Empire of the Ring

Youngho felt as if he were walking on thin ice until Katya left the royal territory.

He did not do anything wrong, but he was concerned about Fatima as there could easily be a misunderstanding.

Youngho intentionally avoided Katya while she was staying in the royal territory. He only saw her at the family mealtime. He did not need to talk to Katya as he always talked to her all the time on the phone for business updates anyway.

He did not want to make the pregnant lady, Fatima, feel uncomfortable, but Katya's provocative eyes made him feel nervous.

From what he heard from Fatima, she said she was satisfied with her life and only living for Rena, but she did not look so in Youngho's eyes.

It could be described as a look that still had the fire that never went out.

"I feel like I finally took out my sick tooth. I got in trouble trying to keep an eye on Fatima."

"You have a look of emptiness. I think Katya still adores you."

Jong-il teased Youngho.

There was no way that Park Jong-il, who was quick-witted, could not have missed the eyes of Katya.

"Oh, stop the nonsense and just tell me what the Chinese reaction is like."

"They're saying the Pamir Plateau problem and Tajikistan investment interest issue are separate… I'm afraid it'll take some time."

"Did you tell them that there will be no more negotiations?"

"I did but would China budge?"

"The Chinese ambassador is vacant, did the Chinese government say anything about it?"

"Of course. It's killing me to coordinate without any lines from China. Officials begged me to get the ambassador back to Kazakhstan, please."

"I'm going to leave it vacant for longer then."

Kazakh ambassador to China had been summoned after the sale of its nuclear submarine and had yet to return to China.

"I said I would keep it vacant if there was no official apology, but the Chinese side blames us for asking so since it's not an official request from the Kazakh government, and it claims that China made a big concession for expressing regret."

"They haven't come to their senses yet."

"Have you seen China admit to their wrongdoings against another country? Since they expressed their regret, why don't we let it go? To resolve the problem of the Pamir Plateau, we need to restore the ambassador to China. If we take too long, we might miss our chance."

"Okay, I'll tell Prime Minister Kasim. Alright, intelligence service can pull out now. Let's get this over with fast. Let's see how they react when we talk about resource exports, too."

"That sounds great."

Up until the previous administration, China was the main export destination of Kazakhstan, but now it was exporting crude oil to Europe through Russian pipelines, and it was exporting raw materials to the Far East Asian region through the Arctic Ocean, so exports to China were not affected much.

China was the only one to regret if it failed to import raw materials from Kazakhstan.

This was because the amount of raw materials that 1.3 billion people needed to consume was tremendous.

"The Chinese side wants to keep using the Pamir Highway. What should we do?"

"That means they can't give up their investment interest."

"Not necessarily. It must be in a hurry because the road to Afghanistan is blocked."

"It can enter through Pakistan. Why does it have to go through there?"

"To do that, China has to rebuild existing roads from the Chinese border to Afghanistan, but the ground is weak, and it often collapses. It's a place known as a way to hell."

The reason for China's construction of the road despite the rough mountainous paths of the Pamir Plateau was because of the risky old road near the border between Afghanistan and Tajikistan.

So it was taking the Pamir Highway from Xinjiang Uyghur and using the route to Afghanistan at the end of the Pamir Plateau, which was another One Belt One Road project to make its way to Europe through Afghanistan and Iran.

So if Kazakhstan blocked the Pamir Highway, all land routes to Europe would be blocked for China.

"If they just agree on the border issue and the stake in Tajikistan, we can let them use the route, but we'll strictly charge them the cost of passage."

***

The Chinese leadership was unhappy with the Pamir border issue brought by the Kazakh royal family.

It should remain a disputed area, but the plan to take control of the entire Pamir would be derailed if it was settled early.

However, it could not help but actively engage in negotiations.

Otherwise, it would be in a dilemma as Kazakhstan would close its way to Europe as well as blocking the export of raw materials. Its whole One Belt One Road project was shaking.

Knowing China's situation, Kazakhstan was pressing China all the way.

Returning to Beijing, Kazakhstan's ambassador, Murad, kept his strong stance.

"If we don't reach a conclusion like this, we have no choice but to judge that you are not willing to solve Pamir`s problem. This could allow us to stick to our existing borders."

"Are you threatening my country?"

