mentioned the matter of negotiation, Qin Zheng said, "Have you met Zhang Peilun?"

Xu Jichao said: "Minister Li of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has received him, but the commander and I have not received him. However, Zhang Peilun put forward a request to us, hoping that this negotiation would allow the Qing government to participate in the formation of a tripartite talks, and at the same time, he hoped that we would be able to help the Qing government lose less benefits in this negotiation. ”

Qin Zheng frowned, and said: "The Qing government wants to participate in the talks, isn't this stuffing us with a pig teammate? With the incompetent and weak nature of the Qing government, Ken will not hesitate to sell national interests in exchange for the withdrawal of the Eight-Nation Alliance from Beijing, in the old time and space, the [Xinchou Treaty] signed by the Qing government and the eleven countries redeemed 430 million silver, plus interest, a total of 920 million, which is ten times the fiscal revenue of the Qing government in 1900. ”

Wang Yunpeng said: "That's why the Qing government wants to join in and hold a tripartite meeting, isn't it just to use our power to suppress the Eight-Nation Alliance and safeguard national interests, so I think this is a good thing." ”

Qin Zheng said: "It may not be a good thing, I see the purpose of the government clearly, just want to pay a little less silver, and not to protect the interests of the country, in the Empress Dowager Cixi's view, China is just the private property of their love for the Xinjueluo family, and they can sell it if they want to, now they just want to sell a little less, and keep a little more for themselves, but now we are involved, and we have signed a traitorous treaty, so we can't get out of it, and I am afraid this will be a big stain on us in the future." ”

Xiao Jianjun said: "Then it is better to refuse Zhang Peilun's request, and we will negotiate with the imperialists alone, and let the Qing government negotiate with the imperialists itself." ”

Xia Bohai shook his head and said, "I don't think so, letting the Qing government participate in this negotiation will still do more harm than harm to us." First of all, the Qing government is still the legitimate government of China at present, so allowing the Qing government to participate in negotiations is conducive to establishing our legitimacy. We can also take advantage of this to force the Qing government to recognize us as Chinese, so that we will have a legal status in the future, and we can also make a request to the Qing government to make Shandong our sphere of influence, so that our rule in Shandong will be logical. As for the fear that the Qing government will betray the country in this negotiation, I think that we have fallen into a misunderstanding by thinking that we will not give the Qing government a chance to betray the country. On the contrary, if we negotiate a treaty that does not cede land and does not pay compensation, and protects China's sovereign interests, it can also enhance our prestige. This point must be made clear to Zhang Peilun. ”

Qin Zheng said: "It's useless to say these words to Zhang Peilun, he is just a person who speaks for Li Hongzhang, and the person who really has the right to decide is Li Hongzhang." ”

Xia Bohai said: "Then let Zhang Peilun send a message to Li Hongzhang and let Li Hongzhang decide." ”

Qin Zheng said: "I don't think I need to say so clearly to Zhang Peilun, it's best to let him bring the words and invite Li Hongzhang to come to Tianjin to talk to us, some things can only be discussed well in person." Of course, we can also send someone to Shanghai to visit Li Hongzhang. ”

Xia Bohai's eyebrows jumped, and he said: "When it comes to Shanghai, I have not been too mature in my idea, but now I can talk about it and let everyone discuss it." ”

Qin Zheng said, "What do you think?"

Xia Bohai said: "I think the venue of this negotiation should not be located in Tianjin, it is better to be located in Shanghai. ”

When everyone heard this, they all felt a little strange, because the location of the general negotiation was set on the territory of the dominant party, for example, the [Treaty of Nanjing] was signed on a British warship anchored in the Nanjing River, while the [Treaty of Shimonoseki] was signed at the Japanese Shimonoseki. The current situation is obviously dominated by the traverser, and Xia Bohai wants to set the location of the negotiation in Shanghai, which is of course very surprising.

Xia Bohai further explained: "This time the crisis on the Korean Peninsula has exposed a major flaw in our ability to gather intelligence, such a major event, and it happened right next to us, the Korean Peninsula is only more than 300 kilometers away from Tianjin, we were so late to know that fortunately, the result of the crisis on the Korean Peninsula is favorable to us, otherwise the consequences may be unimaginable, so we must no longer ignore intelligence work." ”

Xiao Jianjun also attaches great importance to the work of collecting intelligence, after all, a large part of the war is based on intelligence work, so he is very interested in this topic, and said: "I am in favor of strengthening the work of intelligence collection, but the most important thing in engaging in intelligence work is to distribute points, the more points are distributed, the wider the channels, but the more channels for obtaining intelligence, but in our current situation, it is quite difficult to have a wide range of points, let alone abroad." ”

