In a tavern in the Russian village of Dereka, more than 200 miles southwest of Yekaterinburg, Ye Zhao met Governor General Berekov.

Berekov arrived a day earlier, and when Ye Zhao entered the tavern, he was eating brown bread with jam, and he ate it with relish.

Outside the tavern, there are Russian spies preaching Sino-Russian goodwill, and this town was controlled by Chinese infantry five days ago.

Governor Berekov was in his early fifties, slightly chubby, and his deep eyes were as sharp as falcons, and he could see that he was a nobleman with a firm mind.

Boris accompanied Ye Zhao, but this father-in-law actually didn't like him as a commoner, and didn't even ask him how his daughter was, perhaps from the letters, Governor Berekov could already guess how his daughter was doing.

Governor Berekov came on horseback with only a few retinues, and the more than a hundred guards outside the town were only for his safety along the way, and it was clear that he did not have any plans to control and monitor the town, which was very different from the situation in which the Chinese sent an entire infantry regiment as if they were facing a great enemy.

Ye Zhao didn't care if he went to the meeting alone to show his sincerity, but the headquarters would not let the emperor be threatened in the slightest.

Ye Zhao also understood what Berekov meant, not that he did not want to control the dominance of the negotiations, but Mo said that this small town was Ufa, and if the Chinese attacked, his armed forces would not be able to hold on for a few days.

When Boris greeted his father-in-law, he saw his father-in-law's cold attitude, and walked away with interest. Ye Zhao shook hands and hugged Berekov.

Berekov stared at Ye Zhao and suddenly smiled: "Well, I know, Mayor Wen can represent the Chinese with full powers." ”

The strength of the martial law team in the middle of the [***] team can also be known as the weight of the Chinese officials in front of them, perhaps, not much different from Li Zhongtang who negotiated in Petersko.

In the past, China, like Russia, was an aristocratic government, and the elders of the temples and pavilions were not necessarily more vocal than the inconspicuous aristocrats, and this may be the case today.

Berekov said again: "I also thank you for not searching my body." ”

Ye Zhao believes that if Berekov knew his identity in advance and didn't hear his advice, he would not hesitate to tie up a bomb and die with him, but now, under the supervision of the guards, he would not have the opportunity to draw a gun, and Ye Zhao himself is not a weak person, and even Ye Zhao believes that with his quick reaction, sensitive ears and eyes, and excellent physical strength, if he can standardize his surname training, he will definitely be an outstanding figure among top gunners.

Ye Zhao smiled and picked up the coffee poured by the guard, and said, "There must be a process of mutual trust for us to meet this time, isn't it?" ”

Governor Berekov pushed aside the bread on his plate and said, "Mr. Wen, be honest, what can you give us, and what do you hope to receive from me?" ”

He hated the Chinese and was wary of the Chinese.

Ye Zhao sipped his coffee and sighed: "Governor Berekov, you should know that the war between you and me has long been inevitable, and the reason is that your country is resisted by most European countries and has to choose eastward expansion, in this war, we Chinese are the passive side." ”

Governor Berekov was silent, it is true that now the Chinese have invaded large areas of Russian land, but the Chinese nobles on the opposite side are right, Russia will bear the main responsibility for this war, and from the moment it intervenes in the Chinese civil war, it heralds the beginning of this war.

Ye Zhao said again: "Although we denounced the atrocities of your emperor during the war, now our high command has discovered that your revolutionary forces are even more evil and brutal, and we have not been able to conclude a final armistice agreement with your emperor, which is a pity. ”

The Russian Revolution was destined to be full of violence because of its national peculiarities, and the mixing of populist ideas and the ideas of the First International made the revolution the most brutal and bloody disaster since the European Revolution.

The whole of Europe did not want such a revolution to take place in its own country, nor did it want some of the ideas of the Russian Revolution to spread in Europe.

