The South African Presidential Palace is located on a hilltop with dense vegetation in Pretoria. It is known as the most beautiful presidential palace in the world.
When Han Sen came here, he looked around and saw that they were all European-style palace-style buildings made of red granite. The main building was in an arc shape.
There are red roofs and beige walls on the left and right, which looks extremely eye-catching.
The two symmetrical bell-tower-style buildings are towering, exuding solemnity and momentum.
Of course, the most impressive thing is the huge humanoid statue standing in the charming garden.
This is a statue of South African President Antoine.
As a pioneer against apartheid and the first black president of South Africa, Antoine's contribution to black South Africa is undoubtedly huge. Therefore, before Antoine officially took office, this huge monument
The humanoid statue already stands here.
"This face..."
Han Sen glanced at this huge statue and was slightly surprised, but he remained silent. Although Han Sen has a huge reputation in South Africa, compared with Antoine, it is probably only a drop in the bucket.
"Blurting out, I'm afraid Han Sen will instantly fall into a situation of irreversible danger.
Of course, this was because Han Sen was overly worried, and at the same time, he was underestimating himself.
As a real international superstar, Han Sen's influence today is no less than that of Antoine. What's more, Han Sen is backed by China. As the world's largest country, Chinese people have some extraordinary status in various countries around the world.
Especially in some African countries, as long as you know some Chinese people, you can walk around there with your tail raised.
If we can attract some investment from Chinese people, it will be a great achievement.
There are countless people from all over the world who want to marry Chinese people. This sentence is not an idle statement, but a reality.
Not only in terms of military and economic strength, but also because of the cultural influence of some songs, film and television works, etc., many countries around the world are yearning for Western China, and they naturally look at the Chinese people with admiration.
As one of the most famous superstars among Chinese people, Han Sen is very popular in various countries, and his works are widely circulated locally.
This is especially true in South Africa.
Therefore, when Hansen arrived at the South African Presidential Palace, Presidential Office Minister Tonya immediately went to greet him, "Dear Mr. Han, hello!"
Tonya is a black man, 1.9 meters tall, and his official rank is roughly equivalent to that of a prime minister of another country. At this time, he was in the presidential palace, and he kept waving to Hansen from a distance, and greeted Hansen in fluent Chinese.
Han Sen walked on a long carpet in front of him and looked up. In addition to Tonya, there were many reporters and cameramen in front of him. In addition, when Han Sen saw the Chinese flag and the South African flag,
When the national flags were placed side by side in front of me, I couldn't help but take a deep breath.
This scene...
It looks a bit like the two heads of state meeting...
Fortunately, Han Sen was wearing a decent formal suit today, not an exaggerated performance costume, but even so, Han Sen felt a little bit restrained. Fortunately, he was mentally strong. After Tonya greeted him, he took the initiative to smile.
Nodding, he came to Tonya step by step and stretched out his hand: "Hello, Mr. Tonya, it's a pleasure to meet you here."
Tonya held Han Sen's hand and smiled: "I hope you will have an unforgettable lunch with Mr. President today."
After saying that, while holding Han Sen's hand, he took the initiative to turn sideways, stood in front of the South African flag, and smiled at the reporters and cameramen present.
Han Sen glanced at the Chinese national flag behind him and was forced to turn around and smile at the cameras.
This scene was like a meeting between high-level officials from the two countries, which made Han Sen's arms get goosebumps. He always felt that the media would make a fuss about this in private.
But Han Sen is obviously overly worried. Because he has huge influence, Han Sen's arrival at the South African Presidential Palace does mean to represent China. This is an official event.
Han Sen also gradually felt at ease, because he saw the domestic CCTV reporters and cameramen. With the official media here, Han Sen was not afraid of being gossiped about.
After taking pictures for a while, Tonya took Hansen to the cabinet of the Presidential Palace.
After walking through the long corridor and arriving at the President's Office, Hansen immediately saw the black President Antoine who was being interviewed by the media.
Antoine has gray hair. Although he is only about 1.7 meters tall, which is completely inconsistent with the huge statue in the square outside, he has an immovable aura when he sits there.
