African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 1234: Chapter 243: One Step Behind

In recent years, a new trend has emerged within East Africa: more and more East Africans are identifying themselves as Rhine people.

Besides the older generation, who still take pride in being Germans, the younger people mostly refuse to flatter Germany. Many young East Africans already acknowledge that East Africa can completely stand as a new nationality since national integration cannot be faked.

Moreover, the term ”Rhine” is not in opposition to ”German”; the two can be seen as a set and subset relationship, similar to how Germans refer to the Germans of the Austria-Hungary Empire as Austrians.

In short, the evolution of East Africa’s external appellations has been quite complex and intricate, changing alongside the development of the East African countries.

For Alidinar, a Fur person, to understand the twists and turns between East Africa and Germany is relatively insightful among African natives, although he is not an African Black but an African Arab White.

Many among the upper echelons of the Fur people are Arabs, as a lot of Darfur’s upper-class members were once from the Ottoman Empire. This is the result of the Ottoman Empire’s former expansion into the Darfur Region, similar to the Aryans who once conquered India.

”To the victor go the spoils. Since we’ve been defeated by you East Africans, I have nothing left to say, but if you cannot resolve the British, you’ll have major troubles too,” Alidinar remarked.

An officer from the Hera Corps said, ”Your Excellency, Sultan, I think you might be losing your head, unable to see the situation clearly; you’ve already offended the British yourself, isn’t it ridiculous to use them as a scarecrow?”

”Besides, if you could see the international situation clearly and took the opportunity to oppose the British, why didn’t you consider that our East African approach is exactly like what you did before?”

”Finally, we East Africans are likewise a world power and are not afraid of the British. Offending the British is not a big deal—after all, twenty years ago we fought the British in South Africa, and now we are even stronger. What do you say?”

Alidinar said dejectedly, ”This world is ultimately survival of the fittest. Whatever you say is correct.”

As for the South African war, Alidinar had heard of it as well. Over twenty years ago, East Africans were not afraid of the British, let alone today, twenty years later.

In these years, East Africa’s influence in the international arena has grown enormously, especially for countries or regions bordering East Africa like Darfur, which cannot possibly be ignorant of East Africa’s current strength within the international community. Even among various colonial powers, East Africa ranks among the top.

However, East Africa traditionally did not emphasize northern expansion, which led the Fur people to overlook East Africa as a potential enemy. Decades ago, East Africa did have conflicts with Darfur, and they seized a lot of the southernmost livable areas.

However, these issues were selectively forgotten by Darfur because of the arrival of the British.

”Alright, lock them up first,” Farsheng, the captain, interjected at this time, ”and then we will wait for the British at Fashir!”

What Alidinar said holds some truth. The biggest issue with East Africa sending troops to Darfur was never the Fur people from the outset, but the British. As long as the British are handled, Darfur won’t be a problem at all.

...

Two days later.

Johnson, a British Lieutenant stationed in Khartoum, was advancing towards Fashir with a considerably large troop.

This army consists of over two thousand men. Although the number seems small compared to East Africa, the British are very confident about conquering the Fur people with these forces.

Among these more than two thousand, there are only over a hundred actual British, followed by over three hundred Indians, while the rest are mostly Sudanese and Egyptians.

In fact, if not for the difficulties in transportation and supply logistics, the British would surely have brought more soldiers.

”In the past two days, it feels like there are significantly fewer pests on the road, and we’ve encountered almost no decent resistance from the Fur people—could it be that Alidinar has changed tactics?” Johnson asked his subordinate Charlie.

The British Army referred to the small groups of Fur people dispatched by Alidinar to harass the British march as ”pests,” whose interference was a huge annoyance to the British Army.

After all, there were few stopping points between Khartoum and Darfur, and most of the time, they had to cross the Sahara Desert. Any delay could seriously challenge the British Army’s logistics supply line.

From the British perspective, it’s best to end this war quickly. Fighting all the way into Darfur is a losing proposition, but they have no choice but to intervene.

Not even handling the Fur people could easily set a bad example for some tribes and forces in the Sudan Region.

Alidinar and his led Fur people are not much different from other native Sudanese forces and are not even as strong as many local Sudanese forces in the eastern region.

The eastern region, backed by the Nile River, has always been the most densely populated area in Sudan, and its external exchanges, meaning commerce, drive economic development and promote cultural progress.

Without saying more, eastern Sudanese can more easily procure firearms and ammunition than those from the Darfur Region. They can even obtain cannons through Egypt, East Africa, and the Red Sea.

Which are advantages the Darfur Region doesn’t have, and one of the reasons why the British look down on Darfur: apart from the Sahara Desert’s center, there is nowhere as remote as Darfur in Africa.

As for the Southern German Kingdom or Libya bordering Darfur, the population in these areas bordering Darfur is sparse, almost like being uninhabited. Southern German population is concentrated in the southwest, and Libya along the northern Mediterranean coast.

East Africa is quite prosperous, but the north, where East Africa borders Darfur, is one of East Africa’s least developed economic and population areas.

Therefore, if Darfur’s military strength had been a bit stronger, it might have indeed become a neglected area.

However, Darfur’s military prowess is only slightly stronger than that of East Africa’s indigenous forces in the past, and the British, when they initially struck Darfur, probably did so as an afterthought. It’s like finding a penny on the road; it may not be worth much individually, but it doesn’t hurt to pocket it, and a penny saved is a penny earned. Thus, many pennies make a fortune.

Charlie: ”Probably got scared by us a few days ago. After all, we brought two Maxim machine guns. With such a weapon, even if the entire Fur army turns out, they’re just here to deliver supplies.”

Johnson agreed with Charlie’s view. This troop, armed with bolt-action rifles—though the Egyptians and Sudanese have inferior equipment—it is nonetheless superior to old, muzzle-loading weapons that the Fur people are using. Paired with two Maxim machine guns, there are very few forces in Sudan that could stop them.

Therefore, Johnson didn’t think much of it and asked, ”How long until we reach Fashir?”

Charlie: ”According to the map, the distance from Grodos Base to Fashir is about twenty-three kilometers. We should be able to reach Fashir by heading about ten kilometers northwest along the trade route.”

”Walking ten kilometers should only take about three or four hours, and we should arrive by this evening.”

With Charlie’s analysis, Johnson perked up, exclaiming, ”Finally, it’s almost over! God knows how miserable the march has been these past days.”

Marching through the Sahara Desert is certainly a tough job, which is why the Governor of Khartoum forcefully assigned this task to Johnson. Otherwise, Johnson wouldn’t have wanted to come and eat sand here either.

At 4 PM, the British Army reached Fashir as expected, but what awaited them was a surprising turn of events.

”It’s truly over. Damn it, can anyone tell me why the flag of the East Africans is flying over Fashir!” Johnson roared, as he looked at the East African national and military flags fluttering in the wind atop Fashir’s East Gate, with all the hardships of the journey vanishing in light of this development.