"We have received the most coveted ultimatum from Kuhlmann, head of the German negotiating delegation!" At an emergency meeting of the Politburo, Lenin worriedly said, "The situation is quite serious, the Germans threaten to end the armistice immediately and launch a full-scale attack on us!" ”

Speaking of this, Lenin glanced at the faces of several Politburo members and alternate members present, Trotsky seemed to be indifferent, Dzerzhinsky had no expression on his face, Ulitsky's sick face clearly wrote the words indifference, and Bublov lowered his head and could not see any expression.

Suddenly, Lenin was half cold, and four of the seven Politburo members did not take his words seriously, and it seemed impossible to force a resolution to agree to the conditions of the Germans.

Thinking of this, Lenin sighed and continued: "Comrades, tell me your opinion, whether to fight or to fight is in your thoughts, time is already very short, we must make a decision as soon as possible!" ”

Trotsky slowly raised his head and said: "I do not think these harsh conditions can be accepted, the Cadets, the Social Revolutionaries and the Mensheviks are constantly attacking us for betraying the country. In this case, agreeing to the conditions of the Germans, I'm afraid, will put us in political passivity! ”

Lenin glanced up at him and asked, "You mean refusal?" ”

"I didn't say that!" Trotsky replied slyly, "I mean no war or peace, neither to reach an agreement with the Germans nor to continue this war, we can completely unilaterally demobilize the army......"

Before Trotsky could finish speaking, Stalin sneered contemptuously: "No war, no peace? Unilateral demobilization of the army? It's a joke, what if the Germans don't agree? What if they continue to attack? What to do? ”

Trotsky suddenly stopped talking. In fact, the reason why he proposed the middle line of no war and no peace. It is nothing more than to guarantee one's own political correctness. Both Lenin's appeasement and Bukharin's line of using revolutionary war against imperialist war were problematic in his view.

Needless to say, Lenin's appeasement was now the finger of a thousand people, and Trotsky did not have the courage to support it anyway. And Bukharin's declaration of battle, although it now appeals to the psychology of the majority of the people, is not a small problem in Trotsky's view, because it is simply impossible for Russia to continue fighting. Moreover, the battle could not resist the attack of the Germans, and the result was still over.

He doesn't like these two opinions, so he can only take the middle and mud route, and no war and discord can be regarded as unconventional, with a little bit of the golden mean. But like Stalin said, the idea is still fucked up, you want to drag out time without a fight or a discord? The question is whether the Germans promised? The pressure of other soldiers' soldiers can't tolerate you pulling calves!

"So, now we can only use the revolutionary war against the imperialist war!" At last Ulitsky spoke, but it was strange that the tone of the thing was not directed against Trotsky. It turned out to be the one that preached Bukharin.

Strange? Not surprising at all!

This is where the cleverness of the guy Trotsky is manifested, and the reason why he chose to be muddy. It was to have room to advance and retreat, and in case Bukharin's route was not right, he still had steps down. In fact, his true attitude is no different from that of Bukharin. So it was only natural that his iron brother and his henchmen would sing praises for Bukharin.

Sverdlov spoke slowly: "However, I must remind you, Comrade Ulitsky, that our troops at the front are simply not vulnerable to a battle. If the battle resumes, there could be a fiasco! ”

Ulitsky was not convinced: "Even if we will fail, the Germans will not be able to wipe us all out in one go, as long as we persist, the Germans will soon collapse from the inside!" ”

Sverdlov snorted coldly and sneered: "The problem is that we can't hold on, and I must remind you that if there is another great rout, our door will be opened, and those counter-revolutionaries of the bourgeoisie are actively planning a military coup, and they are planning to destroy us by the hands of the Germans." How can we be fooled! ”

Ulitz basically didn't like Sverdlov, and it was he who colluded with a certain immortal last time to put him together, and he had long wanted to avenge this revenge. Now that the enemy was very angry when he saw each other, he immediately got into trouble with Sverdlov: "Then you mean that we can only surrender and can only be traitors!" It's your attitude that's really wrong! ”

"Traitor? I must warn you that you are no different from those of the Protectors! Sverdlov was not polite, and immediately sarcastically said: "Their lessons are already there, the Cadets and Social Revolutionaries are not traitors, but they have not held out for more than four months, do you want our party to be ousted from power?" ”

Seeing that Sverdlov was about to quarrel with Ulitsky, Lenin had to fight a round, and the mentor was really not in the mood to quarrel today, he was desperate to solve the problem, and at the current pace, I am afraid that the Politburo would split first.

"Well, let's vote first, comrades who agree to the answer to the conditions of the Germans, raise your hands!"

Of course, Lenin did not expect anything about the outcome of the vote, and Ulitsky, Bubnov, and Trotsky certainly would not agree, and the best result was three against three, and in reality the worst result was the worst, not even Dzerzhinsky agreed, and it is not surprising that Lenin's proposal was rejected.

