Chapter 27: My good-for-nothing eldest brother, is he finally going to make something of himself?
Klein twitched the corner of his mouth helplessly.
Well, this fellow countryman's personality was just like that; he was already starting to get used to these harmless jokes.
The matter of the gold pounds had come to an end, and the atmosphere Above the Gray Fog had relaxed quite a bit.
Klein looked at this fellow countryman before him, who was both a mentor and a friend, and felt much more at ease.
As long as he clung to this powerful thigh, his future path in the Beyonder world would certainly be much smoother.
Nairn, on the other hand, was calculating the next steps of his plan in his heart.
Klein's side was already on the right track; next was the Tarot Club. This makeshift organization he had helped build couldn't just be used to exchange common knowledge of mysticism; it had to play a much larger role.
He looked at Klein and said casually, "By the way, there will likely be a new topic for next week's Tarot Club."
"A new topic?" Klein was startled. "What topic?"
"Regarding the civil service system of the Loen Kingdom," Nairn said nonchalantly.
Klein was dazed again.
Civil service system? What did that have to do with the Tarot Club? Aren't we a mysticism organization? Why are we suddenly discussing national policies and strategies?
And... "Senior, how did you know there would be such a topic?" Klein asked the biggest doubt in his heart.
Nairn glanced at him, his gaze seemingly saying, "Why do you have so many questions?"
"You don't need to care how I know." He spread his hands.
"Of course, if you insist on knowing my source of information, I can only say that Miss Justice told me in private."
"Huh?"
Klein was completely dumbfounded.
Miss Justice?
He subconsciously complained frantically in his heart:
You've got to be kidding me! You two haven't even officially added each other's contact information yet!
It couldn't be that Miss Justice secretly told you through telepathy while the Tarot Club was in progress, right?
If that were the case, how could I, the Fool, not know? Wouldn't I, the host of the meeting, just be a figurehead?
This lie is too flimsy to withstand scrutiny!
Seeing Klein's "you've got to be kidding me" expression, Nairn knew what he was thinking.
"Don't worry, everything will seem perfectly natural when the time comes." Nairn gave a mysterious smile. "You just need to cooperate and play your part well."
Klein: "..."
Fine, you're the boss, you have the final say.
He had already given up thinking.
Anyway, he couldn't see through the thoughts of this fellow countryman senior.
He just needed to be a good mascot... oh no, a "lead actor."
"Is there anything special about this topic?" Klein changed the question.
He felt that since Nairn had specifically mentioned it, there must be a deeper plot behind this so-called "civil service system."
"Of course." Nairn's expression became serious.
He began to explain his plan to Klein in detail.
"What we discuss cannot merely be a superficial civil service selection system. That's too shallow."
Nairn held up two fingers.
"On this basis, we must clearly distinguish between the 'Administrative Officer' and the 'Cabinet'."
"The 'Administrative Officer' is a screw in the state machine, responsible for execution, requiring professionalism and stability. While the 'Cabinet' is the brain that decides the nation's direction, responsible for decision-making, requiring vision and courage."
"But that's not enough," Nairn continued, his gaze turning sharp.
"On the basis of discussing these, we should take the opportunity to introduce a more important concept—Government Audit."
"Audit?" Klein had some impression of this word; it was related to finance. Nairn had specifically explained it to Audrey last time.
"Exactly, audit." The corner of Nairn's mouth curled into an arc. "An independent audit department, free from administrative interference. Its power is to review every single expenditure of the government, ensuring that taxpayers' money is spent where it should be. This is one of the most effective means to limit the power of the monarchy and the Cabinet."
Klein's mind was shaken.
He vaguely understood Nairn's intention.
Is he going to... change the power structure of this country from its roots?
What a grand move!
"Audit alone isn't enough; that's 'reducing expenditure.' We also need to 'increase revenue'." Nairn's voice was filled with a certain magic. "Therefore, we must also introduce some knowledge from 'The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money'."
"What is that?" Klein had never heard the name before.
"That is the crystallization of the thoughts of Keynes, a modern economist. Simply put, it's about stimulating the economy and creating employment through state intervention using fiscal and monetary policies. It's a more advanced model of economic management."
Klein listened, feeling lost. Keynes? Modern economics? Doing this in this era?
"This is to penetrate the financial power of the Kingdom," Nairn revealed the secret in one sentence. "Miss Justice's background as a high noble is the best entry point. This will also pave the way for her subsequent establishment of a bank and financial operations."
