With that said, the two of them walked slowly to Zhonghai, and happened to see a plum forest. Although the clusters of plum trees had no plum blossoms on their branches, Zhu Erdian took advantage of the scene and said.

"Wanthemi is a small deciduous shrub belonging to the family Chimonaceae. There is an ancient astronomical book in China.") From this point of view, the name of wintersweet should be from 1068 to 1094. Is the President right?

Although he is Chinese, Yuan Shikai has never studied these things. Whether it is Wang Anguo or Huang Tingjian, he has rarely read their poems. Although he has read some of Su Shi's works, because the mood does not suit his mood, he has read them and then discarded them.

Get off. He knew that the British man next to him knew too much about China's history and culture, so he could be called a real "China expert". Different from those so-called China experts, the Englishman next to him knew too much about China's history and culture.

China Hands not only understand China's current affairs, but also understand China's history and culture.

Therefore, he nodded lightly and said:

"Maybe. Your Excellency, the Minister, is so familiar with Chinese history and culture that it puts Wei Ting to shame!"

In front of Zhu Erdian, Yuan Shikai didn't need to hide anything. If he didn't know, he just didn't know. What's more, in Yuan Shikai's view, the most fearful thing about many things is not knowing and pretending to understand. It's really annoying for laymen to pretend to understand in front of insiders.

Ridicule·Instead of doing that, it is better to admit that you are inferior directly

Zhu Erdian continued with a smile:

"Chinese plum blossoms have the most tastes. "Guangdong Ya", "Plum Plum Blossoms", "Flower History", and even "Compendium of Materia Medica" have detailed descriptions of more than a dozen types, and many of them are related to anecdotes from literati.

Interesting facts. It is really a noble world of Chinese culture."

Yuan Shikai nodded frequently when he was told this. He knew that the Englishman beside him did not intend to appreciate plum blossoms when he introduced these words. Now that the plum blossoms have not appeared, why is there any need to appreciate plum blossoms? He just wanted to use plum blossoms as a matchmaker to introduce the topic.

.

Although the outbreak of the European War temporarily slowed the UK's focus on Asia and China, it never relaxed Zhu Erdian. It can be said that Zhu Erdian was very concerned about China's every move, let alone during this special period.

.Early this morning, Zhu Erdian received a report that Yuan Shikai suddenly invited Presidential Advisor Nagao Ariga last night. After Nagao Ariga left the presidential palace, he went to the Japanese Embassy. Then the Japanese Embassy successively issued as many as 100,000 letters to the country through the Dongjiaominxiang Post Office.

Dozens of telegrams were sent back and forth overnight. Of course, Zhu Erdian noticed the sudden anomaly. Just when he could not understand what Yuan Shikai wanted to do and why the contacts between the Japanese embassy and the country suddenly increased, Yuan Shikai

He took the initiative to invite him to the Presidential Palace, so he had the opportunity to use this opportunity.

The purpose of inviting Zhu Erdian here today is to let Britain contribute to China. Yuan Shikai has been waiting for the opportunity to tell the story of the happy event, and then use the power of Britain to solve the Jiao'ao incident through diplomatic channels. When he heard Zhu Erdian mention plum blossoms,

Naturally, his eyes lit up and he followed the words he prompted.

"How can you get the fragrance of plum blossoms without a bone-chilling cold? This is a good saying!"

After saying these two sentences, Yuan Shikai looked at Zhong Hai behind Merlin and said.

"Your Excellency, Minister, you still remember that I once said that in this conflict with no retreat, China and I will pursue the one possibility out of 10,000 impossibilities - that is, defeat the enemy!"

Involuntarily, Yuan Shikai quoted a sentence from Li Zicheng's telegram to him. Once upon a time, Yuan Shikai even thought that Li Zicheng's words were a bit arrogant. In his opinion, the best situation was for the Japanese army to be in a stalemate in Jiao'ao.

, and finally he used diplomatic efforts to give the Japanese a step up, and then the two sides made peace. But now, the situation is completely different. It can even be said that the Army Air Force's victory has fundamentally reversed the situation. Now

The situation is very favorable to China, and it is also very conducive to diplomatic settlement.

"The determination of the president is beyond the comprehension of others! How can the persistence of the president be understood by others?"

Zhu Erdian hurriedly praised him. He was familiar with Chinese people and also familiar with Yuan Shikai. He knew that Yuan Shikai was about to get down to business!

"Well, as the president of the Republic of China, he naturally has to do everything possible to pursue national affairs. Whether he is determined or persistent, this is all he can do for national affairs."

First he sighed, and then Yuan Shikai continued.

"The edge of the sword comes from sharpening, and the fragrance of plum blossoms comes from the bitter cold!"

