"How did you do that, Qin?" Conger asked, "I mean, you ask von . Tomman promised something and let him do what you wanted. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ”

"What do you mean?"

"I saw Feng. Tomman gathered his soldiers and heard him speak to them. The Colonel demanded that his soldiers participate in maintaining law and order in the city, and at the same time strictly forbade anyone to rob, rape, and murder - according to my response to von Von. Tommen understands that he will not give such orders unless you promise him some conditions to do so. Conger said, "What good did you give him?" ”

"Oh." Qin Lang said, "I promised to give Feng . Tomman 150,000 kroner - he himself could get a third, and the rest to the officers and soldiers of the Austrian Guard. ”

It was only a few seconds before the remarks, made in an understated tone, were reacted. "What!" Conger's eyes widened in surprise, "You bribed von. Tomman and his soldiers? ”

"To be exact, dividends." Qin Lang explained, looking at his fingers, "Anyway, Feng. Admiral Tomman and his men were involved in the war, defending the embassy district at its most dangerous moments, as well as the diplomats and civilians in the embassy district, so that they were entitled to a dividend as a reward for their hard work at the end of the war. Of course," he continued, after a pause, "also to protect the interests of Chinese civilians in Beijing, I would be happy to give a portion of my harvest to the Colonel and his soldiers." ”

"You should speak generously in the Senate...... Conger sighed, wanting to make a comment. Before he could do that, however, Morrison had already come over and interrupted him.

"I beg your pardon, Mr. Minister." He first apologized to Conger and then said, "I'd like to have a brief interview with General Qin, is that okay?" ”

Conger tilted his head towards Qin Lang. "Mr. Morrison, you should ask the general himself this question."

"Thank you very much, Mr. Minister." "Would you like to be interviewed, General?" I only have a few questions. ”

"Of course, Mr. Morrison, you can ask me any questions." Even if he didn't like the self-righteous Times reporter in front of him at all, but now, Qin Lang couldn't afford to ignore him, so he could only smile and nod in agreement—but with a discount.

You can ask me any questions. What he meant. But I can refuse to answer, or, give the answer you want to get.

Qin Lang's smile became more obvious. He's ready to take on Morisson's challenge.

"Thank you." With his instincts, the Times reporter seemed to sense something, and hesitated, perhaps wanting to change a few more appropriate questions - but in the end, he could not fully control his mood and ask the questions he had prepared.

"It is said that in order to ensure that the coalition soldiers do not harass the civilians of Beijing, you have promised the commanders that you will give them and their soldiers a portion of the money and treasures you have looted, is that so, General?" Mo Lixun said as he recorded his words in his notebook, then stopped and waited for Qin Lang to answer.

"I must stress that the word 'looting' is not appropriate." Qin Lang first corrected, "What my soldiers are doing is a protective collection of valuable cultural relics and artworks, in order to protect these precious cultural heritages from being destroyed in the war, not to loot wealth." ”

"I don't see any difference between the two."

"The difference is that the work carried out by my soldiers is non-profit. The final destination for those historical artifacts and works of art will be public museums and art galleries, not private collectors' mansions or anything else. ”

Morisson's eyes flickered. "You're saying you're going to donate all your artifacts and works of art to museums and art galleries?"

He did not question Qin Lang whether his "protective collection work" was approved by the Chinese emperor, royal nobles and high-ranking officials. Although to a certain extent, this accusation did have a strong offensive power, Morrison was sure that Qin Lang must have a way to avoid it.

But he couldn't avoid the current problem. It's about human nature. As long as he is a businessman, an absolute egoist, he will show flaws in this matter.

Mo Lixun was full of expectations for Qin Lang's answer. However, he didn't know his opponent well enough, and defeat was a matter of course.

"That's true." Qin Lang said affirmatively.

His answer was a little overwhelmed by Morrison - no general had ever announced in such a positive tone that he would donate looted artifacts and works of art, and in fact, Qin Lang was a businessman, a mercenary arms dealer and a war broker - he should obviously care more about his interests.

