The Emperor’s Angel of Death

Chapter 2345: Ash-Colored Children

Hearing Soshyan's question, the preceptor was first stunned, then swallowed, dared not make eye contact with Soshyan, lowered his head slightly, and clasped the rosary tightly in his hands, whispering as if chanting a scripture:

"Of course, every subject of the God-Emperor unconditionally loves the Empire, and loyalty to the throne is the most steadfast armor."

"Everyone?"

"Most, I suppose, there are always some."

"Really most?"

Soshyan's repeated questions made the preceptor sweat profusely, but he dared not refute, nor could he answer, and could only stand there with his head bowed, letting the sweat drip onto the expensive carpet.

Then he waved his hand.

"Don't be nervous, I'm not questioning you, just chatting casually."

Saying that, he turned to look at the attendant not far away.

"Give the preceptor a warm towel."

The attendant immediately brought a clean, steaming towel, and the preceptor quickly thanked him, then wiped his face and forehead with the towel, his tense nerves finally relaxed a little, and then he said:

"The people of the lower hive live like ants, busy and disorderly, but they still revere the throne."

"Then do they know what the Empire is?"

"I'm afraid they don't."

"Do they know what's beyond the stars?"

"I'm afraid they don't either."

"Do they know what they are doing all this for?"

After a moment of silence, the preceptor said cautiously.

"Ignorance is the best shield for the weak."

"Yes, I don't deny that, but do you also admit that the disorder in the under-hive and lower hive is not only social, but also spiritual? The vast majority of people don't even understand what the Empire is."

The preceptor was speechless.

"So, I want to solve the problem from the root. Imagine, if all, and I mean all, children of eligible age receive education, if they are instilled with the glory and greatness of the human Empire from an early age, if they receive organized and disciplined lives from an early age, then will they be different from their fathers, who are trapped in ignorance, when they grow up? Will they know more clearly what they will fight for?"

At this moment, the old man in the black academic robe suddenly spoke. He was a representative randomly selected from the noble academy.

"Great Chapter Master, do you want to establish a militarized education system similar to that of the Imperial fortress worlds?"

Soshyan smiled and nodded, then shook his head.

"Partly. I don't intend to build a fortress world, but as the Chapter's home world, the military function must be the top priority. Therefore, I want to establish a semi-militarized national education system, basically covering every child of eligible age."

The old scholar nodded slightly.

"This is a good thing, but it will be very difficult to implement in the under-hive and lower hive, where 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, the male teacher among them.

"Lord Governor, this not only requires an astronomical number of teachers, but also the construction of a large number of schools, and the purchase of a large amount of equipment, and the huge cost generated by this"

Saying that, the teacher shook his head.

"And forgive me for speaking frankly, Chapter Master."

The capable professional female teacher pushed her glasses and began to speak. She was a female teacher from the Naisen Five United Mining Association's academy.

"Those ignorant civilians will not be grateful to you for this. The company has dealt with them too many times and knows their character very well. They will want more if they get a little, and they are always complaining about everything around them. Even if they are given knowledge, they will hate their environment even more for it. The more you give, the more they hate. All of this is not worth it. Your kindness should be reserved for those who have more assets and better character. Those children with clean backgrounds will become your best soldiers. As for the factories, they don't need so many literate people. They only need to know how to turn wrenches and screwdrivers."

As soon as she said this, she received the approval of the people around her. Soshyan didn't say anything, his eyes only looked at the silent lady.

What was her name, Soshyan didn't know. This was a servant of the Chapter randomly invited from the lower hive, and now she was just sitting quietly on the edge of the chair, with her hands on her knees, tightly grasping her skirt.

Soshyan was waiting for her to speak, but the other party never spoke.

Just as he felt a little regretful and was about to end this unsuccessful meeting, the other party suddenly stood up and turned to walk towards Soshyan.

In an instant, all the Terminators raised their weapons, and the other five were so frightened that they stood there dumbfounded. The professional female teacher was so shocked that her face turned pale and she covered her mouth, otherwise she might have screamed.

At the same time, Soshyan raised his right arm, signaling the guards to put away their weapons and return to their places, and watched the lady come to the steps in front of the throne.

Stopping, the unknown lady suddenly put her hands behind her back and trembled as she fiddled with her coiled hair. The preceptor thought she was going to take out a weapon and immediately turned to shout towards the entrance.

"Guards! Guards! There's an assassin!"

This made the Terminators at the door also come in, but after seeing Soshyan wave his hand, they immediately retreated.

Perhaps because she was too nervous, the lady fiddled for half a minute, and it seemed that she had finally finished. As her hair fell down, she also had a roll of something in her hand.

When she held it over her head and unfolded it with both hands, Soshyan's face suddenly stiffened and slowly stood up—

It was a photo, a wrinkled photo because it was rolled into a ball. The photo was gray and almost colorless, but it was more dazzling than blood.

In the photo were a group of children, generally only seven or eight years old, boys and girls, all thin and small, standing under a mottled wall, wearing ill-fitting ragged work clothes and aprons, some barefoot, some wearing torn cloth shoes, with scarves or hats wrapped around their heads. Their hands were all black, covered with scars and calluses, some even swollen and festering. The feet of those who didn't wear shoes were also like this. Their faces, which should have been tender, were covered with dust and grease. The only bright thing was their eyes. Perhaps it was their first time taking a photo, and they all showed childish and shy expressions and smiles, but the most shocking thing was not this, but that many of the children in this group either had an empty sleeve, or supported themselves with a wooden stick on one leg, or had half of their face corroded

"Lord Governor,"

The lady, holding the photo with trembling hands, shed two lines of hot tears and choked out words that made Soshyan feel as if he had been hit in the heart by a bolter.

"Save the children."

Soshyan took a deep breath and started walking, step by step, down the steps.

When he came to the lady, he reached out and took the small photo. He had already guessed what the identities of these children were—

Child laborers.