The British know how to play tricks on people, and they almost broke down the relationship between the two countries because of a piece of cake. In July 1979, when the British ** was receiving the Chinese delegation, the cake prepared was actually planted with the Kuomintang's blue sky and white sun flag.
Fortunately, the delegation's General Yang Yong was very resourceful, and with only two simple actions, he succeeded in defusing the opponent's deliberate trouble, and also maintained diplomatic relations between the two countries, although it was almost broken.
The British made an unexpectedly big mistake in diplomacy, what exactly was their motive? How did General Yang Yong successfully handle this crisis?
In the New Year of 1979, China and the United States formally established diplomatic relations, which marked the beginning of a new era in the exchanges between the great powers of the East and the West. With the change of attitude of the United States, many European countries have also extended invitations to China** to welcome Chinese delegations to visit and exchange.
Reform and opening up is China's basic national policy, and the word "opening up" means that we must go out, learn from the construction experience of different countries, and conduct deeper exchanges with capitalist countries.
Therefore, during this year, our diplomatic team, represented by Comrade Chai Chengwen and General Yang Yong, accepted the kind invitation of the British ** and went there happily. This foreign visit is of great importance to us.
As an economic power in Europe, the UK has a strong influence and appeal among many Western countries, and there is a broad space for cooperation waiting for us to open up. Therefore, Deng Gong particularly emphasized that the members of our delegation must maintain good relations with each other and show the etiquette and demeanor of our Chinese nation.
At the same time, we must also adhere to our principles and bottom line, and we must not lose the dignity of a sovereign country. For the subtle scale of this, they need to experience and grasp it with their hearts.
Shouldering the entrustment and important mission of Deng Gong, the delegation successfully arrived in the United Kingdom in July 1979.
The first event that Cameron arranged for our delegates was a meal, and he said that China is a big country with a rich variety of food. Cameron is full of interest in Chinese food, and he hopes that through the well-prepared welcome banquet, the Chinese delegates can taste British specialties and take the opportunity to express friendship to China.
The representative of my country thanked Cameron for his warm invitation and followed him in this gastronomic feast. At first, our representatives assumed that Britain would receive them with thoughtfulness and hospitality, as Cameron had said, and would provide food to their tastes.
Unexpectedly, the Chinese delegation encountered deliberate difficulties in the UK. Before the main meal was served, the British chef served a beautiful cake. The appearance of this cake shows the professional research of Westerners when it comes to desserts.
However, the cake bears a flag that should not have been on such a formal occasion, and that flag belongs to the Kuomintang, not to New China. On such an important diplomatic occasion, the flags of both countries that represent the image of their respective countries should appear, and they must appear.
However, the British flag is right next to the table, while the Chinese flag is nowhere to be found. They brazenly use the banner of the Kuomintang to represent China, and this kind of behavior is really hateful.
The moment they saw the whole picture of the cake, the faces of our delegates changed greatly. Chai Chengwen, as an experienced foreign affairs officer, immediately realized the intention of the British **. Their main motivation for doing so is twofold.
First of all, when the Chinese delegation visited Western countries for the first time, as the hosts, they wanted to give us a dismount. It is an undeniable fact that the rise of the new China will undoubtedly compete with Western countries.
Relations between countries have always been delicate, and a word or action of a diplomat can represent the attitude of the country to which they belong. The subtleties see the truth, that's it.
Although Britain cannot stop China's advance, for the sake of face and the overall situation, they must receive us with respect. However, this group of British, who have maintained an arrogant attitude for a long time, are prejudiced against China and even resist us.
In order to exert pressure, they resorted to some less glamorous means. On the other hand, Britain** has been haunted by the Hong Kong concession issue. Four months ago, Hong Kong's Governor-General MacLehose visited China over the concession issue, and he demanded an extension of the New Territories lease and full control of some of Hong Kong's executive powers.
China** has taken a firm and unambiguous stance on the Hong Kong issue. Hong Kong is China's inherent territory, and although the British ** is currently stationed here, this does not change the fact that Hong Kong is part of China.
It is indisputable that we must take back Hong Kong. On this crucial issue, China's position is clear and non-negotiable. In the past feudal ** period, Britain acted recklessly on Chinese territory by virtue of its status, but now the new China has made them understand that on Chinese soil, only Chinese can decide their own destiny.
