The official meeting with the British was on October 19th. The negotiation team led by Erkin was already waiting outside Tianjin. As for the French envoy, Groth, he was waiting outside the negotiation yamen.
Erjin, who thought that he had given enough face to the Qing Kingdom, saw the Gong Prince and his entourage coming from afar and immediately went up to them. He cupped his hands and bowed."Welcome, the honorable Gong Prince to Tianjin.”
The more Li Qing listened, the more awkward he became. He waved his hand and said,"Oh, no! Count Erjin, you're wrong. I should be the one welcoming you to the Qing Kingdom!”
"Your Highness, Tianjin City is indeed in our hands! I feel that this sentence is not wrong.”Erjin said with narrowed eyes.
Li Qing shook his head." In that case, I don't think there's a need for us to negotiate here. Why don't we go to Zhangjiawan? That's a good place with beautiful mountains and rivers!" It's the easiest to clear one's head."
When Erjin heard Li Qing mention Zhangjiawan, he knew that if he didn't compromise, it would be difficult for him to continue.
He could only make a helpless gesture and say,"Well, the Chinese culture is profound and profound, and the language is even more wonderful. In any case, please allow me to express my sincere gratitude to you. Because of your care, the young men of the coalition army in Zhangjiawan are living very well!”
Seeing that Erjin had given in, Li Qing didn't force him any further. He smiled and said,""This is what we should do. Just like you Westerners say, the customer is God!”
"Of course, it's only right!" Erkin smiled bitterly. However, we also have a saying called fair and reasonable. I hope Your Highness can understand!”
"Of course! However, it's getting late. Let's hurry in and settle the official business!”Li Qing said with a smile.
"Ladies and gentlemen! It seems that your hopes of enjoying the beauty of the ancient East have been dashed! This honorable prince can't wait for you to start working!”Baiyun turned around and smiled.
"Everyone, I'm really sorry. This king has been busy recently, but we have an old saying. Isn't it also said that friends come from afar? In order to make it up to you, tonight, this king has prepared a grand welcome party for our friends from afar!”Li Qing chuckled and showed his courtesy.
The ladies of the British side looked at the polite man in front of them. Not only was he full of masculine charm, but he was also a prince at a young age. He was simply the white…Prince Dark Horse! All of them looked at Li Qing with eyes full of temptation.
When both sides entered Tianjin, everything was prepared, but nothing was ready, such as banners and welcoming ceremonies. According to the itinerary of the British envoy's trip to Tianjin, the two sides would only meet first today and hold formal talks tomorrow morning.
However, they did not expect that the Qing Kingdom's plenipotent representative, Prince Gong Xin, would be so busy. They had no choice but to keep things simple. They only fired a few shots at the gate of the Tianjin government and the welcoming ceremony ended hastily. However, Li Qing was a person who valued material benefits, so he did not care too much about it. Other than Gui Liang's few words of gossip, everything seemed very harmonious.
Amid the loud cannon salutes, the men from the English side, such as Erkin, Basharli, and Viscount Aldrich, wore suits and hats, while the women wore silk skirts.
Qing Country's Gong Prince, Gui Liang, Wen Xiang, and Bao Yun were wearing court robes with flower feathers on their heads.
Outside, the crowd who had heard the sound of the cannon and knew that there was a commotion were pointing and gossiping.
Li Qing's ears were filled with the noisy Tianjin dialect. He was not a Tianjin native before his rebirth, so he did not understand much. He only heard bits and pieces about the imperial court, foreigners, and so on, but it did not matter.
After the salute, the envoys from both sides took a few steps forward."The Great Eagle Empire's Special Envoy to China, Erjin, pays his respects to His Highness, the Prince of the Qing Dynasty. On behalf of the Great Eagle Empire's Queen Victoria I, I would like to extend my sincere greetings to the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty.”
The French representative who had been waiting outside the yamen also said,"The Special Envoy of the Third French Empire to China, Ge Luo, pays his respects to His Highness the Prince of the Qing Dynasty. On behalf of His Majesty Napoleon III, I would like to extend my sincere greetings to His Majesty the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty.”
The Gong Prince had come to Tianjin this time because it was official. For convenience, he had specially brought an interpreter. His name was Liu Zheng, and Li Qing had discovered him by chance. Liu Zheng had lived with his father and brother in Hong Kong and Macau since he was young. He spoke a very fluent foreign language, but he often spoke Mandarin in Hong Kong and Macau. It was very confusing.
When he finished translating, Cheng Xin nodded and stepped forward to salute Erjin."I am very grateful for the sincere greetings from the two envoys. On behalf of the Qing Emperor, I welcome the arrival of the two envoys.”
Erjin and Ge Luo knew that Xi Xin was the younger brother of the Qing Emperor, a prince of a country. His status was very noble, not to mention that they had a favor to ask of someone this time. The two of them looked at each other and bowed respectfully."Thank you, Your Highness."
"Then, Mr. Special Envoys, please come in.”
"Your Highness, please." The envoys from both sides walked side by side, and the translator accompanied each of them, providing them with timely translation.
When they arrived at the hall that had been prepared in the yamen, both parties sat down. As soon as Li Qing sat down, he smiled and said,"This king is very curious about one thing. Can I ask Special Envoy Erjin?”
"As long as it doesn't harm the interests of the Great Eagle Empire, I'm willing to serve His Highness!”
"Of course. It's nothing much. I just heard that the Prime Minister of your country, Palmerston, resigned after being questioned by the House of Lords.”
Li Qing pretended to ask as if nothing had happened.
Erjin's face turned green with anger. He didn't know how to respond to Li Qing's words. He smiled awkwardly and said,"Your Highness, Prime Minister Palmerston has indeed resigned, but not because of doubts. He felt that his health was not good and that he could no longer serve the Empire better.”
"That's really a pity. I still have a good quality ginseng in my residence. When I leave, I'll have to trouble Earl Erjin to pass it to him. Tell him to take care of his health. The world will be very exciting in the future. Don't forget to let him live a few more years and watch a good show in the future.”
"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. I believe that he will definitely be able to obtain Your Highness's sincerity now.”
"I hope so!" After saying that, the two of them looked at each other and smiled.
Li Qing looked at Erjin's involuntary expression and knew that Erjin was no longer confident in this negotiation.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。