When the heavy doors were opened, the scent inside made the Chinese soldiers at the entrance feel as if they had returned to a university library. The smell of a vast quantity of paper gathered together is very distinct; once experienced, it is not easily forgotten.

Stepping into the archives, they saw rows of towering shelves filled with stacks, layers, and files of documents. The Chinese soldiers immediately moved forward at a steady pace, clutching their weapons and raising their lanterns to probe the gaps between the wooden racks.

They had reached the final stage; nothing could be allowed to go wrong! Only after eliminating all risks within the archives could the records be fully protected.

The First Secretary of the Colonial Office, standing at the door, felt a sense of profound loss, but he had no desire to mount the gallows and be hanged like a common criminal. He turned to the Chinese officer, Chen Changsheng. "Mr. Chen..."

Chen Changsheng cut off the unnecessary pleasantries. "If you have other business, you may tell me. If you are merely worried, there is no need to speak. We place great importance on our promises and will never be as treacherous as the Spaniards who tricked the Inca King."

The First Secretary of the British Colonial Office was struck by this statement. Although he knew the Chinese soldiers had received a thorough, systematic education, the fact that they could cite the example of Spanish colonials deceiving the Inca King suggested their knowledge was remarkably comprehensive.

"I certainly believe you, Mr. Chen," the First Secretary said, falling silent.

Chen Changsheng turned his gaze toward the archives of the British Colonial Office, a great weight finally lifting from his heart. Seizing the British archives was the ultimate task of this assault on London—perhaps even *the* most important one.

This level of importance reminded Chen Changsheng of the knowledge he had learned in history class. After the fall of the Qin Dynasty, when Liu Bang entered Xianyang, he took away the Qin archives. When Xiang Yu entered Xianyang, he merely vented his bravado against the Qin nobility, leaving the city in ruins.

Confronted with the mess he had created, Xiang Yu excused himself by saying that for a man to achieve wealth and honor and not return to his hometown was like "wearing silken robes and walking in the night." One of Xiang Yu's subordinates couldn't help but whisper: "People say the men of Chu are but monkeys wearing crowns; it is indeed true."

The idiom "a monkey wearing a crown" (沐猴而冠) originated from this event. When Xiang Yu heard of it, he had the man arrested and boiled alive in a cauldron.

Looking at the vast scale of the British archives, Chen Changsheng finally felt firsthand what the weight of Chinese history had bestowed upon the Chinese people. Even a simple mocking idiom carried behind it profound historical lessons of all kinds. The wisdom of ancient Chinese people from two thousand years ago was not at all outdated two thousand years later.

***

Meanwhile, in Buckingham Palace, another Chinese officer, Lieutenant Colonel Wang Xinli, shared similar sentiments. Across from him, the British King, Henry VI, declared that if he were not granted treatment befitting a monarch, he would never surrender.

Henry, the British representative of the World People's Liberation Army, tried to persuade King Henry VI to recognize reality and stop playing the games of "kings and nobles." But Henry VI clearly did not agree with the views of this British subject standing before him. In the King's view, he was naturally entitled to royal privileges; if this point was ignored, he would rather fight to the end with his final guards within Buckingham Palace, seeking a mutual destruction.

Lieutenant Colonel Wang Xinli could finally contain himself no longer. He spoke to Henry VI in English: "Your Majesty, over seven hundred years ago, a Chinese official and man of letters wrote a poem that left a deep impression on me."

Henry VI had not expected this young Chinese officer to speak of literature. It must be noted that in Europe, literature was considered high culture, a pursuit highly favored among the nobility. Thus, Henry VI immediately felt that Lieutenant Colonel Wang might be someone he could converse with.

"What did that official write?" Henry VI asked. Since the other party was an official and writer from seven hundred years ago, by European standards, he must have been an aristocrat. Henry VI felt that discussing the poetry of the nobility would be to his advantage. Had the opponent been a mere revolutionary, Henry VI would have had no interest in the discussion.

Wang Xinli nodded to Henry VI, then recited the poem *Shan Yang Po: Meditations on the Past at Tong Pass* first in Chinese, and then in English.

"The peaks gather like clouds, the waves rage like fury; the road through Tong Pass winds between mountains and rivers. Looking toward the Western Capital, I hesitate in sorrow, grieving for the places where the Qin and Han once trod. Ten thousand halls and palaces have all turned to dust. When the empire prospers, the people suffer; when the empire falls, the people suffer."

