The scenery of Nanjing in summer is very beautiful, especially in the pavilion of Qilizhou, drinking afternoon tea, blowing the river breeze, and looking at the river view. That's even more wonderful.

The British ambassador and Chinese foreign minister Zuo Zhidan sat under a large pavilion set up on Jiang Xinzhou, and not only the British ambassador, the French ambassador, the American ambassador, the Dutch ambassador, but also the ambassadors of countries that have the ability to set up embassies in China, except for the Russian ambassador, were invited.

The buffet unfolds under the gazebo, with cold dishes, fruits, cakes to pick up, and if you want to eat a hot dish, the Chinese chef will stir-fry it. The person who wants to eat is holding a plate and waiting in front of it. The ladies frolic on the lawn with their children. A few four- or five-month-old huskies have been loved by women and children for their handsome and cute appearances, as well as their lively and docile personalities.

The crushed ice bucket contains a variety of alcoholic beverages and cold drinks suitable for freezing, and the cooler contains ice cream. There are 50 in a box. In less than an hour, three boxes had bottomed out, and the fourth box had been opened.

Both men and women actually love sweets, but the difference between sweetness and sweetness is the difference. As for the children, they don't care what sweetness it is, they eat it first.

Zuo Zhidan and the British ambassador carried a caramel-flavored cone, sat side by side and chatted slowly. The two of them had already eaten two different flavors of ice cream, and they were not so anxious when they ate the third. The British ambassador took a sip of the lemonade placed next to him, and when he put down the teacup, the ice cubes collided against the glass with a crisp sound.

With a long sigh, the British ambassador sighed, "That's good. ”

Zuo Zhidan drank a large sip of cold lemonade in the appearance of the British ambassador, feeling that the rich creamy taste in his mouth was diluted, and the refreshing feeling with a hint of sweetness made him nod as well. After taking another bite of caramel-flavored ice cream, Zuo Zhidan also sighed: "It's really good." ”

The British ambassador ate all the ice cream and drank another glass of lemonade, and then asked: "Minister Zuo, I heard that you fell out with the Russians?" ”

"We have told the Russians that if they do not discuss with us the complete restoration of the treaty, then there is no need to come to us again." Zuo Zhidan said frankly.

"So will there be a war between China and Russia?" The British ambassador asked with interest.

"It's not a war between China and Russia, we, China, are expelling foreigners who have entered illegally on Chinese soil, what kind of war is that?" Zuo Zhidan replied very simply.

"Hehehe!" The British ambassador laughed. This is to show that China has no intention of declaring war on the Russians. But military conflicts will unfold.

After spreading the news, Zuo Zhidan changed the subject, "We are going to send a fleet to the Dutch East Indies." ”

The British ambassador didn't care at all about the big fight between China and Russia in the northeast where the birds don't lay eggs. No matter how many troops China and Russia commit there, it will only benefit Britain. But the Dutch East Indies were different, and now the British ambassador put away his smile and listened carefully to what Zuo Zhidan said next.

Zuo Zhidan said with a face full of unhappiness and disdain: "We didn't send the fleet this time to start a war with the Dutch. According to several treaties and commercial agreements that we signed at that time, we rented the land for a large sum of money, and it was clearly written in the agreement that the minerals mined and the agricultural products that were grown within ten years would not be taxed in the Netherlands. But now the Dutch are going to force a change in the commercial agreement and demand another tax on the minerals we have dug up from the Dutch East Indies. The Dutch also threatened us that if we didn't pay our taxes, they would prevent our ships from shipping minerals. Since the Dutch are so unorthodox, we feel that we can't make the Dutch understand it just by talking about it. So we're going to send a fleet to the Dutch East Indies for a walk. Protect our merchant ships from the Dutch. ”

The British ambassador didn't know what to say after listening to it, and the British ambassador also heard a little about it, but the version was not quite the same as what Zuo Zhidan said. The Dutch said they were deceived by the Chinese at that time, so they merged the exploration rights with the mining rights. Unexpectedly, the Chinese had ill intentions, and they had actually explored privately a long time ago. So as soon as the Chinese landed, they frantically exploited the minerals of the Dutch East Indies. According to this kind of mining intensity, let alone ten years, it is estimated that the local minerals will be harvested in five or six years. Overall, the Dutch suffered a big loss.

The British, as mediators, could not say anything about this. In the traditional customs of Europe and the United States, the prospecting right of the mine is separated from the mining right. Exploration rights are generally up to 350 years, and mining rights are counted separately. At the time of the signing of the agreement, the Dutch side was very afraid of the Chinese, and the Chinese exploration team explored everywhere in the Dutch East Indies for decades, which was a nightmare for the Dutch. In order to avoid this problem, the Dutch merged the exploration and exploitation rights for a period of 10 years. First, it can limit the range of activities of the Chinese, and second, it can also prevent the Chinese from taking root in the Dutch East Indies.

In terms of political and military security, the British, of course, supported the Dutch East Indies. The Dutch in the Dutch East Indies were few in number, and the British in the South China Sea were also very small. The expansion of Chinese immigration in the Dutch East Indies was not good for the colonies of both countries. Therefore, the British firmly supported the Dutch East Indies' claim at that time.

