When Yan Huiqing handed He Rui's handwritten letter to French President Gaston Doumergue, his mood was calm, even somewhat numb. President Doumergue in front of him was dignified, looking a bit like an old British gentleman. For France, such a figure was not easily likable. But Doumergue himself was a very powerful politician in French politics; he had served as Prime Minister and Speaker of the Senate. The French presidency has a fixed term and is not affected by cabinet changes, which gave Doumergue a fairly stable position.

Skilled politicians have skilled responses. Doumergue asked Yan Huiqing to convey his regards to Chairman He Rui of the Republic of China and emphasized Sino-French friendship. Then, the completely formalized meeting ended just like that.

Yan Huiqing returned to the hotel where he stayed and relaxed. When French Foreign Minister Aristide Briand invited Yan Huiqing to watch an opera together, Yan Huiqing readily agreed. In the Minister's box, Yan Huiqing chatted happily with several 'well-connected' friends introduced by the Minister. Yan Huiqing had no interest in opera; the French upper class was long used to opera. Chatting and chatting, someone talked about the standards of beauty in China and France.

In romantic France, Minister Briand was an ascetic and remained unmarried. Hearing such a question, he sat back a bit, obviously having no intention of participating. At this time, there was a knock on the box door. Briand's secretary walked in quickly and whispered in Minister Briand's ear for a moment.

So, Minister Briand said elegantly, "Ladies and gentlemen. Minister Yan has just arrived in France and should be very tired. Please let him go today. I will organize a special banquet. If you have any topics, you can ask freely then."

People in the upper class were sensible. Everyone acted as if they really believed French Foreign Minister Briand's words and said goodbye to Yan Huiqing cordially. After everyone left for a while, and the secretary went out to guard the door again, Briand asked, "Do you need to rest tomorrow?"

"Is the afternoon okay?" Yan Huiqing only felt his mood suddenly return to a lively state, followed by a strong sense of exhaustion. The French reaction proved that the proposal in He Rui's handwritten letter received high attention from the French side.

The two sides finally agreed to meet in the evening. Waiting until 8 o'clock when it was dark, Minister Briand's secretary knocked on the door. Yan Huiqing had been hungry until now. He originally thought of inviting Briand, who walked into the room, to eat something at the nearby restaurant first, but was politely refused. Briand answered, "We can have them deliver dinner to the room to eat."

After speaking, Briand sat on the sofa and rubbed his slightly swollen eyes. Yan Huiqing had slept enough; seeing Briand's action, he felt quite sympathetic. In the afternoon, Yan Huiqing took a bath and saw in the mirror that the swelling around his eyes finally subsided a little. He Rui's suggestion was very valuable. To make this suggestion sufficiently feasible, Yan Huiqing consumed too much energy for it.

Until dinner was delivered, Briand did not speak. Yan Huiqing's secretary tipped the food delivery staff, and the security personnel of the Chinese and French foreign ministers escorted the hotel staff out. After the security personnel of both countries closed the door and guarded outside, Briand sat at the table and picked up his knife and fork, "Our experts believe that China was able to fight Britain without purchasing foreign weapons, possessing very outstanding Chinese industrial R&D capabilities."

To wait for Minister Briand to arrive, Yan Huiqing didn't eat anything after lunch. Excessive pressure made Yan Huiqing have no appetite at all. Seeing Briand start eating as soon as he finished speaking, Yan Huiqing also felt hungry. He picked up his chopsticks and picked up a piece of fish, "French industry has long-term accumulation and surpasses China overall. In this regard, there is a very broad basis for cooperation between China and France."

After speaking, Yan Huiqing also started eating. Yan Huiqing was hungry, and he could see that Briand was also hungry. It seemed that the foreign ministries of both countries spent great efforts to understand and accurately expound He Rui's strategic views.

Soon, only some leftovers remained of the food. Briand wiped his mouth with a napkin, took a big gulp from his wine glass, and asked, "Is there tea?"

Yan Huiqing's secretary hurriedly stood up and began to make tea. Briand continued, "Our government noticed that Chairman He believes in his letter that France does not have the ability to realize the global interests obtained within the Versailles system. We appreciate Chairman He's frankness very much, so we want to understand Minister Yan's understanding of Chairman He's view."

"The current Franc cannot withstand the pressure of the Pound, and is strongly challenged by the Dollar in international trade. Moreover, the French economy cannot support France's global projection. France indeed possesses colonies globally, but France's current situation can only maintain colonies. It does not have the ability to utilize colonies. In financial terms, colonies might be a loss-making asset for current France."

At this time, Yan Huiqing's secretary had prepared the Gongfu tea table, electric stove for boiling water, and purified water. Briand's secretary also stepped forward quickly to gather the tablecloth on the dining table, wrapped it into a bundle along with plates and everything, and carried it out of the room. Soon, the aroma of Gongfu tea began to appear in the air.

Briand was completely sure that the Chinese upper class understood France's current situation very well. Of course, capable countries could understand France's current situation. If France really had enough strength, it would have demanded the same naval tonnage as Britain in the Washington Naval Treaty. The reason for being satisfied with a naval tonnage lower than Britain was that France didn't have the money to build so much tonnage of new warships.

Since the Chinese government understood France's current situation very well, Briand asked, "Is industrialization all that China hopes for?"

"China is a country with a population of nearly 500 million. Have French experts considered the time for China to complete industrialization?"

"Haven't domestic experts in China discussed this time?"

"We think it will take about 30 years." Yan Huiqing answered very readily. Of course, Yan Huiqing would never reveal He Rui's judgment on China's industrialization time.