Ye Zhao said: "Therefore, after careful discussion, the Grand Privy Council of our country has decided to contact people like Mr. Berekov, who are upright and want to restore order in Russia, give you some support, and try to avoid the staging of the massacre. ”

Berekov laughed sarcastically, "Mr. Wen, I have long heard of the cunning of the Chinese, and now the emperor of your empire is ready to use us as the vanguard and cannon fodder to open the way for your army?" ”

Ye Zhao waved his hand: "No, no, no, Mr. Berekov, you have misunderstood me, the empire means, real support, support for your existence as a sovereign state, in order to show goodwill, we can withdraw our troops from part of the occupied areas and let Mr. Governor and your allies take over." ”

Berekov was silent, considering the true intentions of the Chinese, and the proposal made by the Chinese at this meeting was something he did not expect, thinking that the Chinese were ready to threaten him to surrender with Empress Catherine, Emperor Nikolanavich and his daughter and son-in-law as bait.

Ye Zhao said: "We hope that we can establish a principality with Empress Catherine as the Grand Duke, hope that this principality can become a refuge and guiding light for devout Rus believers, and for us in China, we also hope that there will be a friendly regime between China and the evil new Rus' regime, and we have no will to conquer the entire Rus' nation, there is no doubt about this." ”

Ye Zhao's words can only be said here now, and I believe that these words alone are enough to make the nobles of the Ural region quarrel.

Berekov was silent and suddenly asked: "Grand Duke Nikolanavich him?" ”

Ye Zhao waved his hand, sighed, and said, "Hearing about the tragedy in Moscow, the Grand Duke is depressed, and I am afraid that the time is running out." ”

In fact, the Russian emperor's brother is living well in a special prison in the capital, but the original excellent bargaining chips are now worthless, and it is more in the interests of the empire to support Catherine, who is more or less friends with Ye Zhao and hostile to the revolutionaries, to ascend to the position of Grand Duke of the Ural Principality.

Moreover, compared with the Russian emperor's brother, Catherine did not control the Russian aristocracy enough, and she also needed the support of the Chinese.

At present, the royalist forces are mainly entrenched in the Urals, and if they can support a divided principality, it will seriously weaken the strength of Russia, and it is absolutely impossible for China to set the border line in the Ural Mountains, and it is necessary to support a buffer regime in this area.

Only differences in systems and beliefs can cause real divisions of the same nation, which Ye Zhao is very clear about.

Berekov walked away full of doubts, he did not expect that the Chinese would have such a proposal, yes and could not give any answer at all, this is not a question that he can give a clear answer, and next, the nobles who want to entrench themselves in the Urals will have fierce discussions and quarrels.

Ye Zhao didn't know if his proposal could win the support of the Russians, and then, in addition to waiting, he had to make his own deployment to make this goal possible.

Looking at Berekov's back, countless thoughts surged into Ye Zhao's mind in an instant.

Sheng Xuanhuai, the deputy secretary sitting next to Ye Zhao, felt a stir in his heart, it turned out that the quarrel in Petersko was just a side dish at best, a real big meal, and the emperor hadn't served it out yet.

…… When Ye Zhao entered Catherine's bedroom, Zoya was helping Catherine groom her ivory-white jade feet.

Ye Katerina leaned on the palace-style couch with a gorgeous skirt like a ball of flowers, Ye Zhao felt that this kind of chair was similar to the foot massage table in later generations, of course, a hundred times more gorgeous and beautiful.

On the round tables and long tables on both sides of the benches, there are all kinds of cakes, tea fruits and snacks, and it is obvious that Catherine is gradually returning to the Yonghua life of the past.

Ye Katerina wanted to get up when she saw Ye Zhao coming in, although the Western tradition is different from the East, and does not regard the jade foot as a sacred and inviolable part, but the young man was still a little embarrassed when he saw the scene of the snow foot with the surname of the modified surname.

However, under Zoya's eyes, Ekaterina hesitated, and finally just sat up and said hello to Ye Zhao politely.

