Chapter 1616
Building an Embassy
Chapter 1616 Building an Embassy
Early the next morning, Zhang Qianzhi still came to the guest house in the name of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and took Fei Cexian to see the location of the embassy.Fei Cexian didn't doubt that he was there, and after packing up, he went out with Zhang Qianzhi.
At present, foreign embassies in Sanya include Annan, Champa, Portugal, and the Netherlands. Since Luo Hong Langsang visited Matalam, the embassy at the selected address has also started construction, and it is expected to be completed in one or two months. Time will work.The Matalan people are rich and powerful, and they don't care about the cost of building the embassy at all. In addition, Luo Honglangsang's energy is devoted to the military purchase agreement, so after finalizing the few deals, Luo Honglangsang hurriedly returned to the country to return to his mission. However, he entrusted Haihan with full authority over the building of the embassy.
In addition, there are various offices of the governments of Fuzhou and Guangzhou stationed in Sanya. Because the two countries did not formally establish diplomatic relations before, it was inconvenient to use the name of embassy. .These guild halls not only handle trusteeship or shareholding business for officials, but also handle some government affairs that need to be contacted and negotiated with Haihan.
And all these institutions with diplomatic functions and political color, Haihan placed them at the foot of the mountain not far from the guest house, and the locals called this area the embassy area.Daming wanted to set up an embassy in Sanya, so the site selection was no exception, and it was also a piece of land drawn out in this area.
"Master Fei, please take a look. This land is surrounded by mountains and forests in the north, Fort Victory in the south, and the Portuguese embassy in the east. There is still room for future expansion in the west. Facing south and north, the view is wide. They are all within a mile distance, and life and work are very convenient. The land is provided by our country, and there is no fee, just complete the registration procedures. As for the building plan of the embassy, Mr. Fei can decide on his own, and there are many alternative plans in our country For Mr. Fei's reference. The construction teams are all ready-made, and the work can start when the date of breaking the ground is set."
Zhang Qianzhi led Fei Cexian to the ground for a walk, and introduced the surrounding environment and Haihan's arrangement to him as he walked.What Fei Cexian valued was naturally the environment here. There are other foreign embassies around here. This arrangement is obviously convenient for Haihan to manage. If Daming wants to forcefully open another embassy in another place, it will also appear It is not humane, and the environment here is indeed as Fei Cexian said, life is very convenient, and there are no noisy ordinary residential areas around, so it is indeed an excellent choice to build an embassy.
Fei Cexian asked: "According to your country, how big can our embassy be built? How many people can be stationed there?"
"The upper limit of the embassy's land is [-] acres, and the number of people stationed cannot exceed [-]. All military officers, guards, bodyguards and other armed personnel must undergo special registration." Zhang Qianzhi immediately explained to him.
When Fei Cexian heard it, these conditions were basically the same as what Qiu Yuan said in Haikou. It seems that no matter where the embassy is finally built, these basic conditions will not change.But that's good, lest he need to consider more objective factors for the location of the embassy.
As for the construction plan of the embassy, Daming has already prepared several sets, and it will be adjusted according to the conditions that Haihan can provide.For example, if the place is too small, you can reduce the yard from four or five to two or three. However, after checking the environment here, Fei Cexian feels that there is no need to make major adjustments to the existing plan, even for the largest building. The plan, in fact, could not use up the [-] acres of land Haihan gave.Of course, Fei Cexian has a limited project budget. If the embassy is enlarged, the interior decoration will definitely be a hasty affair. On the contrary, if the building area can be controlled well, there will be enough funds to make the interior decoration better. You can even have spare money to build a courtyard inside and build a little landscape outside to increase the comfort of living.
Fei Cexian asked again, "Is the local foreman here?"
"Here it is, let's ask him to come and answer." Zhang Qianzhi responded, and called the foreman who was waiting nearby.
