African Entrepreneurship Records

  Chapter 270 The Loyal and Patriotic Merchant of Venice

  In Ernst’s eyes, the Great Zimbabwe site is just a pile of stones without any technical content. Like the Egyptian pyramids, it is nonsense to discuss any cultural value.

  Because these civilizations are completely cut off, the civilization of ancient Egypt was first wiped out by Rome, and then completely wiped out by the Arabs.

  The ruins of Great Zimbabwe did not leave any clues directly in the long river of history. There is also Machu Picchu in South America in the world, but Machu Picchu can still be determined to be a masterpiece of Indians.

  Whether Great Zimbabwe is the masterpiece of African indigenous people has been questioned by Europeans, because the surrounding indigenous people themselves do not have any skills to inherit these relics, and do not even know their origin.

  Early Europeans frantically associated the Great Zimbabwe site with Solomon's treasure. In the 21st century, there was no evidence to prove who built it, and it was classified as an indigenous building according to the principle of proximity.

  Actually, according to Ernst’s thinking, it doesn’t matter who built it. All the stone-built relics in the world are the products of miracles. They belong to the category of wonders. Those slave monarchs in ancient times would definitely like to create wonders.

  Because Ernst himself likes spectacle, but due to the limited conditions in East Africa, it has not been implemented. Ernst wonders if most boys like playing with mud when they were young, but he himself liked it when he was young.

  …

  The site of Great Zimbabwe, as a transit point, is a microcosm of East Africa’s invasion of the Matabele Plateau, and there is not even much intersection with the local indigenous people.

  The advance of the army is carried out at its own pace. The destination of the South Route Army is the Limpopo River, rather than conflicts with the local aborigines.

A regiment of the vanguard of the Southern Route Army had just casually wiped out an indigenous tribe who was seeking its own death. After the battle, the regiment's staff officer Linde pointed to the map and said: "The Limpopo River is on the southern edge of the Matabele Plateau. To the south, not far away is the sphere of influence of the Boers, and the task assigned by the higher authorities is to control the line of the Limpopo River and block the possibility of the Boers going north.”

Looking at the map, the head of the group, Huber, was a little puzzled and said: "Why does the kingdom keep Mozambique? If you count Angola and East Africa, they are surrounded by them, especially Mozambique is almost as embedded in Spain as Portugal on the Iberian Peninsula. inside."

Linde said: "This should be the Kingdom's strategic consideration. Last year, the British clashed with the Portuguese in southern Mozambique in an attempt to occupy the southern part of Mozambique, but failed. So the Portuguese still have some use value for the Kingdom. If we At this time, if the Portuguese are disabled, it is very likely that the British will take advantage of it. I also support this point. Mozambique is too narrow and long. If we attack from south to north, the front line is too long and it will take a long time. The British will It is possible to take advantage of the fire and rob Mozambique from the south at the same time. In the future, when we gain a firm foothold on the Matabele Plateau, we can respond from the west and monopolize Mozambique instead of sharing it with the British.”

   "These British guys are really greedy. They have so many colonies, and they don't share any oil and water with others!" Huber said angrily.

Linde just smiled. People are greedy, and East Africa is the same. Otherwise, there would be no third war of conquest. It is conceivable that these lands occupied by the military will be the negative assets of the kingdom for a long time to come. Apart from military spending, there will be no effective development.

  Southwest (Zambia) has just entered the development stage, and other newly occupied areas will definitely take time later.

In Africa, land claims are basically a piece of waste paper, and anyone can shout slogans. For example, in the previous life, the Congo (Kinshasa), Britain, Portugal, and France all claimed their sphere of influence, but in fact they were picked up by the Belgians in the end, because None of the three countries has actually invested in the region.

  Effective occupation is the right way. For example, the Kingdom of Portugal is not qualified to provide shoes to the United Kingdom, but in Mozambique, the British are powerless against the Portuguese colony, and the basic condition for effective occupation is the existence of military power.

  …

   Italian region.

