Years of the Republic of China 1913

() Just as Princess Anastasia was in despair, Fang Zida changed the subject: "However... I personally sympathize with His Royal Highness's experience. Although my personal ability is limited, if I only guarantee the personal safety of Her Highness Princess in China That's absolutely fine, and as a civilized person, I would not allow such a dirty political deal to happen to someone as noble as His Highness."

"You are such a good person! Thank you..." Princess Anastasia suddenly raised her head, and she couldn't believe her ears. When she confirmed that she heard correctly, she burst into tears and sent Fang Zida a "good person" from the bottom of her heart. Card".

"But, my royal father, my stepmother, my brothers and sisters..."

"God will bless them." Fang Zida pretended to make a sign of the cross, and seduced Little Red Riding Hood in front of him with a soft tone like a wolf grandmother: "Dear Princess, please forgive me, the influence of the Chinese government may not be able to The puppet political decision of your country, not to mention that they have agreed to His Majesty Nicholas’ request for political asylum in China. If they were really released, they could have done it long ago, but they did not do so. As members of the royal family , you also know that politics is not as simple as one plus one equals two. If the Chinese government puts pressure on the false government in response to this matter, the result will be counterproductive. Furthermore, Your Highness, as the only member of the royal family who has escaped from national disasters, Standing up when His Majesty Nicholas is unable to govern, doing so will ensure their safety, so this is your best choice."

Princess Anastasia thought about it quietly, and felt that what Fang Zida said made sense.The main problem right now is to maintain the orthodoxy of the Russian Empire. Once the entire Romanov family dies completely, the Russian Empire will cease to exist.And if I first establish a government in exile in China and come forward to preside over the situation, the usurpers in the country will also be wary, and relatively speaking, the safety of the members of the royal family will be guaranteed.In other words, if the other party really wanted to wipe out the entire Romanov family, even if she, the princess, hid in the remotest corners of the earth, it would still not be able to change the fate of other members of the royal family.

Standing up, Princess Anastasia saluted Fang Zida with the noble court understanding: "Thank you for your help, I will follow your arrangement."

Completely relieved, a smile appeared on Fang Zida's face.In order to accommodate the princess, Fang Zida specially designated an area in the backyard for her to live temporarily. Since Princess Anastasia escaped from the embassy in a hurry and did not bring any luggage, Fang Zida asked his wife Yuan Sizhen to prepare some daily necessities and a change of clothes for her. As for the princess's confidant guard, Ivan, Fang Zida also arranged for him properly, and arranged a room for him near the room where the princess lived for easy care and protection.All these arrangements made Princess Anastasia very satisfied.

It was late, Fang Zida returned to his inner courtyard after leaving, and drank the tea made by his wife, Fang Zida was a little absorbed in thinking.

"Zida, is it appropriate to keep her like this? However, she is also pitiful..." Not long after, Yuan Sizhen walked in and asked worriedly.

"Is everything settled?" Fang Zida asked first.

Seeing Yuan Sizhen nodding his head, Fang Zida smiled and motioned her to sit down beside him, took her hand and patted it lightly: "Politics is that you use me and I use you. Don't underestimate this princess. In fact, she It's very scheming."

"No? She's only a little over 16 years old." Yuan Sizhen said in surprise.

"The royal families in the West have strict training since they were young. Even the elder brothers of the Qing Dynasty were not like this at the beginning? Have you ever heard the story of the Kang Dynasty's Kowloon seizure of the throne? Which of these royal children is simple? From birth In the political vortex, it is impossible to survive without a little thought. She came to me today, which means that she has thought it over a long time ago, and knows that Fang Zida is the only one who can help her in the whole of China. Moreover, she used it from the beginning The two moves of seduction and return of the land, if someone else might either become her servant or be dazzled by the benefits. Even if she agreed to my proposal in the end, it also achieved her purpose of coming here Purpose. So, this little woman, don't underestimate her."

Yuan Sizhen looked shocked. Although she was Yuan Shikai's daughter, none of Yuan Shikai's children was really involved in politics. Even when Yuan Shikai was alive, he seldom talked about politics with his children.After hearing Fang Zida's words, the surprise in her heart was obvious, and she couldn't help worrying about her husband amidst the uneasiness.

"Don't worry, even if she is the monkey grandson, she can't escape my Wuzhishan." Fang Zida saw his wife's worry, and said with a smile: "If the Russian Empire is still in the hands of the Romanov family, I will be playing with fire by doing this." , but the situation is different now. To hold this noble princess up, no matter whether it succeeds in the end, the whole of Tsarist Russia will inevitably be in chaos. This is my real purpose. You know, no one wants to have a greedy , huge, vicious and unsatisfactory neighbor."

