The War of Resistance Against Japan: Special Operations Battalion Traverses Shanghai and Slaughters

Molotov was, after all, a diplomatic elite, and his mind worked very quickly.

He softened his tone and began to speak.

"General Long, the gap between our demands is too large. I hope both sides can make some concessions. Otherwise, if the negotiations break down, everyone will suffer losses. What do you think?"

Long Fei's request, of course, left room for negotiation. Seeing that Molotov's tone had softened considerably, he nodded in agreement.

“Mr. Molotov, what you say makes some sense, but every negotiation has its bottom line and principles, and I’m afraid there’s not much room for compromise on my three demands.”

Molotov understood what Long Fei was saying, so he decided to let Zhigalev negotiate with Long Fei.

So Molotov picked up a pen and quickly wrote a few sentences on a piece of paper, then placed it in front of Zhigarev.

Zhigarev picked it up and quickly glanced at it, then looked up at Molotov and nodded slightly.

So Zhigalev began, "General Long, your first demand—the abrogation of all treaties signed between our country and your former Qing government—is something we can agree to."

"After all, our former leader publicly announced the abolition of the unequal treaties signed with your former Qing government and the return of the territories you ceded."

"However, there is a problem with your second request. Even if we were to return it, it would be to the Chinese government, not to your Dragon Flame Legion."

"Furthermore, your one-month deadline is too short. Our vital artery, the Trans-Siberian Railway, was destroyed by your bombing, but it only takes half a month to repair. Therefore, we hope to extend the deadline to six months."

"As for the third request, we can also agree to it. The matter of the Horseback Kingdom should be decided by the Chinese Kingdom and the Horseback Kingdom themselves, and we will not interfere."

"We will release Amar immediately and deliver him safely to Ulaanbaatar."

Long Fei knew that Zhigalev was merely relaying Molotov's meaning.

However, that's not important. What's important is that the other party has already agreed to two requests. As for the second request, Long Fei already has a plan.

At this moment, Long Fei smiled and said, "That's right, that's the attitude your side should have."

"I think there is some merit to what you just said, but a six-month period is too long. We can only agree to extend it to three months."

"As for the second request, you believe that all the territories ceded to you should be returned to China instead of our Dragon Flame Legion. In principle, I have no objection."

"But the problem is that China is not one of the negotiating parties right now, so I think it's better to do this: you cede all the territories that the former Qing government ceded to you to my Dragon Flame Legion, and then we will return them to China at an appropriate time."

Zhigalev's eyes widened in disbelief, wondering if he had misheard.

He seriously suspected that Long Fei might have a mental problem or be very ill.

Although what Long Fei is now demanding to cede is the territory of China that they plundered.

Molotov immediately flew into a rage and roared.

"What? How can this be? You want our Rakshasa Kingdom to cede territory? We agreed to return it as our bottom line, but you want us to cede it. This is an insult to our national dignity. We will never agree to this."

Long Fei looked at Molotov and said in an extremely calm tone.

"Mr. Molotov, don't get agitated. It's not like your Russian country hasn't ceded territory before."

"Besides, these territories never belonged to you. It's not shameful for you to cede them to my Dragon Flame Legion."

Molotov's attitude remained extremely firm.

"These territories were won back by our strength back then. Now that we have agreed to return them, that is our bottom line. Ceding them is absolutely impossible."

Long Fei's face darkened, and he slowly stood up, speaking in a deep voice.

“Mr. Molotov, you are right. Back then, our former Qing government was no match for you, so we were forced to cede territory and pay reparations, and sign these unequal treaties with you.”

"Although I do not agree with your robber logic, I am not opposed to learning from you great powers."

"Today, the tables have turned. This time, your Rakshasa Kingdom went to war with my Dragon Flame Legion, but you are not as strong as us, and you have been defeated."

"So, as the victor, I demand that you cede all the Chinese territory you plundered. Is there a problem with that?"

Long Fei's words were sharp, and Molotov was momentarily speechless.

Unexpectedly, Long Fei did not stop, but instead continued to stab Molotov in the heart.

"From 1853 to 1856, you were defeated in the Crimean War. In order to alleviate your financial crisis, you sold Alaska, a territory of 58 square kilometers that originally belonged to you, to the United States for a mere $720 million."

"In 1917, in order to end the First World War quickly, you signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with the Hans, giving up nearly 100 million square kilometers of territory and paying 60 billion marks in reparations."

"In the Treaty of Riga you signed in 1921, you were forced to cede part of your territory to the Bolshevik State."

At this point, Long Fei paused, his gaze fixed intently on Molotov.

"So, Mr. Molotov, you are not without precedent for selling and ceding territory. The so-called national dignity you speak of has long been insulted."

What Long Fei said at the end was nothing short of a moral attack.

Molotov felt as if he were being stripped naked piece by piece by Long Fei in public.

Therefore, at this moment, Molotov was no longer able to refute, and had already become a defeated rooster.

Zhigalev was, after all, a Russian, and Long Fei's words were undoubtedly an insult to him.

Therefore, Zhigarev couldn't help but stand up and express his dissatisfaction.

"General Long, although you saved my life and I am very grateful to you, what you just said was indeed an insult to us."

“Our great Comrade Stalin will never agree to this, so I hope you can withdraw this request so that our negotiations can continue and achieve a satisfactory result.”

Long Fei smiled coldly and retorted mercilessly.

"General Zhigalev, when your country was forcing my former Qing government, weren't you insulting them? Why can't you stand it now that it's your turn?"

"This……"

Zhigalev was speechless after being rebuked. He realized that no one on their side could match Long Fei in terms of eloquence and responsiveness.

"General Long, let's not dwell on the past. After all, it's history that can't be changed."

"Since we've already reached a majority of consensus, why don't we work together to resolve the remaining differences?"

To be honest, Long Fei didn't necessarily want the other side to agree to cede territory, because he knew that the stubborn, autocratic, and arrogant Stalin would never agree to it.

The essence of negotiation is the trick of asking for an exorbitant price and then settling for a lower one.

“Alright, General Zhigalev, considering that you previously aided our China in resisting aggression, I can make a concession.”

Seeing that Long Fei was willing to compromise, Zhigalev and Molotov both secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

The two looked at Long Fei together, waiting to hear how he planned to compromise.