America 1881: Legend of the West

Chapter 537 Someone Jumped Out
"Say it, I'm listening."

Chen Jianqiu picked up the water glass on the table, and the revolver in his other hand was still tapping the back of the chair rhythmically.

"Um, could you put the gun down first? I'm a little nervous." Klickitat was trembling a little.

"No." Chen Jianqiu's reply was extremely brief.

He took a sip of water, then moved his neck, waiting for Klickitat to speak.

"Well, Mr. Chen, you are a powerful man. You conquered the entire southwestern frontier of the United States, from California to New Mexico, to Oklahoma, and your name is still being praised."

Klickitat lowered his eyebrows and looked respectful.

But his compliment was interrupted by Chen Jianqiu.

"No need to fart rainbow, let's get down to business." Chen Jianqiu's pistol patted the back of the chair again.

"Oh, oh, I'll make a long story short."

Klickitat was agitated.

"After we came here, life became much better and everyone was very satisfied; but the chief..."

Chen Jianqiu's thumb reset the hammer.

"Ah, ah, I said, I said, the chief has always wanted to take his people back to the United States. He thinks this is not his hometown no matter how good it is, and he has always wanted to take his people back across the border."

"Your prestige among the Indians troubled him, and his ridiculous dignity made him lose himself."

"Didn't you notice? Under his influence, many Indians in the town are more afraid of you than grateful."

Klickitat said everything he wanted to say as fast as he could in his life.

His English had a strange Indian accent, and it was a bit unclear when he spoke it fast, but Chen Jianqiu basically understood what he meant.

"Well, keep talking."

He looked at Klickitat in front of him with interest.

Seeing that Chen Jianqiu seemed to be interested, Klickitat finally let go of his worries.

Before coming, he had been trying to figure out Chen Jianqiu's thoughts.

But the thoughts of this former boss are said to be unpredictable. Not to mention him, even the people around Chen Jianqiu cannot figure it out sometimes.

So he decided to take a gamble.

"I'm done, sir," Klickitat said, lowering his head. "I'm just telling you the truth about what I saw and heard."

Chen Jianqiu nodded:
"Well, you mean, Geronimo, he's old?"

Klickitat rolled his eyes and didn't dare to answer.

Chen Jianqiu stood up from the chair, put his hands behind his back and began to pace. The golden revolver was still in his hand, flickering.

"As people get older, they will be more homesick. When homesickness is severe, their judgments on many things will be biased. Is this what you mean?" He suddenly raised his head, looked at Klickitat and asked.

"Yeah, that's what I mean." Klickitat replied cautiously.

"But he is dead." Chen Jianqiu said suddenly.

Klickitat shook his head:
"No, Mr. Chen, he is not dead. None of us believe he is."

"Do you know where he is?" Chen Jianqiu walked to Klickitat's side and asked.

He was very close to the Indian, looking directly at the latter.

Klickitat's hair stood on end again.

"No, I don't know, sir, I'm just inferring."

Chen Jianqiu was a little disappointed, but he didn't show it.

He continued to pace back and forth and said to himself:
"In this case, whether he is dead or not, the leader of the Indians here should be replaced this time."

Klickitat's heart began to beat wildly.

He felt that things were starting to develop in the direction he had preset, so he continued to wait with his head lowered.

Chen Jianqiu looked at him again:

"What do you think of Lozen?"

"Lozen's thoughts are the same as Geronimo's, sir."

"What about the old man this morning? I think his qualifications are pretty good."

"He is old too, sir."

Klickitat was very depressed.

Chen Jianqiu didn't even call his name.

Could it be that in the heart of the big boss in front of him, his status is so low? Is my ability so incompetent? Or is he deliberately stimulating himself?

He glanced at Chen Jianqiu secretly with his eyes and found that the latter was looking at him:
So he took a deep breath, plucked up the courage and said:
"Mr. Chen, I think I can do it!"

Chen Jianqiu was happy and waved his hand:
"You can't do it. Last time you worked in our company, you gambled away the heatstroke prevention and cooling expenses of several of your Indian workers. No, no, you can't."

Hearing Chen Jianqiu reveal his dark history, Klickitat became anxious:

"Chen, Mr. Chen, I really don't know what the heatstroke prevention and cooling fee is. Whether it is the railway company or the mine, I have never, never had this kind of money before!"

