May 6, 1941. No sooner had President Roosevelt of the United States woken up than his secretary informed him that the Secretary of State was waiting to brief him.

*Did China declare war on the United States?* This was the first thought that popped into the drowsy Roosevelt's mind. He quickly realized as he fully woke up that this was impossible. Another possibility was that war had broken out between the Soviet Union and Germany, but Roosevelt felt that if that were the case, Secretary of State Hull wouldn't be coming now; he would have notified him immediately.

Before long, Roosevelt was dressed and appeared in the Oval Office. Secretary of State Hull placed a document before him. "Mr. President, this is the joint statement from the Asian Conference held in Shanghai on May 5th, the *Pacific Charter*."

Hearing the name "Pacific Charter," Roosevelt couldn't help but frown slightly. The United States was, after all, a Pacific nation as well; on what basis did China create a Pacific Charter on its own?

Picking up the document, he saw the participating nations: China, Free France, Japan, Korea, Ryukyu, Assam, Upper Burma, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Champa. All were nations single-handedly fostered by China.

The content of the *Pacific Charter* was not long. The nations, having conferred, deemed it appropriate to make known to the world at this time certain common principles in their national policies on which they based their hopes for a better future for the world.

First, their countries seek no aggrandizement, territorial or other;

Second, they desire to see no territorial changes that do not accord with the freely expressed wishes of the peoples concerned;

Third, they respect the right of all peoples to choose the form of government under which they will live; and they wish to see sovereign rights and self-government restored to those who have been forcibly deprived of them;

Fourth, they will endeavor, with due respect for their existing obligations, to further the enjoyment by all States, great or small, victor or vanquished, of access, on equal terms, to the trade and to the raw materials of the world which are needed for their economic prosperity;

Reading this far, Roosevelt felt his heart sinking. To steady his emotions, he temporarily set down the document. Secretary Hull had looked grave from the start and now seemed hesitant to speak. Hull had previously participated in various conferences advocating world peace and had produced quite a few declarations and agreements singing the praises of pacifism. Unlike the impassioned declarations Hull had once written, the wording of this *Pacific Charter* was extremely elegant and plain, yet its core was the use of military force to realize the future world order envisioned by China.

Roosevelt naturally understood this. He had originally hoped to produce such a document with Britain, but Britain was not currently under immense military pressure. Moreover, by importing massive amounts of industrial goods from China, Britain had consumed its creditor rights in China, so Churchill had yet to express any intention of compromising with the United States. Now that China had dragged France along to release this vision for the future world first, Roosevelt felt that He Rui was moving a bit too fast!

Picking up the document again, Roosevelt soon began to sigh.

Fifth, they desire to bring about the fullest collaboration between all nations in the economic field with the object of securing, for all, improved labor standards, economic advancement and social security;

Sixth, after the final destruction of the Nazi tyranny and colonialism, they hope to see established a peace which will afford to all nations the means of dwelling in safety within their own boundaries, and which will afford assurance that all the men in all the lands may live out their lives in freedom from fear and want;

Seventh, such a peace should enable all men to traverse the high seas and oceans without hindrance;

Eighth, they believe that all of the nations of the world, for realistic as well as spiritual reasons, must come to the abandonment of the use of force. Since no future peace can be maintained if land, sea or air armaments continue to be employed by nations which threaten, or may threaten, aggression outside of their frontiers, they believe, pending the establishment of a wider and permanent system of general security, that the disarmament of such nations is essential. They will likewise aid and encourage all other practicable measures which will lighten for peace-loving peoples the crushing burden of armaments.

After finishing the relatively short document, Roosevelt still did not speak. Secretary Hull said, "Mr. President, China is making an enemy of the entire white world!"

Roosevelt did not answer immediately. By mentioning colonialism in the same breath as the Nazis, the *Pacific Charter* was indeed making enemies of many Great Powers. Since China dared to publish the *Pacific Charter*, it had naturally prepared for war. Moreover, the white world had never been a unified world; many European countries did not have overseas colonies, and the strife between European nations was equally intense.

