Just as Yan Huiqing thought France would not allow the German and Austrian reporters to speak, the German reporter was actually called upon. He immediately asked, "Mr. Chairman, European newspapers have always reported that you are a communist."

Yan Huiqing was stunned, but before he could process this, he heard He Rui reply, "I am a member of the Chinese Civilization Party, not a member of the Communist Party."

The German reporter immediately pressed, "Then are you a Marxist?"

"Yes, I am a Marxist. Furthermore, I am a Marxist who considers Marxism to be a form of economics."

He Rui never hid his political stance. Moreover, the newly revised constitution of the Republic of China established that the Republic of China is a socialist country. In the 1920s, a country whose socialist attributes were defined by its constitution would be considered a communist country.

The German reporter asked again, "Then how do you view Soviet communism? From the perspective of the communist line understood in China, do you consider the Soviet system to be communism?"

Yan Huiqing instinctively felt the German reporter wanted to cause trouble, but on second thought, he realized it wasn't a problem. In the German Weimar Republic, the Communist Party was a major party with many seats in parliament. Many Germans believed that Germany had already established a Soviet regime and had formed good relations with the Soviet Union. By introducing China, a major extra-regional power, into Europe, France was destined to affect the political situation in Europe.

He Rui did not hesitate. Marx said that communists disdain to conceal their views, and He Rui felt there was nothing wrong with that statement.

"The Soviet Union understands Marxism from the perspective of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks), and especially according to Russian tradition, and formulates the Soviet Union's ideology, politics, and state system based on their understanding. Setting aside communist ideals or the founding philosophies of various nations, if we look only at the matter itself, every country does this. Germany, the Soviet Union, France, and China are no different in this regard. Marxism is a form of economics, not theology. China does not deify Marxism, nor does it treat Marxism fundamentally; rather, it applies this economics to every level of the state. Therefore, in China's view, the Soviet Union has adopted a socialist system with Soviet characteristics."

The German reporter couldn't immediately find a point of entry for further questioning from He Rui's answer. He Rui had indeed answered two questions, but his perspective was certainly not what the reporter had initially perceived. In fact, the reporter wanted to ask about the Soviet Union's barbarity during the process of taking power. This barbarity was also the reason why the German upper and middle classes could not accept the Soviet Union.

However, He Rui's answer was quite interesting. Following He Rui's line of reasoning, the Soviet Union's crude simplicity was, to some extent, a continuation of traditional Tsarist Russian culture. It had to be said that in German eyes, Tsarist Russia was indeed a crude and simple country. In this regard, the Tsar had no right to claim he was more civilized than the Bolsheviks.

After thinking for a moment, the German reporter still asked, "Do you consider the atrocities committed by the Soviet Union during its seizure of power to be inevitable?"

"First, we must have a definition of atrocities. Just like during the French Revolution, when the King and Queen were sent to the guillotine. Does the reporter consider this an atrocity, or a crime? Or should it be considered in the context of the historical environment of the time? I think there are two ways to evaluate the Soviet Union. The first is to start from specific events and find the true face of the matter. The second is to express opinions based on one's own feelings. Regardless of which method is used, it is best to state the evaluation method first."

Hearing this, the German reporter immediately indicated he was finished asking questions. The next to stand up was an Austrian reporter. "Mr. Chairman, will you visit Austria?"

He Rui smiled slightly. "I have not yet received an invitation from the Austrian government."

The Austrian reporter immediately asked, "Mr. Chairman, there is a belief in Hungary that the Magyars are descendants of the Huns. You are Han Chinese; how do you view the descendants of the Huns today?"

At this, many reporters laughed out loud. He Rui also smiled. "Hehe, reporter, have you read *Records of the Grand Historian* (*Shiji*), a purely Chinese historical text?"

