North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 271 Preparations for Drawing the Sword!
"Li, based on your direct observations of the major powers during your recent visit to Europe, what is their attitude towards the American Civil War?"

In the Oval Office of the White House, Lincoln and Azuma's conversation continues.

After gathering his thoughts, Azu replied, "Whether it's Britain and France, Prussia and Tsarist Russia, or Austria and the Ottomans, their current focus is on Southern Europe, the Black Sea, and the Balkans...!"

"For the European powers, the imminent European battlefield was what concerned their core interests."

"And they didn't pay much attention to the American Civil War."

"Even if there is some attention, it is limited to how to profit from this war."

Azu shook his head slightly: "Whether it's abolishing slavery or keeping slaves, it doesn't matter to them at all. They'll support whichever side benefits them, that's all!"

"Therefore, despite my efforts to lobby during this trip to Europe, I did not achieve the success I had imagined."

"Even my offer to acquire Alaska ultimately fell through."

"Furthermore, no European power has explicitly stated that it will stand with the Northern Federation government...!"

"Alas...!" Although Lincoln had expected this, he couldn't help but sigh: "Between nations, there really are only eternal interests...!"

……

That evening, after the conversation ended, President Lincoln, despite his busy schedule, personally hosted a banquet at the White House to entertain Azu and his delegation.

In particular, President Lincoln and his wife, who accompanied Azu to America, were very interested and insisted on seeing with their own eyes what kind of stunning beauty was worth the young governor of California making a trip to Europe.

Upon seeing her, the Lincolns were immediately awestruck!

No wonder he's a young governor, and the youngest and most powerful politician in the entire United States, personally traveling to Europe to marry the woman he wanted!

"Tsk tsk tsk...!" Mrs. Lincoln affectionately took Princess Sissi's hands and looked her up and down carefully: "So, the woman our Governor brought back from Europe is such a stunning beauty, comparable to a goddess of beauty...!"

A blush crept onto Princess Sissi's pretty face: "First Lady, I... he and I aren't married yet...!"

"Hahaha...!" Mrs. Lincoln laughed heartily, "Everyone has returned with our governor, so how far away can the wedding day be? It's just a matter of time...!"

Mrs. Lincoln whispered in Sissi's ear with a smile, "However, you'd better keep a close eye on our Governor. He's married so many wives, and although you're not the first, you must be the last...!"

Princess Sissi blushed even more, and couldn't help but glance at Azu with a hint of resentment.

"Hehe...!" Mrs. Lincoln, a woman with experience, chuckled, "Your Highness, winning a man's heart isn't actually that difficult. Let me teach you a few tricks...!"

……

On the flight back to California from Washington, Azu suddenly noticed that Sisi seemed to have suddenly taken a liking to cooking!
With nothing to do on the ship, Sisi spent almost all her time in the kitchen of the "Guilin" ship, either learning to cook from the chef on board or forcing herself to try out the dishes she had made herself, even if they were considered "disastrous" dishes.

When did a pampered princess like Sissi ever cook in Bavaria?
At first, the dishes that Princess Sissi made herself were almost unpalatable.

Although he made terrible food, Ah Zu would always finish every dish on his plate and force a smile, offering a few insincere compliments.

This fueled Sisi's enthusiasm for cooking, and by the time she arrived in California, her culinary skills had actually improved, at least to a decent level.

……

By the time they returned to San Francisco, it was the end of October 1853.

Upon arriving home, Azu immediately arranged for all the stockpiled Minié rifles, machine guns, artillery, and other munitions, as well as a large quantity of medicine, to be loaded onto ships and transported directly to the Crimean Peninsula using the fastest merchant ships, where they would be delivered to Tsarist Russia.

According to Azu's prediction, the Crimean War would be about to break out when the first batch of weapons arrived.

After arranging the arms transport, Azu personally arranged a ship to send Feng Yunshan back to China.

As they parted, Azu held Feng Yunshan's hand and earnestly urged him repeatedly, "Mr. Feng, when you return to China, your safety must come first! No matter what, you must keep yourself alive!"

