Father of France

Chapter 254 Ministry of Railways

"So what was exchanged for?" Coleman knew that France hadn't reached the point where the government would listen to whatever the army said. It must have been that the government agreed to some conditions from the army in exchange for the army's support on another issue.

"I heard they're seeking military support for merging the occupied territories," Martin said, sounding like he was enjoying the drama. "Now the Socialists and the French Communist Party are causing trouble again, tying France's fate to defeated Germany? Most of Parliament sees the People's Republican Movement as treason!"

"We can't let Germany continue to suffer like this. The People's Republican Movement believes that when Prague's radio stations stopped broadcasting independently, France lost its options."

Koeman shrugged. The Czechoslovak coup was still a significant event in Europe. "The Americans also believed that either Germany would become our shield, or we would have to wait for it to become the spear of the Soviet Union. If Germany continued to have such a difficult time, the thought of a Soviet-German coalition was more of a nightmare than anything else."

"These two countries can form an alliance?" Martin looked incredulous. Given the deep-seated hatred between Germany and the Soviet Union, their animosity would only be greater than that between France, certainly not less.

"It's no use in us thinking that way; Washington and London don't think that way. Since Napoleon III, France has been held hostage by these English speakers." Corman said with dissatisfaction, adding that France's ambition for hegemony was extinguished after the Franco-Prussian War, and the France that followed was merely a remnant of its past glory that hadn't been completely extinguished.

During World War I, France placed its hopes of defeating Germany on Imperial Russia.

Then, helplessly watching as Imperial Russia was trapped by the Central Powers, and with the Anglo-French alliance as the core of defense in World War II, France subconsciously lost the courage to compete with Germany, not to mention that the Soviet Union was much stronger than Germany.

To be honest, if he were only relying on the domestic market, Coman could just give up. He can't really make anything of France; it's not like the agricultural era where it's all about who's better at farming.

Needless to say, even if the military doesn't express its opinion on merging the occupied territories, the French Communist Party and the Socialist Party in parliament will still make a fuss about it. Neither of these parties will accept the rhetoric of the People's Republican Movement.

Koeman stopped worrying about the higher-ups and went to the printing plant with Martin to check on the progress of printing five million copies of the French version of the Soviet classic, titled "100,000 Whys." It wasn't intended for distribution in France, but rather in overseas territories as children's educational reading material.

Early childhood education is a crucial step in defeating the descendants of Muhammad in the overseas provinces, and this process absolutely cannot be skipped. Corman, a serving French officer who has surveyed Central Asia, would not be lax in this matter; scientific enlightenment cultivates materialistic understanding through visual aids.

“I’d rather see a bunch of atheists than a bunch of kids brainwashed with Muhammad. Those kids are useless and won’t strengthen France,” Corman shared with his comrades as they walked. “What can you expect from someone who only knows how to chant scriptures when they grow up? They’re not even as good as liberal arts students.”

“Liberal arts students will protest your assessment.” Martin chuckled. “Didn’t you say before that liberal arts students could join the army, even as cannon fodder?”

"It's still possible now, but what if technology develops to a point where we can't even be cannon fodder anymore?" Koman said with a sneer. "We can't expect technology to stop, can we? That's not something we can control. And if technology stagnates, believe me, the advantages of a planned economy will be amplified even more."

The Soviet Union was left behind because of the information revolution represented by integrated circuits. Without the information revolution, wouldn't their organizational strength be stronger than that of Western countries?
Koeman was already considered lenient. If the overseas provinces were to replicate the Soviet Union one-to-one, then in early childhood, boys would often participate in mechanical assembly and military games, while girls would learn weaving and fabric crafts, reflecting the social concept of gender division of labor. They might even be labeled as employing child labor.

The United States is now not only concerned about Germans, but also Italians. This is all in preparation for the Cold War and to promote American superiority, starting with movies.

Several major Hollywood studios offered free feature films, romance films, and documentaries to Italian cinemas every week. The underlying message was that only by choosing America's partner—the Catholic Democratic Party—could Italians live the American life depicted in the movies, while the Bolsheviks could only bring disaster.