The reporter shook his head. He Rui replied, "More than two thousand years ago, Sima Qian, the author of *Records of the Grand Historian*, clearly recorded that the Xiongnu (Huns) were also descendants of the Huaxia lineage. The Han Empire back then did indeed war with the Xiongnu, but this does not equate to the Han people, who later branched off from Huaxia, and the Xiongnu being natural enemies. By blood, we are distant relatives. Furthermore, since the time of Darwin, the theory that modern humans originated in Africa has been gradually confirmed and accepted. That is to say, humanity was originally a single group that migrated and evolved. Black people, white people, Chinese people—every one of us is related to every other person."

The Austrian reporter was stunned. Hearing He Rui say that black people and white people were relatives, the Austrian reporter felt uncomfortable. But he could not publicly oppose He Rui's scientifically based view, so he could only nitpick reluctantly. "Mr. Chairman, Darwin said that humans originated in Africa, not that modern humans originated in Africa."

"Modern humans originated in Africa, but humans arriving in various continents is the result of human migration. Moreover, humans may not have migrated just once; it is very likely that several migrations occurred. Furthermore, Africa is a vast continent; humans who did not migrate to other regions would also have migrated within Africa. Due to the influence of the natural environment and the climate at the time, humans underwent some evolution. This is my view on human origins."

The Austrian reporter heard He Rui actually using academic viewpoints to explain. Although this was also a method of obfuscation, its purpose was to highlight the political philosophy He Rui had also spoken of: He Rui believed that 'black people, white people, Chinese people' are all the same humans and should enjoy equal rights. Although as a European white person, he naturally held a sense of racial superiority, it was inappropriate to use racial superiority theories to refute He Rui, nor would it garner support. The Austrian reporter could only end his questioning.

At this time, a Danish reporter asked, "Mr. Chairman, American newspapers believe it is worth discussing whether the trade between China and France constitutes honest trade. I wonder how you view this."

At this, a burst of laughter erupted among the reporters. Everyone knew that American newspapers were saying this purely because the United States was powerless to intervene in Sino-French trade, and at this stage had no way to independently reach a trade agreement with China like the one France had. With America's tradition of mercantilism, they naturally had to shout a few times.

He Rui had read this news, but he replied, "I haven't read that news yet. If I have time, perhaps I will take a look. As for the views of American newspapers, I believe everyone will have their own judgment. I personally do not entirely agree with that view."

The press conference ended, and He Rui quickly got into the car sent by the French President to head to the Élysée Palace. In the car, seeing He Rui stretch comfortably, Yan Huiqing asked, "Chairman, how long will you stay in France?"

He Rui rotated his body comfortably to relax as quickly as possible. "I will head to Italy once more than half of the contracts for the first phase are signed. By then, the French stock market should have risen to a certain level."

Yan Huiqing felt this timing was indeed very good. Before the signing of the Sino-French Economic Cooperation Agreement, France had no standing to join the currency struggle between Britain and the United States. Now that Britain and the United States had clearly noticed that the franc had the potential to become one of the contenders for a world currency, they both began to take the franc seriously.

Domestically, France had originally had quite a few complaints about this agreement, which required France to pay out 20 billion francs in interest-free loans. But as the franc appreciated and the French stock market surged, the French public felt that this agreement might be different from their previous intuition. Especially with Britain beginning to attack the agreement, French public opinion began to believe that the Sino-French Economic Cooperation Agreement was very important for France. He Rui staying in France a while longer would be perfect for reinforcing this feeling among the French public through reports in French newspapers.

Yan Huiqing said, "Chairman, I will head to Italy tomorrow."

"Thank you for your hard work, Minister Yan," He Rui expressed his gratitude.

Yan Huiqing laughed. "I don't feel it's hard work at all. I only feel regret thinking that I was only able to participate in such diplomacy at this time."

The next day, January 31st, Yan Huiqing took a Chinese airplane that had already arrived in France to fly to Italy. Looking at the white clouds below the plane, Yan Huiqing felt that He Rui would probably envy him when it came to means of travel. Although He Rui was very composed, he was very trendy regarding travel tools. Taking the *Siping* light destroyer to Italy, even if the *Siping* sailed at maximum speed, would indeed be somewhat torturous for He Rui.

