In the trembling Japanese Bangle, Foreign Minister Kato Takaaki, who had just finished meeting with Russian Ambassador to Japan Malevsky, looked at Katsura Taro with a smile and said: "Lu Guo has promised that no matter how Shina responds, they will fight in the south." ”

"Nani?" Katsura Taro was a little surprised, but suddenly he began to get excited again. After more than three months of fighting, the army has not made the slightest progress, and the people have long had opinions, thinking that when the first day and day were fighting, the army was victorious one victory after another, and that was like now. Measuring his steps in place, Katsura Taro said, "What did the British give to Lu Guo?" Still is...... What does Lu Guo want us to give them? ”

"The British won't give Lu Guo anything, and what Lu Guo asked us for was also vetoed by me." Kato still smiled, "The people of China have more than 20 divisions in North Manchuria, and Lu Guo will not be at ease." If we defeat China, then he is very worried that we will take advantage of the victory and pursue us to the north of Changtu; If China defeats us, it will be even more necessary to destroy them before then. It is too difficult to emigrate to the Far East, and so far, there are only 600,000 Lu people in the whole of Siberia, and there are more than 8 million people in Heilongjiang alone, and there is still an army hidden in these people, and the Lu people are afraid. ”

Although Katsura Taro is a veteran, he obviously doesn't understand anything like diplomacy, and now he heard Kato clearly say the reason, and he couldn't help but nod deeply: "Then what do they want, do they agree to the Inner Mongolia demarcation line we proposed?" ”

"Nope! They proposed to use the Beijing meridian as the boundary to divide the sphere of influence of the two countries in Inner Mongolia, instead of the boundary line of the four eastern alliances and the second western alliance as the dividing line, and they also wanted our country to recognize its special interests in the western part of China. "I will only answer the previous question of post-war considerations." However, I rejected the latter clause without thinking about it, and we cannot break the agreement with the UK. Tibet was already a British sphere of influence. ”

"British?" Katsura Taro smiled, "Are they still an ally now?" He mocked and added, "We have become allies with our former enemies, while our own allies stand by and watch." This is the abominable government! ”

Katsura Taro liked the country in his bones, so he was not surprised to see him so Kato Takaku, he turned to ask: "Your Excellency, the people of the Lu country are attacking from the north, and I think the battle against the branch will soon be won." ”

"Victory?" Katsura Taro shook his head and said: "China is a big country, even if the northeast is completely occupied by us, he can retreat to the mountainous areas of western Liaoning, or the mountainous areas of eastern Liaodong, especially Tonghua." There has been a fortress. The one who can really defeat China still has to occupy Beijing - aren't the people of China proud that the Ming Dynasty emperor once coexisted and died with Beijing, then I will capture their emperor and defeat them completely, so that they will tremble when they think of the saber of the Great Japanese Army in the future! ”

Katsura Taro's eyes were shining, the decisive battle of the Naoli Plain was his ideal eighteen years ago, but at that time, he insisted on attacking to the west, but he was recalled to the country by the emperor's edict to recuperate, this time China and Japan fought again, he believed that the military boots of the Japanese army would definitely step on the Chengtian Gate of the Forbidden City!

"Your Excellency, Rear Admiral Tanaka asks to see you." Katsura Taro is looking forward to the time when he will enter Beijing. The adjutant suddenly reported that Yoshiichi Tanaka had arrived. Kato Takaaki's side was over, and when Tanaka Yoshiichi came in, he got up and retired.

