IBTCPOTME Novel - Chapter 156
## Chapter 156 (156/180)
< South and North (10) >
Marquez, standing on the platform, opened his dry lips.
“My dear neighbors of Cartagena,
Today, I stand before you to reveal the truth about the rumors that have been circulating.
Yes, it is true. The landowners, including Joaquin Posada Gutierrez, are plotting to establish their own kingdom without asking our opinion.
Their plan, on the surface, is to establish a republic, but in reality, they are envisioning a state dominated by landowners, where only those who own vast lands have voting rights.
They have even already decided on the first president, and can you imagine that it is Joaquin Posada Gutierrez, the very man who tried to kidnap me?”
It was a shocking revelation.
It meant that what the citizens of Cartagena had been secretly worried about was a reality.
If this revelation was true, it meant that they would not be a state different from Nueva Granada, but a state worse than Nueva Granada.
“Are you sure? Are you saying there’s evidence?”
Even if Marquez was a young man who had lived in the city all his life, they couldn’t believe everything he said based solely on his appearance, as if he had been kidnapped.
“Of course, it’s hard to believe. I was skeptical when I first heard about it. But seeing them try to kidnap me to hide the truth of the rumors, putting me on a cart, and hearing them talk, I couldn’t help but believe it.”
Marquez said that, and before anyone could ask, he brought up the story that everyone was most curious about.
“Everyone, you must be wondering how I escaped during the kidnapping. In fact, I belong to the ‘Free Citizen Alliance’, which is working to expose and stop these landowners’ plots. The reason why I learned about these things relatively quickly is because of this background. My comrade, who witnessed me being beaten and dragged away by Gutierrez’s men, immediately informed my comrades, and they carried out an ambush operation, allowing me to narrowly escape. It was possible because we had been preparing since the end of the war with Mexico.”
“···There was such an organization?”
Gutierrez was frightening not only because of the manpower he could mobilize, but also because of the weapons he possessed. As the governor of Cartagena Province, he had a great influence on this port city, and he strictly controlled and monopolized firearms. But from what Marquez said, it seemed that this organization called the ‘Free Citizen Alliance’ had a way to obtain weapons.
In reality, the ‘Free Citizen Alliance’ had only 50 members. They had no choice but to grow the organization secretly. The weapons were smuggled by a comrade who worked in the trading business, but Marquez didn’t tell the citizens the details of the organization.
Marquez continued.
“My friends, they are trying to create a quasi-feudal state where only landowners have rights. Our free citizens’ will was not reflected in this process at all. If this plot is realized, the landowners will monopolize all rights. They will become true nobles. What will happen to us, free citizens?”
“Those disgusting bastards···.”
“What era is it, they’re going to play noble games?”
Marquez’s speech was inflammatory, but it was perfect for provoking the citizens of Cartagena, who already had a simmering anger in their hearts.
“Therefore, I appeal to all of you. Let us have the courage to stand up to this conspiracy. Let us fight for our freedom and our future!”
“Let’s fight!”
As the members of the Free Citizen Alliance shouted to fight, some people joined in, while others looked around, but that day, the number of members of the Free Citizen Alliance increased several times.
***
“Wow! This is the ‘public school’?”
“Yes, son. What do you think? Isn’t it cool?”
“Yes!”
Carlos was amazed at the model.
‘It was worth making the model. Although I didn’t make it myself.’
I patted Carlos on the head and showed him around the construction site.
“Be careful here. Stay close to your father.”
“Yes!”
Carlos was only 11 years old, but the sooner the successor education started, the better.
When I took over from my father, went through the coronation ceremony, and became emperor, Carlos would naturally become the crown prince, and it would be difficult to spend time like this then.
“Father, why is that empty space there?”
“That’s the playground. It’s a space made so that during physical education, they can learn various sports, and during break time, they can play soccer.”
“Wow···. Soccer with friends, I’m jealous.”
We agreed to avoid educating children too strictly, fearing that they might become warped, as in many historical examples, but Carlos, as a member of the Imperial Family, had been receiving private lessons from various intellectuals in Mexico.
Soccer, which I first started at the military academy, was smoothly integrated into Mexican society because of its unique fun and because I, the crown prince, introduced it. Carlos had playmates, but naturally, he wasn’t good enough to play soccer, so he had only watched it.
Since he was still at an age where he wanted to play, he must have been jealous of having a space where he could play soccer with his friends.
“Do you want to go to school?”
Carlos thought for a moment at my question and answered.
“I know I can’t do whatever I want, but it would be nice to go!”
Hmm.
In modern times, most children of European royal families attend regular schools, but that wasn’t the case in this era. They all receive education with private tutors, like we are doing now.
‘Still···. It wouldn’t hurt if we just focused on safety.’
We had been paying attention to educating him so that he wouldn’t develop unnecessary feelings of superiority, so it wouldn’t be bad if he could go to school, interact with various people, and broaden his horizons.
