(Thank you for the reward of the book friend sample ★2, and thank the book friend for taking off the confused monthly pass)

The negotiators on the western Sichuan side were Liang Xingrong, Song Zhengping and Wang Yuze. Among them, Liang Xingrong is mainly in charge, and Wang Yuze is just going to observe. On the Manchu side, a delegation composed of Prince Gong Yixin, Prince Li Shiduo and Xu Gengshen, the secretary of the Ministry of War. According to the agreement, the parties were allowed to bring only five staff members and ten guards, except for the negotiators. Lest there be any attempt by one party to sabotage the negotiations. Of course, both the Qing army in the city and the western Sichuan army were also prepared. In the event of an accident, they will go all out to call on their respective negotiators.

Ministers from various countries were also present at the negotiation site, and on the one hand, they would ensure the fairness of the negotiations. On the other hand, they needed to help the Manchus so that they would not be overly weakened.

At 10 o'clock in the morning of the 7th, the direct negotiations between Western Sichuan and the Manchus officially began, and the ministers of various countries also arrived, in addition to the ministers of the five countries, the ministers of Japan, Austria-Hungary, Italy, and other countries also arrived. Although, this negotiation has nothing to do with them. However, this will undoubtedly be a negotiation that will completely change the situation in the Far East, so the countries attach great importance to it.

In particular, Japan, after more than two decades since the beginning of the Meiji Restoration, has entered the fast lane of development. Although it cannot be compared with the Manchus in terms of economic strength, the gap is not very large. I believe that it will not be long before they will be able to catch up with and surpass the Manchus in terms of economic and military strength. In this case, the rise of western Sichuan is a very big threat to Japan. Japan is an island nation. There is a shortage of various resources, and if you want to develop, you must expand your living space. And the weakened Manchus were exactly their target. Therefore. In this negotiation, Taro Kawaguchi, the Japanese minister to China, was also uninvited.

"Ladies and gentlemen, for the sake of peace in the Far East and China, an armistice has been established between Western Sichuan and the Qing Kingdom through the mediation of the British Empire and other countries. The dispute between the two sides will also be carried out through this negotiation. I hope that peace will lead to the Far East. God willing! British Minister Ogna said. This time, the UK is the main mediator, therefore. The heavy responsibility of presiding over the negotiations fell on Ogna.

Whether it was the western Sichuan side or the Manchu side, they all smiled and nodded. Although some time ago the two sides were still saber-rattling enemies, after the truce was achieved. Both sides have to hide their hatred for the time being.

After Ogner's ramblings, direct negotiations between Kawanishi and the Manchus began.

"Ahem! Director Liang, Deputy Director Song, Wang Shaoshuai. This war was simply a mistake. Now, I've realized this mistake. Therefore, it is hoped that the war will be ended at an early date. For this reason, we are willing to pay a sufficient price in exchange for peace. With the consent of the Queen Mother. We decided to compensate Kawanishi for the war losses of five million taels of silver. In addition, Qinghai and Gansu provinces. It will be handed over to Kawanishi to govern on its behalf! Prince Gong Yixin coughed, and then said. He's got a good plan. Relying on the support of the great powers, the indemnity of 200 million taels of silver proposed by Wang Yuze was directly reduced to 5 million taels, which was directly reduced by 20 times. On the territory, not only did they not plan to cede Shaanxi, Henan, Hunan, and Guangxi proposed by Wang Yuze, but they also planned to take back Shaanxi, Hubei, and Yunnan-Guizhou occupied by western Sichuan. Such conditions simply made Chuan Xibai busy for a while! After paying such a huge price, the bamboo basket was empty.

After Prince Gong's words were finished, the representative of Western Sichuan suddenly changed his face, and the Manchu Qing was obviously bullying people. Is this like the words of a defeated man? Why is it that there is no consciousness of the vanquished at all?

The ministers of various countries also exclaimed, they were aware of the conditions proposed by Kawanishi. Although there is a suspicion of a lion opening his mouth in western Sichuan, he asks for a price all over the sky and pays back the money on the ground. It's just that the Manchu Qing Dynasty is inevitably a little too ruthless.

"His Royal Highness Prince Gong, is this the answer of the Manchu government?" Liang Xingrong asked with squinted eyes. Although, there was not much expression on his face, he was undoubtedly irritated by Prince Gong's reply.

"Yes, that's our answer!" Prince Gong nodded.

"In that case, there's no need to talk about it. We'll see you on the battlefield! Before Liang Xingrong could recover, Wang Yuze stood up. He was not yet twenty years old, and it was when he was young and vigorous, and this reply from the Manchu government immediately made him very angry.

"Wang Wei, order the troops to prepare for the siege! I want this Jingshi's defense to be strong! Wang Yuze ordered directly. With the arrival of the mission, they also brought a batch of supplies, especially a batch of shells that were in short supply, which suddenly made Wang Yuze feel a lot more confident.

"Ahh Prince Gong and the others were immediately dumbfounded, they didn't expect Wang Yuze's reaction to be so fierce. If one is not satisfied, the negotiations will be terminated, and troops will be sent to attack the city and directly break the truce.

