I Became a Plutocrat in World War I: Starting with Saving France-Chapter 773: Freemasonry

Tonight there's only one chapter, I'll make it up tomorrow.

...

"What's the bad news?" Shire asked.

He didn't think there could be any more bad news now.

Lucia didn't answer directly but asked solemnly, "Have you ever heard of Freemasonry?"

Shire nodded.

It's a joint organization originally founded in England, later spreading to various parts of Europe and America, with members who are powerful capitalists, high-ranking politicians, or social celebrities.

Lucia said, "You've successfully caught the organization's attention. I guess they might be assessing the possibility of inviting you to join."

Then she turned her head to look at Shire: "You won't join, will you?"

Shire nodded.

Shire had his own independent system, and joining would only bind his hands and feet.

Although Shire is also a capitalist, his presence threatens the very capitalist system. He has created another capitalist system that competes with the existing one, making integration impossible.

"So..." Lucia cast her gaze toward the Davaz factory district: "This is not the end, but the beginning."

Freemasonry is not comparable to ordinary capitalists, and their intelligence organization is not as simple as the Second Bureau.

Shire nodded slightly, indicating understanding.

It's an organization targeting nations. When they make a move, they often trigger a global financial storm.

Their methods are not complicated: using the concentrated wealth and power to leverage a nation's currency, playing with their assets at will, and finally cashing out at a high point, leaving the mess to that country's government and people.

This is what modern times often refer to as "shearing the sheep."

To avoid being passive, one option is to nationalize industries related to the country's lifeline that cannot be sold, such as energy, military industry, agriculture, steel, transportation, communication, and electricity.

Otherwise, the nation's life and death would be in the other party's hands. How would you fight them then?

But this is almost impossible. The Third Republic of France has almost no foundation for nationalization, as they advocate for a market economy.

The other way is to develop oneself to such a powerful extent that Bernard Group and its partner companies alone could control the national market to maintain price stability.

Shire chose the latter option, but it's not easy.

Before this, Shire thought that the Bernard Group had grown fast enough and the resources he controlled were sufficient.

Now, he suddenly realized he was far from it and even felt a sense of crisis.

Because Shire's focus had always been on energy and military industries, neglecting other parts.

...

In the afternoon, sunlight cast a few shadows through the mist into the Prime Minister's office.

Clemenceau sat smugly in the rocking chair in front of the office, spinning it twice, then raised a glass of red wine towards the office's decor, taking a sip.

"Finally back in this position again," he sighed as he put down the wine glass.

He leisurely picked up a cigar and lit it for himself, taking a long breath in the swirling smoke.

If there's anything that falls short, it's Shire's control.

But what does that matter? Clemenceau thought.

Shire also provided him with protection, a kind of protection others couldn't offer, enough to make him feel at ease.

With this thought, Clemenceau felt relieved.

If there were several paths before him now, he would still choose to cooperate with Shire. Shire is a very reliable power.

At this moment, there were two light knocks on the door. The secretary pushed the door open and reported, "Prime Minister, General Shire is here. He wants to talk to you about the war in Metz."

"Oh, of course," Clemenceau hurriedly put down the cigar, "Let him in!"

Clemenceau waited for a moment, and as Shire pushed the door open, he immediately stood up and walked over quickly to greet him:

"Welcome, General. I was just about to talk to you, and here you are."

"Please, this way."

"A drink? To our victory today!"

Clemenceau emphasized "our," as he didn't want to offend this behind-the-scenes "boss."

"No, thanks." Shire walked to the sofa and sat down by himself: "I'll have a cup of coffee."

"Of course." Clemenceau gestured to the secretary: "Two cups of coffee!"

After the coffee was served, Shire didn't touch it. He was worried about something.

"Prime Minister," Shire said, "I want to know, is anyone making large-scale purchases of agricultural and construction land in France?"

"Yes." Clemenceau nodded:

"This situation emerged shortly after the war broke out."

"You know, during wartime, a large amount of labor is sent to the battlefield, even the elderly and women have entered factories to produce ammunition and equipment."

"This has led to large tracts of farmland being left uncultivated, and farmers and ranchers going bankrupt, with farmland prices dropping to absurdly low levels."

"The situation with construction land is similar."

During wartime, no one can afford to build houses, and with a large number of soldiers dying, many second-hand homes are being sold on the market, so both land and house prices have hit rock bottom.

Shire's heart sank. It was indeed as he had anticipated.

All along, Shire had focused on military and profits, with his strategies centered around "companies."

Now, standing with control of much of France from a "state" perspective, he suddenly realized that the initiative was in the hands of those Freemason capitalists all along.

Farmland represents a nation's agriculture.

It relates to the first of people's "food, clothing, housing, and transportation"—food.

Currently, supplies can indeed be imported from the United States.

But in peaceful times, big capitalists holding vast tracts of farmland could easily manipulate grain prices, extracting wealth from French citizens, while the government and Shire could only watch helplessly.

This even concerns national security: if the country were surrounded by enemies, while internally the farmland was in the hands of capitalists, survival would depend on the mercies of those capitalists.

Construction land is tied to "housing" concerns. Raising its value and cashing out could easily collapse a nation's economy.

Shire was somewhat disheartened.

The reason he hadn't considered this point was his past life experience in a country with "public ownership of the means of production," causing him to overlook this aspect out of habit.

As a result, while Shire was fighting and capturing territories at the front, capitalists were acquiring quality assets at low prices at the rear.

No, Shire thought, he must make these capitalists cough up the land.

How should he proceed? 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

After some thought, Shire said to Clemenceau:

"Prime Minister, after successive battles, the French Army has suffered immense casualties."

"Whereas the British Expeditionary Force, after a period of rest, should have almost fully recovered."

"I think we should let the British Expeditionary Force defend the areas east of the Meuse River. What do you think?"

Clemenceau agreed without hesitation: "Of course, they're our allies, and they should contribute on the battlefield rather than just resting in the rear and watching!"

Then he further added with sarcastic complaint: "Those British, they're slower in their movements than we are in reclaiming land, and their presence here is just wasting resources, wasting food!"