After a long silence, Grantham suddenly showed a smile, laughed loudly at Fang Lang and said:
"It seems that General Fang knows me. I am really not optimistic about this plan. In my opinion, Hong Kong City is fundamentally different from other colonies and cannot be lumped together. Let alone arbitrarily choose to be independent like other colonies. and autonomy, this will not solve the problems of the port city.
On the contrary, it will establish a powerful enemy for the British Empire and Hong Kong City, and even Hong Kong City will have no chance of independence at all. "
Fang Lang smiled, put a mouthful of food into his mouth, and continued to speak unhurriedly:
"Since Mr. Governor knows it well, why doesn't he pass on this idea? Don't you know that this plan is dangerous?"
"Haha... General Fang needs to understand that I am the colonial governor of the British Empire. I am responsible to the British royal family. Some things cannot be decided by me alone. They must be approved by the higher-ups before they can be implemented."
Grantham smiled bitterly and put his elbows on the dining table, while interlacing the fingers of his hands in front of him.
Fang Lang looked at Grantham opposite and felt a little guilty. What is going on? The relationship between myself and him has not gotten to this level yet! This is a bit of an exaggeration!
However, since the other party had spoken out his difficulties so frankly, Fang Lang certainly couldn't turn a deaf ear and smiled and said:
"Then I wonder what the Governor thinks of the problems in Hong Kong City?"
Hearing Fang Lang's question, Governor Grantham's clenched hands tightened unconsciously. He looked across at Fang Lang who was still slowly eating sumptuous food with burning eyes. His lips were slightly open, as if he was vomiting lightly. Then he said slowly:
"I think Hong Kong City is different from other colonies. It has a lease agreement. This is not a simple colony, but a concession. In the end, it will definitely need to be resolved through diplomatic means."
This statement made Fang Lang look sideways. He looked at Grantham in disbelief and said:
"So, your Excellency the Governor is willing to negotiate with the other side on the Hong Kong City issue?"
"This is just my private opinion and does not represent the attitude of the British government. Just like the general believes that the other side will not use force against Hong Kong City now, it is all a private opinion."
Hearing this, Fang Lang couldn't help but show a knowing smile and said pointedly:
"It seems that the views of His Excellency the Governor and my views are quite similar!"
Facing Fang Lang's eyes, Grantham couldn't help but reveal a meaningful smile and said:
"I had already discovered this when His Excellency the General boldly expressed his views on the future of the port city. It's just that today I had the opportunity to discuss it alone with His Excellency the General."
"Then what does your Excellency the Governor mean...?"
Fang Lang vaguely guessed Grantham's intention and couldn't help but test it out.
"Last time, His Majesty the General said that you can come forward and talk to the person opposite. I don't know if this is true."
This time Fang Lang did not answer directly, but after thinking carefully for a while, he slowly said:
"What I mean is that I can send a message to the other side through some friends. If both of you have the will for peace, I am very willing to contribute to peace."
It wasn't that Fang Lang didn't want to bring the two parties together to meet and negotiate, but that after living in Hong Kong City during this period, he discovered that the situation in Hong Kong City was far more complicated than he imagined.
For example, in his previous life, he had never heard of the "Muchi Yang Project" mentioned earlier. Although this plan has not been successful yet, part of it has already begun to be implemented in the port city.
In fact, under the guidance of this plan, Hong Kong City has set up a parliament that is generally elected by the people, with the intention of cultivating the democratic consciousness of Hong Kong City and preparing for the future independence of Hong Kong City.
Once the British government's plan is implemented, it will definitely cause a strong backlash from home.
More importantly, Fang Lang discovered that there was a loophole in this plan that was likely to be caught by his hometown, that is, there were some people in the democratically elected parliament who spread his ideas. It can be seen that this plan had already aroused the concern of his hometown. focus on.
The reason why Grantham did not agree with this plan was that he was aware of the possibility of risks in this plan.
If I stand up at this time and directly express my willingness to help both parties negotiate, it might disrupt my hometown's plans.
