The Han culture is spreading strongly in Southeast Asia

Chapter 197 Dislocation from France
In the Upper Normandy region of the Kingdom of France, a straight and wide road runs along the Seine River to the core and capital of France, Paris.

It was April, and the banks of the Seine were full of life. On the wide and flat land, thin and short French farmers wearing patched clothes were working hard.

A few naked children looked at the huge convoy coming from a distance, stopped playing, put their fingers in their mouths, and stared blankly at those who obviously looked different from them.

The more knowledgeable peasants, looking at the white sun flag with a red border and a blue background, which was completely different from the white flag with gold irises of the Bourbon dynasty, speculated about which nobles were heading to Paris.

Some faces showed obvious fear.

In recent years, contradictions in France have been particularly acute, with various rebellions by marginal churches and the exploited bourgeoisie, big and small, emerging one after another.

Well, maybe many of them cannot be called rebellions, but are just ordinary disturbances, but they are enough to scare these people.

Because if they are "involved" in these things, the small pieces of land on which they depend for survival may be taken away.

At this time in the Kingdom of France, 50% of the land was controlled by the great nobles and the great church headed by the king, who accounted for less than 2% of the total population.

Then, of the remaining 50% of the land, 40% is in the hands of small nobles and middle-level clergy, whose number will not exceed 10% of the total population.

In other words, the remaining approximately 90 percent of French people only own 10 percent of the land.

Among them, 10% of the people are in a state of absolute poverty. They can survive if they have food today, but if they don’t, they will become a corpse tomorrow.

Even now, after the tenancy system had been popular for decades and serfdom had been abolished for more than two hundred years, serfdom had made a comeback in areas bordering the Kingdom and the Holy Roman Empire, and two million people had been forced to become serfs again.

However, the great nobles and high-ranking monks were still not satisfied. They took advantage of every opportunity to seize the already scarce land of the self-cultivating farmers.

A cough was heard, and Lin Tong lifted the curtain of the carriage, looking at this land that he was very familiar with in books, but the reality gave him a completely different feeling.

It was April 1770, the th year of Emperor Qianlong's reign in the Qing Dynasty, exactly one year since Lin Tong and his companions set out from Pattani.

The reason why it was so slow was that Lin Tong, who had just coughed, was sick.

For more than a year, Lin Tong has been traveling around without stopping. He just came back from Beijing and rested for less than ten days before embarking on a journey to Europe again.

Then, Lin Tong, who thought he was strong and had no problems, fell ill. Or rather, it was not just a simple illness, he almost died of illness during this long voyage.

For his life safety, the fleet had to stay at the Cape of Good Hope for about two months. Only after Lin Tong was basically recovered did they start sailing north.

Also, because we missed the strongest period of the East African monsoon, the voyage time was greatly extended.

They were supposed to arrive in Paris in early January, but they didn't arrive until the end of April.

Before they arrived in Paris, the discussion about the arrival of the delegation of Prince An Dai of Siam and the Crown Prince of Ha Tien in Paris had already ended.

King Louis XV's close ministers advised that France should carefully consider an alliance that might anger the Qing Dynasty.

Foreign Minister Caesar Gabriel even suggested that an embassy should be sent to the Qing Dynasty to learn about the situation of Prince An Dai of Siam and Crown Prince of Ha Tien King, and most importantly, to find out the attitude of the Qing Dynasty.

After all, at this time, the Kingdom of Siam was a constituent member of the Qing Empire.

Outrageous! This was Lin Tong’s first feeling after hearing the news.

He, Mo Zibu, Peter and others had deduced countless times in Southeast Asia, and they all believed that gaining a foothold in the Far East like Ha Tien would be a hundred benefits and no harm for the Kingdom of France.

It is not Ha Tien begging France, but France begging Ha Tien.

And now, they seemed to be insignificant visitors.

After thinking for a long time, Lin Tong read a large number of mainstream French thoughts and books, mainly the works of Baron Montesquieu and Jean-Jacques Rousseau.