"As long as you're alive, anything is possible...!"

Feng Yunshan was deeply moved and bowed again, saying, "Thank you for your kindness, boss. I will always remember your earnest teachings over the past year!"

"Please rest assured, boss, I will definitely keep my integrity and live a meaningful life. We will surely meet again in the future!"

To ensure Feng Yunshan's safety, Azu also assigned him a platoon of personal guards, these highly skilled individuals who had undergone extensive special training, specifically responsible for his personal safety.

Moreover, Azu also planted several secretly trained "hidden knights" among these guards.

Besides protecting Feng Yunshan, these guards and "hidden knights" infiltrated the Taiping Army as personal bodyguards. In the future, it wouldn't be difficult for Azu to take the life of any Taiping leader with a single order.

……

After Feng Yunshan sailed away, Azu stood on the dock, gazing at his receding figure, and remained silent for a long time.

Shi Dakai, standing behind Azu, couldn't help but say, "Boss, Mr. Feng has gone far... Let's go back too!"

Without turning his head, Azu said in a deep voice, "Dare you? Do you still remember what I told you last year?"

"Boss, are you referring to the plan to have me lead the army to take over Guangdong?" Shi Dakai replied.

Azu nodded: "So, how are things going now?"

Shi Dakai replied, "Under the personal arrangement of Mrs. Victoria and myself, we have already planted a large number of spies in Hong Kong, Guangdong, as well as in the surrounding provinces, and even in the capital."

“Since the beginning of this year, a steady stream of intelligence has been sent back every month.”

Shi Dakai continued, "Based on the intelligence we have gathered so far, we now have a complete understanding of the Qing government's military deployment in Guangdong."

"Under the command of the Guangzhou General, there are nominally several thousand Eight Banner troops. But everyone knows that the current Eight Banner troops are just a bunch of useless people who play with birdcages and smoke opium, and have no fighting power whatsoever."

"Under the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi and the Guangdong Provincial Commander, there are 8,000 Green Standard Army soldiers, which are the main force of the Qing government in Guangdong. But to our National Guard, 8,000 Green Standard Army soldiers are nothing but clay chickens and earthen dogs!"

"In Guangdong, there are still 5,000 naval troops under the command of the naval admiral. Their warships are still just dilapidated Fujian ships. Our coast guard fleet can annihilate them in one battle."

"The remaining troops are the soldiers stationed at coastal and river defense fortresses, as well as the city defense battalions in various prefectures and counties, whose combat effectiveness is even lower."

Shi Dakai added, "All things considered, the Qing government's available military force in the entire Guangdong province is approximately between 30,000 and 40,000."

"Although the number of men is considerable, their combat effectiveness is extremely low!" Shi Dakai said with full confidence, "Boss, we don't need 30,000 men. Just my Second Division, along with a coast guard fleet, will be enough to take over the entire Guangdong."

Shi Dakai's confidence was entirely justified.

During the Second Opium War, several thousand British and French troops easily defeated the Qing Dynasty's most elite tens of thousands of Manchu and Mongol cavalry at a very low cost.

Now, the California National Guard's combat capability far surpasses that of the British and French forces, who used Minié rifles and muzzle-loading smoothbore cannons.

The Qing troops stationed in Guangdong were not the Qing court's elite forces at all.

With one addition and one subtraction, Shi Dakai, commanding 12,000 men of the Second Division, was confident of capturing Guangdong.

Azu turned around, looked at Shi Dakai and smiled: "Taking Guangdong is not difficult, the difficulty lies in holding it, and even achieving long-term peace and stability!"

“I dare say that you have read a lot of books and gained a lot of knowledge in the past few years, but it has mainly focused on military strategy.”

"I believe you can easily take Guangdong, but to hold onto it and even achieve long-term stability is a much more difficult thing."

“I dare to accept this. I also believe that you are a man of both literary and military talents, capable of taking over Guangdong and quickly stabilizing the situation.”

