Brannan stood on the towering observation tower, from where he had often watched the passing merchant ships and the lighthouse in the harbor, looking down at the tiny city of San Francisco below.
He witnessed the rise of San Francisco from a small town with a population of less than a thousand to a large city with a population of over 40,000.
He was now also experiencing firsthand the decline of the Brannan family.
There is no greater ups and downs in life than this.
Brannan's face once again showed the confidence and composure he had once had as the King of California.
When he learned that Liang Yao and Griffin's soldiers had looted his shops, casinos, and brothels in San Francisco, he just smiled faintly.
It seemed that these huge fortunes had become worthless to him now.
Brannan returned to the house and opened his private safe.
Even his closest and most trusted family members were unaware of this small treasury.
The small safe was neatly stored with US dollar bills and banknotes from Citibank, First United States Bank, and Kentucky Insurance Company.
Below these US dollar bills and banknotes, there is a locked wooden box about one foot long, wide and half a foot high.
After opening the lock, a box full of gold coins and US dollar coins appeared before his eyes.
"This is US dollar bills and banknotes worth $230,000. This box contains gold coins. These are my brother's life-saving money that he has slowly saved over the past two years. My brother has never told anyone about this."
Brannan smiled bitterly. He had saved this money for emergencies. He would never use it unless it was absolutely necessary.
If possible, he hopes to never use the money, let it lie here quietly until he dies and then pass it on to future generations.
Although California had a lot of gold, it had few creditworthy dollar bills and banknotes.
After all, there are no branches of big banks or companies here. The only institution that has anything to do with banks is Liang Yao's China Bank.
"With this money, we can start a new life."
Little Brannan rubbed his hands excitedly, he was very excited, he didn't expect that his brother had a backup plan.
"You were right. Maybe if I had stopped while I was ahead, I wouldn't be so miserable now. But if I could do it again, I would still choose to fight Liang Yao to the end. You know, I have been competitive since I was a child and I will never admit defeat."
Brannan has no regrets about his original choice.
Brannan collected the dollar bills and stuffed them into a suitcase along with a box of gold coins and dollars, then handed the heavy suitcase to his most trusted brother.
"The Brannan family deserves a comeback, but not here."
"What's the meaning?"
Brannan's encouragement rekindled young Brannan's fighting spirit and filled him with hope. His brother was the backbone of the family, and as long as his brother did not fall, the Brannan family could stand up again.
But Brannan's words were like a bucket of cold water poured over little Brannan, causing little Brannan's mood to plummet to the bottom.
Young Brannan did not try to persuade him with words. He knew Brannan's character and knew that once he made a decision, no one could make him change his mind.
"From now on, you should assume the responsibility of the Brannan family. You are the head of this family."
Brannan struck a match, lit his pipe, and took a long drag.
"Take your sister-in-law and nephew to the East, which is the center of America. A merchant ship will arrive here in two days. The captain and I have a good relationship. You can take my letter with you, and they will send you safely to the East.
New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Portland are all great places to start a family and build a career there."
As he spoke, Brannan walked up to little Brannan, grabbed little Brannan's shoulders and continued.
"You can use part of the money to start a business or enjoy yourself, and the other part will be used for Oliver's education and to support my wife.
When you get to the East, remember what I told you today. I suffered from my lack of education. You must send Oliver to the best school and give him the best education. If necessary, find him the best tutor."
"Don't worry, brother. I will take good care of my sister-in-law and Oliver."
Young Brannan made a promise to Brannan in the presence of God.
After explaining all this, Brannan felt relieved. He smiled, a very relaxed smile.
He hadn't laughed so hard in a long time.
Two days later, Brannan secretly sent his family away, now free of ties.
Brannan returned to the manor and took out all the fine wines and delicacies in the cellar to reward his hired gunmen.
Most of his hired gunmen had fled, and the remaining ones were either those who had done many evil things and had nowhere to go, or those who were truly loyal to Brannan.
Brannan was generous to these hired guns. In this respect, like Liang Yao, he was willing to spend money.
He collected all the valuable gold and silver utensils in the manor, as well as the paintings and books he had painstakingly collected to show off his taste, and placed them neatly in the hall. He even chiseled off the gold lace on the walls and the side chairs.
"Today will be your last day of service to me. After this last tough battle tonight, all these will be yours!