"Then how much money do Chinese experts think is needed?"

"The first stage, lasting one year. We probably need 10 billion. Moreover, I can tell you frankly that our Chinese government believes that 75% of this money can be used as authorization, all used to purchase French technology, equipment, and hire French experts."

10 billion Francs is not a small sum. Even at the current exchange rate of 200-240 Francs to 1 Pound, it is about 40-50 million Pounds. But for a country like France, this money is not impossible to take out. Briand stared at Yan Huiqing, "Then what does the Chinese government use as collateral?"

"Our country's official foreign trade in the future will prioritize the Franc as the currency. Our country will also persuade our merchants to prioritize using the Franc when conducting trade."

Briand's secretary looked up in astonishment. Although He Rui's letter mentioned China's willingness to support the Franc's currency status in the world, being specific to this extent was still shocking enough. The He Rui government always tended to use Pounds as foreign exchange reserves, even during the Sino-British War. If what Yan Huiqing said was executed, China would undergo a major change in foreign exchange reserves. Even if China's trade volume with the world was not large, it was enough to cause a huge impact on sensitive international currency transactions.

French Foreign Minister Briand's expression became more solemn. He had been the Prime Minister of France and was very clear about France's current situation. The current Franc did not adopt the gold standard, so the currency value fluctuated severely. If an agreement with China could really be reached, the Franc would stabilize after a round of rapid appreciation.

Although excited, Briand still didn't discuss these specific issues. As the Foreign Minister, Briand must figure out China's strategic considerations, "How long does China hope such cooperation to last?"

"Our government believes we can sign a 3-year agreement first. After 3 years, if neither side has objections, the agreement will be automatically extended for 3 years."

3 years... Briand calculated. This time reflected China's sincerity. If China expressed a request for a longer time, it would make Briand feel China had a conspiracy.

At this time, the water had boiled, and Yan Huiqing's secretary brewed Gongfu tea. Briand drank the first cup; this kind of cup was very small, finished in one sip. The sweet tea refreshed the French Foreign Minister's spirit, and he laughed, "Is it only in China that one can drink such tea?"

"If you visit China, you will drink tea more delicious than this."

"Oh? Minister Yan, I have also drunk some so-called famous teas at self-proclaimed tea experts' places, but that taste was a bit strange."

Yan Huiqing felt a sense of resonance with Briand's words and nodded in reply, "I once drank coffee claimed to be very high-end, and after drinking it, I felt my stomach couldn't stand it. Believe me, I will treat you with tea that best suits the public taste. You will like it."

"I look forward to drinking such tea as soon as possible," Briand replied with a smile.

At the government meeting the next morning, Briand explained his views on He Rui's proposal to the French President, Prime Minister, Economy Minister, and the Chairman of the Bank of France.

"...China is willing to support France in exchange for French investment and technology transfer. Chinese Foreign Minister Mr. Yan Huiqing conveyed Chairman He Rui's view that Chinese officials will use the Franc as the first priority payment currency in the next 3 years, and suggest Chinese merchants use the Franc as the transaction currency."

Hearing this, the Chairman of the Bank of France subconsciously shifted his fat body. A moment later, he wiped his still sweating forehead with a handkerchief. At this moment, the Chairman of the Bank of France confirmed one thing: he must not leak this news no matter what. If he leaked the news, even as the Chairman of the Bank of France, which was actually the central bank, his whole family would be killed.

The interests involved in this matter were too great. If someone else leaked the news, the Chairman of the Bank of France would also feel that person's whole family being killed was not unjust. With France's capital volume, even if the Franc appreciated by only 2%, it would be tens of billions or even hundreds of billions of wealth. In current France, no one's whole family was worth this price.

French President Doumergue looked fairly stable. The French Third Republic should be a presidential system of government. However, due to constitutional regulations, every order of the President must be countersigned by ministers of various ministries, so no matter how great the power of the French President is, it is difficult to exercise.

Compared with the President's calmness, the French Prime Minister looked quite uncalm. The cabinet of the French Third Republic generally changed twice a year. Although under this political game, many ministers were actually re-elected in different governments, the Prime Minister had to be replaced with the fall of the cabinet.

The proposal now put forward by the Chinese government was a national interest for France that transcended the interests of various parties, so the possibility of passing was very high. Making China, the most important country in the Far East, a quasi-ally of France, and allowing a large amount of French funds to be lent out. If this matter passed during his term, he would gain great merit. It might even be possible to create the longest prime minister term in the French Third Republic.

Even if his cabinet fell, with his achievements in this matter, he could obtain an important position in future cooperation with China. In that case, his second half of life would definitely lack nothing.

Foreign Minister Briand had served as Foreign Minister continuously in several different cabinets, so he was not that excited. After he finished describing the content of this meeting, the Economy Minister immediately said, "Mr. President, I think France needs such cooperation. Once such an agreement is reached, it can stop the depreciation of the Franc. The economic policy proposed by the Prime Minister includes controlling inflation. The Franc stopping depreciation, or even appreciating, can help control inflation to a large extent."

President Doumergue had been Prime Minister, and he had determined that he had no reason to refuse. If he refused such cooperation, this group of people in front of him would immediately publicize this matter, and at that time he would probably be impeached by the parliament.

Although He Rui's purpose was certainly not for France, He Rui obviously understood France's current situation very well. From Doumergue's personal judgment, this matter was indeed very beneficial to France. Moreover, this matter involved too huge interests; Doumergue really couldn't discuss this matter with others. He had to make a decision with these French government upper echelons.