Episode 82 Foreign Minister vs Foreign Relative

Outside the small hall, inside and outside the entire garden, more than a dozen plainclothes agents were scattered around, pretending to chat and wait for people......

“…… It's not funny what you guys are talking about, I'll talk about one," Zheng Yuxuan said with shrimp in one hand and a wine glass in the other, grinning and fainting, "It was said that a guy went to the banquet, and then came back to complain to his friends, saying: Alas, those people at the banquet are too unparticular, I stared at a large piece of meat for a long time, and it was grabbed by others." Then they asked him: Then why don't you clip it up first? The guy said, "You don't know, I'm holding a piece of chopsticks." They asked again: Then why don't you put the chopsticks in your mouth? And the guy said, "Hey, you don't know, I still have a piece in my mouth!" …… Hahahaha......"

All three girls burst out laughing. Zheng Yuxuan said it himself, laughing the most, leaning forward and closing back; Fourteen Gege couldn't stop laughing; Xiuxiu is the most quiet, and she covers her mouth and laughs.

But after laughing, the three girls looked at each other, and suddenly they all lowered their heads in a weak heart. There was silence at the table. Zheng Yuxuan was drunk, blushing and continuing to eat jade shrimp; Fourteen Gege lowered his head and played with his wine glass to think about his thoughts; Xiuxiu quietly glanced at the two of them.

They are all silently thinking about who is the meat in their mouths, who is the meat on the chopsticks, and who is the meat on the plate. …… Also, who is the meat-eating "guy".

"By the way," Zheng Yuxuan suddenly proposed, "After eating, let's go to the palace to play together!" It's been a long time since you've been there! Go see my cousin...... My cousin has been pitiful these days......"

Fourteen Gege and Xiuxiu looked at each other, Fourteen Gege hesitated for a moment, and said to Xiuxiu: "Xiuxiu, what do you say?" ”

Xiuxiu hesitated and said:

"Will it ...... Will you go too often? After all, it's a palace, I'm afraid it's not very good......"

"Not diligent, not diligent!" Zheng Yuxuan hurriedly smiled, "You haven't been there for five or six days!" In the past few days, Shen Rongxuan's gang has been running to the palace, my cousin's ears are soft, and Shen Rongxuan always uses national interests, national righteousness and the like to drug her, and my cousin still eats this set the most...... I can't be reasonable, and I can't persuade my cousin...... You think, as long as my cousin goes to Siam, then the second one will have to be the turn of Lord Xiang......"

So, the three girls quickly reached an agreement to destroy Zhu Yourong's political marriage at all costs.

……

On the outskirts of Berlin, at a military airfield in the Brandenburg area.

Several black cars were parked there, surrounded by two groups of SS troops. Several prominent figures stood beside the car, looking up at the sky. These men were either dressed in military coats and large-brimmed hats, or black tweed coats and top hats, and they all shrank in the cold spring of April in Europe.

A black dot faintly appeared in the gray sky, which soon grew larger and larger, and in the blink of an eye, it turned into an airplane. At the same time, the roar of the motor was mixed with some kind of sharp whistling sound.

Almost instantly, the plane swooped down, accompanied by a sharp, anti-aircraft siren-like roar that resounded across the ground, and two huge landing gears under the wings and a bomb in the middle could be clearly seen.

The legendary Stuka!

The plane swooped almost vertically to the ground, when suddenly it rose 180 degrees, roared and pulled up, and at the same time, the bomb between the landing gear shook and fell straight to the ground.

Although several people next to the car had been mentally prepared, two or three of them involuntarily made dodging movements and bent down to hide behind the car. They felt like the plane was coming at their heads.

However, the black "bomb" was still a few hundred meters away. It was heavily planted on the grass and did not explode, but only kicked up a large cloud of dust, jumped twice, and lay in the dirt.

A circle of small flags was planted around it, forming a circle with a diameter of 50 meters, and the training bomb landed precisely in this range.

Two or three people who squatted down next to the car in the distance slowly stood up, looked at each other, and laughed mockingly. Then they jumped into the car and drove towards the point of impact a few hundred meters away.

The car stopped outside the shooting area, and several big people got out of the car, walked to the middle of the small flag, and stared at the "bomb" lying in the green grass and dirt. The appearance and weight of this bomb are no different from ordinary bombs, except that it is not filled with **, but a mixed powder of sawdust, lime, and sand.

