The Heroic Age of the Late Qing Dynasty

Zhao Dahu didn't know who he had hit with his shot, but he knew he had stirred up a hornet's nest. He didn't dare run anymore, so he could only use his limbs to hold on to the wooden walls around him, his body suspended in the air, not daring to move, to avoid being hit by the bullet. He completely gave up resistance and resigned himself to his fate.

Because a large number of Japanese troops were firing into the woods, bullets rustled through, sending leaves flying and stripping many trees of their bark. If he exposed himself or fought back, there was no doubt that he would be shot to death, with no other chance of survival. The Japanese didn't know where he was hiding yet, so this was his only chance of survival.

After a burst of random gunfire from the Japanese army, the infantry immediately entered the woods to search. Zhao Dahu had no idea what was happening outside at this time. He also didn't know that a Japanese soldier saw a pile of shit outside the tree hole and then discovered this tree hole. Because of the strong smell, the Japanese soldier had no intention of entering the tree hole. He took a look and saw that there was no one inside, then he put the muzzle of the gun in and fired a shot.

Zhao Dahu was also lucky. The bullet grazed his waist, ripping his clothes and leaving a red mark on his waist. Zhao Dahu clenched his teeth and even stopped breathing. He had never expected this little Japanese soldier to be so cautious. If he hadn't been lucky and kept his mouth shut, if he had made any extra noise just now, he would have been exposed and would have died.

Zhao Dahu breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the shadow of the tree hole go away. Only then did he realize that his forehead was covered in cold sweat.

Oyama Iwao was seriously injured by a cold gun, and the Japanese army had no intention of staying there. Kuroki Tamemasa was an iron-blooded and decisive old Japanese soldier. Seeing that the enemy who shot him in the back was not found for a while, he immediately led his troops to continue on the road.

The bullet penetrated a piece of muscle before hitting Oyama Iwao. In fact, his injury was not particularly serious, but Oyama Iwao was already in his sixties at this time and would not live for many years. He was also exhausted by the blow of fleeing the Northeast. Moreover, the Japanese army did not have good medical conditions during the march, which led to wound infection and high fever. There were no special antipyretic drugs such as sulfa drugs and penicillin in this era. After crossing the Yalu River and confirming that the troops were safe, Oyama Iwao lost his last bit of courage.

At this time, Oyama Iwao was lying on the hospital bed, knowing that he was going to die. At this time, Oyama Iwao did not care about anything else. While he was still conscious, he gave the last order to the Japanese troops who stayed in the Northeast to cover their retreat: "Surrender to the Russian army!"

Until his death, Oyama Iwao was always thinking about Japan and causing trouble for China. Oyama Iwao's order for the Japanese army to surrender to Tsarist Russia can be said to be extremely malicious but also extremely brilliant. It not only preserved the strength of the Japanese army, but most importantly, it allowed the field army to directly confront Tsarist Russia. As for what to do with the captured Japanese troops? Japan captured over 70,000 Russian soldiers, and at most they could exchange prisoners with Russia in the future.

Oyama Iwao knew that now that the main force of the Japanese army had escaped, it was practically meaningless for those remaining in Northeast China to continue their resistance. This old devil was well aware of this. For the Japanese headquarters, the main force's escape from Northeast China completely eliminated all their concerns and put the initiative back in their hands. Japan could continue to fight if it wanted to, or retreat to Korea if it didn't want to. No longer constrained by any constraints, Japan could sit back and watch the situation unfold, raising its own price. Although Japan had suffered heavy losses, the main force's escape had already stopped the losses. Now it was just a matter of seeing how much they could gain.

Oyama Iwao, the pioneer of the invasion of China, died on his hospital bed the next day, ending his sinful life. However, he never dreamed that after slaughtering so many ordinary Chinese people, he would eventually die from a cold gunshot from an ordinary Chinese citizen. This can be regarded as the cycle of cause and effect. The net of heaven is vast and retribution is inevitable.

At this point, Liu Wenxiu was unaware that his beloved Oyama Iwao had been shot by a hunter and was nearing death. He also had no idea that Oyama Iwao would soon order the Japanese army to surrender to Tsarist Russia. After learning that the majority of the Japanese army had fled, he gradually intensified his offensive. The Japanese army's ammunition reserves were rapidly depleting, forcing them to continue to shrink their forces.

