I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 365

< Opening (3) >

To put it simply, the 19th-century international order was often described as survival of the fittest.

A barbaric era where powerful imperialist nations exploited and annexed weaker countries, sometimes even merging them.

The British Empire, France, and most European powers basically did as they pleased.

However, when you looked at the reality, only a very few countries in Europe could truly enjoy this freedom.

Unless the Earth was truly infinitely vast and resources poured out endlessly, fertile land was bound to be limited.

For example, the British Empire didn’t allow any country to approach the area around India, and France was tremendously possessive of Algeria and the countries in the Indochina Peninsula.

Prussia was also recently becoming increasingly focused on developing overseas colonies, so as the late 19th century approached, there were hardly any places left to plant flags.

In this situation, if someone lost their mind and tried to develop a fertile colony, they would immediately be met with a swift and harsh response from the great powers and would have no choice but to back down.

It wasn’t for nothing that other small and medium-sized European countries were trying to anticipate the moves of England or France, hoping to secure even a single colony in Africa.

And even the British Empire and France were now in a position where they had to manage their colonies while maintaining some level of justification.

If they didn’t, dissatisfaction would inevitably accumulate with the sentiment that ‘are you guys going to hog everything yourselves?’

If even the great powers were like this, there was no need to mention the weak countries.

Unless they had a reasonably solid justification, they were not even allowed to wage war.

Rather, there were countless cases where they ended up not even recouping their losses, only providing the great powers with an excuse to intervene.

The European intellectuals predicted that the war between Joseon [ancient Korean kingdom], Japan, and Qing [the last imperial dynasty of China] would initially fizzle out like that.

From the perspective of European countries, Asia was like livestock that they had to raise diligently and then devour, and weren’t those livestock fighting each other?

Even if the pig that started the war was a pig raised by the British Empire, it was still livestock.

Qing was already prey that all the European powers were drooling over, and they couldn’t share this place with such third-rate countries.

France had initially intended to end this war and use it as an opportunity to further increase their influence in Asia.

At first.

“Our France is thinking of siding with Qing in this opportunity to gain more concessions.”

“Hmm… but aren’t Japan and Joseon allies of the British Empire?”

“Of course, I’m not saying we’re going to oppress them altogether. We’re just going to take this opportunity to delve deeper into Qing.”

“I think that would be good too.”

The opinions of the Prime Minister and ministers were almost identical.

Even if Japan was trying to cover up the fact that they were going to declare war, the fact is that they didn’t.

It could be said that they couldn’t, but in any case, Qing was the victim of a surprise attack, so they could mention that point and make Japan back down.

Next was Joseon, but frankly, does it make sense to invade land that your ancestors had a thousand years ago?

If they told them not to talk nonsense and kicked them out, Qing would owe France a huge debt.

In fact, France was willing to handle the situation themselves if the British Empire didn’t step in first.

However, in less than a week, France immediately reversed its position.

-If France is not affected by this war, it will remain neutral.

-Regarding which country has the legitimacy of the Manchurian region, which is the cause of the Asian conflict, we propose that each country’s investigation team thoroughly review and examine which country’s claim is more credible!

There were a few more announcements in addition to this, but in the end, what France was trying to say was clear.

They had to examine who had the legitimacy of Manchuria, but this was a proposal that Qing could never accept.

Saying that they would mediate if they accepted this was practically the same as saying that they had no intention of getting involved in this war.

Naturally, the European countries, which had expected France to step in and take a share, took France’s announcement as unexpected.

“Okay. So, is that it now?”

“Yes. We are deeply grateful for France’s generous decision.”

“No need for thanks. We’re all doing this to benefit ourselves. So, can we consider this contract to be definitely established?”

“Yes. We will reduce the interest rates on all ongoing projects.”

“I should be the one thanking you for this. Even if it’s not a few percent, when you add it all up, it’s going to be a huge amount, so thanks to you, we’ve saved a lot of money.”

France, which is currently growing rapidly, is carrying out a series of large-scale projects, from railway construction to infrastructure maintenance that had been delayed due to the previous war, and from weapons research to urban maintenance.

And naturally, such large-scale projects are accompanied by corresponding costs.

Rothschild [referring to the Rothschild family, a wealthy Jewish family with European banking interests] had established a good relationship with the French government during the previous food crisis, so they were involved in several public projects.

