"Hello, Chief Johnson."

After listening to Old Carl's introduction, Allen nodded gently, his face was gentle, and even his smile became more friendly, but his hand...

He was still the same as before, without moving his upper arm and only moving his elbow, that is to say... he would raise his elbow and put his hand a little bit closer to his chest. In this way, if others wanted to shake hands with him, they had to bend over and straighten their arms.

Otherwise... if two people stand too close, their faces will be touching, which is too impolite.

This is a trick often used by arrogant nobles. They seem to respect you, but they cannot lose their airs. When a noble shakes hands with a "commoner", you have to bend down first, you have to be inferior to them!

This is class!

…

Old Johnson's cheerful face twitched slightly when he saw Allen's handshake, but he still slowly stretched out his right hand, slightly bent over, and shook Allen's hand.

But because of this, the little bit of "enthusiasm" that had just arisen also disappeared. In just a few seconds, the two shook hands, and old Johnson took a step back and stood aside without continuing the polite conversation.

Alan acted as if nothing had happened and continued to look at the other middle-aged man.

"Master, this is the Chandler family leader. The Chandler family is a prominent family in California. They have a large population and are mainly engaged in newspapers and media industries. They have cooperated with us a lot and have been of great help to me in the past few years."

When introducing the Chandler clan leader, old Carl made a point of pointing him out, and Allen understood instantly. His smile towards the Chandler clan leader became a little more sincere, but his hands were still in the same position. He hadn't moved since he entered the door and stood there, waiting for the clan leaders of these local big clans to take the initiative to shake hands with him one by one.

…

Many people may wonder, for a wealthy family, when facing a foreigner, even if he is a noble, what is there for him to be worthy of them being humble or taking the initiative to make friends with him?

Isn’t it said that money is the most important thing in capitalist countries?

Americans have such a great influence in the world, and Britain has long been on the decline. Is it necessary to be so accommodating, or even to rush to lick the ass of a nobleman?

Even some people have never seen this before when they met the Queen, right?

…

That's true, but that's not the truth.

As for the relationship between Britain and the United States, the various evil relationships in between are too complicated to be explained in a short time, but for most people in the two countries, the older people are divided into two factions.

One group was the one that had different intentions at the time and advocated driving out Britain.

Their slogan at that time was, "Eat the British, spend the British, drive the British away and stop paying taxes."

Faced with the brutal rule of Britain, they would be free if they could drive it out.

Then……

Everyone knows the result later. What do you mean by driving Da Ying away and not paying taxes? Isn't this just driving Da Ying away and replacing them with those former small characters who continue to pay taxes?

The tax you should pay will not be reduced by a penny, it’s just that the person collecting the tax has changed.

The other group is the most traditional "old aristocracy".

These people were mainly old Southerners, or down-and-out nobles and wealthy businessmen.

They came to America to make money, but in terms of cognition and cultural identity, they mainly followed Britain.

Without Britain, they would no longer have the reputation of being impoverished aristocrats.

For the rich people in the past, money is no longer the focus when it reaches a certain level; status and class become the focus!

A family cannot be rich forever, but the identity and class of a family can exist forever, just like Alan. From the first second he came into this world, he was nobler than more than 99.9% of the people in Britain. Even if he had no money, his birth was noble. Money can be earned slowly in the future, but birth is not so easy to earn.

After hundreds of years of development since the independence of the United States, many of their large families have reached a bottleneck. Money is just a concept to them. To be more specific, in the end, what they are pursuing is no longer money, but status.

For ordinary people, increasing income and living a better life may be their biggest dream in life.

But what about the rich?

Long-term stability is the most important!

There may be some wealthy people who are not interested in these things. They just live their own little lives, spending money on wine and women, living a life of drunkenness and dreams, and so on. There are such people.

But when everyone in this large group is climbing up and continuing to pursue a higher status, he as an exception will stand out. And if he is excluded by others in such an environment, will his money still be safe?