Fei Cexian mainly asked questions about construction, and had a general understanding of how long the construction plan he requested would take, how long it would take to prepare building materials, how to calculate wages, and so on.This foreman is an old employee who worked with Liu Shanxia in the Ministry of Construction. He has been in charge of construction projects over the years, and answered these basic questions raised by Fei Cexian fluently, without dragging his feet.Fei Cexian was also very satisfied with this, he thought that the people of Haihan really considered things very carefully, but after thinking about it, with so many embassies built here, the people of Haihan are naturally familiar with this, and it may not be that they have any special care for Daming , and can't help being a little disappointed.
Zhang Qianzhi didn't know these little schemes in Fei Cexian's mind. He listened to the question-and-answer conversation between Fei Cexian and the foreman with a humble expression, but he was judging whether Fei Cexian got a kickback from this embassy project. Intend.Although the quotation Haihan gave was basically the cost price, if Fei Cexian really said that, Zhang Qianzhi would not hesitate to make the decision and pocket a benefit for Fei Cexian.Zhang Qianzhi remembered that when he first went to Guangzhou, He Xi once said to himself that when dealing with officials of the Ming Dynasty, what you fear is not corrupt officials, but fear that the other party will not ask for benefits. As long as you are willing to accept money, the rest will be fine. done.
Zhang Qianzhi has always kept this principle in mind. He has dealt with many officials of the Ming Dynasty over the years, and has repeatedly verified that He Xi's words are indeed correct. Starting from collecting benefits for small things, as long as there are greedy actions, it will be difficult to keep insulated from Haihan's endless bribery methods.If Fei Cexian wants to deduct a sum of money from the embassy construction project and put it into his own pocket, there must be some signs to follow. As long as Zhang Qianzhi discovers such signs, he will naturally find a way to attack him .
However, Mr. Fei seems to have stayed in the Qingshui Yamen for a long time and is out of touch with the world. He didn't have any other thoughts about the embassy project he led. Zhang Qianzhi, who had been listening, was slightly disappointed.
After the foreman finished answering the questions and left, Zhang Qianzhi asked again tentatively, "Master Fei, don't you plan to deduct a little from the project payment for emergency use?"
Sure enough, Fei Cexian asked back without knowing what he meant: "Why is it deducted from the project fee? What is the emergency?"
Zhang Qianzhi couldn't be too explicit, so he had to explain in a tactful manner: "Master Fei, the world is unpredictable, and you have to keep some money around for emergencies. If you finish the work smoothly in the end, the money will be arranged by yourselves. Yes."
Only then did Fei Cexian understand that this Qianzhi was trying to embezzle public funds for himself again, so he showed displeasure and said, "Am I, Fei, a person who is greedy for petty gains? Don't say that in front of me again. Such words!"
Zhang Qianzhi quickly responded, thinking that this person surnamed Fei was difficult to deal with, but he responded in such a serious manner, how can he move this stubborn rock?But he thought about it again, maybe Fei Cexian just doesn't know the way, and feels that this kind of money is not safe, not really not interested in money, he still has to be patient to find out the other party's preferences, and make targeted moves Only then will it be effective.Anyway, Fei Cexian has been here for a long time, so just find the right time slowly.
In fact, Fei Cexian didn't take Zhang Qianzhi's words too seriously. In his eyes, Zhang Qianzhi was just a philistine, and he put profit first in everything. How could he waste his energy and have the same knowledge as such a small person.What's more, although Zhang Qianzhi's speech is not very pleasant, he is capable in handling things, and he is also a member of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Fei Cexian doesn't want to offend this kind of person and let him go back to make his own small report.So for Zhang Qianzhi's admonition, he also pointed to the end, and did not really intend to reprimand the other party.His energy is still mainly focused on the current embassy project.
According to the foreman's introduction, the construction period can actually be adjusted to a certain extent according to actual needs, but the cost will naturally change accordingly.To put it simply, if you want to shorten the construction period, you need to hire more people. If you have enough funds, you can even arrange several groups of people to take turns to work day and night.However, after hearing the introduction of labor costs, Fei Cexian silently dismissed this idea. Although the funds in his hands are not small, if the construction period is forcibly shortened, the construction cost of the entire embassy will increase by two times. Three times, it will be very difficult for him to hand over business to the court at that time.