How did Corman know about this? Because Ava Gardner received a call from the United States. This American actress, who was paid a weekly wage, is no longer in the US, but her value has been recognized by the US. The US government is now preparing to promote this weekly wage superstar.

"I don't agree to any on-screen romance," Coleman stated coldly. "Honey, I'm serious. There are hundreds of families in America I wouldn't dare touch, but that definitely doesn't include certain Hollywood male actors. What's the difference between kissing on screen and cheating?" Ava Gardner wanted to say the difference wasn't that big, and she initially considered using a camera trick, but seeing Coleman's expression, she immediately changed her mind. "I don't want to go either. Filming a documentary or something is fine, but a romance film is out of the question. I've already found my love. Can you tell me how many families in America you wouldn't dare touch?"

"There are probably around two hundred, in the House and Senate and the courts, some families like DuPont, that's all," Coman replied, counting on his fingers.

At this time in the United States, there were already quite a few politicians whose fathers died and whose sons took office. The Senate was even better, since it always appeared in front of the whole country. But the House of Representatives was where local tyrants were truly.

The United States has all the characteristics of hereditary members of parliament in Japan, except that they are usually hidden in the House of Representatives and are not easily seen by those with ulterior motives.

Because there are fewer seats in the Senate, the competition is fiercer, and the required resources and public profile are higher, the advantages of family background are more obvious, and the forces vying for power are also increasing. Many local strongmen in the House of Representatives are not strong enough in the Senate.

If Coman were British, he'd be considering becoming friends with McCarthy by now; there's nothing shameful about joining forces when you can't win.

But he is French, and American and French cultures are different after all. France is quite resistant to American infiltration, at least in the short term.

Koman's current job is to assist in the establishment of the Railway Corps. After this temporary task is completed, he will stay in the overseas province to continue his service.

After obtaining permission from the Schuman government, the establishment of the Railway Corps was put on the agenda. Before General Juan even left Paris, Corman came to his former superior with the draft of the Railway Corps' work plan for his review.

"Because the security situation in North Africa is far from stable, the Railway Corps is responsible for ensuring railway transportation. They repair damaged railways and bridges amidst the sabotage by anti-French forces, ensuring smooth military transport and providing crucial support for final victory. Besides combat, the Railway Corps also has engineering capabilities, assisting in the construction of numerous major projects. They carve roads through mountains and build bridges over rivers, constructing steel highways under extremely difficult conditions. Therefore, we need an important department to manage the Railway Corps."

General Zhu An became interested at this point, "It's as if you were born to build railways, so what is the role of this department, and what is it called?"

“Just call it the Ministry of Railways, it’s simple and easy to understand.” Koeman suddenly became wide awake when he talked about this department, and excitedly explained, “Through this railway connecting several countries, we can maintain our influence after the French troops in Morocco and Tunisia withdraw. In addition to the main transportation business, it can also include affiliated industrial, engineering, educational, and health units.”

Since the government has already agreed to establish the Railway Corps as a branch of the military, Koman can now fill in its responsibilities, much like how the military-controlled Algerian overseas provinces can be transformed into a war preparedness province. The Railway Corps could also become a unit called the Ministry of Railways.

"Such a department is only truly safe if it is controlled by our most trusted group, namely the military. In order to safeguard the interests of the military, this department must possess astonishing stability; once you join, it's an iron rice bowl. It's a guaranteed job from start to finish, with an extremely high iron content, so strong that it's unbreakable. This also provides us soldiers with a stable way out."

General Zhu An was just listening casually, not expecting anything from Koeman, but as he listened, he felt that this genius seemed particularly good at filling in content in what appeared to be nothing special.

The Ministry of Railways that Koeman described was far more ruthless than the Soviet Union's, truly embodying the idea that wherever imperialist railways were built, imperialist exploitation followed.

"I think you'd be perfect for this new department," General Zhu An praised with anticipation. "If such a department really comes into being, glorious soldiers will finally have a place to call home."

(End of this chapter)