The Rise of the Writers of the Republic of China

The sunset is infinitely good, but it is almost dusk.

The empire on which the sun never sets once ruled the world, like a declining old man, staggering forward on crutches.

The U.S. economy boomed in the 1920s, and the French economy recovered quickly after the war, but the situation in Britain was chaotic.

No economist in the world today can analyze and explain the British economy in the 1920s. It recovers and declines, booms and busts, without any pattern at all.

British economists summed up the 1920s as "the age of no rules".

In the years just after World War I, the British economy recovered rapidly and showed prosperity. The economy suddenly declined after over-expansion, resulting in soaring prices, soaring unemployment rate, and endless strikes. The British government had to carry out social welfare reforms.

Due to the recession in the British economy, the Labor Party's support rate rose rapidly, and it won the general election in 1923, successfully forming a cabinet for the first time.

As unfortunate as US President Hoover was, when the Labor Party formed a second cabinet in 1929, the world economic crisis broke out. The life of the British people has gone from bad to worse, and the support rate of the Labor Party has also dropped sharply.

Instead of aggressive economic reforms, the Labor government responded to a severe economic crisis by cutting unemployment benefits and other benefits. This is tantamount to stabbing a hornet's nest. People's lives are already difficult. Do you want to cut social welfare policies and drive people to death?

British Prime Minister Macdonald was forced to resign and was regarded as a traitor within the Labor Party, and he was directly expelled from the party.

Why be considered a Labor traitor?

Because the Labor Party represents the interests of the working class, they believe in "Fabianism", that is, "progressive socialism", which is a branch of socialist thought.

As the name suggests, "progressive socialism" advocates class cooperation and social peace, and advocates the use of moderate and gradual means for improvement. The state gradually controls and distributes public resources, and ultimately realizes socialism.

The various social improvements in Britain after World War II were carried out under the leadership of the Labor Party, and their ultimate goal was to build a socialist country.

Now, however, because of Macdonald's messing around, the Labor Party is split into two factions - the Independent Labor Party and the National Labor Party.

The "Red Nobility" Sir Marley belonged to the faction of the Independent Labor Party. He advocated guaranteeing the rights of the people, advocating world peace, etc., and actively sought cooperation with the British Communist Party. His ideological line was sharply left.

After Zhou Hexuan was invited to the UK by Sir Marley, his first stop was not to give a speech at a university, but to pay a visit to the wharf—to visit the leader of the British Independent Labor Party, Arthur Henderson.

In a small house on the outskirts of London, Zhou Hexuan met the old man. His hair and beard are grizzled, his eyes are small, and there are only cracks left when he smiles, but his demeanor is swift and resolute, and he doesn't look old at all.

"Mr. Zhou, I have admired your name for a long time, and it is a great honor to meet you." Arthur Henderson shook hands with Zhou Hexuan enthusiastically.

Zhou Hexuan said with a smile, "Hello Mr. Henderson, I have also admired Your Excellency for a long time."

The old man was still the British Foreign Minister last year. He resigned directly from the government cabinet because of a falling out with Prime Minister Macdonald.

One of the reasons why Chang Kaishen started the disarmament plan was to respond to the League of Nations call for disarmament. The main promoter of the international disarmament movement is Arthur Henderson in front of him, and he will win the Nobel Peace Prize two years later.

Arthur Henderson said: "Mr. Zhou, your "The Rise of Great Powers" is very wonderful, especially the section that discusses and predicts the world economic crisis."

Zhou Hexuan shrugged: "I'm sorry, the prophecy happened to be accurate, and now everyone has to live a hard life."

Arthur Henderson said with a smile: "You did not bring the world economic crisis, so why blame yourself? In terms of world peace, I heard Sir Marley say that you think the Second World War is inevitable."

"Yes, indeed." Zhou Hexuan said.

"I hope you don't get it right again," sighed Arthur Henderson. This old man is a true pacifist. He promoted international disarmament when he was the British foreign minister, and he still opposed the war after he resigned. He even went to persuade Hitler to disarm.

Persuading Hitler to disarm...

Zhou Hexuan said: "Although I also hope for world peace, I am afraid that the pace of war is getting closer and closer."

"I know, so I am very worried. Too many people died in the last war." Arthur Henderson felt very helpless. Although he was naive and hoped to achieve peace through international disarmament, he was by no means a fool, after all He has served as Minister of Education, Minister of Finance and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the United Kingdom.

It was precisely because when he was in charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that he found that Europe and the Far East were clouded by war, Arthur Henderson stood up and called for global disarmament.

Zhou Hexuan took the initiative to invite: "As an ordinary Chinese citizen, I invite Mr. Henderson to go to the Far East, to China and Japan to have a field look. Japan has been completely militarized, and they are instigating the Asian War. This kind of behavior must be punished. stop!"

Arthur Henderson thought for a while and said: "I will go to the Far East, and I hope there will be no more wars in Asia."

"I am very grateful for that." Zhou Hexuan smiled.

Although Arthur Henderson has resigned, the status of the former British Education Secretary, Controller and Foreign Secretary is still very important in Asia. He ran to Asia to shout a few words, which can make Japan's diplomatic environment more difficult, and at the same time can stimulate the anti-Japanese morale of the Chinese.

This is all Zhou Hexuan can do. He ran to Europe and jumped up and down, actively calling for peace while winning international sympathy.

This kind of thing seems to be doing useless work, but it can lay a good foundation for international public opinion. Anyway, if the relationship is established first, the alliance between China and the United Kingdom and the United States will be smoother in the future, and even more international support can be obtained through personal relations.

Chinese diplomats such as Gu Weijun and Yan Huiqing are also doing this kind of thing in Geneva at this time, but their friends are governments of various countries. However, Zhou Hexuan took the folk route, made friends with the British Labor Party that had just lost its status as a ruling party, and made friends with great writers and thinkers in Europe and America. In the future, he might be able to get a lot of unexpected support for the comprehensive anti-Japanese war.

Zhou Hexuan talked about the International Anti-War Alliance in detail, and Arthur Henderson expressed his strong support. He said: "I will help you publicize within the British Labor Party and give you some financial support."

"Thank you so much!" Zhou Hexuan said happily.

The two chatted for a full afternoon, from anti-war topics to socialism, and how to deal with the world economic crisis. In the end, Arthur Henderson personally sent Zhou Hexuan out and said that he would consider visiting China in July or August.

The next morning, Zhou Hexuan officially went to the University of London to give an academic speech.