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Minister Barland's carriage followed the Iron Lion Hutong to Houhai, and then headed north, along the Liuyin River, and soon arrived at the palace of Prince Gong Yixun.

After entering the palace through the East Esmen, Minister Barand got out of the carriage, and then was led by the eunuch all the way to Xijinzhai in the study and office of Prince Gong Yixun.

The meeting between Minister Barland and Prince Gong was a private luncheon.

Generally speaking, a banquet for a status person like Prince Gong Yixun, and a private banquet for a foreigner, is rare in the Qing Dynasty, but Prince Gong Yixun is a prince who supports foreign affairs, is proficient in foreign affairs, and likes to deal with foreigners, otherwise how could he be nicknamed "Devil Six" by the flag people.

When Minister Barland put the oil paper bag and porcelain jar in his hand in front of Prince Gong Yixun, Yixun couldn't help laughing and scolding, "Lao Ba, Lao Ba, although I like this bean juice and coke ring, but every time you come to see me, you carry a three-penny bean juice coke ring, are you burying me?" ”

"No, no, no, your Royal Highness, don't you often say that courtesy is light and affection is important, and that gentleman's friendship is as light as water." Minister Barand shook his head and explained in less accurate Chinese.

"Minister Ba, you are carrying this bean juice is not water, it tastes!" Wan Yan Chonghou, who was standing on the side, quipped.

"Hey, isn't Lord Wanyan going to Russia, why are you still in Beijing?" Barand pretended to be stupid, and then asked rhetorically.

"Lao Ba, you told me a few days ago that your country and Russia have always been friends, and this time Dishan is going to send Russia to negotiate peace." Prince Gong smiled and touched his beard, looked at Barland and said, "You see, in the matter of purchasing fast guns, this king is doing his best to help you, do you also want to be courteous?" ”

"Oh, this prince of the Qing Kingdom has also learned to bargain in diplomacy and ask for an exchange of interests, and he learns so fast." Minister Barand said in his heart.

"Your Royal Highness, Honorable Prince, if you hear what I have to say, I think you are going to reciprocate with me." Barland smiled confidently.

Prince Gong Yixun and Wanyan Chonghou glanced at each other and asked, "Lao Ba, they all say that you are a rare real person among Westerners, if you use big words to deceive me, this king, I will not agree." ”

Barland said with a smile, "Your Royal Highness, my old man has always been an honest person, and I was telling you a few days ago that I have always been biased towards you regarding the contradictions between Qing and Japan. ”

"And my compatriots, they are also a group of peace-loving people, and they look forward to world peace every day."

"After describing to my compatriots the injustice you have suffered, my compatriots are outraged. Especially when your country is willing to purchase 40,000 quick guns and ammunition at one time, this makes my compatriots feel the friendship of the Far East! And ......." Minister Barland's diplomatic nature drove him, and he began to speak freely.

"This foreigner talks a lot of nonsense, your compatriots like me Daqing, it's not because I'm going to spend a quick gun 85 taels of silver to buy your fast gun, 3.4 million taels of snowflake silver, grandma, even if a chaste martyr smashes it with this silver, she will become a slut." Wan Yan Chonghou smiled, but scolded angrily in his heart.

"Gotta get it, old ba, pretty words, etc., we have discussed the matter of the fast gun you said, and now it is an intention, and we will wait for you to show us the fast gun. If you're not satisfied, don't think I'll spend a big deal. After Prince Gong finished drinking the bean juice, he finally couldn't bear Minister Barland's tirade, and interrupted, "Lao Ba, you still slipped through what you were going to say, and said it happily, I annoy you foreigners going around in circles." ”

"Hehe, honorable lord, after my unremitting efforts, my government has officially ordered me that in the judgment of the Qing Dynasty, my position should be inclined to the government of your country." Barland said with a disapproving smile.

"What? Isn't the axiom that you foreigners often talk about just justice?! How come you can sit crookedly in international justice?! Wan Yan Chongshi couldn't help it and exclaimed.

Prince Gong immediately turned his head, glared at Yan Chongshi angrily, and shouted in Manchu, "Shut up!" ”

Then he said to Minister Barland, and said with a smile, "Lao Ba, this king has confessed his feelings, and it is still the same sentence, I only recognize German goods for fast guns, but I have to deliver the goods with one hand and pay the money with the other!" ”

Wanyan Chongshi lowered his head and wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said in his heart, "It turns out that the more than three million taels of silver were bought for this, and the prince's business is fine, so he will give the Germans a silver ring, and the Germans will go up to the pole to help." I went to France before, and France must have money in hand to do things, honestly, or Germans sincerely! ”

"Of course, as friends of the Qing Kingdom, we Germans believe in the credibility of His Royal Highness!" Barand stood up and saluted, "Your Royal Highness, as you just said, Germany is both a friend of the Qing and a friend of Russia, can it play a constructive role between the Qing and Russia, I think, we can work together in a certain direction!" ”

"Lao Ba, if you have something to say, tell me how to work together?" Prince Gong still didn't want to go around in circles, so he asked directly.

"Your Royal Highness, you are the most far-sighted man in the Qing Kingdom, and our Crown Prince Frederick admires you very, very much, and his son, Prince Heinrich, will visit East Asia in the near future."

"If you can, Crown Prince Frederick is more than willing to form a high-level friendship with you, or the Hohenzollerns, and Prince Heinrich will be willing to meet your Emperor on behalf of the German royal family." Barland said with a smile.

"Long live the audience?!" Prince Gong looked at Barland and thought for a while, and then asked solemnly, "I need to bow down to meet my Majesty the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty." ”

"Oh, this is a very serious matter of etiquette, Your Royal Highness, you know it in the West." Minister Barand had just wanted to explain the Western system of etiquette.