At this moment, he was smiling, giving people a feeling of affability, but even when he was smiling, he gave people the illusion that he was not angry and had no authority.
"Wait a moment, Mr. President is being interviewed."
Tonya smiled.
Han Sen nodded and waited outside the President's Office for a while, observing Antoine through the crack in the open door.
This is the world-famous black leader, Antoine, who is even called the founding father of South Africa.
What’s more worth mentioning is that Antoine’s popularity has increased again recently because it is approaching the date of China’s famous Tu Hong Award.
Because there are constant rumors from the outside world, Antoine is very likely to win the Tuhong Peace Prize this year.
In fact, while Antoine was still serving his sentence in prison, he had continuously won many well-known international awards to reward Antoine for his contribution and efforts to freedom of speech.
Within a year after his release from prison, Antoine had received more than ten awards for freedom of speech and peace.
Therefore, with the foreshadowing of these awards, Antoine has become one of the most favorable contenders for this year's Tuhong Peace Prize.
Han Sen looked at the old man who showed his kindness and talked eloquently when asked by reporters, and guessed the purpose of the other party inviting him to the luncheon.
Is it to build momentum for winning the Tu Hong Peace Prize?
But then I thought about it and it was impossible, because the Tuhong Award never considers the reputation and worth of the winner, but only the contribution made by the winner in the field of the award.
However, although Antoine was frequently in the international news last year, outside the African continent, there was little coverage or discussion about the South African leader.
Even in China, Antoine is almost unknown.
It was only reported by many Chinese media when he first took office. Once the popularity passed, no one discussed it anymore.
The reason why many people in China know Antoine is probably related to Han Sen's "Glory Days". People only know that the song "Glory Days" was written by a black man in South Africa.
And if they don’t understand the creative background, no one will be interested in Antoine’s liberation of black people.
Therefore, this may be one of the reasons why Antoine wants to have lunch with Han Sen, to use Han Sen's international reputation to impress the people of the world.
In fact, Antoine does have this consideration.
Moreover, according to the intelligence survey of the South African Presidential Office, not only South Africa, but also many leaders in the countries where Hanson will be hosting the concert are very interested in meeting Hanson.
Even in subsequent concerts in the United Kingdom, the United States, Maple Leaf Country and other countries, Han Sen will be received by leaders of various countries, because Han Sen is one of the few top performers in China who is also developing English songs.
Superstar, this has naturally attracted the attention and interest of some English-speaking countries.
Of course, the relevant meetings are all about drafting decisions within each country and are not actually implementing them.
And Antoine became the first person to actually implement it.
At this moment, although Antoine was being interviewed, he looked outside the door from time to time, and nodded to Han Sen with a smile many times.
After more than ten minutes, Antoine's interview ended, and he immediately stood up, strode towards Han Sen, and said in English: "Dear Mr. Han, please come in quickly."
Under Tonya's guidance, Han Sen walked into the President's Office, stood on the soft carpet, looked at Antoine who was walking quickly, smiled and stretched out his hand: "President Antoine, nice to see you."
"I'm very happy too, haha." Antoine smiled and shook hands with Han Sen, then invited Han Sen to sit on the sofa in the office. He turned around and personally picked up the teapot on the desk: "Mr. Han
, knew you were coming, so I specially prepared one of the most famous teas in China, West Lake Longjing, for you!"
"This was a gift given to me by the Chinese leaders when I visited them last year. It has been treasured by me to this day. If I had not met Mr. Han, I would have been reluctant to take out such tea to entertain guests."
Antoine laughed, and the calm and self-confident attitude he had just lost was gone. He didn't look like a president at all, but like a gentle and elegant university teacher.
Han Sen stood up, took the tea, thanked him, and drank it while the tea was warm. However, he found that the bitterness entered his throat. Han Sen really couldn't appreciate it, but he said with a smile: "Good tea.
!”
Antoine smiled, he didn't know whether this tea was good or not, because he was not Chinese and could not appreciate tea. He preferred to drink coffee, but he knew that this tea was really bitter, just like his youth.
An old Chinese medicine doctor he met during this period gave him a Chinese medicine prescription.