In addition, he discovered that the British government has not completely severed diplomatic relations with his hometown. The two sides have actually maintained diplomatic ties. If they really want to express their peaceful wishes for Hong Kong City, there is no need for him to convey it.
Therefore, he was very suspicious that Grantham asked him to contact his hometown because he suspected that there was a connection between himself and his hometown and wanted to grab some evidence.
This forced him to remain vigilant.
His answer obviously disappointed Grantham. He slowly put down the hands he was holding in front of him and sighed slightly decadently:
"Forget it, the current issue of the port city is no longer something I can decide by myself. The Colonial Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are already communicating with the other side. If I get involved at this time, it may be counterproductive. "
Looking at Grantham's expression, Fang Lang was a little unsure about what the other party meant. One moment he told himself that he wanted to talk to the other party, and the next moment he said that he was not suitable to get involved.
Could it be that his ideas are at odds with those currently in charge of negotiating with his hometown?
"Your Excellency the Governor, as the Governor of Hong Kong City, you should be the person who knows the situation of Hong Kong City best! At the same time, your opinions should be the most valued by the higher-ups!
I think if you really want to maintain peace in the port city, you should take the initiative to express your ideas to your superiors. This is your responsibility, isn't it? "
"You are right, I know very well what I should do, and I am actually working hard on it, but now it seems very difficult.
If according to my prediction, the final direction of Hong Kong City will definitely be to return to the embrace of the opposite side, all we can do is delay this time.
But this is obviously not the result that the higher-ups want to see. If we are destined to be unable to control the port city in the end, the higher-ups would rather promote the independence of the port city than easily return the port city to the other side. "
Grantham's words were very candid. His views seemed very advanced for this period and were infinitely close to the reality proven by history.
As the current governor of the port city, if he can really have such a clear understanding, it will undoubtedly be beneficial to the future of the entire port city. This means that they will not fight to the death for a colony that is destined to be lost. !
His statement made Fang Lang's eyes narrow. In order to further confirm the other party's attitude, Fang Lang couldn't help but confirm again:
"You mean, the port city will be taken back by the other side sooner or later, right?"
Faced with Fang Lang's repeated temptations, Grantham did not choose to evade, but said directly and frankly:
"Yes, I think this is the future of Hong Kong City!"
This attitude completely confused Fang Lang, and he was completely unable to understand Grantham's purpose. If he was British, and the other party said this to him, it could be regarded as a frank exchange of opinions.
But he is a Brazilian and a Chinese. And his relationship with him was definitely not close enough to say such a thing. This made Fang Lang very doubtful about his purpose, and he couldn't help but said directly:
"Your Majesty the Governor, I don't understand why you are telling me this!"
Seeing Fang Lang's puzzled expression, Grantham finally showed a faint smile on his face, and said seriously to Fang Lang's probing eyes:
"Because, I think you, like me, hope that Hong Kong City can be peaceful!"
Fang Lang looked at the other party's meaningful smile and did not directly admit or deny it. Instead, he shrugged and said:
"I feel that I am not the only one who hopes for peace in Hong Kong City, but all the people in Hong Kong City hope for peace. Why does the Governor have to tell me this?"
Although Fang Lang had been avoiding Grantham's words, Grantham was not angry. Instead, he smiled and picked up the wine glass at hand, took a sip gently and said:
"Because, during this tense period, all businessmen are shrinking their industries, and even a lot of funds are already trying to escape. Only General Fang is still increasing investment in the port city.
Even now, he is building his own private museum in the port city! Doesn't this explain the problem? "
Fang Lang really didn't know how to refute this. After all, when he met with the leaders of several group companies in the past few days, he told everyone not to restrain their hands just because of the current tense situation in Hong Kong City.
Rather, we should take advantage of this opportunity to receive a number of high-quality properties at low prices from companies that have given up high-quality assets.
Now it seems that the other party is probably based on the recent actions of his own group company. Discovered my own views on the situation in Hong Kong City.
In this period of tense situation, companies that are willing to invest funds to continue to be optimistic about the development of the port city naturally firmly believe that a war will not break out in the port city.
