Chapter 291: "The Country That Stole"
Valonga Province, East Africa
"Hey, Maurice, look! There's a snake in that tree ahead!" shouted a startled East African soldier.
"Bohr, you've been bitten! No saving you now—drag him off and bury him," Maurice joked darkly.
"Damn it, Maurice! That's not funny—I'm just telling you what I saw!" Bohr snapped back.
"All right, enough shouting. Where's the snake?" asked the squad leader.
"Look at the fork of that tree, just left and ahead," Bohr pointed. "I've got great eyesight. That green fellow is hiding under the leaves."
Following Bohr's direction, the squad leader spotted the snake and fixed his bayonet to his rifle. Using the weapon, he gently prodded the branch—and a green African tree snake dropped to the ground, quickly slithering out of sight.
"Good thing it wasn't a mamba. That would've been a real problem," the squad leader remarked.
African tree snakes are mildly venomous, rear-fanged snakes. Their venom yield is low, and their delivery is inefficient, so they aren't particularly dangerous. Still, since they're venomous, East African soldiers approached with caution.
As for the infamous black mamba—one of East Africa's most dangerous snakes—it is more feared for its extreme aggressiveness than its venom. Unlike most African snakes, which tend to flee rather than bite, the black mamba will actively chase and strike. Catching one requires exceptional skill; it's much faster than other snakes. By contrast, the green mamba is far less aggressive.
And when it comes to venom in this era, getting bitten was often a death sentence—there were few remedies available. However, East Africa had taken action. In Mombasa, they'd already hired herpetologists and biologists to establish a research institute to study antivenom for snakes like the black mamba and the puff adder.
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Hohenzollern Castle, Hechingen
"Your Highness, why are we recruiting medical professionals from the Far East? Wouldn't it make more sense to bring in talent from Europe?" asked Tom, clearly baffled. "I've heard their medicine is more like medieval witchcraft."
Tom wasn't necessarily opposed—he just wanted to understand, especially since this project would be expensive. Previously, East Africa had collected medical knowledge globally at little cost, often for free. But now Ernst planned to spend real money to bring in Far Eastern doctors, texts, and proven remedies.
Ernst explained,
"It's simple, Tom. Sure, some frauds in the East might hide behind traditional medicine. But much of it has been systematically passed down for over 3,000 years. It's been tested far longer than European medicine. Their cultural records are also more extensive. Meanwhile, our parchment scrolls were mostly used to copy the Bible."
Traditional Far Eastern medicine didn't just appear recently. In Ernst's judgment, the practical records that form the foundation of Chinese medicine began flourishing during the Warring States era. At that time, with the rise of private education, countless scholars—including physicians—began documenting and refining centuries of experience. Bamboo scrolls preserved those systems, ensuring they were transmitted in written form rather than just orally.
Of course, there were errors. But much of traditional medicine was field-tested and kept only because it worked. Far Eastern medicine only began declining before the Ming Dynasty. By the time the West had its industrial revolution—right around Ernst's current era—modern medicine surged ahead.
Still, Ernst distrusted European medicine. In this transitional period, you never knew whether a new "treatment" was a cure or poison. Various narcotics were still being prescribed as miracle drugs.
"But how do we avoid hiring frauds?" Tom asked. "We know so little about Eastern medicine."
"Easy. We ask their governments to help," Ernst said. "Have Ambassador Richard speak directly with their top leaders. With official support, we can filter out con artists. Ideally, we'll connect with their Imperial Medical Academies. Also, send our people to China, Korea, Japan, and Vietnam to collect prescriptions and medical books."
With state cooperation, Ernst could eliminate most of the riffraff. His real plan? Steal those formulas, register them in Europe, and claim the patents. If someone was going to profit off the East, it might as well be East Africa—not Japan or South Korea.
Besides, East Africa was a nation of immigrants. The heritage of Far Eastern migrants was now East African heritage. "What's yours is mine, and what's mine is still mine." No guilt needed. Everyone knew East Africa had a short history—it didn't need to shamelessly steal historical titles.
Ernst added,
"And one more thing—make sure we keep out those quacks who say opium cures everything. Don't let them slip in."
"That's the biggest challenge," Tom replied. "Our own people don't know enough to tell real from fake."
"Then we focus on official partnerships and use our own judgment," Ernst replied. "Even if we make some mistakes, that's fine. Once East Africa's medical system matures, we can sort through what we've collected and keep the best."
It was like a high-risk, high-reward gamble. If they could uncover something like a legendary healing formula, it'd be a jackpot. If not—no harm done. They wouldn't lose much overall.
Ernst still planned to invest in modern medical research down the road. But for now, his priority was gathering proven traditional remedies. That meant launching a widespread traditional medicine initiative, centered on Far Eastern practices. Modern medical infrastructure wasn't ready in East Africa; it made more sense to build that in Europe, where the talent and equipment were already in place.
Ernst's aggressive patenting of Far Eastern remedies earned East Africa a new nickname from the East: "The Country That Steals." Japan, in particular, was furious, especially after East Africa registered many Japan-specific medical techniques. Korea, on the other hand, boasted that East African medicine was based on Korean traditions and claimed it as their legacy.
But East Africa rejected that claim. Its "veteran Eastern doctors" insisted these were the achievements of their Eastern ancestors, and thus East Africa had the right to inherit them.
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