Liu Wenxiu was commanding the field army to launch a final attack on a hilltop that had been divided and surrounded by Japanese troops. At this time, the field army was really biting a hard bone. These remaining Japanese troops occupied dangerous places, which were often easy to defend but difficult to attack.

If Liu Wenxiu had been in his old ways, he wouldn't have attacked these stubbornly resisting Japanese troops. But now, that was no longer possible. If these Japanese troops weren't eliminated, the field army could bypass them without any problems. However, if they attacked the logistics and transport units, the consequences would be disastrous. But would encircling without attacking work? Clearly, that wasn't possible now, as the field army was about to face a new enemy and didn't have the resources to contain these Japanese troops. Therefore, even if it was a tough nut to crack, it had to be gnawed slowly.

The lower-level Japanese soldiers remaining in Northeast China now knew they were abandoned and the consequences of continuing to resist. At this point, Japanese militarism hadn't yet completely brainwashed the lower-level soldiers. In fact, despite Japan's promotion of militarism and unwavering loyalty to the emperor, Chinese culture has profoundly influenced Japan. As a neighboring country, how could the Japanese not know the saying, "A good death is worse than a miserable life; even ants try to survive." It was simply shame at work; the Japanese "culture of shame" played a significant role in this.

Therefore, TV dramas often show Japanese soldiers dying to apologize for their sins and dying for the emperor, as if the Japanese soldiers were all iron-willed. In fact, there were not many people who committed suicide by seppuku, and high-ranking Japanese military officers committed suicide even more rarely. It is precisely because of this that Nogi Maresuke's suicide to follow Emperor Meiji has become the "role model" that Japan desperately promotes to the lower classes, and he is a "military god."

Moreover, even though the Japanese have been poisoned by militarist ideology, the Japanese soldiers are basically educated and not fools. They naturally have their own judgments, so the actual effect needs to be viewed from many aspects. What is truly powerful about Japan is its complete military education system.

In China and Southeast Asia, the Japanese army was already in an absolute advantage. Therefore, militarism and the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere were justifications for Japan's aggression, fig leaves, and spiritual food that allowed the Japanese army to continue its offensive. The Japanese army knew that only aggression could bring benefits...

But if the Japanese army was poisoned by militarism, then how many Japanese committed suicide when Emperor Hirohito announced the end of the war and surrendered in World War II? Less than one in a hundred thousand. The number of suicides and the suicide rate were far lower than those of her lackeys and loyal South Korea. It has to be said that the so-called Bushido spirit is a joke.

The terror between life and death was immense. Faced with the reality of being abandoned and facing the threat of total annihilation, the Japanese army naturally began to consider their options. After all, during the Russo-Japanese War, approximately 2,000 Japanese soldiers had been captured in Russian prisoner-of-war camps. Now, having received Oyama Iwao's telegram urging them to surrender to Russia, the Japanese army was naturally overjoyed. This gave them a reason to surrender, freeing them from shame. No one would blame them or look at them with strange eyes.

The reason why these Japanese troops could surrender to Tsarist Russia without hesitation was because they had captured so many Russian soldiers, so they naturally didn't have to worry about any problems. In fact, the treatment of Japanese soldiers captured during the Russo-Japanese War was completely different from that of their descendants captured by the Soviet Union. In addition to being required to do hard labor, the Japanese prisoners of war in the Russo-Japanese War were provided with basic survival guarantees. Moreover, after the war, these Japanese prisoners were released back to their country one after another, and there was not much loss of personnel.

Chapter 542: First update!

Nine out of ten things in this world go wrong, and unexpected events often catch us off guard. The situation in Northeast China is changing so rapidly it can be described as changing three times a day, like a fleeting glimpse of a flower. It's a dazzling, overwhelming sight. If someone who isn't pragmatic and adaptable is in charge of these matters, they're bound to make huge mistakes.

While Liu Wenxiu was still attacking the besieged Japanese troops, he saw a signalman from the frontline troops rushing over to report: "Commander-in-Chief, a large number of Russian troops have appeared on the front line. The Japanese troops have left their positions and surrendered to the Tsarist Russian army."

When Liu Wenxiu heard the news, he was stunned and asked in disbelief: "What did you say? The Japanese army actually surrendered to the Russian army? How is this possible?"

