environmental-regulation

Nadia remains in Sheffield to implement a new cooperative-based eco-economic system on Mars, focusing on horizontalization of businesses and establishing a Martian currency resistant to Terran speculation. Meanwhile, a conference in Sabishii debates terraforming strategies, particularly the use of greenhouse gases and melting polar ice, but faces ecological, political, and technical challenges that complicate unilateral action. Nadia also navigates internal political struggles within the executive council, balancing ideological conflicts and resistance while managing the complexities of Mars's evolving governance and environmental regulation.

This chapter follows Jaidee, a captain in the Environment Ministry, as he enforces strict coal rationing regulations on a Chaozhou Chinese factory owner in a flooded Bangkok struggling against rising seas and ecological collapse. The narrative explores the tensions between different Chinese communities, the loyalty and pragmatism of the Chaozhou, and the broader challenges faced by the Kingdom in maintaining its sovereignty and environmental stability amid plagues, climate change, and corporate pressures. Jaidee reflects on the Ministry's expanding role in managing ecological and societal crises, emphasizing the long-term vision symbolized by the tortoise emblem.