No one would think that after his death, the foundation he has worked hard for all his life would be destroyed or taken over by others.

But the nature of America does not allow them to have a system like the British aristocracy.

The top power is still held by the largest families. What should the rest of the people do if they want to move up further?

Dual citizenship!

Dual identity!

Even multiple identities.

Looking around the world, Britain has the greatest influence.

All Commonwealth countries and all countries that have formal diplomatic relations with Britain recognize and agree with their aristocratic system.

Ordinary people can talk nonsense, saying that Britain has declined and is no longer viable.

But no matter how outsiders view the nobility, it is recognized and objectively exists!

Even if one day even Britain no longer exists, these nobles will continue to exist for a while, just like France today, the political system has changed, but those noble lords are still there.

This group of people is the real elite, a minority group standing at the top of the pyramid of the entire world.

…

"Hello, Sir Allen. It's an honor to meet you. Sir Carl and I hit it off right away. We have had a very pleasant cooperation over the years."

"Haha, if you have a chance to visit Great Britain in the future, I will treat you well in Wales."

Alan patted Chandler on the shoulder, which was a rare occasion.

When old Johnson next to him saw this scene, his face instantly became even uglier.

…

"Master, this is Patriarch Beck of the Bechtel family. They were responsible for building our prison. Patriarch Beck has been very caring towards me over the past few years. The Bechtel family mainly engages in construction projects and also has a presence in the transportation industry."

"Haha, hello, Chief Baker."

"Hello, Mr. Allen. I heard that Britain's leading building developer, the Grosvenor family, and you...?"

Patriarch Baker is the middle-aged man who looks to be of French descent, with black hair and an extremely burly figure. He had a very bad temper in his early years. As a construction worker, he has a large number of subordinates. Although his family assets are only more than 3 billion US dollars, in terms of family strength, he can be ranked first among these local tycoons present, just because they have many family members!

But even such a big family, compared with the Grosvenor family in Great Britain... To put it bluntly, when he was carrying shoes for others, they thought he was clumsy.

Old Baker was well-informed. He had heard from others that the Earl of Carmarthen had a special relationship with the Grosvenor family. When they met, he was quite direct and asked Allen for confirmation in person.

…

"Chief Baker, the young Duke of Grosvenor, is my master's adopted son. This was personally recognized by the current Duke of Swestminster."

Old Carl explained to Allen very seriously.

"!!!"

Old Baker's burly body trembled subconsciously. He was not afraid, but did it subconsciously.

The relationship here is impossible to verify without a certain status. Who would have thought that two seemingly unrelated families could have such a relationship?

The aristocratic relationships in Britain are complex and intertwined. He is in the construction business, and the Grosvenor family's businesses are spread all over the world. The future head of their family is only two years old and is the legal first in line to the throne of the next duke. Such a person is actually the adopted son of the young lord in front of him. What a concept!

Without mentioning anything else, anyone who is engaged in construction and wants to expand overseas will basically have no way to avoid them. As long as you make enemies with them, people will have tens of thousands of ways to cause trouble for you!

"Please take good care of me in the future. On behalf of the Bechtel family, I welcome you to visit California."

Old Baker was a very direct person and he spoke directly. He held Alan's hand tighter and bent his back even lower.

…

"Master, this is..."

"Sir Carl, I'll do it myself!"

When it was the fourth middle-aged man's turn, this man, who wore gold-rimmed glasses and looked very gentle and had the temperament of a university professor, interrupted old Carl's introduction and took the initiative to introduce himself.

"Hello, Mr. Allen. You can call me Hughes. Our Hughes family is mainly engaged in the warehousing industry, and we also dabble in transportation and procurement. I heard that your takeaway company wants to transform into a supermarket? If you are interested in developing in California, then I will be your best partner. As long as there is something in this world, I can help you purchase it, as long as it is what you want."

"Oh? I can just ask for what I want without paying?"

Alan looked at this guy, who looked gentle but spoke in a very arrogant manner, and couldn't help but retort to him.

