“Oriental Gunman! Sheriff of Lawrence! Nice to meet you!”
Andrew Horatio Leader.
Current Governor of Kansas Territory, lawyer, and politician. He came up close and shook Max’s hand from his horse.
“You never know when a bullet might fly, so hurry up and do it.”
“……It is an honor to meet you.”
“What glory? I am the glory!”
The governor burst into laughter and nodded at Max’s group.
“You’ve created subordinates in the meantime.”
The Jayhawks, who were furious, couldn’t bring themselves to say the words that were on their lips. They couldn’t bring themselves to curse the governor.
“Let’s talk slowly as we go.”
Max and his men mounted their horses and rode forward, keeping pace with the governor.
The pace was quite leisurely.
“You said Max Joe? I did some research on you. Buffaloes leave their hides behind when they die, and the ones that killed you left bullet marks and knife wounds.”
“……”
Then he spreads out eight fingers.
“If you include the number of recent murderers, you’ve killed eighteen. I’m really interested in you.”
“!”
The group that followed behind had blank expressions on their faces,
Max tried counting the numbers, but they were not correct at all.
‘How do you get that number?’
Let’s leave it at that, considering it wasn’t covered in the article. Max said, looking at the two men next to the governor.
“Are we going together?”
“My secretary and my financial officer. They are people I can trust.”
“I see. But who is threatening the governor?”
The governor turned his head and looked at Max.
“Forgive me for not being able to point out just one enemy, since they are all on all sides. They are all eager to devour me. The slave owners in particular are the most numerous.”
“I don’t think he feels particularly in danger.”
“What are you talking about? I’m taking medication for a mental breakdown.”
When he thought that it might be because of land speculation, the governor let out a long sigh.
“It is vain and disappointing that we have worked so hard to make Kansas a free state.”
“If you tried, then yes.”
The governor glanced at Max and sighed even more deeply.
“You criticize me too. Well, that’s what everyone thinks of me. But I have something to say, too.”
The governor rambled on and on about all the things he had done, perhaps hoping to convince Max.
But when I heard it, I also felt sorry.
He forced the current president to become governor of the Kansas Territory and even conducted a census to ensure fair voting.
“But who would have thought that a slave state would resort to violence? They are damned. In fact, even if Senator Lane hadn’t asked me to, I would have actively supported free states.”
‘I didn’t come to ask for a favor, I came to threaten.’
As Max shook his head, the governor said with a solemn look in his eyes.
“I will end this conflict. Please help me fulfill my mission.”
“All right.”
The governor has had quite a bit to say since then.
He also showed his speculator side by saying that it would be too late to buy land in Topeka and Lawrence.
*
The pony, which arrived after a three-hour run with the governor, was in worse shape than the initial Lawrence.
Except for one capitol building, all that was around it were tents.
The governor said, expressing shock and dismay.
“This is where the legislators reside.”
“Are there no separate accommodations?”
“There wasn’t enough time to build it. Well, isn’t it okay if the meeting place is okay?”
Considering when the land was purchased, this makes sense.
“Instead, the place we will be staying has already been completed.”
The governor led his party to a two-story, modern brick house hidden behind the Capitol building.
It’s the second day of staying at the governor’s house.
A mob appeared to occupy the Pony House the day before the legislature was due to convene.
Benjamin Franklin Stringfellow.
He led the Border Ruffians and shouted toward the governor’s house.
“Until the legislative session is over! The governor is not to come out of this house!”
I refuse
The day before the legislature convenes.
Benjamin Franklin Stringfellow took drastic measures to ensure smooth drafting of the Kansas Constitution by confining the governor to his home.
But what was absurd was the governor’s reaction.
This is what is said with one’s mouth pressed against the window.
“I’m not leaving, so don’t even think about coming in here! Then I’ll see you after the legislative session is over!”
The governor gave his okay without a second thought at the threat. Listening to his voice, it sounded like he was welcoming the house arrest. Stringfellow, who had nothing to say, could only stare fiercely at the house.
‘The governor is out of his mind.’
The idea of making Pawnee, 150 miles (242 km) from Missouri, the state capital was not normal in the first place.
Stringfellow spat toward the house and disappeared into the Capitol, leaving behind some Border Ruffians.
The Jayhawks inside the house could see through the windows those surrounding the house.
I roughly counted the number and it was over 30 people.
