The small living room on the first floor of the Qinzheng Building of the Imperial Palace, this small living room with a European Renaissance style is the emperor's small living room, only the closest friends or subordinates, well! Now the minister should be called to come here, so it has always been the dream of many officials to come to this small parlor, which means that he may become a close attendant of His Majesty.

Although the empire has not yet been knighted, the title has always been said to have been spread in the officialdom and the people, for those officials and gentry who are consciously qualified to be promoted, their greatest hope is to be able to become His Majesty's "close attendant", so that the opportunity is in the future, well! Get a head start.

"Before the official meeting, the minister hopes to get a clear indication from His Majesty, where is our bottom line?"

Liang Dunyan, who was sitting on the sofa, asked His Majesty, who was sitting not far away, and Zhang Zhidong also looked at His Majesty, the reason why he and Liang Dunyan met His Majesty together was precisely to finally persuade His Majesty in this way.

In this private drawing-room, the emperor and the ministers conversed intimately, and the meeting seemed to be unrestrained, without any protocol and ceremony, and on the surface the three of them sat side by side, as if the three of them were chatting and sipping tea contentedly.

But in fact, although sitting on the sofa, whether it is Zhang Zhidong, who is the prime minister, or Liang Dunyan, who is the foreign minister, is sitting respectfully and half-empty, both of them are habitual, perhaps, in the officialdom of the Chinese Empire, there are no longer so many rules, and even as the emperor, there is no right to life and death of ministers and subjects, but the tempering of officialdom, what is a monarch and what is a minister, has long been engraved into their bones.

In the early hours of yesterday morning, after the meeting, Zhang Zhidong remembered that when he actually questioned the emperor, his underwear was soaked, so that when His Majesty left him behind, he just nodded and said yes, although he still didn't want to see the emperor's willfulness, but behind this willfulness, it was the support of the vast majority of ministers.

Are they annihilators? No! Perhaps, as His Majesty said, the people yearn for the revival of national dignity! If it is not worth the risk of defending the dignity and rights of the country, then what is worth trying?

"Didn't I already say that?"

Chen Moran replied with a smile on his face.

"Zhang Xiang,"

He turned his gaze to Zhang Zhidong, and yesterday's reprimand of Shi Si to him, although he was merciless, reminded him of what is the way of a monarch and a minister.

"Yesterday you told me that the Dutch would never agree to our conditions, not even our proposals!"

"Your Majesty, that condition is undoubtedly to put the Netherlands in the position of a defeated country, and it is hard for the minister to imagine that the Dutch would accept such a condition!"

Zhang Zhidong replied with a serious expression.

"Even if it's the big ...... of the past The Manchu Qing Dynasty may not be able to agree! Not to mention the ......"

Afraid that Zhang Xiang, who he regarded as an honorable elder, would have another dispute with His Majesty, Liang Dunyan hurriedly interjected.

"Your Majesty, the minister and Zhang Xiang, Minister Yuan, and others have discussed the request made by His Majesty, and the Dutch will accept the other points, and the British Minister Zhu Erdian, who mediated it, also said that it was understandable, and said privately that he would do his best to bring about it. However, if we put forward that condition, I am afraid that it will be difficult for the Dutch to accept! It is even possible to refuse negotiations outright because of this! Your Majesty is to be asked to consider this matter carefully! ”

The words were interrupted Zhang Zhidong did not show anything unusual, but listened to the conversation between Liang Dunyan and His Majesty, Liang Dunyan is a diplomat, what he said should be more convincing.

"Of course, I thought about it. I can say that I made this decision after careful consideration and weighing many parties. ”

Chen Moran nodded and replied seriously.

"It's because I've thought about it that it's impossible for me to give up on this one!"

"However, this is an extremely dangerous attempt, Your Majesty."

Liang Dunyan said stubbornly.

"Everyone thinks that the chances of a compromise are slim to none, and that there are no conditions for a compromise at the moment. Chen is the Minister of Foreign Affairs of China, and he must be responsible for China's foreign affairs, and I need to maintain the dignity of the country, but I must not cause a war between China and the Netherlands, which ......"

"That's exactly what happened."

Chen Moran argued.

"But if you succeed, think about what glory it would bring to the Empire if you had focused the eyes of the world on us and the Dutch, and if you had focused the eyes of the world on us and the Dutch, it would have ensured the implementation of the Motogari Plan. ”

To be precise, how much prestige it brings to himself, Chen Moran understands that for the current Chinese, they need a shot of strength to shake the hearts of the people, and this dose of strength is only war!

"Your Majesty, you are overly optimistic about the prospects."

In the face of His Majesty's optimistic answer, Liang Dunyan sighed helplessly while sitting down on the sofa, but Zhang Zhidong couldn't help but look forward to it because of His Majesty's words, but when he thought of the risks, he couldn't help but sigh.

