Temporary Cabinet Established

Staring at the newspaper in his hands, Archbishop Clement said in disbelief, "How is this possible? The Cabinet has gone mad, and have the officials below them all lost their minds too? This is complete and utter insanity!"

No one answered his question; those around him were just as stunned as he was. The opposition party, which had originally expected to make a comeback, was now blindsided by this tragic news.

The key figures were all dead, the foundation was gone, and the few stragglers left were destined to be nothing more than spectators.

To the outside world, this was a massive, bloody clash between the Liberal Party and the opposition. The Liberals felt the tide had turned against them and simply decided to drag the opposition down with them.

Now, both sides were in a similar state: the Liberal Party was notorious, the opposition was decimated, and both had lost their popular support base, leaving neither with the ability to eliminate the other.

This was exactly the result Ferdinand wanted. After this battle, it would be difficult for any political party in Bulgaria to gain momentum for at least twenty years.

Moreover, the public had grown weary of political parties. The Liberal Party's massacres and the opposition's assassinations were terrifying just to think about!

After some thought, Ferdinand decided to strike while the iron was hot. He said to Hoover, "Your focus moving forward must continue to be guiding public opinion, with a primary emphasis on promoting the idea that political factionalism is the root of all evil!"

Hoover asked skeptically, "Does Your Highness intend to abolish political parties?"

Ferdinand glared at Hoover with dissatisfaction. After a moment of silence, he said, "What? Do you think there is a problem with that?"

Hoover realized he had spoken out of turn; this was already beyond the scope of his duties. He quickly replied, "No, no problem at all. I will see to it immediately!"

Ferdinand waved his hand, signaling for Hoover to leave. He thought to himself, Hoover holds too much power, to the point where he is becoming arrogant. It seems I must decentralize his authority!

At this moment, Alice walked up to Ferdinand and said, "Your Highness, Minister Chekhov is here."

"Let him in," Ferdinand said, steadying his emotions.

After the formalities were concluded, Chekhov began to report his work to Ferdinand.

"Your Highness, I would like to recommend someone to you. His abilities are excellent, and he can assist you in handling government affairs!"

Ferdinand asked with pleasant surprise, "Oh! Who is it?"

The Stam Cabinet had fallen, and besides leaving behind a massive debt, they had left a pile of messes. The provisional cabinet had not yet been formed, and all of this required Ferdinand's attention; he was in urgent need of help.

Chekhov spoke without reservation, "My old classmate, Konstantin Stoilov, a former high-ranking member of the People's Party. He is highly capable, and he has no obvious leanings in foreign policy."

Ferdinand was startled. Another famous figure; it seemed he was the next Prime Minister of Bulgaria in the original timeline.

Konstantin Stoilov served as Prime Minister of Bulgaria in 1894. With the most abundant energy of any government in history, he continued to push the economic policies of the Stam Government and promoted Bulgaria's industrial development. In foreign affairs, he reached a reconciliation with Russia, normalizing relations.

However, when dealing with political rivals, the People's Party often hired assassins to murder their opponents. Furthermore, shortly after taking office, party officials engaged in rampant gray-market dealings and corruption, quickly becoming notorious.

Ferdinand thought for a moment, then relaxed. The current situation was already vastly different from history. A single Konstantin Stoilov could not stir up any major trouble, and having him handle domestic affairs seemed like a good choice.

"Oh, since you recommend him so highly, I shall meet him," Ferdinand said with a smile.

Chekhov said with a tone of certainty, "Rest assured, Your Highness, he will definitely not disappoint you!"

Ferdinand nodded and said, "Hmm! By the way, the provisional cabinet will be formed soon. I have reserved a position for you, so be prepared!"

Chekhov felt a surge of joy; his hard work had finally paid off, and so quickly. With excitement in his voice, he said, "Please rest assured, Your Highness, I will certainly do my best!"

Ferdinand nodded in satisfaction. He had been operating in Bulgaria for too short a time, and he actually had few suitable candidates at his disposal.

Chekhov was the first high-ranking government official to defect to him. Although his abilities were average, he had the advantage of being obedient and having good execution. Besides, he was already the Minister of Education, so promoting him to the cabinet would not seem too abrupt.

Time flew by. After two days of fermentation, the news had spread throughout Bulgaria, and everyone was discussing it.

The media, having just had its restrictions relaxed, now acted as if it had gone mad, latching onto the Liberal Party and the opposition to launch scathing attacks. Intellectuals and figures in the education sector who had escaped the disaster joined in the outcry.

Thanks to the reign of terror under the Stam Government, many ordinary citizens had adopted a "not my business, stay out of it" attitude, which actually eased the pressure on Ferdinand.

Although the Stam Cabinet had been removed under the guise of mental illness, the calls for them to be sentenced to death remained high.

Fortunately, Ferdinand acted decisively by establishing a Rehabilitation Committee, using the overturning of past cases to divert public attention, which prevented chaos from erupting.

On May 15, 1889, Ferdinand quietly formed a provisional cabinet, with the position of Prime Minister temporarily vacant.

The cabinet consisted of only three members: Minister of Education Chekhov, Minister of Agriculture James Pedinov, and the pro-Russian Archbishop Clement.

After the new government was established, it immediately abolished the collection of tithes in kind and repealed the exorbitant taxes imposed during the Stam Government era.

Subsequently, Ferdinand commissioned Archbishop Clement to lead a delegation to Saint Petersburg to appease the pro-Russian faction within the country.

Only after doing all this did Ferdinand breathe a deep sigh of relief. The chaotic situation in Bulgaria had been stabilized in the short term.

Only now did Ferdinand have the energy to deal with the mess left behind by the Stam Cabinet. The ongoing Five-Year Plan could not be stopped; the chaotic government system needed to be reorganized; and most troublesome of all, the cases of those secretly executed and those still in prison needed to be re-evaluated.

Konstantin Stoilov passed Ferdinand's test and was appointed Minister of Interior, responsible for overseeing the daily operations of the government.

Chekhov personally took charge of the Rehabilitation Committee and began the process of determining guilt. Naturally, those who participated in or were involved in the assassination cases were directly ignored. Those unlucky souls whose entire families had been wiped out were also pushed to the back of the line.

Even so, the rehabilitation work for thousands of people could not be rushed. This was Ferdinand's idea: everything was to be handled according to legal procedures.

Ferdinand also invited the famous old hardliner of the Bulgarian judiciary, Boris Kristov, to establish the Anti-Corruption Bureau.

They began to purge the parasites within the government, including the previous cabinet, which was also subject to investigation. A large number of officials faced replacement.

The police department bore the brunt of this; as direct participants in the massacre, they were being loudly condemned by the public. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Ferdinand quietly completed his control over the police system.

Ferdinand and the provisional cabinet were busy for over half a year before the government finally got back on track.