"Brother Huafu, we can't let the Northeast expand like this. Now that they have occupied nearly ten provinces, such a vast territory has posed a great threat to us. It was only at this time that I realized that most of us were now above the Northeast Encirclement, and this form was really too dangerous. Now Duan Qirui saw the piece representing the northeast on the map, and he felt a little frightened.

originally thought that the Northeast occupied a bitter cold land, but Duan Qirui didn't take the Northeast too seriously. In terms of population, even if the Northeast annexes Xinjiang, Tibet and Shaanxi, the total population will be 70 or 80 million, which cannot be compared with the 200 million people under Beiyang's rule. It's just that the Northeast puts so much pressure on him, and it is the almost invincible image shown by the Northeast. This is in stark contrast to Beiyang's consecutive defeats.

"I know that. The Northeast is indeed a big problem. Now the Northeast Public Security Army is confronting us with more than 100,000 troops. They could march south at any time. When the time comes, Beijing will bear the brunt. It's just that our army is still in the southwest. The military aid received from Britain and Japan was almost squandered. In this case, what are we going to fight with the Northeast Security Army? And once the north fights, not to mention whether Jin Yunpeng can beat the Northeast Army led by Jiang Baili, the military consumption of hundreds of thousands of troops alone can drag down the government's finances, so no matter what happens in the northeast, we can only endure it at this stage. The war to endure until the southwest came to fruition. Feng Guozhang said with a calm face.

Now the situation in the southwest is not clear, Beiyang has invested huge financial and material resources, and the new army in the southwest has not collapsed so far, and the government finances have not dried up. Although the people who stayed in the southwest of Beiyang have already understood that the southwest is now in a state of limit, if the southwest's finances do not collapse for a day, Beiyang can only accompany them to consume.

"Now that the Liangguang and Guizhou systems have gradually become a climate, it can be said that our Beiyang is already surrounded by wolves. If there is no strong foreign aid, our Beiyang will sooner or later be the result of being eaten by wolves. Brother Huafu, in this situation, we can only seek foreign aid! Duan Qirui's face was extremely gloomy.

"Seeking foreign aid? Brother Chery, you don't want to borrow from abroad again, do you? No, the government's finances are already in a tight state, and our customs and other things that can be mortgaged are basically controlled by foreigners. In addition to some railway projects that are still attractive, there are not many things that can be exchanged for foreign aid! Feng Guozhang's face was not very good-looking. Although the territory of Beiyang is vast, both Feng Guozhang and Duan Qirui are only representatives of one force. They don't have the absolute control over the territory under their jurisdiction like the Northeast. The local overseers in Beiyang basically listened to the tune and did not listen to the announcement, and their decisions on many things may not be able to completely reach the bottom of the society.

"The Northeast has become a tiger and wolf, in the face of them, our Beiyang Army may not have a chance of winning, and the problem of training the army to participate in the war has been stranded because of the war in the southwest, and it is not yet known when we will be able to gather the forces to destroy the Northeast. Even if the southwest wins. The army can move north, and our finances will not be able to support a large-scale protracted war again. So, this time I'm going to borrow troops from abroad! ”

"Borrowed soldiers? You are crazy! Do you want to repeat the tragedy of the Eight-Nation Alliance's invasion of China? Feng Guozhang suddenly stood up and shouted.

"What else can be done otherwise? Now it has come to the critical moment of Beiyang's survival. The tiger in the northeast is always waiting for us to be exhausted on the battlefield in the southwest. In addition, our Beiyang interior is not monolithic, and the overseers in various places look like they are separated, you look at the troops we transferred from them, they are all rabble, not only did they not complete the strategic tasks, but also frequently failed, wasting the military funds we had raised with great difficulty. Duan Qirui said dissatisfiedly.

"They will not agree to let foreigners send troops, without great benefits, not to mention, now in the midst of a world war, Britain and France and other countries are mired in war, it is impossible to send troops to help us. Wait, you mean to borrow troops from Little Japan? Feng Guozhang's face became ugly. He is clear about the wolf ambitions of the Japanese, and he himself knows that Duan Qirui is pro-Japanese. The last declaration of war on Germany was also provoked by Duan Qirui and the Japanese. Moreover, this time the British took the lion's share of the military aid, and the rest came from small Japan. Of course, they did not give these benefits in vain, and the construction of a large railway in Shandong fell into the hands of large Japanese enterprises.

"Yes, it's Japan. The Japanese army is known as the first in Asia. As long as we can invite Japan to send troops, the Northeast will be a local chicken and a dog, and it will be vulnerable. "For the combat effectiveness of the Japanese Imperial Army, Duan Qirui is very admired. As generals from Beiyang, they all have an instinctive fear of Japan, after all, the First Sino-Japanese War launched by Japan knocked Beiyang from the peak to the trough. Let the efforts of Beiyang tycoon Li Hongzhang for decades be put to waste. Therefore, after Yuan Shikai came to power, he was never tough on Japan. It is because Beiyang does not have the slightest confidence in front of Japan.

"What about the conditions? What is the condition? The Japanese are not fools, they will not send troops without enough benefits! What do we have now, do we cede land to the outside again? Feng Guozhang is clear about Japan's greed.

