When Yang Du returned to the hotel, he was stopped by the American reporters who heard the news, and they were questioning one by one, which made people very unhappy. Listening to these accusatory voices, the adjutant of the regiment used a very loud voice to quiet the scene, Yang Du ordered a reporter who wore glasses and was slightly mild-mannered and began to ask questions, not wanting the reporter to open his mouth and say, "Your Excellency, why do you insist on starting another war?" ”

The questions of American journalists are incomprehensible, but Yang Du knows that in this country where journalists are rampant and public opinion is king, any questions raised by reporters must be answered carefully, otherwise they will definitely arouse suspicion.

"No, it's a rumor, a vicious rumor!" Yang Du immediately gave a definition of this statement, "A country that has only two battleships and no longer requires more capital ship tonnage is not qualified to wage war, you must know that you have more than twenty battleships." What's more, what's worth going to war with? With China's weak navy, it is simply not worth coming to Washington for a meeting. ”

"Then why did your country have to form an alliance with Japan, and the war in Europe was caused by the allied countries?" The reporter obviously did not understand what was said at today's meeting, which is why he repeated this kind of question.

"An alliance with Japan is only a self-protection measure for the weak, and now the combined battleships of China and Japan are only seventy percent of your country's, and if you count the battleships in the dock, the proportion is even less, less than seventy percent. If we look at it individually, our battleships are only 0.60% of your country's, and if we accept those terms of the conference, we will have to form an alliance with Japan to protect ourselves. Yang Du said,

"But the Japanese are also building battleships on a large scale, and they will eventually start a war one day." The next reporter said again. "And the alliance between your country and the Japanese will only increase their confidence in starting a war."

"The Japanese Navy's battleships are only 60 percent of your country's, and our country's 0.60 percent is less than 70 percent. Do you believe that such a ratio will start a war? Whether in terms of industrial strength, economic strength, or naval strength, the two Japan and the two China together are not as strong as the United States. But even so, we still agree with the tonnage ratio of capital ships proposed by Mr. Hughes of your country. Willing to conclude treaties limiting the expansion of armaments.

Gentlemen, it is an evil conspiracy to declare that China and Japan will provoke a war in the Pacific, and someone is trying to extract greater profits from the members of Congress by all means. If war does happen, it is also because of the instigation of certain interest groups. Yang Du said.

"Your Excellency, I have heard that Christians are being persecuted in your country, and not only are the number of believers drastically decreasing, but even Chinese priests are disappearing...... "When discussing military affairs, a religious question was suddenly inserted, which really made people laugh and cry.

Yang Du smiled: "No one is persecuting Christians, and the only explanation for this phenomenon is because the Buddha has appeared." Then everyone thought that only the Buddha was the true God, so they all converted to Buddhism. ”

"That can only be the devil!" The journalist was obviously a reporter for Christian Monitor, and in his view, all other gods except God were demons, and now there is a manifest devil in China who tempts the Lamb of the Lord.

"Your Excellency, will your country renounce its alliance with Japan?" The protests of the previous journalist were quickly drowned out by other journalists.

"It is our right to ally with whomever it is, just as it is your right to make friends with whomever it is." Yang Du said. "If this meeting continues to interfere in our internal affairs, I don't think there is any value in such a crude agreement.

Gentlemen, please keep one thing in mind. We have only two battleships, while you have more than twenty; The combined number of battleships of our country and Japan is less than seventy percent of your country's; Those who conclude that there will be a Pacific war definitely have ulterior motives, and the war is unfortunate for ordinary people, but fortunate for some people, especially those with a stake. Tens of millions of people died in the Great War in Europe, but some people made a fortune from it......"

"Your Excellency, it should be your country that made a fortune in the war in Europe." Yang Du's words were interrupted very rudely by a reporter. He wasn't angry about it, but smiled even more. "Yes, my country is making a lot of money. But don't forget that Europe still owes you $15 billion, and our country doesn't even earn a fraction of that. And that's just the arrears, not the part of the cash paid during the war......"

