African Entrepreneurship Record

Zalingai.

The former capital of Darfur Province in a previous life, here already belongs to the heartland of the Darfur Plateau. The East African Army took less than two days to officially station in this major town of Darfur.

"Directly advance to the city center!"

With Farsheng’s order, the Seventh Infantry Regiment swaggered into the urban area of Zalingai.

Calling it an urban area is already respectful to the local natives. The entire Zalingai is actually less prosperous than a rural village in East Africa. Due to climate constraints, the population is only around three to four thousand, and this is the largest settlement the Seventh Infantry Regiment has encountered so far.

As for why the speed is so fast, it mainly benefits from the mobilization construction of the current East African Army. Facing these steel creations, the local tribes in Darfur didn’t even think about resistance. Just seeing the cars carrying East African soldiers and weapons made them tremble.

"Allah bless!" An Arabian Sect believer, seeing these creations beyond understanding, cowered inside a house, secretly peeking through the window hole in the wall. The narrow, earthen houses perhaps offered them some psychological sense of security.

Some bold Zalingai residents stood on the street, their eyes filled with curiosity towards the East Africans and their cars.

"The houses here are very similar to those in other parts of the Sultanate, all earth-toned, but fairly well-constructed. This should be considered the most prosperous town we’ve seen in Darfur along the way."

Farsheng sat in the front passenger seat, holding tightly to the grab handle on the car roof, speaking to the driver.

The experience of military vehicles is naturally not very good, and the road conditions in Darfur basically make it seem like there are no roads. Even the so-called urban area of Zalingai is the same.

The so-called roads are just narrow paths between houses, slightly compacted by the frequent passage of people, but their strength cannot possibly support the weight of East African trucks. Dust rose along the way.

Thick layers of dust gathered on the heads, clothes, and weapons of the East African soldiers in the rear compartment.

"The situation is roughly as I expected. There’s currently no army in the heartland of Darfur. Those tribal warriors with primitive cold weapons don’t even have the desire to fight us," Farsheng said.

"Commander, if it were me, I wouldn’t want to stand against a truck with iron knives and spears. In the eyes of these natives, military vehicles are probably no different than monsters."

Farsheng’s driver firmly controlled the steering wheel, paying attention to the road while speaking with Farsheng.

Darfur, not to mention how remote it is, is a desolate land. Otherwise, the British wouldn’t have allowed this place to self-govern. If not for the Darfur Sultan sending troops, the British probably wouldn’t have bothered with Alidinar.

The poor and remote Darfur people naturally have little knowledge. Their situation is only slightly better than that of African natives from decades ago, after all, they still have some commercial exchanges with the Arab world, but even this exchange is quite limited.

Because it’s too poor here, especially after East Africa blocked the border, Darfur’s economic trade routes with the southern grassland areas were cut off, and they couldn’t even act as middlemen.

Arabs are born traders, after all, the regions they reside in generally don’t produce much. The Arab Countries in the Middle East used to thrive by monopolizing Eastern and Western trade.

In the past, the Arabs of Darfur were similar, with Darfur merchants trading with the Black people of the southern grasslands, then transporting goods to other regions in North Africa.

But since East Africa occupied the Azande Plateau, this trade basically ended, especially after the northern railway opened, with goods from the Azande Plateau typically shipping out from Mombasa.

Blocking one’s source of income is like killing one’s parents. Darfur once attempted to arm-wrestle with this unfamiliar force from East Africa, but the result was clear: they couldn’t win at all.

Fortunately, Darfur’s agricultural conditions are passable, allowing for some farming and pastoralism to barely sustain life.

The distance from the outskirts of Zalingai to the center is not far, so in no time, the Seventh Infantry Regiment’s vehicles arrived as they spoke.

As for how to identify the city center, it’s simple, just aim in the direction of the minaret of Zalingai’s mosque, and you won’t go wrong. The Zalingai mosque is also the only decent-looking building in Zalingai.

Soon, the main forces of the Seventh Infantry Regiment congregated in front of the mosque. Over this journey, the Seventh Infantry Regiment had already dispatched approximately two companies of troops to control the occupied area.

Thus, when they reached Zalingai, the Seventh Infantry Regiment was not at full strength, but their numbers were still considerable. Even if the entire native force in the Darfur Region allied with the British colonial forces, they wouldn’t be a match for the Seventh Infantry Regiment.

"Commander, this person is the sheriff of Zalingai. According to him, the tribal Allies of Darfur are currently engaged in battle with the British Army to the east in Fashir. The entire heartland of Darfur is empty."

An East African soldier reported, holding a local official dressed in Arabian attire.

Fashir was the capital of North Darfur in a previous life, also a place of fierce conflict between the former Sudan Government Army and local armed forces in Darfur.

It was also a crucial traffic hub connecting eastern Sudan with the Darfur Region.

At the very least, if the British wanted to quell the chaos, they must first capture Fashir to enter the heartland of Darfur. Right now, the Darfur Sultan Alidinar is probably leading his troops in their last stand against the British colonial forces.

This Alidinar was also blind to the situation. Although the British were indeed mired in European wars, the British colonial government in Egypt didn’t need home support to suppress the entire Sudan Region with one hand, let alone the lesser Darfur Region.

As the Sultan of Darfur, Alidinar’s power wasn’t strong either, closely related to the economic situation, social culture, natural environment, and terrain of the Darfur Region.

Communication between various parts of Darfur was inherently poor, scattered across oases, with a large proportion of nomadic tribes, divided into Black and White forces, so Darfur was effectively a large tribal federation.

It was only because the British were so dismissive that Darfur’s various forces gathered under Alidinar’s command to seek independence and resist the British.

However, this alliance was destined to be very fragile. As soon as Alidinar failed, it would immediately collapse.

Of course, East Africa is quite satisfied with this "freedom fighter" Alidinar. Without his resistance to the British, East Africa’s invasion of Darfur wouldn’t have been this smooth.

"Kleisen, Zalingai, and the surrounding areas will be your battalion’s responsibility. Next, the commander and I will take the main forces to Fashir to end this farce," Hera said.

From Zalingai to Fashir is only about a two hundred kilometer journey. If the East African Army set out now, it would take only a few hours.

As for why it took two days for Fashir and others to reach Zalingai, it mainly stemmed from initially overestimating the military strength of the Darfur people.

Thus, the Seventh Infantry Regiment was initially very cautious in their march, especially the first day, expending most of their energy, only to discover that Darfur didn’t have any decent military, with its main forces already in the east with Alidinar.

And under Alidinar, only a small portion of elite forces could use firearms, with most Darfur warriors holding cold weapons against the British Army.

Even those elites under Alidinar, or the British colonial forces, their weapons were two levels inferior compared to East Africa. Commander Farsheng and Staff Officer Hera couldn’t fathom how they might lose!

If they couldn’t even defeat the British colonial forces, the East African Defense Army might as well be disbanded. Nowadays, it’s different from the South African war era. East Africa not only has absolute advantages in weapons but also in manpower and logistics.

When the British colonial forces encounter the Seventh Infantry Regiment, avoiding them is their only option, but these things will be dealt with once the Seventh Infantry Regiment arrives in Fashir.