  With the help of Venice's fortifications, the Italians really resisted the offensive of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In fact, this should be the normal state of war.

  Because the first two lines of defense were too childish, the Italians themselves felt unreliable and did not fight with all their heart. The Austro-Hungarian Empire used a little force, and the Italian army let go.

   This also led to most of the Italian troops on the Eastern Front being brought together on the Venetian defense line. At present, among the 250,000 troops of the Kingdom of Italy on the Eastern Front, 180,000 are concentrated in the city of Venice and surrounding areas.

  The army is concentrated, and many of them are defeated soldiers who retreated from the first two lines of defense. One can imagine the law and order in Venice.

   "Mr. Leon, I don't know what you are here for!" The supreme commander of the Italian command, Raffaele Cadorna, asked Leon, the head of the delegation sent by the Venice City Government.

"General Cadorna, on behalf of the Venice city government, I would like to express a solemn protest to you. Can you restrain your soldiers? They have caused many serious public security incidents in the city, and there are countless small cases, which have caused The public indignation of the citizens of Venice!"

After hearing Leon's intentions, Raffaele Cadorna moved a chair for Leon himself, and said: "Mr. Leon, please sit down and speak slowly if you have anything to say. Go and give Leon a seat." Make a cup of coffee, sir," said Raffaele Cadorna to the adjutant.

After stabilizing Leon, Raffaele Cadorna said unhurriedly: "Mr. Leon, I will order them to implement this matter, and the whole city will be strictly controlled immediately, but the citizens are the last It’s best not to go out on the street, because the current situation of the army is more complicated, because the retreat was more urgent two days ago, which caused many troops to be in chaos, and we are still rectifying, and we cannot effectively restrain the troops during this period.”

  Military control is actually a one-size-fits-all approach, forcibly separating the army from civilians. This is the only good way Raffaele Cadorna can think of.

Raffaele Cadorna was also very helpless. The frontline troops withdrew too quickly, and many troops were in chaos because the commanders and division commanders ran too fast. As a result, the lower-level troops followed suit, causing many platoon leaders to find If you don't reach the company commander, the company commander can't find the battalion commander...

This is because the establishment of the Kingdom of Italy was too short, and the temporary expansion of the army caused many officers to be unqualified. The military generals and nobles of the annexed kingdoms also mixed into the army of the Kingdom of Italy. Although the army of the Kingdom of Italy is now larger than that of the Kingdom of Sardinia Quite a few, but the combat effectiveness and command ability have dropped by a level instead.

   "In this case, I don't know if it will affect the normal operation of the factory." Leon asked.

   "Of course not, the business can operate normally as before, but it is best to manage the workers within the factory area."

   "What about other business activities of the enterprise? Such as food procurement, and other activities of citizens, they can't be starved to death at home and not go out!"

   "This will be handed over to your city government to run. You can organize temporary armed forces to maintain the operation of the city. The distribution of drinking water and food for residents will also be handed over to you for the time being. If this is not possible..."

Just when Raffaele Cadorna wanted to say that if the Venice city government disagrees, it can only abolish military control, but the mixing of residents and the army will not prevent some soldiers from committing crimes. The exit was interrupted by Leon.

   "No problem, leave it to the city government of Venice! General Raffaele Cadorna, you are really a courageous, resourceful and responsible general."

   "Ah! You agree!"

   "Of course, it is understandable for the citizens to entrust us, the public servants of the people, to comfort them and stay at home temporarily. The citizens will understand. After all, it is all the fault of the damned Austro-Hungarian invaders." Leon said righteously.

   "Thank you so much for your understanding!" Raffaele Cadorna, who didn't know that he had caused a catastrophe, said with emotion.

  The Venetian government is still reasonable and willing to fully cooperate with the kingdom in resisting the invaders of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It is true and reliable.

   And Raffaele Cadorna didn't know at all that Leon was the deputy mayor of Venice City Hall and was also one of the largest suppliers of salt products in Venice.

  (end of this chapter)