NIS Agents Tearing Up the Japanese Empire - Chapter 284



Only Noblemtl

Episode 284

Promises should be kept carefully (3)

The small panic that the United States started became a great economic depression that engulfed the entire world.

European countries that had just emerged from the aftermath of the war and were once again on the path to economic growth were hit hard by the Great Depression and collapsed one after another.

Even the British Empire, which had dominated the world and boasted of fancy nicknames like the “empire on which the sun never sets” and “Pax Britannia,” was hit hard by World War I and the Great Depression and was left reeling, while Germany was barely able to breathe properly.

Oh, France was doing pretty well compared to the other two countries, but it didn’t have the same skyrocketing unemployment rate as the other two countries.

This was because so many people had died in the last great war that there was a severe labor shortage.

Of course, France, like the other two countries, had a difficult time, even though the unemployment rate was low.

Rather, France was in a long-term economic recession due to a shortage of workers.

Spain, which was next to France, suffered losses several times the small gains it had made during the Great War, and its economy was completely destroyed.

If the traditional powers of Europe are struggling, would things be any different for other weaker countries?

They were mostly in similar circumstances.

The Netherlands and Belgium, which had been making a living from exports and finance, joined hands and dived into the North Sea, while newly independent Poland and several Balkan countries laughed heartily as their already ruined economies were completely torn to pieces.

In the United States across the ocean, they also heard news of people dying every day, so much so that they were now making bets on how many people would die the next day.

The heads of households who lost their jobs either took their own lives or tried to find work on the streets, while the families left behind starved to death or became ill from eating strange things.

When the dark clouds of the Great Depression that had covered the entire world settled, and everyone shed tears while holding on to their own ruined economies.

In this situation, there were two countries that smiled: the Soviet Union, which declared itself the world’s first socialist country and was the first in history to cut diplomatic ties with all countries; and the Japanese Empire, whose economy had already collapsed several years earlier.

Well, although the Soviet Union was an international outcast, it possessed a lot of resources and had its own level of technological prowess, and thanks to the isolated economy created by the diplomatic severance and blockade by the Western world, it was able to maintain stability even during the Great Depression.

No, it didn’t stop at just maintaining stability; it even achieved sustained economic development.

Of course, this does not mean that the Soviet Union suddenly became one of the world’s leading economic powers. It is simply that the economy that had collapsed due to the Great War and the Civil War was normalized again.

So what happened to the Japanese Empire?

The Japanese Empire was having difficulty ruling due to its failure to suppress the large-scale rebellion of the Bulyeongseon people who opposed the imperial rule along with the Ghost of Gyeongseong.

There was a situation where the economy completely collapsed due to a series of events that caused military spending to skyrocket and a sudden national disaster.

Of course, it is true that the economy has recovered to some extent, but it is only an improvement over before and has not completely eliminated the recession.

While the entire world was suffering from the Great Depression that originated in the United States and its economy was in ruins, the Japanese Empire’s economy was actually recovering.

Since the Japanese Empire lifted its ban on gold exports, numerous foreign powers have been taking Japan’s gold overseas through currency manipulation.

The amount of money that was lost was equivalent to several years of the Japanese Empire’s national budget, yet the Japanese Empire easily withstood the onslaught of foreigners.

No, it wasn’t just something I could endure.

Rather, they took advantage of the Great Depression to empty the pockets of foreign powers who had been emptying their own pockets, completely emptying every last bit of their pockets.

The whole thing came about because the Great Depression caused European countries to suspend the gold standard again and block gold exports.

Naturally, the Japanese Empire also tried to follow this trend and suspend the gold standard.

but.

“No! The gold exchange must not be stopped.”

A parasite that had dug into the heart of the Japanese Empire, our great-great-grandfather, raised his voice in front of the head of the Japanese Empire, Crown Prince Hirohito.

“Maintaining the gold standard… … If we do that, won’t other countries take away all of the Japanese Empire’s gold?”

“That’s right. Once again, foreign money changers will flock to the Japanese Empire, buy up the Empire’s yen indiscriminately, and then withdraw the Empire’s gold through gold exchange.”

“Yes, I am not an expert on economics, but I do know that gold plays a significant role in the economy. So in this situation, wouldn’t it be right to protect gold?”

Hirohito, the Crown Prince and Regent of the Japanese Empire, asked Lord Daigal.

Then, the great lord Daegal answered curiously.

“If you are an ordinary person who does not know how to see the great country, you would fold the sails in the face of a sudden storm, surrender yourself to the waves, and crawl into the hold, shivering.”

“Would you make a different decision if you saw the coming storm?”

“Yes, it has been said that the difference between a crisis and an opportunity is only a sheet of paper. I have no doubt that the unprecedented global economic crisis will, in turn, serve as a springboard for the growth of our Empire of Japan.”

“scaffolding?”

The plan of the great lord was this.

Now, with the Great Depression originating in the United States, capital markets around the world have been completely devastated.

As private and government organizations around the world struggle to overcome this situation, they will seek to secure gold to secure cash liquidity in preparation for the coming deflation.

However, in the current market, the only place where gold can be legally and reliably obtained is the Empire of Japan.