Now that political and security have been satisfied, what we have to discuss now is commercial interests. If the Dutch want to tear up the commercial agreement, if they do not have China's consent, it will theoretically not be implemented, and they need to find arbitration. The arbiters of this era were the British, and the other was the warship cannons.

It is clear that the Chinese prefer the latter. The British ambassador immediately said: "We are against the Chinese fleet to the Dutch East Indies. ”

Zuo Zhidan said without hesitation: "We signed a treaty with the United Kingdom, and we naturally remember this." But that treaty was about military operations. But now it's not a military operation, it's a commercial operation. If you don't let our warships go to the Dutch East Indies, then ask the British fleet to escort our merchant ships. If the British fleet refuses to go, then we must go. This kind of thing can't be started, and once it starts, there is no way to end the rest of the matter. ”

The British ambassador's brain was racing, and he immediately understood that it was the Chinese government that was pressuring Britain to intervene in the Dutch East Indies. But that doesn't mean China will be stupid enough to wait. If the Chinese were really confident in the British mediation, they should first ask the British to come forward and use the dispatch of the fleet as a hole card. Now that this order has been reversed, there is no need to hope that China will meekly and honestly wait for the British arrangement.

"Whatever the case may be, we in Britain are opposed to China sending a fleet. If China must send a fleet to the Dutch East Indies, then we in England will also send a fleet there. "The situation could not be held out, and the British ambassador could only make further threats.

Zuo Zhidan smiled happily: "We don't care about you sending a fleet at all, as long as the British fleet does not intercept our merchant ships, we are very welcome to the British fleet to go over there to have a look." ”

"Whatever the case may be, we are opposed to Chinese warships going to the Dutch East Indies." The British ambassador once again made clear the position of the British. He stood up and walked towards the Dutch ambassador, and if he was not mistaken, he thought that there would be a diplomatic discussion between the British ambassador and the Dutch ambassador.

Zuo Zhidan did not join the discussion between the two foreign ambassadors, and this discussion would only be fruitful if he did not join. The two ambassadors didn't seem to have any intention of completely avoiding people, so Zuo Zhidan saw them walk to a corner that was far away from the crowd but could be seen, and began to point fingers and say something, and the demeanor and movements of the two were sometimes excited, sometimes gentle. It seems that the discussion is quite hot.

"I hope the Dutch will get acquainted." Zuo Zhidan thought in his heart. He originally thought that China would use diplomatic means to solve this problem, but at the political bureau meeting, the entire upper echelons expressed a strong hawkish stance this time, regardless of their previous attitude. They unanimously demanded that the Dutch East India authorities be subdued as quickly as possible, so that they would honestly refrain from any further obstruction of China's mining operations.

Sending a fleet to intimidate and escort ships is also a method that everyone agrees on, and the Ministry of Finance and Commerce said the same as one person, "We can't afford to pay for this time." The supply of raw materials must be uninterrupted. If you only listen to their speeches, there is no way to connect the words "harmony and wealth" with them.

The military's hardline attitude is unlikely to change, "The military protects the interests of the country." ”

Thinking of this, Zuo Zhidan could only sigh. He thought that the risk of war in the Dutch East Indies had been greatly reduced, but he did not expect that the possibility of war had not disappeared.

But is the war really gone? The Liberation Army tried to annex the Dutch East Indies with great tension, but in the end, the war did not start despite diplomatic efforts. But in the past few years, there has been a war within China, a war has been fought in Japan, and even Goryeo has not been able to avoid the flames of war. Now the war in these three Far Eastern countries has not completely ended, and the war between China and the Russians has already begun, in a sense.

Zuo Zhidan suddenly figured out one thing, it has been 17 years since 1852, and the flames of war have been raging one after another in the Far East, and they have not been extinguished for a day. The flames of war, which has lasted for 17 years, not only show no signs of extinguishing to the present, but more and more countries are involved in the war, and the forces involved in the war are becoming stronger and stronger. If the situation continues to develop according to the current trend, an unprecedented war in the Far East will inevitably break out.

China, under the leadership of Weizer, has been preparing for this for a long time, and other countries have prepared for this? If so, are they ready?

Raising his head and looking at the cocktail party attended by ministers from various countries with their wives and children, Zuo Zhidan pondered which of these brightly dressed people would be enemies and friends in the future war.

While thinking about this, the sound of a band playing sounded in the distance. The central venue of the festival is an open-air plaza with terrazzo flooring, which is perfect for dancing. I think the ball has already begun at this time. Not long after the opening music sounded, a blonde girl came running in a formal dress. She is the daughter of the Swedish ambassador to China and is twelve or thirteen years old.

Running in front of Zuo Zhidan, the little girl said to Zuo Zhidan with a slightly shy expression, "Mr. Zuo, last time we said we wanted to dance together......

"Oh......" Zuo Zhidan was a little impressed by this matter, but as the foreign minister, his first thought was that the relationship between Sweden and Russia was not very good, could it be that the Swedish ambassador knew about the war situation between China and Russia and wanted to strengthen contacts in this way?

Whether it was out of politeness or for profit, Zuo Zhidan had no reason to refuse the invitation. Standing up briskly, Zuo Zhidan raised his arm to the little girl, "Miss, can you please dance?" ”

The happy look diluted a lot of shy expressions, the little girl grabbed Zuo Zhidan's arm, and the two walked together on the soft lawn in the direction of the open-air square.