After finishing his meeting with the Imperial Minister in Russia, Liu Jingren, Russian Foreign Minister Nilatov, he immediately rushed to the Winter Palace to pay his respects to Tsar Nicholas II. After all, it is not a trivial matter that the Chinese Empire is going to meddle in the internal affairs of Russia.

After Russia was defeated by China in the last war, they regarded China as their great enemy. If World War I hadn't broken out, they would definitely have tried to find revenge on China. Even now, there are many people in Russia who are still dreaming of ending World War I and defeating the Allies and then marching eastward with the Allied armies to defeat China again.

However, when the First World War was in full swing, no one dared to ignore China. Now China, and the United States on the other side of the ocean, are called the two great powers that can change the situation on the battlefield. If China and the United States had said they had joined the side, the world war might have ended immediately. Therefore, the Russians have no choice but to bury their anger against China deep in their hearts for the time being.

It's just that the Russians don't want to fall out with China at this time, but that doesn't mean that China won't be looking for trouble. No, the Chinese are starting to make trouble for Russia. At the very least, the Russians thought that the Chinese Empire was deliberately looking for fault.

"Your Majesty, the Chinese government has officially sent us a diplomatic note, asking us to stop persecuting the Jews and let all the Jews who are willing to leave leave on their own." Nilatov reported. He kept his head down, knowing full well how Tsar Nicholas II would react when he heard the news.

"Chinese? Asking us to stop persecuting the Jews? What's going on? The Jews are now of Russian nationality, and this is our internal affair, so what does it matter to them? Nicholas II's face suddenly darkened.

"Your Majesty, there is no doubt that this is our internal affair, and it is the arrogant Chinese who want to meddle in our internal affairs. Those damned Jews. They must have turned to the Chinese for help, trying in vain to escape from Russia with the help of the Chinese. Nilatov said.

"Damn! Arrogant Chinese, do they think that this will bring us to our knees? It's impossible. No country has absolutely no right to meddle in Russia's internal affairs. Tell the Chinese that the Jews in Russia have nothing to do with them. Moreover. Protest to them against their meddling in the internal affairs of our country. Nicholas II suppressed the anger in his heart. If it weren't for the fact that the Russian army was now mired in war with the Allies, he would have even declared war on China in a fit of rage. In his view, China's direct interference in Russia's internal affairs is a complete provocation against Russia, which he cannot accept under any circumstances.

"Your Majesty, what if the Chinese take an extreme approach?" Nilatov was somewhat worried. After all, now Russia. Although the military is strong, it is dragged on the European battlefield. In Central Asia and Siberia, it was when they were at their weakest. And China's military power is known to the whole world. If China takes extreme measures at this time, Russia will probably have to face an even more difficult situation.

"Damn, are we going to compromise with the Chinese?" Nicholas II finally could not contain the anger in his heart, and the words of curse erupted from his mouth like a storm. And Foreign Minister Nilatov. can only bow his head and bear the wrath of Nicholas II. I didn't dare to refute it at all. He was afraid that if he refuted it, he would be directly ordered to be hanged by the enraged Nicholas II.

It took a while for Nicholas II to vent his anger and pause.

"Bring in the Prime Minister, the Home Secretary, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and the Chancellor." Nicholas II finally came to his senses and ordered the main ministers of Russia to be summoned for consultation.

"Yes. Your Majesty. The guards immediately went to inform the ministers. Soon, in less than half an hour, the ministers arrived.

"Your Majesty, the behavior of the Chinese really makes us angry. This is their wanton interference in the internal affairs of Russia. We should respond with the toughest possible response. However, the situation is critical and we must be cautious. Prime Minister Pyotr A. Stolypin said.

"Your Majesty, Your Excellency the Prime Minister is right. Seventy percent of our troops were engaged in the battle against the Allies. The remaining 30 percent is partly a reserve on the front, partly stationed in important cities in the country, and partly deployed in Siberia and Central Asia to confront the Chinese. If we have a conflict or even a war with the Chinese, it will be difficult for us to mobilize enough troops to fight back against the Chinese in a short period of time. Therefore, until the end of the world war, it is better not to turn the other cheeks with the Chinese. The Minister of War, Grand Duke Karl, also said. Although the total strength of the current Russian army is quite large, almost all of them are useful, and it is very undesirable for Russia to rashly start a war with a big country like China.

