Chapter 1912 Schedule
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is usually responsible for arranging visits and inspections by foreign dignitaries throughout Hainan Island, and coordinates with various departments and local governments. However, Ning Qi and Schneider, who are in charge of foreign affairs, generally do not personally intervene in the itinerary unless they are required to accompany them. But Li Bo's status seemed to be a little less interesting, and the relevant itinerary had not been confirmed with Haihan officials in advance, so neither Ning Qi nor Schneider had set aside time for such a temporary arrangement.
"The chiefs are busy with official duties. I am afraid that they will not be able to spare so much time in the near future to accompany the crown prince of your country on an inspection around the island. I also ask Mr. Li to explain the situation to the crown prince on my behalf."
After listening to his appeal, the diplomats who received Li Xi took the initiative to express their apologies for being unable to allow senior officials from Haihan to accompany Li Xi to complete this trip. In fact, Li Xi did not make such a straightforward request. He just hoped that Haihan officials could arrange the itinerary for him. However, the other party may have understood this as hoping to be accompanied by senior officials. After all, Li Xi's reception standards after arriving in the port were extremely high, and people from the diplomatic department were all It can be felt that the executive committee attaches great importance to the crown prince of Joseon. If he wants to visit and inspect the country, it seems only reasonable to be accompanied by senior officials.
Li Xi responded quickly: "The leaders of your country are busy with official duties, so why bother them to spare so much time? That's impossible."
Li Xi has actually thought about this matter very clearly. If he is accompanied by a senior official from Haihan, the reception standards at various places along the way should be higher, and he will enjoy better treatment in food, clothing, housing and transportation. But such an arrangement may not always be beneficial. The itinerary needs to take into account the schedule of senior officials of Haihan, so it is definitely not that free. Moreover, diplomatic etiquette must be paid attention to along the way. This itinerary will inevitably be tiring.
Li Xi knew that Li Pu was not keen on socializing and was not good at dealing with the old foxes of the Haihan Executive Committee. If there were no senior Haihan officials involved in the trip around the island, Li Pu would be more comfortable and even able to Said it was a relief. Since the other party had already expressed that it might not be possible to arrange for senior officials from Haihan to accompany him, Li Xi just went along with the situation and said that it would not be so troublesome.
The official responsible for receiving Li Xi was named Song Yongan. He was a scholar during the Tianqi period, and he could be regarded as a person with a bit of ink in his belly. After joining Haihan in his early years, he worked under Ning Qi. Later, he was transferred to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Now he is responsible for dealing with various affairs with the envoys of various countries in Sanya. He is also the highest-ranking naturalized official in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Song Yongan felt a little relaxed when he saw Li Xi's knowledge and interest. If the other party insisted, he could only go to the chief for instructions, and the various preparations required for the chief's trip were much more complicated, so this saved a lot of trouble.
"It would be best if Mr. Li can be considerate." Song Yong'an nodded and said: "Our country has corresponding plans for this kind of visit and inspection. Let me get it and have a look with Mr. Li."
Li Xi sat in Song Yongan's office for a while, and then saw him coming back holding a book. Song Yong'an put it on the table, and Li Xi could clearly see that the words "Visit and Inspection Plan for Foreign dignitaries" were written on the cover.
"Master Li has been in our country for a long time. He should also know the behavior of our country's chiefs. Standardization must be implemented in everything, and this matter is no exception." Song Yong'an said while patting the book lightly. shoot.
Li Xixin thought that it was unheard of to have a standard method for this inspection. Could it be that there are still regulations on how many miles to walk at each hour of the day?
Song Yong'an didn't show off, and opened the book after saying: "Master Li, please read, our country's visit schedules for foreign dignitaries are mainly divided into three categories. One is industrial inspection, and the inspection objects are mainly those exported by our country. Various industries, such as the Sanya Port and the Shengli Port Shipyard that the Crown Prince was arranged to visit yesterday, all fall into this category.”
"The second is a humanities inspection. The inspection objects are mainly populated areas and big cities, so that foreign dignitaries can understand our country's customs, customs and social conditions."
"The last one is simply touring the mountains and rivers. We will choose some more distinctive scenic spots so that the guests can enjoy the travel in peace and peace of mind. Each plan has different itineraries and destination arrangements, or you can Adjust the content according to the prince’s preferences and needs.”
