African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 306: Chapter 293: Refusal

The smooth proceedings of the transactions between both parties can be attributed to the favorable trading environment established by the East African government, with a trade post planned by the East African government at the Limpopo Riverbank.

Next to the trade post is the stationed East African military, whose show of force naturally deters any troublemakers from causing disturbances here, unless they first manage to defeat the East African army.

There are no tariffs. Most of the goods sold by East Africa are their own products, and if any tax was to be levied in Africa, the Limpopo River wouldn’t be able to stop merchants’ cravings for money, with both parties capable of starting smuggling operations along the sparsely populated Limpopo Riverbank at any time.

In the last East African government meeting, one of the approaches to increase the popularity of the Matebelian Plateau involved trade not only with the natives but also with the Boers and the Portuguese, which is all part of the plan.

Just as Van der Meier and Joris were about to leave after completing their transaction, the person in charge of the Beins Crossing trading market, Leon, suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

He quickly called out to the departing Van der Meier, saying, ”Mr. Van der Meier, please wait!”

”Oh, it’s you! Manager Leon,” Van der Meier replied, ”Is there something you need, Manager Leon?”

Leon: ”Mr. Van der Meier, the truth is, your ships are still too small; how much cargo can they carry? So, I suggest you get some larger ships. It would also facilitate trade activities between the East African Kingdom and the Transvaal Republic.”

Van der Meier: ”About that! I do wish to get larger ships, but alas, I’m just a small merchant, and there’s never been much business on the Limpopo River before. It’s already quite good that I managed to get a few small boats temporarily.”

Leon glanced at the limited cargo on those small boats. Accompanying Van der Meier were a few people, mostly purchasing industrial goods. Locally produced agricultural products from East Africa saw very poor sales, with cashews being the main product that could be sold.

Leon: ”Mr. Van der Meier, if possible, you could consider getting into this kind of business. We generally don’t lack industrial products in East Africa, but there’s still a large gap for cattle, sheep, and horses, and your small boats can’t carry that much cargo.”

Upon hearing Leon’s hint, Van der Meier said, ”Of course, there’s no problem. This is not something I can’t do. By the way, can cattle, sheep, and horses be used to offset monetary transactions?”

Leon: ”You can discuss this matter directly with me. Heixinggen Bank will be establishing a post here soon. Our East African government will directly purchase live cattle, sheep, and horses.”

Van der Meier: ”That’s great! Looking forward to our next collaboration.”

Leon: ”Looking forward to it.”

Van der Meier’s small caravan paddled towards the Transvaal Republic, leaving the transaction market to become somewhat desolate again.

Leon commented, ”Still haven’t gained enough reputation, wonder if the Transvaal Republic government is doing this on purpose.”

”Hehe, Mr. Leon, you might be overthinking. It’s always challenging in the beginning. Right now, the infrastructure at Beins Crossing is not yet complete, so it’s normal for few people to come. Moreover, the number of people in the Transvaal Republic who have purchasing power is still small. The total population of the Transvaal Republic is limited, so even if everyone had some spare money, it’s impossible for them all to come to Beins Crossing to spend it. Developing a regular customer like Van der Meier is already quite good. How Beins Crossing develops next will have to be compared with other trading markets to know the outcome,” Joris, standing by, said.

Leon: ”You’re right. This matter can’t be rushed. By the way, Mr. Joris, how did today turn out?”

Joris: ”Not bad. Next time I go to Dar es Salaam for supplies, I can send a bit more money home.”

Leon: ”Well, congratulations!”

Joris laughed heartily, ”How about a barbecue for dinner?”

Leon: ”Are you inviting me?”

”Of course, Mr. Leon.”

...

Mozambique.

Maputo.

”Your Excellency, the Governor, East Africa has sent representatives to Mozambique!”

Governor: ”What do they want to do?”

”According to the East Africans, this time they want to borrow one of our ports in the south.”

Governor: ”Haha, have the East Africans lost their minds? We don’t even give face to the British. Why would they think we’d open a port for them?”

”But Your Excellency, if East Africa really uses this as an excuse to act against us, we could be at a disadvantage, especially considering how lengthy our mutual borders are now.”

Governor: ”You are overestimating East Africa. They are nothing but a colony formed by German immigrants. Not even a Prussian or Austrian colony. How could they possibly contend with the Kingdom of Portugal? Send them back! We will not open a port for them, not even one. If we open this gate, they will become even more greedy in the future.”

”Should we at least talk to them?”

Governor: ”What’s there to discuss? They are just a self-indulgent little country in the middle of nowhere. It’s already good enough that we aren’t demanding they open a port for us. Get rid of them quickly.”

”Yes, Your Excellency the Governor!”

The new Governor of Mozambique, Kaborrel, who looked down on East Africa, thus outright refused their request, and the East African diplomats didn’t even get to meet him in person.

Kaborrel was a retired officer from the Portuguese army. He was sent by the kingdom to Mozambique to clean up the mess left by the previous governor.

The Malawian campaign was too disastrous before, and someone from the colony reported the previous governor for nepotism, family ventures, embezzling colonial assets, and oppressing patriots, leading a directive from Portugal to recall the former governor back home for enjoyment.

Upon arriving, Kaborrel was extremely dissatisfied with the military strength of Mozambique, observing an appalling level of slack. The military funds had been embezzled by the previous governor’s cronies.

Therefore, Kaborrel, with his army background, embarked on a comprehensive overhaul of the Mozambican colonial forces. He first cleared out the sycophants and incompetents from the military, then directly reported to the Portuguese central government, denouncing the colonial army’s deterioration and the former governor’s crimes, successfully obtaining a batch of firearms and funds to replace the outdated equipment of the colonial forces and settle the overdue military wages.

From Kaborrel’s actions, he appeared to be a fairly competent individual, albeit a bit straightforward.

Of course, this was one of the reasons he was assigned to Mozambique; the Portuguese military did not particularly favor him. Meanwhile, the government considered such a straightforward person suitable for Mozambique to straighten out the former governor’s mess.

Following the reform, the Mozambican army’s morale soared, and merely the fact that Kaborrel distributed military wages made people eager to lay down their lives for him.

Kaborrel personally led the troops to re-enforceigate the Kingdom of Malawi, and with his excellent military acumen, fully conquered it a month ago, placing it under Mozambique’s jurisdiction.

Although not as flashy as East Africa’s exaggerated expansion pace, Kaborrel thought otherwise. He believed it was purely the former governor’s incompetence that allowed East Africa to take advantage of the situation.

After all, when he first arrived in Mozambique, had the former governor been him, Mozambique would have invaded the African mainland long ago.

Despite the shortcomings of the previous governor, some tangible tasks were accomplishable, like the intensely fought Malawian campaign, which also drained the natives’ strength significantly. If it hadn’t been for the catastrophic loss due to a mountain flood, they might have conquered the Kingdom of Malawi. In this respect, Kaborrel did benefit from an opportunity, although the increased strength post his army reforms couldn’t be ignored either.