It's no wonder Liu Wenxiu couldn't accept it for a moment. Based on his understanding of the Japanese army, they would never surrender so easily. He was already attacking the Japanese, and he had tried to persuade them to surrender, but they were still resisting. His best option, aside from using artillery, was to exhaust the Japanese army's ammunition and supplies before destroying them. Liu Wenxiu believed the Russians faced the same situation as he did. If the Japanese surrendered now, it would mean the field army and the Russian army would be facing each other early, and all the staff's previous plans would have to be restructured accordingly.

"Yes, now the army facing us has become the Russian army."

After reconfirming the news, Liu Wenxiu took a deep breath, accepting the reality. If it weren't for Chairman Zhang Yinghao's reminder, he wouldn't have been able to accept it so quickly. However, now that things had come to this, they had to make adjustments immediately. Otherwise, if a major change occurred, the various departments would be caught off guard.

“Did the Russian army attack our army?”

"Not yet, but the situation is already a bit tense."

"Order the front lines to resolutely not fire the first shot, but if the Russians dare to attack, resolutely fight back..."

But as soon as he finished speaking, Liu Wenxiu knew there was a serious problem with this order! Northeast China wasn't just the field army; there were also militias, bandits, and other armed forces. Would these armed forces attack the Russians? There was no doubt about it. Many people had a deep hatred for the Russians, and they would inevitably attack them. If the Russians were willing to suffer, his order might work, but what if they really wanted to retake the Port of Lushun? That would be the perfect excuse for the Russians to attack the field army.

However, Liu Wenxiu had no intention of changing his order. If the Russian army did not attack immediately, the field army would take this opportunity to rest and summarize the experience and lessons. If the Russian army wanted to fight, then they would fight.

The Russian army wanted to fight at this time. After all, when the Tsarist Russia invaded the Northeast, the losses were extremely small. However, the Tsarist Russia also had a certain understanding of the field army. It was necessary to fight to retake Port Arthur. However, the Russian army's supply lines were too long. The previous conflict with the Japanese army had almost consumed all the stored supplies. Now it had no ability to fight again.

After watching the signalman leave, Liu Wenxiu turned to Zhao Yong and said, "Comrade Zhao Yong, now that the Japanese have surrendered to Tsarist Russia, this place is handed over to you. I need to go back and redeploy the troops."

"Okay! Commander-in-Chief, don't worry. We will definitely take down these Japanese troops."

"Very good! However, since the Japanese army has surrendered to Tsarist Russia, we should also ask the Japanese army above whether they surrender! If they still don't want to surrender, ask the Japanese army if they are willing to go north and join their Japanese army. We will open a gap and promise not to attack them. If the Japanese army still insists on defending this place, then we must capture it at all costs."

"Understood. I'll arrange it right away. If the Japanese army is sensible, that would be great. If not, then we'll have to storm the hill and take it." Group number for this book: 775111838

Liu Wenxiu nodded and said nothing more. He also knew that Zhao Yong should be able to handle the situation here, so he immediately walked out, mounted his warhorse and galloped away.

Shortly after Liu Wenxiu's departure, Zhao Yong dispatched a force to announce to the Japanese troops on the hilltop that the Japanese troops on the Russo-Japanese front had surrendered to the Russians, and urged them to surrender immediately. However, the Japanese troops on the hilltop believed that the field army was deceiving them, believing that the frontline troops would not surrender so easily. Zhao Yong and his men had no way of knowing that the surrender was ordered by Oyama Iwashita, so they could only make a second attempt to persuade the Japanese troops to retreat north.

Just as Zhao Yong was about to send someone to tell the Japanese army to leave north and join other Japanese troops at the front line, another messenger came running over and reported: "Commander, the Russians have sent someone to negotiate with us."

"Negotiation? About what?"

"The Russians didn't mention it!"

Zhao Yong thought for a moment, smacked his lips and said, "What's there to talk about with the Russians? Haha, Sima Zhao's intentions are known to everyone. Very good, if the Russians want to talk, then let them talk. Send the people to headquarters and let the comrades at headquarters negotiate with the Russians. We can forget about it here."

After that, Zhao Yong sent someone to tell the Japanese army to leave to the north. Soon, Zhao Yong received another report, "Commander, the Japanese army thinks we tricked them into coming down the mountain so that we can take advantage of the opportunity to annihilate them, so they don't trust us?"