According to Fang Zida's expectation, he should have received the news from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs early the next morning.The disappearance of Princess Anastasia may have disturbed the Tsarist Russian embassy long ago. From a diplomatic point of view, such a big event should be notified to the host country as soon as possible.

But the strange thing is that until the afternoon, there was no news about the Russians at all. Fang Zida called Cao Rulin on purpose and asked the Russian embassy if someone contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs today. Cao Rulin used a very surprised voice on the phone Ask yourself why you suddenly care about the Russian embassy?Fang Zida immediately made a haha ​​and found an excuse to cover it up. After hanging up the phone, he couldn't help but laugh. The abnormal behavior of the Russians showed their guilty conscience. After coming out, the baron and the ambassador are no longer reliable, and if she continues to stay in the embassy, ​​her safety cannot be guaranteed at all.

The Russians kept this matter from the Chinese government, and their intentions are easy to guess. Perhaps the baron and the ambassador have reached an agreement with the country to quietly send Princess Anastasia back to the country, so as to completely abandon this hot-handed potato.Unexpectedly, the princess escaped ahead of schedule and her whereabouts are unknown.Notifying the Chinese government at this time is tantamount to making the matter public, and neither the baron nor the ambassador, or even the temporary government of the Russian Empire can bear this result.

"Come on!"

Sitting at the desk and thinking for a while, Fang Zida wrote a telegram and rang the bell to call the staff outside.

Not long after, this telegram was sent to Wu Peifu in Shandong. A few days later, a major general of the army rushed over from Shandong non-stop.

"report!"

This day, the people Fang Zida and others finally arrived, and following a call to come in, a burly and handsome army major general walked in, accompanied by Zhou Yuanliang from the Secret Service.

"Major General Zhang Zongchang, deputy commander of the 38th Division of the 86th Group Army of the National Defense Forces, came to report!"

After the visitor entered the door, he first stood at attention, and then saluted neatly, with a clear and loud voice. In addition, he was dressed in military uniform, making him a mighty general.

Looking at the deputy commander in front of him with great interest, Zhang Zongchang's name Fang Zida has long been heard. This famous dog meat general has left a strong mark in the modern history of China, especially his many The nickname and several crooked poems that make people laugh are often cited as funny talk by later generations.

But this is just a superficial phenomenon. The real Zhang Zongchang is not so unbearable. He received a private school education when he was young, and he has received a good education. , worked odd jobs, worked long-term jobs, and shepherded sheep for rich landlords, and then worked as a road builder, loader, and switchman on the Middle East Railway... These experiences will be told in future generations. It is a typical origin of the proletarian working class.

When Zhang Zongchang was a railway worker, he was capable and studious. He was magnanimous, valued righteousness over profit, and had great prestige among the workers. He was self-taught and could speak fluent standard Russian. , It was not until 1911 that he resolutely returned to China to participate in the revolution under the influence of advanced revolutionary ideas, and then joined the army.

This is a talent, although Zhang Zongchang may have some personality flaws, but it cannot be denied that he is indeed a rare talent in this era.Since the reorganization of the National Defense Forces, the selection of generals in the army has formed a strict promotion system. Since Zhang Zongchang was gradually promoted from the head of a local army to the deputy commander of the 38th Division of the 86th Army, it is enough to see his ability .

It was not the first time Zhang Zongchang saw Fang Zida. The last time the 38th Army was in training, Fang Zida came to Shandong and Zhang Zongchang accompanied the officers to meet him behind the crowd.However, it was the first time that the two met face to face today, and this meeting was ordered by Commander Wu, and Fang Zida specially sent a telegram from the capital to name him.Facing this big man who holds a lot of financial power and is the real leader of several major armies, Zhang Zongchang has a fearless personality, and he still can't help being a little nervous.

After the report, Fang Zida stared at him with a smile, but he didn't say anything.The saluting hand was kept on the brim of the hat. Zhang Zongchang didn't understand whether Fang Zida saw him as good or bad, and couldn't help dripping sweat from his forehead.

"Xiao Kun, speaking of it, you are not an outsider, come on, don't be so nervous, sit, sit!"

When Zhang Zongchang was uneasy, Fang Zida got up and smiled, pointing to the sofa beside him.

"Thank you, President!"

Heaving a sigh of relief, he put down his sore hands, and Zhang Zongchang and Zhou Yuanliang sat on the sofa. Compared with Zhou Yuanliang, Zhang Zongchang didn't dare to sit comfortably. He sat firmly on half of his buttocks, and his upper body was straight. , put his hands on his knees neatly, posing a standard posture of a subordinate being trained by a superior.

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