Dung stars are dotted, and the summer night is heavy. There was silence all around. The whole city has fallen asleep, and in this hot season, not everyone can easily fall asleep, at least, the British Minister to China, Zhu Erdian, has not slept now, he is still lying on a bamboo chaise longue as he did the other day, on the balcony on the second floor of the small building of the legation, looking up at the starry sky.

Insomnia still plagued Jurdian, and in order to relieve anxiety, he even tried the method of being an addict, but to no avail, as a British diplomat who was in a diplomatic dilemma, Juerdian did not feel sleepy at all.

Lying on a bamboo chaise longue, Zhu Erdian counted the stars in the night sky in a serious manner, hoping to fall asleep in this way, but so far. He had counted the stars in the starry sky several times. But if you can't sleep, you can't sleep.

There was an electric fan next to the chaise longue, but it was not enough to completely dispel the heat, and Zhu Erdian was covered in sweat, he did find it a little difficult to tolerate the climate here, he remembered the summer in London, he remembered the climate in England, and if possible, he would rather return to London than endure a long night in this old Oriental city.

With the further aggravation of the Far Eastern Foreign Field Bureau, Zhu Erdian's insomnia symptoms became more and more serious, and he used to be able to fall asleep before midnight, but now. It was not far from dawn, but he still didn't feel sleepy at all.

Considering the current tensions in Europe, Zhu Erdian had to worry about the situation in the Far East, and in the event of a war between China and Japan, it would be difficult for Britain, as an ally of Japan, to stay out of it, and according to the Anglo-Japanese alliance treaty, if any third country was involved in this war, then the British government would have to directly enter the war in the Far East in accordance with its treaty obligations.

Germany now has very close relations with China, and some British politicians have even regarded China as a quasi-ally of Germany, in the present situation. If China joins forces with Germany to go to war against Japan. Britain will definitely join the war, then, the war will soon spread to the European continent, by then. The British Empire would face serious challenges from Asia and Europe, and it is unlikely that Britain would have to give up certain Asian interests in order to secure the initiative in the European theater. As a member of the British Far East policy, it is difficult for Zhu Erdian to get rid of his responsibilities, and even if he can continue to serve the government, I am afraid that there is no future to speak of.

This is the main reason for Jurdian's anxiety, he worries about his own future, and he also worries about the future of Britain. After all, the strategic initiative is not in his hands, not even in the hands of the British government, and now it is the "madman president" who holds the strategic initiative in the Far East

So. Now the only thing Jurdian can do is for me to pray, to pray for "Mad President." It was possible to maintain some calm and not to draw Germany into the war against Japan, although Germany simply did not have the means to commit enough military force in the Far East at the moment. But as long as China makes demands on Germany. Jurdian was fully confident that His Majesty the German Emperor would once again use his authoritarian character to take a political adventure in the Far East.

The German government has been looking forward to a major war in Europe for a long time, and many Germans have despised the strong determination of the British government to maintain the strategic balance in Europe, and they believe that Britain will not shed blood and sacrifice for the sake of the French feud, but they are wrong, very wrong, and Zhu Erdian is fully convinced that in the event of any provocative military action by Germany, the British military machine will be running at full speed, and the interests of the British Empire cannot be shaken by any force, which almost all British diplomats are confident in.

Zhu Erdian finished counting the stars again, still in good spirits, so he had to helplessly pick up the alarm clock placed beside him, and looked at the time through the light bulb on the electric fan, it was already four o'clock, it seems. Today I was tired again during the day.

Just as Jurdian put the alarm clock back to his feet, he noticed two beams of light outside the legation. It seemed to be a car heading in the direction of the Legation, and soon the car stopped outside the main entrance of the British Legation in China, and several people stepped out of the car to negotiate with the British soldiers guarding the Legation.

Zhu Erdian stood up, leaned on the railing of the balcony and looked in the direction of the main entrance, and by the first light of the street lamp, he found that there were several cars coming, he didn't know who was coming, generally speaking, unless there was a bad situation in the sun, otherwise. There were no visitors in the early morning in the embassy area of Dongjiaomin Lane, and the British staff in the legation also lived in the embassy, so it was impossible for them to appear outside the embassy now.

A few minutes later, the telephone rang in Zhu Erdian's bedroom, and when Zhu Erdian picked up the microphone, the voice of an officer on duty came from inside.

"Sir. Sorry to disturb your rest. The Chinese Minister for Foreign Affairs, with a few attachés, came over and asked to meet with Mr. Minister, who had very important information to inform him and intended to deliver a diplomatic note and a diplomatic memorandum to him. ”

"I see, invite them to the living room, I'll be poisoned in no time."

Zhu Erdian pressed down the phone and turned on the lights in the bedroom. After hesitating for a moment, he finally decided to put on the formal dress, and for some reason, his instinct told him that the Chinese Foreign Minister must have something very important coming over now.

It took five minutes for Zhu Erdian to tidy up his appearance, and then calmly left the bedroom, before leaving. He even turned off the lights.

