Qin Siyang felt a chill at those words. "Minister Sun, are you planning to have the Department of Justice investigate people in the United Government? Is it really all right to do something that would damage your relations with your colleagues?"
"Who in the Safe Zone doesn't know that while I serve in the United Government, my heart is with you, Xiao Qin?"
"But you're still part of the United Government. Secretary-General Gu appointed you Minister."
Sun Linshou smiled. "Xiao Qin, you're always so considerate of others. Do you know why Choi Chan-hoon was always the Minister before, while I was the Deputy Minister?"
"Why?"
"It's only been ten years since the Apocalypse began. Every department in the United Government is still feeling its way forward. They look dignified and steady, but they're actually walking on thin ice. When more than twenty percent of a department's staff are seat-warmers, it struggles to function. When that figure exceeds thirty percent, it grinds to a halt. Do you know what proportion of the Department of Justice's staff are dead weight?"
"How many?"
"Fifty percent."
"That high?"
"Exactly. The Department of Justice was a juicy prize, and everyone wanted a bite. Keeping it running normally, dividing the spoils among its internal factions while still fulfilling its external duties, takes considerable skill. I could become Deputy Minister because I had that skill. I couldn't become Minister because I wasn't the only one who did."
"Over the years, several Ministers came and went, but it was never my turn. My lack of powerful backing was one reason. Objectively speaking, though, the United Government was full of talent. There was always more than one person capable of handling the Department of Justice. But talent is like stocks: it has bull markets and bear markets. You can't