Hearing the name "Guo Songtao", Okubo Ritsu's brows furrowed even tighter. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

"How much do you know about this person?" Okubo asked.

Vice Island Taneki was unprepared to ask about Guo Songtao's situation, and he didn't know how to answer for a while, Yanagihara Maemitsu said on the side: "This Minister Guo Songtao used to be the governor of Guangdong in his early years, and was later dismissed, and has been idle at home, and it has been six or seven years now, and this time he was suddenly appointed to negotiate with us in the Yamen, the prime minister of the Qing Dynasty. It is said that this man was very learned......"

"It seems that this is a rare expert on international issues in the Qing Dynasty." Okubo Ritsu interrupted Yanagihara Maemitsu and said coldly, "Otherwise, he wouldn't have thought of using the 'armistice agreement' to embarrass us." ”

"That's right." Vice Island Chongchen took out a handkerchief, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said, "The prime minister of the Qing Dynasty, Yamen, is debating with us these days, and it is mainly this Minister Guo. ”

"Apart from this new minister, who else is the Qing official involved in the negotiations?" Okubo asked again.

"The official in charge of the negotiations on the Qing side, the highest level is Prince Gong Yixin, but he has only attended once, and the status below him but higher than other ministers is the Minister of Military Aircraft Wen Xiang, and the Minister of Military Aircraft Shen Guifen and Bao Jun, they have each attended two talks, and judging from the situation of the negotiations, they do not know much about international law. There are three ministers under their status, one is Chonghou, who was the minister of trade and trade of the three people, and has a certain understanding of foreign affairs, and the other is Xia Jiahao, who was originally a low-level official of the Prime Minister's Yamen, and was later promoted to Taichang Temple Shaoqing, and became the Minister of the Prime Minister's Yamen, who has served in the Prime Minister's Yamen for more than ten years, is very familiar with the work of this official office, and has a lot of experience in handling foreign affairs, and the other is the new Minister Guo Songtao. Sokushima Tanetomi took out a table from the document, looked at it, and explained the situation to Okubo in as simple language as possible.

"What about the two ministers who once said that the Qing government agreed with us to send troops to Taiwan to punish Shengfan?" Ito asked, "I remember that one of them was named Mao Changxi and the other was Dong Sui, and they didn't attend the negotiations?" ”

"After learning that the imperial army had entered the Taiwanese border, the Qing emperor was very angry. Later, the governor of Fujian, Lin Yizhe, played to the Qing Emperor, saying that it was the nonsense of the two of them that caused the imperial army to come, and the Qing Emperor immediately put the two of them in prison. Yanagihara Maemitsu said, the expression on his face was a little gloomy, "According to the news not long ago, a Chinese official named Huang Tifang wrote to the Qing Emperor asking for the release of these two ministers, but the Qing Emperor was furious and ordered the two ministers to be exiled to Heilongjiang, and later under the persuasion of some ministers, they were exiled to Zhangjiakou, which is closer to Beijing. ”

"That means these two people are useless now." Okubo nodded quietly, then turned to Sotomi Soejima and asked, "What other results have been achieved besides this so-called armistice agreement?" ”

"Nope." Sotomi shook his head with a sigh.

"Then what have you been talking to the Qing people these days?" A hint of anger flashed in Okubo's eyes, and his voice grew stern.

"These days, the debate is mainly focused on the issue of whether the Qing government has sovereignty in the area where Taiwan lives." Sweat trickled down the forehead of the vice-island minister, "The Qing government has been accusing the imperial army of entering Taiwan as an act of aggression and an act of war, and in order to avoid the responsibility of the government for starting the war, we have been debating this issue with Qing officials these days......"

"The result?" Okubo asked in a deep voice.

"Qing officials insist that the entire island of Taiwan is the inherent territory of the Qing state, and that the Qing state has sovereignty over Taiwan for more than 200 years, and it is also recognized by all countries in the world." "We refute this in accordance with international law, arguing that the administrative power of the Qing government does not reach the place of residence of Shengban at all, nor does it have any jurisdiction over Shengban, so it further shows that it is lawful for the imperial army to enter Taiwan." Qing officials had no way to refute it, so they resolutely refused to recognize the binding force of international law on China, arguing that there were no relevant provisions on China in international law. ”

"That is, there is no substantial progress in the current negotiations, is it?" Okubo asked, his knife-like gaze sweeping over everyone, and the expression on his face became more and more stern.