"Lao Ba, I know that you are only willing to bow down and worship God." Prince Gong interrupted directly, "But in the Qing Dynasty, the ceremony cannot be abolished, and if you refuse to bow down, I will not agree to your prince meeting the Lord Banzai." ”

"Your Royal Highness, in fact, I have a way to solve this problem, look at me?!" Minister Barand motioned to Prince Gong to take a closer look at himself.

"Lao Ba, we are so acquainted, you old eyebrows and squint, what can you look at, look at it again, you can't grow flowers on your face!" Prince Gong said with disgust.

"No, no, no, your Royal Highness, esteemed prince, look at my outfit, my outfit is very in line with your image of a talented man in the Qing Kingdom!" Barland, half ostentatiously, half boasted, turned around.

This situation made Master Wanyan Chongshi really unable to hold back, and stretched out his thumb again and smiled, "Ambassador Ba, talent!" ”

After smiling and thanking Lord Yan for his compliment, Barand continued to ask Prince Gong, "If Prince Heinrich is dressed like this, if he goes to see His Majesty the Emperor of your country, who is also dressed in the same costume, and lets two merry and talented men chant poems and paint under the moon, is it a kind of respect for the Emperor of your country?" ”

"Lao Ba, do you mean to let my Majesty the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty come to meet the prince of your country in the form of a private meeting?" Prince Gong was stunned.

"Yes, it's a private meeting!" Barand said categorically.

This time, Wanyan Chongshi could only hold it hard, wanting to laugh but not daring to laugh.

"Old ba, don't fucking talk nonsense, that's not called a private meeting! Your uncle's! Prince Gong scolded with a smile, and then thought of Minister Barland's idea, and couldn't help but think in his heart, "This is really a way, no one's face will be hurt, and they can still meet, but when the German prince sees the emperor, what do you want to do, what friendship do you want to talk about?" ”

"Lao Ba, you can try the method you said, but the key is that it is necessary to meet the emperor to talk about friendship?" After thinking for a long time, Prince Gong asked slowly.

"Hehe, the way Berlin said to meet, sure enough, the Qing people are no longer disgusted, I don't know the method that the guy from the Berlin Ministry of Foreign Affairs came up with, those guys have never been to East Asia, but they can come up with this method, they are really diplomatic wizards!" Minister Barand thought happily in his heart.

"Of course it is necessary, Your Royal Highness." Minister Barand said the prompt given by Berlin with a straight face, "First of all, this is a respect for the Qing Emperor, but also an apology, we don't want to comment on the past, who is right and who is wrong, the German royal family just wants to represent the Western compatriots, and say sorry to the Qing Emperor." ”

"Secondly, our country is a completely different country from Britain and France, we have never had a war conflict with your country, we have never arrogantly accused your country, and we have always been friends with each other. So we want to present a new image of Germany that is completely different from that of Britain and France. ”

"Third, to establish the friendship between the Qing and German royal families, your Royal Highness, you must know that His Majesty the Tsar has always been a good friend of His Majesty the Emperor of our country, if the friendship between the Qing and German royal families is established, then the German royal family, as friends between the two, can mediate the conflict between the two countries as friends."

"Finally, Your Royal Highness, we are willing to help your country to build industry and to build something that is beneficial to your country. Rest assured, the sovereignty of these industries rests with your country. ”

"For example, we only invest in equipment and technology, and as for the management of the country, we only send technical personnel, and we only need a certain percentage of dividends to decide how to run your country."

After thinking for a long time, Prince Gong asked, "Lao Ba, are you saying that your prince wants to apologize to me on behalf of the foreigners?!" ”

"No, no, no, Your Royal Highness, you are apologizing, not apologizing!" Barland corrected with a serious face.

"Lao Ba, isn't expressing an apology an apology?" Prince Gong was confused when he heard this, and asked rhetorically.

"No, it's not, I mean ........ to apologize"

Prince Gong and Minister Barand immediately fell into a grammatical discussion about expressing apologies and apologies. (In the West, the difference between Sorry and I apologize)

Lord Wanyan Chongshi, who was listening carefully to the discussion between the two on the side, first understood the difference between the two words by Prince Gong Yixun, and quietly explained to Prince Gong Yixun.

After listening to the explanation, Prince Gong immediately quit and said angrily, "Lao Ba, you are embarrassed to say that you are a real person, you are a fool!" Either apologize or don't talk! ”

Minister Barand raised his hands when he heard this, "Your Royal Highness, don't be angry, I have one more suggestion on how to express this grammar. ”

"You say!" Prince Gong said angrily.

"You can say that we apologize in your own language, and we will only use English, German and French to say that we apologize." Minister Barand continued to use another killer weapon given by Berlin.

"Poof!" This time, Wan Yan Chongshi couldn't help but laugh.

And Prince Gong Yixun was in a daze, and said in his heart, "Honest Germans, can you still play word games like this?!" ”

Wanyan Chonghou looked at Prince Gong Yixun who was in a daze, and whispered in Manchu, "Lord, this is a way, one thing and two expressions, we only know Manchu and Chinese, not Western, if this matter is done, your prestige is beyond measure!" In front of my ancestors and ancestors of the Qing Dynasty, it can be regarded as a real raising of eyebrows! ”

"Lord Wang, we must do this, we must do it!"

Prince Gong's face was cloudy, looking at the smiling Barland, after thinking for a while, he asked in a rather hoarse voice, "Lao Ba, your idea is indeed a bit interesting, Ming people don't do dark things, let's say, what do you want?" ”

Minister Barand smiled and said in his heart, "It's done!" After this is done, I must go back to Germany to see which genius came up with this idea! ”