Sure enough, on the core issue - the issue of Fengtian Province in Liaodong, there will be differences between Japan and Japan tomorrow.
At the beginning, Toshiaki Oyama did not agree with Ming Dynasty’s division of land outside the customs at all. He said that according to Japan’s expectations, the two countries should use Shanhaiguan-Nuruerhu Mountain-Daxinganling as the dividing line, and the west of this line
All belonged to the Ming Dynasty, and all east of this line belonged to Japan. Japan was satisfied with the whole of Manchuria and had no intention of asking for Outer Mongolia.
What he meant was: I, Japan, will not compete with you, Ming Dynasty, for the land of Outer Mongolia, and you, Ming Dynasty, should not compete with me, Japan, for Fengtian Province.
Fengtian (Liaoning) is not only the richest economy in the entire Northeast, the place with the most concentrated large towns and the densest population, it is also a strategic location in Northeast Asia, which has a profound impact on China, the Korean Peninsula, and Japan. Such an important place,
Of course, both sides want it. It is understandable that Japan is willing to give up several times the area of Outer Mongolia for it.
This is Japan’s asking price, which is pretty much what Daming expected. But since it’s the asking price, then it’s time to bargain.
He Ziguang immediately pointed out that the Liaodong Peninsula was given to Japan, which was absolutely unacceptable to the Ming Dynasty. This is the bottom line. Anything beyond this bottom line can be discussed, but this one cannot be discussed.
Dashan Junming also smiled after hearing this. He knew that there was little point in entangled on this issue. There was no water in He Ziguang's words. It was impossible for the Ming Dynasty to give the entire Liaodong Peninsula to Japan. At least Port Arthur definitely could not give it to Japan. If Japan wanted to continue the negotiation,
You have to make concessions.
Toshiaki Oyama immediately took a step back, carefully drew on the map with the red end of a two-color pencil, and said with a smile:
"That's good... How about taking a look at this dividing line?... Both sides jointly occupy the Liaodong Peninsula, with Fuzhou River and Biliu River as the dividing line... Your country occupies the part south of this line, which is Liaodong.
The southern tip of the peninsula includes the entire Lushun Peninsula, Jinzhou, Wafangdian, Pulandian... This is already one-third of the Liaodong Peninsula.
"In this way, your country not only controls Lushun, but also the land corresponding to Changshan Islands belongs to your country... In this way, your country can use Lushun as its home port and Changshan Islands as its sub-port to form a port similar to Zhoushan
The military port group on the archipelago... In this case, your country no longer has to worry about the security of the 'sea gateway'."
On the surface, it sounds like a huge concession, but everyone knows that just having a few ports is definitely not enough. The area on the land is only as big as sesame seeds and mung beans, not to mention that there are at most one or two divisions stationed, and there is no depth at all. The Japanese army only has the land from the north.
It only takes one charge, and it may be captured. Not to mention the loss of the place, even the warships in the harbor are likely to be captured.
He Ziguang still shook his head and firmly opposed it.
"Mr. Ambassador, although I don't know how much of a concession your government has given you, I can tell you clearly that our country will not make any concessions on the Liaodong Fengtian issue. We must control the entire Fengtian Province including the Liaodong Peninsula, including a
A wide enough land corridor leading to the pass. As for the land, your country does not need to worry, our country can compensate your country in Mongolia with several times the area of Fengtian."
Dashan Junming smiled slyly and said:
"Your Excellency, Minister, our country is an island country and does not need such a large inland land. We would rather choose a smaller area and a place closer to our mainland. Fengtian directly borders North Korea, which is extremely important to our country. Your country is a mainland country.
He has rich experience in managing large areas of landlocked land. Your country can use Mongolia’s large areas of land just right.”
He Ziguang frowned, looked at his pocket watch, and said:
"Mr. Ambassador, our time is very tight now and we don't have time to test each other. It's best to throw away the previous routines. Since everyone is sincere, it's best to be honest with each other. Just tell the bottom line, some 'coloratura'
If so, don’t say anything.”