Their influence was so great that there was talk that there was hardly any place where Rothschild’s money was not involved in the projects that the French government was currently undertaking.

So, the French government had no choice but to welcome the offer to reduce the interest rates on these projects to a certain extent.

Moreover, the condition was not difficult, and all they had to do was to highlight the reason why Joseon attacked Qing internationally and observe how the situation unfolded.

“But I don’t understand. Aren’t you guys cold-blooded businessmen? I know you as people who don’t move unless it’s profitable, but you’re giving up some of the already guaranteed profits in exchange for watching the conflict in that distant land in the Far East? Is there a gold nugget hidden in that land called Manchuria? Are you planning to cooperate with the Joseon government to dig up resources there?”

“Of course not. In fact, we first learned that the land called Manchuria exists on Earth this time. What we are interested in is whether Joseon’s claim can be recognized by the world or not.”

“Even if we remain neutral, what about the British Empire? Are you going to request them to observe with similar conditions as us?”

“We already did. His Majesty Killian has also agreed to our proposal.”

If France and the British Empire both agreed, it meant that no one could actually intervene in the war.

“The more I hear, the less I understand why you guys are doing that.”

“We are trying to devise a more national business plan through this, so you don’t have to worry too much.”

Prime Minister Guizot felt that there was something going on, but that was it, and he couldn’t figure out what Rothschild wanted.

Rothschild also had no intention of revealing their purpose yet, so they just made excuses and never told the real purpose.

How could they say it?

To create conditions for the reconstruction of the Jewish state centered on ancient Israel.

Of course, it wasn’t that Rothschild was imbued with a spirit of nationalism and believed firmly in the promise that God had given them.

To be precise, the main reason was that they wanted to use the spirit of nationalism, which was currently in full swing, and their growing influence to carry out a business on a scale that was different from anything they had done before.

If the reconstruction of the Jewish state proceeds in earnest, who would they rely on?

Rabbi? Jewish tycoons from various countries scattered here and there?

That may be the case, but even among them, the family with the greatest influence would inevitably be their own family, which had accumulated wealth that ranked among the top three in Europe.

If Europe is turned into a neutral position, the side that actually wins between Qing and the Joseon-Japan alliance will end up taking Manchuria.

If Europe is made to recognize Joseon’s occupation of Manchuria, then all preparations will be complete.

From then on, they can rally the Jews and drive public opinion to create a new country in Jerusalem.

How much suffering have the Jews endured in Europe so far?

If they tell them that in that distant land in the Far East, a country called Joseon has regained the land where their ancestors used to live, and that Europe has recognized this?

They had told Killian that it would be a lucrative business, but they hadn’t said anything specific, and even he didn’t seem to know what they were really aiming for.

‘So please do your best to fight.’

The Rothschild family sincerely supported the country, whose name was unfamiliar even a few months ago, and steadily proceeded with preparations to build their paradise.

* * *

France’s declaration of neutrality was immediately conveyed to the British Empire, and my mind began to spin furiously again.

“Since France has declared neutrality as Your Majesty said, we don’t need to get involved here.”

“It seems like we should take the same position as France for now.”

“As expected, money is good. France is even taking Joseon’s side.”

“They’re not taking their side. They’re saying they’re neutral.”

“Isn’t that the same as taking their side? They’re practically condoning an absurd claim.”

Well, the very act of forming a joint investigation committee to determine whose words are correct is something that would make Qing furious.

It would be different if Qing was a Han-centric country like other Zhongyuan dynasties, but they are clearly a country where the Manchus reign as the imperial family.

It is a place that even uses a policy of sealing off Manchuria, considering it sacred.

But ironically, due to this sealing policy, Manchuria was in a situation where it could not defend itself from foreign invasion.

Of course, until now, there was no need to worry because there was no point in defending it.

The south was Joseon, a tributary state of Qing, and Russia to the north and east had no reason or leeway to come down to Manchuria.

But for that reason, when the war actually started, the Joseon army quickly advanced north with only a small number of troops and occupied all the major strongholds.

In this situation, France’s claim to examine whose land this is was like pouring oil on Qing’s anger, which was already burning fiercely.

Manchuria was Qing’s Achilles heel, even if it was different from other regions.

“How likely do you think Qing will give up Manchuria, Your Majesty?”

“0 percent.”

