Empire of the Ring

There was not a grain of royal authority set forth in Azerbaijan’s constitution.

But in substance, it was the pivot of the people of Azerbaijan, and naturally, the vacancy of Aliyev was naturally offered to the royal family.

Although it was a vague role that wielded enormous power without stipulated authority, the political situation quickly returned to the top when the Duke of Kazakhstan stayed at the presidential palace.

Those who blindly followed Aliyev also returned to their daily lives, leaving their sense of despondency behind.

They never dreamed that the president would abandon them and run away at night.

In addition, his aides, who believed in him, all panicked as if they were hit by the back of their heads.

Now they had to be raided by the police, which became the hands and feet of the royal family, and were placed under house arrest and awaiting judicial action.

It was a sudden misfortune for them, but it was good news to the people.

It was because they, who had seized power and controlled Azerbaijan for decades, were unable to come out of their homes, holding their breath.

The sudden democratization was a bit awkward to the people, but they believed that the Kazakh royal family would protect them no matter what.

They had deep trust for the royal family as it had made Kazakhstan powerful enough to fight against China and solve the financial crisis in Azerbaijan.

“He’s covered the presidential palace with money. Did you see the toilet sink and toilet? It’s all gold.”

At Park Jong-il’s fuss, Youngho just smiled.

It was gold-plated, but not pure gold.

It would be difficult to decorate the presidential palace in such a splendid way without thinking to remain as a president for his whole lifetime.

“It’s a family that succeeded the president from the father to son. Perhaps, he was planning to make one of his daughters president. Just by looking at the fact that he appointed his wife as vice president, it’s obvious.”

“Even if he thought that, what kind of a madman would appoint the first lady as vice president? Aliyev has dug his own grave.”

“So we must find the Aliyev family and retrieve the slush funds. With that money, Azerbaijan can leap forward in one go.”

The country had huge oil resources despite the small population, and now a peace treaty with Armenia had allowed it to cut defense spending.

Without corruption by bureaucrats and public corporations, Azerbaijan would be a rich country.

Even though Aliyev and his aides siphoned off the nation’s money, Azerbaijan had a strong economic base, thanks to the president’s constant commitment to economic development.

“I wish the British government would cooperate. It knows better than anyone else that real estate invested under borrowed names came from Aliyev’s pocket, but it’s not budging.”

Park Jong-il habitually recounted Aliyev’s wealth invested in Britain.

“Since I asked the foreign minister for a favor, there will be tangible action soon. It’s a matter of time anyway, so stop reciting and look for their family in Estonia.”

According to research, Aliyev’s assets were estimated to exceed tens of billions of dollars considering his involvement in various rights projects during his term in office.

It was the money of the people, so it must be retrieved from the Aliyev family.

***

There were about 20 gold mines owned and privatized by the Azerbaijani government, and all of them were bought by the Kazakh royal family this time.

Dozens of gold mines were scattered throughout the Caucasus Mountains, and government-owned gold mines were still actively being mined.

According to central bank statistics, the amount of gold mined from government-owned gold mines was close to 15 tons a year.

In other words, it was more than the amount of gold produced from private gold mines, but it did not make sense.

This was because companies that prioritized profits would not mine less than government-affiliated organizations.

This could only mean that they were reporting reduced amounts of gold production to the government.

Private-owned gold mines were sold en masse 10 years ago on the grounds of poor profitability, but it was hard to say that companies bought gold mines with no economic feasibility.

This was only possible because the black deal was made.

Youngho called in Doctor Park Young-sun’s team to launch a gold mine investigation.

However, according to a random survey conducted by an exploration team led by Dr. Park Young-sun, all gold mines sold to the private sector for poor economic feasibility had high-quality gold veins.

“What a thief! Dr. Park, how much gold do you think is reserved?”

“We don’t know the exact amount, but if the current gold vein is maintained, at least 500 kilograms of gold will be produced annually from one mine, and there’s gold that’s sometimes found in lumps, so it can be more.”

If so, the annual output of one ton was false, as reported by the mine owner who had been caught as a corrupt businessman.

Since he had five mines, it meant that he had produced as little as two tons or as much as five tons.

He could have gifted the rest of the produced gold to someone else or kept it for himself.

“Jong-il, we have to get back to him under house arrest.”

“I’m about to do that. I’m going to get to the bottom of this this time.”

