The world war had only just ended; development was a matter for the future. For now, Ferdinand's most important task was still dealing with the aftermath!
There was no need to say much about rewarding meritorious officials. They could simply follow the standards established beforehand—no more, and certainly no less!
The first problem they had to face was the population issue. It concerned Bulgaria's long-term peace and stability!
Ferdinand asked directly, "Prime Minister, how large is Bulgaria's total population now? How many hold Bulgarian citizenship? And how many are applying for Bulgarian citizenship?"
"Citizenship" was currently Ferdinand's main basis for determining whether someone had been assimilated. Under Bulgaria's nationality law, obtaining Bulgarian citizenship was no simple matter!
The easiest way was through military merit. Take the Russian mercenaries, for instance: once they had distinguished themselves in battle, applying for Bulgarian citizenship became very easy. Their interests were already bound to the country's; military-merit land was the tie linking both sides. Integration was simply not a problem!
The second way was to endure the passage of time. Anyone who had lived in Bulgaria for ten years, had no criminal record or undesirable political views, and passed Bulgaria's cultural examination could also obtain Bulgarian citizenship.
These people were the most conventional immigrants. Ten years was enough to change many things about a person. Cultural identification was often more important than race.
Then there was special contribution. Anyone who rendered great service to the country could obtain Bulgarian citizenship. This was aimed at elite talents.
Of course, if ordinary people were lucky enough to invent or create something that gained recognition, they could receive the same treatment.
After giving it some thought, Konstantin said with some difficulty, "At present, our mainland population is approximately forty-four million. Of these, only 35.8685 million possess Bulgarian