"Your Majesty, in the current situation, it is indeed inappropriate for us to continue the war. As the British and the French believed, our main threat now comes from Europe, from the Allies. After we defeat the Allies, we can go back to dealing with the Chinese. When the time comes, Britain and France will definitely stand on our side and fully support us! Prime Minister Kokovetsev said first.

"Your Majesty, the attitude of England and France is very tough. If we don't accept their opinions, they will stop supporting us. In addition, it will create a huge rift in our relationship with Britain and France. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs suggested accepting the goodwill of Britain and France for the time being, and then seeking revenge from the Chinese later. Foreign Minister Izvorsky also said.

Other Russian ministers, such as Interior Minister Sergei. Witte, War Minister Sukhhomlinov and others also supported the armistice.

A trace of hesitation flashed on Nicholas II's face, stopping the war now, and then seeking revenge from the Chinese after defeating the Allies, this is undoubtedly a very beautiful idea, and it is also a good way for Russia to get out of the current predicament. However, Nicholas II also had some concerns. The Chinese Empire has developed so rapidly that by the time they put down Germany, the Chinese Empire must have been even more powerful than it is now. When the time comes, it will undoubtedly be more difficult to seek revenge on the Chinese Empire.

"Your Majesty, the situation in Europe is indeed becoming more and more tense now. Britain and Germany are desperately building capital ships, and tensions can be described as imminent. Now, it is indeed inappropriate to continue fighting with the Chinese in the Far East. The head of the General Administration of Orthodox Affairs, Pobedonoschev, also advised. According to his expectations, a war between the Entente and the Central Powers was most likely to break out in the next few years. This war will be about the fate of Russia, and they will do their best in the war. If you still fight with the Chinese Empire. It is extremely disadvantageous for Russia.

"Well, since everyone agrees with that. Then, let's continue peace talks with the Chinese. However, whether it was the war reparations or the ransom for the prisoners of war, it was forty million pounds. That's a no-no. We pay them up to £20 million. In addition, regarding the territory, Vladivostok is still under our control, and there is no reason to cede Vladivostok to them as well. Nicholas II said.

Vladivostok is Russia's most important outlet to the sea in the East and the base of the Pacific Fleet of the Russian Navy. If Vladivostok were ceded to China, it would undoubtedly completely cut off Russia's way to the sea in the East! What's more, now that the Chinese Army has not been able to capture Vladivostok, there is no reason for Russia to cede Vladivostok to China.

The ministers all nodded their heads one after another, although Nicholas II made his request. But. The change in Nicholas II's attitude undoubtedly solved the biggest problem for this peace negotiation. Whether Nicholas II's demand for a reduction in war reparations or the preservation of Vladivostok for Russia was a matter of negotiation. Although there are still some differences between this and the conditions proposed by the Chinese Empire, it is entirely possible for the two sides to reach an agreement after several rounds of negotiations. As long as it can get out of this war, then Russia will be able to rebuild its strength and devote itself to a larger war that may break out next. As long as the Entente can win the war in the future. Russia remains one of the most powerful countries in the world, taking revenge on the Chinese Empire. That's even more true.

The Tsar and his ministers in Russia were not willing to admit defeat from the bottom of their hearts. The reason why we are now compromising with the Chinese Empire is that there is no way to do it. They are all waiting for the day of revenge in their hearts. As long as the Entente could defeat the Allies and destroy the Chinese Empire, it would not be a big problem at all.

It's a pity that the Russians probably never expected it. They don't have that chance again. The future war far exceeded the Russians' expectations, and their already decaying empire finally collapsed in that war. The crown prince of the Chinese Empire, far away in the east, had long been ready to cut off a piece of fat on the Russians when the time came. So, the Russians tried to take revenge later. It was nothing more than an unattainable dream.

The attitude of the Russian government has changed dramatically, which is undoubtedly good news for Britain and France, who are desperate to bring about this negotiation. Although there are still some differences, they all agree that these are minor issues that can be resolved soon.

On April 7, 4607 (09), negotiations between China and Russia continued. In the negotiations, both the Chinese Empire and Russia put forward their own conditions. Compared to the conditions put forward on April 5, both sides have made a great compromise. The current disagreement mainly focuses on the amount of war reparations or ransoms for prisoners of war, and the issue of Vladivostok.

