Chapter 3 – In Berlin
June 1863, the University of Berlin. As the son of a top-ranking noble, Ernst was able to attend classes here as an auditor through his father's connections. Recently, his schedule had been quite busy, focusing mainly on studying economic principles. Other subjects, such as noble etiquette, bearing, and even religious studies, were handled by his private tutor. Accompanying Ernst were his tutor Richard and his servant Tom.
Previously, Richard had been responsible for Ernst's early education. Their group set out from Hexingen, traveled to Stuttgart, and finally took the train through Bavaria to Berlin. The journey took nearly half a month because they spent a lot of time visiting friendly nobles along the way. Fortunately, the second half of the trip was mostly by rail, avoiding unnecessary banquets and social events.
Upon arriving in Berlin, as a member of the Hohenzollern family, Ernst naturally had to visit the Prussian royal family first. He met his uncle, Wilhelm I. In fact, Ernst had seen Wilhelm I as a child, but he had been too young to remember, and he still lacked the memories of his previous life.
Why did they have this family connection? It stemmed from Hexingen's unique status. As the birthplace of the Hohenzollern family, even though the Brandenburg branch of the Hohenzollerns had become highly influential—becoming Holy Roman electors and expanding into what was now the Kingdom of Prussia—the bloodline could not be denied. The ancestors of the Prussian royal family also came from Hexingen. The ancient castle Ernst lived in had been jointly funded by the Prussian royal family and his own side of the family. Ernst's branch had stayed in Hexingen for generations, while the Brandenburg line obviously wouldn't leave Berlin, Prussia's political center, to develop in rural Hexingen. But because of Hexingen's symbolic importance, the Brandenburg royals contributed to repairing the Hohenzollern Castle in Hexingen to maintain family prestige.
Hohenzollern Castle was originally an early military fortress that was later destroyed in war. The current Hohenzollern Castle was a relatively new reconstruction. From time to time, the Brandenburg Hohenzollerns returned to visit. The last time the Prussian royal family sent envoys was when Hexingen and Sigmaringen joined to form the new Prussian Hohenzollern Province and were incorporated into the Kingdom of Prussia. Ernst had just been born then and naturally couldn't recognize the visiting Prussian princes.
Wilhelm I first inquired about Prince Constantin's condition, then asked why Ernst had come to Berlin. Upon learning that Ernst was there to study, Wilhelm I was very pleased. The Prussian royal family had always highly valued education, just like the military; both were part of the kingdom's long-term strategic plan. Now that Ernst had chosen Berlin as the first stop of his study tour, Wilhelm I was delighted, seeing it as indirect proof of Prussia's recent progress in education. He welcomed Ernst, assuring him that if he encountered any difficulties, he could seek help at the palace.
Ernst expressed his thanks and also met other members of the Hohenzollern family, including Crown Prince Friedrich and the young Wilhelm II, who would one day stir up global affairs.
Having just arrived in Berlin, Ernst often had to participate in gatherings among nobles, which was his only social activity. He spent most of his other time at school or doing physical training. Given the inadequate medical standards of the era, Ernst took his health very seriously. Besides basic strength exercises, he also practiced horseback riding and firearm drills. He had some prior familiarity with this kind of military training, since for Prussian nobles it was essential.
At the University of Berlin, Ernst made many friends. Although he struggled academically and felt slow compared to his brilliant classmates, he remained levelheaded and didn't compare his intelligence to those prodigies. Some noble students similar to Ernst were also enrolled, though they were older. Thanks to Ernst's slightly more mature manner, he got along with them as well. Many prominent figures studied at the University of Berlin, but this was nothing special in the German states, since nobles often preferred military academies, or universities like Göttingen and Bonn, among other competitors.
"Alright, that's it for today. Class dismissed!" the professor said sternly, then packed up his materials expressionlessly and left without delay. Exhausted, Ernst rubbed his eyes, gathered his notes and books, placed them in his satchel, and stood up to leave. Suddenly, a voice from behind called out, "Ernst! Where are you off to after class?" It was his classmate Garret, nudging him with an elbow.
"Home, of course, Garret," Ernst answered.
Garret feigned shock: "You're not coming to tonight's banquet? Karl is hosting it, and I heard lots of ladies will be there!"
"Garret, I'm still young; don't try to lead me astray. Besides, there have been too many parties and salons lately. I want a bit of a break," Ernst said with a laugh, nudging Garret's shoulder in return.
"You jerk, you know more dirty jokes than I do. You're just pretending to be prim and proper," Garret exclaimed, waving his hands theatrically to "expose" Ernst's facade.
Laughing and bantering, Ernst left the university. Outside the gate, Tom was already waiting.
"Tom, we're going to the workshop today," Ernst instructed.
"Yes, young master."
The carriage pulled away slowly, weaving through Berlin's streets, winding around, until it stopped in front of a blacksmith's shop. Ernst pushed open the door and stepped inside. The place was piled high with random tools—hammers and axes scattered across the floor. The forge was blazing, the air heavy with the smell of coal, and bits of solidified iron had splashed near the flames.