"Yes." Sotomi Sonojima said in a hoarse voice, and as he spoke, he lowered his head, as if he was afraid of Okubo Ritsu's gaze.

"Do you know how wrong you were?" Okubo said in a deep voice, his voice as cold as if he was about to fall off the ice slag.

"This ......" Sotomi Tosajima and Yanagihara Maemitsu were shocked in their hearts, and couldn't help but glance at each other.

"Such a precious opportunity and time have been wasted by you!" Okubo stood up sharply and roared loudly.

"During this period of time, you can reach an agreement with the Qing government as soon as possible while the Qing government is not clear about what is happening! Even if you make a few more concessions! What did you all do? Do you have to wait until the Qing government makes a military threat to us before you understand what to talk to them? ”

Hearing Okubo Ritsu's words, Yanagihara Maemitsu immediately understood, and couldn't help but regret it in his heart.

Okubo Toshitsu is indeed very reasonable, and if it can take advantage of the Chinese side's ignorance of international law and its persistence in the outdated "view of the world" in a short period of time, as well as the impact of the "Monaken" incident on China, to reach a peace agreement with the Chinese side as soon as possible, it will be extremely beneficial to Japan, and it will be worth paying some price. Once the peace talks are formally reached, it will not be so easy for the Chinese side to realize that it has been fooled and want to reverse it.

And the longer the negotiations drag on, the more the Qing court's understanding of international law and the details of the war and the comparison of forces between the two sides will be understood, the Japanese side will have less and less room for maneuver in negotiations, and the final result will certainly be extremely unfavorable.

He stared blankly ahead, when he suddenly opened his mouth, a mouthful of blood spurted out and fell onto the table, and some blood splattered onto the faces of the participants opposite.

Vice Island Tanetomi's eyes instantly dimmed, his head tilted, he looked at Okubo Ritsu, spat out another mouthful of blood, and suddenly fell softly on the chair.

"Vice Island-kun!" Yanagihara Maeko was shocked and hurriedly stepped forward to help him.

Okubo Ritsu felt as if there were blood spots splashed on his face, and when he saw that Soetomi Soejima looked dying, and the placket on his chest was full of blood, he couldn't help but panic, and for a while he forgot to wipe the blood on his face.

"Call the doctor!" Okubo Ritsu shouted loudly.

Several embassy personnel rushed out of the door, Yanagihara Maemitsu and several others helped the vice island to lie flat on the sofa, one embassy staff wiped the blood on the side of the mouth and chest of the vice island with a handkerchief, and the other found a pillow and put the head of the head of the vice island on the ground.

Okubo Ritsu and Ito Hirobumi and Kido Takayo got up and came to Sokushima Taneto's side to check his injury, at this time Sokushima Tanetomi had fainted and was unconscious, Okubo Ritsu only noticed that the 46-year-old Toshima's hair was half gray, and he knew that he must have been exhausted these days, and he couldn't help but feel sorry.

"Yanagihara-kun, you and Vice Island-kun have worked hard these days." Okubo said to Yanagihara Maemitsu.

"It's a pity that our efforts have been used in the wrong direction." Yanagihara Maemitsu sighed, "If the army conscripting Taiwan is called 'thieves', saying that they did not act on the orders of the government, exempting the government from responsibility, and making some compensation, the matter may have already been over." Now, the Qing government has begun to look for officials who understand international law to participate in the negotiations, and it will be very difficult to reach a peace agreement at a very small cost. ”

"yes!" Okubo sighed, "And the government is also very responsible for not giving you the right instructions in time for this matter. ”

Hearing that Okubo did not put all the blame for the failure of the negotiations on himself and Tanetomi Soejima, Yanagihara Maemitsu couldn't help but be moved.

"So what do we do now?" Yanagihara asked, "Okubo-kun, what are your plans?" ”

Okubo pondered for a while, and instead of answering, he asked, "Yanagihara-kun, do you know who the Qing government plans to send to participate in the negotiations?" ”

"As far as I know, the Qing government also planned to ask Li Hongzhang, the governor of Zhili, and Lin Yizhe, the governor of Fujian, to participate in the negotiations, but because no one could take over their duties, they have not yet issued relevant appointments." Yanagihara Maemitsu said.

