The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 703 Mr. Lincoln, please lead us to make America even greater!
1861 1 Month 20 Day.

The platform at the Baltimore train station was packed with people.

The smoke from the steam locomotive rolled in the cold air like an angry black dragon. As soon as the door opened, Xianfeng (Zhao Si) heard a deafening roar:

“47% should not lose to 40%!”

"There can be no minority tyranny in America!"

"Anti-tariffs! Protect state rights! Amend the Constitution! Protect democracy!"

The crowd surged toward the Southern politicians who had just gotten off the train. They waved placards, held high their Kentucky long rifles, and some even wore old military uniforms from the Mexican War. Looking at this posture, those who didn't know would have thought that the American Civil War was about to break out!
Xianfeng thought: If these Americans had heard the story of the Three Kingdoms in Dashilan, they should have gathered a hundred thousand troops and marched to Washington, New York, Philadelphia, Boston and Chicago. They should have done something big before the Republicans could get organized! Unfortunately, these Americans were still not very knowledgeable.
"Look! It's the heroes of Charleston!"

As soon as the political elites from Charleston walked out of the train station, the crowd gathered in the square burst into screams, and the plantation owners wrapped in gray woolen coats took off their hats and waved them. Xianfeng caught a glimpse of the bronze statue on the top of the clock tower of the City Hall in the distance - it was the statue of the first governor of Maryland, now covered with a wreath of South Carolina palm leaves.

It seems that most of the citizens of Baltimore support the South - this is quite normal. Although Baltimore is the fourth largest city in the United States today, and there are many factories and banks in the city, Maryland is still a slave state. The influence of plantation owners in Baltimore is still very large!
Mayor William Brown, the most radical Democrat in Maryland, came forward with open arms and said to O'Hara in a thick southern accent: "Gerald, I didn't expect you to be here. So, you want to enter politics too?"

"I have no interest in politics," O'Hara said with a smile, patting the mayor of Baltimore on the back, "but I must stand up to defend my interests, my plantation, my slaves, and my cotton!"

At this time, the crowd outside the train station became even more excited, and everyone was shouting various slogans. It was really noisy to the extreme.

Xianfeng pulled Scarlett beside him and whispered something in her ear. The girl immediately grabbed a Star-Spangled Banner, climbed onto the roof of a carriage waiting outside the train station, waved the flag vigorously, and shouted loudly: "March on Washington! March on Capitol Hill!"

"March on Washington! March on Capitol Hill"

As Scarlett's slogans spread wider and wider, the entire Baltimore train station square finally boiled over.

Xianfeng narrowed his eyes and scanned the crowd, which included farmers, veterans, state militiamen, and even southern gentlemen wearing wide-brimmed hats, all with anger and dissatisfaction written all over their faces.

Although Lincoln's name was not on the ballot in the ten southern states, they still believed that they were the majority and that they were fooled by the election rules set by the Northerners.

"Bishop Zhao!" John Brown came up to Xianfeng at this time, "You must be the Bishop of the True Covenant sect, Mr. Nicholas Zhao Si. Your goods have been delivered!"

Xianfeng nodded slightly. He knew that the "goods" that the mayor of Baltimore was talking about were the batch of Napoleon cannons and Minié rifles given by Napoleon III.

"Mr. Mayor," Xianfeng lowered his voice, "Is this batch of goods... safe?"

Brown smiled complacently, then lowered his voice and responded: "It's absolutely safe. The port customs are all our people."

Xianfeng nodded with satisfaction and patted his shoulder. "If everything goes well, Baltimore can serve as a logistics transfer center for the federal government to fight against the rebellion in the North."

Suppress the northern rebellion?
Would the North really start a civil war just because Lincoln was deprived of the presidency?
A hint of worry flashed across Brown's eyes, but it was quickly concealed.

In the conference room of the New York State Government Building, the atmosphere was as solemn as the calm before a snowstorm.

Lincoln sat at the end of the long table, his hands folded on his chin, his eyes deep. Opposite him, California Senator Jamie O'Connor was waving a telegram, his voice excited:
"Gentlemen! The Southerners have gathered in Baltimore. They are not here to negotiate, they are here to overturn the table! They are here to start a civil war with us!"

New York Governor Edwin Morgan slammed the table and stood up: "They dare?!"

"Of course they dare!" O'Connor sneered, "They don't even recognize the election result of 180 votes to 99 votes. How can we expect them to recognize the Constitution?"

Secretary of State Seward, with a gloomy face, tapped the table with his fingers: "Mr. Lincoln, we must act immediately!"

Lincoln slowly raised his head and glanced at every Republican leader present.

