North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 239 The Schemes of an Arms Dealer

In Ah Zu’s mind, the only person who could be the governor of Panama and take charge of things independently was Zuo Zongtang!

In terms of character, ability, and loyalty, Zuo Zongtang was the best choice.

During his two years in America, Zuo Zongtang became quite familiar with Western customs and had learned English, Spanish, and Native American languages ​​quite well.

During the year or so that Zuo Zongtang was actually in charge of governing San Francisco, he also became fully familiar with the government affairs, as well as the situation and working style of the China American Group.

Moreover, Zuo Zongtang's six-month trip to Europe last year broadened his horizons and allowed him to truly understand the world as it is.

In other words, Zuo Zongtang, whose talent was already close to its limit, has been thoroughly honed in the past two years.

Therefore, Azu was able to entrust Panama to Zuo Zongtang with peace of mind.

Hearing his name called by the boss, Zuo Zongtang, who had actually expected it, slowly stood up, bowed to his ancestor, and said without hesitation, "It is my wish, and I dare not refuse!"

Ah Zu stepped forward, took Zuo Zongtang's hands, and solemnly said, "Panama may be small, but it is of vital importance to California!"

"Now, I entrust Panama to you, sir, and hope that you will work diligently to govern it so that in a few years you can return to me a prosperous and thriving Panama!"

Zuo Zongtang also solemnly replied, "Zongtang will certainly live up to the boss's trust!"

……

The day after this important meeting, Azu personally received a delegation from the U.S. Army Logistics Department.

The delegation that arrived in San Francisco was still led by Lieutenant Colonel Miles, the same one who had led the delegation two years prior.

But the lieutenant colonel has been promoted to colonel!
When Colonel Miles, with his full beard, saw Azu again, his expression and demeanor were completely different from two years ago.

Colonel Miles is now completely different from the arrogant man he was two years ago; his attitude towards Azu is exceptionally respectful and humble.

“Mr. Governor, it is truly an honor to see you again!”

Two years ago, Azu was just a businessman with some ability.

Two years have passed, and now Azu is not only the first governor in California's history, but also the youngest governor in the entire history of the United States, and the first Chinese governor.

In his previous open and covert struggles with the Freemasons, as well as in the war against the Republic of Grenada, this Chinese governor has proven his absolute strength.

Whether in political infighting or on the front lines of real combat, this young governor has proven his worth through his abilities.

Even on a national scale, this young governor is an absolutely influential figure with real power.

This young governor even received a personal decree from His Holiness the Pope of the Vatican!
In front of such a high-ranking and powerful figure, Colonel Miles had to suppress all his arrogance and pride.

Even this rare opportunity to meet was the result of the logistics department delegation, led by Colonel Miles, persuading and cajoling for over a month.

Therefore, Colonel Miles cherished this rare opportunity and hoped to use it to complete the important task assigned to him by the War Department.

Upon seeing Colonel Miles with his full beard, Azu smiled and said, "Colonel, it's been a long time!"

"I remember the last time I saw you, Colonel, was when we were purchasing HM50 rifles from our Huamei Armory, right?"

“Yes!” Colonel Miles nodded quickly. “Governor, your memory is amazing. You even remember a lowly army colonel like me.”

Azu maintained his smile: "How could I forget someone like the colonel?"

"Especially Captain Nicholson, who's always with the colonel, he's almost killed me several times!"

Azu's smile gradually faded: "Speaking of which, Colonel, could you tell me where Captain Nicholson is now? I'm quite interested in his whereabouts!"

"This...!" After only a few words, Colonel Miles' forehead was already covered in cold sweat.

“I’m very sorry, Governor, Captain Nicholson is actually not an officer in our Army Logistics Department.”

"I brought him to your California last time only on orders from my superiors."

"I truly have absolutely no knowledge of anything Captain Nicholson has done!"

Miles quickly distanced himself from Captain Nicholson.

Not only because he wanted to protect himself, Colonel Miles was now even more afraid to have any connection with the Freemasons.

Since President Lincoln took office, he has been vigorously purging Freemason forces from the military.

Those Freemason officers were either dismissed or sent to remote and desolate places, which was equivalent to being exiled far away.

Even in the war that just ended, many of the low- and mid-ranking Freemason officers in the U.S. Army were sent to the front lines where the fighting was most intense, and became cannon fodder under the fire of the New Grenada Army!