There is another reason, and that is that Fei Cexian feels that the conditions of the guest house where he is currently staying are actually quite good, with all the living and office facilities, and the board, lodging and transportation are all in charge of the official arrangement of Haihan.He had already inquired that as long as he wanted, foreign envoys like him could stay in the guest house all the time.Even if the embassy of the Ming Dynasty in Sanya is built in the future, the living conditions may not be as comfortable as the guest house.Since there is no need to rush to relocate, Fei Cexian feels that the matter of building an embassy is not so urgent—at least for himself.
As for whether the imperial court is in a hurry... Fei Cexian recalled what Ning Qi said during the meeting yesterday: "Master Fei, what did you do and what did you say in Haihan? You won’t know until a month or two later, so you don’t need to rush for a lot of things, including negotiations, no matter how firm your attitude is in Haihan, you won’t be able to feel it in the capital.”
At that time, Fei Cexian didn't have a deep feeling for Ning Qi's words, but when he thought about it now, he felt that Ning Qi seemed to mean something.But slowing down the pace a little bit does not seem to be a bad thing. Besides, the embassy may have to be used for many years after it is completed. It is always right to work slowly and carefully.
Once a person has the idea of desertion in his mind, he will continue to find various reasons for himself to rationalize this behavior.Fei Cexian is currently showing signs of this. Although he remains loyal to Daming, after seeing the colorful world of Haihan Kingdom, he inevitably wavers in his previous thoughts.With the wealth of Haihan Kingdom, it seems that there is no need to invade Ming Dynasty. After all, the living standard of Haihan people is obviously much higher than that of Ming Dynasty, and there are various ways to make money, so why use war to achieve their goals.
Haihan is unwilling to take the initiative to start a war against Daming, this is a fact that even blind people know.Since there is no need to go to war, it means that both contradictions and conflicts of interest can be resolved through negotiations.Negotiations are a very time-consuming way of communication. If Da Ming shows an overly eager attitude, he will be left behind. Haihan people are so smart, and they will definitely try to lead Da Ming by the nose when the time comes. Ce Xian must try his best to avoid the situation that arises.
After seeing the embassy site arranged by Haihan on the spot, Fei Cexian was basically sure that the construction of the Ming embassy would start here.However, he did not rush to urge the foreman to start work, but first looked at the almanac, and specially selected a day that was suitable for ground breaking two days later as the start date.As for the two days in between, Fei Cexian didn't plan to be idle, he had to discuss the specific construction plan with the foreman.Although he didn't know much about the construction field, since he was an envoy of the Ming Dynasty, he could only pretend to be ignorant, and first tried his best to ensure that the various building materials required by the foreman could be in place before the construction process started.
The two parties still signed the project agreement according to the formal procedures. Fei Cexian paid an advance payment of 1 yuan as the first payment for the construction team to enter the site and start construction.The construction team also delivered various building materials to the construction site continuously according to Fei Cexian's request.It was only at this time that Fei Cexian began to realize how strong Haihan's material transportation capabilities were. Those stone slabs and bricks weighing tens of catties, pillars more than one foot high and two feet in diameter, and beautiful and refreshing glazed tiles were constantly changing from heavy to heavy. Horse-drawn carriages are transferred from ports and railway stations to the construction site.
Fei Cexian thought that he did not follow the foreman's suggestion to hire more construction workers, which would slow down the progress of the entire project, but in fact this was not the case. The operation efficiency of the embassy construction site under the command of the foreman was extremely high, which made people who were worried about it Fei Cexian also breathed a sigh of relief.
Perhaps it was because of the fact that the Ming embassy was under construction, and Fei Cexian needed to be a temporary guest supervisor on the construction site. Haihan didn't take the initiative to arrange a negotiation meeting, and planned to let Fei Cexian finish this part first.And Fei Cexian really had no time to look around at this time, besides supervising the construction progress on the construction site, he still had a lot of things to do every day.
First of all, the memorial must be written. After so many days, everything is on the right track. It is necessary for Fei Cexian to report to the capital the progress and achievements he has made in Haihan.In addition, Fei Cexian is also paying attention to the local business operation model, thinking why this model has not appeared in Daming. Is it because the Haihan people are smarter, or is there no room for this kind of business model in Ming Dynasty?
