Episode 67 Washington's Verdict

Negotiations on the morning of the 3rd,.

The Qing side first put forward its own demand, that is, the Ming army withdrew from the whole of Shanxi. Yonggui repeatedly emphasized that the Qing side's requirements for the Ming side are just that, the only one, and there is nothing else. But there are many who are willing to exchange it.

Yonggui made an offer. He proposed that the Qing Dynasty officially recognized the places occupied by the Ming army (except Shanxi) as belonging to the Ming Dynasty. Regarding Shaanxi, although the Ming army did not actually occupy northern Shaanxi, the Qing Dynasty was also willing to recognize that the entire Loess Plateau belonged to the Ming Dynasty.

The specific boundary, Yonggui drew on the map, probably with the Mu Us Desert as the natural boundary in the north, the Yellow River as the natural boundary in the east, and the Liupan Mountain as the natural boundary in the west. In this way, the Southern Ming Dynasty basically occupied the inner part of the Yellow River's "several" shape, that is, the Loess Plateau, and the Northern Qing Dynasty still occupied the outer part of the "several" shape, which was the Hetao Plain. And, of course, a small part of the word "several".

The part of the Yellow River is the Mu Us Desert in the northwest and the Loess Plateau in the southeast. But between the Mu Us Desert and the vertical to the right of the Yellow River, there is a corridor about 180 kilometers long and 20-30 kilometers wide, which is not a desert. The desert is safe, and no one would march through such a large desert, but this corridor is dangerous. Yonggui proposed that in order to ensure friendly relations on the northern border, the two sides should establish a 140-kilometer military buffer zone along this corridor, with the southernmost part of the Qing army garrison not exceeding Ordos and the northernmost point of the Ming army garrison not exceeding Yulin.

"Hehe, look, the big oil fields in Shaanxi have been allocated to you," Yonggui smiled and pointed to a few places on the map, "There is a large oil-producing area here in Yan'an, and there is a large area in the north and west...... China's two major oil fields, one in Shaanxi and the other in Sichuan. It used to be one on one side of both of you, but now both of them are yours. That's enough to show sincerity. If you want to say that we are not sincere, it will be too much. ”

Several people in the Ming side looked at each other and smiled, and they all understood what the so-called "big oil field" in Shaanxi was. He is right, the two major oil fields in Shaanxi and Sichuan are really two traditional oil-producing areas in China, and oil production has been recorded since hundreds of years ago. In modern times, it was also the first to be mined. It's been mined for almost half a century now. However, when it is said to be a "big oil field", it is in China, which is now an "oil-poor country". In the world, it is not ranked at all. As far as the world's largest oil fields are concerned, the Shaanxi oilfield has small production, small proven reserves, poor quality, and a long history of exploitation, and many oil wells have been exhausted.

Neither the Northern Qing nor the Southern Ming Dynasty expected to live on domestic self-produced oil. For a large oil-consuming country like the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the so-called "big oil fields" in China belong to the peeled cucumber on the Chinese New Year's Eve dinner - with it for the New Year, without it for the New Year. What's more, Nanming has now obtained the main oil-producing areas of the East Indies, which are among the top oil-producing areas in the world, and belong to the "pig's elbow". And at the moment, Yonggui is smiling with a shy face and grinning at the "big oil field", which is the "grasshopper leg". The Ming side didn't look down on it at all, and when it hit Shaanxi, it didn't count this oil field as a consideration at all.

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled and said:

"Hehehe, Lord Yong has bothered, and he has worked hard...... But if we want to talk about sincerity, can't we all do the dry goods? If you don't give it to us in the west, it's already ours, so what about the east? What about Shandong? What about the eastern part of Henan? What to do in northern Jiangsu? What to do in northern Anhui? ”

If you want to talk about oil fields, Shandong's Shengli Oilfield is real. That's a big oil field. It's in the Dongying area. If we can really get most of Shandong south of the Yellow River off the negotiating table, then we can see sincerity.

Hearing the question about the east, Yonggui was confident and came up with another set of plans. He proposed that the Qing Dynasty cede the entire northern part of Jiangsu and the remaining part of northern Anhui to the Southern Ming, and the northernmost to Xuzhou. That is, with Xuzhou as the center, Tongshan County, Xiao County, Pi County, Xinyi County, Donghai County, Haizhou County (Lianyungang), Suqian County, Guanyun County, Guannan County, Xiangshui County, Huaibei County, Su County, Suqian County, Suining County in the south and east...... And so on, about 35,000 square kilometers of land, all belong to Nanming.

It's a long list of county names, but it's drawn on the map, that is, a small piece of northern Jiangsu. This is too far from Mingfang's expectations.

