African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 88: Chapter 84 News

The ship passed through the Far East and finally stopped at the port of Mombasa in East Africa.

With the telegraph from East Africa to Europe, Ernst learned the news of the successful rescue of Maximiliano I.

Amusingly, after figuring out in East Africa that it was Ernst who had sent someone to rescue him, Maximiliano I refused to return to Europe and insisted on staying in the East African colony.

He even sent a telegram instructing his son-in-law, whom he had never met, not to let the Habsburgs know his whereabouts.

Ernst dared not act on his own and informed Empress Dowager Sophie upon receiving the news of Maximiliano I’s safety.

Long before Mexico announced the execution of Maximiliano I, European countries had received the news, and many royal leaders requested Juarez not to execute Maximiliano I.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire was naturally among them, but Maximiliano I was too stubborn; when Napoleon III’s people fled, they invited him along, but he insisted on coexisting and perishing with Mexico, eventually getting captured by the Juarez government.

Though Queen Carlota sought aid in Europe, no country had the ability to send troops to Mexico or wished to interfere in Mexican affairs, and Austria-Hungary had just suffered defeat in the war with Prussia and found itself confronting Italy in the Mediterranean, leaving its navy without the capacity to interfere in Mexico’s domestic affairs.

Thus, all they could do was send a telegram persuading Juarez to change his mind, but Juarez insisted on executing Maximiliano I.

As Juarez was confidently about to succeed, Ernst’s men surprised him, proving that not everything must be done by the book!

The unscrupulous Ernst directly used the oldest and simplest method to pull Maximiliano I out of the Mexican quagmire.

At that time, Mexico had just undergone a civil war, with warlords scattered throughout the country, illustrating the chaos. It’s foreseeable that even after a few hundred years, Mexico remains unchanged.

In such a Mexico, inefficiency in administration allowed Ernst’s men to seize the opportunity and escape this troubled land.

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”God bless...” Empress Dowager Sophie was relieved to hear that her son was safe and sound.

The Mexican government naturally could not publicize losing their captive, especially when they didn’t even know who had taken the emperor.

Hence, before Maximiliano I arrived in East Africa, no other country besides Ernst’s people knew that someone had snatched Maximiliano I right under the Mexican government’s nose.

”Ernst, thank you so much this time. How did I never think of using mercenaries to rescue Ferdinand (Maximiliano I)?” Franz expressed self-reproach.

Franz could only think of mercenaries, but for such an important mission, Ernst would surely not use them.

Mercenaries only work for money, and they may waver when things are tough. Ernst was certain that if they had used mercenaries for the rescue plan, it would undoubtedly result in something like Jing Ke’s fear-stricken withdrawal in the assassination attempt on Qin Shi Huang.

After all, Mexico was such a large country, and Juarez had already grasped the overall situation. To oppose him was akin to opposing all of Mexico.

Therefore, the people involved in this mission had to be loyal and unwavering despite the challenges. Since Ernst did not maintain a group of expendable fighters, he employed students from Heixinggen Military Academy.

To these students at Heixinggen Military Academy, Ernst was like family, and coupled with the academy’s education on loyalty and patriotism, they harbored a fervent admiration for Ernst and the Heixinggen royal family.

Now that loyalty was ensured, everything else fell into place. Since the marriage alliance, Ernst had arranged for a group of outstanding students to join the special operations team.

After months of training and continuous intelligence gathering on Mexico, their action plan was constantly refined.

This resulted in the Heixinggen Military Academy students saving Maximiliano I just before his execution.

”Your Majesty, in reality, who could have predicted that both Juarez and Maximiliano I would be so rigid? One would execute a monarch ignoring international opinion, and the other would rather die with Mexico, a country on the brink, than seek refuge.” This was heartfelt.

Had Ernst put himself in Juarez’s shoes, he would never have antagonized the royal families of European countries since the real core threat was neighboring America. Ignoring European intervention and antagonizing the monarchs would ultimately leave Mexico defenseless when the Americans arrived.

Don’t be fooled by the hypocritical American president who seemingly hopes Juarez would spare Maximiliano I. In reality, Americans must be overjoyed at Juarez’s intent to execute Maximiliano I.

Americans had always coveted and guarded against Mexico, and once the Civil War ended, one of the first actions of the U.S. government was to send people to the U.S.-Mexican border to spy on military matters.

On hearing that Juarez was still on the move, the U.S. government was ecstatic and immediately shipped weapons and ammunition to Mexico to support the overthrow of the monarchy.

From Maximiliano I’s perspective, Mexico was a quagmire, an irreparable failure.

Such a beginning required a bold reformer daring enough to transform Mexico. In facing the U.S., Mexico was supposed to be relatively weak.

If it couldn’t unite as one, it would only be gradually devoured by Americans.

Yet Maximiliano I was a liberalist, so why did he decide to become the emperor of Mexico? One really couldn’t fathom his thought process.

This inevitably reminded Ernst of Franz’s son, Crown Prince Rudolph, who was also a liberalist, who even disdained the throne of Austria-Hungary, later declaring he wished to be the president of both Austria and Hungary.

???

Indeed, like father, like son. Poor Rudolph, who eventually, in extreme depression, ended his life with his lover, sparing his country from further ruin unlike his uncle.

There must be significant problems with the Austro-Hungarian royal family’s education! Who knows how Princess Karina turned out! Mind you, Empress Dowager Sophie personally managed the education of both predecessors, raising Princess Karina herself since childhood.

Ernst glanced at little Karina in Empress Dowager Sophie’s arms, a mere eleven-year-old who only understood that the person in front saved her father’s life, noticeably improving her grandmother’s mood, and she curiously observed her surroundings with wide, shining eyes.

She seemed quite clever, with a sparkle in her eyes and not the dullness often found in depression patients who usually exhibit a sense of deep resentment.

Evidently, Karina had no worries, possibly due to the fact that Empress Dowager Sophie, being female, avoided political education and responsibility in Karina’s upbringing, creating a relaxed environment for her growth.