I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 22

Becoming a Hidden Power in the British Empire 22

The Goose That Lays Golden Eggs

“You must know by now that the railway business is definitely the goose that lays the golden eggs, right?”

“Of course.”

At Gladstone’s explanation, Robert and I nodded in unison.

After the Stockton-Darlington Railway opened in 1825, Britain fully realized the power of railways.

Being able to transport raw materials on a scale incomparable to horse-drawn carriages, the drastic reduction in transportation costs was evident.

Subsequently, the Liverpool-Manchester Railway opened as a long-distance railway carrying people as well as goods, marking the beginning of the Great Railway Era in Britain.

“The potential of railways is truly enormous. Personally, I expect that our British Empire’s rapid adoption of railways will be a crucial factor in significantly surpassing other European countries. However, the problem is that most railway businesses are private companies, and therefore there are too many unreliable operators.”

“Capitalists will rush in wherever there’s money to be made. Since the government can’t bear all that enormous cost, isn’t it an inevitable phenomenon?”

“Kilian, you’re right. But the brighter the sun of the railway boom shines, the darker the shadows cast under the bridge. The incident I heard about was related to the London-Birmingham railway line, and everyone knows about this line, right?”

Of course, I know.

The talk about the effects of this railway’s opening and which areas will boom hasn’t stopped even now.

It’s a name that anyone living in London can’t help but know.

“The line that goes from London through Watford to Birmingham, right?”

“Yes. Birmingham is also close to Liverpool, so it’s considered a line that will greatly contribute to the development of commerce. Currently, there’s a legal battle surrounding the railway line, but the industry predicts that it will be resolved by next year at the latest. And after doing some research, I found that scammers are most rampant at times like these.”

Of course, the habits of scammers haven’t changed, whether now or in the past.

Even 200 years ago, or rather, to be precise, even 200 years later, people don’t change.

“So, the scam that your acquaintances suffered was related to information about the railway line currently under construction?”

“To be precise, they were approached with investment opportunities, claiming to be a company supplying materials for railway construction. It was so convincing that too many people were fooled.”

Originally, when a large-scale construction project is planned, numerous companies are connected, and various interests are intertwined.

However, Robert, who had been listening to the story, asked with a face that he couldn’t understand.

“But usually, when making an investment, don’t people check whether they are actually a railway construction-related company?”

“If you grease some palms [bribe someone], you can forge those documents as much as you want. If you investigate with the conviction that it must have been forged, you might find something, but ordinary people don’t usually think that far.”

“That’s true. But if they keep scamming with the same pattern, it seems like they’d get caught quickly. How have they been able to continue doing this until now?”

“When it seems like the police are coming, they close the company and open it under a different name. And the methods change slightly too. They might ask you to invest in railway construction-related stocks, or they might ask you to partner with them in ordering materials, or even entice you by saying they know the location where a new station will be built, so invest in real estate.”

Even though the specific methods are different, the fundamental means is just one.

They forge documents pretending to be related to railway construction and use that to deceive poor suckers.

Indeed, even with this level of sophistication, it means that in the early to mid-19th century, there was no problem in emptying the pockets of numerous victims.

It’s more simple and 허접 [shabby/poor] than I imagined, but I didn’t particularly want to blame the victims.

Even in modern times, where information can be obtained relatively easily due to the development of the internet, scams using real estate and railway information are rampant, so how much more would it have been in the 19th century?

Moreover, at this time, various scams were just beginning to emerge in earnest, so most people were caught off guard without even imagining it.

It’s not the fault of the person who was scammed; the scammers are the trash.

“Railway-related stocks are now considered a surefire way to earn at least a higher interest rate than commercial banks, even if you invest without thinking. If you add real estate information about where the station will be located, there will be many people who really lose their minds.”

“Yes. So, both of you should warn people around you to investigate twice or three times if they say they’re going to invest in a railway-related company. The most malicious thing about this fraud is that even if you catch the culprit later, there’s little chance of getting the money back. So, it’s best to be careful and avoid getting involved as much as possible.”

“Thank you, 선배님 [senior/mentor]. Thank you for giving us such valuable advice.”

“It’s nothing. I’m the one who’s pleased to have met 후배 [junior/protégé] that I want to associate with after watching you for a long time today.”

Afterward, Gladstone gave a few more pieces of advice related to Eton or university entrance and waved his hand towards us until the end before leaving.

The value of enduring the boring Eton classes for two weeks was more than enough.

Robert and I bowed our heads until his carriage leaving Eton’s campus disappeared from sight.

Thank you, 선배님 [senior/mentor].

It may not be much of a reward for the information, but there will be no need to dig into the scammers’ backs after being elected.

By then, they will either be penniless or rotting in jail.

* * *

If information comes in, first verify it.

The very next day, I told James, who came to Eton for the regular report, the information I had heard from Gladstone.

“How about it? Isn’t this the perfect target to test whether our private detectives are qualified to receive their pay?”

