"If you don't come help, I'm really going to tell everyone on the radio you two are gay!" Tom griped, holding a bundle of waterproof tarp by the plane.
The two men exchanged a smile and walked over to the plane. After taking the tarp from him, the three of them stretched it out and wrapped the plane tightly from nose to tail.
"What, are you guys planning to spend the night?" Feng Shan asked curiously.
Lawyer Frank's eyes widened. "Are you saying we're not welcome? Man, we braved a blizzard to fly here for you! Right, Tom?"
"That's right! It was incredibly dangerous. Look, my hands are still trembling!" Tom said, playing along and shaking his head.
"That's because you've been drinking. Ronald from Kobek Town said you love flying drunk."
Feng Shan rolled his eyes. He'd picked up a lot of gossip from their radio chats over the past few days, and one of the juiciest tidbits was that Tom frequently flew drunk.
"Bullshit! Ronald is slandering me! Everyone knows I won first place in the air race at Kevik Camp in Alaska," Tom said, waving his hands angrily.
"The Kevik Camp air race? I heard there were only two racers. You, and Duncan from Deadhorse Town, the one with the limp. Besides, Duncan doesn't even have a pilot's license."
Feng Shan twisted the knife without a shred of mercy. He and Lawyer Frank then burst out laughing.
Tom, his bluff called, didn't get mad. He just laughed along with them.
This was something Feng Shan had learned over the past few days. 'Maybe it's the harsh tundra environment.' The people of the Far North were direct. They didn't mince words and just said whatever was on their minds. Even if they got angry and cursed each other out over the radio, they'd be back to normal the very next day.
Laughing and talking, they finished securing the tarp on the plane. The three men then picked up the boxes and headed for the camp. The small puppy, noticing it was being ignored, trotted happily along behind them.
Back at the camp.
They saw the smokehouse, with smoke curling from it, and under the wooden shelter hung rows of fresh, large fish and dried Thunderbirds.
"Man, you're a tougher survivor than I gave you credit for," Lawyer Frank exclaimed in admiration. He then turned to a sour-faced Tom. "Pay up. You lose!"
Tom reluctantly pulled a crumpled roll of bills from his pocket. "Damn it. You still owe me 245 US dollars for the transport fee."
"You guys bet on me?" Feng Shan's eyes widened.
"Sorry, you know how dull life in Alaska can be. You have to find your own fun," Lawyer Frank said, taking the money with a shrug. "And look, the pet I got you is getting along so well with Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola is like a big sister looking after her little brother."
Feng Shan turned his head to look.
'You've got to be a fucking lawyer to lie so shamelessly.'
'Where the hell do you see them "getting along so well"?'
Coca-Cola had the puppy pinned to the ground. For a scrappy tabby, handling a little pup was child's play. He was unleashing a flurry of "Feline Fang Fists," smacking the yelping puppy around with his paws.
"Coca-Cola's a boy," Feng Shan said darkly, pushing open the bus door and ushering the two men inside.
The small living room of the bus wasn't spacious to begin with, and with three big men, it was even more crowded. Tom seemed to know what was about to happen, mumbled something about checking the smokehouse, and turned to leave the bus.
Now there were only two people left in the living room.
Lawyer Frank took out his seemingly bottomless briefcase, pulled out a thick stack of documents, and placed them in front of Feng Shan. His expression turned serious as he spoke.
"Mr. Feng Shan, on behalf of the state of Alaska, I must now formally ask you one final question."
"Are you willing to accept the inheritance left by Mr. Feng Kailu, and to uphold the commitments he made in his lifetime, with the promise that you will not alter them in the future?"
'What does that mean?'
'Uphold the commitments my grand-uncle made?'
'Is there more to this Crown Territory than I thought?'
With a baffled expression, Feng Shan nodded instinctively.
Following the confirmation, Lawyer Frank's tense, serious expression immediately vanished. He leaned back in his chair, pulled out and lit a cigarette, and waved his hand in a relaxed manner.
