The American Minister naturally could not come to negotiate with the People's Party empty-handed. In addition to being responsible for recognizing the People's Party regime and handling the establishment of diplomatic relations with the new Chinese government afterwards, the American side also brought an official gift. Upon learning that the People's Party controlled Shanghai, the United States hoped to build four 10,000-ton merchant ships at the Jiangnan Shipyard.

"We will provide the important equipment, materials, design drawings, and even engineers. Your side only needs to provide the docks, site, and auxiliary personnel. If your side also needs to increase shipbuilding equipment, our country can even consider giving your country credit loans." The American Minister introduced the situation.

Chen Ke had reminded Zhang Yu that the American side might talk to the People's Party about shipbuilding cooperation. After all, the People's Party and the United States had discussions about building a navy. At that time, the People's Party did not have a shipbuilding base, and the United States did not want to wade into muddy waters when the People's Party was in conflict with Britain. The intention of cooperation had long existed, and now was exactly the opportunity to turn intention into practice.

Zhang Yu had also prepared for this, having read the information long ago. Hearing the American side state their needs so frankly, Zhang Yu replied, "Is this the American side ordering ships from us separately, or is the American side preparing to fulfill the naval construction plan discussed before?"

"If your side is prepared to fulfill that agreement, we certainly welcome it." The American Minister was delighted. His original mission also included this task, but at any rate, this topic had to be raised by the People's Party first.

"Can the price of machinery and equipment follow the original price?" Zhang Yu continued to ask.

"Absolutely not!" The American Minister immediately rejected Zhang Yu's proposal.

The American Minister understood the People's Party's craftiness very well. Taking advantage of the economic crisis in the United States before World War I, the People's Party purchased a large number of machines at very low prices. At that time, American shipping was relatively idle, and the People's Party raced against time to ship these machines and equipment back to China. In order to acquire equipment as much as possible, the People's Party even hired Chinese workers who were driven to desperation by the American "Chinese Exclusion Act" to quickly dismantle factories after buying bankrupt ones, and then shipped both people and equipment away.

At that time, the attitude in the United States towards the People's Party was very mocking, especially those Americans with strong anti-Chinese stances who were simply glad that the People's Party had cleaned up all the trash in the United States. However, these mockeries did not last long before World War I broke out. Stimulated by orders from Europe, the entire American industry started operating at almost full capacity, and the prices of machinery and equipment skyrocketed. Americans discovered that the People's Party had actually made a huge profit.

Now Zhang Yu wanted to buy machinery and equipment at the prices of that time. The prices of these equipment had more than doubled compared to before the war. No matter how sincere the US government was, it was impossible to sell products to the People's Party at that price.

"We still don't have money," Zhang Yu said sincerely.

"Our country can provide credit loans," the American Minister replied quickly. Now a large amount of gold from the Entente Powers was pouring into the United States, and the United States was experiencing inflation problems. If money could be lent to the People's Party, at least there was raw silk trade as a guarantee, which was several streets better than that pile of IOUs from Britain.

"Many thanks for your country's support, but borrowing money to live is really unreliable. Can we discuss this matter again?" Zhang Yu replied, "Or shall we solve the immediate priorities first?"

The so-called priority was the US government recognizing the People's Party government and the two countries establishing formal diplomatic relations. Chen Ke emphasized repeatedly that the "Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence" must be established with the United States, but there was no need to mention this topic with France and Britain at all. Zhang Yu already had the confidence and assurance to go to war with world powers. At least he believed that going to war with other countries on Chinese soil could still protect China's interests. However, the implied content of Chen Ke's attitude was that China wanted to "not respect sovereignty and territorial integrity, and interfere in each other's internal affairs" with Britain and France. This attitude that had to be fought for could not help but make Zhang Yu feel a little excited.

Of course, Zhang Yu knew very well how he should explain this issue. After all, in the international relations of this era, "not respecting sovereignty and territorial integrity, and interfering in each other's internal affairs" was originally a tradition.

The Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence seemed like a rhetoric of "farting after taking off pants" in the eyes of the American Minister, but this principle was also relatively beneficial to the United States. The American Minister could fully imagine how eager the People's Party was to avoid foreign interference now. Interfering in Chinese affairs across the Pacific Ocean was also an unimaginable thing for the United States. Unless the United States completely abandoned the Chinese market and prepared for a military invasion of China, blocking China's coast with a fleet would be an action where the loss outweighed the gain. The vast Pacific Ocean itself prevented the United States from investing too many troops in China. With Japan's lesson from the past, even if the United States used all its strength to send 100,000 people, they would be surrounded and annihilated by China's million-strong army as soon as they entered the Chinese interior. Only a fool would make such a decision.