He also collected a large amount of research and various literary works on the French Kingdom's view of the East, or the imaginary East, and finally managed to figure out one thing.

At that time in France, or in the whole of Europe, they regarded the vast areas including Southeast Asia, Korea, Japan and mainland China as part of the entire Chinese Empire.

These guys understood the Chinese tributary system as something like the Holy Roman Empire. The only difference was that there was a big guy in the Holy Roman Empire that was in an absolute leadership position.

Although a large number of missionaries, merchants, and even adventurers had arrived in the East at that time, their upper classes still had a very superficial understanding of the East.

Because these upper classes don't really listen to the voices from the lower classes.

Don't ever think that Europe, with its flourishing schools of thought and a new era about to arrive, is very open, free and inclusive.

That's not the case. There is indeed a soil for freedom, tolerance and science to survive, but the existence of this soil is limited and only interacts within certain classes and circles.

European kings, dukes, and queens supported science and freedom not because they truly understood the value of these things.

Instead, they needed to support and tolerate the behavior of these great scientists, philosophers, and artists, making themselves appear enlightened and liberal, thereby enhancing their own reputation and establishing the image of a wise monarch.

With this image, he can attract more talents and capital to make him stronger in the European melee where a group of relatives are fighting.

Note that it is him, not the country, because I am the country.

To put it bluntly, at this time in Europe, the kings, high-ranking monks, and nobles were living in the feudal era.

The big bourgeoisie and the philosophers and scientists closely associated with it are on the eve of capitalism.

The vast majority of the poor people at the bottom are still living in the painful era of slavery.

In this situation, a king like Louis XV would listen to the opinions of a scientist or philosopher and discuss with them.

But Louis XV would not listen to the voices of lower-level adventurers and missionaries, because that would pollute his aristocratic temperament.

So, when Louis XV and his ministers heard the report sent by Peter through the Paris Foreign Church, they had such an idea about the uninvited Mozibu mission.

What is it equivalent to?

The equivalent of the Austrian Netherlands, which wanted to establish normal diplomatic relations and even an alliance with France. Considering that the Qing Empire was a Far Eastern hegemon even more powerful than the Habsburg Monarchy, the Kingdom of France naturally had some interest in Mo Zibu's delegation.

Because in the eyes of Louis XV and the French ministers, concluding an alliance with Mo Zibu was tantamount to encroaching on the territory of the Qing Empire and would definitely lead to a state of war between the two sides.

There are some benefits, but the cost is too high and not worth it at all.

Even Foreign Minister Caesar Gabriel had some immature suggestions.

Isn't this because the Qing Dynasty always closed its doors to the outside world and used the designated Thirteen Hongs for transactions, in fact implementing trade protection in a completely seller's market?

The Kingdom of France asked the Qing Dynasty to open its ports several times, but not only could it not negotiate, it couldn't even send an envoy.

Now that we have this opportunity, can we send an embassy?

Emperor of the Qing Dynasty, you see, I have helped you arrest a rebel who colluded with foreigners. As long as you are willing to open a port to France, I can hand him over to you for punishment.

Mo Zibu didn't know that his delegation had come to a very embarrassing period.

At this time, Louis XV was still in power. Although the Kingdom of France had experienced many setbacks, the conservative forces of the royal family, high-ranking monks, and nobles were still very strong.

The big bourgeoisie, which has an infinite desire for outward expansion, has not yet completed its final transformation, so they are unable to push the Kingdom of France to try to challenge the ancient Qing Empire.

Peter was still just a middle-level monk in the foreign church and had not reached the historical heights.

Seventeen years later, when the embassy of Nguyen Phuc Anh of Annam arrived in Paris, Peter had become a well-known figure in the entire European religious world.

This archbishop, who had the highest status in the foreign church in the entire East, used his influence to let the upper echelons of Paris know the general situation in the East.

They had a relatively clear understanding of the differences between the Eastern tributary model and the European Holy Roman Empire model, and also understood the benefits of an alliance with Nguyen Phuc Anh.

