Beijing Dongjiaomin Lane, British Embassy.

In this embassy area located in the capital of China, but the Chinese police are not allowed to enter. The British Embassy is undoubtedly in a leading position. This former residence of Prince Dun became the home of the British Embassy after the Second Opium War. During the Boxer Movement in 1900, it was attacked by the Boxer and the Qing army, but it was not broken. Now the alert situation of the British Embassy seems to have returned to 1900! The soldiers of the British Royal Marine Corps set up barricades at the door of the embassy and set up machine guns. All Chinese servants in the embassy have been dismissed, leaving only the Red-headed Ah San who came from India.

Minister Jurden walked out of the car tiredly and took the briefcase handed by his secretary. It seemed that the British soldiers on guard at the gate of the embassy glanced at him, sighed, and walked into the embassy with great strides. When the Indian gardeners and servants saw the minister's dejected look, they knew that the Chinese had not completely surrendered to the British Empire.

In the living room, there was already a well-dressed middle-aged man waiting there with his brows. The gentleman was Eston, the British Embassy. Seeing Juerdian walking in with a dark face, Eston forced a smile and asked, "Mr. Minister, do Duan Qirui still disagree with our plan?"

Juerdian sat down on the sofa tiredly, and the Indian servant gave him a cup of black tea. The minister took a sip and said with a wry smile: "These damn Chinese people, they don't think about who protected this country from division in 1901. They don't think about who saved China from division in 1911... They are really ungrateful people! They are still stubbornly insisting that they cannot be responsible for the terrorist activities of the Red Brigade in the concession, and they also disagree with us using Guan Yu to form a 10-country business group to defend the concession! It's so irresponsible. By the way, Mr. Lan Pusheng, do you see if the British Empire's position of supporting the Beiyang government is wrong? Should we consider letting Sun Yat-sen come to Beijing to preside over the Chinese government?"

Eston shook his head with a wry smile, took out two telegrams from his pocket and handed them over: "Mr. Minister, I don't think Sun Yat-sen would speak better than Duan Qirui."

"What is this?" Zhu Erdian frowned and put down the teacup. He took out the reading glasses from his pocket and put them on his nose. He took the telegram and looked at it. He then jumped up after taking a look: "What! How dare they call customs! Are these two news accurate?"

Eston shrugged: "I think Mr. Chen Jiongming should not deceive Sir Situba (Governor of Hong Kong)? And Mr. Chen did not ask the British Empire to support him in overthrowing Sun Yat-sen's rule in Guangdong. He just hopes that we will reach a compromise with the Beiyang government as soon as possible to avoid further deterioration of the situation! So I think the information provided by Mr. Chen Jiongming is reliable.

As for the report of the Consul Frezhe in Xiamen, it is even more accurate. There have just been protests against our control of China's customs in Xiamen and Fuzhou! Tens of thousands of Chinese people have taken to the streets of Xiamen and Fuzhou. Our customs in Fuzhou have retreated, and the Marine Corps is confronting the Chinese people in Xiamen..."

Although the situation seemed to be extremely serious, the British counselor just said slowly and slowly, as calm as some gentlemen of the British Empire.

However, the always steady Minister Juerdian could no longer hold back. He jumped and shouted: "Immediately cover the telegram to Frey and ask him to immediately protest to the Chinese officials stationed in Xiamen, and ask them to ensure the safety of the British Concession in Xiamen! Tell us that the young man in the Marine Corps must not allow Chinese mobs to enter the Concession one step!

Then we will send a power to our consul stationed in Fuzhou, asking him to go to China's Fujian Governor and Governor. What kind of military supervisor Chang Ruiqing should put pressure on them to send troops to disperse the rioters who occupied the Fujian Customs Building! Otherwise, the British Empire would not mind sending troops to restore order there.

Also, we will generate electricity to the commander of the Far East Fleet in Hong Kong and ask them to send a fleet to Xiamen to support our Marines there! We must never let the Chinese scatter in the British Concession!"

Eston was a little surprised. Does this Juerdian know what he was doing? Did he want to provoke another war in Asia before the European war was over? He did not move to convey Juerdian's orders, but just whispered: "Mr. Minister. I think the current situation is not that bad. Consul Frez's telegram did not say that the Chinese protesters were out of control. It might be just a peaceful demonstration. And in this incident, we did have some mishandling. I think the most important thing at the moment is to reach a compromise with the politicians in the Beiyang. Let them come out and re-control the situation!"

Juerdian held his head down, and he knew that he might have been too tough on some issues, but that was also to safeguard the interests of the British Empire in China! Extreme nationalist and anarchist terrorist organizations like Red Brigade must be eliminated as soon as possible! The Chinese government must also do its best to achieve this goal... For this reason, there is nothing wrong with the British Empire putting some pressure on them.