"But you haven't had any experience in government affairs... Well, since there's no war going on right now and you've already graduated from military academy... why don't you take a temporary position in the government affairs office and get some experience first?"

Ah Zu said calmly, "When the time is right, that will be the time for your sharp sword to be truly unsheathed!"

After a moment's thought, Shi Dakai asked, "Boss, when is the time right?"

Azu calmly replied, "When Mr. Feng and that Hong Tianwang turn against each other, when the American Civil War breaks out, when the Crimean War breaks out... that will be the truly opportune time!" Shi Dakai asked curiously, "Boss, how can you be so sure that Hong Tianwang will turn against Mr. Feng?"

"Hehe...!" Azu smiled faintly: "That King Hong has now established his capital in Nanjing, above all others, and enjoys all the riches and honors."

"It's easy to share poverty and hardship, but difficult to share wealth and honor. With Mr. Feng's current vision and abilities, and his current ideas that are incompatible with the Taiping Army... it would be strange if that petty-minded King Hong could tolerate him!"

"Once Mr. Feng returns to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, it will take at least six months, and at most a year, for them to completely fall out!"

"At that time, Mr. Feng, who was not tolerated by the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, would most likely not return to California directly, given his pride."

“I dare to do so. When you take Guangdong in one fell swoop, you will be able to meet Mr. Feng. I believe that many insightful people within the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom will follow Mr. Feng and leave the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.”

"When the time is right, if you and Mr. Feng join forces, why should we worry about Guangdong not being stable?"

Upon hearing this, Shi Dakai's eyes suddenly lit up.

Ah Zu continued, "Guangdong is just our testing ground."

"Once we take Guangdong, you only need to do these few things...!"

"Boss, which few things are they?"

Azu said in a deep voice: "Reduce taxes and levies, conscript and train soldiers; build schools widely, broaden minds; develop industries, expand trade; establish newspapers, broaden channels for expression; build bridges and roads, and develop infrastructure extensively...!"

Fearing he might forget such an important matter, Shi Dakai quickly took out paper and pen and wrote down every word that Azu had said.

Azu continued, "The existing imperial examination system cannot be easily abolished in the short term, otherwise it will surely lose the hearts of scholars throughout the land."

"However, we need to make significant reforms to the rigid and outdated imperial examination system."

"Boss, how should we reform the imperial examination system?"

Azu then replied, "The original imperial examination system will be changed to the humanities, and on this basis, science, engineering, agriculture and medicine will be added."

"Arts students mainly study in secondary schools, while science, engineering, agriculture, and medicine students mainly study in Western schools. Anyone who passes the exam can go to university to systematically learn modern ideas and scientific theories."

"Only those who obtain a university degree can become civil servants...!"

"Civil servants... can't you become an official directly after graduating from university?" Having lived in the United States for so long and been exposed to the Western system for so long, I certainly understand the meaning of civil servants.

Azu continued, “Only those civil servants who excel in their actual work can become officials! Otherwise, those who only write on paper are just empty talkers and useless scholars.”

"I understand, boss!" Shi Dakai said suddenly.

After saying this, Azu changed the subject: "As long as we do these things well, Guangdong will surely achieve a peaceful and prosperous life and long-term stability within two or three years."

"If our model can succeed in Guangdong, then it will be time to completely expel the Manchus and seize the world!"

Shi Dakai silently put away his pen and paper, remained silent for a moment, and finally couldn't help but ask, "Boss, what will the future form of government be? A republic... or an empire?!"

Even if Shi Dakai hadn't asked, Azu had already been pondering this question for a long time.

Even now, Ah Zu still doesn't have a perfect answer in his heart.

But since Shi Dakai had asked, Azu didn't mind giving an imperfect answer: "Currently, the people in the country are not enlightened, and more than 80 percent of them are illiterate."

"For thousands of years, the common people have been accustomed to having an emperor above them. If we rashly promote a republic, the time is far from ripe."

"Even in Europe, where the people's intelligence and social customs are far more enlightened than in China, republics and empires are constantly changing. For example, France, where the republican revolution first broke out, has now produced the Third Reich...!"

