After Li Hongzhang left, the negotiating team officials looked at each other with annoyance and hatred in their eyes, with different expressions. Li Hongzhang's harsh words were like a hammer hitting the hearts of the negotiating team officials from various countries, making the negotiating team's It was difficult for the officials to calm down, and they were all thinking about what would happen next.
British Prime Minister Henry Temple took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "Everyone, Li Hongzhang's words are just Li Zhen's intimidation to us. This is a sign of Li Zhen's guilty conscience. Don't be afraid. Huang Shihai's army is retreating steadily on the Mongolian battlefield. Once Li Zhen is defeated, We can take the opportunity to coerce Li Zhen and retrieve the captured soldiers. This is an opportunity, not a threat."
U.S. Secretary of State Seward nodded and continued: "I agree with Mr. Temple's statement. Li Zhen is now a foreign power and a domestic cadre. The war in Mongolia has made Li Zhen very upset. After the news about Mongolia was leaked, he faced threats from our negotiating team. He exerted pressure. Under such circumstances, Li Zhen could only use strong methods to exert pressure and make us surrender, in order to achieve his purpose of diverting all his energy to deal with Mongolia. Everyone, this is Li Zhen's conspiracy. As long as we stabilize , it must be Li Zhen who surrenders."
Muravyov had a calm smile on his face and continued: "Li Zhen's intentions are self-evident. He used Li Hongzhang to scare us. In fact, he wanted to divide us and make us fight among ourselves in order to control the situation. purpose, in order to prevent Li Zhen from succeeding, we must unite sincerely, just as we said we should unite when we first arrived. Now at the critical moment, we unite together and maintain unified opinions. Li Zhen’s intentions are not offensive. Self-destruction.”
The three most important officials unanimously agreed to stick to the end.
The Dutch official looked worried and said: "You have only considered the victory of the Mongolian army, but what if the Mongolian army is defeated? Where will we go then?"
The Italian official continued: "As Li Hongzhang said, once the Mongolian army is defeated, Li Zhen will ask for high prices and the conditions he offers will be more harsh than the current conditions. How can we talk to Li Zhen at that time? The detained soldiers will not Maybe get it back."
The Austro-Hungarian official gritted his teeth, and then said in a deep voice: "I think it is feasible to negotiate with Li Zhen now, and it is a great opportunity. Now we can reach an agreement with Li Zhen to bring back the captured soldiers from various countries, and then sit back and watch. In the war between Mongolia and China, once China is defeated, we will add fire to the situation and cancel the signed contract. If Mongolia is defeated, we will not care about anything and just withdraw ourselves to protect ourselves."
After a pause, the official continued: "I think we must ensure our initiative. This is the most critical thing. Moreover, the captured soldiers have always been in Li Zhen's hands. We will exchange the captured soldiers back, and Only after Li Zhen's defeat did we dare to interfere openly. Otherwise, once Li Zhen was defeated and we still had people in Li Zhen's hands, under such circumstances, would we dare to interfere with Li Zhen's affairs? It is definitely impossible. We must replace our people. , to ensure that the next thing goes smoothly."
"no no……"
Temple shook his head and said, "No, what you said is wrong."
Austro-Hungarian officials asked: "Why."
Temple explained: "We are now negotiating with Li Zhen and agreeing with Li Zhen's conditions. This is to involve ourselves, because after the treaty is signed, we end up tearing up the treaty signed with Li Zhen. This is not abiding by the treaty. In the future, countries will no longer have any credibility. Once the treaty is signed, it will be fatal to all countries. It must not be signed according to Li Zhen's conditions. This is a matter between countries. It is not a child's play. It cannot be changed overnight, otherwise it will be repeated in the future. Whatever treaty is signed, the situation will be unpredictable."
After hearing this, the Austro-Hungarian officials frowned.
He thought that once the Mongols were defeated, the country would face greater difficulties, and he couldn't help but complain.
Can't hold on.
Austria-Hungary raised its head and said loudly: "Britain, France, the United States, and Russia are all big countries with strong strength and rich resources. They can support the conditions proposed by Li Zhen. But we are a small country. Big countries can withstand huge pressure, but we cannot. Once Li Zhen wins, we can't bear Li Zhen's conditions. Are the four major countries willing to help us bear part of it?"
He stared at Temple, Muravyov and others without blinking.
"I also have the same idea. Once Mongolia is defeated and Li Zhen wins, Li Zhen will ask for a huge price and Italy will have difficulty paying the conditions Li Zhen demands. Are the four major countries willing to help Italy bear part of it?"
The Italian officials stared at the officials from the four countries with burning eyes.
Immediately afterwards, the Netherlands, Denmark and other countries also spoke.
Several small countries put forward conditions, which made Temple, Muravyov and others feel embarrassed. They could not help other countries to bear the conditions proposed by Li Zhen. However, once they refused, several small countries were likely to contact Li Zhen first, resulting in The negotiating team split.
"Li Zhen is too cunning and cruel."
Siward frowned, his expression extremely ugly.
He understood that Li Hongzhang's threatening move was an outright conspiracy and was difficult to stop.