He was so anxious to explain that his words became stammering.

"I have stopped gambling. Since being expelled, I have been reflecting on my behavior and realizing my mistakes."

"Mr. Chen, please believe me again."

"If I can manage this Indian town instead of the chief, I swear! I will make these Indians surrender to you forever! No complaints!"

"If I can't do it, my soul will not be able to rest in peace after death!"

Klickitat was agitated and swore all kinds of things.

Chen Jianqiu stared at him quietly for a while, wanting to laugh for no reason.

He pressed his hand downward:
"Okay, I understand. Well, you are a good choice. You can go back first. I will contact you if anything happens."

After getting Chen Jianqiu's approval, Klickitat lowered his head and slowly backed out of the tent.

Chen Jianqiu placed the golden revolver on the table and continued to look at the map.

"Boss, can I come in?" Feiniao's voice suddenly came from outside the tent.

"come in."

Asuka quickly walked into the tent, he turned back and pointed outside the tent:
"Boss, you can't believe even a single word of what that person said just now."

Chen Jianqiu laughed:
"Go to bed quickly, there are still things to do tomorrow."

On the other side, in the town in the valley, is the home of old Marais.

After the tribe members came back, most of them dispersed.

Only himself and a few confidants were left in Old Marais' mud house.

There were no chairs or even beds in the house, just mats made of straw.

So a few people sat on the floor without holding a lamp, and a "night talk" was held in the dark.

"This Chen Jianqiu has gone too far! He is threatening us just because he is armed." In the darkness, an Indian said.

"But we just can't help it. Who told him to have big fists?" A sigh came out.

"Do you believe Geronimo is dead?" It was the same voice.

"Whether he is dead or not, this is a good opportunity for us! Their tribe is leaderless now, and if we don't fight, we will have no chance. If Chen Jianqiu hadn't intervened last time, Geronimo would have died long ago." Another voice sounded, with resentment in its tone.

"No matter how you talk about it, we still can't avoid Chen Jianqiu." said the voice that sighed just now.

These words plunged the room into silence.

Yes, with Chen Jianqiu and his soldiers at the entrance of the valley, none of them could cause any waves.

After a long silence, an old voice sounded.

"I have a way." It was old Marley who spoke.

After being humiliated by Chen Jianqiu, he hasn't said much since.

But his heart was in turmoil and filled with grief and anger.

It had been a long time since he had felt the feeling of being humiliated in public but being helpless.

So, on the way back, he kept thinking about ways to take revenge.

Hearing that their leader had a solution, everyone listened attentively.

"Tomorrow, I will cross the border and go to Colonel Wiltold of the Federation. He has long been dissatisfied with Chen Jianqiu and his Chinese people. I can make a deal with him."

The people in the darkness listened to their leader's advice and remained silent.

After a long while, a voice finally sounded:
"But we are in Mexico. Will that colonel cross the border to fight Chen Jianqiu for us?"

"Yes, if I tell him about Geronimo's death," said old Marley.

The next day, before dawn, old Marley set out on horseback alone.

He did not go directly to the valley entrance where Chen Jianqiu's soldiers were stationed, but made a detour, took advantage of darkness, passed through a place far away from the camp, and headed towards the border.

Old Marley soon arrived outside the fortress stationed on the border.

This is a fortress with considerable history.

Since the Mexican-American War, American border guards have set up a post here, and then built a fortress with mud and stones to prevent Mexican attacks.

After the Mexican-American War, the border was peaceful for a while until Geronimo and his Indian allies began to raid the border again.

Colonel Wiltold's troops are stationed here.

The colonel was once a senior member of the KKK.

Like many soldiers of that era, he hated that he was born at the wrong time and that his great talents could not be fully utilized.

He had thought about attacking Roswell countless times, but was always stopped by his rational deputy, Captain Burke.

the reason is simple.

First of all, it is difficult for them to find excuses.

The local Chinese, white people and Mexicans get along very well.

The level of modernization here is very high, and like the east, it has electricity; the economy is also good, and even during the economic crisis, people's living standards have not been greatly affected.

Now that life is better, there are naturally fewer conflicts. Everyone is busy making money and has no time to fight.

Even when Colonel Wiltold tried to send an insider to create some conflicts and prepare to go and safeguard the interests of the white people, they encountered a second problem.

