I'm in Warhammer, I just want to grow mushrooms

Chapter 224 The Sinister Intentions of the Word Bearers
spy.

A magical creature.

After they are eliminated, they will always grow back at some point in the future, and it will take the Governor's agents some time to find the new spies.

From this perspective, spies not only possess the vitality of leeks, but also, like mice, are adept at hiding and can easily disappear without a second thought.

Li Nuo's approach to such characters is to monitor them first, control them later, and then wipe them out once their numbers reach a certain scale.

Amy proposed a cleanup operation in the communications, indicating that the number of spies in the hive had reached a threshold.

"I'll send you an operation authorization letter later. You'll need to follow the operational guidelines in the authorization letter to clear out the spies. Anyone with a governor's background will be detained, and Tido will send a letter to the governor asking them to pay ransom. Anyone with a third-party background will be handed over to the Nest Capital's legal department. Anyone with a long history of misconduct and no background will be dealt with according to their crimes."

The Warhammer version of Journey to the West belongs to this category.

"Received," Amy replied.

Encrypted communication has ended.

Li Nuo wrote the authorization letter and handed it to Suan Dongdongqi to check. After confirming that it was correct, he sent it to Amy.

The action authorization document outlines countermeasures for various situations.

In a sense, it was equivalent to the "bible" of the Governor's Secret Service.

However, "sacred texts" are not always reliable, and so are authorization letters.

An unexpected, yet logical, situation arose.

Do you remember the governor of the Nidlevin Sector?
Because their entire family was implicated in the Cold Trade vortex, they were all arrested and tried by the Imperial Ministry of Justice.

Before Nidlevin XV was put on trial, he had planted a spy for Apimatt.

This spy estimated Lino's monthly net profit by observing the production status of Apimatt's starch factory, making him a skilled intelligence gatherer and data analyst.

After the Nidravyn family was destroyed, the spy received the news, changed his appearance, abandoned his original identity, and went into hiding in Apimettri.

By the time Amy discovered her again, she had become a local power in the Lower Nest, and was showing signs of unifying the gray forces in the various regions of the Lower Nest.

"What a talent, this guy."

Li Nuo looked at the document in his hand and couldn't help but let out a soft sigh.

Amy stood across the table, her long, light blonde hair tied in a single ponytail. She wore a black trench coat that concealed her figure, underneath which she wore a burgundy vest and plaid shirt similar to her father, Delton's.

Although she was still underage like Li Nuo, she dressed up as an adult in order to intimidate her subordinates. That was the reason for her disguise.

“What should we do with this spy? Her employer, Ned Levin XV, is dead, and the Ministry of Justice has not issued an arrest warrant for him. Your authorization letter does not mention this situation.”

What Amy said was exactly what Li Nuo was thinking.

The spy's name is Corrie, and she has undergone genetic modification, so her original appearance and body shape are no longer visible. Currently, she has the appearance of an average-looking middle-aged woman.

After the Nidlevin family was destroyed, Corvin joined the gray forces of the Tenth District of the Underworld, starting as a low-level thug and rising to the position of deputy leader in just a few months.

After the leader of the gang died in the struggle within the gray industry, Koliwen took the opportunity to become the legitimate leader of the gray industry.

Looking at her resume, it seems that she has been blessed with good fortune.

What's remarkable is that, perhaps anticipating that she would eventually be caught, after becoming the leader of the gray forces, Corvin proactively helped the Ministry of Justice manage the nooks and crannies that the Empire's light could not reach, thus making a certain contribution to the order of the Nest City.

If it weren't for Corrie's wisdom, Li Nuo wouldn't have given her a second glance.

Li Nuo flipped through the interrogation records on the data panel and gave the instructions:

"Could you make some arrangements for me? I need to meet with her."

"Serious security incidents frequently occur on Granite 5, all led by the remaining rebel forces. Lord Voges has ordered me to send someone there to provide support. The person chosen must be someone with connections to both the legitimate and criminal worlds, and possess exceptional skills, so that they can work with Delton from within and without to dismantle the remaining rebel forces on Granite 5."