“That’s firm.”

“There is a 0 percent chance that they will give it up on their own, and about a 50/50 chance that they will be taken away by force? Originally, I thought even 20 percent was high, but it seems that the Jews are trying to advocate Zionism [a nationalist movement for the establishment of a Jewish state] through Joseon, so I gave it a little higher.”

“Zionism? What is that?”

As expected, Wellesley doesn’t know either.

I found out after Rothschild left, but the term Zionism itself did not exist in this era.

It seems that the movement will be created a little later according to the original history, but I think the butterfly effect of raising Rothschild in advance has come out in this way.

But as a result of examining it so far, Rothschild was not really going to develop a movement to build a nation-state for purely nationalistic purposes.

The goal is clearly not the result of building a Jewish nation-state, but the process.

Considering how much power and money will come and go in building a country and laying the foundation, I can roughly guess what they are aiming for.

“To put it roughly, it means that the public opinion that Joseon has recovered the land of their ancestors a thousand years ago, so why can’t we, will spread among the Jews.”

“If they’re sane, they wouldn’t think of doing it. No… but the Jews might do it. There’s definitely something special about that place. So, Your Majesty, did you accept their proposal knowing all their intentions?”

“France is currently in charge of the holy land. We can pass the complicated problem on to them, and we can slowly merge the Pacific while France is racking their brains.”

I stared intently at the map and marked the places that this side should take with a pen one by one.

“First of all, the land we definitely have now is Tainan in Taiwan here. The rest of the land still belongs to Qing, but considering the future, this place needs to be left as territory of our British Empire. And here, Hainan Island as well.”

A long line connecting Hainan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Shanghai.

When this line that wraps around the continent is completed, the China Sea will practically be our sea, not the China Sea.

“The problem is how can we do that.”

“So, we have to take this war as an opportunity. If Japan and Joseon perform better than expected, the opportunity will come.”

“…You don’t mean to hand over weapons to that side, do you?”

“We have to sell them, not hand them over. Well, they won’t have enough money to do that, so it will be impossible to make a lot of profit by selling weapons. So, it would be better for us to just sell them cheaply at a level that doesn’t hurt us. And since we are neutral, we have to sell weapons to Qing as well.”

“Didn’t you say it would be good for Joseon and Japan to perform well?”

The Civil War and the current war are different.

At that time, both were countries with a certain level of physique, so selling weapons was very profitable, but now, not to mention Qing, Japan or Joseon were not so attractive markets.

If the war is prolonged here, there may be various variables, so it was convenient in many ways for the balance of the war to tilt quickly, no matter who wins.

“It’s okay. Even if we sell weapons to Qing with excitement, they can’t use them properly right now.”

The reality of Qing is that they are diverting the money they made to buy warships to expand the imperial gardens and add to the Empress Dowager’s meal expenses.

But what? Are you going to buy weapons and ammunition to use on the front lines?

I know whose pocket it will go into, so why wouldn’t I sell it?

“So, let’s say we sell everything that Qing asks us to sell. There is one more problem. Of course, I want to have Taiwan and Hainan, enough to make me drool. But if we eat there, will France or Prussia stay still?”

“Of course they won’t stay still.”

If this side takes 10, you have to give the alliance something that looks similar, whether it’s nitrogen packaging or something, to maintain the relationship.

And of course, I didn’t have the slightest intention of taking anything out of my pocket and sharing it.

“Prussia got a colony they dreamed of in America last time, so if we give them something suitable in Asia, they will be moved to tears. Isn’t there something perfect right under Taiwan?”

“If it’s under Taiwan… are you talking about the Philippines?”

“Yes, what else would be under Taiwan besides the Philippines?”

“The Philippines is a Spanish colony.”

“Where in the world is there a permanent colony? Yesterday’s land can become someone else’s land tomorrow, or something like that.”

Wellesley, who thought I was joking for a moment, laughed and shook his head.

“Hahaha! If that’s the case, it’s no different from saying that humans will die someday, so it wouldn’t be strange if they died tomorrow.”

“······.”

“Oh, wasn’t that a joke?”

No. When have you ever seen me joking at such an important meeting?

Sooner or later, Spain is destined to spit out the Philippines without me lifting a finger.

They’ve built up too much karma.

Hey, Wellesley, don’t pretend to be shocked when you’re the Prime Minister of England.