Great Power Reclamation

Chapter 2921 Strength is Power
Three months later, the first Horn of Africa Economic Development Forum was held as scheduled in the newly built international conference center in the capital of Marseille. Ye Rou, dressed in a white suit, stood confidently in front of the podium.

"The Marseille-Soviet Joint Bank was officially established today with an initial capital of US$100 billion, and will provide low-interest loans for regional infrastructure projects." As she announced this news, representatives from neighboring countries in the audience whispered among themselves.

A Tanzanian journalist asked: "Your Majesty, there are critics saying that this is the beginning of Marseille and the Solomon Islands' attempt to economically colonize their neighbor. How do you respond?"

Ye Rou maintained her smile and calmly replied, "Africa has long been economically colonized by external forces. Now it's time for us to take control of our own destiny."

"The United Bank of Marseille and Somalia is open to investment in all African countries, and board seats are allocated according to the proportion of capital contribution, which is completely transparent and fair."

Meanwhile, on the northern border of Somalia, Yang San was inspecting the newly formed mechanized infantry division. Tanks kicked up clouds of dust, and the soldiers marched in perfect unison.

"MiG military advisors are helping Egypt train its special forces, right on the other side of the border."

The Solomon Islands' defense minister pointed to the location on the map and told Yang San.

Yang San sneered, "It seems the old men from the colonial era are still unwilling to let go." He turned to his chief of staff and gave the following order:

"Deploy the newly acquired drone reconnaissance system to the border to monitor any unusual movements 24 hours a day. At the same time, invite the Chinese military advisory group to train our air defense forces. I believe Dad will help with this."

A week later, Yang Da chaired an agricultural cooperation conference in Marseille and announced:

"Marseille will provide high-quality seeds and agricultural technology assistance to neighboring countries, while purchasing all surplus grain at market prices. We are also building a regional grain reserve system to cope with possible natural disasters."

This move had an immediate effect. Agriculture ministers from several neighboring small countries expressed interest, given Marseille's remarkable agricultural achievements in recent years.

However, not everyone welcomed this development. The MiG ambassador to Kenya wrote in a secret diplomatic cable:

"The Maasai-Soviet Union is clearly attempting to establish regional hegemony, which will undermine the traditional interests of the United Nations in East Africa. It is recommended that the UN tricolor states and the United States take measures to contain it."

Soon, a media attack targeting Marseille-Soviet's economic initiatives unfolded in Western media. The Economist published an article titled "Neo-colonialism or Real Development?", questioning Marseille-Soviet's true motives.

The BBC produced a special program suggesting that Huaxia Capital was manipulating everything behind the scenes through Ye Feng.

Upon seeing these reports, Ye Mei was furious and immediately convened a press conference:

"Western media are used to manipulating Africans' discourse and defining what is good and what is bad. Today, we want to use our own voices to tell the world—Africans have the ability to determine their own future!"

That evening, Ye Rou had a video call with Ye Feng: "Brother, we need your support in the international arena."

Ye Feng responded with a smile from his office in New York:

"It's all arranged. Brother News will broadcast a three-part special report on African development tomorrow, and the Wall Street Journal will also publish my optimistic article on the prospects for investment in Africa."

"In addition, Jewish capital groups have agreed to lobby the U.S. Congress to suspend certain trade restrictions on East African countries."

"Thank you, brother," Ye Rou said sincerely.

Ye Feng waved his hand: "We're all family, no need for formalities. But just a heads-up, MI6 from the US and DGSE from the US have been flooding into East Africa. Be careful. Should I send some security personnel over?"

Ye Rou shook her head confidently: "Yang San has already assembled an excellent counterintelligence team. Let us handle it ourselves."

While economic cooperation is progressing, military pressure is also increasing.

The EU, under the guise of "combating piracy," has deployed additional warships to the Gulf of Aden, clearly to monitor Solomon Islands naval activities. Yang San, not to be outdone, announced a month-long large-scale naval military exercise and even test-fired newly purchased anti-ship missiles.

"Let them know that Somalia is not to be trifled with." Yang San stood on the command ship, watching the missile accurately hit its target, and said to Ye Mei with satisfaction.

Ye Mei, however, seemed slightly worried: "Militarily we can be tough, but political isolation still exists. The next African Union summit will be held in Egypt, and I've heard that some countries are preparing to put forward a proposal 'against regional hegemony'."

Yang Da then suggested: "Why don't we take the initiative to propose hosting the next African Union summit? The facilities at the new Marseille International Conference Centre are first-class. At the same time, we can commit to covering half of the conference costs and establish an African Development Fund to support the least developed member states."

The Ye sisters exchanged a glance and smiled simultaneously.

