Chapter 1569 When disaster strikes, we all fly away

You Xu's predictions were astonishingly accurate.

In the afternoon, the two delegations held a routine meeting.

According to the plan, the formal negotiations will not officially begin until next Monday, so the atmosphere of the meeting was relatively peaceful. It was just procedural introductions and greetings, and did not involve any substantive content.

However, when Lan Xinzhi and others returned to the hotel restaurant and were about to enjoy a late dinner, the first "uninvited guest" came to the door -

Pierre Emiret, head of the French negotiating delegation, visited.

The notification came suddenly, so Lan Xinzhi had to put down the tableware he had just picked up and get up to go to the small reception room of the hotel.

Out of the principle of diplomatic reciprocity, he needed to personally greet this senior official from the French Ministry of Economy and Finance.

"Mr. Lan, good evening. Sorry to bother you." Emily smiled and shook hands vigorously. "I am here in a purely personal capacity. I want to have a chat with you, my friend who has come from afar, and express our welcome to the Chinese delegation."

Lan Xinzhi thought to himself, I don’t believe you, the more you emphasize this, the less likely it is that this is some bullshit “private visit”.

But on the surface, he still responded with a decent smile:

"Mr. Emiletti is so polite. You are most welcome."

Sure enough, just as he expected.

The so-called "private" greetings lasted less than two minutes, and Emily changed the subject, his tone becoming sincere and emotional:

"Mr. Lan, you know that the friendship between France and China has a long history and has grown stronger through wind and rain. We all cherish this precious tradition."

He paused skillfully, as if observing Lan Xinzhi's reaction.

But the latter just lowered his eyebrows and eyes like an old monk sitting still, so he didn't see anything.

Emily had no choice but to continue:

"Especially in some strategic and high-tech fields, such as nuclear energy and aerospace, our two sides have established a very mature and successful cooperation model over the past 15 years... These cooperations have not only brought economic benefits, but also enhanced mutual trust and understanding."

Then, his words began to take on a clear direction:

“Therefore, we believe that the most sensible and most effective choice to achieve the goal of ‘mutual benefit and win-win’ is to prioritize the precious investment resources into advantageous industries that have been proven to be successful, have a deep cooperation foundation, and have strong international competitiveness and stable return expectations.”

The wording of this last sentence is quite euphemistic, but after a series of adjectives, it's basically just short of reporting your French ID number.

Lan Xinzhi understood what was going on, but his face still maintained an expression of listening and thinking.

After thinking for a moment, he responded cautiously: "Mr. Emiletti, I fully understand and agree with your point of view on deepening cooperation in advantageous areas. France's industrial strength, especially in the areas you mentioned, is indeed admirable, and the cooperation between the two sides is indeed fruitful."

"However." After a round of flattery, he changed the subject slightly, his tone was gentle but his position was clear, "The focus of our cooperation this time is to help stabilize the current situation and overcome the difficulties together... As a core member of the European Union, France has a strong economic foundation and a relatively sound financial situation. It does not seem to be facing imminent systemic risks in the short term..."

Emily seemed to have expected Lan Xinzhi to say this. The smile on his face faded a little, replaced by a frank expression:

"Mr. Lan, those regions facing severe situations, such as southern European countries and even southern Italy, have deep-rooted structural economic problems that are difficult to reverse. They are like a bottomless pit. Even if more money is invested, it will be difficult to reverse the situation in the short term. Instead, it may be consumed inefficiently or even ineffectively."

When talking about other allies, Emily's words were almost blunt, which surprised Lan Xinzhi.

This is not what we want to see, but it is the harsh reality.”

The former spread his hands:

“So, instead of investing precious resources in places where it is difficult to produce significant results, it is better to focus on investing in countries with strong industrial engines and clear recovery paths, generate real economic growth and tax revenue first, and then use this new wealth to help those difficult regions carry out structural reforms and debt resolution. This is a responsible approach to the European Union and your country’s assets.”

These remarks may seem high-sounding, but in fact they are just short of throwing away the burden.

Even the well-informed Lan Xinzhi felt stunned and at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

He finally understood the meaning of You Xu's previous statement that "Europeans are more worried about being eavesdropped on than we are" -

Such blunt accusations against allies and the distinction between "core" and "burden" would never appear at a formal negotiating table or in any public setting where there might be audio recordings.

It is a completely naked cutting of interests and scramble for resources in private.

In fact, Lan Xinzhi even felt that the other party’s statement made some sense.

But after all, he came here with a request from his superiors, so he couldn't make any promises rashly.

