Chapter 822 Can Nini's book still be unsold?
Hughes sat at his desk, staring blankly at Nini.
Nini looked embarrassed, and the tip of her tail started rubbing against the ground, quickly digging a small hole in the cement.
Hughes felt that if he left her alone, she might dig out a three-bedroom apartment, so he sighed helplessly.
"Tell me what exactly happened."
“Oh, I didn’t think it through properly,” Nini’s face fell. “My novel about the Vatican’s plan to collapse was actually perfect, but I ran into two small problems.”
"oh?"
"First of all, the literacy rate among the people in the Vatican is just too low. Even when we send them novels, they can't understand them."
Hughes nodded slowly: "Have you figured out why?"
"They're just reluctant to build schools, since they don't need to build factories anyway."
"Actually, it's more than that; this can also be considered a form of protection for the public."
Nini was taken aback, then her eyes widened slightly: "You mean cognitive interference?"
Cognitive interference is an extremely dangerous thing. It appears without any warning—like soap, the craftsmen just thought it was edible, and that caused cognitive interference. They didn't even make a big fuss about their idea!
Hughes, or rather Castells, chose to implement universal education, requiring all workers on the production line to thoroughly understand the principles before they could participate in production. There were also regular spot checks to monitor whether people's understanding had deviated.
Therefore, it was extremely difficult for Hughes to develop industry in this world. Even though he controlled the entire Storm Ocean and the North, he only managed to build up two large cities: Bloodharbor and Castel.
If this were in an ordinary world, he would have already started a massive expansion, with factories everywhere, summoning a steel torrent.
It's not a cognitive interference card yet.
But in this world, besides building schools like Hughes, there is another way to deal with this unstable reality.
“That is to prevent people from having any contact with danger or knowledge.” Hughes’s eyes were full of memories.
He didn't truly realize that the supernatural existed in this world until he was killed by the mechanical priest in the factory.
In his previous visits, he had not discovered any trace of anything extraordinary.
"The Vatican completely separates people from knowledge. As long as everyone keeps repeating what they are familiar with, there will be no inaccurate cognition. As long as no one in the country innovates or conducts research, there will be no erroneous knowledge."
Castells' cognitive interference most frequently occurred at the Gem Bay test site, where any exploration was accompanied by extremely high risks—meaning that if you didn't explore, you wouldn't have to bear the risks.
“Preventing people from learning to read is a crucial part of this.”
Hughes chuckled softly: "The reason why the Fire Moth is known as the most dangerous cult on the continent is largely because they pursue knowledge. Surely none of the Fire Moth's members are illiterate?"
Nini nodded. Even before Castel popularized education, the Moth of Fire had a 100% literacy rate.
"It just so happens that the Candlelight Church's doctrine is precisely to seal away knowledge and isolate itself from danger, which coincides with their approach. By using books to deal with their people, you are hitting them right where they excel."
Nini's tail drooped: "So... this method didn't work?"
"No, I think it's just right."
Nini: "?"
"Think about it, the Fire Moths have been persecuted by the Candlelight Society, but why don't they leave the Empire?"
"They've left. They've all hidden away in Castel."
"They only ran away when they were really beaten to a pulp. Look how many superhumans the Holy See has, while the Fire Moth only has a few. They were almost finished back then, so let's not talk about it. You know, I asked Chloe about that."
"She told me that the Fire Moths could only thrive in the Empire, only under the rule of the Candlelight Society."
"This doesn't make sense!"
"No, that makes perfect sense. It is precisely because the Candlelight Society strictly controls and forbids the leakage of knowledge that more people want to explore it. It is precisely because the literacy rate of people under the rule of the Candlelight Society is low that literacy itself becomes a form of resistance."
Hughes thought of the worker Hughes who had been killed. Although he was dead, his fellow workers, those who had witnessed his death, would naturally become a force against the Church.
"Where there is oppression, there is resistance. There is resistance in the North, and there are moths drawn to the flame in the Empire."
Nini suddenly realized: "So, the church naturally helps us filter people out, making it easier for literate people to stand against the Candlelight Vigil?"
Hughes smiled and nodded: "That's why I approved your proposal. The current setback is just that you've gone in the wrong direction—don't try to promote your novel among the general public, recommend it to literate people."
"But how do I know who can read?"
"You'd have to ask an expert about that."
Hughes took Chloe's diary out of the drawer: "The Moths of Fire, professional rebels, their specialty is developing things right under the noses of the Candlelight Society. They must have a whole plan all along!"
Nini looked over expectantly.
"The plan does exist, but it requires our personnel to implement it."
"Ideally, there should be 'nymphs' present, otherwise the effectiveness will be greatly reduced—basically, it's about finding potential adversaries of the Papacy through various subtle clues, then gradually making contact with them and sharing our ideas."
"Now we can switch to selling novels. Novels are not illegal, so they can be bought and sold openly and subtly change people's thinking."
"Hmm, that sounds like a good idea. I'll have Richard compile some information; Moth Chaser is quite adept at developing downlines."
"That's great!"
Nini excitedly picked up Chloe and was about to leave, but Chloe's diary had been stretched open and was stuck firmly on Hughes's desk.
"Wait, I have something else to ask!"
"What's up?"
"Um," Chloe's handwriting became somewhat hesitant, "I heard Nora has taken up self-propelled artillery, and... actually, I could also support the front lines!"
Upon hearing this, Hughes scratched his head somewhat awkwardly.
Chloe's request was quite reasonable. She had sacrificed herself for Castel and even hung herself in the church, so it was normal for her to want a body.
Even if it's just a steel turret.
Moreover, she was planning to go to the battlefield, so neither reason nor emotion could Hughes refuse.
only
"Cough, Chloe, I'm not kidding you, this really does have some technical difficulties."
"What difficulties could there be? Nora could drive it even with just her brain! She's so clumsy, but she could drive it!"
"You see, your only way of communicating with the outside world right now is through a diary, which is basically just writing in it."
"What's wrong with writing? I write really fast!"
"It's not that, it's just that... the main problem is that the machine spirit can't read!"
(End of this chapter)
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