Just after the New Year, Japanese Foreign Minister Sutaro Komura visited Qingdao again and asked to continue to negotiate related matters of cooperation between the East China government and Japan, mainly the establishment of a joint combat command and the joint management issues after the occupation of the Northeast region.

However, during the negotiations, Sutaro Omura proposed that given the current situation, the Japanese government may start war against Russia within 1-2 months, so it is unlikely that there will be no time for negotiations to establish a joint combat command and jointly manage the Northeast region. Therefore, it is hoped that the East China government will first provide Japan with materials in accordance with the agreement previously reached by the two sides, and will bring the first list of materials.

Throughout 1903, Japan and Russia almost never stopped negotiations, and the negotiation location was transferred from St. Petersburg to Tokyo, and then to London and Paris. The negotiation agreement version was changed again and again, but both sides were always unable to negotiate. In addition to the unwillingness to both sides to make less of their core interests, interference from external factors was also an important influence. Britain, France, the United States and Germany all had their own interests in this marathon negotiation. Some countries even added fire to both sides, making this already very difficult negotiation even more difficult.

On December 12, 1903, when Japanese Minister Shinichiro Kurino delivered the nth version of the negotiation clause to Russian Foreign Minister Ramsdorf, he issued a stern warning to him: if Japan and Russia cannot reach an agreement as soon as possible, serious situations will arise and it will be out of control.

Although this was not an ultimatum issued by Japan, war was the only option in Japan. On December 28, the Japanese Emperor issued an emergency edict to mobilize the war. The army troops were on standby at any time, and the navy's joint fleet also gathered in the port. Although the British side did not intend to participate in the war directly, they also made necessary preparations. The officers of the Irish Legion received the order and rushed to India to report; the naval reserve soldiers must notify the London Admiralty Department of their address.

All countries also smelled the strong smell of gunpowder. Merchants from various countries in Lushun left one after another, and in London and Paris stock exchanges, all Russian public-private bonds were sold.

However, compared with other countries, Russia's reaction seemed to be chilly and careless. After receiving Japan's warning, Tsar Nicholas II also invited the imperial meeting to discuss countermeasures. However, the Russian ministers were optimistic. Interior Minister Feng Previ believed that the war was beneficial to Russia, because war could be used to divert the increasingly serious political crisis and social conflicts in the country. The Tsar could use a small-scale controllable war to enhance the prestige of the monarch, in order to calm the people's dissatisfaction with the national autocracy and the call for constitutionalism.

Lieutenant General Alexei Kuropatkin, commander-in-chief of the Russian army in the Far East, believed that a Russian soldier could deal with three Japanese soldiers, and it only takes 14 days to gather 400,000 troops in the Far East, which is three times the number required to defeat the Japanese army. Therefore, it is more appropriate to say that what will happen in the future is not a war, but a military walk.

In this optimistic mood, Nicholas II proudly declared to the ministers of various countries that there would be no war between Russia and Japan because I don’t want to fight now.

Of course, although the Russian government is optimistic, it is not entirely prepared and not doing anything. Nicholas II authorized the Far East Governor General Alexeikyev to decide whether to mobilize the war on his own, and further instructed: If a Japanese warship is found on the North Korean coast, he can directly use force without waiting for the other party to open fire.

In this case, Japan naturally needs to negotiate with the East China government, because the two sides are still in a cooperative relationship. Once the war begins, Japan needs a large amount of supplies. Of course, Japan is also a little clue. The establishment of a joint combat command and joint management of the Northeast region can be negotiated slowly. After the war begins, it depends on the progress of the war. If it can be delayed, it will be pushed, and if it can be pushed, it will be necessary to get the supplies first.

After the two sides started negotiations, Li Sanjie, the representative of the East China government, first made severe reprimand Japan, accusing Japan of deliberately delaying time, which led to the war coming soon, but the two sides had no time for negotiations. Therefore, they believed that Japan had no sincerity to cooperate at all, and threatened to stop cooperation with Japan and go to war with Russia alone.

However, Sutaro Komura apologized repeatedly, bowed and nodded, and repeatedly explained that it was not that Japan intended to delay the negotiation time between the two sides, but because the situation changed too quickly. Japan originally expected that the war would take place in April and May, and there was no matter how long it was to negotiate cooperation with the East China government. However, the Japanese government and His Majesty the Emperor attached great importance to cooperation with the East China government, and was definitely sincere and hoped that the East China government would understand. Moreover, Japan would immediately send relevant personnel to conduct formal consultations with the East China government, striving to decide the cooperation model and details of both sides as soon as possible. It is beneficial to both sides to deal with Russia, so I hope that the East China government can put the overall situation first and do not act irritably.