"The ransom of forty million pounds is too high, and the Russian Empire can only pay a ransom of ten million pounds at most." Lang Suovic shook his head repeatedly. Although there are hundreds of thousands of captured Russian troops, for Russia, the most important thing is probably those gray livestock.

"No, no. The ransom of 40 million pounds is not high, and the number of Russian soldiers captured by us is as high as more than 400,000 people, so if you calculate it, each Russian prisoner of war is only 100 pounds. Isn't a well-trained and valiant Russian soldier worth a hundred pounds? If Russia is unwilling to redeem these prisoners of war at this price, then we can only regret that these prisoners of war will have to participate in forced labor to pay for the food and other supplies they consumed during their captivity. Tang Shaoyi shook his head.

The massive infrastructure construction of the Chinese Empire had already begun, requiring a large amount of labor. If the Russians were not willing to pay even 40 million pounds, they would have to leave these Russian prisoners of war to do the coolies. A strong Russian prisoner of war would have created a fortune of more than a hundred pounds if he worked to his death.

Lang Suovic's face suddenly became ugly. Although, they never took those gray animals seriously. But if the Chinese want to use these prisoners of war as slaves, it will undoubtedly be a slap in the face to Russia!

Sir Jurdian and Minister Pasteur also exchanged views in a whisper, and in their opinion, it was undoubtedly a very cost-effective thing to redeem more than 400,000 veterans who had undergone the baptism of war with 40 million pounds! The Russians are still against it, are they kicked in the head by a donkey? Although Russia has a large population, more than 400,000 veterans are undoubtedly a huge wealth!

The German minister on the side, Hahausen, had a smile on his face. If the Russians were unwilling to ransom the veterans, it would be good news for Germany.

"Twenty million pounds, we are willing to pay a ransom of twenty million pounds, this is our bottom line. If it is higher than this price, it is blackmail against Russia. Ronsovicz said.

The price of 20 million pounds is already the bottom line for Russia. However, this price was obviously not able to satisfy the Chinese Empire.

"The price of twenty million pounds is too low, and it is less than fifty pounds for every Russian prisoner of war." Tang Shaoyi shook his head.

After some haggling, Tang finally relented and cut the ransom from £5 million to £35 million. After reaching this price, Tang Shaoyi didn't back down a single step.

Subsequently, Sir Jurdian suggested that the meeting be adjourned temporarily, and Sir Jurdian, Minister Pasteur, and Lang Sowitz conspired for about ten minutes, and finally reached an agreement and accepted the request of the Chinese Empire. Of the £35 million ransom, Russia's bottom line is £20 million. But the extra fifteen million pounds can be divided between the three of them, and each family pays five million pounds. In this way, it will be possible to redeem all the more than 400,000 prisoners of war.

The question of war reparations was agreed, and the last remaining focus of disagreement was Vladivostok.

"Vladivostok is the territory of the Russian Empire, and now Vladivostok is still under the control of the Russian Imperial Army, and is not occupied by the Chinese Army. Therefore, if the Chinese Empire wants to forcibly occupy Vladivostok, the Russian Empire will absolutely not agree to it. "Ronso Vici has a tough attitude.

For Russia, Vladivostok means the Far East's access to the sea, and it is also the direction of Russian expansion. Leaving Vladivostok behind is tantamount to leaving Russia with a thought in the Far East.

However, what the Chinese Empire had to do was to cut off this idea of the Russians. Drive the Russians out of the Far East once and for all. Therefore, on the issue of Vladivostok, the attitude of the Chinese Empire is also very resolute.

Because of the resolute attitude of both sides, the negotiations once again reached an impasse.

A very important reason why the Russians refused to hand over Vladivostok to the Chinese Empire was that Vladivostok had not fallen and was still under the control of the Russians. Although, the Chinese Army has been launching an offensive against Vladivostok in the past few months. However, the fortifications of Vladivostok were too strong, and even if the Northern Army threw all the large-caliber heavy artillery into the attack on Vladivostok, it would still be very difficult to take Vladivostok in one fell swoop. Therefore, the current negotiations are not very smooth.

The British and French began to act aggressively again, and they turned to pressure the Chinese Empire to abandon Vladivostok. In their view, even if the Russians continued to occupy Vladivostok, this isolated stronghold would not pose any threat to the Chinese Empire. (To be continued......)

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