Alexander and Philip arrived at the administrative office of the Winter Palace. Alexander gestured to Philip to sit down at the chair by his table as he sauntered towards the desk.

Philip nodded with his hands clasped behind his back as he bowed his head to Alexander.

As Alexander took his seat, he began.

“I’m going to be direct with you, Philip. I’m going to offer you a position that would make you one of the richest people in the world,” Alexander announced.

Philip’s mouth hung open as he processed his words. “S-Sir…?”

There was apparent disbelief on Philip’s face. The future emperor of the Ruthenia Empire just offered him something that would make him rich. He found it hard to believe that an emperor would make an offer to a farm boy who only likes tinkering with electronics and reading autobiography of some of the greatest minds on Earth.

“You heard me right, Philip. I’m going to make you an offer.” Alexander said, tapping his fingers on the table. “This is a very lucrative opportunity, especially considering that this television of mine would revolutionize the way we disseminate information, news, or any other entertainment shows. Imagine where you can not only hear the broadcaster’s voice but also see him talking. See different places caught on camera in real-time as it transmit to your house where you’re comfortably watching, entertain yourself by watching theater plays without even having to go to the theater. Imagine countless possibilities this television can offer,” Alexander paused to glance at Philip as he continued his speech. “I want you to manage the Imperial Dynamics System Electronics Division to help me get this product out to the world.”

After Alexander finished his little spiel, he sat quietly waiting for Philip to reply. Philip glanced at Alexander briefly as he slowly sat there processing the proposal. After a moment, he raised his head to look into Alexander’s eyes.

“Thank you, Sir. That is a wonderful offer, one that I am honored to receive. But may I know why you doing this sir? I’m just a simple farm boy…”-.

Before he could finish his sentence, Alexander raised his hand, stopping him.

“A simple farm boy who came up with a revolutionary product? You humble yourself Philip,” Alexander chuckled slightly and continued. “If you are wondering as to why I offered you this then here are my reasons,” Alexander leaned closer and folded his hands together, resting them on the table between them.

“The first reason is the fact that you are a self-driven young man who has thought of creating a television at a young age. This, in itself, is a sign of prodigious talent, precocious trait that I desire. The second is reason is that you have the natural talent that I’m looking for. The third reason is that you’re industrious, diligent, and resourceful. Even without monetary support, before the investors of course, to create the thing you’ve come up with and eventually making a prototype is somewhat of a feat.”

Philip was astonished to hear these compliments. It was as if Alexander was giving an ode of praises to him. However, deep inside, he didn’t feel like receiving this kind of praise. What made him worthy to receive those in the first place?Philip let out a forced chuckle as he rubbed his hair, averting his gaze from Alexander for a moment. “…Thanks, Sir Alexander…but I’m curious why you’re giving me so much praise even though I haven’t completed my prototype?”

Alexander’s eyes flickered to his.

Philip continued. “I haven’t finished it, it was still at development stage. I created nothing sir but the way you speak sounds like I’m the one who invented the television, even though it was you who created it, finished it. and even perfected it.”

Alexander propped his chin on his palm and gave Philip a confident smile, “You made a very good point there, Philip. However, what I’m praising is your ability. In the future, technology will progress, I want a progressive mind who looks in the future, not in the past. The way you try to bring your television to reality proves and justifies my evaluation.”

“Is that so…sir?” Philip lowered his head.

“So what is your decision? Are you in or out?” Alexander asked.

Philip thought carefully before answering. “I’d love to accept the offer sir and become part of your vision but what about my family living in the States?”

“Ah…about them. You can bring them here. The house, the expenses, everything will be paid off by me. I almost forgot to tell you that you’ll have to become a Ruthenia citizen to accept the offer, because you’ll be working here permanently,” Alexander informed as he leaned forward on the edge of his chair.

“Is that really okay sir? I mean I don’t speak Ruthenian…”

“Don’t worry, the people you’ll be working with in the future can speak English,” Alexander assured.

.

Philip nodded, smiling slightly in response.

“If that’s the case, sir…I’m in. I accept the offer, Sir Alexander.”

Alexander’s lips curled upwards slightly as he returned Philip’s smile, “Excellent! Glad to have you on board.”.

“So, Sir Alexander, how do we start?” Philip inquired with curiosity in his eyes.

“First off we’ll meet some challenges. Even if we introduce the television to the public, they’ll not know its amazing use of it instantly and my people in Ruthenia are quite poor at the moment. But it’s fine since that’s not our primary objective,” Alexander explained and continued. “Our goal is to make this television be known throughout the world, attracting potential buyers and have them line up to get one, but to do so, we’ll have to create an infrastructure that will support the television industry,” Alexander paused.Philip wondered. “What is it, sir?”

“We are going to create a broadcasting company,”

Philip couldn’t follow what Alexander meant but Alexander is quick to notice.

“Just like radio companies have a broadcasting network, we will also have our own network around the television. Now, I’ve already gained ourselves some assets through a series of property acquisitions. But it is located in Moskva. There, we will start our own media empire, rivaling those of in the States.”

“Lastly, we will hold an exhibition where we can demonstrate the wonderful things the television can do.” Alexander added, as a sly smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

He leaned back, grabbed something out of the drawer, and set it down on the table.

“This is the blueprint of the television,” Alexander tapped his finger at the blueprint. “It’s already patented. You’ll be assigned to our headquarters in Moskva where you will oversee the production. So make sure you study this. I’ll keep in touch via telephone. I will visit there once I finish most of my work here as the head of state. Good luck and may the luck smile upon our fledgling business,” Alexander smiled warmly as he held his hand out for Philip to shake.

Philip grasped Alexander’s hand as Alexander shook it firmly. “I will do my best, Sir Alexander.

“While you’re here in the capital, I would suggest that you look around the city. It’ll be a wonderful experience. I have already arranged a room for you in one of the grandest hotels St. Petersburg can offer, The Grand Hotel Europa.”

“Thank you, Sir Alexander. I’m deeply honored.”

“I will excuse myself now,” Alexander dismissed himself.

While heading back to his workshop, Alexander contemplated.

Now that the production of the television will start the moment Philip arrives at Moskva, he can now focus on the very thing that will help boost not only the manufacturing industry but also the quality of goods of the Ruthenia Empire.

Arriving at his workshop, Alexander went to a seat with a table in front. Resting on the table was a device covered in black fabric.

He sat on the seat and removed the fabric. In front of him was a device called keypunch. A device in the past that programmers used to write programs.

He’ll resume working on a program that will serve as the brain of the computer numerical control.action

He is writing a code similar to the G-codes, a widely-used programming language in computer numerical control machines. It was introduced in the 1950s.

He’s been writing up programs for three weeks straight but thanks to his determination, he’ll be able to finish it in two weeks. Once he finished writing up the programming language for CNC, the automated machine will have its debut on the assembly lines and factories he had bought from the wealthy elites of the Ruthenia Empire.

And that’s where the real thing starts, the modernization of the Ruthenia Empire.

Motivated by the thought, Alexander cracked his knuckles and began working by tapping on the keyboard.