Chapter 1391: Sino-Indian Friendship Depends on Slaves? (Please Subscribe)

The enormous retinue of the Shun Empire's Foreign Affairs Study Mission finally settled into a Chinese-style garden residence in the smelly, chaotic eastern part of Paris, near the Bastille.

This Chinese-style garden was called the Huang Family Garden, the residence of Huang Zhisheng, eldest son of Huang Jiang, the great banker settled in London. After Huang Jiang left France, the French operations of the Divine Europe United Bank fell into the hands of this Young Master Huang. This Young Master Huang was a capable man, in his thirties, a first-generation graduate of the Nanjing Capital Academy, where he had studied accounting.

After graduating, he entered the Maritime Merchant Bank, and before following his father overseas, he had already risen to the position of Assistant Manager of the Yingtian branch. Considering his age at the time, his future at the Maritime Merchant Bank was absolutely bright. But he gave up his position at the Maritime Merchant Bank and followed his father Huang Jiang to Europe to start a business.

After working in Europe for a few years, Huang Zhisheng, who loved excitement, moved from the quiet town of Versailles into Paris proper, and set his eye on a plot of land near the Bastille — that counted as scenery too, I suppose! After buying it, he built a Chinese-style garden — not entirely Chinese, but a Chinese-style garden residence blending a great deal of Western style. Once completed, it became a "famous garden" in Paris.

In present-day France, "chinoiserie" was still very fashionable, and even the Sun King Louis was extremely fond of Chinese style. In the not-yet-completed Palace of Versailles, there were large numbers of Chinese-style structures and furniture, ornaments, and porcelain from China. There was even a garden entirely designed by Chinese craftsmen, with flourishing flowers and trees, winding paths leading to secluded spots, rockeries standing tall, and elegant arched bridges.

What was more, the Sun King of France would sometimes put on a Ming-style dragon robe and ride around the Palace of Versailles in a palanquin carried by eight men.

However, the Young Master Huang settled in France did not actually really like "chinoiserie" — otherwise he would have gone back to China long ago. In fact, he preferred European style. In later generations' words, this fellow was a bit of a worshipper of things foreign — mainly worshipping fair-skinned, beautiful-faced, generously bosomed French women.

His Huang Family Garden in Paris was built for a French actress named Marquise. Huang Zhisheng had taken a fancy to this woman while watching a play at the Palais-Royal Theatre where Molière's troupe was in residence, and then spent a great deal of money to win her over. It was so that she could continue performing on the stage of the Palais-Royal Theatre in Paris that he built the garden beside the Bastille.

So Young Master Huang could stroll hand in hand with his beloved French woman through a Chinese-style garden in Paris, and with one lift of his head he could see the Bastille, symbol of the French monarchy — how truly romantic!

Perhaps it was because he spent all day fooling around with this French actress named Marquise that he had gotten a bit muddle-headed. When the French Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Hugo Léonard, came to him wanting to borrow his Huang Family Garden to entertain a Chinese mission, he agreed without a second thought.

As a result, when he and Marquise returned to the Huang Family Garden after spending Christmas at the Palace of Versailles, he discovered that his French mistress's love nest had been occupied by roving bandits!

This was terrible — the roving bandits had roved all the way to France!

"Squire Huang, don't be afraid — and your rather good-looking foreign woman, don't be afraid either. We haven't come to squeeze contributions. Who asked this place to be France and not Beijing? We are here on the Emperor's orders, come to learn foreign affairs from the Westerners."

The speaker was an elderly man, dark-faced, with graying hair, a face full of wrinkles, and a mouthful of Shaanxi accent.

This old man had a background too: he was the brother of Wu Ruyi, the Earl of Taiping, who had died in battle at Niulan Pass, and his name was Wu Ru'en. Because Wu Ruyi had no son, the title of Earl of Taiping had passed to him, and he had also become Song Xiance's deputy envoy, going abroad together on the study mission.

"You've come to France to study — study what?" Huang Zhisheng did not understand; the Ming side had no such term as "foreign affairs."

"Foreign affairs!" Song Xiance said with a smile. "That is, the affairs of the West. Squire Huang, you've been in France quite a few years, haven't you?"

"Yes, yes, quite a few years now." Huang Zhisheng looked at Song Xiance, his forehead covered in beads of sweat.

Of course he knew who Song Xiance was! This was the great military strategist of the roving bandits, who knew astronomy above and geography below, a great sage who could calculate and divine!

And now he was sitting right in front of him, chatting and laughing with him — this was colluding with the enemy! Now he really couldn't clear himself even if he jumped into the Atlantic!

