Seeing that direct opposition to the armistice was unlikely to succeed, Rykov was ready to retreat and force the Central Committee to pass a resolution to return to a state of war as soon as it was found that the Germans had violated the armistice.

Some comrades may ask, if there is a discrepancy between the facts and Rykov's speculation, and the Germans are honest and do not violate this agreement, then Rykov has not worked in vain?

But how can it be in vain? Dirty politicians and politicians have always done anything to achieve their own ends, and in Rykov's view, it did not matter at all whether Germany had violated the agreement or not, but what mattered was that if he insisted that the Germans had violated the agreement, it was possible to overturn the agreement that made him unhappy.

Soon, some comrades are going to say again, author, you are talking nonsense, if whatever Rykov says is nothing, then if you directly deny the armistice agreement, it will not be over, why go and seek the next best?

This question is easy to answer, it is naturally impossible to negate this agreement by relying on Rykov's strength alone, but you must see that Rykov is not fighting alone, he not only has a brother like Kamenev by his side, but even Britain, France, the United States, Japan and other entente countries are also on the same front with him.

For the other Allies, a unilateral truce between the Polar Bears and the Germans was certainly unacceptable, and if they could break the agreement, they would do anything to do it. It is not particularly difficult to have Rykov and Kamenev and the like, and the Entente countries behind the scenes, insisting that the Germans have violated the agreement, and this is where Rykov's confidence lies.

According to Rykov's inference, Lenin would probably not have accepted such a restriction. Will definitely argue with him on this issue. Fight with the word. And this is a good opportunity for him to take advantage of. As long as Lenin opposed his proposal, he could make the Central Committee members present think that the armistice agreement was not binding on the Germans at all, and that the compromise and capitulation faction led by Lenin was trying to get away with it by such means.

Once such an impression is created, then in the next vote, Rykov has something to do, and it is possible to even reject the paper agreement in one fell swoop.

However, what Rykov could not have imagined at all was that Lenin did not have anything to do with him at all. He did not object to his conditions, but agreed to his request with a wave of his hand: "Comrade Rykov's proposal is reasonable, and in order to ensure the interests of the people of the Entente bloc and to prove our party's determination to safeguard the interests of the allies, this proposal is very good!" I support it! ”

The mentors have said that they support it, so who dares to say that they don't support it? At the urging of his old man, the Central Committee immediately agreed on an armistice, which was almost unanimously adopted.

This scene made Rykov was shocked, he couldn't figure out why the mentor would jump into his trap, don't you know that there is a loophole in it? Anyway, with the political wisdom of Rykov. Can't figure out what this is for? And he didn't have the heart to think about it, because he felt that he had the upper hand. It was imperative to accuse the Germans of violating the agreement, and to put pressure on the Central Committee to make the agreement a waste paper as soon as possible.

Therefore, Rykov was completely ignorant of this, and the mentor had already made a full plan for this, because before the meeting began, Sverdlov had this concern: "There are some comrades who will fiercely oppose the armistice, and even if the armistice agreement we have reached is completely fair and reasonable, they will turn a blind eye...... They oppose the armistice by all means and methods, some are directly opposed, and more likely, some small means that are completely unacceptable......"

Rykov's trick is naturally what Sverdlov called "a small trick that cannot be put on the table", and the mentor has already had a way to deal with it: "These people are very likely to make a fuss about prohibiting Germany from transferring troops from the Eastern Front to the Western Front, will concoct some fake news, spread some fake news, will set up a target for themselves, and then attack desperately...... In this regard, our response is to respond to all changes with the same change, and first try to get the Central Committee to adopt the armistice agreement, which is our first and most important work, and once the armistice agreement is passed, we can completely ignore these small means! ”

"But what if they push the Central Committee to pass some mandatory resolutions?" ”

"That's not a big deal!" Lenin replied lightly, "Whoever asserts the evidence will only have to ask them for evidence, and if there is no evidence, they will only be farting!" ”

Sverdlov was stunned for a moment, and then came back to his senses, it would be very difficult to find evidence of the Germans' violation of the agreement, because even if the Germans did it, it would be very hidden, and where it would be easy to find evidence.

If the goods of Rykov and his ilk were ready to attack with a little gossip and gossip, then the mentor would definitely slap them twice in the face at the Central Committee. And to take a step back, it will take time for these people to create public opinion and make a big noise to slander the Germans.

And as long as the armistice agreement is passed first, and a de facto armistice is reached, it will definitely be good for the mentor who has been under a lot of pressure during this time. After all, the armistice has been a very important topic since the February Revolution, but both the Cadets and the Social Revolutionaries have never been thunder or rain during the nine months they have been in power, not only have there been no armistice, but they have also launched a large-scale offensive against Germany (and suffered a crushing defeat).