Zhao Yong was unhappy about this. "Why does our field army have no credibility?"

"Uh, Commander, it was our surprise attack that caused heavy losses to the Japanese army, which was also the reason for their defeat. Moreover, the Japanese army now knows that we are killing Japanese soldiers everywhere. The Japanese soldiers also know about the "Kill Japanese Order". Now the Japanese army hates us to the core. It is normal for the Japanese army to distrust us..."

Zhao Yong was stunned when he heard this, and then he burst into laughter! That's right! He thought the attack was very successful, the battle was very successful, and the spoils were quite rich. But for the enemy, it was naturally the exact opposite. So naturally, no Japanese soldier was happy about the field army's sneak attack. In the minds of the Japanese, the field army was probably synonymous with despicable, shameless, and hooligans.

"We can have the Japanese send two men down the mountain on horseback to the north to verify. If they can confirm that the Japanese troops in the north have surrendered, even if they are still resisting stubbornly, at least their desire to resist completely will fade."

"it is good!"

Zhao Yong did this to make the Japanese army trust the field army and believe that what the field army told them was the truth. However, Political Commissar Hei Chengze was in charge of political work and also needed to do united front work, so he had an open mind. As the signalman left, he said: "Commander, now the Japanese army doesn't trust us, we just need to find a way to make them trust us. As the saying goes, hearing is not believing, seeing is believing. Well... don't we have Japanese prisoners? They should believe what the Japanese say themselves, right? Then arrange for some prisoners to make a speech. Our field army treats prisoners well. As long as these Japanese troops surrender, whether they plan to surrender to Tsarist Russia or to us, it will be beneficial for us to surrender."

Political Commissar Hei Chengze was right about the policy of preferential treatment for prisoners in the liberated areas. Those Japanese who survived the public trials were indeed treated well by the field army. It could even be said that they lived well and were not mistreated at all. The treatment provided to Japanese prisoners was quite benevolent. Besides the labor required, although the housing was rather simple, with dozens or even dozens of people sharing a large room, each prisoner was provided with a bed, pillows, blankets, towels, soap, and other daily necessities.

Regarding food, captured Japanese soldiers were treated just like laborers, with no discrimination. They were given enough mashed potatoes, the occasional whole grain meal, and even some meat. Since everyone was fed the same way, the Japanese had no complaints; at least they were still alive, right? Furthermore, their stomachs were bland, so the occasional bite of meat made them happy. While rice was as important as life to the Japanese, they would give up their lives for meat.

The Military Commission had also held a special meeting to discuss the treatment of prisoners. Since they weren't planning on killing these Japanese, there was no need to deliberately embarrass them. It was unnecessary and unworthy to deliberately criticize them for minor incidents and to incite hatred.

After hearing the idea of ​​Political Commissar Hei Chengze, Zhao Yong's eyes suddenly lit up and he immediately said: "It is indeed a good idea to let the Japanese prisoners shout. This way, we can dispel the concerns of the Japanese army and increase the hope of surrender. The political commissar's idea is good. Not only can it divide and disintegrate the enemy and eliminate the Japanese army's will to resist, but it can also make the Japanese army trust us and increase the chance of surrender. Now let's find some prisoners with good performance to shout!"

Chapter 543: The Second Round!

The power of example is infinite. With the shouts of the Japanese prisoners and the observations and hearings of the two Japanese soldiers who rode to the front line to check the situation, the Japanese soldiers on the mountain knew that the field army's propaganda was true and that stubborn resistance would not produce any results. They no longer had the will to resist. With the example of the surrender of the Japanese soldiers on the front line, these Japanese soldiers naturally planned to surrender as well.

Since these Japanese soldiers did not know that Oyama Iwao's telegram was asking them to surrender to Tsarist Russia, they went down the mountain and surrendered to the field army after receiving the field army's guarantee of their safety.

At the same time as Liu Wenxiu received Zhao Yong's victory report, he also met the Russians who had come to negotiate. These Russians included officers and diplomats. Needless to say, the officers were sent to inspect the field army's situation and gain a firm grasp on its strength. Liu Wenxiu generously allowed them to see, showing no intention of deliberately stopping them.