Ito Hirobumi listened quietly to their conversation, and when he heard the names of Li Hongzhang and Lin Yizhe, his eyebrows couldn't help jumping.

And Yanagihara Maemitsu also looked a little strange when he said Lin Yizhe's name.

"If these two people participate in the negotiations, we will be in even greater trouble, and we must reach a peace agreement with the Qing government as soon as possible." Okubo said.

"What do you want to do? Okubo-kun? Hirobumi Ito asked.

"Insisting that the place of residence of the Shengfan tribe in Taiwan is ownerless, and that the imperial army entered Taiwan to punish the murderers of the Japanese people, but there was a deviation in the implementation process, and the imperial government did not want to start a war with the Qing State, and it was the reckless actions of the army that conquered Taiwan itself that caused the current result." General Okubo said, "Acknowledging that the imperial government bears the responsibility for the failure to restrain the army, and is willing to make some compensation to the Qing country." A peace agreement was reached as soon as possible with certain concessions. ”

"Do you want to take advantage of the 'Monaken' incident?" Yanagihara asked.

Okubo Toshitsu pondered for a moment and didn't answer immediately, while Kido Takayoshi said on the side, "I think we should take advantage of it." The operation of the 'Monaken' was contrary to the orders of the US Government, but the Qing Government did not hold the US Government accountable for this. In other words, the same situation of disobedience by the army should also be applied to Japan, since it applies to the United States. ”

"You're right, Kido-kun." Okubo nodded, "We can just debate with the Qing officials and relieve the Imperial Government of its responsibility." ”

Hearing the answer between Kido Takayoshi and Okubo Ritsu, Yanagihara Maemitsu's heart rekindled hope, and his eyes lit up.

"Yanagihara-kun, there's one thing I want to ask." Hirobumi Ito asked Yanagihara Maemitsu, "Where did you get the information that the Qing government had planned to transfer Li Hongzhang and Hayashi Yizhe to participate in the negotiations?" ”

"Ito-kun, you should know that many of the officials of the Qing Kingdom are very greedy and can be easily bribed." Yanagihara Maemitsu smiled a little smugly and said, "As long as you give them a little money, they will say a lot of what we need." ”

"Oh, yes, that's great." Ito Hirobumi nodded quietly, and a bold plan in his heart was born.

A short time later, a foreign doctor hurriedly walked into the hall with a medical kit and several embassy personnel.

The doctor came to the sofa and began to administer first aid to Tanetomi Soejima, several embassy personnel helped on the side, while one embassy staff came to Yanagihara Maemitsu with a nervous expression, close to his ear, and whispered a few words.

After listening to the embassy officer's report, Yanagihara Maemitsu's face changed suddenly.

"What happened? Yanagihara-kun? Hirobumi Ito keenly noticed the change in Yanagihara Maeko's expression and immediately asked.

"It's Lin Yizhe......" A hint of panic flashed in Yanagihara Maemitsu's eyes, "The Qing Emperor has issued an order for him to come to the negotiations and granted him full powers......"

Hearing Yanagihara's answer, Hirobumi Ito suddenly changed color.

"Carte blanche [carte]!" Okubo Ritsu also heard the unusual meaning, and his face also changed, "What does this full power of the Qing Emperor include?" ……”

No one answered, and the hall fell silent at once, except for the foreign doctor, who was still dutifully rescuing Sotomi Soejima, unaware of the horror of the Japanese.

"It won't be the power to decide war or peace, will it?" Kido Takayo voiced the worries in his heart.

"I'm afraid...... Yes! Hirobumi Ito muttered.

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"Li Wenzhong's Public Collection: Collecting Public Opinion on Taiwan Affairs":

"Jun Chu argued with Okubo and Yanagihara repeatedly, and in the last reply: 'If you dare not understand it again in the future', if you have a little understanding, you should boil it down to the method and turn around on your own, and if you regenerate branches, you should be forced to use the military strength as the end party."

