North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 229 I heard you're very arrogant?

The two whaling ships sailed north and arrived at Sitka Harbor, Alaska, a few days later.

Since Tsarist Russia occupied the land, Sitka has been the capital of Alaska and the headquarters of the Russian-American Company.

Even so, Sitka Port is now a small town with fewer than a thousand inhabitants, whose main economic activity is supplying whaling ships from various countries.

Upon arriving at Sitka Port, Azu did not rush to begin whaling, but instead first joined up with the fleet led by Wu Qingfeng.

In order to open up a series of supply ports in the Pacific, Wu Qingfeng led the fleet with the "Guangzhou" as its flagship, and the first stop was Sitka, Alaska, the port closest to California.

Upon learning that his boss had come in person, Wu Qingfeng quickly led his men to greet him.

"Boss, I was just about to write you a letter, why did you come in person?"

Wu Qingfeng, who had been in Sitka Port for some time, felt somewhat uneasy when he saw Ah Zu arrive in person.

Azu smiled and said, "I accompanied Duke Joseph and Ambassador Bismarck to the Bering Strait to hunt whales, and I stopped by to see you."

Ah Zu patted Wu Qingfeng's slightly thin shoulder and asked, "How's the development of the supply port going?"

Wu Qingfeng shook his head slightly: "Things are not progressing as smoothly as I imagined... Boss, please settle in first, and I will report back to you later!"

"Alright!"

……

A moment later, Azu and his group booked the entire largest hotel in Sitka Port.

Even the largest hotels were quite basic.

After all, in this freezing, desolate place, most of the guests were whaling ship captains and crew members, so there was no need to build it too high-end.

After settling into the hotel, Wu Qingfeng gave a face-to-face report on the progress made during this period in Azu's room.

"Boss, we've been in talks with Russian and American companies lately, trying to lease a port to serve as a dedicated supply port for our fleet."

Wu Qingfeng said in a deep voice, "But the Russian and American companies are quite wary of us, fearing that once we lease the port, we will stay here and not leave, thus threatening the security of the entire Alaska."

"Although we have repeatedly emphasized that it is only for the supply of merchant ships and immigrant ships, they have remained adamant about not admitting it."

"Hehe!" Azu couldn't help but chuckle, "This Russian-American company is really quite interesting!"

“There’s no money to be made in a godforsaken place like Alaska.”

"The Russian Empire occupied Alaska for decades and gained absolutely nothing except for a negligible fur trade."

"Why are they treating us like thieves in such a useless place?"

Wu Qingfeng agreed, "That's absolutely right! Russia has occupied Alaska for so long, yet the population is still pitifully small. Such a vast land has only a few thousand people in total."

"Even for Russia, which is so greedy for land, Alaska is too far away and is a completely unprofitable asset."

Azu pondered for a moment and asked, "Qingfeng, what's the name of the boss of the Rumei Company?"

"It's Baron Nicholas... I've never met him before because of his status! He's an arrogant fellow who looks down on us Chinese!"

"Looking down on Chinese people...?" Azu raised an eyebrow: "Qingfeng, take my invitation and go pay a visit to this Baron Nicholas. I want to see just how arrogant this old Russian really is!"

"Okay, boss...!"

……

That afternoon, Baron Nikolai Zarenov, the owner of the Russian-American Company, received a visiting card from Azu.

Baron Nicholas was a little confused when he saw the name on the visiting card!

"The Earl of Gold Mountain, personally conferred by His Holiness the Pope...? This... isn't this the Chinese governor of California?"

"How did this Chinese guy suddenly end up in Alaska?"

Even in a desolate and barren place like Alaska, no matter how ignorant Baron Nicholas was, he still often heard people mention the Earl of Gold Mountain's great name.

This excessively young Chinese man arrived in the Americas and, in just three years, became the youngest governor in American history. He also founded the powerful China Industries, created the miracle drug penicillin, and even received a personal decree from His Holiness the Pope.

Not long ago, the governor's army defeated the navy and army of the Republic of New Grenada in a very short time and seized the Isthmus of Panama in one fell swoop.

Every now and then, Baron Nicholas would hear the sensational news about the young Chinese governor.

Baron Nicholas had long admired the Earl of Gold Mountain!

Moreover, California is not too far from Alaska; the sea route is only about two thousand nautical miles, so they can barely be considered neighbors.

Therefore, Baron Nicholas was genuinely bewildered by the Earl of Gold Mountain's sudden visit and couldn't fathom the young Chinese man's intentions.

"Could it be that they're here to lease the port as well?"

