African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 102: Chapter 97 Travel

Maximiliano I, who was whiling away his days in East Africa, was naturally not the type who could stay idle. Having had enough of the tedious life in Mombasa, he decided to plan a journey to explore East Africa.

Meanwhile, in Europe, Maximiliano I’s family had learned through Ernst that he was staying in East Africa. They considered calling him back, but Maximiliano I was inherently stubborn, the kind that ten oxen couldn’t drag back.

Maximiliano I’s current state of mind was probably similar to Xiang Yu’s when he took his own life by the Wujiang River — too ashamed to face the elders of Jiangdong.

Back then, he had gone against all the family’s opposition and was determined to go to Mexico to achieve his ambitions and values, but in the end, he ended up imprisoned.

Therefore, Maximiliano I was determined to stay in East Africa for three to five years until people forgot about him, and then return to the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

If he had no concerns, Maximiliano I would have loved to live in East Africa for a lifetime, but he was a filial son. Though somewhat willful, he didn’t want his mother to be heartbroken, especially as she was getting older and he needed to go back to visit her in the future.

Despite feeling very depressed due to his failure, after coming to East Africa, Maximiliano I still wrote a few letters home to his mother to assure her of his safety, preventing her from worrying.

As for other people, like his brother and father, he asked Empress Dowager Sophie to send them his regards in the letters.

Maximiliano I had no way to keep his beloved daughter by his side at the moment. When he went to Mexico, he worried about the situation and environment, fearing his young daughter couldn’t endure it.

So he left her in Austria under his mother’s care, as Austria’s living environment and educational conditions were top-notch.

Now, having become down-and-out and exiled to East Africa, he couldn’t ask for too much.

Queen Carlota, who had been seeking aid among European countries, learned from the news sent by the Habsburgs that her husband had escaped disaster and was preparing to travel to East Africa to reunite with him.

Originally, when she heard that Empress Dowager Sophie had arranged a marriage for her daughter without consulting herself or Maximiliano I, Queen Carlota was quite indignant.

Regardless of who the betrothed was, as a parent, naturally, one should decide their daughter’s fate. Though she herself was in a political marriage, she and Maximiliano I truly loved each other. At that time, Queen Carlota was Princess Charlotte of Belgium, but she fell in love at first sight with the not particularly outstanding Maximiliano I.

The Belgian royal family wasn’t considered inferior in Europe, matching the Habsburgs, so the two of them didn’t experience much obstruction; in that era’s Europe, they were the epitome of a perfect marriage.

Maximiliano I and Queen Carlota had a deep affection for each other; unfortunately, their aspirations were too high, ultimately falling into the political mire in Mexico.

Upon hearing that her future son-in-law saved Maximiliano I, Queen Carlota developed a great fondness for this stranger, changing her previous impression of Ernst.

He could organize a group to travel thousands of miles to Mexico and rescue such a significant figure like Maximiliano I from the local government.

His abilities were naturally undeniable, and Ernst’s political sensitivity was strong (from a divine perspective); otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to save Maximiliano I. If he acted too early or too late, he might have missed the opportunity.

Snatching a person from the hands of a major country like Mexico (since there weren’t many independent countries in the world at that time) required courage, wisdom, and responsibility.

Ernst, willing to offend the Mexican government to rescue his father-in-law (the Mexican government is still unaware), surely wouldn’t treat his future daughter poorly.

Knowing her husband’s whereabouts, Queen Carlota was eager to go to East Africa to reunite with her husband. Though there were rumors of Africa’s harsh environment, this didn’t scare Queen Carlota.

After all, having lived in the tropical highlands of Mexico, East Africa’s environment wouldn’t be a challenge for Queen Carlota.

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Mwanza Port.

In the Tanga sisal processing plant, the sound of machines was roaring.

Maximiliano I watched with great interest, learning from the workers’ movements, waiting by the machine’s exit to bind and sort the loosened sisal fibers.

”Is this factory the largest in East Africa?” Maximiliano I asked the factory manager.

”Your Majesty, you’re right. Currently, sisal processing is one of the rare industrial operations using machines in East Africa. Moreover, as sisal planting in the colony expands, the future scale and prospects of sisal processing in East Africa are very promising.”

”What about the wages for the workers? How long are their working hours?” Maximiliano I asked.

”It’s like this, Your Majesty. Our workers mainly come from Far East immigrants, where the labor cost is relatively low, so the wages aren’t high (almost nonexistent). As for the working hours, they are about six to ten hours a day.”

The manager wasn’t lying; the sisal processing plant’s hours were like this. It wasn’t due to benevolence but because the supply of sisal raw materials was tight (they hadn’t had a harvest yet, using reserves), plus the Mwanza coal mine hadn’t started supplying yet, so coal was still being imported from Europe, making the energy supply for the machines not very stable.

But soon, the first batch of sisal planted in the East African colony will mature, along with the development of the Mwanza coal mine. At that time, the Tanga sisal processing plant will definitely be working overtime to produce sisal products.

Unfamiliar with the intricacies, Maximiliano I continued, ”It seems quite good, but are most of the employees here Chinese? Didn’t they say there were also Austro-Hungarian immigrants coming to East Africa? I saw many Austro-Hungarian immigrants in Mombasa; why are there so few in this factory?”

The manager mentally griped; with these conditions, how dare they lure Austro-Hungarian immigrants? Many Austro-Hungarian immigrants hadn’t worked in factories, and the meager salary given by the East African sisal factory wouldn’t be accepted by any Austro-Hungarian immigrant.

”Most Austro-Hungarian immigrants are from a farming background, so they’re not enthusiastic about industry. More Austro-Hungarian immigrants choose to continue their previous agricultural lifestyle,” the manager explained to Maximiliano I.

”Alas, such a pity. Industry is a symbol of modern civilization, and currently, every European country is vigorously developing industry. East Africa shouldn’t underestimate the development of industry,” Maximiliano I lamented.

”Your Majesty, you’re overthinking it. Prince Ernst also places great importance on industry, but East Africa, so to speak, is impoverished, not even having agriculture. Only with a good agricultural foundation can we better build industry. For example, the Tanga sisal processing plant is set up to cooperate with the sisal agriculture in East Africa. If the East African government doesn’t first plant sisal, the processing plant would have no value for existence and no future prospects for development. So first building the agricultural foundation is crucial for future industrial development,” the manager said to Maximiliano I.