"This treaty is intended to put an end to the state of war between the Allies and Soviet Russia. As States Parties to this Treaty, the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Kingdom of Italy, the Ottoman Empire, the Kingdom of Romania and the Soviet Union shall be legally bound by the Treaty and shall enter into force upon the exchange of instruments of ratification after its signature. Trotsky's gaze froze, as if he did not dare to look down at the following provisions; He gritted his teeth, and finally cast his gaze on the dense Russian alphabet below.

"1. The state of war between Soviet Russia and the camp of the Central Powers was terminated. All Russian troops were fully demobilized, and naval warships returned to port and disarmed, a process that had to be carried out under the full supervision of the Central Powers. During this period, the Allies promised not to carry out military operations against Soviet Russia. ”

"2. Soviet Russia recognizes the independence of Finland and Georgia and is obliged to sign a new peace agreement with the two countries."

"3. Soviet Russia renounces its sovereignty over Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Russian Poland, Belarus and Ukraine. The future state of affairs in these regions was determined by the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the Kingdom of Romania. Russia withdrew from the provinces of Adakhan, Kars, and Batumi, and was given full control by the Ottoman Empire. Before he knew it, Trotsky's pupils had contracted to a point, and green tendons had jumped on his thin forehead; He forcibly suppressed the surging tide of anger in his heart, and turned a new page of the memo in front of him with his hand. Although Trotsky was now tempted to turn the table, he still had to see how much appetite the other side was prepared to dismember and slaughter Russia into.

……

"7. To show the sincerity of peace. The Russian government shall surrender 2,000 locomotives and 30,000 carriages to the Central Powers within two months from the date of the signing of this treaty. The Russian Army handed over half of its heavy machine guns, all heavy guns with a caliber of 100 mm or more, and 100,000 tons of ammunition. The Soviet and Russian navies handed over all warships with a displacement of more than 10,000 tons, and the unfinished capital ships that had been launched were also handed over to the Central Powers for safekeeping. ”

"8. Soviet Russia shall open its free trade market to the Allies and shall not establish exclusive tariff barriers."

"9. Soviet Russia is required to pay to the Allies war reparations of 30 billion marks, to be repaid in twenty-five installments. The last payment date must not exceed December 31, 1923. ”……

The fire jumps, and the clock chimes. The vast negotiating room was silent, except for the rustle of the Bolshevik delegates turning over papers and their increasingly heavy breathing. German State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Kidren waited calmly in his seat, without the slightest impatience on his face: he had survived so many years before, and now how could he be in a hurry to wait for the last moment before the feast?

Look around. The expressions of the representatives of the rest of the countries varied. The Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister, Count Berchdold, was flushed. Eager to try, it seems that they are ready to lash out at the gang of mud-legged people in front of them who have no noble background: as a long-cherished feud with Russia since the founding of the state, the people of the Habsburg Dynasty have dreamed of today's scene and longed for it for a long time. Since boarding the German chariot, Vienna has achieved a spectacular reversal in the game with St. Petersburg: both in the Berlin Agreement of 1878. Or the Bosnian crisis of 1908. The Russian giants are serialized on them. And Austria-Hungary has also squeezed into the club of the world's top powers. This time, they looked down on their opponents with an overwhelming advantage. Although Austria-Hungary itself did not win on the battlefield, on the contrary, it was mostly defeated. But who calls their allies so powerful? Being able to choose a good ally is also a kind of strength!

Compared with the excitement of the Austrians, the Italian Foreign Minister Sonillo was much calmer; A body of at least 150kg of fat sat quietly on the only iron chair in the room, but in those soybean-sized eyes, there was a flash of greed from time to time. For the Mediterranean country, the Russian battlefield in Eastern Europe had nothing to do with them, and the Italians were able to sit in this room this time because of the bet that Giulliti had placed on Germany. Since he is a member of the Central Powers and one of the undisputed European powers, it is natural that he will have to make a fortune in this negotiation. The Italians had little idea of the land, but their thirst for wealth was unequivocal: the presence of the Foreign Minister Sonillo was enough to see the Roman government's desire to get a piece of the feast!

