Chapter Sixty-Eight: Countdown

After reading the telegram from the Kaiser, Feng Chengqian fell silent.

In the past, Feng Chengqian had withdrawn from German politics, voluntarily resigning from his post as Minister of Naval Warfare for the Empire. This act was directly linked to the fall of the Great Qing Dynasty and changes in the Empire’s Far Eastern policy.

The content of this telegram concerned the Far East.

With covert support from the Empire, the Shandong warlord Wu Tiesheng had already seized control of the entire Shandong Peninsula and had extended his influence into Hebei and Shanxi. This man had not appeared in the histories familiar to Feng Chengqian, for he was no ordinary warlord, but an activist among the Chinese laborers sent to Germany. He had only returned to China in 1912, and at the beginning of 1913 had become the commander of the Chinese Legion in Germany, thus stepping onto the stage of history.

Feng Chengqian knew exactly who this man was, for their relationship was far from ordinary.

Before returning to China, Wu Tiesheng had already caught Feng Chengqian’s attention and had been invited to attend a banquet Feng Chengqian held specifically for labor representatives.

Although Feng Chengqian had deliberately kept a low profile, that did not mean he had done nothing.

Before returning to China as an officer of the Legion, Wu Tiesheng had visited Feng Chengqian’s castle. During this meeting, Wu Tiesheng swore allegiance to him.

In a sense, Wu Tiesheng was Feng Chengqian’s man, though their connection was extremely secret.

But now, Feng Chengqian was no longer so certain.

Could it be that the Kaiser had discovered his relationship with Wu Tiesheng?

Though somewhat concerned, Feng Chengqian maintained his composure, showing nothing on his face.

“What do you think?” the Kaiser asked.

“Your Majesty, do you mean—”

“You once advised supporting local Chinese warlords. Now we’ve seen results. Though Wu Tiesheng hasn’t united all of China, the Shandong Peninsula is firmly in his hands.” The Kaiser paused, then continued, “Baron Richthofen suggests we recognize Wu Tiesheng as the central government of China and formally establish diplomatic ties, thereby consolidating and enhancing our influence in the Far East.”

Feng Chengqian did not respond. In this matter, he could not easily take a stand.

Of course, he also felt relieved. The Kaiser’s discussion of Chinese affairs, aside from probing him, indicated he was unaware of Feng Chengqian’s connection to Wu Tiesheng.

“Well then, do you think it’s necessary?” the Kaiser pressed.

“Your Majesty—”

“I know you’re always cautious. But as an adviser, it’s your duty to offer counsel.” The Kaiser exhaled deeply. “As you’ve said, a great war is inevitable. We’ll be challenging Britain, France, and Russia in Europe, but we’ll also have to fight elsewhere. The Far East is a battlefield for us, too.”

“Your Majesty, I believe the greatest threat comes from Japan.”

“Japan?”

“Though Japan is not yet truly powerful, it is already the strongest nation in the Far East—and also Britain’s ally.” Feng Chengqian paused, then went on. “The Empire’s overseas colonies are few, either in Africa or the Pacific. Once war breaks out, Japan will certainly attempt to seize our Pacific territories, and will also covet our interests in China. Imagine, if Japan is victorious in the Far East and the Pacific, it would relieve the pressure on Britain and France, allowing them to concentrate their forces against us on the European front.”

The Kaiser nodded, waiting for Feng Chengqian to continue.

“Unfortunately, the chaos in China is unlikely to be quelled quickly.”

“Do you mean—?”

“Even if we recognize Wu Tiesheng’s regime in Shandong, it will not change the facts, and after war breaks out, we won’t be able to provide him with enough support. On the contrary, if we recognize Wu Tiesheng’s regime, it will not only make him a target for other warlords, but also the focus of attacks from Britain, France, and others during the war. If we lose the war, what happens to Wu Tiesheng’s regime is of little consequence. The key is, if we win, but Wu Tiesheng hasn’t survived until victory, our efforts will have been in vain.”

“So, you don’t advocate recognizing the Shandong regime?”

“Your Majesty, supporting the Shandong regime doesn’t necessarily mean recognizing it.”

“You mean—?”

“For us, the ultimate goal of supporting Wu Tiesheng is to control the Far East after the war, or to build friendly relations with a new China, and thereby gain access to its markets, resources, and labor.” Feng Chengqian paused. “For this reason, we need not be in a hurry to recognize Wu Tiesheng’s government. Instead, we should offer practical support, such as supplying arms. Given that Britain will blockade us at sea during the war, we must make sure Wu Tiesheng acquires the capacity to produce his own weapons as soon as possible.”

