Chapter 15 Chapter 15 "Treaty of Shimonoseki": Loss far more than on paper

The queen party faction has already started peace talks. However, peace talks are a disgraceful thing after all, and it would be a great loss of face, so the peace talks of the Houdang Group have always been secretive. When Youpeng in Shan County broke through the defense line of the Yalu River, the Zongli Yamen began to seek help from Britain, Russia, France, and the United States everywhere, preparing to start a new round of six-party talks, asking Western powers to mediate and end the war as soon as possible. The Japanese don't take this set. At this time, the Qing Dynasty has not been "pained", and what is not obtained on the battlefield cannot be obtained on the negotiating table. This is one of the reasons why Japan can not get much from the peace talks that started so early.Muhito's authorized representative, Ito Hirobumi, has long established the principle that only the important ministers of the Qing Dynasty should be interviewed face-to-face. This kind of negotiation is effective, and what is negotiated can also be guaranteed to be fulfilled.

Then, Li Hongzhang sent his German adviser, De Trilin, as his personal representative to Japan.At this time, the Japanese army had captured Lushun, and Li Hongzhang hoped that he would not have to come forward, and that the peace talks could be carried out successfully. Ito Hirobumi didn't even give this person the chance to meet. At that time, Japan was very angry at Li Hongzhang for sending a foreign consultant to the peace talks, and they did not intend to meet with De Trilin.But after Ito Hirobumi considered for a long time, he still decided to meet De Culin. This is not for Li Hongzhang's face.

For Japan, Li Hongzhang is the best candidate for peace talks in Ito Hirobumi's mind. Li Hongzhang's qualifications and power in the Qing Dynasty can guarantee the realization of Japan's negotiating interests. He is too negligent and rude, which will undoubtedly affect Li Hongzhang's prestige and status in the Qing court. I am afraid that Li Hongzhang will lose the opportunity to represent the Qing Dynasty in peace talks in the future—so, although there is no need to talk to De Cuilin, you must meet De Cuilin , to ensure that Li Hongzhang will continue to stay on the reserve table of the future Qing peace ambassador.

Just when Ito Hirobumi was about to have a cup of tea with De Trilin and leave, the situation changed again. The German government got involved. They asked Ito Hirobumi to meet De Trilin through the Minister in Japan, with the purpose of taking care of Germany's face and in the Qing Dynasty. status.When Hirobumi Ito received the report, he immediately changed his decision: disappeared.Because once interviewed, the fact will become that Japan is under pressure from Germany to interview Detriline, and Japan does not need such an image. Niu, you are worthy of being an old fox. The next two ministers at the provincial and ministerial levels, Zhang Yinhuan and Shao Youlian, were sent. Ito Hirobumi met him, but he didn't start a minute of formal negotiations. He also found a reason to beat him back: It's not that Japan doesn't love peace, it's your documents Incomplete, so we can't talk about it.

The so-called incomplete documents have been described in many history books. Hirobumi Ito said that the word "full power" was not written in the credentials carried by the two ministers. This is fooling Japan. How can we talk to you? What Hirobumi Ito said is true, but he is still deliberately finding fault. During war negotiations, the so-called "plenipotentiary" of any country must be approved by the top leader of the country after negotiating the terms. Hirobumi Ito himself No exception, he insisted that Zhang and Shao were not plenipotentiaries, but Hirobumi Ito was. In fact, the letter of appointment that Muruhito gave him was not a "plenipotentiary" letter of appointment. If it is really appropriate, even if it is approved).

If we pay attention to the time, we will find why Hirobumi Ito is looking for trouble.At this time, the Japanese army was attacking Weihai, preparing to wipe out the Beiyang Fleet.According to international practice, if the two countries officially start peace talks, there must be a truce. Hirobumi Ito's purpose of disturbing this matter is to buy time for military operations and find a high-sounding reason to maintain Japan's international image. Sure enough, when the imperial court backed down a step and expressed its willingness to give the two ministers Zhang and Shao the "full power" letters of appointment as required by Japan, Hirobumi Ito had already issued an order to expel the guests. On February 12, 1895, under the supervision of the Japanese military and police, Zhang Yinhuan and Shao Youlian left Japan and returned to China sadly. On the ship returning home, they heard the news that the Beiyang Fleet had been wiped out!