Zemar, one of the three giants of the Ottoman Empire, was sitting upright with his back straight at the moment. As a representative of another feud in Russia, Zemar's face was also full of hatred and happiness that had been avenged. Compared to Austria-Hungary, the Turks and Russians had a deeper enmity between them: this was the 11th major war they had fought with the Russians in more than 240 years. Due to the weakening of the Ottoman Empire, the Turks retreated again and again in the previous wars, losing all their Black Sea territories except for the Asia Minor Peninsula; Now that he has finally seized such an opportunity to turn the tables, how can he not kill this enemy? Even the Romanians were equally interested in the conference on the division of the spoils, and they had long coveted Russian land and wealth, but they simply did not have the strength to move St. Petersburg's mind beforehand.

Looking at the different faces of the delegates from various countries, Kidren couldn't help but sigh quietly in his heart. The current round of negotiations is only the beginning of the game, and the members of the Allied Powers also have conflicting demands against each other: the reason why everyone is still able to come together is simply because the current common enemy, Russia, has not yet been completely settled, and needs to cut a bigger pie from it as much as possible. Once the cake has been cut, there will inevitably be considerable disagreements among the members of the Allies over distribution: and Germany will have to spend even more energy on resolving these disputes than it is at present!

It didn't take long for Trotsky to close the memo in front of him. His face was heavy, and he said slowly: "With regard to this treaty, with the exception of Articles 1 and 8, the Soviet Government will not dare to agree to it. What is the precedent for such a reparation? We have come to Brest by train of 1,100 kilometers this time in order to sincerely negotiate peace with your country, and I have absolutely no intention of half of it. If I return to St. Petersburg with this treaty, not only will the angry crowd tear me to pieces, but the regime of the Bolshevik Party will be difficult to guarantee. At that point, what will we do to fulfill our agreement with you? Therefore, we kindly ask you to consider carefully and make appropriate amendments to the current Terms. ”

"Mr. Trotsky, there are a few questions I would like to make clear to you first. You were the first to propose the armistice talks, so you need to show sufficient sincerity for peace. And this kind of sincerity can only be expressed in the armistice treaty at the government level, and the rest of the individual statements cannot be reflected. I believe that Your Excellency should be very clear about this. Kidren met Trotsky's eyes and said unhurriedly.

Kidren paused, and then said: "In addition, it is precisely because your country took the lead in issuing a 24-hour ultimatum to our Germany that this war broke out in Eastern Europe. If it weren't for your country stabbing this sharp dagger behind us, Germany, which was advancing westward with all its might, would have completely defeated Britain and France in the Battle of the Marne, where would there be the current situation on the Western Front, which has lasted for more than half a year but is still unresolved? Going back to the roots, your country will undoubtedly bear full responsibility for this war. Today's world is very different from any previous era, so it is only natural that peace treaties should be made slightly easier according to the times. ”

"At present, the armies of our allies have penetrated far into your territory, and your country lacks an army to defend against; If this situation continues, it will only take two months for our front to break through the territorial boundaries of the treaty. Therefore, our clause on Estonia, Belarus and Ukraine as the post-war national border has already shown great sincerity! As for the demobilization of the army and the surrender of some of its weapons, it is a very ordinary thing to do to guarantee peace. And on the question of reparations, shouldn't your country, which was the first to declare war on us and brazenly invade the German-Austrian mainland, make compensatory reparations for its crimes? Kidren added with a grimace.

Austria-Hungary Foreign Minister Berchdald listened impatiently, and immediately grabbed the conversation, and said coldly: "Mr. Trotsky, these terms have been determined by our allies after examining the current situation, and each one is completely reasonable. If you are unwilling to accept our kindness, we can only express our deepest regret and be forced to choose to plow with the sword for the reasonable gains we deserve. ”

Seeing that the other party refused to eat hard and soft, and always clung to the word profit, Trotsky felt bitter in his heart, and his eyes under those lenses also lost some of their brilliance. The situation is just as he thought before he came, it is developing in the worst direction, and he has no hole cards in his hand and no confidence to fight back! He was silent for a long time, and finally spoke: "Two gentlemen, I hope to communicate with our government in order to vote on your proposal. The stakes are too great for me to represent the opinion of the whole Bolshevik in one person. ”

Kidren smiled and nodded, "As it should be." However, I would also like to ask your Government to respond expeditiously, as the current peace treaty has not yet entered into force and our forces are still attacking forward. (To be continued......)

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