"Moreover, given the current situation in the country...!"

Shi Dakai understood: "So, boss, you mean the Empire is more suitable?"

Azu shook his head slightly: "At least from the current point of view, the empire is indeed a more suitable choice for the current era... but even an empire is not going to follow the old path of a hereditary monarchy."

Shi Dakai pondered for a moment and said, "Boss, is that like the British Empire, a constitutional monarchy?"

At this point, Azu began to nod slightly: "From the current point of view, this is the only suitable option! However, unlike the figurehead monarch of the British Empire, at least while I am still young and vigorous and clear-headed, we should implement a certain degree of real monarchy."

"Hehe...!" With that, Azu chuckled self-deprecatingly, "It won't be too late to discuss the real and nominal rulers when I'm old and my eyesight is failing and my mind is senile decades from now!"

"Boss, with your foresight and wisdom, there will never be a day when you become foolish... Only under your leadership can we achieve final victory and build a great empire...!"

Shi Dakai's words may have seemed a bit like flattery, but they truly reflected his true feelings.

Having followed Ah Zu for the past few years, he has come to admire his boss's wisdom, magnanimity, vision, and everything else from the bottom of his heart!
"Hehe... It's too early to say anything now!"

Azu patted Shi Dakai's shoulder heavily: "What we just talked about today is only between you and me. Remember, you must not tell anyone else...!"

"Don't worry, boss, there will absolutely be no third party who knows...!"

Ah Zu laughed and said, "Of course I'm at ease, otherwise I wouldn't have said all this to you."

"However, we still have many enemies and stumbling blocks both inside and outside our borders... In the foreseeable future, the United States, the Qing Dynasty, Tsarist Russia, Spain, and even... France and the British Empire will become our enemies and stumbling blocks!"

Azu continued, "I have already placed almost all the pieces... This is a game involving global powers, and almost all of them, one by one, will be kicked away by us... Well, perhaps we won't be able to kick them away, and we might even break our own legs instead..."

"However, once the arrow is released, there's no turning back; the arrow is on the string and must be fired...!"

"When the United States and Europe, including the Qing Dynasty, are locked in fierce fighting and in complete chaos next year, that will be the time for us to truly unsheathe our swords."

Azu gazed at the vast sea: "The world is so big, and since we're already here... hehe!"

……

Two months later, on Christmas Day in 1853.

Cardinal Evan, who was far away in the East, also made a special trip back to California that year to attend the grand Christmas celebrations.

In 1853, California made significant progress in all aspects.

The most significant achievement was conquering Alaska!
Now, after Huamei Industrial secretly took over the entire Russian-American company, it has effectively gained control of all power in this icy land of Alaska.

Although sovereignty nominally still belongs to Tsarist Russia for the time being, the core of it has been completely devoured by Huamei Industrial.

Having acquired this vast land, we already possess the foundation for establishing a nation.

Meanwhile, as the year drew to a close, the population of California had grown to 1.1 million.

Chinese people make up more than 600,000 of them, making them the dominant ethnic group in California for the first time in terms of absolute numbers!
Huamei Corporation also saw significant growth, with total annual revenue exceeding $600 million for the first time. The fastest-growing sectors were no longer traditional gold mining and penicillin, but rather fertilizers and weapons!

The combined arms orders from both the North and South and Tsarist Russia amounted to more than 160 million!
Fertilizer production has increased tenfold, from one million US dollars last year to more than twenty million US dollars!
The growth of advanced machinery is also not to be underestimated, with sales reaching over 30 million US dollars this year.

The traditionally most profitable gold mining and penicillin production combined contributed over $300 million.

……

Total revenue exceeded $600 million, while total expenditures also increased significantly, reaching over $300 million.

The final net profit also reached a record $300 million.

As for Huamei Industrial's huge vault, the cash and gold reserves exceed six hundred million US dollars!

This is an unimaginable sum of money!

They are so rich they could rival a nation!

(End of this chapter)