Of course, the US minister could not negotiate with the People's Party empty-handed, except for the recognition of the People's Party's political power and the subsequent establishment of diplomatic relations with the new Chinese government. The United States also brought an official gift, and the United States, after learning that the People's Party had taken control of Shanghai, hoped to be able to build four 10,000-ton merchant ships at the Jiangnan shipyard.

"We provide important equipment, materials, design drawings, and even engineers. All you need is the dockyard, the grounds, and the support staff. If you also need to increase the equipment for shipbuilding, our country can even consider giving your country a credit loan. The American minister gave a briefing.

Chen Ke reminded Zhang Yu that the United States may discuss shipbuilding cooperation with the People's Party. After all, the BJP and the United States have discussed building a navy. At that time, the BJP did not have a shipbuilding base, and the United States did not want to wade into troubled waters while the BJP was in conflict with Britain. The intention to cooperate has been around for a long time, and now is the opportunity to turn the intention into practice.

Zhang Yu has also made preparations for this, and the information has been read for a long time. Hearing the US side so frankly state its needs, Zhang Yu replied: "Is the US side ordering ships from us alone this time, or is the US side ready to fulfill the naval construction plan that was previously discussed?" ”

"If you're ready to honor that agreement, we'd certainly welcome it." The U.S. minister was overjoyed, and his original mission included this task, but it was better that the People's Party had to raise this topic first.

"Can the price of the machine be the same as the original price?" Zhang Yu continued to ask.

"Absolutely not!" The U.S. minister immediately vetoed Zhang Yu's proposal.

The American minister understands well the treacherous nature of the BJP. Taking advantage of the economic crisis in the United States before World War I, the BJP bought a large number of machines at very low prices. At that time, U.S. shipping was relatively idle, and the People's Party raced against time to ship these machines and equipment back to China. In order to purchase as much equipment as possible, the People's Party even bought the closed factory, and hired desperate Chinese workers who were forced by the Chinese Exclusion Act in the United States at that time to quickly disassemble it, and then loaded it with all the equipment and shipped it away.

At that time, the attitude towards the People's Party in the United States was very ridiculous, and the Americans, in particular, who held a fiercely anti-Chinese stance, simply congratulated the People's Party for cleaning up all the garbage in the United States. However, the ridicule did not last long, and the First World War broke out. The entire U.S. industry is running at almost full capacity, spurred by orders from Europe, and the price of machinery and equipment has skyrocketed. The Americans found out that the BJP was actually making a lot of money.

Now Zhang Yu has to buy machinery and equipment at the price at that time, which is more than double the price of this equipment compared to before the war, and it is impossible for the US government, no matter how sincere it is, to provide products to the BJP for sale at that price.

"We still don't have any money." Zhang Yu said sincerely.

"We can provide credit loans." The American minister hurriedly replied that now the gold of the Entente countries is pouring into the United States in large quantities, and the United States has a problem of inflation. If you can lend money to the BJP, you can have the raw silk trade as a guarantee, and it is a few streets better than the pile of white strips in England.

"Thank you very much for your support, but borrowing money is really unreliable. Can we discuss this matter a little more? Zhang Yu replied, "Or let's solve the current priorities first?" ”

The so-called priority is that the US government recognizes the BJP government and the two countries establish formal diplomatic relations. Chen Ke has repeatedly stressed the need to define the "Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence" with the United States, but there is no need to talk about this topic at all with regard to France and Britain. Zhang Yu already has the confidence and confidence that the People's Party and the world powers will go to war, at least he believes that a war with other countries on Chinese soil can still defend China's interests. However, the implicit content of Chen's attitude is that China wants to "disrespect each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity and interfere in each other's internal affairs" against Britain and France. This important attitude can't help but make Zhang Yu feel a little excited.

Of course, Zhang Yu knows very well how he should explain this issue, after all, in the international relations of this era, "mutual disrespect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, and interference in each other's internal affairs" is a tradition.

In the eyes of the US minister, the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence seem to be a "fart off your pants" rhetoric, but this principle is also more favorable to the United States. The U.S. minister can fully imagine how the People's Party is now eager to interfere in China's affairs across the Pacific without foreign interference, which is also an unimaginable thing for the United States. Unless the United States completely abandons the Chinese market and prepares to invade China militarily, sealing off China's coast with a fleet is itself an action that does not outweigh the losses. The vast Pacific Ocean itself prevents the United States from throwing too many troops into China, and Japan's experience shows that even if the United States sends 100,000 troops with all its strength, it will be surrounded and annihilated by one million Chinese troops as soon as it enters Chinese mainland. Only a fool would make such a decision.