"If Okubo can't settle properly in Beijing, I am afraid that China will send troops to invade its territory, and the Japanese will take precautions. The Youyun General Administration now plans to demand compensation of 2 million from Japan for military expenses. In addition, if China is at war with Japan, it is ordered that the Chinese living in Japan will be protected without fear. In addition, the Japanese purchased two more ironclad ships, and purchased fine guns and British and American steamers to defend against Chinese soldiers coming from the east. It's nothing more than a false voice and a fuss, confusing the public, hoping that I will make peace as soon as possible. ”

"Yesterday, I received a letter from Kunyu on July 30, saying: Okubo's coming, which is embarrassing and conceivable, must be cunning, in order to show that he is in good time, and he refuses to give in to the scope. It is the intention of wanting to end quickly, when he is not in me, I am waiting for work, but I don't want to speed up. It seems to be in the middle of the talk, implying the meaning of respect. It is said that the envoys should be stubborn, debate with each other, and do not get questions for a while, and it seems that they can discuss with Ming: please make public comments and make a turn of pen. Suitable for the French envoy from Yantai to Tianjin, Hongzhang went to pay respects, talk about the occasional matter, I would like to submit the abridged notes of the question and answer to the verification. On the afternoon of the 19th, the envoy boarded the boat and headed north, and during the meeting, he may confirm his contemptuous arguments slightly, so as to make up for his public comment on the other day, and pray for his discretion. A few days ago, Feng Daozhuo of the Jiangnan Machinery Bureau came to Tianjin to bring the consul general in Shanghai and the United States, Xihuatiao Chen Taishi, and the German consul Anneke. The general idea is slightly the same as that of the former Jiang Customs, Shen Dao, and others. It is still derived from the theory that the Jun Department will do the end of trade. This is written by Feng and Shen Erdao, and is recorded and sent to your office and Minshuai. Hearing that the governor of Fujian is quite a policy, and the second article is feasible. Kunyu is bracketed with the words "benefit and people, and its power must be ****", which is very concise. He also planned to use Western methods to open mines on the platform by himself, and leaked the essence of the mountain, but he did not have the financial resources to do so. Looking at the discussion of the consuls of the United States and Germany today, it can be seen that the eastern and western countries have coveted Taiwan for a long time, and they are finally worried that it will be difficult for our country to defend it alone. In the future, if the envoys are to be judged publicly, it is not known whether they will be discussed here. However, the Xihua article is too bad to be feasible. The Anneque language is relatively plain and has a sense of dominance. But depending on how to do things and how people are. I hereby submit the electric core according to the original manuscript of the banknote. Aunt Hongzhang ordered Feng Dao to return to Shanghai and wait for the letter. The German and American consular offices did not answer, and they still waited for the future. According to Feng Daomian, Britain and the United States secretly helped Japan, hoping that he would get the land and fertilizer one day. But Germany was jealous of it, and did not join it. If it is discussed, it seems appropriate to lead Germany to hold all countries, and it is appropriate to manipulate the opportunity, but Zhuo Zhuo will judge the machine. ”

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Beijing, Prime Minister's Yamen for State Affairs.

At the long mahogany table, Okubo's piercing gaze swept over the Chinese officials sitting across from him, and finally fell on the young Chinese official sandwiched between several gray-haired old men.

Today is the first formal negotiation between the Japanese delegation and the Chinese side since its arrival in Beijing, and the Japanese negotiators are, in order, Ambassador Plenipotentiary, Secretary of the Interior Toshimichi Okubo, Secretary of Education, Culture, Sports, and Foreign Affairs Takayoshi Kido, Secretary of the Ministry of Industry Hirobumi Ito, and Japanese Deputy Ambassador to China Yanagihara Maemitsu, while the Chinese negotiators are Prime Minister Yamen Minister Chonghou, Minister Plenipotentiary First Class Negotiation Minister Yoshizhe Hayashi, Ministry of Rites Attendant Guo Songtao, and Taichang Servant Shaoqing Xia Jiahao.

And what is extremely unusual compared with the previous negotiations is that in today's negotiations, the three old Chinese men seem to be waiting for the young man to show off!

Lin Yizhe carefully looked at the four Japanese with serious expressions sitting opposite, and somehow, there was some excitement in his heart.