Beiyang 1917

"Brother Ting Zhai, Deputy Chief Xia, believe it or not, if we can unite under Prime Minister Duan's command and seize this opportunity to join the war, let alone the Boxer indemnity from Germany and Austria, I will waive it from Britain, France and Russia !” Wang Geng gritted his teeth and said in a low voice.

"Although the Tsar has abdicated in Russia, the Provisional Government seems to want to stay in the Allies and continue the war, and Russia's indemnity can also be waived? Is this not easy? Britain and France are even more difficult!" Xia Yiting obviously felt Wang Geng's thoughts Too radical and over the top.

"Brother Ting Zhai, don't hesitate. The foreign minister under Prime Minister Duan is no better than you. He has no turning back. I believe that President Tang will show his support for the Prime Minister sooner or later. If you wholeheartedly unite with me and Youzheng." Around Prime Minister Duan, we must not let the big powers take advantage of it, and it is completely meaningless for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to have some southern party member as the chief, it is purely internal friction!"

Wang Geng was so bold that he didn't ask Duan Qirui for instructions, so he picked up his first helper in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Xia Yiting groaned silently, but Wang Geng's performance this night and the ambitious flick just now aroused the long-standing arrogance in his heart. Wang Geng's meaning was very clear, and he had to drink the soup first. Well, if you follow Tang Hualong, you may not be able to vote under Prime Minister Duan in the future, but at that time, the value in Premier Duan's mind will be far less than it is now.

"Brother Tingzhai, to tell you the truth, I, Wang Geng, came back to serve the country and the nation. I never thought of failure, and I didn't plan to have both ways. I just went forward and fought to the end! As for my wife and children, can I go to the United States to study? If you have a little property, you don't have to worry about family members.

I, Wang Geng, treat my own people with two words, frankly!You give me a letter, can we become comrades?I will keep it a secret for you, and no one will disclose it except the prime minister! "Wang Geng stared at Xia Yiting's eyes and said.

"Brother Wang, brother is willing to bet this with you. You are right. China cannot miss the opportunity of the European War. Prime Minister Duan is the only person who is qualified to be the leader of the country. I, Xia Yiting, am willing to work with my brother for The nation is betting on this one!"

"That's it! Brother Tingzhai, with you in charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I will play the side drum for you, and let's see how the great powers are controlled by us! Don't worry about Xu Youzheng, he can still distinguish between public and private. Besides, I am his biggest competitor if he wants to make trouble, brother, there is nothing else, as long as you and I are of the same mind, and Wang Geng is with me for a day, no one can touch you and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs!"

Wang Geng raised the champagne glass in his hand, Xia Yiting gritted his teeth, and raised the glass as well. After the two clinked glasses, they drank it all together. Wang Gengle smiled broadly, and patted Xia Yiting's shoulder and said,

"Brother Tingzhai refuses to be the Minister of Foreign Affairs because he is afraid that the cabinet will fall. Don't worry, since the power comes from the barrel of a gun, our Nanyuan team is the cabinet and the government's guards! Let's see who dares to put the first gun!"

Not to mention how Wang Geng persuaded Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Xia Yiting to stand on his new ship in the corner of the banquet hall of the Liuguo Hotel, but also said that after Wang Geng and Xia Yiting left the private room of the American embassy on the fourth floor, the four countries that stayed behind The envoy is blown up.

"This is blackmail by eating fruit. The French government will never accept such a condition! This Wang Geng is talking nonsense! We should protest to the Duan government!" French Minister Kant blushed and waved his hands.

"What are you protesting? Are you protesting that the conditions first proposed by China last month changed too quickly? We didn't agree to them last time, and it is inevitable that their conditions will rise now!" British Minister Zhu Erdian obviously did not agree with Kant's words.

"China will never send 300 million troops to participate in the European war. Don't be fooled by Wang Geng's bluff!" Japanese Minister Lin Quansu walked back and forth in the living room, yelling. Quan Zhu felt panicked in his heart.

"That's not necessarily the case. The combined population of China is almost as large as that of Europe. Conscripting 300 million soldiers out of a population of 3000 million may not be a problem! Didn't you hear what Wang Geng said, the population of landless farmers and urban refugees in China is more than [-] million , The point is, even if he can send so many soldiers, who will bear the military expenses?" U.S. Minister Rui Enshi unhurriedly lit the cigar in his hand.