The Briton, Henry, and the African, Abu, had both studied in China for several years and could basicially understand Chinese poetry. But this was the first time they had heard this piece, and they could not fully grasp its nuances. However, both could tell it was a lament for past dynasties, especially the final lines—"When the empire prospers, the people suffer; when the empire falls, the people suffer"—which left them both deeply shaken.

Hearing the English version of "Goat Slope" (Shan Yang Po), Henry VI felt a strange sense of familiarity. This was because British and European place names, in essence, were mostly literal translations similar to Chinese names like "Date Palm Grove" or "Horse Station." "Goat Slope" certainly had a European ring to it.

As a soldier, Wang Xinli's translation used more military-inflected terms: "The mountain ridges huddle together like defensive barriers of war, and the towering waves of the great river seem like the furious will to sink any who attempt to cross. Within the ramparts formed by mountains and rivers, the fortress-gate named Tong sits upon the only passage. Standing atop the fortress looking toward the capital of a previous dynasty, the desolation in my heart makes me reluctant to personally enter those great ruins.

When I pass through the open ground before the ancient capitals of the Qin and Han Empires of sixteen hundred years ago, and think of how history records tens of thousands of royal palaces and gardens once stood here, only to see them now reduced to the very soil before me.

With the rise of a new empire, the people are the ones who suffer most. With the fall of an old empire, the people are likewise the ones who suffer most."

Henry VI fell silent. He never expected that an ancient Chinese poem he had never heard of would strike him so deeply in the heart. In his view, the beauty and poignancy of this verse could only be compared to the poetry of Shakespeare. If set to music, it would surely become the most famous troubadour song in Europe.

After hearing it just once, Henry VI thought of the Rome he had once visited. Such a great city could no longer manifest its appearance of sixteen hundred years ago; later generations could only see fragments of that great empire and great civilization from the surviving ruins.

The accompanying Henry and Abu watched Henry VI's darkened expression, unable to tell exactly what the British King was feeling. They looked again at Lieutenant Colonel Wang Xinli, both starting to wonder about his background and the level of education at the Baoding Military Academy.

The current Baoding Military Academy was a university and a world-renowned military institution. This was because New China’s five Marshals had all followed He Rui from the time they graduated and were assigned from the academy's predecessor, the Baoding Land Army Officers' School.

Even with such illustrious alumni, the Baoding Military Academy remained a school for training junior and field officers. Similar prestigious institutions included the Shenyang Military Academy and the Jiangning Military Academy. The training of generals was the task of China's National Defense University.

Therefore, the fact that graduates of Baoding could not only fight but also possessed such a level of literary skill seemed to prove that, by European standards, Baoding was an aristocratic military school... and yet, in daily life, Lieutenant Colonel Wang appeared no different from any other officer. He would curse when necessary, and there was nothing of the "aristocrat" in his conduct.

As the two were pondering, Henry VI had already made his decision. "Lieutenant Colonel Wang, may I have a private word with you?"

At this moment, Henry VI believed Wang Xinli must be a Chinese aristocratic officer. If a surrender had to be discussed, Henry VI would rather communicate with a fellow aristocrat. After all, only an aristocrat could understand an aristocrat.

Wang Xinli had originally only wanted to persuade Henry VI to stop resisting so that the area centered on Buckingham Palace would not be turned to scorched earth. In this operation, the goal of the World People's Liberation Army was to liberate London, not to preserve it. The units were already equipped with various weapons, including thermobaric bombs; once combat began, the WPLA would pursue the lowest possible casualty rate for their own side.

If not for the fact that a peaceful surrender could minimize casualties to the greatest extent, the assault would have already begun.

Seeing Henry VI request a private talk, Wang Xinli, though not having made comprehensive prior preparations for such a scenario, could only reply: "I accept the invitation."

Upon hearing this, Henry VI felt that Wang Xinli clearly had not received a European aristocratic education. A European aristocrat, though meaning the same thing, would have said something like, "It would be my honor."

However, Eastern aristocrats were clearly different from Western ones, and under the current circumstances, Henry VI decided to be a bit more tolerant. Thus, the two went to a small reception room in Buckingham Palace, where Henry VI asked: "Lieutenant Colonel Wang, I would very much like to hear China's arrangements for me."