"For the peoples of Russia, the sun of freedom, equality, and fraternity has risen. In order to support the new government, the Kazakhs should unite. In order to consolidate the new system, fraternal ties with other peoples must be strengthened. Preparations should be made for the election of the Constituent Assembly. Let's fight for unity and justice! (Kazakh Gazeta, March 24, 1917) [note 1]

In Orenburg, an important town in the northwestern part of the Kazakh steppe, the Kazakh newspaper, founded by the Kazakh national liberation organization Arash Party, published such a call with passion; Leader of the Arash party, economist, member of the Central Committee of the Democratic Constitutional Party of Russia, member of the 1st and 2nd State Duma of Russia. Comrade Bukekhanov, who was smiling every day during this time, believed that after the abdication of the autocratic tsar, the democratic, free and civilized Provisional Government and the State Duma would not only protect the rights of every Kazakh, but also preserve the national identity of the Kazakh people and lead Kazakhstan to modern civilization.

Like Bukekhanov, the backbone of the Arash party, who is also the editor of the Kazakh newspaper, Ahmad. Deeply rejoicing at the abdication of the Tsar and the establishment of the Provisional Government, he and the rest of the party were preparing for the All-Kazakh Congress, while everyone, including Bukekhanov, was arguing about what kind of democratic Russia would guarantee the interests of the Kazakh nation, and the final result of the conference was actually the supreme program of the Arash Party, that is, Russia must become a democratic, federal republic. The independent polities of a federal republic must exercise self-government and self-administration on the basis of complete equality of rights and interests...... [Note 2]

The future is bright. All the Arash members were confident that the Provisional Government would accept such a national policy. The most impressive and promising of all party members was Alexander Murray, who had become the Minister of Military Affairs of the Provisional Government. Kerensky, who had come to the steppe to investigate after last year's great uprisings in Central Asia. Knowing the truth of the incident, he actively spoke for the Kazakhs and even strongly criticized the Governor of the Steppe Governorate, General Sukhomlinov, and his loyal subordinates at the Duma meeting. There was also the governor of the province of Seven Rivers (southeast of Lake Balkhash), Falbaumnan, who demanded that the State Duma stop the unilateral massacres that took place in Central Asia; Eventually, thanks to his efforts, the Russian government approved 11 million rubles in relief funds, of which 5 million were required to be used for relief in Rivers Province, and according to the amount of funds, every household in Rivers Province would receive 100 rubles.

Kerensky's show was as deeply ingrained as his later agitation to the front-line soldiers, although the effect of that agitation would eventually fade as quickly as 'a swollen pack of mosquito bites'. All the Arash party members were convinced of his promises. But at this moment, an unexpected figure appeared.

Hu Wenyao, an agent of the Intelligence Bureau, was standing at the entrance of the editorial department of the Orenburg Kazakh newspaper, and now his immature face has completely withdrawn, replaced by an indescribable smile and harmony, especially at this time he is wearing a Kazakh leather coat with a cloth surface, a fox skin Tumak hat, a belt at his waist, and leather shoes on his feet. And there was a white man standing next to him. It shows that he is an incredible character.

"Sengax!" Looking at a Kazakh in a suit who came out, Hu Wenyao still greeted him in Kazakh with a smile on his face, although the person opposite was full of vigilance and impatience.

"Sir, who are you looking for?" Tusebayev, who opened the door to greet him, did not understand what the Tatar in front of him wanted. The tsar abdicated though. But the fact that the entire Central Asian region was so insecure because of the war and insurrection that this stranger was able to go directly to the editorial office made Tusebayev doubt his identity and motives.

"We're looking for Mr. Bukekhanov." The Kazakh in front of him has a sloppy beard. He is dressed and dressed in Russian, and he speaks in Russian. This made Hu Wenyao confirm his judgment.

