Of course, among the great powers, whether it is the imperial Britain, Germany, Japan, and Russia, or the republican France and the United States, although they privately almost unanimously believe that the republic is not suitable for China for the time being. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 info But for most of them, this is not a topic they should intervene in.

Zhu Erdian sighed softly, and the slight tone of admonition in the telegram showed that the Provisional Government's incessant accusations and denigrations against him, as well as the success of the diplomatic strategy of the United States and Germany, and the assistance of economic activities, had made the Imperial Government dissatisfied with itself. But isn't everything you do for the sake of maximizing the interests of the empire?

And what kind of agreement did the Provisional Government reach with the United States and Germany, and will it really form an alliance between China and the United States and Germany? The feeling in this cloud is even more anxious, one is the largest country in Asia, the other is the richest country in the Americas, and the other is the strongest country in Europe. It is no wonder that the Imperial Government has expressed full concern, but it may not be so bad now, and everything will depend on the outcome of the talks between Graham and Morrison and Chen Wenqiang.

………………

Weak countries have no diplomacy, but it is precisely because of China's weak position in international diplomacy that the role and ability of individuals will be more demonstrated. And Chen Wenqiang, as a time-traveler, has a successful experience in the past, making him a well-deserved core of the provisional government's diplomacy. The core of the diplomatic breakthrough pursued by the Provisional Government is to support the United States on the left and Germany on the right, and jointly oppose the loose alliance of Britain, Japan, Russia and France.

The atmosphere in the room was solemn, and Chen Wenqiang was surprised by the arrival of the British consul in Shanghai and the Japanese consul in Shanghai, Oda, and among them was a traveler and famous journalist, Morrison of the British newspaper "The Times" in China.

Chan has only expressed a moderate amount of enthusiasm for Morrison and has been very serious. He shook hands with the two consuls perfunctorily, and after sitting down, his eyes kept rolling on the faces of the two consuls, with a thoughtful and wary look.

"Recently, I have heard that the Provisional Government is negotiating with the Bethlehem Iron and Steel Company of the United States a plan to build a military port and build warships in Fujian, and my Government is very concerned about this, and Your Excellency, as Acting Foreign Minister of the Provisional Government. Please elaborate. Japanese Consul Oda got straight to the point and asked directly.

Chen Wenqiang waved his hand lightly, and said with a sinking face: "I can't, and I have no obligation to explain in detail what I heard. ”

Xiao Tian paused for a moment and continued: "Bethlehem Iron and Steel Company's vice chairman James Ston has come to China for activities and has visited Sanduao and Mawei in Fujian Province to 'inspect' this, right?" ”

Chen Wenqiang blinked his eyes and said with some impatience: "I am not his entourage. I'm not interested in his itinerary, maybe he likes to travel around and see the scenery! ”

Oda was choked for a moment, and said in a deep voice: "I must remind Your Excellency that Fujian Province is strategically important to our country, and our government is resolutely opposed to China's use of foreign debt to build a naval base in Fujian. ”

Chen Wenqiang's heart was furious, and his face became even more gloomy. He said coldly: "International friendship, I don't know where the international friendship you are talking about?" It was for the Manchu weapons support. Or is it an attempt to prevent the landing of the revolutionary army on the Liaodong Peninsula? Or are there repeated calls for interfering with our ongoing revolution by force? I do not want to negotiate anything with the Japanese government until Japan makes a gesture of friendship. ”

Oda was about to get angry, but Ge Fu had already interjected, "The recent series of actions of the provisional government have the meaning of discriminating against other countries, and this cannot but arouse the dissatisfaction and concern of our country. It is hoped that the Interim Government will treat the commercial activities of all countries fairly and equitably, without discrimination. ”

"Equal treatment is mutual. Some of the tilts of the Provisional Government were not without reason. Chen Wenqiang softened his tone and explained: "Your country took the lead in amending the treaty so that the countries agreed that the Qing army could be stationed within 20 miles of the foreign concession in Tianjin to carry out police duties, and the road protection plan formulated and was about to be implemented was also biased in favor of the Manchus. This could not but arouse the revulsion of the Provisional Government and the anger of the entire population. If your country could maintain an impartial position, change the Qing army in the Treaty of Tientsin into the Chinese army, and treat the anti-Qing forces and the Qing government equally on the issue of protecting the railway, the provisional government would certainly provide a fair opportunity for your country's commercial activities. ”

Graham pondered, judging from the tone and wording that the Provisional Government did not seem to be determined to oppose the British, that is, that all problems could be resolved through negotiation, which was a good sign.