“But—”

“Of course, there are risks. Wu Tiesheng is not an Imperial subject, and as his power grows, he may not act in our interests. Yet in the short term, we have no other choice; these preparations must be made at once. In fact, the outbreak of war will only strengthen our position in the Far East.”

“Why is that?”

“In the eyes of the Chinese people, the greatest enemy isn’t Britain, France, or Russia, but Japan, which has always schemed to carve up and annex China.”

“So you mean—?”

“If Wu Tiesheng can raise the banner of resistance against Japan, he will surely win the support of the people. Even if he is just a regional warlord now, he could one day unite the entire nation.”

The Kaiser said nothing, well aware of the consequences.

“Of course, we must strengthen our control over Wu Tiesheng’s regime. For example, while helping him acquire arms production, we must strictly limit the scale of his factories. In short, as long as Wu Tiesheng needs our weapons, he won’t turn against us. And, looking further ahead, once we’ve won the war and have the capacity to help him unify China, he will have no reason to oppose us.”

“It seems you’ve considered this thoroughly.”

“Your Majesty—”

“I have thought about all you’ve mentioned. I simply haven’t made a final decision. There is risk, but we must also consider another scenario.” The Kaiser smiled. “If we don’t support Wu Tiesheng, Japan will surely invade the Shandong Peninsula after war breaks out, and Wu Tiesheng will become everyone’s target. As you said, after war begins, we’ll be cut off from the Far East and unable to send troops. If we wish to hold Shandong, we can only rely on Wu Tiesheng. Think: if Wu Tiesheng is defeated, what do we gain—or lose?”

“This—”

“No matter what Wu Tiesheng does in future, right now he needs us, and we need him.”

“Your Majesty means—?”

“You’ve made your point clear. We must support Wu Tiesheng, but not too directly. The approach you proposed is sound. Before war breaks out, ensure Wu Tiesheng is self-sufficient. Then, during the war, we won’t need to focus much on the Far East, and he won’t be so quickly defeated. If, after resisting Japan, he can distract Britain, France, and Russia even a little, all the better.”

“In that case, it would be best to send some military advisers.”

The Kaiser nodded. “That’s acceptable. Besides assisting him in combat, they will also supervise, reminding him who helped establish his regime in Shandong.”

“The war is about to break out—it’s better to act sooner than later.”

“Very well. I’ll send a telegram to Richthofen today, and have Little Moltke select a group of officers to form a military advisory mission.” The Kaiser exhaled deeply. “As for arms, negotiations with Krupp and other firms are still needed, but there’s no urgency. Once war erupts, everything will be easily resolved.”

“Your Majesty means—?”

“I’ve already instructed Bethmann to draft wartime legislation. Once the Empire enters a state of war, all enterprises will come under wartime control. At that time, we can directly transfer the factories that Krupp and others have in Shandong to Wu Tiesheng, and have the company employees remain there.”

At this, Feng Chengqian finally allowed himself a sigh of relief.

Clearly, the Kaiser had long since prepared everything; he was simply informing Feng Chengqian in person. Calming himself, Feng Chengqian also realized the Kaiser was taking this chance to reassure him and keep him in service to the Empire. More importantly, the Kaiser was certainly aware that Feng Chengqian would one day leave the German Empire.

With that, the matter was essentially settled.

Feng Chengqian did not attend the privy council; after their discussion, he left the palace.

Now that the Kaiser’s mind was made up, there was little left to discuss in the council.

According to the Kaiser’s instructions, Foreign Minister Bernstorff would deliver an ultimatum to Russia on July 31. If Russia did not cease its mobilization within twenty-four hours, the German Empire would initiate mobilization against Russia on August 1.

However, Little Moltke raised a concern.

If the Empire mobilized against Russia, France would certainly mobilize against the Empire. Thus, the Empire’s mobilization could not target Russia alone.

Therefore, the Kaiser arranged that once France’s stance was clear, the Empire would also mobilize against France. Even if France did not mobilize, the Empire would put its western armies on a war footing, though without immediately calling up reserves.

Clearly, the Kaiser’s orders would not be fully implemented.

Even mobilizing only active-duty troops would be seen by France as hostile. Considering the French army was already weaker than Germany’s, France would almost certainly proceed to full mobilization.

Thus, once one side began to mobilize, the situation would spiral out of control.

It was not the German Empire, nor Russia, nor Austria-Hungary that lit the fuse, but Serbia, a nation so weak it was almost overlooked. For it was Serbia, after rejecting Austria-Hungary’s ultimatum, that first announced mobilization.

On this day, Russia and France also held similar high-level meetings.

By this point, the continent of Europe was inevitably sliding into the quagmire of war. The major powers had either begun or were about to begin mobilization.

The countdown to the outbreak of the European war had begun.