Half-kneeling and half-sitting on the soft pier, Zhuo Ya explained sharply: "Sir, I have just been halfway busy, if Miss gets up now, I will give up all my efforts." ”

Ye Zhao waved his hand and said, "Busy with you." Sitting on the sofa, but then I felt that this angle was wrong, and I was sitting behind Zoya, not only Catherine's jade feet, but also the beautiful legs with a faint sense of surname in the gorgeous skirt like red and bright flowers, but if I changed my seat, wouldn't I want to cover it, but it would be even more embarrassing.

Speaking of which, Catherine has been quite strange recently, listening to Mama Li, she actually started to wash her underwear, and she did it herself, and she didn't want Zoya to help.

When she spoke, she also became more and more flattering to herself, and it became a routine to help herself cut meat during meals, and even Mama Li said that she also asked Mama Li for Oriental etiquette, and even learned to bow down.

These changes all happened after Zoya's arrival, and I really don't know what Zoya told her.

Picking up the red apple on the coffee table and taking a bite, Ye Zhao said, "Katyusha, I'm going to disclose your identity as the queen." ”

Ekaterina sat up suddenly, her face turned pale, and Zoya also looked back at Ye Zhao in surprise, and said repeatedly: "No, sir, don't you want to protect Miss?" Am I you off? ”

Ye Zhao smiled and waved his hand, and said, "Don't be afraid, take your time in this matter, first of all, you have to correct Katyusha's name." As he spoke, he took out a piece of paper from his sleeve, stood up and walked over to Catherine and handed it to her, saying: "Look, this is an article that is going to be published tomorrow in a Russian newspaper in the non-occupied territories." ”

If Catherine is to succeed in ascending to the throne of the Grand Duke, she must change the trajectory of her life, or make up her life trajectory.

In the next propaganda, Empress Catherine will become a warrior who has endured hardships and sufferings, but still persevers in the struggle against the Chinese.

Moreover, Empress Catherina's struggle strategy was more effective than the armed struggle, and when she sadly found that the guns of the Russian [***] team would only slaughter her own people, she decided to negotiate with the Chinese, and finally the Chinese withdrew their troops from the occupied areas, and she would also play a great role.

This propaganda will not be effective in a day or two, and will continue until the peace talks are really over.

And some real stories in the process of the queen's escape can also arouse the sympathy and resonance of the people, among them, the story of Zoya's savior is naturally indispensable.

Catherine froze as she looked at the note in her hand, and after a long time, after a series of glances from Zoya, she said, "I listen to you, sir." ”

Ye Zhao nodded slightly and said, "Your guards are in training, and besides, you will also have weapons loyal to you." ”

It is also necessary to train and support the armed forces for Catherine, otherwise, if this principality can be drummed up, maybe Berekov can be drawn into Catherine's camp, but what about the other nobles? After all, Catherine is just a failed queen who is immoral and incompetent, and even some nobles do not recognize her as a queen without European royal blood.

Ekaterina almost didn't know what Ye Zhao was talking about, and said blankly: "Guards? ”

Zoya hurriedly said, "Miss, you should be happy, thank you sir." ”

Ye Zhao had already waved his hand and walked out slowly.

…… The change of the name of St. Petersburg to Petrosk shows that the aristocratic system that ruled the Principality of Petrosk no longer considered itself a continuation of the Romanov dynasty, because St. Petersburg was named after Peter the Great, the holy lord of the Romanov dynasty, and it was also Peter the Great who opened the port.

The abandonment of the Romanov dynasty also gave the principality the diplomatic initiative, and most of the major European countries followed China in recognizing its pronounced and legal surnames.

European countries, from the perspective of the royal family, can be divided into two groups, the southern Catholic kingdom, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Austria-Hungary, etc., and the royal family intermarried with each other.

The northern group consisted of Protestant and Orthodox countries such as England, Germany, Russia, Sweden, Denmark, etc., and these royal families also intermarried with each other.

