Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology

12th February 1659

Citizen Database Management Department Sub-Office, Thiruvananthapuram

A few hours ago, when Moshe Goldstein and Rajko Durril were guided to the immigrant arrival area by the German merchants, they were promptly discovered and directed to register their identities in the Citizen Database Management (CDM) Office by one of the Bharatiya officials at the port responsible for handling immigrants.

A few hours later, Moshe Goldstein and Rajko Durril walked out of the Citizen Database Management Office of the Bharatiya Empire with a few documents in their hands. Although the turn of events was unexpected since they didn't know they had to register their identities, they were happy nonetheless as it was over pretty quickly.

Rajko Durril, currently standing outside the CDM Office, felt very strange after spending nearly half a day in the Bharatiya Empire. When he was in Europe, he had lived a humble life as a shepherd, herding sheep for the local lord. Due to his low status, he was accustomed to being despised wherever he went. The saddest part was that he didn't think there was anything wrong with it, as this was the sort of environment he had grown up in—an environment that made him view himself as a lower being solely because of his skin colour and birth origin.

However, for the first time in his life, he began to question his own self-worth after coming to the Bharatiya Empire and realizing the difference in how people treated him. They didn't look down on him or even unconsciously emanate a desire to kick him out, which made him feel a little unaccustomed. Although he felt very good when the people of the Bharatiya Empire spoke to him in a respectful and kind manner, like he was one of their own, he was still unsettled by the experience.

' I guess I'll just have to get used to feeling like a human from now on ', he thought to himself, as he realized that his restlessness stemmed from being treated as a person for the first time in his life. He now understood that the treatment he had received since birth had been as though he were some sort of a plague.

Coming back to his senses and looking at the sky to gauge the time, Rajko asked the man next to him, "Sir Moshe, we have already waited for an hour. Do you think the person you know will still come to receive us?" Then, thinking about the proposal from the Bharatiya official within the CDM Office, he added, "Or should we just claim our dorm rooms like the kind Bharatiya man suggested?"

Hearing the question, which was more of a suggestion, Moshe Goldstein was a little shaken. Even though he had recovered from his illness, he was still not at his best. He would have loved to rest a little, but thinking about what Joseph Oppenheimer had promised him, he had to grit his teeth and endure.

"Let's wait for 30 minutes more. If my acquaintance still does not arrive, then we can follow your suggestion," he said.

Rajko had no opinion. He shrugged, signifying his acceptance of the suggestion. He was in no hurry anyway; in reality, he had nothing to do.

Thirty minutes passed, and just when Moshe was about to leave with Rajko, with a disappointed expression on his face—

"Uncle, please wait!"

A young man, who looked no more than 25, wearing a yamaka and, surprisingly, a Bharatiya black sherwani, came running forward as if worried that Moshe would slip away.

Moshe Goldstein, turning around with curiosity, was pleasantly surprised. "Haha! Young master Ezekiel has really grown up. When I last saw you, you were only the height of my shoulders. Now it looks like the tables have turned," he laughed heartily.

Ezekiel Oppenheimer smiled as he panted. Fortunately, being young, it didn't take long for him to recover. In a few breaths, he straightened his back and smiled again. "I am very pleased that you are in good health too, Uncle Goldstein."

Throughout the whole conversation between the middle-aged Jewish man and the young Jewish boy, the Romani, Rajko, stood without any expression on his face, as though he wanted nothing to do with the conversation and wished he could disappear altogether.

However, in the end, after a few hugs and some casual chat, Ezekiel finally noticed him.

"Uncle Goldstein, this is...?" he pointed towards Rajko, his expression a little doubtful, as he could not imagine any reason for his uncle to be travelling with a gypsy.

In fact, even though the Jews were not held in high regard in Europe, the same as the Romani if a question were asked about who was discriminated against more, the answer could only be the Romani. Their status was only a little better than that of black slaves. For this reason, even the Jews, who were pretty low in society, although they did not despise the Romani like all the other white European ethnicities, had a general dislike or disregard for the Romani due to reasons of colour and culture.

Moshe Goldstein understood the doubt on Ezekiel's face, as a few months ago, even he would have felt absurd about travelling with and befriending a gypsy. Now thinking about the mischief of fate, he couldn't help but chuckle a little in his heart.

"Well, let me introduce him to you. His name is Rajko Durril. He used to be a shepherd in a small town near Auschwitz, but unfortunately, due to one of the sheep under his watch being stolen, he lost his job and was beaten very badly. Unwilling to be turned into a slave by the local lord and left with no other choice, he heard about the emigration to the Bharatiya Empire and boarded the ship."

"Coincidentally, we ended up in the same bunker on the ship, so we had to travel together for almost a month and a half. He is a good guy. A few days ago, when I was very sick, he saved my life too."

Ezekiel was surprised by the statement and looked at the gypsy in a different light, but Moshe continued.

"Apparently, he wants to look for a job to start his new life, so in order to repay him for helping me during my sickness, I had him tag along to see if you could be of any help."

Ezekiel finally understood the ins and outs. "Definitely, Uncle. This is a simple matter," he said, waving his hand as if it wasn't even an inconvenience for him.

Moshe nodded his head, relieved. Although he was confident that Ezekiel could help, who could say in such situations? He was no longer rich; after all, he was currently under the alms of others. In such a situation, how could he force his benefactor to take in a random stranger?