"There is no Mr. Bukekhanov here." Tusebayev said that he was going to close the door, but he didn't want Hu Wenyao to hold the door carefully. He handed over his business card and said with a smile: "My friend from the Far East, I heard that your party is organizing the first All-Kazakhstan Congress, maybe," Hu Wenyao said with a smile, "I think some of my suggestions will still be helpful to your party." ”

Hu Wenyao spoke Chinese, and the people around him translated into Russian, but this seemed to add to the Kazakh's suspicions, and he took Hu Wenyao's business card and closed the door in a coping manner. Hu Wenyao, who thought he was going to come again next time, turned around and didn't walk a few steps when the door was opened again, and a Kazakh, also wearing a suit, walked out.

"Mr. Zhang came here from the East, is he doing business?" After introducing each other, Bukekhanov, whom Hu Wenyao was looking for, set aside others and met him in his independent office.

"Of course." Hu Wenyao, who looked at the office slightly and understood that the other party knew his approximate identity, smiled kindly again, "We are very powerful in the whole of East Asia, and all the business we do is a national business. ”

"State buying?" Bukekhanov asked curiously, not knowing why.

"Yes, some people sell wool and some people sell cloth, but we are generally only buying and selling by the state. Wholesale, retail, independence, self-determination, segmentation, these are our projects. It's just that this kind of business is difficult to take over, and the last order of buying and selling is still a matter of North Korea's restoration. Hu Wenyao quietly introduced the specific business of 'Great East Asia International Consulting Co., Ltd.' on his business card, and when he talked about the restoration of North Korea, he could clearly feel the eagerness in Bukekhanov's eyes.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Zhang, I don't think there's any business you want to do here." That trace of fanaticism suddenly disappeared from Bukekhanov's eyes, and he calmly straightened his shirt, and then said slowly.

"Soon it will be!" Hu Wenyao was not discouraged in the slightest, he said and handed the other party a note, and said: "Mr. Bukekhanov, I have to stay in Orenburg for a while, if you need anything, you can come to me at any time." He hesitated, but in the end the note was answered, and Bukehanover politely stood up to see off the guest.

"Hu, the Kazakhs seem to be tempted." Deina, a Polish man with Hu Wenyao, sat in the carriage and said happily, the two of them holding the briefing of the Intelligence Bureau. After that, I carefully studied the contents of the entire Arash Party and the Kazakh newspaper, and finally made my first contact with each other today.

"Don't call me by name!" Hu Wenyao complained. He didn't like the Pole in front of him, but unfortunately he had a talent for languages. But Russian is not fluent.

"Yes, Mr. Zhang San!" Seeing that Hu Wenyao was displeased, De Yina hurriedly changed his name to the name on the business card. For a Pole, or rather, for a Polish nationalist, the collapse of Russia was God's greatest boon to the Poles, and his mental condition was often above and beyond the horizon, and he was ready to return to Poland with his Chinese wife in mind.

"Go back and draft the report immediately, and then send electricity to Tacheng." Hu Wenyao confessed. Then, when the carriage slowed down at a certain street corner, he quickly got out of the carriage and disappeared into the crowd of people on Orenburg Street.

Tacheng is an important port on the border between China and Russia, and because of this, there was a huge full camp in the city with a circumference of more than five miles, but this was all a matter of the former Qing Dynasty, although the Manchu people in the city did not confiscate the land and money like the Guannei because of the border guards, but these people still returned to the Guannei. I lived in the Tianjin Concession, which I thought was the safest.

What was once Manchu was now the epicenter of chaos in Central Asia, with stout radio-antennad hedgehogs towering above the government office, and soldiers in Baath Army uniforms guarding the city and beyond. It seems that he is worried about when the Russian army will attack. In fact, anyone who knows even a little about the situation outside Central Asia knows that Russian rule in Central Asia is completely over.

On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the combined forces of the Khiva and Bukhara Khanates, which had entered Tashkent by surprise, captured the Turkestan governor Kuropagent. As well as his deputy Yerofiev, Chief of Staff Sivers, the entire army of Turkestan was completely thrown into disarray. And Omsk, the seat of the governor of the steppe governor, was due to communication failures. Unable to communicate directly with Tashkent, the Governor-General, General Sukhomlinov, had heard only terrible, unbelievable and contradictory news, and although he had telegraphed to Petersburg requesting the transfer of troops to Turkestan to quell the rebellion, the Provisional Government did not respond positively to his request.