Yang Du sharply responded to the reporter's attack, and when he was speaking freely, suddenly someone among the reporters shouted a sentence in Chinese, "Hit the authoritarian government!" ", and then 'smack... ...... two shots, he felt that he had been hit twice and fell backwards. When the assassination occurred at the scene, the reporters retreated in surprise, and some reporters who were quick to react and quick to shoot quickly took pictures, and the scene was in chaos.

It was big news that China and Japan had withdrawn from the conference because of the protests, and now that the Chinese envoy had been assassinated by the Chinese Revolutionary Party, it was even more big news.

Yang Du's assassination was definitely an accident, thousands of miles away, Yang Rui and others, who were discussing the strategy of the naval meeting overnight in Yin'an Palace, suddenly raised their hearts when they heard the news, but after hearing that Yang Du was wearing nylon body armor and was only slightly injured, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Qiu Jin, who was in charge of the powerful department, said: "Sun Zhiyu's party is becoming more and more rampant, and if it goes on like this, it will be a disaster sooner or later!" ”

"They want to kill Yang Huizi and sabotage the meeting so that China and the United States can go to war." Xie Jintai guessed. "As in the Russian Revolution, only war could keep the tsarist government out of control and eventually lead to revolution."

"It's not a good thing to put up too much, we should make up our minds to do it." Du Yaquandao, who was convinced of Xie Zhangtai's speculation, said that the Ministry of Civil Affairs had proposed to attack Sun Wenyu's party by assassination, but Yang Rui was completely opposed, and now they dare to provoke a Sino-US war.

"It is enough to publicize their intentions among overseas Chinese." Yang Du was relieved that Yang Rui was not dead, "We can't do what the revolutionary party does, because once there is a scuffle, then their actions will have legitimacy - you see, the government does the same." I still remember that if I had been a Manchu at the time, I would have let Uncle Mei scold me enough, because as soon as I arrest someone, it will make a big fuss, and if the revolution is propagated, it will be sympathized with. ”

"But I just feel aggrieved!" Qiu Jin was still indignant, although she thought that Yang Rui was completely right.

Only in this way do people feel that Sun Wen and others are hateful. And not that the government is hateful. After Yang Rui instructed Li Zilong to send a message of condolence, he said that he no longer paid attention to Sun Wen's affairs. With the temperament of a cannon, when the money he got was spent. The event naturally ended, and he took the money purely for the show. "Let's pick up where we left off, where did you just go?"

"Speaking of the countermeasures of the British and American joint efforts to strangle." Xu Huafeng reminded.

"Hmm. It's here. Yang Rui nodded, "I went on to say that if Britain and the United States jointly strangle, then we will have to pull Japan and Russia and Germany to do another set, my country is a domestic demand market, and light industry does not need to worry; And heavy industrial products. Because Russia is completely blockaded by the outside world, it needs tractors, cars and other goods, although their demand is not long-lasting, but at least they can save us for a while, waiting for the domestic heavy industry market to rise. The machinery and equipment are counting on Germany and France, everyone is a metric standard, there is no problem of incompatibility, and Germany is much stronger than the United States in many aspects. ”

"What happens in the event of war?" Xu Huafeng asked, what he was most worried about was war.

"When there was a war, the Japanese were the first to die. He was on the east side. Yang Rui said. Last year, someone in Japan wanted to give us a few pieces of the German colony, but it was just a statement, the Japanese were still too stingy, if it were me. That's one and a half in German New Guinea. ”

The Viceroyalty of the Steppe gave nearly half of the Japanese to the criticism of many people, who believed that the Japanese had done nothing at all, and that only a few thousand patrolmen had been sent to Tsaritsyn. It doesn't help the war at all; However, this kind of voice is only a very small minority, and the people of the whole country still agree with the policy of the United Japan. Just like the defeat of the First Sino-Japanese War, many people not only do not resent it. On the contrary, he thought that because this was the Manchu navy, the defeat under such a disparity in strength could only be a sign of the death of the Tartars, and it was not at all as defensive and eulogizing as later generations.