There is no doubt that the traveler who made this itinerary referred to the later travel agency business methods and segmented the market according to customer needs. Of course, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Hainan does not actually have many customers, and there are not many foreign dignitaries who are able to go to Hainan Island for such long-distance inspections. In fact, there are only a few times when this kind of measure can come in handy, and it may not be possible in a year. Just two or three times.
Although Li Xi has participated in several inspections since arriving in Haihan, most of them were in Sanya itself, and he was also unfamiliar with the arrangement of inspections around the island. However, since the other party was willing to discuss the matter with him, he did not refuse and took advantage of the situation to study the plan presented by Song Yongan.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs listed all local places in Hainan Island that foreign dignitaries can visit according to the standards mentioned by Song Yongan. Some places are purely industrial inspection targets, such as Yinggehai Saltworks, Shilu Iron Mine, etc., while some places are It has multiple roles, such as Danzhou and Sanya, which exist in these three categories at the same time.
According to the other party's purpose, selecting suitable targets from the places listed in the plan, and then arranging the corresponding itinerary is undoubtedly much more efficient than planning an itinerary from a blank state. Li Xi is also a smart person, and he can understand the brilliance of Haihan's plan at a glance. Haihan people pay attention to efficiency in doing things, which is fully reflected in such details.
However, Li Xi didn't have any specific plans yet as to what kind of itinerary he should arrange for Li Bo. Pure sightseeing should be eliminated. He knew that Li Bo didn't like to waste too much time in this area. It seems a bit difficult to choose between the other two categories. If Li Mu's idea is to follow, perhaps visiting several big cities in Haihan would be the first choice, but Li Xi knows that many important industries in Haihan are not near these big cities. , taking a look may be helpful to Li Bo who is currently confused about the direction of studying abroad.
"Sir Song, can we not choose the destinations in the tour itinerary exactly according to the classification you mentioned?" After Li Xi took a rough look, he asked Song Yong'an: "Perhaps the prince would prefer a place with a wider range of choices. What do you think of the relatively free itinerary? ”
Song Yong'an raised his eyebrows and said: "It turns out that our invitation to the Crown Prince to travel and inspect our country was rejected earlier because the Crown Prince felt that he could not freely choose his destination! Since there was something wrong with our previous arrangements, it would have been better to have said no earlier. Done!”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Haihan had actually arranged a visit and inspection trip for Li Bo very early on. However, at that time, Li Bo was still on his way south. He only wanted to get to Sanya and start studying as soon as possible, and had no intention of spending additional time in Haihan. The Han Dynasty traveled around, so he rejected this arrangement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. But I didn't expect that not long ago, Li Bo would take the initiative to apply for a visit.
Song Yongan didn't take the initiative to mention this matter out of courtesy before, but Li Xi's conditions reminded him of the previous arrangement and he couldn't help but complain.
Li Xi seemed a little unhappy when he heard the other party's tone, and quickly explained: "Don't get me wrong, Mr. Song. Your Majesty, he is not dissatisfied with your country's arrangements at all. He just thought that after arriving in Sanya, he should give priority to his studies and travel. It can be postponed for a while, but now it is difficult for the prince to make a decision on the direction of study, so he wants to go to more places to increase his understanding of your country. This is why I asked if I can adjust my itinerary. Purpose." Li Xi's tone was very humble. Even if Song Yongan was dissatisfied, it would be difficult to lose his temper with him at the moment. But having said that, Song Yongan actually didn't have any bad feelings towards the North Koreans. Li Xi had been here for a year, and the frequency of interactions between the two sides was quite high. Song Yongan also felt that the North Korean ambassador was pretty good and had no bad feelings towards him.
Song Yong'an said: "Master Li is serious. Since it is the prince's wish, whether it is rejection before or new ideas now, we will try our best to cooperate. Master Li will see which places are suitable, outline them first, and then arrange accordingly." That’s it for your trip.”
Li Xidao: "Then I'll choose a rough area first. Mr. Song will see how to arrange it. I'll also go back to consult the prince's wishes. If there are no problems on both sides, how about we decide on the itinerary as soon as possible?"
