The arrival of Tsicherin seemed to give Harson hope of saving face, and on the day of Tsicherin's arrival in Moscow, the consul general expressed a strong protest to the Deputy People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, despite his ill health.

However, he received only a very official reply: "We express our sympathy and regret for the plight of your country's diplomats, but in view of the fact that this is caused by force majeure, we can only ask your staff to be vigilant and submit an application for protection in accordance with our request, in addition to expressing our condolences...... Of course, we will do everything we can to solve the case, but it will take time......"

Anyway, Harson hit a soft nail, and people didn't miss it and told him that he was self-inflicted, and he was so angry that this thing's illness was even more serious.

To tell the truth, Tsicherin's attitude surprised Moscow's large and small external forces, who originally thought that Tsicherin was here to calm things and was ready to watch a good show. As a result, they were taken aback by the toughness shown by Chicherin, could it be said that the Bolsheviks were already fighting them to the end?

That evening, the American ambassador to Russia, Francis, reported to his own government: "The Soviet power has separated itself from the Allies, and in view of the possibility of the worst, the government must be prepared for armed intervention in the Russian revolution!" As soon as the conditions are right, you can implement it immediately! ”

The reaction of the British was also more direct, and while discussing armed intervention, they felt the need to strengthen the blockade of Russia in an effort to completely defeat the Soviet power economically. Moreover, several possible options for arming and supporting the anti-Bolshevik White Army were discussed.

That is, after 1918. The situation in Russia has become more unpredictable. Just a fuse. You can detonate the entire powder keg.

The fuse was soon there, and in accordance with the decision of the Central Executive Committee of the Workers' and Peasants' and Soldiers' Soviets, the Constituent Assembly was supposed to be formally convened on January 5. In order to strike down the arrogance of the Bolsheviks at the Constituent Assembly and to overthrow the Soviet power, the Socialist-Revolutionaries, the Cadets, and the Mensheviks did a great deal of work and mobilized almost all human and material resources.

But the poor creatures could never have imagined that on this very day the Bolsheviks would give them a blow to the head. At the opening of the Congress, the Bolshevik delegation suddenly declared: "The Constituent Assembly is full of counter-revolutionaries who are trying to use it to block the path of the workers' and peasants' movement, and the overwhelming majority of the working people in Russia demand that the Constituent Assembly recognize the achievements of the Great October Revolution, and that the Bolsheviks will participate in the Constituent Assembly only if the Soviet Agrarian Decree, the Peace Decree, the Workers' Supervision Decree are recognized, and the Soviet power of the workers' peasants' and soldiers' deputies is first recognized."

How could the Cadets, the Right Socialist-Revolutionaries and the Mensheviks agree to these conditions, and not surprisingly, the demands of the Bolsheviks were categorically rejected and thus at the opening of the Congress. The Bolsheviks immediately announced their withdrawal from the Constituent Assembly.

In fact, the Bolsheviks' move was not at all surprising, on December 12, 1917. Lenin made this clear in his Theses on the Constituent Assembly, and if the Constituent Assembly could not unconditionally recognize Soviet power, it should overthrow it by revolutionary means!

Of course, the so-called means of revolution are only a literary modifier, and to put it bluntly, it is to dissolve the Constituent Assembly by force and directly let him go. However, there was also a great deal of controversy within the Bolsheviks.

For example, Rykov and Kamenev and others strongly opposed the use of force to settle the Constituent Assembly, denouncing what it was against the spirit of democracy and indiscriminate use of violence. But fortunately, their voices are very weak and can't make much of a difference. Lenin's proposal was easily adopted by the Central Committee and immediately implemented!

Therefore, when the right wing of the Cadet Party and the Socialist-Revolutionary Party was ready to show their talents, they were at a loss to find that the stage was directly demolished by the Bolsheviks. What they had been working on for more than a month had all come to naught.

"Mr. Chernov, what I said, how about it, everything has come true!" Savinkov tried his best to be sarcastic, "What fool told us that the Constituent Assembly was hopeful, and now what is it, hopeless!" ”

Chernov sat sullenly in his position, what else could he say at this moment, the Bolsheviks gave him a mouth with practical actions, it really hurt!

"It's because of the betrayal of the leftists!" Chernov thought about it for a long time before he came up with an excuse for himself, "They actually watched the Bolsheviks do whatever they wanted, and they need to be held accountable for this!" ”

The role of the Left of the Socialist-Revolutionary Party in the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly was rather ambiguous, and without their acquiescence the Bolsheviks could not have dissolved the Constituent Assembly so easily, that is to say, they approved of the Bolsheviks' actions. But on the other hand, I am afraid that they do not like this result very much, after all, they still have some ideas about the Constituent Assembly.

The Bolsheviks did a great deal of work to silence the left of the Socialist-Revolutionaries, and after the union of the two parties, the Bolsheviks relinquished some of the seats of the People's Commissars and co-opted the left wing of the Socialist-Revolutionaries.

