As summer approaches, the temperature continues to rise, and the fields outside Rome have already turned into a sea of flowers.
In this beautiful and fertile land, manors and farms are dotted in this wilderness. Flowers are in full bloom on the dense grapevines, nurturing the fruits of the autumn harvest.
Aiglon strolled through this lush green field, and then led by his great-uncle, Cardinal Fish, to a secluded country church.
Of course they are not here to enjoy the scenery.
This group of people stopped outside the small church and carefully observed the surrounding situation. After making sure that no one was waiting, Cardinal Fish opened the door first and walked in.
After a moment, he withdrew again, nodded to the young man reassuringly, and then made a gesture to invite him in.
It seems that there is no problem...Aigron was relieved.
That's right, he came here specially today just to meet people.
To be precise, it was the meeting with Cardinal Vittorio Esposito.
Since receiving the mission from Aiglon, Cardinal Fish has started his private activities with a long-lost passion, and the focus of his activities is this bishop.
After his frequent lobbying, Cardinal Vittorio Esposito was finally moved and agreed to the meeting, and the location they agreed on was in this remote country church.
It was obvious that both parties did not trust each other. Because of this distrust, Aigron did not invite the Cardinal to the hotel where he was staying, but chose to meet at the agreed place.
The cardinal was also afraid of any conspiracy on his side, so he also wanted to choose a place he was familiar with.
So after secret negotiations between the two parties, this was finally chosen as the meeting place.
Now that he was sure to be safe, Aigron no longer hesitated and walked to the church with his head held high.
The light inside the church was quite dark, exuding a rotten atmosphere that had been in disrepair. Aigron quickly walked into the depths of it.
At this time, he saw the person he wanted to meet next to the altar.
Opposite him is an old man who is about sixty or seventy years old. His hair has already turned gray. He is tall and thin, with a pointed chin and a high nose. His face has become more sharp and gloomy due to the contraction of muscles in old age; his body does not have much The decaying aura of the elderly, the bright eyes, and the energy and lust for power can easily be seen in them.
For understandable reasons, he was not wearing the red robe of a cardinal, but the black robe of an ordinary priest. Behind him, stood two middle-aged men, about forty or fifty years old, also wearing robes. The young man is probably his secretary and confidant.
At this moment, the three people across from him were also looking at him with scrutinizing eyes, obviously also weighing the young man's weight.
With the pace he had been trained since childhood, Aigron walked calmly in front of the three people, looking directly at each other without showing any nervousness.
Then, he bowed and showed respect to the other party, "Nice to meet you, Your Majesty the Bishop."
"Nice to meet you, your young highness."
True to his appearance, the Cardinal's voice is aged but still strong, full of piercing sharp stones. "This is an extremely unexpected meeting for me, but I think it is also a rare honor in my life."
"You are flattering to say so." Aigron replied with a smile.
"No, Your Highness, to be honest, I was filled with emotion when I saw you at this moment." The cardinal shook his head slightly, "I saw you at the empire's celebration. You were only over a year old at that time. Although you I definitely don’t remember, but I and everyone once thought that he was the King of Rome, the future King of Rome—that is, the future Earthly Supreme, but who of us can imagine what will happen next?”
The cardinal sighed and shook his head, as if he was regretting something.
It seems that he is not repulsive to me - Aigron thought to himself.
But words are never valuable, especially words spoken by people like this, especially not worthy of belief.
Being able to rise step by step in the Roman Church, which is full of intrigues and combines the seven deadly sins, Cardinal Esposito will never be an easy character to deal with.
He may not lose all human emotions, but they are certainly ranked below power.
So Aigron would not take such words seriously.
"I'm a victim of these tragedies, but I think I can fix it," he replied simply.
"Maybe it's tragedy, maybe it's comedy, but to me both are the same thing - they are both God's will." The cardinal replied expressionlessly, "Your Highness, I am neutral about everything. , I followed God’s guidance.”
Stay neutral! Great, that implies that anything is negotiable, as long as the price is right.
Aiglon understood.
"Then you'd like to hear what I'm planning?" he asked.
"If I don't want to, there is no need for me to come." The cardinal replied calmly, "But Your Highness, I didn't intend to get into this muddy water, but you gave me too much. The cardinal will not be moved by the gift you gave me..."
