Chapter 554: The Hidden East vs. Jewish Power Struggle
Mogville didn't have time for flattery—he had plenty to do. As a newly established district, Grusegen City faced numerous problems needing resolution.
After two months of preparation, the East African Navy was finally ready to set sail for the Southern Ryukyu Islands.
"Father-in-law, why are you going out to sea again? You have plenty of subordinates now—there's no need to do everything yourself. The sea is dangerous. If something happens to you, how would I explain that to Karina?"
"Exactly, Father," Karina added softly, "please listen to Ernst. You're the navy's commander, so you should stay here and oversee things. The Southern Ryukyu Islands aren't even that important—there's no need for you to go personally. Mom and I just want you to stay safe."
"Uh… well, it's just that I saw how much Ernst values the Southern Ryukyus, so I decided to personally help him out," said Archduke Ferdinand.
As soon as he spoke, Karina shot Ernst a sharp look—this was all his fault!
Ernst quickly tried to deflect: "Father-in-law, don't pin this on me. Who said I cared so much about the Southern Ryukyus? It's just a nice-to-have—nothing essential. If I lost it tomorrow, I wouldn't even be upset."
Ferdinand looked at him skeptically. "If you didn't care, why all the supplies? You even brought heavy artillery—for a few worthless islands? Not even Mayotte got that kind of treatment."
Ernst replied, "Hah, you think I care just because of that?"
"Don't you? The weapons and supplies clearly show you plan to maintain a long-term presence. The scale is higher than what Lanfang received," Ferdinand retorted.
"Father-in-law, it's all a misunderstanding. The supplies weren't because I care deeply about the islands. Making them a Pacific outpost was just incidental."
Ferdinand remained unconvinced. He could see the truth—whether or not Ernst cared, other nations like the Far Eastern Empire and Japan certainly thought he did. Troops, warships... how could they not assume so?
"Sigh, Father-in-law, I'm not trying to deceive you. Strategically, the Southern Ryukyus mean little to me. They're far from East Africa, have no economic value, and would only create trouble for us."
"Yet you still took them," Ferdinand pointed out. "Same as East Africa—it wasn't a promising colony at first, but you took it anyway. Look how well it's turned out for you."
"There's no comparison. East Africa and the Southern Ryukyus are leagues apart. East Africa has over ten million square kilometers—even if it's all wasteland, it still holds value. You can always dig something up. But the Ryukyus? They've got nothing—no land, no people, no resources, no economy, no military value."
Ferdinand persisted. "Then why garrison it like Lanfang?"
"Father-in-law, I'm not defending the Ryukyus for their value, but to guard against petty thieves. Since we've taken it, we can't just hand it over. It's like a piece of cake—I might not want it, but if a beggar tries to steal it, I'll break his teeth."
Ferdinand narrowed his eyes. "And by 'petty thief' you mean... Japan?"
"Haha, Father-in-law, you know me well."
"Why do you treat Japan like that?" Ferdinand asked. Karina was also curious.
They both had a relatively good impression of Japan, which was a common misconception. In East Africa, everyone knew Ernst was friendly to the Far East—especially to Germans.
In Europe, "Far East" was a geographic term that included the Far Eastern Empire, Korea, Vietnam, and Japan. Mongolia, part of the East Asian Five, was still under the Far Eastern Empire. With Ernst stirring things up, its future was uncertain.
"Japan is a very extreme country. Don't be fooled by how restrained they seem now—they're full of dark intentions. The Far Eastern Empire knows this well. Simply put, Japan is a nation of backstabbers. They're not unlike the Jews. Their methods differ, but the outcome is the same."
Ernst explained to his wife and father-in-law. His tone was venomous. In this era, Jews had a notoriously bad reputation—unlike in later Western narratives where they were heavily protected by American influence.
In capitalist nations, Jews had immense influence, representing the most powerful transnational capital groups. This wasn't viable in the Arab world or the Far Eastern Empire, where native forces would push back fiercely.
Europe, having suppressed commerce in favor of agriculture, had left Jews to dominate finance and trade. When capitalism rose, their power surged. The freer the country, the more influence Jews gained.
As a reborn figure, Ernst was one of the few resisting Jewish financial control. His Hechingen Consortium had directly challenged the Rothschilds in Germany.
The Rothschilds couldn't touch him—Ernst was also a German aristocrat. Having a "native" in finance gave the German nobility a reason to support him. They controlled the military, so relied on Jewish finance—but still looked down on Jews.
Ernst couldn't eliminate Jewish capital, but he could restrain it—and the aristocracy welcomed that.
But this only applied in Germany. The Jewish strongholds were now in Britain and America. As for German attitudes toward Jews, history had already shown what Adolf thought.
Japanese industry was financed by Britain, which relied heavily on Jewish bankers. So, behind the East-Japan conflict, Jews still played a critical role.
The same applied in the Far Eastern Empire. East Africa and Jewish capital also clashed there—though East Africa had a semi-cooperative relationship with the empire and invested primarily in industry. Jewish capital, backed by Britain, relied on HSBC and other foreign firms to compete with German merchants—especially in finance. The Hechingen Bank was a direct competitor.
Ernst looked down on the Qing government, but he respected one thing—they valued industrial development, especially in heavy industry and arms. That was far better than the comprador, anti-industry "democratic" governments of the past.
The Qing collapsed due to incompetence, but they left something behind—especially in military industry. Unlike certain later regimes that, before dying, stole the treasury and foreign reserves, abandoning 400 million people who had saved for decades. Despite retreating to a tiny island, they underperformed compared to Japan and Korea. Ernst had nothing but contempt for such governments.
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 40 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Canserbero10