A brief silence enveloped the small living room, "We must notice,"

There was a slight passion in Chen Moran's voice.

"The external and internal situation we are facing now requires us to be tough, and we must implement the "Moto-hunting Plan" for the dignity of the country, if this plan is successful, the actual return may be very limited, but the glory of the country and the change in the image of the country we have obtained, the impact on the future is incomparable, so in order to protect this plan, we must not forgive the Dutch...... If! I don't want to face this situation if I could. ”

He continued.

"But I have to do it, the "Yuan Hunt Plan" is to maintain the dignity of the country, to use our courage and even sacrifice, in exchange for the world's attention to China, for the current China, maybe all we have left is our courage and sacrifice, this is the only thing we can do. ”

It is true that only when he dominates this weakened country can he understand the current situation of this country, and the current situation of this country makes it impossible for Chen Moran to realize his wishes, at least now he definitely does not have this opportunity.

From businessman to ruler, from ruler to emperor, everything he did was setting a historical precedent, and any decision he made would affect the course of Chinese history, but he also knew that what he was experiencing now was probably the most tragic moment in Chinese history.

In the past, any Chinese emperor Yanjing held the status of the co-lord of Asia, enjoyed the self-satisfaction of the Celestial Empire, and ruled the largest empire in the world, but now, as the second Han king to rule the country after 260 years, what he needs to do is to make this third-rate country on the verge of extinction survive in this era of the law of the jungle, not only to survive, but also to become a powerful country that can use the law of the jungle to seize its own prey, but what does he need to face?

As the emperor of China, he had neither the opportunity to enjoy the pilgrimage of the vassal kingdom of Laiga, nor the opportunity to enjoy everything that an imperial emperor should enjoy. All he was faced with was the scraps of cold food left over from the great powers after they had eaten them at the table.

"Once the "Motokari Plan" is successful, our image in the world will be greatly changed, we will regain our respect, and our country, our army, and our voice will be valued by other countries along with our success! And the most important thing is that our citizens can puff up their chests and tell the world that I am Chinese! They don't have to feel inferior anymore, they don't have to grovel in front of foreigners! So we have to carry out this plan without any cost! ”

Chen Moran's words were full of longing, but then there was a burst of helplessness.

"I know what I'm going to lead this country to."

With a long sigh, Chen Moran's eyes became lost.

"I know the risks that need to be faced in carrying out this plan, if it fails, I will lose the title of Emperor of China, maybe we will lose more state power, and then I will be a sinner of the country and the nation! But if I don't take the risk, I'll live in remorse for the rest of my life, because I've watched an opportunity for the nation to boil and be honoured slip away from my eyes. ”

When making this decision, Chen Moran clearly realized that the dream of the Chinese empire would either be forged from now on, or it would disappear from now on, or the glorious achievements of the empire that he had created himself, or the empire would ...... However, as the emperor, he must spare no effort to make this empire strong, to make himself and this country respected by the world, to let this country have its own place on the world stage, and let the world listen to his voice.

"If we do fail, it will be a disaster."

Chen Moran said in a heavy tone.

"At that point, maybe I will have to lead this country in a war of resistance to the death! But even if it is ten years, I will fight and will never surrender halfway, and at that time, either we will fight them back, or ...... For us, there is only a desperate fight! ”

His Majesty's absolute words made Zhang Zhidong fix his eyes on the angular and resolute-looking face of His Majesty in front of him. He has always had mixed feelings for His Majesty in front of him. He admires his youth and ability, has the ability to control the general trend, and is also quite far-sighted on many issues, but this majesty's gambling surname is far stronger than he imagined, for this majesty, as long as he needs, he is willing to gamble everything he has, and bet his old book on the gambling table, if he loses, does he still have a chance to turn over? .

"Your Majesty, now we're going to have two gambles!"

Zhang Zhidong reminded earnestly that on the surface, the negotiations with the Dutch were to cover up the "Yuan Hunt Plan", but in fact this was also a gamble, and if you were not careful, it might lead to a war.

"Yes! That's why we need to be unanimous and overcome difficulties together! ”

At this time, Chen Moran stood up, his brows slightly locked.

"And after much deliberation, I felt that the Dutch did not have the courage to fight us, and that they were even more eager for peace than we were."

"Then end the ...... as soon as possible"

Without waiting for Zhang Zhidong to speak, Chen Moran interrupted him.

"Nope! No way! We have to make another plan for security, and if we can, we have to convince the world that we really want to take a bite out of the Dutch! ”

After a moment of silence, Chen Moran suddenly smiled again.

"Maybe, we'll be able to bite off an unexpected piece of fat!"

(To be continued)