Similarly, by 1787, Watt's improved steam engine had been officially on the market for two years.

Having lost most of its overseas colonies and completely despairing of gaining a foothold in India, France urgently needs a fulcrum in the Far East.

The growing bourgeoisie hoped that France would try to gain as much territory as possible from the East in order to dump inferior industrial products.

A large amount of funds and technology that cannot obtain high returns in Europe also need a stable investment target.

The king and the kingdom's upper echelons hoped to open up new trade routes to the East to ease the kingdom's financial pressure.

However, all these conditions are not yet met.

Alas! Lin Tong sighed deeply and said to Peter, "Bishop, I hope we don't rush to meet His Majesty King XV, because that might not lead to a good result.

I think we need to first popularize Eastern knowledge among the upper echelons of the kingdom and arouse their interest."

After saying that, Lin Tong picked up the quill pen and continued writing.

When he was at the Cape of Good Hope, he had actually realized a little bit of the problem, but he didn't expect it to be so serious.

Just when Lin Tong wrote "From the Pre-Qin Dynasty to the Ming Dynasty - The Growth and Changes of the Seres Empire", a popular science article introducing Chinese culture and political system.

Ou Zirong, who was feeling uncomfortable, jumped off the carriage in a cool manner. They came to a small town where they wanted to rest and have lunch.

Under the lazy sunlight, Mary walked out of her family's small inn, holding a plate of pancakes in her left hand and a pot of fish soup in her right hand.

She saw the huge convoy and guessed that these rich people might need some food, so she prepared to go up and sell it to them.

Young Mary was sixteen years old. Although she had some fine freckles on her cheeks, they were not noticeable and instead added a strange charm to her.

This made her appearance very attractive, and coupled with her curvy figure, Mary became a famous beauty in the town. Countless young men were obsessed with her.

With her beauty, Mary could often sell ordinary pancakes and fish soup to passing nobles and get a good price for it.

But this time, she only felt her heart thumping. When she saw the fiery red figure jumping down from the carriage, her body couldn't help but soften and her cheeks began to heat up rapidly.

The most outstanding thing about Ou Zirong is not his artistic talent, but his handsome appearance.

He is not as handsome as Kun Zhan and Fan Fenghan in later generations, but as handsome as John Lone and Leon Lai.

A kind of handsomeness that combines sunshine and elegance with a perfect face, plus a subtle artistic aura, to be frank, it is no problem for him to attract both men and women, and anyone who sees him will be confused.

Especially when such a handsome guy wearing a bright red yisha, a jade belt around his waist, and a wingless black gauze hat on his head suddenly appears in front of a young girl in love, the lethality is still quite terrifying.

Mary bit her lip and raised her head as much as she could to look a few times, but she couldn't bear to look away. However, she suddenly felt dizzy at the sunlight and the buildings around her seemed to start shaking.

After letting out a soft moan from the bottom of her heart, Mary fell softly to the ground.

Ou Zirong immediately stepped forward, gently supported the girl, and considerately helped him hold the plate full of pancakes.

And in a fluent and sexy low voice of standard French, he asked: "Are you okay, ma'am? Do you need a doctor?"

A faint scent of incense slowly filled the air, and Mary became even more dazed. She swore that this was the most charming scent she had ever smelled on a man.

"Jesus, this man is finally here!" As if possessed by a ghost, the young girl Mary moaned and said these words in Ou Zirong's arms.

Peter stood in the carriage, looking at the scene before him, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he said to Lin Tong:
“François, I think you should write an article to the French Mercure using your identity as an Oriental nobleman.

The title is, Lord, that person is finally here!
The subtitle is, 'The envoy from the Silk Country seems to be able to use magic that can make young girls faint.'

　After thinking about it, Lao Hu gave up the plot he had written in the morning. The current main plot is still in Southeast Asia. If Europe is written in too much detail, it seems to be a bit overwhelming. At that time, there will be more than a dozen characters and a bunch of side stories, which will affect the story too much. Therefore, the content of Europe should not be written in great detail.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)