Thinking about this, he couldn't help but ask, "Joseph told me that I would be responsible for the operations of the new trading company here. Is everything prepared?"

"Oh, look at me," Ezekiel exclaimed, knocking his head in annoyance. "I almost forgot to mention this."

"Currently, there is no option in the Bharatiya Empire for a foreign citizen to open a company. It can only be done by its inhabitants."

Then, remembering something, he looked at Goldstein with a worried expression on his face.

"Uncle, when you were in the CDM Office, you did get the temporary identification, didn't you?"

Moshe Goldstein nodded without thinking much.

"Can I look at it?"

Moshe took up the documents he had just gotten and handed them over with a doubtful look on his face.

Ezekiel quickly read through the document and was immediately happy. "That's great! A trial citizenship ID," he laughed.

"What do you mean? Is it not a temporary identification certificate?" Moshe asked in confusion.

Ezekiel nodded. "It is, but there is a difference. When a European merchant travels to the Bharatiya Empire and wants to trade, a temporary identification certificate will be provided. However, if a European wants to come to the Bharatiya Empire and settle, then a temporary citizenship ID certificate will be provided. This is valid for two years, and after that, if all the criteria are met, the temporary citizenship holder can upgrade to permanent citizenship."

"I guess you must have told the civil servants that you will be emigrating to the Bharatiya Empire, so they issued the temporary citizenship ID because of this."

Silently, Rajko took a look at his own certificate and compared it with the one Moshe had gotten. He confirmed that his certificate was also a temporary citizenship ID. That was it—he did not think much of it since he had already decided to stay in the Bharatiya Empire unless the conditions proved worse than in Auschwitz.

However, unlike him, Moshe got worried. "Will my temporary citizenship ID be a problem for Joseph's requirements?"

Ezekiel shook his head with a smile. "No, it's the total opposite. Normally, for anyone to get a temporary citizenship ID, it is a tedious process that involves a lot of background checks. However, due to a policy by the government, this process has been greatly simplified for us Jews and the Romani."

He secretly glanced at Rajko and continued, "Remember how I mentioned that only the citizens of the Bharatiya Empire can start a company?" A smug grin spread across Ezekiel's face.

"Oh!" Moshe Goldstein's eyes immediately lit up. "You mean that I am now eligible to start a company by myself in the Bharatiya Empire?" But then he became a little depressed. "However, I don't have any money left on me. Everything I had has already been taken away," he said with a bitter smile.

Ezekiel had guessed something like this must have happened; otherwise, he couldn't explain why his uncle, whose wealth—although it could not compare to his Oppenheimer family—was not bad compared to other Jews, would be in such dire straits. He wanted to ask what had happened right away since his father had not mentioned it to him, but seeing that another person was present, he decided to ask at a later time.

"No, Uncle, you don't have to put in any money for this. According to the rules of Bharat, even though outsiders cannot directly run wholly-owned companies in the Bharatiya Empire, it is possible to make an investment."

"As long as the Bharatiya citizen has decision-making power of over 51% and an actual stake of at least 15%, outside investment is fully allowed by the Bharatiya laws."

"So, as long as you register this company or acquire one locally and accept the investment of my Oppenheimer family, the problem will be solved. It's as simple as that."

Moshe immediately understood the intention of his old friend Joseph and his second son. "Considering the quality of trading talent here is as good as in Europe, it's a good choice to acquire a small company with an existing trading channel and build a new one according to our intentions."

"But are you sure—or more importantly, is Joseph sure—about the Bharatiya Empire's promise to let us build our own nation? It's a lot of money he's spending just to please the Bharatiyas, you know. Even though I'm in dire straits and I could use this job a lot, I still have to tell you to reconsider."

There was a hint of scrutiny in his eyes.

Ezekiel was taken aback by this statement. But then again, remembering his own thoughts before he came to the Bharatiya Empire, he couldn't help but laugh a little. "Uncle, you think that the only reason our family is setting up a trading company in the Bharatiya Empire is to please the Bharatiya government, don't you?"

Moshe got a little confused. "Isn't it? Why else would your Oppenheimer family come so far to the Bharatiya subcontinent to start a trading company, of all things?"

Ezekiel nodded, "Yes, that's true. Initially, that was the plan, but after I inspected everything in the Bharatiya Empire for the past three months, I dare say that trade right now with the Bharatiya Empire is the most profitable thing in the world, bar none."

"If I may be even more bold, even our Oppenheimer Bank will not be able to compare with the prospects in the Bharatiya Empire."

Moshe immediately frowned. "That's impossible," he exclaimed because he knew how rich the Oppenheimers were and how much a single branch of the bank would make in a month.

But now, how could he believe that halfway across the world, far from all Western civilization, there was an ancient civilization that offered much more prosperity?

Looking at the disbelieving expression on his uncle's face, Ezekiel knew there was nothing he could say to convince the man. "Forget it, Uncle. Just come with me for two days, and I will show you firsthand," he said with confidence, which caught Goldstein off guard.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Even though he was still unwilling to accept that opening a business here would be more profitable than the Oppenheimer Bank, He knew the reputation of Ezekiel Süß Oppenheimer, so in his heart, a small hope for the impossible began to grow.