Friday, 14 January

Heavy snow, sun

Last night I mourned for my mother and I could not sleep late into the night. So I got up and read H.W. Blood-Ryan’s The Great German Conspiracy, which I borrowed from the British Embassy. He talked about the history of the German Foreign Minister, Ribbentrop and also about his influence on Hitler. In the last chapter, he talked about Poland’s Pilsudski, Beck, Kazuiierg, Sosnowski, Smigly-Rydz and so on. They were high-flown, impractical, pro-German and anti-Soviet, repressive to the public, and harsh to minorities in particular. The anti-Jewish movement was even worse than Hitler’s Germany. These led to the occupation of their country and the Polish people homeless. I did not know this before so I felt quite interested. The author has been working in the printing industry in Germany for many years and is a prolific writer. He knows many important German and Polish figures well, so he knows many inside stories. I could not stop reading until 4.30 in the morning.

In the afternoon, I went with Jingchen, Jibang, and Chengyong to the diplomatic shop. We had lunch at the Cossack Restaurant. This restaurant’s mutton is quite famous. I had never liked mutton in the past, but the mutton made by this restaurant was fine with me. Jibang said today is the Orthodox calender’s New Year. Last night a Russian man rang her and asked her name. It was because it is the Russian New Year custom that single women and men are free to ask each other’ surnames of the people (opposite sex) whom they meet in the streets. It was said that in this way they could predict the surnames of their future spouses. If they do not go to the street, they can give a ring at random. If the receiver is the opposite sex, one can ask their name.

In the evening, Counsellor Liu and his wife invited the Soviet Consul at the Far East Foreign Office, Director of Communications, and others, to have dinner. Leo Tolstoy’s granddaughter came as well, and we had a good time until late at night, and only then did they leave.