Expedition to Europe

Double standards are common all over the world, not just an isolated case.

Whether it was the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895 or the later Russo-Japanese War, when the Japanese had the upper hand, they performed well what "big fists mean right".

But when Lu Zhengxiang proposed similar conditions to Hara Kei and Tanaka Giichi, Hara Kei and Tanaka Giichi were unacceptable.

So what?

At the beginning, whether it was the negotiating representatives of the Qing Empire or the negotiating representatives of the Russian Empire, they told the Japanese that the Japanese conditions were unacceptable, but in the end, both the Qing Empire and the Russian Empire had to admit the conditions proposed by the Japanese.

Even if they pinched their noses, they had to admit it.

The situation is stronger than people, people are under the eaves, and I am the fish on the chopping board...

They all mean this.

There was no progress on the first day of negotiations. Although Hara Kei was the prime minister, he did not dare to easily agree to Lan Fang's conditions, otherwise Hara Kei would have to apologize by committing seppuku.

So the negotiations were temporarily suspended, and Hara Kei would give Lan Fang a reply after asking the emperor for instructions.

That night, after Lu Zhengxiang arranged for Yuan Jing and Tanaka Yiyi to stay at the state guesthouse in Coconut City, he immediately boarded a plane and flew directly to Penglai Island.

Right next to the Black Swan Castle, a tall and solid building complex has risen from the ground. The name of this place is Eagle's Nest, which is where Qin Zhiyuan is currently working.

Black Swan Castle is good, and Qin Zhiyuan is used to working in Black Swan Castle, but because of Julie and Xiao Qinde, it is a bit inconvenient after all.

So when the Eagle's Nest was completed, Qin Zhiyuan moved his office to the Eagle's Nest.

Compared with the Black Swan Castle, the Eagle's Nest is a huge building complex. The three-story main building where Qin Zhiyuan works occupies the central position. There are various functional buildings such as the General Staff, the Communications Department, the Operations Command Room, the Conference Hall, etc. around it. There is a battalion of troops responsible for the security here, and an armored force is stationed nearby. If something happens, they can rush to the Eagle's Nest within ten minutes.

Lu Zhengxiang met Qin Zhiyuan in the study on the second floor of the main building.

"Just now, Hara Takashi and Tanaka Yoshiichi visited British Ambassador Scott James and American Ambassador Glynton Augustine respectively. The specific content of the conversation is not clear yet, and no intelligence has been transmitted yet." Gao Hongshi was reporting to Qin Zhiyuan.

"Haha, Hara Takashi and Tanaka Yoshiichi are looking for reinforcements. How long will it take for Bastian to come?" Qin Zhiyuan was not too worried. Isn't it just looking for reinforcements? Lan Fang also has them.

Since Hara Takashi and Tanaka Yoshiichi arrived in Coconut City, Gao Hongshi's intelligence department has been fully mobilized. Including Hara Takashi and Tanaka Yoshiichi, the Japanese delegation has been closely monitored by Lan Fang agents. No matter what Hara Takashi and Tanaka Yoshiichi do, they cannot escape the surveillance of Lan Fang agents.

Although Lan Fang agents are powerful, there are always some places that cannot be penetrated, such as the British and American embassies in Lan Fang. There is no way to plant nails in these places, and it is not easy to eavesdrop due to current technical conditions.

France has also declared war on Japan. There are French warships in the current Northern Expedition Fleet. Now that the Japanese have asked for peace, the French will definitely send representatives to participate in the negotiations. Hara Takashi came too quickly, and France did not have time to dispatch negotiators from its homeland, so the Governor-General of the French East Indies, Bastien, became the French representative.

After receiving the news that Hara Takashi and Tanaka Yoshiichi arrived in Coconut City, Bastien originally wanted to take a plane to Lan Fang, but he did not expect Hara Takashi and Tanaka Yoshiichi to start working without even drinking a sip of water, so that Bastien did not catch up with the negotiations tonight.

After reporting the matter, Gao Hongshi was about to leave when there was a knock on the door. Gao Hongshi went to open the door and took a document from the staff.

After a quick glance, Gao Hongshi's voice was a little disdainful: "The Republic of China has declared war on Japan!"

"Declared war?" Lu Zhengxiang, who was sitting next to him, looked surprised.

"Declared war... hehe." Qin Zhiyuan was not surprised at all.

The pro-Japanese forces in the Republic of China are indeed quite powerful, but now even a fool can see that the Japanese are going to fail. If the Republic of China does not declare war now, it will get nothing. Even Japan's privileges in Guandong, the Republic of China, may be transferred to Lan Fang, which is unacceptable to the "elites" of the Republic of China.

Declaring war now may be a bit embarrassing, and there is a suspicion of taking advantage of Lan Fang, but compared with national interests, face is nothing.

"So, Cao Rulin will also be included in the negotiations tomorrow." Lu Zhengxiang's expression is indeed a little happy.

Cao Rulin, this is the Republic of China's ambassador to Lan Fang.

Because of the emergence of the Foreign Legion, the history of the Republic of China finally reached a turning point in 1919. Because of the signing of the Paris Peace Treaty, the May Fourth Movement also occurred, but the target was not the diplomats who signed the treaty, but focused on the interference of the Eastern and Western powers in the Republic of China.

