The British minister expressed his joy at Beiyang's desire to join the Entente, and he sent a report to Britain in front of Tang Shaoyi, informing Britain that Beiyang was willing to join the Entente. Britain then congratulated Tang Shaoyi and praised the Beiyang government for making a choice that was in line with justice and interests. Tang Shaoyi also said that the Beiyang government will fulfill its obligations as a member of the Entente within its capacity. Then Tang Shaoyi began to inquire about the war situation in the European battlefield and the war situation around the world.

Who is engaged in diplomacy is not a human being, and the British minister praised Tang Shaoyi's "pretense" in his heart. In fact, everyone knows that if the problem of the People's Party cannot be solved, Beiyang itself will face the pressure of life and death. The British minister waited for Tang Shaoyi to take the initiative to talk about the war situation between Beiyang and the People's Party, but Tang Shaoyi had no intention of speaking to this matter. While admiring Tang Shaoyi's stability in his heart, the British minister also felt that Tang Shaoyi was a little too trusted.

The two sides had a conversation that was not in the right place, and the British minister naturally boasted about how the Allies had suffered heavy losses, how the Allies had fought bravely and skillfully and annihilated countless enemies, and that the war should have ended in a complete victory for the Allies in a very short time. Tang Shaoyi didn't have the slightest sense of urgency because of this, because he really didn't know what was going on on the battlefield in Europe.

Tang Shaoyi came out of the British Legation with a rare sense of relief, in the past, if he went to the British Legation to protest against the British, or the British tried to extort something from the Manchu government or the Beiyang government, in short, it was a very painful experience for Tang Shaoyi. At the moment, the two sides were talking about cooperation calmly like friends, and Tang Shaoyi suddenly felt a little excited. In Tang Shaoyi's view, this experience was a pleasure, a victory for China's diplomacy, and China won the respect of foreign countries with its own strength.

Because he was in a happy mood, when he returned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tang Shaoyi walked into the office calmly. Vice Foreign Minister Gu Weijun was working in the office next to Tang Shaoyi, and a group of middle-aged young clerks were listening to Gu Weijun talk about some legal issues. This is also one of Gu Weijun's recent major work, explaining to these subordinates about the internationally accepted laws and characteristics. This knowledge can be used when dealing with foreign countries.

Seeing Tang Shaoyi come back, Gu Weijun asked everyone to do their own things first, he entered Tang Shaoyi's office, closed the door seriously, and listened to Tang Shaoyi's experience of this trip.

first talked about the performance of the British, and Tang Shaoyi praised Gu Weijun's suggestion, "Talking about joining the Entente on a case-by-case basis seems to have a really good effect." ”

Gu Weijun knew that Tang Shaoyi had lofty ambitions and a noble nature, and hoped to make a career. So even though Tang Shaoyi's words were far from the level of international politics, Gu Weijun did not show any negative expression. Internationally, it's about strength, and if you can't prove it, the great powers won't treat anyone as a dish. After staying in Beiyang for a while, Gu Weijun understands the habits of the current officialdom. These Beiyang bureaucrats view the world situation according to the habits of domestic officialdom. Domestic officialdom is hello, I am good, everyone is good, and the intensity of the struggle will end until the other party steps down. Moreover, stepping down for a while is just stepping down for a while, and the frustrated also have a chance to make a comeback.

This is not the case at all in the international arena, where the interests of various countries are constantly colliding and contending, and friends and enemies are constantly being chosen according to the reality of their interests. For example, Britain, even though it tried to ally itself with Russia in Europe, supported Japan in the Far East against Russia. However, Russia will not completely turn against Britain in Europe because its interests in the Far East have been damaged, and Europe's interests are fundamental to Russia.

Beiyang undoubtedly did not understand this way of turning hands into clouds and turning hands into rain, completely ignoring human feelings and relationships, and choosing naked international political interests. Compared with Beiyang, the People's Party, under the leadership of Chen Ke, already has such characteristics in its style of acting. Taking the attitude towards Britain as an example, the People's Party has not interrupted trade with Britain until now, and after Gu Weijun studied the speech of the People's Party, it was very clear that the People's Party had subdivided its interests very accurately. The pursuit of China's sovereignty and its accession to the world trade system were very clearly emphasized in the speech of the People's Party.

