I'm playing whack-a-mole in Siberia

Chapter 686 Eat inside and outside
As the patriarch of the Dolgorukov family, Mario does not want to see brothers fighting each other.

But Mario didn't have a good solution for Alexander.

Alexander had gone too far to turn back.

“If you don’t support me in making money in finance, then I will do it myself.”

Alexander insisted on his own way, so if things didn't work out, he could just split the family.

"Without the protection of your family, you, a Russian, simply cannot survive in the United States."

Mario reminds Alexander of the importance of his family.

“But I’m an American now—”

Alexander is a naturalized American citizen.

"You are first of all a Slav, and a wealthy Slav, which means you are destined to become a prey."

George reminded Alexander not to be fooled by the Americans.

"You have a serious prejudice against the United States. The United States is not what you think it is."

Alexander thought George and Mario were intimidating.

There's nothing much to say about this.

The next day, Alexander and Mario took a train to Adrianople.

Catherine misjudged Alexander. She thought that Alexander wanted to take over the American business, but she didn't expect that Alexander wanted to split the family business.

Alexander is not stupid. He knows George's strength. If he dares to betray the Dolgorukov family, Mario and Dejan will not let him go even without George's help.

Since Alexander was unwilling to continue serving the family, Catherine did not force him.

Mario and Alexander clashed over the proportion of wealth distribution.

George owns half of the Dolgorukov family's wealth in the United States, and the remaining 50% is divided among Ekaterina's five siblings, with each receiving 10%.

Alexander didn't want any real property and asked to take away all the cash and stocks.

"Everything? Are you crazy?"

Mario disagreed and only agreed to let Alexander take half of the cash.

"I earned these cash and stocks myself, why can't I take them with me?"

Alexander was a penny pincher.

"Don't you have to pay a price for betraying your family?"

Dejan rushed back from Paris and was very angry. He didn't know what was wrong with Alexander.

"I have never betrayed the family. I have never done anything to harm the family."

Alexander stressed that he did not view the separation as a betrayal.

"If everyone is like you, the whole family will fall apart in an instant. What else can this be but betrayal?"

Dejan's understanding of betrayal is different from Alexander's.

Alexander thinks like a businessman. Since he is not satisfied with the distribution method, he might as well split up the business and do his own thing.

Mario and Dejan are now the highest administrators of Amur and East Indies respectively.

Amur is easy to deal with, as it is all George's fiefdom. If anyone dares to mention "division", George will naturally take action.

The East Indies was made up of former colonies of the Netherlands, Britain, and Germany. The situation was very complicated, and if anyone dared to mention "division", Dejan would kill his entire family.

"When my father went to the United States, he only had 10 francs on him. Now that money has become 10 billion U.S. dollars, I only want to take the part that belongs to me and my father. Isn't this reasonable?"

Alexander was filled with grief and indignation. At least half of the $10 billion was created by Alexander and his father.

The stocks and cash that Alexander wanted to take away were worth nearly $3 million in total, of which less than $5 million was in cash.

"Your father had just arrived in the United States. He almost went bankrupt because of heavy losses from his investment in the railway. It was Aunt Katya who helped your father pay the money, and your father was able to get through the difficult times—"

Since Alexander wanted fairness, Mario gave Alexander fairness.

"During the war against Japan, your father invested in Japanese bonds and nearly went bankrupt again, causing the family to lose more than $1500 million."

"Before the United States entered the war, you invested more than $1.5 million in Germany. When can you get this money back?"

Mario's tone was relatively calm, but Dejan was not so easy to talk to.

"So that's why you want to split up the family business. Are you worried that you won't be able to recover this investment?"

"That's not true at all. Germany's debts can definitely be recovered."

Alexander's face flushed as he tried to defend himself.

"The German Empire is gone - who are you going to ask for money?"

Dejan hates this kind of traitor the most.

"You just caught up with the dividends of the world war, so you made some money. Overall, your investment losses over the years have been greater than your gains. Stop it, you can't beat those Hebrew bankers in the United States."

Mario hopes Alexander will stop.

Alexander remained silent. Once the crack appeared, it would not disappear.

"Don't waste time talking to him. Leave it to your aunt."

Dejan was completely disappointed with Alexander.

“No, no, no, the key is not how the money and stocks are distributed, but that this model must change.”

Mario wants to solve this problem from the root.

The reason why Alexander wanted to divide his family was that his power was too great and almost unrestricted. Absolute power leads to absolute corruption, so it is appropriate to put it here.

If this problem is not solved, similar problems will arise.

