made an appointment to report to Xianliang Temple in the evening, but Long Qian couldn't shirk it. No one else could help with this matter, so he only brought David and Situ with him. For the upcoming negotiations, Long Qian positioned himself in a small role and would not play much of a role. Although he knew that the upcoming treaty would be a great damage to his country and would have a profound impact on history.

Long Qian and Situ Jun and David. When Di Wen arrived at Xianliang Temple, King Qing had already arrived. After explaining their identities, the Russian soldiers guarding Xianliang Temple let Long Qian and the three of them in.

Long Qian was the first time he met the famous Li Hongzhang.

"Wu Wei's right military standard, Long Qian, see Lord Zhongtang." Long Qian bowed to the worship.

"Get up and speak. General Long, the old man has been waiting for you for a long time. Li Hongzhang squinted his eyes and looked at Long Qian, who was slowly standing up.

What a majestic man! No wonder the foreigners are defeated! Li Hongzhang praised it from the bottom of his heart. The reality of Long Qian and the shadow in his heart slowly coincided, well, it should be like this.

Yesterday, Wu Yonglai, the main thing was to talk about this returned overseas Chinese general who killed foreigners, which triggered Li Hongzhang's infinite association, and now, this person is finally standing in front of him.

Long Qian was also looking at Li Hongzhang. It was discovered that this giant of modern China was actually a drooping old man, his hair was completely gray, his face was wrinkled, and he seemed to be sleeping, and he seemed to be running out of energy.

"Who are these two?" Li Hongzhang's gaze fell on David. Long Qian's ass was followed by a blonde and blue-eyed foreigner wearing a New Army uniform, which made Li Hongzhang curious.

"Back to the middle hall. David. Divin. An American, whose uncle was a missionary in Shandong, had come to visit his uncle. In the spring of last year, he was surrounded and suppressed by Yuan Shikai, and when he broke through Pingyi, he happened to encounter the Boxers attacking the church, and his uncle was killed. The lowly duty rescued him, and he has been following the lowly duty ever since. Long Qian looked at Li Hongzhang's wrinkled face, "The other one is called Situ Jun." The origin is similar to the lowly position. His parents were both overseas Chinese who had joined the German nationality, graduated from the Berlin Military Academy, admired his homeland and returned to China, and joined the Wuwei Right Army as a staff officer under the recommendation of the German Minister to China, Klinder. He was captured by a lowly post in the spring of this year. Joined the Ministry of Civilian Offices. In early summer, he was recruited by Yuan Futai. Organize the Qinwang detachment to go to Tianjin to participate in the war. Situ Jun served as deputy chief of staff and counselor of military aircraft, and he had many good strategies. The lowly office won the Battle of Xigu. Situ Jun has made a lot of contributions__"

It's really different. Li Hongzhang stared at Long Qian deadly. Ordinary people will conceal or omit their own experience of opposing the imperial court, this person is really different, and it seems that his experience as a bandit is to show off__An American who came to China to visit relatives, a German overseas Chinese who graduated from Germany's highest military academy, turned out to be his subordinate__ together with Long Qian's personal experience, which made Li Hongzhang have a very strange feeling.

Now is not the time to learn about these weird stories, "Please go down and rest for the time being, the old man and King Qing have something to ask you." ”

David and Szeto were taken out of the house.

"General Dragon__"

"Humble duty."

"You're so daring."

"I don't understand what Lord Zhongtang is referring to__" Long Qian chuckled in his heart, could it be that I robbed the palace? Impossible__

"Lieutenant General Seymour, where is it now?"

"Still in custody at the Taiyuan military camp. Before the Humble Commander led his troops to recapture Niangzi Pass, he had handed over all the allied prisoners to Lord Ronglu. ”

"Well, I'll ask you. Why did you return home when you were born in the United States? Li Hongzhang asked.

Long Qian put his mind at ease, "Go back to the middle hall." Long Qian wears a dress, but his heart is always a Chinese heart. ”

"A good one is always the heart of China! Look! ”

"Master Xie."