Seeing Kato go away, Yoshiichi Tanaka said excitedly: "Your Excellency." There was a secret report from China that the Beijing defense line of the China Army was empty, and many troops had been withdrawn from the customs! ”

"Nani!!" Katsura Taro, who was already sitting upright, suddenly jumped up from the tatami mat. He looked at Yoshiichi Tanaka in disbelief and said, "How is this possible?!" The East Factory of China has blocked a qiē message. Even the Red Cross was not allowed to enter the war zone, which was ... This is...... Where did you get the news? ”

"Your Excellency. This is intelligence from the British MI5. "Yoshiichi Tanaka took a breather, he came running as soon as he got the news." The North China Army entered the northeast from the line of Chengde, Chaoyang, and Fuxin, instead of taking the Jinzhou line of Shanhaiguan, which we were concerned about, and these troops did not carry heavy weapons such as artillery, and traveled day and night, which is why we could not find them at Shanhaiguan. Tanaka Yoshiichi was indescribably excited, "Although the East Factory of China has destroyed the intelligence network that we have painstakingly managed, there are still churches all over China. The priests of the churches in Chengde, Chifeng, and Fuxin all received reports from the parishioners that for more than half a month, the dogs in the village had barked violently at night, and when the moonlight was clear, they could still see the smearing of the rushing Chinese army. ”

"Soga!" Katsura Taro nodded and asked, "Then can you know how many troops have been dispatched from Shina?" ”

"After receiving the priest's report, the consul of the consulate sent a military attache to calculate the number of troops in the Chinese army who passed in one night, and according to their estimates, the number of troops that could pass the role of one division and regiment in one night, according to the recollections of several parishioners, it has been twenty-two days since the transfer was carried out, that is, at least twenty-two divisions and regiments in China have been opened outside the customs." Tanaka Yoshiichi said the details of the information, and suddenly said at the end of his words: "I really don't know why the people of China want to betray their country, the Yang family is already very good to them." ”

After listening to Tanaka's words, Katsura Taro only thought about the previous information, if there were twenty-two divisions of the North China Army out of the pass, then it seemed that the decisive battle on the Naoli Plain could begin. When the time comes, the army will land from Qinhuangdao and Tianjin, and rush to Beijing by two routes...... Katsura Taro thought about things very far, and only suddenly woke up when he thought that after he captured the emperor, he appointed Yang Jingcheng to come to Xiaguan Chunfeng Tower to sign the treaty of ceding Manchu and Mongolia. He saw Tanaka Yoshiichi staring at him, and busily continued his topic: "The people of China are not called betraying their country, they are serving the almighty God of white animals, and they will do whatever the priest tells them to do, so our subjects are never allowed to believe in the white animal religion!" ”

"Your Excellency, the landing plan can begin!" Major General Yoshiichi Tanaka said. "This is the best chance, every month that China will build a division of rifles, and with the size of the reserve army in China, they will soon replenish the troops near Beijing."

"Hmm!" Katsura Taro nodded, the plan for the decisive battle of landing on the Naoli Plain had already been made, and now so many divisions and regiments were crowded in Kanto Prefecture, just waiting for the right opportunity to land on the Naoli Plain. "Lu Guo is said to attack in ten days, and if there are eight divisions left in Beijing, then we must have at least six divisions landing. With combat materiel, does the Navy have so many ships? ”

"Yes!" Tanaka nodded and said, "Many merchant ships loaded with supplies and ammunition did not get off the ship. It's just moored outside the port of Dalian, and there aren't many ships that need personnel. Even if there are not enough merchant ships, you can find the British to solve the problem. Ten days is enough time for us to raise enough ships. ”

"Yo Xi!" The British knew how many merchant ships there were Katsura Taro, and he turned his head to look at Tanaka Yoshiichi: "Immediately carry out the No. 2 battle plan!" ”

"Hey!" Tanaka Yoshiichi was stunned when he heard this, and then he tensed up and bowed, and the second battlefield between China and Japan was opened.

When Tokyo Xiaguan was plotting, the Yin'an Hall of the Prime Minister's Office in Beijing, the newly appointed Russian Minister to China, Kupenschi, looked at Yang Rui, who was in the old god, and had nothing to do, according to his previous assumption, the yellow-skinned monkey must have been frightened under the pressure of the soldiers. Who knew that after chatting for a long time at the beginning, Yang Rui only talked about the interesting things that happened on his way to the United States, and he didn't mean to talk about the note at all, and when he mentioned this matter and began to threaten, the yellow-skinned monkey was indifferent. He finally remembered what the army generals before leaving Petersburg had said about this man: as cunning as a fox, harder than steel, and favored by God—if it had not been for the sudden outbreak of a strong wind in the Battle of Mukden nine years earlier, this man would have died.

