That year the flowers bloomed 1981

Chapter 1328 Inner Pride, Outward Humility
"Damn it, what kind of great Eastern power is he?"

"."

Li Ye's complaint was truly from the bottom of his heart.

But as soon as he finished speaking, he immediately sensed something was wrong, because his colleagues around him were all looking at him with strange expressions, and Deputy Director Liang's eyes were also somewhat unfriendly.

Li Ye immediately realized that if there hadn't been outsiders present, he would have been reprimanded by Deputy Director Liang.

Meanwhile, the people from Kamas on the other side were whispering among themselves. After a moment, Zelyushinko asked Li Ye, "Comrade, do you think White Elephant isn't a major power?"

Li Ye immediately felt the pressure, especially from his colleagues on the inspection team, who were all somewhat worried about him.

Li Ye speaks impulsively, and if he says a few wrong words, it could lead to a major or minor incident.

However, Li Ye replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "White Elephant ranks seventh in the world in terms of land area, which certainly meets the standards of a major power. We have always treated it as a major power."

"But later we discovered some strange things. One of my elders was a soldier who had many in-depth exchanges and discussions with the White Elephant people on the southwestern border."

He believes that the White Elephant lacks the demeanor of a great power. They like to boast, saying they are the third largest in the world. But if they are the third largest in the world, where are we?
Furthermore, they are prone to going back on their word; what they say today is meaningless tomorrow. So if they say they're willing to give you a million dollars, you'd better actually get that million dollars.”

"."

After Li Ye finished speaking, the people on Kamas's side were completely confused. It was clear that their Chinese proficiency was really limited. They could translate short sentences, but long sentences and idioms simply crashed.

However, the translator in the delegation also rolled his eyes, because he didn't know whether he should be translating or not.

Such words are too offensive. If they reach the ears of the fussy White Elephant, it's no wonder there will be a fight!

Just then, Deputy Director Liang said calmly, "Comrade Li Ye's words were too long-winded. Let me summarize briefly: we have great respect for White Elephants, and they are indeed a major power in South Asia."
Especially before 1962, we thought they were very powerful. When they claimed to be the third strongest military power in the world, we were very nervous. But after 1962, we realized that their military strength was far inferior to that of some third-rate countries.
While commercial cooperation should not be linked to military strength, if their involvement forces us to accept such outdated technology, then there's no point in continuing negotiations.

"."

Liang Furu's words were even more abrupt than Li Ye's earlier words, but the translator immediately translated them for Kamas's men. He actually looked down on White Elephant, but now that his boss had endorsed him, why should he be polite?
When the translator finished translating Liang Furu's words, Sumonkov and the others looked at him strangely.

Dignity is earned through fighting.

Before 1962, the Chinese people did indeed respect the British and were absolutely respectful of their opponent strategically, after all, they had fought alongside Britain in World War II. However, after the farce of 1962 ended, many soldiers who were eager to make a name for themselves were greatly disappointed.

Their combat effectiveness was far inferior to that of the main force of the Kuomintang army; they would flee at the first sign of battle and never achieve any significant merit.

This is the true assessment of the White Elephant given by the participating parties.

I wonder what the principal who retreated to the other side of the strait thought after hearing this evaluation.

“Oh, Liang, I understand your confidence and pride in the motherland very well, but advanced technology should be matched with a reasonable price. Your current sincerity is not enough.”

"."

Seeing that Liang Furu was angry, Kamas's factory manager, Sumonkov, quickly explained, while also expressing the idea that "the highest bidder wins."

But Liang Furu immediately stood up and calmly said, "Alright then, let's go back and discuss it before making a decision. That's all for today! Goodbye."

After Liang Furu finished speaking, he politely said goodbye to Sumonkov and then turned and left.

Moreover, as they were leaving, they deliberately said to the person next to them, "Ask the Communist Party's automobile factory if they can arrange a visit for us tomorrow."

"."

Sumonkov, still in a daze, immediately changed his expression, because even if their Chinese level was low, they could still understand the three words "Communist Qing Corps".

He immediately said to Liang Furu, "Liang, in the truck industry, no one has better technology than our Kamaz."

Liang Furu turned around and said with a smile, "We are an inspection team, not just inspecting trucks. Please don't mind."

It would be a miracle if I didn't mind!

The Komsomolskaya Pravda Automobile Plant is also a large automobile enterprise located in Moscow. Their "Moscow" brand cars are a well-known brand in Russia and have even been exported to inland China.

Moreover, the 2141 model sedan, which was just launched in 1985, was considered an advanced model in Eastern Europe. If China were to have designs on them, wouldn't Kamaz suddenly have an extra competitor?
. . . . . . . . .

Li Ye followed the inspection team out of Kamas's building. As he was getting into the car, Liang Furu suddenly called him to his own car.

After getting into the car, Liang Furu said, "Although the people from Kamas are unethical, this is common at the negotiating table. Don't let your personal emotions get in the way when you speak."

Li Ye said helplessly, "I'm sorry, Director Liang, my brother-in-law's father sacrificed his life in the war in 1962, so my wording just now was indeed inappropriate."

Liang Furu paused for a moment, then softened his tone and said, "It's a good thing that you young people are proud of the strength of our motherland, but in this kind of international setting, no matter how proud you are inside, you must be humble on the surface and hide your sharpness."

Li Ye said sheepishly, "Am I arrogant?"

Liang Furu chuckled and said, "Aren't you proud yet? Just now you almost stood on the table and shouted at Sumonkov, 'The White Elephant is our defeated foe!'"

"Hehe, hehehe~"

Li Ye chuckled.

Decades later, in the eyes of many Chinese, the White Elephant is utterly worthless, even though it truly is a "major Eastern power" internationally. It's just that the Chinese people of decades later viewed it from too high a position.
The number of science and engineering technicians trained by Baixiang each year is only slightly less than that of China, which has revered "only studying is noble" for thousands of years. But when compared with other countries, Baixiang can gain a lot of confidence.

Their military strength is actually quite good. When facing Pakistan, they were able to organize nearly a hundred third-generation or higher fighter jets to take off and fight at the same time. Their tactical and technical level is definitely among the top in the world.

It's fair to say that on this blue planet, those who have the right to laugh at the White Elephant people can be counted on one hand, while those who actually dare to confront the White Elephant head-on and fight are probably less than one hand's worth.

But it was born in the wrong place, and unfortunately, it ended up next to the flower-loving family, who suppressed it from every angle, leaving it no chance to even catch its breath.

If he could just have a real fight with the Chinese, even if it was a 30/70 split, as long as the publicity was done properly, turning a minor defeat into a major victory, he could use the momentum of that victory to resolve internal conflicts and catch up with the Chinese.
After all, they have so much to catch up on. Qin Shi Huang achieved "standardization of writing and cart axles" two thousand years ago, but they still have twenty-two languages. The national parliament needs translators to discuss matters, otherwise, it is easy to have a situation where people are talking past each other.

Even their most prized asset in later generations—population—is less than that of China at this time! So Li Ye's mockery of the proud opponent, "What kind of great Eastern power are you?", is entirely justified.

(End of this chapter)