Li Hongzhang didn't care that Long Qian had fallen into the grass and became a bandit. Not to mention the ordinary bandits who gathered in the mountains and forests, they were many generals in the Taiping Army who disturbed the world, and they were still reused by him after surrendering to the Huai Army. Like his teacher Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang has an unusual appreciation and desire for talent, which is one of the main reasons why they have reached the top of their careers. Wu Yong's letter and Wu Yong's personal account made Li Hongzhang attach great importance to Long Qian's views on the current situation.

"Long Qian, Wu Yong claims to be your friend. He once told the old man about your strategy for resolving the war, which was very insightful. Today, King Qing and the old man will listen to you carefully. Don't worry, but don't worry. Finally, Li Hongzhang turned to the topic.

"Lord Wang, Zhongtang," Long Qian bowed his head, "This matter is extremely difficult. There is no good way to be humble. Therefore, the humble position admires the prince and the middle hall so much__"

"What's it called? Admire both of us? What do you mean? Yixuan had already been familiar with Long Qian along the way, and he couldn't help but wonder when he heard it.

"It seems that such a thankless errand, that is, the prince and Zhongtang are willing to bear it__"

Li Hongzhang snorted, I heard too many compliments of this kind, not to mention that he had already repented in Shanghai and was almost about to return to Guangdong, "General Long, Wu Yong's talent, I know it." Those thoughts are not his, and he does not have the merit of greed for himself. King Qing and the old man summoned you to hear your opinions. Those words, there is no need to say them. ”

"Yes. I think that foreigners have no intention of subverting our Qing Dynasty. With a land area of more than 11 million square kilometers and 40,000 people, we cannot swallow it by foreigners. The purpose of the great powers was either to encroach, such as Japan, Russia and Germany, or to plunder goods, such as Britain, France and the United States. If you want to overthrow the Qing Dynasty, you can't swallow China in one gulp. Moreover, foreigners have their own scheming intentions and will never move in unison, and what they are trying to do is only to benefit from China. This is the main one. Because the boxers attacked the embassy, shaking the world, and many missionaries and parishioners were injured, the foreigners must be held accountable and punished the culprits. This is complementary. ”

"Well, go on." Li Hongzhang picked up the teacup, "The old man is old and his mouth is often dry, you continue." "It is a common practice in officialdom to serve tea to guests, but he put down the shelf and made a special explanation.

"Xie Zhongtang. He is young and shallow. said wrong, I hope that the prince and Zhongtang will forgive their sins. The Empress Dowager and the emperor summoned him in Taiyuan, gave him a mission, and always pondered the requirements that foreigners might make. In the view of the lowly office, the following are the following. I'm afraid that this is the proper meaning of the question. ”

"Oh? Let's take it into detail. ”

"Yes. One is to punish the culprits. the second is to claim compensation; Third, it will probably be proposed that the security of embassies should be the responsibility of each country; The fourth is to dismantle coastal defense facilities, such as the Dagu Fort; Fifth, it may be proposed to station troops of various countries along the line from Dagu to Beijing to ensure their traffic safety."

Li Hongzhang raised his eyebrows, "It is said that your subordinate who grew up in Germany visited the German minister, these terms, but what the Germans mean?" ”

"It's not. Situ never saw the minister. These terms are all thought of from the standpoint of foreigners__"

"Well, as you can see. If the foreigner makes these requests. What should we do? ”

"That's why I admire Lord Zhongtang. This is like doing business, we have no capital at all, how to bargain with the other party? From the point of view of humble duties, the land is important. The silver is light. Rollover payments. The situation has changed. Here's our chance. than promised that the foreigners would support the garrison in my own harm. It is okay to punish the culprits, and compensation for military spending can also be discussed. The demolition of the battery can also promise him. Only we can't let them garrison troops on the territory of our Great Qing Dynasty! ”

Li Hongzhang raised his face and pondered. What Long Qian said, he thought of it. Even more than Long Qian said. The arm is like forcing Cixi to return to the emperor. But as Long Qian said, he has no cards to play in his hand

"For what is it okay to punish the culprit? This is a matter of the face of the imperial court. ”

"On the investigation and punishment of the so-called culprits, the opinions of the foreigners should be unanimous, and I am afraid that we will not be able to turn around. However, the so-called culprit should be those who advocate attacking the embassy and church, and it cannot be extended to the main battle faction, let alone the queen mother and the emperor, so as to shake the country's foundation. If the scope is expanded, it will inevitably hurt the morale of the military and public opinion."

