"What happened? Why were we called in for a meeting so early?"
"Why is everyone here from our Ministry of Agriculture? Huh! The Ministry of National Defense is here too?"
"I'm dead tired, and we have to have a meeting first thing in the morning. Sigh-"
"Huh? Why is the president here already? I just checked the time. It's not even eight thirty yet."
"Stop talking. The president doesn't look too good. We'd better be careful!"
The Ministry of Agriculture officials arrived at the conference hall in twos and threes, only to discover that Sankara had arrived long before them, and several officers from the Ministry of National Defense were sitting inside as well.
Meanwhile.
Some of the sharper-eyed Ministry of Agriculture officials noticed that Sankara's face was a little pale, and the dark circles under his eyes were heavier than before.
Most importantly, something was very wrong with his mood.
He looked somewhat angry, yet somewhat repressed, like an active volcano on the verge of erupting. At a time like this, even tossing a tiny pebble into it would send scalding lava surging out at once, scorching everything in its path!
"Gulp-"
Some officials with weaker nerves, or guilty consciences, could not help swallowing at the sight.
The other officials immediately shut their mouths too. Then, like students arriving late for school, they dared not even glance at Sankara as they quietly hurried to their places with short, quick steps and hastily sat down.
After the last few officials hurried into the conference hall with their heads lowered, the time soon reached 8:30 a.m.
"I don't know how well you all slept last night, but I didn't sleep a wink. I was so angry I couldn't sleep at all. Unless I get this anger out of my system, I probably won't be able to sleep tonight either!"
Sankara, who had remained silent all this time, spoke.
But the officials felt he would have been better off keeping quiet. His words instantly sent a shiver through them. The already chilly conference hall grew even colder, as though they had arrived in the Arctic Circle.
What on earth made the president this angry?
It feels like another batch of people are about to lose their heads. I just hope that blade doesn't come down on my neck!
Almost everyone here today is from our Ministry of Agriculture. Could this have something to do with agriculture?
Damn, the president's killing intent is so thick I can feel it even sitting this far back!
The officials tightened their clothes around themselves as these thoughts ran through their minds.
Their minds were a babble of voices, but in reality, not one of them spoke, nor did anyone dare speak at a time like this.
After Sankara's voice faded, only silence remained in the conference hall, a silence frightening enough that some officials even wondered whether they had walked into a haunted house.
Sankara's voice, filled with anger and killing intent, rang out again:
"I want to ask you a question. How many of you know how much arable land our country has in total? Raise your hand if you know!"
The officers from the Ministry of National Defense looked utterly bewildered by the question.
Of the forty-odd Ministry of Agriculture officials sitting in the conference hall, however, fewer than ten raised their hands without hesitation, followed by another few who hesitantly raised theirs.
At the sight, Sankara felt even angrier. A group of mid- and high-ranking Ministry of Agriculture officials did not even know how much arable land their own country had?
Forcing down the fury in his heart, Sankara continued:
"Then how many of you know the minimum amount of staple grain needed to feed our country's population of more than twenty-two million?"
"..."
Silence!
Every Ministry of Agriculture official fell silent. They looked at one another, and not a single person stood up to answer the question.
The atmosphere in the conference hall instantly turned awkward.
Everyone bowed their heads deeply, even wishing they could bury them straight in the ground like ostriches.
It was just like being at school when the teacher stood at the podium, about to pick a student to answer a question. They, too, were terrified that Sankara would call on them.
No one answered, and Sankara simply watched them in silence, his gaze growing colder and colder.
A long while passed.
Just as Sankara's patience was about to reach its limit.
"If we calculate it at two hundred and fifty grams of staple grain consumed per person per day, our country needs at least two million tonnes of grain."
Ameli, the Minister of Agriculture, stood up and answered Sankara's question.
"Phew-"
Heavy exhalations sounded throughout the conference hall. Hearing someone stand up to answer, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, especially the Ministry of Agriculture officials.
Sankara glanced at Ameli, who had stood up, then at the other Ministry of Agriculture officials, who had raised their heads again. His face remained expressionless, though his gaze lingered on Ameli for a few extra seconds.
"Only two hundred and fifty grams of staple grain per person per day? You really aren't afraid of starving people to death! Never mind. It's not too far off my own calculation anyway. Sit down!"
Sankara waved a hand for Ameli to sit down, then continued:
"Then do you know how much grain our country produced last year?"
Hearing this question, the Ministry of Agriculture officials all breathed a sigh of relief. They knew this one.
"I know! It was 1.2 million tonnes!"
"The areas under our government's control produced nine hundred thousand tonnes of grain. We estimated production in the areas controlled by the anti-government forces at three hundred thousand tonnes."
"It was 1.2 million tonnes. I compiled those figures last year."
Almost everyone spoke up at once, their voices overlapping. The conference hall instantly became a vegetable market, like a group of students encountering a question they knew and hurriedly seizing the chance to show off in front of their teacher.
But soon, the conference hall quieted down, then sank into silence.
People who could become officials were no fools, even in a small country like the Republic of Burkina.
The officers from the Ministry of National Defense might not have caught on yet, but the Ministry of Agriculture officials had already realized why Sankara had called this meeting today.
If there isn't enough grain to eat, the only option is to grow more. And growing more grain will inevitably encroach on the landlords' interests!
Hiss... Is the president planning to move against the landlords?
The landlords have devoted most of the land to growing cotton. If he wants to switch to grain, they definitely won't agree!
Previous presidents tried to resolve this problem too, but nothing ever came of it. Who knows whether this new president can do it?
If the president really can solve the country's toughest problem, I truly will be his most loyal dog!
Every official from the Ministry of Agriculture was inwardly shocked!
The minds of a small minority of officials began racing:
Is Sankara planning to move against us landlords?
No, once the meeting is over, I need to find a chance to tell the tribal chief right away!
Does he think the landlords' interests are so easily shaken? Has a little money and a few guns gone to Sankara's head?
If Sankara really does move against the landlords, his hold on the presidency might become shaky. Should I invest in the next president ahead of time?
Of course, Sankara did not know what this particular group of officials was thinking.
But!
Through the data panels in his field of vision, especially the changes in their loyalty, Sankara could still roughly guess what this small minority of officials was planning to do.
I haven't even directly said what I want to do, and you lot have already dropped to sixty loyalty, or even below fifty? Heh-
Sankara sneered inwardly.
Outside the conference hall, Kroko, chairman of the National Security Committee, was waiting by the door with a document in hand.
The document contained a list bearing the names of every official attending this meeting.
Meanwhile, in Kroko's pocket lay a fountain pen filled with red ink.