(End of this chapter)
Early the next morning, Zhang Qianzhi still came to the guest house in the name of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and took Fei Cexian to see the location of the embassy.Fei Cexian didn't doubt that he was there, and after packing up, he went out with Zhang Qianzhi.
At present, foreign embassies in Sanya include Annan, Champa, Portugal, and the Netherlands. Since Luo Hong Langsang visited Matalam, the embassy at the selected address has also started construction, and it is expected to be completed in one or two months. Time will work.The Matalan people are rich and powerful, and they don't care about the cost of building the embassy at all. In addition, Luo Honglangsang's energy is devoted to the military purchase agreement, so after finalizing the few deals, Luo Honglangsang hurriedly returned to the country to return to his mission. However, he entrusted Haihan with full authority over the building of the embassy.
In addition, there are various offices of the governments of Fuzhou and Guangzhou stationed in Sanya. Because the two countries did not formally establish diplomatic relations before, it was inconvenient to use the name of embassy. .These guild halls not only handle trusteeship or shareholding business for officials, but also handle some government affairs that need to be contacted and negotiated with Haihan.
And all these institutions with diplomatic functions and political color, Haihan placed them at the foot of the mountain not far from the guest house, and the locals called this area the embassy area.Daming wanted to set up an embassy in Sanya, so the site selection was no exception, and it was also a piece of land drawn out in this area.
"Master Fei, please take a look. This land is surrounded by mountains and forests in the north, Fort Victory in the south, and the Portuguese embassy in the east. There is still room for future expansion in the west. Facing south and north, the view is wide. They are all within a mile distance, and life and work are very convenient. The land is provided by our country, and there is no fee, just complete the registration procedures. As for the building plan of the embassy, Mr. Fei can decide on his own, and there are many alternative plans in our country For Mr. Fei's reference. The construction teams are all ready-made, and the work can start when the date of breaking the ground is set."
Zhang Qianzhi led Fei Cexian to the ground for a walk, and introduced the surrounding environment and Haihan's arrangement to him as he walked.What Fei Cexian valued was naturally the environment here. There are other foreign embassies around here. This arrangement is obviously convenient for Haihan to manage. If Daming wants to forcefully open another embassy in another place, it will also appear It is not humane, and the environment here is indeed as Fei Cexian said, life is very convenient, and there are no noisy ordinary residential areas around, so it is indeed an excellent choice to build an embassy.
Fei Cexian asked: "According to your country, how big can our embassy be built? How many people can be stationed there?"
"The upper limit of the embassy's land is [-] acres, and the number of people stationed cannot exceed [-]. All military officers, guards, bodyguards and other armed personnel must undergo special registration." Zhang Qianzhi immediately explained to him.
When Fei Cexian heard it, these conditions were basically the same as what Qiu Yuan said in Haikou. It seems that no matter where the embassy is finally built, these basic conditions will not change.But that's good, lest he need to consider more objective factors for the location of the embassy.
As for the construction plan of the embassy, Daming has already prepared several sets, and it will be adjusted according to the conditions that Haihan can provide.For example, if the place is too small, you can reduce the yard from four or five to two or three. However, after checking the environment here, Fei Cexian feels that there is no need to make major adjustments to the existing plan, even for the largest building. The plan, in fact, could not use up the [-] acres of land Haihan gave.Of course, Fei Cexian has a limited project budget. If the embassy is enlarged, the interior decoration will definitely be a hasty affair. On the contrary, if the building area can be controlled well, there will be enough funds to make the interior decoration better. You can even have spare money to build a courtyard inside and build a little landscape outside to increase the comfort of living.
Fei Cexian asked again, "Is the local foreman here?"
"Here it is, let's ask him to come and answer." Zhang Qianzhi responded, and called the foreman who was waiting nearby.
Fei Cexian mainly asked questions about construction, and had a general understanding of how long the construction plan he requested would take, how long it would take to prepare building materials, how to calculate wages, and so on.This foreman is an old employee who worked with Liu Shanxia in the Ministry of Construction. He has been in charge of construction projects over the years, and answered these basic questions raised by Fei Cexian fluently, without dragging his feet.Fei Cexian was also very satisfied with this, he thought that the people of Haihan really considered things very carefully, but after thinking about it, with so many embassies built here, the people of Haihan are naturally familiar with this, and it may not be that they have any special care for Daming , and can't help being a little disappointed.