"Respect Your Excellency, you will only lead to war. But your army is now deeply confined to the Japanese attack, and for the sake of your many years of friendship with our country, you should accede to the request of His Majesty the Emperor, and it will be nothing to lose you. Outer Mongolia is only autonomous, not ceded. Kupenschi's tone began to soften, and he felt sorry for the man who had been killed from the battlefield. Intimidation only provokes anger and rebellion against him.

When Yang Rui heard the Russian minister talk about friendship, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but move. There may be friendship between people, but where is the friendship between countries? Some can only use and be used. He politely waited for the Russian to finish. Then Feng Qingyun said lightly: "Your Excellency, according to the previous agreement, Harbin and the entire railway annex can only be stationed with fifteen policemen per kilometer, but now the Russian army in Harbin exceeds 200,000, I really don't understand why there are so many people asking for autonomy in Outer Mongolia?" Please tell your Majesty the Emperor: We will not cede every inch of our country's land. As for Outer Mongolia's request for autonomy, they can submit a proposal to the National Assembly, rather than through your country. ”

"Your Excellency, you will only start a war by doing so." Once again, he felt his patience run out.

"Your Excellency, your army has gathered in Harbin, and the war has begun, but we have not declared war." Yang Rui stood up with the tea and said, he was already about to send off the guests.

"May God bless you!" Kupenschi said no more, saluted, and turned away.

A few minutes later, Yang Du and Song Jiaoren arrived together: "Brother Cheng, Russian... Are the Russians really going to war with us? Song Jiaoren's face was clear and innocent, and he had just learned the news from the Beijing-Tianjin Times today, but of course the newspaper did not say that Russia was threatening to demand autonomy from Outer Mongolia.

Yang Du next to him was also uneasy, "My lord, this Russia is different from Japan, now the two countries have no chance of winning against our country, can this battle continue?" ”

"Why can't this battle go on?" Yang Rui was amused, and said after laughing, "I will broadcast the speech in a while, and everything you want to know is in the speech." ”

......According to the Constitution, the prime minister of Greater China can declare war on the outside world without the approval of the Congress, of course, the Congress can also put forward a no-confidence motion to let the prime minister step down, but with Yang Rui's public opinion and the organization of the Revival Association, if he wants to step down, the sun will come out of the west, and he endured the word parliamentarian, but said: "Millions, thousands... Don't be reckless! ”

"Don't worry," Yang Rui said, "it's just an armed conflict." ”

The National Assembly only meets at the end of the year, and it is now April, and the prime minister gave a speech to the outside world only in the press briefing hall of the Prime Minister's Office.

When the group arrived at the press conference hall, the hall was already crowded with Chinese and foreign reporters, if usual, those Chinese reporters would applaud warmly when they saw the prime minister appear, but this time everyone was stunned when they heard that Russia was going to war against China, they only looked at Yang Rui's complacent expression, and when they remembered to applaud, Lu Bicheng had already stepped aside, and Yang Rui had already begun to speak:

"Today. I was kindly reminded by a gentleman that if I didn't give him a piece of flesh on my body. Then I won't live this month! Yang Rui's eyes began with blazing eyes, and after he finished speaking, his eyes swept the audience. Seeing that everyone was waiting for their next words, he had to continue: "Of course, this gentleman is a civilized man, and he is a superior person, and his words are not as vulgar as mine, and he speaks of borrowing, not cutting. But I really couldn't tell what was cut and what was borrowed, so I refused this gentleman's kindness. I want to see if I can survive this month.