However, the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence emphasized by the People's Party were by no means a simple slogan; these principles were extremely practical. Once this agreement was signed, the United States must establish its stance on other local regimes in China. The American Minister asked, "After the People's Party wipes out the chaotic parties in various places, can our American merchants invest in the whole of China?"

Zhang Yu said with a mix of coaxing and threatening, "It will definitely not work in the initial stage. We need to implement the final rectification in various places. I think you gentlemen don't want to run to turbulent areas and encounter various uncontrollable dangers, right?"

"But how long will this deadline be?" The American Minister insisted on asking.

Zhang Yu smiled confidently, "If you are referring to the southeast region, fully normal investment can be resumed within two years. If it is the northwest, it will not exceed six years at the latest."

The American Minister understood that this was Zhang Yu predicting the course of the future war. This time was also within normal imagination. Investing in the southeast meant competing with the British in the southeast. The United States had no strongholds in northwest China at all. Since Zhang Yu confidently believed that the northwest problem could be solved within five years, then they would just wait and see to what extent the People's Party could achieve it.

Since China and the United States, separated by the Pacific Ocean, both showed the ability to defend their land territories, in 1916, only guys in madhouses could think of a land war where you die and we live between China and the United States. And guys in madhouses could not lead the official negotiations between China and the United States.

The People's Party held fast to the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, requiring the United States to establish diplomatic relations with China under this principle. The American side wanted to avoid various troublesome details as much as possible. Only agreeing to such a seemingly all-encompassing yet quite empty principle could give ample space for various detailed discussions later, so the American side agreed to this request of the People's Party.

Gu Weijun studied law in the United States and was very familiar with the American judicial system. The People's Party did not use specific legal provisions as a blueprint, but based it on a "principle." This was obviously a practice not in line with American conventions. The United States could completely use its domestic laws as an excuse to undermine this principle. He expressed to Zhang Yu that doing so was tantamount to being meaningless.

Zhang Yu laughed, "Setting principles is to guard principles. Laws amount to nothing. If laws were sacred and inviolable, then there would be no need to amend laws after they are set. Otherwise, what are the people who amend laws? Gods?"

"Law is about legal principles, about principles..." Gu Weijun said this and suddenly realized that there was no need to say anything more. If basic principles could not be observed, specific legal provisions would really "amount to nothing" as Zhang Yu said. Law is an agreement between people. If this agreement is not taken seriously by both parties at all, legal provisions are completely meaningless.

Moved, shocked, panicked, admiring—various emotions mixed into an indescribable feeling in Gu Weijun's heart. He couldn't help asking Zhang Yu, "For this principle, to what extent can we go?"

A sneer appeared on Zhang Yu's face. Behind this sneer was great determination. He replied, "I can't speak for others, but for me, to destroy this principle, one must first step over my dead body."

Hearing Zhang Yu's words, Gu Weijun couldn't help but recite the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence again in his heart, "Mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence."

Gu Weijun actually didn't have much confidence in how determined Zhang Yu was not to interfere in other countries, and he didn't care at all. For China, which had been bullied for more than sixty years, wanting sovereignty and territorial integrity not to be interfered with by other countries, wanting not to be invaded by other countries, and wanting internal affairs not to be interfered with by other countries was not about thinking of methods with all one's might, but about practicing with blood. Just as Zhang Yu said, soldiers must truly step onto the battlefield to defend China's interests.

Recalling his days in Beiyang, when Beiyang faced foreigners, they quoted classics and collected all the "axioms and justice" they could collect, but they couldn't really accomplish anything.

Zhang Yu and the People's Party, who mocked the law, never talked about this. They just went to the battlefield and maintained the principles they insisted on with blood and life. Precisely because of the struggle of such a group of people, Gu Weijun, as an employee of the People's Party, could play various word games with the powers, and could discuss what the meaning of law was with Zhang Yu when reaching an agreement.

Gu Weijun knew that weak countries had no diplomacy. The initial feeling of this pain was inflicted on Gu Weijun by the People's Party. Gu Weijun finally fully understood why Zhang Yu mocked legal provisions. Strong countries were definitely not supported by legal provisions; they were supported precisely by these people who did not believe in legal provisions at all.

