Blackstone Code-Chapter 408: Unity is Strength

The governor wanted to secure re-election, and the simplest way was to meet the people’s demands.

So, what were the people demanding now?

The answer was simple: a job. Even if the benefits and wages didn’t meet all labor law minimums, as long as people had a job, it was enough.

With a job, people would feel secure and no longer wander aimlessly.

With a job, they would be filled with hope and energy for the future.

If this problem could be solved—or at least if the government showed it was on the path—public support would follow. And if some real results were achieved, the governor would undoubtedly be re-elected.

But the question was, how to solve it?

Everyone knew the answer. It was like the homeless on the street using donations—not begging, since begging was illegal in the Federation. Instead, they would pick causes people cared about or ignored, set up donation boxes, and convince passersby to support them however they could.

Mostly financial help, though if some feminists wanted to be kind, the homeless gladly accepted that too.

This allowed the Federation to proudly claim it had no beggars.

After drinking away the donated money on cheap liquor, these homeless often lay in cardboard boxes and newspapers, thinking that after a night’s sleep, they’d get up and find a job.

Even if it was manual labor, they’d work hard, change themselves, and strive to become valuable, living people.

But… it was always wishful thinking. The poor knew that earning money could change their lives, just as the governor knew increasing employment could save York State and secure his re-election.

Everyone held the truth, but none could reach out and grasp it.

The governor was a politician, not a businessman. He could only command the city leaders below him from above, ordering, Hey, our employment rate needs to rise, got it?

Besides issuing commands and stressing issues, he could do nothing else.

This was the harsh reality, but not everyone was the same. The governor met with Lynch and others to drive real change.

He looked seriously at Lynch. Lynch’s achievements had shaken the Federation. Maybe this time he could create another miracle?

Lynch thought for a moment. He hadn’t expected such a deep question right away and needed time to organize his thoughts.

About seven or eight minutes later, Lynch’s expression brightened, and he said, “We need industry trusts. We need monopolistic giants!”

The shocking statement raised the governor’s eyebrows.

Since the earliest Federation settlers taught the natives about love and peace with their flower-adorned weapons and colorful knives, monopolism had taken hold.

A business run alone yields far more profit than everyone sharing. The idea of everyone getting rich together was just a weak group’s false excuse to survive against stronger forces.

Anyone with monopoly power would never spout such nonsense.

The early Federation’s business atmosphere was chaotic. Merchants equaled violence. Take the railroad tycoon who used violent tactics—destroying competitors’ tracks, assaulting, even assassinating rivals—so that nearly half the Federation’s railroads were directly or indirectly his.

Every industry was this chaotic. The fledgling government couldn’t fight back against capitalists backed by armed forces, allowing monopolies to flourish.

Oligarchs cast a shadow over the Federation for at least forty years until the government decided to crush these monopolistic capitalists threatening social stability and public safety, finally embracing a free market.

Since then, the Federation passed dozens of laws to prevent monopolies and strictly monitored all capitalists.

Anyone linked to monopolies avoided the topic. There was even an Anti-Monopoly Measures Committee in the Senate and similar bodies in the National Security Council investigating monopoly firms.

Anti-monopoly sentiment was ingrained. Yet now, Lynch proposed monopolies could save York State. The governor at first thought Lynch had lost his mind, not knowing what he was saying.

But soon, he found Lynch’s idea intriguing.

He showed no reaction but kept listening seriously, nodding slightly. “Go on.”

That was enough for Lynch to know the governor had shifted from outright rejection to curiosity.

Lynch leaned back, lit a cigarette with the governor’s permission, and took a drag.

The smoke curled between them as he said, “We always fear monopolies and avoid them, but the ultimate goal of most businessmen is monopoly.”

“Monopolies bring huge profits. We control an industry, set our own standards, and control pricing.”

“Even a single stone, if monopolized, can be sold at gold prices—because no one else can get it.”

“We say monopolies bring destruction and instability because our understanding is stuck in the past, focusing only on the negatives and ignoring the potential positives.”

The governor repeated, “Positives?”

“Yes,” Lynch nodded, “there are positive sides.”

He shifted tone, more firmly, “Governor, you know the steel tycoon controls 70% of the Federation’s steel business. Besides pushing some businessmen to bankruptcy, what else has he done?”

The governor shook his head. “I don’t know much about that, but I’m sure you do.”

Lynch took another puff, flicked the ash. “He created countless jobs.”

“For ordinary people, whether monopolies or free markets, it doesn’t matter much. They just work.”

“If prices are unreasonable, people won’t buy. Before the Anti-Monopoly Act, the real victims were capitalists.”

“Small and medium businesses were exploited by monopoly giants. Though workers were exploited too, it doesn’t mean only monopolies exploit workers.”

“What if we remove the bad parts and keep only the good?”

“What kind of monopoly would emerge under today’s worldviews, values, morals, and sound laws?”

Lynch stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray. “Local pillar enterprises!”

“Monopolies have always been around us; they’ve never truly disappeared—they’ve just taken on a different face to confront the world.” 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

“The situation in some cities of York State is more severe than elsewhere because several key economic pillar enterprises have gone bankrupt. The impact of these bankruptcies far exceeds that of the economic tsunami.”

“If we want York State’s economy to recover quickly, we need a dominant monopolistic enterprise.”

In a way, the Liston Group was already a large conglomerate with the beginnings of a local monopoly. Its collapse, combined with the economic crisis, triggered a chain of problems.

If the Liston Group hadn’t fallen, then with the Federation’s victory over Gephra in the naval war, gaining more influence, Federation goods would have started selling worldwide, and the economy would have quickly improved.

The power of pillar enterprises is unquestionable; combined with the strength of a state, they can easily overpower most smaller, non-pillar companies.

They also wield sufficient influence overseas. If the Federation government provided benefits like tax rebates or negotiated duty-free agreements through diplomacy, the Federation’s economy would rebound rapidly within three to five years.

But the problem now is York State lacks such a company. Without dominance or cohesion, countless businesses are scattered like loose sand, each fighting its own battle, even competing against one another.

This internal strife, coupled with international trade competition, will only lead to more small and micro enterprises collapsing and large companies struggling to survive—an almost certain outcome.

They haven’t considered uniting as one. After all, many vested interests are at stake.