Chapter 164 – Allen as if he were an enemy

This is not an easy thing, according to the information from the French Embassy, the members of the Red Flag Cabaret who came to London this time, men and women together totaled two hundred and four, Allen Wilson’s hands are going to shake sour.

Fortunately, the second half of the female members, he reluctantly adhere to, but also can be close to appreciate the face value of the female members of the Red Flag Song and Dance Troupe, can not say that each of the stunning, but the female members of the Red Flag Song and Dance Troupe, each of them are tall, red lips and white teeth, but also quite atmospheric.

The so-called high daughter-in-law standing in front of the door, do not work also look good! Just these walking hangers, not yet opened the song has been the first voice, touching these soft vegan hands, Allen Wilson standardized upright, can not give the British Empire shame.

“You?” Alan Wilson with a stiff smile stretched out his hand and looked at the middle-aged woman in front of him, who is this if not Foltseva?

“It’s you again!” Foltseva usually this Alan Wilson in front of her, with a businesslike tone, “I am currently working in the Ministry of Culture, this time accompanying the Red Flag Song and Dance Troupe to visit London.”

“I am temporarily working in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, this time responsible for receiving the visit of the Red Flag Song and Dance Troupe.” Alan Wilson glanced at his head and looked at the long queue that walked by, this one huge delegation visited, adding to the already poor London, “A little later in the day, I will give you the performance itinerary, as for the hotel to stay is ready to be arranged, I don’t know when to give me the program list?”

“Work arrangements have their own process.” Foltseva flicked her lips and said in a double entendre, “It’s done by the book in a completely open and transparent manner.”

Heh! As if seeing an alien, Alan Wilson left the airport and took a car back to the Foreign Ministry building.

In front of George Middleton, Director of Personnel at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he colorfully learned the scene at the airport, “A full two hundred people came, and that’s fine, after all, it’s not a big deal in the current government’s friendly welcome. But a Soviet talking to me about openness and transparency, isn’t that a bit much.”

“Openness and transparency are both good words separately, but openness and transparency together is problematic in terms of vocabulary composition. A double affirmation followed by a negation.” George Middleton smiled after hearing this, “We can be open or transparent, not to mention that we would have done so, Allen, you won’t have any complaints about this job, right?”

“Absolutely not.” Alan Wilson’s reply was decisive, with an undeniable tone, “I’m a true socialist, just like the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary.”

“Oh?” George Middleton grinned, his eyes full of I-believe-you look.

“Of course life is a constant learning process, and no one can guarantee that what you think now is right. A change of scenery might lead to different thinking.” Alan Wilson shows a flexible bottom line.

“I’m sure you’ll be a true socialist before the next general election.” George Middleton replied in the affirmative, and in the final analysis the clerk of the service has to carry out the decisions of the politicians.

Now that the Labor government is expressing détente towards the Soviet Union, then the Foreign Office diplomats are all True Socialists. Once the Tories make a comeback they can also become true conservatives, agreeing and disagreeing, vetoing themselves, is part of the job.

Civil servants aren’t politicians, they don’t throw their weight around and naturally don’t need to create a persona, they’re not going to go one way or the other.

“We also need to be careful how we respond, so as not to let the Soviets catch on.” George Middleton returned to the subject, “Security work, also with other departments.”

“I’ll go find Guy Liddell and see if there’s any arrangements over there.” Alan Wilson nodded, “No surprise, there’s definitely a clamor in the papers.”

“It can’t be helped, citizens want the country to be as tough as possible on foreign affairs. But the Foreign Office is the opposite, full of compromises, and hopefully the news of the Isthmus of Kladi will keep the citizens happy for a while.” George Middleton said helplessly as he looked at Alan Wilson who was about to gear up again.

Guy Liddell was the deputy director general of MI5, responsible for the security of this Red Flag Cabaret’s arrival in London. Because of the difference in specialties, Alan Wilson still had some places to ask for advice from the other party.

“Isn’t it necessary to keep a close watch on the Soviets to ensure that they have no contact with ordinary British citizens.” Alan Wilson took a notebook and prepared to record Guy Liddell’s words.

“Alan, we are a democracy.” Stretching out his hand and pointing his finger at the notebook’s location, Guy Liddell signaled for a stop and said in an unhurried manner, “All that is needed is to take basic security. The current British Empire doesn’t seem to have much to pry into, and we’re rationing just like the Soviet Union.”

