The second volume is full of glory and splendor in the capital, and the spirit is full of vitality in the foggy city. Chapter 157: The Hanged Man (Part 2)
Chapter Subtitle: Angel Investment of Investment Devil
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Heinrich. I've been looking forward to seeing you ever since I received your letter."
Mussolini had a warm smile on his face and spoke fluent...English.
This guy is a foreign language expert and is proficient in all major European languages.
In 1902, as traveled to Switzerland, a country in the mountains that was then a refuge for European revolutionaries. Mussolini even met Lenin. Mixing with other exiles from various countries, he easily learned several foreign languages.
After returning to Italy in 1904 and serving in the army for two years, he successfully obtained an intermediate French teaching certificate and got an opportunity to teach French at the University of Bologna.
In comparison, the man with the mustache is also proficient in many languages, but these languages are German, Austrian, Luxembourgish, Liechtenstein and Sudeten German... In fact, according to this calculation, most Serians are proficient in many languages.
In fact, Italy experienced a surge in emigration in the late 19th century. Between 1896 and 1915, nearly 10 million Italians—yes, 10 million—emigrated. However, many of these went to neighboring countries, returning home once they made some money. Therefore, some of these people can be considered "migrant workers."
What Incubus heard was that Italians who went abroad became more patriotic. As the immigrants at that time said, only after immigrating to America did they know they were Italians.
The reason why the Hanged Man transformed from an anti-nationalist socialist to an extreme nationalist was partly because his experience of wandering around the world in his youth made him clear about his national identity.
As he himself said, "When we are with a Frenchman, we Italians will show full confidence and good understanding in our conversation; when communicating with an Englishman, we have to make a considerable effort to understand them or be understood by them; and when talking to a German, the differences and disagreements are further increased; as for us and the Russians, there is simply an abyss between us."
To be frank, the reason Jews like Marx, Engels, Bernstein, Liebknecht, Luxemburg, and Trotsky were able to devote themselves wholeheartedly to the international communist movement was because they had no homeland. At least they didn't have the same strong sense of national identity as the Hanged Man, Temperance, the Iron Man, and the Devil's Heir.
His Excellency, Justice, shook the other's outstretched hand and said, "Mr. Mussolini, I happened to read Il Volo Italia and took the liberty of writing you a letter. I never thought you would reply so quickly and arrange this meeting. I am truly overjoyed."
The two men shook hands very "enthusiastically" and at the same time felt each other's great strength, and couldn't help but smile at each other.
"Mr. Heinrich, please come in. My accommodation is very simple, please forgive me."
Lord Justice followed his host into the unremarkable building and found that, just as he had said, the furnishings were not only disorganized but also very shabby.
The most eye-catching thing is the notes posted on the door, wall and table:
"Be attentive, be attentive, be attentive. People who are not attentive don't deserve to work here!"
"He could have used one word, but he used five. This is a crime!"
"Anyone who does not maintain order and disrupts fan fiction is inhumane!"
The American businessman smiled slightly and said without any disgust, " Mr. , don't say that. You are in a much better place than in the trenches."
The Hanged Man was quick-witted. Upon hearing this, he immediately asked, "Oh, Mr. Heinrich, you're also a veteran of the last war?"
His Excellency said without disguising anything: "Yes, Mr. Mussolini. I did serve in the American Expeditionary Force."
He pointed to the hideous scar on his face and said, "Look, this is the gift my compatriots gave me."
"Hahaha, I didn't expect we were comrades in the Allied forces." Mussolini lifted his sleeves, revealing the scars on his arms. "And this is a gift from your compatriots..."
In 1914, he became the editor-in-chief of the Italian Socialist Party's official newspaper, La Forward, but he was already a less than pure socialist at the time. Because of his remarks, he was expelled from the Socialist Party and lost his position.
However, in November of the same year, he received funding from "enthusiasts" and founded the Italian People's Daily, which angered his political opponents, who said he had been bribed by the French.