According to the Western saying, to be a man must be rational, the ancients also had a similar admonition, called to know the current affairs, but I am a person with thorny bones, when I was young, I looked at the history of the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, both angry and sad, I only feel that China has always had few failed heroes, few resilient resistance. There are few warriors who dare to fight alone, and there are few hangers who dare to cry traitors; When they saw the victory, they gathered one after another, and when they saw the defeat, they fled one after another. Westerners whose weapons are sharper than ours, and Manchurians and Japanese, whose war equipment are not necessarily sharper than ours. As if we were in a no-man's land, we kept braids for more than 200 years. The country has also reached such a situation! Now, I know that our national strength cannot withstand the aggression of two powerful countries. There are more soldiers who know the enemy than the sand in the Yellow River, and denser than the leaves in the forest. But my heart of resistance is stronger than the Himalayas!

Ladies and gentlemen, the citizens of great nations must be tempered by iron and blood, and they will not give in even if they die. Today, iron and blood will also sharpen us, whether to kneel and be slaves, or to be unyielding, only to fight here! I can't tell you what the outcome of the war will be, but I promise that every Renaissance soldier will fight to the death against the enemy, and every Renaissance member will live and die with the country! Thank you, and I'm done. ”

Yang Rui didn't give the reporter time to ask questions after finishing his speech, the moment he left directly to close the door, the reporters who came back to their senses applauded one after another, and even the British reporter who originally wanted to find fault couldn't help but clap because of Yang Rui's courage after listening to the relay.

Through the wooden door, Yang Rui could hear the applause for a long time, but he was not the slightest excited at this time, but extremely calm, at this time he suddenly felt that the outcome of the war was no longer important, and he only hoped that every citizen could cheer up. What does it take to be a great country? Then please first hone a great national - he hopes that every Chinese will be indomitable!

As before, Yang Rui's voice spread throughout the legation area, but everyone in the British legation who heard Yang Rui's choice to start a war with Russia was in a haze, and after a brief speech, one person whispered: "Oh my God! Yang Jingcheng will make 400 million Chinese as crazy as boxers, we ...... We should kill him. ”

Such a childish statement, Zhu Erdian, who listened to it, just smiled bitterly, and he stared at the person who spoke: "Killing Yang Jingcheng will only make the Chinese more crazy, and the only way to defeat him is to defeat him!" Only by constantly defeating him and making every Chinese no longer believe in him is the best way! ”

When he had finished speaking, the assistant reported to the Russian minister for an audience, and he left the meeting room and went into the living room.

"Dear sir, did you hear it, the Chinese are crazy! They're already crazy! These savage yellow-skinned monkeys should be taught a lesson! Kupenschi didn't expect Yang Rui to say the words he threatened on the radio, which was completely against diplomatic norms. His actions will only make Russia declare war on China.

"Nope! He's sane. Zhu Erdian laughed. If they were crazy, he would declare war directly on your country on the radio, but he didn't. ”

"That's because Russia hasn't declared war on him yet." "I really don't understand, why are those yellow-skinned monkeys so bold?" ”

The Russians said this, Zhu Erdian just sighed, he is not good to tell him, the more tough the current government is to the outside world, the more the people support, this is purely to use their own people as monkeys to please the people, but the situation in Europe is in crisis, otherwise the second Eight-Nation Coalition would have entered Beijing long ago.

"When will your army move south to attack Shenyang?" Zhu Erdian asked.

"Within ten days!" Kupenschi said. "I hope that your country will support our occupation of Mongolia and North Manchuria, as well as the Province of the Western Regions, as promised at the beginning. This is the fundamental reason why my Majesty has done this in spite of French opposition. ”

"Of course, but your army must defeat the revival army!" "The French," he said, "we will persuade them. The British Army also did a good job from... Preparations for the attack on Yunnan from Burma. ”

Seeing that Zhu Erdian did not mention Tibet, Kupensiqi nodded and said, "In view of the courage of the Chinese, I will do my best to declare war on them." ”

"It doesn't seem to be planned anymore." Zhu Erdian looked at the Russian humanity in front of him.

