Just as people bid farewell to spring and began to feel the heat of summer, Father Faria, who was left by Aigron to serve as Prime Minister of the Principality of Ioannina, quietly returned to France under the escort of his entourage.
This is not a "job transfer" by Aiglon, but Father Faria's own wish.
When Aigron first met him a few years ago, he was already paralyzed due to a sudden stroke and his body was extremely weak. Then he took his adopted son and joined Aigron's army, and worked hard to make suggestions for Aigron.
Eventually he became the prime minister of the newly born principality and shouldered the burden of the entire country.
Although the principality is not large in area, in the initial stage of the founding of the country, affairs were still complicated. Father Faria relied on his amazing will to drive his residual body to make the principality's government run in an orderly manner. There were not many people but
A well-equipped and well-paid standing army has been established to guard the borders and fortresses; all levels of government, tax offices and customs in the principality have been established and functioning well; land reforms have also been carried out to replace the land of Muslim landowners with knights and Orthodox landowners.
It has been implemented... In short, he has properly completed all the stalls left by Aigron for Aigron.
On the one hand, he felt that his work had come to an end; on the other hand, he also felt that his body was close to running out of fuel, so he wrote to Aiglon not long ago, requesting to step down as prime minister and stay in his life.
In the last moments of my life, I hope to see His Majesty again and reunite with his adopted son Edmund.
After receiving this letter that was almost like "begging for bones", Aiglon certainly couldn't bear to refuse. He immediately approved the priest's request, and then sent someone to send a ship to take the priest from Ioannina as quickly as possible.
took it over.
Originally, the imperial government was planning to arrange a grand welcome ceremony for him, but Father Faria refused this kindness. His weak body could not withstand the torment of various ceremonies and rituals. Now he just wanted to
Get tranquility.
In this case, Aigron also complied with his request, allowing the priest to land from Marseilles lightly, and then brought him all the way back to the Palace of Fontainebleau.
There was no grand ceremony, and the priest was directly carried to Aiglon's reception room. In addition to Aiglon, there were Theresa, the priest's adopted son Edmund, and Chanel, who had been taking care of the priest.
-These are the people the priest last cares about.
When the priest was brought to Aigron, Aigron immediately felt the terrible aura of aging.
The priest was already thin due to paralysis, but now he is even thinner than before. Because of the deep sunken eye sockets, his eyes appear disproportionately large, and the veins on his forehead are slightly raised, giving his face a strange blue-gray color.
His hair was completely gray and dry, and his wrinkled face showed no vitality at all.
Just by looking at his appearance, people can understand what the description of "dying" really means.
But even so, his eyes were still clear and sharp. When he saw a few people in the room, tears of relief and joy appeared in his originally numb eyes.
Although his entourage took good care of him along the way, the bumps along the way almost killed him. It was just because of his "obsession" that he wanted to see his relatives that he held on to it with just one breath.
The end of the journey - and this will also be the last journey in his life.
Therefore, he declined the grand ceremony arranged for him by the imperial government, preferring to come to Fontainebleau quietly and walk the last part of his life.
Before Aiglon could say anything, seeing his adoptive father so exhausted, the earl couldn't sit still at all.
He forgot about etiquette and manners, rushed to the priest desperately, picked up his hand, and cried emotionally.
"My father...please forgive me, I should have taken good care of you..." He became more and more sad as he spoke, and finally burst into tears.
Because he was framed and imprisoned, Edmund's father eventually died of illness and starvation, which became a lingering nightmare in Edmund's heart. Now, the priest who is like father and son to him seems to have passed away.
Not much, the two kinds of grief were intertwined, making it really unbearable for him to be so "unfilial".
Finally seeing his adopted son, Father Faria also had tears in his eyes, but he controlled his emotions with great perseverance, and then used the half of his body that could still move to gently hold him.
took Edmund's hand.
"No, my child... you have done everything I expected you to do... I am very proud of you, and I thank God for bringing you to me so that I will not finish my life alone.
…”
Although he still had thousands of words in his heart that he wanted to say to Edmund, he still resisted the urge and managed to raise his head slightly, walking around Edmund's body and looking at Egron longingly.
Aiglon was also quite sad in his heart, but on the surface he pretended to be calm.
He walked up to Father Faria, then bowed slightly and held the priest's pale and withered hand.
"Father, welcome back. I have approved your retirement plan, which means that from today on, you don't have to worry about anything anymore. You can enjoy your old age. Next, you can witness Edmund getting married and starting a business here.
The branches and leaves are blooming, I think this will definitely make you feel more gratified and happy."
"No, Your Majesty... I'm afraid... I'm afraid I won't be able to enjoy this happy future, but I will keep a close eye on him in heaven." Father Faria showed a weak bitter smile, but he still managed to cheer up.
Spirit, "You don't need to comfort me, let alone give me any false hope. I can fully bear the weight of reality. Don't forget, I am a priest and an unlucky guy who has experienced countless disasters. In my life
Among them, I have seen the death of too many people. I have become accustomed to it and have never been afraid of it... Moreover, because of your help, I can now be remembered in the history books in an inconspicuous corner.
, then what else is there to complain about?”
Looking at the priest's open-minded smile, Aigron sighed secretly in his heart.
As expected of a person who has seen a lot of the world, he can be so calm in the face of death.
Unlike the grief-stricken Edmund, although Aigron's heart was full of melancholy at this time, he was still able to maintain his rationality.
On the one hand, it's because he has a harder heart; on the other hand, it's because he knows that compared to the unlucky ending of the original work where he died in obscurity in a dark prison and his body was thrown into the sea, the current Faria
The priest not only lived for a few more years, but also once served as the prime minister of a country and held great power. After his death, he was able to receive endless honors and honors. The adopted son he missed most was also well... It can be said that he had helped the priest overcome his fate.
