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"Lord Lin, such conditions are too harsh, we will never agree!" Sezanne said tremblingly, he was trembling all over, and he didn't know whether he was angry or frightened. The conditions put forward by Xinhua Guoguo really made him unsimilar and even more difficult to accept. Although the Xinhua State controlled the area south of the Yangtze River, the conditions they put forward included Sichuan, which had not yet been controlled by the Xinhua army, and the areas north of the Yangtze River in Hubei, Anhui, and Jiangsu provinces. In addition, the war reparations of 50 million silver are not even considered.

"Master Sai, you can think about it, it's better to cede these territories to us than to go directly to Beijing City with our army!" Lin Zihao said with a smile. However, the threat in his words was heard by everyone.

Saishana and Mu Zhang'a were silent. Lin Zihao's threat certainly made them very angry. However, they were worried that the Xinhua Army would really continue to attack. If that's the case, then the Manchu Qing Dynasty is really finished.

"Lord Lin, you don't have to threaten us. If Xinhuaguo insists on such conditions, then we have no choice. Mu Zhang'a also said. He is the person who looks down on Xinhua the most, but now, he has to bow to Xinhua Guo, which shows how aggrieved he is in his heart.

"So, what conditions can you afford? If it's a condition you put forward before. Then there is no need to say any more. Lin Zihao said. Of course, he knew that the Xinhua Army would not really hit Beijing. The strategy set by King Long Yufei was to digest these territories first. After digesting these territories, we will cross the Yangtze River and attack northward, step by step. Although with the current strength of the Xinhua Army, it can take Beijing in one go. But what about after the capture of Beijing? The Xinhua Army did not have enough troops to stabilize the place, and when the time came, it would be a chaotic mess. This is Long Yufei's desire to quickly establish China into a developed industrial country. is unrealistic.

Saishana and Mu Zhang'a hesitated for a moment, and Mu Zhang'a finally nodded to Saishan'a, so Saishan'a said, "Lord Lin." We can recognize the rule of the Xinhua State south of the Yangtze River. However, Sichuan and other provinces north of the Yangtze River belonged to the Qing Dynasty. In addition, 50 million war reparations. We simply can't afford it. Plus in this war. The Qing Dynasty also suffered heavy losses. Therefore, we believe that it is very inappropriate for the Qing Dynasty to pay war reparations. Forget about this one! ”

It was clear that in order for the negotiations to continue and finally to reach an agreement, the Manchus were prepared to make concessions. And the concessions are relatively large. But again, there is still a gap between this and Xinhuaguo's bottom line. Sichuan is a province with a large population, and its geographical location is also very important. After taking Sichuan. Xinhua could use Sichuan as a springboard to march westward into the plateau and northwest. Threaten Guanzhong to the north, and go down the Yangtze River to the east and march into the Central Plains. Although the Xinhua Army has not entered Sichuan at present, this time the negotiations with the Manchus have given Xinhua an excellent opportunity. Sichuan can be obtained through negotiations, which is much easier than sending troops to attack. In addition, in terms of war reparations, the Manchus wanted not to pay a single tael of silver, so how could it be? When the Manchu Qing Dynasty was defeated by the British, didn't they also lose more than 20 million taels? There is no reason for Xinhua to be cheap to the Manchus, rather than letting the Manchus use the money to buy weapons, it is better to compensate Xinhuaguo!

"Lord Sai, you are very sincere. However, this is still far from our bottom line. Otherwise, today's negotiations will come to an end for the time being, and we will start negotiations tomorrow. You two should think about it when you go back. Lin Zihao said. He knows that blindly forcing may be counterproductive, it is better to give the other party a little buffer time, and maybe it will have a miraculous effect.

"Okay, then we'll talk about it tomorrow!" Sezanne nodded as well. Negotiation is not an easy task, and it has to go through a painstaking process. Although the Manchus wanted to reach an agreement with Xinhua so that the war could be ended as soon as possible. However, the Manchus also wanted to end the war at the lowest cost. After all, the Manchus were not ready to rest on their laurels, but wanted to win a period of time so that they could give up another fight with Xinhua in the future to see who could win the final victory.

At the end of the negotiations, the negotiators from both sides immediately moved into the conference room. Saishan'a and Mu Zhang'a got into the carriage and returned to the post house prepared for them by the Xinhua Kingdom. Lin Zihao, the foreign minister of Xinhua, and Liang Baochang, the governor of Guangdong Province, went to Liang Baochang's office in the provincial government.

