Su Ran's meticulously devised strategy for breaking the deadlock unfolded across the vast lands of Great Qing like a grand blueprint. Yet, reality stood before them like towering peaks, with every single measure encountering wave after wave of formidable obstacles and making progress arduous and sluggish.
1. Trade Expansion: A Long and Arduous Overseas Journey
On the journey to develop new trade markets, the trade missions faced perilous conditions abroad. Most of the nations that received Great Qing's proposals for cooperation remained deeply wary of this sudden gesture of goodwill. Caught in a complex international landscape dominated by major powers, they feared that signing trade agreements with Great Qing would unwittingly drag them into the whirlpool of trade disputes between Great Qing and those powers, thereby bringing unnecessary trouble upon themselves. Although mission members used their exceptional eloquence and unwavering conviction to tirelessly demonstrate Great Qing's sincere desire for cooperation and its formidable national strength, the majority of countries still maintained a wait-and-see attitude, lingering in a fog and unwilling to take that crucial first step toward signing trade pacts with Great Qing.
Meanwhile, merchants venturing deep into Central Asia, West Asia, and Europe faced a tangled web of intricate challenges. Language barriers acted like invisible chasms across communication, rendering business negotiations immensely difficult; vast cultu…
Chapter 130