Before Zhang Yinhuan and Shao Youlian left, Ito Hirobumi simply stated his true thoughts: You Qing people lack integrity, and you are not sincere about peace talks. If you really want to seek peace, you should send higher-ranking officials who are enough to guarantee peace. Those who implement and sign the treaty come and send qualified plenipotentiaries to write down the country clearly, so that I can talk to you! So who is this person?Li Hongzhang. After going back and forth, time has passed again, Yejin Taoist sweeps the Northeast, invincible.Although Guangxu had always opposed the peace talks, the emperor had to accept the reality after using Wu Dazhang: Li Hongzhang and the Huai Army were not the only ones who could not do it, and the results were still the same if they were replaced by people from his own camp. worse!

Therefore, "seeking peace with Japan at all costs" has become the consensus of the two parties of the emperor and empress.Cixi personally ordered that Li Hongzhang's failure in the battle be revoked. Master Li put on the top hat and yellow jacket again. In Tianjin, Li Hongzhang embarked on the road to Beijing.He knew that the so-called "request for instructions" was to discuss a way to negotiate peace with the Japanese.With the war at this level, the cards in Japan's hands are no longer what they used to be. Ito Hirobumi and the Japanese government have shown their minions. Everyone knows that what Japan wants in this war is not just a huge sum of money. Reparations, but one of the most stringent conditions - ceding land.Once the land is ceded, it will be unacceptable to hundreds of millions of Qing people, and those who make the decision will also bear the infamy of generations to come.Therefore, Li Hongzhang believed that he had to "ask for instructions" and get the full power to cede land granted by the court, whether it was authorized by Cixi or Guangxu, as long as he was not allowed to bear Li Hongzhang's eternal infamy!

But as soon as Li Hongzhang came to Beijing, Cixi fell ill. She was very ill and could not see anyone, not even Guangxu came to pay her respects.She instructed: Master Li should talk to the emperor about the peace talks. If the emperor makes the decision, it means she makes the decision. The old fox is going to shirk the responsibility of authorization. Li Hongzhang was not in a hurry, he still had the same plan. Before he was given the right to cede land by Cixi or Guangxu, and before he got the tacit approval of the powerful princes and ministers in the court, he would stay in Beijing and he could not bear this infamy.Li Hongzhang knew that the court would be in a hurry. Even if Cixi was not in a hurry, Guangxu would be in a hurry. After all, he is the nominal supreme leader of the country. Eunuchs are not in a hurry, ministers are not in a hurry, he must be in a hurry.

Guangxu was not stupid, he went to ask Cixi to make a decision with great reluctance, and he must meet Cixi, ask about his illness, and show his filial piety.So he knelt outside Empress Dowager Cixi's bedroom and shouted "May the Merciful Sage be safe", but there was no response for a long time.Cixi's personal eunuch couldn't stand it anymore, so he came out to pass on a message and quietly told Guangxu: Please go back, Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager will not see you. "Today, the Empress Dowager not only suffers from liver pain, but also has diarrhea. Her arms are so sore that she has no strength to lift it. How can she see you? The Empress Dowager said, please come back, the emperor. Everything can be done according to the emperor's will." ("Weng Wengong's Diary")

