The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 682 We are the free California that defends private property!

When Emperor Xianfeng (Zhao Si)'s carriage drove into San Francisco, the midday sun bleached the cobblestones. The wheel tracks ran over the marks of wet paint on the street - that was the slogan that was newly painted last night. The words "Free California, State Rights First" appeared over and over again, extending from the pier all the way to the steps of the True Jesuit Cathedral. The aroma of caramel wafted from the bakery on the corner. Two Japanese women with their hair wrapped in headscarves trotted past, carrying baskets of freshly baked rye bread, and ran towards a group of new soldiers who were training not far away.

"Stand at attention! Guns on shoulders!" The roar in the square startled the horses and snorted. Xianfeng lifted the curtain of his carriage and saw a group of new recruits of the "California Freedom Army" practicing to the beat of their instructors. Their blue cloth uniforms were washed white, and the brims of their gray cylindrical hats were pulled down very low, covering half of their oriental faces. Amid the dull sound of the wooden butt of the rifle hitting his shoulder, a skinny Mexican boy staggered a step and was immediately dragged out of the queue by the instructor by the collar: "Go to the dock and move the shells! Your arms can't even lift a woman's spindle!"

The grocery store across the street was open, and the Chinese owner behind the counter was checking the bills with an abacus. At his feet were piles of canvas - the material for sewing tents for the Free Army. Three Japanese women sat by the door, carrying sleeping babies on their backs, their fingers quickly sewing the soles of military shoes. Amid the rustling sound of needles and threads, the proprietress shouted in stiff English to the passing Irish workers: "Twenty cents a pair! Come pick it up tomorrow!"

When the carriage turned around Golden Gate Avenue, Xianfeng saw more than a dozen fishing boats floating in the waves of San Francisco Bay. The fisherwomen on the bow stood barefoot on the slippery deck, deftly pulling in the trawl nets, and the silvery salmon between the meshes were thrown into the barrels. A few Mexican boys squatted on the shore, using iron hooks to cut open the fish's belly, and the blood and internal organs were splashed on the rocks, attracting a group of circling seagulls.

"Stop!" Xianfeng suddenly shouted. His eyes were fixed on the pier - a group of soldiers of the Free Army were carrying boxes of ammunition, guns, and even iron plates tied with straw from a steamer flying the Union Jack belonging to Jardine Matheson. No one knew what they were used for.
It seems that the blockade of the US Pacific Fleet still has some loopholes. Xianfeng thought: "After all, the Pacific Fleet currently has only two large ships, and they may not dare to fire at ships flying the British flag."

“All men are created equal.” — A new slogan painted on the outer wall of a True Covenant Cathedral.

Xianfeng thought to himself: "It turns out that Hong Renzheng does understand the United States! Don't rush into independence from the United States at this moment."

However, when Xianfeng walked outside Hong Renzheng's office, he knew he was wrong. Before he even entered the door, he heard Hong Renzheng roaring inside: "Why doesn't King Luo Wu allow us to build a 'heavenly kingdom' in California? Now the Yang family has the Korean Heavenly Kingdom, the Wei family has the Javan Heavenly Kingdom, and the Shi family almost has the Luzon Heavenly Kingdom. What's wrong with our Hong family building a California Heavenly Kingdom?"

When Xianfeng opened the door, Chen Yucheng was looking at a Pacific Ocean map on the wall with a wooden stick. He knocked the end of the stick on the mark of the Panama Railroad: "It only takes 30 days to transport troops from the East Coast to San Francisco! It takes at least two months to transport troops from Shanghai to California. And the most important thing for the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom right now is to develop industry. It has no spare energy to fight a war with the United States in North America!"

Huang Shiren and Lei Lao Hu were both biting their pipes in silence. The burnt smell of tobacco made the office look like a powder keg.

"The Golden Prince Consort of Nanyi!" There were some ink stains on the cuffs of Hong Renzheng's military uniform, and it seemed that he had just drafted a manifesto. "Is there anyone on the front line shouting 'Long Live the Kingdom of California'?" His fingers tapped on a book on the table. It was an edict sent from Tianjing, and it was transported by a clipper of Jardine Matheson. Jardine Matheson has now been taken over by Jardine Matheson. Although it is 100% "Chinese-funded", it still hangs the sign of "Foreign Company" to pretend to be British-funded.

Xianfeng grabbed the cup and took a sip of cold tea: "Yes, but I suppressed it." Tea dripped down his hairy chin onto the map. "America is not the Netherlands. If the Federation really wants to mobilize and fight a total war with us, they can transport 100,000 guns from the Panama Railway - what about us? Can the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom send 100,000 or 80,000 soldiers all the way to America?"

Luo Dagang in the corner suddenly asked, "Prince Consort Nanyi, if you suppress this matter, will the people below lose their motivation?"

"Captain, you worry too much." Xianfeng said, "What do you think those white guys who are making trouble with us want? San Francisco County Magistrate Smith wants to be governor, Murrieta wants to be a senator, and the Irish trade unions are eyeing the judge's seat... They don't want to kowtow to Tianjing!" He broke off a piece of chalk and wrote the words "state rights" on the blackboard. "These people would rather be local emperors in California than be controlled by the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom!"