As far as this absurd war is concerned, Li Hongzhang and Yi Liang are out-and-out anti-war factions, but it cannot be said that they are capitulation factions. Now Long Qian has limited the scope of the culprit, especially when he said that he could not involve the queen mother and the emperor, which surprised Li Hongzhang. I feel that the young man in front of me, who claims to be returning from overseas, is like an old fritter who has been soaked in officialdom for a long time.

"Long Qian, when you say this, are you worried that you will be held accountable by foreigners?" Yi Xuan interjected.

"Back to the prince. The reason why this is mentioned is not for the sake of the lowly individual. The lowly duty is ordered to serve the king, and the soldier takes obedience to orders as his duty. The foreigners are defeated by their humble duties, because they are incompetent. If the lowly department kills prisoners of war, it can also be discussed. Humble duty does not violate international general rules, although the foreigner is brutal, but he must be reasonable, at least in terms of face. In this Gyeonggi War, the Wuwei Left Army, the Wuwei Front Army and other troops had many battles with foreigners, if the imperial court did not fight according to reason, who would dare to fight in the future? ”

"You've cleared your name! What if you have to pursue it? Li Hongzhang snorted.

"It can't involve the Queen Mother, it can't involve the generals who are ordered to resist, this is the bottom line. As for those officials who disregard their own strength and violate international practice, they will not be able to keep it. It is better to make a decision earlier in order to break the deadlock. ”

The queen mother's biggest worry is the loss of her authority and the return of power to the emperor, no wonder the queen mother values him. For example, the likes of Duan Wang are really a disaster for the country and the people, Li Hongzhang has long been annoyed, and it is actually very good to use the hands of foreigners to remove those stumbling blocks in the imperial court. However, the imperial court was slow to make up its mind, which led to his difficulty and no progress after he came to Beijing. The Germans, for example, just want to punish the culprits, and nothing else.

"But Britain and France have stated that they have to wait for the emperor to return to Beijing to talk." Yi Xuan said.

Long Qian was stunned. It is estimated that this is what Li Hongzhang told Yixuan, and the negotiations between Li Hongzhang and foreigners have probably not been smooth in the past few days__

Then tell them that the position of the Queen Mother is irreplaceable. If you want to see a chaotic and disorderly China, then do it. Behold, they go there and ask for money. Long Qian thought that his words would probably be conveyed to Cixi by Yixuan, and he must be unwavering in this position.

"Well, very insightful. Speaking of reparations alone, since the First Sino-Japanese War, the country has been ruined, where can I get the money? What do you see about it? ”

This section is unavoidable, but it's just a matter of how much and how long. The countermeasures can only be divided and disintegrated. Our country's income is geometric, and foreigners are not ignorant. The amount is too large, and the reminder is too urgent, but it will not be available. It is said that when Lord Chunado negotiated with him in the Chunfan Building in Japan, he once said that if he couldn't do it, he would fight to the end. Didn't little Japan also back down? If you have low knowledge of your position, you must have a clever plan in the middle hall. ”

Li Hongzhang couldn't help touching the wound on his cheek, Chunfan Tower was the sad place of his life. Long Qian's words were really a stab at him, but at that time, his attitude turned hard was indeed the reason for Japan's concessions, but today's situation is not as good as Ma Guan's original.

"Well, you go on."

"Russia and Japan are looking more at the northeast and northwest. British interests were concentrated in the Yangtze River valley and Tibet, while the French aimed at South China. Especially the two Guangzhou. The Germans were probably aiming at Shandong. Although the Americans are economically strong, they are militarily weak, and European countries despise the United States very much, and they advocate an open-door policy. There is harm to European countries, especially the United Kingdom. Therefore, the United States is not enough. The rest of the countries did not contribute much troops. The spoils were not much of an appetite, but they were just trying to get concessions and some war reparations. Lord Zhongtang was far-sighted, and the Southeast Mutual Insurance Charter blocked the British and French demands south of the Yangtze River. Therefore, the scope of the discussion could be limited to the province directly under the government. It is okay to set up a concession, but not to cede land. If a demand for land cession is made, we can only take advantage of the contradictions between the two countries to destroy the land -- and in particular, we must guard against the territorial demands of Japan and Russia, and we believe that these two countries will be the ones who will plot the most and do the most harm to our country. Long Qian continued.

