African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1454: Return of the Warrior
Compared with other capitalist countries in the early 20th century, East Africa's attitude towards the grassroots people is ultimately "kind-hearted". Although East African bureaucracy is more obvious, this is because the government bears more responsibilities. If it does nothing at all, the East African government can completely hide like the US government and shirk all responsibility.

In fact, this is not an isolated case in East African countries. The situation in Germany is actually very similar to that in East Africa, except that the two have different focuses. The same is true for Austria.

If Germany is considered "heretic" in the outside world, then the Soviet Union is considered "unhuman" in the eyes of other countries.

……

1927 5 Month 4 Day.

East Kalimantan.

Banjarmasin is one of the three major cities in the East Kalimantan colony and the southern core city of East Africa's rule over East Kalimantan. Corresponding to it are Tanjung in the north and Samarinda in the center.

Banjarmasin, Tanjung and Samarinda are also the only three modern cities in the East Kalimantan colony. Around these three cities, in recent years, East Africa has gradually launched a "mopping up" of the rainforest area in the hinterland of East Kalimantan.

The East Kalimantan colony in East Africa covers an area of ​​nearly 400,000 square kilometers, and its hinterland is an endless tropical rainforest, which makes it difficult for East Africa to completely wipe out the indigenous people in the interior.

In July 1926, the Lan Fang Overseas Province in East Africa, together with the East Kalimantan Colony, once again launched a siege against the indigenous people in the inland hinterland.

The encirclement and suppression process lasted for more than half a year and is only now drawing to a close, with the colonial troops in East Kalimantan returning to their respective bases.

Li Ji Fresh Food has a sign written in German, standing in front of the stall at the door of the store. According to the Citizens' Guide issued by the Banjarmasin City Government, all shops, businesses, schools, factories, government and public institutions in Banjarmasin must be marked in German.

Especially in the business places of people from East Kalimantan in East Africa, only German signs and notices can be used... Therefore, even the sign of the roadside stall Li Ji Fresh is described in German.

The announcement of the Banjarmasin City Government was based on the special provisions of the East Kalimantan Colony issued by the East Kalimantan Governor's Office in East Africa.

In the early days, when the German language was being promoted in East Africa, there were similar practices, but with the passage of time, these restrictions have now been completely lifted.

The colonies, apparently because of special circumstances, continued and intensified such practices.

Li Hui, the owner of Li Ji Fresh, is an "indigenous person" of East Kalimantan. His ancestors were from the Far East Empire. This allowed him to successfully avoid the encirclement and suppression by the East African government when it conquered the East Kalimantan region, and successfully joined the household registration of the East Kalimantan territory in East Africa. Of course, this colonial household registration obviously cannot be equated with East African nationality.

However, there is not much difference between the two. Colonial residents can also travel to East Africa, and their status is legally binding and they enjoy the same treatment.

The registered population in the East African colonies also liked to identify themselves as "citizens of the Rhine Empire" in foreign exchanges. Although this was not certified by the East African government, the East African government condoned the existence of such behavior.

The so-called fresh food in East Africa literally means raw and delicious. In fact, it refers to the sashimi of the Far East Empire, or Japanese sashimi, or raw fish slices. This is a way of eating that has become popular in the coastal areas of East Africa in recent years.

According to the description of the East African government, this fresh food originated from the sashimi of the Far East Empire. Of course, under the regulations of the East African government, fresh food can only use safer marine fish as raw materials.

Li Ji Fresh Food is obviously not something that came from East Africa, but is a traditional craft mastered by Li Hui’s ancestors, which is the sashimi of the Far East Empire.

Of course, in the eyes of East Africans, this is fresh food, so the business license issued to him by the authorities is also implemented in accordance with the local customs of East Africa.

Moreover, the authorities have also imposed certain restrictions, such as hygiene standards, food selection, etc., in order to regulate its safety and prevent parasites and other problems.

The economic prosperity of Banjarmasin in recent years has stimulated the development of the local consumer industry, so when it became profitable, Li Hui picked up this family craft to support his family.

Because of his superb knife skills, Li Hui's fresh produce has been well received by locals for its beautiful appearance, and even attracted some East African officials from Banjarmasin to become regular customers.

It is also thanks to this skill that Li Hui's Li Ji Fresh Food has successfully transformed from a roadside stall to a combination of a store and a roadside stall, with many citizens coming here every day.