Later, the Italian government actually organized a committee to investigate the matter, and finally concluded that all the expenses for running the newspaper were "donated" by his friends, not "foreign subsidies."
It can only be said that the current British ambassador to the United States, Sir Samuel Hall, led by MI5, has made great contributions..
In 1915, Italy officially declared war on the Allies. Mussolini volunteered to join the army, and because of his bravery and tenacity in combat, he was quickly promoted from an ordinary private to a platoon leader.
In 1917, he was seriously injured in a landmine explosion and underwent more than 20 operations to remove dozens of fragments of various sizes from his body. After recovering from his injuries, he was no longer fit to serve on the front lines, so he had no choice but to retire and return to Italy to continue publishing La Popolo.
In terms of this experience, The Hanged Man and Temperance are quite similar.
As soon as they said these two sentences, their relationship immediately became much closer. This is what is called "fighting together".
However, Mussolini immediately showed a hint of doubt and said, "Mr. Heinrich, please forgive me, but your name..."
His Excellency Justice's current name is Hermann, Augustus, Ermavon, and Heinrich. He doesn't sound like an officer of the American Expeditionary Force at all, but rather like a Prussian Junker knight.
Little Chandler, who had already prepared an explanation, spoke frankly, "Oh, Mr. Mussolini. To be honest, I'm passing through Italy. The purpose of this trip is to do some small business in Germany, so..."
"I see." The Hanged Man nodded in understanding. He led the guest into an office piled high with documents and said, "This is my office... Oops, I'm so sorry!"
He quickly cleared the papers off a chair, placed it across from the desk, and rubbed his hands. "Please sit down, Mr. Heinrich. By the way, what would you like to drink?"
Lord Justice sat down on the chair without a care in the world and said casually, "It's too early to drink now. How about a glass of your espresso..."
"Hmm, this coffee is good." Little Chandler downed the espresso in one gulp and nodded. "It's strong, just like the guys who came with me just now."
He put down his coffee cup, pulled out a business card from his inner pocket, and handed it over. "Mr. Mussolini, my letter was a bit brief. I'm actually the general manager of a trading company in New York."
The Hanged Man took the business card and looked at it... Goldmalgam Trading Co., Ltd.
There are many types of amalgam. Mercury has a unique property: it can dissolve a variety of metals (such as gold, silver, potassium, sodium, and zinc). After dissolving, it forms alloys of mercury and these metals, called amalgams, such as gold amalgam and sodium amalgam.
The Hanged Man casually asked, "Mr. Heinrich, what is your company's main business?"
Lord Justice once again spoke honestly, "Oh, our company is currently dealing in some... well, some security products and services."
In fact, after coming to power, Mussolini had a very close cooperation with Italy in terms of security products and services. Mussolini sent military and economic advisory groups to Serbia, and he also opposed the Japanese invasion at the beginning.
In fact, Chuan Lin Beitui has always wanted to learn the Hanged Man and restraint, but it is a pity that he cannot even reach the level of the Hanged Man, let alone restraint.
"Security equipment and security services?" Mussolini understood immediately. "I see. Mr. Heinrich, you are really...really straightforward."
"When dealing with a man like Mr. Mussolini, I think it's best to be straightforward." Mr. Chandler Jr. smiled. "Besides that, we also have a consulting business, responsible for providing our clients with the most relevant business information."
The Hanged Man was also a knowledgeable and intelligent man, so he naturally knew what the other person meant.
He coughed and said, "Mr. Heinrich, how can we help you?"
Lord Justice calmly lit a cigarette and said, "A good friend of mine once said that the best way to do business is to win together. So we are helping each other..."
He raised his hand to stop the other party from interrupting and continued, "Mr. Mussolini, please listen to me. Our company's clients are interested in investing in the markets of various European countries . But today's European countries, such as you in Italy..."
He shook his head and said, "With all due respect, investing in a country like this is a very risky business. Therefore, our clients hope that someone can step forward and restore peace to European countries..."
