From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

As for the angry and suspicious Archbishop Giotto, who wanted to ask for evidence, Lawrence did not have the slightest worry about him; after all, it was Grosso who was doing the work, and he would not simply install a trap for a few fishermen. The charge of espionage.

Grosso must have used many methods of coercion, inducement and winning people's hearts. I am afraid that even now, those fishermen imprisoned in Valletta Port still wish they were really British spies.

Grand Commander Erwin sat on his seat and read the confession again, then sighed and handed it to other senior officials for circulation.

Although he was often disappointed with Franche's incompetence, and often felt that he hated iron and steel against his own race, Franche was his nephew after all, and he was a descendant of the Medici family, so he was not like Joe. That raises too many doubts about the great imam.

The main hall was quiet, except for the occasional gasps from the senior officials who circulated the confessions.

Grand Captain Erwin leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes tightly. He looked like an old man sleeping peacefully, but from his clenched fists with bulging veins, Lawrence knew that this Grand Captain Chang's heart must have stirred up huge waves.

Several people just waited silently.

More than half an hour later, Archimandrite Giotto returned.

The Grand Priest is no longer as angry and suspicious as when he first left the house. Now, only a heavy emotion can be seen on his face.

Archimandrite Giotto walked to the long table, but did not return to his seat. Instead, he looked at Erwin seriously and said in a deep voice:

"Grand Commander, I just went to the dungeon to see the spies. They are indeed native Maltese, and they were indeed bribed by an unknown British person."

An imperceptible smile flashed across Lawrence's face. Grosso was indeed a capable subordinate in this matter.

"this!"

"The British really started to inquire about Malta's intelligence?!"

"Grand Commander, we must take action."

And when the senior leaders of the Knights heard that their trusted Grand Master had confirmed the authenticity of those spies, they couldn't sit still for a moment and looked at Grand Master Erwin for his opinion.

"Is this so"

Grand Captain Erwin narrowed his eyes a little and looked at Franche twice, then opened his eyes and said slowly:

"France, you have done a good job in this matter. The Knights will not forget your outstanding achievements. In addition, Your Excellency Bonaparte, we have to continue talking about the British."

"I am extremely happy, Your Majesty the Grand Commander." Lawrence nodded expressionlessly, as if everything that just happened had nothing to do with him.

"Um"

Grand Captain Erwin opened his mouth, but did not make a sound. Instead, he hesitated for a while, as if he was still considering the safest decision for the Knights. After a long time, he said tiredly:

"Your Excellency, I allow your soldiers to garrison the fortresses in Malta. As for seeking protection from King Louis, I cannot make a promise to you yet."

Although he had believed the British espionage, Erwin still retained his usual caution and did not immediately proceed to give up the independence of the Knights in exchange for protection.

In his view, allowing Corsican and French soldiers to garrison Malta's fortresses was already a huge concession, and it was enough to ensure that Malta could defeat the British attack; therefore, he might as well wait and see again, if the British really Come, then it is not too late to seek protection from France after defeating their first wave of attacks.

After all, Grand Master Erwin is still unwilling, especially in his own hands, to commit the Knights to the rule of a secular king. This will make his name appear in the history books with disgrace. part.

"You made the right choice, Grand Master."

Lawrence smiled and nodded, he was already very satisfied with the result.

After all, Lawrence didn't expect that through such a layout, Grand Commander Erwin would willingly surrender to Louis XV. If this was the case, Erwin would definitely not get the support of everyone in the Knights.

For this Grand Master, who was cautious and calm by nature, only after he saw the mast and guns of the Saint-Denis would he truly put aside all worries and transfer the Grand Master's reputation and position to King Louis of Versailles. .

Grand Captain Erwin stood up unsteadily, and his voice sounded a little weak when he spoke. I don't know whether it was due to old age or frailty, or because this series of events consumed too much of his energy.

He pointed feebly at Francesco and Giotto, and gave brief instructions:

"Grand Priest, Captain of the Guard, assist Governor Bonaparte in arranging soldiers to garrison in various fortresses; the rest can disperse."