However, the BJP's emphasis on the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence is by no means a simple slogan; Once this agreement is signed, the United States will have to establish its position on other local regimes in China, and the American minister asked: "When the People's Party has eliminated the rebel parties in various places, will we American businessmen be able to invest in the whole of China?" ”

Zhang Yu said coaxing and frightened: "It will definitely not work in the initial stage, we need to implement the final rectification in various places." I don't think you want to run to a volatile region and end up in all kinds of uncontrollable dangers, right? ”

"But how long will that period be?" The American minister insisted.

Zhang Yu smiled confidently: "If you refer to the southeast region, you can resume completely normal investment within two years." If it is the northwest, it will not be more than six years at the latest. ”

The U.S. envoy understood that this was Zhang Yu predicting the course of a future war. This time is also within the normal imagination. Investing in the southeast is tantamount to competing with the British in the southeast, and the United States has no stronghold in northwest China at all. Ren Zhang Yu is full of confidence that the northwest issue can be solved within five years, and then it will be up to the People's Party to see how far it can go.

Across the Pacific Ocean, both China and the United States have demonstrated the ability to defend their land territories. In 1916, only the guys in the madhouse could come up with a plan for a land war between China and the United States. And the guys in the madhouse can't lead the official negotiations between China and the United States.

The People's Party (PBP) has stubbornly clinged to the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence and demanded that the United States establish diplomatic relations with China under these principles. The United States, on the other hand, wants to avoid all kinds of troublesome details as much as possible. Only agreeing to such a seemingly all-encompassing and at the same time rather empty principle can give sufficient room for the discussion of various details later, so the US side agreed to this demand of the People's Party.

Gu Weijun studied law in the United States and is familiar with the American judicial system. The BJP is not based on specific legal provisions, but on a "principle". This is clearly not in line with US practice. The United States has completely used its own laws as an excuse to undermine this principle. He told Zhang Yu that it was meaningless to do so.

Zhang Yu said with a smile: "To set the principle is to guard the principle." If the law is sacrosanct and inviolable, then there is no need to amend the law after it is decided. Otherwise, what is the person who changes the law? Immortal? ”

"Law is about legal principles and ......principles," Gu Weijun said this, and suddenly found that there was no need to say anything more. If none of the basic principles can be observed, the specific legal provisions will really be like what Zhang Yu said. The law is an agreement between people, and if the agreement is not taken seriously by both parties at all, the letter of the law is meaningless.

Moved, shocked, panicked, admired, all kinds of emotions mixed into an indescribable feeling in Gu Weijun's heart, and he couldn't help but ask Zhang Yu, "How far can we go for this principle?" ”

Zhang Yu had a sneer on his face, and behind this sneer was great determination, and he replied: "I can't say anything else, but for me, if I want to destroy this principle, I must first step over my corpse." ”

After listening to Zhang Yu's words, Gu Weijun couldn't help but recite the five principles of peaceful coexistence in his heart, "mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence." ”

As for how determined Zhang Yu is not to interfere in other countries, Gu Weijun actually doesn't have much confidence, and he doesn't care at all. For China, which has been bullied for more than 60 years, not to be interfered with by other countries in its sovereignty and territorial integrity, not to be violated by other countries, and not to be interfered in by other countries in its internal affairs, it is not how to do its best to think about methods, but to put it into practice with blood. As Zhang Yu said, there must be soldiers who really set foot on the battlefield to defend China's interests.

Recalling his days in Beiyang, when Beiyang faced foreigners, he quoted scriptures and collected all the "axioms and justice" he could collect, but he couldn't really accomplish anything.

Zhang Yu and other People's Parties, who ridiculed the law, never talked about this, they just went to the battlefield and defended the principles they adhered to with their blood and lives. It is precisely because of the hard work of such a group of people that Gu Weijun, as an employee of the People's Party, can play all kinds of word games with the great powers, and can discuss the meaning of the law with Zhang Yu when reaching an agreement.

Gu Weijun knew that a weak country had no diplomacy, and the initial feeling of pain was inflicted on Gu Weijun by the People's Party. Gu Weijun finally fully understood why Zhang Yu laughed at the legal provisions. A strong country is definitely not supported by the letter of the law, but by these people who do not believe in the letter of the law at all.