The United Kingdom**, holding a grudge for its previous refusal, has been looking for an opportunity to take revenge on our country. This foreign visit has provided them with such an opportunity. Faced with this thorny situation, the Chinese delegation was caught in a dilemma.
If we move forward, our actions may be interpreted by the West as recognizing the legitimacy of the Kuomintang regime, which will not only make them make more excessive demands, but also make a fuss about the Taiwan issue.
In this way, China will not only lose face, but also be at a disadvantage in the game of the international community. Therefore, we must tread cautiously and find a strategy that will both safeguard national interests and avoid attacks by the West.
The appearance of General Yang Yong allowed the Chinese delegation to successfully avoid potential embarrassment and conflict during its first visit to Western countries. His resolute action not only upheld the dignity of the delegation, but also demonstrated to the world the maturity and wisdom of China's diplomacy.
Although there may be misunderstandings and prejudices from the outside world, General Yang Yong's actions have shown everyone the bravery and determination of the Chinese delegation. The significance of this visit is significant, and the successful performance of the Chinese delegation has also enabled the world to have a deeper understanding of China.
This veteran of the army, with his outstanding wisdom and brave courage, can be called both wise and brave. Back in 1960, he had already played against the British. At that time, Montgomery, a famous British military general, visited China, and it was General Yang Yong who received him.
Montgomery was nominally to learn from Chinese generals who had participated in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, but in reality he wanted to compete with them. During a visit to the training ground of our army, he pretended to be skilled, picked up a sniper rifle, and accurately hit the bull's-eye in front of him.
After finishing, he put down his ** and looked at General Yang Yong on the side, with a slight disdain on his face, obviously he was demonstrating to General Yang Yong.
General Yang Yong was calm, picked up the gun and aimed it at the moving target, hitting the bull's-eye with nine shots in a row. In the face of the rude ridicule of foreigners, he did not get angry, did not argue, and only proved his strength with practical actions.
In full view, action was the best response, leaving Montgomery stunned and no longer daring to act rashly. This provocation was easily defused in this way. General Yang Yong's self-confidence and strength brought an incomparable sense of security to his companions.
Therefore, he decided to take the initiative and break the trap set by the British. He made a decisive move against everyone's gaze.
In the first action, he pulled out the Blue Sky and White Sun Flag, threw it on the ground and trampled it hard. This action was clearly conveyed to the British ** and the scene ** that the Kuomintang was our defeated opponent and should not appear on this occasion.
If someone forces them to come to power, China will fight back. In the second move, he picked up the small British flag and put it back on the cake. This act fully demonstrates the demeanor and etiquette of Chinese diplomats.
We have no intention of destroying the "gift" of the host, but we need to correct the host's fault in a timely manner. After the correction, we also put a perfect end to the matter in a respectful way of the host.
On the cake, neither the Chinese flag nor the British flag is abrupt. It happened that there was a British flag next to it, and General Yang Yong used it skillfully, which was seamless.
Seeing his behavior, the British, even if they wanted to provoke, could not find any reason. China has fully demonstrated its respect for them, putting their flag on the cake and giving them face.
In contrast, who is more embarrassed, they know in their own hearts. As a result, Cameron could only smile awkwardly and beckon all the members to take their seats, trying to ease the tension.
The members of the Chinese delegation burst out laughing at General Yang Yong's witty move, and the previous hiccups had long since vanished, and everyone sat down and began a formal conversation.
A diplomatic crisis was successfully defused by General Yang Yong, and although the Chinese diplomats encountered some unexpected things during this trip to Britain, it was not without gain.
The British just want to do something bad for China, but they don't dare to take it lightly on big issues involving cooperation between the two countries. They showed us their advanced equipment and invited General Yang Yong and other Chinese people to visit their military base.
Based on the current situation in the two countries, the representatives of the two sides determined the direction of future cooperation and outlined some frameworks. China has also actively stated that we look forward to more sincere exchanges with each other.
Although someone single-handedly planned the cake incident, sincere words did not pale in this way. The important thing is that the Chinese generals successfully resolved the difficult problems with their diplomatic wisdom, and the Chinese delegation also completed the task perfectly, creating a wonderful start for China's "going out".