Toshiaki Oyama smiled and did not answer. He just nodded slightly according to Japanese custom and said softly:
"Yes, yes..."
He Ziguang and Xiang Xiaoqiang looked at each other. Xiang Xiaoqiang flicked the Xianchen on his epaulette and said lightly:
"Mr. Ambassador, the battle situation on the frontline is changing rapidly. If we cooperate, it would be more meaningful before our army captures Shandong. Otherwise... it will not make much sense."
Toshiaki Oyama and Kenji Doihara also looked at each other, and both sides understood. Xiang Xiaoqiang was secretly threatening to join forces to carve up Beiqing, but you are looking for us. We just want to end it quickly and kill fewer people.
, I agreed to talk to you. But if you are still so unhappy, then when our army completely wins the Battle of the Central Plains and crosses the Yellow River and approaches Beijing, nothing will happen to you.
Doihara Xian laughed, sat forward for a moment, and said directly:
"So what is your country's bottom line?"
He Ziguang didn't hesitate, took the two-color pencil, used the blue end to draw slowly on the map, and said:
"I have long heard that General Doihara was a straightforward man, with a strong legacy of Confucian generals from the Han and Tang Dynasties...Although He is engaged in diplomacy, he also likes straightforward people...Well, the opinion of our government is this: in the southeast, the Yalu River should be used
To the east, it is bounded by the Hun River and the Ful River... To the north, it is bounded by the Qinghe River and the Liaohe River... To the west, it is bounded by Nuruerhu Mountain... To the southwest, it is bounded by Shanhaiguan."
When he circled like this, he almost encompassed the entire Fengtian Province, which is about 130,000 square kilometers, accounting for one-sixth of the entire Manchuria area.
Seeing Mingguo's "lion's big mouth", Oyama Toshiaki and Doihara Kenji looked at each other, both shook their heads and laughed, expressing that they could not accept it.
"Since Your Excellency, the Minister, likes to be forthright," Doihara Kenji sighed, "I will say it directly. Your Excellency, the Minister, the draw is too big. Although your country said that it would give us Manchuria, it took away the most prosperous part of it.
The richest piece. Our country needs mainland territory, not just land, but also resources. Half of Manchuria’s mineral resources are concentrated in Fengtian Province. Our country itself does not have these resources. In this way, we got the land, but not the
What’s the point of getting resources?”
Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled and said:
"Then there's still half outside Fengtian."
Toshiaki Oyama glanced at him, a little unhappy. Kenji Doihara smiled and said:
"Haha, General Xiang is really good at joking."
Xiang Xiaoqiang also smiled and said:
"Haha, Mr. Doihara's joke is not bad. The entire Manchuria has 800,000 square kilometers, and Fengtian only has 1,340,000 square kilometers, only one-sixth. But Mr. Doihara said that the entire Manchuria
Half of the mineral resources are concentrated in this one-sixth place, which is obviously contrary to common sense. It can only be said that Fengtian's population is relatively concentrated.
It is also close to the pass, so more resources have been developed. The other five-sixths of Manchuria are still full of resources, but most places are sparsely populated and the resources have not been developed much. If your country starts to develop it after getting it, then
You will find that five-sixths of Manchuria's resources are in your hands, and only one-sixth is in Fengtian."
Doihara Kenji saw that his sneaky concept was immediately discovered, and he laughed at himself and shook his head.
He Ziguang nodded slightly to Xiaoqiang, and then said:
"Mr. Ambassador, I still say that since everyone is sincere, let's not get entangled in these bottom-line issues. I have just stated that the boundaries of these 'five rivers and one mountain' are related to our country's core interests and are
This is the bottom line, and we really can't give in. We might as well move our eyes away from here and look to the north. In the north, we can use a large amount of land to compensate your country."
As he spoke, he extended his pencil to the Mongolian area in the north and roughly circled it, including the eastern half of Inner Mongolia and the eastern third of Outer Mongolia.