‘Hmm. The public school in Mexico City will probably be completed in two years, so if he starts school the following year···.’
“You could go for two years.”
“Really?”
Carlos looked surprised.
“Then, really.”
I took Carlos, who was excited, around the construction site and explained in detail the various parts of the public school that would be built in the future. As for his bloodline(?), Carlos seemed to enjoy the architectural stories.
“If there are many schools like this, I think our empire will develop even more.”
At those words, I nodded and said.
“Protecting the country is the top priority, but it’s also important to develop the country like this and improve the lives of our people.”
“Yes!”
After spending a cozy time with my eldest son, I returned to the Imperial Palace and spent time with my family.
***
“···Malaria again. The deaths just won’t stop.”
“It has decreased a lot by applying the things Your Highness told us to do, but···.”
Diego trailed off, noticing my slightly unpleasant tone as I read the report.
“No, it’s not your fault. It’s not Ortega Construction’s fault either. But we need to come up with a solution.”
We had been building a railroad in the newly acquired territory since the end of the war, and there were no problems in the north. More than 95% of the territory belonged to the government, and the construction was going smoothly.
The problem arose in the south, in the extension of the railroad to the southernmost part of Panama.
‘It was good to persuade the hacienda owners to sell the land for the railroad route, but malaria···.’
“At this rate, there will be more deaths from malaria than from all the railroad construction so far.”
Ortega Construction and the Mexican Imperial Railroad Company had paid a lot of attention to the safety of the workers, but they were helpless against malaria.
Malaria, which still holds the title of number one killer from infectious diseases even in modern times, is a truly terrifying disease. Surprisingly, it has both high infectivity and high mortality.
This is a phenomenon that differs from the general knowledge that infectious diseases with high mortality rates have low infectivity because the host dies quickly and the disease cannot spread. This is because the definitive host of malaria is not humans, but mosquitoes. Humans are just intermediate hosts, so even if they die quickly, there is no reason for the infectivity to decrease.
I had warned about this beforehand, but mosquitoes were difficult to prevent.
“Tell them to proceed by filling in all the pits where mosquitoes can breed, even if it delays construction.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
It was actually an order I had already given. But there was nothing they could do until the cure was complete.
“How far has Gaitan’s research progressed?”
“He has succeeded in extracting quinine from the bark of the cinchona tree, but as in the last report, the cinchona tree itself is very scarce.”
Cinchona tree bark is a malaria treatment that was discovered by European missionaries in the 17th century. This substance, which also cured Emperor Kangxi, who had contracted malaria (malaria) on an expedition, became so famous that cinchona trees in South America were becoming scarce.
Therefore, in 1820, a method was developed to extract quinine, a chemical substance with medicinal effects on malaria, from the bark of the cinchona tree, but the fact that it still depended on the supply of cinchona trees remained unchanged.
‘In the end, we need to create a synthetic compound, chloroquine···.’
That was created in the original timeline after 1900.
‘So, is the Panama Canal still out of the question?’
The reason I, who is ignorant of chemistry and pharmaceuticals, know about chloroquine is because it was all related to the story of the Panama Canal.
The Panama Canal was attempted by France in 1880, but failed after more than 20,000 people died, and it was only completed in 1914 after the United States invested a huge amount of troops. Even the United States lost about 6,000 people.
A total of 26,000 people died building the Panama Canal.
It’s ridiculous.
Not war, but a construction site, and 26,000 people died. Does that make sense? Even if a natural disaster suddenly occurred, it wouldn’t be a disaster of that magnitude.
Even if the Panama Canal would bring enormous benefits to our empire, I can’t even imagine the number 26,000 that I remember.
That’s why, instead of building the canal recklessly, we’re laying railroads and doing the groundwork to minimize the mosquito population.
There have been casualties, but since we started knowing that the cause was mosquitoes, we haven’t suffered the same losses as France or the United States, but if we start digging up the land to build the canal, they will breed again.
‘I shouldn’t even think about the Panama Canal until we have chloroquine.’
I reaffirmed that again and told Diego.
“Tell Reginald, who is busy in Ireland, to gather as many people as possible who are interested in chemistry and pathology as quickly as possible. Tell him to offer them exceptional benefits.”
“Yes, I will tell him so, Your Highness.”
It was an order to Reginald, who was in charge of the European immigration company. He is focused on relief activities and encouraging immigration in Ireland, but the network he has built on the European continent remains, so he will soon achieve results.
I sent a few names I knew, ‘Louis Pasteur’ and ‘Rudolf Virchow’.
Honestly, I don’t know what achievements they made, but if they are famous enough for me to know their names, they will be a great help even if it’s not malaria. I will provide the best environment and support in the world based on the current time, so they may even achieve more than their original historical achievements.
‘Let’s take it step by step, step by step.’
I know the way, so I just have to keep going.