At this time, Li Hui was waving a kitchen knife, chopping a swordfish on the chopping board. The swordfish was quite large. He skillfully disassembled the swordfish, washed it with clean water, and put it into an insulated box filled with ice. He did it in one go, which amazed the diners.

"Lao Li, you are such a great cook. It's a pleasure to see you cut fish every time."

A familiar voice was heard, Li Hui looked up and saw that it was indeed an acquaintance.

He asked the man, "Yaozu, has your unit returned from this operation?"

Lin Yaozu is a member of the East Kalimantan Territory Army in East Africa. In July last year, his unit joined the inland cleanup operations in the Lan Fang Overseas Province and the East Kalimantan Colony.

There was a look of vicissitudes on his face, his body was extremely strong, without any extra fat, and his skin was as white as bronze, and it was obvious that he had been exposed to wind and sun.

"Yes! I suffered a lot in this military operation. I am lucky to come back alive." Lin Yaozu said hoarsely.

Li Hui frowned and asked, "Was this battle very fierce?"

Lin Yaozu smiled and said, "There was no fighting at all. During this operation, we didn't encounter any enemies. We just hid in the woods every day."

"In my opinion, there are only a few natives left in East Kalimantan. It's hard for them to become a force to be reckoned with. After all, we have already surrounded and suppressed them for more than a dozen times. Even the weeds should have been harvested."

Li Hui heard this and asked, "Why are you sighing when you haven't encountered any battles? Isn't that a bad thing?"

Lin Yaozu shook his head and said, "It's not that simple. Compared to fighting the natives, trekking through the rainforest every day is the most terrifying thing."

"You have no idea how depressing and uncomfortable it is to stay in the rain forest in the hinterland. In the past few months, my clothes and shoes have never been dry for a long time. The rain forest is full of various insects and dense vegetation. Just marching in it is a disaster." "So, I would rather fight with the natives than stay in the rain forest."

Li Hui could empathize with the horror of the rainforest in the heart of East Kalimantan. As a native of East Kalimantan, he had also entered the rainforest when he was a child. There was naturally no big problem in the short term, but over a long period of time, it was pure suffering.

So Li Hui said: "The rainforest is really not a place for people to stay. If you can survive for a few months, it will be too hard."

Lin Yaozu nodded in agreement, but he also said: "Fortunately, the government was not completely inconsiderate of us soldiers before. We can rest every once in a while, and the supply of materials is sufficient. Otherwise, I'm afraid it would be difficult for me to hold on."

Even the colonial troops in East Africa were treated very well. Of course, there were differences between the colonial troops in East Kalimantan and those in the North Gulf (Persian Gulf).

The latter is entirely part of the East African National Defense Force, with elite troops from various military regions assigned by the East African government to be stationed in the North Gulf region.

As for the East Kalimantan colonial army, except for a small number of local troops, most of them were recruited directly locally.

The factors that cause this difference include population, strategic position, funding, etc. Take the North Gulf region for example. It is not only related to the future energy security of East Africa, but the North Gulf, that is, the Persian Gulf itself has a high strategic value. In addition, the North Gulf has a sparse population, which also increases the difficulty of recruiting troops.

The situation of the colonial army of East Kalimantan is quite different. Through years of development, the population of East Kalimantan has exceeded one million, which is almost the same as the population of some small countries in Europe.

Although the area of ​​the East Kalimantan colony is exaggerated, 400,000 square kilometers, almost equivalent to half of Germany, so East Kalimantan can also be said to be sparsely populated, but the amount of developed land in East Kalimantan is not large. Banjarmasin, Tanjung and Samarinda alone account for about 40% of the local population.

Moreover, there are no forces in the surrounding area that can threaten East Africa, so the defense pressure on the East Kalimantan colony is not great.

As for the indigenous resistance forces, they have actually always been the ones being "bullied" by East Africa and have not made much of a difference. This is even more so after so many years of encirclement and suppression.

To deal with these natives, there is no need for a national defense force at all. We can just hire some soldiers from the local area, give them simple training, and then rely on our weapon advantage to defeat these natives, and it can also greatly reduce the military expenditure of the East African government.

Of course, although the military expenditure of the East Kalimantan colony was relatively low, the East African government provided it with basic food, clothing, housing and transportation.