“I originally planned to send Wick, but I transferred him to the Space Guard Company, so I don’t have a replacement for now. Corvin might be able to help me.”

"Okay, I'll make the arrangements and give you an answer within half an hour."

Amy was about to leave when Li Nuo called her back.

"Wait, Amy, has Corrie seen you before?"

"No, I don't show myself in front of non-agents. Apart from you, the head of the Nest City Department, and my agents, no one knows that I am the head of the Governor's Secret Service. Outsiders all think that you personally manage the Secret Service."

Li Nuo snapped his fingers:
"That would be perfect. I'll temporarily play the role of the head of the secret service. Get me a set of clothes like the ones you're wearing. Of course, I want men's clothes. Ask Tido for the height and size."

"No problem, I'm leaving now."

Half an hour later.

The underground prison and interrogation room of the special agent base.

Li Nuo disguised himself, putting on the same trench coat, vest, shirt, and leather shoes as Delton, and then used fake leather to mold himself into a different appearance, and swallowed drugs to change his voice.

If he went out looking like this, probably no one would recognize him.

"Hiss—" The airtight door of the interrogation room slid open.

Li Nuo stepped inside.

At the other end of the rectangular iron table sat a middle-aged woman with a scar on her face, who looked fierce.

She only had half a scalp; the other half was replaced by a steel-colored subcutaneous armor, and there were traces of biochemical modification all over her body.

Seeing that the person interrogating her this time was a new character, Corrie looked Li Nuo up and down for a few seconds, and seemed to have come to some conclusion, her tense body relaxing slightly.

Li Nuo stared at the other person from the moment he entered the room. The super vision granted by "Staring Spirit" helped him accurately grasp all the other person's subtle changes.

Koliwen's inner tension eased somewhat, and Li Nuo quickly came to a conclusion after a moment's thought:
"You're quite perceptive; you guessed right away that I was here to recruit you."

Even after the visitor exposed her thoughts, Corrie remained expressionless.

"Just tell me what you want me to do. I only have one condition: to live."

"Ha, you're quite straightforward."

Li Nuo pulled out a chair, took out a data tablet, and used his privileges to lock the airtight door from the inside.

"Now it's just the two of us here. In the conversation that follows, I have only one request for you, and that is to speak your true feelings."

Li Nuo put the data board aside, interlaced his fingers on the table, slowed his speech, and patiently guided the other person to open up:

“I guarantee that as long as what you say is your true feeling, you will live. The better you perform, the higher your starting point in life will be when you walk out this door. In the worst case, you can only go back to being a leader. In the best case, you can even join us and embrace a brand new life with a legal, legitimate, and compliant new identity. The premise is that you are truly honest. Do you understand what I mean?”

Koliwen's eyes flickered slightly as she asked:

"Who are you? The head of the Governor's Secret Service? Do you really have that much power?"

“I have the authorization,” Li Nuo replied simply, then asked the first question:
"With your abilities, you could easily have boarded a cargo ship and left here to start a new life elsewhere. Tell me, why didn't you do that?"

Koliwen lowered her head, pondered for a few seconds, then looked up and said:
“Epimet is different. I’ve seen benefits here that I don’t see in other hives, and almost free educational resources. The hives I’ve visited before were lifeless, especially the lower hives, which could be described as human factories. But here in Epimet, I’ve found that most people have hope for the future.”

"Parents will hope their children go to college. The sick and disabled will receive basic medical services and won't be dismembered, dismantled, and sold into the black market. The dead will be sent to incinerators, not processed into starch and served on dinner tables..."

Koliwen's emotions fluctuated noticeably, and her speaking speed unconsciously increased significantly.

She took a deep breath and calmed herself down:
“I like it here and I approve of many of the things the acting governor has done. It’s no exaggeration to say that Lino Wilsey is the best governor I’ve ever heard of. That’s why I haven’t left.”

Li Nuo observed Kao Liwen's expression and was basically certain that it was a genuine expression of her feelings.

To be honest, Li Nuo felt somewhat gratified.

It was worthwhile that I implemented significant reforms to the various regions of Apimatt over the past year.