Countering razing with razing is Li Hongzhang's consistent practice in conducting diplomacy, although it has achieved little or even the opposite. But he believed in it and took it as a guide.

Li Hongzhang had long understood Japan's greed and shamelessness, but he had illusions about Russia. This time, he came to Beijing from Shanghai, and the Russian warship escorted him throughout the whole process, and the Russians even invited him to come to Beijing on a Russian ship; for other reasons, Li Hongzhang rejected the Russians' "good intentions." After coming to Tianjin, it was the Russians who assumed the responsibility of defending Li Hongzhang, escorted Li Hongzhang all the way to Beijing, and took the initiative to send troops to guard the Xianliang Temple, and even proposed that in order to save Li Hongzhang's face, the Russian army could take the lead in withdrawing some of the troops stationed in Beijing. Therefore, Long Qian's words made him a little unhappy.

"Why worry about Russia? You must know that without Russia's containment, Japan will put us to death. ”

"Forgive your arrogance. Japan's small land is located in the middle of the ocean, and its location determines its national policy of establishing a country by the sea. Its continuous expansion in the seas will inevitably touch the interests of the United States and Britain. Don't look at the current alliance between Britain and Japan, sooner or later it will turn its face. In short, Japan's national strength is by no means on the same level as Russia's, which has a vast territory and abundant resources. I heard that under the pretext of exterminating the Boxers and protecting the Russian nationals, the Russians have sent troops to occupy the entire northeast territory, killing countless Chinese residents, and the fire in Shenyang will not be extinguished for several days. Britain, the United States, France, Italy, and other countries are thousands of miles away from our country, and they are just plotting against our property, but Russia and Japan must have territorial ambitions. When he was studying in the United States, he studied the history of Russian expansion, and Russia's desire for territory was simply insatiable. Its occupation of Vladivostok has already obtained access to the Pacific Ocean, because it has a freezing period of four or five months every year, and has already aimed at the good port of Lushun, and the heart of the northeast is clearly revealed. Using Russia's power to block other countries is no different from luring wolves into the house. Humble speculation is that the British will inevitably propose the principle of negotiations to maintain the status quo in China without change."

Li Hongzhang was greatly surprised, because Long Qian guessed the facts. He has been in Beijing for almost 10 days, and he is in an extremely embarrassing situation. Germany and France were keen on crusading against the four sides of the capital, and the new German minister only demanded that the culprit be punished, and did not mention anything else, and the commander of the allied forces, Wadsey, did not see him at all. During this period, only the Russians were in close contact with him, and they did put forward territorial demands: allowing Russia to build a railway from Harbin to Lushun, leaving Yingkou under Russian jurisdiction, and demolishing forts and arsenals in various parts of Northeast China. Li Hongzhang understood that the unconditionality of the Russians was based on the premise that the Northeast issue would meet their demands.

He did have the intention of using the Russians to disintegrate the countries. In his opinion, this is the fight against razing. Now Long Qian bluntly said that he must not trust the Russians, and that Russia is China's most dangerous enemy.

"By the way, are the foreign captives in our hands considered bargaining chips?" Yixuan asked.

"At most, it can be used to reduce some reparations. It is difficult to change the overall situation by relying on hundreds of foreign soldiers to take prisoners. However, I think that we might as well dry them, they may not want to have a situation as soon as possible."

The British minister Dou Nale did not discuss the substantive issue with Li Hongzhang, but asked Lieutenant General Seymour about the situation, and when he heard that Seymour was all right, Dou Nale, an old friend, actually expressed his gratitude to Li Hongzhang and hoped that the Qing court would return the captured allied officers and soldiers to them as soon as possible. Yixuan mentioned this matter and gave Li Hongzhang some confidence. It was probably the only chip he had.

"The afterlife is terrifying. It's getting late, so stay here. Li Hongzhang ended the conversation. (To be continued......)

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