In the eyes of the Beiyang side, the People's Party's claim of the right to protect the legitimate trade of foreign merchants was just a pretext. Gu Weijun believes that both the British and himself can see that the People's Party does not want to interrupt any legitimate trade practices. It's just that there is a sharp contradiction between the British and the People's Party over the interests of ruling the Yangtze River Valley, and the British want to control the Yangtze River Valley, and the People's Party wants to control the Yangtze River Valley. A fierce conflict broke out between the two sides over this interest.

Although the current conflict has not yet been decided, Gu Weijun firmly believes that after the conflict and contradictions are completely resolved, the People's Party and the British side will collude to cooperate because of various interests. This is the essence of international politics, where there are only eternal interests and no eternal enemies.

Gu Weijun believes that Beiyang will not only be unable to grasp this attitude of the People's Party and the British in the short term, but will not even be able to experience it. This is a very equal relationship, "the country is equal before the strength". There is no shortage of talents in the middle of the Beiyang who hope to save the country by industrialization, there is no shortage of talents in the middle of the Beiyang who hope to save the country by means of military, there is no shortage of talents in the middle of the Beiyang who hope to save the country through education, and there is even a certain number of talents in the middle of the Beiyang who do not care much about life and death. However, in the middle of the North Ocean, there is a lack of understanding of equality, and there is a lack of understanding of whether there is an attitude in this world about distant and close relatives, which is only related to the matter itself. Judging from the data collected from all sides, the "People's Party", Beiyang's most powerful and dangerous enemy in China, adheres precisely to this attitude of "seeking truth from facts".

Anyway, Tang Shaoyi is a talent, and no matter how happy she is, she has no gaffe. After happily recounting this experience, Tang Shaoyi asked, "Shaochuan, what suggestions do you have for the negotiations in the future?" ”

"Don't show your cards." Gu Weijun answered neatly. The advantage that Beiyang now has is not that of the People's Party. At present, the British probably believe that as long as the People's Party intervenes, the People's Party will have no opponent in Asia in a land war far from the coverage of naval artillery, and Beiyang obviously has no such power. At least the British clearly did not believe that Beiyang had such power. Then at this stage, we must continue to give confidence to the British, and continue to increase the common interests with the British. Only in this way will the British support Beiyang because of themselves.

"Does that mean we don't want to have a direct military clash with the BJP in the near future?" Tang Shaoyi grasped the point.

"The People's Party is now targeting the south, especially the Yangtze River basin. At this stage, it would be desirable for us to strengthen our integration with the North. Try to get Britain to support us before the final battle breaks out. Father-in-law, if the People's Party is desperate to mobilize forces to fight a decisive battle with us, do you think we will be able to win? Gu Weijun asked.

Tang Shaoyi was silent, this question is difficult to answer, and it is easy to answer. The difference lies in whether it is from the standpoint of "taking care of face" or from the standpoint of "facing reality". At present, the People's Party has gathered elites to attack Hebei, and the possibility of victory for the Beiyang Army is not very large. Maybe it's not a question of how long the Beiyang Army can resist. However, the current strength of the Beiyang Army has exceeded 1.2 million, and with Wu Peifu's new victory, Tang Shaoyi feels that it will take time to improve the strength and combat effectiveness of Beiyang.

"Father-in-law, if our army can expand to 2 million and the training level can reach the level of General Wu Peifu's subordinates, not only do we feel that we have a great chance of winning, but the British will also think that we have a great chance of winning. So until the decisive battle is ready, our army cannot have any failed blows. To put it more plainly, our army cannot afford any defeat until the British finally support us. Gu Weijun gave the answer.

Tang Shaoyi was silent for a while, "Shaochuan, why is the People's Party unwilling to show weakness to the British at the moment, and is not afraid of any defeat?" If they are willing to show weakness to the British, they are afraid that the British will support the People's Party. ”

Gu Weijun replied: "Looking at what the People's Party is doing at the moment, they firmly believe that they can sweep away all the opposition, including the British. There is no point in showing weakness at this point. ”

After listening to Gu Weijun's explanation, Tang Shaoyi asked hesitantly: "Then do you want to tell the British about this matter?" ”