"Valiant warriors, the shield and wall of the nation!" Gu Weijun now understood why the Book of Songs praised soldiers so much. At present, when soldiers were almost synonymous with shame, the leadership of the People's Party, which was almost entirely of military origin, allowed the title of soldier to regain true glory.

Gu Weijun couldn't help but repeat, "To persist in the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, we would even go to war with the United States?"

Zhang Yu didn't have the leisure for Gu Weijun's sentimentalism. To this stupid question, Zhang Yu answered simply, "Isn't that nonsense?!"

The news of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States on January 1, 1917, shook the world, or more accurately, shook Britain, France, and Japan. Just as the secret negotiations between Chinese and French representatives made the United States feel uneasy, the agreement between China and the United States also made France feel uneasy. As the People's Party expected, the British already knew about the separate agreement between China and France.

The news that France was very likely to get 50,000 Chinese laborers in the near future could only be described as making Britain envious, jealous, and hateful. However, this was a separate agreement between China and France. Since the People's Party did not join the Entente Powers, the People's Party had no obligations to the Entente Powers. Britain couldn't even use the principle of consistency among the powers to demand that the People's Party also provide labor to Britain.

The news of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States further stimulated Britain. Although the memorandum signed by the United States and China was a secret treaty, it was not impossible secret intelligence for the British to obtain. If the People's Party really implemented this memorandum, it would be a good thing for the Entente Powers, but not necessarily good news for Britain. This meant that the "international influence" of the American side increased greatly.

Britain could only urge its own minister to reach a diplomatic agreement with China as soon as possible. Only in this way could various demands be formally made to the People's Party.

However, the People's Party did not immediately reach an agreement with Britain. By January 4, 1917, the People's Party government formally established diplomatic relations with France. The two sides reached a secret agreement when establishing diplomatic relations. Once China joined the Entente Powers, France would allow the People's Party army to enter the Northern Vietnam State and Laos, and support the various commercial interests of the People's Party in Indochina. Within one year after the Entente Powers defeated the Central Powers, France would hand over the Northern Vietnam State and Laos to China for "protection."

At the same time, the two sides signed an agreement that the People's Party would provide the first batch of 50,000 laborers to France before February 1917 to work in French farms and factories. Depending on the specific situation, France had the right to continue requesting the People's Party to expand labor. France guaranteed that these laborers would not go to the battlefield but would work in the rear of France. France and the People's Party established a committee to coordinate and supervise the specific implementation process of the agreement.

Leaving Britain aside, the People's Party hooked up with Entente member France and cooperated brazenly with quasi-Entente member the United States. The British Minister found that he completely missed the point. What was the reason that the Chinese refused to reach an agreement with Britain? Finally, the British side found Zhang Yu and asked Zhang Yu to explain the reason for this behavior of the People's Party.

Zhang Yu took out a map, pointed to the border between China and India, and asked, "We don't know what Britain means by separately designating the McMahon Line?"

The British Minister didn't even know about the "McMahon Line." But the British Minister knew very well that Britain had always been infiltrating Tibet. Since the People's Party raised this issue with such a tough attitude, even if the People's Party had not even entered the Tibet region, the British Minister hurriedly wired back to his country. The British Foreign Office went to great lengths to finally figure out the McMahon Line matter. The result was quickly determined. Britain stated that the McMahon Line was cancelled. On the Sino-Indian border issue, Britain would sign an agreement with the People's Party under friendly conditions.

After discussing this issue, the British Minister raised another issue, "I wonder what the People's Party thinks about those applying for asylum in the British Concession?"

Zhang Yu laughed, "If some people claim to be political prisoners and say they are politically persecuted so they run to your Britain, this kind of thing is unclear. Britain can deal with them however it wants. We also don't want to make it so that everyone can't step down. However, if this person is a criminal, we will absolutely not let him go. We hope to reach an agreement on the extradition of criminals with the British side."

The British representative nodded; this request was indeed very reasonable. He continued to ask, "Now someone is requesting the People's Party to release Cai Yuanpei. Requesting our Britain to protect this person..."

Just hearing this, Zhang Yu immediately interrupted the British Minister very rudely, "This person is a criminal, a murderer. We are going to execute him in a few days, so we hope the British side will not plead for a murderer anymore."