"Nope! War should be declared on China so that there will be a justification for our massacres. Kupenschi smiled. He stood up and took his top hat to greet Zhu Erdian slightly, and then floated out of the British Legation.

Kupenski said that he would do it, and on the same day he sent the telegram declaring war on China to Petersburg Foreign Minister Shazonov, and when Shazonov read the telegram to the imperial council, the emperor was aggrieved: "Treat the Chinese kindly, but they turn a blind eye to the barbarism, and even give such a rude speech." Shazonov, do you think we can tolerate such an impertinent practice? ”

"Your Majesty, we need to let the Chinese understand what civilization is, and we should declare war on them." Shazonov affirmed, saying that he had thought of the answer before the matter.

The Foreign Minister so advised, Nicholas II nodded and then looked at the chairman of the National Defense Committee earlier to Nicholas. Grand Duke Nikolayevich, "Nikolai, can our army teach those arrogant and unreasonable yellow-skinned monkeys?" ”

"As you wish, Your Majesty." Grand Duke Nikolayevich bowed: "Although in the Far East there are only six Siberian corps, four divisions of the Amur Military District, as well as three cavalry divisions, but the brave Alexander . Samsonov is enough to teach them a lesson with these troops, and it will not take long for the war to end. However, it is likely that the Japanese will land on the Zhili Plain when we begin our offensive, presumably with the intention of capturing Beijing to capture the Chinese emperor. ”

When Nicholas II heard about the Japanese plot, he looked at Shazonov with inquiring eyes, and Shazonov hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, Britain and Japan have long had an agreement with us, even if they occupy Beijing and capture the Chinese emperor, the agreement is still valid." I just want to ask the Grand Duke to enter the Western Regions Province from Turkestan at the time of China's defeat, which is a very valuable place. ”

"Well, let the monkeys know what civilization is." The enemy army fought on two fronts, and Nicholas II straightened his beard and watched his ministers who were expecting him finally make a decision.

On the tenth day of the fourth month of the third year of Shenwu, the Russian Empire declared war on the Great China State, and the next day, the Great China Kingdom also declared war on the Russian Empire. With Russia's entry into the East Asian war, the world's public opinion focused on the East, Kaiser Wilhelm II, who knew about the matter, was a little happy and a little guilty, while US President Wilson began to worry after making statements in support of China, and the stock market in China first fell sharply and then rose sharply at the moment when Russia declared war;

And the front page of the China Times that day was full of big words: reluctant life or unyielding death! The Imperial Daily is a hand-painted Himalaya, and it is also a few big words: National War! Live or die! There were many more Chinese-language newspapers, all impassioned. Only the English-language newspapers of the concession and the Chinese-language newspapers controlled by foreigners, full of rational and realistic analysis, warned the Chinese government that if it did not compromise, then another change of Gengzi was inevitable, but when the Prime Minister's Office also declared war on Russia on the second day, these newspapers all turned into accusations and abuse: The Chinese have gone crazy!

Public opinion is surging, and public opinion is panicking, and the people of the country understand that they can fight with the Russians. And where is Outer Mongolia? Such a wild land, why not give it to Russia? Even Sun Wen and Liang Qichao in Japan wrote articles criticizing the government of the current dynasty for being unreasonable, reckless in military force, and not measuring its own strength, and such a move would only destroy the country and the nation.

All the dissuasion telegrams were ordered by Yang Rui to be published in the China Times, and the private words were actually made public, so whether China could win or not, the parties had been nailed to the pillar of shame, and for a while everyone was resentful but helpless. In the chaos after the declaration of war, it was only when Zhu Kuansu issued the holy decree to start a war that it finally subsided, but this was only the surface, and in private, the northern gentry fled one after another, and even the most dilapidated inns in the concession were overcrowded.

On April 15, the third year of Shenwu, amid the attention of the whole world, the Russian troops in the Far East assembled in Harbin marched south, and the decisive battle in East Asia was about to begin. (To be continued......)