In the vast land of Northeast China, as long as he gained the support of the people and organized them, Liu Wenxiu really had no fear of the Russian army, which numbered tens of millions. Moreover, the Party Central Committee had already made a series of arrangements for the war against Russia. If the war broke out, the Russian troops in Northeast China would be immediately isolated, without any more ammunition, supplies, or manpower. They would be wiped out by attrition.

At this time, the comrade who brought these old Russians over introduced: "Mr. Guo Luo Baifu, General Xie Erxun, let me introduce you. This is our commander-in-chief, General Liu Wenxiu, our chief of staff, General Sun Tongpao, our military representative, General Lianchengjue, and our director, General Hu Songhui..."

Hearing so many generals, the old Russians were stunned. In reality, the field army didn't even have any official ranks, and they didn't have any yet. However, the military was a place where order and discipline were paramount, and equality was paramount between armies. If a general arrived from the opposing side, they had to receive him as a general; otherwise, it would be considered disrespectful and contemptuous. So, Liu Wenxiu and the others discussed it and decided to temporarily grant him the title of general.

Then a Russian translator said: "Your Excellencies, Generals, let me introduce you. This is General Shelson, an officer of the Great Russian Empire stationed in the Far East. This is Mr. Guo Luobaifu, the imperial diplomatic envoy, and this is..."

Liu Wenxiu and his team shook hands with the likes of the Russian bears, including Xie Erxun and Guo Luobaifu, and then entered the conference room. Both sides sat down, and the field army even poured each Russian a cup of tea. Without much communication, the negotiations began.

In fact, the Russian side had already known at this time that Liu Wenxiu and his men were the militia from Wujiabaozi who had once defeated the Russian Imperial Army. The Russians who were negotiating knew that these people had attacked their mines and dared to kill Russians without fear of retaliation, just like they killed Qing people at will.

Therefore, these Tsarist Russian negotiators also knew that this negotiation would not be easy. It would be very difficult to get what they could not get on the battlefield at the negotiation table. Of course, Russia had always taken advantage of the situation when the Qing Dynasty was in trouble, and basically got what they wanted at the negotiation table. So, even though they knew that these people might not be as weak and vulnerable as the Qing government, Tsarist Russia still came to negotiate. They had to talk as they should, and if they couldn't reach an agreement, they would talk about other things.

The first to speak was Guo Luo Baifu, an experienced diplomatic negotiator. He took out a large stack of documents and introduced them one by one: "Generals, please take a look. These are the various agreements and treaties signed between the Russian Empire and your central government. For example, the Qing government has leased Lushun to the Russian Empire for 25 years, allowing the construction of the Chinese Eastern Railway. To this end, the Russian Empire spent tens of millions of rubles on the construction of the Chinese Eastern Railway. The Empire also obtained the right to mine minerals along the route, etc...."

Guo Luo Baifu immediately began presenting evidence and facts, throwing out a mountain of documents for Liu Wenxiu and the others to review. Liu Wenxiu didn't even need to look at the documents to understand what these Russians were trying to say. They were trying to tell Liu Wenxiu and the others that Russia had originally obtained these items legally, and now that they had lost them, they could get them back without any problems. In other words, if Tsarist Russia launched a war to reclaim these items, would Russia be the righteous party, while the Field Army would be the evil, the party in breach of contract?

Liu Wenxiu listened carefully to Guo Luo Baifu's story and read through all the documents. She wanted to see how the Qing Dynasty sold out its own country and how the victorious countries gained more benefits, so she could learn from their experience. So, when Guo Luo Baifu finished speaking, Liu Wenxiu nodded in agreement and said, "There should be no problem with these documents, but what then?"

When Guo Luo Baifu heard Liu Wenxiu say there was no problem with the document, he breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Your Excellency, the despicable and shameless Japan launched a surprise attack on the Russian Empire. The Empire was caught off guard and was successfully attacked by these yellow-skinned Japanese monkeys. It temporarily lost Port Arthur and the South Manchuria Railway. However, the Empire's million-strong army has been fighting and has never given up on recovering the railway and Port Arthur. Now, a million-strong army is on the alert, preparing for a full-scale counterattack to recover the Chinese Eastern Railway and Port Arthur. It's just that your sudden action disrupted the Russian Empire's plan. Otherwise, the million-strong Russian army would have recovered the Chinese Eastern Railway and Port Arthur by now. Of course, the Russian Empire also wants to thank your army for helping the Russian Empire recover the railway and Port Arthur. You are our eternal friends of the Russian Empire."