Putting his notes away without a trace, Alan Wilson stated easily, “I believe everything is temporary, it’s just a matter of transferring the conflict, it’s similar to surgery, it’s about turning our problem into the problem of the entire British Empire, and then removing the lesions, although there may be some losses, for the sake of the greater good, there is always a need for someone to be sacrificed, and instead of letting the native citizens sacrifice, it’s better to sacrifice someone else.”

“Is this a Ministry of External Affairs? Or the Ministry of Indian Affairs, I have no right to interfere.” Guy Liddell crossed his fingers and took stock, “It’s the theater where the Red Flag Cabaret is needed to perform, and it’s enough to keep some of the basic forces. Nothing else will be needed.”

“It’s that simple?” The corner of Alan Wilson’s mouth twitched, no wonder Britain was infiltrated into a sieve. Not to mention the Soviet side, it was estimated that the American side was also well aware of the movements in London, “I would have thought that some means needed to be taken, such as surveillance and whatnot, do quite a few newspapers have all sorts of stories about the work of the Fifth Branch?”

“The usual work is very boring, the so-called legends you speak of are limited to what you see in the papers.” Guy Liddell shrugged, “There’s not much I can do about citizens being attracted to these fictional stories.”

Understood, it’s like Simon Says, “Can’t a warrior be bald? A great warrior doesn’t have to be as handsome as he looks, that’s just wishful thinking on the part of you ascending citizens.”

Thanks to Alan Wilson, he still looked like an enemy and ran here to Thames House for advice on how to deal with it.

“Our main job is to defend ourselves in terms of civil exchanges, such as the list of exchanges the government arranges with the Red Flag Cabaret, by the way, Alan, take a look at this, you are the representative of this reception of the Red Flag Cabaret. If there is anything wrong, you can maintain communication with the fifth office.” Guy Liddell took out a list of the British show business that participated in this exchange with the Soviet Red Flag Cabaret.

Alan Wilson took it and glanced down at it, his eyes pausing for a moment on Vivien Leigh’s name.

Vivien Leigh had been well known in 1945 and was undoubtedly an icon of British female acting. Vivienne’s figure was not remarkable, with an average build, an even more average head-to-body ratio, and large hands, all of which did not sit well with her personally. There is a theory that she liked to wear gloves just to hide her large hands.

But all these flaws were worthless in the face of face value, and Churchill said that Vivien Leigh’s face was God’s work.

Before the war, Vivien Leigh had her American agent, Myron Selznick, recommend her to the producers. Selznick watched Vivien Leigh’s performances in The English Havoc and The Winds of Oxford and named her as one of the key candidates.

In the end, Vivien Leigh won the role of Scarlett O’Hara over hundreds of other actresses, including such heavyweights as Pauline Goldie, Joan Crawford, Katharine Hepburn and Bette Davis.

Among the films Mrs. Hamilton, Vivienne spread her influence to the United States, and the Soviet Union.

With this list of show business exchanges in hand, Alan Wilson left Thames House, and made a deal with Guy Liddell to attend, together, the Red Flag Follies concert when the time came.

“It is also a rare opportunity, I will definitely go to see it then. I hear that this cabaret is very popular in Paris.” Guy Liddell nodded his head and agreed, for this Red Flag Cabaret Troupe that came to London from the Soviet Union, this mysterious country, he was also very curious in his heart.

Curious is not only Guy Liddell, Alan Wilson and these people, London high society aristocrats and celebrities, down to the ordinary citizens, each of the Red Flag Troupe performances are eagerly awaited.

After the war so to be thrifty and frugal environment, even because of the arrival of the Red Flag Troupe, the emergence of scalpers. It can be seen that even in hard times, hardship is divided into people.

This Alan Wilson in Vienna, in Berlin has seen, the vast majority of people are hungry to pay the hard work want to ask for fruitful food, but there is such a group of people no matter at any time, the quality of life is the same as always.

On a national level, of course, Britain is in a very difficult situation, but that does not mean that there is a shortage of rich people in Britain, not only is there no shortage, but there is an abundance of them.

If there had been a reasonable boss like Sir Barron in New Delhi, Alan Wilson would have been ready to take action, with his boss’s acquiescence, to join forces with the Soviets to cut off the leeks.

Too bad! Alan Wilson expressed his regret to the head of the troupe, Alexander Alexandrov, as well as Foltseva, and if after returning to New Delhi, he should really consider inviting the Red Flag Troupe to visit British India.

Of course this premise would have to be acted upon after London decided to let India become independent, or even after British India fell into chaos.

“Is Vivien Leigh on the list? When will we be able to meet him?” Foltseva looked at the list of show business used for exchanges and showed rare excitement and longing for the rest of the trip.