When Nikolai toured Bulgaria, Ferdinand held a grand welcome ceremony at the Sofia Palace.

It is the rule in Europe to curtsy to a person of higher status than oneself, who has a royal title. With one leg crouched at the knee and the other foot half a step back, the body remains upright, and the eyes may look at the one being saluted, or the head may be lowered as a sign of respect.

In order to show respect for Nikolai, the top officials of the Bulgarian government were all present, led by Ferdinand, and went to greet Nikolai with respect.

Ferdinand could have done without personal action, but sadly, he could not send enough royal family members now. In order not to provoke the cautious Nikolai, Ferdinand finally went out himself.

After a tedious set of protocols, Ferdinand, as the host, said with a big smile, "Nikolai, welcome!"

They are also counted as old acquaintances and have met each other several times. Of course, the friendship is limited to a few greetings.

Ferdinand knew Nikolai a little. He knew that he was very proud, despised people of low birth, and did not like to have close contact with commoners.

The greater envies of ministers who have great abilities may be related to the political climate in Russia. There is always the fear that one day they will take away his power of the monarchy.

Ferdinand knew that now the pro-Russian faction in Bulgaria is very strong, many ministers have great hopes for Nicholas, and he did not care.

The position of being born determines the political position!

Someone in the Russian government might support them, but Nikolai's character had already defined that he couldn't get mixed up with a bunch of civilians.

Nikolai smiled back and said, "Thanks! Ferdinand, it's been a long time! If I use the oriental phrase, it's good to see you after three days of friendship. You've changed a lot!"

"Well, people always change, and you've changed quite a bit! You wouldn't have said that before!" Ferdinand said in return. It looks like the dialogue between the two men has caught the eye of the Bulgarian ministers. However, on this occasion, there is no way for them.

When Ferdinand traversed, after having dealt with the great aristocrats, he knew that Western and Eastern values are not the same.

It is easier to receive respect if you are equal in status and do not need to be subtle in your speech but rather straightforward. If you slip up, it will be a test of your ability. At least Ferdinand thought he did not have that ability.

"Haha, God bless!!! It looks like you've had a good time lately! I heard in St. Petersburg that you expelled a group of rebels, good job! A lot of people used to look the other way and think you were a total businessman!" Nikolai said with a teasing smile.

"Oh, really! You've changed a lot, too! The old Nikolai would not have been so keenly observant! By the way, I am more interested to know among the people who are looking away, once again there is without you?" Ferdinand asked rhetorically.

...

On the surface of the party, the two men didn't seem to have a good conversation! Nikolai didn't even attend the ball. He just showed up and hurried through.

Many people in Sofia will not be able to sleep tonight. The people have turned their attention spontaneously to this visit of Nikolai.

Some ministers who had attended the banquet looked divided. Some were confident, some were worried, and some were pleased.

Those who are confident are Ferdinand's loyalists and have trust in him, while those who are worried are mostly his supporters and do not want a change that would interrupt Bulgaria's development. Those who are happy are those who are upset with the status quo and seem to perceive an opportunity in it.

Well, none of this concerned Ferdinand. By talking to Nikolai, he could already be sure that the wheels of history had not changed. The next strategy of Russia had begun to shift from Europe to the Far East.

"When a soldier leaves for three days, you'll be surprised by a new sight!" You can't say that without knowing the Eastern culture.

As the crown prince of Russia, the future Tsar, he would have nothing better to do than study Eastern culture? As far as Ferdinand knows, Nikolai is not such a good learner. The Crown Prince of the Russian Empire is not as laid-back as Edward, and there are a whole lot of things waiting for him to deal with it.

"Ukhtomsky (one of the representatives of the Russian Orientalist faction), it seems that we can basically achieve the purpose of our visit to Bulgaria!" Nikolai said happily.

Ukhtomsky said calmly: "Yes, Your Imperial Highness. It's easy to rope in those Bulgarian turds, but it's a little hard to deal with Knyaz Ferdinand!"

Nikolai said with no concern: "It's just a matter of interest! Ferdinand is indeed impressive. In just two years, he has single-handedly taken control of Bulgaria! But that's all, Bulgaria is only a small country after all. In the international battle, it is destined to be under the wing of the great powers!"

"Your Imperial Highness, the future of Russia lies in the Far East. The Balkans are not worth the effort to draw too much attention from us!" Ukhtomsky advocated him.

Nikolai said confidently: "You are right. Bulgaria is a traditional ally of the Empire, the civil relations between the two countries have always been very good and is our natural ally in the Balkans. And now Bulgaria's development is fast. Did you find out that this is already Russia's largest trading partner in the Balkans? It's not hard to pull them over!

Surprised, Ukhtomsky asked, "Does Your Imperial Highness intend to control Bulgaria economically?"

Nikolai looked at Ukhtomsky and smiled and said, "Why not?"

"Bulgaria is resource-poor! Geographically, it is cheapest to import from Russia, and the faster they develop, the more they can't live without us!!!"

Ukhtomsky fell into deep thought, "Yes, Bulgaria started the road of industrialization, which requires resources that certainly can not be self-sufficient. They must import it! Many countries in the world can provide resources, but there is no choice but the Ukrainian region, which is economically viable!"

Seeing Ukhtomsky's concern, Nikolai thought he was worried about affecting Russia's future state policy and at once assured him, "Ukhtomsky need not worry. The future strategy of the Empire lies in the Far East. Building a Yellow Russia is the mission given to us by history!"

Knowing that Nikolai had misunderstood, Ukhtomsky hastened to explain, "Your Imperial Highness, I'm not worried that it will affect future state policy! All Balkan countries have many problems now, and Bulgaria's development can be described as a unique one. I'm afraid that in the future, it will upset the balance of the region!"

Nikolai nodded, thought for a moment, and said, "You worry too much. Bulgaria is too small. Even if it develops, it will be at most like Belgium. Even so, by that time, we had solved the Far East problem. We had enough power to hold them down!"

Nicolas probably wouldn't know that the place where they were talking had been bugged in the most basic way and was now reaching Ferdinand's ears.

) This phrase comes from 'Records of Three Kingdoms' (Sānguózhì), Book of Wu, Volume 54: Biographies of Zhou Yu, Lu Su, and Lü Meng. It means you can no longer use the same perspective to see people again.