FOR those who dwell on nuances, metaphor and the diplomatic skills of saying very little with many words, the start of the 31st meeting of the Joint Liaison Group in London yesterday was a triumph.
As these events go, those who like to read between the lines could only have been impressed at the warmth of banter between the two sides.
It was enhanced by senior British representative Hugh Davies' own ink-sketched Christmas card to Ambassador Zhao Jihua featuring a picture of Father Christmas and a tram - no doubt a through-tram - rattling along in Central.
Ahead lie three days of talks centred around the Court of Final Appeal, China's concerns over the non-return of the Vietnamese and issues including the offshore sewage outfall.
They began by Mr Davies commenting on the sunny weather.
But then came the first faux pas. Mr Zhao, through a translator, said he had studied English language and literature at university. It was his first time in Shakespeare's home town, perhaps unaware that the bard came from Stratford, 140 kilometres away.