Xiang Xiaoqiang didn't talk to him too much, and directly reported Ming Fang's request:

- The Ming army did not withdraw from Shanxi, and the Qing side wanted to cede Shandong south of the Yellow River to the Ming Dynasty. In return, the Ming side was willing to sign an armistice agreement to end the war and let the Northern Qing Dynasty go.

At this moment, Yonggui began to be dumbfounded again, shouting that Ming Fang was insincere.

So, the process of asking for the price and paying back the money on the ground began.

By the end of the negotiations on the evening of the 3rd, the opinions of the two sides were still far away, but after all, they had moved a little closer.

The conditions of the Qing side were: the Ming army withdrew from Shanxi, and in return, the Qing side gave Shangqiu to the Southern Ming. Given to Shangqiu, it is equivalent to giving all the remaining bits in eastern Henan to Nanming. That is to say, Nanming has completely owned the whole of Jiangsu, the whole of Anhui, and the whole of Henan. The "Central Plains" in the traditional sense of China has been returned to the Southern Ming Dynasty.

The conditions of the Ming side were: the Ming army would not withdraw from Shanxi, but it would not want the whole of Shandong, as long as the peninsula part of Shandong. That is, from Jiaonan to the east of Changyi, about a quarter of Shandong, including Qingdao, Weihai, Yantai and other port cities. However, the western half of Shandong's inland areas and three-quarters of Shandong were still left to the Northern Qing Dynasty. At the same time, the Northern Qing Dynasty had to give the southernmost tip of the Liaodong Peninsula, that is, the Luda Peninsula, to the Southern Ming. In this way, there is no military port in the Northern Qing Dynasty. The three northern military ports of Lushun, Weihai and Yantai are also all under the control of Nanming.

This is the end of the negotiations on the 3rd, the Ming and Qing sides of their respective conditions.

On the 4th and 5th, the negotiations continued to make steady progress. The core of the differences between the Ming and Qing dynasties was the Shanxi issue. The Qing side must withdraw from Shanxi, but the Ming side did not agree to withdraw from Shanxi. This is the only issue on which neither side will budge. As for the territorial issue in the east, it is not so deadlocked, and there is at least a process of compromise and loosening on both sides.

By the 6th, the Qing side had already proposed: Shandong could not give. Shandong is the gateway to the northward attack, which is the foundation of the Qing Dynasty, if Shandong is given, then the Ming army from Shandong to the north to Beijing is much closer than from Henan to the north. That would be too dangerous, and this is related to the core interests of the Qing Dynasty.

But in fact, Yonggui kept in mind the emperor's instructions - at the last moment and the most necessary time, he could use the whole of Shandong as a big bait and throw it to Nanming. When is the "last minute"? That was when Nanming found that the Qing Dynasty was delaying time through negotiations, losing patience for negotiations, and preparing to resume the war. At this time, throwing out the whole of Shandong, it should be able to stabilize Nanming for a while, and then pull the skin at the negotiation table for a while.

Ming Xiang Xiaoqiang said to Yonggui, we don't want you to go through Shandong, we only want the Shandong Peninsula in the east.

Yonggui also said that the Shandong Peninsula could not be given. The Shandong Peninsula is an important part of the Beijing-Tianjin defense circle and the maritime gateway of Beijing and Tianjin. And if I give it to you, our Qing Navy will have no military port. Your Nanming Navy will enter and leave the Bohai Sea at will, just like entering a no-man's land.

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled and said, what the hell are you doing with this, anyway, when we go in and out of the Bohai Sea, it is like entering a no-man's land.

Yonggui said, although Shandong can't give you, we can compensate in Liaodong. Don't you want to travel to the Great Peninsula? Well, we give. Moreover, we will not only give you the Luda Peninsula, but we can also give you one-third of the Liaodong Peninsula from Wafangdian to the south. In this way, the area is more than three times the size of the Luda Peninsula, and your Changshan Islands are safer. for the land on the other side of the strait is yours.

As soon as this condition was thrown, the Ming side was quite surprised, but they didn't expect that the Northern Qing Dynasty was willing to make a fuss on the Liaodong Peninsula.

Originally, the Ming side planned that if the Qing side did not make any major concessions, it would throw out the two cards of "media openness" and "freedom of movement" on the 6th. But now when he heard that the Qing side suddenly threw out a large piece of Liaodong land, the Ming side was not prepared at all, and he had no bottom in his heart, so he held the two cards in his hand and did not throw them out for the time being.

……

That night, Xiang Xiaoqiang, Song Ruhai, and Shishige discussed with them, and their initial opinions tended to two things: the reason why the Qing side was willing to cede the land of Liaodong to the Ming side was that although the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula was very close to Beijing's sea and air distance, the land distance was very far, and it was necessary to bypass the entire Bohai Sea, bypass the long Liaodong Bay, and then enter the Beijing-Tianjin area from the Liaoxi Corridor and Shanhaiguan. In addition, along this long road, the mountains are stacked, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and it is quite unfavorable to the motorized march of the Ming army. It is very unlikely that the Ming army will use the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula as a springboard to attack Beijing. It is not like the Shandong Peninsula, which is very close to the sea and air, and very close to the land, which is too dangerous.