“That’s the plan,” Ye Rou decided. “We need to flex our muscles while also extending a friendly hand.”

Four weeks before the African Union summit, an invisible war has already begun in Addis Ababa.

Yang Da personally led a delegation to Egypt to lobby representatives from various countries to support Marseille hosting the next summit. His gentle demeanor and pragmatic commitment to financial support impressed representatives from many small and medium-sized countries.

"Masai is willing to provide five full scholarships to each least developed country, specifically to train agricultural and medical personnel."

During his meeting with Malawi representatives, Yang Da promised, "At the same time, we can send agricultural experts to help your country increase maize production."

Meanwhile, Ye Mei received military delegations from various African countries in Somalia, showcasing the live-fire exercises of the newly formed joint rapid reaction force.

"The Solomon Islands is willing to share its experience in counter-terrorism and anti-piracy with other countries."

Dressed in military uniform, Ye Mei looked heroic and spirited. "We can train ten special forces soldiers for each friendly country, and we will cover all the costs."

However, Western powers did not stand idly by. The U.S. State Department suddenly announced that it would provide a total of $6 million in military aid to Egypt, Kenya, and Tanzania.

The three-color countries invited leaders from more than ten African countries to participate in the "Franco-African Security Summit" held in Paris.

To make matters worse, an international human rights organization suddenly released a report accusing the Solomon Islands government of “violating the rights of ethnic minorities” in the border region, prompting the European Union to express “serious concern.”

“This is a classic example of information warfare,” Ye Rou analyzed at the emergency meeting. “Their choice to release this report before the summit is aimed at weakening our influence.”

Yang San angrily replied, "That's completely fabricated! There are no ethnic minorities in those areas at all, only some anti-government armed groups funded by foreign powers."

"Facts are not important; what matters is the right to tell the story," Ye Rou said calmly.

“Take three things immediately: First, invite neutral international media to form a team to conduct on-site interviews in the so-called infringement areas.”

"Second, have our embassies abroad hold press conferences to refute the accusations; third, contact Brother Ye Feng and ask him to launch a counterattack in Western media."

This series of measures quickly proved effective. Brother News broadcast a special program revealing that the funding for international human rights organizations mainly came from certain European governments, and that the organization's head had previously served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Tricolore.

Brothers Investment's think tank also released a report detailing Western countries' arms sales data to Africa, questioning:

"Who is the real force destabilizing Africa?" A week before the summit, a sudden crisis shattered the surface calm.

Yang Da was staying at a hotel in Addis Ababa when a bomb attack occurred. Fortunately, he was out attending a meeting at the time and escaped unharmed, but two Marseille security personnel were injured.

Upon hearing the news, Ye Mei immediately flew into a rage: "This is a declaration of war! It must have been instigated by the Americans or the Tri-color people!"

Ye Rou remained relatively calm, but her eyes were cold: "Don't make accusations without evidence. The most urgent task is to strengthen security, and at the same time, we cannot let this matter affect our summit bid."

Yang San took a more direct approach – he personally led a team of special forces soldiers to Addis Ababa overnight.

“I will personally take charge of my brother’s safety,” he told Ye Mei, “and at the same time find out who is the mastermind behind it all.”

In Addis Ababa, Yang San demonstrated astonishing intelligence-gathering capabilities. Through cooperation between the Somali intelligence department and the intelligence agencies of China and Russia, a suspect was identified within 72 hours—a former member of the MiG SAS employed by a private military company.

Even more surprisingly, they discovered that the company was actually controlled by a Tricolor Energy Corporation, which was competing with Ye Feng's brother for a natural gas extraction project in Tanzania.

“Commercial interests drive political violence,” Ye Feng told Ye Rou in a encrypted call. “It seems we’ve touched a nerve with some people.”

After a moment's thought, Ye Rou made a decision: "On the one hand, lodge a formal protest with the government of the Tricolor Kingdom through diplomatic channels."

"On the other hand, let our media expose the scandal of this French company—Brother Ye Feng, you should have enough material, right?"

Ye Feng smiled: "Of course. This company has covered up at least ten bribery and environmental pollution incidents in Africa in recent years, which Brother News would be happy to report."

The bombing, ironically, became a turning point. Many African Union countries were outraged by this blatant violence, especially after learning that Western interest groups might be behind it.

Countries that initially supported the tricolor countries' nomination (to host the next summit) began to waver.

The day before the summit, Yang Dacheng successfully reached an agreement with Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa:

Maasai will help Nigeria build three large grain storage centers, while Nigeria will support Maasai in hosting the next African Union summit.

Meanwhile, Ye Mei's military talks in Addis Ababa also achieved a breakthrough:

The Solomon Islands signed a joint security agreement with five East African countries, pledging to share intelligence and cooperate in counterterrorism.

