The doctor suffers from amnesia, but not complete amnesia.

"I am Yefim Berekov. Welcome, Your Excellency Secretary General."

"No need for formalities—Anatole hasn't arrived yet, has he?"

"The General should be arriving soon."

Alexander gave a cold laugh.

"Yes, immediately. He will never show up before all the guests have arrived; it's his 'pride'."

After saying that, he walked straight in without even looking at Yefim and Igor.

"Still the same."

The Chancellor shrugged and headed towards the restaurant.

Yefim continued to wait for the guests.

The two men who came out of the foyer this time were both wearing suits, but they were clearly two different kinds of people.

"Oleg Smirnov."

The man had a serious expression on his face.

"Yegor Terekin, I am the Minister of Labor of the Empire."

The man had a fawning smile on his face.

"Welcome, Your Honor, and Minister."

Yefim shook hands with each of them and then invited them to the restaurant.

Oleg walked very fast, and Yegor had to jog to keep up.

"Hello, Judge Oleg, I think you probably don't remember me. I am—"

"Yegor Terekin, you just introduced yourself, and I also remember you. Compared to the previous minister, that fat pig who could barely walk, you are at least more human in appearance and behavior. Thank you for reducing a considerable amount of workload for our Ministry of Justice—at least in terms of labor arbitration for free people."

Oleg said without turning his head.

"Oh, what an honor, you actually remember me..."

However, the judge quickened his pace again because he had spotted the person he was looking for.

Yegor tactfully stopped, picked up a glass of wine from the table beside him, put on a smile again, and continued to introduce himself to the other guests.

Oleg walked up to Alexander.

"Your Excellency Secretary-General, do you know the true content of this meeting?"

"I'm sorry, I just received a notification to attend the meeting—but the people who came were all incredibly unpleasant."

Alexander looked around; everyone there was either a nobleman or a military officer.

“I hate attending political meetings. Whenever I do, they either want to overturn the laws I’m defending or they want me to write a new ‘menu’ for them to enjoy.”

Oleg was clearly in a very bad mood.

"These guys never understand the word 'legal.' To them, the law is just a thin layer of ice that can be melted at any time by their money-grubbing eyes."

"Because they already have so much, yet they still crave more, but they are unwilling to share even a tiny bit with the common people of the empire—even though those things were originally obtained by trickery and plunder from the common people."

Both of them spoke in hushed tones, their unease stemming from their discomfort with the environment; they could practically be described as being in enemy territory.

A new sound of footsteps caught their attention; another new guest had arrived.

"Damn it, I'm starting to get a headache."

"me too."

The two men stared grimly at the newcomer—Major General Valery Gordev, the Imperial Police Chief, watching him mingle with the nobles as if they were fish in water.

When Qiao Yelan entered the restaurant, this was the strange scene she saw: two men in suits stood to one side, their faces gloomy, while the others talked loudly and laughed continuously.

However, when they saw Qiao Yelan, everyone was stunned, not only because he was pushed in by a servant, but also because he had a face that was completely out of place with them.

"Please allow me to introduce myself—Qiao Yelan, Chief Administrator of the Siberian Vice-Kingdom."

People from Koschke?

The group exchanged glances and politely greeted Qiao Yelan, but that was all.

Only one person came forward.

"Hello, Your Excellency Qiao Yelan, I am Yegor Terekin, Minister of Labor of the Empire."

He extended his hand with a broad smile and shook hands with Qiao Yelan.

"Hello, Your Excellency Minister."

"Hello, Lord Qiao Yelan. The territory of Grand Duke Kosichä is the largest in Ursus, and many imperial subjects live on its vast lands. Would you mind making some contact with the Ministry of Labor? Or, would Grand Duke Kosichä be willing to let the Ministry of Labor recruit people from you, or ask us for help with some construction?"

Qiao Yelan showed a rather interested expression, exchanged a few words with the other party, and finally made a promise to submit an application to Grand Duke Kosicche.

"This person is interesting."

[Just a foreman—I'm curious, how do you know so much about my territory?]

Kosiché was full of doubts. Even she couldn't answer some of Yegor's questions, but Qiao Yelan answered them very smoothly.

"Since you've given me this title, I should at least make it look convincing. As for why I know about your territory—have you forgotten that half of the mineral resources under your name are mined and transported by Babel Tower?"

Kosichello fell silent, because she had truly forgotten about it.

Qiao Yelan continued to focus her gaze on the two people beside her: Secretary General Alexander and Judge Oleg. One of them was a royalist, and the other came from a family of judges who were at odds with the local nobles. No wonder they couldn't get along with others.

Before long, Yefim entered with a blond middle-aged man. The man had a friendly smile on his face, which made him instantly likable. The lieutenant general's insignia on his shoulder indicated his identity.

"Welcome to my private villa. I hope you had a pleasant experience here, because we are about to get down to business—perhaps we can enjoy the delicious snacks later."

"The kitchen has prepared a sumptuous lunch."

Yefim spoke at the opportune moment.

"very good."

Anatoly led the way into the conference hall.

The Secretary General quickened his pace and caught up with Anatoly.

"Your Excellency, regarding this meeting—"

"Alexander, your arrival is crucial. Is His Majesty the Emperor in a good mood?"

"His Majesty is in a very good mood. I would like to ask you, given the large number of departments and officials involved in this meeting, it should have been reported to Parliament and His Majesty, and the Secretariat should have conducted the proceedings—"

"Please wait a moment, please wait a moment, I will tell you the reason. Now please take a seat."

Anatoly clearly has no intention of revealing any information in advance.

Alexander fell silent, looking at the other man's smile without uttering a word.

"Gentlemen, your seats have been arranged. Please take your seats. I think if we can finish lunch quickly, you may be able to go back and rest—which would be a good thing for all of us in this kind of weather."

Yefim pushed Qiao Yelan to his seat, then noticed that the table seemed a bit too high.

"Excuse me, I'll go get you a mat."

"No need."

Qiao Yelan gently turned the knob, and the wheelchair slowly rose to a height he felt comfortable with. He turned his head and saw Ye Feimu with a somewhat surprised expression on his face.

"What's wrong, Colonel?"

"It's nothing. Please let me know if you need anything else."

"Thank you."

Yefim quickly returned to Anatoly's side, glanced at the clerk beside him, and seeing that the clerk nodded, he sat down on Anatoly's right.

Qiao Yelan looked around; the other party's positions were clearly arranged quite cleverly.

"I think we've all gotten to know each other a bit, but a formal introduction would help to build rapport—how about we start with General Valery?"

Anatoly patted Valery on the shoulder affectionately.

"Major General Valery Gordev, Inspector General of the Imperial Police."

"Igor Ulrich, the Imperial Minister of Finance."

“I am Alexander Ivanov, Secretary General to Speaker Witt. Thank you for summoning me—but I would like to know what exactly this meeting is about?”

"You'll find out soon enough. Please be patient; the problem will be solved."

Anatoly maintained his friendly smile and turned his gaze to Qiao Yelan on his right.

"Qiao Yelan, Chief Administrator of the Siberian Vice-Kingdom Territory."

"Oleg Smirnov, Chief Justice of the Imperial Ministry of Justice."

“I know almost everyone here—Yegor Terekin, Minister of Labor of the Empire.”

"Valentin Viktorov, State Minister of the Governor-General's Office of East Kasimir."

"Lieutenant General Andrei Petrov, Minister of Military Affairs, also under the jurisdiction of the East Kasimir Governorate."

"Colonel Yefim Belikov, General Anatoly's secretary."

The conversation quickly veered off course and returned to Anatoli.