After several losses under the Germans, the new battalions recruited by Russia from all over the country were all set up in Europe, and if they were to send troops to Central Asia to quell the rebellion, it would take not a month or two; Even if the troops were transferred from the Caucasian front, it was unrealistic, and the Ottoman Empire, which had learned of the changes in Central Asia, was expanding the next round of offensive in response to the Muslim rebellion in Central Asia, and although the Ottoman army was the weakest, Russia was also weak at this time, not to mention the news from the British consul in Afghanistan and the consul in Kashgar in the western regions of China - after the rebels in Khiva and Bukhara captured Russian weapons, the army instantly expanded to more than 60,000 people.

Under the observation of the British, these armies are the same as the Turkmen cavalry of decades ago, and their combat effectiveness cannot be underestimated, although they do not know how to use artillery, and they do not have any artillery, but to deal with these tens of thousands of cavalry, they cannot be suppressed without an army of more than 100,000; Moreover, the sharp-eyed British found that although these cavalry troops were well-dressed and ordnanced, many of them looked like well-trained soldiers, and if it were not for the fact that they were all dressed as Muslims and did not look like Han Chinese, they would almost certainly be the cavalry units of China's revival army. However, the Central Asian region is already a mixed race, and it is difficult for anyone to say whether this is the Baath Army or not.

Although the Provisional Government claimed to have taken over power, in Petersburg, on the European front, and everywhere in the entire empire, not to mention the Bolsheviks who were about to move, even other people who supported the Provisional Government also hoped to get unexpected benefits from this round of changes.

In the barracks-like Tacheng Office, the British consul in Kashgar, Aizeun, was drinking tea and talking with Yang Zengxin, the governor of the Western Regions. Below Central Asia is Afghanistan, and beyond Afghanistan is India. In order to prevent Russian power from moving south, Britain fought a fierce war with the Russian army in Afghanistan, and finally stopped Russian power in Afghanistan; Today, the chaos in Central Asia is clearly related to China and to Yang Zengxin, the governor of the Western Regions, and if China wants to annex Turkestan, then Britain must assess his true intentions.

Yang Zengxin, who fully understood the thoughts of the British, only smiled, and said: "Lord Ai is here to worry too much, and this governor is entrusted by His Majesty. Stationed in the Western Regions, its duty is only to protect the territory and the people. Today, the Russian army has been driven out of the Western Regions, and our army will stop at the border. I don't want to take half a step beyond the thunder pool, and when the Central Asian countries are pacified and the two countries are reconciled, then they can withdraw their troops on the same day. ”

Aizedon, who had been with him for many years, had long known that he could not ask anything from the mouth of this conservative and slippery bureaucrat in front of him, and said, "Your Excellency the Governor, I am here just to know Your Excellency's attitude towards the chaos in Turkestan, if China and Russia reconcile. To quell the chaos in Turkestan, China's help is also needed. ”

"Let's take care of each family's business." Yang Zengxin didn't raise his eyelids at all, "Russia is a big country, its military strength is extremely strong, and there is no difficulty in pacifying the chaos in Central Asia. ”

"And what if China and Britain share Turkestan?" Completely confused, Azedon had to throw the hook, hoping that the fish would bite the line as he wanted.

"Haha......" Yang Zengxin laughed. Said: "Lord Ai is really joking, this Central Asian country only wants to recover the land that was forced to cede before, to be honest, even if the Prime Minister urges the governor to recover the lost land in the past. The Governor also felt that it was not a good idea to take advantage of the danger of others, and besides, Russia was a world power. The Western Regions are no better than Heilongjiang, and the two countries are really going to war. That will surely kill and injure millions of people, and greatly damage the national strength. This is something that our country can never afford. The Governor did not even dare to ask for the lost land in the past, so how could he say that Central Asia should be divided equally. ”