Guangxu left the inner palace very depressed, and returned to the main hall, only to be in a daze alone.His eunuch told him: Li Zhongtang is waiting for your "sacred teaching"! In fact, Li Hongzhang was also thinking of a way, and this method was still his old method - using barbarians to control barbarians.At the British Legation in Beijing, Li Hongzhang secretly visited the British Minister in China. Master Li took out a copy of the "Draft of the Secret Treaty of the Sino-British Alliance" to the British Minister in China. The conditions in it were very attractive. In order to repay this "great favor", the Qing Dynasty can allow the United Kingdom to reorganize and control the land and sea forces of the Qing Dynasty in the next few years, and enjoy the exclusive right to build railways and mine mines, and Several new ports were to be opened for British commerce. This treaty is equivalent to automatically becoming a British puppet government, handing over the actual management of the country to the British government. As long as you don’t cede land, the imperial court will live in face, and the people of the Qing Dynasty will not know about these private deals we have reached with you, and will not rebel. This is for the long-term stability of the imperial court’s rule, and it will last forever. After reading the plan, the British Minister smiled slightly: Li Zhongtang is going to play tricks again. The United Kingdom also wants to monopolize the Qing Dynasty, but this is impossible, because there are many other powerful countries in the world besides Great Britain, and everyone is salivating, maintaining a balance based on strength.Once a country completely breaks this balance, it will definitely have to become the target of attacks by other powerful countries.For example, Russia will not agree. When the war between Britain and Russia occurs, the British will not eat meat, and there will be heavy losses. This kind of business cannot be done. At this time, Yejin Daoguan had captured Tianzhuang Terrace and was approaching Shanhaiguan. Guangxu knew that he could no longer drag on, and began to write a power of attorney in the palace, clearly granting Li Hongzhang full power to cede the land. Cixi's illness was miraculously cured.Behind the curtain, her recovering voice sounded again: "Your proposals are against my will, but since you have discussed it with the emperor, what can I do? This matter is a set rule, then Let's do this. Li Hongzhang is on the road, his destination is Maguan, to sign a treaty with the most stringent conditions for the Qing since the Opium War in 1840. The full text of the Treaty of Shimonoseki: 1. The Qing Dynasty withdrew its troops from North Korea and recognized North Korea's "independence" and was no longer the sovereign state of North Korea; 2. The Qing Dynasty ceded Taiwan Island and all affiliated islands, the Penghu Islands and the Liaodong Peninsula to Japan; 3. The Qing Dynasty compensated Japan for military expenses of 200 million taels of silver; 4. The Qing Dynasty opened Shashi, Chongqing, Suzhou, and Hangzhou as commercial ports, and Japanese ships could enter the above ports along the inland river; 5. The Qing Dynasty gave Japan a one-sided most-favored-nation treatment, allowing the Japanese to set up consulates and invest in factories in the Qing Dynasty's treaty ports. Japanese merchants and civilians were required to reduce taxes and exempt lijin for goods transported into China's ports; 6. The Qing state shall not arrest persons serving in the Japanese army. The text of the Treaty of Shimonoseki reaches Russia.The Tsar was pleased when he saw the first article. The Qing Dynasty lost North Korea, and North Korea’s tribute and ceremonies to the Qing Dynasty will be abolished forever. It will be convenient for Russian forces to enter North Korea in the future. This is what the Russians want to see. Disappointed to see the second one.The Northeast has always been a place that Russia has been coveting. The Russians have long regarded the Northeast as their territory. Now Japan wants to cut off Liaodong (including Lushun, Dalian Bay, etc.) from the Qing Dynasty. Even if the Qing Dynasty is easy to bully, Russia is not easy to deal with. yes. The Tsar was very angry and decided to intervene by force.Also called two friends: France and Germany. France has always been a friend of Russia. In 1871, France and Germany fought a war (the Franco-Prussian War). It was through this battle that Germany was unified and became an emerging European power. After that, France formed an alliance with Russia to deal with Germany.And Germany is working hard to mend relations with Russia, because Germany does not have a territory in the Qing Dynasty, the most urgent thing is to build a naval base in the Qing Dynasty, so that the German fleet can reach here, so as to grab the territory.Germany has just become strong and has little power in the Qing Dynasty. This ambition needs the support of the overlord in this region—Russia. For current or future interests, these three countries with different dreams in the same bed united temporarily, and jointly dispatched warships to the Sea of ​​Japan, demanding that Japan immediately return the Liaodong Peninsula to the Qing Dynasty (so that Russia can take it away in the future). If Japan does not agree, the warships of the three countries will It is about to fire on the Japanese mainland. Japan can't deal with Russia for the time being, and it is really unwilling to give up the mainland of Liaodong. The Japanese have found their big brother, Britain.Before the Qing-Japanese War, Britain was already an ally of Japan. At the most critical juncture of the Qing-Japanese War, Britain successively lent two huge sums of money totaling nearly 