No one expected that the important and rare imperial meeting in the past would suddenly be held again, and this second imperial meeting was held in a hurry.
Without an outline and agenda prepared in advance, the efficiency of the meeting will undoubtedly be very low.
In the meeting hall of Wenyuan Pavilion, the expressions of the officials of the Cabinet, the Governor's Office, and the Consultative Council were different, either solemn or full of interest.
"This is not a good sign for them. The Burundi Party and the Socialist Revolutionaries may have made up their minds this time."
"There's an undercurrent surging, this time... I don't think I can survive it."
"Undercurrent? This is an open current!"
There is no need to go into details about the former, and the so-called Social Revolution refers to the Socialist Revolutionary Party, which is a huge party that plays a decisive role in Tsarist Russia.
At that time, the petty bourgeoisie in Tsarist Russia was extremely large. The minimum program of the social revolution was to eliminate the tsar and the old aristocratic forces and establish a federal democratic republic. It did not advocate the nationalization of land.
It overthrew the tsar without confiscating land. The social revolution was deeply supported by farmers and teachers in rural areas of Tsarist Russia.
But it must be noted that this is also a loose and fragmented organization, and the views of its members are very mixed.
In the end, they chose to compromise, siding with the Cadets and the Octobrist Party, and then directly promoted the successful constitutional reform of Tsarist Russia.
At that time, a large number of disappointed opponents chose to leave and join other factions to continue the struggle, but they still failed and had to go into exile abroad.
But now, whether it is looking back on its glory or lingering on, the crumbling Tsarist Russia has finally reached the edge of collapse and chaos.
For those stalwarts committed to ousting the tsar and establishing a federation, the long-awaited opportunity finally arrived.
Later, Zhu Lingjing arrived late wearing a formal suit.
After a brief stand up and salute, we quickly got down to business, and some symbolic rules were tacitly ignored by everyone.
No matter whether the negotiation efficiency is high or not, at least it seems to be quite neat and efficient now.
Interestingly, no one in the meeting hall spoke first, and the huge room was filled with an unusual and strange atmosphere.
Now... what can I say?
"Your Majesty, according to what the attaché of my embassy in St. Petersburg saw at the train station, about two regiments of the Guards have already loaded up. It can be concluded that this chaos will not subside in a short time."
In order to break the awkward silence, Lin Xi reacted quickly and calmly stated a meaningless statement.
"Has the intelligence from the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Governor's Office been compiled?" Li Guangyuan looked at Yu Shenhua who was standing aside. "In the past, there were often Russian protest marches, but they were suppressed in the end. This time... can you find out whether there are any Adding fuel to the flames behind your back?"
The latter shook his head slightly, "Things are progressing too fast. How can we figure it out so quickly? We have to wait a few more days at least."
Chen Jieli, the elegant president of the Consultative Council, raised his hand and waved, "These are not important, are you adding fuel to the flames? Even if you don't take the initiative, the passive influence is always there. This time it is actually a long-term accumulation...it suddenly bursts out when it reaches the limit." "
"Yes, the matter is over. There is nothing to pursue. It is the historian's job to find out the root cause." Wu Weihuan looked around at everyone present, and finally focused on the prime minister. "The Germans are unlikely to miss the opportunity."
"Yes, but we have to consider their actions." Gao Qingkui paused thoughtfully for a few seconds and then said: "Will they strongly support it? Or even send troops to intervene?"
"Sending troops? Oh... If this happens, Europe will be in chaos and become a pot of porridge again." Li Guangyuan said with a smile.
The German Society sent volunteers to Tsarist Russia. There was absolutely no way that Britain and France could sit idly by and do nothing, and the possibility of the former sending troops was not small.
In addition, Poland and the Baltic Sea are already unstable...
"Your Majesty, I'm afraid the period we estimated earlier will change." Lin Xi, with bright eyes, took a breath, "If things continue to progress like this, it will only take ten days and a half at least."
Taking into account the reaction speed of both sides and the time it takes to deploy troops, if the German volunteers intervene across the border, Britain and France will definitely declare war without hesitation after the final warning is invalid.
"Actually, it's not much different." Zhu Lingjing said.
The original estimate was that the European war might start in December this year or January next year, and then wait one to two months to wait and see while mobilizing.
Wu Weihuan stroked his beard and said: "How about preparing a big drill in the north? It can confuse the public."
Lin Xi, who was on the opposite side, waved his hands when he heard this and said, "It's so unnecessary! The British are so smart, how could the imperial dynasty abandon the near and seek the far away and go north? This is just trying to hide something, but it is a waste of resources."