So, foreign countries will try to buy up Japanese yen indiscriminately and drain Japanese gold.

“If people gather at the counter like that, won’t the value of the yen rise and the value of foreign currencies fall?”

“That may be true, but if that happens, the empire’s export routes will be completely blocked.”

“But we will have a yen that is stronger than ever before.”

“Hmm… …so?”

The Great King planned to actively utilize the strengthened yen and the foreign currencies that would flood the central bank.

“We are investing in overseas assets that have become worthless pieces of paper due to the Great Depression.”

“Investment? Are you telling me to invest in overseas markets at this time?”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

In a situation where it is no exaggeration to say that the capital market was completely dead due to the Great Depression, Hirohito frowned at the words of the great general discussing investment.

“No matter how much I think about it, your words sound like the absurd idea of ​​trying to stop the flow of a river by throwing money at it.”

Hirohito shook his head at Grand Duke Daegal’s suggestion.

The fact that he shook his head meant that no matter what happened, this motion would not pass.

If it were any other politician, he would have realized the Crown Prince’s intentions at this point, given up, and stepped down.

But Daegal Daegam was different.

Rather, as if he had been waiting for Hirohito to object, he raised his voice even more.

“I am not trying to stop the river from flowing.”

“Then what are you trying to do? What good can come from looking at overseas investment in these times?”

The great lord answered.

“I am not trying to stop the river, I am trying to give you the opportunity to become the master of the river.”

“Lecture… …Master?”

“Yes, the Japanese Empire will become the master of the great stream that is the world economy.”

“… … That’s ridiculous.”

“It’s not an entirely impossible story.”

Although Daegal Daegam was skilled at self-preservation, he flexibly moved his cunning tongue that had captivated Emperor Gojong and gently provoked Hirohito.

His tongue, moving smoothly, pierced Hirohito’s heart, which was as hard as the Siberian winter.

* * *

Thanks to the efforts of the great general, the Japanese government began making large-scale investments in Western powers such as the United States, Britain, and France.

A warm wind from the Land of the Rising Sun in the East blew into the frozen market, which was frozen by a cold wind of panic colder than the midwinter north wind.

As money began to flow back into the market, the once-frozen market began to regain its vitality.

Of course, loosening the purse strings in Japan did not end the Great Depression and make the Japanese Empire the world’s greatest economic power.

The Japanese Empire’s funds are just a stopgap measure, like urinating on someone’s own feet.

Because that couldn’t be the solution.

To begin with, the Japanese Empire did not have a strong enough economy to manage the global economy, nor did it have a large economic zone.

They just had a little more money in their pockets than usual, and they were just showing off a little by throwing it around.

In any case, the Japanese Empire’s capital that entered the international market in this way immediately began to sweep away the capital markets around the world.

The yen flowing out of Japan was never wasted.

Their money went exactly where it was needed: to companies that would fill the production infrastructure the Japanese Empire lacked or to companies that seemed likely to bring greater profits in the future.

The Japanese Empire began to buy up, at dirt-cheap prices, any companies it needed and any items it could make money with from all over the world, much like a lady shopping in a department store.

Then, Westerners, who had initially acted as if they were willing to give their all to Japan in light of its current difficulties, began to look upon Japan with increasing displeasure.

“Tsk… … Those Japanese guys… … Don’t you think they’ve been acting too arrogant lately?”

“But if those guys hadn’t been there, we would be begging on the streets by now.”

“I know that too… … It’s just that the guys who were whining under us until recently are now putting their necks together and standing firm, which is really annoying.”

This reaction was also influenced by racist sentiments deeply rooted in the hearts of white people.

“If not, what can you do? Let’s just let it go, okay?”

“No, let’s think about it for a moment… … Until recently, a country that was bowing its head to other countries to borrow loans has now become a country that influences the entire world economy.”

If you think about it for a moment, it was a strange thing.

“Why is that? I heard a rumor that the Japanese government is bringing gold this time… … .”

“That’s why it’s weird.”

“What’s so strange this time?”

“Since the Japanese Empire maintains the gold standard, wouldn’t the whole world rush in to rob them? It’s a bit strange that they’re still holding on to it.”

“Is that so strange?”

“No matter how much I think about it, it’s just strange. If the British guys were to rush in from Wall Street, they’d only be able to hold out for a few months before they gave up!”

“Really? But how did the Japanese Empire survive for so long? No, it’s not just surviving; it’s doing so well that it’s investing overseas.”

“That’s what I mean, it’s weird.”

“Hmm… I don’t know.”

“Oh my, you annoying guy.”

“What I’m saying is that we just have to live off the money they throw at us.”

People with a reasonable level of intelligence were skeptical about this aspect of the Japanese Empire.

But they also only sensed that there was something strange about the Japanese Empire.

I couldn’t find any evidence that they were really weird.

Because.

This was because someone in the middle was kicking out all the news that could have a negative impact on the market.

It was strange that all the bad news coming from Japan never made it past Shanghai and died down.

For example, the bad news that the Bank of Japan’s vaults were empty and that Dongyang Mining, run by the great tycoon, had been shut down for months has been completely buried.

So the world was truly quiet.

It’s so amazing.