Guo Luo Baifu repeatedly emphasized the million-strong army, and his words were very clear: without the action of the field army, the Russian Empire would have been preparing for a counterattack. If the field army recovered what originally belonged to Russia and returned it to the empire, you would be the Russian Empire's eternal friend. If you don't hand it over, it goes without saying that you are the enemy.

"Haha, we're naturally willing to be friends with the Russian Empire. However, you also said that we took back the railway and Port Arthur from Japan, and we have nothing to do with you, Russia! From a legal perspective, we are a "good-faith" third party, and our vested interests should not be harmed. So if you have losses, you should seek compensation from Japan, not from us."

"But we have treaties and documents. Look for yourself. The Russian Empire leased Port Arthur for 25 years, and it hasn't expired yet. We want to continue the lease, and we also want to take back the railway built by the Empire..."

"Well, there's nothing wrong with the contents of these documents, and I believe they're true. If there's any problem, you should go find the people who signed the treaty and the documents with you, right? What do you mean by looking for us? You lost Port Arthur, and it was the Japanese who made you lose it, so you should ask Japan to return it. The Qing government can't fulfill the terms of the treaty, so you should go to the Qing government to negotiate. It's useless to look for us. Look, are our names on these documents or the treaty? Not at all!"

What Liu Wenxiu said made sense, but it was only the thinking of Liu Wenxiu and his group, not the thinking of imperialist Tsarist Russia. Tsarist Russia was already upset that the despised Japanese had been driven into northern Manchuria. Now that the Japanese had fled or surrendered, and the lost spoils had fallen into the hands of the weakened Qing people, the Russian Empire naturally wanted to take back what it had lost.

"General, these are treaties signed by your central government. They are legal and you must recognize them."

"Well, we still need the Qing court, the party that signed the treaty, to explain the treaty to us, otherwise I dare not acknowledge it!"

Hearing Liu Wenxiu and the others' rogue words, Shelson immediately said sternly: "It doesn't matter whether you admit it or not. The Russian Empire now has a million-strong army. It is now time to retake the Chinese Eastern Railway and Lushun. The mines that originally belonged to the Russian Empire must also be handed over to the empire. For the safety of the railway and Lushun, your army must surrender all weapons and disband. The Russian Empire will send troops to protect the railway and Lushun. We will also send administrative personnel to Fengtian. All of you can live in Fengtian, and your safety will be protected by the Russian Empire..."

"Haha, you want to disband the field army's military power and seize power and political power! You're still dreaming of annexing Northeast China? You're truly extremely greedy and shameless."

Liu Wenxiu thought to himself, but he actually said: "We will not disband the army. Fengtian, Liaoyang, Anshan and all the other cities and mines are our spoils of war. We can't hand them over to you. As for accepting your protection? Sorry, we are safe, safer than ever before. We don't need any army or country's protection."

"General, your actions and attitude will seriously harm the interests of the Russian Empire. You must correct and change them. The Chinese Eastern Railway was built at great expense to the Russian Empire and you must return it to the Empire. Port Arthur was a leased territory to the Russian Empire and you must return it unconditionally. For the safety of the railway and Port Arthur, your army must also be disbanded. If you do not agree, then the Russian Empire can only act according to the signed contract, and you will bear all consequences."

Chapter 544: The third round!

Tsarist Russia resorted to every possible means to gain advantage from the Qing Dynasty: intimidation, deceitful rhetoric, coercion, division and disintegration, infiltration and fraud. Each time it pressured the Qing Dynasty into signing treaties to annex China, it exploited its misfortunes, taking advantage of the chaos to profiteer. These tactics fully exposed the utterly insane, cunning, barbaric, and brutal nature of Tsarist Russia's imperialism.

Comrades like Liu Wenxiu and Liancheng Jue have attended Chairman Zhang Yinghao's lectures and read his books. They have also received special training and have a very good understanding of both Japan and Russia, or in other words, they have a very good understanding of the nature of imperialism.

