I Became a Plutocrat in World War I: Starting with Saving France-Chapter 745: Internal Division

Thank you to "Longing for Poetry and Distance" for the reward; there won’t be an extra update today, but I’ll do my best tomorrow!

...

Clemenceau was evidently moved, his face flickered with uncertainty as he hesitated for a while.

But soon he snapped out of it, smiling and speaking with a mocking tone:

"A good strategy, General, you’re using military tactics to divide us."

"But you failed to consider one thing, right now you are our greatest enemy."

"As long as you exist, no matter who among us becomes Prime Minister, they would just be a puppet."

Shire at this moment was a titan encompassing the military, political, and business spheres.

Although it couldn’t be said he held supreme power yet, having only entered these realms at 19 and in less than two years, continued development meant no one could be his match.

Shire did not deny this.

However, he had certainly considered this situation; he smiled slightly, and asked calmly, "Commissioner, the former Prime Ministers like you, including the current Prime Minister Briand, weren’t you all puppets?"

Clemenceau was taken aback, then slowly nodded.

The ones who truly controlled the political situation were the big capitalists behind the scenes; the Prime Minister and the Cabinet had always been mere puppets.

Shire added, "If it’s destined to be a puppet, what difference does it make who the puppet belongs to? The key point is who becomes the Prime Minister, do you agree?"

Clemenceau fell silent.

Shire was right, the interests of France, the lives and deaths of the common people, whether it was a republic or a dictatorship, what did these have to do with Clemenceau?

Clemenceau wanted benefits, his own benefits!

And continuing this way, the probability of Clemenceau becoming Prime Minister again was almost zero.

But if he could get Shire’s support, it would be different; he who was originally in a weak position in parliament could immediately gain the upper hand.

Seeing Clemenceau hesitating, Shire added fuel to the fire, "You know, I can’t resign from my military post, so I won’t threaten your position as Prime Minister. In this respect, I’m not your enemy."

Clemenceau slowly nodded.

In principle, there was no conflict of interest between him and Shire; the reason they were enemies was merely because the capitalists and Briand pushed him into it.

However, Clemenceau said with difficulty, "I’ve been Briand’s think tank for a long time, General, a lot of decisions were made after our discussions. I can’t accuse him of anything." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Clemenceau was an accomplice.

If Briand’s scandals were exposed, although Briand would certainly be ousted, Clemenceau would also be unable to compete for the Prime Minister position.

Shire calmly responded, "So, you need some new backing."

"New backing?" Clemenceau mused, then sighed gently, shaking his head.

He couldn’t find a backing strong enough to topple Briand without harming himself.

Shire, holding his coffee cup, walked leisurely to the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing into the rain-soaked void, calmly saying, "I heard that France has two refineries in Romania, is that correct?"

That was around the 1850s when Romania discovered oil, and countries like England, America, and France subsequently opened refineries there to ensure their gasoline supply.

"Yes." Clemenceau replied, "But since the Dardanelles Strait was blocked, their gasoline couldn’t get out and could only pile up in warehouses, so production has stopped now."

Clemenceau didn’t know why Shire brought this up.

Shire continued, "Among them, there’s one called the Fidel Refinery, in which Briand holds shares, quite a lot actually, am I right?"

Clemenceau nodded again, "Yes, not exactly sure, but estimated to be around 10%."

Shire turned to look at Clemenceau, "Then, what if the Fidel Refinery sold all the gasoline piled up in its warehouses to the Germans?"

Clemenceau’s eyes lit up, "If so, Briand would be suspected of colluding with the enemy."

Gasoline was a strategic material that Germany lacked; for a company belonging to the Allies to sell gasoline to the enemy was absolutely forbidden.

"But it won’t be easy," Clemenceau said, "they wouldn’t be so foolish as to sell gasoline to the Germans..."

The Fidel Refinery wouldn’t be easily fooled, as it would face charges of treason.

"Of course they wouldn’t." Shire interrupted Clemenceau, "But what if they didn’t know?"

Shire had already thought it through, using the "Lady in White" to arrange for a Russian shell company.

Russia was an ally, buying gasoline would be unquestionable.

Then through this Russian company, it could be resold to the Germans.

Neither Briand nor the Fidel Refinery would know, they would even be innocent.

But who would care?

People would think:

"The so-called ’sold to Russia’ was just a guise."

"The capitalists, to keep their refinery from going bankrupt, sold the gasoline piled up in warehouses to the enemy through Russia’s hand."

"They knew the truth, but pretended not to in order to evade responsibility!"

...

That’s politics.

People wouldn’t care what the truth was, and the truth couldn’t be found out.

Because those who knew, those who could testify, were only the "Lady in White" and the middlemen, who would disappear without a trace, not even a body to be found.

Even if people knew the truth someday, the fact that Briand was ousted would be irreversible.

And Shire could still use this batch of gasoline to extend Germany’s lifeline.

A double benefit, why not?

Clemenceau silently pondered, thinking this indeed could bring Briand down, nodded in agreement with the plan: "Very well, then, I await your good news."

"Commissioner." Shire stopped the departing Clemenceau: "I think it’s best if you and Briand start showing ’disagreements’ now. You know, this will give you more leverage."

Clemenceau responded with a grunt.

Shire was right, doing nothing and waiting for the explosion would inevitably implicate Clemenceau, the think tank.

"What should we do?" Clemenceau asked.

Shire’s answer was simple, "You can start with the Reserve Army Group Commander."

Clemenceau realized, Shire wanted to keep Gallieni as the Reserve Army Group Commander.

This was a good pretext, an excuse to break with Briand, and it could win military and civilian support.

Because Gallieni was very prestigious among the military and civilians, and he was a general deeply supported by Shire’s faction.

Clemenceau couldn’t help but gain newfound respect for Shire’s political acumen; he could consider this point and properly solve the "Reserve Army Group Commander" issue.

Even though he knew he was being used, he had no choice but to agree.

"No problem!" Clemenceau responded solemnly: "But once I sever ties with Briand, I’ll have to face the ’Second Bureau’..."

"I will handle it." Shire was very confident about this.

This outcome was exactly what he wanted.

With the "Second Bureau" as a threat, Clemenceau would have no way out.

One might even say his life and death were in Shire’s hands.