Ireland could be considered part of the white world in a broad sense, but Ireland would certainly support the *Pacific Charter* and demand that Britain, the colonial power, get out of Ireland. Although France was a major colonial power, what most French people needed right now was not to preserve colonialism, but to liberate France.

Roosevelt believed that Secretary Hull wanted to use the anti-colonial parts of the *Pacific Charter* to unite the white world and build a united front against China. Without even thinking it through, Roosevelt began to feel that this possibility was slim. In particular, a white alliance with the United States as the leader of an anti-China united front was not something the United States was prepared for. But with the situation as it was, Roosevelt could only ask Hull to come up with some contingency plans.

Leaving Roosevelt, Hull immediately contacted think tanks and American scholars, asking them to get to Washington as soon as possible. Within two days, renowned scholars from Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, and other places arrived in Washington. This time, Hull did not let the scholars give free rein to their imaginations. Instead, he produced a list. The list contained directions set by the U.S. State Department. These scholars chose the topics they preferred and conducted deduction and analysis according to the lines of thought set by the State Department.

Some scholars who considered themselves big shots frowned slightly after seeing the settings, which seemed like elementary school homework. Some more pragmatic scholars immediately began their work. Hull did not disturb them and left on his own. He had a dinner appointment with the British Ambassador.

Washington had many restaurants suitable for such meetings. Hull and the British Ambassador chose an Italian restaurant. There were few people inside, and the decor was simple: wooden tables, watercolors from the Italian Renaissance on the walls, and very quiet. The Italian waiter withdrew after serving the dishes, no longer disturbing the guests. The two chatted about the current international situation, especially the recent war developments between Britain and Germany.

The British Ambassador recounted the recent attacks by the Royal Navy on German convoys in the North Sea. "The Nazis lack raw materials now. With the continued blockade by Britain and the United States, plus China's boycott of the Nazis, Nazi Germany cannot hold out."

Hull praised Britain's heroic tenacity, but he was a bit anxious inside. After the He Rui administration took the lead in producing the *Pacific Charter*, they did not hide it but sent it to countries all over the world. American newspapers just hadn't had time to publish it yet. Before long, American newspapers would publish it and conduct various analyses of the content described in the *Pacific Charter*.

If the British government really hadn't sent the short *Pacific Charter* to the British Ambassador to the U.S., it would only prove that the British government didn't take the United States seriously. But that was impossible. That meant the British government was analyzing China's various possible attitudes based on the *Pacific Charter*. Before reaching a conclusion, the British Ambassador to the U.S. could not actively mention the matter.

Although he had many thoughts, the British Ambassador just didn't open his mouth to mention the *Pacific Charter*. When Hull finished his meal, he only discussed the scope of application of the U.S. Lend-Lease Act with the Ambassador.

It was apparent that Britain felt American goods were too expensive. Hull couldn't help it either. Originally, the United States was the only country in the world capable of providing massive amounts of industrial goods. But after He Rui quelled the chaos in China and restored order, China quickly reversed its decline and restored its status as a world supplier. Previously, the Chinese Yuan was pegged to the Franc to maintain its value. Now that the Franc had collapsed, the exchange rate of the Chinese Yuan had plummeted by 30%, making it quite cost-effective for Britain to purchase goods from China on a large scale.

Hull had previously worried that China would become a competitor to the United States in commerce. After seeing the *Pacific Charter* produced by the He Rui administration, Hull no longer worried that China would steal business from the United States. Since the British weren't making a sound now, he would just keep waiting. Unlike Britain, the United States had its own colonies, but the United States did not live off its colonies.

The British Ambassador to the U.S. genuinely did not know about the *Pacific Charter* because the British Cabinet was in chaos over it. The British Foreign Office was urgently analyzing the matter and had invited political experts to make judgments.

Before the British Foreign Office could come up with a line of thought, Oxford and Cambridge had already given their analysis results. The *Pacific Charter* was fully consistent with China's consistent philosophy and was not a suddenly appearing declaration. The reason war-related content appeared in the declaration was simply that China now possessed the ability to realize its consistent "anti-colonial, anti-racist, anti-imperialist" stance through war.