"The British government doesn't know how to repay the debts owed to the US government. It would be more than enough money to arm the Chinese army to participate in the European War! Even women and child laborers in the UK are working overtime in the arsenal. They just don't get paid for food. , This guy actually thinks that the Chinese laborers' wages of 5 francs a day are too little!" Zhu Erdian bit the cigarette butt in his mouth, obviously feeling a little helpless.

"Minister Lin, you Japanese are very clear about China's troubles. Is there no information about the details of Wang Geng's Banxi Mansion?" Zhu Erdian asked Lin Quanzhu.

"We only pay attention to the transfer of the 16th Mixed Brigade. Who knows that in a week, this Wang Geng, who fell from the sky, has so many titles. The brigade commander, who also supervised the preparations for joining the war, also had the title of supervising negotiations with the United States. Is there no one in China? A military student who returned from studying in the United States should be so reused!" The Japanese envoy gasped.

"This Wang Geng should not be underestimated!" U.S. Minister Rui Enshi closed his eyes, flipped through the records of Wang Geng's file just sent from the embassy, ​​and murmured,

"Wang Geng, a native of Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, studied in the United States after graduating from Tsinghua University No.1911 in 1. He studied at the University of Michigan, Columbia University and Princeton University. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Princeton University in 1915. He was admitted to West Point Military Academy in the same year and skipped directly second grade"

"Well, at Princeton University, he was the main force of the school's swimming team and the record holder in the school sports meeting. Well, he was actually the best running back of the year in the school's football team. After arriving at West Point, his overall score ranked first in the whole class for two consecutive years. "Pistol Shooting Champion"

"Well, he was also the chairman of the New York Chinese Students Association in the United States for the past four years. Well...he has a very good relationship with the family of Gu Weijun, the Chinese ambassador to the United States. In the past two years, Christmas has been spent at Gu Weijun's house in Washington!"

I have to admire the ability of the Americans to collect intelligence. In fact, the United States is the first country among the great powers to give up the boxer indemnity, and instead use the returned indemnity to set up Beijing Tsinghua University to select outstanding students to study in the United States. It can be said that the United States People who plan for a rainy day look farther than the great powers at that time. For leaders of students studying in the United States like Wang Geng, someone has been responsible for tracking and updating their data files.

"It's gone? Even if he is an excellent student, he won't be able to be so reused as soon as he returns to China? Duan Hefei is so talented that no one can use him?" Japanese Minister Lin Quansu couldn't help but said.

"It's not that simple. This Wang Geng dived to save someone on the Brooklyn Bridge in New York at the end of February. Who do you think he saved?" Rui Enshi smiled and said, putting down the file in his hand. It was news that Wang Geng had become an honorary citizen of New York. I read about it earlier in the New York Times.

"Who was saved?" Zhu Erdian, Kant and Lin Quanzhu asked at the same time.

"The one who saved was the granddaughter of President Wilson, the daughter of Secretary of the Treasury McAdoo!" Rui Enshi announced the answer. This news did not come from the New York Times.

"Hiss... no wonder!" The envoys of several countries gasped. Obviously, Wang Geng's ability to win Duan Qirui's favor may not be unrelated to his relationship with the American president's family.

Lin Quanzhu scolded his mother secretly in his heart, you Duan Hefei, we in Japan spare no effort to support you in inheriting President Yuan's cause, I didn't expect that you have already started planning a way out, Wang Geng seems to be a pawn in China-government-US relations the top priority?

The information in Rui Enshi's hands is more than just this information. The US envoy didn't mention Wang Geng's Manhattan Industrial Bank and Pfizer, as well as the looming relationship between Wang Geng and Wall Street financial emperor Jack Morgan. .

"This guy doesn't play the cards according to the rules at all! Guys, he actually threatened us that he would go to Germany, Austria and Russia to make peace! We are so easy to deceive when we are three-year-old children?" French Minister Kant waved his hands and shouted again.

"Alexander, how do you know he won't go looking for it?" Zhu Erdian was scheming, but deliberately took the French minister Kant into his army!

"My dear John! With the participation of the great American ally, the victory of the war is only a matter of time! The Chinese government will not go against the grain and fail to see this point?" Kant shouted unconvinced.

"Since Italy can join the Allied Powers to fight, how do you know that Russia, which has lost the Tsar, will not join the German-Austrian War? Not to mention joining the Allied Powers, if Russia makes peace with Germany and Austria alone, Germany and Austria will turn their troops on the eastern front to the west. The quagmire on the western front cannot be solved in a short period of time!" Zhu Erdian obviously sees farther than others!