Make France Great Again-Chapter 57: The Envoy and the Gifts

As Charles Bonaparte had anticipated, Bishop Muzarelli entered the Vatican Palace to meet with the Pope, and after informing Pope Pius IX about the Bonaparte Clan’s desire to meet him,

feeling the unpredictability of the situation in the Pope State, Pope Pius IX decided to keep another option open for himself.

Pope Pius IX immediately granted the request of the Bonaparte Clan and set a date.

"Muzarelli, please make the trip personally!" Pope Pius IX said to Bishop Muzarelli.

"As you command, Your Majesty!" Bishop Muzarelli took his leave from Pope Pius IX after receiving the orders.

Watching Bishop Muzarelli’s departing figure, Pope Pius IX’s gaze became vacant, and he murmured to himself, "This world becomes more and more unfathomable!"

An old man in a red robe emerged from a shadowy corner before Pope Pius IX, his hair white and face lined with wrinkles, reporting softly, "Your Majesty, Rome is becoming increasingly chaotic! Many forces are already stirring!"

Pope Pius IX frowned, his tone laden with annoyance, "Have the forces behind this been identified?"

"Most have been identified!" the Cardinal responded to Pope Pius IX.

"Then take action!" Pope Pius IX gestured with a hand chop in the air, "What I’ve given them is far too much!"

"Your Majesty..." The Cardinal whispered hesitantly, "I’m afraid it’s not possible now; rashly intensifying conflicts might trap us in a precarious situation."

"So what do you suggest we do now? Are we just to wait passively?" Pope Pius IX said with agitation in his voice.

The Cardinal remained silent, having no solutions up to this day.

"Enough! I’m tired; you may leave!" Pope Pius IX turned to sit on the papal throne inlaid with various jewels.

The Cardinal departed.

Pope Pius IX took out a ruby offered by Muzarelli and gazed at it, murmuring softly, "Bonaparte Clan, can you still tame the beast of revolution like the Emperor did in the past?"

...

On the other hand, Jerome Bonaparte, residing at the Ancient Roman Square, was not idle. He was staying in an inn, diligently writing something.

So much so that he didn’t have time to admire the ruins of Ancient Rome.

"Knock knock!"

The sudden knocking on the door awoke Jerome Bonaparte from the sea of words. He closed his pen and got up to open the door.

Lucien Louis and an unfamiliar person stood outside the door.

"Uncle Jerome!" Lucien Louis respectfully addressed Jerome Bonaparte.

"Prince Jerome!" The other man curiously scrutinized Jerome Bonaparte while bowing to him.

"Who is this?" Jerome Bonaparte inquired with a hint of confusion.

"Uncle, this is Bishop Muzarelli!" Lucien Louis introduced to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Hello! Your Excellency Bishop!" Jerome Bonaparte bowed to Muzarelli.

Although he did not know what rank this person held in the Holy See, anyone brought before him by his nephew must be someone helpful in meeting the Pope.

"Bishop Muzarelli is the Pope’s envoy! He is also the bishop managing Rome’s book censorship and public education!" Lucien Louis further introduced to Jerome Bonaparte.

Jerome Bonaparte showed a hint of surprise on his face, not expecting this fellow to be the Pope State’s "Minister of Education."

"Your Highness, perhaps you have forgotten me; however, when Bishop Fish was around, we met!" Muzarelli drew closer to Jerome Bonaparte.

Jerome Bonaparte could not recall and could only awkwardly brush it off.

At Jerome Bonaparte’s invitation, Bishop Muzarelli and Lucien Louis sat on a long sofa.

As soon as he sat down, Muzarelli said to Jerome Bonaparte, "I represent His Majesty in welcoming Your Highness. His Holiness feels greatly comforted that Your Highness could come to Rome."

Muzarelli’s courteous remarks were reciprocated with equally polite responses by Jerome Bonaparte.

The formal exchange began.

"I am following the orders of Pope Pius IX to invite Prince Jerome to the Religious Palace! May I ask if Your Highness could spare some time?" Bishop Muzarelli inquired of Jerome Bonaparte.

Success!

As Jerome Bonaparte’s hand resting on his thigh clenched into a fist.

Despite his excitement inside, his face remained composed.

"I thank the Pope for granting me, a devout believer, the opportunity for an audience!" Jerome Bonaparte boldly claimed himself a "devout believer."

Muzarelli, equally speaking nonsense with keen eyes, said, "His Majesty shows concern and assistance to every devout believer, especially those as devout as Your Highness!"

After exchanging pleasantries for some time, they finally set the date for May 31, which was in four days.

"Your Highness, in four days, a papal carriage will come to take you. Please do not forget!" Muzarelli reminded Jerome Bonaparte.

"Certainly!" Jerome Bonaparte committed it to memory, "By the way! Please tell Pope Pius IX that I intend to bring him an important item on the day we meet!"

Just how much wealth does the Bonaparte Clan still have!

Muzarelli, thinking Jerome Bonaparte’s "gift" to be a jewel, had no idea it was, in some ways, more valuable than a jewel.

"I’ll look forward to it then!" Muzarelli stood up to leave, and Jerome Bonaparte and Lucien Louis escorted him to the inn’s downstairs.

A carriage emblazoned with the emblem of the Pope State appeared before Muzarelli, and Bishop Muzarelli took the carriage back to the Palace of Literature.

Lucien Louis was invited again into the inn by Jerome Bonaparte.

"Take a look at this!" Jerome Bonaparte handed Lucien Louis the draft on the desk that hadn’t been finalized yet.

Lucien Louis initially glanced over the draft’s contents dismissively, but his expression grew increasingly serious.

Sitting across from Lucien Louis, Jerome Bonaparte waited with calm anticipation, his legs crossed.

Because the draft was unfinished, Lucien Louis quickly read through it. He pointed at the draft with a shocked expression and said to Jerome Bonaparte, "Uncle, you just wrote this!"

"Correct!" Jerome Bonaparte acknowledged without guilt.

After all, the original author wouldn’t be born for another 26 years, so his unauthorized version could completely outdo the original.

The original author could never have imagined that someone could plagiarize across time.