Chapter 39 Falling into a trap and signing a secret contract

After the Sino-Japanese War and the "Treaty of Shimonoseki", the mainstream understanding of the Qing government's policy towards Japan gradually became an alliance with Russia to resist Japan.Because Tsarist Russia jumped out at the most difficult time of the Qing Empire to help get back to the Liaodong Peninsula.In addition, the Qing government also wanted to use Tsarist Russia to contain Japan.Among them, Liu Kunyi, the governor of Liangjiang, said it most clearly: Japan is the most threatening country. Japan has long accumulated ambitions to occupy the Northeast, and Russia is the least willing because it borders the Northeast of the Qing Empire.Therefore, if I take advantage of this time to form a deep bond with him, to support each other, and to give him a little advantage, Obi will be happy to obey me.

Japan ceded the Liaodong Peninsula through the "Treaty of Shimonoseki", which violated the place that Tsarist Russia was going to seize, so Tsarist Russia joined forces with France and Germany to intervene.At that time, although Japan dominated the East, it did not dare to fight against the three Western powers, so it had to agree to give up the Liaodong Peninsula, but China had to pay a huge ransom for this.On October 14, 1895, the Qing government negotiated with Hayashi Quansuke, the Japanese Minister of Plenipotentiary in Beijing, with Li Hongzhang as Minister of Plenipotentiary for the return of the Liao Brigade.On November 8, it was finally agreed and signed that China paid 30 million taels to redeem the Liaodong Peninsula.In this way, in the eyes of the Qing government, Tsarist Russia became a savior and was treated as a benefactor.

In the early 1890s, Russia began to build the Trans-Siberian Railway across the two continents of Europe and Asia, starting from Moscow in the west and reaching Vladivostok in the east, in an attempt to gain greater advantages over other European countries in the Far East and control all international affairs in the Pacific Ocean. business activities.In 1894, the Siberian Railway was built to the Transbaikal region. Regarding the direction of the railway, the Tsar approved the plan to cross Northeast China proposed by the Minister of Finance Witte, because it could not only shorten the distance, save money, and speed up the progress; Military, political, and economic expansion of China and the Far East.Once the plan was established, it began to try to implement it.In June and July of 1895, without the consent of the Qing government, Russia sent personnel to Northeast China to survey routes.In November, Witte proposed to Xu Jingcheng, the Chinese ambassador to Russia, that the Russians set up a company to undertake the construction of this road and sign a contract with China, in an attempt to deceive the Qing government under the guise of the so-called Sino-Russian joint venture without hindering the main state affairs Take the bait.Not long after, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs ordered its Minister in China, Kassini, to discuss with the Prime Minister's Yamen the establishment of a company.Witte also promised to allocate an appropriate amount of money for the use of the Duke in China to bribe the Qing emperor's cronies and close officials.But later, Russia considered that Beijing was in full view, which was not conducive to secret negotiations, and it happened that the coronation ceremony of Tsar Nicholas II was about to be held, so Russia chose Petersburg as the venue for negotiations.The coronation of Tsar Nicholas II was scheduled to be held in May 1896, and all countries sent special envoys to congratulate him. Both Empress Dowager Cixi and Yixin believed that it was most appropriate to send Li Hongzhang.One is because foreigners said that for China in the 19th century, they only knew about Li Hongzhang but not the emperor;

In February 1896, the Qing government decided to send Li Hongzhang to Russia.In addition, considering that Li Hongzhang was idle at home, Cixi decided to take the opportunity to let him travel to Europe and the United States to contact the feelings of the great powers. Li Hongzhang was quite proud of being sent to Russia, but on the surface he pretended to be an old man, using old age and infirmity, a long journey, and being out of etiquette, which hurt the state as an excuse. You repeatedly declined, but the Qing government firmly refused.When Li Hongzhang felt that it was indeed what everyone expected, he said that he dared not love his body, but was afraid of humiliating his life.

On February 28, Cixi summoned Li Hongzhang. Two days later, Li Hongzhang asked for his majesty's speech. On March 3, he left Beijing for the south and arrived in Shanghai on March 14.At that time, Britain, France, and Germany all invited Li Hongzhang to visit first for profit.Li Hongzhang also had plans to go to Russia via France and Germany.However, Russia was worried that Li Hongzhang's first visit to France and Germany would damage the Sino-Russian negotiations, so Cassini came forward and agreed with Li Hongzhang on the itinerary: depart from Shanghai by boat, cross the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, and transfer to Russia at Port Said, Egypt. The ship entered the Black Sea from the Mediterranean Sea, arrived at the Russian port city of Odessa, and then drove to Moscow.