"Monsieur Earl," said a big fat man in a white uniform, cheerfully, patting his thigh with his gloves and pointing to the crater, "look, the error is no more than twenty meters!" Can you find a more accurate bomber than this? ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang patted Goering's arm affectionately, and said with a smile:

"Mr. Minister, of course you can find it! Not long ago, I personally commanded and used it! ”

The smile on Goering's fat face stiffened, and he immediately laughed again, patting Xiang Xiaoqiang's arm. He just remembered how the "Osprey" dive bomber of the Ming Navy showed its skills in the Ming and Qing wars not long ago. That short war also showed the world how great the role of dive bombers in ground operations was. But this "show" was one-sided, and only a few countries with a heart captured it. Germany is one of the most caring ones.

Immediately after the end of the battle on the other side of the world, those in the Luftwaffe who were vehemently opposed to dive bombers, the "low-altitude weapons threat theorists", shut up for a moment. The development and improvement of the Ju-87 dive bomber was given the highest priority. Over the next few months, improvements that had been slow-moving were suddenly several times faster, and the V-4 prototype was unveiled ahead of schedule. That's what I'm looking at now.

"Mr. Minister," Wang Hexiang held the test data of the No. 4 JU-87A in his hand, looked at the Stuka in the distance landing and taxied on the runway, and said with a frown, "I take the liberty of saying that your Stuka does not feel stronger than our Osprey in terms of data." In terms of speed, our Osprey has a maximum speed of 315 kilometers per hour, and you only have 310 kilometers per hour. Also, we have a bomb load of 450 kilograms, and yours only have 250 kilograms. …… I don't see where the superiority lies. Seriously, I'm a little disappointed. ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang kept nodding his head beside him, and said one of his most proficient German sentences:

“ja…… ja……”

After the interpreter spoke to the others in German, the chief designer of the Junkers, who was next to Goering, could not help but say:

"Sir, but our overall design is better and our performance is better. Our Stuka has a bomb load of only 250 kg, but if you subtract one crew, you can have a bomb load of 500 kg! And as far as I know, your Ospreys, even minus one person, have a similar maximum bomb load. And, I don't know if you noticed, our Stuka is more accurate than your Ospreys, or rather, much more accurate.

"Your Osprey is diving down too fast, the time from the start of the dive to the drop is so short that the bombardier doesn't have much time to aim. Your wing design is not good enough, the area is too small, the shape is poor, and the overall fuselage shape makes it difficult to control speed during the dive...... Sir, we are talking about bombers, not fighters, and the first thing is not speed, but the effect of bombing. Even if the maximum speed is 5 kilometers per hour, it will not escape the pursuit of fighter jets. But doubling the accuracy doubles the results of the battle, or in other words, the number of sorties required each time is halved. ”

Goering looked at the chief designer with a satisfied expression. He looked at Wang Hexiang and Xiang Xiaoqiang again, very proud.

Wang Hexiang smiled unhurriedly:

"The performance data of our ospreys are all summarized after long-term training and actual combat, which is very reliable. And your Stuka, after all, there are only a few prototypes now, and the chances of all kinds of data are too great, and it is irresponsible to say how the performance surpasses us. Moreover, the planes are operated by the top test pilots, and the data they obtain, such as the bomb data, must be the best. If it is replaced by an ordinary pilot of our army aviation, whether it can be more accurate than the Osprey, it is difficult to say......"

Although the professionals on both sides came and went, arguing with each other, and even had a bit of gunpowder, Xiang Xiaoqiang and Goering both smiled and didn't care at all. They all know that "praise and criticism are buyers, applause is idlers", and only real buyers will desperately find fault. This is true in ancient and modern times, both in China and abroad.

……

In the afternoon, they again went to the station of a certain regiment in Brandenburg. On the shooting range, Xiang Xiaoqiang lay behind a few MG34s and fired hundreds of bullets with his own hands. Then, the designer of the Mauser company demonstrated to him the disassembly and assembly of the whole gun, explained the structure, and the performance of use. This time, without Wang Hexiang, Xiang Xiaoqiang himself pointed out several serious shortcomings: the cost is too high, the structure is too complex, the production speed is too slow, and the reliability is not strong in harsh environments.