The May Fourth Movement was actually a manifestation of the awakening of national consciousness. Whether there was the Paris Peace Treaty or not, the May Fourth Movement would have happened. The emotions of the Chinese people who had been oppressed by the Eastern and Western powers for decades always needed an opportunity to be released.

"Minister Lu, you are now the Foreign Minister of Lan Fang..." Gao Hongshi reminded in a sarcastic tone.

"Hahahaha... I know, I know, Director Gao, don't worry, I will never favor the Republic of China and cause damage to Lan Fang's interests." Lu Zhengxiang vowed.

Lu Zhengxiang still has feelings for the Republic of China. After all, before joining Lan Fang, Lu Zhengxiang had been working for the Republic of China. This feeling and sense of belonging cannot be erased by just one year of working for Lan Fang.

Gao Hongshi did not speak, but just pointed to his eyes, indicating that he would keep staring at Lu Zhengxiang, and then left.

"... Overall, the Japanese negotiation bottom line seems to be Yingzhou and Penghu Islands, and the Japanese do not seem to want to get involved in the ownership of other areas." After reporting today's negotiation process, Lu Zhengxiang attached his own conclusion at the end.

"The current problem is not whether the Japanese want it or not. No matter what the Japanese think, the dominant power of the negotiation is in our hands. As long as our front-line troops maintain an offensive posture, the Japanese will sooner or later have to face this problem." Qin Zhiyuan is not in a hurry. With the progress of the Lan Fang army, the Japanese will have less and less room for maneuver.

"Look at this..." Qin Zhiyuan picked up a document on the desk in front of him and handed it to Lu Zhengxiang.

After a quick glance, Lu Zhengxiang was overjoyed: "Hahaha... General Chen landed in Hokkaido, General Zhang captured Taipei, and General Liu marched into Goryeo... This is really great. If this continues, our conditions will have to be revised in a week at most."

This morning, Chen Kangjian sent troops to land in Hokkaido. Before six o'clock in the evening, Chen Kangjian sent two divisions to Hokkaido. These troops will sweep Hokkaido from north to south with the cooperation of fighter planes in the Northern Frontier Region.

If Chen Kangjian occupies the entire Hokkaido, then Lan Fang can build an airport to Hokkaido. Bombers taking off from the Hokkaido airport will be able to directly attack Tokyo, which will pose a great threat to Tokyo.

The original text is available at Liu # 9 @shu/bar!

Also this morning, Zhang Tianshou captured Taipei.

Taipei is the "Taipei" of another time and space. In this world, since there is no Taiwan at all, there can be no Taipei City.

As in the original history, Beishi was the ruling center of the Japanese colonial government in Yingzhou. The capture of Beishi also marked the collapse of Japan's Yingzhou ruling order. It can be said that the occupation of the entire Beishi is just around the corner.

The fire in Lushun has not been extinguished yet. Liu Zizheng couldn't bear it and sent Xu Sheng to lead the First Division of the Foreign Legion to stay in Lushun for surveillance. He took the remaining troops into Goryeo and also began to sweep the Japanese in Goryeo.

Zhang Yuting's two divisions also stayed in Lushun with Xu Sheng.

After Zhang Yuting met Liu Zizheng, he immediately dispatched troops to help.

This was also the main reason that prompted the Nationalist government to declare war on Japan. Regardless of whether the Nationalist government declared war or not, Zhang Yuting's troops had already appeared on the battlefield, and it had become a fait accompli.

Since this is the case, it is better to go with the flow.

Although Liu Zizheng's troops had a large number of tanks, the attack on Goryeo was not smooth.

The Japanese knew that they could not defeat the Lan Fang army with real swords and guns, so they came up with other bad ideas.

The northern part of Goryeo is a mountainous terrain. The previous Goryeo government built the "Guanma Avenue" from Pyongyang to Shengjing to strengthen transportation.

After the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, the Qing Empire lost its suzerainty over Goryeo, and Japan became the de facto ruler of Goryeo.

After annexing Goryeo, the Japanese widened and reinforced the original "Guanma Avenue" to make it more convenient for transportation, which effectively strengthened the connection between Goryeo and Liaodong.

This "Guanma Avenue" is full of mountains and steep ridges, dangerous mountain roads, and rugged terrain. It is the only passage from Liaodong to Goryeo.

After discovering that the "Vladivostok Allied Forces" began to attack Goryeo, the Japanese carried out extensive damage to the Guanma Avenue, especially in key areas with dangerous terrain. Many sections of the road were no longer passable or even completely destroyed. The "Vladivostok Allied Forces" had powerful armored forces but could do nothing but clear the road while moving forward with difficulty.

In fact, there is a way to avoid taking the Guanma Avenue. As long as we take Xie Rundong's fleet, we can take a shortcut from the sea to attack the Japanese retreat.

However, Xie Rundong still has his own mission to perform. After bombing Lushun, he has now led his troops to Tokyo. The attack from the sea can only be temporarily stranded.

"No need to modify the conditions, just talk to the Japanese with the current conditions, but all conditions are not allowed to shrink. We can't let the Japanese have a chance to breathe. We must beat them to death with one stick." Qin Zhiyuan did it decisively.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured. If we don't peel off a layer of the Japanese skin this time, I, Lu Zhengxiang, am willing to be punished by military law." Lu Zhengxiang vowed.

This is the rhythm of making a "military order"!