The entire British mission to the Qing Dynasty, including the officers and men of the fleet, numbered more than 800 people, but only 92 were qualified to go to Beijing with Magalny, most of whom were learned naturalists, painters, naturalists, and surgeons.

In order to demonstrate the use of the latest field artillery and rifles to the Qing Emperor Qianlong and his ministers, Magalni asked the Qing officials to bring a small armed guard. After consulting and agreeing to Emperor Qianlong, the officials of Tongzhou agreed to Magalni's request, but the guards were not allowed to wear weapons at will until the new weapons were demonstrated, and the safety of the mission was guaranteed by the accompanying Qing army.

The task was carried out by a platoon of the Marine Corps of the fleet, and the person in charge was Second Lieutenant Barnett, which was also an opportunity for Margarny to show his face for his nephew.

The team was accompanied by more than 100 cars of birthday gifts from King George III of England to Qianlong, and among these miscellaneous gifts, there was even a state-of-the-art steam engine. Regarding the technology of the steam engine, the British classified it as a state secret to the rest of Europe like a thief, but the British generously gave it to the Qing state, hoping to give the other side the impression that the United Kingdom of Britain was a strong country, which would also be conducive to the subsequent trade negotiations.

It's a pity that the British flattery was completely done to the blind to see, and these gifts, which represent the crystallization of British industry, were ultimately piled up in the warehouse and fell into ashes, and did not succeed in attracting the attention of the Qing court.

The long convoy of the head of the Qing mission lined up all the way, several miles long, and immediately attracted the sideways of pedestrians on both sides of the official road.

In order to show the importance of the mission, and also to fight for face, the Qing court sent more than 500 well-armored Mongolian cavalry to serve as the escort of the mission. This cavalry was well-equipped and had excellent equestrian skills, which gave the British a great shock, and Margarny even lamented that these Qing cavalry were completely comparable to the Polish pikemen who threatened Europe.

Wickham had to admit that the Qing army, which had gone through a series of counterinsurgency operations, had not yet been loosely armed after 50 years, and there were many experienced and well-equipped troops, and the cavalry in front of him happened to be the best among them.

Wickham was not too shocked by this, the cavalry was no longer the overlord of the previous land warfare, and in the subsequent Napoleonic Wars, the cavalry completely became an auxiliary force, only a kind of unit to contain the enemy's flank, or it was sent out to pursue when the enemy fled.

Nowadays, the cavalry troops attacking the infantry phalanx are a dead end, and the fiasco of the Indian Asan's princely state cavalry attacking the British infantry phalanx is a typical case. The Manchus thought that they would not be able to catch up with the changes in the world war situation for a long time, and the tragedy of the earth where Seng Lingqin led more than 10,000 Mongolian cavalry to attack the infantry array of the British and French forces is a good illustration of this point.

Tongzhou was not far from the city of Beijing, and the whole team soon entered the gate of the city. The officials of the Imperial Court and the Ministry of Rites had been waiting for a long time again in the city of Wengcheng, and when they saw that the British mission had arrived in Beijing smoothly, they breathed a sigh of relief, and then took the mission to the "Huitong Siyi Pavilion" to rest.

Lord Magalny was anxious to meet the Qianlong Emperor in order to make a request for trade and the sending of ambassadors to each other. However, what disturbed him was that after the British mission entered the Huitongsi Yi Pavilion, the Qing court officials seemed to have forgotten the British mission, and not a single Qing court official came for several days in a row.

Margarni's lips were so anxious that his lips were foaming, and he tried to go out directly several times, but was stopped by the guards at the door.

"Captain Wickham, why hasn't His Majesty the Emperor of the Qing Kingdom received us these days, is there something rude about us?"

These days, because of the unfamiliarity with Chinese etiquette, the members of the mission always offended the accompanying Qing officials inexplicably, causing a lot of misunderstandings, which made Magalny become a little neurotic, and once something unusual happened, he would subconsciously think that the people in the mission had violated the etiquette and customs of the Qing state.

Lord Magalny approached Wickham many times and asked him to supervise the words and deeds of the members of the mission to avoid taboos, but the modern society in which Wickham lived was still very different from the ancient Chinese society, and many times even Wickham himself was confused and could not understand what those cumbersome etiquette were all about.

Wickham thought for a moment and pondered: "Your Excellency, I heard that His Majesty the Emperor has left Beijing a long time ago, and now it is estimated that he is taking a summer vacation in Chengde Villa." "In his later years, Qianlong basically went to Chengde Summer Resort every summer to live for a while, and now it is really mid-August, and the important ministers and royal family members of the Manchu Qing Dynasty are basically in Rehe to escape the summer.

"What? His Majesty the Emperor is not even in Beijing! Hell, are these damn Qing people playing with us? If His Majesty the Emperor of the Qing Kingdom does not summon us, then what is the point of our envoys! "Margarny is as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, and has long since lost the so-called English gentlemanly manners.