I always remember a lesson Chairman Zhang Yinghao once said, "Western powers conquered large colonies with weapons of a different generation and did not allow the colonies to develop industry, especially

They built heavy industry, kept the local people ignorant, created conflicts everywhere, prevented the people of the colonies from uniting, and even brutally suppressed the rebels, attempting to make all the people of the colonies afraid of them and not dare to resist.

Therefore, the Western powers' true greatest weapon of domination was to exploit the "ignorance" of the colonized peoples, or their lack of knowledge and information gap. It was precisely this "ignorance" that prevented the colonized peoples from properly understanding the Western powers, and themselves. It was also this "ignorance" that allowed Western powers to dominate the world.

This was the case with the Qing court. The vast Qing was forced to sign unequal treaties time and time again. In fact, these were the result of the Qing royal family's own compromise and had nothing to do with the general public.

In fact, the threats from the great powers were mostly empty words. The key to opposing the great powers was to resist continuously and never give up resistance. We had to be willing to sacrifice our lives and have the courage to dethrone the emperor.

In reality, Western powers attempting to cross thousands of miles to China and then exploit the gap in weaponry to conquer it would have been extremely draining. They simply couldn't deploy many troops; even the Eight-Nation Alliance numbered only about 20,000. Tsarist Russia was indeed powerful and shared a border with China, but aside from a few battles with the Qing before the Treaty of Nerchinsk, it effectively forced the Qing into submission without any major fighting.

Therefore, Western powers have always tended to use diplomatic means, relying on intimidation to force the Qing court to retreat and surrender. This is a tried-and-true method against the Qing court, because the Qing court, determined to maintain its rule, dared not mobilize the people, so it was very effective. However, our Progressive Party represents the interests of the people. The people are not afraid of imperialism and are firmly opposed to it and the signing of unequal treaties. Therefore, the Progressive Party has never needed to accede to the great powers' demands, unless the great powers can conquer all Chinese people..."

Liu Wenxiu and the others were thinking about the lectures Zhang Yinghao had given and listening to the conversation between Guo Luo Baifu and Xie Erxun, one playing the good cop and the other the bad cop. If the field army had not really prepared for war, if they did not know the current situation of Tsarist Russia, if it were not for the wise leadership of Chairman Zhang Yinghao, if it were just for their own interests, they might have started to compromise.

How could the Qing Dynasty, with its closed-minded attitude, withstand the eloquence of the Russians? Perhaps if these Tsarist Russian diplomats issued a war threat, most of the Qing Dynasty officials would have to kneel down.

At this time, Liu Wenxiu and his men were thinking about how to drive Tsarist Russia out of Northeast China. How could they be influenced by what Luo Baifu and Shelson said? It would be wishful thinking to want to gain benefits from the field army just by means of intimidation.

Dogs that bite never bark; they simply sneak up behind you and bite. So, Liu Wenxiu and the others had been very patient, not saying a single harsh word, threatening, or retaliating. They simply didn't want to escalate the conflict.

The hatred between China and Russia is now as deep as the sea, and there will inevitably be a war. This is the consensus within the Forward Party. Liu Wenxiu and his companions have been in the Northeast for a long time, and they know that the evil deeds done by Tsarist Russia in the Northeast are too numerous to list, and they understand this very clearly.

But Liu Wenxiu and the others didn't mention a single thing, as if they were unaware of the evil deeds committed by the Tsarist Russia. However, Liu Wenxiu and the others knew that all the Tsarist Russian officers and soldiers in the Far East had been executed, without a single one being innocent. Therefore, Liu Wenxiu knew that the war with the Tsarist Russia was essentially the same as the war with Japan: a policy of genocide in the Northeast, and the "Kill Mao Order" had to be issued.

So, no matter what Luo Baifu and Xie Erxun said, Liu Wenxiu and his men remained unmoved, offering perfunctory and prevarication. Their attitude remained consistent: "No matter what you Tsarist Russia says, I won't accept it. As long as you don't start a war now, we will attack when we are ready..."

Zhang Yinghao simply smiled after receiving Liu Wenxiu's telegram regarding the details of the negotiations with Tsarist Russia. However, Zhang Yinghao knew that the field army had just finished fighting and needed to rest. He also had to consider Northeast China's production capacity. So, after a moment's deliberation, he wrote back to Liu Wenxiu and his team: "Maintain a strong defense, maintain internal stability, establish a political regime, streamline local affairs, step up production, and don't fire the first shot."

