Chapter 17: Opportunities in the Collapse of an Empire

An opportunity —The phrase sounded casual, but in Pierre's ears, it carried a far heavier weight.

Before he could respond, Louis continued:

"Look over there…"

He motioned with his knife and fork toward a group of well-dressed men seated nearby, clearly not government officials.

"Some of them are from Morgan, others from Rockefeller, GM, Ford… In short, they all belong to America's major financial groups and industrial giants.

Unlike the government officials arguing to dismantle the British colonial empire with sharp words, these men are quietly taking over the postwar world without firing a single shot or spilling a single drop of blood.

All they need are money and supplies."

His tone grew sharp with sarcasm as he cut into his steak.

"Wherever there are important mines, factories, or banks, American corporations are moving in and swallowing them whole.

The British can't do a thing about it.

See those men eating steak, just like us?"

With a casual air, Louis sliced through his steak, his words tinged with mockery.

"While Sherry's husband is dropping bombs over Germany, and Beth's lover is eating sand in North Africa, these polite, refined American tycoons are busy drawing their own map of the postwar world.

Not Roosevelt's political map, nor the generals' battle maps — but their own, a map drawn with mountains of wealth, rivers of assets, towns of industry, and armies of capital.

They are fighting a world war too — but this war does not belong to Sherry's husband, Beth's lover, or the millions of ordinary men and women.

It belongs to the American tycoons."

He set down his knife and fork as if the American beef on his plate had lost all appeal. His tone became serious:

"And if you can seize the opportunity, you can be part of it."

— Whoa.

Hearing those words, Pierre suddenly had a thought:

This man is no ordinary diplomat.

Indeed, not many people in 1943 could so clearly see through America's postwar ambitions — and articulate it so plainly.

It wasn't 1953 yet, after all.

"Part of it? How exactly?"

Louis smiled.

"Some eat the meat, some drink the soup.

All you need is to grab your chance.

And how do you grab it?

By clinging tightly to the Americans."

He spoke matter-of-factly:

"In the coming years, as the British withdraw from their colonies, the Americans — especially their corporations — will step in.

If you establish good ties with them now, you'll have no trouble making money later."

Well, the first half sounded reasonable… but the second half felt almost sycophantic.

The contrast was so abrupt it left Pierre momentarily speechless.

Still, Louis's next words — 'If you want to make real money, earn it from the Americans' — made perfect sense.

"Brother Chengjie, I am truly impressed,"

Pierre said respectfully.

"Bah, it's nothing,"

Louis laughed modestly.

"Everything I just said is borrowed wisdom.

Ambassador Louis often reminds us at the embassy:

This great war is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our country."

He went on, his voice lowering:

"To avoid repeating the mistakes of the last world war, America will dismantle the British and French colonial empires for its own gain.

After the war, Asia will change drastically.

Japan will fall; Britain and France will be driven out by the Americans.

In order to maintain a balance in Asia, the Americans will inevitably support China."

He paused meaningfully.

"If even a nation can rise by holding fast to America, how could an individual not prosper?

When the Americans feast on the meat, even the soup will be enough to make someone rich beyond their dreams.

Crude though his words might have been, the logic was sound.

Whether one clung to the Americans or not, the collapse of the British and French colonial empires was inevitable.

In the coming years, under the combined pressure of the United States and the Soviet Union, those vast empires would crumble with astonishing speed.

What would remain?

A world full of spoils.

Resources.

Markets.

Vast opportunities.

The doors of the world would swing open — mostly to American capital, yes — but there would still be enough scraps for others to feast on.

Those who seized the chance could make fortunes.

Hadn't Japan and South Korea, in the postwar years, followed behind America and drunk deeply from that "soup"?

Hadn't they built corporate empires during that time?

As the evening wore on, Pierre and his cousin spoke at length.

All the while, his eyes drifted again and again to the Americans in their fine suits.

Some were officials, others were corporate managers.

They sipped rare Scotch whiskies and French wines — luxuries ordinary people could barely dream of in wartime.

They cut into steaks, but symbolically, it wasn't just beef they were slicing.

They were carving up the British Empire itself.

Amid casual conversation and polite laughter, they were laying claim to the postwar world.

"They're the real victors,"

Pierre realized.

In that moment, he finally understood why people said America was the true winner of the war.

Their gains were almost unimaginable.

They hadn't just turned Europe's nations into their loyal lapdogs, they were also quietly taking control of the world's wealth.

In fact, it was during this very war that the foundations of the modern multinational corporation were laid.

American companies used their wartime profits to fund exiled governments, to prop up struggling foreign firms, to buy stock at prices so low it was nearly theft.

While millions of Allied soldiers bled for the cause of "justice for all humanity" — From Asia to Africa, from the Pacific to the Atlantic — These suited gentlemen were cutting quiet deals with desperate governments in exile.

They were buying up the most promising mines, oil fields, and factories.

Not content with that, they were redrawing the maps of the world in their favor.

Through political pressure, American officials forced Britain and France to give up their empires.

And behind them, the American financial giants waited, patient as sleeping beasts, ready to pounce the moment opportunity struck.

In the clink of wine glasses and the quiet rustle of linen napkins, Pierre saw those American gentlemen for what they really were — Dormant giants, lying in wait.

And in this long, slow game, anyone perceptive enough to see the truth — and brave enough to act — could reap tremendous rewards.

Wasn't this his chance too?

Swirling the glass of French wine in his hand, Pierre Smiled.