Listening to the experts' account, the first thing the British Foreign Secretary thought of was China's rapidly expanding naval power. During China's dispatch of four aircraft carrier battle groups to the North Atlantic to evacuate expatriates in 1940, a few very foolish but determined fellows appeared in Britain who believed that Britain should use all its strength to strike at China's navy.

Of course, the British government could not declare war on China while fighting Germany, but the British Cabinet members knew that although the talk of striking the Chinese navy was foolish, it was like the child pointing out the Emperor's new clothes. Britain was no longer the British Empire of old. The United States was viewed by Britain as the greatest challenger, and now China had also become a challenger on par with the United States. If facing only the United States, Britain could still hold on, but with the addition of China, Britain's world hegemony was finished.

Seeing that the Foreign Secretary remained silent, the experts from Oxford and Cambridge also understood his helplessness at this moment. The top international affairs experts from the two top British universities exchanged glances; their views on dealing with the Chinese challenge were quite consistent. Britain no longer had the ability to deal with it alone and could only learn from the method used to deal with Napoleon I: form a coalition against China.

An Oxford expert recounted their view. "The He Rui administration is now declaring war on the entire white world. We must unite the white world to meet such a challenge. He Rui's enemies include the British, American, and German camps. The Soviet Union is also an object that can be united. As long as we can unite these forces, we can win victory!"

Hearing the experts' suggestion, the British Foreign Secretary initially had a sense of absurdity, which immediately turned into a kind of helplessness. The "white world" in the experts' mouths was already riddled with contradictions internally; it was absolutely impossible for it to change just because China published a *Pacific Charter*.

The Foreign Secretary asked the experts to continue their analysis. A Cambridge expert picked up where the previous one left off; this was a plan worked out together by Cambridge and Oxford. "There will be a view that we should let the Soviet Union and Germany fight, and Britain and the United States join hands with other white nations to deal with the Chinese challenge. This view is wrong. Given the Soviet Union's ideology and Sino-Soviet relations, after the outbreak of war between the Soviet Union and Germany, the Soviet Union will choose to cooperate with China. Whether it is the Soviet Union's aggressive communist ideology or the traditional Russian tradition of expansionism, in a situation where the Soviet Union chooses to cooperate with China, the Soviet Union will become a major threat to Europe. If Germany is defeated, the Soviet Union will take advantage of the situation to annex the whole of Europe.

"We believe that China has chosen to become the greatest enemy of the white world and will launch an attack on the white world within a year. At this stage, war must not be allowed to break out between the Soviet Union and Germany. If war breaks out between the Soviet Union and Germany, the white world will be thoroughly split.

"China is likely not interested in ruling Europe and will hand over the rule of Europe to the Soviet Union, while China annexes the whole of Asia and Africa. If the situation develops like this, the white world will be left with only North America and Britain. With such strength, it is not enough to defeat the Sino-Soviet combination.

"Therefore, at this stage, it is necessary to convene a high-level conference between Britain, the Soviet Union, and Germany to coordinate the relations between the three countries. And then coordinate the relations between the three countries and the United States. Complete the cooperation of Britain, the United States, Germany, and the Soviet Union..."

After the experts finished stating their views, they left a thick stack of documents and took their leave. The British Foreign Secretary, whose head was buzzing, rubbed his temples and stood up to walk to the window. The sky in London was the same as it had been for the past two hundred years, gray and not making one feel relaxed.

The experts' suggestions made the British Foreign Secretary feel even heavier. But experts were experts after all. They believed that Britain now had enough chips to win over Germany. As long as peace talks were held with Germany and the trade blockade against Germany was lifted, given Germany's eagerness to make peace with Britain, Germany would choose to cooperate.