Baron Nicholas stood up from his chair and paced back and forth in his office. "Such a trivial matter requires the Earl to make the trip himself?" After thinking for a moment, Baron Nicholas simply put on his coat, opened the office door, and said to his servant, "Quickly, get the carriage ready. I need to pay my respects to that Chinese man immediately…!"

"Yes, sir...!"

The tiny port of Sitka is so small that it takes less than fifteen minutes to walk from west to east.

Although the distance is short, the status and demeanor of a nobleman cannot be lost!

Moreover, this is a visit to a high-ranking nobleman, so one must show even more respect.

A quarter of an hour later, escorted by several knights, Baron Nicholas arrived at the inn where Azu was staying by carriage.

Upon discovering that it was the Baron himself, Wu Qingfeng personally came out to greet him.

"Your Excellency, I didn't expect you to come in person so soon...!"

Baron Nicholas waved his hand with an air of authority: "Where is the Earl of Gold Mountain? I want to see him in person...!"

"Wait a moment, I'll go report right away...!"

Wu Qingfeng, who had gone to report, quickly came out and gestured, "Baron, please follow me...!"

With that, Wu Qingfeng personally led Baron Nicholas to the hotel's rather simple reception room.

When Baron Nicholas entered the reception room, several people were already sitting around the crackling, warm fireplace, chatting and laughing in a lively atmosphere.

Baron Nicholas's gaze swept across the faces of the group, and when he saw a rather young and stunningly beautiful white lady, his pupils suddenly lit up.

"Your Excellency, Baron Nicholas has arrived...!"

Wu Qingfeng walked up behind the young Chinese man and whispered respectfully in his ear.

The young Chinese man then turned around and looked at Baron Nicholas, who had a full beard and a physique as robust as a polar bear.

Azu rose unhurriedly and extended his hand to Baron Nicholas: "Baron Nicholas, it's a pleasure to meet you. I am Li Zunian!"

Nicholas maintained his aristocratic air of superiority, but hesitated slightly, unsure whether the overly young Chinese man before him was truly the legendary Earl of Gold Mountain.

"You are... Earl of Gold Mountain...?" Nicholas didn't shake hands with Azu, but asked somewhat uncertainly.

"Hehe!" Azu laughed, "What count or not, it's just His Holiness the Pope being kind to you...!"

Azu continued, "Baron Nicholas, it's really not easy to see you!"

Ah Zu patted Wu Qingfeng on the shoulder and said, "This Mr. Wu is the director of our California government's representative office in the Far East, and he was also the director of our California State Taxation Administration and the customs commissioner!"

"Someone of Mr. Wu's stature has been in Sitka Port for so long, yet he hasn't been able to see the Baron even once."

A cold glint flashed in Baron Nicholas's eyes, and his voice became somewhat displeased: "Earl of Gold Mountain, you should know that I am responsible for such a vast land as Alaska, and my affairs are simply too numerous to handle...!"

"Let's not talk about that for now...!" Azu waved his hand dismissively. "Come, come, Baron, let me introduce you to these gentlemen...!"

As he spoke, Azu extended his hand to Bismarck and introduced him, "This is Mr. Otto von Bismarck, the diplomatic ambassador of the Kingdom of Prussia visiting California...!"

"The diplomatic ambassador of the Kingdom of Prussia...!"

Baron Nicholas was startled: "Really...?"

Azu didn't explain, but pointed to Joseph and said, "This is Grand Duke Maximilian Joseph of the Kingdom of Bavaria...!"

"What did you say... Grand Duke...?"

Baron Nicholas was truly shocked!
Even in Europe, where nobility abounds, it is extremely difficult to meet a grand duke.

How did a Bavarian Grand Duke suddenly appear in such a remote and desolate place?

Before Nicholas could react, Azu continued, "This is Duchess Elizabeth Amalie Eugenie of Bavaria, Archduke Joseph's most beloved daughter...!"

“Duchess… gulp…!” Baron Nicholas stiffened his neck and swallowed hard.

At that moment, he suddenly realized that his proud baronial title seemed so insignificant, even... humble, in this room!
Two dukes, one earl... these are all true nobles!

Ambassador Bismarck, judging from the "von" in the middle of his name, must have been a nobleman.

A foreign ambassador, in terms of both status and position, far surpasses the minor nobles of this empire's desolate frontier.

Baron Nicholas didn't doubt the men's identities too much, after all, the powerful armored cruisers and frigates docked outside the port were the best proof of their identities.

"I am so sorry...!" Baron Nicholas, with utmost humility, raised his hand in the highest European court etiquette: "Your Excellency Archduke Joseph, Duchess Elizabeth, Earl of the Gold Mountain, Ambassador Bismarck...!"

"It was extremely impolite of me not to personally greet you all...!"

(End of this chapter)