The personnel of the Mauser company have long been angry in their hearts: Daming did too inauthentic, without the permission of the Mauser company, did not pay the Mauser company a penny, and did not go through the permission of the German government, they gave their masterpieces to a large-scale "copycat" in the country, of course, you know the advantages and disadvantages of our machine guns!

But they have been warned: the most important thing to work with Daming is now, and not to bring up any topics that may cause unpleasantness. The Ming army's imitation of MG34 must be forgotten......

Therefore, the people of the Mauser company still had to laugh and explain patiently: although this machine gun is a little lacking, the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages......

Finally, Xiang Xiaoqiang said instructively:

"Well, the advantages of your guns are great, but the disadvantages cannot be ignored. Good design is good, but not conducive to mass production. This is also the old problem of you Germans. Remember, we want weapons of war, not works of art. If we do introduce MG34, I hope to get your company's follow-up R&D and upgrade services, and it is best to get an upgraded version as soon as possible, a version that can overcome these shortcomings. I suggest that you don't always think about using cut parts, you can use stamped parts as much as possible. ”

…… Alas, if only this little butterfly flapped its wings, MG42 would have come out a few years earlier......

……

On the morning of April 7, Xiang Xiaoqiang's delegation traveled west by train and arrived in the evening in western Germany, in the city of Eisen in the Ruhr region, where the Krupp Reich was located.

There, they were warmly welcomed by the Krupp father and son. Gustav Krupp, the current head of Krupp, said he was proud that his son had such a friend as General Xiang.

The next day, April 8, Xiang Xiaoqiang and his entourage visited several factories in Krupp, and although it was a quick visit, Xiang Xiaoqiang was still shocked by the momentum of the legendary Ruhr industrial area.

Chimneys and blast furnaces, intertwined with cobweb-like railways, extend widely into the factory area, extending in all directions. Trains spewed steam, truckloads of coal were pulled, and flatbed cars were tied with all sorts of large castings......

All kinds of cranes and tower cranes rotate in the roar of motors, carrying unknown large metal parts......

Drilling machines, sawing machines, planers, boring machines, and milling machines are processing precision parts, and the cutting cutter heads are rotating rapidly, spewing dazzling sparks and steel chips......

Xiang Xiaoqiang saw with his own eyes how the barrel of the legendary 88 gun was bored out on the boring machine.

Over the next three days, the delegation visited a wide range of factories in the Ruhr area, following a "menu" of more than a dozen advanced lathes and dozens of production lines. These are the essence of Germany's first-class fire industry and other heavy industries, all of which are the weakness of the Ming Dynasty and Germany's strength. If the cooperation can be successful, Daming will definitely send a large number of technical personnel from China to select and screen in more detail.

In the past few days, not only has Xiang Xiaoqiang been taught a lesson, but even Wang Hexiang, a military expert, has deep feelings.

"There are two things in Germany that stand out from the rest of the world," Wang said, "one is music, and the other is industry." ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang was equally impressed, adding:

"The first should be industry. Music, at least Austria can surpass it. Its industry is the best thing in the world. ”

On the evening of April 11, Xiang Xiaoqiang and his party left the Ruhr area by train and returned to Berlin the next day on April 12. Next, it was time to work with Hitler's negotiators. The most ideal result in Xiang Xiaoqiang's mind is to get back a group of professional officer corps headed by Guderian.

Xiang Xiaoqiang felt unprecedented urgency. He knew that he had to deal with the general negotiation matters as soon as possible, and then let Daming send experts and representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to finalize the details and finally sign the treaty. He must return to Daming as soon as possible to prevent Zhu Yourong from marrying Siam. Whether you like Zhu Yourong or not is secondary, in case Zhu Yourong really leaves Daming, then he will be immediately exposed to no protection. The People's Guard will definitely not be able to keep it. In the end, being driven out to be an idle earl is already a good ending.

……

Qiu Yu found that Xiang Xiaoqiang had been running non-stop in the past few days, and it seemed that he had changed back to the previous Xiang Xiaoqiang, and His Majesty's incident didn't seem to have affected him at all.

But her gut told her that it was definitely not the case. After Xiaoqiang falls in love with someone, he will never forget it so easily. Xiaoqiang is not such a numb and heartless person. Qiu Yu obviously felt that Xiang Xiaoqiang was trying to forget His Majesty by being desperately busy.

