Franz did not have much cargo in hand, but that did not mean others had none.
In truth, Alaska's gold mines could not be kept secret at all. Although Alexander had not discovered them, the immigrants sent by the Austrian Empire often found gold and traded it to Austrian officials for a chance to leave.
After all, money was useless in this frozen wasteland, and no one liked a godforsaken place like this.
Before long, Austrian imperial inspectors discovered these under-the-table deals. By tracing them back to their source, they quickly found the location of the gold mines.
For the sake of secrecy, the Austrian imperial inspectors dealt with most of those who knew.
According to one official's proposal, the Austrian Empire could mine the gold deposits in secret. The Russians were notoriously thick-skinned and unlikely to notice, and Alaska was simply too vast.
Even if the Russians did discover it, the blame could be pinned on private companies, or even on those foreign laborers hired through contractors.
The Austrian Empire had the technology and could bring in enough cheap laborers from Hawaii, Japan, and other regions. In a barren land like Alaska, labor costs should not have been a concern at all.
One of the officials spun such a dazzling tale that it seemed the Austrian Empire would possess an endless stream of Fortune as long as he were appointed governor. Clearly, he had mistaken Alaska for California.
However, Franz had no intention of adopting his proposal. He chose to lay his cards on the table directly with Russia—or, more precisely, with Russia's ruler, Nicholas I.
When Franz's letter reached Nicholas I, the latter was shocked beyond measure.
Russia was desperately short of money at the moment, and Nicholas I could not quite understand Franz's actions.
"I never thought