The grand and spectacular sea parade lasted for one hour and twenty minutes. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 On the way back to Hong Kong, King George V and Queen Georges V met with Cheng Biguang, the commander of the Chinese Navy who led his ship to the UK to participate in the fleet review, and presented him with the "Coronation Silver Medal".

In order to enhance the communication between the British Royal Navy and the navies of other countries, the British side has designated corresponding visiting ships for all foreign ships. The escort ship was the large battleship HMS Prince of Wales, the flagship of the British Royal Navy's Atlantic Fleet.

The fleet commander, Vice Admiral Jericho, was stationed on the ship, and a few years later, when World War I broke out, Jericho was promoted to commander-in-chief of the fleet, defeating the German fleet and becoming a famous British admiral. The flagship of the Prince of Wales is anchored next to the Haiqi. On the evening of the same day, Vice Admiral Jericho hosted a banquet on the flagship of the Prince of Wales to entertain Captain Cheng Biguang, Tang Tingguang, and officers and students. On 25 July, Cheng Biguang also hosted a banquet on the Haiqi ship to thank Vice Admiral Jericho and the captain of the flagship of the Prince of Wales.

On June 22, the day of the coronation of the British King, the British Royal Navy held a multinational naval athletics meeting in Portsmouth Harbour to celebrate this important historical moment and to deepen the friendship and exchanges between the navies of various countries.

Chinese sailors have organized any track and field games in China, but it is a matter of face for the Chinese, so they have to select dozens of able-bodied people to organize a team to participate in the competition, and the supernumerary first mate who supervised the ship's visit to the sea academy was the leader of the team and entered the arena. Although it was an impromptu entertainment, it was also an "international event", so it attracted tens of thousands of people in Portsmouth.

In the 200-meter hurdle race, Meng Guangji, a signal soldier of the Haiqi ship, tripped over the wooden hurdle after stepping over two hurdles in a row. It received a flood of applause from the audience." For this reason, at the award ceremony, the Chinese team was praised by the chairman of the conference. Since then, the Chinese Navy has placed great emphasis on sports activities to improve the physical fitness of cadets.

On June 26, 1911, the Haiqi ship, which completed its diplomatic mission to England to celebrate the coronation of the British king, set sail from the anchorage outside Portsmouth Harbour. Return to Plymouth Harbour to replenish your coal water for food. Two weeks later, it sailed east again along the English Channel, crossing the Strait of Dover into the North Sea and arriving at the Port of Newcastle.

Newcastle is an important coastal industrial town in the north-east of England, where the famous Armstrong shipyard is located. At this point, the Haiqi ship, a cruiser that was far away from "marrying" China, could be regarded as truly returning to its mother's home. Here, the Haiqi ship was berthed for nearly a month, and all the wires in the ship were replaced in docking.

Chen Wenqiang and his entourage changed to the Hairong ship and sailed along the coast. He arrived in Wilhelmshaven, Germany, on 2 July and began an official goodwill visit to Germany.

German Foreign Minister Jagaul led a number of high-ranking officials to greet him at the port and drove a special float to show his solemnity. Kaiser Wilhelm II does not seem to have given up hope for the triangular alliance between China, the United States and Germany, at least the recent performance of New China, which makes him feel that supporting this Asian brother is very beneficial to Germany, not only to contain Russia. In the future, it is possible to boycott the Anglo-Japanese alliance.

Germany, the largest country in central Europe. This land is nourished by classical music and exudes the rational light of classical philosophy. It was once the birthplace of the Second Industrial Revolution, famous for its modern universities and technological inventions, and was the birthplace of two world wars, which hurt the world with its astonishing destructive power. Hurt yourself too.

And all this stems from the collective memory of this nation for a long period of division and war. Unity and strength have become the greatest driving force for Germany's development. In the tortuous course of pursuing national reunification in the past 200 years, what kind of tragicomedy has been staged in this land that has repeatedly amazed the world? What kind of inspiration and lessons do they give us?

For the process of the rise of Germany in modern times. Chen Wenqiang believes that it has special reference significance for the current China, not to mention that the current China can rely on very few forces, and it is simply impossible to resist the two powerful enemies of Japan and Russia alone.

