Chapter 36: Chapter 35: Seeds of the Future (For Yanhuo Daofan and Shenzhou, who are celebrating birthdays)

Vienna, Schönbrunn Palace.

Franz was lying on Talia's lap, listening to her read the newspaper.

The skyrocketing prices of American land were within Franz's expectations.

However, what Franz had not anticipated was that this land fever was gradually spreading from the East Coast toward the West.

This left Franz somewhat flustered, because in his plan, he intended to "slaughter this American pig" several times over.

At this moment, every piece of land being sold by the American government was being sold at a premium; even so, buyers would make a fortune within a few days.

Fortunately, the American wars to expel the Indians prevented the real estate craze from spreading further west.

Otherwise, Franz would have been considering whether to purchase western lands a decade in advance.

Britain had experienced a massive wheat harvest, leading to the dumping of wheat everywhere, which caused prices to plummet by 40%.

Austria also had a bumper wheat harvest; fortunately, there were the German Customs Union and Italy to dump into, but the situation in Hungary was bleak.

Hungary's wheat suddenly lost its market, leading many landowners to switch to other crops to fill the deficit—an ill effect that would manifest in several years.

The Imperial faction, represented by Széchenyi, held the upper hand, whereas historically, the Kingdom faction in Hungary had always been dominant.

However, due to the sudden loss of influence of Prince Esterházy, combined with Austria's successful entry into the German Customs Union, the power of the Kingdom faction suffered heavy losses while the strength of the Imperial faction was bolstered.

The Imperial faction: Those who supported Austrian rule over Hungary and hoped for the complete integration of Austria and Hungary. They believed that Hungary leaving Austria would be self-destruction, and that the best way to protect their own interests was to make Hungary valuable to the Empire. Most of these people belonged to the emerging Hungarian nobility and capitalists, as well as the high nobility who had lived in Austria for a long time and identified with Austrian culture.

The Kingdom faction: Those who demanded autonomy, prioritizing Hungarian interests above all else, and hoped to reconstruct the Kingdom of Hungary while drawing a clear line between themselves and Austria. They viewed the Austrians as robbers who had stolen their property and kingdom. They believed power in Hungary must be held by Hungarians, and that Hungarians should not die for Austria or the Habsburgs; instead, Austria and the Habsburgs should repay the debts owed to Hungary. Part of these people were traditional landed aristocrats who controlled vast amounts of land, many of whom lived in Vienna and Paris. They had their own territories in Hungary where they could control taxation, justice, and even organize armies. These high nobles opposed Austria primarily to seize more benefits.

The main supporters of the Kingdom faction were the so-called "nobles in single garments"—referring to nobles so poor that they only owned one set of clothes. These people were extremely impoverished and desperately hoped to change the status quo, seeking to achieve class mobility through violent seizure of power.

"Austrian explorer Costa is organizing an expedition to the Amazon rainforest to search for a mysterious kingdom hidden deep within the jungle. Currently seeking philanthropic sponsorship; profit distribution is negotiable."

This news caught Franz's attention, though it wasn't the mysterious kingdom in the rainforest that he cared about.

As far as Franz knew, there were only indigenous tribes in there, and certainly no treasures.

What Franz wanted was the seed of a certain plant—a seed that would change the world in the future.

"Talia, can we contact this explorer?"

"Legends are all lies. If you have so much money that it's blooming like flowers, you might consider improving the menu," Talia said, looking down at Franz.

"I'm not looking for treasure; I want the seed of a plant."

"A plant? The Royal Greenhouse has every kind of plant. Is it edible?" Talia asked.

"Ahem, no. But it is said to be a 'weeping plant.' Don't you want to see it?" Franz tried to pique her interest.

"A weeping plant? Won't that affect one's mood? It sounds like a sad plant, and it's not even edible," Talia complained.

"Haven't you heard of building one's happiness upon the suffering of others?" Franz said.

"Archduke Franz, you are wrong. It is that one *cannot* build one's happiness upon the suffering of others," Talia replied.

"Right now, because I cannot see that weeping plant, I am suffering. And if I am suffering, I want to build my happiness upon the suffering of others," Franz said, pinching Talia's thigh as he spoke.

Talia cried out in pain and begged for mercy.

"Fine, you've convinced me. Now can you tell me what you want those rubber seeds for? If you like playing billiards, ivory is still better; rubber is too soft."

Franz had bad memories of billiards; because he was too short, he had to be held up by others to play. Being used as a human cushion, feeling as though he had no autonomy—it felt terrible.

***

Cambodia, Ponson.

Upon arriving in Ponson, Ambrosius felt cheated. This was no port; it was clearly just a fishing village.

The surrounding Cambodians looked at Ambrosius's party with terrified eyes.

The ancestors of these locals were not fishermen, but honest farmers. However, successive invasions by Vietnam and Siam had left the fields desolate and the people destitute.

The Cambodian government had used military force to resist the Vietnamese and Siamese invasions, but instead, they had colluded with bandits and bullies, increasing the exploitation of the common people. To survive, their ancestors had fled to this uninhabited beach to become fishermen.

Guan Jinpan still had some authority; he barked an order, scaring the local minor official into sitting on the ground.

"From now on, this place shall be commanded by Thousand-Household An. Do not meddle, or you might lose your head."

It was the local official's first time seeing a Second-Rank Grand Yuan, and hearing that the Fifth-Rank Thousand-Household was surnamed An, he naturally associated it with the imperial surname. As for why a member of the imperial clan would come to such a remote wasteland, the official reasoned that since this Master An looked so strange, he must have been driven out of Phnom Penh.

Having figured this out, the official shut his mouth immediately. There weren't many people in this place anyway; let Thousand-Household An do whatever he pleased.

While Ambrosius was dissatisfied, the Catholic priests were extremely happy. They hadn't expected to find a foothold so easily; this was a massive step for the Church in Southeast Asia.

One must know that the French, the Spanish, and the Dutch had all been here, but they had left behind neither strongholds nor even a single church. Furthermore, once the Austrian Empire established a port here, they could mission in Cambodia with peace of mind.

These Catholic missionaries had already been telling their comrades about Ponson along the way; it was believed that Catholic believers within Cambodia would soon come to settle in Ponson.

The two officers brought by Ambrosius were also very happy; after all, this could be considered a small colony. They might even be recorded in history as the first colonists of the Austrian Empire.

Only the diplomat, Zacher, was filled with anxiety, for he knew clearly that Austria currently had neither the plan nor the strength to expand in Southeast Asia.