Reborn: Imperial Officer Promotion Guide

Ganasde carefully reread the slave trading list, which also contained detailed distribution ratios.

Detailed records are kept for each month's account details.

Apparently, Gozel has been dealing in slaves for a long time.

Minister Ganasde was horrified. He looked at Hull and asked, "How did you know?"

"Gozel's behavior is very inconsistent with his character."

"Your explanation is really concise... Can you elaborate?"

Hull nodded. "First, regarding my complaint, it is now clear that this financial officer is behind it. What is his purpose? Of course, he wants to stop me from continuing to provide relief to the people. He even mentioned your name, Minister Ganasde. This is enough to show that he is a coward who likes to do small things in secret."

"..."

"But the fact is that you were completely unaware of my complaint and had no complaints, so a conflict arose. Gozel and I are on the same level in terms of position, and we are in different departments. With that guy's cowardly personality, how could he dare to cause trouble for me? The reason he did this must not be as simple as disliking me."

Minister Ganasde understood: "Gozel is worried that your relief will damage the slave business?"

Minister Ganasde's tone was a little bitter. He really didn't expect that there would be such a scum among his subordinates.

Hull nodded. "Ordinary people would not sell their children unless they had no other choice. If we want to create more slaves, we must force a large number of people into desperate situations. Cutting off water and food is one of the most effective means. As long as the Ministry of Resources curbs the work of providing relief to the people, we can easily gain a lot of profits through the slave trade."

"Hmph... You seem to be very familiar with the operation mode of the slave business. It feels like you are just like a slave trader."

Of course, Hull would not say that there was a slave ranch in his territory, where all the slaves were the nobles and people of high rank in the past.

His mother in the legal sense is an even more experienced practitioner.

"I have destroyed several guilds that illegally traded slaves in the past, so I know the details."

In response to Ganasde's ridicule, Hull responded with a hearty smile.

Hel turned his head and looked down at Gozil with a calm and penetrating look.

"...I've seen too many scumbags like Gozel, and--"

Hull took out a secret report from his arms and handed it to Ganasde, which clearly stated that someone in the Resources Department was secretly involved in the slave trade.

This was exactly the result of Reinhardt's previous investigation.

"Gozel is not an exception. A coward like him would definitely not do it secretly by himself. My superior told me that if I want to survive in East Territory, I must learn to stand with the majority. There must be many accomplices in the Resources Department."

Minister Ganasde's eyes widened, his expression extremely angry as he held the secret report in his hands.

He raised his head and met Hull's wary gaze.

"I see. You suspected that I was involved, so you asked me to come along. You wanted to test me, right?"

Hull nodded: "Yes, I once suspected that you were the leader of these scumbags, but now, I can confirm that you were not involved in this matter."

"Oh why?"

"It's very simple. If you were involved, you wouldn't agree to come here with me. Besides, this timid Mr. Gozil would not have told me the name of the mastermind right away when he first met me."

Minister Ganasde's expression was solemn. After a long while, he shouted, "Investigate! No matter how many people are involved, we must get to the bottom of this!"

After saying that, he personally led Gozil out and said, "Hell Helm, and Gilder, I need you to be the first prosecutors to help investigate this matter!"

"of course."

"Ok."

On that day, under the organization of Minister Ganasde, all 36 junior financial officers, 12 mid-level financial officers, 4 senior financial officers, and their secretaries in the Ministry of Resources were examined.

This major review, hosted by the Ministry of Resources and supported by the Ministry of Government Affairs, lasted for three full days and nights.

At the same time, the territory of East also began to arrest criminals who were illegally engaged in the slave trade.

Combining the evidence and witnesses found in the Slave Guild, half of the fifty-three financial officers and hundreds of secretaries were found to be involved in the slave trade.

The sheer number of people affected and the severity of the impact are truly shocking.

Hull and Gilder sat in Minister Ganasde's office.

Minister Ganasde held the final review report in his hand with a very serious expression.

"You've already noticed it, right? Because they are all your subordinates... You didn't dare to launch a major investigation without conclusive evidence..."

Hull's words were sharp, and he showed no mercy even when facing Minister Ganasde, who was two levels higher than him.

Minister Ganasde made no excuse for Hull's sarcasm.