“Wow, how are you going to handle that many people?”
“It’s no joke when you think about the guys who even took over the Capitol.”
“Damn, if I had known this would happen I should have brought all the troops from Lawrence.”
“Don’t you know that you are more important now?”
“Oh my. That aside, what on earth are those two thinking?”
Jayhawks frowned at the governor and the oriental man’s unpredictable behavior.
The two were playing chess peacefully in the study on the second floor.
“Let’s play one more round. There’s no way I’m losing this much.”
“This is the third time you’ve said that.”
“It’s because I’m anxious. I’m anxious. If they attack you like that, do you have the ability to stop them? Even if you’re the one in this situation…”
“I told you. The one who holds on in this house is the winner.”
Max pulled away from the chessboard and looked at the governor.
A legislative session that lasts a total of three days.
The only information Max found out by searching through his memories of his past life was that the legislature in Pony had suddenly changed locations. He had no idea when, where, or why it was moving.
But Max, who came here, was able to guess the reason through the servants working at the house.
The anxiety and fear in the servants’ eyes.
It wasn’t a problem like Border Rufian.
– There’s an outbreak of the disease in Fort Riley. I’m worried it might spread here at any moment.
‘That’s why you moved to a different place than Pony.’
Max remembered that it was a pandemic that occurred not only in the United States but around the world.
The identity of the epidemic is none other than Asian cholera.
A plague, not a Border Ruffian, threatened the ponies.
An infectious disease transmitted through dirty water and food, Asiatic cholera, which swept the world during this period, is named after the disease that broke out in 1837 in a region called West Bengal in northeastern India.
After its initial outbreak, it gradually spread westward, reaching Kabul, Afghanistan in 1938, and then eastward to the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and finally China.
And by 48 AD, it had spread throughout Europe, and was causing a thousand deaths a day in England. The immigrants who flocked to the eastern United States brought cholera with them to the west to open up the gold rush and wilderness.
The governor was already aware of the gravity of the situation.
“In fact, just a few days ago, there were 175 dead at Fort Riley.”
Forts built for Indians and western expansion, like Fort Leavenworth. Many soldiers and hired laborers died from cholera.
Given the distance between Fort Riley and Pawnee, it would not have been surprising if cholera had spread at any time.
But why did you insist on coming here?
The governor’s answer was somewhat shocking.
“…… If the slaveholders die of an infectious disease, isn’t that God’s will? I’m staying in a clean new house, so I’m fine.”
Max blinked and looked at the governor.
I took a cursory look, but it turned out that there was a cruel plan hidden behind the land speculation.
However, I had not even thought about moving the meeting location to another place.
“This pony is my last bit of pride.”
The governor’s gaze turns to the window.
Suddenly, a shadow fell over his face, as if he was reflecting on himself.
“Actually, I am a coward and a speculator. If you look at what I have done so far, it is obvious how I will be recorded in history.”
The governor continued with a look of emptiness on his face.
“When I look at you, I feel like you have a special eye for reading the situation. So I ask, do you also know that I will be fired soon?”
“……I expected that to happen.”
The repercussions of the legislative assembly in Pawnee were greater than one might have thought. The slave owners, in an unexpected place, denounced the governor and petitioned the chairman of the military committee to condemn the governor’s abuse of power.
Since the United States is currently governed by the Democratic Party, which supports slavery, the impeachment of the governor was a natural course of action.
“I really wanted to help Lawrence, but what strength would I have if I were kicked out of my position?”
“So you were planning to spend your final years in Pony like this?”
“Well, since it’s over, I should at least leave some money behind. As you can see, I’m that kind of person.”
The governor looked at Max with a bitter smile.
“I’m sorry if I disappointed you. But I still hope you’ll continue to protect me until the end.”
“I will return to Lawrence after the legislative session is over.”
“I know.”
“Pony would be a dangerous place for a dismissed governor to live.”
“Why would you attack me when I’m so exhausted?”
Max shook his head. It was a pathetic sight, but on the other hand, it was understandable.
It’s not a thorough one, but it’s the feeling you get when your own beliefs are shattered and the ending is miserable.
Isn’t this why they laugh excessively and talk nonsense in order to escape their feelings of defeat and self-loathing?
Max looked at the governor calmly and opened his mouth.
“How about doing this instead? Be recorded as someone who fought to abolish slavery.”