The second reason, I am afraid, is a diplomatic trap planted by the Northern Qing Dynasty, deliberately allowing the hand of the Ming Dynasty to officially extend to the northeast, thus greatly stimulating Japan and Russia, making Japan and Russia feel a great threat, so that they have no choice but to support the Northern Qing Dynasty and contain the Southern Ming Dynasty with iron heart.

Especially Japan. At the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula, it is close to the border with North Korea. Japan will not tolerate the expansion of the influence of the Southern Ming Dynasty, which is also a naval power, to its own doorstep.

The second reason was raised, and several people were taken aback by themselves.

Xiang Xiaoqiang pondered for a while, and asked Fourteen Gege:

"Your Royal Highness Princess, hasn't the Northern Qing Dynasty always taken the 'Land of Longxing' outside the gate more seriously? If you don't let it be officially developed, you will cut out that piece of ...... now."

Several people also looked at Fourteen Gege at the same time, obviously having the same question.

Fourteen Gege smiled slightly, shook his head, and said softly:

"No one cares about it for a long time. It is said that development is not allowed, but there are many illegal iron mines, coal mines, and gold mines outside the entire Guan, and the mines can be opened if the local government is fed. After making money, you can share the fertilizer with the government. If the background is enough, you don't even have to pay the money, and someone will send it to your door. ”

"Oh."

A few people were thoughtful.

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled:

"You have a mine too, right? Hehe, I guess it was delivered to the door. ”

Fourteen Gege smiled and shook his head:

"Not anymore. …… Alas, no more. ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang nodded:

"Speaking of which...... The condition proposed by Yonggui today is very creative and tempting. The southern half of the Liaodong Peninsula is home to Port Arthur, what a good place, one of the most strategic locations in Northeast Asia. It's a pity that it's still too far from our request, and we don't need to tell the cabinet and Your Majesty, and we can call back here. I don't want to give Shandong and Shanxi, so I want to use such a small piece to send us away, and let us get into trouble with Japan and the Soviet Union...... Hehe, that kid from Guangwu played well in abacus. ”

……

At ten o'clock in the evening, many citizens of Daming were still standing by the radio, listening to the broadcasts of Jinling Station and Huaxia Station. The content of this broadcast is extraordinary, and not only the people of Daming are concerned, but also many other parts of the world are also very concerned.

It's 22:00 Nanjing time and 9:00 a.m. EST. There are two cases to be pronounced in the United States today.

In Washington, D.C., at 9 a.m. EST, the U.S. Supreme Court is delivering its verdict on the case of Nanming Xu Changji Trading Co., Ltd.'s purchase of tent sleeping bags from a number of U.S. companies.

In Pennsylvania, at half past nine a.m. EST, it was the Pennsylvania court that handed down the verdict in the case of Nanming Xu Cheong Kee Trading Company's purchase of chocolate from the American Hershey Chocolate Company.

It is indeed a coincidence that two major sentences were pronounced on the same day, and that there was only a half-hour difference between them.

Because the distance between Washington, D.C. and Nanjing is too far, even shortwave cannot be transmitted directly. Therefore, the broadcaster's correspondent in the United States was on the scene to observe, and then wrote a news release at any time, and asked his assistant to rush to the telegraph office to send the telegram back to Nanjing. As soon as the two major radio stations in Nanjing received the telegram, they immediately read it out on the radio. During the period, the host and several celebrities continued to discuss, and the atmosphere was quite tense and exciting.

Xiang Xiaoqiang and the others also stood by the radio in Wuwang Villa. Although they also have a spy network in the United States, since the media has done everything, they don't have to take the risk of using spies to send reports. In the words of a spy, he did the same things that journalists do.

The Jinling Broadcasting Company is more wealthy, and its reporters in the United States are better than those of the Huaxia Broadcasting Company, and they are faster at grabbing news. There is a time difference between the two stations. Now Xiang Xiaoqiang and they are listening to Jinling Terrace.

The host is solemnly reading the verdict of the ** official.

“…… To sum up, this court believes that the number of camping tents purchased by the Daming 'Sun Chang Ji' trading company is huge, and the military characteristics are obvious, combined with the ongoing war in China, these tents are obviously not for civilian camping, but for military use...... This court pronounced a verdict that the tents and sleeping bags purchased by the Daming 'Sun Changji' Trading Company this time all belong to the category of "military equipment". ”

After reading it, even the host was silent for a few seconds, and no one next to him spoke. There was silence on the radio.

Many people were silent on the radio.

Xiang Xiaoqiang also didn't speak quietly, just licked his lips.