The German Legation appeared magnificent, fully equipped with murals, tapestries, and other decorations. Aside from a complete lack of artistic soul—all the decorations being arranged in the most rigid, formulaic manner—one really couldn't find fault with the interior.

"Xingtai, I'm going to have them swap the coffee for tea. Do you want to swap too?" Chen Ke asked Chen Tianhua.

"I... I'll swap as well." Chen Tianhua actually wanted to taste the coffee, but he didn't want to go against Chen Ke's lead. More importantly, since Chen Ke said so, there was likely a good reason for it.

"This coffee is both sour and bitter; I'm afraid you won't be used to it." Chen Ke could never accept the original version of coffee; his reason for having Chen Tianhua switch to tea was truly nothing more significant than that.

Since it was a legation, at least some of the staff understood Chinese. At the very least, the Chinese translators waiting on the side understood it. Hearing Chen Ke's request, their faces showed looks of astonishment. They had never seen anyone dare to put on such grand airs in front of foreigners. Regardless of what the coffee actually tasted like, daring to demand the host change the drinks was an extremely rare occurrence in the China of this era.

While it's true one should follow the host's lead, when the host asked the guests what beverage they wanted, Chen Ke felt it would be foolish not to swap the detestable original-flavor coffee for tea, which he could actually tolerate. If anyone thought he was being too arrogant, he could only let them say what they wished.

The German Ambassador didn't think much of it. Diplomacy was a process of constant contact and deepening understanding. The fact that Chen Ke specifically requested to swap the coffee had already been recorded; discovering the other party's preferences was part of diplomacy. Using the beverage as a starting point, the conversation unfolded.

"What type of food does Mr. Chen like to eat?"

"I don't cook myself; the chef handles the meals. I eat whatever the chef prepares."

"Do you not have any favorite dishes of your own?"

"The cook surely has his own favorites. As for myself, once I've eaten, I forget the taste."

Chen Tianhua had never seen someone lie so sincerely. If he hadn't known Chen Ke's background and the nature of the People's Party, he might have been fooled. Chen Ke always opposed providing exclusive chefs for leading cadres; in responding to the German, he spoke of the master chefs in the communal canteen as if they were his personal cooks.

The Germans didn't really want to talk about fine dining with Chen Ke either; this was just the opening of the conversation. They also wanted to see if Chen Ke had any requests for Germany. After blowing smoke for a while, it turned out Chen Ke had no other intentions; the entire talk was meaningless nonsense. The German Ambassador and the Counselor beside him exchanged a glance—a prearranged signal.

The Counselor said, "Mr. Chen, I wonder how the People's Party views German rights and interests in Shandong?"

Chen Tianhua immediately perked up. The People's Party had seized southern Shandong. And while the Germans had snatched rights in the province, they hadn't yet been able to extend their reach into the People's Party's controlled areas. However, a conflict between the two sides was not impossible. Chen Tianhua held his breath, waiting to hear how Chen Ke would respond.

"What rights and interests does Germany have in Shandong? Why don't I know about this?" Chen Ke said with a look of pure innocence.

"Mr. Chen, what kind of joke is this!" the Counselor's words were translated.

"The German government and our People's Party government have never signed any treaties. When you say Germany has rights in Shandong, I truly didn't know such a thing existed," Chen Ke replied, still innocent.

The Counselor and the Ambassador exchanged several looks. They had originally envisioned several scenarios, but they hadn't expected Chen Ke to use ignorance as an excuse and refuse to recognize German rights in Shandong. After a flurry of murmurs to the translator, the man translated the German's words into Chinese: "We have signed treaties with the Chinese central government; Germany possesses special privileges in Shandong."

Chen Ke laughed. "Whichever government you signed the treaties with, you go find that government. What's the point of coming to me?"

This was a direct and blunt denial. The atmosphere in the meeting room, which had just been discussing pleasant topics like food and drink, suddenly shifted. The situation hurtled toward a breakdown. The only constant was Chen Ke's consistently flippant yet serious tone.

"Does that mean the People's Party does not recognize the treaties signed by the previous Chinese central governments?" the Counselor asked in a threatening tone. In all his years, this was truly the first time he had encountered a character like Chen Ke. In these times, during official negotiations, as long as the foreigners showed a hard-line attitude, the Chinese side would usually retreat. The Counselor had found this to be true without fail.

"The 'Chinese central government' you refer to, I assume, means the recently fallen Manchu Qing government." Chen Ke's voice underwent a subtle change; the tone remained the same, but the casual air vanished completely. "As the heads of this legation, I'm sure you are aware of the situation in China. One of the primary reasons the Manchu Qing government was abandoned by China was precisely because they signed certain agreements with you."

Once these words were out, everyone in the meeting room changed countenance. Chen Tianhua had seen Chen Ke negotiate with Beiyang and other factions, and Chen Ke had never driven things to a direct deadlock then. He had thought Chen Ke would act similarly when negotiating with foreigners. However, the facts before him proved otherwise.