"Senator O'Connor." Finally, Lincoln's eyes fell on O'Connor, who represented California - he certainly understood that this California senator had ulterior motives!
But now he also knew that he needed someone to speak up and fight the Southern Democrats to the end, even if it meant civil war!

Lincoln's deep voice echoed in the room: "What do you suggest?"

O'Connor took a deep breath, stood up straight, and said in a loud voice:

"Gentlemen, we can't hesitate any longer! Southerners have assembled militias in Baltimore. They are preparing to march to Washington and force Congress to amend the Constitution. This is a coup! If we sit back and do nothing, the United States will become a slave owner's world! American democracy will also become history! America will never be great again!"

He slammed his fist on the table, shaking the ink bottle.

"We must immediately mobilize the militias of the northern states! New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts - all Republican-governed states must be armed immediately!" "We must let the Southerners know that they can overturn the table, but we have the power to put the table right again!"

"Mr. President!" O'Connor turned to Lincoln with a fiery look in his eyes. "Please lead us to make America even greater!"

The room instantly erupted in thunderous applause.

Governor Morgan was the first to stand up and shouted, "Lincoln! Great! President! Great."

Then Seward, Hamlin, and all the Republican leaders stood up and shouted in unison:
"Lincoln! Great! President! Great."

Lincoln stood up slowly, his tall figure casting a long shadow under the light. He did not speak immediately, but just stared at everyone quietly until the applause gradually died down.

"Gentlemen," he finally said, his voice low and firm, "the United States of America will not yield to the tyranny of a minority."

"If they want to use their guns to change the election results, then we will use our guns to tell them."

"This country belongs to the people!"

The room erupted in deafening cheers again.

Southern militiamen line up on the streets of Baltimore.

In a New York arms factory, workers are working overtime to produce rifles.

Lawmakers are arguing on Capitol Hill in Washington.

And in faraway California, Huang Shiren was smiling as he watched boxes of goods labeled "Made in California" being loaded onto a ship bound for the east coast of the United States.

At this time, who cares whether these "Made in California" products are OEM products? What the East Coast really cares about now is who California is sitting on!
"Gentlemen," he said to Huntington and Crocker beside him, "it seems that war is the most profitable business!"

At the same time, 20,000 miles away, on the platform of Pukou Railway Station, the roar of the steam locomotive drowned out the whistling river breeze.

Luo Yaoguo, the prime minister of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, was standing in front of the special train carriage at this moment, with the collar of his black woolen coat slightly raised, covering half of his face. Beside him, Shi Dakai, the chief of staff of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, was discussing the use of troops in the northwest with Wei Changhui, the minister of the army who came to see him off. After several years of hard work, the Longhai Railway was finally built from Haizhou to Luoyang. The Pukou-Xuzhou section of the Jinpu Railway was also completed.

Now, the arms and food produced in the southeast could be transported to Luoyang by train carload after carload! The Taiping Army stationed in the Yangtze River Basin could also be transported to Luoyang by train at a very fast speed.

Therefore, the time to attack "Zeng Zhou" is ripe!
Luo Yaoguo went north this time to deploy an encirclement and suppression campaign against Zeng Guofan!
"Your Highness, the car is about to leave." A guard reminded in a low voice.

Luo Yaoguo nodded slightly and was about to raise his foot when he suddenly heard hurried footsteps behind him.

"Your Highness, King Wu! Urgent!"

Fu Shanxiang, the first female champion of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's college entrance examination, is now a secretary in the Prime Minister's Office. She came quickly, holding a telegram that had just been translated, with beads of sweat on her forehead, obviously having run all the way here.

Luo Yaoguo took the telegram and quickly scanned the words on it.

"The South has already started, Washington will be in chaos, and the northern states are also mobilizing. In addition, French weapons have arrived at the port, and British ships are also cruising. Please order the Pacific Company to speed up the delivery and ensure that the South can successfully control Washington - Zhao Si."

Shi Dakai came over to take a look and raised his thick eyebrows: "Are the Americans going to fight?"

"Faster than expected!" Luo Yaoguo folded the telegram and stuffed it into his coat pocket, frowning slightly. "Lincoln will not sit still and wait for death, and the mobilization capabilities of the northern industrial states far exceed the expectations of the South."

Maria, who was accompanying Luo Yaoguo, whispered, "If the South controls Washington, Britain and France will definitely provide assistance to the weaker South, because they do not want the United States to be reunited."

"They don't want us to unify either!" Luo Yaoguo looked towards the northwest, "If Zeng Zhou is not eliminated, the Kingdom of Heaven will be in trouble forever!"

Shi Dakai patted his chest and said to Luo Yaoguo: "Ninth brother, don't worry, with me here, we will be able to capture Lanzhou within this year, and within two years, the northwest can be stabilized!"

The whistle blew long and the train started slowly.

(End of this chapter)