Chapter 39: Undisguisable Greed (1)
If you ask imperial citizens living in Europe where the Far East is, they usually answer "Isn't it east of Siberia?" but actually the Far East is land several days further even from that eastern Siberia.
Truly as the name suggests, a place at the end of the east.
Unlike the west that succeeded in Westernization since Peter the Great's time, the Russian Empire became less civilized going east.
"Siberia? Hasn't that been a place where you get caught by nomadic slave traders since ancient times?"
"In this country, going east just means death. Land's no good and barely any flatland."
"Just consider 70% of land beyond the Urals as a different country."
A part where you can understand why the imperial government was skeptical of Siberian migration policy.
Though harsh winters and barren land were problems, the perception long embedded in imperial citizens discussed the Urals as if it were the River Styx itself - pure fear and unknown.
However, making such perceptions meaningless, Roman recently began feeling the Far East gradually changing.
"Is this newly arrived food?"
"Salmon, pork, beef, rice - diverse. Probably no army in the empire feeds this well."
"Peter Choi's supply."
"Choi Petka - it's best to go through him for all fresh food. The young fellow can do anything when given work. All Koreans follow him."
Outsourcing work unimaginable just a few years ago. This land without even private markets had nothing work without the Governor-General's Office doing it directly, but now it's different.
Now companies exist that handle food supply in tens of thousands of units. What's important here is that these companies are local businesses operated by Koreans.
"Governor Roman! Haven't I repeatedly said military expenditure must not exceed fiscal revenue!"
"...Chairman Bunge, the military is a group that only spends. How could expenditure be small feeding and housing over 100,000 troops?"
"It's all because of that strange fortress! Even now slow down construction speed and reduce scale!"
"It's already built so nothing can be done!"
Though Chairman Bunge raises his voice whenever meeting, thanks to him the huge Far East seems to run well.
The worried population structure problem was also solved in its own way.
Originally the Far East with extremely low proportion of Russians was practically no different from Asian colonies, but recently with noise about agricultural reform and such, no small number of imperial citizens came over from the west. Long-term this was a very good signal.
Though sometimes among immigrants there were those saying they were deceived by Beren Volkov, that was unknown to Roman.
"Now that the South Manchurian Railway is complete, this land's true value clearly shows."
On the railway heading to Beijing, the Qing capital, were various powers' concessions and this was the second trade route connecting Vladivostok.
The South Manchurian Railway hadn't rested a day since opening.
The rails transported goods day and night, and this was purely the Governor-General Office's profit.
The Far East finally starting to spit out water after years of pumping and massive priming water.
The military growing bigger and strengthening defenses day by day, and markets growing on their own without the Governor-General's Office touching them once water started flowing made Roman hold girlish huge expectations.
However sadly, Roman's dream didn't last long.
"Attack! Qing residents are destroying all sections connected to our railway!"
"...Could they be Qing government troops or Japanese army disguised as residents?"
"It's not just us. Other countries' concessions and railways are also suffering attacks!"
"First evacuate our people out working as South Manchurian Railway operations staff."
Just as Russia built the South Manchurian Railway, other powers also built railways section by section within Qing.
If such railways are being attacked simultaneously, it's probably not Japan's doing.
'A people's uprising.'
Roman's insides just burned black at such an incident happening now when the Far East was about to take flight.
He only thought about blocking Japanese forces striking up through Korea, never imagining such problems would burst from the Qing side.
'Must we just quietly watch like this? All railways connected with such effort being destroyed?'
Without those rails the Far East will just become dead land isolated again. Going forward it will just be a parasite receiving budget from the imperial government unable to stand alone.
Unable to send forces to Manchuria or stop the railways being destroyed - then orders flew from the capital.
<The Governor shall send troops to protect imperial property.>
Roman immediately carried out the Tsar's orders.
"Prepare full army for expedition!"
"It's waaaar! It's war!"
Roman immediately moved half the forces under the Governor-General's Office, 50,000 troops.
