In the entire banquet, in addition to the main seat of the Zhu family is the focus, there is also a table that is not weaker than it, which is rare at the table. Generally speaking, unless it is intended to set the mood, there is very little one who does anything to distract from the crowd, especially if the host is a high-ranking chief of internal affairs.

But this man did it, even though he was passive. He looks sven, his face is handsome, he is well-suited, and he shows a gentlemanly demeanor in his gestures, the key is that he is only in his twenties, which is the time of pride. Around him, from time to time, someone toasted and narrated, and he was able to deal with it skillfully, so that the comers could return happy. Not only did Zhang Hanqing notice it a long time ago, but he also noticed that the ladies in the room, including several sisters of the Zhu family, also frequently glanced over there.

Zhang Hanqing followed Zhu Qichao straight to the man's side, and the onlookers took the initiative to get out of the way, so that the two guests could have a brighter space to talk, and they all knew that there would be this scene. As soon as Zhu Qichuan moved, the man had already caught a glimpse of it while drinking, and hurriedly stood up and accused, "How dare you work for Elder Gui to come over in person?" The little nephew had long wanted to go over to toast, but when he saw that Gui Lao was talking about sex, he didn't dare to make a mistake. ”

Not only is he handsome, but he is also very tall, which dwarfs Zhang Hanqing, who is not fully developed.

Zhu Qichuan smiled and said, "Shaochuan, do we still use more courtesy?" As I said, today's banquet is not only for the little girl's birthday, but also for Shaochuan's trip to the United States. ”

The man also smiled and said, "Nagging about my uncle's meal is already uneasy, and you dare to make a noise, will you go to your uncle's house in the future?" ”

The two of them finished their hustle and bustle, and Zhu Qichao pointed to Zhang Hanqing behind him and said: "This is Xueliang, the son of Fengtian general Zhang Zuolin, the word Hanqing, how close and close you are." He also said to Zhang Hanqing: "Among the younger generation, Shaochuan is the dragon and phoenix among the people, and at a young age, he became a minister to the United States---- I am afraid that he is the youngest minister to foreign countries in the Republic of China, right?" ”

Zhang Hanqing suddenly thought of someone and blurted out: "Gu Weijun? ”

Zhu Qichuan was slightly stunned and said: "It's rude! Shaochuan is also what you can call by his name? But although he was reprimanding him on the surface, he still said it with the attitude of an elder, and he still loved it very much.

The man smiled and said, "The name is meant to be called by people, so it doesn't hurt to call it directly." Then he said: "Gu Weijun, the word Shaochuan." ”

It's really him! Not only is he the youngest minister of the Republic of China stationed abroad, but also the youngest foreign minister in the history of the United States!

His father Gu Qingchuan was the first president of the Bank of Communications in the late Qing Dynasty; The father-in-law is former Premier Tang Shaoyi. Yuan Shikai has a discerning view in handling the 21 negotiations with Japan, and with his background in the United States, he has served as the minister of the Beiyang government to Mexico, the United States, Cuba, and the United Kingdom since this year, and a few years later he has served as the chief foreign minister, the chief financial officer, and the acting prime minister of state, and after World War II, he has served as China's chief representative to the United Nations, ambassador to the United States, and vice president of the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

He is known as the "First Diplomat of the Republic of China" and is one of the most outstanding diplomats in modern Chinese history. Even ** said: "I admire Mr. Gu Weijun's diplomatic talent and personality. ”

He personally participated in the negotiation of many historic treaties between China and the great powers in modern times, such as the Paris Peace Conference, the Sino-Japanese negotiations on the Shandong issue, the Sino-Soviet Agreement, the negotiations with the British Concession, and the drafting and signing of the UN Charter on behalf of China, and made great contributions to the Chinese nation in diplomacy. If you talk about diplomatic achievements alone, they are comparable to Zhou Enlai, and even Zhou regretted that "the reason why Gu Weijun was not able to be worthy of the name of China's first diplomat is completely created by the times, but the first diplomat of the Republic of China deserves his name."

Of course, at this time, he did not have any later achievements, but the title of the youngest minister abroad alone was enough to envy others. The good reputation of others is really earned by their own efforts. In addition, his handsomeness is also one of the reasons why he can eat in the social world, he is one of the three beautiful men in Beijing, and he does not let Zhang Hanqing be "beautiful" in front.

At this time, he was full of spirits, and when he was full of ambition to show his strength, of course, with a tolerant heart, he looked down at the immature Zhang Hanqing.

Zhang Hanqing quickly returned to his normal state from the initial surprise, and he took the initiative to toast forward and said, "Brother Gu is a young talent, and I have a thunderous ear for your name, junior brother." Weak countries have no diplomacy, but you have done something that Li Hongzhang can't do in the Sino-Japanese negotiations, so the younger brother borrows flowers to offer Buddha and toast you. ”

Gu Weijun's role in the 21 Article negotiations is rarely known to the world. It was he who cleverly revealed the news to his American friends, thus gaining the "attention" of the United States, thus putting pressure on the Japanese Government on the side and avoiding Japan's attempt to fully control China. This point is often described in later history books, but at that time, it was rarely clear to the outside world.

