The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 875 Yalta Feast

At the end of the seventh year of Tianshou (1719), delegations from the five countries of Britain, France, Switzerland and the Netherlands gathered at the Yalta Palace on the Crimean Peninsula to discuss post-war peace issues.

In early December, Prime Minister Kang Guangxu led Zhang Tingyu, Nian Gengyao, Ogyū Sorai and others to arrive in the Crimean Peninsula in advance to participate in the peace conference on behalf of Empress Divine Right.

Prime Minister Kang traveled thousands of miles to Yalta and made the following demands to the European allies:

1. Urge all nations to completely abolish the debts of Great Qi;

2. Urge all countries to respect the legitimate rights and interests of Great Qi in the Americas;
3. Urge all countries to cancel the additional tariffs imposed on China;

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Simply put, Da Qi not only demands to pay off foreign debts of tens of millions of taels of silver and enjoy the most-favored-nation treatment, but also wants to get involved in the North American colonies and get a share of the new world order.

Of course, all demands will be resolved at the negotiating table.

After all, peace and development are the two major themes of today's world.

The peace-loving Empress Divine Right had high expectations for the Yalta Conference.

After Luosha was dismembered, Qi State gained a vast buffer zone.

Specifically, the area east of the Ural Mountains was under the jurisdiction of the Great Qi, although officials had not yet been appointed to many wild and uncultivated areas.

For Da Qi, the legitimacy of the vast territory east of the Ural Mountains urgently needed support from other countries.

In other words, the legitimacy of the Empress's rule needs to be affirmed by all nations.

That is why Kang Guangxu, who was over 60 years old, dragged his old body and led an envoy to the Crimean Peninsula, and bargained with a number of European kings in the palace that once belonged to Peter the Great.

On December 18, Kang Guangxu had lunch with King George Ludwig of England, Regent Philip II of France, King Charles XII of Sweden, King William IV of the Netherlands and others.

Old Kang, with his hair and beard all white, raised his wine glass tremblingly, and the glass was filled with bright red wine.

"Respected King George, I wonder if you've adapted to the climate in Rakshasa? Is this our second meeting?"

King George also raised his glass and said to Kang Guangxu with a smile:
"Compared to London, Crimea's winter is much warmer. The Yalta Palace is very lively today, and many old friends are here."

Philip II and Kang Guangxu touched noses, then raised their glasses and said sincerely:
"Without Qi's sharp offensive in the east, it is hard to imagine that Europe could have defeated the tyrant and won peace. Salute to Her Majesty the Queen!"

"Cheers to victory over tyrants!"

Carl XII raised his glass in blessing.

The table in front of Kang Guangxu was filled with sumptuous French dishes.

The banquet was hosted by the King of France. In order to let these "distinguished allies" experience French cuisine, Louis XV specially brought his top chef from the palace.

French cuisine uses a wide range of ingredients and is carefully prepared. In addition to traditional dishes such as Marseille fish soup, steak, and onion soup, foie gras, oysters, and baked snails are also very distinctive.

Potages appetizer soup, Potage Impératrice (Egg yolk cassava chicken soup), Potage Fontange (Sorrel beef soup with fresh pea puree), Relevés appetizer, Queen's Puff Pastry (Truffle Chicken Puff Pastry)

Cheese-crusted turbot fillet Escalope de turbot au gratin
Breton broad bean puree with grilled lamb chops Selle de mouton purée Bretonne
Entrées
Pouletà la portugaise (a whole chicken stuffed with tomato-flavored rice, brushed with a sauce of tomatoes, red bell peppers, garlic, oregano, red chili peppers, brown sugar, lemon juice, white wine, chicken broth, and olive oil, and baked)

Hot quail pâté paté de cailles
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Kang Guangxu endured the pain, raised his left hand which was aching from the rheumatism, and picked up a piece of duck meat.

The chef around Louis XV introduced this dish to the oriental guests in French.

Kang Guangxu nodded slightly and looked sideways at the Vice Prime Minister Zhang Tingyu who was sitting next to him.

