Chapter 555: Border Crisis
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The Paris Peace Conference ended, but the division of forces after the war was not over, but after cleaning up Germany, the boss of the Central Powers, the Entente had achieved most of the benefits, and the rest was the division of the interests of the other belligerents. These countries themselves have limited overseas interests, and now they are even more fragmented, and the benefits they can obtain are simply not comparable to the benefits discussed at the Paris Peace Conference. Therefore, the three giants of the Entente did not quarrel as much as they did at the Paris Peace Conference. Rather, it sent a delegation to set up a special agency to prevent the resurgence of the Central powers, which, of course, were far less harsh than the Treaty of Versailles.
The Western world calmed down for the time being, and the Allied armies began to withdraw from Germany. Although the German government did its best to stabilize the situation in the country. But looking at the shattered society and the industrial system that has passed nearly half of it, Germany is in mourning. Many workers thought that when the Allied army had retreated, they would be able to return to work in the factories and live a normal life. But what they couldn't have imagined was that the originally prosperous factory had become an empty shell, and all the machinery and equipment inside had been sold by the Allies on the pretext of raising reparations. Of course, as a first-class industrial power, Germany's basic industrial equipment is also quite advanced, and although China wields a lot of money, it can only eat 30% of Germany's industrial system despite its efforts. Another 20 percent were taken by other countries. Add to this the losses suffered by the German military industry and the loss of dominance in the prosperous industrial areas. All at once, Germany's industrial capacity went from first-class to third-rate. Moreover, the huge war reparations in the Treaty of Versailles also made the Weimar Republic despair. Looking at the empty factories and the depressed markets, the Germans felt despair for the first time. The whole society was in mourning and becoming more and more turbulent.
In the face of this social reality, which is about to collapse, the German government has shown a decisive power that has shocked the world. The Wehrmacht, which had been reduced to 100,000 men, took on the role of policing on an ad hoc basis. Some of Germany's relatively intact factories are up and running with government support. At the same time, the German government has increased the degree of mining in major mining areas. Take advantage of the boom in the raw material market and quickly recover the economy.
The rigor of the Germanic peoples played a good role at this time. After the government made these moves, the unrest of the people gradually disappeared. The workers had to find another job for the time being, thanks to the German government's promise to produce new machinery and equipment as soon as possible and restore the lost factories.
Although the German government's measures were effective, it would be difficult to restore German industry to its pre-war level in five years. Coupled with the heavy debt burden, Germany is also under great pressure. This pressure led to the growth of ideas in German society.
After the Paris Peace Conference, the biggest event in the world was the formation of the World Alliance. As a core member of the World Alliance, Japan's power is unparalleled for a while. The Japanese government has taken the opportunity to give a good publicity. The whole of Japanese society was jubilant, and many of the complaints that had been raised by the increase in taxes had disappeared. There is a great characteristic of the Japanese nation that they can do anything for the sake of face. And the status of a core member of the World League is the best proof of national identity for the Japanese. You don't see that China, the enemy of the Great Japanese Empire, has not even entered the World Alliance.
With the help of this atmosphere, Japan's military expansion plan was carried out smoothly. Both the army and the navy have received significant financial allocations.
Compared to Japan, the world seems to have moved away from China. Since the Paris Peace Conference, Western commercial power has returned to the Far East on a large scale. South Asia, Southeast Asia is full of people from famous big companies in the West. Many Western countries have come to China with old visions to continue the unequal rights and interests in China before the war. At the same time, a large number of merchant ships carrying opium and other contraband entered the Chinese docks, hoping to make huge profits in China. ..., to the shock of Western companies, the Chinese customs fleet immediately arrested these people. Regardless of the country they were merchants from, all merchant ships that smuggled contraband were confiscated and all of them were detained. A few days later, millions of tons of opium were openly burned in more than a dozen ports along China's coast. The entire coastal region was completely shaken. Westerners doing business in China have also changed their faces.
You must know that the business monopoly giants of Western countries are all in this action, and they can influence the political situation in Western countries. China's resolute action has offended almost half of the Western countries. Among them are the world's giants Britain and France.
The British and French ambassadors to China immediately lodged a protest with the Chinese Government, but the Chinese Government sternly refused.
"Mr. President, if you are so bent on going your own way, then wait for the war of the British Empire!" The British ambassador said with an ugly face. After the First World War, Britain's national strength declined, but the reputation of the empire on which the sun never set was still mighty, although the British minister to China knew that China was no longer what it used to be, but the pride in his bones still made him look down on the yellow government, otherwise the government of any country would not say such words as a declaration of war.
