industrial lord

Chapter 537 United Fruit Company
In the teahouse in Hamma City, Frederick thought for a long time after listening to Bellberk's account of the cause of the incident.

"It's not that simple." Frederick sighed, "The swamps in the south are different from those in the north. We also have to consider factors such as climate and soil."

"Most importantly, that's the territory of the Church of Flame. Are they trying to start a religious war?"

What he was worried about was the last point. It was one thing for pagan merchants to come and do business, but it would be a serious problem if they wanted to settle down on the land.

The Church of Light and the Church of Fire had fought several full-scale religious wars, with both sides suffering heavy losses, so the two sides divided their territories and stopped fighting.

The Kingdom of Sverrière in the north believes in the Natural Church, and their invasion of the south is threatening to trigger a religious war.

Now the Rhine Alliance is trying its best to prevent the war from escalating into a religious war, because once it is upgraded, other countries that believe in the Church of Light will join in and the cake will be divided among others.

Bell Burke said confidently, "It's OK. This matter has been resolved. We can use the church's 'false believer clause'."

Frederick was speechless. The "False Believers Clause" was a product of the previous religious wars. At that time, the battle lines were going back and forth. In some places, odd months belonged to the Church of Light, and even months belonged to the Church of Fire.

The Vatican then announced that believers in areas occupied by pagans could pretend to convert to Christianity in order to preserve their usefulness, and then return to the embrace of light after liberation.

Of course, the church will not believe you just because you say you are a false believer. You have to donate a sum of money to the church. The moment the money falls into the till, you are still a loyal believer of the God of Light.

Considering that many bishops in the Church of Light now have illegitimate children, Frederick frowned and asked, "Who in the church do you find to protect you?"

Bell Burke said, "On the side of the Church of Light, we will give the Pope and the College of Cardinals some shares, positions but not individuals, and promise to give some benefits to their illegitimate children in due course."

Frederick nodded. The illegitimate children of those clergymen were mainly their fathers' white gloves for making money and tools for making friends with local nobles.

Bell Burke continued, "In the Church of Flame, Linhai Parish has always been a place of exile. We contacted the archbishop there and gave him a small stake."

"Oh... huh?!" Frederick immediately realized that the amount of information was a bit overwhelming, "How did you get in touch with the Flame Church?"

Bell Burke answered as a matter of course: "Of course, ask Marshal Hayreddin to pass the message. He came to give Susan something during the World Expo last year. Maria told him about this and he agreed immediately."

"He also wanted a place to house his subordinates and leave himself a way out."

Frederick sighed and accepted it.

He asked again: "How many people did you pull in?"

Bell Burke counted on his fingers and answered, "Maria is in charge of this business. Susan returned to the country last year with Marshal Hayreddin to take charge of the Kush Kingdom. Lilu also joined. I am responsible for the specific work on the Rhine Alliance side."

"In addition to the two churches abroad, Mrs. Maffia returned home last winter and sent a message not long ago that she joined as a glove of the royal family of the Kingdom of Sardinia."

"Lulu went to the Osmaga Empire, and Queen Anna is willing to join in and contribute."

"Marshal Hayreddin is trying to win over Pietro, the maritime leader of the Tarago Kingdom. There should be news soon."

Frederick did not expect that this matter would become so serious and involve several countries.

He then asked: "What stage has it reached now? Where are the children of the various families now?"

Bell Burke replied: "Our company now invites scholars from various schools to conduct field investigations and formulate development plans. They go together as major investors."

"Hmm?" Frederick grasped the point, "They paid for the development?"

"Why are they so enthusiastic?" Logically speaking, since so many people have participated, they are all wealthy people and have made considerable investments. There is no reason why the family members should be the ones spending the most money.

Bell Burke said helplessly: "Foreign partners are currently only willing to provide help other than money. They trust you but not us."

"In the Principality of Wessen, we, the children of foreign families, have several clubs. I am one of them, so I pulled them in."

“They pay for the on-site inspection first, and then use the inspection report to apply for a bank loan.”

"Maria has found many ladies in the Principality of Mainz who are willing to invest in our company's bonds and stocks in the future."

She felt helpless when she said this, and she also saw Frederick's reputation in the economic field and the confidence he gave people.

Whether it was her or Maria, when they talked about business with others, they would first make sure whether this was a business led by Frederick. When those people heard that Frederick didn't know about this, they became much colder.

No one can resist his own money. Talking business with Frederick is one thing, and talking business with someone other than Frederick is another, even if it is his fiancée or lover.

Frederick reached over and tapped Belle Burke on the head, saying softly, "What kind of outsider are you?"

He went on to say: "This is also good. The Rhine Alliance has the majority of people, so we have more initiative."

"Oh, by the way," he thought of something, "you said you set up a company, what's the name?"

Bell Burke replied: "Because this company was opened by many people together and mainly grows fruit in the South, it is called the United Fruit Company."

Frederick was silent for a moment when he heard this, and finally said nothing.

"I don't care about you guys." He lay down on the sofa, resting his head on Bell Burke's legs. "I believe in your abilities."

Belle Burke breathed a sigh of relief, bent down and kissed Frederick on the forehead, and said softly: "I thought you would be angry."

She knew that this matter was not a small matter of one or two thousand gold coins, and it might affect the diplomacy of the Duchy of Wessen. She was always worried that Frederick would be angry.

Frederick raised his hand and pinched her face, saying, "Remember before, you said you could help me get information in salons and tea parties, but I refused."

"I have always believed that talented women should use their talents in their careers instead of wasting them waving feather fans."

Bell Burke nodded, he still remembered those things.

In the environment where she grew up, even among the nobility, unless a woman had outstanding abilities, she could only use teahouses and dance parties as her stage for her whole life, and the outside world had nothing to do with them.

Over the years, she first suffered setbacks in the catering industry, and then led Wesson Railway Construction Company to achieve remarkable achievements in railway construction and civil engineering.

Every time she saw another section of railway opened to traffic or another building delivered, she felt a little more accomplished and a little more disgusted with her previous life.

Frederick continued, "You go to Cologne, and go there as the leader of the Wesson Iron and Steel Company and one of the heads of the United Fruit Company, and explain this matter clearly to those families."

"Thank you." Belle Burke reached out and gently stroked Frederick's face, tears dripping onto his nose. "You have given me a new life."

With Frederick's words, Bellberk could appear in the upper society of the Rhine Alliance with a completely new independent identity. She was no longer a girl under the protection of the Shakespeare family, nor a lover dependent on Grand Duke Wessen, but the leader of a large company with four-digit employees and gold coins flowing like water every year, and she was also an emerging capitalist.

(End of this chapter)