Chapter 1402: Changing Positions
I saw that after the door of the venue was opened, the Chinese crown prince Wang Zirui walked into the venue with a stern face, accompanied by the Austro-Hungarian Crown Prince Ferdinand and the Ottoman Turkish Sultan Mehmed V!
"Austria-Hungary supports the decision of the Chinese government on this issue!" Archduke Ferdinand also said coldly! The Germans continued to favor Russia, which made the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which had always wanted to slaughter Russia fiercely, very dissatisfied. Now that China has come out, Austria-Hungary, of course, will not let go of this opportunity! After all, although Austria-Hungary is not as strong as Germany, if it has the support of China, there is no need to be afraid of Germany!
"The Ottoman Turkish Empire also supported China's decision!" This was stated by the Ottoman Turkish Sultan Mehmed V. Over the past two hundred years, the Ottoman Turkish Empire and Russia have fought ten Russo-Turkish wars! During this period, the Ottoman Turkish Empire had always won and lost, losing large swaths of territory. This time, with the help of China and the allies, they were finally able to defeat Russia, the great enemy of life and death, and they naturally would not let go of this opportunity to trample Russia under their feet! The more Russia was weakened, the less pressure the Ottoman Empire would be on in the future.
The three crown princes and emperors suddenly entered the venue and expressed their views on behalf of their respective countries, which caused discussion among the delegates of various countries! However, with the exception of the German delegates, the delegates from several other countries were all smiling. After all, this means that the attitude of these countries has been very clear, and if Germany continues to oppose it, then they may really leave Germany alone!
German Chancellor Holwig and Foreign Minister Stresemann were pale-faced, and the sudden appearance of the situation caught them a little off guard! The fact that the other five victorious countries, in addition to Germany, seem to have been united, which is not good news for Germany! In addition, the hardline attitude of China, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Turkish Empire was somewhat beyond their expectations! Under such circumstances, if Germany continues to be tough, it is very likely that Germany will be isolated, and even because of the conflict between the two sides, it may lead to the outbreak of war! And Germany obviously does not have the strength to face such many countries alone!
Prime Minister Holwig took a deep breath, calmed the anger in his heart, and then said: "Everyone, I have no authority to make a decision on this issue, I hope to adjourn the meeting for the time being, and then give a specific answer after I ask for instructions from home!" ”
"Okay, then we'll adjourn for today! However, the Chinese side hopes that the German government will make the right choice and not become an enemy of the whole world! Chinese Prime Minister Wu Tingfang warned! If Germany were to pursue its own interests at the expense of other countries, it would turn Germany completely into opposition to other countries. Wu Tingfang believes that as long as the Germans are not caught in the door, they will not make such a choice!
The meeting on October 22 ended in fruitlessness once again! German Chancellor Holwig and Foreign Minister Stresemann were the first to leave the venue. The two need to report the accident that occurred at the meeting to China as soon as possible! And the representatives of other countries in the venue were already greeting each other with smiles on their faces. This is undoubtedly a victory for them! Having united, the Germans have already been thwarted! Although, everyone is not really united, but only temporarily united for the common good. However, this is enough! After forcing Germany to compromise and retreat this time, all countries will be able to obtain rich benefits! At the same time, it will also cause tensions between countries and Germany, which the Chinese side is undoubtedly very happy to see!
At four o'clock in the morning on October 22, Berlin time, the study of Kaiser Wilhelm II in the Palace of Gonglu was still brightly lit. Kaiser Wilhelm II, Field Marshal Falkenhayn, Minister of War and Chief of the General Staff, and Field Marshal Tirpitz, Minister of the Admiralty, are discussing the difficult problems facing Germany.
Wilhelm II's face turned pale, and after receiving the telegram from Peking, he urgently summoned the Minister of War and the Minister of the Admiralty, despite the fact that it was already early in the morning. After the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary traveled to Beijing for the peace conference, there were not many people with whom they could discuss state affairs! The telegrams sent back by Chancellor Holwig and Foreign Minister Stresemann made Wilhelm II very angry! This time, Germany was actually forced by several other victorious powers, led by China and Austria-Hungary, which made him feel as if he had been greatly humiliated!