This is not a pleasant thing to say and does not give much face. Wu Weihuan himself has a good temper, but as the top figure in the military, his words and deeds on important occasions must take into account the group he represents.
"Lin Hezhong, it's not good to be so angry."
Zhu Lingjing ignored the conversation between the two, but Wu Weihuan's suggestion caused her to think deeply in another aspect.
If Tsarist Russia were to fall apart, it would inevitably fall into a multi-party melee. As the sky is high and the emperor is far away in Siberia, it is likely to choose to separate itself from one side and wait and see the direction of the "Chicken Eating Contest" before making a decision.
Obviously, if these local forces want to find foreign forces as their backers, they have no second choice except Ming Dynasty.
If things develop like this, Ming will be able to more easily control Siberia's rich mineral resources-gold mines, coal mines, and iron mines.
"The drill should be held, and it should be held in a big way." Zhu Lingjing and others said calmly: "It should be shown not only to the Russians, but also to the British... and also to the people of the country and the DPRK."
No one here was a fool, and after a little thought, he understood what she meant.
Cheng Han, who had been silent the whole time, asked: "Your Majesty, how many troops are you preparing for a large-scale drill?"
"All the governor's offices in the north need to participate, at least 100,000, and the total scale is around 300,000, and there must be no shortage of aircraft."
There are 100,000 combat troops, and the corresponding logistics support force will only be several times that.
Spend 400,000 people working hard?
Lin Xi was silent for a few seconds and hesitated: "Is this... too big a move? Your Majesty, the cost alone is less than 100,000 yuan."
However, Zhu Lingjing didn't care at all and just asked coldly: "Is this something we should consider expenses?"
Lin Xi, who was quite ashamed, held up his hands and said: "I am too cautious. Well... this can also test the ability of large-scale dispatch and organization. It should be done."
Because everyone felt that conducting such a large-scale exercise had both advantages and disadvantages, the costs behind it were ignored.
Zhou Changfeng, who was standing at the right rear of the throne, recalled a so-called comparative exercise in history - the Guan Special Exercise.
The large-scale exercise involved hundreds of thousands of people and cost a total of 1.7 billion yen.
In comparison, the cost of the Yamato battleship is 160 million yen, and the cost of the Shokaku aircraft carrier is 84 million yen.
A single army unit may not be called a money-burning unit, but it cannot cope with the army's large scale and high consumption. It burns money every minute and every second.
"Prepare a photography team, organize it well with the Ministry of War, edit it properly, and publicize it well."
After finishing speaking, Zhu Lingjing thought of something else and added: "The bond issue should be finalized as soon as possible. We can't delay it any longer. When it comes to issuance, we should focus on the north and the south as a supplement."
The so-called bonds actually refer specifically to war bonds, which are not only used to cover military expenditures, but also for land redemption.
Land reform, in which the government forcibly redeems land from landlords, is relatively conservative and moderate, but it consumes a large amount of money and progresses slowly, and the court does not want to fully pay for it.
The Chinese Party has a more radical idea about this, and plans to issue corresponding war bonds to raise a large amount of funds to complete a wider range of redemptions in a short period of time.
Zhu Lingjing was in favor of this move, but she was more shrewd and cunning - she mainly focused on issuing war bonds against Tsarist Russia, and then set a rule that "bonds can be exchanged in equal amounts for the Nanyang Raiders".
In this way, if unexpected circumstances arise, such as the war going poorly or the funds not being able to operate properly, then it is reasonable to temporarily postpone the payment of the bonds.
Why not pay?
Because the bonds you bought are for Tsarist Russia, not Nanyang.
[The Meifu coupon has been extended/expired. 】
In addition to discussing these matters, the most important preparations for war have also been further emphasized.
Wu Weihuan and Li Guangyuan argued for a long time about the new military expenditure. Finally, Gao Qingkui coughed several times before they stopped.
Now that the war has not started, the court still has a better say, but when the war starts later, the arrogant military department may have its tail raised.
Gao Qingkui and all the ministers could not help but sigh in their hearts.
In this way, the hastily convened imperial meeting came to an end.
Preparations will soon begin for an unprecedentedly large-scale exercise; countless bonds will be printed in piles and then snapped up like treasures.
After leaving Wenyuan Pavilion, Zhu Lingjing whispered to herself: "Time is also about luck."
Then, she turned her head and said to Zhou Changfeng, who was a few steps behind her: "You are also packing up and preparing to leave for the island in the north of Japan."
Hokkaido? Where to go and what to do?
"Your Majesty, are you going to Hokkaido?" Zhou Changfeng was a little confused.