For example, food, medicine, tobacco, alcohol, etc., which the National Defense Force has, these quasi-regular armies also have. The main difference between the two lies in weapons and equipment, training intensity, and salary and benefits.

However, the salary level of the East Kalimantan colonial army is not eye-catching in the local area, and it can be considered above average in East Kalimantan.

Lin Yaozu said: "In the rain forest, the only things that can comfort me are cigarettes and alcohol. In the past few months, they have been in unlimited supply. However, after so much trouble, I haven't even seen a hair of the natives."

Li Hui said with a smile: "Of course. No matter how many indigenous people there are, they can't withstand the government's encirclement and suppression. After all, there are not many places to live in the rainforest."

Lin Yaozu agreed with this: "Our superior also said that this may be the last large-scale cleanup of the indigenous people of the East Kalimantan colony by the empire. In the future, the focus of the East Kalimantan colony will be on the northern border."

"Even if there are some that slip through the net this time, it is highly likely that they will find it difficult to survive and expand. After all, their population base is not enough to sustain the population, not to mention the harsh climate and various disasters in the rainforest. A minor cold or a flood could cause a small tribe to disappear silently in the long river of history."

"On the contrary, the northern border needs attention because it borders the British colonies. Many indigenous people fled to the British territory."

"However, this obviously has nothing to do with our troops, but it is something that other armies should pay attention to."

The unit to which Lin Yaozu belongs has jurisdiction over the southernmost part of East Kalimantan, so the situation in the north has basically nothing to do with them, unless there is a war between the British and East Africa. However, the strength of the British in Kalimantan is far less than that in East Africa, so the possibility of this happening is basically zero.

What East Africa is really wary of are the remnants of the previous dynasty who fled to northern Kalimantan, namely Sarawak, Brunei and other places. They are not afraid of their restoration, but are worried that they will secretly return to East Kalimantan.

After all, East Kalimantan is such a large area that it would be difficult to be discovered if someone sneaked in. This is one of the reasons why East Africa has not given up on the large-scale purge of the indigenous people of East Kalimantan over the years.

Lin Yaozu said: "In the coming period, East Kalimantan should be completely quiet and focus on economic development. Of course, the most important thing is that the army gave us a two-month long vacation. It is indeed comfortable to be an East African, whether it is the army or ordinary people. It is not like the life we ​​lived before."

Except for a small number of white immigrants, the residents of the East Kalimantan colony had basically had enough of the hard life. For example, Lin Yaozu, his family was originally a farmer on the plantation of a Chinese master in East Kalimantan.

Since the arrival of East Africans, local resources have been redistributed and development efforts have been intensified. This is also the main reason for the recovery and rapid development of East Kalimantan today.

Unlike the Dutch, whose rule in the local area was basically based on exploitation and insufficient construction, although East Africa also obtains resources such as oil from here, the investment is not small, especially the three major cities in East Kalimantan. In terms of development level, the level of modernization of cities in other parts of the world is basically on par, and the scale may be slightly inferior.

Li Hui also said with emotion: "At least East Africa treats us as human beings. They are not as arrogant as other Western countries. I hope that East Africa can continue to rule here in the future. After all, we can't enjoy such treatment in other places in Southeast Asia."

Lin Yaozu said: "That's natural. After all, half of East Africans' blood is from the Far East. Moreover, we are now citizens of the Empire and have household registration certificates. We are more confident when we go out."

"In recent years, many immigrants from the Far East Empire have come to Banjarmasin. When I see them, it's as if I saw what we looked like in the past, skinny and listless. But now, not only are our lives better, but our spirits have also improved. So, only with a strong motherland can we avoid being bullied by outsiders."

As a colony in East Africa, East Kalimantan has far fewer restrictions on immigration from the Far Eastern Empire than in the mainland, which makes it one of the more popular places in the Far Eastern Empire today.

After all, compared with other areas in Southeast Asia, the living habits and stability here are easier to integrate into, and once the time limit is reached, you can automatically become a citizen of the empire.

This is also the main reason for the rapid recovery of the population in East Kalimantan. Of course, the East African government has also tried to immigrate white people to the local area, but the number of white people that can be attracted each year is extremely limited. At the same time, other colonies in East Africa also have a relatively large demand for white immigrants, so the competition is particularly fierce.

However, no matter how much, this also further accelerated the ethnic and racial integration of the colonies, which is a matter of proportion.

(End of this chapter)