Seeing Grantham's determined expression, Fang Lang didn't know what to say for a moment. It was not wrong to say that he was really optimistic about the long-term development of Hong Kong City.
But in the short term, is Hong Kong City really suitable for development? In fact, this is not the case. You must know that during the Peninsular War, life in the port city was not easy.
Because the port city is close to his hometown and there are many smuggling businesses between the two sides, the entire port city has been added to the blockade list by the Americans, and the economy of the port city has also been severely hit.
Therefore, although Fang Lang asked his companies to take advantage of the opportunity to acquire high-quality assets at low prices, he also emphasized not to act too hastily. The entire process can be completed within four years.
This order made many people in charge of the company very puzzled, but everyone still followed Fang Lang's order and began to look for those valuable and high-quality assets, and actively started negotiations with the other party.
Now it seems that these actions of the group company must have caused Grantham to make some misjudgments. Think they are now going to expand their investment in Hong Kong City.
But the actual situation is that the inquiry is just starting now, and the actual negotiation or acquisition will still take a long time.
Of course, these East-West waves will not talk to Grantham, they can only make mistakes:
"I am indeed very optimistic about the future of Hong Kong City. I have never denied this. I have been emphasizing this from the moment I set foot in Hong Kong City.
In the past two days, I have indeed had a slight wavering on whether Hong Kong City can truly be peaceful. There were even thoughts on whether to lead the fleet to escape in time.
However, the words of His Excellency the Governor today made me understand that the people in charge of Hong Kong City still have a clear mind. I believe that with the existence of such a sober leader, the future of Hong Kong City will not change. And my wavering heart will naturally settle down.
If there is anything you need my help with, Mr. Governor, please feel free to ask. I will not refuse within the scope of my ability. "
Grantham was shocked when he heard Fang Lang say that he had considered taking away three warships of the Brazilian Navy. This was not good news.
Although he also wants to peacefully solve the problem of the port city, who can guarantee that there will not be any risk of war! Once a war does break out, the three warships of the Brazilian Navy may not play a big role, but the political significance of the Brazilian Navy's participation in the war is something that the British are not willing to lose.
In addition, it was originally agreed that the Brazilian Navy would visit the port city for a month, but it has only been about a week. If the Brazilian Navy is allowed to leave early, the outside world may have questions about this matter.
This is also what Grantham does not want to see.
Fortunately, this incident did not happen, and after talking to the other party today, the other party seemed to be more confident in the peaceful resolution of the Hong Kong City issue, which made him let out a long sigh.
"Haha... Thank you General for your trust in me! Thank you General for your optimism about the future of Hong Kong City!
If your Excellency General is willing, I really need your help with something here! "
When Fang Lang heard this, his eyes narrowed slightly. He knew that this guy would not say these words to an unfamiliar person like him for no reason.
Therefore, he deliberately offered to help the other party just to find out the other party's true purpose. Now the other party has indeed followed the stick, which made him couldn't help but his eyes flashed and his mind was spinning.
"Haha... Governor, please rest assured that Mr. Fang will never refuse if he can help. But please understand, Governor, that I am only a Brazilian Chinese, and I may not be able to do anything that is beyond my capabilities."
Regarding Fang Lang's obviously evasive words, Grantham surprisingly did not show any anger. Instead, he continued to look at Fang Lang with a smile, nodded slightly, and said slowly and unhurriedly:
"General Fang, please rest assured! We are friends, and I will never let my friend do anything embarrassing. This matter is absolutely easy for General Fang."
Seeing the other party's calm expression, Fang Lang couldn't help but become more curious, wishing to know immediately what kind of help the other party wanted him to do!
But fortunately, his training in high positions in Brazil in the past few years has made him understand the importance of calmness, and he also clearly knows that the more seemingly simple things are often the most complicated.
This allowed him to suppress his eagerness and prevent him from falling into the other party's trap due to his impulsiveness. After taking a deep breath, Fang Lang slowly picked up the wine glass in his hand, gestured to Grantham and said:
"Your Majesty the Governor, since you regard me as a friend, then please say what you have to say!"
