African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1462: Gangtok Secret Talk

The unusual thing about the South Asian Three Countries Office is that it is not located in Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan, but in Darjeeling in British India.

The reason for this is transportation issues. The British built a railway in Darjeeling. The railway in Darjeeling was completed in the last century and is also one of the earliest railways in British India.

At the same time, because a large number of British officials, Indian aristocrats and high castes come here for vacation every year, the infrastructure is quite complete.

Moreover, according to the treaty signed between Sikkim and Britain in the early 19th century, the Sikkim government was not allowed to allow Europeans and North Americans to live in Sikkim. At the end of the 19th century, Britain went a step further and forced the Sikkim government to sign a new treaty prohibiting the Sikkim government from conducting diplomatic activities with other countries.

The situations in Nepal, Bhutan and Sikkim are similar, but since Darjeeling was seized by British India, there are not so many concerns.

Now that Charleson is here, he wants to move all offices to Sikkim, which can be regarded as "Brexit and Africa" ​​in a sense, and he also has to circumvent British laws.

After all, Sikkim's economic situation and level of development are not even as good as some backward countries in Africa. Their so-called royal capital may not be much different from a larger village, and various supplies are not easy to obtain.

Take electricity for example. It is basically zero. This also means that if Charleson's future office wants to communicate with the mainland, it will need to have its own generators, wireless telegraphs and other facilities.

As for how to bypass the British restrictions and enter Sikkim, this was not a difficult task for the East African government, because it was very easy for the East African intelligence agencies to obtain a British identity.

Moreover, even if the UK has a strict household registration system similar to that of East Africa, it cannot stop East Africans from entering these regions. After all, the UK still has many colonies, such as Australia, Canada, South Africa, etc., and they can also carry out work by obtaining colonial status.

Of course, this also means that the embassies of the three East African and South Asian countries can only continue to carry out their work secretly like the offices of the three countries in the past.

……

Gangtok is the capital of the Kingdom of Sikkim today. Gangtok is not large in size, with a population of only about 10,000 people. It is considered a relatively prosperous town on the southern foothills of the Himalayas.

It connects the trade route between the Far Eastern Empire and India. Of course, the scale of trade on this trade route is not large, but for Sikkim, which has a small population, it is also an important source of income.

1927 12 Month 3 Day.

The office of an Australian tea company called "Bechani" has officially been established in Gangtok. According to the company's public information, their main business activities are to contract land locally, grow tea, and then sell it to Australia.

This company did not attract much attention. After all, there were not many British people in Sikkim. As for the locals, they could not tell the authenticity of this company and did not dare to provoke the "British".

In the Sikkim Royal Palace.

"Your Majesty, King Namgal, I hope you can keep your mouth shut about the content of our conversation, otherwise it will not be good for everyone."

Namgyal is the surname of the royal family of Sikkim. They are Tibetans themselves and used to pay tribute to Tibet. In other words, Sikkim was once a vassal state of the Far Eastern Empire.

King Namgal looked at the narrowed eyes of Chalsen in front of him, and suddenly became a little nervous. Chalsen asked him to keep his mouth shut as soon as he opened his mouth, which made him feel a strong premonition of conspiracy.

He pretended to be calm and asked, "Mr. Charleson, what secrets do you have in the UK this time?"

Namgyal was really scared of the British. Since the 19th century, Sikkim had basically not had a peaceful life under the British. Sikkim, which already had a small territory, had also undergone several territorial cessions, which made the already poor country even worse.

For example, Darjeeling was originally Sikkim's territory, but now it is British territory. After the British occupied these lands, they also migrated a large number of Nepalese and Indians. This is one of the reasons why Sikkim resisted the British so strongly.

After all, the land where they have lived for generations was seized by the British and is also inhabited by other ethnic groups. Five cities are ceded today and ten cities are ceded tomorrow. The future fate of the Tibetans in Sikkim can be imagined.

However, Sikkim could not defeat the British. The consequence of its last strong resistance was an even harsher treaty and further loss of land and sovereignty.

Charleson shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, King Namgyal, to tell you the truth, I am not British."

