***

"Mr. Prime Minister. I think we should ask for the people's opinion. What do you think?"

The Azerbaijani government had proposed the royal family to be the head of the state, so Youngho was discussing it with Prime Minister Kasim.

When Baku's public opinion was generally taken care of, President Aliyev sent a special envoy to the royal palace to politely ask for its intention.

If the Kazakh royal family accepted the demand of Baku citizens, there would be a referendum to amend the const.i.tution.

"It's not an agreement between governments, so why do we have to hold a referendum? It's a business between the royal family and the government of Azerbaijan, and if the royal family decides, the Kazakh people will follow suit."

It was not that Kazakhstan was subjugating Azerbaijan, it was just the Queen of Kazakhstan would be crowned in Azerbaijan as the head of state.

However, the public's opinion could not be ignored at all.

It was because the royal family was first recognized in Kazakhstan.

"Prime Minister, but I still want to hold a public hearing like Azerbaijan did. If the royal family alone decides on such a serious matter, it is tantamount to ignoring the people. I don't want to make decisions against the will of the people."

"If your will is so, I will try to hold a public hearing, but there's no reason for people to refuse it when the royal influence is getting bigger. It's like a windfall to be able to incorporate Azerbaijan as a federal state."

If Azerbaijan became a federal state of the Kazakh Kingdom, Kazakhstan would not only become a major power in the Caspian Sea but also permanently secure a bridgehead to southern Europe without pa.s.sing through the VolgDon Ca.n.a.l.

In addition, it would be able to raise its voice in the Caucasus region following Central Asia, so it was indeed a windfall.

"Even if the people oppose it, the royal family should push hard. It's to secure a bridgehead in Azerbaijan."

"Would the people of Azerbaijan like it if our people were against it? We can get a bigger windfall later if we can get both peoples' approval."

"..."

Kasim was curious about the bigger windfall that Youngho just mentioned.

If Azerbaijan were to become a federal country, Youngho did not intend to make the royal family stay merely symbolic.

This was because he had confirmed that there were great treasures buried in the waters off Baku.

Although Dr. Park Young-sun's team was still conducting a thorough investigation, Park Young-sun said he was certain that there would be more oil buried than any other oil fields found in the Caspian Sea.

If that was true, both Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan would be rich when the oil field's commercial production began.

Considering this and that, it would be a waste if the royal family was to just sit there as a symbolic being.

When Kasim heard the explanation so far, he had to nod his head.

"We were lucky. I think the Queen's visit has completely turned the public's attention."

"It's not necessarily luck, Your Highness. It should be said that it started from the time Your Highness and Her Majesty lived in Baku. Azerbaijanis are making an excellent choice to demand for the royal family. Likewise, the people of Kazakhstan welcomed the royal family, which was the best choice since the nation was formed."

***

The acceptance of Azerbaijan as a federal country was also fully supported by the people of Kazakhstan.

It was an opportunity to expand the nation's scope to the Caucasus following Central Asia, so it would be strange to oppose it.

When the Kazakh royal family accepted the federal members.h.i.+p, Azerbaijan hurriedly decided to hold a referendum to amend its const.i.tution.

"So, Did you find out more about the Azerbaijani government?"

"We are still gathering information, but we think the government decided that if it puts our royal family at the forefront, it can continue to stay in power."

Park Jong-il was checking the Azerbaijani government's move in real-time from intelligence agents.

After a.n.a.lyzing the information, the intelligence service of Kazakhstan was able to figure out what the Aliyev government was aiming for.

It was hurrying the referendum with the intention to maintain the government after making the royal family as its puppet.

"Let's play with their tune first. I don't know how long that'll last though."

"All you have to do is wait a little. We're looking into the source of Aliyev's slush fund, so it'll be revealed soon."

The British daily Guardian reported that Aliyev's slush funds managed through a British-registered corporation were 2.5 billion euros.

The president's two daughters were also listed on "Panama Papers," a list of tax haven property holders.

Aliyev had countered that the slush fund report was false information and an attempt to smear Azerbaijan, and that the Armenian government was behind it.

"That's only what's revealed so far. Our investigation has found that he is hiding more than seven billion euros. I wonder what it would be like to expose this to the media."

"The press should never know. I'll use it as a bargaining chip later."

Most of the slush funds were illegally raised.

It should belong to the people, and Youngho could not allow Aliyev to flee with all of it.

"You're not going to let him get away, are you?"

"I should if I need to. He can take some, but not the whole."

"There are a lot of Aliyev's supporters in the military, so there could be a huge opposition."

"That's why I'd rather induce asylum. If his supporters resist, it could lead to bloodshed."

The corruption of the establishment in Azerbaijan was as severe as the one used to be in Kazakhstan.

The creation of illegal funds by the president's family had already been known through foreign media, but it was only the tip of the iceberg.

The Kazakh Intelligence Service found that part of the oil sales fund had been funneled to the president's family.

When Aliyev's father was president, Aliyev managed a state-run oil company, and it turned out that he was still turning a blind eye to some corruption to induce loyalty from his aides.

Nevertheless, the people of Azerbaijan were overwhelmingly supportive of President Aliyev, thinking that a stable government would be better than a powerless regime to confuse the nation.

This was because people had seen many countries independent from the Soviet Union fall into chaos and their national compet.i.tiveness plummet badly due to political strife.

As a result, presidents wielding long-term dictators.h.i.+ps were supported.

The power of the Aliyev family was behind the two generations of long-term rule, but the absence of rivals in the opposition camp was also playing a part.

"We can't deal with him with just speculations, so get the perfect evidence."

"There's enough evidence. We could siphon off the slush funds if we wanted to."

"How? Don't tell me we have to go steal it ourselves."

"Oh, we are past that phase. I think it would be possible if we secretly asked the British government for cooperation…"

Jong-il apparently intended to take back the slush funds by freezing them.

"Don't do anything until the country officially becomes a federal state. If we make a fuss now, he will erase all the evidence."

"You're ignoring our intelligence service's ability too much."

"Come on. Why would you touch the bushes and scare the snake? We just need to keep the evidence one by one."

The idea was to slowly take control of the power inst.i.tutions.

First of all, it was first to meet with Sevan, the commissioner-general of Azerbaijan's National Police Agency, and examine his intentions.

Once the police were in control, the rest of the power inst.i.tutions were supposed to come into Youngho's hands naturally.