On December 28, Foreign Minister He Ziguang summoned the German Ambassador and asked him to ask the German Chancellor if he was interested in sending a secret envoy to Ming Dynasty to discuss issues related to Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union.
The German ambassador did not dare to neglect and immediately sent a secret telegram to Berlin to ask for Hitler's instructions. A few hours later, the ambassador drove to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs again to meet with He Ziguang and told him that the head of state was planning to send his deputy Hess to the Ming Dynasty secretly. He Ziguang was shocked. , I thought that even if Hitler was very interested, he would send at most one diplomat. Unexpectedly, he actually sent his successor.
The top management of the Ming Dynasty immediately understood that Hitler was not only "very interested", it could be said that he was already crazy about it. Shen Rongxuan and He Ziguang could not help but secretly sigh that Xiang Xiaoqiang's trip to Germany was really not in vain. He It scratched the itch in Hitler's heart.
At the same time, He Ziguang also summoned the British and French ambassadors successively and asked them whether their governments were interested in sending special envoys to Ming Dynasty to discuss "the situation in Central and Eastern Europe and West Asia."
When Britain and France received the report from their country's ambassador to Ming Dynasty, they were a little hesitant. To be honest, the British and French governments now don't quite understand what the "situation problems" are in Central and Eastern Europe. - Not all problems were solved at the Munich Conference. What? There is nothing wrong with Europe anymore. Why is the Ming Dynasty coming to interfere at this time?
But at this time, the Ming Dynasty had become a hot potato internationally. Not only was it fighting against the Bolsheviks on its own, but it was also conceivable that once the war ended, the entire East Asia - mainly the northern part of the Ming Dynasty - would usher in a climax of construction. That was A market with astronomical numbers. Countries suffering from depression are all coveting this big cake, hoping to get a share of it. Although the industrial level of Britain and France is very high, the number of factories and workers is not large, so they cannot Compared with countries like the United States and the Ming Dynasty, as long as the Ming Dynasty gave a small piece of cake to Britain and France, it would be enough to solve their serious domestic unemployment problem.
Also, now that the Ming Dynasty has defeated Japan, there is no longer a threat in East Asia. The Ming Dynasty has taken away all the remaining large warships of Japan, and now the Ming Dynasty has become the world's strongest navy, and it is no longer a threat in East Asia. No force can check it. So the entire colonial area in Southeast Asia is under the shadow of the world's strongest navy. Will the Ming Dynasty covet this colonial area? What will be the national policy of the Ming Dynasty in the future? What will the future of the Ming Dynasty be? What is the political direction? Will it be peaceful construction, or will it continue to expand? Will it transform into a "strong and secure" democratic country like the United States? Or will it transform into a militaristic country like Japan?
All this made Britain and France wary. Therefore, after considering Ming's invitation, the politicians of both countries felt that it was appropriate to send special envoys there. Even if there were no problems in Europe, there were still problems in Asia, so they should follow The Ming Dynasty should discuss it face to face. Although the Ming Dynasty is now powerful, it is still its own ally after all, and it is completely free to talk about anything.
…
Half a month later, on January 13, 1939, German envoy Hess first took a boat and secretly arrived at Guangzhou Port. On the 14th, the British envoy's ship also entered Guangzhou Port. One day later, on the 15th, the French envoy also arrived. Ming Dynasty Diplomacy The Ministry immediately organized two secret talks. One was a secret talk between Ming and Germany, and the other was a secret talk between Ming, Britain and France. Britain and France knew each other, but they did not know that the German emissary was in Nanjing. And the German emissary Hess did not know either. The British and French emissaries are also here.
The meeting between the Ming Dynasty and the German emissary was mainly to break through the window paper and directly reveal the "little ninety-nine" of Germany's desire to expand eastward. Then, under Hess's consternation, He Ziguang painted a beautiful picture of the Ming Dynasty and Germany carving up Russia.
He even directly drew a line on the map to mark the future sphere of influence of the two countries. After Hess was stunned, he quickly stopped pretending and directly showed that Germany was indeed interested in joining forces with Ming Dynasty to attack Russia. But there is a problem. Now Germany
There are still Czechoslovakia and Poland between it and the Soviet Union, and the head of state has just signed the Munich Agreement, ensuring that the Sudetenland is his last request in Europe. In this case, what can Germany do?
He Ziguang smiled directly and said that the Munich Agreement should not be a problem for Mr. Prime Minister.
This means "I know that for your head of state, breaking the agreement is nothing." If you say this to the leaders of other countries, it will be considered rude, but Hess obviously came with sincerity.
He didn't get entangled here at all. He directly expressed Hitler's request, which meant that it would be great if Ming Dynasty could help mediate with Britain and France to get Britain and France to understand Germany's continued eastward march.
Ming Dynasty is already very experienced in dealing with parliamentary democracies such as the United Kingdom and the United States. It can be said that it is much more experienced than Germany. He Ziguang knows very well the most important "parts" of "mediation" with countries such as Britain, France, and the United States. That is:
When dealing with a dictatorship, you must focus on the dictator. As long as you get the dictator, it doesn't matter no matter how reluctant the people are. When dealing with a democratic country, you must focus on the voters. As long as you get the voters, it doesn't matter how reluctant the elected politicians are.
Useless.
He Ziguang smiled and said:
"This, our country can work together with your country. What do the people of Britain and France want most now? There are only two: peace and work. Your country can give them peace, and our country can give them jobs. As long as these two things are combined
In exchange for the British and French people, Mr. Prime Minister can gain the freedom to do whatever he wants in Europe."
Hess said suspiciously:
"Your Excellency, I don't quite understand."
He Ziguang said:
"It will not take long for our country to regain the north. As soon as the war is over, large-scale economic construction will begin. We will promise to give Britain and France a large part of the market and orders, and we can also let British and French companies undertake the construction of railways in the northwest. British and French
The number of workers is only a fraction of that in our country, and we can easily give them jobs. Besides work, what they want most is peace. This is why Mr. Chamberlain and Mr. Daladier are so blindly giving in. Sir, you
We also know that it is not that the German army is stronger than the French army, but that the British and French people are afraid of war, but the German people are not afraid. As long as Mr. Prime Minister can make a gesture to reassure the British and French people: Germany will never 'advance westward'
, then even if your country violates the Munich Agreement, the people of Britain and France will not particularly care."
"Your Excellency," Hess frowned even more tightly, "when you say 'Mr. Prime Minister makes a gesture', this 'gesture' refers to..."
He Ziguang paused and said:
"For example, withdrawing from the Rhineland and restoring it to an undefended area."
Hess was shocked and shouted directly:
"No, absolutely impossible!"
He Ziguang had already expected Hess's reaction. He continued:
"This is the best policy. As long as Mr. Prime Minister is willing to do this, our country can guarantee for Britain and France: Your country can expand arbitrarily in Eastern Europe. Apart from condemnation, Britain and France will not take any action to prevent it. Not even economic sanctions."
After hearing the translation, Hess pondered for a moment and then asked:
"What about this 'best option'?"
He Ziguang said:
"That's the middle strategy. Germany should at least try to weaken the Siegfried Line, such as demolishing part of the fortifications, withdrawing part of the defenders, and inviting the British and French troops to send long-term observers into the Siegfried Line. This is better than any other
Treaties and agreements on paper are more reassuring. Especially after your country tore up the Munich Agreement."