Chapter 1727

Diplomatic Occasions

Chapter 1727 Diplomatic Occasions
Zheng Ting actually doesn't know much about Haihan's actions in Northeast Asia in the past one or two years.Although An Nanguo also sent military observers to follow the Haihan army to the battlefield far away in Liaodong, but the area they can operate is only near the battlefield, and it is difficult for Haihan to have a clearer understanding of the international situation of the Liaodong Peninsula and the Korean Peninsula. The news sent back to the country is often only rough information that the Haihan army defeated the Liaodong barbarian army on a certain day, occupied a certain place, and killed a few enemies.

Therefore, regarding the diplomatic situation between North Korea and Haehan, Zheng Ting only knew that the two countries established diplomatic relations just last year, but did not know that the two parties had some twists and turns before the establishment of diplomatic relations. It can even be said that Haehan forced North Korea People signed the covenant.The biggest reason for the alliance between the two countries was due to the external situation. They wanted to join forces to deal with Houjin, the main enemy in the Liaodong region. This was different from Annan's alliance with Haihan during the civil war.

Because Xu Yuzhuo has a close relationship with the Haihan Navy, he even went to the Liaodong battlefield in person, so he knows a little bit more about the situation in Liaodong, and probably knows that Haihan recruited North Korea into his group.However, he was a little surprised to see members of the royal family of North Korea in Sanya, because in the history known in the past, North Korea has always been subject to the orthodox dynasty of China, and will not show too much towards other countries. too close.Japan and Hou Jin, who tried to tame North Korea by force, have never succeeded so far.

But North Korea actually sent a member of the royal family all the way to Sanya to participate in the national celebration in Haihan. If the news spread to the capital, those senior officials in the court would immediately write an article to reprimand the North Korean royal family for not understanding the rules.Although Daming has now established diplomatic relations with Haihan, seeing the vassal state that held its own in the past fell to Haihan, and the status of the celestial kingdom was snatched away by its newly rising neighbor, I am afraid that it would not be very pleasant.

And Li Xi didn't have any definite understanding of his country's image in the world. The countries he mainly came into contact with in the past were Daming, Houjin, Japan, and Haihan. Daming was the suzerain of North Korea. Japan is an enemy, and Haihan is a newly allied friend. As for other countries and forces, most of the information Li Xi knows comes from classics and rumors, and he has no actual contact experience.

Like Annan, a country located in the South China Sea, Li Xi had only seen the names in books before, but when he found that the young generals of this Annan country looked and talked almost the same as the Han people, he naturally felt a little close.As for the one from Fujian, Li Xi didn't dare to neglect. After all, Xu Yuzhuo's official position is the commander of a provincial navy, and the Fujian navy is the most powerful surface force on the Daming Sea. This status can still scare people of.

Although the three came from different countries, they met each other sooner or later, but unexpectedly got along.After completing the settlement procedures, the three of them inquired about each other, and sure enough, they all received invitations to today's welcome dinner, and they made an appointment to have a drink and chat at that time.

It was not the first time for Zheng Ting and Xu Yuzhuo to settle in a guest house specially used to receive foreign guests, so it goes without saying that they are familiar with the road.But Li Xi was quite curious about this place, especially after the waiter at the Guest House explained to him how to use the bathroom equipment and hot water. After Li Xi used it himself, he couldn't help but sigh that Haihan people really enjoy life. No wonder they came all the way from the north. , found that the upper echelons of the southern coastal provinces of Ming Dynasty would be proud to emulate Haihan, who would not like such comfort and convenience.

In addition, Li Xi also noticed that whether it is decoration or service, he can deeply appreciate the intentions of Haihan people.Although he is not a prince or prince, he is still at the top of the society in North Korea. He has also represented North Korea as a diplomatic mission to Ming Dynasty in the past, and his vision is far better than that of ordinary people.

The bricks, tiles, plants and trees of this guest house, all the furnishings and supplies in the house, all highlight the word "exquisite". Li Xi subconsciously compared the guest house in Seoul, which was used to welcome the envoys of the Ming Dynasty, with this place, and suddenly There is a big gap in the taste, and I even feel that my home is really shabby.