Ulitsky was a little proud, and almost as soon as the results of the vote came out, he proposed: "It is obvious that the majority of comrades do not support this plan. I think it is necessary for the Central Committee to adopt a new resolution to fight the imperialist war with a revolutionary war. ”

Ulitsky was a little too naïve, and he was satisfied that the rejection of Lenin's proposal just now meant that most of them supported the fight to the end, but the facts slapped him in the face, and Lenin and the other three were the first to express their opposition. Only Bubnov expressed support. Neither Trotsky nor Dzerzhinsky did not say anything for the time being.

It is understandable that Trotsky did not take a position for the time being. After all, this product is a calculation at both ends of the snake and mouse, if there are many people who support Ulitsky, he will immediately choose to support it, if there are many people who oppose it, he will abstain, anyway, it depends on the wind and the rudder.

The temporary situation was three to two, and the focus of the whole audience was on the Man in the Iron Mask, and Dzerzhinsky's heart was heavy at this time. He naturally knew that his vote would play a crucial role. From the bottom of his heart, he was unwilling to accept the coercion of the Germans, but he also knew that it was unrealistic to fight in the end, so he was left and right, and he couldn't make up his mind!

After pondering for a long time, Dzerzhinsky said: "I am against it! ”

Well, at that time, Ulitsky's face was not ordinary ugly, just now he was full of joy and ready to slap Lenin in the face, who would have thought that Dzerzhinsky would change his attitude again in a blink of an eye, what do you mean by this? You do not support Lenin's proposal. You don't support my proposal, what are you trying to do?

Faced with Ulitsky's questioning. Dzerzhinsky calmly replied: "My attitude is clear, and for the time being, whether it is a compromise with Germany or the continuation of the war, there will be certain problems. I think that although the Germans put forward the ultimatum, it does not mean that they have blocked the door to peace talks. I believe that we should continue to communicate and negotiate with the Germans and strive to solve the problem by peaceful means! ”

"I also support the opinion of Comrade Felix!" Trotsky hastened to say that if he did not speak again, he would really be a soy sauce player, and that he did not want such a result: "I hope that the Central Committee will approve me to go to Brest in person to preside over the peace talks!" ”

Ulitsky was dumbfounded, this was not the same as what they had discussed before, before Trotsky meant to explicitly oppose compromise with Germany, why did he suddenly volunteer to go to Brest now?

He hurriedly reminded: "Comrade Trotsky, I think it would be better for you to stay and preside over the overall situation, right?" Yue Fei and Comrade Radek are completely trustworthy! ”

Trotsky cursed in his heart: "You know a fart!" "The Germans have put forward the ultimatum, if they want to continue peace talks, Yue Fei and Radek will definitely not be able to open the situation, and they will even refuse to negotiate with Yue Fei and Radek. At this time, only I, the legitimate People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, can continue to negotiate.

Of course, this was not that Trotsky was ready to sacrifice himself for the sake of the overall situation, he felt that it was beneficial for him to preside over the peace talks, first of all, to avoid Petrograd, a place of right and wrong, because during this period of time not only Lenin was under great pressure, but also his people's commissar for foreign affairs, not only the two factions in the party were putting pressure on him, but also those outside the party were constantly making trouble for him. This annoyed Trotsky. So he also has the heart to avoid the limelight.

Secondly, having him preside over the negotiations can greatly alleviate Kalinin's troubles for Yue Fei and Radek. Moreover, with him personally grasping the real-time dynamics of the negotiations, he can also adjust his political strategy more quickly.

However, Ulitsky was still not at ease, and after the meeting ended, he said worriedly: "How can you leave at this time? Finally, I'm back, we can occupy a little advantage in the Politburo, and you suddenly left at this time, isn't it for nothing? ”

"You don't understand!" Trotsky said earnestly, "It is precisely because we have the advantage in the Politburo that I can go with confidence, and with you and Comrade Bubnov, plus Dzerzhinsky, I can completely resist Lenin." I am going to preside over the negotiations at this time, and we can further control the overall situation! ”

"Forget it, Felix is not reliable at all, you didn't see his attitude at the meeting just now!" Ulitsky said contemptuously.

"It is precisely because of his attitude that I can leave with confidence!" Trotsky sighed again, "his attitude is very clear, neither Lenin nor Bukharin." Isn't this just for us? ”

Ulitsky was confused, "Didn't we support Bukharin?" ”

Trotsky was speechless, and said with hatred: "How can you support Bukharin?" We just used Bukharin to oppose Lenin, we went to support him? That's not a joke! ”

Ulitsky understood a little and nodded stunned, but Trotsky was really not at ease with this hardcore friend, and continued to explain: "Remember, after I leave, don't get too close to Bukharin. His assertion is also problematic. I'll wait until I'm in contact with the Germans. Don't just follow the crowd. And also! Don't get too close to the left of the Social Revolutionaries, those guys can't do much, now they just have to unite them! ”

Trotsky was wary of the left wing of the Social Revolutionaries, but his warnings fell on deaf ears of Ulitsky. In order to further expand his "advantage" over the Leninists, Ulitsky closely followed Bukharin's political tactics and completely became in tune with the left wing of the Socialist-Revolutionaries, and for a period of time his arrogance was not ordinary.