Nairn looked at Klein, finally revealing his true intentions.
"After all, Miss Justice comes from a high noble family, her father is a Kingdom Banker, and she herself has a simple passion for improving people's livelihoods. It couldn't be more appropriate for her to propose these concepts."
"Moreover, parts of the content can be cleverly hidden and issued under the guidance of a 'Spectator'."
"What she needs to be responsible for is only the safest and most influential part."
"When the time comes and she becomes an indisputable authority, we can, through her, penetrate our influence into the fiscal and financial systems of this Kingdom. This is our true purpose."
Klein listened, dumbstruck.
Only now did he realize that the accounting knowledge Nairn had taught Audrey before wasn't some "extra price" at all, but a far-sighted layout!
From the very beginning, Nairn's goal was the financial lifeblood of the Loen Kingdom!
Too terrifying!
Just how deep were this person's calculations?
He couldn't help but mourn for Miss Justice in his heart for three seconds.
Poor Miss Justice, she thought she was just learning new knowledge, unaware that she had already been used as the fulcrum to pry the economic lever of the entire Kingdom.
She's also too easy to see through... Klein silently complained in his heart.
Klein couldn't help but complain: "Is Miss Justice just seen through and arranged so clearly by you?"
"No, I will let her master the most vigorous and influential power that an ordinary person can master in this era."
"When that time comes, regardless of whether Miss Justice is a Spectator or not, she can gain a significant status within her family, in the Kingdom, and even become an iconic figure of the era, just like Roselle the Great."
Klein was secretly alarmed by this multi-purpose plan.
Put this way, it seems like no one loses?
Everyone has a bright future?
Even so, he felt a deep sense of awe for Nairn's methods.
This feeling of strategizing and winning from thousands of miles away was too much like a "mastermind."
Perhaps this is what a "deity" should look like?
He looked at Nairn and suddenly felt that he still had much, much more to learn.
While Klein was still digesting Nairn's startling remarks, his mind was in a mess, filled with terms like "financial penetration" and "fiscal power."
He felt as if he had opened the door to a new world, a door to influencing the world through wisdom and layout that he had never imagined before.
Just then, Nairn casually tossed out another sentence.
"By the way, since we're going to do auditing and finance, you can take this opportunity to have your eldest brother, who is a clerk in a commercial company, prepare more knowledge in this area."
"Ah?" Klein suddenly snapped back to his senses, looking at Nairn in bewilderment. "My eldest brother? Benson?"
"Yes," Nairn nodded as if it were a matter of course. "Don't you want him to have a better life?
"This is an excellent opportunity. In the future Loen Kingdom, the most sought-after talent and the most stable opportunity will be to become a civil servant—especially a professional who understands modern finance and auditing."
"Let him learn in advance to seize the initiative. It's not impossible for him to enter a government department later, or even go into business and become a big banker."
After all, in the original development, that's exactly what Klein did.
Nairn was just giving a tip along the way.
And what he was doing through Audrey's hands was an even better opportunity.
If Benson could grasp it, he would naturally develop better than in the original timeline.
Perhaps he could even be of help in the future.
Klein's heart began to pound uncontrollably.
Let Benson become a big figure?
He hadn't even dared to think of this before.
Benson was just an ordinary clerk, running around every day for a living. His biggest wish was probably a small raise or a slightly easier job.
But now, Nairn was telling him that Benson had a chance to become one of the top talents in the country?
The temptation was too great!
But... "Is this... is this okay?" Klein hesitated.
He suddenly felt it was a bit unfair.
After all, this wasn't the situation in the original development—where Audrey proposed a kingdom's problem, Klein helped solve it with modern knowledge, and later had Benson prepare.
In that case, at most he would be considered to have insider information, and it was because the matter was solved by him.
But in this situation—using the Tarot Club, using Miss Justice, to drive changes in Loen society.
Klein wasn't just "passing by"; he was mixed up in it.
In other words, he didn't like being proactive, didn't want to be responsible, and had no sense of participation.
Although it felt a bit like being a scumbag, the strange thing was—
This instead gave Klein a feeling of specifically seeking personal gain for himself.
"Aren't you a god? Do you still need to hesitate over such a small matter?" Nairn looked at Klein with a teasing gaze.
Klein blushed a bit under his gaze and was momentarily speechless.