The British and Japanese envoys came together because Japan was dissatisfied with Britain's single-handedness in China, and demanded that Britain not set aside such problems when it encountered them again, on the grounds that the two countries had an alliance.

Graham felt that it might be better for the two countries to come together, and before he came, Oda vowed that he would follow the British lead, so that he was convinced that Japan could help him. But Oda's performance so far was not so much to help Britain as to use Britain to achieve the Japanese own goals, which made Gefort a little dissatisfied.

Chen Wenqiang continued to say slowly: "The fall of the Manchu Qing Dynasty is inevitable, and it is very certain that the provisional government will become the only government in China at present, but your minister, Mr. Zhu Erdian, has turned a blind eye to this, and still uses prejudice and arrogance to influence your country's China policy. I would like to remind the two consuls that it is useless to complain and protest, and that it is better to show kindness to the provisional government and the Chinese people with practical actions as soon as possible! Look at the United States, they have already released the warships ordered by the Manchu government after we have settled the final payment; Look at Germany, which is cooperating with the Provisional Government in all respects. The Provisional Government has expressed its corresponding appreciation and gratitude for this, which is completely understandable. ”

"I must once again remind Your Excellency of the strategic importance of Fujian Province for our country." Oda said very arrogantly: "China has promised that this province will not be ceded to any other country, and Japan has repeatedly safeguarded its interests in this region, and if China borrows money from the United States to build a naval port in Fujian, it will certainly cause great displeasure in Japan, the United States, and Japan." In addition, regardless of whether or not it is rumored that the Provisional Government and the Mobil Oil Company are cooperating in the exploration and exploitation of the Yanchang oil field in Shaanxi Province, I would like to inform you that Japan has priority over the oil fields in Shaanxi Province, where Japanese engineers have long worked. ”

Chen Wenqiang looked at Xiao Tian with a light gaze. With a mocking smile on the corner of his mouth, he said in a deep voice: "In view of the way you have come to your conclusions, I will suggest that the Provisional Government and the Chinese industrial and mining enterprises will never hire Japanese engineers in the future, and those that have already been hired will not be renewed after the contract is over." So. It is believed that there will be no more disputes between China and Japan on priority rights in the future. In addition, I would like to remind you to be mindful of your own rhetoric, as today is an informal meeting, all of which will be published in the media. ”

Oda wanted to say that Japan had the intention of forcibly intervening by strength, but he was afraid that Britain would not support it, so it would be boring. Soon the second Anglo-Japanese Entente would expire, and Japan was eager to sign it again, and planned to change the duration of the pact from five years to ten years, so it did not want to anger Britain at this time.

Moreover, Zhu Erdian was opposed to Japan's armed intervention. He explicitly told Japan that "care should be taken to avoid interfering in China's affairs by similar coercive means." Japan has never been able to get the support of Britain on this issue, and it is somewhat difficult to stand alone, and the conspiracy of intervention has been delayed for a long time.

"Your Foreign Minister, Mr. Gray, has just stated in the media: 'We aspire to see a strong and unified China, regardless of the political system in which we are located, guided by the wishes of the Chinese people.' We are very pleased with this, and wonder if Mr. Zhu Erdian has the same attitude? Chen Wenqiang gave the Japanese a lesson. He turned to complimenting the British and treating Britain and Japan differently. This is a good way to borrow British pressure on the day.

"Of course, Mr. Zhu Erdian also has a deep affection for China and wants to see a strong and unified China." When Ge Fu heard that the contents of the talks would be made public to the media, he deeply regretted that he had spoiled the atmosphere of the talks by mixing them up with the Japanese dwarfs. At this time. He could only show a very sincere smile, but he wanted to end the meeting as soon as possible, and then meet Chen Wenqiang alone for a frank, direct and secret discussion.

