Potsdam lies on the banks of the Havel River, only 27 kilometers from Berlin. It is a small town with beautiful scenery, where the German royal family built a palace. The Kaiser lives here for more than half of each year.
A young man sat by the Havel River, silently watching the water flow past.
His name was Qin Tian—at least, that had been his name in his previous life. Now, he was called Oscar. This was a name that left Qin Tian rather speechless, as it always reminded him of an American movie award. Fortunately, cinema had only just begun to develop in this era, like a toddler learning to walk, so naturally there were no famous movie awards yet.
Why he had become Oscar, or why he had transmigrated into this world at all, Qin Tian did not know. He only remembered clearly that it had been one year since he arrived in this world, as if his soul had merged into the body of a young man named Oscar. Moreover, this was not the twenty-first century, but the early twentieth century. In other words, he was now living more than a hundred years in the past.
In his previous life, Qin Tian had been born into a wealthy family. Both of his parents were successful businessmen, constantly busy with their work and rarely at home. As a result, they had little time to care for him.
Unlike many second-generation rich heirs who relied on money to act recklessly, Qin Tian became a complete otaku and a military enthusiast.
He was passionate about collecting military historical materials, weapons and equipment from various countries, as well as military relics and weapon models—aircraft cannons, tanks, warships—anything related to warfare fascinated him.
Among all countries, Qin Tian was particularly interested in Germany. In his view, Germany was a deeply tragic nation. Its people were diligent, rigorous, and disciplined, almost machine-like in nature. Their strength was undeniable. In the two wars of the first half of the twentieth century, they nearly defeated powerful enemies while fighting against overwhelming odds and almost became the hegemon of the world—yet each time, they fell just short.
Qin Tian had often speculated: if Germany had defeated Britain and France in the First World War and dominated the European continent, would the later course of world history have been completely different from what he knew?
Unfortunately, history could not be replayed—let alone rewritten through speculation.
Yet fate seemed to play a cruel joke on him.
When Qin Tian purchased a German Iron Cross medal at an enormous price, he excitedly opened the package—only for a dazzling flash of light to burst forth. After a moment of dizziness, he realized that he had become someone else entirely.
Now, Qin Tian held an extraordinarily noble identity. He was Prince Oscar, the fifth son of Kaiser Wilhelm II, ruler of the German Second Reich. However, knowing the eventual fate of the Second Empire, Qin Tian was far from satisfied with this identity.
Once the empire collapsed, the German royal family's princes rarely met good endings.
In his original timeline, Prince Oscar lived to the age of sixty, but his later life was merely about survival—existing quietly in the world. That was not the life Qin Tian wanted.
"What should I do?" Qin Tian murmured softly."It's already 1904. The war is only ten years away. Is Germany's defeat truly unavoidable?"
A deep sense of anxiety and helplessness filled his heart.
Although Germany's industrial output had already surpassed that of Britain, making it the world's second-largest industrial power after the United States, it still lagged behind America in many high-tech fields—especially military technology.
At present, the United States was not yet the later "Uncle Sam," but at best a "Boy Sam." While it had achieved remarkable industrial growth, it still trailed behind Europe. At this time, Europe remained the center of the world.
Britain controlled the largest colonial empire on the planet and possessed the most powerful navy in existence. Compared to Britain, Germany suffered from serious disadvantages in many aspects.
First, although Germany had a developed industrial base, it lacked most natural resources except coal. Its industrial products relied heavily on overseas markets. Once war broke out, if the German Navy failed to break the British blockade, German goods could not be exported and vital resources could not be imported by sea. The result would be inevitable: slow strangulation. This was, in fact, the primary reason Germany was defeated in both world wars.
Second, Germany's central position in Europe gave it excellent transportation links in all directions—but also left it surrounded by powerful enemies. Britain and France lay to the west, Russia to the east, all hostile powers. Although Germany had the Austro-Hungarian Empire as an ally, that empire possessed little more than the reputation of a great power. In reality, its military performance was abysmal. Not only could it not assist Germany, it often dragged Germany down instead.
As the saying went: not fearing god-like enemies, but pig-like teammates. With powerful enemies and unreliable allies, even a strong Germany could be beaten into submission.
Although Germany had begun building a powerful navy, and the ambitious Wilhelm II longed to create a fleet capable of challenging the Royal Navy, Germany's geopolitical reality demanded a strong army as well. As a result, it was impossible to pour all financial resources into naval construction.
This meant that the gap between the German Navy and the British Navy did not shrink—instead, it widened. Whenever Germany launched one battleship, Britain arrogantly launched two, maintaining overwhelming superiority at sea.
"Damn it… no matter how I look at it, Germany seems doomed," Qin Tian thought bitterly."Is it really my fate, as a German prince, to simply struggle to survive for the rest of my life?"
It had been a full year since he had become Prince Oscar, and he was already thoroughly familiar with this world. Yet he felt no joy in his noble status. Instead, he was trapped in endless anxiety and crisis.
To others, this only made him appear more silent and withdrawn.