Magarni, who has been in the political arena for many years, knows very well that the various domestic blocs are waiting for him to open the Chinese market diplomatically to balance the growing trade deficit. But if you can't even meet Emperor Qianlong, what kind of diplomatic negotiations will you talk about.

Wickham saw that his immediate boss was really angry, and hurriedly explained: "According to the previous practice, Emperor Qianlong's birthday celebration will be held in Chengde Villa, and His Majesty the Emperor will meet with foreign envoys who come to pay tribute, so Your Excellency Lord doesn't have to worry so much at all, just wait for the news." ”

At this moment, a small attendant hurriedly walked in: "Your Excellency, the envoy sent by His Majesty the Emperor of the Qing Kingdom is now outside the door, Your Excellency, do you think you will go out to greet you?" ”

The envoy of Lord Magalny's attendant was the minister sent by Emperor Qianlong to receive the British mission, Changluyan political envoy Ruizheng.

How could Wickham, who is familiar with this period of history, forget this important Manchu official in the history of Sino-British diplomacy? Magalny had a very bad impression of Rui Zheng, and once wrote bluntly in his memoirs: "The envoy of His Majesty the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty, Rui Zheng, was a Tatar, very different from the courteous Han officials we had seen before, he was very arrogant and did not pay attention to etiquette, and often put the meeting between the two sides into an embarrassing situation." ”

However, Margarny, who wrote this paragraph, did not realize what kind of role he was facing at this time, but happily took Wickham and Baron Stanton out with him, hoping to discuss with the envoy the time to meet Qianlong.

Before he reached the gate of the guild hall, he saw a Manchu official wearing a three-rank official uniform and white-soled soap boots striding towards the courtyard with five or six followers. Although Magalni still knew nothing about the official uniform system of the Manchu Dynasty, he was thoughtful, and he quickly recognized that the middle-aged official at the beginning should be the person with the highest status, and he must be the envoy in the mouth of the little attendant.

"I am Lord George Margarney, Envoy appointed by His Majesty King George of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, and it is my honour to meet you, Your Excellency." Although Ma Garni's posture was very low, Rui Zheng did not buy it, only to see him raise his head, squint at Ma Garni, and said in Manchu: "You are the envoy of England, right?" I have been ordered by the emperor to teach you the etiquette of the audience, so that you can study hard, and do not lose face in front of the emperor and the ministers. ”

Ruizheng croaked in Manchu, and Wickham was also confused. In later generations, even the Manchus could not speak Manchu, and it was impossible for him to understand a language that was on the verge of extinction.

"My lord, I am a shallow learner, and I have not dabbled in the elegant and beautiful Manchu language, so I really didn't understand the teachings of adults." In his later life, Wickham did business work, specifically picking good things that customers liked, so these words were very beautiful, although this disobedient sycophant gave him goosebumps all over his body.

At this time, a clothed servant behind Ruizheng glared at Wickham angrily and shouted angrily: "My master is talking to the envoy of England, Lord Ma, and you are a slave of Lord Ma, who dares to interject indiscriminately!" ”

Mr. Lu Xun once wrote that there are two kinds of people in the world, one is a slave, and the other is a person who wants to be a slave but cannot. After nearly a hundred years of Manchu rule, the descendants of Emperor Qin and Han Wu have been successfully enslaved, and the clothed slave in front of him probably wants to show his loyalty in front of his master, so he is impatient to scold Wickham.

Being said to be a slave by others, Wickham's heart also held back a fire, and he said loudly: "I am not a slave, I am George Wickham, a captain officer of the United Kingdom of British Marines, who is both the direct commander of the mission guard and the translator of Lord Magalny. ”

When the clothed slave wanted to say something more, he was kicked by Rui Zheng: "Master hasn't spoken yet, what are you howling about a dead minion." ”

The clothed servant was kicked, and he didn't dare to say a word, and retreated to the back. Because he didn't understand Mandarin, Magalni looked at the scene in front of him with some confusion, and he didn't know what was happening.

Rui Zheng laughed and said to Wickham in Chinese: "This little brother speaks good Chinese, but this Chinese is spoken by inferior people, why don't you teach God to speak Manchu?" ”

Fuck your uncle's Manchurian Tartar, how dare you say that Chinese is the language of inferior people! Although Wickham wanted to beat up the ignorant and arrogant Manchu official in front of him, he still had a smile like a spring breeze on his face: "I can afford it, but I am not as smart as an adult, and I can't learn the noble Manchu language." ”

Rui Zheng just said casually, he is a third-grade official and has little time to hand over a Yiren to speak Manchu, just now he was just a little curious about Li Zihan and said more. Seeing that Wickham politely refused, he didn't say more, but turned to Magalny and said, "Master Ma, time is pressing, I have brought a few officials from the Ministry of Rites over, so let's get to the point quickly." Wickham hurriedly followed behind Margarny and acted as a dutiful little translator.