Xia Bohai said: "Of course, we can't go abroad to set up intelligence outlets now, but Shanghai can, and Shanghai is also the most complex, diverse, and international society in China's modern history, and it is also a city infested with all kinds of ghosts, snakes, and gods, such a social environment is the best area for collecting intelligence, in the old time and space, all countries in the world have their own intelligence agencies in Shanghai, and our ancestors are no exception, no matter how difficult the situation is, they have not given up Shanghai's intelligence station." Although the current Shanghai has not yet reached the grand occasion of the ten-mile ocean field in the old time and space, it is already the place where China has the most extensive and close ties with foreign countries, and has initially formed a diversification. In addition, it is also the economic center of the South, so if we can set up an intelligence point in Shanghai, the channels for obtaining intelligence information at home and abroad will be greatly expanded, and we will be able to learn about any such thing as a crisis on the Korean Peninsula in a timely manner, and at the same time, we will be able to expand our intelligence network to the South by relying on Shanghai. In addition, in the future, we will establish our industrial system and develop the economy, and in the early stage, we also need to introduce a considerable part of foreign equipment and machinery, and at the same time we must purchase a large number of resources, and we must also have a product sales channel, which is inseparable from Shanghai. ”

Qin Zheng said: "You mean to take the opportunity of negotiations in Shanghai to establish our intelligence station in Shanghai?"

Wang Yunpeng said: "I think it is better to establish a commercial bank first, and then set up an intelligence station under the cover of a commercial bank, and most of the intelligence personnel use the identity of a businessman as a cover, so that they can not only collect and guarantee information, but also develop the economy, killing two birds with one stone." ”

Xu Jichao said: "What kind of business should we do if we set up a commercial bank now? At present, our light and heavy industries are almost blank, and we cannot provide any products, and the establishment of a commercial bank is just an empty shell, and on the contrary, it arouses suspicion. ”

Wang Yunpeng said: "You can buy things if you don't sell things, now we need more things." It makes perfect sense to set up a comptoir for acquisitions. ”

Xia Bohai said: "I haven't thought about how to operate the club, I haven't thought about it now, the details can be discussed slowly, so I won't expand here, but we can set up an office in Shanghai through negotiations, and what to do in the future, and then step by step." ”

Qin Zheng said: "I think this suggestion is feasible, tomorrow I will meet Zhang Peilun first, see what he says, and then let the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Security come up with a comprehensive plan." ”

Xia Bohai nodded and said, "Is there anything else to discuss?"

Xiao Jianjun said: "Preparing for war, how can such an important matter not be discussed." ”

Xia Bohai said with a smile: "This is a military matter, let's discuss it at the meeting of the Military Commission, but Lao Xiao can prepare it first and come up with a preliminary preparation plan." ”

With the expansion of the power of the crossing group, now Xia Bohai and Qin Zheng's energy has gradually shifted to government affairs, only Xiao Jianjun is not very interested in government affairs, so only he focuses on military affairs, forming a relatively clear division of labor.

Xu Jichao said: "There is another matter, that is, after the Executive Committee moves to Qingdao, how will Tianjin be handled, whether to establish a city or establish a military sub-district. ”

Qin Zheng said: "I think it's better to build a separate city, there must be a garrison, but the military subdivision should be set up below the city, after all, Tianjin is not far from Shandong, there is no need to establish a separate military subdivision." ”

Xu Jichao said: "If it is a city, but what model is adopted to build a city, autonomy, partial autonomy, or completely controlled by the executive committee, whether it has its own independent finances, and the candidate for mayor." ”

Wang Yunpeng said: "I think the most important thing is to select the person who is the mayor of Tianjin, of course, I think it is better not to call the mayor now, and Tianjin should not be called a city, but an administrative district or a special administrative region, and the mayor will be called the administrator, so as not to stimulate the Qing government too much." ”

Qin Zheng said: "The title is secondary, and I also think that people should be selected first, so that we can discuss the future model of Tianjin." Lao Xia, do you have a suitable candidate?"

Xia Bohai said: "I have discussed with Director Xu and think that Comrade Li Songchen is the most suitable person to be the mayor of Tianjin, or the administrator of Tianjin. ”

Xu Jichao continued: "After we occupied Tianjin, Comrade Li Songchen has always been in charge of rural work, and has made outstanding achievements in the construction of new rural areas, the restoration of agricultural production, and the division of land. Moreover, he has experience in working at the grassroots level and is also familiar with the environment in the rural areas of Tianjin, and the main body of Tianjin is still rural, so the commander and I believe that Comrade Li Songchen should be a suitable candidate. ”

Qin Zheng nodded and said, "Have you asked Comrade Li Songchen about his personal opinion?"

Xu Jichao shook his head and said, "This is not yet." ”

Qin Zheng said: "Personally, I can trust your vision, but first of all, it is best to ask Comrade Li Songchen's personal opinion to see if he is willing to take up this position, and then make a final decision after discussing it at the executive meeting." ”

This five-person meeting lasted for nearly three hours, and the five people discussed many important things, and set the tone for the future development of the group. However, since only five people participated in this meeting, and many of the resolutions were actually decided by five people, the content of this meeting was unknown for a long time, so it was not placed alongside the three major conferences. It wasn't until much later, when all five people were gone, that the content of the meeting was gradually declassified and named the Council of Five.