Split is inevitable.
Siward sighed and said: "I have no objection to you wanting to contact Li Zhen in advance, but I want to make it clear that you should contact Li Zhen in advance first. After the Mongolian army wins, you will definitely not want to get a share of the pie." Maybe, when the time comes, you can do whatever you want without getting involved with us."
The Italian official said: "Please rest assured, Lord Seward, that after Italy signs the treaty, it will immediately withdraw it."
A Danish official said: "We are a small country. We don't seek to make anything, we only seek to protect ourselves."
The Dutch officials felt embarrassed. If he agreed to Li Zhen's conditions, he would inevitably cede the East Indies. This was something the Dutch officials did not want to see. He did not speak, but silently thought about the path of his country.
…
Hebei Province, Chengde City.
Huang Shihai's military command post is located here. In the command post, Huang Shihai frowned, with irritability in his eyes. Before that, his troops had entered Mongolia, and he even moved the military command post to Mongolia, but later The Mongolian army had new weapons, especially since there were no bunkers on the grasslands. The new weapons used by the Mongolian army failed repeatedly, so that Huang Shihai had to withdraw the command post to Chengde City to remotely control the situation on the Mongolian grasslands.
"Commander, there is a letter from the President."
A guard said.
Huang Shihai took the letter from the guard, read it carefully, with a smile on his face, and said loudly: "Okay, okay, the President's letter said that the production of weapons to deal with the Mongols has begun. It won't take too long." We can counterattack. If the order is passed, the army will retreat across the board and turn to defense. As long as we are not on the vast plains and we have bunkers to cover us, we can use our own weapons to block the Mongolian attack. When the Mongols leave the grassland, nothing will happen. no."
"yes."
The guards went to convey the order, and the troops under Huang Shihai began to defend across the board.
…
Beijing, Presidential Palace.
On this day, a guest came to the Presidential Palace. This person was wearing a black windbreaker and black leather boots. However, his clothes and leather boots were covered in dust, and his face was full of haggard. However, he His eyes were clear and sparkling with excitement. This person was none other than Dai Yuanhua, who had just arrived in Beijing. After receiving Li Zhenfa’s telegram to Guangzhou that day, Dai Yuanhua immediately put down what he was doing and rushed to Beijing. He was sitting in the hall, looking very excited.
Li Zhen provides a new weapon, and he will be responsible for manufacturing it.
For this reason, he was excited for a long time. The sound of footsteps came from outside the hall. Dai Yuanhua looked back, then stood up suddenly, bowed and said: "President."
"Thank you for your hard work, sit down."
Li Zhen waved his hand, came to the main seat and sat down.
After Dai Yuanhua sat down, he shook his head and said: "It's not hard, the President has many things to do every day, so he should pay attention to his health." After a pause, Dai Yuanhua changed the subject and said straight to the point: "The President said that he would develop a new type of smoke bomb. Weapon, what kind of weapon is this smoke grenade, and how was it developed?"
Li Zhen smiled and said: "Yuanhua, you are really a weapons fanatic."
"Haha~~"
Dai Yuanhua smiled and said, "You know, this is my hobby."
Li Zhen was not in a hurry to answer, but asked: "How is the production of the tank going? Is there any new progress?"
When mentioning tanks, Dai Yuanhua was even more excited. He couldn't help rubbing his hands and said: "Reporting to the President, the production of tanks has been completed. We have also produced the first tank. We are now testing it. All the data have been collected clearly, and it is estimated that it will take at least a month before the tank can be stabilized and put into use on the battlefield."
"One month."
Li Zhen frowned and asked, "Can the time be shortened?"
Dai Yuanhua thought for a while and replied: "The time can be shortened, but it will take half a month at the latest."
"Okay, just half a month."
Li Zhen smiled and said: "Half a month later, the newly developed tanks will arrive in Beijing and then be sent to the Mongolian battlefield in the north. The Mongols have smoke bombs, but we have tanks on the grassland. Let's see how they can resist it. "
"The Mongolian grasslands are flat and suitable for tanks to drive on."
Dai Yuanhua nodded, with a smile in his eyes. After a pause, Dai Yuanhua said again: "What's going on with the smoke bomb?"
In a word, Dai Yuanhua returned to the topic.
Li Zhen laughed loudly, stopped talking in circles, and said: "A smoke bomb is a weapon that produces a large amount of smoke after being ignited, used to confuse the enemy, and then cover and protect one's attack. Such a weapon is not fatal, but it can have a great effect. It has a strong auxiliary effect." Li Zhen briefly talked about the use of smoke bombs and began to explain the production of smoke bombs to Dai Yuanhua.
He took Dai Yuanhua to the study, handed the drawings that he had already produced to Dai Yuanhua, and said: "The production of smoke bombs will have an important impact on both Mongolia's war situation and future wars, and must be developed as soon as possible. , at the same time, the tank must also be tested in half a month and then transported to the battlefield."
"President, please rest assured that the arsenal will definitely complete its mission."
Dai Yuanhua raised his hand in a military salute and hurriedly left the presidential palace.