However, the Northeast was full of events, and the situation changed three times a day. Zhang Yinghao had just asked his secretary to send the telegram when another telegram came from the Northeast: "Japanese warships bombarded Andong."

Zhang Yinghao sighed after reading it, "The Japanese warships have finally arrived."

Zhang Yinghao was completely helpless against the warships sailing the sea. The only thing Zhang Yinghao feared now was these sea giants. Didn't Zhang Yinghao want to unify the country now? China's vast maritime borders, with so many coastal provinces and cities, made defense impossible. He could only play the ostrich.

Zhang Yinghao was well aware of the power of the cannons on the warships, and the field army had basically no way to fight back. However, the limitations of warships were also great. For example, warships could not go ashore, and they had to refuel with water and coal. The barrels and shells of warships were expensive. Current warships did not have sonar radars, and communications were also problematic. It was best to hide at night and move out during the day, etc. As for using small land-based artillery to bombard the cannons of giant ships, Zhang Yinghao would not even think about it. So he immediately replied: "Set up observation posts on the front line, hide during the day and move out at night, and use artillery to fire from a distance. Do not allow the Japanese to establish a beachhead. If the Japanese army lands and attacks from the Yalu River under the cover of naval guns, you can lure the enemy deep into our territory, use the sixteen-character strategy, and finally surround and annihilate them."

After writing the telegram, Zhang Yinghao thought of the serious situation in Northeast China and sighed.

"What a fucking bastard."

Zhang Yinghao knew that if a solution wasn't found quickly and the situation continued as it was, and if countries like Britain, France, and the United States intervened with funding and weapons, the Northeast Field Army would likely face a dire situation, including a joint attack from Japan and Russia. While even a combined Japanese and Russian presence wouldn't completely annihilate the Fifth Field Army, defeating or even disbanding its main forces and destroying its factories could bring the revolution in Northeast China to a low ebb, potentially forcing Liu Wenxiu and his men to start over and fight guerrilla warfare in the mountains. If this were to happen, the victory of the Chinese revolution would be significantly delayed.

"Break the situation, break the situation, what is the key to breaking the situation?"

Chapter 545: First update!

After having his secretary take the telegram out, Zhang Yinghao closed the door and forced himself to calm down, preparing to quietly and comprehensively analyze the current situation in Northeast China and find a way out. A materialist must first face the facts and acknowledge them, because facts are reality that cannot be changed by personal will. Only by acknowledging the facts can a better solution be found.

Zhang Yinghao knew that breaking through the current situation in Northeast China would require unconventional approaches. This reminded him of the four words he learned in the military academy: unity, tension, seriousness, and freedom. Indeed, now was the time to break free from the current situation, to step outside the box, and find a viable solution.

Zhang Yinghao sat in a chair, leaning back and relaxing, closing his eyes, and silently chanting: "Wisdom comes from being uninvolved, and wisdom comes from being outside the situation. The person involved is confused, but the bystander can see clearly. The simplest is the most effective..."

Zhang Yinghao knew he was caught in a dilemma, entangled in interests and constraints, driven by the desire for gain and loss, and blinded by a single leaf. While silently reciting the situation in Northeast China, Zhang Yinghao replayed it over and over in his mind like a movie, but he still couldn't think of a way to break the deadlock.

Just when Zhang Yinghao felt his mind wandering in the void, on the verge of becoming an immortal, a god, and feeling extremely relaxed, just when Zhang Yinghao felt that inspiration was about to burst forth, the office door was forcibly pushed open. Hearing the sound, Zhang Yinghao immediately opened his eyes and realized that he had just been about to fall asleep.

"Damn!"

He cursed inwardly; the feeling of being interrupted was quite unpleasant. Zhang Yinghao knew he had just entered the state described in the Heart Sutra as "the profound perfection of practice." Form is not other than emptiness, emptiness is not other than form. Form is emptiness, emptiness is form. Feeling, perception, volition, and consciousness are also like this. There is no eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, or mind; no form, sound, smell, touch, taste, or dharma...

As the saying goes, what you think about during the day you dream about at night. I should have been about to come up with a way to break the deadlock, but my inspiration was interrupted. If Zhang Yinghao wasn't kind and restrained, anyone with a bit of temper or a bad temper would have scolded the person who banged the door.