Another World: Naval Storm

The Japanese naval review ended with the roar of 21-gun salute from the Combined Fleet. The excited crowd did not disperse and continued to watch the warships of the Combined Fleet on the shore.

Emperor Kikuchi brought everyone to a meeting room in the imperial palace.

"Excuse me for making a fool of myself! Kyoto was attacked and the Imperial Palace was damaged. These are the few intact houses!" Emperor Kikuchi said, staring straight at Ambassador Drake.

Ambassador Drake felt very uncomfortable being stared at and could only sneer to hide his embarrassment.

"Mr. Ambassador, I believe you understand that Romania and Japan fought due to a misunderstanding, and now both countries do not have the strength to continue fighting. I hope you can tell His Majesty the Tsar that Japan hopes for peace!" Emperor Kikuchi described a national war with hundreds of thousands of casualties so easily that the ambassadors of various countries were dumbfounded.

"I will convey your wishes... As for the negotiation, I don't have the power to make the decision... The Empire should have news soon!"

At this time, Ambassador Yemelica stood up and said, "President Theodore of our country sent an identical letter to your country and the Rakshasa Empire, calling on the two countries to meet and negotiate peace on the basis of humanitarianism. Now that Japan is willing to negotiate, I believe the Rakshasa Empire will reply soon!"

"That's right, it's time to stop this inhumane war!" Ambassador Talen also echoed. He was a little forgetful and forgot that Talen colonized the world and massacred and exterminated no less than 6000 million people.

"The Franconian Republic is also willing to work hard to end the war!" The words of the three countries' ambassadors carry a lot of weight.

The three countries invited both sides to Pompey for post-war negotiations. The Japanese negotiator was Special Representative for Foreign Affairs Komura Jutaro, and the Russian Empire's negotiator was Finance Minister Witte.

Komura Jutaro couldn't understand the character of the Russians. He claimed to be a victorious country and put forward several harsh demands right from the start:

First, the Rakshasa Empire must recognize that Japan has the right to protect the Korean Peninsula.

Second, both Japan and Romania must evacuate the Northeast within the specified time.

Third, the leasehold rights of the Liaodong Peninsula need to be transferred to Japan, and the southern extension line of the China-Eastern Railway also needs to be transferred to Japan.

Fourth, pay 35 billion yen in military expenses.

Fifth, Sakhalin Island and its affiliated islands need to be ceded to Japan.

Sixth, Rakshasa’s navy in Northeast Asia needs to be restricted.

Seventh, Vladivostok can no longer have any defensive measures and should be converted into a commercial city.

Of these 7 items, the first two were reasonable, just appetizers, but the last 2 were more dizzying than the last! If all of them were agreed to, Witt would not have to return to St. Petersburg. The Tsar didn't even need to force him to agree to these conditions. He would just find a suitable place in the Far East to jump into the sea.

"Are you kidding me?" Witt threw the document back to Komura Jutaro.

"Special Envoy Witte, you are rude!" Komura Jutaro still doesn't understand the situation.

"How rude! Anyone who signs with these conditions is an idiot! Now let me show you something even more rude!" Witt took a deep breath and spit it directly into Komura Jutaro's mouth.

"You you you... ugh..." Komura Jutaro never expected Witt to do this, so he swallowed it directly. By the time his brain reacted, his body was already lying on the ground retching.

"Ugh... Special Envoy Witte's methods are a bit dirty!" Representative Yemelika felt nauseous.

"Indeed... Ugh..." Envoy Farran had a dark face. He was sure that the Russians were more barbaric and rude than he had imagined.

Of course, the negotiations could not continue, and Komura Jutaro was too embarrassed to stay in Pompey, so the negotiations had to be put on hold until a new negotiating envoy arrived.

The two sides did not resume negotiations until Japan sent a new negotiating representative, Aoki Shuzo.

Witte discussed with his staff for a long time before coming up with the Rakshasa Empire's own plan:

First, the Rakshasa Empire recognized Japan’s rights and interests in the Korean Peninsula.

Second, the Rakshasa Empire promised to withdraw its troops from the Northeast.

Third, the lease of Mashijin Port was transferred to Japan, and the southern extension of the Middle East Railway was also transferred to Japan. They did not consider the opinions of the Xunyang government, and the declining Xunyang was no longer taken seriously by them.

Fourth, the Russian Empire needs to retain sovereignty over the main line of the Middle East Railway.

Fifth, Rakshasa allowed Japanese fishermen to fish on the coast of Xianbeilia.

Witte's reply avoided the three major issues raised by Japan: the first was compensation, the second was the cession of Sakhalin Island and its affiliated islands, and the third was the conversion of Vladivostok to commercial use. The Russians also wanted to find an opportunity to continue to implement the Huangluo Ross Plan.

The Russians definitely don't want to pay compensation, not only because they don't have money, but also because they are stubborn and unwilling to accept losing the war. As for Sakhalin Island, it is now controlled by the Japanese, which is a big bargaining chip on the negotiation table.

Obviously, Japan was very dissatisfied with Witte's proposal, and the two sides parted unhappily. One day later, the third round of negotiations began. Aoki Shuzo insisted on two points: the Russian Empire must pay compensation and Sakhalin must be ceded to Japan. The negotiations were deadlocked.

At that time, President Theodore of Yemelica asked both sides to make concessions. He hoped that the Russian Empire would cede half of Sakhalin Island to Japan. This half of Sakhalin Island would serve as war reparations. After all, the entire Sakhalin Island had been controlled by Japan.

However, this proposal was not accepted by both sides, especially Japan, which did not accept this request at all because they were in urgent need of money at that time.

After the end of the Romanian-Japanese War, Japan suffered huge losses in addition to military losses, as well as enormous economic losses.

Statistics show that Japan spent more than 15 billion yen on military expenditures for this war, while the annual revenue of the Japanese treasury was only about 2 million yen at the time. The losses incurred by the attacks on Kyoto and coastal cities in Japan were also huge.

In order to fight this war, Japan not only emptied itself, but also owed Tarun and Yemelica about 8 million in foreign debt.

Therefore, as the so-called winners, they must find ways to make up for their losses and pay back the money they borrowed from Tarun and Yemelica. These two creditors are not easy to deal with!

The Japanese government racked its brains to find a way to repay its debts. After defeating Xunyang, it claimed more than 2 million taels of silver from the Xunyang government. It decided to follow suit and ask for some compensation from the Russians.

In the eyes of the Tsar, these yellow monkeys were asking for too much, but it was just bad luck and not the end of the country. You know, the Rakshasa Empire was not the cowardly and incompetent Xunyang government. Even if it lost on the battlefield, it would not accept such unreasonable demands from Japan.

The Tsar acted very tough. After learning that the Japanese representatives did not accept Witte's suggestion, he directly called Witte and asked him to return home and give up the negotiations. However, Witte did not do so. This was a play between the monarch and his subjects, telling Japan that the patience of the Russian Empire was limited.