…………………

At the end of the talks, Chen Wenqiang readily accepted Morrison's request for an exclusive interview. Back in the house again.

Morrison, born in Australia in 1862, is the chief correspondent of The Times in China. In 1894 he travelled to southern China, and a year later his travelogue An Australian in China was published in England. In 1896 he traveled from Bangkok to Kunming, and then to the three northeastern provinces.

It was because of this book that he was recognized by the British newspaper The Times, hired as a correspondent in China, and in 1897 he went to Beijing and began his career as a journalist. At that time, China was in the aftermath of the Sino-Japanese War, and it was the focus of the world and the target of the conspiracy of the great powers of various countries. Morrisson's scoops from the first time made The Times a well-deserved authority on reporting from China. It can be said that as many readers of the Times as there were at that time, there were as many people as there were people who knew about this "Chinese Morrisson".

As an eyewitness, he used The Times to report objectively and impartially on the "Boxer Rebellion" in Beijing to the Western world, believing that the disrespect of some Western missionaries for Chinese feelings was an important cause of the whole incident, dispelling the fog of public opinion demonizing China.

Subsequently, he used the pages of the Times to launch a campaign to curb Russian influence, so much so that the international public opinion circles at that time called the "Russo-Japanese War" "Morrison's War".

Morrison has a strong public relations presence in the UK and a strong international reputation. If he can lean towards the Provisional Government, it will do much to ease relations with Britain, increase the Provisional Government's international prestige, and win more international support. Therefore, Chen Wenqiang showed enough enthusiasm and frankness towards Morrisun, which also made Morrison feel very happy.

"China should have a strong leader who has absolute authority, who has influence in the world, and who can guide China to a strong and bright future with British-style capitalist politics, economics, culture, and diplomacy as its guiding principles." Morrisun's words are easily reminiscent of his good personal relationship with Yuan Shikai, at least Chen Wenqiang feels this way.

"I have a slightly different view from you, I think that the so-called strong leader is easy to go to dictatorship and **** in today's Chinese environment, and a strong leadership core is enough to do what you say." Chen Wenqiang smiled kindly: "You should have confidence in the nascent republican regime, I suggest that you go to Guangzhou for a trip, I believe you will definitely make this trip worthwhile." ”

"That's a good suggestion, but it's a little late." Mo Lixun blinked his eyes and said with a smile: "The plan to go to Guangzhou is being implemented, and this is just an intermediate station. ”

"Oh, that's what I did." Chen Wenqiang laughed and said: "Mr. Morrison is one of the few Englishmen who maintains a fair attitude towards China, and his desire for China's rejuvenation is also sincere, for which I feel very admired. ”

Morrison smiled, and then said very cautiously: "What do you think of Yuan Shikai in the north, the provisional government, or from your personal point of view?" ”

In Morrisun's eyes, Yuan Shikai naturally has another image. Although this image is inevitably the result of personal preference, Morrison is a person of that era after all, and he has a close relationship with Yuan, so the Yuan Shikai in his eyes may be closer to the real Yuan Shikai in some aspects.

Chen Wenqiang pondered for a moment, he was a little unclear, whether this was Morrisun's personal concern or a temptation on behalf of Yuan Shikai.

"It's a little bit of my personal curiosity." Morrison explained: "I don't represent anyone, any force. Of course, you can leave this question unanswered. ”

Chen Wenqiang nodded and said slowly: "From my personal point of view, although Yuan Shikai is known as a new-school figure, he has only implemented several new policies according to the gourd. In his bones, he is still full of old ideas and concepts, lacking creative thinking and vigorous vitality, and even more lacking the sense of democracy that you attach the most importance to in the West. Of course, if he can climb out of the feudal mud, he will have a place in the government of New China, and it may still be a very important position. After all, he has a very bright mind and a wealth of life experience, as well as practical achievements. ”

Mo Li nodded in understanding, "With all due respect, according to China's national conditions, I am afraid that it is not very appropriate to suddenly implement a republic." Morrison avoided Yuan Shikai's topic and said: "Actually, a constitutional monarchy is also a good choice. (To be continued.) )