The first ray of sunshine in the morning shines on the earth, giving the street lights that have been on all night to rest. As time goes by, more and more pedestrians are walking on the street. The vibrant city of Rome has entered another busy and lively day.
Antonio stood on the balcony, looking at the city that was becoming more and more modern, and he was filled with emotions.
"It's been a long time since I've been back to Rome. It's changed a lot."
He looked at the scene outside and couldn't help but admire it.
Just when he wanted to see more of the sights of Rome, a knock on the door interrupted his thoughts.
"Your Excellency, Speaker Crispi has arrived."
The words of the entourage came from outside the door, asking Antonio to quickly tidy up and prepare to welcome his friend.
"Antonio, I haven't seen you for so long, I almost don't recognize you."
As soon as he entered the door, Speaker Crispi looked at Antonio who appeared in front of him and exclaimed. Because the Antonio in front of him was very different from that of several years ago. The previous Antonio was not so dark, and there were too many wrinkles on his forehead.
Bar.
Faced with his friend's surprised expression, Antonio was no longer surprised. He replied directly. "In East Africa, it's very difficult not to get tanned. On the contrary, there is really no change."
"Tell me quickly, what have you done in these years to make such a big change? Although I have received many letters from you before, I want to hear the content beyond the letters."
Facing his curious friend, Antonio immediately replied, "As you wish, let's sit down and talk."
Seeing that the two of them were planning to have a long conversation, the others showed signs of coming to the door and left.
Antonio then briefly narrated his experiences over the years to his friend. During his narration, Speaker Crispi realized that his friend had visited all the East African colonies in the past few years, including Abyssinia and the Mahdi.
He had been to the front lines of the kingdom's war several times, and he was so shocked that he called his friend so brave.
At the same time, he also asked curiously, "The Mahdi Kingdom and Abyssinia are still at war?"
When asked by his friend, Antonio replied, "Yes, they are still fighting, but their war is a little different from ours."
Antonio then explained to his friends how the ongoing bad war was fought. It turned out that the two countries were fighting in the disputed Lake Tana and refused to admit defeat. Every year during the off-season, the two countries were in the Lake Tana area.
If you win a battle, you can grow crops here for a year, but if you lose, you can only leave in despair.
It was an eye-opener for Crispi to hear about a battle that was like a duel.
After a pleasant conversation, Crispi suddenly said seriously. "Antonio, your Majesty has called you back to Rome this time. You should know what happened."
Seeing his friend talking about serious matters, Antonio answered equally seriously. "I know some general information."
After hearing Antonio's answer, Crispi immediately continued. "This summons is crucial. If His Majesty is satisfied, it will be a matter of course for you to take over. But what are your plans for how to let His Majesty make a choice?"
Faced with the question from his friend, Antonio thought about it for a while and then answered. "I have some ideas, but I don't know if they are suitable. Do you have any good suggestions?"
Faced with Antonio's rhetorical question, Crispi immediately replied. "Actually, there are three candidates for the Governor of Borneo this time. In the end, you were summoned to Rome for questioning. It is obvious that His Majesty needs you. But after all, Borneo is still the number one tax collector."
It is an important place, so it is more or less necessary to inform His Majesty of its plans for economic development.
If you follow what I mean, when talking to His Majesty, you need to focus on the description of economic development, and then talk about your expertise in ethnic adjustment and governing officials."
After listening to his friend's suggestion, Antonio nodded and replied. "This is the same as what I thought before, but I am not very good at economic development, and I am afraid that His Majesty will be disappointed by then."
"This is how modest you are. What kind of place is East Africa? The land is barren and the products are not rich. There are even few minerals. You can manage the place in an orderly manner and hand over five million lire to Rome. You have performed very well."
Facing Crispi's compliment, Antonio shook his head and said, "This is all thanks to maritime transportation. If a few suitable ports hadn't been cleared, I would really have been able to play in the sand in East Africa."
Then the two of them talked together for a while. After waiting for a while, Crispi looked at the time and said, "You have to meet with His Majesty at noon, so I won't disturb you. We will talk after you are done."
"Well, I won't send you out."
The two parted just like they did many years ago, without so many polite words.
After Crispi returned to the carriage, he took a complicated look at the room where his friend was, and then said to the coachman, "Let's go back now."
In the room, after his friend left, Antonio had been sitting in a chair and meditating. He didn't wake up until his entourage knocked on the door again.
After receiving the news that his friend had left, he picked up a manuscript from his box. This was the manuscript he planned to write for the conversation with His Majesty. The ideas in the manuscript were surprisingly similar to what Speaker Crispi had talked about before, but now he planned to
Make some changes to it.
This modification took a short while, and by almost noon, I finally had it done again.
Satisfied, Antonio stretched and relieved his fatigue, and then prepared to meet His Majesty. After doing all this, he suddenly said, "I hope I didn't think too much."
Then he boarded the carriage and headed for the palace.
Antonio stayed in the palace for five hours in total, and waited until the lanterns came on before leaving.
Under the attention of many pairs of eyes, the carriage carrying him returned to his residence all the way.
Antonio was very happy when he returned to his residence. Fortunately, he revised the manuscript, otherwise if he had followed the original plan, this position would definitely not have fallen into his hands. This good friend of his had been a 'big help'.
The next day, Carlo signed the order appointing Antonio as the governor of Borneo, and also signed the candidate for the governor of East Africa after his transfer.
The new Governor-General of East Africa unexpectedly fell into the hands of Home Secretary Sabot. As for his transition from Home Secretary to Governor-General, no one except the person involved knew whether it was good or not. Of course, if he became the Governor-General of Borneo, it would definitely be a huge challenge.
progress.
And as Antonio got the governorship of Borneo, many ambitious people seemed to be discouraged and died down.
As for Antonio's friendship with the Speaker, the friendship has not changed, and the two still talk about everything in public.
However, as Antonio goes to Borneo, where there is a need to receive a successor with a different style from the previous governor, I believe they are busy again.