The Counselor had never encountered such a negotiating opponent in China. He looked at the German Ambassador; as long as the Ambassador gave a signal, the Counselor was prepared to use even more intense language to intimidate Chen Ke. But despite waiting, the signal never came. Instead, he saw the German Ambassador looking at Chen Ke with a cold, stern gaze. Chen Ke stared back at the Ambassador like a fighting cock, the two of them competing in a test of wills.

In the end, it was the German Ambassador who softened first. He weighed his words before saying, "Mr. Chen, you once said you wanted to maintain the status quo. I would very much like to know what exactly you mean by 'maintaining the status quo.'"

"Maintaining the status quo means that when we took the territory in Shandong, there were no Germans in the areas we controlled, so that status quo must be maintained. Until Germany reaches an agreement with our base area, there can be no Germans there. That is maintaining the status quo," Chen Ke replied.

Hearing Chen Ke's explanation, Chen Tianhua pressed his lips together with some effort. If he didn't, he feared he might burst out laughing. Although he had often thought about how they must abolish all unequal treaties, when actually facing the foreign devils to discuss them, he hadn't realized that many things could be said in such an interesting way.

The German side, however, could not laugh. After hearing the translators' long-winded explanation, Chen Ke's stance was clear enough: the People's Party would absolutely not recognize previous treaties.

The reason Germany was the first to invite Chen Ke was because the People's Party's action of establishing Huaihai Province had touched upon German interests in Shandong. While doing business was the British hope, the Germans, in addition to trade, also hoped to control the Shandong region of China. Now that southern Shandong had been seized directly by the People's Party, the Germans were naturally unhappy.

"You have an obligation to abide by the treaties. This is international practice," the German Ambassador said, using the most moderate language possible.

"The successor to the Manchu Qing is the new Central Government of the Republic. In a sense, we are still in a state of war with that government. You are coming to me to talk about treaty issues; you've simply found the wrong person," Chen Ke replied with a smile.

"I said earlier that one of the great crimes of the Manchu Qing's fall was the signing of many treaties. We in the People's Party will not repeat those mistakes. If you all hope we will yield on such matters, I can only tell you that in my hometown, we have a saying for things that cannot be done: 'Wash up and go to sleep'—which is to say, keep dreaming. My attitude is, if the German side expects us to recognize the treaties signed by the Qing and wants the People's Party to abide by them, then you don't even need to wash; just go straight to sleep."

The intense malice hidden in these words truly stumped the translators. They had never heard the phrase "Wash up and go to sleep," so they didn't understand the unspoken part: "Keep dreaming."

The only thing they could be certain of was that Chen Ke firmly refused to recognize any treaties. After a brief, low-voiced discussion, they managed to translate this direct meaning to the German side.

The Counselor was infuriated by Chen Ke's words. He looked at the German Ambassador again, and this time, the Ambassador finally gave a signal. The Counselor felt a slight relief and then said in a fierce tone, "Is the People's Party prepared to be in a state of hostility with us?"

"Haha," Chen Ke laughed. "Do you mean that Germany is going to formally declare war on the People's Party?"

This was the very content the Counselor intended to use to frighten Chen Ke, but having it stolen by Chen Ke instead left the German side choked up. Although Germany loved to boast of "Blood and Iron," the German Legation did not have the authority to declare war on behalf of the German government and the Emperor. Let alone declaring war, even deploying military force to strike the People's Party would require Germany to secure the support of other nations.

However, the German Legation naturally wouldn't show weakness before a Chinese person. The Counselor shouted, "That depends on your own attitude!"

"Our attitude has always been consistent: as a local government of China, our People's Party has the duty to defend China's national interests as well as local interests. Of course, we also recognize your side's stance in striving for your own interests. Therefore, we hope your side can clearly state what exactly you intend to do. Threatening us with such vague words is meaningless."

Watching Chen Ke fearlessly and properly deal with the Germans, Chen Tianhua replayed Chen Ke's words in his mind. Defending the nation's interests was a stance that had to be maintained, but how one expressed that stance required great skill. However, Chen Tianhua soon realized that as a cadre in Shandong, if Germany moved against the province, he and his people would be the first to face the enemy. Thinking of this, he felt a genuine sense of excitement.

The negotiations had reached this point, and both sides had informed each other of their basic stances. The German side was hard-line but limited by their status, unable to directly take further coercive measures. The situation fell into a stalemate.

Chen Ke didn't bother saying more and simply rose to take his leave. The German Ambassador did not try to keep him, and the People's Party's first diplomatic visit thus drew to a close.

"Chairman Chen, what will the Germans do?" Chen Tianhua asked after he and Chen Ke were seated in the carriage.

"The Germans? What they're good at is pretending to be a military power. And those Junker hillbillies are famously boneheaded. Don't worry about what they say," Chen Ke gave a response typical of a 21st-century online forum.