Zhang Qianzhi didn't know these little schemes in Fei Cexian's mind. He listened to the question-and-answer conversation between Fei Cexian and the foreman with a humble expression, but he was judging whether Fei Cexian got a kickback from this embassy project. Intend.Although the quotation Haihan gave was basically the cost price, if Fei Cexian really said that, Zhang Qianzhi would not hesitate to make the decision and pocket a benefit for Fei Cexian.Zhang Qianzhi remembered that when he first went to Guangzhou, He Xi once said to himself that when dealing with officials of the Ming Dynasty, what you fear is not corrupt officials, but fear that the other party will not ask for benefits. As long as you are willing to accept money, the rest will be fine. done.
Zhang Qianzhi has always kept this principle in mind. He has dealt with many officials of the Ming Dynasty over the years, and has repeatedly verified that He Xi's words are indeed correct. Starting from collecting benefits for small things, as long as there are greedy actions, it will be difficult to keep insulated from Haihan's endless bribery methods.If Fei Cexian wants to deduct a sum of money from the embassy construction project and put it into his own pocket, there must be some signs to follow. As long as Zhang Qianzhi discovers such signs, he will naturally find a way to attack him .
However, Mr. Fei seems to have stayed in the Qingshui Yamen for a long time and is out of touch with the world. He didn't have any other thoughts about the embassy project he led. Zhang Qianzhi, who had been listening, was slightly disappointed.
After the foreman finished answering the questions and left, Zhang Qianzhi asked again tentatively, "Master Fei, don't you plan to deduct a little from the project payment for emergency use?"
Sure enough, Fei Cexian asked back without knowing what he meant: "Why is it deducted from the project fee? What is the emergency?"
Zhang Qianzhi couldn't be too explicit, so he had to explain in a tactful manner: "Master Fei, the world is unpredictable, and you have to keep some money around for emergencies. If you finish the work smoothly in the end, the money will be arranged by yourselves. Yes."
Only then did Fei Cexian understand that this Qianzhi was trying to embezzle public funds for himself again, so he showed displeasure and said, "Am I, Fei, a person who is greedy for petty gains? Don't say that in front of me again. Such words!"
Zhang Qianzhi quickly responded, thinking that this person surnamed Fei was difficult to deal with, but he responded in such a serious manner, how can he move this stubborn rock?But he thought about it again, maybe Fei Cexian just doesn't know the way, and feels that this kind of money is not safe, not really not interested in money, he still has to be patient to find out the other party's preferences, and make targeted moves Only then will it be effective.Anyway, Fei Cexian has been here for a long time, so just find the right time slowly.
In fact, Fei Cexian didn't take Zhang Qianzhi's words too seriously. In his eyes, Zhang Qianzhi was just a philistine, and he put profit first in everything. How could he waste his energy and have the same knowledge as such a small person.What's more, although Zhang Qianzhi's speech is not very pleasant, he is capable in handling things, and he is also a member of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Fei Cexian doesn't want to offend this kind of person and let him go back to make his own small report.So for Zhang Qianzhi's admonition, he also pointed to the end, and did not really intend to reprimand the other party.His energy is still mainly focused on the current embassy project.
According to the foreman's introduction, the construction period can actually be adjusted to a certain extent according to actual needs, but the cost will naturally change accordingly.To put it simply, if you want to shorten the construction period, you need to hire more people. If you have enough funds, you can even arrange several groups of people to take turns to work day and night.However, after hearing the introduction of labor costs, Fei Cexian silently dismissed this idea. Although the funds in his hands are not small, if the construction period is forcibly shortened, the construction cost of the entire embassy will increase by two times. Three times, it will be very difficult for him to hand over business to the court at that time.