"We in China are never afraid of war, if you want to fight, I will fight!" Feng Delin, who was born in the military, has a peaceful personality. The threat of the British and French ambassadors provoked his blood. After these words spread, they caused a shock in the entire Chinese society. You must know that Feng Delin is facing the world's largest power this time, and he is also the culprit who forced China from a feudal society into a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society. This is the first time since the Opium War that China has said no to Western countries in such righteous terms. And the object is still Britain and France, which have just won the world war.
The British and French ambassadors looked ugly, and Feng Delin's words almost forced them to the wall, if Britain and France did not act, it would affect the image of Britain and France in the Far East, but if there was a war, with the current British and French manpower in the Far East, it would still be far from meeting the requirements.
After the departure of the British and French ambassadors, the government became silent. If Britain and France are intent on finding fault, this matter is likely to lead to a war between Western countries and China, and even another invasion of China by the Eight-Nation Alliance.
But the development of things was far more tense than everyone imagined, and on the same day, Feng Yong, commander-in-chief of the National Defense Forces, issued a national telegram: supporting the government's actions to safeguard national sovereignty. The Wehrmacht's 3 million troops are willing to fight to the end for the sake of national stability and national rise.
Feng Yong's telegram completely set the tone of the Chinese government's hardline. The ambassadors of the Western countries immediately transmitted the situation in China back. For a time, the top leaders of Western countries reacted strongly to this matter.
British Prime Minister George Lloyd advocated sanctions for China's impertinence in order to preserve the prestige of the empire on which the sun never sets. However, the British Parliament rejected the decision to send troops. The reason is simple. China is simply too far away from Europe. And it is a large country with a vast territory. It is not difficult to defeat such a country, but it is simply impossible to destroy it. Moreover, according to the intelligence obtained by the British, the Chinese National Defense Forces are very combat-effective, and the number of more than three million troops is really staggering to the British. Now the main forces of the British army are basically staying in the west. It is impossible to want a large-scale transfer to the Far East, but it is difficult to achieve it in the short term. But the old and rigid minds of the British government will not easily expose the matter. In the end, the British government made a decision to speed up the transfer of troops to the Far East on the one hand, and to restore and strengthen British power in the Far East. At the same time, the British colonies in Southeast Asia and South Asia were ordered to strengthen their forces and put pressure on China on the border.
France has made a different decision than the United Kingdom. France had few colonies in the Far East, far from being comparable to the British. As for the attitude of the Chinese government, the French government, after discussion, still believes that it is not appropriate to fall out over this trivial matter. After all, China has become an independent power, and its influence in the Far East cannot be ignored. The French are now trying to absorb the benefits of the world war, and naturally look down on the problems of the Far East. ..., but when it was heard that the British government was sending troops to the Far East and creating trouble on the Chinese border, French Prime Minister Clemenceau, by virtue of his prestige, forcibly approved the strengthening of the army and navy in the French Far East. The aim, of course, was to follow the British and check cheaply. Clemenceau was an old fox and had a very keen political nose. He sensed from the British attitude that something big might happen in Asia, and that the French were following the British, and that Britain would bear the brunt of something, and that France would be able to get some advantage if it was fine. This kind of thing has not been done less since Britain became the world's number one power.
Moreover, in the late Qing period of China, the French also invaded China, and the Second Opium War Britain and France were embarrassed to directly enter Beijing, China, destroying China's Old Summer Palace and obtaining huge benefits. Moreover, they were also deeply impressed by the incompetence and backwardness of the Chinese army. It can be said that the French who advocate aristocratic romance look down on the ignorant and backward Chinese, and on this point, the French and the old-fashioned English gentleman have exactly the same cognition.
Along with the actions of the two major Western powers, several small Western countries with interests in Southeast Asia have also taken action. They are not capable of attacking an independent power like China, but it is no problem to wave the flag and shout for Britain and France, and beat the side drum. And now they also have a ready-made excuse, after all, Britain and France are the founding members of the League of Nations, well-deserved core members, and these small Western countries are members of the League of Nations.
Faced with this situation, the Chinese government reacted quickly. Adjustments were made within the Wehrmacht. The armament strength of the Nanjing Military Region, the Southwest Military Region and the Lanzhou Military Region was strengthened. in response to a possible border crisis. At the same time, Jiang Baili and Cai Yi, commanders of the National Defense Forces, also left Beijing and went directly to the southwest border to set up defenses.
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