After quoting an ancient poem again, Yuan Shikai added with a serious expression and a hint of joy.

"Yesterday, after two months of bitter cold, I finally smelled this fragrant fragrance again!"

As he spoke, Yuan Shikai burst out laughing. Before Zhu Erdian could understand what he meant, his smile faded and he said again seriously:

"I think your Excellency, Minister, already knows that after the incident in Jiao'ao, our Jiangsu Army fought a bloody battle in Jiao'ao. Today, the two armies in Jiao'ao are in a stalemate. Although the Japanese army increased its troops three times and changed commanders twice, it failed to make any progress!"

"Yes, and on my own behalf, I would like to express my gratitude to the President for having such a tenacious army. We would like to know how the President plans to make his next move and what goal he will achieve.

Zhu Erdian followed Yuan Shikai's words and said, in his opinion, does the unusual behavior of the Japanese embassy yesterday mean that China has decided to make some concessions, and what is the bottom line of such concessions?

Yuan Shikai, who was about to tell his irresistible old friend about yesterday's great victory, suddenly became serious. For him, now was the time when the plum blossoms were fragrant for the first time after a bitter cold. However, he

I clearly realize that now is not the time to be complacent.

"Your Excellency, Minister, one month ago, Japan made the determination to dispatch the Second Army, with the intention of cutting off the Jiangsu Army's rear route and invading Lianyun. To achieve its goal, it dispatched the most elite First Fleet!"

Judging from Yuan Shikai's words, Zhu Erdian could feel his helplessness. Facing such a threat, it is understandable for a country without a navy to consider giving in. This was already expected. Given Japan's actions, what Britain could do

That is to say, let Japan endorse and limit the war zone, so as to achieve the purpose of preserving China.

"Ever since Japan made this decision, I have been restless and unable to sleep because of the pressure from the president of a weak country!"

After sighing, Yuan Shikai looked at Zhu Erdian and said.

"Your Excellency understands China. With Japan's arrogance, if China wants to end the Jiao-ao conflict through diplomacy, it must make huge concessions and sacrifice a lot of national interests. But China's current situation does not allow China to do this.

Therefore, this president can only grit his teeth and hold on."

"indeed."

Zhu Erdian nodded. How could he not know about Yuan Shikai's difficulties? On the one hand, there was Li Zicheng who used the Jiao'ao Incident to stir up public opinion in order to protect China's interests. On the other hand, there were revolutionaries in Japan who were supported by Japan and faced

This kind of situation can be said to be a dilemma for Yuan Shikai. If he negotiates peace, Yuan Shikai will only become the target of public criticism. If he fights to the death, why would China fight? Sometimes he puts aside the interests of Britain. In his heart, he even sympathizes with this old friend.

.

"The difficulties faced by the president are beyond the understanding of others."

"Yes, others cannot understand, and all kinds of misunderstandings can only be tolerated by this president."

Zhu Erdian nodded, vaguely getting the result from Yuan Shikai's words. It seems that China has decided to make huge concessions, whether to sacrifice Jiao'ao or...

"I want to ask you a question, Niu Guo is preparing..."

Before Zhu Erdian could finish speaking, Yuan Shikai quickly interrupted Zhu Erdian, wanting to shock him, but he could not let him block his own way.

"Your Excellency, the Minister, may not know that yesterday, Jiangsu gave me a reassurance."

Yuan Shikai, who was smiling and proud, turned around, looked at Zhu Erdian and said almost word for word.

"Yesterday, Jiangsu not only repelled the invading Japanese army, but also severely damaged the Japanese fleet!"

What?

A somewhat surprised Zhu Erdian looked at Yuan Shikai, unable to even react for a moment. Jiangsu had severely damaged the Japanese fleet? What did they use? Mines?

"And it sank all eight main warships of the Japanese Navy's First Fleet. Now the Japanese Navy can be said to have regressed to ten years ago overnight. Although it is still capable of fighting, it is actually vulnerable!"

"ah!"

Another sentence that was like a bolt from the blue shocked Zhu Erdian and he couldn't recover for a long time. How could this be possible? What does it mean to sink eight battleships? Maybe he is a China expert, but he is also a China expert.

An expert on Eastern issues, he clearly knows that the eight battleships of the First Fleet, which can be said to be the essence of the Japanese navy, have been sunk now!

"Is this true? Is it a false report of war results? Your Excellency, President"

Zhu Erdian asked directly, somewhat unbelievably. In his opinion, this might be a local officer falsely reporting the results of the war. Even an ignorant child could see the nature of such false war results.

But Yuan Shikai shook his head and said:

"Haha, old friend, let me tell you, the results of this victory have been confirmed, and soon, the Japanese themselves will admit it!"
Chapter completed!