The other ministers also nodded their heads, having suffered heavy losses from the defeat of China in the last war. Even when I think about it now, the tragic situation at that time is still vivid, which makes people feel palpitations. Before being absolutely sure, many ministers were reluctant to go to war with the Chinese Empire. Especially now that the main battlefield is in Europe, if there is another war with China, then Russia will have to face the dilemma of fighting on two fronts. Maybe Russia will soon collapse.

"So, what exactly is your opinion? Could it be that we have to compromise with those Chinese? This is a slap in the face of the Russian Empire, which I will never accept! Tsar Nicholas II said stubbornly. He was very dissatisfied with the ministers' ambiguous answers.

"Your Majesty, we may be able to communicate with the Chinese to see if we can solve this matter by other means." Chancellor of the Exchequer Sergei Witte advised. The best way to do this is for the two countries to resolve the matter peacefully after consultations and avoid a violent conflict. Otherwise, it will be very bad for Russia.

"But what if the Chinese don't agree? Those damned Jews, they actually got help from the Chinese, and they must have given the Chinese a lot of money. Otherwise, how could those greedy Chinese come forward to help them? If I had known, I would have hanged all those Jews, and their property would have been confiscated! Nicholas II said viciously.

The ministers were silent, and it was clear that the Chinese Empire had come out on behalf of the Jews, which had caught them off guard. Originally, they simply regarded the Jews as fat sheep to be slaughtered. I didn't expect it to cause so many things. After all, the Jews had money, but they didn't have any force to protect their wealth. The rulers could take the wealth away from these Jews at any time if they wanted to.

After the outbreak of the war, Russia suffered heavy losses on the front. In order to mobilize more troops and purchase more weapons and equipment to arm these troops, Russia needs to spend a lot of military spending. However, Russia's fiscal revenues are not rich in the first place, although they are as high as more than 3 billion rubles. But when you put aside all the spending, there's nothing left at all, and it's often a deficit. The war that has been going on for a year has long left Russia with high financial debts, and there is even a possibility of collapse. Therefore, the Tsar and the Russian government turned their minds to these Jews, hoping to raise enough military funds by persecuting them.

Originally, their plan was easily successful. In the face of the oppression of the rulers, these Jews had no recourse at all. No matter how rich they are, they can't keep their wealth, or even their lives. These Jews, like children walking in the downtown area with gold coins, naturally could not distract such a scoundrel as Russia.

"Your Majesty, we may be able to talk to the Jews. We stopped persecuting them, and they remained in Russia. In this case, the Chinese will have no reason to put pressure on us. Prime Minister Stolypin suggested.

"No, in that case, where will we find our military spending? Without military spending, such a large consumption on the front line cannot be supported at all. Chancellor of the Exchequer Sergei Witt immediately objected.

"Yes, we need enough military spending to keep this battle going." War Minister Archduke Karl also said. Although the Russian army was defeated one after another on the front line, they were able to hold on with their huge territory and number of troops. If there is not enough military support, the front line is likely to collapse. If Russia loses the war once and for all, the consequences will be unimaginable.

Now, there is undoubtedly a difficult problem in front of them. The military expenses they needed were in the hands of the Jews, who in turn turned to the Chinese Empire to protect them. And Russia did not want to tear its face with the Chinese Empire, which put the Russians in a dilemma.

"How many troops do we have in Central Asia and Siberia?" Nicholas II asked.

"Your Majesty, we have only half a million troops in Central Asia and Siberia." Archduke Karl replied.

"If we ignore the Chinese, do they have the guts to go to war against us? If there is a war, will our army be able to withstand the attack of the Chinese? Nicholas II continued to ask.

"Your Majesty, this is a question that I find difficult to answer. I only know that if the Chinese Empire really wants to go to war against us, it will probably be difficult for our troops on the front line to resist the attack of the Chinese. The total strength of the Chinese Army has exceeded two million. They can throw more than half of their army into an attack on us at any time. However, Russia is not isolated, we still have allies, and the Chinese are afraid that they will not act rashly! (To be continued.) )

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