"I have looked everywhere for you," Monsieur Roché exclaimed, as he took my hand.
"There is only one place where I could be, monsieur, and that is here. To be away from 'Le Pole Nord' at this time of the day is to be out of the world. Would you care to cultivate the art with my assistance?"
"I wish for your guidance over something even more slippery than ice," he answered, as we seated ourselves upon a lounge.
"Well?"
"You know that we are entertaining an envoy from China, who presumably tours the world on a voyage of pleasure and enlightenment."
"His Excellency Hun Sun?"
"Precisely." Monsieur Roché leaned towards me until his lips almost touched my ear. "This journey of pleasure is a subterfuge. The Ambassador comes from China to France."
"And the object of his visit?"
"To gain a pledge from France for defensive, or even offensive, protection."
I pursed my lips, for who in the world did not know that England and Russia would have to be reckoned with?