“Railway-related fraud, huh? It’s definitely a good opportunity to sweep up easy money.”

“With information this specific, finding traces should be easy. First, tell the detectives we have to tail those scammers and dig up as much information as possible. Find out what fake company they’ve set up, how they’re conning people into investing with lies, and especially how long they’ve been running this fake company.”

“Why are you curious about how long they’ve been running the company?”

“Well, if it’s been a while, they might be about to shut it down and start a new fake company somewhere else. In that case, it’s better to wait for the next opportunity rather than approaching them now.”

Like the saying goes, to catch a tiger, you have to go into the tiger’s den; to fleece a scammer, you have to contact them.

Of course, I can’t do it myself, so James’s role is crucial, but this is practically his first time doing this kind of work as my proxy.

I need to write a scenario that minimizes variables and makes it as easy as possible.

“Understood. So, what should I do while our informants are investigating?”

“Apparently, some of Gladstone’s acquaintances have been victimized by these scammers. Meet with them and get information on their methods. Then, compare it with the information gathered by the investigators to be more certain.”

“Yes.”

“Obviously, you shouldn’t contact them under your real identity. You’ve created a new identity, right?”

The Earl of Aaron’s family must remain completely separate from all the behind-the-scenes work that James and I will be doing.

The best way is to fire James on the surface as soon as I inherit the earldom, but I can’t do that now, so I told him to create a new identity as a backup plan.

Fortunately, identity forgery is incomparably easier now than in modern times, so it wasn’t a particularly difficult task.

The main reason was that there was no centralized standardized identification system, as there were no resident registration cards or driver’s licenses.

At this time, identification mainly relied on introductions from socially prominent people, occupations, and church records.

In other words, with the right intentions and a reasonable amount of money, forgery or theft was a piece of cake.

Especially now, with countless people pouring into London from the countryside, it was even easier.

To exaggerate a bit, you could say that only a small number of people could properly verify their identity.

James will use the fake identity of Richard when contacting those scammers, and he has taken measures to avoid being easily traced.

“For now, the new identity of Richard is set as a young businessman who made some money from railway-related stocks after founding a company. He’s the typical *nouveau riche* [new rich] type, who got lucky with successive investments and now sees the world easily, full of arrogance.”

“Perfect. Then, let’s say the company was founded when the Liverpool-Manchester Railway started construction. Find a suitable company sign and fabricate the books.”

It’s not the internet age where everything is recorded, so there are many inconveniences, but when you need to manipulate something, there’s nothing more convenient.

With so many companies being founded and failing every day in London, cross-checking is as difficult as picking a star from the sky, and few people actually do it.

Moreover, there were countless companies that were founded ten or twenty years ago but had effectively closed down, just leaving the sign up.

Therefore, unless it’s a very large company, it’s safe to say that complete verification is impossible.

If you manipulate the books and activity records to match, there’s no problem in making it look like a company that has been operating steadily for several years.

And there are plenty of people who would raise their hands and line up to do this for you if you give them some money.

“Then I’ll look into some reputable contractors and hire the right person.”

“No. Pick at least three and have them do it. And it would be good to mainly deal with the one who forges the best quality, considering future work.”

“You mean to have them compete and choose the best one. Understood. Oh, by the way, when meeting with Gladstone’s acquaintances, what should I say about where I got the information? From what I hear, they don’t seem to have told anyone about being scammed.”

“Tell them that other victims have joined forces to catch the culprit and hired you. Then, if you say you found out about them while investigating the criminals, they won’t suspect anything. The fact that you found them even though they didn’t tell anyone except their lawyers means you have that much information.”

And if you instill that much trust in your abilities, they will pour out information even if you don’t ask for it.

Even if they don’t get their money back, they’ll welcome the chance to throw the trash who ripped them off into jail.

“Young Master, then to those victims…”

Just from the way he’s hesitating, I can see what he’s about to ask.

Unlike me, James probably hasn’t deceived anyone like this before, so he must feel a little guilty.

In that case, all you have to do is give him the conviction that you’re clearly telling a benevolent lie.

“If there’s enough income left later, give the victims you met some money as an information fee. If you squeeze those scammers dry, you won’t even notice a little information fee.”

“Yes! I knew you would say that, Young Master. I understand and will be on my way.”

As expected, James’s face looked much lighter as he bowed.

Well, in fact, getting specific information from the victims is helpful enough, so giving an information fee can be seen as a kind of business ethics.

There were several such cases in my previous life, and victims will try harder to recall even one more piece of useful information if you promise an information fee.

Above all, it would be great if this made James work even more enthusiastically.

After seeing him off with a satisfied feeling, I turned my steps towards the dormitory to write the full scenario.

I wonder what kind of information will come into my hands next week.

And how should I cook them to extract the best recipe?

It feels different from when I got the casino with simple sleight of hand.

My heart fluttered slightly with excitement as I thought about returning to my real job after a long time.