"Yes, I have felt a lot of injustices in the six months since I took office. Many relief programs cannot be implemented at all, either because of insufficient budget or insufficient manpower. There are endless excuses. I used to think they were just lazy and reluctant to spend money, but I didn't expect that they were secretly using this method to create slaves on a large scale...

Collusion... collusion... embezzlement... I am really being played by these guys as a clown..."

Minister Ganasde was extremely angry, but his expression seemed very calm, except that his right hand was bleeding.

Gilder was also shocked when he saw the results of the review and shared Minister Ganasde's anger.

The Territory of East is a territory directly governed by His Majesty the Emperor. It is hard to imagine that such a thing could happen.

If it were made public, it would definitely have a huge impact on the prestige of the royal family.

"Hmph... I am getting more and more useless as I age. I can't even control my subordinates. Fortunately, I met a young man as motivated as you at the end of my career. I have to admit, Gilder, you have an excellent subordinate."

Ganasde looked at Hull and for the first time a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

"The end of your career? Could it be——!" Gilder immediately understood what Minister Ganasde meant.

"As a superior, I must take primary responsibility for this matter. I will go to the Acting Archon to submit my resignation today."

Hull looked at the investigation report in his hand with a cold face: "This is not your fault, and you don't need to resign."

"……what are you saying?"

At this moment, Ganasde's face became visibly gloomy.

There was a flame of anger burning in his eyes, but Hesen kept a calm expression.

"Did I say anything wrong? Mr. Gilder and I participated in the entire review. We can prove that Minister Ganasde was not involved. At most, it was just a crime of negligence. Or do you want to take the blame for these guys?"

This is clearly what Minister Ganasde meant.

"After all, they are all my subordinates. If I push my subordinates to take the blame when problems arise, what qualifications do I have to be a superior?"

"I see. Then, please allow me to ask, if the superior should bear the main responsibility for the subordinate's mistakes, then does your superior, the acting senior consul, also need to resign? Above him, the senior consul far away in the imperial capital, and even His Majesty the Emperor..."

When Ganasde heard Hel mention the Emperor, he immediately interrupted, "Shut up! Hel Helm! You are being disrespectful!"

After saying that, he looked out the window. Fortunately, it was late at night and no one was passing by.

"...I'm very sorry for my words." Hull bowed his head to express his apology.

Then he raised his head again and looked directly into the eyes of Minister Ganasde.

"But these scumbags, for their own selfish interests, have been wringing the people of this area like dry rags, just to squeeze out more money. I still don't think you should be held responsible for these scumbags."

Gilder also echoed: "Yes, I agree with Helheim's opinion. This matter is not your responsibility. There is no reason to hold you responsible for this matter when you are not at fault!"

"...Gilder, even you...are you trying to make me evade my responsibilities as a superior?"

"No, Minister Ganasde..."

Hull looked at him seriously: "I think you have more important things to do. Now is not the time to unload the burden."

"..."

"If I must say something, I think you should be responsible for the people of East Territory instead of taking the blame for these scum and resigning on their behalf. This will only lead to more bad officials and fewer good officials, right?"

Minister Ganasde was silent for a long time, and it was obvious that he was very conflicted.

After a long while, he sighed and said, "Okay, I'll think about it carefully..."

After saying that, Heer and Gilder also tactfully left.

Walking in the corridor with Gilder, Hull noticed that his expression was a little heavy.

"Hull, what do you think about the follow-up of this matter?"

"That's not something I should consider." Hull answered calmly.

The silence lasted for a while. Soon, Mord gave a wry smile as if giving up.

"...Ah, no, I can't understand your thoughts at all. Let me be frank. I hope to resolve this matter in a more gentle way."

The meaning is clear. Even if those people committed serious crimes, Gilder does not want to hold them accountable too much.

"I have no opinion."

Gilder stopped, and Hull stopped as well.

Gilder stared into Heer's eyes: "You...you don't object?"

Hull shook his head, which was obviously beyond Gilder's expectations.

Gilder was deliberately testing the other party. He wanted to know what Hull thought about the follow-up of this matter.

"These scumbags are certainly despicable, but now is not the time to deal with them. The important thing is to use this incident as a handle so that they can all unite under Minister Ganasde and truly take the responsibilities they should bear."