100 million taels of silver to the Qing Dynasty. But if we think that Britain is helping the Qing Dynasty Wrong, on the contrary, the purpose of the British is to help Japan.This is consistent with Japan not wanting to start peace talks so early in the war. The loan to the Qing Dynasty is to enable the Qing Dynasty to barely maintain the war instead of surrendering immediately, so that the war can be carried out to the extent Japan hopes to achieve, so that when the treaty is signed, Japan to get as much as possible of what they want. The Japanese believe that with this relationship, Big Brother will continue to support them. But Big Brother has his own considerations at this time. Big Brother is the country with the greatest interests in the Qing Dynasty, and the core of its policy is to be conservative and maintain the status quo.The United Kingdom cannot be enmity with those three big bosses simply for the sake of Japan's ambitions.Therefore, the British politely rejected Japan (the UK has the most sincere friendship with Japan, but it also has to consider its own interests, so it cannot assist you at your proposal). Japan had no choice but to endure and return Liaodong to the Qing Dynasty.But it had to be respectable, which meant not changing the full text of the "Treaty of Shimonoseki", so as not to leave an impression in the world that Japan was under pressure from the three countries to revise the treaty. Japan then signed a subsidiary treaty with the Qing Dynasty, announcing its abandonment of Liaodong.This subsidiary treaty is the "Liaonan Treaty" in history. It is an agreement on the sharing of spoils among the big brothers, and the Qing Dynasty can only sign it. However, Japan did not announce "unconditional renunciation". The renunciation is conditional. In Ito Hirobumi's words, it means "total concessions to the Three Kingdoms and no concessions to the Qing Dynasty."Liaodong originally belonged to Japan, but now if you want to go back, the Qing Dynasty will have to buy it with money. How much is it? 30 million taels of silver. In this way, the Qing Dynasty was lucky enough to keep Liaodong, but the total amount of compensation increased to 230 million taels of silver. Let's take stock of the fortunes made by the Japanese. The following calculations will be very detailed, and I will strive to not miss a single cent. Although it is actually impossible, I still intend to do so. 230 million taels of silver, Japan requested to pay in British pounds.At this time, we need to understand the exchange rate knowledge. At that time, the international silver price fell, and the pound sterling exchanged for one tael of silver decreased. Through the exchange rate method, Japan successfully squeezed out about 15 million taels of silver.In addition, Japan stipulates that all indemnities must be paid in eight installments at most within three years. Before all the money is in hand, Japan will not withdraw its troops from Weihai. A total of 1.5 million taels. Don't underestimate these small coins. The Qing Dynasty has a vast land and abundant resources, so you don't need to care about these small coins.The Japanese only know how cool it is to count money with their fingers. Interest will be accrued until the indemnity is paid. According to regulations, after the first delivery of the Qing Dynasty, Japan will charge interest at an annual rate of 5% on the remaining indemnity. The annual interest of 230 million taels of silver is more than 10 million taels of silver. Japan not only increased its income, but also ensured that the Qing Dynasty would desperately repay the money. The sooner it is paid off, the better. In addition to the reparations stipulated in the treaty, there is one more thing we must not forget.That is the spoils of war that the Japanese army got in the war.According to statistics, during the Sino-Japanese War, the Japanese army possessed only 300 field guns, while they captured 608 cannons, and the input-output ratio was 1:2. Throughout the Qing-Japanese War, the Japanese army only consumed 340,900 shells and 1,241,800 bullets.And they seized 2.6 million rounds of shells and 17.45 million rounds of ammunition, regardless of the input-output ratio. If anyone can achieve such a result in stocks, he will probably invite everyone he knows to have a meal. There are still many trophies of the Japanese army, such as the unsinkable warships of the Beiyang Fleet, and more than 7,000 13-shot Mauser rifles seized. 368 horses were taken back to Japan by the Japanese army, and 17,000 shi of military rations were transported back by the Japanese. Other military salaries seized in the Qing army camps-gold bricks, gold coins, and silver ingots are difficult to count. Someone once did an in-depth study, and finally came to a conclusion, which I also quote here: The Japanese army earned between 80 million and 100 million taels of silver only from the spoils of war. Counting seven times and eight times, Japan’s direct wealth is more than 330 million taels of silver, which is nearly ten times the total indemnity of the two Opium Wars and four times the fiscal revenue of the Qing Dynasty (80 million taels of silver). Five times the income (60 million taels of silver).The Japanese fought for half a year and received direct income for five years. Finally, in May 1898, the Qing Dynasty paid all the above indemnities to Japan in four installments. Japan used these indemnities to invest in the establishment of modern enterprises such as arms, steel, railways, shipping, mining, telegraphs and telephones, and quickly completed the industrial revolution.Data show that in the five years from the first year of receiving reparations (1895) to 1900, Japan's industrialization achievements were equivalent to the sum of