There were sighs in the hall of the British Embassy, and a depressing atmosphere filled the air.
Russian Governor-General Muravyov, US Secretary of State Seward, French royal aristocrat Philip, and British Prime Minister Henry Temple gathered together. The faces of the four old guys were full of regret and frustration. Mongolia and China were at war. , they expected that the Mongolian army in the north would win and benefit from it, but they did not expect that the Mongolian army would lose their pants.
The defeat of Mongolia indirectly caused the four countries to fall into a quagmire, making it more difficult for the negotiators of the four countries to reconcile with Li Zhen, especially since the last time relations were at loggerheads, and it was even more difficult to bring back the captured soldiers from each country.
"Tell me what we should do."
Temple said with a grimace.
Even though he was a veteran thief from Temple, he felt powerless and exhausted.
Philip was dissatisfied and immediately said: "I have sent the conditions set by Li Zhenkai back to the country. Our Imperial Majesty has made it clear that the transfer of Laos, Cambodia and other places is not allowed. Now that the Mongolian army has lost, the conditions offered by Li Zhenkai must not only be the transfer of Laos, Cambodia, etc." The country is so simple, so it is impossible to reach an agreement. The matter is too troublesome."
He had a depressed look on his face and was extremely regretful. When he came to Beijing, Philip thought it was just for fun and thought he would not encounter any difficulties. He planned to go out for a walk. Now the tasks on his shoulders were very heavy and he was almost out of breath. He was so breathless that Philip had already quietly sent a message back to his country, asking Napoleon III to send someone to replace him.
Unfortunately, Napoleon refused directly and left Philip to take matters into his own hands.
In this situation, how could Philip not be angry?
Seeing that the rest of the people were silent, Philip continued: "If I had known that the Mongolian army would not help, I should have directly agreed to Li Zhen's conditions like the Netherlands and Denmark. At that time, even if I went back and was scolded, I would be more worried than now. better."
Temple smiled and said: "Napoleon III does not agree, but your Excellency still dares to agree."
Philip said: "If I really can't finish it, I have no choice but to agree."
Westward of the American Federation said earnestly: "Sir Philip, there is no use in complaining, and there is no use in sighing. Excessive worry and sighing will only make ourselves more depressed. We must adjust our mentality and find a way to solve this matter."
Muravyov said: "Yes, the main task now is to consider solutions."
"What can I do?" Philip asked.
Muravyov replied: "We had a falling out with Li Zhen, but falling out is a falling out. Because it involves the interests of the country, you have to be thick-faced, so falling out is not a big deal." After a pause, Muravyov Said: "I suggest that you go to the Presidential Palace to see Li Zhen immediately, and then discuss the terms of the negotiation after meeting with the person. We are waiting for the outcome of the battle between the Mongolian and Chinese armies before deciding, but this was only mentioned by Li Zhen, and We have no intention of selling at a price, so we will pretend that the Mongolia incident has not happened and continue to negotiate with Li Zhen. If Li Zhen's requirements are more demanding, we will come back and continue the negotiation if there is something we can do. "
"You can only treat a dead horse as a living horse doctor."
Temple nodded and immediately went to prepare.
The group left the embassy and ran towards the presidential palace.
Presidential residence, Presidential office.
Li Zhen looked at the telegram sent back from Guangzhou with a smile on his face. According to the situation reported by Dai Yuanhua, a breakthrough has been made in the production of smoke bombs. A new type of smoke bomb will be produced soon. By then, the Mongolian army will produce it. China's weapons are definitely lagging behind, while China's weapons will definitely be ahead.
"Dong, dong,."
A knock on the door came from outside the room.
"Come in."
Li Zhen put down the telegram in his hand, looked up and saw a guard walking in. The guard looked respectful and reported: "President, envoys from various countries have arrived at the presidential palace and want to see you."
Li Zhen sneered and said: "Just say that I am sick and it is not convenient to see you at the moment."
The guard was stunned for a moment, but a smile suddenly appeared on his face. He understood Li Zhen's intention. The guard came to the living room of the Presidential Palace and told Temple, Seward and others about Li Zhen's illness. After listening to this, the expressions on the faces of the people were rigid and there was a hint of displeasure in their expressions, but in the end they all left the Presidential Palace in dismay.
After returning to the British Embassy, the negotiating team officials from the four countries were furious.
After a lot of yelling, you still have to think about how to solve the problem.
Siward sighed softly and said helplessly: "There is no way to find Li Zhen. It seems that the only way is to make insinuations. In my opinion, it is better to send people to contact the people around Li Zhen respectively. You can contact Prime Minister Zeng Guofan, Vice Prime Minister Shi Dakai, and the principal of the military academy Zuo Zong Tang, as well as Defense Minister Peng Yulin, Speaker Hu Linyi and others, will use these people to see if they can get Li Zhen to relent."
Philip said: "If I had known this, why did I do it in the first place?"
"Idiot." Henry Temple scolded him directly.
Muravyov continued: "When it comes to the interests of the country, we cannot agree easily. As long as there is half a chance to reduce the country's losses, we must fight for it. Your weakness can only show the lack of national strength."
Phillip said angrily: "I said I can't beat you."