But international politics is not so clear-cut, but in any case, the influence of the king and queen still exists, for example, Alexander III's wife is from Denmark, because Denmark was invaded by Prussia, Alexander III was influenced by his wife, and began to dislike Germany, which also made the relationship between the two countries worse.

Not long after the establishment of the Duchy of Petersk, although the renaming of St. Petersburg to Petersk had some de-Germanization implications, since the fort was of Germanic origin, the Duchy soon announced a marriage to the German royal family, and the niece of Sava was married to Heinrich, the second grandson of Wilhelm I.

Although most of the royal marriages in European countries were adulthood, Wilhelm I had a whim, fascinated by Chinese marriages, and began to inquire informally about the possible surnames of the eldest daughter born to the Emperor of China and Princess Sava and his eldest grandson, the second in line to the throne of the German Emperor, the fifteen-year-old Wilhelm. The first in line to the throne of the German Emperor was naturally Frederick, the father of the emperor's eldest grandson, Wilhelm.

Ye Zhao almost refused, remembering that this Wilhelm II had some mental problems, but he could not marry his precious daughter, although this would be the best channel for the imperial royal family to enter the European royal family, and it would also be a channel for him to intervene in European politics in the future. But for Ye Zhaohe's subjects, how glorious is the empire, and what is the identity of the imperial princess? Is the Western world really becoming a barbarian land, and its princes are at peace? It's really not very interesting.

Li Hongzhang is well aware of these changes, and yesterday he received a secret letter from the liaison officer, and Li Hongzhang also knew that the emperor was preparing a big meal.

St. Petersburg is a port city, the Rus' gateway to the Baltic Sea, and became the capital of Russia more than 160 years ago.

The site of the Peace Conference was chosen at the Smolny Palace in St. Petersburg, where the Noble Women's College had studied, and which now serves as the residence of delegations and the place of negotiations.

The whole palace is a crisp and clean blue and white color, and the arched portico and the Baroque architecture of Smolny Abbey are a magnificent blend.

Princess Sava became the most famous princess in Europe almost overnight, and her beautiful portrait soon became popular among the entire aristocracy, and was known as "the most beautiful queen in Europe", and perhaps, the queen with the highest status.

The emperor of the powerful empire of the East has no control over the country by any emperor and king in Europe, and Princess Sava who is married to the Great Emperor of the East will inevitably have more influence than the queen and princess of any royal family in Europe.

Europeans have some incomprehension of the "three palaces, six courtyards and seventy-two concubines" of the Oriental royal family, and theoretically, the wives of the Chinese emperors are called empresses, companion concubines, etc., and Princess Sava is called the empress, and there are some factors for Westerners to elevate European princesses.

Li Hongzhang led the Chinese delegation on a pilgrimage to the classroom where Princess Sava had studied, and held oriental rituals to commemorate Princess Sava when she was a young child, and it also made Europeans feel that Princess Sava who could marry the Emperor of the East was really a great female surname.

In the conference room on the second floor of the palace, the position of the Poles under Russian rule was discussed, and to be exact, the land on which the Poles lived east of the Neman-Bug River.

In the past, discussions about Poland were usually between Prussia, Austria, and Russia, and it was these three countries that carved up the once powerful Poland.

At the current negotiating table, in addition to the German Empire's Chancellor Bismarck, the Austro-Hungarian Emperor's brother Karl? Grand Duke Ludwig, Provisional Chancellor of the Russian Narodnaya Volta, Alexander? Mikhailovich? Gorchakov, there is also a yellow-skinned and black-eyed Chinese, that is, Li Hongzhang, deputy prime minister of the Imperial Council.

Among the Big Four, Li Hongzhang's status in their respective empires may also be the lowest.

Because there was no progress at all in the border negotiations involving Russia's eastern and southern fronts, Li Hongzhang began to discuss the corners and corners with the Russians, first resolving easily resolved disputes, such as the status of the Ukrainians.