As he rowed, he smiled and said to Xiaoqiang:
"We can allocate all these lands to your country. Including the center of Outer Mongolia - Great Kulum (Ulaanbaatar), they are all within the scope of your country. In this way, as long as the cooperation with our country is successful, the returnees will
The new territory will be approximately... 1.8 million square kilometers, equivalent to five times the current land... Your country will transform from a small and barren island country with many volcanoes and earthquakes into a large country spanning sea and land, with vast territory and rich resources.
empire.
"Haha, from now on, no one will call your country 'Little Japan' anymore. Everyone will call your country 'Big Japan' with conviction. Your country's name - 'Great' Japanese Empire" will also be worthy of its name... How?
So, isn't this enough to make your country give up a small Fengtian with a smile?"
Although the faces of Toshiaki Oyama and Kenji Doihara remained calm, Xiang Xiaoqiang clearly saw that their Adam's apples rolled slightly.
Neither of them expected that the Ming Dynasty would be so generous and give up such a large area in Mongolia for the sake of Fengtian Province. They originally thought that even if the Ming Dynasty compensated Mongolia, it would be at most two or three times that of Fengtian. Unexpectedly, the Ming Dynasty would actually
Eight or nine times the area of Fengtian Province was offered in exchange. Although
The land is in Inner and Inner Mongolia. Although most of it is grassland and Gobi, Japan took Manchuria north of Fengtian. There are already enough rich forests and black soil. The Ming cabinet made a good estimate. Now the "area" thing is really
The temptation to Japan, which is "scared of crowds", is irresistible.
Both Toshiaki Oyama and Kenji Doihara had the same feeling: it was a good deal. This was a good deal.
After He Ziguang finished drawing on the map, he took a long breath, threw away the pencil, and pushed the map over for them to see. He leaned back in his chair, picked up the tea, drank it, and said lightly:
"Okay, regarding land division, all the bottom lines of our country are here. There is no more. Your country can consider it."
Then he crossed his legs and just drank tea without talking.
The meaning is obvious: this is the condition, if you want it, cooperate, if not, forget it. Japan is still guarding hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of volcanic and earthquake islands, so go ahead and live your life, and let everyone break up.
Oyama Toshiaki and Doihara Kenji immersed themselves in research for a while, and whispered for a while. Then Oyama Toshiaki raised his head and smiled:
"Haha...Okay, okay, I will report the conditions of your country to our government after I go back...I personally feel that there is still a lot of hope for our successful cooperation."
He Ziguang also nodded and smiled:
"In this way, that's the best."
…
After seeing off the two Japanese envoys, Xiang Xiaoqiang and Shi Shigege stayed at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and discussed with the Foreign Minister for a while.
Although Xiang Xiaoqiang said that he performed well just now, he always felt a little uneasy afterwards.
He felt that the Ming Dynasty's way of planning seemed to place all its vigilance on the Japanese navy. It seemed that it had no vigilance at all about the Japanese army. In other words, the Ming Dynasty was too confident in its own army.
The Ming Dynasty wanted to take the Liaodong Peninsula and the entire Fengtian Province even if it wanted to do so in order to give the Liaodong Peninsula a sufficient buffer inland. This was obviously to use the strategic location of the Liaodong Peninsula to protect the maritime security of Beijing, Tianjin, Tang and Shandong, and to defend the
The maritime gateway of North China. But for this reason, Ming Dynasty willingly gave a large area of northern land to Japan.
In this way, although the sea gateway was sealed, the land gateway in the north was wide open. The Ming Dynasty and Japan formed a long land border in Mongolia. Moreover, there were vast plains along the way, with not many mountain barriers.
The only ones that can play a decent protective role are the Nuruerhu Mountains and the Yanshan Mountains. And this barrier is less than 100 kilometers away from Beijing.
Perhaps the overwhelming momentum of the Ming army's armored clusters impressed the Ming government so deeply that the government felt that its own army was invincible as long as it was on the Great Plains?