The reunification of Germany in 1871 was itself a miracle of diplomacy and national strategy, which deserves serious study and discussion by people, especially the Chinese. Although the ancient Germanic peoples lived on the territory of Germany at that time, it was far from a state in the modern sense, because the large and small city-states were scattered within the borders of Germany, there was no concept of a unified state, the German ships sailed on the high seas without their own flag, and there was no government that could effectively protect them. German territory was also often a playground for the European powers, with France, Denmark and Spain free to wage war on German soil, and a divided Germany became a chessboard for the major European powers.

Look at how similar this is to pre-revolutionary China, where the same powers are around and there are crises. However, Germany benefited from Bismarck, an outstanding diplomat and strategist, who was so clever in his means, broad-minded and far-reaching in his thinking that there was no one before or after in German history.

Prussia's unification of Germany was accomplished through three wars, and when one stripes away the wars and their trivial and complex details, one can immediately see that these three wars have some unusual features that are particularly worthy of interpretation by the Chinese government today.

In these three wars, Prussia faced Denmark, Austria-Hungary, and France, three of the great powers on the European continent at the time, and the three obstacles in Germany's path to unification. In every war, Prussia's opponents or potential enemies were neutral or even Prussian allies, respectively. In the aftermath of a war, the enemy country that was at war with Prussia could be transformed into a hardcore Prussian ally.

It was Bismarck who showed an indomitable spirit that Chen Wenqiang admired. He is a good use of strategy, and has the cunning of a fox; He used all diplomatic means skillfully and skillfully, reflecting superb diplomatic wisdom; He is good at judging the situation and can accurately grasp the fleeting strategic opportunities, but he is never greedy for merit and rashness, and has a deep understanding of the truth that it is too much.

Bismarck did solid and meticulous diplomatic work before every war, and even did not hesitate to sacrifice part of his interests to stabilize the major European powers Britain, Russia, and France, which might reverse the process of German unification, and even did not hesitate to put down his posture to show flattery to Britain and Russia, lowered tariffs on Britain, did not interfere with Russia's suppression of the Polish revolution, and signed a treaty of friendship with Russia.

For the French deaf Napoleon III, Bismarck saw through his joyful nature, indecisiveness and short-sightedness. He was promised that Prussia would not interfere in France's annexation of Belgium, Luxembourg and the Ruhr area in western Germany, etc. Everything Bismarck did was to strive for the neutrality and non-interference of the other powers to the greatest extent possible in every war, to isolate the enemy country to the greatest extent, and to make the enemy country fall into isolation and helplessness in Europe.

What shocked Chen the most was that the first map of Germany he saw was in 1871, when Bismarck had unified Germany, and the boundaries of Germany at that time were slightly different from today's, but they were generally the same. What does this mean? Defeat from the First World War. Then came the rise of World War II, another fiasco, and after more than a century of reincarnation, Germany's borders were almost restored to the same as before.

In other words, the iron-blooded Chancellor Bismarck completed the unification of Germany during his administration, and then experienced several ups and downs, as well as the joys and sorrows of the country's rise, partition, re-rise, re-sinking and three rises.

Chen Wenqiang fell into a long thought about this. After that, he learned a lot from the history of Germany since Prussia and gained a deeper understanding of the philosophy of the state and the nation seeking the best interests of the country on the path of reason.

"The reunification of your country is a miracle, the rise and strength of your country is a miracle, throughout the history of China and Germany, there are many similarities and similarities, we are here to humbly learn and ask for help......" At the first welcome banquet in Germany, Chen Wenqiang delivered an enthusiastic speech. He praised Germany's support and assistance to China, and spoke highly of the profound friendship that China and Germany have established. He also extended a sincere invitation to German business people.

No matter what the reasons are, Chen Wenqiang's speech set a very good tone for his visit to Germany, and his humble and simple style also made a very good impression on the Germans.

From the very beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Chinese government has expressed its closeness and dependence on Germany. The idea of a triangular alliance between China, the United States and Germany was renewed. And on the Outer Mongolia issue that occurred not long ago, the Chinese government also showed the role and consciousness of a chess piece.

This is the case between countries, where advantage is need, and there has never been any immutable principle in history, and there is no country that cannot form an alliance. Nor is there any country that will not become its own enemy.

The Chinese delegation brought a lot of exquisite traditional handicrafts as gifts, which may not be worth a few dollars, but they did make the relationship between the two sides more harmonious.