Moreover, the agreement between Germany and France explicitly stipulated that once peace was restored between Britain and Germany, Germany would withdraw from the occupied zone and release all French soldiers held in prisoner-of-war camps. If it could proceed to this stage, Western Europe would unite, and the currently chaotic French colonies would be utilized by France again.

If the order in Western Europe was restored, the situation in Europe would also return to normal. As for the conflict between the Soviet Union and Germany, as long as war did not break out, there was room for coordination. Given Russia's tradition, they would likely remain neutral and would not choose to go to war with China immediately. Even this would be quite good; a Russia that possessed the possibility of attacking China at any moment was enough to cause huge pressure on China.

The problem now was whether Germany would keenly sense China's attitude.

"...As long as Russia remains neutral, it will trigger China's suspicion. And Germany is undoubtedly the dam of the white world, able to withstand the flood from the Soviet Union at any time. Therefore, My Führer, I believe that as long as Germany withdraws from France when there is progress in the peace talks, peace talks with Britain are possible to succeed," Ribbentrop said seriously to Hitler.

At this moment, Martin Bormann walked into Hitler's office. Looking nervous, he walked quickly to Hitler's side and handed a letter to him. Hitler knew that Martin Bormann would never do this unless something major had happened. He opened the letter, read Rudolf Hess's letter, and his expression became somewhat complicated.

Rudolf Hess had always firmly believed that Britain and Germany must make peace. Although Hess did not say it publicly, the few messes Hitler himself had made had already reduced Hitler's political credit to nothing. Britain dared not trust any of Hitler's promises at this time. So Rudolf Hess decided to go to Britain in person, trying every means to rebuild Britain's trust in Germany.

Although he didn't know if the *Pacific Charter* proposed by He Rui had influenced Rudolf Hess, Hitler still fell into hesitation. Because Germany was preparing to launch an attack on the Soviet Union on May 15th, and war preparations were underway. Negotiations with Britain would take some time and had a high probability of failure.

However, Germany's war against the Soviet Union could not be delayed. Before Napoleon's tomb at Les Invalides in France, Hitler had thought of Napoleon's failure. Russia had the ally of General Winter. Once the window for attack was missed, it meant that Germany could only attack the Soviet Union in 1942. German intelligence agencies had determined that given the Soviet Union's industrial development level and weapons production speed, by May 1942, the quantity of Soviet military equipment would greatly exceed that of Germany. Although the German army possessed extremely high military quality, the huge gap in military equipment was enough to offset the advantages brought by military quality.

Ribbentrop, who was in front of Hitler, saw Hitler's hesitation. He knew that his own rhetoric alone could not make Hitler make up his mind. Judging from Hitler's expression, this letter indeed gave Hitler a great shock. Ribbentrop very much wanted to know what was written in the letter.

After waiting for a good while, Hitler's finger tapped on the letter. "Ribbentrop, Rudolf Hess has taken it upon himself to fly to Britain. He may have already landed in Britain by now."

Hearing this news, Ribbentrop was stunned at first, then overjoyed in his heart. He hurriedly said, "My Führer, we will soon be able to see if Britain is sincere!"

Hitler also thought of this. Although that fellow Rudolf Hess had acted without authorization—one could say he was crazy to want to make a contribution! Only a simple fellow like Rudolf Hess would believe that his own sincerity alone could change national strategy!

But Rudolf Hess's luck was actually quite good; he actually encountered the matter of He Rui publishing the *Pacific Charter*. Hitler felt that he was a very sincere person and did not like to engage in conspiracies and schemes. His actions were all forced by those guys who were good at conspiracies and schemes.

And as an "old senior" who had stepped onto the international political stage during the First World War, He Rui's actions up to now had been open and aboveboard, possessing an extremely high degree of credit. Therefore, countries around the world would have a high degree of trust in everything He Rui said. Presumably, the British would also believe that He Rui would definitely implement the *Pacific Charter*.

If Britain and Germany were to negotiate peace, the process would inevitably be long. But if Britain really wanted to make peace with Germany, it would inevitably let Rudolf Hess return to Germany within a short time. For just these few days, Hitler could afford to wait.