His frankness made Namgyal even more alert. In his opinion, this might not be a sting operation by the British.

Looking at the silent and alert Namgal, Charson did not explain too much, but said bluntly: "Charson is indeed my name, but I am East African. I wonder if your Majesty King Namgal has any knowledge of this country in East Africa?"

Although Sikkim's geographical location makes it difficult for it to have contact with the outside world, it does not mean that the Sikkimese people know nothing about the outside world, especially the top nobles and monks of Sikkim, some of whom have studied abroad, but they have only been to Kolkata in British India.

But Kolkata was enough for them to broaden their horizons and recognize some new things in the world and changes in the international environment.

Namgal said, "Of course I have heard of East Africa. After all, according to rumors, East Africa is a powerful country, but I am not sure about the specific situation. Mr. Charleson, are you from this country? What evidence do you have? What is your purpose in coming to Sikkim?"

As the king of Sikkim, Namgyal was very cautious when asking these questions. His attitude was neither humble nor arrogant, and even looked a little stiff, which showed that he had not let down his guard.

Charleson took out a document and a letter of credence from his pocket and said to Namgal, "This is my ID. I am Charleson, the East African ambassador to the three South Asian countries. This is the letter of credence for the establishment of relations between the Empire and Sikkim."

Namgyal took the certificate carefully, but he could not understand the German on it at all. Namgyal knew Tibetan and English, but obviously knew nothing about German. However, he could still see the black and white photo of Chalsen on the certificate.

As for the official letter, he was finally able to understand it because in addition to the German language, there were also Tibetan annotations.

Charleson said on the side: "The Rhine Empire, that is, East Africa, is one of the most powerful countries in the world. Our country is more powerful than Britain."

"At the end of the last century, East Africa had a war with Britain, the South African War, and defeated the alliance of Britain and Portugal."

"In the decades since the South African War, the empire has developed even more rapidly, surpassing Britain in industry, military and other fields."

"And the purpose of my visit to Sikkim this time is to strengthen the cooperation between our two countries and pave the way for the future development of our two countries..." Namgal did not care about what Charleson said. After all, the current situation in Sikkim could not withstand any turmoil unless the British withdrew from South Asia.

After reading the letter, he said to Charleson: "Mr. Charleson, even if you are really an East African, what does that have to do with us in Sikkim?"

"Sikkim is a country so small that it can't be any smaller. It's not worth your country's efforts. Our 'cooperation' with the UK is good now. As long as the UK allows us to continue to exist, we don't have too many ideas."

Namgar's words revealed a deep sense of humility and numbness to the current situation.

Chalson didn't care too much about it. A weak country has no diplomacy, and he had already anticipated Namgyal's attitude.

Therefore, he said: "Your Majesty King Namgal, in fact, you don't need to be so pessimistic, and we from East Africa came here with sincerity this time."

“As you said, the current situation in Sikkim is not good. You have no right to choose. Your fate is completely in the hands of the British.”

"We in East Africa are also very clear that if we really drag you into this, it will not be good for you, but will harm you instead."

Namgyal bowed to Charleson and said: "Thank you for your understanding, Mr. Charleson. It is impossible for Sikkim to go against the will of Britain."

Charleson waved his hand and said, "We in East Africa never expected you to stand with the Empire now. After all, even if the Empire really wants to be an enemy of Britain, you can't provide much help."

"To put it bluntly, Sikkim's size is only as big as a sesame seed compared to East Africa. Its other data are not even a little bit worse. Let alone Sikkim, even Nepal can't play a big role in East Africa now."

Nepal is also a small country in East Africa, but compared to Sikkim, it is a big country.

Namgyal asked, "Then I wonder, Your Excellency, what is your real intention in coming to our Sikkim?"

He didn't believe that he had no other purpose in coming to East Africa. To put it bluntly, he might not even earn enough to pay for the trip to Sikkim for cooperation.

Charleson did not shy away from saying: "Our purpose in East Africa is mainly to target India, or the future India."