The etiquette of meeting the emperor was very cumbersome, especially the differences between Chinese and Western cultures, which caused a great headache for the officials of the Ministry of Rites and the members of the British mission. This painful learning process lasted for two days, and on the third day, Ruizheng began to personally teach the etiquette of bowing to the emperor, that is, the great ceremony of three kneels and nine bows. In history, because of this etiquette, China and Britain have broken up many times, and Chinese and Western cultures have collided fiercely.

"You have to take it seriously, and when you meet the emperor, you will perform these three kneeling and nine bowing ceremonies." After speaking, Ruizheng knelt down in the direction of Rehe and practiced this etiquette with a reverent attitude. The Englishmen in the house all grew their mouths in amazement, and they couldn't believe their eyes!

Margarny said to Ruizheng with some unease: "Your Excellency, in our Britain, even when we meet the king, we only get down on one knee and kiss the back of the king's hand. Such etiquette is really degrading to us, and we forgive us for not following your etiquette. ”

For the kneeling salute, Wickham is also 10,000 reluctant in his heart. Although later generations only achieved superficial equality, such degrading etiquette was abolished for many years. Let Wickham be a big man to kneel for someone else, he really can't do it.

Although Wickham deliberately removed degrading words that might anger Ruizheng when translating, the arrogant Manchu man still broke out: "You actually kiss the king's hand as a courtesy, if you are really a barbarian country that is different from the gift of a saint, it is really insulting!" I will report this matter to the emperor and expel you and other barbarians. ”

After saying that, Rui Zheng flicked his horse's hooves and went out with a snort. Everyone in the room looked at each other, not knowing what to do for a while.

Baron Stanton said to Lord Magalny with a worried expression: "George, will this matter affect our mission?" If the Qing officials insist that we perform the etiquette of kneeling three times and bowing nine times, then what should we do? ”

Ma Garni was also breathed by Ruizheng's toughness, and his neck changed: "We are all gentlemen from the civilized world, even if we are deported, I will not perform such a humiliating three kneeling and nine bowing salutes!" It's just that I didn't expect this Qing country to produce exquisite silk porcelain, but it is a barbaric and uncivilized country! ”

Wickham pouted quietly, this European would really put gold on his face, and in the Middle Ages, when the so-called untouchables such as farmers met high-ranking nobles and high-ranking priests, didn't they humbly lie on the ground and kiss the shoes of noble people? This is much more humiliating than the Chinese kneeling ceremony, like a peasant who has just washed the mud off his feet and vigorously denies who he once was, which is really ridiculous.

Baron Stendon is not a high title, and he does not have the temper of Magalny's self-asserting identity, so he knows how to be flexible: "George, I have an idea, if that Mr. Ruizheng can perform three kneels and nine bows to the portrait of our King George III, then it is not impossible for us to perform the same etiquette to the emperor of the Qing Kingdom." ”

Margarni's eyes lit up, and he said happily: "Stanton, your idea is good, we can try it tomorrow." It wasn't that Magalny was willing to kneel, but that he felt that Levy would not kneel to the portrait of George III, so there was a reason for him to refuse the request.

It's just that what the two didn't expect was that after listening to Standon's proposal, Rui Zheng was even more furious, he was a dignified nobleman with a yellow flag, if he bowed to the portrait of the king of a barbarian country, where would he put his face if he said it? So the meeting broke up again unhappily.

Although Rui Zheng looked non-negotiable on the surface, he was actually nervous in his heart. He Shen, the Minister of Military Aircraft who was far away in Chengde, had written to him several times, asking him to take the English delegation to Chengde Villa as soon as possible to prepare for the birthday ceremony of Emperor Qianlong.

However, because of the problem of etiquette, he had been in a stalemate with the English mission for several days, and if he was any longer, he would definitely make He Shen unhappy, and he did not dare to take such a risk.

Ruizheng was in a hurry, and so was Magalny, the diplomatic action of this visit to the Qing State was facilitated by the East India Company, if he could not meet the Qianlong Emperor because of the etiquette problem, and could not negotiate the issue of trade, then he would become the target of the London high society.

Seeing that the two sides were at a stalemate, Wickham had an idea to think of a joke in later generations: the Manchu ministers during the Opium War thought that the British were missing a kneecap, so their legs would not bend or kneel. This is a very retarded explanation, as long as the IQ is not negative, will not believe this nonsense, obviously Ruizheng is a little stupid, but he is not the kind of brain-dead person.

But Wickham's goal is simply to put both sides on a footing, for whatever reason. So when Wickham explained to Ruizheng that the British had missing a piece of cartilage in his right knee, so he could only kneel on one knee, to the surprise of Magalny and others, Ruizheng actually agreed! In addition, Ruizheng also asked them to hurry up and prepare to go to Chengde to meet the emperor.

With a look of disbelief on his face, Magalny asked Wickham, "Captain Wickham, why did Envoy Rezheng later agree to our request?" ”

Wickham blinked and smiled, "I just gave him a ladder." ”