The Great Purge: Sweeping Away the Vested Interests
While Mussolini and Lenin scrapped over oil shares, Roosevelt and Taft wrestled it out, and France and Germany clashed in a battle of souls, the Korean Empire kicked off its Great Purge. In the past, I'd crushed the so-called conservatives and reactionaries. Were they bad? Eh. I just didn't need them anymore. In my world—no, our world—their desires to honor their ancestors' plaques and secure their kids' rise weren't evil. Calling that bad would be like saying shitting is wrong. It's a basic urge. But when they kept trying to shit in the streets, I just chased them out of the streets... and this life.
Now, cracking down on my comrades—the construction clan and the agriculture clan—was for the same reasons. We'd been aiming at the same horizon until now, but from here on, our worlds diverged. They'd think their communist paradise, their socialist Eden, their vested rights would last forever. But I knew it couldn't. We'd stay isolated without foreign capital, mutual distrust would fracture us, and eventually—cold war, hot war, world war—we'd have to go all-in on one big gamble. Armed isolationism right now? Not a bad idea. But diplomatically, it'd put us in the loser's seat. Could the Korean Empire's citizens swallow that after I'm gone? I could promise it wasn't pure loss, but other leaders would play it differently. To the people, I'd just look like Mugabe. So at this point, armed isolationism wasn't a real option either. Different paths lead to rot in various ways. It's like shoving field-grown plants straight into hydroponics.
One thing was clear, though. The construction and agriculture clans, pillars of the "Korean Empire" conglomerate state until now, needed a purge. In my eyes, they'd become the new vested interests under communism. Look at them—shitting right in the street because they crave it. I'm no Confucius. When someone shits in public, it's my job to clean it up. I hadn't ignored it out of ignorance. This was the chance to uproot it all. Those revolutionary ashes.
"Landlord cooperatives, huh? No joke."
A cartel atop the cooperatives. Sucking profits from the rights divvied up among the others via a straw. Digging in, it was useless—just a ghost company, a temp agency, a license farm run by cooperative heads and power players. And the bosses? The construction and agriculture clans. Nothing moved without them; they threw wrenches everywhere. Their business models thrived on prime spots I'd granted, making it possible. Then they slapped "key money" on those golden eggs I handed out, pocketing kickbacks and breeding their empires. Crossing lines. I always figured they'd overstep eventually. Even casual picnics, unity meets, alumni gatherings—they all mutate like that. Why wouldn't those who'd drunk with me?
Using me as their backer to chase profits. Mutual protection rackets. Such urges are inevitable, especially as people get richer. You can't stop humans from building those "systems." As the economy grows, communism hits its era's limits. Even if I dotted cooperatives and partners with watchdogs, who watches the watchdogs? That's how Joseon's shitters and noble cliques formed. Why did the Hanyang inner circle emerge? To protect their turf. Frogs in a well treasure the well. No surprise there. Just realizing the Korean Empire's economy ballooned faster than I thought.
I figured it'd hit by the end of World War I at soonest, the Great Depression at latestest.
"Proceed."
I suppressed comrades dead-set against foreign capital and rammed through investment anyway. We're not selling water, power, or land—what's the problem? It's not one-way; they invest here too for talks to work. Obvious, right? How long can we hog all the gains? My comrades should thank the world. I'm not turning us into a colony begging scraps; it's a joint venture. Sure, investments target Korea and Asia writ large, but we get our cut. Unlike Persia.
After the Gallipoli disaster booted the old Mr. Gallipoli, Mr. Indonesia—now Navy Minister Churchill again—screamed in cabinet that we had to take this deal. As a Gallipoli architect, he'd eaten crow on shared blame; Korean help was desperate. And it wasn't a raw deal.
"Even I, the Navy Minister, get it. Lease ports and Ganghwa Island get returned, but we recognize them as shares in the new Korean Chamber of Commerce or investments via the Securities Commission. Rejecting that's nonsense."
Churchill thought: This is basically a free trade pass.
Colonial ports were exploitation tools for British interests, but Korea graduated from that ages ago. Now exports flooded to Britain via those ports. Korea exported; Britain imported. Britain footing maintenance? Absurd. But buying them back now? Not nationalizing by force or threats? A nation that gets credit. Even seizing the king's assets? Nah, they invest overseas. No shock. Brits, blind to their own port grabs, saw Korea as trustworthy. Korea knew grand strategy. Like agreeing to return Constantinople to Greece? Or Polish independence (German parts only)? Freshly freed Poland could war Russia post-ruin—fine by Britain. Korea backed Russia against Germany strategically, not to fight for Russian scraps. If push came to shove, Britain could nudge as always.
"But investments we take—aren't targets fixed? The list? Canned goods companies at best?"
"Early stage. That's why enter now. Skip Ganghwa or ports? We get Thames ducks."
Korea's pitch: Securities Commission in Ganghwa-Incheon special zone near the capital—not five-day markets, but permanent exchanges. Chamber of Commerce in trade hub Busan for full-spectrum trading houses. Invest there. Britain had stakes, so count them as capital. Bonus: Fold in leased ports. Same for U.S. (Busan New Port) and France (Incheon rights). War-strapped, they got investment funds reframed from near-canceled plans. "Please invest here."
"U.S. and France got offers too. Incheon gets Chamber or Commission. We must too."
"France, fine. U.S.? Tricky."
Obvious. Germany rivaled Russia-France in Europe; America, Anglo kin, vied globally. Hegemonic clash. Why no U.S. aid? They demand Empire's dismantlement as price. Unacceptable. Korea? Commie-tinged, but inward-focused, ditching revolution vibes. Long-term interests diverged: Continental end-of-Asia vs. European sea power. Less friction than Atlantic-facing U.S. Korea's massive U.S. liner orders reassured Britain. U.S. built dreadnoughts amid war; Korea eyed no naval push.
Britain knew: Dodge checks, go naval now? Korea knew too. Post-war arms treaties kill battleships—why now? Cruisers hurt to waste too.
Supreme Leader saw it: War's not for naval buildup, but reforms. Export markets open amid global war—break inner-market limits. Construction/agriculture held domestic monopolies; fix via exports. Dump them in the sea? New ones burrow up. Why bother? True purge turns nobles to capitalists/workers. No Gulags—spin off intra-party factions. Party steps back to indirect economic sway. New committees handle that. Chamber/Securities, outward-facing, check clans perfectly.
All commerce, industrial plans route through Chamber now.
I'm blurring internal-external trade barriers. Self-crit: "Free trade, zero tariffs"? Local cartels built walls via self-trade. I did that. Made cooperatives. Teamed with clans.
Korea's heavy industry focus was fragile!
But now all falter. Korea has Japanese know-how, Chinese resources, manpower. Markets too. China? We spend there—too vast, low ROI. Hard earn. Britain couldn't. Indonesia? Mideast? Industrializing; small investments yield big, cash crops perfect.
China was Korea's India; Indonesia, Haiti. To earn, grow capital—go south, like imperialists. Plant French commercial crops.
To earn, they need money for markets.
Sell goods? They sell crops back. Trade forms. Not tribute. Korea had seeds: Not sugar/tobacco/rubber/cotton/cacao staples, but novel, nascent, future goldmines.
I knew Southeast Asia/Indonesia's cash cow: Untapped high-yield.
Dutch once pitched their oil palms.
Disaster-prone, but true. Future palm oil hub. Why French seeds? French West African stock; Brits/Dutch bred rivals competitively. I bought full batch. Superior yield vs. Dutch naturalized palms—commercial future bright.
Indonesia's water/power/engines enable industrial extraction.
Ka-ching already.