“Abandon the repeal of the 《Corn Laws》?”

Avena’s brow subtly furrowed.

It wasn’t that she wanted to oppose what Ciel said, but rather she was thinking about what kind of resistance Ciel’s words would face if they were to be implemented.

Among them, the biggest obstacle would certainly be Charles’s interest group.

This was Charles and William’s plan, and the new government was also formed by establishing a new cabinet under the slogan of repealing the 《Corn Laws》.

If Ciel wanted the 《Corn Laws》 to continue existing, it would be equivalent to completely denying the legitimacy of the new Prime Minister and the new cabinet.

“Do you have any suggestions?” Ciel looked at Avena and asked.

“Mm…”

Avena was silent for a moment. She looked up and met Ciel’s gaze, then said, “If you don’t mind, you can talk directly to Charles.”

“If your reasons are valid, he should not ignore your ideas.”

Avena could naturally see that Charles, when facing Ciel, completely lacked his usual “superior” demeanor. Instead, he treated Ciel more like an equal, even with some reverence.

Something must have happened during the battle with Forte at the Deton Member Hotel, during the time she was unconscious, for Charles to treat Ciel with such caution.

“Mm.” Ciel nodded and said, “I also think it’s best to be clear.”

Charles was somewhat on their side. If they could just talk openly, it would definitely be best, to avoid creating any misunderstandings or conflicts by her acting alone.

Ciel had no interest in family drama or emotional plays involving misunderstandings.

“Today, he seems to be waiting to talk with a few nobles. He’s still at home.” Avena looked at Ciel and said, “I can go with you to find him.”

“Alright,” Ciel nodded. “Then let’s go.”

…

Roswell family mansion, inside Charles’s private study.

Ciel and Avena sat on the sofa in front of the fireplace.

Charles sat on the single sofa on the other side. After taking a sip of the red tea in front of him, he looked at Ciel and asked, “Have you… eaten yet?”

“Not yet.” Ciel shook her head.

“Oh…” Charles nodded, put down his cup, and after a moment, looked at Avena, “And you?”

“No.”

“Oh…”

For some reason, Charles, who was well-versed in social etiquette, found it difficult to maintain his usual shrewdness in front of his daughter and Ciel.

“Your Excellency Duke,” Ciel looked at Charles and said directly, “My visit this time is concerning the 《Corn Laws》.”

“The 《Corn Laws》?” When it came to serious business, Charles sat up straight, leaning back against the chair. His mood seemed to quickly shift to seriousness. He looked at Ciel and said, “Do you have any thoughts on repealing the 《Corn Laws》?”

Talking about serious matters actually made Charles more at ease.

“Do you know Forte’s reason for allowing the famine in North Ansu before?” Ciel looked directly at Charles and asked.

“He had a private arrangement with the Society of Merriment, and even helped the Society of Merriment attack a professor from the Redemption Society, sacrificing the Royal Medical Association for it.” Charles subtly nodded and said, “I was in charge of investigating this matter.”

“I speculate that his purpose was to use the Society of Merriment to eliminate the independent and noble forces in North Ansu, to facilitate Ansu’s unification.”

Due to Forte, Charles certainly had no choice but to suppress the investigation results. But now that Forte was dead, these matters could naturally be brought into the open.

“He had no dealings with the Society of Merriment.” Ciel shook her head.

Charles said nothing, only looking at Ciel, waiting for her to provide a reasonable explanation to support her conclusion.

“The Society of Merriment had from the start precisely calculated that Forte would not concern himself with North Ansu. They were merely tacitly exploiting each other, without reaching any substantial agreement.” Ciel said directly, “I confirmed this with a Tier 4 from the Society of Merriment.”

“Oh?”

Charles processed the information Ciel provided, and, under the premise that “this information is true,” began to think.

Ciel came this time for the 《Corn Laws》. Why would she mention North Ansu?

The repeal of the 《Corn Laws》, besides its internal impact on Ansu, would also affect North Ansu the most. From Charles’s and William’s deductions, repealing the 《Corn Laws》 would, to some extent, alleviate the famine’s impact and result in fewer deaths.

“Too many people have already died.”

Although not fully tallied yet, at least over five hundred thousand people have died in North Ansu… William had served as a provisional governor in North Ansu for a period, and it was William’s report that convinced Charles that this disaster must cease.

“Too many people have indeed died.” Ciel shook her head and said, “But it’s not enough. If the 《Corn Laws》 are repealed, the influence factor of the ‘Rotting Disease’ on hunger will be less than that of the repeal of the 《Corn Laws》. This is absolutely unacceptable to them.”

“Therefore, if you intend to repeal the 《Corn Laws》, they will quickly react and send people to stop you… The way they will stop you is by creating chaos here.”

Listening to Ciel’s words, Charles, who was deep in thought, pondered carefully for a moment, and his eyelids subtly twitched.

“What do you mean?”

He looked up at Ciel, his voice low and serious.

“You mean, the deaths caused by repealing the 《Corn Laws》 will be higher than those from the ‘Rotting Disease’? It won’t alleviate the famine?”

Such dissenting voices had appeared in newspapers before, but Charles and William both consistently believed that repealing the 《Corn Laws》 was the best option.

Imported cheap grain could alleviate famine, and the market would naturally regulate supply and demand… Of course, these were moral justifications.

The deeper reason was to appease the risk of worker uprisings within Ansu… There have been quite a few worker uprisings in various places recently. When Ciel and her companions were still in Berren City, there was news of a factory owner being hanged, which even sparked considerable discussion within Ansu City.

Repealing the 《Corn Laws》 would cause brief pain, but in the end, it would definitely be a win-win situation—this was the conclusion Charles and William had reached.

But now, it wasn’t a journalist or a scholar, but Ciel who raised this question, forcing Charles to reconsider.