Because the aftermath of the 21st Article has not subsided, Yuan Shikai and others, who know the inside story, will not publicize it, so Gu Weijun's merits will be lost in the torrent of history. For the young Gu Weijun, this kind of unknown great glory is like carrying a treasure in his arms without being recognized by the world. Zhang Hanqing's words made him as sweet as eating a peach.

It's just that how can he know about this kind of secret thing as a child? Even Zhu Qichao was secretly surprised. Although he did not directly participate in the negotiations, he understood the hardships and Gu Weijun's contributions.

"A weak country has no diplomacy", which exhausted the bitterness of being a handling officer, and Gu Weijun experienced it the most. He was originally very high-spirited, but he suddenly fell from the flowers to the mortal world, and the aura of the "youngest" in diplomatic history no longer seemed dazzling.

"Thank you!" Gu Weijun solemnly drank this glass of wine, and in the face of this young man who was more than ten years younger than him, he put away his contempt. To be able to summarize the current situation of China's foreign exchanges in such a concise manner is not something that ordinary people can do.

"Brother Gu is a person who will be sent by heaven to make greater contributions to the country in the future, this little brother is convinced. However, how much contribution can be made by the elder brother depends on the strength of the country. Therefore, after my brother took office, he paid more attention to the trends in the US economic circles in his spare time. At the beginning of the Republic of China, all industries were waiting to be developed, and the United States had many advanced technology and equipment talents, all of which were urgently needed to build the country. My father is also preparing to invest heavily in industry to revitalize Mukden and even the Northeast, and he may need to borrow his brother's power to lead the needle. ”

"Oh, does Han Qing want to buy arms from the United States? As far as I know, although the United States is currently friendly to China at home, it is still very scruples about exporting weapons to China. ”

In Gu Weijun's mind, as the son of General Fengtian, the focus is nothing more than the common cognition of his father Zhang Zuolin and the domestic warlords in this era: expanding the army and buying arms.

Originally, among the specific contents of the notorious "Xinchou Treaty" was the first international agreement in China's history on which a Western country imposed an arms embargo on China: "Arms and raw materials for the manufacture of arms shall be prohibited from entering China for a period of two years, and if necessary, the embargo may be extended for several additional two-year periods." The first arms embargo imposed by Western countries on China that began in 1901 had serious consequences. The consequence of the embargo is that China has completely lost its military strength to resist foreign invasion in terms of military equipment, which has seriously endangered China's national security.

How many years has the arms embargo against China been imposed by the Xincho Treaty? At present, there seems to be no specific record in the books on the mainland. What is certain is that the arms embargo lasted for more than two years. It was not until the Xinhai Revolution overthrew the Manchu Dynasty that the arms embargo imposed on China by the Xinchou Treaty was effectively extinguished in view of the support of Western countries for the government, and China could easily buy the latest arms from Germany, Britain and other compradors in China.

However, this changed after the start of World War I, when Japan took advantage of the great powers' fierce war to develop ambitions and blocked arms deals with China in the name of violating the Treaty of Xincho. Its intention was simple: to prevent China from possessing weapons advanced enough to resist the Japanese threat, or to buy Japanese arms under Japanese tutelage.

Britain and Germany have no time to think about anything else, so only the neutral United States can have a chance to intervene. However, will the United States rashly snatch food from Japan because of such a small arms deal? The young major general thinks about national politics too simply!

Zhang Hanqing shook his head: "Japan has always regarded the Northeast as a thing in its pocket, how can it tolerate us to grow?" It can do it with treaties. I mean, oh no, my father meant that it was better to teach a man to fish than to teach him to fish. Wouldn't it be better for us to raise the level of industry ourselves, and to make our own arms in the future? The Northeast is really blessed with unique conditions, including steel and coal, and is the only place for industrial development. What we lack now is technology and capital. And these two are the strengths of the United States. ”

"Oh, I didn't expect Han Qing to know so much about the United States in the northeast corner! As a minister to the United States, Gu should do his best for the country, but what can Gu do? Gu Weijun didn't understand that Zhang Hanqing's ambition was so big, and thought that he just needed to pull some investment.

In Zhang Hanqing's plan, there are many places where the Americans are borrowed. Regardless of what people in this era think about it, Zhang Hanqing has decided to follow the United States economically and get close to the United States politically in order to maximize his expectations. There is no other way, because the United States is the only one among the great powers that does not seek to occupy Chinese land in substance, and it is also the only power that is most friendly to China at present. Although their national policy is not lacking in their own calculations, as a country, is their plan wrong?

"There's so much you can do! Brother Gu, the United States has a huge manufacturing industry, advanced industrial system and technology, machinery, shipbuilding, electronics, electric power, metallurgy, automobiles, water conservancy, steel... These are what the development of Northeast China urgently needs. In addition, the current situation of the United States headquarters with less people and more land is similar to that of the Northeast, and their farm construction can also serve as a reference for the development of the Northeast.

These are projects that we want to catch up with on our own, and the Americans also want to have a greater impact in China. If there is a breakthrough in cooperation between the two sides in these areas, it will be quite beneficial to our own development and to the interests of the United States in China. Moreover, these are purely private economic exchanges, and the Japanese cannot interfere with them. ”