From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

After Major Sérurier saluted and said hello to Lawrence, he wisely retreated to the rear, leaving the central position to the Duke of Choiseul and Lawrence.

Duke Choiseul, who was standing in front of Lawrence, continued to turn his head and look around, but his eyes soon stopped on a ship in the port.

I saw that the hull of the ship was covered with black damage marks, and only a very small area showed the normal dark oak color.

Even the three masts that should have been standing on the deck were dismantled due to the fire, leaving the deck bare with nothing.

With such damage, it is even a miracle that it can still float on the sea.

"Tsk tsk. This is the British warship."

Duke Choiseul looked at Reason, which was like a large piece of coke, and shook his head sadly.

Lawrence also focused his attention on the Reasonable, smiled and nodded.

Although the Reason was so badly damaged on the surface, Grosso personally inspected its internal structure and confirmed that the main structure was not damaged, so it was not particularly difficult to repair it.

Of course, in view of Corsica's current financial situation of making ends meet, and the fact that there is no immediate need to improve its naval strength, Lawrence has no choice but to shelve the matter of repairing the Reasonable and store the battleship in the port for future discussion.

"What a great battleship. It is also a model among third-tier ships."

Duke Choiseul shook his head and said, seemingly intentionally but unintentionally:

"The British have lost such a warship and the experienced sailors on it. I'm afraid they won't let it go."

After hearing this, Lawrence glanced at the Duke of Choiseul without changing his expression, and secretly lamented that the Duke was indeed the same as when they first met. He set a trap for himself and made a show of force.

Both of them knew very well that Lawrence's act of daring to burn down the Reason and execute the British officers was essentially a false pretense. It was with France's support for Corsica that Lawrence could do such a radical and popular move. decision making.

The Duke of Choiseul's words were undoubtedly asking Lawrence for reward. After all, France's willingness to block most of the pressure from the British for Corsica was not out of kindness.

"I think so. The British guy must be furious."

Lawrence nodded calmly and said. This sentence also hinted that he accepted the benefits of the French and would make concessions in subsequent negotiations. Then he added:

"Your Excellency, it is noisy here. Please follow me to the Governor's Palace. I have prepared a grand banquet for you."

Duke Choiseul had a look of satisfaction on his face, but he waved his hand and said with a smile:

"Forget the banquet. Rather than stuffing my stomach with food, talking to an enlightened and outstanding young man like Governor Bonaparte can satisfy my spirit more."

Lawrence glanced at the Duke of Choiseul and lamented that he was indeed as impatient as historical records. He had just arrived in Corsica and was eager to negotiate with him.

However, since the Duke of Choiseul had requested this, Lawrence was also willing to accompany him. After instructing Old Sean and Yan to receive the rest of the French visitors, the two got into the carriage and headed to the Governor's Palace.

After returning to the Governor's Palace, since the meeting was between Lawrence and the Duke of Choiseul, and it was not a formal negotiation recorded by a clerk, it was held directly in Lawrence's study.

Neither of them was in a hurry to speak after taking their seats. Instead, they calmly tasted the hot tea that Anna brought in, while silently preparing the strategy for the next confrontation in their hearts.

Although this was not a formal negotiation, both Lawrence and the Duke of Choiseul knew that the subsequent tedious negotiations would only discuss trivial issues.

The real major issues will be resolved in this private meeting.

"Ahem."

Duke Choiseul picked up the teacup and drank the remaining tea in one gulp, then put the teacup aside, cleared his throat and said:

"Governor Bonaparte, let's take this opportunity to talk about the Corsican Crown."

"Sure, what do you want to talk about?"

Laurence politely stretched out his hand to signal the Duke of Choiseul to continue.

"The last time we met, it was at Count Malbeuf's estate."

Duke Choiseul rubbed his temples and recalled:

"I remember that we reached an agreement on the issue of autonomy in Corsica, but King Louis was not satisfied with this resolution. You can understand, of course, as a king, you need to govern this country more or less."

"autonomy"

Lawrence frowned and looked at Duke Choiseul. Louis XV's dissatisfaction was mostly just rhetoric. In essence, Duke Choiseul wanted to take advantage of the enmity between the British and Corsica to force Lawrence to make concessions.

"Of course I can understand what King Louis is thinking, so what does King Louis need?"

Although Lawrence was asking the Duke of Choiseul, in fact Lawrence had already guessed the answer.

The French will not have the will to directly rule Corsica, a poor place with backward education, poor language and culture, in a short time, so it is clear what the French want.

"money."

Duke Choiseul smiled and said:

"Or taxation. A certain proportion of Corsica's taxation needs to be handed over to the king to demonstrate the king's right to rule this land."

Lawrence looked at Duke Choiseul silently, sighing in his heart that he was really here to ask for money.

Although Corsica is already very poor, the French have given Corsica full political autonomy anyway. To put it bluntly, they are letting the Corsica people fend for themselves.

So in this case, even if the French's exploitation of the Corsican people caused any problems, they did not need to spend extra energy to manage it, because the mess would be left to Lawrence to clean up.

"I have to tell you that just now I was discussing taxation with the Corsican finance minister."

Lawrence looked at Duke Choiseul seriously and said:

"The people of Corsica cannot afford another tax burden."

"Maybe, but as for the people, those farmers can save this part of the tax if they live frugally for a period of time."

Duke Choiseul ignored Lawrence's direct gaze and said nonchalantly:

“Every Corsican eats one less piece of bread a day, and that’s it.”

"Most Corsicans don't get a piece of bread a day."

Lawrence said in a deep voice.

Duke Choiseul shrugged but said nothing. It was obvious that he did not accept Lawrence's reason.

There was a brief silence in the study, and Duke Choiseul's face became a little stiff.

Seeing that the negotiations between the two parties had reached a deadlock, Lawrence suddenly raised his head and stared at Duke Choiseul and said:

"Maybe I have another plan."

"Another plan?"

Duke Choiseul frowned and asked. He didn't think Corsica could provide France with anything other than taxes.

"You may know that there is a silver mine deep in the mountains southeast of Ajaccio."

Lawrence stood up and took down the map of Corsica hanging on the wall, pointed to the southeast of Ajaccio and said to Duke Choiseul.

The Duke of Choiseul nodded in enlightenment. It seemed that Lawrence was planning to use part of the income from this silver mine to replace the taxes paid, so he said with some satisfaction:

"I have indeed heard that it is a rich mine. This is probably why the Kingdom of Sardinia wanted to invade Corsica. It's just that"

Duke Choiseul said, with a bit of hesitation on his face, and added:

"I also heard that the development of that silver mine is extremely slow, the surrounding road facilities are very poor, and the labor force in Corsica is insufficient. I guess it will take a long time for large-scale mining, right?"

Lawrence nodded. Duke Choiseul was indeed the person who controlled France's foreign policy. He knew the situation of the silver mines in remote Corsica so well.

"You're right, but this is indeed a pretty good investment." Lawrence said, tracing the map with his hand.

Duke Choiseul became somewhat interested, licked his lips and asked:

"Governor Bonaparte, what are you going to do?"

Lawrence looked directly at Duke Choiseul. He had already prepared for this question, so he said in a deep voice:

"I will use the Ajaccio silver mine to establish the National Silver Company of Corsica, with the Corsican government holding 51% of the shares and the remaining 49% held by the French royal family."

Thanks to the book friend "A Legendary Pigeon" for your monthly ticket support!