Song Yong'an said: "That's how it should be. As long as the prince's side is confirmed, we can arrange the itinerary in just one day, and we won't let the prince wait too long."
The communication between Li Xi and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was relatively smooth, and it didn't take much time to basically finalize the matter. However, there are still some things that are not free when choosing the itinerary, because the range given by Haihan is indeed relatively large. When Li Xi chose, he felt that he wanted to go here and not miss there, and he had to take into account the time required for the itinerary. Just spend more time on multiple choice questions.
Of course, his job is relatively simple, and what really needs to take action is the Haihan official side. Song Yongan had to confirm the destination and number of travelers in North Korea, and then arrange the itinerary for them. At the same time, he had to coordinate with the security, transportation and even intelligence departments. At the same time, he had to use telegrams to notify local governments of the matter in advance. After all, he had to visit The local authorities must be responsible for the specific arrangements for inspections.
In addition, the actions of such foreign dignitaries must be accompanied by someone. Not only diplomats, but also people from the Ministry of Security will probably be sent to accompany them throughout the trip, so as not to expose some projects that need to be kept secret to the North Koreans. Go.
Then which arrangements need to be informed to the North Koreans in advance, which arrangements are confidential, and which are emergency measures, Song Yongan has to coordinate here. No matter where problems arise, he has to respond and adjust in time.
At this time, the role of formulating a program framework has become more and more prominent. Not only can it save the Ministry of Foreign Affairs a lot of trouble in itinerary selection, but there are also corresponding arrangements for coordination and cooperation between various departments and local governments - but this part It's just that it wasn't included in the information given to Li Xi.
Song Yong'an himself didn't have the idea that doing less would be better than doing more. He knew that the superiors had originally intended to arrange for the Joseon Crown Prince to visit key construction areas in the country. If Li Bo had agreed to the invitation the first time, then The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will only have more work to deal with. Because at that time, his immediate boss Ning Qi had originally planned to accompany him in person, the related security work must have been upgraded to at least one level, and the itinerary arrangement had to take more into account Ning Qi's schedule and the details that needed to be adjusted. At least twice as much as now. If viewed from this perspective, Li Bo first refused Haihan's official invitation and then made his own request, which actually saved the Ministry of Foreign Affairs a lot of trouble.
Li Bo, who was waiting for news at the embassy, did not get much peace. He had just opened "The Rise of the South China Sea" and read a few pages when someone came to ask for an audience, and there were more than one group.
Li Bo attended a banquet hosted by the Sanya Chamber of Commerce yesterday and had a pleasant chat with various bosses at the banquet. However, he forgot some things after he sobered up. For example, he invited several bosses to visit the embassy today to discuss future relations with North Korea. country’s trade cooperation.
In fact, Li Pu didn't know much about the trade field, and he was even more of a layman on Haihan's unique trading system. His invitation at the wine table was more of a spur-of-the-moment idea after drinking, without considering too many practical issues. But now that others are invited to visit, he has to have a headache.
When it comes to trade, he is a layman, and he does not dare to make casual promises on the trade policies that others want. Just as he was sitting on pins and needles, Li Xi finally returned from finishing work at Fort Victory. Li Pu was relieved and quickly called Li Xi together to let him deal with these businessmen.
After finally dealing with the visitors and sending them out of the embassy one by one, Li Fu asked Li Xi about the arrangements for the inspection trip.
"Thank you for your honor! The Haihan people have already agreed, but the specific itinerary needs to be reviewed by the prince himself." Li Xi took out a copy of the itinerary and put it on the table to show it to Li Shu.
Li Shu took a few glances and asked Li Xi to get a local map of Hainan Island and compare it with the places written on the itinerary.
Li Xi explained from the side: "The itinerary above was discussed between me and Mr. Song from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. However, if the prince wants to go to places not listed above, he can add them in. There are also places he doesn't want to go. Delete it from the itinerary. After the crown prince decides, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will arrange the corresponding itinerary and we can set off soon.”
Li Pu nodded and said: "Have you made it clear to the Haihan people about the cost?"
Li Xi responded: "Master Song said that all the expenses for food, accommodation and transportation will be borne by the Haihan official. If there are no temporary expenses along the way, then we basically don't need to spend money."
(End of chapter)