Reborn in 1950: Shorting the Federal Reserve at the Start

The African savanna is bathed in the blazing sun.

A group of lions, who were preparing to ambush the antelope, suddenly stopped. They pricked up their ears in terror, their fur stood on end, and they stared intently at the horizon.

"Buzz—!!!"

With a terrifying shriek that tore through the air, a silver-white steel dragon swept across the ground! It was so fast that it was just a blur, and the violent airflow knocked several young lions down into the waist-high grass, scaring the grassland overlords into fleeing in a panic with their tails between their legs.

This is no ordinary train.

This is the latest "Kuafu-level" vacuum tube maglev train developed by the Shenzhou Bureau!

Inside the carriage, everything was so calm that not even the water in the teacups on the table was disturbed.

Shen Jinghong leaned back in the large leather seat, watching the savannah rushing past the window, a smile of extreme comfort playing on his lips.

"Chief, that's amazing speed!"

Chen Weiguo rubbed his hands together excitedly, his dark red face filled with barely suppressed fervor. "Eight hundred kilometers per hour! Our engineering corps brothers are simply divine beings descended to earth, carving out a major north-south transportation artery right through this muddy African landscape!"

He pointed out the window at the primitive tribes that were far behind him, spitting excitedly as he spoke:

"Three years! We cleaved through mountains and built bridges over rivers. The roads that Westerners couldn't build after centuries of colonization were completed in just three years! These black guys look at us like we're God!"

The Tanzanian president, sitting opposite him, was trembling with excitement.

Looking at the luxurious, futuristic amenities inside the carriage, and then at the silver railway track stretching across the vast grassland outside the window, tears streamed down his face. This elderly man, who had suffered so much disdain from the West on the international stage, suddenly stood up and actually wanted to bow deeply to Shen Jinghong.

"Director Shen, you are the savior of all of Africa!"

The president's voice choked with emotion, filled with a deep, soul-stirring gratitude: "Without you, our people would still be suffering from hunger and malaria, and our mineral resources would be snatched away by Westerners at rock-bottom prices. It is you who have brought true light to this land of despair!"

"Mr. President, we don't do that."

Shen Jinghong grabbed his arm and gently pressed him back into his seat. He picked up his teacup, his tone gentle yet exuding the composure and domineering presence of a leader of a great nation.

"We are friends, we are brothers. Between brothers, the principle is mutual benefit and win-win."

Shen Jinghong put down his teacup, his eyes instantly becoming sharp as knives, as if they could pierce through the century-long history of humiliation of this ancient continent.

"Westerners came to Africa with guns in their hands and gunboats in their sails. They robbed you of your gold and diamonds, leaving behind only poverty, war, and disease. They treated you as slaves, as leeks to be harvested at will."

"But we Chinese are different."

Shen Jinghong leaned forward slightly and slammed down the rules, word by word:

"We came with bulldozers, a medical team, and hybrid rice."

"You lack electricity, I'll build you a nuclear power plant; you lack medical care and medicine, I'll build you a top-tier hospital; your children lack education, I'll build you a Hope Primary School. I want your people to have enough to eat, afford medical care, and be able to ride the world's fastest train!"

He stretched out his long, slender fingers and tapped them lightly on the table, making a soft, rhythmic sound.

"In exchange, I only want the copper, cobalt, lithium, and uranium mines beneath your land. These ores are just rocks in your hands; give them to me, and I'll make your country leap into modernization."

Looking into the president's shocked eyes, Shen Jinghong smiled confidently: "This deal, wasn't it worthwhile?"

"What a bargain! It's such a great deal!"

The president was so excited he was almost incoherent. He slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "From today onwards, all mineral development rights in our country are exclusively granted to the China National Petroleum Corporation! Anyone who dares to oppose China is an enemy of all of Africa! Our vote at the United Nations will forever be for Beijing!"

This is a case of dimensional reduction attack.

Without firing a single shot or resorting to any force or coercion, Shen Jinghong, through sheer infrastructure-building prowess and tangible benefits, effortlessly seized absolute control of this vast continent.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the ocean in Washington.

The atmosphere in the White House’s underground situation room was so oppressive it felt like you could wring water out of it.

The US president stared intently at the map of Africa on the big screen, densely covered with red lines, and slammed his coffee cup against the wall in anger. The brown liquid streamed down the wall, much like the bleeding wounds of America at that moment.

"Can anyone tell me what's going on?!"

The president roared like an enraged lion, his eyes bloodshot, "The entire continent of Africa! All of Africa's rare mineral resources have been monopolized by the Chinese! Our multinational corporations haven't even gotten a scrap of them! Those cobalt and lithium mines that originally belonged to us are now all under the Shenzhou Bureau's name!"

The CIA director wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, his voice hoarse as if he had swallowed sand.

"Mr. President, the Chinese are too cunning. They don't engage in military occupation; they use infrastructure to achieve a dimensional advantage. They've built maglev trains, hospitals, and schools for Africans. Now, those African chiefs and presidents treat Shen Jinghong like a living saint and completely ignore our diplomats."

"Then send troops! Send aircraft carriers to blockade their ports! Take back those mines!" the Defense Minister roared, his eyes red, like a gambler who had lost all his chips.

"Are you crazy?!"

The president turned his head sharply, looking at him as if he were an idiot, his eyes filled with deep despair and fear.

"Ten Chinese nuclear-powered aircraft carriers have just conducted a 'freedom of navigation' patrol along our west coast! Their stealth fighters even broke the sound barrier over Los Angeles! Now you're sending a fleet to Africa? Are you trying to annihilate our entire Pacific Fleet?!"

Dead silence.

A suffocating silence fell over the command center.

These once arrogant Western politicians can only watch helplessly as they are completely squeezed out of the African market. Seeing rare metals, essential for future technological development, flowing steadily to China, they are filled with impotent rage, yet dare not utter a single word.

Because the truth is no longer within their range.

……

Beijing, headquarters of Shenzhou Bureau.

Shen Jinghong pushed open the office door and casually hung her coat, which was still radiating the heat of Africa, on the coat rack.

Lin Qinghan stood in front of the giant holographic globe, her cool eyes gleaming with the light of data streams. Seeing Shen Jinghong return, she pushed up her black-rimmed glasses and a gentle smile appeared on her lips.

"African mineral resources have been fully integrated into our industrial system. With this supply, we will no longer have to worry about material shortages for our interstellar warships and controlled nuclear fusion projects."

"Well done."

Shen Jinghong walked over and naturally put his arm around her slender waist, his gaze falling on the slowly rotating blue planet.

"Africa's success is just a show."

Shen Jinghong's eyes instantly became incredibly deep, revealing an arrogant ambition that seemed poised to sweep the globe. He looked at the areas marked in red on the map, and the cold smile on his lips grew deeper.

"Since this path is viable, let's expand it further."

Chen Weiguo, listening with great enthusiasm, quickly stepped forward and asked, "Director, where are we going to build roads next? South America or the Middle East? Just say the word, and the engineering corps brothers will set off tomorrow!"

"Build roads? That's too narrow-minded."

Shen Jinghong sneered and drew a heavy line on the holographic globe with his finger.

A dazzling red light instantly pierced through the three continents of Asia, Europe, and Africa, tightly connecting the entire world and forming a vast, impenetrable network.

"Notify the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to send invitations to the whole world."

Shen Jinghong turned his head, looking at Lin Qinghan and Chen Weiguo, his voice carrying an aura of domineering power that sent shivers down the spines of the entire planet Blue Star:

"Next month, I will be holding an unprecedented global economic summit in Beijing."

"Now that the US is finished, it's time for us to redefine the rules of this global village!"