Chapter 694: Foreign Relatives

As a professionally trained soldier with a privileged background, Krim Zhelevyanko had always viewed gangs as mere street thugs and thus held them in deep contempt. However, over the past few days, with Simon's constant revelations, Zhelevyanko felt as though a new world had gradually opened up to him.

It turns out that the annual global drug trade amounts to hundreds of billions of dollars.

It turns out that gang-controlled sports industries can be incredibly profitable.

It turns out that the relationships between Western governments and underground forces can be so close.

It turns out that the massive tax revenues contributed by money laundering can influence a country's economic trajectory.

Therefore, when Simon hinted at some of his plans, Zhelevyanko, who was inherently adventurous, immediately showed strong enthusiasm. He began by leveraging the Zhelevyanko family's influence in the Rivne police system to investigate and document the nascent gangs in the city and suggested selecting suitable soldiers from UFMS and former KGB agents to serve as leaders throughout Europe.

Simon agreed after a brief consideration.

Professional agents often suited the role of strategists after joining gangs, but at least in the early stages of gang development, there was a need for leaders who dared to fight.

In the preliminary plan, over the next few months, Zhelevyanko would be mainly responsible for recruiting and training candidates, while Simon would use the Westeros family's intelligence team to arrange suitable smuggling routes and safe houses. As for the future, although the Westeros system would not completely withdraw, it would largely rely on the individuals involved to build their own empires.

World-class gangs typically have histories spanning decades. Simon was not in a rush; achieving results within five to ten years would be considered a success.

Rivne, at Simon's estate.

Having arrived in Ukraine on August 16, today was already August 21, Sunday.

From the morning, Krim Zhelevyanko and Simon discussed the entire layout of the plan in the estate until past 4 p.m. when Zhelevyanko finally took his leave.

With Zhelevyanko gone, Simon's business trip to Ukraine was essentially concluded.

He was set to leave the next day, but there were still some personal matters to handle.

These involved six newly acquired porcelain dolls:

Ekaterina Noskova;

Yulia Antonenko;

Natalia Lyudayeva;

Evgeniya Kolkoshko;

Annika Pavlenko;

Marta Boyarskaya.

These six porcelain dolls represented six different families.

No one likes to be controlled, especially capable individuals who naturally develop a sense of independence once their power grows strong enough.

Thus, Simon did not place absolute trust in the Westeros system's representatives in Ukraine.

This necessitated checks and balances.

Simon's strategy was to place the eggs in more baskets.

Without any one entity becoming too powerful, it would be easier to control. Even if one or two representatives betrayed them, the losses would be manageable.

Regarding the Ukrainian frontline military service company (UFMS), tied to the military power of the Westeros system, although Simon valued the deeply rooted Zhelevyanko family, he discreetly supported several key figures like UFMS Vice President Viktor Kostrev to check Zhelevyanko's influence.

If the Zhelevyanko family developed disloyalty, Simon could promptly replace Krim Zhelevyanko with Viktor and others.

In business, Sergey Komarov's Ordek Company temporarily managed most of the Westeros system's investments in Ukraine but had no say in the arms trade company connecting Kyiv authorities with various African nations.

After arriving in Rivne, Simon instructed Celia to gather detailed background information on the families of the six porcelain dolls, aiming to foster a group of 'foreign relatives' as representatives in Ukraine.

All six porcelain dolls were very beautiful.

Moreover, two were 14 years old, three were 15, and one was 16, each standing over 1.7 meters tall, indicating that they had not suffered from malnutrition during their growth, which was common in the economically declining Soviet Union of the 1980s.

These signs indicated that the girls' families were not poor, at least not before Ukraine's recent turmoil.

A phoenix emerging from a chicken coop is rare, hence the saying.

During the selection process, the girls' backgrounds were investigated and recorded in the Dumé Cape estate's archives.

Celia's organized data quickly confirmed Simon's suspicions.

This formed the foundation for fostering these families.

After Krim Zhelevyanko left, Simon spent the remaining afternoon and evening meeting the girls' families.

Ekaterina Noskova's father, Maksim Noskov, 43, had served in the Soviet Navy and retired as a captain. Post-retirement, he worked at a fertilizer plant in Rivne. Before the Soviet Union's collapse, Maksim had been the deputy director and was almost certain to be the next director due to his excellent work.

However, after the Soviet Union's collapse, the new government dismissed the plant's management team, mostly Communist Party members, leading to the plant's decline. From a peak annual output of 300,000 tons, the Rivne State Fertilizer Plant's production fell to less than 20%, teetering on the brink of bankruptcy.

As an agricultural country, Ukraine has a constant need for fertilizers.

Unlike the heavily targeted energy and power industries, the low-profile fertilizer sector, despite its future market downturns, remained neglected.

This presented an opportunity for the Westeros system.

Simon planned to purchase the Rivne fertilizer plant and appoint Maksim Noskov as the manager. With Ukraine stabilizing after the current unrest and agricultural production reviving, the demand for fertilizers would significantly increase. If Maksim's capabilities matched the information, with the Westeros system's financial support, it would be possible to monopolize Ukraine's fertilizer supply by acquiring and merging during the industry's low period.

Natalia Lyudayeva's parents both worked at the state broadcasting company in Rivne Oblast. Though both were ordinary employees, Natalia's uncle, Alexander Lyudayev, was part of the management.

