Hearing Soshiyang's question, the dean was stunned for a moment, then swallowed his throat, not daring to make eye contact with Soshiyang, lowered his head slightly, held the rosary in both hands, and whispered as if chanting a sutra:
"Of course...of course, every...subject of the God-Emperor unconditionally loves the empire and is loyal to the throne...Faith is the strongest armor."
"Everyone?"
"Yes... most of them, there are always some..."
"Is it really most of it?"
Soshiyang's rhetorical questions made the dean sweat like rain, but he didn't dare to refute, but he couldn't answer. He could only stand there with his head bowed, letting the sweat drip on the expensive carpet.
Then he waved his hand.
"Don't be nervous, I'm not asking for accountability, I'm just having a casual chat."
As he spoke, he turned to look at the waiter not far away.
"Give the dean a warm towel."
The waiter immediately brought a white, hot towel. The dean quickly thanked him, then wiped his face and forehead with the towel. His nervous nerves finally relaxed a little, and then he said:
"The lives of the people in the lower nest are as busy and disorderly as ants, but they still respect the throne."
"So do they know what the Empire is?"
"I...I'm afraid I don't know."
"Do they know what lies beyond the stars?"
"...I'm afraid but I don't know."
"Do they know what they are doing?"
After a moment of silence, the dean said carefully.
"...ignorance is the weakest's best shield."
"Yes, I don't deny this statement, but do you also admit, Master, that the disorder in the Bottom Nest and the Lower Nest is not only a social level, but also a spiritual level? Most people don't even understand what an empire is.
"
The dean was speechless.
"So, I hope to solve the problem fundamentally. Imagine if all, I mean all, children of school age receive education. They are instilled with the glory and greatness of the human empire from an early age. They accept organization and discipline from an early age.
So when they grow up, will they be different from their parents who were trapped in ignorance? Will they know more clearly what they will fight for? "
At this time, the old man wearing a black academic robe suddenly spoke. He was a randomly selected representative from the aristocratic academy.
"Great Chapter Master, do you want to establish a militarized education system similar to that of the Imperial Fortress World?"
Soshyan nodded with a smile and shook his head.
"Partly, I don't intend to build a fortress world, but as the leader of the Astartes Chapter, military functions must be given top priority, so what I want to establish is a semi-military universal education system that basically covers
to every child of school age.”
The old scholar nodded slightly.
"This is a good thing, but it is very difficult to implement it in Xiachao and Dichao where public security and management are extremely poor."
"And the cost will be very high."
One of the teachers employed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs also spoke up, it was the man among them.
"My Lord Praetor, this not only requires an astronomical number of teachers, but also requires the construction of a large number of schools and the purchase of a large amount of equipment, which incurs huge costs..."
As he said this, the teacher shook his head.
"And with all due respect, Chapter Master."
The capable professional female teacher pushed up her glasses and began to speak. She was a female teacher at the college affiliated with the Naison No. 5 United Mining Association.
"Those ignorant civilians will not be grateful to you for this. The company has dealt with them too many times and knows the character of these people very well. When they get a little, they will expect more, and they always complain about everything around them.
, even if you give them knowledge, they will resent their own environment even more. The more you give them, the more resentment they will have... It's not worth it. Your kindness should be reserved for those who have more assets and better character.
People, those kids from clean families will be your best soldiers, and as for the factory, you don’t need so many literate people, they just need to know how to twist a wrench and a screwdriver.”
When she said this, she also got the agreement of the people around her. Soshyan said nothing and just looked at the silent lady.
Soshyan didn't know what her name was. She was randomly invited by the war group's servants from the lower nest. Now she was just sitting quietly on the edge of the chair, putting her hands on her knees together and holding on to her skirt tightly.
Soshyan was waiting for her to speak, but the other party never spoke.
Just when he felt a little regretful and was about to end this unsuccessful meeting, the other party suddenly stood up, turned around and walked towards Soshyan.
In an instant, all the Terminators raised their weapons, and the other five people were so frightened that they froze on the spot, dumbfounded. The professional female teacher was so shocked that she turned pale and covered her mouth, otherwise she might have screamed.
.
Also at the first moment, Soshyan raised his right arm, signaling the guards to put away their weapons, return to their original positions, and watched the lady arrive at the foot of the steps in front of the throne.
Stopping in her tracks, the unknown lady suddenly put her hands behind her back and was tremblingly doing something with her braided hair. The dean thought she was going to use some weapon and immediately turned around and shouted towards the entrance.
"Guards! Guards! There are assassins!"
This caused the Terminator at the door to come in, but after seeing Soshyan waving, he immediately retreated.
Perhaps she was too nervous, but the lady fiddled with it for half a minute before she seemed to have it right. As her hair fell down, there was a roll of something in her hand.
When she raised it above her head and unfolded it with both hands, Soshyan's face suddenly froze, and she slowly stood up——
It was a photo, a photo that was crumpled because it was rolled into a ball. The photo was gray and almost colorless, but it was more dazzling than blood.
The photo shows a group of children, generally only seven or eight years old, both boys and girls, all thin and short. They are standing under a mottled wall, wearing unfitting tattered work clothes and aprons. Some are barefoot, and some are wearing rag shoes.
, their heads are wrapped in scarves or hats, their hands are black, covered with scars and calluses, some of them are even swollen and ulcerated, the same is true for the feet of the children without shoes, their faces should be immature
It was covered with dust and oil stains, and the only thing that was bright was the pair of eyes. Maybe it was the first time they were photographed, and they all showed childlike and shy expressions and smiles. But the most shocking thing was not this, but these children.
Many of them either have an empty sleeve, have a wooden stick on one leg, or have half their face corroded...
"Consult...sir..."
The lady holding the photo with trembling hands had two lines of hot tears streaming down her face, and she choked out words that made Soshyan feel as if a bomb had hit her heart.
"...Save the child..."
Soshyan took a deep breath, stepped forward, and walked down the steps step by step.
When he came to the lady, he stretched out his hand and picked up the small photo. He had already guessed the identities of these children——