The Warhammer universe is a giant cesspool.

So much so that even the slightest bit of hope can awaken people's yearning for a better life.

Unrelenting oppression, cruelty, and intimidation will only lead to backlash, backlash, and a massive backlash. As for the idea that "pursuing happiness" or "praising life" would attract Nagle's attention, Li Nuo thought it was pure nonsense.

Apimatt is thriving, and there's no sign of any Nurgle cultists emerging.

"I agree with your answer. Now, let's move on to the second question."

"Imagine you live in a mining world and are a foreman at a smelter. This world has just experienced a rebellion and its suppression, and living standards are steadily improving."

“A rebel told you in private that the continued improvement in living standards is because the governor wants to win people’s hearts and eliminate the impact of the rebellion. Once the remnants of the rebels are all wiped out, the governor will exploit the miners even more cruelly. What you, as the foreman, need to do is to secretly supply the remnants of the rebels with supplies so that the aftermath of the rebellion can continue and the living standards can be maintained at the current level.”

What would you do in this situation?

Koliwen frowned and asked:
"In your assumption, am I just a foreman? And have no other identity?"

"Yes, you are just a foreman, not a governor's agent disguised as a foreman."

Koliwen pondered for a moment and said:

“I will not listen to the rebels. I will report the rebels who have contacted me to the Governor’s Enforcement Department.”

“A good choice.” Li Nuo opened the data panel, pulled out the relevant information about the Empire World of the Word Bearers, and showed it to the other party.

This document presents a picture of life in the city of Locadillo: prosperous, peaceful, and happy, but it omits information related to the Word Bearers.

“Take a look at this intelligence. This is the future the rebels are painting for you. They're telling you that if the rebellion succeeds, the world will become like this.”

Koliwen flipped through the data on the dashboard and shook her head:
"Impossible, such a world cannot exist."

“No, Corvin, such worlds do exist within the Empire, and there are quite a few of them. The people there spend their days studying, engaging in art, gathering, and procreation. As long as they can produce offspring, they will not be sent to pay the population tax.”

Koliwen was somewhat incredulous. "Does such an imperial world really exist?"

Li Nuo nodded his chin seriously:
"Yes, not only that, I can also tell you another crucial piece of information. If the mining world is occupied by the rebels, it will indeed eventually become the world shown on the data board. Now answer me again, as the foreman, what choice will you make? Secretly fund the rebels, or insist on reporting them to the law enforcement department?"

Koliwen fell into a long period of deep thought.

Time passes minute by minute.

Nearly 10 minutes later, she spoke:
Before I formally answer your question, I need to verify a few premises:

"The first premise is that the mining world I live in is ruled by a human empire;"
"The second premise is that the governor of the mining world is legitimate;"

"The third premise is that my process of becoming a foreman complies with the legal requirements of the mining industry;"

"The fourth premise is that after the rebels succeed, they can legally establish their dominance over the mining world through some means, and after a period of development and transformation, they will transform the mining world into the world depicted on the data board."
"Based on the above four premises, my answer is that I will still report the clues about the rebels to the Governor's Enforcement Department."

Li Nuo shrugged and asked:

"Why did you report the rebels? Didn't you like the situation in Epimet? I think the world depicted on the data board is no worse than Epimet's, right? Why don't you join the rebels and transform the mining world into a better one than Epimet's?"

Faced with Li Nuo's pressing questioning, Kaoliwen calmly replied:

"The human empire is a whole."

"When a planet that should be producing mineral resources becomes an imperial world that produces people, the mineral production of the human empire will decline. This decline must be made up for from other places. This will lead to one or more mining worlds being subjected to more severe oppression and exploitation."

"Therefore, the world on the data board may seem to depict a happy future, but in reality, it is built on the premise that other imperial worlds bear more production pressure. And these worlds that bear greater production pressure will invisibly sow the seeds of rebellion."

"Furthermore, I strongly suspect that the rebels in the mining world originate from a premeditated and organized force behind the scenes. This force promotes other worlds as breeding grounds for rebellion by shifting the production pressures of its own world onto them."

