No Place for Eastern Legs: Containers and the Shadow of War
Sun Tzu's Art of War, chapter six: A man measures the space to lie down and stretches his legs accordingly. The Hague? No place for an Easterner to stretch out his legs and bed down. Isn't it just the spot to send Emperor Gojong or a special envoy? There's no other limb like that one.
"International Peace Conference?" Why not just call it the "White Man's Peace Conference"? It hasn't deviated one bit from the Berlin Conference, where the whites basically said, "Let's not bash each other anymore."
"You want me to go?"
"Then should I go?"
I shipped Lee Wan-yong off as the special envoy and drilled the orders into him: no matter what they say or ask, respond with silence, evasion, or outright refusal.
Why drag someone kicking and screaming who doesn't want to go? I decided to focus on something far more constructive than getting stabbed with the knife those white bastards chew and gnaw on.
"Ok-gyun?"
"Yes?"
"This is called a 'container.'"
"A container?"
"It's just a fucking huge iron box."
"Ah, so what am I supposed to do with this now?"
"See how simple the structure is?"
"Yes, it is. But what's it for?"
"Make it."
"Pardon?"
"We'll load them onto trains and use them as boxes."
"You mean stack these on top of trains and use them like boxes?"
"Weird?"
"I just wonder why go to the trouble."
"How have we been transporting cargo by train so far?"
"We'd shove it into one corner of the station and unload it, right?"
"By hand?"
"Yes."
"Let's not do that anymore."
That's why, even with trains and tracks galore, we're still short. The moment it stops, unload the containers, slap on new ones, and send it right back out. In a way, this is more crucial than shipping itself. Ships? We can just make a ton more containers—no problem. Ports are cramped, but the sea's wide open. Trains, though? Stations are narrow, tracks are narrow. Pulling off to a siding, unloading cargo bit by bit, then heading out again? What the hell is that nonsense? This ain't an airport.
With containers, just lift 'em out and swap 'em. Hydraulic cylinders aren't just for forklifts, you know.
"I see. But isn't it a bit small? It doesn't match the width of the trains I know, and the height's too low."
"Wouldn't it be better to make it twice as long into a rectangle instead of stacking two square ones waist-high? And raise the height to about head level?"
Ok-gyun stretched out his arm, gesturing roughly at the length and width. Shockingly, it matched the containers I knew from my world.
"That works too. But small is fine—we can stack 'em. The key isn't moving a ton of cargo at once; it's moving it fast. Same thing, but subtly different."
"The bigger they get, the bigger the cranes need to be. Bigger cranes mean fewer of them, and slower unloading per crane. We avoid that."
"Park the train at the station and use a bunch of small cranes to yank out these small square containers front, back, left, right—quick and sequential. Got it?"
"Got it."
On multiple levels, this means churning through crane operators—a method that demands skilled hands. But pump in enough experts like that, and the world changes. The real priority isn't efficiency, cost-performance, or peak output. It's speed. Pure unloading speed.
Think the enemy will sit pretty while we set up massive cranes and unload? First train drops its troops and cargo in 30 minutes flat—then the next rolls in, unloads, repeat. No matter how much cargo's actually aboard, make it possible, and we win. Do that, and no one in the Korean Empire will doubt victory.
"You really get it?"
"Yes."
"The goal too?"
"Boosting cargo volume, right?"
"Not just that."
"This is about standardization of measures."
"One of the most vital things before war."
What became of the Qin dynasty after unifying weights and measures? In war, supply is number one, and standardization is a close second—they're that intertwined. No supply, no war. No standards, and screw-ups happen somewhere. The metrics of supply? Incredibly vital.
I never plan for outright victory. Defeat in war is inevitable, so the basics are not screwing up. Lose well, recoverably. No one wins every battle—that's war. If it's a gamble, the winner's the guy with endless chips who doubles down after every loss. I know that, so stack the chips relentlessly.
"The war's already started."
While they play chess, moving piece by piece—claiming "I control this key point with my army, so I win"—we play go, securing positions wholesale. That's exactly what we need. And naturally, it minimizes casualties.
Even if a reincarnator German soldier rolls out god-tier tactics and pushes to Siberia? Fight in Siberia. Pushes to the Far East? Fight there. The Russian Republic I planted in Siberia isn't window dressing—I've planned for attrition and grinding wars, including a Russian heavenly mandate revolt.
When the Germans slap Russia around, slip in supplies from behind to drag them into mutual exhaustion. Once the Germans tire, switch to offense.
"Knowing doesn't mean you can stop it."
Personally, I'd love their neutrality—maybe force armed neutrality. But relying on their declaration alone? Britain's recent handouts are getting suspicious. That London invite last time, the Sultan back from a London jaunt, then the Ottoman carved up. Our own would-be Fuhrer back from London tourism, then the Korean Empire gets diced? Ominous as hell.
If we just get warships squatted like the Ottomans, call it a zombie bite and go neutral when the mutual defense pact expires. But it won't end there.
They see me rejecting alliance extensions or defense pacts as cutting ties. Duh—if I didn't notice, that would be weird. Ottomans played both Britain and Germany, tried neutrality, got betrayed—Britain squatted their warships, Ottoman partition followed. Cause and effect feel off, but that's common.
Ultimately, I have to join the British side. Otherwise, straight into some shitty worldline. My crisis sensor's blaring: You could, but do you have to?
Neutrality possible? Nah.
"Prepare for war."
The Supreme Leader inwardly leaned toward neutrality but, after ages, quietly probed Gojong's aides on the emperor's thoughts.
If things heat up, we join too, right?
Result: Neutrality's best, no?
Not convinced, he rattled Gwangmu's cage. Answer: Join the war. Yeah, that's the play here. Handing this inferno-difficulty Korean Empire to someone else while dreaming British dreams? Smart move. We're losing soon anyway—send 'em off artistically.
But one precondition: Don't become kindling for their sun first. Make their sun set early instead? Original plan went too far, but spark a Hindu separatist revolt in India alone—no time for Korea worries.
Issue: We stay squeaky clean, zero suspicion. If Britain charges us anyway sans evidence, soothe with a gift. Need an ambiguous stalemate—not full Indian independence or British win.
I know Britain goes irrational over India. Understandable. Everyone's got blind spots. Logic won't sway it—that's why the Great Game existed. Claim innocence all day; if they fail suppression, they'll drag us down, spraying bullets into China to break my arm. Caught red-handed? Korea's the next Russia—regret, obsession, ruin porn.
So, ignite Hindu independence with zero traces. End in vague ceasefire. Piece of cake for me.
Problem: Britain's 140% irrational. Might not suffice without a helluva gift—or gift box.
Britain's favorite gift? I know it. Hate giving it. Short of that, "Hong Kong at worst."
Snag Hong Kong back? Any British pol slaps it front and center on their resume. Their precious—absent a bit, now desperate. Package it nicely as "alliance anniversary gift," and they'll hesitate attacking.
Britain regains reason, crunches numbers? Convince 'em we're innocent with trust. No evidence, it fizzles. Return Hong Kong to China.
Not easy. Rip Hong Kong from China—balls snipped (Hong Kong/Macau), just regrowing one, now snip again? Maybe forever. Resistance fierce.
But for a nation-surgeon who's neutered Joseon, Qing, Japan, Russia, China, Philippines? Doable. China's misfortune.
France nagging for ironclads lately? Our rails in China? Mortgaged on Hong Kong.
Use France as knife, sever Hong Kong? Totally feasible. Violence no Chinese comprehends engulfs them.