On March 28, 1896, Li Hongzhang, who was already 73 years old, led his entourage Li Jingfang, Li Jingshu, Yu Shimei, Luo Fenglu, Ke Lede (Russia), De Cuilin (Germany), Mu Yi Forty-five people including Suo (France), He Zheng (England), and Du Weide (America) sailed from Shanghai on the French cruise ship Ernesto Simon, and began their journey around the world.Li Jingfang was in charge of assistant affairs, and Li Jingshu was in charge of taking care of Li Hongzhang's daily life.In addition, there are Yu Shimei, the head of the Ministry of War, and foreign consultants from various countries. Li Hongzhang also brought a British doctor.After they set off from Shanghai, they passed through the East China Sea, the South China Sea, the Strait of Malacca, crossed the Indian Ocean, passed through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, and arrived in Port Said, Egypt.The Tsar sent Duke Ukhtomsky to meet him in Port Said, and then he was transferred to a Russian ship from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea.

Before his departure in Shanghai, Li Hongzhang once said to the visiting Huang Zunxian: Contacting the West and containing the East are the key strategies for this trip.This not only reflects Li Hongzhang's aspirations, but also expresses the intention of the Qing government.If you do not seek self-reliance, but want to use barbarians to control barbarians, the result will be barbarians. Li Hongzhang first arrived in Russia.They arrived in the Russian port city of Odessa on April 27, 1896.Li Hongzhang sent a telegram to the Prime Minister's Yamen and said: "When I arrived in Odessa, the Russian land and water admiral and the local civil and military reception were very respectful.

An important task of Li Hongzhang's trip was to form an alliance with Russia. The tsar asked Li Hongzhang to go to Petersburg instead of Moscow in order to start negotiations before the coronation ceremony, because it would be very difficult to hold negotiations during the coronation ceremony.Until then, there will be various celebrations every day.On April 30th, Li Hongzhang arrived in Petersburg by express train, and lived in the luxurious private residence of the tycoon Barauf. From the food to the interior furnishings, everything was Chinese, and Barauf's daily life and language were all Chinese.Li Hongzhang enjoyed it so much that he almost forgot that he was in a foreign land.The Tsar appointed Witte to negotiate with Li Hongzhang.At that time, someone warned Witte that the first thing to do when negotiating with Chinese officials is not to be in a hurry, because if they are in a hurry, they will think it is a bad manner, and they must do everything in a calm and unhurried manner, and everything must follow various Chinese etiquette.Werther finally pushed Li Hongzhang into the preset trap.

In Petersburg, Li Hongzhang began to discuss the "Sino-Russian Secret Treaty" with the Russians. On May 3, Werther raised the issue of borrowing land to build roads to Li Hongzhang. He linked the borrowing of land to build roads with Russia's support for China's integrity. China will not make concessions to such demands that violate China's sovereignty.He said: Originally, I wanted to take advantage of the road to make a quick success and relieve the Japanese problem. Although China now considers it to be self-managed, but it has always been accustomed to it, and I am afraid that it will not be successful in ten years.Russia proposed to recommend the company to undertake railway matters.Regarding Werther's request and explanation, Li Hongzhang raised various objections, pointing out that: the recommending company is acting as an agent for Russia, and Yu Hua's rights are hindered, and other countries must follow suit.

Although Witte hit a snag in the initial negotiations with Li Hongzhang, he learned from Li Hongzhang's conversation that if he saw that the tsar wanted to build the railway, he would agree.Therefore, Witte suggested that the Tsar receive Li Hongzhang. On May 4th, Li Hongzhang paid a visit to the Tsar in the Emperor's Palace, presenting the letter of credence, the treasure star, and reading the eulogy.On May 7, the Tsar once again secretly received Li Hongzhang, ordering the party who brought the scriptures to spread the word, so that no one else would know.The Tsar led Li Hongzhang to the side hall, gave him a seat and talked freely, and said: Our country is vast and sparsely populated, and we will never invade human-sized land.The friendship between China and Russia has become closer.The connection of the Eastern Province is actually a quick way to deploy troops in the future, and China will help when there is something to do, not only for the benefit of Russia.China may not be able to do it by itself, or it may be undertaken by the Russo-China Bank in Shanghai, with proper regulations, controlled by Hua, and no malpractice. There are many cases of this in various countries.In the future, it is difficult to guarantee that there will be no troubles between Japanese and British, and Russia can help.

