The United Mining Company was established amid the toasts between Liang Yao, Fremont and Ge Wen.
The three chatted over drinks about their personal future and the future of California.
"Politics, damn politics. In the struggle between Stockton and Kearney, I stood on the side of the upright General Stockton, but what did I get? A soldier who shed blood and was wounded for the United States during the war was brought to court!"
After three rounds of drinks, the drunk Fremont could no longer suppress his anger.
Fremont and Gwen are two people with completely different personalities. Although Fremont has been expelled from the army, he still maintains the straightforwardness of a pure soldier, and his character is generous and upright.
Ge Wen was cunning and cautious even at the drinking table. He never talked about any sensitive political events at the table, and even when drinking, he only drank a small sip perfunctorily. This allowed him to stay more sober and avoid unexpected situations where he would speak out of turn after drinking.
"I didn't die fighting Mexicans, but I died in a court of my own."
"Mr. Fremont, you are not dead, you are still alive and well, and you have been reborn." Liang Yao remained sober and comforted the drunk Fremont.
"My heart is dead, which is more painful than the death of the body."
Fremont howled heartbreakingly, saying that being kicked out of the army and never being able to serve his country again in his life was an irreparable regret.
Liang Yao had no idea what kind of grudges and entanglements existed between the two Commodores, Stockton and Carney.
He also didn't know why Fremont, an army officer, would stand on the side of the future of the navy in the political struggle between the army and navy generals.
But Fremont played an indispensable role in California's successful separation from Mexico and joining the United States of America. It was indeed inappropriate to send Fremont to a military court and remove him hastily without a thorough investigation.
The Mexican-American War also helped to develop a group of American military officers and generals, who became the backbone of the North and South in the Civil War ten years later. Fremont was one of them.
Fremont was understandably resentful of this.
Liang Yao's private party was soon interrupted by an uninvited guest. Brannan Jr. came to Sacramento with a dozen people in a menacing manner.
Unlike Brannan, Brannan Jr. is very low-key. It is said that he manages Brannan's business behind the scenes and rarely shows up in public.
Liang Yao was completely confused about little Brannan's arrival and had no idea why he came.
Are you here to cause trouble? Or are
you here to make peace? "Mr. Brannan, what brings you all the way to Sacramento?"
Liang Yao patted his dizzy head and tried his best to stay awake.
His guards gathered around him, vigilantly guarding against Little Brannan and others.
"Mr. Liang, if we continue to fight like this, both you and I will suffer losses." Little Brannan went straight to the point.
"It was you who started the trouble, not me."
"Maybe we should just get along in peace."
"Can you speak for Brannan?"
"I'll try to convince him."
"This is not the answer I want. Please go back."
Liang Yao ordered little Brannan to leave.
In the struggle with Brannan, he was at a disadvantage and never thought of negotiating with Brannan.
Not to mention that the strong and the weak have changed now, and Brannan has already shown signs of defeat. Moreover, Brannan Jr. cannot fully represent his family to negotiate with him.
Brannan Jr.'s trip was just his own wish, not Brannan's. Such negotiations were unnecessary and would not produce any results.
He had to root out Brannan, a vengeful and narrow-minded person, to prevent future troubles. Otherwise, he would not feel at ease staying in California.
"How much gold and dollars would it take to buy your land?!"
Brannan Jr. raised his voice.
"That's not for sale."
Liang Yao flatly rejected Brannan's request to buy land. Brannan's idea was too naive.
The fact that young Brannan has such naive and unrealistic ideas just shows that the situation on Brannan's side is not optimistic and he has the upper hand in this business war.
Liang Yao now not only has the China Bank to help him raise money, but also can mine gold in the riverbed of the American River. He can handle this price war with ease without worrying about the risk of a broken capital chain.
Brannan's two main sources of income now come from casinos and brothels. Brannan's good days are coming to an end.
