Not only was Bafuer confused, but Mintini, who was translated, was also confused and looked at Yi Zhizuo with a puzzled look. In their opinion, the so-called concession is just a copy of the Thirteen-Shang Shangguan District in Guangzhou. It was just an expansion of the territory and an increase of necessary rights and interests to safeguard the personal safety and property safety of his own country's subjects in the concession. If the people of the Qing Dynasty were allowed to move into the concession, wouldn't it be contrary to the original intention of establishing the concession?

When the two people saw each other, Yi Zhizu was also puzzled. He clearly remembered that there were a large number of Chinese people living in the concessions in Shanghai. Is there any difference? When the concessions were just established, Chinese people were not allowed to live in the concessions? In other words, Britain and France have not yet realized how valuable the Shanghai concessions are, and they just regarded the concessions as a foothold.

After reaching out and giving the two people a seat, he walked back to his seat and then said carefully: "You may not really understand the meaning of the concession. The concession is not the Thirteenth Street Store in Guangzhou. Within the scope of the designated concession, you are allowed to manage all affairs in the concession, such as justice, finance, taxation, trade, finance, municipal construction, etc. within the concession.

Perhaps it is simpler to say that. The concession is very similar to the medieval autonomous cities in Europe. It is equivalent to a micro-autonomous city in your country in Shanghai. You can plan and build the concession according to your own intentions, open banks, businesses, factories, schools, hospitals, etc..”

As he said that, he smiled, "Do you need a closed and independent concession? Or do you need a concession like an autonomous city? If it is the latter, you need to absorb a large number of Chinese people into the concession. Only in this way can the concession be vibrant. I believe that with the concession, you can earn a lot of wealth."

After hearing this, Bafuer and Mintini were both very surprised. Neither of them expected that the so-called concession proposed by Yi Zhizu was actually a small autonomous city! What kind of concession do they need? This is simply self-evident. How can a closed and independent small concession be compared with a small autonomous city?

After pondering for a moment, Bafur asked anxiously: "How long is the lease term?"

Yi Zhizu said without thinking: "If you rent for a permanent long period of time, unless it is a dynasty change, the rent must be renegotiated for ten years, and reasonable rents must be renegotiated every ten years based on the land price in Shanghai, and the relevant details will be negotiated when signing the concession contract."

Minti Ni hesitated and said, "Will your country's people be happy to enter the concession? Besides, Shanghai is just a small town."

"Shanghai is indeed just a small city at the moment, just comparable to Guangzhou." Yi Zhizu said with a smile, and said, looking at Bafuer, "Shanghai has a superior geographical location and its development potential is far better than Guangzhou. I believe your country should be very clear about this, otherwise it would not require Shanghai to be opened as a trading port.

Your country is interested in Shanghai's superior shipping conditions, river transportation and sea transportation are connected, and Shanghai's hinterland is vast and radiates to Jiangsu and Zhejiang, where the Qing Dynasty's economy is the most prosperous."

After a pause, he continued: "The Beijing-Hangzhou Railway and the Baoshan-Shanghai Railway are constructed by England. I think the two should be very clear that as the construction of these two railways starts, I plan to raise funds to build the Shanghai-Jiangning railway, connecting Shanghai with the Beijing-Hangzhou Railway.

With river transportation, sea transportation and railway transportation, Shanghai will develop soon. Although it is still a small county town, it will take less than ten years to catch up and even surpass Guangzhou and become the largest and most prosperous port city in the Far East.

As for whether Chinese people are willing to enter the concession? This is a question you should consider. I think as long as the concession can be formulated and create a fair, just and relaxed institutional environment and sufficient security guarantees, it will be enough to attract many Chinese, especially wealthy businessmen, to enter the concession."

After hearing this, Bafuer and Mintini were all very moved. Both of them knew the huge advantages of railway transportation. If Shanghai could connect to the Beijing-Hangzhou Railway, it would inevitably greatly stimulate and promote Shanghai's economic development and prosperity. As for the concession, Yishizu said it is not without reason. It has a good system, a relaxed environment and sufficient security guarantees, which is enough to attract a large number of Chinese and traders from all over the world.

After pondering for a moment, Bafuer said: "The matter in the concession is very important. Can you rent your "Flying Yan"? I want to go to Hong Kong."