"Takeshi, the dry city of the country!" Gu Weijun now understands why the soldiers are so praised in the Book of Songs. At a time when military personnel are almost synonymous with disgrace, the leadership of the People's Party, which is almost exclusively military, has once again given the title of military man real glory.

Gu Weijun couldn't help but repeat again, "In order to adhere to the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, we will even go to war with the United States?" ”

Zhang Yu didn't have Gu Weijun's sadness at all, and Zhang Yu replied very simply to this stupid question: "Isn't this nonsense?!" ”

The news of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States on January 1, 1917, shook the world, or more accurately, Britain, France, and Japan. Just as the secret negotiations between Chinese and French representatives unnerved the United States, the Sino-American agreement also unnerved France. As the People's Party had predicted, the British were already aware of the separate agreement between China and France.

As for the news that France is likely to get 50,000 Chinese laborers in the near future, we can only describe the mood of Britain at this time with envy and jealousy. However, this was a separate agreement between China and France, and since the People's Party had not joined the Entente, the People's Party had no obligation to the Entente. Britain could not even use the principle of unanimity of the great powers to demand that the People's Party provide labor to Britain as well.

The news of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States has stimulated Britain even more, and although the memorandum signed by the United States and China is a secret treaty, it is not impossible for the British to obtain secret information. If the People's Party did implement this memorandum, it would be good for the Entente countries, but it would not necessarily be good news for Britain. This means a significant increase in the "international influence" of the American side.

Britain can only urge its ministers to reach an agreement on the establishment of diplomatic relations with China as soon as possible, and only then can they formally put forward various demands to the People's Party.

However, the People's Party did not immediately reach an agreement with the British, and on January 4, 1917, the People's Party government formally established diplomatic relations with France. At the time of the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two sides reached a secret agreement that once China joined the Entente, France would allow the People's Party troops to enter North Vietnam and Laos, while supporting the People's Party's various commercial interests in Indochina. Within a year of the Entente's victory over the Allies, France handed over the northern kingdom of Vietnam and Laos to China for "protection".

At the same time, the two sides signed an agreement that the People's Party would provide the first 50,000 laborers to France by February 1917 to work in French farms and factories. Depending on the circumstances, France has the right to continue to petition the PPP for the expansion of labor. The French guaranteed that these laborers would not go to war, but would work in the French rear. France has set up a committee with the People's Party to coordinate and monitor the implementation of the agreement.

Leaving Britain aside, the People's Party colluded with France, a member of the Entente, and blatantly cooperated with the United States, a quasi-Entente member. The British minister found himself completely out of control, what was the reason why the Chinese were always unwilling to reach an agreement with the British? In the end, the British approached Zhang Yu and asked Zhang Yu to explain the reasons for the People's Party's behavior.

Zhang Yu took out a map, pointed to the border between China and India, and asked, "We don't know what it means for Britain to demarcate the McMahon Line alone?" ”

The British minister did not know about the "McMahon Line". But the British minister was well aware of the fact that Britain had been infiltrating Tibet. Since the People's Party (BJP) had taken such a tough stance on raising the issue, even if the BJP had not even entered the Tibetan region, the British minister hastened to telegraph to the country. The British Foreign Office has gone through great trouble to figure out the McMahon Line. The results were soon determined, and Britain said it would cancel the McMahon Line. On the Sino-Indian border issue, Britain will sign an agreement with the BJP on friendly terms.

After discussing this issue, the British minister raised another question, "I wonder what the People's Party thinks about those who apply for asylum in the British Concession?" ”

Zhang Yu said with a smile: "If some people call themselves political prisoners and say that they are being politically persecuted, they run to your Britain. This kind of thing is inexplicable, and Britain can do with them as they please. We don't want to make it impossible for everyone to get off the stage. However, if this person is a criminal offender, we will definitely not let it go, and we hope to reach an agreement with the British side on the extradition of criminal offenders. ”

The representative of the United Kingdom nodded, and this request was really reasonable. He then asked: "Now there are people asking the People's Party to release Cai Yuanpei. Ask us to take refuge in the UK, this person ......"

As soon as Zhang Yu heard this, he immediately interrupted the British minister very impolitely, "This person is a criminal and a murderer. We're going to execute him in a few days, so let's hope the British won't intercede for a murderer again. ”