Liang Yao has taken away everything that should have belonged to us, and he deserves to pay for it with his life!"
After brainwashing these thirty-odd vicious criminals, Brannan sneaked to Liang Yao's residence under the cover of night.
Liang Yao was well prepared. He had already cast the net and was waiting for Brannan to take the bait.
Griffin's forces have returned to the fortress, and now there is no one left to stop him from destroying Brannan.
"Brannan is such a lunatic."
Under the moonlight, Flagg sighed softly, feeling sorry for Brannan.
"But this madman made California."
Liang Yao pressed down the hammer of the revolver with his thumb.
California should thank this madman, who single-handedly ignited the gold rush in the United States and even the world.
Without him, the California Gold Rush might have come, but it would have been several years later.
Brannan is not a mediocre person. His greatest tragedy is not his encounter with Liang Yao, but his own over-inflated ambition.
Even if Liang Yao hadn't existed, Brannan's final outcome in history wouldn't have been much better.
In order to obtain Brannan's land, the big financial groups from the East colluded with Congress without hesitation, sent Brannan to prison in the name of the law, and acquired large tracts of Brannan's land at a very low price.
Just one day before going to prison, Brannan naively wanted to negotiate the price of the land with the representatives of these big consortiums. In the end, what he waited for was not the quotation from the consortium representatives, but a pair of cold handcuffs and an arrest warrant.
Those large conglomerates that integrate politics and business are the real winners in the gold rush.
The gate of the yard was violently pushed open, and Brannan finally invaded Liang Yao's private territory.
The gunmen and mounted police who had been lying in ambush on the second floor and the surrounding areas opened fire at Brannan and his loyal hired gunmen without hesitation.
A bloody massacre took place in Liang Yao's private residence in San Francisco.
The moment he heard the gunshot, Brannan knew he had fallen into a trap.
This opponent really did not disappoint him. Isn't it an honor to die at the hands of such an opponent?
Brannan was unfortunately shot in the thigh during the fierce battle. He just staggered but did not fall down, and he did not feel the intense pain from the gunshot.
Brannan's hired guns kept falling like harvested wheat, but none of them chose to retreat.
Like a medieval knight, he was fearless and courageous, facing the enemy's hail of bullets calmly and continuously pulling the trigger at the enemy until the last bullet in the revolver was used up.
This was not a battle, but an asymmetric massacre.
After the massacre, Deng Yan led the Chinese people forward to shoot the dying wounded again to end their suffering.
After experiencing the baptism of several battles, these soldiers who came from peasant backgrounds gradually shed their peasant character.
The simple farmer who used to tremble at the sound of gunfire and was hesitant to shoot at a human target, is now able to calmly pull the trigger when facing a flesh-and-blood person.
After the gunshot, even though he was covered in blood, he felt nothing in his heart.
They have become accustomed to the roles they play now.
Liang Yao walked up to Brannan's body. Brannan had been beaten into a sieve, his body was covered in blood and flesh, and there was almost no healthy flesh left.
He still held the gun tightly in his hand, and faced them in a fighting posture before he died.
Liang Yao took off his hat and covered Brannan's open eyes.
"Give them a proper burial, and find Brannan the best priest in California."
The plot of the first volume has ended, and next we will face more powerful enemies!
I agree to respond to the questions raised by book friends about the international status of Chinese people. The international status of Chinese people did not plummet after the First Raven. The decline in the status of Chinese people was also a gradual process.
After the first crow, the international status of Chinese people declined, but the first crow was lost to the invincible Britain at that time, just like a country losing to the United States today, it is not so shameful. At that time, there were a number of vassal states around the Qing Dynasty. Although the Qing Empire was weak, it was also one of the great powers. After all, its size was there.
After the second crow, the international status declined further. This time, the capital was occupied and the Old Summer Palace was burned down.
The Chinese Exclusion Act was signed into law in the United States in 1882.
What really caused the Qing Empire's international status to plummet was its defeat in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, when it lost to Japan.
The United States in 1850 was not as powerful as everyone thought. The main contradictions in the country at that time were the dispute over abolition of slavery and how to digest the newly acquired California, New Mexico, and Texas.
The issue of the Chinese could not be brought to the table at that time. After all, at that time, there was only a small group of Chinese who came to California to pan for gold, accounting for less than one thousandth of the total U.S. population.