Of course, this can only be regarded as a small favor, and more importantly, the Mentor gave them a proposal that suited their tastes - to replace the Constituent Assembly with the newly formed Soviets of Workers' Peasants' and Soldiers' Deputies.

The key to the appeal of this proposal to the taste of the Left of the Socialist-Revolutionary Party was their considerable influence in the newly formed Central Executive Committee of the Soviets of Workers' and Peasants' and Soldiers' Deputies. Compared with the seats in the Constituent Assembly, they were more influential in the Central Executive Committee of the Workers' and Peasants' Soviets. In other words, by replacing the former with the latter, their political influence will not only not shrink, but expand.

That being the case, the Left wing of the Social Revolutionary Party did not agree to anything, and in any case they were not on the right side with the Cadets and the Cadets, and it was only natural for them to be in the same direction. As a result, the Constituent Assembly, which had been vigorously arguing for more than half a year, ended without a hitch.

But that's a good thing, and it's unlikely that this bullshit meeting will make any significant breakthroughs anyway. Disbanding it early can also be regarded as saving national resources. And just after the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly, the Third Plenary Session of the All-Russian Congress of Workers', Peasants' and Soldiers' Soviets was victoriously convened.

Without the interference of the Cadets, the Social Revolutionaries and the Mensheviks. At this meeting, Lenin was finally able to do a great deal. This can also be seen in the closing speech of the Mentor: "All great revolutions always strive to completely eradicate the old capitalist system...... in order to eradicate all exploitation and oppression forever...... But this task has not been completely completed until now! ”

It can be seen from the subtext of the mentor. What he wanted to pursue was the line of "turning the imperialist war into a civil war" mentioned in the "April Theses." That is, to end the foreign war first. Fighting a civil war again, to put it bluntly, is still an endorsement of a compromise with Germany.

This was most evident in the "Draft Letter to All Party Members", which he later drafted with Sverdlov. In the draft, Lenin said: "On the question of accepting the terms of the contract, the opinion of the Central Committee is inconsistent. But reality dictated that we had to conclude a predatory and extremely harsh contract with Germany. This is first of all because we do not have an army and cannot defend ourselves. Moreover, the war that is now being waged is objectively provoked by the bourgeoisie. He advocated a revolutionary war now, or a revolutionary war under the pretext of supporting the international socialist movement. These are empty words. Because these are only beneficial to the German and Russian bourgeoisie, and are a dead end for us. ”

At a glance, it is clear that these words are directed at the ideas of Bukharin and Trotsky, and who made them always carry the slogan of fighting imperialist war with revolutionary war?

In fact, these two men also knew it, but they did not particularly care about it, because judging from the approval rating in the Central Committee for the time being, those who opposed the compromise with Germany still had a large advantage.

"How are the peace talks going?" Every day Bukharin, Ulitsky and Trotsky had to exchange opinions by telephone, and compared to the splendor of Petrograd, Brest was a stagnant water.

Because every day, Trotsky gives the same answer: "No progress, the Germans are very tough!" ”

Today, though. Trotsky brought a new message: "The attitude of the Germans has changed!" ”

As soon as they heard this, both Bukharin and Ulitsky perked up. Could it be that the Germans are finally going to give in?

Of course, this is impossible, because the answer given by Trotsky was: "The attitude of the Germans today is strange and a little ...... It's kind of like a perfunctory ......."

This answer surprised Bukharin and Ulitsky, who knew that the moral will of this people was very strict in nature, and its attitude towards work was simply meticulous. One is one and two is two, and it is rare to see the scene of them working without working hard to grind foreign workers.

"Could it be that the Germans have lost hope of negotiations?" Bukharin and Ulitsky thought of this possibility at the same time.

"I can't tell," said Trotsky, recalling the scene of today's negotiations, "I can only tell you that the attitude of the Germans is peculiar!" But as for whether they have lost patience with the negotiations or are ready to make concessions, it is difficult to say! ”

Ulitsky interjected and asked, "Then did you inform the Politburo of this change?" ”

Trotsky rolled his eyes on the other end of the phone, he didn't have enough to eat, how could he possibly write this kind of gossip based on feeling, wasn't this asking for trouble for himself? If his guess is wrong, it is not misleading the Politburo, how wrong is that? And, taking a step back, even if he guessed correctly, notifying the Politburo wouldn't do him any good!

For, in the first possibility, if the Germans were ready to make concessions (which even Trotsky thought was minimal), was this not pandering to Lenin's tactics? Then Lenin did not give him the burden of playing with his life, and let him make persistent efforts to get the contract, which Trotsky did not want to accept.

The second possibility is that if the Germans are not ready to negotiate and are ready to attack again, then he, the head of the regiment presiding over the negotiations, will not be able to escape his responsibility, since you have already noticed this situation, you should actively work hard to delay the Germans as much as possible! Otherwise, you're not doing your job well!

Anyway, Trotsky would not have taken this kind of, so this subtle change. He will certainly not take the initiative to tell the Politburo.

