North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 70 The Last Straw

A newly published newspaper immediately caused a huge uproar in San Francisco.

Ross, still reeling from the minor shock of the newspaper, immediately yelled, "Quick, close the bank doors! We're closed today!"

"No, we can't close down!" the manager quickly stopped him. "If the bank closes down, our reputation will be completely ruined! And...and..."

"And what? Say it!" Ross roared angrily.

"And...it's too late!"

The manager pulled Ross to the window and looked down.

The surging crowd had completely submerged the main gate of the bank!

Looking up, even more people surged in from all directions!

"It's over! I'm really finished!"

Ross collapsed to the ground, slumped there, as if all the bones in his body had been instantly removed.

"Boss, we need to think of something quickly! If this continues, the entire head office will be wiped out in a few days! Then... then we'll be truly finished!"

"Yes, think of something, think of something quickly! I...you...do you have any ideas?"

"Quickly draw funds from all branches to weather this wave of bank runs! Otherwise, our credit will be ruined, which is tantamount to the bank going bankrupt!"

"Yes, yes, yes, quickly transfer all funds from all branches! We must ensure that the head office has enough funds to weather this bank run!"

Ross regained his support and quickly sent people to his dozen or so branches throughout California to withdraw funds.

However, this wave of bank runs clearly far exceeded Ross and Bay Area Bank's expectations!
For several days in a row, The Standard relentlessly exposed the various misdeeds of Bay Area banks, pushing the wave of bank runs to ever greater heights!

In just three days, the head office's funds were completely depleted!

However, Ross felt he still had a chance to turn things around as long as he could hold out until the funds from the various branches were withdrawn!
However, three days later, the news he received plunged him into utter despair!
Instead of receiving funds from the various branches, messages from each branch pleading for help and hoping to receive financial support from the head office poured in like snowflakes!
Almost all branches experienced the worst bank run in history!

In just a few days, the funds at the Bay Area Bank's headquarters and all its branches have run out!

However, the run on banks is getting worse and worse!

Even the elites began to take action, demanding that Ross immediately cash out their deposits!
If the squeeze from the common people is like skinning Ross alive, then the squeeze from the elite is like pulling out Ross's tendons!

He can refuse to bail out ordinary people, but he would never dare to refuse to bail out the entire elite class!
And what caused all of this was the California Standard, which was distributed throughout California and almost everyone had a copy!
In the past few days, Ross did not sit idly by. Instead, he searched for other banks throughout the Bay Area and wealthy businessmen he knew, hoping to get loans from peers or from wealthy businessmen.

But who would throw their money away and lend large sums of cash to this doomed guy?

That night, having exhausted all possible solutions, Ross slumped into his chair in despair.

Around him was the entire management team, all wearing expressions of despair.

"Tell me, what other ideas do you have?"

Ross stared listlessly at the ceiling, and it took him a long time to finally manage to utter those words.

"Boss, sell! Sell off all the bank's valuable assets quickly! The bank vault is completely empty; we won't be able to open tomorrow. If we don't sell, we'll truly be facing bankruptcy!"

"I won't sell!" Ross slammed his fist on the table in anger. "If the vault is empty, then we won't open it tomorrow! Let's see if those damned paupers dare to burn down my bank!"

"Boss, those poor bastards might not dare to burn down the bank, but those powerful and wealthy people with large deposits in the bank might dare to kill your whole family!"

Upon hearing this, Ross felt a chill run down his spine! Through years of painstaking management, Ross had accumulated a considerable amount of high-quality assets, of which Cameron Shipping Company was just one.

These high-quality assets generate substantial profits every year, and asking him to sell them would be worse than killing him!
Especially shipping companies that have just been poised for a bite of meat, they're about to lose it before they've even had a chance to enjoy it.
However, if he doesn't liquidate his assets, he and his entire family might really die!

Sell ​​or not?

To sell or not to sell?
After struggling painfully for a long time, Ross finally waved his hand, having exhausted all his strength: "Go, go contact potential buyers!"

The boss finally relented, and the management team breathed a sigh of relief. They immediately contacted potential buyers overnight to liquidate the assets as soon as possible.

Ross's assets are indeed of very high quality, and there are quite a few potential buyers.

Overnight, they contacted many interested buyers and prepared to begin acquisition negotiations the next day.

But no one expected that the next morning, that damned Standard newspaper would drop another bombshell!
Major Daniel Cameron is back!

Cameron's youngest and last son has returned!

Moreover, he also served as the commander of the Northern California Ranger Battalion!

The Standard not only exclusively reported the news, but also speculated with great insight that Major Daniel would definitely launch a crazy revenge!
This bombshell news is a heavy blow to the elite class of San Francisco!
What bank runs and acquisitions are nothing compared to this news!
Those powerful figures who had swallowed up the Cameron family's assets suddenly felt that what they had swallowed was not fat meat, but a red-hot iron!

What kind of bullshit acquisition is this? At this moment, the most important thing is to think about how to save the lives of your whole family!

All potential buyers vanished without a trace, severing all ties with Ross as quickly as possible, fearing that Major Daniel Cameron might have his eye on them.

Ross stared blankly at the newspaper on the table.

Ross wasn't too shocked by the news of Major Daniel Cameron's return.

Simply because his heart was dead, truly and utterly hopeless!

At this point, he was no longer thinking about how to protect his assets or the bank, but how to save the lives of his entire family!

Ross had witnessed the ruthlessness of the Cameron family firsthand; Cameron would never let any traitor go unpunished!
Unfortunately, to the Cameron family, he, Ross, is a complete traitor!
Bay Area Bank's rise to become the largest bank in California is inseparable from the strong support of David Cameron over the years.

But what did Ross do after the Cameron family fell from grace?

They turned the tables viciously, using forged loan contracts to swallow Cameron Shipping Company whole!
Moreover, he and the entire elite class sent out several waves of assassins to secretly kill Daniel Cameron, who was far away in Arkansas!

If this isn't betrayal, then what is?

Ross no longer cared about banks or assets; at that moment, he had only one thought in mind.

Go home immediately, pack your things, and run away!

Run as far as possible!

"Beep beep beep...!"

Just then, a soft and polite knock sounded on the door.

Even such a gentle knock startled Ross!

"Who?"

(End of this chapter)