Seward said: "Your Excellency Philip, it is useless to have internal strife. We should unite."
Phillip hummed twice and stopped talking.
Siward continued: "I took the initiative to contact Zeng Guofan."
Muravyov nodded and said: "I have dealt with Peng Yulin in Vladivostok. I will contact Peng Yulin."
Temple said: "I will contact Zongtang Zuo."
Phillip finally gave in and nodded: "I'll contact Hu Linyi."
Several people divided the work and then went to visit different people. When the negotiation team officials were running around, the negotiation team officials from the Netherlands, Denmark, Italy and other countries were beaming with joy. They were deeply grateful to have reached an agreement with Li Zhen early. They were originally small countries. , if they persist until now, they will definitely be more passive, and after reaching an agreement, they have more time to respond.
Several small countries laughed, and Britain, France, the United States, and Russia were almost crying.
Siward went to the prime minister's official residence alone to visit Zeng Guofan, hoping to meet Li Zhen through Zeng Guofan, but he did not want Zeng Guofan to be invulnerable and remained unmoved at all. He only chatted with Siward. Once it came to Li Zhen's Everything, no matter how big or small, was pushed aside without giving Siward the slightest chance.
Seward spent a long time in Zeng Guofan's house without getting any useful promises, and finally had to return to the British Embassy. As soon as he entered the hall, he saw Muravyov, Philip and Temple sitting in the hall. middle.
These people all have grim faces.
After Siward sat down, he took a sip of water and said, "Could it be that you all..."
As soon as he opened his mouth, everyone nodded one after another.
"well……"
Siward sighed and said, "What should we do if we can't see Li Zhen now?"
Philip said: "I can't help it."
Henry Temple said solemnly: "Li Zhen's conditions are too harsh, and it is impossible for Her Majesty the Queen to agree to it."
Muravyov said solemnly: "If we are really forced to do anything, no matter what the captured soldiers are, we can say that Li Zhen will not let him go, or that Li Zhen is simply embarrassing other countries and does not want to let him go."
Temple shook his head and said, "I won't take this step until the end."
Seward then said: "I also don't think we should take this step until the end."
Philip's eyes were rolling, and he was quite moved in his heart, and said: "Actually, I think His Excellency Muraviyov's suggestion can be properly considered. The cost of rescuing the captives is too high, so we have to give up."
Seward said: "I disagree."
Muravyov said: "Actually, we can wait a little longer, there is still a chance."
"Oh, why is that?" the other three people asked quickly.
Muravyov looked serious, lowered his voice, and slowly spoke out his thoughts. His words caused the expressions of the negotiating team officials from the other three countries to change constantly, and there was even a look of horror in their eyes.
…
At the Presidential Palace, Zeng Guofan, Shi Dakai, Zuo Zongtang and others gathered.
Zeng Guofan looked relaxed and said casually: "The President's prediction is correct. Britain, France, the United States, and Russia are like ants on a hot pot. They have become restless. We left them alone for a while, and they became even more panicked."
Zuo Zongtang also said: "These people want to use Mongolia in the north to make a fuss. They take it for granted."
Li Zhen laughed loudly and talked and laughed with everyone.
After this day, people paid attention to the movements of the officials of the four-nation negotiation team every day. However, for about half a month, there was no movement from the officials of the four-nation negotiation team. It was very strange. Time passed by and it was early December, which was almost the end of the new year. At that time, the negotiating team of the four countries still did not move and did not show any panic. This made Li Zhen feel a drum in his heart.
This situation is a little weird.
Li Zhen investigated carefully and received news of victory from the front line, but found nothing unusual.
This matter will be suppressed for the time being.
No one from the Four Kingdoms came looking for him, and Li Zhen was not in a hurry, so he just delayed.
Time flies and it’s December next month.
At this time, Huang Shihai had already led his army deep into the Mongolian grassland, forcing the Borzigit tribe and the other Mongolian soldiers from other banners on the grassland into a corner. The Chinese army was getting stronger and closer to the important border town of Mongolia near Lake Baikal of Tsarist Russia. Kyaktu, the chief of the Borzigit tribe, and the troops from other grassland tribes have all withdrawn here.
Prior to this, the Borzigit clan leader wanted to fight a stalemate with Huang Shihai and use smoke bombs to stabilize the situation.
Unexpectedly, Huang Shihai sent a regiment to seize the retreat of the Mongolian army. After a battle, the army led by Chief Borzigit became sandwich biscuits. They were attacked from both sides and finally fled in a panic. In the end, on the Mongolian grassland, A trend was set off, and all were defeated. No tribe could stop Huang Shihai's army.
In just over a month, Huang Shihai had led his army to sweep through the entire territory of Mongolia, leaving only Kyaktu. At this time, the leader of the Borzigit tribe had been forced into a desperate situation. If he did not launch a counterattack, he would only fail.
But he has no capital to fight back, and Russian weapons have not yet been sent.
"Report,."
A loud shout came from outside the camp, and a burly man strode in. He quickly came to the head of the Borzigit clan, bowed and saluted: "Sir, an envoy from Huang Shihai has come outside, requesting to see him. You, you.”
