As a former student who had studied in Britain, Rama VI had naturally made a thorough study of East Africa, which had fought Britain to a draw in the South African War. After all, when it came to influence over the Nanyang nations, the traditional great powers—including the already declining Netherlands and Portugal—still possessed deep-rooted prestige in Nanyang.
And Britain was currently the one carrying the banner in the Nanyang region. No local country did not fear Britain—except for those unlettered natives in the jungle who feared neither life nor death.
In fact, the more uncivilized such natives were, the more lightly they regarded life and death. Their living conditions were simply too harsh; death and injury were everyday fare to them.
Siam, an ancient civilized state in the Nanyang region, was clearly much more "clever," and this had led to the weakness of its present foreign diplomacy.
This was the sorrow of backward countries at the beginning of the twentieth century: fear of Britain, fear of France, fear of Germany, fear of Spain... and now the newest "fear of East Africa." There was always one great power—or several—that suited these small, weak nations.
Siam was now in precisely such a situation, being served in turns by the three Imperialist countries of Britain, France, and East Africa. It could be said to possess profound "good fortune."
In recent years, as East Africa had deepened its colonial activities in the Nanyang region, it could be said that East Africa had firmly claimed the title of an imperialist power in the region as well.
In truth, besides East Africa, the United States, Japan, and Germany were also new players in Nanyang colonization. However, Germany's colonial path had already been cut off; the United States was still stirring things up in the Philippines;