Song Xiance smiled and asked again: "Judging by this residence of yours, and this foreign concubine, you must have made a name for yourself here in the West?"

"I wouldn't dare say I've made a name for myself — I just, just have a little money." Huang Zhisheng gritted his teeth and put on a pained expression. "Chief Song, if you're a bit short of funds, just say the word. As long as I can produce it, this brother will certainly have it prepared for you."

Hearing this, Song Xiance was somewhat at a loss whether to laugh or cry. "How did I become 'Chief Song'? Did I come down from Mount Liang? I am a founding Grand Military Strategist of the Shun dynasty, enfeoffed as Marquis of Yong. Do you understand? I am a nobleman, not a bandit!"

"Right! I'm no bandit either, I'm a nobleman too!" Wu Ru'en chimed in. "I am Wu Ru'en, Earl of Taiping of the Shun dynasty — a nobleman won by fighting, far nobler than those damn nobles bred into their titles!"

Huang Zhisheng thought to himself: Actually, I'm a nobleman too. My father Huang Jiang is the Earl of Kenan Xinhui!

Of course, this identity could not be revealed.

"Two noble lords, this humble one had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai. I have long admired you, long admired you!" Huang Zhisheng hurriedly rose and bowed with clasped hands to Song Xiance and Wu Ru'en.

"Sit, sit, let's talk seated." Song Xiance was also quite polite. He had made inquiries with the French envoy who had escorted him here and knew that this Squire Huang was a figure of some standing in France!

This fellow was friends with the French king's Grand Viceroy, and with the French Prince de Condé and Duke Philippe I, Duke of Orléans — all drinking and carousing companions. Such a person was not someone that "roving-bandit nobles" like Song Xiance and Wu Ru'en could afford to offend on French soil.

"Squire Huang," Song Xiance said with a smile, "you've been doing business in France for so many years, you must be thoroughly versed in foreign affairs. Tell me, if our dynasty is to undertake foreign affairs, what should be the first priority?"

Huang Zhisheng had no choice; if they wanted him to speak, he would speak!

"Foreign affairs comes down to two things: first, learning skills from the foreigners; second, doing trade with the foreigners." Huang Zhisheng said, "There are two ways to learn skills: one is to send people to Europe to study; the other is to invite European teachers to go and teach. As the Master once said, when three walk together, there is surely one who can be my teacher. There is indeed much to be learned from the Europeans.

As for doing trade with the foreigners, that is not so easy!"

"How is it not easy?" Song Xiance asked.

Huang Zhisheng said: "The Western merchants who sail east are all merchants and pirates at once. Only when they cannot be pirates do they deign to do honest trade."

Hearing this, Wu Ru'en burst out laughing: "Isn't that just like us?"

"Earl of Taiping!" Song Xiance turned and glared at Wu Ru'en, who had let his tongue slip.

Wu Ru'en hastily corrected himself: "Not the same, not the same. We're not pirates — we're good men and nobles who rob the rich to help the poor!"

At the words "rob the rich to help the poor," Huang Zhisheng shuddered — he was precisely the rich man to be robbed!

So what if he was a little rich? Why did he have to be robbed? And when had this bunch of roving bandits ever helped the poor? They had oppressed the people of Sichuan to such a degree.

Song Xiance glared at Wu Ru'en again. What kind of talk was that? The more he explained, the worse it got! Saying such things to a merchant was one thing, but when meeting the French king, princes, and dukes, he must not speak like that.

"Squire Huang," Song Xiance continued, "in truth, our dynasty doesn't care much for trade either. But our dynasty's guns and cannons are not very good! Do you think the foreigners would be willing to teach us how to make guns and cannons?"

"They would not!" Huang Zhisheng shook his head repeatedly. "Teach the apprentice and starve the master — how could they be willing to teach?"

"Then how did the Ming learn to make foreign guns and foreign cannons?"

Huang Zhisheng said: "The Ming originally knew how to make guns and cannons; it was just that a bunch of incompetent officials were handling it, so it was done badly. Later, the Hongxing Emperor first disbanded all the offices that made guns and cannons, and reformed them by buying — using purchased guns and cannons to train a new army, and then relying on the new army's strength to seize back Macau, which the Portuguese had occupied. Macau had many Chinese and Western craftsmen. After seizing them back, the Royal Trading Company, the Yiguan Party, and the Sea Sand Gang all improved their gun- and cannon-making skills!"

Huang Zhisheng's words were half true and half false, so Song Xiance always felt something was off as he listened. But Wu Ru'en beside him slapped his thigh and laughed heartily: "I understand now! The essence of foreign affairs is that making is not as good as buying, and buying is not as good as seizing!"