On the same day, January 31st, British Prime Minister Baldwin appeared before King George V of the United Kingdom. King George V had the handsome looks of a German, although he had changed the royal house name to 'Windsor' during the Great War in Europe to shed his German surname. But everyone knew the fact that King George V and the German Emperor Wilhelm II were cousins.

Facing this gentleman, George V, Prime Minister Baldwin was not nervous. Just as Prime Minister Baldwin expected, George V asked with the politeness expected of a gentleman, "My dear Prime Minister, my advisors have told me about the Sino-French cooperation. I wonder how His Majesty's Government will respond to this matter?"

Baldwin immediately replied, "Your Majesty, the government has once again sent the Foreign Secretary to France to convey to the Chinese Foreign Minister that there will be certain changes to the reception process. The government has prepared content to discuss further areas of cooperation with China. We believe that with Mr. He Rui's wisdom, he will certainly be able to feel the sincerity of His Majesty's Government."

"Mr. Prime Minister, my advisors believe that Mr. He Rui will not sign a similar agreement with Britain within the three years that the Sino-French agreement is being executed," George V raised his concern.

Baldwin did not express opposition. The King's advisors were all experts in various fields. Although experts had their own agendas, their professionalism left Baldwin no room for criticism.

"Your Majesty, the Cabinet has the same judgment. But the Cabinet believes that signing a most-favored-nation agreement with China and investing in China will not be refused. At this stage, what His Majesty's Government needs is to offset the impact of the Sino-French cooperation agreement, not try to overthrow it. Moreover, the Cabinet believes that Mr. He Rui has no intention of cooperating with the United States. At least in the near future, there is absolutely no such intention."

The United States was currently Britain's strongest challenger, and the US dollar was the world's second strongest currency. The views of George V's advisors on the future situation were indeed the same as what Baldwin had said: as long as China and the United States did not cooperate to jointly promote the dollar, the pressure Britain faced would be much smaller.

Even if China helped the franc quickly become a participant in the battle for world currency supremacy, it would first snatch market share from the US dollar as a world trade currency. Britain could even use the contradictions between the US and France to its advantage, very likely dealing a blow to the dollar.

Having finished his audience with the King, Baldwin sat in his car and couldn't help but rub the space between his eyebrows. Lately, Baldwin had also tried to learn a bit of Chinese culture. He found Chinese proverbs very interesting, one of which was called 'The King of Hell is easy to see, but the little devils are hard to deal with' (*Yánwáng hǎo jiàn, xiǎoguǐ nán chán*). Hearing it just once, Baldwin immediately committed this sentence to memory.

Regardless of the King of England's mood, Baldwin had enough confidence to handle it. Because the King of England was not elected, the King only had to appease the entire British populace. But those MPs in the House of Commons were genuine 'little devils'. To perform in front of their constituents, those people were acting most of the time. To get re-elected, this group used demagoguery and bait-and-switch tactics to the extreme. Baldwin's answer just now was completely sufficient to deal with the King's inquiry, but it wouldn't be enough to face the House of Commons at all.

Fortunately, the House of Commons inquiry was the day after tomorrow. Baldwin decided to relax as much as possible for these two days. The more relaxed one is when going onto the battlefield, the more effectively one can survive.

However, Baldwin did not expect that at this moment, the Paris radio station was interviewing Marshal Joseph Joffre. The host first recounted the question raised by the British reporter during the day, and then asked, "Marshal Joffre, how great of a role do you think the Chinese laborers played in the Great War in Europe?"

Marshal Joffre naturally knew why he was being interviewed. Although the old man didn't like the Chinese, he disliked the British even more. As for the current situation of Sino-French cooperation, the old man actually agreed with it. After listening to the reporter's question, Marshal Joffre replied, "Based on my observation of the war, Germany was exhausted by the Allied forces. According to German documents we captured, before Ludendorff launched the Kaiser's Battle (Spring Offensive), he had submitted requirements for materials and manpower to his Quartermaster General..."