"Isn't there a way to turn back the current situation?" Du Yaquan thought of the previously planned trade with the United States, and deeply felt that turning the other cheek with the Americans would be very detrimental to the development of commerce and trade.

"How?" Yang Rui thought for a while and said, "It depends on whether the Americans care about the tonnage ratio or the Sino-Japanese alliance, if it is the former, there will definitely be a turnaround; If it's the latter, then there's no other option but to break up. It was up to the British, who were the only ones who were most afraid of the break-up of the meeting. ”

"British?" Everyone knows a little, and as far as the current situation is concerned, only Britain is the most anxious.

The British were indeed very anxious, because they received the news of Yang Du's assassination earlier than Yang Rui, it is said that because the murderer's marksmanship was not good, Yang Du was only injured, and the person was fine, but the meeting would be delayed, as the Chinese saying goes, the night is long and dreams are many, and Balfour and the British delegates are worried that the postponement of the meeting will produce new changes, so early the next morning, in addition to sending people to visit Yang Du at the Chinese delegation, Belfort himself rushed to the Berham Hotel in person, in order to persuade the Japanese.

"General Kato, if we insist on an alliance between China and Japan, then we will not be able to sign an entente, and the result will be that the ratio of Japanese and American capital ships will not reach 6 to 10. Especially when the American people felt that Japan had wrongly rejected a fair naval ratio, they would vote for a navy of any size if needed. Balfour seemed to be neutral, but in fact he persuaded partially, that before only the lower-ranking officials of the British delegation were biased towards the United States, and now the situation is serious, and he has to make a stand in person.

"I understand Your Excellency's concerns, but the Sino-Japanese alliance is only defensive in nature, and it has no intention of attacking any country." Kato didn't speak, but Kishigero Bihara nodded and replied, although the British position had been predicted, their betrayal so openly was indeed desperate and chilling.

"But the Americans don't believe it." Balfour continued to persuade that he had to be a wolf grandmother for the benefit of Great Britain. "To the simple American public, an alliance would mean a new war, and China and Japan are in the same Pacific Ocean as the United States, and New Guinea is so close to the United States. I believe that after the failure of this conference, the Americans will definitely build a navy on a larger scale, but these expenses cannot be sustained forever, and the final result can only be war, because only war can end the costly arms race. ”

"Your Excellency, I will make this proposal to the country." Yuzaburo Kato was extremely calm, he was not angry at the naked betrayal of the British, because what had happened had been expected by him.

After a bitter mouth, Yuzaburo Kato was still so calm, and Balfour had to feel a sense of frustration, "Gentlemen. Once again, I have to say a word of caution if there is no agreement at the meeting. Things are going to get very, very ...... Worst. ”

After Balfort said goodbye, the Japanese in the hotel looked at each other. The secretary of the embassy reported to Kishigero Bihara: "Your Excellency, more than 2,000 newspapers in the United States are denouncing our ......"

"More than 2,000 newspapers ......" Bihara had not yet spoken, but Yuzaburo Kato was full of surprise, he knew the influence of American public opinion on American politics, and before, he thought that there would always be a few newspapers that would say a few fair words to China and Japan, but now all the newspapers condemned it.

The newspaper business was not over, and on the morning of the third day, worse news came from the financial circles of New York: if Japan broke down the meeting by insisting on an alliance with China. The United States, Britain, France, and Italy will not only condemn Japan, but also impose a boycott and embargo, which will bankrupt the Japanese economy.

For a foreign trade country like Japan, countries can use the trade blockade as a weapon, while for a self-sufficient country like China, the only way to use it is an embargo on equipment and technology. On the fourth day of Mr. Yang's assassination, a number of American, British, and French companies that had signed contracts with China sent telegrams to Beijing, claiming that they were under pressure from the government to delay the delivery of equipment. Some U.S. companies have even directly stated that they want to terminate their contracts.