It can be said that the millions of soldiers on the front line, as well as tens of millions of families in the rear, are very disgusted by politicians saying one thing and doing another. And now, after only a month in power, they, the Bolsheviks, have de facto reached an armistice, even if only temporarily, and it is no less than a shot in the arm for the Russian people, who are exhausted by the war.

It is conceivable that the armistice agreement will greatly enhance the confidence of the common people in the Bolsheviks, greatly enhance the political influence of the Bolsheviks, and greatly consolidate the political authority of the Mentor.

As long as the armistice is passed, so to speak. The influence of the Mentor and the Bolsheviks will flourish. At that time, it will be a great response to the provocations of the opposition in the party during this period. Create a good political atmosphere for the difficult peace talks.

In other words, as long as the armistice is passed, it will be a victory for the Mentor. As to whether the Germans had violated the agreement, these were secondary, and even if Rykov and his ilk had tried to defuse it with the great consolidation of the political authority of the Mentor.

It can also be seen from this that Lenin did have more political foresight than Kamenev and Rykov and the like. Those two goods will only be entangled in some trivial things, and they can't see the overall situation and the long term, and they will always be teased by the mentor.

Even, in terms of the details, these goods are not really thorough, they think that as long as they create momentum, they can make the Mentor submit, but the Mentor does not even give them the opportunity to create momentum.

"Inform the Cheka to intensify their efforts, especially strict censorship. Any gossip that is not scrutinized and has no real evidence is not allowed to appear in the newspapers! In particular, it is necessary to crack down on those malicious rumors. The counter-revolutionaries who spread false news must be resolute and tough when they find out and deal with them one by one, and must not let their nonsense affect the overall situation of the revolution! ”

If Rykov had known that Lenin had made the corresponding arrangements before the meeting, he would not have been so naïve as he tried to spread the false news, and soon he would have bled on his head.

After the armistice was adopted, there was prolonged and enthusiastic applause, and even the members of the Central Committee in the audience congratulated Trotsky, who really thought that the armistice was really a credit to the People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs.

"Comrade Trotsky, your work is so good, that in less than a month you have been able to do what the Cadets and the Social Revolutionaries could not do in more than half a year, and this fully demonstrates your good leadership!"

"Yes, yes! Comrade Trotsky is definitely the first credit! Without your leadership, Comrade Yue Fei and Comrade Radek would never have been able to achieve results so quickly, which fully shows that the train runs fast because of the headband......"

Sverdlov scoffed at these shameless boasts, and the fact that an armistice agreement could be reached had little to do with Trotsky, and even if it did, his role might have been negative, and if it had not been for Li Xiaofeng's timely delivery of information, there would have been no progress in the negotiations at all.

Anyway, Sverdlov felt that if he were Trotsky, he would not be able to listen to these disgusting sycophants with a smile, so he said to his mentor sourly: "Some of our comrades really take all this as his own credit, and I blush for him!" ”

Lenin smiled indifferently, he knew Trotsky better than Sverdlov, don't look at the smile on his face now, but in his heart it is definitely not as relaxed and happy as it seems, and he is afraid that he is just forcing a smile at this time.

It was indeed a forced smile, Trotsky now had a smile on his face, but in his heart there were tears! At the Politburo meeting held first, he touched his head in the bag, and Lenin cleaned it up in a disgraced manner.

At the very beginning of the meeting, Lenin asked straight to the point: "Comrade Trotsky, have you made progress in the negotiations with Germany?" ”

Trotsky knew very well that there was no progress, not only because the Germans were not easy to deal with, but also because the communication between the two sides was not smooth. It is even more because Yue Fei and Radek, who presided over the negotiations, are essentially opposed to compromise with Germany, and the bottom line they insist on in their hearts is too high, so it is naturally difficult to reach a consensus.

However, he could not directly answer that there was no progress, and could only say vaguely: "Comrade Yue Fei and Comrade Radek are working hard, but the conditions of the Germans are unacceptable for the time being!" ”

Lenin nodded slowly, as if accepting Trotsky's words, but only Sverdlov, who was watching from the sidelines, knew that the Mentor was playing tricks, and that Trotsky had bitten the hook.

"It is understandable that there is no peace agreement on all fronts for the time being," Lenin seemed to be very understanding, but immediately he changed his tone and asked: "Is it possible to reach a temporary truce, even if it is acceptable for a short time!" ”

Trotsky muttered to this question that a temporary truce was not impossible, but he was not inclined to do so.

First of all, it's easy to tell the truth. In accordance with the previously established diplomatic course. The central government was inclined to reach a joint truce between the warring parties. However, the Entente group refused, and if Russia and the Allies unilaterally ceased war, it would be suspected of betraying its allies and might be passive diplomatically.