Foreign Minister Wang Yi was furious at Ambassador Murad's remarks.

"Why is that a threat when we'll have our territory at our disposal? It was a very peaceful place until your country started a conflict."

"So did you secretly bury the landmines in a peaceful place?"

"Your side dragged a mechanized division into the border first, so should we have just sat there and watched it? Why would you argue against the defense of your country? It's like interference in domestic affairs."

Thinking that it was his opportunity to press, Murad poured out his complaints.

He responded more strongly because there was also an order from the Duke.

As he aggressively argued, Foreign Minister Wang Yi was dumbfounded.

"Our government has acknowledged the radical actions of the hard-line military and is now working on mine clearance. Then I must tell you that you have made a reckless remark that we are an immature country, but we haven't heard any apology for that yet."

"We expressed our regret clearly, didn't we?"

"I don't know if that's going to end with just a regretful expression. Don't you know it's an insult to the whole of Central Asia? You still don't understand the seriousness of the situation even though I was summoned home."

"I don't know how long Kazakhstan has been so stiff."

"I don't know why I can't say what I'm supposed to say because we are not a subordinate to your country. Let's focus on the Pamir border issue now. If you don't want to negotiate, I'm going to have to tell my government that."

In response to Ambassador Murad's reply, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi put his hand on his forehead and was controlling his anger.

"If you keep on upsetting our country, it's a big mistake."

Wang Yi tried to scare the ambassador, but he soon realized that he made a mistake.

He was reminded that Kazakhstan was an opponent that China could not exercise its force recklessly.

"Why are you trying to demonstrate force again? Give it a try. I'm very curious to see how it will turn out."

***

Youngho laughed out loud when he heard from Ambassador Murad.

Murad, who had been to Beijing, was explaining in detail his war of words with Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

"Then, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said he would come to a conclusion by next week. Your Highness."

"You dealt with him quite well."

"I was very nervous inside, but I tried to be as strong as you ordered."

"I'll just say that the power of the royal family is more than you think. So, I hope you don't get dragged around by China and be confident in dealing with it."

"…"

"Soon, two nuclear submarines will launch operations in the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. Is that not enough to explain?"

"Do we have nuclear warheads by any chance?"

"Well, there is and there isn't."

Whoever asked, the answer would be the same.

It was an armed force that both existed and did not exist.

Youngho intended to obscure the existence of nuclear weapons in any case until he used them.

"I've acted out, but I'm very worried about how China will respond."

"Hahaha…"

"Your Highness, it's nothing to laugh about. Don't forget that the current Chinese regime is stronger than any other regimes in history."

"It's also true for Kazakhstan, so don't worry."

"Do you really have a weapon against China?"

"Well, all I can say is that even if we only have rifles, it's like we only have nuclear weapons, and if we only have nuclear weapons, it's like we only have rifles."

Murad, who was pondering Youngho's answer, nodded and got up.

"Your Highness, I'm going back to Beijing tomorrow, and I'll continue to be strong as you say even if I meet Xi Jinping. Now I have a vague idea where our power comes from."

"I didn't say much, but I wonder what you guessed."

"There's a saying, 'pretend to have more when there's none and pretend to have none when there's a lot'. Didn't you mean that?"

"I will take what you just said as a sign that you will not lose your nerve in Beijing."

"There is no doubt about it. Your Highness, please wait for the result. I'll end it even if I have to grab Wang Yi by the collar."

"And when the Pamir negotiations are over, please shake China once again with export volume."

"Are you trying to limit crude oil exports?"

"Including mineral resources. I'm afraid we'll have to impose restrictions to meet the European countries' demand."

"Your Highness, please reconsider the crude oil. That will complicate the Indian Ocean, which should be delayed until we have the nuclear submarines."

"The complexity of the Indian Ocean means China's faster advance. Are you saying that?"

"Yes. It's going to have a base in the Maldives before we get ready. Then there will be a head-on collision with India."

In other words, Kazakhstan had no choice but to intervene automatically because it had formed a military alliance with India.

Youngho suddenly felt a chill. If oil exports from Kazakhstan to China were restricted, there would be a war on the wrong Indian Ocean.

It was just like the saying that a butterfly in a jungle in South America would cause tornadoes in the southern part of the U.S.