After the talks, Li Hongzhang telegraphed the Zongli Yamen, thinking that the tsar's proposition was stronger than Witt's previous peace talks.The so-called "peaceful" and so on, nothing more than the tsar's promise not to invade human-sized land, the Eastern Province to be controlled by China, and China to assist China against Britain and Japan.Li Hongzhang believed the tsar's promise.In his mind, as the lord of the country, how could he deceive others with his promises!Beginning on May 8, Russian Foreign Minister Robanov, together with Witte, continued to negotiate with Li Hongzhang.Li Hongzhang telegraphed the negotiation situation to the Prime Minister's Office at any time, and asked to act on his behalf. Weng Tonghe and Zhang Yinhuan mostly handled the negotiations in the Prime Minister's Office, and discussed with Yixin and Yikuang.Adhering to the tsar's will, Robanov and Witte attempted to sign a secret agreement with China and Russia in exchange for the right to connect the Eastern Province.On the other hand, Li Hongzhang and the Qing government advocated running their own road connections and signing mutual aid treaties in order to ensure road rights and win foreign aid.Robanov and Witte pressed forward step by step, but Li Hongzhang retreated step by step.The negotiations between them started in Petersburg and ended in Moscow. Li Hongzhang arrived in Moscow on May 18, and then participated in the coronation ceremony of Tsar Nicholas II. He was invited to the palace to celebrate. All diamond inlaid.The czar's reception of Li Hongzhang was both courteous and courteous, and he tried his best to win over him without making any publicity, so as not to arouse the suspicion of foreign countries.Witte said: In the "Official Gazette", there is the least information about Li Hongzhang. There is no mention of his reception in Petersburg, nor of his reception in Moscow or his reception after the coronation ceremony. In late May, Li Hongzhang thought that the matter had come to an end and he could no longer argue, so he called the Prime Minister's Yamen, saying that it was troublesome to rush things, and asked for an order as soon as possible, and he called for compliance.Weng Tonghe, Zhang Yinhuan, Yixin, Yikuang, Li Hongzao, Ronglu and others discussed the joint Russian affairs, and all the secret telegrams were read publicly, and they agreed to do so.That is to say, it is a decision, and it is a general purpose.On the 28th, he asked for approval, and on the 29th, Weng Tonghe went to Zhang Yinhuan's place to issue a decree, not only approving the inscription on the treaty, but also making some changes to the words and sentences in the treaty.On June 3, Li Hongzhang, Robanov, and Witte signed the "Treaty of Mutual Assistance against the Enemy" commonly known as the "Sino-Russian Secret Treaty" on behalf of the governments of the two countries.In his memoirs, Witte described a dramatic episode that occurred at that time: the first paragraph of the "Sino-Russian Secret Treaty" drafted by Robanov originally stipulated that the Sino-Russian military alliance should deal with Japan or countries allied with Japan.Witte believes that this will make Russia take unnecessary risks, which has attracted opposition from many European countries.He suggested to the tsar that the words "country allied with Japan" should be deleted, and the tsar agreed and ordered Robanov to do so.On the day of the signing, when the representatives of both parties were seated at the table, Witter suddenly found that these words had not been deleted from the official text. him about it.Robanov slapped his forehead and said: Oh, that's too bad, I forgot to tell the secretary, I forgot to ask them to rewrite this as the first draft.Still, he is a veteran diplomat with a knack for adapting.He looked at his watch, it was already a quarter past twelve, he slapped his hands a few times, and when some people came in, he said: Let's have dinner now!Then he told Li Hongzhang and other people present that it was already past twelve o'clock, let us eat first, otherwise the food will not taste good, and we will sign after we finish eating.When everyone went to eat, he specially left two secretaries to make necessary corrections to the text of the treaty. In this way, what was placed on the table after the meal was no longer the two texts of the treaty just now, but one that had been changed. of the text.Sadly, Li Hongzhang fell into the quack trick played by Werther and Robanov without realizing it, and immediately signed the revised text. The "Sino-Russian Secret Treaty" consists of six articles, the main content of which is: If Japan invades the Russian Far East or the territory of China and Korea, China and Russia will jointly send troops and provide each other with food and arms; during the war, all ports in China should be open to Russian warships; China Allows Russia to Build Railways in Heilongjiang and Jilin Provinces to Vladivostok This treaty was the product of Russia's well-planned aggressive conspiracy and the Qing government's policy of uniting Russia to control Japan. Under the guise of Sino-Russian joint defense against the enemy, Russia not only defrauded Russia of the privilege of building a transit railway in Northeast China, but also for the sea. The army's invasion of Chinese territory opened the door to convenience. After Li Hongzhang signed the "Sino-Russian Secret Treaty" with Russia, which violated China's sovereignty, he kept it secret and returned to China.Li Hongzhang said with satisfaction that the "Sino-Russian Secret Treaty" can guarantee that the borders of the Qing Dynasty will be safe for 20 years.He never expected that this secret agreement would not be kept for even a year. In 1897, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany visited Russia and hinted to Nicholas II about getting involved in the Jiaozhou Bay issue, but Nicholas II expressed no interest.In November of that year, two German missionaries were killed in China, and then another German sailor was killed. Germany finally found an excuse and sent troops to occupy Jiaozhou Bay.In December, Russia sent warships into Lushun and Dalian under the pretext of helping the Qing army resist Germany. Only then did Li Hongzhang realize that he had made a big mistake of leading the wolf into the house.In the end, the Qing government had to agree to lease Jiaozhou Bay to Germany.Then, Tsarist Russia shamelessly proposed to lease Lushun and Dalian.The Qing government had to agree.Then France proposed to lease Guangzhou. At this time, what else could the Qing government do besides agreeing?Since then, the United Kingdom has proposed to expand Hong Kong.Since then, the great powers have begun a frenzy to carve up China. The treaties related to these concessions were all signed by Li Hongzhang.Li Hongzhang's diplomatic career in his later years was nothing but shame.Back then, he had successfully used the so-called ruffian tactics against foreigners; now he has no means to deal with foreigners, and he is unable to parry.