Perhaps because he felt there was no need to act pretentious with the young man, the cardinal was very candid in his words.
Obviously, Aigron could hear that the cardinal said this deliberately. He wanted to limit the relationship between the two to monetary transactions rather than political alliances. He did not want to bear any obligations to Aigron.
Huh, this old cunning guy, although he was moved by money, he still wanted to retain freedom of action for himself until the last moment.
However, Aigron was not angry. After all, he had never counted on the other party and his loyal ministers. How could there be good men and women among the top leaders of the Roman Church.
Everyone uses each other and everyone gets what they need, and that's all he needs.
"These gifts are just a way for me to show my sincerity. You can accept them. Of course, I also have my demands -" Aigron also directly entered the topic, "Your Majesty, next I am going to carry out a project." Big move, I hope you can help me convince His Majesty the Pope to give me some favors."
"It is a difficult thing," answered the cardinal. "His Majesty the Pope cannot grant favors to others for no reason, let alone your special status——"
"It's precisely because it's difficult that I need your help. After all, everyone knows now that His Majesty the Pope has both trust and dependence on you, and your opinion is very important to him." When Aigron said this, he deliberately pulled He said in a long voice, "Besides, I have also prepared a gift for His Majesty the Pope..."
Then, he winked at Cardinal Fish, who had been silent all this time, and the cardinal understood, took out a package from his arms, and then opened it.
"oh!"
When he saw this piece of jade with his own eyes, even the well-informed cardinal couldn't help but lose consciousness for a moment.
But he quickly calmed down.
"Do you really want to give it to the Pope?" he asked, staring intently at Aigron.
"Of course." Aiglon nodded heavily, "What I miss most is the throne. Treasures and treasures are meaningless to me. I am happy to give them to anyone who is willing to help me..."
Then, he touched the jadeite with his hand and felt its smooth touch. "Besides, there have been too many bloody events surrounding this treasure. I think only His Majesty the Pope, who is the most loyal servant of God, has enough virtue to bear its value..."
Although Aigron knew that he would never dare to keep such rare treasures for himself, he still hinted and threatened to prevent the cardinal from getting carried away and doing something stupid.
The cardinal did not answer immediately, but thought for a moment.
He knew that if this treasure were presented to His Majesty the Pope, it would definitely make him very happy and further consolidate his favor for him, and it was by virtue of this favor that he climbed to his current high position.
Although he has become a cardinal, Vittorio Esposito's inner ambition is still not fully satisfied. Every sleepless night, he is thinking about the Holy See in this world.
Even though he had violated the commandments countless times, he believed that he was fully qualified to occupy it. After all, so many extremely depraved villains had worn the triple crown, why couldn't he?
However, Vittorio Esposito also knows that this will not be easy, and there are too many people who are also coveting this position.
In the process of climbing up step by step, he is old and has so many colleagues behind him who are also watching him. He must take active action.
He wants to please the pope and build gangs within the bishops' conference in order to occupy a more favorable position in the succession war when the pope dies - and this cannot be separated from the support of huge amounts of money.
However, before this huge undertaking, although the Cardinal had tried every means to save money, he was still a little stretched. At this time, he received an extremely valuable gift from Cardinal Fish - Fish The cardinal also promised to give him more gifts to come.
In the face of this "favor" that provides help in times of need, even if he knows that the other party has bad intentions, the cardinal is still willing to listen to the other party's appeal.
"After spending such a huge price, you must have an incredible goal..." The cardinal standing on the altar asked the young man in a kind and solemn tone as if he was preaching, "Your Highness, what do you want from me?" , What do you get from His Majesty the Pope?"
At this point, Aigron didn't hide it anymore.
"Next, I plan to organize a volunteer army to go to Greece, drive away the Turks and Egyptians, and regain this holy land for Christians. I want the Pope to bless my expedition and inform the entire Catholic world when I win. Reward me for my good deeds and encourage me for my righteous deeds." Aigron said his plan, "If God really bless me and let me succeed, then I hope that when I succeed, the city of Rome will scream for the liberation of Greece. bell--"
As he finished speaking in one breath, the cardinal listened quietly, first shocked, then lost in thought.