"So we have to let the legal system of 'Free California' run ahead of the federal bayonets!" Xianfeng put down his teacup heavily. "We have to enact the California Citizenship Act to grant citizenship to all Chinese who participated in the war, and then elect a new state government before the 1860 election - let those masters in Washington know that we are not rebelling, but 'defending state rights'! If we can set a successful example of 'defending state rights', then the Democrats in the South will dare to roll up their sleeves and work hard! Only when the white people in the United States take action themselves, can we Chinese become big in the three states on the West Coast."

Hong Renzheng silently opened the drawer and took out a letter sealed with Lushan headquarters wax: "King Luo Wu also meant the same thing...but he wants us to kill more white people in the Battle of Sacramento River!"

"Of course we have to kill more." Xianfeng stared at the state army stronghold marked in red on the map. "Dead white people won't vote on voting day." He paused and added, "Archbishop, I'm afraid we have to quickly transfer the troops to Stockton!"

Chen Yucheng turned around and asked, "What? Weller can't wait to die?"

Xianfeng nodded: "Sacramento's food reserves are running low. He must try his best before the food runs out!"

Chen Yucheng smiled and said, "Great! I'm just afraid that he will stay in Sacramento and not come out!" Sacramento, the capital of California.

The mills on the Sacramento River had long stopped turning, and the wheel blades of the mill were covered with spider webs. In the underground warehouse of the state government building, the grain reserves were decreasing at a visible rate - although the four major families in California had handed over their grain stored in Sacramento to the state government, the quantity was still far from enough. Sacramento was a city that prospered with the help of the mining industry. It was not a grain-producing area in California. In the past, Sacramento's supply had to rely on the Sacramento River for transportation. But now, water transportation has been completely cut off, and the capital of California can only rely on the remaining grain reserves to maintain its existence. The grain stored by the four major families in other parts of California cannot be transported.

Governor Weller stood in front of the arched window on the third floor, looking at the sparse flow of people on the street. State soldiers in gray uniforms were sent in teams of five to search for stores that had stored food. An Italian shop owner was hit in the nose by the butt of a rifle while holding onto a bag of flour and refused to let go. Blood spurted onto the "All for California" recruitment poster.

"Governor!" Commander Bigler's coat smelled of horse manure. "Several farmers in the north refused to pay their grain. They said they wanted to save the seeds for spring planting."

"Send Sherman's cavalry." Weller said without turning his head. "Hang two and the rest will behave themselves."

He had just finished giving the order when the office door was pushed open again. This time it was Sherman who came in, holding a piece of paper torn from somewhere in his hand - it was a notice.

"Governor," Sherman said, "look at this. This is the California Declaration!"

"Free California?" Weller asked hurriedly, "Are they going to declare independence?"

Sherman shook his head. "Sadly, no."

Bigler quickly took the paper with the "Free California Declaration" printed on it and read it in a hoarse voice: "Letter to the citizens of California counties: The Weller government has blatantly abolished jury trials and confiscated Chinese property with the "Wartime Special Law". This is a violation of Article 25 of the Constitution! Now San Francisco, San Jose and other counties have established "Free California", restored the elected legislature, and vowed to defend private property and state rights. Please send representatives to San Francisco City and County to vote before the th of this month to elect a new governor and legislature. God bless California - San Francisco County Executive William Smith, Free California Militia Colonel Murrieta, and Irish Free Union Chairman State Senator Patrick O'Leary."

After Bigler finished reading it, he crumpled up the declaration and threw it into the wastebasket: "Governor, there is no point in waiting! Those people are more cunning than foxes! And we only have enough food for two months. We must either fight quickly or run out of food and lose our morale!"

Weller grabbed a paper cutter and stabbed it into the Sacramento River on the map. "Then let's set the battle site on the north bank of the Sacramento River. Colonel Sherman, we have few people and it's impossible to storm Stockton, so you have to find a way to lure those yellow monkeys across the river for a decisive battle."

"Yes, Governor!" Sherman, Chief of Staff of the California Militia, thought for a moment, "We can pretend to go to Napa County to steal food!"

"Okay, that's it!"

At dawn the next day, the army assembled on the Sacramento River looked like a group of ragtag beggars. Only one-third of the 13000 militiamen wore uniform blue coats, while the rest wore hunting suits or Mexican ponchos. Sherman rode on his skinny warhorse and watched the soldiers wrap their blistered feet with rags.

"Let's go!" Bigler pointed his saber forward. There was no military band, no cheering, only the creaking of wheels rolling over gravel. At the end of the team, a dozen teenagers carried homemade flags with a crooked brown bear and the words "Defend Homeland" painted on them.

As they crossed the last intact bridge, a little blond girl suddenly broke out of the crowd and thrust a bunch of wild flowers into the hands of a passing soldier. "Daddy said to be brave." Her voice was drowned out by the sound of marching footsteps.

In the bushes on the other side of the river, a scout from the True York faction was writing down on paper with a pencil: "The enemy has 3000 artillery pieces and cavalrymen, but the horses are generally skinny and half of the infantrymen have no boots."

(End of this chapter)