Although the radio host would tell Marshal Joffre the general content of the interview in advance, not to mention a small host, even the entire Paris radio station dared not demand Marshal Joffre say anything. So the host was actually somewhat worried that Marshal Joffre would not cooperate at all.

Hearing Marshal Joffre actually talking about things the public didn't know, he was also very curious. And the citizens of Paris who had radios at home, as well as those who could hear the broadcast, listened with equal interest.

Marshal Joffre continued, "The German Quartermaster General replied in a document that Germany's production capacity could only meet 30% of the materials and ammunition required for the Kaiser's Battle. Ludendorff immediately rebuked the German Quartermaster General in a document. And the German Quartermaster General also replied directly on paper that if Your Excellency Ludendorff believed this subordinate was incompetent, he could immediately order this subordinate to be shot."

The Kaiser's Battle was Germany's last large-scale offensive. Because they adopted very advanced tactics, the German army achieved success that was unimaginable in trench warfare within a short period, successively piercing the Allied lines and forcing the Allied forces to retreat continuously. So much so that when the German army was dozens of kilometers from Paris, France was shaken domestically.

Hearing Marshal Joffre explain now, the French public realized that the German army at that time was an arrow at the end of its flight—it had the ability to launch a final strike, but no possibility of winning the war through that final strike.

Having finished recounting the past, Marshal Joffre continued, "It is logistics that determines war. Judging from the results of the war, the contribution of one Chinese laborer to the war was probably worth 100 British... hmm, at least 50 British soldiers..."

It wasn't just Paris citizens listening to the broadcast in Paris; at this time, reporters from all European countries were in Paris. British reporters were sitting in a hotel salon with reporters from several other countries, listening to the broadcast and drinking beverages. Hearing France's Marshal Joffre say 'one Chinese laborer is worth 50 British soldiers', many reporters roared with laughter.

The British reporters naturally knew what the Frenchman was thinking—wasn't this just retaliation for the British side's sowing of discord! This answer indeed infuriated the British reporters enough; that the contribution of one Chinese laborer was worth 50 British soldiers was obviously an insult to Britain.

Under the gloating gazes of reporters from other countries, the British reporters stood up angrily and left. They didn't flee, but immediately sent this matter back to London and began preparing content for rebuttal.

Behind the British reporters, Marshal Joffre's explanation came from the broadcast, "British soldiers are indeed very brave, but they lose their combat effectiveness or even die in battle after one charge. Whereas Chinese laborers braved a hail of bullets, participating in battle after battle, transporting supplies for the officers and men on the front lines. Or producing urgently needed supplies for the front lines in factories and farms in the rear, very beneficial to the war. In terms of the quantity of combat participation, one Chinese laborer is far superior to a British soldier..."

The other reporters burst into laughter again. From the perspective of war, this statement was indeed correct, but looking at it from another angle, wasn't it saying that British soldiers were single-use consumables?

February 1st. British newspapers began a counterattack on three fronts. In the military field, British newspapers believed France was ungrateful; without the support of the British Expeditionary Force, France would have been beaten into Paris by Germany long ago.

In terms of history, Britain pointed out that France's current colony of Indochina was seized from China by France through war. Moreover, in that war, France had shamelessly launched a sneak attack on the Nanyang Fleet.

In the economic field, Britain emphasized once again that France had always adopted very dishonest methods in trade with China, and China should beware of France adopting dishonest means.

At the beginning of the broadcast that evening, the host of the Paris radio station announced, "Today, we have invited Marshal Ferdinand Foch."

Hearing the name of this war hero, admiration spontaneously arose in the hearts of the Paris public. The views of reporters from various countries were somewhat different; unlike Marshal Joffre, who was good at operational command, Marshal Ferdinand Foch was a military strategist with deep attainments in strategy. This interview would likely be even more interesting than the last one.