the 30 years since the Meiji Restoration to the pre-war period.In addition to completing industrial reforms, they also successfully completed financial reforms. Requirement to pay compensation in British pounds, in addition to the exchange rate issue, is still preparing for the reform of the currency system.At that time, due to the rise in the price of gold and the fall in the price of silver in the international market, the major countries in the world changed their currency systems to the gold standard one after another. However, Japan, like the Qing Dynasty, was still a country on the silver standard. To change to the gold standard system, a large amount of gold and foreign exchange reserves were needed. , and Japan's foreign exchange reserves are not enough.After acquiring huge sums of pounds, Japan withdrew some of it as reserves. On October 1, 1897, Japan successfully switched to the gold standard. The benefits of changing to the gold standard system are obvious. First, it successfully avoided the risks brought about by the fall in the international silver price. More importantly, Japan was able to participate in financial operations in London, the world's financial center at that time, until it became an Asian financial center. center. Well, Japan's accounts are over, can everyone take a long breath and take a break, after all, the numbers are boring and seem boring, but it will take a little time for everyone, because the accounts of the Qing Dynasty have not yet been settled. Because the money returned to Japan by the Qing Dynasty was borrowed, and the loan was subject to interest and kickbacks. The two largest sums: borrowed 100 million taels of silver from the joint consortium of Russia and France (Hua-Russia Bank), paid the other party a rebate of 5.875%, and paid an annual interest of 4%, and paid it off in 36 years.Borrowed another 100 million taels of silver from the joint consortium of Germany and the United Kingdom (Deutsche Bank and HSBC), with a rebate of 6%, an annual interest of 5%, and repayment in 36 years. During this 36-year period, no early repayment is allowed - then there will be no interest.And foreigners are not worried that the Qing Dynasty will not be finished, because these loans are guaranteed by the customs revenue of the Qing Dynasty and other regular taxes. The first head of tax collection (the General Taxation Department of Customs) is held by the British. Borrowed 200 million taels, seems to be almost the same, right?wrong!I did a special research and found that the loan of 200 million taels of silver was finally used to pay compensation, only about 130 million taels of silver, and the remaining 70 million taels were kickbacks given to foreign banks, but there was still a small part whose whereabouts are unknown , it was taken away by various "middlemen" as commissions, or exploited by people in the Qing government department that specifically handled the matter. In this way, I counted again. For the repayment of the three years, the imperial court borrowed 7 times from foreign banks, a total of 370 million taels of silver, plus interest, rebates, etc., the 370 million taels of silver doubled again, It became more than 700 million taels.In other words, through financial means, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and other Western countries plundered a total of more than 300 million taels of silver from the Qing Dynasty. Through the First World War between Qing and Japan, they made a fortune that was not much less than that of Japan. Why did the six-party talks organized by the Qing Dynasty fail again and again, and why Western countries always and unanimously supported Japan's war, from the perspective of making a fortune, I found the reason. The loss of the Qing Dynasty was not only economical, but more deadly, it opened a door, a door that made other powerful countries want to move. Western media reports at the time: The Japanese opened the eyes of the world, allowing people to see the true incompetence of the Qing court.There is another unspoken sentence in the back: everyone, come and grab it. Originally, through the Westernization Movement, the Qing Dynasty gave itself and the whole world an illusion: it is already strong, and you have to be afraid of aggressing the Qing Dynasty like it did during the Opium War.But the unbelieving Japanese broke this illusion, shattered the false prosperity of the Qing Dynasty’s Westernization Movement, and shattered the Qing people’s dream of a strong country. Starting from Japan, the big powers began the carve-up action that everyone rushed to grab. We calculated Japan's direct income earlier, it's time to calculate their indirect income.Indirect income cannot be counted clearly, but being unclear does not mean that it cannot be counted, and it does not mean that it does not need to be counted. The first indirect income is the tax and lijin exempted from Japanese goods at various treaty ports. The second indirect income was even larger. Through the "Treaty of Shimonoseki", Japan acquired its first colony-Taiwan.From 1895, Japan forcibly occupied Taiwan until 1945. During these 50 years, Japan collected taxes and obtained other materials from Taiwan. And when the Japanese thought that they could easily obtain Taiwan by virtue of the treaty, in order to resist the cession of Taiwan, the people of Taiwan began to unite against Japan and bravely resisted the Japanese invaders.This is a battle that is seldom recorded in detail in history books. The Taiwanese militia fighting alone eventually failed, but they never surrendered!I recorded this battle in more detail, because in this battle, there are things worthy of our memory, some worthy of our admiration, and even more worthy of our memory—— real resistance.