"Majesty, I think we should change our strategy! We defended the interests of Russia, but offended the other victorious powers, which was very disadvantageous for Germany! In terms of Germany's overall strength, there is no guarantee that we will be able to defeat China at the moment! Even after a few years, the benefits of this war are digested, it will be the same! If we want to confront each other, we need to win over other countries! Russia is certainly a country that we must win over, but other countries cannot give up either! In particular, the victorious countries of this world war cannot let them fall to China! "Said the Minister of the Navy, Marshal Tirpitz! At present, the main force of the Chinese Navy is still conducting exercises in the North Sea, and the German Navy has also sent some ships to participate in the exercises. If the contradictions between the two sides intensify, it will undoubtedly increase the possibility of war between the two countries!
Wilhelm II had some hesitation, Russia's hundreds of millions of people and huge military resources were a very important part of Germany's future strategy! If Russia is weakened by Yanzhòng, then Russia will play a much smaller role! The Chinese side undoubtedly saw this, so it tried every possible way to weaken Russia!
"Your Majesty, I also think that we cannot now stand in opposition to all the victorious powers! In this case, it will be very detrimental to the future of the empire! Russia has a population of hundreds of millions, and even after the partition of these territories, there are still 50 million people left! In this, at least about three million troops can be armed! Moreover, after this peace conference, it will inevitably deepen Russia's resentment against China and Austria-Hungary, and as long as we give the Russians enough support at that time, they will be able to burst out with amazing combat power! Therefore, I believe that the most important thing is to conclude a peace treaty to end this war, and then devote all my energy to the building of the country! "Field Marshal Falkenhayne, Minister of War and Chief of the General Staff!
Wilhelm II pondered for a few seconds, then finally nodded. People are under the eaves and have to bow their heads! Of course, he wanted to protect Russia's interests as much as possible, but in the face of the oppression of other countries, Germany had no choice! After all, it is very uneconomical to harm the interests of Germany for the sake of Russia!
"Come, send a telegram to Prime Minister Holwig and ask them to change their position at tomorrow's peace conference! However, if possible, it is better to make the Russians pay as little as possible! In addition, Germany's interests cannot be lost! "Said Wilhelm II! Since all countries are trying to get as much benefit as possible from Russia, it is clear that Germany cannot afford to lag behind! Since it is impossible to take sides with Russia, it is undoubtedly the most important thing to satisfy one's own interests first!
On October 23, the peace conference was held again. All of us are full of confidence in today's peace conference. Everyone agrees that the victorious countries should be able to reach an agreement at today's peace conference! The next step was to negotiate with the Russian representatives and force them to accept the conditions offered by the victorious powers! Under the absolute oppression of force, it seems that Russia will have no other choice but to accept the offer of the victorious power! That is to say, the interests of all countries can already be guaranteed! Russia's reparations will allow all countries to reap rich rewards in this war!
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is the beginning of the meeting! Do you still have any questions about the plan to dispose of Russia? Chinese Prime Minister Wu Tingfang asked? The main object of his inquiry was the representative of Germany, and the representatives of other countries had already reached an agreement!
"Ahem! Ladies and gentlemen, the German side has a little opinion, and I hope to get a pass guò! German Chancellor Holwig coughed and said.
"Germany, as one of the victorious powers that defeated Russia, also paid a huge price for it! Therefore, the German government believed that in addition to the cession to Germany of northern and eastern Poland and the Baltic coast, Russia should also cede Belarus to Germany! In addition, Germany should receive 30 percent of the war reparations paid by Russia! Chancellor Holwig said!
"Belarus belongs to Austria-Hungary! No one wants to snatch it! "The Prime Minister of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Mario. Webb said angrily!
"Germany paid a huge price in this war, and the northern and eastern parts of Poland and the Baltic coast alone were not enough to compensate for Germany's losses, plus Belarus was very necessary! Austria-Hungary has already gained the whole of Ukraine, and this is already a very good harvest! German Foreign Minister Stresemann said. Ukraine is the breadbasket of Russia, and it is a famous grain producing area in the world, and the acquisition of Ukraine by Austria-Hungary will undoubtedly enable them to completely solve the food crisis once and for all.
"On the question of Belarus, otherwise, Germany and Ukraine are one and a half, bordered by Minsk, the north belongs to Germany, and the south belongs to Austria-Hungary! There is no need for a little bit of territory so that our relations are affected! Wu Tingfang said. Now that Germany has changed its position and started to play by the rules of the game, this is a joy for all!