There is another reason, and that is that Fei Cexian feels that the conditions of the guest house where he is currently staying are actually quite good, with all the living and office facilities, and the board, lodging and transportation are all in charge of the official arrangement of Haihan.He had already inquired that as long as he wanted, foreign envoys like him could stay in the guest house all the time.Even if the embassy of the Ming Dynasty in Sanya is built in the future, the living conditions may not be as comfortable as the guest house.Since there is no need to rush to relocate, Fei Cexian feels that the matter of building an embassy is not so urgent—at least for himself.
As for whether the imperial court is in a hurry... Fei Cexian recalled what Ning Qi said during the meeting yesterday: "Master Fei, what did you do and what did you say in Haihan? You won’t know until a month or two later, so you don’t need to rush for a lot of things, including negotiations, no matter how firm your attitude is in Haihan, you won’t be able to feel it in the capital.”
At that time, Fei Cexian didn't have a deep feeling for Ning Qi's words, but when he thought about it now, he felt that Ning Qi seemed to mean something.But slowing down the pace a little bit does not seem to be a bad thing. Besides, the embassy may have to be used for many years after it is completed. It is always right to work slowly and carefully.
Once a person has the idea of desertion in his mind, he will continue to find various reasons for himself to rationalize this behavior.Fei Cexian is currently showing signs of this. Although he remains loyal to Daming, after seeing the colorful world of Haihan Kingdom, he inevitably wavers in his previous thoughts.With the wealth of Haihan Kingdom, it seems that there is no need to invade Ming Dynasty. After all, the living standard of Haihan people is obviously much higher than that of Ming Dynasty, and there are various ways to make money, so why use war to achieve their goals.
Haihan is unwilling to take the initiative to start a war against Daming, this is a fact that even blind people know.Since there is no need to go to war, it means that both contradictions and conflicts of interest can be resolved through negotiations.Negotiations are a very time-consuming way of communication. If Da Ming shows an overly eager attitude, he will be left behind. Haihan people are so smart, and they will definitely try to lead Da Ming by the nose when the time comes. Ce Xian must try his best to avoid the situation that arises.
After seeing the embassy site arranged by Haihan on the spot, Fei Cexian was basically sure that the construction of the Ming embassy would start here.However, he did not rush to urge the foreman to start work, but first looked at the almanac, and specially selected a day that was suitable for ground breaking two days later as the start date.As for the two days in between, Fei Cexian didn't plan to be idle, he had to discuss the specific construction plan with the foreman.Although he didn't know much about the construction field, since he was an envoy of the Ming Dynasty, he could only pretend to be ignorant, and first tried his best to ensure that the various building materials required by the foreman could be in place before the construction process started.
The two parties still signed the project agreement according to the formal procedures. Fei Cexian paid an advance payment of 1 yuan as the first payment for the construction team to enter the site and start construction.The construction team also delivered various building materials to the construction site continuously according to Fei Cexian's request.It was only at this time that Fei Cexian began to realize how strong Haihan's material transportation capabilities were. Those stone slabs and bricks weighing tens of catties, pillars more than one foot high and two feet in diameter, and beautiful and refreshing glazed tiles were constantly changing from heavy to heavy. Horse-drawn carriages are transferred from ports and railway stations to the construction site.
Fei Cexian thought that he did not follow the foreman's suggestion to hire more construction workers, which would slow down the progress of the entire project, but in fact this was not the case. The operation efficiency of the embassy construction site under the command of the foreman was extremely high, which made people who were worried about it Fei Cexian also breathed a sigh of relief.
Perhaps it was because of the fact that the Ming embassy was under construction, and Fei Cexian needed to be a temporary guest supervisor on the construction site. Haihan didn't take the initiative to arrange a negotiation meeting, and planned to let Fei Cexian finish this part first.And Fei Cexian really had no time to look around at this time, besides supervising the construction progress on the construction site, he still had a lot of things to do every day.
First of all, the memorial must be written. After so many days, everything is on the right track. It is necessary for Fei Cexian to report to the capital the progress and achievements he has made in Haihan.In addition, Fei Cexian is also paying attention to the local business operation model, thinking why this model has not appeared in Daming. Is it because the Haihan people are smarter, or is there no room for this kind of business model in Ming Dynasty?
(End of this chapter)