"Lord Lin, do you think the Manchus will agree to our conditions?" Liang Baochang asked. Now, he has completely severed himself from the Manchu Qing and regards himself as a native of the New Zealand Kingdom. Guangdong Province was the first province occupied by Xinhuaguo in Chinese mainland, and his status was also very high among Xinhuaguo's senior officials, not even worse than some cabinet ministers. Of course, Lin Zihao is different, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is a very important department, and there are even rumors that after Prime Minister Li Decheng retires, Lin Zihao will take over and become the new prime minister. Therefore, Liang Baochang is very respectful to Lin Zihao.

"I think they will agree to our terms. However, we also need to make some concessions. The Manchus could no longer drag on. Lin Zihao said with a smile. He is optimistic about this negotiation.

"Well, that's the best. Guangdong is now much more developed than before, and the people's lives are getting better and better. After we develop those newly occupied provinces, it will be time for His Majesty to become the master of the capital! Liang Baochang had a hint of expectation in his eyes, Conglong Hero didn't have his share, but now it seems that he can still mix a founding hero. Although Xinhua is based in the South Seas, everyone knows that after the overthrow of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, Xinhua will turn its focus back to the mainland. After all, there are still more than 300 million people on the mainland, and this is the foundation of the Chinese people and the foundation of the entire Chinese nation.

"There will come a day, I believe, soon." Lin Zihao also sighed. At the beginning, he was just a child of a Chinese family in Zamboanga in Nanyang, and in order to close the relationship between the Lin family and Xinhuaguo, he agreed to join Xinhuaguo as an official. But I didn't expect that in just a few years, Xinhua State would develop into such a behemoth, and it would soon overthrow the Manchu Qing Dynasty. Looking back now, it was as if he was still in a dream.

Compared with Lin Zihao and Liang Baochang's optimistic attitude, Saishana and Mu Zhang'a are a little depressed. The bottom line of the Manchu government was to maintain the status quo, that is, to recognize the rule of the Xinhua State over the areas now occupied by the Xinhua army. However, Sichuan, as well as the areas north of the Yangtze River in Hubei, Anhui, and Jiangsu provinces, absolutely cannot be handed over to Xinhua. In addition, the war indemnity of 50 million taels of silver was completely unexpected by them. You don't have to think about it to know that the Manchus can't come up with so much money at all.

"Lord Sai, the conditions of Xinhua Kingdom are too harsh, it seems that it will be difficult for us to reach an agreement with them this time." Mu Zhang'a said a little discouraged. His arrogance is not worth mentioning at all in front of Xinhuaguo.

"Master Mu, let's try harder. If it really doesn't work, we will make some concessions appropriately, and I believe that His Majesty and the regent will understand us. Sezanne said.

Mu Zhang'a nodded, he and Saishan'a are now grasshoppers on a rope, and no one can run.

The next day, negotiations continued. Lin Zihao and Liang Baochang are in good spirits. But Saishana and Mu Zhang'a are in a bad mental state, their eyes are a little red, and they obviously didn't have a good rest last night.

"Two adults, don't you have a rest, okay? Could it be that we are not hospitable? That's embarrassing. Lin Zihao naturally knew why Sai Shang'a and Mu Zhang'a couldn't sleep well, but he still said a few polite words.

Saishan'a and Mu Zhang'a hurriedly expressed their gratitude and said that Xinhuaguo's hospitality was very good. Saishana also proposed that if Lin Zihao had the opportunity to go to Beijing, he would also entertain Lin Zihao.

After a few polite moments, the negotiations continued.

"Two adults, I wonder what you think of the conditions we put forward yesterday?" Lin Zihao asked.

"Lord Lin, the conditions proposed by Xinhua Guoguo are still too harsh." Sezanne said.

Lin Zihao nodded, thought for a while, and then said, "Okay, in order to show our sincerity, we can make some more concessions. Hubei, Anhui and Jiangsu are located in the regions north of the Yangtze River, and we can do without. However, Sichuan must be ceded to us! That's our bottom line! ”

Xinhuaguo once again made concessions, which made Saishana and Mu Zhang'a more satisfied. Although Xinhua has strongly stated that it wants to occupy Sichuan, it is already very good to be able to keep Hubei, Anhui and Jiangsu, which are located north of the Yangtze River. At the very least, the Yangtze River moat was still in the hands of the Manchus, and the Yangtze River could be used to defend against the powerful Xinhua Army.

Saishana and Mu Zhang'a discussed in a low voice, and then said, "Lord Lin, the two of us accept this condition in principle. However, in the end, it is up to His Majesty to decide! ”

Lin Zihao has no objection to this, he believes that with the current strength of Xinhuaguo, even if the Manchus are dissatisfied, they can only accept Xinhuaguo's conditions.

"Then the next step is the war reparations. We can reduce the amount of war reparations from 50 million taels of silver to 40 million taels! Lin Zihao said. (To be continued......)