Episode 53 Hess Comes to China

On December 28, Foreign Minister He Ziguang summoned the German ambassador and asked him to ask the German Chancellor if he would be interested in sending a secret envoy to the Ming Dynasty.

The German ambassador did not dare to slack off, and immediately sent a secret telegram to Berlin to ask Hitler. A few hours later, the ambassador drove again to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to meet with He Ziguang and told him that the Führer was going to send his deputy, Hess, to Daming secretly. He Ziguang was taken aback, and thought that even if Hitler was very interested, he would send at most one diplomat. I didn't expect to send my own successor.

The Ming top brass immediately understood that Hitler was not just "very interested", so to speak, he was already crazy about it. Shen Rongxuan and He Ziguang couldn't help but sigh secretly, Xiang Xiaoqiang's trip to Germany was really not in vain. He touched the itching flesh of Hitler's heart clearly.

At the same time, He Ziguang also summoned the British and French ambassadors and asked them if their governments were interested in sending special envoys to Ming to discuss "the situation in Central and Eastern Europe and West Asia."

When Britain and France received the report from their ambassadors to Ming, they were a little hesitant. To be honest, now the British and French governments do not quite understand what the "situation problem" is in Central and Eastern Europe. – Didn't all the problems be solved at the Munich conference? There is nothing to do in Europe anymore, what is Ming coming to mix with at this time?

However, at this time, the Ming Dynasty had become a sweet spot in the international community, not only fighting against the Bolsheviks alone, but also conceivably that once the war ended, the whole of East Asia, mainly the northern part of the Ming Kingdom, would usher in a construction upsurge. That's an astronomical market. Countries suffering from depression are salivating over this big cake and want a piece of the pie. Although the industrial level of Britain and France is very high, the number of factories and the number of workers are not large, and they cannot be compared with countries such as the United States and Ming Kingdom. As long as Ming Guo gave a small piece of cake to Britain and France, it would be enough to solve the serious problem of unemployment in their country.

In addition, now that the Ming Kingdom has defeated Japan, there is no longer a threat in East Asia. The Ming took all the large warships that Japan had left, and now the Ming navy was the strongest navy in the world, and there was no power in East Asia that could counterbalance it. Then the entire colony of the South Seas is under the shadow of the world's strongest navy. Will the Ming Kingdom covet this colonial area? What will be the future national focus of the Ming Kingdom? What is the future political direction of the Ming Kingdom? Is it peacebuilding, or is it continued expansion? Is it the transformation into a "strong and secure" democracy like the United States? Or will it transform into a militaristic country like Japan?

All these made Britain and France fearful. Therefore, after considering Daming's invitation, the dignitaries of the two countries felt that they should send a special envoy to visit. Even if there is no problem in Europe, there are still problems in Asia, and we should discuss it face-to-face with Mingguo. Although the Ming State is now powerful, it is still its own ally after all, and there is something that can be said about it.

……

Half a month later, on January 13, 1939, the German envoy Hess first took a ship and secretly arrived at the port of Guangzhou. On the 14th, the ship of the British envoy also entered the port of Guangzhou. A day later, on the 15th, the French envoy arrived. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Ming Dynasty immediately organized two secret talks. One is a secret meeting between Ming and Germany, and the other is a secret meeting between Ming, Britain and France. Britain and France knew each other, but they did not know that the German envoy was in Nanjing. And the German envoy Hess did not know that the British and French envoys were also here.

The talks between the Ming Dynasty and the German secret envoys were mainly to first break through the window paper and directly uncover the "little ninety-nine" that Germany wanted to expand eastward, and then under Hess's astonishment, He Ziguang painted a beautiful picture of the division of Russia between Ming and Germany, and even directly drew a line on the map to indicate the future spheres of influence of the two countries. After Hess was stunned, he soon stopped pretending to be a statue, directly indicating that Germany was indeed very interested in cooperating with the Ming to attack Russia. But there was a conundrum, and now there were Czechoslovakia and Poland between Germany and the Soviet Union, and the Führer had just signed the Munich Agreement, guaranteeing the Sudetenland as his last demand in Europe. What can Germany do in this situation?

He Ziguang smiled directly and said that the Munich Agreement should not be a problem for Mr. Chancellor.

This means "I know that for your Führer, tearing up the agreement is not a matter at all". It would be considered rude to say this to the leaders of other countries, but Hess obviously came with sincerity and did not dwell on it at all. He directly expressed Hitler's request, which meant that it would be great if the Ming could help mediate with Britain and France, so that Britain and France could reach an understanding of Germany's continued eastward advance.

In dealing with parliamentary democracies such as Britain and the United States, Daming is already very experienced, and it can be said that he is much more experienced than Germany. He Ziguang knows very well what "parts" should be mediated in "mediation" with Britain, France, the United States, and other countries. That is: when dealing with a dictatorship, you have to put the effort on the dictator. As long as the dictator is dealt with, it is useless for the people to be reluctant. When dealing with democracies, you need to put your work on the voters. As long as the voters are settled, it is useless for elected politicians to be reluctant.

He Ziguang smiled:

"This is something that our country can work with you. What do the people of Britain and France want most now? There are only two things: peace and work. Your country can give them peace, and our country can give them jobs. As long as these two things are given to the British and French people, Mr. Chancellor may be given the freedom to act as he pleases in Europe. ”

Hess said suspiciously:

"Your Excellency, I don't quite understand."

何子光 says:

"It will not take long for our country to recover the north, and as soon as the war is over, large-scale economic construction will begin. We will commit a large part of the market and orders to the UK and France, and we will also have British and French companies build railways in the northwest. The number of workers in Britain and France is only a fraction of that in our country, and we can easily get them to work. Aside from work, what they want most is peace. This is also the reason why Mr. Chamberlain and Mr. Daladier are so insistent on making concessions. You also know, sir, that it is not that the German army is stronger than the French army, but that the British and French people are afraid of war, and the German people are not afraid. As long as Mr. Chancellor can make a gesture to reassure the people of Britain and France that Germany will never 'go west,' the people of Britain and France will not particularly care even if your country violates the Munich Agreement. ”

"Your Excellency," Hess's brow furrowed even tighter, "and what you mean by 'Mr. Chancellor', and this 'gesture' refers to ......"

He Ziguang paused for a moment and said:

"For example, withdraw from the Rhineland and restore it to an undefended zone."

Hess was shocked and shouted directly:

"No, it can't be!"

He Ziguang had already expected Hess to react in this way. He continued:

"That's the best policy. As long as Mr. Prime Minister is willing to do so, we can assure Britain and France that your country can expand in Eastern Europe at will, and that Britain and France will do nothing to stop it, except to condemn it. Not even economic sanctions. ”

After listening to the translation, Hess pondered for a moment, and then asked:

"What about the other than this 'best policy'?"

何子光 says:

"That's the middle way. At the very least, Germany should have done something to weaken the Siegfried Line, such as demolishing some of the fortifications, removing some of the defenders, and inviting the British and French forces to send permanent observers into the Siegfried Line. This is more reassuring than any treaties and agreements on paper. Especially after your country tore up the Munich Agreement. ”