Chapter 21 Chapter Twenty

Seldon didn't have the composure of Demerzel, after all, he was only a man of flesh and blood.The summons came to his office, and the sudden, faint flashes and vibrations of the Scrambler's electromagnetic field were enough to make him realize that something unusual was about to happen.He had also used a closed line to pass calls before, but compared with the security of this kind of imperial use, it pales in comparison. He had thought some government official was clearing the way for Demerzel.He couldn't expect anything less than that, considering the robot leaflets that have been all over the city lately.But he wasn't expecting anything bigger than that, either, so when the image of the Emperor himself, still flickering faintly with a scrambling field at the edge of his silhouette, entered his office (let's just say it), Seldon sat back down on him. In the chair, his mouth was opened wide, and he couldn't stand up for a while.

Kryon signaled impatiently that he didn't have to get up to pick him up. "Surely you know what happened, Seldon." "You mean the leaflets about robots, Sire?" "That's what I mean. What shall we do?" Despite the privilege to sit, Seldon finally stood up. "Also, Your Majesty. Joe Ruonan organized rallies all over Trantor on the subject of the robot. At least, that's what I heard on the news broadcast." "I don't know anything about this matter. Of course I don't know anything. Why does the emperor want to know about such things?"

"This kind of matter really does not need the Emperor to care about it personally, Your Majesty. I believe that the Prime Minister—" "The prime minister can't do anything, he won't even talk to me. I turn now to you and your psychohistory. Tell me what to do." "His Majesty?" "I don't want to beat around the bush with you, Seldon. You've been working on psychohistory for eight years. The Prime Minister told me there should be no legal action against Joranan. So, what on earth am I supposed to do?" Seldon stammered, "Your Majesty! Nothing!"

"You have nothing to tell me?" "No, Your Majesty. I didn't mean that. I meant there was nothing you needed to do. Nothing! The Prime Minister was quite right in telling you that no legal action should be taken. That would only make matters worse." "Very well. How can we make things right?" "You have nothing to do. The Prime Minister has nothing to do. Let Jo Ruonan do what he likes." "What's the use of that?" Seldon tried his best to downplay the desperate tone in his words, and said, "That will be decided soon." The emperor seemed to be relieved on the spot, as if all the annoyance and anger had vented from his body at once.He said: "Aha! I understand! The situation is under your control!"

"Your Majesty! I didn't say—" "You don't have to say it. I have heard enough. The situation is under your control, but what I need is the result. I still control the imperial forest army and the three armed forces of the empire. They are still loyal to me. Once the situation is really Out of control, I will use them without hesitation. But before I do that, I will give you a chance." The image of the Emperor disappeared in a flash, and Seldon sat there, staring blankly at the blank space left behind by the image. Since he first mentioned psychohistory eight years ago at an inappropriately timed Decadal Congress, he has had to confront the even more embarrassing fact that the very thing he had the audacity to mention does not yet exist .All he had were some wild ideas, some unreal things—what Jugo Amarel called intuitions.