Li Xi remembered that Zheng Ting had mentioned earlier that An Nanguo had established an embassy in Sanya long ago, but the accommodation environment was not as good as Haihan Guest House, so every time the little prince Zheng Zuo came to Sanya, he still settled in the Ying Hotel instead of his own embassy.Thinking about the budget he had for building the embassy, ​​Li Xi felt that after the completion of the North Korean embassy, ​​it would probably not be possible to catch up with the conditions of the guest house.

At present, there are as many as six or seven countries with embassies in Haihan, all of whom maintain close contacts with Haihan, but no matter which country, it is difficult to compare the level of comfort of the embassy with Haihan Guest House.After all, when Haihan first built the guest house, it was a big investment, and it is almost impossible to invest the same level of funds in the construction of foreign embassies.

On the contrary, those resident institutions that are not embassies have sufficient budget and living conditions are much better than embassies.For example, the Xu family in Fujian has established a special resident agency in Sanya, which is responsible for managing the cross-border trade run by the Xu family, as well as communication and cooperation in politics, military affairs, economy, trade, and culture.The comprehensive institution built by the Xu family is even more imposing than the Ming embassy, ​​which is nearing the end of construction. There are nearly a hundred people permanently stationed in Sanya, far surpassing the Ming embassy with Fei Cexian as its ambassador.

In addition, there are businesses like "Furuifeng" in Sanya. There are already two large commercial warehouses. As for the residence built by Li Nai, it is even more luxurious. Most of the building materials and furniture are Shipped from Guangdong, it is so luxurious that even high-ranking Haihan officials can only sigh, "It's nice to be rich."

Li Xi saw that it was still early for the dinner party, so he went to the bathroom to take a bath and change clothes, and enjoyed the convenience of a Haihan-style hot bath.The temperature here is much higher than that in Seoul. After taking a shower, Li Xi wore unlined clothes and leaned on the easy chair on the balcony, with iced freshly squeezed juice and exquisite snacks next to him. He could see the busy city in the distance without standing up. Port Victory.This kind of leisurely enjoyment made him temporarily forget the hard work of traveling all the way from Manila by sea. With the breeze blowing on his face, Li Xi fell asleep sitting up like this.

When the servants woke him up from his sleep, it was already getting dark, and people from the Haihan Ministry of Foreign Affairs were already waiting at the door to pick him up to attend the welcome dinner hosted by the executive committee tonight.Li Xi hurriedly got up and straightened his clothes. He will meet Hai Han's leading figures tonight, so he must tidy up his appearance. After all, in this kind of official diplomatic activities, he represents the face of North Korea.

The place where the banquet is held is the National Hall near Victory Fort. In addition to holding large conferences, this place also holds high-level banquets as one of its functions.It is rare to see such a banquet attended by envoys and dignitaries from many countries as today, even in Sanya, which has gradually grown into an international city.

Whether it is for Haihan or other countries, such an international social occasion is very rare, so the guests of honor attach great importance to this dinner.Haihan started preparing for this dinner a month ago. Some high-end ingredients and drinks were even transported across the sea from other countries, and the cost during the process was really not small.

However, in the opinion of the Executive Committee, this kind of expenditure is very worthwhile. As long as Haihan can once again establish a high-ranking image in front of guests from many countries, there will naturally be opportunities to slowly recover this publicity investment through other means in the future.

Apart from envoys and officials from various countries participating in this dinner, it is natural that multinational businessmen representing the interests of various countries are also indispensable.To this day, the countries that communicate with Haihan know that the importance and management of business is one of the fundamental conditions for the rapid rise of this emerging country. Haihan is constantly growing its national strength through large and small transnational trade.In the process, many businessmen were able to take advantage of the situation and become big figures that officials of all countries had to pay attention to.

The road leading to the National Hall was closed a few hours in advance, and there were hundreds of patrolmen on duty at each intersection on the periphery to prevent random people from mixing into it.When Li Xi arrived here in the carriage prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he was also inspected and allowed to pass after his identity was verified.

After the next time, a waiter stepped forward to complete the handover with the driver, and then took Li Xi into the National Hall.Li Xi was quite novel about this square and tall gray building, so he specially stopped the waiter and stopped to take a look at the exterior of the building.The waiter seemed to have gotten used to this for a long time, and did not urge Li Xi, and waited patiently until he had seen enough before continuing to lead the way.

After arriving inside the auditorium, the waiter took Li Xi to his seat and asked him to rest for a while, waiting for the banquet to start.Li Xi noticed that there was a stand on the table in front of him, which indicated his nationality and identity.The layout of this venue is one table per person, and there are stand cards on each table, so there is no need to worry about sitting in the wrong seat.But Li Xi entered the venue quite early, and most of the seats were still vacant.