Morrison hadn't figured out what was going on. Conger, who was standing on the sidelines, didn't either. He looked at Qin Lang, strange and confused, not understanding what was wrong with him.

In fact, Qin Lang's plan was very simple. Yes, he does donate those artifacts and treasures to open museums and art galleries, but only to the museums and galleries he has established - and not to other similar institutions - and then charges all visitors.

Of course, it is also free for the general public, and donations from both wealthy and charitable organizations are accepted...... Or both charge and accept donations. Either way, it's a very long-lasting, and very profitable business.

And that doesn't mean he's going to send everything to museums and galleries. Some things, such as artifacts and works of art that were made by the emperors of the Qing Empire or labeled by them personally, resulting in a decrease in the value of the collection, can in fact be secretly sold.

He can do these things. After all, no citizen of any European country and the United States, except for the guy who wants to spoil his reputation, cares about these issues, and no one can figure out which of the Chinese treasures that appeared in the commercial market, which came from his mercenaries, and which from the eunuchs and court maids who fled the palace.

Qin Lang was confident in his plan. In fact, it has tricked Morrison into it.

The Times reporter lowered his head and thought for a moment, thinking that he could not find any loopholes now, so he had to jump away from it and return to the original question.

"But you did promise the Coalition commanders, right, General?"

"As you say, it is." This time, Qin Lang did not bypass or deny it.

Morrison saw this development as a good start, and he immediately added a second question. "How are you going to keep your promise, General? With the silver of the Chinese government, the emperor, the nobility and the bureaucracy, and the commercial banks? ”

"That's right." Qin Lang still didn't deny it.

"Don't you think it's still a robbery, General?" Morrison asked.

"This is war reparations, Mr. Morrison." Qin Lang's lips curled, "As the losing side in the war, the Qing government is obliged to pay compensation to the victorious side, this is an international practice, isn't it?" For now, I'm just a little bit earlier than that. ”

"General, I must remind you that war reparations are paid by the government to the government, not to the soldiers who participated in the battles - and of course, not by the soldiers themselves." Morrison rejoiced, "May I think that your actions are still plundering?" ”

"It's funny." Before Qin Lang could reply, Conger interjected and said mockingly, "I must say that the British Army is undoubtedly a true expert in this respect, as the stories of Washington in 1814 and Peking in 1860 have amply proved this. ”

It was a counterattack, but it didn't work.

"Yes, Mr. Minister." Morrison said in an approving tone—which, of course, turned into a mockery of him in Conger's eyes—but it wasn't over yet. "I must say that the British Army's act of setting fire to the U.S. presidential palace and looting and burning of China's royal gardens, like those things that General Sherman did in Atlanta and Mississippi, are criminal acts against human morality. At a time when our world is about to enter the twentieth century, such acts should be condemned by all sectors of society. ”

Conger was a little furious. Still, he kept his composure, trying to figure out Morrison's true intentions. If he brazenly criticized Qin Lang's behavior just because the British army didn't get much benefit from Qin Lang's large-scale looting, it was a bit too extreme, and it was not like his usual style.

So what does he mean?

Conger was still speculating, but Qin Lang was already quite clear: he was an American general, so it was natural that his actions could rise to the level of the state. Morrison didn't need to make up anything at all, he just needed to write the mercenary's actions truthfully in his report, then replace his name with "an American general", and with a little incitement, the British people could point the finger at the United States.

Of course, the people have always been just a tool for the government to use, and it goes without saying what London wants to do with that tool.

Clearly, the rapid expansion of American power in China has made its Tommy cousin extremely uncomfortable. Morrison's actions were either dictated by London or he volunteered to help his government as a patriot.

Oscar. Wilde said that patriotism is the virtue of the wicked - Morrison is an evildoer, but not evil enough.

Qin Lang smiled secretly and began to answer the question: "I must emphasize one point, Mr. Morrison, there is an essential difference between the ongoing operations of my army and the robbery of the British Army......" (To be continued, if you want to know what happened next, please log in to the www.qidian.com, there are more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!) (To be continued.) )