Chapter 931

Dengzhou.

Schroeder’s heart pounded uncontrollably as he watched the moving steam locomotive. The stimulation he had received in Dengzhou these past two days was quite significant.

Before coming to the Great Yu Empire, he had never paid attention to this country, until the Dutch brought back steam engines from the Great Yu Empire and spread the news of the Great Yu Empire’s prosperity throughout Europe.

This made King Frederick II of Prussia quite interested. Especially when he learned that France and Britain had stolen even more advanced technology from the Great Yu Empire and were producing more advanced firearms, he grew even more restless.

After all, the current Prussia was already weaker than France. If it fell behind in firearms again, they would lose even more influence in Europe, and the unification of the German Confederation would remain a distant dream.

Precisely because of this, the Prussian delegation arrived. They believed that the Great Yu Empire now needed an ally in Europe, and they would be more reliable than the Dutch.

“Please take your time with the tour, gentlemen. I have already sent news of your arrival to Qingzhou Province via the last steam locomotive. A reply is expected tonight. If all goes well, you can arrive in Qingzhou City tomorrow.”

Beside Schroeder was Luo Xingyi, the current prefectural governor of Dengzhou. He was once Yang Chengye’s most capable subordinate. After Yang Chengye entered the Grand Secretariat, Luo Xingyi was appointed as the next prefectural governor of Dengzhou after a review by the Grand Secretariat, responsible for Dengzhou’s government affairs.

“Thank you, Prefectural Governor Luo. You are truly a good man,” Schroeder said gratefully.

They had made very few preparations for this trip to the Great Yu Empire. When they arrived in Dengzhou, they didn’t even have anyone who spoke the Great Yu Empire’s language to communicate.

If not for the large number of translators in Dengzhou’s Foreign Affairs Department, they would probably have returned empty-handed this time.

Luo Xingyi stroked his beard and smiled. Having been in Dengzhou for a long time, he was very familiar with Westerners who came to do business in the Great Yu Empire, but this was his first time seeing people from Prussia.

According to the information he possessed, Prussia was currently a small country in Europe, comparable in status to the Netherlands.

However, the Dutch navy was slightly superior, while Prussia’s army was stronger. Therefore, unlike Britain and France, Prussia could not expand its influence to Asia, only possessing some small territories in the Americas and Africa.

“It’s a small matter. In that case, envoy, please take your time with the tour. I have other important matters to attend to and cannot accompany you. The Foreign Affairs Department will naturally have someone accompany you.”

Luo Xingyi cupped his hands. As the Prefectural Governor of Dengzhou, he was extremely busy.

Ever since the railway reached Dengzhou, Dengzhou’s development could be said to be changing rapidly. Now, a large number of merchants chose to build factories in Dengzhou.

This way, their goods could be transported directly by merchant ship to Goryeo, Japan, the Sanshan Kingdom, and Ryukyu immediately.

The influx of a large number of merchants was certainly a good thing, but it also brought many developmental problems to Dengzhou. These were all testing his capabilities.

In addition, the Great Yu Empire’s strength made him very confident now. He treated Westerners with an ordinary mindset. These delegations were the responsibility of the Foreign Affairs Department; he did not need to ask too many questions.

His reason for coming this time was merely a normal courtesy procedure.

Before arriving in the Great Yu Empire, Schroeder harbored mixed feelings towards the Great Yu Empire. After all, all Europeans now believed that Europe was the center of the world, and that the world should be ruled by white people.

Even though Europe was constantly embroiled in war, this ideology was deeply ingrained. But now, everything in the Great Yu Empire completely overturned his ideas.

From the moment he disembarked, he paid attention to all sorts of new things along the way: warships belching black smoke on the sea, fishing boats using huge trawl nets, soldiers carrying advanced firearms, and various exquisite industrial products in the market.

Everything here destroyed the European image of the Great Yu Empire as a place covered in gold but inhabited by ignorant natives.

Watching Luo Xingyi depart, Schroeder was still not entirely satisfied. He gazed deeply at the steam locomotive, then earnestly requested the Foreign Affairs Department official to lead them on a tour of Dengzhou’s factories, and even the naval base.

In one afternoon, Schroeder spent his time constantly in shock. The popularization of steam engines in the Great Yu Empire and the use of various miraculous machines left him dumbfounded.

Returning to Dengzhou City with a shocked heart, they received news that evening: they could take the steam locomotive to Qingzhou tomorrow morning for an audience.

“Prepare our gifts for the Emperor of the Great Yu Empire. This time, we want to establish a long-term relationship with the Great Yu Empire. The foolish British and French, their misjudgment will be our opportunity,” Schroeder said confidently.

The next day, they were awakened early by officials from the Foreign Affairs Department.

Carrying his gifts, Schroeder boarded the steam locomotive bound for Qingzhou Province, led by officials.

Seating himself, Schroeder looked out the window somewhat nervously. Dense crowds were now squeezing into the steam locomotive from the platform, which surprised him somewhat.

Because he realized that the use of steam locomotives was seemingly commonplace in the Great Yu Empire.

Thinking thus, the steam locomotive slowly began to move forward after emitting a loud whistle. Schroeder no longer thought about these matters. Instead, he fully focused on the scenery outside the window, while also experiencing the continuously increasing speed of the steam locomotive.

When the scenery outside his window rapidly sped by, Schroeder finally couldn’t help but exclaim, “This is truly a miraculous country!”

Amidst the roar of the train, six hours seemed to pass quickly. Having departed in the morning, they arrived at Qingzhou Station in the afternoon.

Following the crowd, Schroeder reached outside the platform, and his eyes instantly widened. Compared to Dengzhou, Qingzhou prosperity had a different kind of splendor.

Especially when he saw someone riding an iron frame with two wheels speeding on the street, he found it even harder to remain calm. In his opinion, this was exceptionally strange.

However, the accompanying officials clearly didn’t want to explain anything more and led them directly to the imperial palace.

After a brief announcement, they were led to a beautiful garden.

In the center of the garden, a young man dressed in bright yellow robes was waiting for them. Around him were several serious-looking officials.

“Your Majesty, these are the envoys from Prussia,” the official from the Foreign Affairs Department said, bowing.

Xiao Ming nodded. He directly asked, “What is the purpose of your visit, envoys, to the Great Yu Empire?”

Schroeder was a well-traveled man. He often visited various European countries and was accustomed to meeting high-ranking and powerful individuals.

He said, “Esteemed Emperor of the Great Yu Empire, we are envoys from Prussia in Europe. We have come this time to establish stable trade relations with the Great Yu Empire. We hope Your Majesty the Emperor can grant our request.”

“Prussia? That country along the Baltic Sea?” Xiao Ming asked. He was not yet certain of Prussia’s situation.

After all, contemporary historical records were useless. The development of countries in this world was different.