Gu Weijun shook his head, "Father-in-law, I don't think it's necessary. With the cleverness of the British, they can definitely see this. The reason why Britain is hesitant is that it has illusions in the BJP, or because Britain is hesitant to act at the moment. After all, the People's Party has made it clear that it will neither join the side of Britain nor the side of Germany. The contradiction between the People's Party and Britain is only the contradiction between the People's Party and the British. That being the case, the British felt that it would be good to drag this contradiction until after the end of the war in Europe. At that time, the British were able to deal with the People's Party in a comfortable manner. ”

Tang Shaoyi recalled the meeting with the British minister, and the British confidently stated that the war in Europe would inevitably end with a British victory. No matter what was in his mouth, Tang Shaoyi was really afraid of the British in his heart. Because of this preconceived attitude, Tang Shaoyi still felt a little anxious at that time. After all, this "confident" attitude on the part of the British meant that the British were likely to turn their favor with Japan. If such a situation occurs, the "sunshine victory" of Beiyang, which cost a huge amount of money, will become meaningless. After listening to Gu Weijun's analysis, Tang Shaoyi felt that the attitude of the British was a bit "fake". The feeling of bragging is obvious.

was able to make such a low-level mistake, and the feeling of shame made Tang Shaoyi feel a little fever on his face. After only a moment of silence, Tang Shaoyi asked: "Shaochuan, do you think that now that the British are at war with the People's Party, can't the British win the People's Party?" ”

When she asked this question, Tang Shaoyi's voice was very low, and she even felt a little ashamed. Gu Weijun didn't know how to answer this question for a while, and after a pause, Gu Weijun also replied in a low voice: "The British know this matter best. ”

These two Beiyang diplomats both understood a truth: What cannot be obtained on the battlefield in any case is even more impossible to obtain at the negotiating table. No matter how cold the BJP may be to the British, there is always a chance that the BJP will turn to the British. But no matter how hard Beiyang tries, it can only stick to the British, and once it is abandoned by the British, there will be no future at all. This fact was too cruel for both Beiyang diplomats to accept.

As considered by the two Beiyang diplomats, the British side is no longer in a hurry now. Even though the People's Party was still "stubborn", Japan's anxiety and Beiyang made it clear that they would join the Entente. With Britain's centuries-old experience as a-stirring stick, they have determined that the situation in Asia is once again in the hands of Britain. Both the Beiyang and the Japanese bowed to the British for support. The BJP's hostile and firm attitude ensured a clear division between friend and foe. The only fly in the ointment is that the strength of the BJP is somewhat excessive.

Of course, if Britain, Beiyang, and Japan join forces and are not opponents of the People's Party, it would be a good thing. The British could decisively sell Beiyang according to the method of long-term accumulation, and instead support the People's Party, and encircle Japan. There are many ways to achieve balance, and direct confrontation is only one way to balance.

Now that there is a clear structure, the British do not need to be in a hurry. The BJP has been clamoring for the expulsion of the British, but lately they have not been as aggressive as they have been shouting. Business between the two sides went on as usual, and even because of the war, Britain was unable to deliver the two steel production lines ordered by the People's Party, and the People's Party expressed serious understanding. At the very least, the deposit is not repaid for the time being.

Including not so long ago, the British again asked the People's Party about its willingness to join the Entente. The People's Party made it clear that it would not join the war in Europe, so it would not join Britain, let alone Germany. ”

As for the question asked by the British about the contradiction between the two sides, the People's Party also replied seriously, "China must take back all its sovereignty, and this is the whole crux of the contradiction." If Britain is willing to cooperate in this area, the BJP can forge a closer alliance with Britain. ”

The British will not agree to peacefully surrender their interests in China, but this does not mean that Britain will refuse to "recognize the status quo" when the situation is not good. This is the British way of life, no matter how passive the situation is, no matter how unbearable the situation is, the British will face the reality and try to fight for the best interests of Britain. In a sense, Britain is also a practitioner of "seeking truth from facts".

Since there is no longer a "misunderstanding or misreading" between the two sides, the British side has decided that the immediate goal is to do everything possible to bring down the BJP. The British minister felt at ease that this was a reciprocal enemy relationship. The British side also firmly believes that the People's Party is also doing its best to regain China's sovereignty at this time. The struggle between the two sides is not based on personal grudges, but simply on the struggle for interests. So much for.