Manipulating a nation requires significant media influence.

Igor Kolomoisky, controlling vast Ukrainian broadcast resources, was a media tycoon.

Compared to the politically fading figures like Tymoshenko and Poroshenko, Kolomoisky's story was 'legendary.' A media tycoon, he was also part of the 'Petrovsk Gang,' rising during the Kuchma era and later serving as the governor of Petrovsk Oblast.

In 2015, when President Petro Poroshenko dismissed Kolomoisky from his governor post, Kolomoisky, with his private army, ignored the order and deployed troops to Kyiv, forcing Poroshenko to retract his decision under the guise of protecting private property.

With Leon Kuchma becoming president, Ukraine was poised for another wave of privatization, including the national broadcasting companies.

Simon planned to support the Lyudayev family in acquiring newspapers, radio, and TV assets in several western Ukrainian oblasts, forming a local media group controlled by the Westeros system, managed by Natalia's uncle, Sergey Lyudayev.

Yulia Antonenko and Evgeniya Kolkoshko's fathers, Viktor Antonenko and Vladimir Kolkoshko, were former government employees who had lost their jobs due to recent political upheavals. Both men had returned to work in Rivne's municipal government after their daughters were selected as Simon's attendants.

Simon went further, mapping out a political career path for them from state legislators to national parliament members.

Just as former Ukrainian tycoon Akhmetov could place his bodyguards, drivers, lawyers, and dentists in the Ukrainian parliament, it would be even easier for Simon.

Finally, Annika Pavlenko and Marta Boyarskaya.

Annika's father, Yuri Pavlenko, was an accountant at a state-owned lumber mill in the northern town of Lekbany, Rivne. The town was near vast natural forests in northern Rivne. After the mill went bankrupt two years ago, Yuri Pavlenko had been unemployed.

Marta Boyarskaya's father, Nikolai Boyarskaya, was a minor supervisor at a glass processing plant in Dubno, southern Rivne.

Simon planned to appoint both girls' fathers to management positions in Ordek Company, also considering acquiring the glass processing plant where Marta's father worked.

Having informed Sergey Komarov beforehand, Simon ensured they were not given overly high positions and made it clear that Komarov could remove them if they were incompetent. By giving Komarov the impression that this arrangement was due to his indulgence of the newly acquired porcelain dolls, Komarov agreed readily.

Whether Komarov realized this was an effort to infiltrate Ordek Company didn't matter to Simon.

The meetings lasted from 4 p.m. to past 8 p.m.

Each family had half an hour, and Simon did not invite them to stay for dinner; it wasn't time for that.

This was just about planting seeds.

Whether these seeds would grow depended on future developments. Simon would decide based on their progress whether to invest further or abandon them altogether.

After dinner, in a second-floor living room of the villa.

As he was set to leave the next morning, Simon discussed the final arrangements with Celia and Emily, who would stay in Ukraine for a few more days: "Regarding the acquisition of the fertilizer plant and the establishment of the media group, I'll have a team from the Westeros headquarters come to handle it. Celia, you'll need to spend more time in Ukraine to help coordinate these matters."

The two women nodded in agreement as Ekaterina and Natalia brought in coffee.

After serving the coffee, the girls were about to leave when Simon casually pulled Ekaterina onto his lap. The tall girl, despite her height, curled up in his arms like a kitten,

 exuding a sense of dependence.

Though her name sounded grand to Simon, Ekaterina was the most obedient and gentle among the six girls, only 14 years old.

During his meeting with Ekaterina's father, Maksim Noskov, Simon sensed that he was a very strong-willed man, likely due to his military and executive experience. A strong parent often results in a submissive child, which explained Ekaterina's kitten-like demeanor.

Although Simon usually preferred strong-willed women over mere beauties, Ekaterina offered a different kind of charm.

If it weren't for the hassle of relocating her, Simon had considered taking her out of Ukraine.

Ultimately, he abandoned the idea.

Surrounded by formidable women, introducing a gentle kitten would surely result in her being devoured.

Thus, he decided to keep her in Ukraine.

Holding the girl's waist, Simon continued in English to Celia and Emily: "And about Nanna and the others, find a female housekeeper and two female bodyguards who can also drive. They will continue living here, but they need to start studying again."

Celia glanced at the girl in Simon's arms and said, "Simon, there aren't many good schools in Rivne. Perhaps they can enroll once our UFMS community school is built?"

Simon shook his head without hesitation: "That would mean waiting until next year. We're hiring many teachers, right? Assign some to teach them directly. They don't need to go to school. The main courses should include English, definitely. Add some literature, art, and ballet, but without pointe training. Other subjects can be based on their interests. Also, the teachers must be women, and the girls' daily class time should be no less than six hours, except on weekends."

Celia quickly noted everything down.

The past few days made Celia realize that to earn Simon's trust, everything related to him should become her responsibility, not just military matters.

However, at one moment, she felt like she was listening to a father arranging his daughters' schoolwork.

It was quite peculiar.

Of course, she didn't dare voice this thought.

After Celia noted everything in her memo, Simon added: "Also, the surveillance system installed around the estate won't be removed and will continue to operate. Once the bodyguards are chosen, I'll arrange for the handover of this matter."

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