If Tsar Nicholas II had been a man of humble obedience, perhaps he would have taken the exhortations of his ministers as disobedient. However, Tsar Nicholas II was a man of rigidity and conceit. How could an emperor with the ambition to make the Russian Empire the most powerful in the world not dare to send troops to attack in the face of a provocation from a local warlord?

"Oh God! When did the great Russian Empire decline to such a point? Even a backward and ignorant yellow-skinned monkey can show his teeth and claws in front of us. The Russian Empire was absolutely not able to accept such a thing. Therefore, we must go to war with them and defeat them once and for all. The glory of the Russian Empire is not to be tarnished. Nicholas II roared angrily.

The ministers, under the roar of the tsar, had to bow their heads. They knew that Nicholas II's stubbornness had been repeated. If they say more, it will not only be detrimental to the problem, but will make the problem worse.

It took a while for Tsar Nicholas II to vent his anger. However, his determination to wage war against the government of northern China has also become even stronger.

"I don't care what method you use, this time, the Russian Empire will definitely not bow its head and compromise, we need a hearty victory to declare to the world that the Russian Empire is still a powerful empire!" Nicholas II said firmly.

The ministers were silent for a long time, and in their opinion, Nicholas II's demands were too harsh and did not take into account the current state of affairs in Russia. Not only do they have no money, but the strength of their army has not yet been restored, and the Trans-Siberian Railway has not yet been built, it is extremely unwise to start a fierce war with the government of northern China under such circumstances.

"Ladies and gentlemen. Although, the power of the Russian Empire declined to an all-time freezing point. However, with our strength, it should not be a big problem to defeat a local warlord in China, right? If we win, it will also be very helpful for the Russian Empire. This will be beneficial in reshaping the image of the Russian Empire as a great power internationally. So. We'd better find a way to win this war. An old man with gray hair said. He was the head of the General Administration of Russian Orthodox Affairs and Tsar Nicholas II's most trusted aide. His opinion was largely representative of the Tsar's opinion. The ministers also knew that a war with the government of northern China was inevitable, as Pobedonoszev had already said so.

"Indeed, if this war can be won, it will be very beneficial to Russia. But these are the challenges we face. It has to be resolved. Otherwise, if we want to win the war, it will be empty talk. "Prime Minister Kokoftsev's attitude has also changed.

"Your Excellency, if we are to win the battle against the government of northern China, how many troops do we need to commit in the Far East and Eastern Siberia?" Prime Minister Kokoftsev asked.

"Your Excellency, if we are to win against our enemy, we must not devote less than 700,000 troops in the Far East and Eastern Siberia. Right now. Our troops in the Far East and Eastern Siberia are less than four hundred thousand. Especially in the Far East. Because the Trans-Siberian Railway has not yet been built, it is difficult for us to replenish the Far Eastern Military District. Sukhhomlinov said.

"In other words, we need to send more than 300,000 people to the Far East and Eastern Siberia. Fiscally, how much more can we squeeze out? Prime Minister Kokoftsev asked. According to his estimates, to fight this battle, they will need to spend more than a billion rubles. And this. It is already almost half of Russia's annual revenue. Russia's finances were already heavily indebted, and it simply could not come up with so much money. The only way to do this is probably to borrow from Russia's allies.

"Your Excellency, the treasury is so empty that we can't even get a single ruble. If you have to fight this battle. It is better to be able to borrow with foreign countries. After we win this war, we can just extort money from those Chinese. "Chancellor of the Exchequer Sergei . Witt said.

"We can ask the French and the British for borrowing. However, the British will most likely reject us. In order to counter the pressure of the Germans, they were tilting their financial revenues towards the naval side. In addition, the British also want us to focus on Europe rather than the Far East. Plus the British did not want to see our successful expansion in the Far East. So, they probably want us to lose this war. Only the French, can afford to borrow money for us. As long as there is enough collateral, the French will probably agree to lend us money. Foreign Minister Izforsky said.

"Then contact the French, and hope that they will give us an emergency loan for the sake of our allies." Prime Minister Kokoftsev said.