Yes, he was "The Fool," the ruler Above the Gray Fog.
But... he was just a fake.
Not to mention the true substance where every move involved the general trend.
However, the teasing on Nairn's face quickly disappeared, replaced by an unprecedented seriousness.
He looked at Klein and said word by word:
"Klein, you must remember."
"Since you have taken this seat and played the role of a 'deity,' you must learn the methods of a 'deity'."
"What are the methods of a deity?"
"That is, in the process of driving the general trend and sweeping up all living beings, you reasonably intersperse your own purposes, making them an inconspicuous ripple in this great tide."
"In this torrent, skillfully achieve your own insignificant goals, making everything appear perfectly reasonable."
"As long as you can bring a large enough benefit to everyone, then even if you include a bit of your own, reasonable, and not excessive private interest, who will say anything?"
"Furthermore, the purpose you need to achieve is truly so small, so small it doesn't attract any attention at all."
Nairn secretly added in his heart:
Compared to Adam's grand plans spanning several epochs, Klein's so-called "insider information" is truly petty.
"Just like this time, promoting the civil service reform and introducing modern economic thought, who ultimately benefits? It's the people of the entire Loen Kingdom! It's thousands of people like your sister Melissa who need jobs to support themselves!"
"This is a great deed that benefits the present and the future, a blessing brought to this world."
"In the face of this major event capable of changing history, having your eldest brother learn some professional knowledge so he can better serve this system in the future and improve his own life along the way—is that really too much?"
"In fact, believe it or not, if you don't do this, you will still receive other rewards in the future. Is it strange that good deeds are rewarded?"
"The most brilliant creation is not sacrificing the small self, but finding that 'magical intersection'—where your most passionate personal dreams and the grand problems the era needs to solve happen to be the same path."
"When you clear the path for others, you also happen to clear your own path. People won't feel you've brought anything extra; they will only cheer that another obstacle has been removed."
"And as the trailblazer, the mud on your shoes and the fruit falling into your arms are the medals and sustenance you deserve."
"Heroism is not about burning yourself to light up others and then turning into ashes. A healthy system will inevitably reward those who create great value for it. Refined self-interest is altruism."
"Moreover, Klein, the ideal path you envision should also be the path to happiness for everyone. To achieve the general trend is to fulfill yourself. This is not an insertion; these are two names for the same river."
"This is an Open Scheme! This is the way of a king! And it is the way of a deity!"
After he finished speaking, the entire Gray Fog Space seemed to fall silent.
Klein sat blankly on the high-backed chair, Nairn's words echoing repeatedly in his mind.
"In the process of driving the general trend, intersperse your own purposes..."
"These are the basic methods..."
If it had only stopped there, Klein would have understood many principles and learned by analogy, making his methods increasingly sophisticated.
But it wouldn't have been enough to completely break the mental barrier in his heart.
That was the level of "technique."
But later, Nairn's further guidance made Klein feel as if the morning sun had just risen, giving him a clear general direction.
"To achieve the general trend is to fulfill yourself. This is not an insertion; these are two names for the same river..."
These words, like a beam of light, instantly illuminated all the confusion and doubt in his heart.
All this time, he had been cautiously playing "The Fool," for fear of revealing himself, for fear of doing something wrong.
He treated the identity of "The Fool" as a heavy burden, a mask that required constant disguise.
But now, Nairn told him he was wrong.
He shouldn't just passively "play the role"; he should actively "become"!
He should use the identity of "The Fool" and the power of the gray fog to do something truly meaningful, to change this world!
And in the process of changing the world, striving for a better life for himself and his family was not shameful; rather, it was an inevitability.
Having thought this through, Klein felt his entire mental outlook was refreshed.
He felt as if he had shed a heavy shackle, and his whole being felt much lighter.
The way he looked at Nairn also changed from previous awe and reliance to a hint of true recognition and conviction.
This fellow countryman was not only teaching him how to be a Beyonder, but also teaching him how to be... a true "Fool."
"I understand, Senior." Klein nodded solemnly. "I know what to do."
Nairn smiled with satisfaction.
A teachable student.
Some major events enough to influence the future direction were quietly settled Above the Gray Fog in just a few words.
And as the beginning of all this, a seed named "ambition" had truly been planted in Klein's heart.
Perhaps, in the days to come, it will take root and sprout, eventually growing into a towering tree capable of shaking the world.
Even if one day, Nairn were to suddenly disappear.