"Your Excellency the Governor, after the end of the war in Europe, victorious Russia will certainly transfer its heavy forces to Central Asia and the Far East, in order to recover the Far East and the Trans-Siberian Railway, which you have occupied. Heilongjiang may not be able to win the battle, but the Western Regions are ......" Aizedun said with a smile: "Although your country's Western Regions Railway will be completed soon, Your Excellency the Governor also knows that this railway cannot offset Russia's advantages at all, although this is a heavy-gauge railway. ”

Azedon said the word 'heavy track' very seriously, indicating that he knew a lot of things. However, Yang Zengxin is not worth a damn about this, not to mention that the churches and foreign businessmen along the way are watching how the railway is built, but to say that the hundreds of high-horsepower Marais duplex steam locomotives purchased by the Western Regions Railway from the Ballwin factory in the United States cannot be concealed.

Yang Zengxin, who still didn't want to answer the British's words, just smiled lightly and said: "It doesn't matter what Russia plans to do with this governor, since this governor is sitting in the Western Regions, it is natural to maintain local peace." When the Russian army invaded Ili two years ago, if it weren't for the fact that your country and France did not allow our army to move, they would have been driven out of the country by our army a long time ago. ”

"Your Excellency the Governor, our country hopes to form an alliance with Your Excellency in the Western Regions, and if Russia sends troops to occupy the Western Regions, we will support Your Excellency in resisting them." Losing patience, Azedun had to open the skylight and say something bright to wait for Yang Zengxin's reaction.

"Haha, Lord Ai......" Seeing that the British were telling the truth, Yang Zengxin directly responded to this topic and asked rhetorically: "Russia attacks the Western Regions, and your country supports us, does that mean that if Russia attacks Turkestan or directly attacks Afghanistan, my country will have to support your country?" ”

"Since it is an ally, it is naturally the obligation of an ally." Aizedun said euphemistically, he was worried about Yang Zengxin's concerns, and emphasized: "Your Excellency the Governor, in fact, your country has seized the Russian Far East and cut off the Trans-Siberian Railway, and Russia will not stop there. After the end of the war in Europe, the first thing Russia has to do is to put down the rebellion in Turkestan as a whole, and the second thing to do is to attack the Western Regions, and if your country does not interfere with Russia's actions in Turkestan, then the next thing is ......"

Going around or Central Asia, Yang Zengxin only paused slightly, and finally said: "Lord Ai, it doesn't matter what happens to the Far East, since the Prime Minister has granted me full powers, then the governor will only govern the province of the Western Regions." Central Asia was originally Russian territory, and if he wanted to quell the rebellion and suppress it, it was their business, and the governor would not interfere in this matter. As for your country's intention to support our country in resisting the Russian army, I thank you here first. ”

Yang Zengxin finally blocked the British's suggestion, and when he served tea to the guests, Aizedun said goodbye with regret, and Xu Jingxi, who heard the conversation between the two in the inner room, waited for the British to leave, and hurriedly came out and asked, "My lord, what does this Briton mean?" Did they also want to control the two khanates of Khiva and Bukhara? ”

"I think so." Yang Zengxin said, "The alliance is just its name, what they really want is to deceive us first, and then deceive the two khanates." ”

"Your Excellency is saying that they want to use the name of an alliance between China and Britain. Let Khiva and Bukhara take refuge in the British? Xu Jingxi asked.

"That's exactly what it means." Yang Zengxin nodded and said, "We have the lead in Central Asia. Britain is an old empire, and the cotton here has long been coveted. It's just that their reputation is too stinky, and if they don't pull us in, probably everyone won't believe them. You'll have to send a telegram to Junaid and the Bukhara guys, don't cheat the British, we don't have the slightest cooperation with them. ”

I didn't expect there to be such a meaning, Xu Jingxi arranged the matter with a smile, and then he took out the telegram from Orenburg: "My lord, there is a telegram from Orenburg, and he and the people of Arash have connected." But the other person doesn't seem to be interested in us, should we try someone else? ”

"No need." Yang Zengxin said, he wanted to explain the reason but felt that the words were too long, so he thought for a while before he said: "This Western Regions, I am from Guangxu for thirty-four years, after Zuo Ping's return, the people's livelihood here has withered, and after decades of cultivation, he has slowly recovered some vitality." It's just that there are many entanglements from Central Asia. Once it is not well controlled, it will cause chaos.

