North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 225 What are you planning to do now?
"Your Excellency, are you willing to support the unification of Prussia?"

Bismarck was losing patience with Azu's constant evasive answers, so he went straight to the point and asked the core question.

Azu replied, "From my personal perspective, I naturally do not oppose Prussia's great cause of unifying Germany!"

"But my personal will does not represent California's attitude, much less the attitude of the United States!"

Having said all that, Bismarck had completely figured out the young Chinese count's attitude.

Personal perspective, not objecting... these are all just high-sounding nonsense!

Ultimately, the first governor of California remained neutral, neither supporting nor opposing Prussian unification of Germany.

This is the real attitude!

It's impossible not to be disappointed.

But Bismarck was, after all, a seasoned diplomat and politician.

He then continued, "In that case, on behalf of the Kingdom of Prussia, I hope that Your Excellency will not hinder the great cause of German unification."

“Of course…!” Azu nodded readily.

Bismarck continued, "For example, we Prussia do not want to see the Count selling advanced weapons to the Austrian Empire again."

Azu raised an eyebrow and said in a deep voice, "Mr. Ambassador, we in California hope to maintain friendly relations with all European countries, including Prussia and Austria, of course."

"If I can sell weapons to Prussia, then I can certainly sell them to Austria as well."

"Mr. Ambassador, isn't your request a bit too much?"

"For me, Austria, at least right now, is definitely a bigger market than Prussia."

"The Austrian Empire had a population of thirty to forty million, while Prussia had only seventeen to eighteen million."

"The Habsburg dynasty of Austria has accumulated a vast amount of wealth over the past thousand years that far exceeds that of Prussia."

Azu continued, "To maintain relations with the Kingdom of Prussia, I'm being asked to give up an even bigger client... Mr. Ambassador, tell me, why should I do this?"

Bismarck replied, "There is an old Chinese saying: You can't have your cake and eat it too!"

"Austria is the biggest obstacle to Prussia's unification of Germany. In the near future, war will inevitably break out between Prussia and Austria if Austria does not choose to back down."

"Prussia today may not be as large or as wealthy as Austria, but in the future, a unified German Empire will certainly be far more powerful than the Austrian Empire."

“Your Excellency, with your vision, you are certainly not so short-sighted as to only see the insignificant immediate benefits, are you?”

A smile appeared on Azu's face: "Mr. Ambassador, you are indeed an outstanding diplomat. Your lobbying was so effective and brilliant."

“That’s right! Compared to the declining and complacent Austrian Empire, I certainly have a much better view of the Kingdom of Prussia.”

"But this does not mean that I will completely side with the Kingdom of Prussia and completely sever the good relations with the Austrian Empire."

“Mr. Ambassador, I can make you a promise that I will exercise appropriate restraint in future arms sales to the Austrian Empire.”

"At least, my arms sales to the Kingdom of Prussia will be far greater than those to the Austrian Empire."

"Are you satisfied with such a promise, dear Ambassador Bismarck?"

Bismarck pondered for a moment, then nodded emphatically: "As long as Your Excellency can keep your word, I will certainly be satisfied with such a promise!"

Azu smiled and said, "Mr. Ambassador, you should know that I am a person who keeps my promises. I will always do what I say."

"Your Excellency, that would be wonderful!"

……

Having finally completed all the tasks entrusted to him by William IV, Bismarck was finally able to relax completely.

In the days that followed, Azu led Archduke Joseph, Bismarck, and Princess Sissi, among others, deep into the Sierra Nevada Mountains for a hunt.

Youma personally led a battalion of cavalry to act as his escort on this trip.

The Blackfoot tribe's war chief, Giant Stone, personally led a group of his people to act as guides for Azu and his companions, helping them with their hunt.

Looking at the group of Native Americans with strange tattoos on their faces, wearing animal skins, with fierce appearances and strong physiques, Sisi immediately recalled the rumors of people being skinned alive.

“Ah… Mr. Azu, are they… are they Native Americans?”

Princess Sissi hid behind Azu, holding onto Azu's arm with both hands, and secretly peeked at Jushi and the others with fearful eyes.

Azu patted Sisi's hand reassuringly: "Don't be afraid, these are all good Native Americans...!"

"Then...did they ever scalp living people?"

"Haha!" Azu laughed, "I don't know, how about I go ask for you?"

“No, no, no…!”

Before Princess Sissi could finish speaking, Azu asked, "Giant Rock, my brother, my little princess friend, have you ever skinned a living person?" "Hahaha!" Giant Rock laughed triumphantly, "Li, aren't you insulting me?"

