Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 617 Difficult Negotiations (Part 4)
The following morning, the Spanish delegation members, with a cautious optimism, followed Xinhua protocol officials toward the Colonial District Building, which served as the venue for the negotiations.

The friendly atmosphere at last night's dinner made them feel that, despite the difficult prospects, the negotiations could be conducted on a relatively moderate and rational basis.

The negotiation took place in a spacious and bright conference room on the third floor. A long, polished pine table occupied the center position, covered with a thick, dark green velvet cloth, and several potted plants were also placed on it.

A large map of the Nanping Colonization Zone and the red five-star flag of the Republic of China in Xinzhou were hung on the wall. Apart from that, there were no other decorations, making it look simple and solemn.

The representatives from both sides sat on either side. The Xinhua representatives maintained their polite smiles, but their eyes lacked the casualness of the previous night's banquet and instead showed a sharper edge befitting a formal occasion.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries and necessary formalities, Chen Rui, the chief representative of Xinhua, the host country, gestured for them to enter and said in a gentle tone, "Your Excellency Marquis, Your Excellency Baron, and all the representatives of the Kingdom of Spain who have traveled from afar."

"In order to end the state of hostility between our two sides as soon as possible and restore peace and stability to the region, we hope to exchange views with each other in a frank manner. Here, we would like to ask your side to put forward preliminary ceasefire conditions for us to discuss together."

Marquis Mendoza cleared his throat, adjusted his posture, and tried to appear more dignified.

He nodded to the secretary in charge of documents beside him and signaled him to begin reading the pre-drafted ceasefire terms.

At that moment, he seemed to regain some of the confidence he once had as the chief negotiator of the Kingdom of Spain.

The secretary's voice echoed in the quiet meeting room, and through the interpreter's relay, it reached Xinzhou *****'s ears clearly:

"Dear New Continent ***, based on the principles of restoring the inherent rights and dignity of the Kingdom of Spain and maintaining peace and order in the Americas, we hereby propose the following ceasefire conditions:"

"First, in order to achieve peace in the Americas, both sides must immediately implement a comprehensive ceasefire. The New Continent Chinese Republic must unconditionally and completely withdraw its armed forces from all currently illegally occupied territories of the Kingdom of Spain, including but not limited to strongholds such as San Diego (i.e., Nanping) and Jingyuanbao in California, as well as the Philippine Islands in the east."

When he read out the first point, the expressions of the new Chinese in the conference hall did not change significantly; they were simply listening attentively to the interpreter's retelling.

"Secondly, your country must immediately and unconditionally release all Spanish soldiers, officials and civilians captured and detained during the war, and fully return all weapons, equipment, military supplies, civilian assets, and all merchant ships and warships belonging to the Kingdom of Spain or its subjects that were captured or illegally seized by your side during the battle."

When Chen Rui read this, the corner of his mouth seemed to twitch slightly, but he quickly regained his composure.

"Third, your country must issue a formal apology for this unjust military action that has caused enormous loss of life and property to the Kingdom of Spain and its subjects, and pay corresponding war reparations to make up for the losses suffered by us."

"Fourth, your country must immediately cease and pledge never again to fund, incite, or arm any indigenous Indian forces within the Americas, and recognize and respect the Kingdom of Spain's complete sovereignty over its American territories and its absolute jurisdiction over its internal affairs."

"Fifth, your country must strictly abide by the laws and prohibitions of the Kingdom of Spain regarding trade in the Americas, and immediately cease and guarantee that it will not engage in any form of smuggling trade activities without the permission of the Kingdom of Spain in the future."

"Sixth, in order to ensure the security and stability of the Pacific region, it is required that the New South Wales reduce... the size of its army and navy to ensure that it does not pose a military threat to the Spanish Kingdom's American territories."

"..."

The interpreter would pause after translating each line, and the air in the conference room seemed to freeze for a moment.

After all the terms had been read aloud, an eerie silence fell over the room; you could hear a pin drop.

The Spanish officials, including the Marquis of Mendoza himself, unconsciously straightened their backs, preparing to face the expected rebuttals and debates.

However, what they saw was a strange expression on the faces of all the Xinhua negotiating team members.

Chen Rui turned his head slightly and exchanged a glance with Lin Afu beside him. Lin Afu shook his head gently, and the corner of his mouth seemed to twitch, as if he was trying his best to suppress some kind of explosive emotion.

The other Xinhua officials looked at each other in bewilderment, some even unconsciously picking at their ears as if they doubted they had heard correctly.

Their attention eventually focused on Deputy Representative Harvey.

The Spanish-American Xinhua official wore an expression that was a mixture of embarrassment and helplessness.

He took a slight breath and nodded very subtly but firmly, confirming that the interpreter's relay was accurate.

Then, he shrugged almost imperceptibly, making a gesture that said, "See? I knew this would happen."

A strange atmosphere permeated the meeting room. The expressions of the new Chinese representatives shifted from confusion to disbelief, and finally to a sense of absurdity, changing unpredictably. This made the Spanish representatives feel somewhat uneasy, and they couldn't help but exchange glances with each other.

Why isn't Xinhua News Agency responding?

The silence in the room lasted for a full minute.

Finally, Chen Rui made a move.