After giving these instructions, Erwin nodded slightly to Lawrence and left the main hall with the support of a young knight.

The remaining three senior knights also left Fort Manoel and returned to their respective posts.

"His Excellency Bonaparte"

Archbishop Giotto walked up to Lawrence. Although his face showed a bit of reluctance, he lowered his head without hesitation and bowed deeply, and the previous hostility in his tone was completely gone. :

"I apologize for my disrespect to you before. Since you did lead the troops to defend the Knights, you are our brother with the same faith. I look forward to the day when I can fight side by side with you."

Looking at the vigorous Grand Priest, who was quite prestigious in the Knights, Lawrence stood up quickly, put his hands on Giotto's shoulders to help him up, and said with a faint smile:

"There is no disrespect, Grand Priest. I only see your loyalty and duty to the Knights. I hope that our swords can always point in the same direction."

"I hope this will always be the case." Giotto stood up, a smile finally appearing on his strong, thin, unsmiling face.

A few people chatted briefly in the main hall, and then immediately went to the port to start deploying Lawrence's soldiers to garrison various forts.

Archimandrite Giotto skillfully listed several weak points that needed to be defended on the island of Malta. In the process, he did not even need to look at the map. He just stood at the port and planned for Lawrence to deploy his troops at various locations. Distribution among forts.

As the captain of the guard, Franche was listening to the discussion of several people. He only felt that it was as obscure as when he was listening to his tutor teach algebra and geometry in his childhood. He quickly withdrew from the discussion and stood aside with an embarrassed look on his face. Enjoy the sea view.

With Giotto's assistance and command, 3,000 Corsican soldiers quickly stationed in the core hinterland of Malta. Among them, the 2,000 more powerful French soldiers were deliberately arranged by Lawrence on both sides of the port. The fortress was used to resist the British attack head-on.

By sunset, all the soldiers had been transferred from the rickety merchant ships to the castle fortress.

It can be said that Archbishop Giotto was always busy. One moment he was at the port, pointing out the location for a certain army that had just disembarked and was still in a dazed state. The commander here explained the essentials of defense; he immediately rushed to a tower that had been in disrepair to see if it was still suitable for soldiers to live there; then he called the division chief's men and asked them to deal with Corsica as soon as possible. Logistical problems in the army.

Two or three times, as soon as Lawrence asked him about the arrangements for a certain matter, Archbishop Giotto replied flatly: "That has been done."

Even Major Serurier, who joined the army at the age of thirteen, couldn't help but praise: "He is really a natural soldier."

In the evening, all the affairs had been basically handled, and the Corsican soldiers had a clean bed to rest on, so that they could recharge their batteries and prepare for the hard battle to come in the coming days.

Archbishop Giotto said goodbye to Lawrence immediately after finishing these tasks. He still needed to deal with his own job-managing Malta's naval affairs.

Lawrence and Major Serulier stood on the top of a seaside fortress, looking at the blood-red sunset gradually sinking into the boundless Mediterranean Sea.

Soon, the sun had set in the west, casting red clouds all over the sky behind it, like a vast expanse of golden dust.

The Mediterranean Sea is calm, with no waves and no ripples. The ocean surface shines in the setting sun and looks like a huge, neat and smooth metal plate.

"Today is such a lucky day." Major Serulier sighed happily as he blew the sea breeze on his face:

"Thankfully those spies were discovered, otherwise our soldiers would still be living on the ship tonight."

This time, only Lawrence, Grosso and Franche knew about the conspiracy. Therefore, Major Serurier thought it was really the goddess of luck who made Grand Commander Erwin change under the influence of this unexpected incident. Notice.

Lawrence smiled and said nothing, feeling the moist sea breeze mixed with the touch of salt particles hitting his face.

"But that Erwin is quite decisive." Major Serurier then commented:

"If it were me, I wouldn't be able to let 3,000 foreign soldiers garrison the core defensive fortress. What's more, the knights don't even have 3,000 people in total."

If Lawrence really has other intentions and prepares to seize the island of Malta with arms, with the protection of these fortresses, the Knights will have little room for resistance; this shows that Grand Commander Erwin still bears a lot of psychological pressure.