And imperial property, the railway, was connected to Beijing.
==
The Boxers formally rose up in October 1899.
The Boxers "purified" territory advancing north from the south, and all sorts of atrocities were committed in the process.
If skin was white death was naturally hard to avoid, and they killed those friendly with Westerners, those knowing Western languages, those attending church, even Qing officials who surrendered to Western powers.
True to their slogan of "Support the Qing and exterminate foreigners," those joining the Boxers truly believed this was for their country.
Actually it wasn't a matter of believing or not. This mass madness was an explosion of history accumulated from the past.
All sorts of unequal treaties made by powers. Foreigners spreading like poison in Qing territory picking fights whenever bored and tearing off concessions.
Hostility accumulated one by one since the Opium War era just expressed as nationwide mania.
Now Qing people didn't want to know about Western new civilization or technology.
They missed the past when no one could touch China and wanted times without barbarians. So they tried to turn everything back a century.
First race.
"Here's one white guy!"
"Catch him! Catch him!"
"I-I'm a priest who ran an orphanage-"
"Cut off his limbs first!"
No exceptions. Even if skin wasn't white, groups that got along with white guys were also targets for purification.
Of course stolen land must be reclaimed too.
"This is a port legitimately delegated from the Qing government! You are committing invasion!"
"Don't know what they're saying but kill everyone in this land!"
"50 taels for Western women, 30 taels for Western children! Even if not Boxers, bounties given so catch them all!"
Powers' armies permitted to station in Qing territory couldn't stop the Boxers alone.
Westerners chose suicide when facing Boxers, knowing they would have genitals crushed and be tortured to death if caught.
Priests and missionaries died.
Their following believers died.
Then those related to foreigners died.
These Boxers spreading rapidly in less than a year truly killed all "Western things" existing within Qing.
Who would dare refuse when a stage was completed across the whole country where inherent violence and cruelty could be freely displayed?
After occupying Beijing and even Empress Dowager Cixi joining, the Boxers gained legitimacy and grew stronger thinking only driving out foreigners completely remained.
Until armies came down from the north overnight.
"Hey, foreign armies are coming!"
"Don't be afraid! We've steadily practiced boxing skills so even bullets can be- ughk!"
Though madness spread down to Manchuria since Beijing fell to the Boxers, their numbers weren't many.
"Crazy bastards. Mass murder."
"They killed all diplomatic ministers and orphanage priests, so no reason to spare us either."
"Kill them all! No prisoners needed!"
Already at the point Empress Dowager Cixi crossed over, Roman was clearly a general out to wage war. Not at all a situation to fight watching the opponent.
It took just a week for Russian forces to occupy up to where the South Manchurian Railway was built.
"...Was it too fast?"
"Governor, shall we wait until allied forces attack Beijing?"
"If so, the Tsar would have given separate hints."
Though other powers would surely oppose if Roman entered Beijing alone like this, he had one good justification.
"Currently foreigners are isolated surrounded by Boxers in Beijing. Shouldn't we rescue them?"
Namely saving lives. With even clear justification there was no reason to delay.
At worst they were likely government forces armed with just matchlocks so damage wouldn't be great.
Plus there was one more reason to advance to Beijing right now.
"As soon as we advanced south, Japan announced dispatching 20,000 troops."
"I'll prepare siege warfare immediately."
Four days later, Roman reached Beijing.
==
Before Roman led troops down receiving my orders, the allied forces also attempted to rescue foreigners isolated in Beijing.
"However, they say 3,000 troops led by British Naval Commander Seymour were unable to advance toward Beijing."
Thanks to his failing once, there shouldn't be major problems even if Roman occupies Beijing.
Though some countries will raise claims later about single-handed entry into Beijing, I don't see it becoming major diplomatic issues.
Anyway at most what we want to gain by entering first is just paper content like territorial sovereignty over Manchuria.
"Manchuria is already land we effectively control."
Japan hastily dispatched 20,000 troops after tasting Qing silver coins last time but was too late.