He slowly stood up, his movements unhurried yet carrying an invisible pressure that drew everyone's attention to him. He didn't look at the ceasefire terms being presented to him, but instead calmly swept his gaze across the faces of each Spanish representative opposite him, finally settling on the Marquis of Mendoza.

A smile appeared on his face.

It wasn't a joyful laugh, nor a mocking laugh, but a laugh filled with utter surprise, pity, and even a touch of helplessness.

"Your Excellency Marquis, gentlemen of Spain," Chen Rui's voice was not loud, but every word was clear. Through the interpreter's relay, each word reached the ears of the Spanish representative, "I think your side may not have fully understood its 'situation,' or rather, lacks even the most basic clear understanding of the current development of the war."

He paused, letting the interpreter convey his meaning completely, and then continued, "The conditions you just stated... please forgive my bluntness, but they sound more like the surrender terms offered by a victor to a vanquished, and very harsh ones at that."

"However, the reality seems to be quite the opposite. On land, our army has won one victory after another. We have completely controlled California and occupied Acapulco, Chilpansingo, and Iguala. We are also threatening Mexico City."

"At sea, your Peruvian squadron no longer exists, and the hastily assembled task force has also been destroyed by us. The Pacific ports of Panama, Guayaquil, Callao, Valparaiso and others have also been blockaded by us."

"It can be said that the entire Spanish America is under the command of our Xinhua army. No matter which town we want to attack or which port we want to occupy, you have no power to fight back. On the battlefield, we firmly control the initiative of the offensive."

"We could even form an expeditionary fleet to attack your Atlantic coastal port towns, Caribbean islands, and even the Spanish mainland if we so wish."

His voice rose slightly: "Under these circumstances, your demands are not only absurd but also laughable. They are completely detached from reality, a serious misjudgment of the current situation, and a disrespect for our wisdom and strength."

Chen Rui paused for a moment, then glanced at the Spanish group again. "If your side is participating in this negotiation with such an... unclear, or even unrealistic, understanding, then I think that today's negotiations, and all the negotiations to come, will become meaningless."

"Because this is not a negotiation at all, but a waste of time. Unfortunately, today's talks have to end here."

"Let's start again when you truly recognize reality and are willing to explore the possibility of peace in a pragmatic and equal manner."

After saying that, Chen Rui didn't look at the Spaniard again, turned around, and walked straight towards the door of the conference hall.

Upon seeing this, Deputy Minister Javi, Director Lin Afu, and other Xinhua representatives did not hesitate at all. They all stood up expressionlessly and silently followed Chen Rui out of the room, without giving the Spaniard another glance.

With a soft "bang," the conference room door was closed from the outside by the last Xinhua staff member to leave.

In an instant, the huge conference hall was filled with only a group of dumbfounded Spanish representatives looking at each other, and an extremely awkward and stagnant atmosphere filled the air.

Sunlight still streamed through the windows, illuminating the empty chair on one side of the long table and the expressions of shock, humiliation, and bewilderment on the faces of the Spaniards on the other side.

They had anticipated that the other party would haggle, argue fiercely, and even fly into a rage, but they never expected that the other party would not even have the desire to discuss the matter, and would simply walk away, unilaterally ending the negotiations.

Marquis Mendoza's face first turned bright red, then turned ashen.

He slammed his hand on the table, stood up, and pointed his trembling finger at the closed door: "Rude! Insolent! Barbaric! They...they just left like that? They have no regard for diplomacy or the dignity of the Kingdom of Spain. This is the greatest insult to us!"

His chest heaved violently; he was clearly furious.

He had thought that after yesterday's groundwork, today would at least allow them to enter a substantive negotiation phase, but he was met with a bucket of cold water, which thoroughly dampened any remaining sense of luck and superiority in his heart.

Baron Cruz looked at the enraged Mendoza and sighed deeply in resignation.

He walked to the Marquis's side and lowered his voice to comfort him: "Your Excellency, please calm down. In fact... in fact, this situation was not entirely unexpected."

He glanced at his colleagues around him, whose faces also looked grim, and said with a wry smile, "Before we came here, I reminded them that our initial stance must be based on reality."

"But what is the reality? The kingdom is in financial crisis, military disadvantage, and the war is unsustainable. Yet we are proposing such... such unrealistic conditions, which would be nothing short of a pipe dream for any opponent with an advantage."

"If we were in their shoes, our reaction would probably be even more intense."

“But…this is the King’s and Governor’s residence…” a young official stammered, trying to say something.

“I know this is His Majesty’s expectation, and the best outcome the entire American colonial authority would like to accept,” Cruz interrupted him, his tone heavy. “But expectations cannot replace our current strength and reality.”

"Although the Xinhua representative's words were sharp, he was right about one thing: we must be soberly aware of our 'situation'. Today's experience, though embarrassing, may allow us to see the cruelty of reality more clearly."

He glanced around the somewhat empty and cold conference hall, then looked at Marquis Mendoza and said slowly, "The negotiations that follow, if they can continue, will likely be far more difficult than we initially imagined."

“We need to reassess our bottom line, and... what we are willing to pay for a decent peace, or at least one that minimizes the damage.”

Mendoza's face darkened, he snorted coldly, and turned to walk towards the conference hall door.
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(End of this chapter)