"How can I be qualified to be the war chief of the Blackfoot tribe if I haven't skinned ten or eight living people?"

As he spoke, the boulder stuck out its long tongue at Princess Sissi in a threatening manner, then raised its thick arm to show her its incredibly powerful muscles.

"ah……!"

Princess Sissi was so frightened that she immediately buried her head deeply in Azu's back.

Bismarck, with a double-barreled shotgun slung over his shoulder, frowned slightly and said, "My lord, I've heard that the Native Americans are quite primitive and savage. Is it really alright to have them as guides?"

"Hehe, Mr. Ambassador, rest assured, no one is more trustworthy than Boulder and his people!"

"We absolutely need them if we want to catch decent prey!"

……

Led by the giant rock, the large hunting party rode for several days, venturing deep into the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

"Li, once you cross this mountain, you'll reach our Blackfoot tribe's traditional hunting grounds!"

“It’s the cold winter now, and bison herds often hide here to spend the winter.”

Giant Stone rode on his horse to Azu's left, while on his right was Princess Sissi, who was always curious about everything.

Azu asked the boulder, "Your Blackfoot tribe has basically all migrated to the Central Valley, to the territory allocated to you, right?"

Boulder nodded emphatically: "Yes! Except for the days when we hunt bison, we now live in our territory."

“Many of our people have learned to farm from you Chinese people.”

“Last year, the grain we grew ourselves was enough to feed half of our tribe. Combined with the harvest from hunting and gathering, we now have more than enough food, and even some left over.”

A happy smile appeared on Jushi's honest face: "This year we cultivate more land, and we will harvest more grain. Life will get better and better."

“We Blackfoot tribe did not fight any wars last year, whether against white people or other Native Americans.”

"For a whole year, we focused on having babies inside the tent!"

“We have all been vaccinated against smallpox, and we also received the penicillin you gave us. Doctors come to see us regularly every month.”

"Hehe, Li, now there are so many more little children in our tribe. In just a few years, our Blackfoot tribe will be able to recover to its peak population of over ten thousand."

Ah Zu smiled happily: "That's wonderful!"

“However…!” Azu’s tone shifted: “How many children have been sent to the model village for school? And how many Native American women have married Chinese men?”

Jushi replied, "In the past, no one wanted to send their children to school, but since a few children in the village started going to school and learned some amazing knowledge, now many people are willing to send their children to school."

"What incredible knowledge?"

"Haha, settling accounts!" Jushi laughed heartily. "Those educated kids can actually do accounts when they come back! We adults can't even figure out how much grain and meat each family should get, but those kids who've only had a few days of schooling know it all perfectly well!"

"I see...!" Azu nodded with satisfaction.

Jushi continued, "There are now more than a hundred children from our clan studying in the model village. There are also several hundred women who have married Chinese men."

"It's not just us Blackfoot tribe, but most other Native American tribes are like this too."

Azu pressed on, "There weren't any conflicts between you and the Native Americans and the Chinese, were there?"

"Haha, life is so good now, everyone is living their own lives, what kind of conflict could possibly break out?"

Boulder replied, "At most, it's just a bunch of kids having a brawl. It's no big deal."

Azu breathed a slight sigh of relief, but he was afraid that some irreconcilable conflict might arise between the Native Americans and the Chinese, ruining his future plans.

Azu thought for a moment and then asked, "Giant Rock, do your Blackfoot tribes have any contact with other Native American tribes in the surrounding states?"

Boulder scratched the back of his head: "There is definitely contact... but in the past, it was more about fighting each other for territory and hunting grounds."

"After fighting so many battles and peeling each other's scalps so often, you get to know each other. Hmm, wouldn't you say that's a connection?"

Ah Zu smiled and nodded: "I guess that counts!"

"I have a task for you!"

Upon hearing this, Boulder quickly patted his chest and said, "Li, just tell me directly. No matter what the task is, our Blackfoot Clan guarantees to complete it perfectly for you."

Azu said, “I am preparing to produce a large batch of guns and ammunition, which you Blackfoot tribes will distribute to the Indians in the surrounding states.”

"For example, Nevada and Arizona to the east, Oregon to the north, Mexico to the south, and so on... Wherever there are Native Americans, I want them to be armed!"

Giant Stone's eyes widened in astonishment as he stared at Azu: "Li, what are you planning to do now?"

(End of this chapter)