The Boxer Movement and its suppression process. Though contents slightly differed, looking at just cause and effect I see it didn't greatly diverge from original history.
Soon in the process of 8 nations cleaning up after, we'll eat Manchuria and Xinjiang while Britain raises pro-British forces in the southeast region.
Boxer punishment will be hard since it happened in such a mess, and compensation will be outrageous.
Germany angry about their minister dying will probably be satisfied dragging one Qing royal to their country to kneel before Wilhelm II.
Up to here okay. Nothing deviated from the big frame.
However thinking about afterward, I couldn't be certain if I truly didn't deviate even one thing.
"The Boxer Incident itself isn't important except for scale and cruelty. But what comes after is important."
The real point to examine in the Boxer Movement is each country's undisguisable greed.
Like how we couldn't resist quickly eating Manchuria.
Like how America softly slipped in during this gap to propose increasing China trade.
Japan also dispatched 20,000 - exactly 21,000 troops. Though officially under the Eight-Nation Alliance, it was practically independent action.
"Making the peace treaty about Korea meaningless, both sides' calculations showed too clearly."
But we couldn't not eat Manchuria at this opportunity either. Such good justification is like Halley's Comet. Meaning such perfect justification comes once every 70 years.
Similarly, Imperial Japan addicted to Qing compensation taste sent troops to the continent first regardless of other powers' eyes.
If we've exposed each other this far, war is hard to avoid. Since neither side seems likely to give up greed either.
"Of course Britain will take Japan's side."
Not sure if the Anglo-Japanese Alliance was concluded without my knowledge, but even so it just means "if there are countries allying with Japan while it's at war with Russia, Britain can participate."
"If this country had the ability to create alliances and drag them to the Far East, would they have lost to yellow people in early 20th century. This country has no Bismarck."
And Britain's help? Let them if they want. No problem as long as not direct participation.
But America. Ah, these guys are a bit tricky.
The country that helped Japan throw in 2 billion yen equivalent to dozens of years of national budget into a one-year war.
The country that gave so many war bonds and war supplies on credit.
The United States.
I want to separate these guys from Japan most of all. Even if Britain replaces America's role, separating them is good.
"Records say Jewish capital angry at Russian Jewish persecution bought Japanese bonds."
No matter how many bonds those New World Jews bought, even I can't stop Jewish hatred overnight. Jews in this country were really people who did loan sharking.
Though in Britain even commoners can get urgent loans from banks with developed private lending markets, poor commoners in Russia could only go to Jews.
Jews who were nearly ostracized especially in rural societies including the mir played capital games even more desperately in the empire, and Slavs responded with pogrom games.
Coming back, how can we separate those rich New World upstarts?
How should we handle those money-crazy bastards who inject healing factor shots 4 times during the war and save them twice more after?
As concerns lengthened, even as Tsar I felt it wasn't easy to interfere in other countries' affairs, so I thought about why fundamentally many Jews live in the empire.
"In grandfather's time the Russian Empire drew in Jews from around the world."
Educational opportunities, freedom of residence, support for establishing banks and businesses. This increased Jews by 2 million, showing how attractive grandfather's policies were to Jews.
However after grandfather was assassinated, father abolished all such policies. Naturally all their rights and freedoms were also restricted.
"Even if reviving policies now, not sure if we can gain trust."
Though loosening a bit looks good, I'm not sure how effective that alone will be in war breaking out in a few years.
Then rather than such policies, how about approaching Jews more directly?
"Commander Dukhovskoy."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Thinking of experimentally creating Jewish units like Cossack units."
"...Units composed of only specific races? Though presumptuous, wouldn't this violate the empire's assimilation policy?"
"Nothing to do with assimilation policy. Just needs to be obvious they're Jews."
Wouldn't Jews be moved by the Tsar's grace with units respecting their religion and food culture and even guaranteeing Jewish holidays?
Ah, where in the world is there such an army? In a country of conscription at that.
I believe Jews in other countries will think so too.
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