The ministers of several countries also discussed one after another, could it be that the direct war between Western Sichuan and the Manchu Qing Dynasty was about to start again? Aren't all their previous efforts in vain?

"Your Excellency Young Marshal, if the conditions are unreasonable, you can talk about it again, and you can't start a war again!" The British minister Ogener hurriedly grabbed Wang Yuze. If Wang Yuze summoned an army to attack the city, it was really difficult to say whether the current Qing army could hold the city of Beijing. And the mediation of several countries has undoubtedly failed.

"Humph! The Manchu government, were they defeated? Is there the slightest sense of the vanquished? If this is their final condition, then there is no need for me to continue this negotiation. So as not to waste everyone's time, we should still fight it out on the battlefield! Wang Yuze said coldly.

The faces of the three representatives of the Manchu Qing Dynasty were not very good. Especially Prince Gong, his face is gloomy and can drip water. It was Prince Li's Shi Duo, although his face was not very good, but a smile flashed in his eyes. The reply to Kawanishi was put forward by Prince Gong. He also proposed that this reply would definitely not satisfy Kawanishi, in case it angered Kawanishi and the war broke out again, then what would the Qing Dynasty do to resist Kawanishi? However, Prince Gong insisted on doing so, relying on the support of the great powers. Well, now it's finally happening!

"Director Liang, Shaoshuai Wang. This is just our preliminary observation. If you are not satisfied, we can negotiate the conditions. Prince Li Shiduo hurriedly said. When he said this, he had the meaning of easing the stiff atmosphere of the two sides, and also had the meaning of slapping Prince Gong Yixin in the face, which can be described as killing two birds with one stone!

"If Kawanishi is not satisfied with this condition, then we can talk again!" Prince Gong Yixin also said with a difficult face. If he couldn't make a truce with western Sichuan, then he wouldn't be able to explain to the Empress Dowager Cixi. At that time, his dream of foreign affairs and the dream of Zhongxing in the Qing Dynasty will be empty talk. Although he knew that Prince Li Shiduo was deliberately humiliating him, he still had to endure it and focus on the overall situation.

It wasn't until Prince Gong Yixin had softened that Wang Yuze sat down again. He knew that if he wanted to restart the war, the great powers would definitely not agree. The reason why he used this as a threat was just to create greater benefits for Kawanishi.

"Director Liang, what about your conditions?" Prince Gong took a deep breath to calm his mind, and then asked.

"Our conditions are as follows: First, the Manchu government will compensate the military expenses and various losses in western Sichuan, totaling 200 million taels of silver. Second, the four provinces of Shanxi, Henan, Hunan, and Guangxi were ceded to western Sichuan. In addition, the places already occupied by western Sichuan are not counted. Third, the waterway of the Yangtze River should be completely opened, so that ships in western Sichuan can navigate freely on the Yangtze River. Fourth, the Manchu Qing Dynasty opened all its markets to western Sichuan. Five....... Liang Xingrong took out a copy of the text that had been prepared a long time ago and began to read it. However, every time he read a message, the faces of the three representatives of the Manchu Qing Dynasty darkened a little. After reading the Ten Articles, the faces of the three representatives of the Manchu Qing Dynasty were as black as the bottom of a pot.

"No, the other party's conditions are too harsh, we can't accept it!" Prince Gong Yixin immediately refused.

"We can't accept your reply either!" Liang Xingrong returned-for-tat.

Subsequently, the two sides began a quarrel of words, and for the sake of their own interests, they had already put aside the etiquette of a scholar. It's just that the differences between the two sides are too strict, and after a day of arguing, they can't reach an agreement.

The first day of negotiations was spent in a heated bickering. Nothing was agreed between the two sides.

The next day, negotiations continued. Perhaps, in order to speed up the negotiation into the city, the ministers of the five countries also joined in, one moment suppressing the conditions of western Sichuan, and the other time accusing the Manchu side of the lack of sincerity. However, in general, with the exception of the German minister Lucas, the rest of them were towards the Manchus. However, Kawanishi will not sit still. Wang Yuze even threatened to negotiate in the middle section and resume the war on several occasions to force the Manchu delegates to agree to the conditions of western Sichuan.

And the great powers, on the other hand, also intervened with strong means to oppress the side of western Sichuan, even if it came down the next day. The differences between the two sides are still very large, and there is no possibility of reaching an agreement at all.

"Shaanxi, Hubei and Yungui are already under the control of our western Sichuan army, and it is impossible for us to spit it out. Shaanxi, Hunan, Henan, and Guangxi, are also within our range of attack, and as long as we want, the Western Sichuan Army can occupy these places lightly! Song Zhengping said. He was reminding the Manchu government that the Manchus were now powerless to fight back on the battlefield.

However, the Manchus had the support of the great powers, and even if they lost on the battlefield, they were still full of confidence and fought with the western Sichuan side, which made the progress of the negotiations very slow. In the final analysis, whether it is Western Sichuan or the Manchu Qing Dynasty, they are just trying to maximize their own interests as much as possible.

ps: The three watches are complete! ……)