Fatima’s activities in Kyrgyzstan surprised people.
She was quiet in Kazakhstan, but she participated in all activities and events in Kyrgyzstan aggressively. She even gave all of the details of her schedule to reporters kindly, which made the queen’s security team busy. Although they had to prepare and clear out the areas where the queen was supposed to visit, a few days before to remove any dangerous element. However, she also frequently changed her schedule and even made a new schedule spontaneously. The royal guards were now added to her security team to help them out.
Kabak, commander of the Royal Armed Division, could not bear it, so he complained to Youngho.
“Your Highness, why don’t you reduce Her Majesty’s schedule a little? Even the guards are complaining of fatigue.”
“If she visits only some places and doesn’t visit some when the people of Kyrgyzstan all want to see her, what would they think of her? And the police here seem to be on full security duty, so don’t mobilize the soldiers anymore. There’s no harm to our queen here, even if you loosen up a little bit of security.”
“We have to be nervous because Kyrgyzstan’s security isn’t like how it used to be.”
“The residents are volunteering themselves to do guarding duty for the Queen’s safety. The rigid security team will only be a target of criticism, so just do it in moderation.”
Fatima was not the queen of Kyrgyzstan, but she met any Kyrgyz people who were in need. She was loved by the people, but the security team was still concerned.
“And I’m afraid that Muslim leaders seem to see Her Majesty’s visit with an ungrateful eye.”
“I guess they don’t like the Queen’s visit at the mosque.”
“Yes.”
“The royal family does not represent a particular religion, and the Queen will be wearing a hijab according to the mosque’s rule. Do they still don’t like her presence there?”
“They seem to think that the Queen’s visit would damage the sacred and holy image of the mosque because of the reporters following her.”
“I should apologize respectfully for the inconvenience.”
“You have the pride of the royal family. You most certainly don’t have to do that.”
“This is a foreign country. The royal family is just a guest here. We should apologize for any inconvenience caused by the royal events. That way, religious leaders will see the royal family differently.”
“Then I will issue an apology under the name of the commander of the royal guards.”
“I’d like it if it was made under the royal family’s name, please.”
When the royal family issued an apology, the Kyrgyz residents criticized the Islamic community for making a fuss over a small issue of the Queen’s visit.
It was because religious leaders, who did not do anything when the country was in need, were now acting out over something that they could yield. Besides, the Queen’s visit was rather a great move to promote their mosque.
Religious leaders were also perplexed by the royal response. They did not expect that the royal family would even offer an apology.
“Honey, did I go too far?”
“What are you talking about? The monarch could go anywhere. Those religious leaders must’ve been embarrassed since a woman like you visited the mosque since it was mostly men that were allowed to be in there.”
Islamic leaders also stepped back, saying it was only an act of some clerics.
“The Islamic leaders of Kyrgyzstan are generous. If it was in Turkey, people would’ve been different.”
“If the country doesn’t have power, religious leaders can’t speak out. They don’t have any power to lean on now.”
“So, you’re saying, Kazakhstan doesn’t have power, so the religious people are quiet?”
“Why is Kazakhstan powerless? Haven’t you seen China being flustered by us? And it is because the Orthodox Church and Islam coexist in our country.”
“Are you sure China is scared of us? It’s just trying to coax us to use us.”
“They say the thirsty man digs up the well. China is the one who needs us, so it has to do whatever to coax us. If we don’t cooperate, there’d be no way for China to get connected to Europe.”
“I’m very proud of you at this time.”
“You’re going to say that I’m bold, aren’t you?”
“Haha…”
***
The Kyrgyz Prime Minister visited the hotel where Youngho’s party was staying.
Youngho had been intentionally avoiding meeting with Kyrgyz officials. It was because the Kazakh royal family had made sure that the Queen’s visit to the country was strictly to honor the royal guards stationed there.
That was why the queen refused to attend any official ceremonies except to meet the guards stationed in different cities and visited the mosque to occasionally meet with Kyrgyz citizens.
While Kyrgyzstan’s political figures were distrusted by the people, there was no reason for Youngho or Fatima to meet them since it would be like supporting them.
“Your Highness, I’m sorry that I haven’t come to greet you properly when you’ve come a long way. I made a discourtesy because domestic circumstances were not great.”
“I didn’t come here to be treated well, so don’t worry about it too much. We just hope that the nation will be stabilized as soon as possible.”
“At this point, it’s hard to find a happy medium. Fortunately, Your Highness and Her Majesty’s visit had subsided the anti-government protests.”
“I was really sorry to see the grain crisis this time.”
“I’m so embarrassed that I can’t lift my face. Although the royal family and the government helped to resolve the crisis, the economic situation has worsened due to the border conflict. It’s hard to predict what’s going to happen in the future.”
“Be strong. Kazakhstan is an ally and neighbor. I’ll help Kyrgyzstan as much as I can.”
“I am always grateful for that. But it is a concern that people don’t trust the government and want a new one. It’s already no different from anarchy in Kyrgyzstan now.”
