"Fernandez, are you really going to stop thinking about it and stay in East Africa?"

On the pier in the port of Maputo, Eusebio said to his friend Fernández, who had come to see him off.

Fernández took a puff of his cigarette, took a deep breath, frowned and said: "Even if you return to China now, what difference does it make, and the situation in Portugal is probably not much better than Mozambique, I heard that the government owes a lot of debts after the war, and the economy will be dragged down in the future, and now there are so many people returning to China, I am afraid that it is difficult to find a job, so it is better to stay in Mozambique, at least in Mozambique over the years, I also have a little affection for this land." ”

It's not so much about feelings, it's about being used to staying in Mozambique, like a prisoner who is in prison and gets out of touch with society over time, and that's pretty much the case with Fernández at the moment.

Mozambique, as a former Portuguese colony, would not be much worse, if not reduced to a prisoner colony like Australia's British.

In the previous days when Portugal was still prosperous, the colonies in South America and the Far East must have taken precedence over Africa, and the Portuguese had been moving around the coast for hundreds of years since the Portuguese colonized Mozambique, and it was only in recent years that the real inland development was realized.

On the one hand, the other valuable colonies were lost, and on the other hand, the direct threat from East Africa made Portugal insecure, so it invested in Mozambique.

However, Portugal's attention to Africa is too late, and in such a short period of time, Portugal has not had time to change the perception of Mozambique in the country.

Except for those who really have the strength to make a fortune in Mozambique, most of the Portuguese who have developed in Mozambique are actually at the bottom of the social ladder and cannot get along in the country, such as Fernandez and Eusebio.

Fernández reminisced: "Eusebio, do you remember why we came to Maputo? ”

Eusebio said, "Of course, looking for a job opportunity! ”

"Yes, we all came out of the village of Migne, we have no land in Portugal, and we haven't found a job, so we were fooled into going here to work, so even if we go back to Portugal now, we can't change anything, and after paying the boat fare, I'm afraid there is not much savings left over the years, so we still have to go back?" Fernandez asked rhetorically.

Eusebio's heart tightened, what Fernandez said was indeed a bit heart-wrenching, the bottom people are bottom people everywhere, and there are always a few who can make a fortune, and Fernandez and Eusebio obviously belong to the majority.

Fernandez continued: "In Portugal, we don't have any assets, and now we are old, we were only seventeen when we left Portugal, and now we are close to thirty, but we still have nothing, even if we go back to our homeland and enter the factory, I am afraid that we will not be able to compete with those young people, if this is the way of life, it is better to stay in East Africa, after all, East Africa is a country that can beat the United Kingdom, so I think this country should have a better future than Portugal in the future." ”

Eusebio was silent for a while, and after thinking about it, he said, "Maybe we can go back to Portugal first, and then find an opportunity to go to France or Germany to seek opportunities, that would also be a way out." ”

Fernandez: "It's a good idea, but we have to have channels, we don't have a lot of education, we don't have a lot of work experience, after all, we have been working on a plantation for so many years, I'm afraid I can't find such a career when I go back to Europe, of course, if there are relatives or acquaintances to lead the way, it's also a shortcut, but after such a toss, it doesn't feel much different from in East Africa." ”

Eusebio: "It's so different, you've been in Mozambique for so long, you don't know what kind of country East Africa is, right?" In this way, the Germans lived like machines, with little humor, and even the most prosperous cities in East Africa were far inferior to the big cities such as Paris and Berlin. ”

Fernandez: "Dar es Salaam isn't as bad as you say, is it?" And you really dare to think that Berlin and Paris have always been the most developed cities in Europe, the cities of East Africa are very young, and the city of Dar es Salaam is much stronger than Lisbon, and it is more prosperous than the capitals of many countries in Europe. ”

"Alas, we are all old!" Eusebio also sighed, of course, this is true in terms of the average life expectancy of this era, of course, it is not too exaggerated, after all, if there is no serious illness and disaster, it is no problem for ordinary people to live seventy or eighty years old.

After all, life expectancy is only statistical, and the premature mortality rate of children alone can reduce life expectancy a lot in this era.

"However, I still don't think it's a good idea to stay in East Africa, after all, East Africa is the East of the Germans, we Portugal have offended them miserably, and it is inevitable that they will be liquidated if they stay, even if they are generous, I am afraid they will look at us with colored eyes." Eusebio persuaded.

In response to this, Fernandez said confidently: "Definitely not, although East Africa is not very open and inclusive, but it is not too closed and conservative, there are many immigrants from all over the world in East Africa, except for blacks, I have never heard East Africans say that they discriminate against a certain country, and I think it will be the same in the future." ”

"That's not for sure, but I've made up my mind to go back to my hometown first, after all, I still have family, so I can only wish you good luck, my friend, write to me if you have the chance!" Eusebio said his final goodbyes to his companions.

Fernández had a sour nose and gave Eusebio a big hug.

"Good luck, my friend."

Under the sails of the Portuguese merchant ships, Eusebio and other Portuguese waved goodbye to their former colleagues, comrades-in-arms, and relatives, and the fates of the two sides embarked on completely different paths.

More than 40,000 Portuguese eventually remained in Mozambique, more than the East African government's budget, but the East African government chose to accept all the Portuguese who were willing to integrate into East Africa.

After all, Mozambique was too short of manpower at this time, and these Portuguese stayed to assist in the development of East Africa and South Mozambique.

These Portuguese also became an integral part of the origin of East African citizenship, and of course, with the passage of time and the policy of assimilation, it was only natural that in the future they would no longer be called Portuguese, but would be directly incorporated into the German nation.

Like the situation in East Africa, Germany and Austria are actually quite common, but the assimilation ability of Austria-Hungary is too weak, and the strength of other ethnic groups in the country is too strong, and the assimilation policy is not easy to carry out.

It's just that no matter what Germany and Austria say, most of the population absorbed is Europeans, and East Africa has also integrated Asians, so the so-called German nation in East Africa is very "not" pure, although everyone is essentially the same.

As far as the location of Germany and Austria is concerned, it is a natural melting pot of European races, located in the center, and the economic level is not bad, which can play a certain role in assimilating the weak civilizations of eastern and southern Europe.

So there is no pure single-blood people in this world at all, for example, the United States is a typical Anglo-Saxon culture, but the Anglo-Saxons are not the most numerous.

The biggest difference between the Ottoman Empire, as a green "Luo", and the Eastern Romans in terms of the actual people at the bottom is only the difference in cultural identity.

(End of chapter)

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