When the situation became more and more serious, the meeting was reconvened at the Independence Hall in Washington five days later under the mediation of the United Kingdom. He granted his rights to Lieutenant Colonel Shen Honglie in the form of a power of attorney, and he was the only Chinese delegation present at the meeting.

"In response to the concerns of the US side. China hereby makes the following concessions: First, we will make the following concessions. The tonnage of capital ships of 30 to 230,000 was abandoned, and only six aircraft carriers were retained; Second. never develop or build battleships; third, a commitment never to invade the U.S. Pacific colonies; Fourth, it does not develop or produce any shipborne artillery with a caliber of more than 280mm; Fifth, dismantle the 100 submarines in service and keep only 75 ......"

It is true that Yang Du could not recover from his injuries, and the rest of the delegation, especially the people in the navy, did not want to attend because of the excessive concessions of Beijing's instructions, and the commander of the navy, Liu Guanxiong, was comforting everyone at this time.

One concession after another made the British smile, while the Americans looked different, Hughes and others were overflowing with joy, and Theodore Jr. Roosevelt and the others looked heavy. After Shen Honglie finished speaking, the venue burst into applause; Yuzaburo Kato, chief representative of the Japanese delegation, also stood up and said: "For the sake of peace in the Pacific Ocean and the whole world, the Japanese Government will also promise never to invade the American Asian colonies, and at the same time, Japan promises not to build any military docks, military airports, or any military facilities in the Pacific colonies and mandates......

Kato's words also aroused applause, and it seemed to the countries of the country that the matter had been solved perfectly. An aircraft carrier is equivalent to a cruiser carrying aircraft, and in the words of Yang Du, the representative of China, this is just an overseas Chinese rescue warship, and there is no combat power at all, and if it is encountered face-to-face, a cruiser can sink it. Judging from the current tonnage of capital ships, China and Japan together are only 60% of the United States, if aircraft carriers are not counted; In practical terms, aircraft carriers are not within the scope of the proportion of the tonnage of capital ships, and the 135,000 tons of Britain and the United States and Japan's 80,000 tons are all outside the list, and only China, a country that does not know how to build battleships, and at the same time does not know whether it should build battleships or aircraft carriers, will confuse the two.

"If your country really wants to make concessions, you should also dismantle the six aircraft carriers, leaving only cruisers and submarines." At the end of the statements of the representatives of China and Japan, the opposition in the American delegation, Theodore Jr. Roosevelt said to Shen Honglie.

"It's a great idea." Shen Honglie replied unexpectedly, "But why didn't Your Excellency propose to dismantle our country's cruisers and submarines together, and then cancel the navy, and then the US fleet will go straight to the Yangtze River, as before?" ”

Shen Honglie ignored the faces of the Americans and said to the other delegates, "Gentlemen, our country has made the greatest concession for the sake of peace, just like I said before, the aircraft carrier is only for the rescue of overseas Chinese, and it is only equipped with six-inch cannons, and even the cruiser cannot deal with it."...... If the United States is only worried about the Chinese and Japanese navies, then there is nothing to worry about now, but if the United States is alienating itself from Sino-Japanese relations and wants to bring Asian countries under its own protection in the same way that it protects the Americas, I think no country that upholds justice and freedom can agree to this.

China and Japan have the same language and the same species. Although there have been more than one war in history, the two countries have built trust together. and determined to eradicate the chaos of war once and for all in order to achieve lasting peace. The ultimate goal of criticizing the Sino-Japanese alliance and undermining Sino-Japanese relations is nothing more than the hope of provoking another Sino-Japanese war in the Far East. I am sure that people in both countries, as well as peace-loving people around the world, will condemn such acts. The peoples of the two countries are also bound to hate such acts and the evil forces that instigate them.