This is a very sensitive issue, and it is also one of China's bargaining chips, and it is ready to solve the border issue as a package, and if the three countries have a tacit understanding of the discussion and the results are achieved, the empire will lose an important bargaining chip.

It is clear that in Bismarck's speech, he wished to send troops with the Austrians into the eastern part of the Neman-Bug River to "maintain local calm and avoid bloody violent conflicts", which in fact amounted to the preparation of Germany and Austria-Hungary for the partition of the Russian-occupied Polish regions in response to the increasingly raging struggle of the Poles, the root of which was the inability of the Russians to exercise effective rule over the occupied Polish territories.

What Li Hongzhang puzzled was that the Germans and the Austrians, who were the dominant Austrians in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, were both one nation, and the Germans were divided into two countries and were equally full of contradictions.

Russian Prime Minister Gorchakov had a gloomy face, clearly unhappy with the fall of the Germans and Austrians, but remained silent.

Obviously, perhaps the three countries have reached a secret agreement behind the back of the Chinese, and Russia will give up the western territories, and Germany and Austria-Hungary will favor the Russians in the negotiations between Russia and China in the eastern region, and strive for the best interests of the Russians.

The representatives of the Chinese mission were well aware of the dilemma they faced, and if they were to reach an agreement, the empire would be at an extremely disadvantageous position in future negotiations.

But in the face of these sophisticated European politicians, no one knows how to stop them from reaching a deal.

The Germans and Austrians had already discussed the polity of the Poles on the east bank of the Neman.

Karl, the royal brother of the Austro-Hungarian Empire? Archduke Ludwig did not forget to politely and politely consult the Chinese.

Li Hongzhang frowned and sipped his coffee, and suddenly interjected: "I think that when discussing the fate and future of the Poles, there should also be Polish representatives. ”

The air in the conference room froze instantly, and Bismarck's brow twisted into a pimple.

Cal? Archduke Ludwig laughed and said: "Dear Lee, perhaps it is not clear to you that the Poles did not appear to be able to represent their entire nation. ”

Li Hongzhang said: "As far as I know, there have been parties in Poland, such as the Ming Boiler Party, the Proletarian Party, the Socialist Party, and so on, and although most of their leaders are narrow-minded, we should also listen to their voices, shouldn't we?" ”

Cal? Archduke Ludwig shook his head and said: "I don't think these violent gangs represent the Poles, the majority of Poles, who want to have a stable life, and we are helping them, and maybe in the near future, we will help them achieve autonomous status." ”

Li Hongzhang said: "Then maybe only by allowing the Poles to hold a referendum on the east bank of the Neman River, we will know what they really want." ”

After taking a sip of coffee, Li Hongzhang said: "In short, China believes that equality and freedom are the basic rights that people in both the East and the West should obtain, and they are also the rights that Chinese citizens should enjoy. I consider the peace conference to be a success only when an agreement was reached to restrain Russia from carrying out its policy of aggression and expansion, and when it no longer posed a threat to our territory and the lives and property of our people. ”

Unconsciously, Li Hongzhang linked the ownership of the Russian and Polish regions with the peace talks between the empire and Russia, and perhaps also made the secret agreement between the three countries lose its own rational basis.

Following Ye Zhao's side, the set of "freedom and equality" is very familiar, but in fact, the fate of the Poles, in the eyes of Li Hongzhang, is naturally just a bargaining chip.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Looking at people, it doesn't count as an explosion in ten chapters, I'm really Alexander.

But I don't have that ability.,I can only write slowly.,Thank you for your monthly pass and message.,I've read the message.,I'm busy now and I don't have time to reply.。

Good buddy two snakes rewarded the master, the new book is on the shelves, right, I haven't been able to leave a word, sweat to death, wait for the day after tomorrow.

In short, the number of votes this month, thank you really for your enthusiastic support, you have enough energy to join the army, and it is enough to have a confidant in life, not to mention so many friends who enthusiastically support joining the army.

(To be continued)