"You actually have such leisure? Why do you spend money and bleed for the Greeks?" he blurted out.
"I was once the King of Rome, so what's wrong with fighting for the Romans?" Aigron argued forcefully, "Besides, I carried out this project at my own expense, and I didn't need the church to pay a penny to liberate the land where Western civilization was born. Is this the case?" Isn’t it enough to show my nobility and piety? I will show my loyalty to the church to the world, and I hope you can see and praise this loyalty. This is all I need.”
"Oh, of course I believe that your loyalty will never be less than that of your father." The cardinal replied with a hint of sarcasm.
Aigron just pretended not to hear this taunt, after all, he was asking for something from the other party now, but he secretly determined in his heart that sooner or later, this guy would not dare to show a word of ridicule in front of him - he believed that this day would not be far away.
"What do you think?" He stopped beating around the bush and asked directly. "If you are willing, we will cooperate on this, and you will be my benefactor from now on, and I will remember this feeling; if you are not willing, I will not blame you, we will just pretend that nothing has happened, and I will go find someone else." Please give me a reply!"
Under the young man's gaze, the cardinal continued to meditate.
He still needed time to digest the news, after all, it was so unexpected.
Of course, he was shocked but not disgusted.
After all, on the surface, this request is not difficult for him. If the young man carries out this plan, he, the Pope, and even the Roman Church will not suffer any harm, and even benefit a lot.
The real embarrassments and headaches are in Paris, Petersburg, and London, but Rome can legitimately cheer for the liberation and victory of Christians. In the face of this kind of justice, no one can say anything even if they know that the Pope has received money. .
But the matter was serious and he needed to think about it carefully. He couldn't even vouch for His Majesty the Pope's opinion.
"I need a moment to think about—" he answered after a moment.
"Of course." Aigron didn't need him to agree immediately, so he nodded, "You have a few days to think about it. If you are interested, you can find my uncle at any time."
"Well, okay." The cardinal breathed a sigh of relief.
Then he asked, "Do you have any other requests?"
"I have a small request." Aiglon replied, "I want to meet my grandmother. I hope you can make it easier for her to leave the city safely."
Even if he got the cardinal's personal guarantee, he would not be able to enter the city of Rome - after all, morals are declining these days. Who knows if the cardinal would choose to betray his friends for glory, trick Aigron into the city of Rome and then kidnap him? .
In his current situation, it never hurts to be more careful about everything.
However, although he cannot enter the city of Rome, Letizia can come out. After all, Letizia is only living in Rome, and there is no restriction on freedom in theory. As long as the cardinal makes it easier, his grandmother can You can go out of the city to see yourself.
"No problem." The cardinal agreed to this request simply. "I'll make arrangements for you when I get back."
"Thank you." Aigron breathed a sigh of relief.
If nothing else happens, he will be able to see his grandmother soon.
Oh, and Theresa...
At this moment, his heart was filled with joy, or a sense of accomplishment.
He watched his plan being steadily implemented, slowly turning from a fantasy in his mind into a reality.
Nothing is difficult in this world, but for those who are determined, as long as they do it with determination, there will always be a turn for the better.
"Is Faria okay?" Just as he was thinking about it, the cardinal asked suddenly.
"He is fine now, but for some reason he has difficulty moving, so he stayed at my residence for the time being." Aigron answered vaguely, "I assure you that you will definitely be able to see him in the future."
"Okay, I do miss him." The cardinal sighed softly. "Then let's meet again, Your Highness. We look forward to seeing you again."
"Looking forward to seeing you again." Aigron said no more. He bowed and left in large strides.
The cardinal stood motionless, watching the young man leave.
Soon, the door was quickly closed, and the church fell into darkness again.
Although the bishop who has been practicing for fifty years has secretly deviated from the teachings countless times, at this moment when his thoughts were complicated, he frowned and still habitually quoted a passage of scripture and muttered to himself.
"Tell us, please, when will these things happen? What will be the sign of your coming and the end of this age? But he who endures to the end will be saved..."
Meng Gong Chu Meng reminds you: Please bookmark it after reading it (), it will be more convenient to read it again.