China and Japan have never thought of threatening the United States or any other country, nor do they have the strength to threaten the United States or any other country, and building their navies is just a helpless act of self-preservation. I have great admiration for Mr. Hughes, who is presiding over this meeting, but I believe that this kind of restriction of naval armaments will not fundamentally eliminate the chaos of war, and that the truly effective and long-term peace strategy is to eliminate the navy as a service branch......"

Shen Honglie, who is fluent in English, drew laughter and applause from everyone whose proposal to 'eliminate the navy' caused them to burst into applause, and after the applause, he said: "Gentlemen, China has made the greatest concession, and if the United States really only wants peace in the Pacific, then the current ratio of capital ships is already six to ten. The Japanese Navy only has the strength to protect itself, while China does not even have the strength to protect itself, so it can only rely on the help of the Japanese Navy.

If this is not enough to dispel the suspicion and estrangement between them, it can only show one problem, and that is that the United States wants to arrange the Asian countries in the same way that the American countries are arranged, and I can say very clearly that we do not need them; And this will never be possible, China cannot be hostile to Japan in order to get closer to the United States. Thank you! ”

At the end of Shen Honglie's speech, he won applause from the audience except for the US representative. The Delegation of the United Kingdom was the first to applaud. Judging from the comparison of the current capital ships, except for the fact that China's aircraft carriers are somewhat exceeded, the capital ships have nothing to do with who she allies with has nothing to do with the overall situation, and. It would be in Great Britain's best interest to be able to set up an enemy for the United States in the western Pacific while curbing the trend of US shipbuilding.

The British think so, and the French have a tradition of advocating freedom. Italy, on the other hand, resented its frequent ridicule by the American delegates, and the opposition of the United States to its acquisition of the Balkan port of Fum at the Paris Peace Conference. The applause from France and Italy was as warm as that of the British, and the Japanese delegation stood up in unison for Shen Honglie's last words and bowed deeply to him. And Shen Honglie also returned the salute to the Japanese, and such a touching scene of bowing made the Americans who sat on the chair at a loss extremely embarrassed.

The ball has already been kicked by China and Japan – doesn't that mean that an alliance is a threat? Now China has given up the tonnage of its capital ships, leaving only cruiser-like aircraft carriers, and the tonnage of the capital ships of six to ten is only the tonnage ratio of Japan to the United States as previously agreed upon; The previous fears that the Chinese might tear down all aircraft carriers and convert them into battleships are completely gone. If there is still a protest of 6 to 10, it shows that the goal of the United States is not to disarm the navy at all, but to dismantle the Sino-Japanese alliance for no reason, even if this alliance is not threatening, which is exactly the same as dealing with the countries of the Americas.

"Gentlemen, based on the concessions made by the Chinese and Japanese delegations, I propose to adjourn the meeting for three days to discuss the final proposal." Secretary of State Hughes, who chaired the meeting, said loudly.

"I couldn't agree more." Lord Belfort, who sensed something about it, replied loudly. "I very much appreciate China's concessions on this issue, their actions not only give us hope for peace, but also make us understand the sacrifices they have made for peace, please allow us to express our gratitude with applause."

Balfour spoke as if the meeting had been a complete success, and in the frustration of the Americans, applause rang out again in the room; And out of the venue, facing the reporters outside, Lord Balfour shouted even more excitedly: "Gentlemen, gentlemen, peace!" Peace! China gave up all the tonnage of capital ships, they made huge sacrifices for peace! Japan, like the Chinese generation, pledged never to invade the American Asian colonies. Gentlemen, the conference was a great success, the US Navy is absolutely ten to six in the Pacific Ocean, and I am sure that the American people on the West Coast can sleep well......"

Balfour's mouth could have run off the train, and his remarks cheered the reporters waiting for the outcome of the meeting, and many of them immediately had their assistants update the editors after listening to his speech, in order to get ahead of other newspapers for a peaceful story—and that seemed to be the case. (To be continued......)