Late in the night, the banquet was over, and Chen Wenqiang did not go to rest immediately, but negotiated with the new German minister Jiang Zuobin.

"Vienna was a place full of aristocrats, and any of the more senior civil and military officials would be canonized as nobles when they retired. The Austrian aristocracy enjoyed the most, and relished feasts, hunting, and love. They have no intention of making a name for themselves and ignoring state affairs, and inviting them to become ministers is considered a great personal sacrifice. Therefore, the imperial power was in the hands of the Hungarian aristocracy. Jiang Zuobin introduced the situation of Austria with a slight contempt.

As the first minister of the government of the Republic, the German government expressed sufficient courtesy to Jiang Zuobin's arrival, and drove a special car to the German-Swiss border to greet him. At the Berlin station, a number of high-ranking officials came out to greet them (there was no such enthusiasm for the later ambassador).

Before Jiang Zuobin arrived in Berlin, the Chinese Embassy in Germany did not even have a car, and when it encountered foreign affairs activities, it temporarily borrowed a car and was in a hurry, which not only made mistakes, but also often made people laugh at them. Not only that, but the dilapidated inside and outside of the building is also surprising. The eaves are peeled, the curtains are worn, the chairs are connected with broken holes, and the heating is often absent, which is ridiculed by outsiders as a "cold palace".

Immediately after his arrival, he began to design and repair the house, replace the interior furnishings, install walkie-talkies, heating and other equipment, and give the legation a new look. In late autumn, when a banquet is held in the hall, even the female guests with bare chests and backs do not feel a little cool. Since then, the nickname "Cold Palace" has never been mentioned again. Jiang Zuobin also ordered a car and stationed in foreign embassies (residences), which was a window for foreigners to understand China, and he paid great attention to establishing China's prestige through this window.

For such a young envoy to foreign countries, Chen Wenqiang attaches great importance to Jiang Zuobin's ability, hopes that he will temper himself more on the eventful diplomatic stage of Europe, and supports some of his demands.

"Austria is indeed one of the weaker of the great powers." Chen Wenqiang nodded in agreement: "It is indeed very disadvantageous for Germany to pull such a dragging ally. ”

"The northern Germans, especially the Prussians, looked down on the Austrians. Although Austria was once the center of the Germanic Holy Roman Empire, it once carried forward the glory of the empire and repeatedly resisted the Turkish conquest frenzy. Jiang Zuobin continued: "The German Empire is becoming more and more assertive in international affairs, which is related to the Empire's economic, industrial and other strength factors. ”

"Yes, Germany has risen and has begun to demand its own territory under the sunshine of the world, and Germany has become more and more expansive, and has begun to feel that God is unfair and that there is too little room for Germany to live." Chen Wenqiang said with a meaningful smile: "It is very dangerous that Bismarck's national policy of strategic moderation and peaceful development will be replaced by an ambitious policy of military expansion. ”

Some say that if Bismarck had not been deposed, the First World War would not have happened. This view is absurd. As we all know, World War I was a complete war of imperial powers, and there was no distinction between good and evil. The various contradictions in the process of the internal development of capitalism have become fierce to a certain extent, and they will inevitably give rise to contention. At that time, the manifestation was imperialist war. Even if Bismarck lived until 1920, he would only have a partial impact on the pre-war situation, and it would not be possible to change the nature of the war, let alone decide whether the war would occur or not.

"What would be the impact on our country if a war broke out between Germany and another country? Wilhelm II had great hopes for the Sino-American and German triangular alliance! Jiang Zuobin said worriedly: "But my country is located in Asia, under the direct threat of Japan and Russia, as well as Britain and France, and I have to be careful in every move." ”

Chen Wenqiang nodded, touched his chin and thought for a while, and said: "The United States is not enthusiastic about this, and our difficulties can also be explained to Germany, which seems frank." Of course, if the United States agrees and has the support of the United States and Germany, China is very willing to join this triangular alliance. ”

"Mr. Secretary, if Germany were to go to war with England and France, it would not take into account the problems of population and food, although its economy and industry were strong and its army was of high quality." Jiang Zuobin calmly analyzed: "After Britain's war machine is fully activated, with its industrial level and overwhelming superiority in the number of soldiers that are not weaker than Germany, Germany will inevitably be dragged down in a protracted war. (To be continued.) )