The deputy, who was fluent in French, quickly translated for the old prime minister:

"Prime Minister Canetons, this dish is called Canetons à la rouennaise, a famous Normandy dish with a rich flavor and aroma, but the preparation is a bit cruel."

When Kang Guangxu put the duck meat into his mouth, he immediately smelled the unique aroma of pine nuts. The duck meat had tender skin and oily meat, and the pine fragrance wafted into his lungs.

"Oh? Cruel? Tell me about it." Zhang Tingyu stared at the chef and said calmly:

"The duckling is strangled without bleeding and roasted for a short time. The duck blood is then squeezed out and cooked into a Rouen sauce with Bordeaux red wine, port wine, cognac, duck liver, veal broth, etc., which is then poured back onto the duck meat..."

Kang Guangxu used a knife and fork to separate the duck meat, nodded and smiled:
"A gentleman stays away from the kitchen because he has a heart of compassion. I heard Hainan was hit by another strong wind, and countless houses were destroyed. I wonder if the local people can eat clean food."

"Prime Minister Kang has the whole world in his heart, and I, your humble servant, cannot match him."

Zhang Tingyu flattered him a few times.

King George leaned forward and narrowed his eyes.

Zhang Tingyu then translated Mencius's famous quotes for the British.

"This Mr. Mencius is very interesting!"

King George laughed. "Oriental people are very meticulous. They can't bear to see cattle and sheep die tragically, but that doesn't prevent you from enjoying them."

Zhang Tingyu said awkwardly, "This is compassion."

The Europeans laughed.

After the two bottles of brandy were empty, the King of Sweden asked about the whereabouts of the Tsar and his family.

"Is Peter the Great dead?"

Kang Guangxu said nonchalantly, "Peter I was exiled to our country and couldn't adapt to the climate there. Before I set out on this trip, I heard that he was ill again."

Louis XV said solemnly, "Although the people of Qi do not believe in God, God will still take this demon away."

William IV clenched his fists and said angrily, "It's too easy for a tyrant like Peter to die of illness like this!"

Zhang Tingyu coughed twice:
"Everyone, everyone, please believe that Da Qi will properly deal with war criminals."

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Although there were some conflicts and frictions, the atmosphere at today's lunch was quite harmonious. After the main course, several kings frequently raised their glasses to toast Kang Guangxu.

Several old men toasted to health, the young and vigorous William IV toasted to victory over the Rakshasas, and old George began to bless and make wishes for post-war international trade.

"We hope that all countries can further reduce tariffs to ensure unimpeded global trade."

However, just as lunch was coming to an end, Kang Guangxu stood up from his seat and looked at everyone.

Then he casually and naturally talked about the issue of Rakshasa war criminals.

"As everyone knows, Her Majesty the Queen hates war, and therefore deeply detests the Rakshasa's actions. I propose a toast to the swift and fair trial and severe punishment of all Rakshasa war criminals! As soon as they fall into our hands, we must cooperate with each other to punish them and absolutely not let them escape. The pro-war faction in our country believes that war criminals should be treated like this Rouen blood duck: all of them should be executed..."

Before Kang Guangxu could finish his words, the King of England suddenly jumped up from the armchair he was sitting in, as if he was stung by something.

The wine glass in front of him seemed to be affected as well, falling to the side due to the king's drastic standing movement.

The bright red wine suddenly spilled onto the table, and the brandy spilled onto the tablecloth, leaving a bright red wine stain in front of people.

The surrounding area suddenly became quiet.

After three rounds of drinks, King George was already quite drunk.

He waved his hands, his body swaying, and loudly refuted Kang Guangxu's remarks in his not-so-fluent English:
"Such a view is fundamentally opposed to our British sense of fairness and justice! We in Britain will never tolerate such large-scale punishments. God knows how many Russians you have captured in the Ural Mountains! But! In the name of God! I firmly believe that no one, whether he is a Russian devil, a pirate, or anyone else, no matter what evidence we have of his crimes, should be executed without a court hearing."

George raised his glass and drank it all, emphasizing:

"Qi is a civilized country, not a barbaric country!"

(End of this chapter)