It was a very urgent situation for the current government. The public sentiment was so bad that the leadership would have to think about asylum depending on the situation.
“That’s why the Royal Armored Division is stationed here.”
“What concerns our government is after the Queen and Your Highness returned home, and the royal guards are gone.”
Given the prime minister’s stiff face, he did not just come here to explain the situation in Kyrgyzstan. He wanted to talk more in-depth about the issue, but since Youngho gave him short replies, he could not even bring up the words inside.
So, Youngho asked the very fundamental question for him.
“Prime Minister, how do you plan to break the current situation?”
“Pardon?”
“I’m afraid it’s time to make a decision for the future of Kyrgyzstan. That’s why I’m asking you this.”
“That’s actually why I’m here. I wanted to discuss that with you. I’d like to hold a referendum to decide the future of Kyrgyzstan, but I don’t know how the Kazakh government or the royal family would take it…”
What Youngho had been waiting to hear had finally come out from the mouth of the Kyrgyz prime minister, but he gave a look that he did not know what he meant.
“Why should you consider our government or the royal family to decide your country’s future?”
“Kyrgyzstan is a country that lacks resources and jobs. So far, it would have been difficult to run the country normally without the help of Kazakhstan. So, the president and several other officials are carefully looking at the federal system.”
“The federal system?”
“We’d like to take the queen, who the people of Kyrgyzstan absolutely support, as our monarch if you would take us.”
“I’m puzzled because it’s an unexpected suggestion. Do you think that’s possible in real life?”
Youngho was exuberated, but he dismissed the idea as nonsense. He had to struggle to keep his face under control for a while.
“I’ve been assured by the Queen’s visit this time. I’d agree to submit Kyrgyzstan into a federal system with the royal family at the center. If the Kazakh government and the royal family would accept Kyrgyzstan as a federation, we would vote on it in a referendum.”
“That’s something that our government has to contemplate about. Being a federal state is a great national burden. If we’re going to accept Kyrgyzstan as a federal state, we’ll need a national consensus.”
“Help me. Your Highness, the only way for Kyrgyzstan to survive is to be incorporated into Kazakhstan. Wouldn’t the people accept Kyrgyzstan as long as the royal family decides to accept it?”
“We’d have to be prepared for some labor pains. But if the royal family would pay for some of the cost of rebuilding Kyrgyzstan, the people’s minds could be changed.”
“You mean you’re going to pay for rebuilding Kyrgyzstan?”
“If the people of Kyrgyzstan choose the royal family, we can’t just sit still. But we’d need to…”
“All the talk of changing the political world was lost in my mouth. If it is incorporated into a federal state, the president and politicians should step down on their own. Like Pluto, the king will have the authority to nominate a prime minister.”
***
“It was indeed gold!”
“See? I knew it! That’s why Uzbekistan was so eager to take the border area.”
“The whole area is a field of alluvial gold. People there were living off collecting them from the stream.”
“Did the Kyrgyz government not know that?”
“It’d be weird if it didn’t know since people had been collecting alluvial gold for hundreds of years now. I think the Kyrgyz government just neglected the place because its administrative power could not reach there. And the output is so small, so I guess the government decided not to get involved.”
“Then it’s funny that the Uzbek government is so eager to take the area.”
“The area is quite great. There are many Uzbek people living in the area, and they can secure goldfields and water too. You know, the alluvial gold will get exhausted one day, but you need water to farm.”
“Well, that means there’s a vein of gold somewhere in the upper stream.”
“I don’t know. It’s an earthquake-prone area, so it could have been destroyed in the upper reaches. Whatever it is, even if we redraw the new border, Kyrgyzstan will have most of the upper-stream part. So, we won’t have to worry.”
“Whoa, if we find a gold mine in the upper stream, that’ll be a jackpot.”
“We’ll see. The vein could have been disconnected a long time ago.”
“If Kyrgyz people pass the referendum to become a federal state of Kazakhstan, the royal family would have to spend a lot of money in Kyrgyzstan. The only way to recover that is to bust a vein of gold or something.”
Jong-il brought good news when Youngho’s party returned to the royal territory from Kyrgyzstan.
Kyrgyzstan’s economy was only being supported by gold and uranium, but the gold mine was already depleted. If the gold mine in the upper stream near the border area was found to be productive, it would be the icing on the cake.
Also, if Kyrgyzstan became a federal state, Kazakhstan’s power shortage issue would be immediately solved because Kyrgyzstan’s hydro-electric capacity was incredible. Even now, the electricity used in southern Kazakhstan was being drawn from Kyrgyzstan because it used abundant water from mountain ranges.
The royal family’s visit to Kyrgyzstan was a divine move.
Queen Fatima had captured the hearts of the people of Kyrgyzstan at once. The Kyrgyzs welcomed Fatima as if she were their own queen. It was because the poverty-stricken people needed someone’s warmth and care.