Of course, Lawrence would not issue such a stupid order. If he really dared to do so, the impact of such an act would be ten times worse than Count Falcone's invasion of the Corsican embassy.

As the eldest grandson of the Duke of Richelieu, Count Falcone was directly imprisoned in the Palace of Justice by the furious Louis XV. Lawrence could not imagine how he would be punished by Louis XV if he really captured Malta by force.

Although the Knights Hospitaller is a negligible presence in politics, it has a special historical status after all. This is why in the 21st century, the Knights Hospitaller has even lost its territory of Malta, but it can still be recognized as an independent organization. national entity of territory.

For Lawrence, the only way to get this Mediterranean hub is to get them to bow their heads to him.

"The next thing to do is to wait for the arrival of the British." Looking down at the entire Valletta Port, Lawrence breathed a sigh of relief and said.

"This was probably the most relaxing part of our trip."

Major Serurier smiled and made a joke, and he also seemed very relaxed. In his opinion, with the troops currently deployed on the island of Malta, it would be completely easy to repel the British landing attack from the port.

"However, we cannot take it lightly. October is coming soon. Soldiers must maintain combat readiness at all times."

"yes!"

While Lawrence and Major Serrurier were admiring the sunset over the Mediterranean Sea in Malta, they were in a villa by the sea on the outskirts of Marseille.

Baron Bertula was lying on a chair in the courtyard of the villa, admiring the purple sunset with a leisurely expression. As an Englishman, the endless sea always made him feel at ease.

At this time, Bertula's personal secretary, Sir Robert, suddenly walked into the small courtyard, holding a piece of paper sealed with red lacquer.

Looking at his lord immersed in the beautiful scenery, Sir Robert coughed twice carefully to attract Baron Bertula's attention.

"Oh, Robert." Baron Bertula just turned his head, then turned to the Mediterranean Sea under the sunset, and greeted with a smile:

"Did anyone write a letter?"

"Yes, Your Excellency." Sir Robert walked up to Bertula, handed him the envelope in his hand, and explained:

"Sent from the Admiralty."

"Ah! The Admiralty, our old friend, I really don't know what we diplomats will do without the navy!"

Baron Bertula sat up, took the envelope with a chuckle, took out the letter paper inside, and joked to Sir Robert before he read it:

"I bet they must have remembered us poor diplomats at this time and decided to notify us of their plan to launch a surprise attack on the island of Malta when the ship left port."

Sir Robert shrugged. He also had no good impression of the independent Royal Navy.

"Let me take a look." Baron Bertula tore open the envelope forcefully and looked at the contents of the letter inside, with a slight smile on his lips:

"Well, it is completely consistent with the information received by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. My dear Colonel Mohan is serving as the commander of the operation. I really want to see what his expression will be like after he led an entire squadron and failed to capture a small island of Malta. But forget it, this colonel is just a pawn in the overall situation."

"I really don't know how the adults in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs got such top-secret information in advance." Sir Robert sighed and said casually.

The smile on Baron Bertula's face grew stronger and stronger. He put his hand on Sir Robert's shoulder and said sincerely:

"You have to know, Robert, that No. 10 Downing Street is not as glamorous as it appears. Intrigues and intrigues are as common as a rainy day in London. If you are lucky enough to enter there, being mute is the safest option."

"I will remember that." Sir Robert nodded heavily.

With that said, Baron Bertula looked at the letter paper twice, and after confirming that there was no valuable information on it, he crumpled it into a ball of paper, threw it into the sea in front of him, stood up and gave instructions:

"Now that Colonel Mohan has started to take action, I can't be idle anymore and write a letter to the Duke of Richelieu. The finale of the drama starring him will be released next spring, so I have to be well prepared. Oh. , By the way, I also want to invite the envoy from Naples to see me."

"You mean the king's messenger?" Sir Robert asked sternly.

Baron Bertula stretched himself, smiled and shook his head and said:

"Strictly speaking, that's the queen's messenger, but that's about it."