"When other worlds have the conditions for rebellion, the forces behind the scenes will supply them with rebel leaders."

"Clap! Clap! Clap!"

Li Nuo clapped his hands loudly, a smile playing on his lips:

“Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! I love your reasoning. Corvin, to be honest, when you claimed to like Apimatt, I labeled you an ‘idealist’ in my mind. But now, my opinion of you has changed; you are a ‘realist establishment’ who combines strategic vision, macro perspective, and action.”

Li Nuo sincerely admired Kaoliwen.

The other party's analysis was almost entirely correct, which is exactly what the Whisperers are doing.

They transformed their world into a super-population machine, using the population to pay resource taxes, transferring the resource taxes that should have been borne by their own world to other imperial worlds, increasing the burden on those worlds and triggering rebellions.

This narrow strip of land, stretching from the northwest corner of the Taiping Starfield to the southeast corner of the Menglong Starfield, contains numerous mining and agricultural worlds.

They carried the burden for the world of the Word Bearers, and eventually rebelled one after another.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Human Empire is so corrupt, bloated, and stupid, focusing solely on collecting tithes and never considering the enormous impact of regional imbalances.

This influence expands subtly and gradually.

By the time the Ministry of the Interior truly discovered it, the situation was probably already too deeply entrenched to be salvaged.

It's truly astonishing that Kawley, a mere spy, possesses such a grand strategic vision.

However, it cannot be denied that although Corrie's answer was brilliant, it clearly contained an element of flattery.

“Corvin, you’re just a foreman. There’s no need for you to look at the rebels from such a high perspective. What you just said was to show me your intelligence, wasn’t it?”

“Yes, I don’t deny that.” Corrie said calmly.

Li Nuo was satisfied with Kao Liwen's honesty; it was a shame that such a talented person was only a secret agent.

Provided that loyalty is guaranteed, Li Nuo doesn't mind giving the other party better treatment.

"You've passed my screening, Corvin. Would you like to become a Governor's agent? Our benefits are quite good, and you can retire after ten years of service. You can also voluntarily extend your retirement, or accept a transfer order to serve in the Governor's forces as the head of the Nest City Department."

Koliwen's chest heaved slightly as she slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.
"I am willing."

“Very good. Let’s go, I’ll show you through the onboarding process. You must meet with the governor and get his approval to become a trainee agent.”

Li Nuo stood up, used the data panel to unlock the pneumatic gate, and led Kaoliwen out of the interrogation room.

The two wandered through the corridors of the special agent base and entered the elevator deep inside.

When Li Nuo accompanied Delton to meet Voges, he rode in this elevator.

"Shall we go directly to see the governor?" Corrie looked at her prison uniform. "Should I change my clothes?"

“No need, he doesn’t care about that.” Li Nuo waved his hand.

The elevator ascends, moving from the lower nest to the middle nest, and then from the middle nest to the upper nest.

As the beautiful garden city scenery of Shangchao's first district came into view, Kaoliwen's pupils contracted, her eyes shone with light, and she was deeply moved.

Gothic architecture is supposed to be somber and somber, but here, the flowers and greenery make the spires appear gentle and romantic.

"Ding."

The lifting platform has arrived at the station.

"Let's go."

Li Nuo walked ahead of Kao Liwen and removed the fake skin from her face.

The governor's agent on guard saluted, pounding his chest. Corrie was startled and secretly wondered just how high the status of the man interrogating her really was.

When she saw the other person push open the door to the governor's office and walk in without even knocking, Corrie suddenly realized what was happening.

“You are… Lino Wilsey?” Corvin’s voice trembled violently, no longer showing the composure she had when facing interrogation.

"Yes, I am Lino Wilsey."

Li Nuo stopped in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window and extended her right hand to Kaoliwen:
"The Governor's agents are responsible for protecting the Nest City. The head of the agents is someone else. I'm just temporarily filling in for you."

“I…I never thought I’d have the chance to meet you…You’re younger than I imagined.”

Koliwen shook hands with Li Nuo excitedly, her eyes filled with awe, a testament to her appreciation of the atmosphere of the Nest City.

(End of this chapter)