"Man, relax. That was just a formality. I've got plenty of time to explain everything today. But shouldn't a moment like this call for a cup of something to warm us up, like coffee?"
'You were the one who was nervous!'
Feng Shan got up, unimpressed. He picked up a teapot from the stove. "I only have tea. Take it or leave it."
"I'll take it. Black tea would be best, with milk and sugar. A sweet, milky tea on a day this cold would be absolutely wonderful," Lawyer Frank replied, not holding back at all.
"Right, green tea it is," Feng Shan said, pouring the green tea into a cup. He pretended not to notice Frank's dejected expression as he placed it in front of him. Then he yelled toward the door, "Tom! Want some green tea to warm up?"
"Bullshit! To hell with green tea, I'd rather eat snow!" Tom's grumbling voice came from outside.
'Alright then.'
'Can't cast pearls before swine, I guess.'
Feng Shan poured himself a cup, sat back in his chair cradling the teacup, and found a comfortable position. He gestured with his eyes for Lawyer Frank to begin.
"Man, I'm your lawyer, pro bono! Not charging you a single cent! Can't you show me a little respect?" Frank grumbled. He took a sip of the tea and grimaced at its bitterness.
"Feng, do you know the history of Alaska?"
"Not really. Get to the point!"
"Mr. Feng was an erudite man. How did you end up so ignorant? You're just like that moron outside who only knows how to fly a plane."
'Alright then.'
'Leave it to a lawyer to be so eloquent. He just insulted two people with one sentence.'
'Like I give a damn.'
Feng Shan's expression was one of pure disdain.
'If a kid was dumped in an orphanage at birth, dropped out of middle school just to survive, and ended up doing seven years in the slammer for excessive self-defense, he'd know just how far removed he was from the world of 'knowledge'.'
Resigned, Frank could only pull a pair of gold-rimmed glasses and a thick file from his briefcase. Looking like a sophisticated villain from a movie about to do something evil, he began his lesson on the history of Alaska.
"On August 1, 1868, President Andrew Johnson made the greatest deal of his life, purchasing Alaska from the Tsarist Russia Empire for 7 million US dollars, plus a 200,000 US dollar administrative fee."
"At the time, he was widely condemned back home. People said the land was a 'squeezed-out orange' with nothing left but fur-bearing animals, and even those had been hunted nearly to extinction. The deal became known as 'Seward's Icebox'."
"So? What does this have to do with my grand-uncle? Or the Crown Territory?" Feng Shan had no interest in American history. He'd seen enough news in prison to know this country was just a thug, always stirring up trouble.
"Would you please let me finish?" Frank said, rubbing his temples. He pulled a single document from the thick file and placed it in front of Feng Shan.
"This is a classified document. I hope you won't speak of it after you read it."
"Back then, right before the signing ceremony for the Treaty of Cession was completed by the Tsarist Russia Empire's ambassador to the United States, Stockel, and the U.S. Secretary of State, Seward, Ambassador Stockel suddenly received a transoceanic telegram from the Empire."
"The telegram from the Tsarist Russia Empire specified that one piece of land in Alaska was not for sale. It belonged to a Mr. Feng Wenguo. It could nominally fall under the jurisdiction of the United States, but if the United States refused to acknowledge this, the entire treaty for the cession of Alaska would be void."
'What?'
Feng Shan sat bolt upright and snatched the document. It was a photocopy. A supplementary agreement was clearly written on it, stating that the Crown Territory belonged to Feng Wenguo. It even bore the signatures of both nations' ambassadors, as well as Feng Wenguo's.
"Who is Feng Wenguo?"
Frank shrugged. "Sorry, I'm not clear on the details myself. But judging by the surname, he must be one of your ancestors. After Feng Wenguo died, Mr. Feng Kailu inherited the Crown Territory, which makes you the third heir."
"And your government agreed to this?"
...