Sheffield's route was quite similar to the main German forces advancing into Belgium during World War I to attack France. Only this time, it was reversed. Along the way, Sheffield seemed to vaguely feel the clashes of millions of troops on both sides, with blood soaking every inch of the land.
As for whether a world war would break out, it was almost certain. No matter how successful Sheffield might be in the business field, that was merely personal will. However, there was national will between countries.
This national will existed in all European powers, but in the United States, it was still in its infancy. At present, the U.S. federal government could only hope that European powers wouldn't always treat the Monroe Doctrine as irrelevant and give the United States some face.
These old imperialist countries in Europe were not concerned about saving face or just making empty threats like the United States did, strongly protesting against their oppressive enemy nations.
The election situation in the French Republic showed that even the romantic French were collectively turning to the right. What more could be said about Germany and Russia's imperial governments? This sentiment brewing over ten or twenty years made war almost inevitable. These imperial governments found it much easier to consolidate national will than the U.S. federal government.
This was truly a systemic issue. For the United States to form a unified national will to confront enemies was not easy. It became simpler only after the United States firmly ranked first in the world in later times. At this time, the United States was nothing but a small fry. If it weren't for the upcoming elections, and the Republicans always coming out to perform, saying "If we come to power, we will do this and that," President Cleveland wouldn't have abandoned his long-held isolationism to become tough. After all, the Democrats had to take responsibility for the elections; what if they continued to govern?
On the fourth day after leaving Paris, John Connor came to tell Sheffield that he had successfully traced the Secretary of State's footsteps and entered the German Empire.
"Oh?" Sheffield looked out the window; the scenery hadn't changed much. He turned to Annie and said, "I heard that the relationship between France and Germany isn't good. When we get there, you can try pretending to be British."
Sheffield's destination was the heart of German industry—the Ruhr region. The Ruhr industrial area was one of the most important industrial areas in Germany and also in Europe. Its importance could be put this way: the industry of the Ruhr region was the material basis for Germany to launch two world wars.
The Ruhr region supplied the German army that swept across Europe. Renowned companies such as Krupp, Rheinmetall, and IG Farben were well-known worldwide. As a senior fan of Germany, Sheffield was very familiar with the Ruhr region.
He was no longer a novice fan of Germany and wouldn't make mistakes on questions like which was stronger, the Second Reich or the Third Reich. Wilhelm II's Second Reich, despite facing a grain crisis domestically in its second year, managed to resist the Allied Powers for several years while fighting on two fronts. This achievement was more convincing than the Third Reich, which integrated the whole of Europe but couldn't defeat the Soviet Union.
Upon arriving at the Ruhr region, the sky here clearly had nothing to do with birdsong and flowers. Everywhere you looked, towering chimneys reached the clouds, and the smoke-filled skies reflected the characteristics of this era.
After getting off the train, Sheffield put on a black mask, which provided minimal protection.
"What about me?" Annie tugged at Sheffield's sleeve, pointing to her face, "Didn't you prepare anything for me?"
Before getting on the carriage, it turned into a scene where Annie wore a black mask, and Sheffield covered his nose with his hand. "To Bayer Company!" Sheffield instructed with a heavy nasal tone.
"The environment here is so bad. Why come here?" Masked Annie complained in muffled tones, obviously extremely dissatisfied with the environment of the Ruhr region, which was like heaven and earth compared to Paris.
"I have my reasons!" Sheffield leaned back and closed his eyes to rest. Few cities at this time could compare with Paris, which was a city that had undergone key planning. In this era, it was rare. Even the cities within the United States hadn't undergone much key planning and layout.
The environment of an industrial area couldn't be compared to a garden city. Taking a deep breath, Sheffield's nasal cavity was filled with the choking smell of imperialism, which was the norm for cities of this era. The industrial areas around the Great Lakes in the United States were comparable to the environment of the Ruhr region.
Sheffield had to come here. Although many believed that the United States had already surpassed Britain and trampled France and Germany in terms of scale, especially the Northern Yankees in the United States who firmly believed this. However, he didn't think so.
The current situation in the United States was very similar to the first decade of the Republic in the 21st century. In terms of scale, it naturally had some sense of being number one in the world. Just like steel production: first the Republic, second Hebei, third Tangshan.
However, in terms of technological content, the gap between the United States and European countries was still noticeable. A large scale only indicated a large internal demand. With a population of seventy to eighty million in the United States needing housing and such a vast territory requiring railways for communication, how could the scale not go up?
Truly speaking, if the domestic industry was strong, the United States might not necessarily gain an advantage over European countries, especially against the strongest industrial country in Europe, the German Empire. Anyone claiming that the United States was stronger than the German Empire would be considered insane by Sheffield.
The value of companies like Krupp, Siemens, and Bayer was much higher than that of the so-called railroad kings and oil kings in the United States. Technologically speaking, companies like DuPont were considered highly advanced enterprises in the United States at this time.
"Are you the wheat king of America?" In the Bayer company, the founder Friedrich Bayer looked at the visiting child with interest, not understanding the purpose of the visit, hence the question.
"Huh?" Sheffield looked at John Connor with an inquiring gaze. The latter replied in a low voice, "Some small newspapers seem to call our family that. Though some call us the beef king."
"Oh!" Sheffield nodded knowingly, "Those are all exaggerated statements. Our family is just farmers; we used to grow cotton."
"That's right, the former cotton king of the American South had a very good relationship with London." Friedrich Bayer nodded, confirming Sheffield's statement, obviously having detailed knowledge of hearsay.
I remember someone saying Germans are meticulous? Sheffield rolled his eyes, not wanting to dwell on the issue of being a king or not. He humbly said, "Farming depends on the weather; there's no such thing as a king. Coming to Germany is out of admiration for German technology and to discuss cooperation."
"This is strange. Isn't the scale of American industry very large? Why come to Germany?" Friedrich Bayer thought for a moment, not understanding why Sheffield chose a distant option.
"I am not an arrogant person; I am very clear about the gap between the United States and Europe." Sheffield, of course, couldn't tell the truth that his family was the leader of the Dixie people and that cooperation with the Yankees had its limits. Otherwise, wouldn't the prestige of the Southern states be completely lost?
(End of Chapter)