Rat-proof device.

Roswell is now an important border town. Even if there are some conflicts among the people, they are the business of the city and state governments.

If you bring soldiers to beat them up without any explanation, how will you explain this to the state government? How will you explain this to Washington?

The reason that finally made Wiltord calm down was the third one.

After deduction and analysis by his subordinates.

They found that they couldn't win.

According to the investigation of his subordinates, there were more than 2,000 militiamen in Roswell, including not only Chinese, but also local whites and Mexicans.

This does not include the reserve force.

In Roswell, everyone has to participate in military training. The external reason is that it is located on the border and must always be on guard against attacks from our southern neighbors. Everyone has to take up guns and defend the country.

As for the equipment of the militia, it is even more terrifying.

If Pittsburgh is the city of steel, then Roswell is the city of munitions.

From Santa Fe to Albuquerque to Roswell, most of the United States' weapons and ammunition are produced here.

Therefore, Wiltold had no choice but to stay in his office in the castle and indulge in his endless daydreams looking at the map on the wall.

The same is true today.

Just as the colonel was staring at the map on the wall and imagining endlessly, a messenger rushed in from outside the door:
"Report to the commander! An Indian appeared outside the stronghold and said he wanted to see you!"

"Indians?" The colonel didn't even turn around, his brows furrowed like a mountain. "Why are you asking me if an Indian comes? Why not just kill him?"

He had no good feelings towards any race other than white people, and Indians were the kind that could be wiped out at will.

The runner glanced at the colonel's second-in-command, Captain Burke.

The captain shook his head slightly and asked him to stand there and wait for a while.

Sure enough, after a while, the colonel turned around and asked: "What does that Indian look like?"

"An old man who claims to be the chief of an Indian tribe," said the messenger.

"It could be those on the other side of the border." Captain Burke reminded.

"Bring him in!" Colonel Tortold changed his mind.

Led by the messenger, old Marley came to the door, and the guards wanted to search him.

Old Marley raised his hands:

"I don't have any weapons with me. I just want to make a deal with you."

"Make a deal with me? What qualifications do you have to make a deal with me?" The colonel sank back into his chair, and his legs landed on the table with a thump, raising a cloud of dust.

"Geronimo is dead!" cried old Marley.

He told the colonel the news that Geronimo had fallen off the cliff.

This was news that shocked everyone present.

Everyone, including the colonel, was stunned; the colonel even opened his mouth half open, not knowing what to say.

You know, the name of Geronimo, the frontier of the southwestern United States, is a legend.

There are countless stories about how brave and courageous he was!
The harassment of the border he led the Apaches on ten years ago is still fresh in the memory of many people on the border.

No matter how much resentment he has towards Chen Jianqiu and those Chinese, the troops stationed here are ultimately guarding against this person!
But now he fell to death!
It took a while for Colonel Wiltold to recover from his shock.

He asked coldly:

"There's the body!"

Old Marley tapped the ground with his cane again and said in a deep voice:

"The body is in Chen Jianqiu's hands. He is stationed at the entrance of the valley with a hundred men."

"Chen Jianqiu? Why is it him again?" Colonel Wiltord's head almost exploded when he heard the name. "What is he doing there?"

"He is threatening us and wants to control us!" Old Marley replied, "He wants to control me to attack the United States."

The colonel thought for a while and finally took his feet off the table.

My feet are a little numb.

He had to stamp on the ground.

"Well, you go first. I will send troops to wait at the border. When I receive the exact news of Geronimo's body, I will lead people across the border and help you deal with that Chen."

Old Marley didn't expect the colonel to be so cautious.

But he had no better idea, so he turned and walked out of the command room.

"Do you really believe what he said? Besides, are those Indians who have rolled over to the other side of the border worth our efforts? Wouldn't it be better to let them fight each other?" Captain Burke said on the side, "Sir, I remind you that we are crossing the border and may cause unnecessary trouble."

The colonel looked at old Marley's hunched back and licked his lower lip:
"I have no intention of helping those Indians, they should all be killed!"

Burke understood instantly.

He certainly knew what his superior was thinking.

Make up a reason for these Indians to attack the border and then catch them all in one fell swoop.

After all, as an American soldier, who could refuse Geronimo's body as a trophy?
(End of this chapter)