Chapter 315: Clearing Out Stock
Returning now to the trading market in the town of Bordeile, while Bubuyawis and Ouderikewen were fighting on their way back to the Abyssinian Empire, a caravan from Negemet entered Bordeile at a slower pace. The local border troops' company commander, Lowens, warmly greeted them.
Lowens: "Mr. Yaanlide, you've come quite early today!"
Yaanlide: "Hahaha, Mr. Lowens, you're too kind. The weather is good today—I take it as a sign that our cooperation can rise to a whole new level."
Unlike other caravans that arrived at Bordeile early in a rush to "buy up" goods, Yaanlide's caravan was noticeably later. But East Africa's attitude toward Yaanlide's caravan was clearly different; even the border troops took the initiative to greet them.
Lowens: "Mr. Yaanlide, from what I've heard, there's a new batch of firearms that arrived today. Early this morning, merchants from your capital in Tigray and the Amhara region already bought some. But don't worry—we've set aside the good stuff."
Hearing Lowens' inside scoop, Yaanlide hurriedly expressed his thanks: "Thank you for the information, my friend. Those northerners are way too ambitious. They monopolize the empire's arms business out east, and yet they try to get a piece of the south as well. Such greedy folks!"
Yaanlide criticized his peers' unethical behavior. Before East Africa set up its market here, most of the Abyssinian Empire's trade took place along the Red Sea coast. Inland southern cities like Negemet rarely saw such benefits. As for the northern regions, they do have trade routes, but because Egypt's relations with the Abyssinian Empire are terrible, their mutual trade is minimal.
Lowens: "Don't be upset, Mr. Yaanlide. You can't finish all the business in the world by yourself. Besides, we in East Africa are standing on Negemet's side. With our support, sooner or later you'll be able to compete with those major powers."
Just as the British back Yohannes IV, the East African Kingdom seeks a proxy for its own interests within the Abyssinian Empire. Southern regional powers led by Negemet have become East Africa's target for wooing.
In the empire's south, development is far behind the north and also behind the east. Their status within the empire is relatively weak. But after Britain's war shattered the Abyssinian Empire into fragments, warlords everywhere seized control. And as southern factions look to protect their interests, they also covet the imperial throne—supporting former imperial southern commander Nathogg as their leader.
Nathogg's story is quite dramatic. He, too, was originally from a major family of the Tigray region. The previous emperor, Tewodros II, sent him south to guard against East Africa. But after Tewodros II was defeated and committed suicide, the empire split apart. Under the endorsement of various southern forces, Nathogg became one of the top contenders for the Abyssinian throne.
As for why the southern factions chose Nathogg, it's because he's a member of the Solomonic family, effectively the imperial dynasty in the current Abyssinian Empire. That made it easier for him to gain acceptance nationwide.
Meanwhile, those southern factions are secretly backed by the East African Kingdom. So Nathogg, who initially was posted to guard against an East African invasion, has now become one of the main contenders for power in the Abyssinian Empire—under East Africa's support.
…
With Lowens leading them in person, Yaanlide's group arrived at Bordeile's military supplies store. Unlike Bubuyawis and Ouderikewen earlier, they were ushered into the shop's backyard, where neatly stacked crates of weapons were already waiting.
Lowens found a crowbar and personally pried open one of the crates. Painted green, the wooden box still smelled strongly of fresh paint, indicating that this batch of goods was quite "new." Inside lay row after row of shiny flintlock muskets, packed in straw. Lowens handed one to Yaanlide.
Lowens: "This is the M1809 muzzle-loading smoothbore musket once used by the official Prussian army—famous throughout Europe. Look at how its parts still gleam. Its reliability is definitely something you can count on."
Even Lowens felt a bit awkward bragging about such antiques.
That Prussia once fielded these rifles in small numbers at a time when Napoleon's France strictly limited the Prussian army's size. The fact that East Africa was able to pick up this old hardware shows just how cheap it was—bought at scrap-metal prices from Prussian arsenals.
Then these guns served a few more years in East Africa's militia forces. You could say they are over fifty years old, much older than Lowens himself. Visually, they still look quite good, thanks to a refurbishing by East African armories, which even repainted them.
Lowens knew all too well what he was selling, but he still put on a straight face. "They may be a bit old, but they're stable. Don't forget, Prussia has always been a strong military force in Europe, so their weapon standards are high. Plus, everything's uniform, making replacement parts and maintenance easier. They're definitely better than the weapons we sell to the northerners."
In the Abyssinian Empire, firearms come from all over, mostly obsolete antiques offloaded by other countries, and their quality is wildly inconsistent—some aren't even functional. It's extremely rare to find dealers like East Africa that refurbish their stock before selling.
Based on appearance alone, Yaanlide felt satisfied. He asked, "Mr. Lowens, may I check a few more crates?"
Lowens: "Certainly, no problem!" he said, handing Yaanlide the crowbar.
Just opening one box isn't enough to be sure; if that crate were prepped as a showpiece, the buyer would be duped. Obviously, Yaanlide wanted to be cautious. But after he randomly opened a few crates, he saw they were all of similar quality. He nodded his approval. "Mr. Lowens, I'm quite satisfied with this batch, but I'd still like to see it in action."
Lowens: "We can head to our border troops' shooting range on the outskirts of town. There's plenty of open space there."
So they went outside Bordeile, where Yaanlide personally test-fired the muskets. Their performance met the mid-to-high standard of the Abyssinian army's firearms unit.
Yaanlide: "We're very pleased. We can settle payment right now—gold and silver coins, or livestock?"
Lowens: "Either is fine, my friend. Whatever's convenient for you!"
In the end, Yaanlide exchanged his final batch of Ottoman silver coins at the Hechingen Bank. He had acquired them back when he traded with Ottoman merchants on the Red Sea coast. But now, with Egypt at war with Abyssinia, trade between the two countries has mostly ceased, and Ottoman silver coins have sharply depreciated within Abyssinia. Yaanlide was eager to get rid of them.
From East Africa's perspective, it made no difference. Those Ottoman silver coins could still be circulated in the Sultanate of Zanzibar and then find their way back into the Ottoman Empire. After all, Abyssinia is landlocked, but East Africa is not.
At the same time, it signaled the decline of Ottoman influence on Abyssinia's finances. Taking its place were currencies like the British pound, the French franc, and the promissory notes issued on behalf of East Africa by the Hechingen Bank—all considered solid currency.
Since the Abyssinian Empire has a population close to ten million, that market is no small temptation. Plus, Abyssinia isn't like the poor West African tribes who might have "gold" but barely any purchasing power. Here, there's significant potential for real business.
Meanwhile, East Africa is in a hurry to offload its stock of antique guns. With the upcoming installation of Dreyse rifle production lines, East Africa is about to say goodbye entirely to muzzle-loading flintlocks—and the war-torn Abyssinian Empire is a perfect buyer.
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 40 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Canserbero10