"There's always a way!" Duan Qirui said vaguely.

"Brother Chery, although I also think that the Northeast is a big problem, I firmly oppose the exchange of national sovereignty for the dispatch of troops by foreign powers! I hope you are good at this. As he spoke, Feng Guozhang got up and left the Prime Minister's Office with an ugly face.

Looking at the departing Feng Guozhang, Duan Qirui's expression was complicated. After a long while, he said faintly: "For the sake of Beiyang, I, Duan Qirui, have no regrets even if I am broken!" ”

The news that the army led by Li Chun in Beiyang was defeated by the Qin army suddenly surpassed the intelligence on the battlefield in the southwest and became the focus of discussion throughout the country. There were only three days before the Xi'an Incident, Hu Jingyi was able to integrate the turbulent Qin army, and even used 10,000 people against the 30,000 Beiyang army waiting for work, Li Chun was defeated again, and even Li Chun himself almost became a prisoner of the Qin army. Beiyang's defeat again did not cause people to be too shocked, after all, Beiyang has not lost once or twice. Since its launch, in addition to its huge power, Beiyang's performance on the battlefield has the meaning of a silver-like pewter spearhead.

After two major defeats in a row, Li Chun was also regarded as a "defeated general", and his reputation was suddenly stinky. Faced with this situation, Li Chun's reaction was very quick, he quietly put on makeup and changed his clothes, left Hubei with a small number of henchmen, and returned to Jiangsu. After all, he is still the overseer of Jiangsu, and Jiangsu still has his elite army of tens of thousands of people. Only by staying under the protection of his own army will Li Chun feel safe. Now Li Chun no longer thinks about fame, he just wants to return to his territory safely. After two big defeats and losses, the 50,000 elite army was lost by him, if he didn't move quickly, he might not even be as good as the "incompetent commander" Duan Zhigui. After all, although Duan Zhigui was defeated, the army did not lose much, and Duan Zhigui was still Duan Qirui's henchman, and Duan Qirui would not kill him in order to ensure the stability of the Anhui officer group. But he, Li Chun, is different, he is a direct cadre, and his political views are different from those of Chief Duan, and now he is even more guilty of being in the hands of Chief Duan, God knows if Chief Duan will take advantage of the issue and dismiss himself for investigation.

Northeast, Marshal's Mansion.

"Young marshal, Beijing emergency call."

Feng Yong frowned and looked at the telegram in his hand, and said, "Notify Jing Tong to come to see me!" ”

Now Jing Tong has officially served as the head of the intelligence department in the northeast, and the assassin has also been transferred from complete independence to the command of the Ministry of Intelligence, becoming a secret department of the Ministry of Intelligence. As the organization of the Northeast becomes more and more rigorous, the most secret and rapidly developing intelligence department in the Northeast is no longer suitable for existence as a separate organization, after all, the power of the Assassin is very large, and it has both internal and external surveillance, and it also has the right to deal with it on the spot, which is easy to cause a certain degree of chaos. Although Feng Yong practiced dictatorship in Northeast China, as a dictator, he needed a complete system as a basis. The Northeast is not suitable for legislation right now, but the Ministry of Justice has also introduced a number of temporary laws. All these allow the Northeast to operate in a more standardized manner. After all, there are no rules. Liberal democracy also has certain limits. Too much freedom can go wrong. Therefore, Feng Yong incorporated the assassination into the Ministry of Intelligence. It has become the standard establishment of the Northeast, but at present, the dark thorn is still in a secret state.

"Young marshal!" After becoming the Minister of Intelligence, Jing Tong is also considered a high authority, and he often needs to show up for many things, and there is a lot less gloomy aura on his body. This is also where Feng Yong is more satisfied. Jing Tong has been in charge of the dark thorn for a long time, and his identity is not visible, which makes his personality gradually become gloomy. Feng Yong didn't like this very much. After all, no one wants to be surrounded by a gloomy person. This time it makes people feel insecure.

"Duan Qirui's people have come into contact with Japan again?"

"Yes! This time, Duan Qirui secretly visited the Japanese ambassador. It's just that we haven't found out what the two sides have talked about. Moreover, after Duan Qirui returned, the attendants of the Prime Minister's Office interacted with the staff of the Japanese Embassy many times. As if to negotiate this again! Jing Tong said respectfully.

"Little Japan? What does Duan Qirui want to do at this time? Feng Yong frowned. Now that history has changed greatly, Feng Yong can only speculate on many things by relying on the information in his hands. It's just that speculation is full of accidents after all, which also makes Feng Yong's decision-making more and more calm.

"I haven't found it yet. However, before Duan Qirui went to the Japanese Embassy, our people saw Vice President Feng Guozhang walking out of Duan Qirui's mansion, and his face was not very good-looking. ”

"Hmmm! Feng Guozhang seems to have eaten deflated in Duan Qirui, which is understandable, after all, Li Chunbu of Beiyang who was defeated by Qian Yansheng is a direct cadre. His repeated failures have made the reputation of the Beiyang direct line much worse. Feng Yong smiled and said.

(To be continued)