"So..." Gilder swallowed, "You can tolerate their crimes?"

"To save the people of East County, I will." Hesen answered readily.

Hull also wanted to confirm Gilder's true thoughts, but instead of wasting time on such temptations, it would be better to clearly state his own thoughts.

Gilder was a little stunned. "What a pragmatist's statement. You secretly collected information about the slave trade and helped to get to the bottom of this matter. I thought you would be a young man who believed in integrity."

"Investigating this matter is not simply for justice. In fact, for the hungry people, the word [justice] is not worth even a grain of wheat. The people will hate those scum who abuse their power for personal gain, but in the final analysis, it is only because they are suffering while others are enjoying it."

"What a spicy statement..."

"So-called people... No, that's what human beings are like. The world is not a binary opposition of black and white."

"..."

“If you want to achieve a certain goal in the shortest possible time, necessary adjustments are necessary, and of course, they will inevitably be tainted with dirt.”

Hearing this, Gilder swallowed his saliva.

Only now did he realize that the man in front of him was a man who was willing to get his hands dirty in order to achieve his goals.

For Hull, revealing his true feelings to his superior also carried certain risks.

If they can't work together, Hull will have to find a way to get rid of this superior.

"So...what is your ultimate purpose in doing this?"

"Of course it's for the prosperity of the empire." Hull smiled heartily.

"That's a really straightforward answer, but at least I think the same as you about how to deal with these scumbags."

The empire's generals are not cabbages. If more than half of the financial officers and secretaries of the Ministry of Resources are disposed of at once, the Ministry of Resources will not be able to operate normally for a long time in the future.

That would kill more people.

It would be better to take this opportunity to use the review reports of these scumbags as leashes to tie them up so that they can perform their duties normally.

This purpose also includes persuading Minister Ganasde to stop serving as the head of the Ministry of Resources.

"But..." Gilder suddenly changed the subject: "As your superior, I also have an opinion about you."

"Please tell me."

"As a subordinate——you are really unlikable. You should learn how to please your superiors from now on."

"This..." Looking at Hull with an embarrassed expression, Gilder suddenly laughed out loud.

"You are only in your early twenties, right?"

"um, yes."

"It's a little hard to believe. I always feel that you are very sophisticated in doing things, and your ideas are different from those of young people."

When he was called out, Hull realized that his own judgment did not match his apparent age.

The values ​​expressed are indeed incompatible with a young man who has just become a general.

"I am different from you. When I was young, I was obsessed with burning myself for my ideals and struggling to build a just country. In the blink of an eye, I have wasted half my life."

"...I see. One of my secretaries had a similar idea."

Heer replied with a smile on his face.

“To be honest, this matter was originally caused by you. It was you who discovered this unhealthy trend. No wonder Minister Ganasde offered to resign. Even I gave up.

An officer who was promoted from the battlefield in the north, a mid-level government official who could pay for the relief of the people out of his own pocket, an ambitious young man like you, once you get hold of the evidence, you will definitely make this a big event. However, to my surprise, you did not force Minister Ganasde to resign, and even agreed not to deal with those scum for the time being. "

"I see."

No wonder my superior just tried to test me.

It seems that he feels that my words and actions are inconsistent and he has become suspicious of me.

"Whether it is conducting an inspection or avoiding the expansion of punishment after the fact, the two seem contradictory, but they are actually for the same purpose. Of course, it may not seem so to others, so it is normal for you to be confused."

"Really? Well, let me be frank. I hope that this punishment will only be imposed on Mid-level Financial Officer Gozel and his immediate superior. The other personnel will be fined. Minister Ganasde will take control of the entire Finance Department and the matter will be settled. How do you think?"

"I think this punishment is very reasonable. It is the way to deal with a political official. I hope you can sync my opinion with Minister Ganasde."

"...Ah! You speak as if you are my superior. You really don't know how to please your superior..."

Gilder sighed, and Hull made a request at this time.

"If possible, could you please arrange for me to meet with His Excellency Noor Ghana, the Deputy Senior Archon?"

The policy proposal submitted by Hull has been reviewed and approved by his superiors. After this incident, he will also be able to get help from the Finance Department at the execution level.

Finally, only the senior consul was left as acting officer.