"How are you going to solve it?"

Dejan was curious and didn't know how Mario would solve this problem. "George actually gave the best solution--"

Mario doesn't keep you in suspense.

Before the outbreak of World War II, George reminded Alexander not to invest in the stock market and to use the money he earned to buy land.

Compared with the stock market which is manipulated by finance, land is king.

Land in the central United States is now very cheap, only a few dollars per acre. As long as Alexander perseveres, he will sooner or later become the largest landlord in the United States.

The risks in the stock market are too high. A stock market crash every ten years is a harvest of wealth.

Compared with the ups and downs of the stock market, land rents are rising every year. The profits generated may not be as fast as those from the stock market, but it is stable and secure.

For a family like George's, stability is everything.

Ekaterina thought so too.

George is busy at work and won't come until the family gathering starts.

Anne arrived in Adrianople in advance to test Catherine's attitude.

"George would have nothing to gain from ascending the throne."

Catherine had an insight into people's hearts, which was why everyone wanted George to ascend the throne.

Or rather, that's why they want Russia to return to an imperial system.

When George ascends the throne, he will definitely reward people according to their merits. At that time, the generals under George, the so-called loyal ministers who are now persuading George to ascend the throne, and a new group of vested interests may all be granted titles.

Compared with official positions, titles of nobility are hereditary, which means that they can be passed down to future generations endlessly.

Russia has just experienced a change in wealth in the past two years, and there will definitely not be any major problems in the short term.

But it won't be long before the conflict breaks out again, and no matter who becomes the Tsar, he will become the target of public criticism like Nicholas.

Although George did not ascend the throne, since East India participated in the Paris Peace Conference under the name of the Grand Duchy of Yuriev, George had in fact become king.

Being a king in the East Indies is much better than being a tsar in Russia.

"George is still very clear-headed on this issue."

The person who knows George best is Anne.

The Tsar may feel good for a while, but sooner or later his whole family will end up in the crematorium.

George's current power is no different from that of the Tsar, but he does not have to bear the responsibilities of a Tsar. Why does he have to be the Tsar who works hard but gets no rewards?

"I know, I know, this is all thanks to you—"

Catherine took off a bracelet from her hand and gave it to Anne.

"thanks Mom--"

Anne is in her forties, but she can still make the clip sound.

Elizabeth, who was watching the fun nearby, was amazed at the way the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law got along with each other.

Alexandra, who was sent to Alexander's manor to reflect, was used to it. She had seen more disgusting scenes than this.

When facing Alexander, Catherine's face was full of frost.

"Do you feel that your wings have grown strong and you are no longer willing to accept the constraints of the family?"

Alexander was uneasy; Catherine was the only elder in the Dolgorukov family.

"Without the help of your family, you and your father are nothing. You think your money is earned by your and your father's abilities. I don't know how capable you are, but I know your father's abilities very well. If there was no one available at the time, your father would never have gone to the United States."

Catherine was rude and scolded Alexander until his face turned red.

Just when Anne thought that Catherine would be lenient with her, Catherine suddenly changed the subject.

"Since you want to leave the family, then calculate carefully how much profit you and your father have brought to the family over the years."

Catherine wanted to make an example of one man to warn the rest, and this trend must not be allowed to continue.

Anne was curious and didn't know how Catherine would calculate it.

Although Ekaterina did not go to the United States, the chief financial officer in the United States was sent by Ekaterina.

"Since the outbreak of the World War, Mr. Thierry and Mr. Alexander have caused the company a total loss of $1.1 million due to their investments."

As soon as Krukova opened her mouth, everyone's expression changed.

The Dolgorukov family's assets in the United States, including cash and stocks, total $10 billion.

The property belonging to Alexander's family is about 1 million.

These two men have lost all their family’s money and now they are asking for a share of the money. They are so shameless.

"Mr. Alexander's family's living expenses are all paid from the company, up to $100 million per month—"

"Every month? Not every year?"

Deyang couldn't help but ask, how did you spend so much money?

Based on the exchange rate before the outbreak of the World War, one US dollar could be exchanged for a little more than two rubles.

The annual salary of the Grand Duke of Russia was only 150 million rubles.

Alexander's family actually spends 200 million every month——

The cost is staggering considering that the Alexander family has been in the United States for 30 years.

"Mr Alexander privately invested in two companies through which he conducted business with the group and earned at least $1000 million per year from the group."

Korukova confirmed that Alexander was a traitor.

Alexander was sweating profusely, his body was shaky, his legs went weak, and he collapsed to the floor.

(End of this chapter)