"Of course, but I'm going to leave Shanghai for a while recently." Yi Zhizu said: "You can discuss this with Shanghai Taoist Mr. Wu from now on."

After hearing that Yi Zhizu was about to leave Shanghai, Minti Ni asked quickly: "I heard that you have just returned from the capital of your country. I wonder if you have ever seen my country's mission and fleet?"

"They may have to wait a few days later when they return on the same day as me." Yi Zhizu glanced at him and said, "Your countries have signed the Treaty of Tianjin. At our trading port, your country and England enjoy equal rights."

After hearing this, Mintini was filled with joy and said in a relaxed tone: "Since Minister Laeni has returned, what should I do about the concession? Let's wait for the Minister to discuss with you."

After hearing this, Bafur was depressed. England paid a considerable price to gain various rights from the Qing Dynasty. France and the United States enjoyed their achievements without any effort.

Two days later, the combined fleet of France and the United States arrived at Haikou, and the fleet was anchored on the sea surface. The two delegations transferred to Shanghai on two light cruisers. After hearing the news, Yi Zhizu immediately ordered all the civil and military officials in the county to go to the dock to welcome him, and he hurried to Sansuitang to meet Qiying.

"Come to the civil and military officials of the whole city to the dock to welcome the missions of the two countries?" Qiying looked at Yi Zhizu in surprise. He knew Yi Zhizu's attitude towards Western consuls. He was polite and polite, but he was absolutely not respectful, and he was used to being quite strong. Why did he become abnormal this time?

Yi Zhizu smiled and said, "The foreign missions came, so they would not be able to mobilize such troops. However, the imperial envoy, General of the Conquest, and Prince Hui also came with the missions of the two countries."

"As the imperial envoy, how could Prince Hui board a warship from other countries?" Qiying said in confusion: "Will the Feiyan in Guocheng go first?"

"The 'Flying Yan' ship is too fast, and it is extremely bumpy on the sea surface, which is very easy to get seasick. In order to avoid Prince Hui being too burdened, he was allowed to ride a warship." Yi Zhizu explained slowly: "In addition, Prince Hui is not riding in any other country's warships. The Nanyang Navy has bought fifteen warships in their fleet."

"I bought fifteen warships in one go?" Qiying looked at him in disbelief. Western warships are not cheap, and they are often 300,000 to 400,000 taels of silver each, which is a big deal.

"I originally planned to buy ten ships, but the court allocated two million taels of silver, so I simply bought five ships. The Nanyang Navy was first built, so I didn't mind the number of warships." Yi Zhizu explained and said, "Please prepare."

Qiying and Yi Zhizu led a group of civil and military officials in Shanghai to the dock to welcome Prince Hui Mianyu's grand journey. Unexpectedly, Mianyu did not even bring the imperial envoy's ceremonial guards, and they did not wear official robes and were mixed in casual clothes among the missions of the two countries. Seeing this, Yi Zhizu cursed secretly. Wusong's defenders did not report that Prince Hui was coming in contemporary clothes. However, since then, it was just to give face to the missions of the two countries.

After greeting the two ministers, Yi Zhizuo greeted Mian You who slowly got off the boat. After seeing the ceremony, he said with a depressed look: "Why is the prince coming in contempt?"

"The Liangjiang River is not controlled by the King, the Great General of the Conquest of the South." Mian Yu smiled and said, "It will be fast to take a boat, but it is too boring. I want to come to Shanghai to have some breathing, so naturally it is better to come in a very intimate manner." As he said, he said softly: "Su Shun and others said that they also hope to come to Shanghai for activities. Is this king inconvenient to make decisions without authorization, and can the Guocheng allow it?"

"No." Yi Zhizu refused without thinking: "Let them stay at sea."

After informing Shanghai Daotai Wu Changqing received the missions from both countries, Yi Zhizu accompanied Mianyu back to the West Garden with Qiying. As soon as he entered Sansui Hall, Mianyu directly asked to take a bath. Because there were many people on the boat, he had not taken a bath for several days.

After taking a shower and changing clothes, Mianyou was refreshing, but when she arrived at the hall, she saw Qiying alone and couldn't help but ask: "Where is the Guocheng?"

"The French Minister came to visit, and Lord Yi went back to his Tingtao Pavilion." Qiying said with a smile: "The prince has been working hard all the way, and the official has prepared a banquet to welcome the prince. The prince invites—."