"However, Your Excellency Prime Minister, I think that if the government of northern China can be brought to its knees diplomatically, there may be no need for war. After all, war is a last resort. We can issue an ultimatum to the government of northern China to accede to our demands. If we can force them to bow their heads, then we will win without a fight. Izvorsky said.

Prime Minister Kokoftsev nodded.

Seeing that the ministers quickly discussed a practical solution, Tsar Nicholas II was very satisfied.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I am very satisfied that you were able to come up with a practical solution so quickly. It turns out that the Russian Empire is now in a difficult situation, but we are still strong. We still have the ability to solve all problems. Nicholas II said.

"Let's do everything according to your plan, give the damned yellow-skinned monkeys an ultimatum, and if they don't know each other, defeat them once and for all. Turn the entire north of China into Yellow Russia! Nicholas II said excitedly.

The ministers nodded their heads again and again, and they also knew that Nicholas II had always wanted to create a yellow Russia. If Russia can win this war, maybe they can really succeed. However, if it fails, Russia will suffer another heavy blow.

The "Yellow Russia Plan" was a plan of the Russian Tsar Nicholas II in the 19th century to invade China, that is, to draw a straight line from Chogoli Peak on the Sino-Russian border in Xinjiang to Vladivostok, and all the land north of it was assigned to Russia. Over the years, Russia has also been working towards this plan. After the First Sino-Japanese War, Russia "helped" the Manchu government to return to the Liaodong Peninsula. It also took advantage of this to invade Northeast China. During the Boxer Rebellion, Russia, as one of the Eight-Nation Alliance, sent troops to invade northern China. If they hadn't been defeated in the Russo-Japanese War, the whole of northern China might have been controlled by the Russians.

It's just that now the government in the north has risen. If the Russians want to ensure the success of the "Yellow Russia Plan", it is almost impossible. Not only that, but the Russians didn't know that Wu Haoxuan, the major marshal of the Northern Army, was already eyeing the territory of the Russians. The entire Far East and Siberia are Wu Haoxuan's coveted targets. If he had the chance, he would have pounced and bitten off a piece of fat from the Russian. Of course, there's no better chance than in 10 years. However, now the Northern Army can also recover a little interest in advance.

As soon as the Russian ministers agreed, they went into action. The Russian Army began to assemble and prepare for a train trip to Eastern Siberia. Russian diplomats began to contact the French in the hope that the French government would provide Russia with an emergency loan. At the same time, the Russian Minister to China, Rang Sovic, and the consul in Shengjing, Luo Baifu, also received orders from Foreign Minister Izvorsky and began to move.

The Minister to China, Ronso Victor, was active among the ministers of various countries in China, hoping that they would support Russia and stand on Russia's side. And the consul Guo Luo Baifu in Shengjing rushed directly to the office of Yang Du, secretary general of the Political Affairs Committee of the Northern Government, and arrogantly issued an ultimatum to the northern government on behalf of the Russian Empire.

"Your Excellency, I regret to inform you that some of your actions have seriously damaged the interests of the Russian Empire. So, the Russian Empire officially issued an ultimatum to the government of the North. The Northern Government had to agree to the following demands of the Russian Empire: First, the unconditional release of the Russian Consul in Kulen, Lyuba and the staff of the consulate, and compensation for them. Second, the northern government must apologize to the Russian Empire and ensure that similar incidents will not happen again. Third, the northern government had to agree to the independence of Outer Mongolia and allow it to become an independent state under the protection of the Russian Empire. Fourthly, the government of the North must pay compensation to the Russian Empire, the total amount of which is 100 million rubles! If the government of the North does not agree to these conditions, then it will mean war! After Guoluo Baifu dropped these conditions, he waited for Yang Du to answer. He believed that in the face of the threat of war from the Russian Empire, the northern government would be frightened. When the time comes, they will be able to win without a fight.

However, the final result was beyond the expectations of Consul Guo Luo Baifu.

"If this is the ultimatum of the Russian Government to the Government of the North, I can tell Your Excellency now. We do not accept any of these conditions put forward by Russia! If Russia wants war, then we will give you war. Yang Du said solemnly. (To be continued......)

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