On the day the investigation results of the explosion were released, the stock of the energy company in the Tricolore country plummeted by 7%, forcing it to withdraw from the bidding for the Tanzanian project. Brother Investment successfully won the bid.

That evening, Ye Rou sounded slightly tired during a video call with Ye Feng: "Brother, this game is too complicated. Every step has unexpected challenges."

Ye Feng encouraged her: "Do you remember how hard your father and Uncle Yang struggled in Marseille back then? It was much harder than this. We now have the advantage of timing and location, and most importantly—we represent a direction that truly serves the interests of the African people, not the plunder of external forces."

Ye Rou nodded: "Yes, that is our biggest advantage."

On the final day of the African Union summit, voting officially began on the host city for the next summit.

Ye Rou and Ye Mei sat side by side in the observation deck, outwardly calm but inwardly tense. Yang Da and Yang San, meanwhile, were making a final effort between different delegations.

The three countries supported Egypt's re-election and offered substantial economic aid. However, Marseille's proposal was more comprehensive—not only did they pledge to cover half of the conference costs, but they also proposed a package of plans including establishing an African development fund, building a pan-African food security system, and forming a joint African rapid reaction force.

The voting lasted an hour. When the African Union chairman announced that Masai had won by an overwhelming margin, Ye Rou held Ye Mei's hand tightly, her eyes glistening with tears.

“We have succeeded,” she whispered. “African affairs are finally being led by Africans themselves.”

Ye Mei hugged her sister tightly, her voice trembling as well: "Things will get better and better from now on."

That evening, Ye Rou delivered a historic speech at the celebration banquet:
"Today is not a victory for Maasai or the Solomon Islands, but a victory for all of Africa. We are no longer passive recipients of aid, but masters of our own destiny. From this day forward, Africa will speak with one voice and move forward with one step!"

Immediately after the speech, seven East African countries signed a letter of intent to join the "Massai-Soviet Economic Community," marking the formal birth of a regional group with 1.2 million people and a combined GDP of over US$3000 billion.

Western media reactions were mixed. The New York Times had to admit that "the geopolitical landscape in Africa is undergoing a fundamental change," while the Financial Times wrote with concern that "Chinese capital is expanding its influence in Africa through local agents."

A month later, at a signing ceremony held in Marseille's capital, the East African Economic Community (EAEC) was officially established. Ye Rou was elected as its first Secretary-General, while Ye Mei served as Chairperson of the Joint Security Committee.

Halfway through the ceremony, Yang San suddenly received an urgent report: the Somali Navy had intercepted a fleet in the Gulf of Aden that was attempting to sabotage an undersea fiber optic cable. The crew claimed to be an "international marine research team" but were equipped with a large amount of spy equipment.

"Bring them back to the port for thorough examination," Ye Mei ordered directly. "This time, we must seize evidence of direct Western interference."

At the same time, Yang Dazheng chaired the first meeting of the community's agriculture ministers, announcing the establishment of a regional food reserve system and an agricultural technology sharing platform.

Even more surprisingly, the Jewish capital delegation arranged by Ye Feng immediately pledged to invest $50 billion to build a solar power generation network in East Africa.

That evening, the Ye sisters and the Yang brothers stood on the newly renovated balcony of the palace, overlooking the brightly lit city.

“Father will be proud of us,” Ye Rou said softly. “We not only protected this land, but also made it stronger.”

Yang Da put his arm around his wife's shoulder: "This is just the beginning; there's still a long way to go."

Yang San, however, was ambitious: "The next step is to consider West Africa and South Africa. One day, the whole of Africa will unite."

Ye Mei smiled and shook her head: "You should deal with the matters around the Kingdom of Solo first. Don't forget, we still have the pirate problem to solve completely."

At that moment, a servant brought over an encrypted satellite phone. Ye Rou answered it, a complex expression on her face.

“It was the US Secretary of State who called personally,” she told others, “inviting us to visit Washington next month to discuss a ‘new type of US-Africa relationship’.”

The four men looked at each other and laughed. Yang San joked, "See, when you become so powerful that you can't be ignored, even your enemies will become your friends."

Ye Rou gazed at the starry sky, recalling a phrase her father often said:

"In international relations, there are no permanent friends or enemies, only permanent interests. But we can try to redefine what interests are."

She turned to her assistant and said, “Reply to the U.S. State Department that we are pleased to accept the invitation. Also, connect me to Brother Ye Feng’s phone – it’s time to discuss the next phase of Brother Investment’s strategy in Africa.”

The lights of the Horn of Africa twinkle in the night, like a giant awakening from darkness. A new power structure is taking shape, and this transformation has only just begun.

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