But. After Trotsky was forced to change his attitude and support Lenin at the most critical moment of the Brest negotiations, and with the signing of the Brest Pact, the Bolsheviks finally broke with the left of the Socialist-Revolutionaries. Ulitsky, who had previously fought with the left wing of the Social Revolutionaries, was also implicated.

At the 1918 National Congress of Party Members, he was not only elected as a member of the Politburo, but also as a member of the Central Committee.

At that time, anyway, Trotsky was very disappointed in this old friend. How can such a low-level mistake be made? He had already given a warning, how could you not listen to it?

Ulitsky himself played himself to death. But that's a later story, so I won't show it for the time being. At the same time as the Politburo held an emergency meeting, Li Xiaofeng, who was far away in Moscow, also received an unexpected guest.

"Mr. Akimovich, why did you come to see me in person?" Li Xiaofeng was indeed a little surprised by the visit of the German spy chief, but considering the changes at the negotiating table, this visit is also understandable.

"Didn't you knowingly ask?" Akimovich laughed dryly, "Tell your two companions to open their mouths to us, you can't just take advantage and do nothing!" ”

Li Xiaofeng also laughed dryly, and asked pretending to be confused: "Why can't I understand what you said?" ”

Akimovich sighed and said, "Mr. Andrei, don't pretend, I guess you found Henry early in the morning. Eugen is behind me, otherwise you wouldn't have made Mr. Erickson and Miss Victoria so unkind! Now, can we talk openly and honestly? ”

Li Xiaofeng shrugged his shoulders, and didn't have any psychological burden for being exposed, "You can't blame me, who likes to do things secretly and around the bush, you can't blame me for not being honest enough, right?" ”

The corners of Akimovich's mouth twitched twice, and he said that he could not complain about someone's shamelessness. He said, "Well, it was my mistake, I should have come straight to you in the first place." So now, can we get down to business? ”

Li Xiaofeng made a noncommittal gesture of please, and it seemed that he was the one who should take the initiative in the negotiations.

Akimovich didn't talk nonsense, and asked bluntly: "I really want to know what you want from the negotiations?" ”

Li Xiaofeng was also not polite, and said straight to the point: "No land cession and no compensation, the two countries will return to the state before the outbreak of the war......

Akimovich jumped straight from his chair and said angrily: "This is simply impossible!" ”

Li Xiaofeng was not angry at all, and asked angrily: "You say it's impossible?" ”

Akimovich then thought of what kind of monster he was facing, he quickly controlled his emotions, and said in a reluctant voice: "Of course it can't be, we can't accept this condition, it's an insult to Germany!" ”

Li Xiaofeng raised his eyelids and asked slowly, "Then what do you think is not an insult?" ”

Akimovich cleared his throat: "Our ultimatum is our bottom line, Russia must restore independence and ......freedom to Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania, Estonia and other countries that were plundered through aggression and expansion."

Before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Li Xiaofeng's sneer: "When did you Germans like to play this tune too?" If all you want to say is this pointless, get out of my house as soon as possible, lest you get my ears dirty!" ”

The corners of Akimovich's mouth twitched twice, and he looked at a certain immortal for a long time, as if he was thinking about where to go, and after a long time he said: "Mr. Andrei, my country is very sincere, but your previous conditions are completely unacceptable!" ”

Li Xiaofeng smiled and said, "My sincerity is also very strong!" Don't let you Germans return to the way they were before the Second Empire, and don't tell me that your land is God-given, and that not a single piece of land has been acquired through armed expansion. I'm not interested in hearing that kind of! ”

Akimovich finally got angry and said angrily: "But the tide of the war is in our favor, and you are almost unable to hold on!" ”

"Funny!" Li Xiaofeng sneered, "Is the battle really in your favor?" Even if you can get a series of victories on the Western Front, but what about the Eastern Front? Don't tell me that the Americans are going to war to be good for you. And even if you can take Petrograd, or even Moscow, you will be able to destroy Russia? The historical Napoleon also captured Moscow, and what was the final result? ”

Akimovich's face darkened a little, but Li Xiaofeng still said without hesitation: "Russia's territory is too vast, and the huge strategic depth has decided, we can afford to lose once or twice, but what about you?" As the front gets longer and longer, and as the Americans put more and more pressure on you, it only takes one defeat and you will collapse completely! Even if the battle drags on, you'll be doomed! Do you think I'm right? Mr. Akimovich! (To be continued......)