Chapter 16 Chapter fifteen

Kryon is no longer the graceful young monarch depicted in the hologram.Maybe he still was in the hologram - but his mirror told him a very different truth.His most recent birthday celebrations were still in full swing, but there was no denying that it was his fortieth birthday.The emperor felt nothing wrong with his age.His health is quite good.The body is slightly fatter, but not too much.His face would have looked older if it weren't for the small adjustments he made on a regular basis, but the small adjustments made his face look oily.He's been on the throne for eighteen years now - one of the longest-reigning kings of the century - and he sees nothing stopping him from staying on for another forty years, perhaps ending up in imperial history Maybe the emperor with the longest reign in the world.Kryon looked in the mirror again, thinking he might look better if he didn't try to show the third dimension.

Now look at Demerzel—the loyal, capable, indispensable, and unbearable Demerzel.He was the same.His appearance remained the same, and, as far as Kryon knew, he had never made any minor adjustments.Of course, Demerzel is tight-lipped about anything.And he was never young.When he served Kryon's father, Kryon was still a childish crown prince, and he couldn't look younger then.And now, he doesn't look young either.Does looking older at first make people ignore the subsequent changes?Variety!This reminded him that he summoned Demerzel to discuss an important matter, not just to stand there and wait for the Holy One to "Think".Demerzir might see too much "ruthlessness" as a sign of aging.

"Demerzel," he called. "His Majesty?" "That guy named Qiao Ruonan. I'm tired of hearing about him." "You have no reason to listen, Your Majesty. He was brought to the surface of the news just at the right time. This is only a temporary phenomenon, and it will soon disappear." "But he didn't disappear." "Sometimes it takes time, Your Majesty." "What do you think of him, Demerzel?" "He's dangerous, but he has a reputation. And that reputation makes him dangerous." "Since you think he's dangerous and I think he's annoying, what are we waiting for? Shouldn't he be locked up or executed or something?"

"The political situation on Trantor, Your Majesty, is complicated—" "It's always complicated. Can you say anything other than complicated?" "We live in complicated times, Your Majesty. It is useless to take strong action against him, it will only increase the danger." "I don't like it. I may not be well-read—an emperor doesn't have time to read—but at least I know the history of my empire. There has been no shortage of these so-called populists in power in recent centuries. precedents. And in those precedents, without exception, they reduced the emperor to a puppet. I don't want to be a puppet emperor, Demerzel."

"It is unthinkable for you to be a puppet emperor, Your Majesty." "If you want to do nothing like this again, I'm afraid it's not unimaginable." "I'm trying to take steps, Sire, just play it safe." "But as far as I know, there's at least one guy who doesn't act as cautiously as you do. Almost exactly a month ago, a university professor—note a professor—single-handedly stopped a potential Joranan riot .He stepped in at just the right moment and managed to stop the escalation." "It is true, Your Majesty. But how did you hear about it?"

"Because he happens to be the professor I'm interested in. I still want to ask why you didn't tell me about it?" Demerzel said almost flatteringly: "How dare I put everything on the copy Are you using insignificant trifles to bother His Majesty?" "Irrelevant? The man who acted was Hari Seldon." "He did have that name." "It's a familiar name. Did he publish a paper a few years ago, at the last Decade, that interested us?" "Yes, Your Majesty." Kryon beamed. "You see, I have a memory, too. I don't need my staff to remember everything for me. I summoned this fellow Seldon myself for that paper, didn't I?"

"Your memory is truly flawless, Your Majesty." "What happened to his plan? The fortune-telling scheme. My perfect memory doesn't remember for a moment what he called it." "Psychohistory, Your Majesty. It's not just a scheme for counting names, but a theory that predicts the general trend of human history in the future." "How about this?" "No progress, Your Majesty. As I explained at the time, the plan is utterly impractical to carry out. It is a colorful plan, but worthless." "And yet he has the ability to take action to prevent a potential riot. How dare he do it if he doesn't know in advance that he will succeed? Doesn't this just prove that—what?—psychohistory does work?"

"This only proves that Hari Seldon was a fool, Your Majesty. Even if psychohistorical theory had practical value, it could not produce results about a single person or a single act." "You're not a mathematician, Demmerzel. And he is. I think it's about time I asked him again. After all, the next Decade isn't too far away." "It's useless—" "Demerzel, I have made up my mind. You are in charge of the arrangements." "Yes, Your Majesty."