Of course, this may also be because Antoine put too many tea leaves in a pot of tea, and he didn't know how to make tea at all.
No one else, let alone Han Sen, could stand this sip of strong tea.
But Han Sen had no choice but to suffer.
At this time, the reporter next to him did not leave immediately. After seeing Han Sen's arrival, he did not look surprised. He had obviously known the news for a long time, so he sat silently aside, turned on the camera, and helped record this period.
Interview.
Antoine's English is fluent and has almost become his native language, and Han Sen is also proficient in English, so there is no barrier to communication between the two.
After chatting for a while, Tonya, the Minister of the Presidential Office, walked in and informed that the luncheon was ready.
So Antoine stood up and took the initiative to invite Han Sen to the banquet. Along the way, Antoine never showed any distinction between host and guest. He and Han Sen almost walked side by side along the way.
After arriving at the restaurant, there was only one simple table and two tables in the huge venue.
And all around, more than ten cameras and dozens of staff were squatting in the corner.
Han Sen entered the restaurant and was speechless after seeing these people and equipment.
But Antoine was not surprised at all. It was obvious that he had expected all these arrangements. After guiding Han Sen to his seat, under more than ten shots, the two parties started to eat.
"Mr. Han, why did you create the song "Glory Days" in the first place?"
Antoine asked first.
With a smile on his face, he cut the steak with the cutlery in his hand, and the sizzling blood flowed out of the meat. He cut a piece and put it in his mouth, chewing it slowly.
Han Sen glanced at the steak in front of him and thought that this lunch was really simple, so he picked up the knife and fork and cut the meat while saying: "I once read the diary you wrote when you were trapped in prison.
I think the essence of your spirit during those ten years was struggle and hope, which coincided with my background of working hard in Hong Kong, so I was deeply touched and empathized with it."
"So I had a strong desire to write a song to pay tribute to you, so the song "Glory Days" was born."
"As the lyrics say, I hope that in this land, there will be no distinction between you and me. This represents my inner thoughts..."
Listening to Han Sen's words that seemed to come from the heart, Antoine's eyes suddenly became moist. He wiped the corners of his eyes and said with emotion: "I have only three wishes in my life: to eliminate racial discrimination in South Africa and realize democracy and freedom."
, and create a free society in South Africa. Although I am working hard to do these three points, as the Chinese saying goes, there is a long way to go!"
"Perhaps, after ten or twenty years, when I die and be buried in the ground, I won't be able to see this day coming."
Antoine's eyes were a little deep, "Just like the great harmonious society that the ancient Chinese people have always pursued, perhaps all of this can only exist in ideals..."
Many reporter friends nearby were shocked when they heard this.
These three points mentioned by Antoine are the cornerstone of his ability to sit in the Presidential Palace. If even Antoine himself is not confident to achieve these three points, then who else can do it?
For a moment, everyone present had a look of confusion on their faces.
Han Sen looked at Antoine, the wrinkles in the corners of his eyes were like a pile of history. Although the other man sighed and said words of despair, Han Sen did not see a trace of discouragement in the other man's eyes.
What Han Sen saw was as deep as the ocean.
He couldn't see through this old man.
I don’t know if these seemingly sincere words are really Antoine’s inner thoughts.
To put it more bluntly, perhaps this lunch together was a complete performance, performed for the whole world to see.
A politician's performance is much more exciting than a professional actor's performance.
Han Sen cut a small piece of beef brisket, put it in his mouth, and chewed it carefully. At this moment, he could no longer taste the quality of the steak. From the beginning to the end, he had no desire to speak actively. The whole audience was stunned.
It's a question.
One question and one answer.
Finally, half an hour later, Antoine drank a glass of milk, picked up a napkin and wiped it, and said with a smile: "Mr. Han, we hit it off as soon as we saw each other, and we even hated seeing each other so late. I hope I can meet you soon."
See you in China."
Han Sen had already put down his knife and fork. When he heard this, the Tu Hong Award Ceremony that was to be held next month flashed through his mind, and he smiled and said: "I will definitely do it."
At this moment, the two people stood up, smiled and shook hands with each other under the flashing spotlights of photographers.