If he had produced dozens of tons for 10 years and reported only one ton a year, how many gold bars would he have siphoned off?

One gold miner would do this, so it was clear what other miners would have done.

“Investigate the rest of the mine owners. We need to find out where all the gold went.”

If private companies were estimated to have siphoned off at least 50 tons over a decade, the amount was about 3 billion dollars.

If such money could be retrieved, it would be like the country had exported tens of millions of barrels of oil and gas.

It meant that there was no need to extract oil by polluting the waters off Baku.

This might not be the only injustice caused by decades of dictatorship, but gold must be collected in order to secure strategic assets.

“Your Highness, it’s important to find gold bars hidden by private companies, but I think we should also look at gold mines that are directly managed by government agencies. I could tell that they were being poorly managed at one glance. It’s like leaving a fish shop to a cat.”

“I’m going to meet with the prime minister and make this public. If necessary, we should consider buying the mines at a reasonable price as the royal family.”

“The officials of Azerbaijan will accept if they learn how the Kazakh royal family is running its gold mines in Kazakhstan and other countries.”

Gold produced from royal-owned gold mines scattered in Central Asia was strictly managed.

The royal gold was equal to Kazakhstan’s national power as it would be loaned to the central bank if there were low foreign exchange reserves.

“Don’t worry. Every official has committed a crime, so they won’t be able to refuse.”

“Haha… That’s right.”

“It turns out you’re as greedy as me, too, Dr. Park.”

“Baku is as precious as Kazakhstan. Isn’t it the last bastion when the worst comes to worst?”

Park Young-sun loved Baku as it was the place of his first affection.

People who lived together at Baku’s Zeynep farm, including Fatima and the siblings, Dr. Park Young-sun, and his daughter preferred Baku over Kazakhstan.

Even though he lived in Kazakhstan for 10 years now, he wanted to come to Baku whenever he could.

“I’ve always wanted to come because it’s like my hometown.”

“It’s my hometown, too. It’s a beautiful place, isn’t it?”

The climate and living conditions there were much better than Kazakhstan, but what Park Young-sun missed was the time of living on Zeynep Farm. During the harvest season, people from all walks of life gathered to pick grapes together.

The Serbian Ranch in the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains was also a comfortable place to live, with its ranch, village, and villa, which were impregnable due to the natural geographical features. That was why it was called the last bastion.

“Now it’s not going to be a symbolic federal state, it’s going to be a real federal state. The obstacle has disappeared on his own, so on the other hand, I’m thankful.”

It was regrettable that the slush funds were not retrieved, but it would have been a headache if Aliyev had staged a sit-in with his followers, but it was fortunate that he disappeared on his own.

“Yes. I’m relieved that we took over the regime quietly without bloodshed.”

“That’s true. It would have pitied him if he gave up slush funds and left for asylum, but he left with all of my sympathies with him.”

Youngho had known Aliyev for more than a decade.

Aliyev helped him many times, so Youngho was never comfortable when he suggested asylum.

If Aliyev had not helped him along the way, the current Youngho would not have existed. It was because Aliyev gave exceptional treatment for Youngho that Zeynep Farm could have been established, but it would never be easy to give a huge piece of land to a foreigner.

“I wanted to help him because I was sorry, but he’s given that up, so I don’t have any regrets. He is regarded as an enemy of the people, so we have no choice but to trace him to the end. I’m only telling you this, but if Aliyev made a better choice, I would have helped him make his last years comfortable. If he wanted, I was going to give him a villa in a beautiful place like Kyrgyzstan.”

“Your Highness, I think I can understand your mind. I’m sure you feel different because you’ve received a lot of help from him in the beginning, but now it’s irreversible. You have to think about the Federal Kingdom first, instead of the human sorriness.”

“It’s not as easy as you think. I’d like to have a drink with you and Count Park today.”

After a while, as the drinking party took place, a series of memories flowed out.

Youngho was exceptionally talkative today.

That was because he put a lot of thought into President Aliyev’s future.

At least he thought he should not be called ungrateful, so he wanted to keep pushing the regime, but Aliyev’s political life ended because he could not manage his aides and humiliated the nation. This made him even upset.

But consequentially, it was like he had thrown the president away from his position.

Youngho’s heart, sitting in that empty seat and drinking alcohol, was bitter.