Li Xi glanced at the left side, the sign on the table marked the seat of An Nanguo, but the envoy of An Nanguo was the young prince Zheng Zuo, this place must be prepared for him, but I don't know how General Zheng, whom I just met today, is waiting for. Where will I sit when I come later.

Then he turned his head and looked to the right, but it was the seat of Portugal.About the origin of this Portuguese, Li Xi knew very little at first. It was only when he went south with the Haihan army that he gradually learned about the situation of this western country from the generals of Haihan.Later, when the battle started in Manila, Li Xi found out that Portugal had also sent armed men and warships to join Haihan's side in the war, so it was considered one of Haihan's military allies.

However, these were not the focus of his concern. Li Xi's only worry about participating in this banquet was how to deal with the envoys of Ming Dynasty here.After looking around, he finally saw the seats of Daming envoys separated by two rows. It seemed that Hai Han also put a little thought into arranging the seats, and did not arrange Daming and North Korea to sit next to each other.

Although the three countries of Ming, Haihan, and North Korea had secretly concluded a military alliance in Liaodong last year, Daming was still very dissatisfied with North Korea's unauthorized establishment of diplomatic relations with Haihan. , It's just a bad attack.As for Li Xi's mission to Sanya, North Korea did not take the initiative to report to Daming, so he was a little worried that if the envoy of Daming noticed him, he would run away on the spot because of this.

At this time, Xu Yuzhuo, who also just met today, came to say hello to Li Xi. Li Xi knew that although this man from Fujian was an official of the Ming Dynasty in name, he was actually a local warlord doing his own thing, so he asked him about the envoys of the Ming Dynasty. thing.

Xu Yuzhuo guessed what Li Xi was worried about when he heard Li Xi's quizzical question, and patted him on the shoulder with a smile: "Brother Li, don't worry, this is the capital of Haihan Kingdom, not the capital of Ming Dynasty. Even if the envoy of Ming wants to lose his temper with you, he must first take care of the face of the Haihan people. You are a distinguished guest invited by Haihan, and if you make trouble with you, you are making trouble with the Haihan people, do you think this is the truth?"

After hearing this, Li Xi was still a little worried: "The envoys of the Ming Dynasty will be honored as angels when they go to our country. How dare I talk about this kind of truth with the officials of the Ming Dynasty."

After Li Xi said this sentence, he felt that it was a bit inappropriate. This Xu Yuzhuo was also an official of Daming, so these words did not apply to him, so he quickly apologized to Xu Yuzhuo.

Xu Yuzhuo waved his hand and said, "It's okay. I also know a little about Mr. Fei, who was stationed in Haihan by the Ming Dynasty. He is the Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of Rites. He met once when he passed through Fujian on his way south. This person is not an old man. He is a bureaucrat, and he has been in Haihan for several months, so he must have gotten used to Haihan's dominance, I think Brother Li is worrying too much."

"I hope so." Feeling at ease, Li Xi asked again: "Then General Xu is seated alone on behalf of Fujian, is it okay if he sees him?"

Xu Yuzhuo smiled and said: "Even if you don't like it, so what? If he dares to scold me, he will lose face in the end. I am an official from Fujian, not from the Ministry of Rites. What qualifications does he have to dare to control me? "

After hearing this, Li Xi faintly felt that something was wrong. Isn't this Fujian still a part of Ming Dynasty? The officials in Fujian are also under the jurisdiction of the Ming court. Xu Yuzhuo's tone obviously did not take the court seriously.Of course, it seems a normal reaction for a military officer like him who is in charge of military power in the local area not to take civilian officials seriously.

Xu Yuzhuo said: "After the banquet, I'll come over to have a few drinks with Brother Li. If that Mr. Fei wants to find fault with you, I'll help you back!"

Li Xi secretly said in his heart that he couldn't help it, and he had to thank Xu Yuzhuo for his enthusiasm. At the moment, he could only secretly pray that Mr. Fei Ce Xianfei would not come to him to claim his existence, otherwise if Xu Yuzhuo really got into a fight with him Now, I am no longer a human being inside and out.The military attache in Fujian could not give the official of the Ministry of Rites this face, but he did not dare to offend the other party on behalf of North Korea.

(End of this chapter)