“In this situation?”
“People are all about how they are packaged. Even if it’s the same death, the evaluation can change depending on the last words spoken. Would you like to do it?”
The governor’s eyes wavered, but he soon nodded as if he had made up his mind.
“If there is anything I can do.”
Marx gave specific instructions on what to do, which were to place the governor at the forefront of the abolitionist movement.
And it started with a strong support for Lawrence.
Even the governor, who was half-hearted at first, had his shadow lifted from his face toward the end.
“Rather than a unilateral dismissal, it would be possible to create a situation where the president is also criticized.”
“Just stick to your course. At least in Free State, they will support you, Governor.”
“Okay, I’ll do as you say. For now, we’ll just wait here.”
“You just have to catch the guy who comes into the house.”
The governor, who was about to drink tea, noticed that the tea had cooled and called his servant.
“As the sheriff advised, water tastes best when boiled. Bring it to a boil.”
“All right.”
This is not the first cholera epidemic.
If we were to be exact, this was the sixth time.
So what did Max do in the 6th cholera pandemic?
Self-quarantine to keep distance from lawmakers, not home confinement.
The governor nodded vigorously, seeming to like those words.
“That’s a perfect fit for our situation.”
The Kansas Constitution, which dictates whether a state is free or slave.
The pandemic has emerged as a significant variable in the crucial legislative session that is creating it.
*
The Jayhawkers look at Max, who has come down to the first floor, with unfavorable eyes.
Among them, Patrick Downey, two years older than Max, shouted.
“Fuck, are you in a situation where you can just play chess? How are you going to get out of this house?”
Max said, looking at Downey slyly.
“When the time comes to let go, then let go. There’s no need to worry and waste energy in advance.”
“You say it so easily. Dozens of people are camped out there, and you’re just sucking your thumb like this?”
Max shook his head and said.
“If you suck your thumb during an epidemic, it will be useless. Anyway, I have work to do from now on, so gather around.”
“How big is the house? Tell me there.”
Max looked at Downey and then hardened his expression.
“If you want to start a fight, do it with your body, not your mouth. Guns, knives, fists, it doesn’t matter.”
“……”
Max then made eye contact with each of the young Jayhawks.
Despite the challenging gaze, no one steps forward.
Lane and the Governor’s words lingered in their minds, holding them back from their tracks.
Anyway, Max had to know the situation going back, so he explained the epidemic and what would happen next.
And they also prepared a device to protect themselves from intruders. They tied strings to doors and windows and hung crockery to create an alarm system.
“Sleep in turns, and focus on the sounds while on night watch.”
Max added a word at the end.
“Even if you can get past the trouble, you’ll have to be prepared if you fail to keep your guard up.”
‘Fuck, do I have to hear this kind of thing from an Asian kid?’
The Jayhawks’ faces were distorted.
To them, Max was nothing more than a cocky oriental man who seemed a little dangerous.
*
July 2. Members of the legislature gathered at the Pawnee House.
As news of the epidemic spread, some members of the National Assembly had a look of worry and concern on their faces.
“I heard that many people died of cholera in Fort Riley. I wonder if it will spread here if it continues like this.”
“Damn governor. How can you sleep in a brick house like that all by yourself?”
“This is crazy. This is a deliberate attempt to screw us over.”
The governor was noisy with cursing, perhaps because he was upset and resentful about having slept in a tent the day before.
But there were people who were even more aggrieved than them: the congressmen who were blocked from entering the Capitol by Border Rufians.
“What kind of legislature is this! Get out of the way now!”
“Go back when I tell you nicely. This is not the place for you.”
“Damn you! Kansas will never become a slave state because of this…!”
bang!
Stringfollow, who had been shooting at the sky, opened his mouth with a cold expression.
“Disband immediately. By the way, I am a person who does not care about the lives of you bastards.”
The Stringfellow brothers, known as staunch advocates of slavery, tried to get the governor to visit them, but he would not even allow them to do so.
“Get off Pony right now.”
Eventually, he even resorted to violence.
The situation developed so that three of the senators who had been strongly criticizing were beaten and dragged away by Border Ruffians. In the end, the abolitionist senators had no choice but to swallow their anger and leave Pawnee.
Meanwhile, unlike the chaos outside, the atmosphere in the conference room inside the Capitol was cheerful.