"Namgal probably doesn't know that the signs of anti-colonialism have already appeared in the world, which means that most of the colonies in the world may become independent in the future. The British will withdraw from South Asia one day, and this day will not come too late, maybe just a few decades later."

After all, Namgyal could not understand how India could get rid of the control of the powerful British. After all, Sikkim where he was located was like an ant in front of the British and could be crushed to death at any time.

That's why Charleson had to explain to him: "India and Sikkim are two completely different concepts. After all, India's total population exceeds 300 million, and the British army in India is only about 100,000. It is obviously impossible to rule over 300 million people with an army of more than 100,000. Therefore, British India will inevitably be out of British control in the future."

"Even if a million or tens of millions of Indians died, it would not be a big deal for India as a whole. This is unimaginable for a small country like Sikkim."

Namgyal really couldn't imagine such a scenario happening. In fact, in a random famine, hundreds of thousands of people might die in India. If this happened in Sikkim, the country would have been destroyed long ago. After all, the population of Sikkim might only be a few hundred thousand.

Charleson went on to say: "Even without the support of Britain, India after independence is still the most powerful country in South Asia. However, India is obviously more formidable than Britain. After all, Indians are very fertile, and I believe His Majesty the King of Namgyal knows this."

Namgal nodded without denying it.

"India has a population of more than 300 million, but it lives in such a crowded subcontinent. In the future, it will inevitably expand outward to obtain more land," said Charleson.

"Even Sikkim, a tiny country with poor mountains and bad waters, is probably part of their plot. Lord Namgyal, do you think my judgment is reasonable?"

"Don't be so quick to deny it. After all, India is a country that cannot escape human nature. Moreover, India and Sikkim have completely different cultures and races. Moreover, Sikkim is too weak. If the British withdraw from here, do you think India will let you go?"

Sikkim is a Buddhist country of the yellow race. It can be said that it is out of place in South Asia. The race, culture and beliefs are different...

Namgyal's expression became more and more solemn. He often dealt with Indians, so naturally he did not believe in their integrity. Indians were good at sophistry, unreasonable, bullying the weak and fearing the strong, and taking advantage of the power of others. Sikkim was just such a weak country.

Now, we are all colonized people under the British colony, and the Indians are so presumptuous. Then in the future, if the British withdraw, the Indians will definitely rebel.

"Ambassador Charleson, can East Africa guarantee the security of Sikkim in the future?" Namgal asked Charleson.

At this moment, Namgal's address, attitude and tone towards Charson changed.

Charleson smiled and said, "Your Majesty, you can learn more about our East Africa in the future. You still have some misunderstandings about our East Africa's strength. In the entire Indian Ocean region, our East Africa is the most powerful country, without a doubt. Even the British have to give way to the empire."

“Even if India becomes independent in the future, they will never surpass East Africa. If Sikkim wants to avoid being annexed by India, there is only one way, and that is to turn to East Africa in advance. Only in this way can the empire have a legitimate reason to protect Sikkim’s security.”

"Of course, I'm saying this not now, but in the future, after the British withdraw from South Asia, Sikkim will turn to the empire as soon as possible."

"To be honest, we in East Africa do not covet your land, population and resources. The only thing we are interested in is the military value of Sikkim's geography."

"Sikkim is a small fulcrum for the empire to contain India's development in the future. We do not rule out the possibility of deploying some military weapons in Sikkim. Of course, the empire will also guarantee Sikkim's security. Our two countries have a common enemy, that is India."

"Neither the Empire nor Sikkim wants India to be strong. This is our common interest. You are for your own security, while we want hegemony in the Indian Ocean and to ensure that no great power other than East Africa will rise within the Indian Ocean."

"So, next, the Empire will make some investments in Sikkim. We hope to gain your support and cover. It would be best if we don't attract the attention of the British. This way, when the British withdraw from South Asia in the future, Sikkim will not be without support."

In fact, if the British really withdrew from South Asia, Sikkim would have one option, which was its traditional sovereign, the Far Eastern Empire. However, Sikkim's location was too bad. At least in this century, the Far Eastern Empire did not have the ability to guarantee Sikkim's security.

(End of this chapter)