Therefore, Colonel Miles now wouldn't dare to have anything to do with the Freemasons. Hearing Colonel Miles's sophistry, Azu chuckled dismissively and then asked, "I wonder what mission you're here in California to accomplish this time, Colonel?"

"Won't another Captain Nicholson appear in your delegation?"

"No, absolutely not...!" Colonel Miles wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with an embarrassed expression: "Our mission this time is solely to purchase weapons from the Huamei Armory, and we have absolutely no other motives."

"That's for the best!" Azu said. "I wonder what kind of weapons the U.S. Army wants to purchase from us this time?"

"If it's still the HM50 rifle and ammunition, that's no problem at all. We have as many as you need. My arsenal is completely open to supply!"

“Mr. Governor… I’m sorry, it’s not an HM50 rifle!”

Colonel Miles was sweating profusely and felt extremely tormented: "What we are preparing to purchase this time are HM49 rifles, HM51 water-cooled heavy machine guns, 81mm mortars, and 100mm, 155mm and 203mm breech-loading rifled heavy artillery produced by the Huamei Arsenal!"

Colonel Myers explained, "Major General Harold Ritchie, the Army Chief of Staff and the Army Commander-in-Chief during the Panama War, was extremely impressed after seeing the California troops' firearms and artillery firsthand."

"With the strong recommendation of Major General Harold Richie, our War Department is prepared to spare no expense in procuring these advanced weapons produced by the China Armory!"

“At all costs…?” Upon hearing these words, Azu couldn’t help but laugh again: “Colonel, you might as well just tell me, how much budget did the Army Ministry allocate this time?”

"If the order is too small, I'm very sorry, but my arsenal is working at full capacity to produce a huge arms order worth 15 million US dollars for the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. There is simply no extra capacity to allocate to the United States Army."

"This...!" Colonel Miles was immediately at a loss upon hearing this.

Before arriving in California, the Army did give Colonel Miles a budget allocation.

But judging from the Chinese governor's words, it was clear that he did not want to sell these advanced weapons to the U.S. Army.

Azu continued, "If the order is large enough, then I might consider trying to squeeze out some production capacity for the U.S. Army."

"This...!" Colonel Miles hesitated for a long time before finally deciding to tell the truth: "Governor, this time, our Department of War has tried everything we can and finally came up with a budget of up to eight million dollars...!"

Eight million dollars... Ha!

Azu laughed and said, "It must be quite remarkable that the U.S. Army can afford to spend this amount of money to purchase weapons."

"However, this order is still too small for my Huamei Armory. I'm really not interested in it!"

Upon hearing this, Colonel Miles immediately became anxious: "Governor...!"

"Don't rush...!" Azu waved his hand and continued, "An eight million dollar arms deal isn't a huge deal, but it's not a small one either. Even if we accept it, it'll only be a little pocket money..."

"Gulp... eight million dollars in pocket money...!" Colonel Miles and the rest of the delegation members swallowed hard upon hearing this.

Has this governor's appetite grown so much in just two years?

Azu added, "However, considering my personal relationship with President Lincoln, I must give him face."

"Want weapons? Fine, but not now!"

"At present, there are no major wars in the United States, either domestically or internationally. So even if there is a need to purchase weapons, there is no rush."

"Moreover, this year I need to focus on producing arms for the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia, so there is really no extra capacity."

"What I mean is, the U.S. Army should save up for two more years, and then place a big order with me all at once next year or the year after."

“This…!” Colonel Miles hesitated. “Governor, can’t the U.S. Army purchase weapons from you in installments each year?”

Azu replied, "As I said, firstly, there's no production capacity this year; secondly, we have no interest in small orders; and thirdly, the American Army has no internal or external enemies, so what's the rush?"

After saying that, Azu waved his hand: "Colonel, that's all! When you get back, please tell the Ministry of War what I said and tell those generals to save up more money as soon as possible."

"You know, my weapons sell for incredibly high prices!"

"A mere eight million dollars can't buy much!"

"Sigh...!" Having said that, Colonel Miles could only sigh softly, then stand up and give Azu a military salute: "I understand!"

“Governor, I will report your words and opinions to the senior leadership of the Army in their entirety!”

Although the trip was in vain, Colonel Miles and his party did not leave empty-handed.

At least, they figured out the true attitude of this Chinese governor.

For Azu, arms sales are a must, and he's going to sell them off in huge quantities.

but not now!
(End of this chapter)