He sighed again and said, "Of course, such people are hard to find. And such people may not be able to successfully save their country for various reasons..."
His Excellency the Righteous One stared into the other's "golden brown eyes" and said, "Mr. Mussolini, that's why I came to Europe, that's why I saw your Italian People's Daily, that's why I saw your boys, that's why I came here specially to see you."
The Hanged Man paused for a moment before asking, "So, Mr. Heinrich, can you tell me who your client is?"
"Of course... no!" Little Chandler said expressionlessly, taking a drag on his cigarette. "I'm sorry, this is our company's trade secret. But..."
"I can tell you one thing, that is, our company's clientele is very strong, stronger than you can imagine."
"And when they choose investment projects, they don't focus on the industry or the country, but on the opportunity. They believe that opportunity is more important than industry or country."
"Well, you could also call them...Business Angels!"
Mussolini couldn't help but ask curiously, "Mr. Heinrich, what do these angel investors want me to do?"
"You don't have to do anything..." Lord Justice thought for a moment and said, "I'm sorry, I was wrong. You just need to do what you want to do."
"Our clients won't ask anything of you. We just hope you'll remember this friendship. When the right opportunity arises, we'll happily collaborate."
He took out his checkbook, wrote a check, and placed it on his desk. "This is a small gift from the angel investors. Please accept it."
Mussolini picked it up and whistled involuntarily. The amount on the check was a full ten thousand dollars!
Moreover, since the US dollar is much stronger than the currencies of European countries at this time, its actual purchasing power is slightly higher than that of the United States .
With his knowledge, he could naturally guess the other party's background. This German-American should be the investigator sent by the consortium on Wall Street.
As for why he was so generous, it must be because he was optimistic about his political future. In fact, Mussolini was also optimistic about his political future.
However, April 1921 was a very delicate time.
He founded the Militant Fascists in March 1919. However, in the general elections of November of the same year, the small party suffered a crushing defeat and by the end of the year had fewer than a thousand members.
So he decided to change the political direction of the fascist movement. In May 1920, the "Combat Fascists" held their second national congress in Milan, re-elected a new leadership, and passed a new program, "The Basic Points of the Fascist Program."
Mussolini no longer catered to the workers and peasants and removed the anti-capitalist and anti-church measures from the original program, thereby winning the favor of the big bourgeoisie, royal power, and religious groups.
By the end of 1920, the number of fighting fascists had reached 10,000, and by May 1922, the number of members of the "National Fascist Party", which had been renamed, was 320,000.
This was the beginning of Mussolini's transformation from a "hidden dragon in the abyss" to a "flying dragon in the sky." According to the original timeline, he would not have made the final decision to seize national power until the Third National Congress, held in Rome in November of this year.
Now, no one... well, except our Master Yuan, knows what the future of this small party will be, so this $10,000 can really be called an angel investment.
He looked at the check with interest, then at His Excellency Justice, and finally nodded. "Since this is a gift from the angels, I will accept it. Thank you, Mr. Heinrich."
"You're welcome, Mr. Mussolini..."
"My Lord Fool, this is a full ten thousand dollars. Are you really not distressed at all?"
"My Lord Justice, please don't mind this mere $10,000. I really don't feel bad at all..."
Because Mussolini would later become the darling of Wall Street, especially the Morgan Consortium.
When J.P. Morgan Jr. traveled to Italy in 1925, he made the following comment: "We are extremely satisfied with the revolution that Mussolini is now carrying out."
Thomas Lamont, known as "the most successful president in the history of the Morgan Consortium", personally hung a portrait of Mussolini and a portrait of Roosevelt in his office.
George Whitney, a senior partner of the Morgan House and president of the New York Stock Exchange, called Mussolini a great patriot...
Really, what's there to be sad about spending a mere $10,000 to get to know someone recognized as a "great patriot" by Wall Street?
"Mr. Mussolini, we have finished our official business, but I still have a personal matter..."