Mian You waved her hand and said enthusiastically: "It is said that Guocheng is good at diplomacy. Hearing his ears is false, and seeing his eyes is true. Let's go and take a look?"

Qiying smiled wryly and said, "It's better for the prince not to go. He can't understand a word. He is tired of interpreting it on his behalf, which is really a hindrance to both parties."

After hearing this, Mian You's face gradually became solemn, "Jie Chun is the Minister of Commerce Affairs for Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong and Neijiang. The diplomacy, commerce, coastal trade ports, and other affairs are your job, so why do you ignore it at all?"

Hearing his words quite strongly, Qiying hurriedly said respectfully: "It is not that the officials in charge of neglecting their duties, but that is, the diplomacy, commerce, coastal defense and other matters of trade ports are not the director of the officials. The officials in charge of the officials who do not know how to speak the barbarians and do not understand commerce. Whenever there is any problem in Western countries, they will directly look for Lord Yi.

When Lord Yi talks with the barbarians, they all use the barbarian language. The lower officials also hired translators who know the barbarian language, but the translation speed could not keep up with the speed of the two sides' conversations. The lower officials participated in it purely the ears of the deaf people - decorations! In order to avoid damaging the majesty of the court, the lower officials should try to participate as little as possible."

Mianyou said in a deep voice: "If I understand correctly, Yi Zhizu is very powerful? Didn't you take your Shangguan seriously?"

Qiying bowed and said, "The lower-ranking official has submitted a report and requested transfer."

After hearing this, Mian Yu had no intention of watching, so he sat down and said, "There are no outsiders, let's talk about it in detail, what's going on?"

After pondering for a moment, Qi Yingcai said, "Mr. Yi is indeed quite strong, but if you want to say that he is supreme, it may not be necessary. The etiquette is still very comprehensive. You should notify the author and report the author. To be honest, whether it is diplomacy, trade or coastal defense, the officials in the court are probably no match for him.

If the lower officials intervene, it will only embarrass himself and even cause bad things. Some time ago, Lord Yi was not in Shanghai. In some matters involving Western affairs, the officials below reported everything, and were not afraid of the prince's jokes. There were really few people who dared to make decisions. Besides, the prince also knew that the Southern Ocean minister was an empty air, asking for no one, asking for money, and not even having any money in the yamen now. Almost all the civil and military officials in Shanghai had close contacts with Lord Yi. In this case, the lower officials could only make a decor."

After hearing this, Mian Yu was speechless. He was exposed to a subordinate like Yi Zhizu. Anyone who came would be defeated. Even if he sent an extremely powerful official, he would not be able to change his fate. Fortunately, Yi Zhizu was not domineering, otherwise Qiying would have a hard time.

Qiying was full of bitterness. After pouring it out, he felt relieved. Mian You pondered silently. He tentatively said, "The officials thought that instead of doing this, it would be better to just act as Minister Yi, the Nanyang Minister and the Nanyang Admiral. If you want to say, the most suitable one is not him.

The court can select some young officials to come to Shanghai to learn and practice. Only in this way can this situation be gradually improved. The following officials observe that trade with the West will gradually increase, and the court needs to start cultivating officials who are familiar with the situation and commerce of the West."

Mian Yu nodded slightly and said, "The current situation is indeed necessary to gradually improve. This time, Yi Zhizuo came to Beijing and mentioned the barbarian affairs and suggested that the court add the Prime Minister's affairs offices. The emperor is thinking about this." As he said that, he turned his head, "I'll wait until Yi Zhizuo comes to the banquet. Jiechun might as well tell me something about Yi Zhizuo carefully."

Tingtao Pavilion, hall.

"The Treaty of Tianjin was successfully signed, thanks to the mediation of the Viscount." The somewhat bald French minister La Eni said politely, and then changed his tone, "However, England has obtained a contract to build the Beijing-Hangzhou Railway in accordance with the Treaty of Jiangning. It is said that the Beijing-Hangzhou Railway is more than 1,000 kilometers long and the cost is as high as hundreds of millions of silver dollars."

This is really greedy! Yi Zhizu secretly complained, but said with a smile: "As far as I know, your country has not built many railways, and the railway construction technology is not as good as the United States. Of course, if your country insists, I am happy to provide your country with opportunities. However, the required loans, Beijing-Hangzhou Railway, and England are committed to us with large amounts of low-interest loans."
Chapter completed!