Zhu Lingjing, who was walking slowly, raised her hand and shook it with three fingers, "The land and sea echo. There are also oil fields on Kuye Island. Let's get familiar with it. Hmm... And it's relatively similar to the Aleutians."
Gee, this woman is so calculating.
"clear."
The oil fields on Sakhalin Island are used as the exercise target, so as to familiarize themselves in advance with the characteristics and essentials of occupying oil fields when conquering Southeast Asia later.
By the way, you can also get familiar with the landings in the Aleutian Islands - there are also U.S. Navy bases there.
It’s almost November, and the temperature in Hokkaido and Sakhalin has dropped to around 4°C.
Amphibious operations in this situation?
When we landed on the beach, we were all wet, the weather was freezing, and the cold wind was howling. There was bound to be a lot of non-combat attrition.
"Ah? Are you leaving for the Japanese country of Hokkaido now?"
After arriving at the brigade headquarters, Zhou Changfeng held a meeting of all officers and announced the exercise, which immediately aroused everyone's surprise.
Naturally, the officers did not know the content of the imperial meeting and Zhu Lingjing's arrangements, so they thought it was just Zhou's sudden plan.
Zhu Lizhuo, who had always been afraid of the cold, was immediately unhappy, but because he could not touch the prestige of a brigade commander.
So he could only say vaguely: "It's going to be freezing over there in a few days, and it's very easy for a lot of patients to get sick. And going there for a drill is not in line with the actual situation. Why don't we go to Qiongya?" "
Where does it get cold in Nanyang? We must be going south. Why are we going to Bitter Leaf Island out of nowhere?
His words were appropriate both emotionally and rationally. Everyone present looked at Zhou Changfeng eagerly, hoping that he would change his words. After all, no one likes to endure hardship for no reason.
The latter roared, knocked on the table, shook his head and said with a smile: "This is not my decision and cannot be changed."
ah?
Everyone looked at each other in shock, and no one could figure out the reason. They could only vaguely guess that it might be the intention of the court or the emperor.
Zhou Changfeng glanced at the crowd and continued to explain: "The main reason is that there are oil fields on Kuye Island, and they go deep inland after landing. In this regard, it is in line with future actions, but the climate is completely different."
"Okay, if you want to be more open-minded, you can go to Japan to have fun again." Xie Wancheng was very optimistic and didn't take it seriously.
"You can enjoy the hardships, but Hokkaido is also a bitter and cold place. There are few people and the girls are not very young. Just give up your thoughts." Yao Liangchuan complained casually.
Xie Wancheng, who was slightly annoyed, glared at him and said, "Supervisor, can you please keep quiet? Am I not trying to comfort everyone?"
Zhu Lizhuo then asked: "When will we leave?"
"As soon as possible, make preliminary preparations today and tomorrow." Zhou Changfeng's eyes danced on the officers, and finally fell on Jiang Ning. "Prepare more medicine and be prepared for 5,000 personnel (non-combat attrition)."
The latter was originally distracted, because when he mentioned Japan, he naturally thought of Komatsu Moriko who was brought back to the Ming Dynasty by him.
"Yes!" He quickly came to his senses and accepted the order with his fists clasped.
It takes half a month to go back and forth. During this period, it takes at least ten days to plan, prepare, and conduct exercises. Including the waiting time, it takes about a month.
This is still at the end of the day. If the progress is slower, I may only be able to come back a few days before New Year's Eve.
Although there is no way to refuse my job, it is really sad to be separated from my wife.
While driving home, Zhou Changfeng thought about the past between himself and Xia Xiaoshi. It was only a short time between the initial interest and the slight affection, and then they got engaged not long after.
Compared to Xia Xiaoshi's admiration for him, he didn't have much deep feelings for her at first, and had always maintained a "slight affection" for her. But as time went by, now he was getting more and more into it?
"General!"
"Hey, my sister is still awesome."
In the main hall, Xia Xiaoshi and Lin Xi were playing chess with nothing to do. When Zhou Changfeng arrived, they were resetting the chessboard.
"Oh? Sir is back?"
"Are you bullying that little girl again?"
"How can you call it bullying?" Xia Xiaoshi snorted, "How about you playing chess with me instead?"
"No, no, no, you play, you play." Zhou Changfeng waved his hand and took two steps back.
At least in terms of playing chess, he didn't dare challenge Xia Xiaoshi, which was self-defeating.
Hey, even if there are tens of thousands of words about Tsarist Russia, I can’t write more about it. I can only touch on it. Forgive me.
(End of chapter)