Precisely because he knew that he had given the priest a better fate, he had a clear conscience about it.
Since birth, old age, illness and death are the fate that human beings can never escape, we might as well face it calmly.
So, after a brief moment of grief, Aigron calmed down and then asked him again in a concerned tone.
"Is there anything else you would like me to do for you?"
Generally speaking, when monarchs and ministers say such things, they are already entrusting the funeral affairs, and as long as it is not a particularly outrageous request, they will basically agree to it as long as it is put forward - Aigron really wants to satisfy Faria
The priest's last wish was that he could die in peace.
Obviously, on the way to France, Father Faria had used his sharp and clear mind to think carefully about these issues, so when Aiglon raised this question, he did not hesitate at all and directly said his
idea.
"Your Majesty, I am grateful for your grace and mercy! In this case, I will shamelessly make a few requests for myself..." Father Faria cheered up, and then whispered to Aiglon, "First of all, about my body
, I hope that after my death, I will be cremated, and part of my ashes will be taken to Italy and placed in the chapel in my hometown, and part of my ashes will be placed in the garden of the Prime Minister's Palace in Ioannina... And before cremation, I hope to leave my
Heart, if you don't give me up, I hope to place my heart in Paris, next to my adopted son."
In modern Europe and before, it was not uncommon for people to leave their hearts or remains after death. After St. Louis died that year, his bones and organs were even divided into several parts and worshiped as the remains of a saint, so I heard the priest's request.
After that, Aigron agreed to him without thinking.
"Okay, I'll get it done for you."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." After Aiglon agreed, Father Faria continued to talk about his funeral arrangements, "After I became prime minister, I received a lot of salary, and thanks to your grace, you gave me many principalities.
my lands and treasures, all of which I had properly accounted for before leaving Ioannina, and which I hope will be passed on to my adopted son Edmond Dantès and his heirs after my death.”
"No problem, they will always be the property of the Count of Monte Cristo family!" Aiglon made a firm promise.
"As for the other inheritance, that's yours... I give up my claim and won't take any of it." At this time, the priest suddenly added in a low voice, and then blinked.
Aigron was stunned for a moment, and then couldn't help but smile slightly.
"I can't help it. Who allowed me to get there first... But, Father, everything I gave you is enough to make up for the loss of your father and son, right?"
Father Faria spent the first half of his life struggling with the legendary treasure, so in the last moments of his life, he did not forget to mention it to Aiglon - of course, at this time, it was just a joke.
To be able to have such a sense of humor in the last stage of life is indeed admirable.
"Do you have any other requests?" Aigron continued to ask.
At this time, Father Faria's expression gradually became serious.
"Your Majesty, relying on your kindness, I got everything I wanted, and I should have been satisfied with this. However, out of my selfish desire to pass on my career, and out of loyalty to you, I ask you to
Keep the following warnings in mind, and I hope it can bring you some reference in the future..."
Aigron suddenly understood that what the priest had just explained was a personal matter, and now he was about to explain his "political last words", so he quickly cheered up.
"Please tell me, I'm all ears."
"Under the guidance of your courage and wisdom, we overcame all obstacles and created a country from scratch. And through our efforts, the system of this new country has become operational. In the short term, as long as nothing happens,
No matter how big an accident it is, it can survive..." Father Faria braced himself and continued in a weak tone, "In the long run, if you want this country to survive and become a member of the French Empire,
Vassal, we must also be careful of intrusion from external forces."
"You mean Türkiye?" Aigron asked.
"No, no one is worried about Turkey..." The priest shook his head with a hint of ridicule, "Turkey is just a sick man. Although it seems to be able to maintain it now, it is already crumbling. Sooner or later, all the nations in the Balkans will be affected by Greece and Joachim.
Inspired by the independence of Nina, Turkey launched an uprising and broke away from the rule of the Turks - so Turkey has nothing to fear. In fact, it should worry more about whether it can survive to the next century. What I am referring to is another shocking thing.
A country that is in awe, it is stronger and more greedy, enough to swallow everything up..."
"Do you mean the Russians?" Aigron understood immediately.
"Yes, Your Majesty." Father Faria nodded slightly, and then continued speaking with great difficulty, "Although the Russians stopped going back in the last war, their greed for Constantinople and the Balkans
Desire will never disappear. It will always harbor this ambition, instigate conspiracies one after another, stir up disputes one after another, and then take the opportunity to deepen its own power... Although we don't have to worry at the moment,
But from a future perspective, this is almost inevitable."
That's so true, Father.
He did not rely on any "travel experience", but only relied on his own insight to make such a conclusion, which is indeed very remarkable.
Aiglon thought to himself secretly.
"Then what do you think should be done?" he asked.
"Now Russia is very close to the Balkans, but France is beyond its reach. Therefore, for the survival of the principality, we must not only strengthen the principality's own defense capabilities and consolidate its alliance with the Greeks, but also be careful to avoid false accusations."
Then, he explained what he meant, "When the Russians expand abroad, they often accuse their opponents of persecuting their Slav compatriots or persecuting Orthodox Christians, and then send troops as protectors... and the Principality of Ioannina, as a
Orthodox countries will naturally be at risk of being accused, because a group of Catholics now control the government and military.
So I hope that after my death, you can gradually promote local Orthodox Christians, let them participate in political affairs, and let one of them serve as prime minister in a few years. In this case, even if Russia wants to provoke, it will be difficult to find one.
You are telling the truth... Of course, before that, you must first let the landowners in the principality send their children to study in France, cultivate their loyalty to France and the Bonaparte royal family from an early age, and then promote them - just like the United Kingdom
That’s what people did to India.”
"Are you saying that we need to do some localization to decorate our appearance?" Aigron pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly, "That's not bad..."