On the morning of April 13, Xiang Xiaoqiang was eating breakfast in his room while reading the negotiation outline. Qiu Yun glanced at him secretly, sat beside him gently, and then said softly:

"Xiaoqiang, ......"

"Hmm."

"Today...... It's your birthday, remember. ”

"Hmm."

I don't know if Xiang Xiaoqiang is real or pretending, Qiu Yun glanced at Xiang Xiaoqiang who hummed with resentment, and said softly again:

"Xiaoqiang, today, April 13th, is your ......"

"Hmm."

Qiu Yu saw that she was about to catch fire, and she was about to have a seizure when the radio light suddenly turned on. A telegram came.

Qiu Yu hurriedly sat down, put on headphones, and began to record messages with a pen. Then take out the codebook and start translating.

After the translation, there was only one sentence on the message paper:

Happy birthday.

- Friends - Banyan Tree

Qiu Yu only felt sour in his heart, he had already guessed five or six points, but he still didn't understand. She gently put the newspaper under Xiang Xiaoqiang's eyes.

"Hmm...... Not?! ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang's eyes widened, and he picked up the telegram at once. Qiu Yu watched his reaction coldly, and asked in a choked voice:

"Xiaoqiang...... Who is Tingzhi? Who is Yourong? ”

"Hmm...... Uh......" Xiang Xiaoqiang looked at Qiu Yu weakly, his heart was horizontal, and he said, "It's ...... It's me, Yourong is His Majesty's self-title, but it's actually ...... It's a good friend...... Zhu Yourong's meaning......"

Qiu Yu was dumbfounded, she couldn't believe that the relationship between Xiaoqiang and His Majesty had reached such a close level...... She bit her lip, tears streaming down her face, and asked with a sob:

"Your Majesty...... Why do you stand up? ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang looked at her and muttered:

"Yes...... It was a cousin given to me by His Majesty......"

Qiu Yu wiped her tears and sobbed one after another:

"When...... I...... I don't know? ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang is about to collapse:

"That's it...... It is...... Alas, ***, it was a few days before we got married! ”

Qiu Yu couldn't hold back any longer, ran back to the bedroom with a "wow", threw herself on the bed and cried.

……

Nanjing, in the imperial study of the Forbidden City, Zhu Yourong sat on the sofa calmly, listening to the fierce debate between the two factions.

One faction is foreign ministers: Shen Rongxuan, and several cabinet ministers; The other faction is a foreign relative: Mrs. Li, Zheng Gongyin, and Zheng Yuxuan.

During this time, the relationship between the father and daughter of the Zheng family was originally very stiff, but now they are on the same side because of common interests. On the contrary, Shen Rongxuan and Zheng Gongyin, two old friends, are on opposite sides today because of their fundamental interests.

Shen Rongxuan is talking about the necessity of Zhu Yourong to marry the prince of Siam, and refute Zheng Gongyin's views. As soon as Zheng Gongyin came up, he went online and raised the empress's marriage to the prince of the vassal domain to the height of losing national dignity and seriously hitting the national pride.

And Shen Rongxuan advocated from the beginning that this is a normal royal marriage, and there is no concept of who is higher and who is lower. Even if Your Majesty does not marry the prince of the vassal and chooses a husband from within the country, then the status of this husband will only be lower, and the tainting of Your Majesty's status will be greater. Moreover, it has been common in Europe for a female monarch to marry a foreign monarch or an heir to the monarchy, and no country feels that it will lose its national dignity, and no country feels that its self-esteem has been severely hit.

On the contrary, the actual benefits brought by such a marriage to the country and the people will be immeasurable.

"We are no longer the Ming Dynasty of three hundred years ago," Shen Rongxuan said, "We can't give up huge practical interests like before, and we have to cling to that little face." …… What's more, this is not a shame-damaging thing in the first place. ”

Zheng Yuxuan quietly recalled the outline that Fourteen Gege sorted out for her, and felt that Shen Rongxuan could no longer be refuted ethically at this time, and she should try her best to refute it from the feasibility point of view. She looked at Shen Rongxuan and said with a smile:

"Uncle Shen, what you said sounds very good, but why do I always think that there is no such cheap thing?