the.com/patronage
Power dressed as generosity, where every favor quietly mails you an invoice.
means The support, money, or jobs a powerful person grants in exchange for loyalty, votes, or business.
from From Latin patronus, a protector or master who freed slaves but kept them bound by obligation — the original strings-attached benefactor.
Two facesFunds cathedrals; also funds corrupt city machines.
Spoils systemWon elections once paid loyalists with government jobs.
Customer senseYour shop loyalty is patronage too — politer version.