Lan Xinzhi quickly adjusted his mood and said sincerely:

"Mr. Emiletti, I personally am very optimistic about your proposal, but the specific investment direction, scale and how to balance the needs of each member country require comprehensive considerations... I will definitely convey your valuable opinions in full and accurately back to China for reference in decision-making."

After some diplomatic rhetoric, the French representative, who was eager to express his demands, was finally temporarily appeased and sent out the door.

Lan Xinzhi rubbed his swollen temples, walked quickly back to the restaurant, looked at the half-cold dinner on the table, and sighed helplessly.

As a result, just as I picked up the knife and fork to prepare for the two bites, the secretary's voice rang out again:

"Director Lan, Mr. Norbert Oztas, head of the German delegation, is here to visit."

Lan Xinzhi: “…”

He put down his knife and fork resignedly and stood up again.

The German representative is Oztas, a tall, middle-aged man with a serious expression.

"Mr. Lan, the economies of the Federal Republic of Germany and China are highly complementary. For decades, German machinery, automobiles, and electrical products have been deeply loved and trusted by the Chinese market for their excellent quality and reliability. They have contributed to China's industrialization process and established deep business ties..."

"..."

Lan Xinzhi was already feeling a little dizzy from hunger, but fortunately the Germans' opening remarks and core demands were exactly the same as those of the French, except that "nuclear energy and aerospace" were replaced by "precision machinery, high-end automobiles and electrical equipment."

So there is no need to think, just follow the previous response.

When Lan Xinzhi also tactfully mentioned that Germany's financial situation was relatively good, suggesting that resources might be used first in more difficult areas, Oztas's reaction was exactly the same as Emily's, even the words he used were highly similar -

The structural problems in southern Europe and some regions are systemic and cannot be solved by short-term capital injections. Investing in Germany's solid industrial base is the most responsible investment for the long-term stability of Europe as a whole.

Lan Xinzhi thought to himself that the depth of private communication between the representatives of these two core member states was probably far beyond imagination, and even their rhetoric seemed to be a unified "Bag-Dumping Version 2.0".

He once again used the same diplomatic rhetoric - personal agreement, optimism about Germany, need to report the decision - and sent Oztas away.

When he returned to the restaurant for the third time, Lan Xinzhi looked at the cold, unappetizing dinner with a wry smile and planned to heat it up in the microwave.

But the secretary came in for the fourth time to announce the visit of the Italian representative.

"?"

Lan Xinzhi's head was full of question marks.

He really wanted to open the window and see if there was a row of special cars for EU representatives parked outside, and if there was someone responsible for calling out car numbers.

Otherwise, how could such a coincidence happen?

"Ask him in, I'll talk to him here." Lan Xinzhi threw the cutlery on the table with a clang.

He was really hungry and didn't want to bother anymore.

"And... change me a pizza with fruit, preferably pineapple."

Since you don't want him to eat well, then don't eat at all.

……

The Italian's eyes deliberately avoided the pineapple pizza on the table the whole time.

This representative did not have the strong "burden-shaking" attitude of the German and French representatives. Instead, he complained bitterly, emphasizing the severe challenges facing Italy and its unique geographical and cultural advantages. He hoped that China could see the investment value of Italy in high-end manufacturing, fashion design, tourism and culture, and hinted that it was willing to provide "unprecedented flexibility" in review.

Afterwards, representatives from the United Kingdom, Greece, Spain, Ireland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and other countries came to "visit" one after another, either individually or in small groups, as if they had discussed it beforehand.

Some used sincere words to play the sympathy card, some talked about historical origins and traditional friendship, and some tried their best to promote their country's infrastructure projects (ports, railways, power grids) or characteristic industries (agriculture, wine, tourism). Almost without exception, they expressed their willingness to lower or even cancel various review thresholds for Chinese investment in exchange for valuable capital injections.

Lan Xinzhi thoroughly experienced what "a pile of loose sand" meant.

In comparison, the Big Brothers of 1990 were all pretty much a monolith.

This marathon "informal meeting" lasted until late at night, and he returned to the suite dragging his almost exhausted body.

You Xu and Yuan Jiansheng were also waiting for him.

"It is said that husband and wife are birds of a feather, but they fly away separately when disaster strikes." Lan Xinzhi slumped on the sofa and said to the two with a wry smile, "I think our EU friends have already started scrambling to 'fly away' before the 'disaster' has even completely arrived, fearing that they will miss out on food if they fly too slowly."

You Xu smiled and poured him a glass of water: "Now you understand what I said during the day, right? The internal bickering and calculations among them have never stopped. It's just that they can maintain superficial unity at ordinary times, but when faced with a critical juncture like the current one involving real money and life and death, that fig leaf is completely torn off."