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 dotted in the wilderness. Flowers are in full bloom on the dense grapevines, nurturing the fruits of the autumn harvest.
Aigron 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 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 seemed that there was no problem...Aigron felt relieved.
That's right, he came here specially today just to meet people.
To be precise, it was to meet Cardinal Vittorio Esposito.
Since receiving the mission from Aigron, 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 upon 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 that he was safe, Aigron no longer hesitated and walked to the church with his head held high.
The light inside the church was quite dark, exuding an aura of decay and disrepair, and 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 desire 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.
Aigron walked up to the three people calmly and calmly with the pace he had been trained since childhood, 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."
"It is a pleasure to meet your young Highness."
Just like his appearance, the cardinal's voice is aged but still full of energy, full of harsh sharpness. "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, and the future Earthly Supreme Being, haha, 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 repelled by me, Aigron thought.
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 these emotions 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 a tragedy, maybe it's a 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.
Follow God’s guidance.”
Be neutral! Good, it implies that anything is negotiable, as long as the price is right.
Aiglon understood.
"Then would you like to hear my plan?" he asked.
"If I don't want to, there is no need for me to come over." 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 pretend to be 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 people to a monetary transaction rather than a political alliance. He did not want to bear any obligations to Aigron.
Huh, this old cunning guy, although he is moved by money, he still wants to retain freedom of action for himself until the last moment.
However, Aigron was not angry. After all, he had never expected the other party to become his loyal minister. How could there be good men and women among the top leaders of the Roman Church?
Everyone uses each other and 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 Excellency, I am going to carry out a big operation next."
, I hope you can help me convince His Majesty the Pope to grant me some favors."
"This is a difficult thing," the cardinal replied. "His Majesty the Pope cannot grant favors for no reason, let alone your special status."
"It is precisely because it is 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 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 Aiglon.
"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 jade 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, can
Have enough virtue to bear its preciousness..."
Although Aigron knew that he would never dare to keep such a rare treasure for himself, he still hinted at a threat 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 has violated the commandments countless times, he believes that he is fully qualified to occupy it. After all, so many extremely depraved villains have worn the triple crown, why can't he?
However, Vittorio Esposito also knows that this is no easy task, and there are too many people 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 cliques within the bishops' conference in order to occupy a more advantageous position in the succession war when the pope dies, and this cannot be done without 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.
The bishop also promised to give him more gifts in the future.
In the face of this "favor" that provides help in times of need, the cardinal is still willing to listen to the other party's appeals, even if he knows that the other party has bad intentions.
"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"
While he finished speaking in one breath, the cardinal was also listening quietly. He was shocked at first, and then fell into deep thought.
"You actually have such leisure? Why are the Greeks spending money and bleeding money?" 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 was secretly determined in his heart that sooner or later, this guy would not dare to show even a hint of taunting in front of him. He believed that this day would not be far away.
"What do you think?" He no longer beat around the bush, but asked directly. "If you are willing, we will cooperate on this, and you will be my benefactor from now on. I will keep this feeling in mind; if you are not willing, I will not
I'm blaming you, let's just pretend that nothing happened, I'll look for other ways, 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 just 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 lose anything, 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.
.
However, the matter was serious and he needed to think carefully about it. Even the Pope's opinion could not be guaranteed by him.
"I need a moment to think about it," he replied 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 still have a small request." Aiglon replied, "I want to meet my grandmother. I hope you can make it easier for her to get out of 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 have deteriorated these days. Who knows if the cardinal would choose to betray his friends and seek glory, trick Aiglon into the city of Rome and then tie him up.
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 her freedom is not restricted 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 will 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.
By the way, there is Teresa...
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 suddenly asked.
"He is fine now, but for some reason he has difficulty moving, so he stayed at my residence temporarily." Aigron answered vaguely, "I assure you that you will definitely be able to see him in the future."
"Okay, I do miss him a lot." The cardinal sighed softly. "Then let's see you again first, 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 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.
"Please tell us, 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: save it after reading it, so that it will be more convenient to read it again.