The Fox of France

Chapter 247: The Conspiracy of the Ministry of Truth (1)

As the "old rogue" smoothly entered the grand building of the Ministry of Truth, Deputy Director Oliviera wasn't dismayed. Instead, he was even more excited.

"So, it's someone from the Ministry of Truth! What on earth are those folks up to with their conspiracies?" Deputy Director Oliviera pondered. The Ministry of Truth and the Ministry of Public Security had always been at odds, a well-known fact. After all, their operations had significant overlaps, and it was common knowledge that birds of a feather seldom flocked together. Moreover, there was the issue of budget rivalry, further intensifying the animosity between the two departments. The feud had almost escalated to the point of being irreconcilable, comparable to the rivalry between the navy and the army in a certain oriental country in later years.

If they could uncover the secret activities of the Ministry of Truth, perhaps even intercept one of their schemes, it would undoubtedly please Minister Fouché immensely.

Under normal circumstances, Deputy Director Oliviera had no chance of being promoted to the position of director. However, if he made a breakthrough in this matter, the director's seat would no longer be an unattainable dream.

But Deputy Director Oliviera had no intention of investigating this matter on his own. He wasn't arrogant enough to believe he could single-handedly delve into the activities of the Ministry of Truth. This matter needed to be reported first.

Deputy Director Oliviera headed directly to the Ministry of Public Security. Anything related to the "Ministry of Truth" had a high priority and secrecy level, which warranted immediate reporting to the Ministry of Public Security.

"What is the Ministry of Truth up to now? They must have discovered something. Regardless of their plans, keeping an eye on them is the right move," Assistant Minister Léon was quickly briefed and issued these instructions.

The Ministry of Truth was indeed involved in a conspiracy. That was entirely normal because conspiracies were one of its core functions, and they hatched hundreds of them every day. However, by a fortunate twist of fate, the Ministry of Truth had indeed uncovered industrial espionage activity near the Fifth Factory. The only thing they hadn't determined yet was whether these industrial spies were foreign or domestic. As a result, the entire case was still being processed according to procedure.

But at this very moment, agents from the Ministry of Public Security suddenly burst in with lightning speed, swiftly uncovering the spy ring. This left Lucien greatly infuriated, and he even began to suspect that there might be spies from the Ministry of Public Security within his own ranks.

So, Lucien initiated a departmental reorganization within the Ministry of Truth, using undercover agents embedded in the Ministry of Public Security to reveal several operatives who received allowances from both the Ministry of Truth and the Ministry of Public Security. This sparked Minister Fouché's own effort to reorganize the Ministry of Public Security.

While departmental reorganization was crucial, it couldn't overshadow the main work at hand. After all, merely capturing people wasn't the specialty of the Ministry of Truth. The Ministry of Public Security was more professional in that regard. The Ministry of Truth could keep a grip on the Ministry of Public Security because, apart from Lucien being a Bonaparte, the Ministry of Truth excelled at orchestrating high-level conspiracies. At least, that's how Lucien saw it.

For example, at this very moment in England, the Ministry of Truth's conspiracy was progressing systematically.

In the post-peace era, London's publishing scene had become lively. A multitude of French newspapers began publishing their English editions in London.

Among them, the renowned "Scientific Truth Gazette English Edition" was dedicated to speaking the truth, providing economic information, the mostly reliable "Businessman," occasionally inaccurate due to rushing for news, the entertainment-focused "Popular Entertainment English Edition," the sensational news outlet "The Sun English Edition," the comic magazine "Woodpecker Charlie English Edition," and the highly serious and professional "Nature," focusing on mathematics and basic science, and the medical-focused "The Lancet."

The emergence of this range of publications enriched the cultural and intellectual life of the people in London. More importantly, these newspapers were generally very affordable. For instance, "Scientific Truth Gazette," as a daily newspaper with four large-sized octavo pages, was priced at just four pence per copy, even less than the cost of wrapping paper.

However, "Businessman" was even more of a bargain, particularly for those who needed to sleep in cold rooms. This newspaper had sixteen octavo pages, with the exception of the first page, all the other pages were filled with mostly deceptive (in the majority) or truthful (a minority) advertisements. It was even cheaper, priced at just three pence.

