The most complicated mood of this meal is Tang Ning, in his previous life, as his identity, he never thought that one day he would have the opportunity to eat a state banquet at the state guesthouse, let alone that he would eat a state banquet as an American.

Although Tangning's mood was extremely complicated, he was Chinese after all, and he naturally had no problem dealing with these traditional Chinese dishes, and the official in charge of accompanying him at this table saw that he ate so naturally, so he smiled and said: "It seems that Mr. Tangning is still very familiar with our China, and ordinary foreign friends are not so skilled and natural when they use chopsticks for the first time." ”

This question brought Tang Ning's chaotic thoughts back, and he replied with a smile: "Although I have never been to China, I know a few Chinese friends, so I like Chinese culture and history very much, especially Chinese food, which is my favorite." As for chopsticks, although I am an American, I have lived in Japan for more than 20 years, and Japanese people also use chopsticks when they eat, so I learned it slowly, but although Japanese chopsticks are said to have been passed down from China, they are not exactly the same as Chinese chopsticks. ”

"Hey, that's interesting, can chopsticks be any different?" The accompanying officer asked curiously.

Tang Ning picked up the chopsticks in his hand and explained: "Japanese chopsticks are mainly round, and the chopsticks are relatively pointed. This is because there is a lot of seafood in Japan, and in order to prevent the ingredients from slipping and to make it easier to eat, the food is tied up with chopsticks, so the chopsticks gradually become sharper and sharper. In addition, there are many things about the use of chopsticks in Japan, and there are eight taboos. They are chopsticks licking: licking chopsticks with your tongue; Lost chopsticks: holding chopsticks in hand, not knowing what to eat, wandering around the dining table; Move chopsticks: After moving a dish, you should eat, but don't eat. Then another dish was moved; Twist chopsticks: Twist the chopsticks and lick the rice sticking to the chopsticks with your mouth; Chopsticks: Eating vegetables; Chopsticks: Use chopsticks to pick up and eat from the dish; Straddle chopsticks: Straddle the chopsticks on top of the bowl or plate; Chopsticks: Use chopsticks instead of toothpicks to pick teeth. ”

The accompanying officer praised: "Mr. Tang Ning really knows the oriental food culture, I don't know when did you meet the Chinese friends in your mouth?" ”

Tang Ning thought for a moment, and then said: "I met in Japan, but in fact, I don't have many Chinese friends, only three and a half. One is Mr. Wu Qingyuan, a holy player of Go. He came to Tokyo from Beijing in his early years, and I sponsored him for a while. One is Dr. Han Xuewei, the private doctor in my house now, who also went to Japan to study before the liberation and then stayed in Japan to settle down. The third is Mr. Mei Lanfang, a master of Peking Opera, when he went to Japan to perform a few years ago, we met, and Mr. Mei invited me to come to China at that time, but unfortunately now that I am here, he is gone. (Mei Lanfang died in 1961.) ）

The accompanying officer sighed: "That's right. Mr. Mei's generation of masters, but unfortunately he left too early. ”

Speaking of this, Tang Ning's mind moved, and he deliberately asked: "I remember that Mr. Bao Jiu, the son of Master Mei, also has a deep accomplishment in Peking Opera, and has completely inherited the skills of his father Master Mei, I wonder if I have the blessing to be able to see Mr. Bao Jiu's performance?" ”

Tang Ning's question was definitely ill-intentioned, first, he knew very well that Mei Baojiu was being criticized and fighting at this time, and he was working hard every day. In Mei Baojiu's memoirs in her later years, this tragic past was mentioned, although the old man himself said it very easily. But between the lines, you can see how big the crime he suffered back then, and secondly, the cultural entertainment at this time was basically eight model operas, and traditional Peking Opera was not allowed to perform at all. Therefore, Tang Ning's request is simply embarrassing, but outsiders naturally don't know that he is pretending to be confused.

Downing's request naturally can't be met, of course. This is also related to his identity, if it was Nixon's request, it is estimated that Mei Baojiu would be almost able to see him, but it is naturally impossible for an entourage like Tang Ning to attach so much importance to it.

However, Nixon and his entourage have watched a lot of model dramas these days, because it is to dilute the media's attention to politics. Therefore, Nixon paid more attention to China's customs and culture during this visit, hoping to show a new China through the American media, however, in the face of some Chinese-style cultural phenomena, the United States could not help but feel embarrassed, including the model play, which made everyone the most embarrassed is the performance of "Red Detachment of Women".

Because the American personnel have never seen such a revolutionary opera-like performance, they can only reluctantly conclude that the content is that the Red Detachment of Women has defeated the capitalist devil and so on. Titles such as lackeys of the capitalists are common. Nixon could only watch the play with a very helpless and respectful attitude.

For Nixon, such an experience had never been experienced before, and he sat with Premier Zhou and Jiang X sitting on either side. When "Red Detachment of Women" ended, he still applauded politely. Later, when a reporter asked him for his opinion, Nixon struggled to find something positive to comment on. "This ballet is...... Of course, as you know, it's sending a message, and that's one of its purposes...... I've seen ballets from all over the world, both Soviet and American, and this one is really of the same high caliber as any ballet I've ever seen. ”

In fact, Nixon was not in a very good mood when watching this ballet, especially the impression of Jiang X around him was very bad. In fact, this ballet "Red Detachment of Women" was "directed and rehearsed" by Jiang X, and the tree was used as a model play. Moreover, at that time, the performance of "Red Detachment of Women" to Nixon was prepared as an "extremely important political task", and at the same time, it was also the first time that Jiang X appeared in such an important foreign affairs event.

But later Nixon wrote in his memoirs: "I know from the references prepared for us in advance that Jiang X was an ideological fanatic, that she had strenuously opposed my visit, and that she had a tortuous and contradictory experience, from her early years as an aspiring actress to leading radical forces in her 1966 'cultural activities.'" For many years, she was named Mao's wife, but the name is no longer as loud in China, and she has made full use of it to run a gang that embraces her personally. (To be continued.) )