“…”

The smile on Hughes' face froze slightly.

"No... no money?"

"Haha... Your Excellency is joking. With your status, how could you not pay..."

Alan also stared at the wildly talking Hughes in front of him with a smile, but he just smiled but didn't say anything.

The smile on Zeus's face slowly disappeared. He felt uncomfortable being stared at by Alan. The atmosphere between the two was extremely awkward. It was not right to take back the hand they were holding, and it was not right not to take it back either.

There was silence for a few seconds. Just when Old Carl was about to smooth things over, Allen finally spoke up, "I'm a businessman who abides by the rules. Normally, I pay for things I buy. But sometimes, if I come across something I really like but others don't want to sell it to me, then I don't have to pay...hahahaha."

"Haha...Your Excellency is right."

Hughes smiled awkwardly. He was a little slow to react and hadn't figured out why Alan suddenly changed his expression.

But... now that Alan had spoken, he could only smile.

…

"Master... this is Mr. Fisher. Mr. Fisher likes to do charity work and has a very high reputation in many places in America. The Fisher family is mainly engaged in the clothing industry, from the source of raw materials to transportation, production, and sales. In recent years, they have also been involved in the entertainment industry."

"Hello, Mr. Allen, welcome to America. I also have some factories in Asia, and I heard that you also have factories there. If there is an opportunity for cooperation in the future, we can talk more."

Compared with the other people's attitudes, which were either steady or arrogant, Mr. Fisher's attitude seemed normal, but also abnormal.

His attitude towards Allen was very subtle. He seemed neither humble nor overbearing, but...

In theory, everyone who could come here today was here to welcome Alan, but even though he was here, when he really met Alan, his attitude was very distant, which was interesting.

Allen squinted his eyes and looked at Fisher.

If we talk about the sophistication of the five clan leaders, Allen was most impressed by Fisher at first impression.

This guy is a veteran. He doesn't seek special treatment. When others come, he also comes. But when he comes, he is not overly enthusiastic. He just wants to make himself familiar. This kind of person... is the most difficult to deal with if there is a conflict of interest.

As the old saying goes, a biting dog doesn't bark. The more cowardly a person is, the more ruthless he will be when he does things.

"Hello."

Alan held his hand slightly harder and replied with only a brief word. Then, without putting his hand down, he turned his head and glanced at the remaining four clan leaders around him.

These people basically represent the most high-end families in California.

Look at their industries: funds, clothing, warehousing and transportation, construction engineering, and newspaper media.

Are there any emerging industries here?

None at all. They are all very basic industries, and they are all seemingly inconspicuous industries, but these industries are the ones that truly control people's livelihood.

As for more basic food, vegetables, medicines, etc., the families that control these industries would not stay in places like California, which is a higher class!

…

"Thank you very much to all the clan leaders for coming to welcome me today. I only came to America to do three things this time!"

Allen let go of Mr. Fisher's right hand, gestured with three fingers and shook them, and continued: "Save lives, recruit workers, and sell medicine!"

"I will never get involved in any of your family businesses. Please rest assured. If you are interested in expanding into the British market in the future, we can cooperate. I will repay your favors."

After saying this, Alan just smiled and said nothing.

The reason these people gathered together today was not only out of curiosity or etiquette about an old nobleman, but also out of vigilance.

They were also afraid that Alan would come and steal their business.

If everyone starts fighting against this kind of newcomer, it will not benefit anyone. When doing business...it's better to be safe. If you can negotiate properly, then negotiate properly. If you can't reach an agreement, then talk about other things.

Now that Allen said this, no matter what the expressions on their faces were, the people present all felt relieved in their hearts, especially Chandler, who had been the most enthusiastic towards Allen just now.

This guy seemed to have a good relationship with old Carl, like a guide, but facing Alan's arrival, he was the most nervous among them.

Because Allen has the media and newspapers, although they are small in scale, if they swallow him up, won't the scale of the newspapers become bigger?