This blacksmith's shop, which Ernst now called a workshop, was a space he rented. Besides the original blacksmith, he employed a middle-school-level student of the sciences. Ernst interrupted the boy, Peter, who was feeding the furnace. "Peter, is it done?" Ernst asked casually.
"Yes, boss. Take a look—is this what you wanted?" Peter said, pulling out a wooden box from the counter behind him. Opening the lid, he took out a metal object—a brass handle, with two thick metal plates holding a thin piece of metal in between. It was a T-shaped safety razor.
As a time traveler, Ernst's main priority was making money. Though he was born a noble, money was always lacking. He also knew a noble title wasn't guaranteed; in later history, the German Empire lost the war, and even the emperor had to flee the country.
Ernst belonged to a small local noble family. His status was still high (before being annexed, Hexingen was a principality, and Constantin was a marquis, now recognized as a Prussian prince, with a standing similar to other lords), but the Hohenzollern Province, despite its grand name, wasn't even as large as the county Ernst had lived in during his previous life, and its population wasn't even a hundred thousand. A place that small didn't guarantee dominance over its own territory, especially when Sigmaringen next door was clearly more prosperous.
From historical experience, Ernst knew he should use his noble rank to accumulate wealth. That way, even if the empire fell one day, he wouldn't be left destitute. Of course, these were distant concerns. He wasn't in a rush; his bigger motivation was to fulfill a bold idea he'd held since his past life.
Once a person reached a certain status, ambition naturally followed, and Ernst was no exception. With his understanding of the future, he had little hope for continental Europe. In the near term alone, Prussia would fight a series of wars to unify Germany. As he got older, two world wars lay ahead.
If he stayed in Germany, even the empire's fall could destroy him. By then, German nobles would be sitting ducks for the great powers and the republican government. They could lose all their wealth. It was imperative to plan an escape route early.
Europe was no haven; it was a land of storms and power struggles, filled with big players—Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary—and later America and the Soviet Union would become involved too. There was no future here. In fact, this was Europe's best era, and the best era for Germany.
Where did Ernst want to go? He kept thinking of Tanzania, the place he had worked in his past life. Studying East African history, Ernst had felt a deep sense of awe. German East Africa, as Germany's most valuable colony, truly seemed like a land chosen by fate. Sadly, Germany collapsed before it could fully develop it; the government at the time hadn't valued it highly either.
Currently, no European state was paying much attention to East Africa. Britain and France already had vast colonies, and Germany was still not unified. Only Portugal had some posts on the East African coast, but beyond the plains of Mozambique, they hadn't gone into the interior. In Ernst's past life, when Germans entered East Africa, they encountered barely any serious resistance—just a few local tribes, still in a primitive state. This showed how undeveloped East Africa was.
To Ernst, though, that undeveloped land was a good thing. By moving settlers there and slowly opening it up, and relocating the native tribes, he could build a new country in the future. East Africa didn't have major resources—it was developed late, so few colonizers took interest. The population was sparse, unlike the densely populated Philippines in East Asia, so colonizers couldn't exploit large labor forces. This also meant fewer local inhabitants, making relocation simpler and avoiding scenarios like what happened in South Africa. And East Africa's farmland was good, with broad, arable land and decent conditions overall.
In Ernst's view, if he could secure control over East Africa, he could build an independent kingdom there as his fallback plan. It might seem insignificant on the world stage, but once Africa's independence movements began, the country he created could easily outmatch the neighboring tribal states—assuming he didn't repeat the Boers' mistakes by trying to have it all, only to lose everything. Ernst didn't mean to sound arrogant, but even a pig might run a country better than some of Africa's later "benevolent rulers."
And why did Ernst think he could build a base in far-off Africa? It wasn't just his confidence in its environment and resources; there was also the example of Belgium's "benevolent ruler," Leopold II. If he moved quickly to establish facts on the ground before the major powers carved up Africa, then invoked German support and possibly drew in Austria-Hungary and Germany, he could build a branch of the Hohenzollern legacy overseas.
Of course, all this was just a distant dream for now. The pressing issue was money. Ernst didn't even have the starting capital for colonization. He would have to earn it based on his accumulated life experiences.
That was why he was focusing on the T-shaped safety razor as his first step. People still used straight razors at the time. Ernst was still too young to grow a beard, but just looking at a straight razor made his face hurt. Thankfully, he remembered seeing his grandfather's old-fashioned safety razor in his previous life, invented by the American Gillette. He only recalled the general shape, so after arriving in Berlin, he sketched the design and had Peter try to replicate it. This first prototype appeared to be finished.
"Peter, nicely done. If we mass-produce these razors, how difficult do you think it would be?" Peter took a serious look and removed the blade from the razor. He pinched its two ends and snapped it with a "crack," the thin blade breaking on the spot. It was far too fragile to be practical, and if they couldn't improve the blade's strength, they couldn't sell it.
Ernst thought for a moment and asked, "Is there a fix?" Peter replied, "Maybe metallurgists can help, or we could figure it out through repeated tests."
"Alright," Ernst said. "Keep experimenting, and I'll see what I can do about finding an expert. We need to sort this out quickly."
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