This treatment is still to void its body, trap its body, cut its will, and slack its nature, as long as you can do four things. Then the Western Regions will be stable. It's just that now everyone is advocating new learning and implementing new policies, and this new learning and new policies are feasible in the mainland. But this Western Regions must not be feasible. In the new school, there is not only the theory of individual freedom. There is also the theory of national independence, which is very harmful; And the New Deal. It will only make the bureaucrats, the Burkes, be bent on money and have no mercy on human life. There are no good people in the west! If the New Study and New Deal are really run in the Western Regions, then ......"

As a realist, although he reluctantly believed that the officials of the new dynasty who were transferred from the Western Regions were thousands of times better than the officials of the previous dynasty, he still could not rest assured, and he still began to deal with the official affairs of the province at six o'clock every day - just like the people of the time said, whoever lost a sheep The governor knew that he was extremely worried that the officials, traders, and homeless people in the west of Yangguan would stir up conflicts between the guest and the land. In fact, from the perspective of those who go out of the customs, think about it, don't you run so far to the Western Regions, isn't it just to get a few handfuls, since you are here, then you don't fish for nothing, anyway, if something happens on the front foot, the back foot leaves, who can care.

When Xu Jingxi was thinking about Yang Zengxin's logic, he continued to talk about the matter, "Kazakhstan is going to be incorporated into our country, and the most worrying thing is not New Russia, nor the local aristocracy.

As the Prime Minister judged, Russia and Europe must have been weakened after the war, and now the revolution has begun again, and it is not to say whether the new Russia can gather the national armed forces, and even if it can muster the national armed forces, the newly elected revolutionary parties will not dare to do so. If the old Russia was defeated by Germany, and there was a revolution in the whole country, if the new Russia was defeated by us, would there be another revolution in Russia? Central Asia is not Russia, and if our country wants to destroy New Russia, then they are not afraid at all, after all, the invasion of foreign enemies is the most demoralizing of the people; If we only stop at the Kazakh steppe, then New Russia will have to worry about how to end up after the defeat, so New Russia has nothing to fear;

And the local nobles, not to mention, have money and power, and are high in people, as long as they eat and drink well, they don't care if the ant people live or die. After taking Kazakhstan, these people can be bought, it's just a matter of price.

Only those new students who have gone to Western education and believe in personal freedom and national independence are the most difficult to deal with. These people, if they are not exterminated, will spread like a plague throughout the Kazakh steppe. If that were the case, the foundation of our country would be shaky, so these people would be found, and none of them would be let go. ”

When he didn't wear an official robe, Yang Zengxin was just a thin gentleman, but now when he said, 'No one can be let go', the murderous aura permeated the entire Yahua Hall, Xu Jingxi waited for a while before saying: "What adults mean is to ...... those Western scholars first"

"Well, exactly!" Yang Zengxin nodded, "People say that to destroy their country, first destroy their history, I said no, if you want to destroy your country, you should first destroy your thoughts." When the Kazakhs don't know what a Kazakh is, when they don't know how the Kazakhs differ from the Mongols, and the Han Hui, then they will perish! (To be continued......)

PS: Note 1: "In the Long River of History" - [Ha] Nu. Nazarbayev, p129

Note 2: History of Central Asian Civilizations, p204.

*

The day before yesterday, borrowing the mobile broadband next door also collapsed, and the gateway timed out (504 error) when logging in at the starting point, and it was impossible to log in to the background at all, and it was tossed until three o'clock in the morning. The next day, it was verified that the network operator hijacked the access, and finally had to spend money to upgrade the optical fiber and reuse the telecom broadband. Before, I didn't want to spend this money at all, and it was too disgusting for telecom to force a cat change.

Yesterday morning, I checked the network problem with the editor, and then notified the telecom to change the optical fiber modem, which was delayed from morning to afternoon, and was delayed for a whole day; Therefore, under the daily fixed schedule, I am not sure whether I can make up for this lost day, if I can't catch up with this day, please forgive me! Thank you all for your support!