There is nothing wrong with embezzling the Chinese "Guan Yu" to form a business group to defend the concession. Can't we let the British government or British merchants in China bear the extra expenses? He really couldn't understand why the Chinese government, who has always obedient and obedient, did not follow suit with such reasonable demands? This must be the impact of the terrorist activities of the Red Brigade?

Juerdian stomped her feet and said coldly: "Just do what I said. Now is the critical moment of confronting the Chinese. If we make concessions, the Chinese will think that the British Empire no longer has the power to maintain its dominance in Asia. In that case... the Chinese will soon challenge the British Empire's interests in China again!"

"Okay." Eston sighed softly in his heart, just like the telegraph room upstairs. He stopped suddenly after walking a few steps, and turned around and asked Zhu Erdian: "Mr. Minister, what should I do in Guangdong? Sun Yat-sen may take action against Guangdong Customs within a few days."

Zhu Erdian waved his hand and said loudly: "Let's find a way... We must suppress this opponent who jumped out first, so that Sun Yat-sen may retreat!" As he said that, he gritted his teeth and reached out to his secretary: "Charlie, we are going to Zhongnanhai now to meet the Chinese president." As he said that, he murmured to himself in an inauspicious voice: "Things should be broken..."

...

Outside the window, some students were parading on the streets of ponytails in the drizzle. The struggle to reclaim Fuzhou customs was much simpler and faster than expected. When thousands of Fuzhou students and workers, and nearly 10,000 peasant brothers who came (hired) from counties near Fuzhou appeared in the small ponytails, shouting the slogans of "destroy imperialism" and "retrieve customs". The foreigners in the customs building ran away as soon as possible.

Then, Comrade Li Dazhao, the leader of the Chinese G-G, who led the customs retraction, held a press conference in the customs building in Mawei, and in front of a group of Chinese and foreign journalists, publicly announced that Fujian Customs was back in the hands of the people! Chang Ruiqing's Fujian Army did not show up at all in the struggle to retraction of customs here in Fuzhou.

After all the foreigners in the customs institutions in Mawei, Fuzhou were expelled, each of the farmers gathered in Fuzhou received a few dollars. They set out on their way home... Anyway, it is a slack farm now, so everyone is happy to have such an extra income. As for the students who didn't have a penny and were working in vain, they were very excited. They were still parading on several streets where consulates in various countries gathered in Mawei, venting their excessive energy. The placards were full of slogans against imperialism, and some even shouted the slogans of Long Live the Red Brigade and Long Live Zuomin!

Chang Ruiqing pulled up the curtains of the Customs Chief's office, and his expression seemed a little weird. After all, it was the first time he heard someone shouting long live for himself! He had just arrived at the Mawei Customs Building from Fuzhou City. His purpose was to negotiate with the British consul in Fuzhou that Chinese personnel would take over the Fujian Customs. Although he did not expect the British to agree at all, he always had to do his best in terms of face.

"Yaoru! What are you waiting for? You should order the suppression of these rioters! And the leader of the rioters named Li Dazhao must also be arrested immediately! You must never allow the situation to expand."

A voice full of anxiety suddenly rang in his ears. This Fujian Governor Sa Zhenbing was talking. The theoretical leader of Fujian Province is now at a loss. Although it was winter, his forehead was covered with beads of sweat the size of soybeans.

He came from Fuzhou City in a car with Chang Ruiqing. There was also an Australian named Dunna in the same car, a famous journalist who had served as consultants for many political leaders of the Republic of China in history. He came to Fujian to interview Chang Ruiqing. This reporter friend was obviously interested in Chang Ruiqing, a rapidly rising Zhongzhang. As soon as he received the invitation from Zhang Junmai, he quickly went south with a few foreign journalist friends.

Now he is in the same office as Chang Ruiqing. When he heard Sa Zhenbing shouting to suppress his compatriots, his eyebrows twisted slightly.

As a journalist with a fair position, he believed that in the current conflict between China and the great powers, the behavior of the Red Brigade was certainly an unforgivable mistake. However, the Chinese government and the Chinese people did nothing wrong. The great powers should not punish innocent Chinese with the mistakes of the Red Brigade. Moreover, the arrogant behavior of the ministerial delegation not only cannot be effective in combating the Red Brigade, but instead makes more Chinese people think that the great powers really want to turn their motherland into a colony... The occurrence of today's Chinese people rushing into customs to expel foreign personnel is undoubtedly the consequence of the arrogant behavior of the ministerial delegation.

At this time, the highest commander of the Beiyang government stationed in Fujian, the General Sazhenbing, actually proposed to suppress the unarmed Chinese people to please the British Empire... This is simply a slave to the British Empire. Sir Jurden was not satisfied and had to keep forcing them to force them. What kind of Chinese bureaucrats do this old guy want to rule this country?