"What about the situation at home? The Cadets and the Social Revolutionaries on the right, they didn't make trouble? "Compared to negotiations. Trotsky wanted to know more about the situation at home. Part of the reason he came out to avoid the Constituent Assembly was to avoid the troubles of the Constituent Assembly.

"How can you not make trouble!" Ulitsky laughed contemptuously. "The clowns marched, demonstrated, and instigated several unsuccessful armed coups. In short, it's very lively! ”

Trotsky could have imagined the scene in Petrograd with his brain, and the birdmen who were not willing to accept defeat would certainly be going to make trouble, but their opponents were not the puppet Duke Lvov and the indecisive Kerensky, who were in the face of the tough and extremely decisive Lenin.

"Always keep an eye on every move in Petrograd and Moscow. I must be notified as soon as there is any news! Trotsky commanded in all seriousness.

"Speaking of Moscow, I have one thing to tell you," Ulitsky hesitated for a moment, then decided to tell the truth: "Lenin sent Tsicherin to Moscow......"

Before he could finish speaking, Trotsky became anxious, and he asked urgently on the phone: "Why don't you inform me of this kind of news, Petrograd and Moscow are both cities that affect the whole body, how could Lenin send Tsicherin over for no reason, there must be a problem!" ”

Bukharin interjected: "It's not a big problem, it's your enemy Andrei. Petrovich is causing trouble in Moscow again. There was a diplomatic dispute...... That's why Lenin had to send Tsicherin to solve it! ”

Trotsky did not breathe a sigh of relief, as Bukharin had expected, but, on the contrary. His brow furrowed even tighter, and with a keen sense of politics, he was clearly aware of the unusualness of this matter.

If, according to Bukharin, he was really just going to wipe someone's ass, then there was no need for Titchlin to show up, and he would casually send the angry protesting British in Petrograd in three or five sentences.

Lenin, on the contrary, did not do so, but sent Tsicherin to intercede, which, in Trotsky's view, was nothing to mediate at all. Either push the British back, or just go and spank someone's ass, it's as simple as that. Lenin, on the other hand, adopted an inexplicable, muddy tactic, which did not correspond to his character!

"Pay attention to this matter," said Trotsky, in a serious tone, "I don't think it's so simple!" Tsicherin suddenly went to Moscow, there must be something else! ”

Otherwise, the old fox who has been fighting for a long time is different! Trotsky could perceive something unusual just by hearing it, while Bukharin and Ulitsky were not aware of what was happening. In comparison, it is more than a step worse!

However, even if Trotsky had asked them to pay attention to Zicherin now, it would have been too late, because he had already had several rounds of communication with Akimovich, and it should be said that the communication was good, and some of the details were resolved, paving the way for full-scale negotiations in the future.

"Comrade Andrey, in two days I will return to Petrograd," Tsicherin found a certain immortal before leaving, and said straight to the point: "The work has been basically completed smoothly, now you should clean up the tail of your hands!" ”

The so-called hand tail is naturally the matter of the British Consulate General, after all, Zicherin is mediating under this guise, and he can't run out for a trip, there is no result!

Li Xiaofeng did not want to talk about this issue, because the British were much more stubborn than he thought, and his original plan was to exchange hostages and exchange the captured Britons for counter-revolutionaries in the British Consulate General. But the British didn't agree, especially that Harson, who was so sick that he played with him, and the emaciated camel was bigger than the horse.

"The communication went so well?" This thing deliberately diverted the topic.

"This is also what you did well in the early stage," Qi Qilin also put on a high hat for the other party, and everyone carried the sedan chair! Of course, he did find it difficult for someone, and now the conditions proposed by the Germans are much more lenient than the conditions in the previous ultimatum.

However, Qi Qilin can't be fooled casually, after praising someone, he immediately turned the topic back again, "But, Comrade Andrei, you must know that the Central Committee sent me to mediate disputes, and you must let me give a reasonable explanation to the Central Committee!" ”

Li Xiaofeng really wanted to ask on the spot: "What kind of explanation do you want!" Fortunately, he reacted immediately, the tone of such a question is really not good, anyway, Qi Qilin is also his own person, and he has been very cooperative with him before, he really has no reason to be mad!

"Actually, I mean to ask the British to hand over those counter-revolutionaries," Li Xiaofeng pouted and said, "but the British had to admit death and refused to hand over people, so they were deadlocked!" ”

The corners of Zicherin's mouth twitched twice, he was really speechless, how could the British hand over people, if they did, where would their faces go? The dignified empire where the sun never sets, even a few people can't protect it, if this spreads, what kind of influence will it have? Who will dare to cooperate with the British Empire in the future?

Anyway, Chicherin understands the British very well, and this matter can't be left like this anyway, especially since it is impossible to hand over people, so he can only carry it to the end.

Li Xiaofeng was stunned and asked, "In other words, there is no need to talk about this matter at all?" ”

Qi Qilin smiled bitterly and said: "It's not that there is nothing to talk about, the British will definitely not agree to make a deal openly, but there should be a little hope for secret operation!" (To be continued......)

PS: Bow again and thank you for the second kill comrade Potato, the support is so powerful!