Secondly, according to Trotsky's personal ideals, he also tended to wait for change, and in his view a revolution in Germany was inevitable as long as it broke out. Then Russia can completely turn the passive into the active, and peace can be reached without ceding land and paying reparations.

Therefore, he did not want to reach an armistice just like that, because once a temporary peace was reached, Lenin's temper would certainly have to speed up and move immediately towards a truly comprehensive peace. And if we do this now, it will be very bad for Russia.

To sum up, Trotsky was resistant, though not fully manifested, to a unilateral truce between Russia and the Central Powers. However, if you don't work hard, it is entirely possible to grind foreign workers.

"Personally, I think it's still necessary to take care of the mood of the Entente. To avoid our diplomatic isolation, our unilateral truce with the Allies will harm their interests, and the possibility of Germany and Austria transferring troops from the Eastern Front to the Western Front to launch a new offensive cannot be ruled out! If this happens, I am afraid that the Entente will create public opinion and slander us in front of the people of the Entente bloc...... In the long run, this is not conducive to our future revolutionary cause......"

Trotsky said a lot, but in fact the central idea was one, to resist the armistice under the guise of avoiding diplomatic passivity. However, Lenin was already aware of this: "Can Comrade Yue Fei and Comrade Radek do a job of clarifying our concerns to Germany and Austria and include in the armistice agreement a clause that they must guarantee that the troops of the Eastern Front will not be transferred to the Western Front during the armistice?" ”

Trotsky did not expect Lenin to say that if Germany accepted such an armistice, then the excuse he had made would be completely non-existent, that is, that the armistice was inevitable, and he really did not want to take such a big step.

After thinking about it for a moment, he said hesitantly: "From what I know, the attitude of the Germans is very tough, and it cannot be ruled out that they have a plan to launch a new offensive on the Western Front by taking advantage of the truce with us, so I am afraid they will not accept such conditions!" ”

Sverdlov was waiting for this sentence, and according to the previous plan, now it was his turn to jump out and slap him in the face, "Comrade Trotsky, I think this is just your subjective speculation, right?" ”

Trotsky's face suddenly changed, and he asked unhappily: "Comrade Yakov, what do you mean by that?" ”

Sverdlov immediately pushed back: "My meaning is very clear, this is just your personal speculation, it does not mean that the Germans cannot accept such armistice conditions!" ”

Trotsky was a little annoyed, but patiently asked: "How can you have such an opinion?" Comrade Yue Fei and Comrade Radek have already fed back their conditions after contacting the German delegation, don't you see? ”

Trotsky secretly changed the concept here, and after the first round of contact, the Germans offered very harsh conditions, but it must be noted that these were not conditions for an armistice, but for an end to the war.

These two concepts are completely different, the armistice is only temporary, and before a peace agreement is reached, the two sides of the armistice can resume the state of war at any time, for example, the south and the north in the future, that is, the armistice.

It is clear that here the conditions offered by the Germans for the end of the war were not equal to those for a temporary armistice, and Trotsky was intending to confuse the two concepts.

Sverdlov naturally did not fall for it, and immediately pointed out with a burst of blood: "These are two completely different concepts, may I ask you, do the Germans say that an armistice can only be reached if we accept those harsh conditions!" Mind you, it's a truce! ”

Trotsky did not speak, the Germans really did not prescribe too harsh conditions for the armistice, it should be said that there were no conditions at all. Now that he has been exposed to Sverdlov's face, what else can he say?

However, the fact that Trotsky did not speak did not mean that Lenin and Sverdlov would let him go, and Comrade Xiao Si immediately pressed forward with a hot iron: "Comrade Trotsky, I would like to ask you, has the People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs negotiated with the Germans on the question of the armistice, and does it understand the attitude of the Germans towards the armistice?" ”

......Trotsky struggled for a long time, and could only reply stubbornly: "Of course, Comrade Yue Fei and Comrade Radek have made contact with Germany on this issue, and as I said before, the contact was not very smooth!" ”

"Are the Germans creating obstacles?" Sverdlov pressed forward step by step, and Trotsky must make it clear.

Trotsky was genuinely embarrassed, and when he was cornered, he could only ask rhetorically: "Could it be that we are creating obstacles?" ”

Whoever thought that Sverdlov was waiting for this sentence, he immediately seized the opportunity and dealt Trotsky the fatal blow: "I doubt that this is the case!" ”

As he spoke, he slapped the information obtained by a certain immortal in front of Trotsky and slapped him in the face: "According to the information that Comrade Andrei got from the German embassy in Sweden, the Germans did not set up obstacles for the armistice!" It was even guaranteed that during the armistice, troops from the Eastern Front would not be transferred to the Western Front. Are such conditions harsh and unacceptable? Do you have anything to explain about this? Comrade Trotsky? (To be continued......)