Chang Ruiqing's eyes were round, and he looked at Sa Zhenbing, who was urging himself to suppress the people with an incredible surprise expression: "Ding Gong! What are you talking about? There are just some students there! They are just expressing their dissatisfaction in the gentlest way. This is their basic right as a citizen. How can I send troops to suppress the people?" As he said that, he looked back at Duanna and smiled: "Mr. Duanna, do you think I'm right?"

"What's right?" Before Duanna could speak, Sa Zhenbing replied first: "These mobs were just rushing to the customs. What if they rush into the consulate later? Now that Beijing is in chaos, there must be no more trouble in our place! Otherwise, China will really die! Yaoru, please order the suppression quickly, and then go to the British consulate with me to apologize, invite the foreign officers who have run away and return the customs to the British!"

When the old man said this, his whole body was trembling, as if his heart was about to jump out of his mouth. He was an old navy. He also studied in Britain and had witnessed the prosperity of the British Empire with his own eyes! To put it exaggeratedly, he was a Chinese living in the Victorian era!

But there was no fear on Chang Ruiqing's face. Instead, there was a contemptuous smile. This expression made Dunna a little strange. Although the national strength of the British Empire was no longer as strong as before, it was still the world's number one power! He coughed lightly and said, "General Sa, General Chang, I am good friends with Mr. Herber, the British Consul in Fuzhou. I can explain your kindness to him. Maybe the conflict here can be resolved successfully through negotiations, right?"

Chang Ruiqing suddenly turned his attention to the Australian: "Mr. Duanna, Fujian Customs has been taken back by the Chinese people. As a Chinese soldier, I have no right to protect it and never give it to foreigners again! I think your British Empire's customs have not allowed foreigners to manage and control it, right?"

Duan Na was stunned when he heard this, and looked at the young middle-aged man in front of him with an extremely complicated gaze. After a long time, he nodded slightly: "General Chang, can I publish what you just said in the newspaper?"

Chang Ruiqing said lightly: "Yes. It's not a big deal. By the way, please call Mr. Herber and tell him that I will never hand over the Fujian customs to the British. If he wants to come back to the customs management rights from me, there is no need to go for a waste. As for the personal safety and property of British citizens in Fuzhou, I will try my best to protect it."

...

Unlike Fuzhou Mawei, it takes effort to reclaim the customs. At this moment, the entrance to the British Concession in Xiamen is full of gunpowder!

The British Concession in Xiamen is close to the sea in the west, and is very narrow at both ends of the north and south. The only entrance has been completely blocked by the Royal Marines with iron wire. There are several wide roads at the entrance to the east of the concession, which is the most prosperous commercial area in Xiamen. However, now, all the foreign shops here have closed, and there should be more than a hundred neatly dressed British soldiers and Indian police forming a cordon. The black muzzle pointed to the direction of the Chinese Concession.

There are a crowd of people in the Chinese world! There are tens of thousands of people. Standing at the front are the students and workers in Xiamen. Unlike the farmers who spend money to hire, these students and workers are all angry. They hold placards, five-color national flags, and GCD sickle hammer flags. Sometimes they shout the slogan "Get out of imperialism", and sometimes they sing the passionate "Internationale" under the leadership of some movement organizers from Beijing or Shanghai!

British Consul in Xiamen Frezer stood silently on the rooftop of a British foreign business building. His face looked a little gloomy and he was slightly surprised. He was no stranger to the tune of "Internationale"! When he was in college in the UK, Frezer often attended left-wing rallies - because at that time he was pursuing the daughter of a banker who was confused by left-wing ideas.

At this time, a secretary of a consulate hurriedly came up and reported loudly: "Mr. Consul, Sir Juerdian from Beijing, he demanded that the security of the British Concession be absolutely guaranteed and that a Chinese mob would not be allowed to break in! He also said that the Far East Fleet would soon come to reinforce!"

Frez looked up and looked at the secretary steadily: "What did you say? What did Sir Jurden want to do? Is he going to start a war in Asia?"

The secretary was stunned for a moment and murmured: "Sir, do you want to give orders to the Marines so that they can..."

Frezer glared at the secretary fiercely, and pointed at the Chinese people singing the Internationale in the distance and shouted: "Are you crazy? Do you think they are all unarmed Chinese people who can let us shoot? They are singing the Internationale, and they are red elements! There must be terrorists from the Red Brigade among them! Those people can have bloodbathed the Russian barracks in Tianjin! I don't think that our over-age Marines and Indian police will be stronger than Russian soldiers... Go and call Minister Juerdian back and tell him that the protests here in Xiamen are organized by the Chinese Red Month, and it is probably related to the Red Brigade! Go and tell Major Walter that he is not allowed to open fire first, and must remain calm.

Also, we will send people to the Chinese officials in Xiamen to negotiate with them to send troops to isolate the Chinese people from the concessions, and also tell them that we have no intention of intensifying the situation."

The secretary agreed, turned his head and was about to convey the latest orders of Minister Frez, when he heard a few crisp gunshots sounded from somewhere. (To be continued...)

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