"Liang Yao, do you dare to duel with me like a man? Let's decide the winner by dueling! If you are a man, you will accept this duel. If you admit that you are a coward, you can refuse this duel between men!"
Little Brannan invited Liang Yao to a duel. Liang Yao just thought it was funny. Why would I risk a duel with you when I can obviously defeat your Brannan family in a safer way?
Liang Yao smiled coldly and was about to order Little Brannan to be driven away to prevent him from causing trouble in his territory.
"I'm here to duel with you!"
Fremont staggered up to little Brannan, ready for a duel.
"One of my elders once warned me that dueling was an abominable custom brought about by the depravity of mankind. But I like this evil custom."
The intoxicated Fremont took the duel very seriously, his blue eyes lighting up.
He has a unique understanding of dueling. He believes that the essence of a duel is not how to kill the opponent in the most efficient and safe way. Killing the enemy is only secondary.
The essence of duel is to teach you how to stay calm and defeat the enemy when facing the enemy's guns and cannons, so as to prove to the world the value and dignity of your existence.
Liang Yao didn't understand Fremont's way of thinking, and he planned to end this meaningless farce.
But Fremont had already loaded his pistol and was ready for the duel, and more and more people were gathering to watch the duel.
This farce cannot be ended even if we want to.
The curious people took over the game and opened the market, and the gamblers enthusiastically placed bets on this life-and-death battle.
Duels in gold mining areas were not uncommon, with gold diggers often clashing over a piece of gold mining territory of a few feet or even smaller.
The simplest and most effective way to resolve conflicts is to duel, risking one's own life in order to gain a glimmer of hope for wealth and glory.
But this duel is different, as the duelists are both very prominent people, making it quite interesting.
Fremont and Brannan Jr. stood facing each other, glaring at each other, loaded pistols in their hands.
The air around them was deathly silent, and in the eyes of the two, the people around them were like air, as if they did not exist.
At this moment, the only thing in their eyes was the opponent standing opposite them.
The drunk Fremont behaved unusually calmly and composedly, not at all like a drunkard who had just drunk half a barrel of gin.
Young Brannan was the first to break the silence, and he roared to give himself courage.
But in terms of momentum, Little Bran had already lost. Just as he raised his hand, before he could pull the trigger, he felt as if his right shoulder was hit hard by a heavy object, and even the gun in his hand fell out of his hand.
Little Brannan did not die, but the pain still made him collapse to the ground, roaring helplessly.
Fremont, who had just experienced a life-and-death duel, was almost sober. He put away his gun, shrugged and said regretfully: "I wanted to shoot him in the heart, but unfortunately I drank too much and couldn't hold the gun steady."
Young Brannan, supported by a group of hired gunmen, walked towards San Francisco in embarrassment amid boos from the side.
After this incident, Liang Yao and the other two lost interest in continuing the feast. He asked someone to help Fremont and Ge Wen to the guest room to rest.
He returned to his office and stared at the date on the calendar. If nothing unexpected happened, the Sven fleet that had recently gone to Mexico and Central American countries to purchase supplies would return to San Francisco.
It was time for him to give his old rival Brannan the final blow.
It is time for Brannan's absurd era of ruling California to come to an end.
Liang Yao called over his cultural henchman, Henry, the editor-in-chief of the California Daily.
"Publish an article exposing the scam at Brannan's Casino."
"Newspapers are still distributed free of charge?"
This time, Henry did not hesitate. Like most people in Sacramento and San Francisco, he had full confidence in Liang Yao.
"If it's free, I will subsidize the newspaper's losses."
"I understand. I will write a beautiful article to expose Brannan's ugly criminal behavior."
As for the loss of the newspaper, Henry was not too concerned. Although it was operating at a loss, the California Daily was not completely unprofitable. The newspaper gained a reputation and became the most influential local news media, bar none.
Recently, even some dignitaries in the East have sent people to the San Francisco California Daily just to get the latest information from California.
Henry never thought that his newspaper would have such a great influence today.