Due to their low prices, these two newspapers became incredibly popular in London as soon as they were launched. London newsboys loved to bundle these two newspapers together, dashing along the streets and shouting, "Today's news is truly great! Two newspapers for just seven pence!"

Apart from these two newspapers, the magazines "Popular Entertainment" and "Woodpecker Charlie" were also well-received, with the latter, set in the time of Louis XIII in France, as the backdrop for its political satirical comic, "Yes, Bishop." It left British readers laughing uncontrollably.

As one of the results of many years of war, the perspectives of the French and the British towards each other had never been favorable. The upper echelons of both nations resented each other due to conflicts of interest, while the lower classes held grudges against each other due to propaganda.

However, "Yes, Bishop," a satirical comic that portrayed the selfish and greedy Richelieu, as well as the foolish nobles surrounding him, an oblivious king, a voracious clergy, and the clueless knights and officials, provided endless amusement for British readers and left them in stitches.

However, some sensitive Englishmen began to notice that the jokes in "Yes, Bishop" seemed to align quite well with the current situation in England. Many plotlines and dialogues brought to mind various events in England. Sometimes, what the British Prime Minister had announced or decided just the previous month would appear in "Yes, Bishop" the following month, albeit with the protagonist switched to the Frenchman Richelieu. Perhaps only a fool wouldn't realize that Richelieu, at least in "Woodpecker Charlie," wasn't just the historical French statesman of over a hundred years ago; he was also serving as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom today. Apart from that, Richelieu's bishop character in the comics shared some physical traits and quirks that closely resembled Prime Minister Addington.

So, soon enough, the current Prime Minister Addington acquired the moniker "Bishop Richelieu." Initially, Prime Minister Addington took pride in this, as Richelieu was undoubtedly a great figure in European history. However, he quickly grasped the implications.

After thoroughly examining the serialized "Yes, Bishop" in "Woodpecker Charlie," his face twisted with anger. He nearly issued an order to immediately shut down "Woodpecker Charlie." If it weren't for the fact that the Tories privately supported his ideas, he might have gone through with it.

The Tories were extremely disappointed with Prime Minister Addington's inaction – if he had taken such a step, it would have given them the perfect opportunity to accuse him of suppressing free speech.

Furthermore, some Tories had long been eyeing "Woodpecker Charlie." If "Woodpecker Charlie" were shut down, they planned to immediately bring the entire editorial team to the United Kingdom and launch "Woodpecker Richard." At that point, the ongoing comic might no longer be "Yes, Bishop" but rather "Yes, Prime Minister."

"I won't fall for it!" Prime Minister Addington muttered silently.

If "Woodpecker Charlie" only earned the Tories' hatred and the Whigs' favor, "The Sun" was genuinely beloved by all walks of life in England. That was because peeping into the private lives of public figures, especially the lives of the rich and famous, was a common human pastime. In this respect, the British were no different from the French.

"The Sun" in England maintained the same style as in France, focusing on all sorts of sensational news, especially the personal lives of prominent figures. In the French version of "The Sun," Lucien had the highest frequency of appearances among French officials – he appeared in "The Sun" more often than all other ministerial officials combined.

In England, the Tories could always find a Whig figure's scandal in "The Sun's" English edition, and the Whigs had no reason to feel unfairly treated. They could also always find a Tory bigwig's unmentionable stories somewhere else, even in several places. What's more, they weren't too keen on debunking such stories because, the more they denied, the more others believed.

However, the effect of this newspaper was somewhat different in France and England. In France, if you told people that Lucien was a womanizer and had numerous love children, most would consider it a testament to Lucien's charm, a mark of a real man. But in England, with its future "Victorian mindset" that proclaimed, "Discussions in polite society should never venture below the waist, not even to discuss piano legs, to avoid undesirable associations," such matters might not be so well received. To more conservative Englishmen, these kinds of stories indicated moral decay.

As for the scientific publications, they subtly showcased French civilization to the English. Since these publications offered very high pay, many British scholars gradually started submitting articles to them.

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