Rushing to the living room with the embassy secretary, Mr. Wu Tingfang, the Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs, was already sitting upright, and when he saw the British minister entering the room, he stood up and smiled politely at the other party, but smiled

Factory dam for a moment. Then, his face was no less expressionless. “※

"Mr. Wu, I am afraid that it is very important for you to choose such a time to visit

Zhu Erdian politely shook hands with Wu Tingfang and his attaché, and then quickly turned to the topic, in order to maintain a calm image, his question was asked in English, and Wu Tingfang also formally answered him in Chinese. question, translated into English through a translator.

"Yes, Mr. Minister, I have come by order of the President of the Republic of China and the Central Government, and in addition to delivering some diplomatic documents to Mr. Minister, I have been instructed to convey a diplomatic message to the Government of the British Empire:

In accordance with the decision just made by the Central Government of our country, the Government of the Republic of China formally suspended diplomatic relations with the Imperial Government of Japan at 4 o'clock in the morning of July 4 of the old year of the Common Era, and issued an expulsion order to all Japanese diplomats stationed in China, restricting them from leaving the territory of China within 72 hours, and at the same time, the Government of the Republic of China and the Government of the Imperial Government of Japan officially entered a state of war. All Japanese nationals living abroad must also leave our territory within 72 hours, and once the time limit is exceeded, it will be very difficult for the Chinese Government to guarantee the safety of the lives and property of these Japanese nationals. The Japanese side has been formally notified of this decision by the Chinese center, and the Japanese minister in China has also formally lodged a solemn protest with the Chinese center.

Out of respect for the British Empire and out of the necessary diplomatic procedures, I am instructed to formally inform the Minister of this decision of the Centre of our country, and that I hope that the Minister will communicate this decision of my Government to the British Government and the Prime Minister as soon as possible, and that my Government will also observe the principle of diplomacy and will remain committed to acting as a spy for any of the belligerents during the Sino-Japanese War, and that British citizens will be punished in accordance with the laws of our country if they violate it, I also hope that Mr. Minister will be able to convey this to the British Government as soon as possible

Wu Tingfang's words made Zhu Erdian a little surprised, of course, it was just a surprise, and then a hanging heart was put down, and the anxiety in his heart disappeared, even Zhu Erdian himself felt that his current mood was a little unexpected, maybe he had already foreseen this war.

"So, war has broken out? Mr. Wu would like to inform your Excellency the President that, as the diplomat of the British Empire in China, I will immediately convey this information to the British Government, but I must also make the necessary statements. As a foreign minister, I have no right to interfere in the foreign policy decisions of the British Empire government, so. For the "bureau resumption, this needs to be consulted with the British government and the Prime Minister. Moreover, it seems to me that the decision of your central government to go to war against Japan is too hasty, and that the French and Russian governments, as members of the Entente bloc, are likely to be in line with the British government in their diplomatic actions

"I will convey to my Government, Mr. Minister, and as for France and Russia, I will soon be on my way to meet with the Ministers of the two countries. Soon, the French and Russian governments will also know that China has officially entered a state of war with Japan. Well, that's it, disturbing Mr. Minister to rest, I take my leave

Wu Tingfang did not stay long in the British Legation, and after completing his task in order, he immediately left the Legation with his attachés, went out of the main gate, got into the car, and then left for the French Legation in China.

Zhu Erdian sent Wu Tingfang and his attaché all the way out of the legation, watched the car leave, and then turned around and returned to the living room. Like a deflated ball, he sat on the sofa in frustration, looking at the diplomatic memorandum and diplomatic note sent by Wu Tingfang, and stayed for several minutes.

Wait for Zhu Erdian to come back to his senses. He called in an embassy secretary.

"Immediately go to the Japanese Legation and tell the Japanese Legation that I will rush to the Japanese Legation at 8 a.m. to meet with Mr. Japanese Minister."

The secretary left in a hurry. But soon returned in a hurry.

"Sir, the Japanese Legation said that Mr. Kohata Hyakuyoshi, the Japanese Minister to China, will not be a guest today."

"Oh? Then, cancel the trip. ”

Zhu Erdian was stunned. Then he sighed, got up, and walked upstairs.

"Where are you going now, sir?"

The secretary caught up a few steps. Ask about the Jule Line

"To the bedroom, of course, I'm sleepy right now

Jurdian walked up the stairs. Halfway through, he stopped again. Turned to look at the secretary who was stunned by the stairs, and then said a few words to Shi Fang.

"You immediately sort out the main points of the diplomatic memorandum and diplomatic note sent by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and then hand them over to the telegraph operator to send them to His Excellency the Foreign Minister and His Excellency the Prime Minister.

Unless there is a scraping order at home, or if Japan is defeated and surrendered, there is no need to wake me up during the day, and if the French and Russian ministers request a meeting, you can tell them that I will consult with them this evening on the situation in the Far East

After speaking, Zhu Erdian entered the bedroom without looking back, now, he is indeed sleepy, perhaps, the knot in his heart has finally been untied, but it is more likely that he is an evasive gesture, but no matter which explanation. In a word, Zhu Erdian is indeed extremely tired now.

Peace in the Far East ended, and so did Britain's balance of power strategy in the Far East. All of this had to do with Zhu Erdian, but for now, he had decided to put everything aside for the time being, and wait until his mind cleared up to deal with the troubles of the Far East.