In fact, Japan also estimated that the East China government would definitely be dissatisfied. After all, national politics only has open conspiracies and no conspiracies. At this point, anyone can see that Japan does not want to form a joint combat command with the East China government and jointly manage the Northeast region, but also wants to obtain material support from the East China government. Therefore, the intentional delay strategy adopted will naturally be annoying for anyone. However, the Japanese government believes that the East China government will eventually compromise. After all, the East China government also needs to cooperate with Japan to fight against Russia.

In addition, this is also a test of the cooperation attitude of the East China government. Of course, Japan is indeed wrong first this time, so the Japanese government also asked Komura Sutaro to lower his posture when he was on a mission to Qingdao this time, expressing his apology from the Japanese government. If the East China government really wants to cooperate with Japan, it will eventually make a compromise.

Sure enough, Sutaro Komura was very humble in Qingdao, kept apologizing and tried his best to relieve Japan. After getting angry, Li Sanjie did not mention stopping cooperation and agreed to provide the first batch of supplies to Japan, which also made Sutaro Komura relieved. It seemed that the East China government really wanted to cooperate with Japan.

But then Li Sanjie proposed four conditions to Japan: First, the cooperation between the two sides is limited to the first batch of materials. If Japan makes similar moves, the East China government will terminate the subsequent cooperation and no longer provide preferential conditions for materials to Japan; Second, before the military operation, the Japanese side must formally notify the East China government, otherwise the East China government will be regarded as Japan undermining cooperation; Third, in this negotiation, a roadmap for the establishment of a joint combat command center and jointly manage the occupied areas, and then strictly follow the roadmap; Fourth, in order to prevent Japan from launching a war before the two sides negotiate, the two sides will negotiate a plan during this negotiation to deal with the occurrence of this situation.

Finally, Li Sanjie emphasized very strongly that if Japan does not accept these four conditions, the East China government will regard Japan as having no sincerity in cooperation and will terminate the cooperation relationship between the two parties.

Of course, it is impossible for Komura Sutaro to agree on the spot to request such a request, so the two sides will have three days off. Komura Sutaro wants to ask for instructions from the country and also leave time for discussion for the country.

After receiving the report from Sutaro Komura, the Japanese government immediately evaluated these four conditions of the East China government. However, the primary content of the assessment was not whether the conditions of the East China government could be accepted, but whether the East China government was sincere in cooperation with Japan.

There is no conspiracy in national politics. The leaders of every modern country are basically elites, and there are a large number of staff think tank personnel. It is not just a simple trick. Some conspiracies and deceptions in history have considerable subjective and objective reasons. In addition, one of the victim countries is careless.

Japan has always been a country that pays attention to tactical details. At the beginning of its cooperation with the East China government, there was a voice of opposition in China, believing that the East China government was taking advantage of Japan, and now the voice is getting louder and more detailed, pointing out that the conspiracy of the East China government is to hope that Japan and Russia will be in a bad way and that they will make profits from it.

Although the Japanese government was not affected by this voice, it had to be prevented. Another important goal of this negotiation was to judge whether the East China government really wanted to cooperate with Japan. Before Sutaro Komura visited Qingdao, the Japanese government believed that if the East China government had no intention of cooperating with Japan or had conspiracy, there were two manifestations: one was to terminate the cooperation between the two sides on the grounds of Japan's breach of contract, then Japan completely cut off its reliance on the East China government and completely use its own strength to fight against Russia; the other was to be very generous and tolerant of Japan's breach of contract and accepted all the conditions of Japan during the negotiations. This shows that the East China government had no intention of cooperating with Japan at all, but had other conspiracies. Japan must reduce its laziness to the East China government, and while fighting against Russia, it is highly vigilant about the East China government and demand help from the UK when necessary.

After evaluation by the Japanese government, it was believed that the East China government's reaction was very reasonable. After all, Japan was wrong before it was first. However, in order to take into account the overall situation of resisting Russia, the East China government cannot break up with Japan. It can only strive for more benefits in other aspects, which is better than suffering a loss.

Moreover, the four requirements put forward by the East China government are very reasonable. The first and second points are almost the bottom line, which is completely understandable. Although the third point has the meaning of forcing Japan to accept it, it also shows that the East China government still hopes to strive for more benefits within the framework of cooperation between the two sides. The fourth point shows that the overseas Chinese have delicate thoughts, which probably leads to wisdom after learning from one's mistakes.

This also shows that the East China government still hopes to cooperate with Japan in general, unless there is a major change, such as Japan being defeated by Russia and having to rely on the East China government. Therefore, these four requirements can be agreed upon. As for whether to enforce the enforcement or not, how to enforce it depends on the progress of the war.
Chapter completed!