From Corsica to the Fourth Rome.

Chapter 383 Ambition
While the French were ecstatic about the return of Nice, the city of Genoa, the Concession of the Kingdom of Corsica, and the Saint-Marcel district.

Since the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Corsican Army reached a comprehensive ceasefire two weeks ago, the victorious Corsican Army moved south into the city of Genoa, where they rested and planned their next move.

Although the official handover of the concession had to wait until December 1, the trembling Genoese did not dare to refuse Lawrence's request for garrisoning troops, and unanimously transferred control of the St. Marshall district to the Corsican army.

Governor Batista personally led officials of all ranks outside the city gate to welcome the triumphant army of Lawrence Bonaparte.

Upon learning that this army had defeated the Republican Guard and then marched north to defeat the powerful Kingdom of Sardinia, the governor became even more determined not to confront the Corsicans.

The Corsicans, who were once regarded as slaves and beasts, now stood tall in Genoa as masters. This made many Genoese citizens feel a sense of unreality, like a dream.

"Please sit down, brother. It's been a hard journey."

In the Corsican Embassy in Saint-Marcel, Lawrence personally poured a cup of hot tea for his brother, Carlo Bonaparte, who had come from afar.

More than three months ago, after the crisis of the Siege of Ajaccio was resolved, Lawrence, who returned to Corsica, immediately ordered Carlo Bonaparte to go to the province of Provence to serve as the second-level governor. This position was also the reward for Lawrence's cooperation with Chief Justice Maupe to get rid of Madame du Barry.

Although he was only a lieutenant governor, Carlo Bonaparte quickly established his own power in the province of Provence with the help of Lawrence's influence in Paris and Versailles, and at Lawrence's instruction, he placed a group of Corsicans in confidential positions in the province.

A few days ago, it was Carlo Bonaparte who, upon learning that Prince Vittorio insisted on attacking Nice, decisively led a militia force to Nice to lift the siege, and pushed the prestige of the Bonaparte family to its peak among the citizens of Nice.

After settling all affairs in Nice, Carlo Bonaparte also learned that Lawrence had stationed troops in Genoa, so he took the opportunity to come and see his long-lost brother.

"Oh thanks, I can do it myself Lawrence."

Carlo Bonaparte quickly took the porcelain cup, and took a look at the magnificent room and the prosperous port of Genoa outside the window, his expression dazed.

Three years ago, Carlo Bonaparte could never have imagined that he, as an insignificant Corsican parliamentarian, would one day be sitting in the Corsican Embassy in Genoa drinking tea with the title of the second-level governor of the province of Provence.

Carlo Bonaparte felt even more incredible, especially after hearing that the building under his feet was the official residence of the Navy of the Republic of Genoa not long ago.

The Genoese Navy, which was once regarded as the Corsicans' number one enemy and invincible, now has even their department residences become Corsican territory. This was simply a pipe dream for Corsica three years ago.

As for defeating the rich and powerful Kingdom of Sardinia on the Po River Plain and bringing Sardinia Island into the kingdom's territory? Only two types of people would say that - lunatics and drunkards.

But now all this has become an indisputable reality, and the shock it brought to Carlo Bonaparte was no less than when he saw Lawrence moving into the Governor's Palace in Ajaccio with his own eyes.

"How was your stay in Aix?" Lawrence interrupted Carlo Bonaparte's reverie:
"Are Maria and the kids coping well?"

"Oh, of course. Everything is great. Maria is so happy. She went from being a country girl in Corsica to the wife of the Governor of France. She goes to salons and balls with other ladies every day. Although I think she only knows thank you and you're welcome in French."

Carlo Bonaparte came back to his senses, smiled bitterly and nodded:
"The children are all healthy. Joseph and Napoleon are growing fast. I hired a French teacher for them. They miss you very much, but it's a pity that I have to lead the army this time and cannot bring them with me."

Carlo talked incessantly about his life after moving to Aix, and his tone was full of gratitude. He certainly knew what he relied on to become the powerful deputy governor who was admired by everyone.

Lawrence also listened with great interest. He cared deeply about his relatives in this world, especially his young nephew.

One of the reasons why Lawrence asked Carlo Bonaparte to serve as the second-level governor of Provence immediately after the Siege of Ajaccio was that he hoped that Carlo and his family could stay in the relatively stable France.

Although the security of Corsica was basically assured after the surrender of the Kingdom of Sardinia, Lawrence could not guarantee that Corsica would always remain peaceful in this Italian war that would never end.

Carlo Bonaparte's decisive action in leading troops to rescue Nice a few days ago also convinced Lawrence that he was capable of taking on this position.

After all, his brother had served as Pasquale Paoli's military adjutant, and with his support, there would be no problem for him to gain a foothold in the province of Provence.

The two chatted about family matters for more than half an hour, and then Lawrence suddenly asked:
"How are the Corsicans serving in Provence?"

Carlo Bonaparte's face became more serious. He also knew that his brother arranged for him to be the deputy governor not just to let him live a comfortable life. Long before he took office, he knew that he was responsible for controlling the province of Provence:
"The progress was quite fast. In more than two months, I basically controlled the public security affairs. It was thanks to this that I was able to lead the militia directly to Nice this time."

Since the militia was subordinate to the local security forces in the command system, Carlo Bonaparte was able to lead his troops to Nice without asking for instructions from Paris and Versailles, risking a conflict with the Sardinian army.

Now Carlo Bonaparte has become famous for his action of regaining Nice. Naturally, Paris and Versailles will not punish him for his unauthorized actions. From this point of view, Carlo Bonaparte's political judgment is indeed excellent.

Lawrence was very satisfied with the result. Although public security affairs did not have a high status in the administrative system and was a difficult department with a small budget and great responsibilities, it was already very good to be able to hold this power in the hands of the Corsicans for more than two months.

"I have two things to ask of you, Carlo." Lawrence said after thinking for a moment:

"First of all, I hope that the province of Provence can raise a batch of grain for Corsica as soon as possible. The larger the amount, the better."

"Food? Is it in preparation for the war in Sicily?" Carlo Bonaparte had also heard about the famine in Sicily that had not yet ended.

"Well, I once ordered 500,000 livres of black beans and bread from City Governor Josip, but this amount is far from enough to feed Sicily." "That's no problem, but the cost of purchasing a large amount of food in a short period of time will definitely be very high, and Corsica's fiscal revenue may..." Carlo Bonaparte hesitated.

Lawrence shook his head. Although he had just received two high war reparations from the Republic of Genoa and the Kingdom of Sardinia, he did not intend to waste this income on the grain market in Marseille:
"No, you can raise this batch of grain in the name of war aid to the Kingdom of Corsica, and France will pay for it."

Now that Foreign Minister Count Vergennes obeyed his orders and Regent Duke of Orleans sided with him because of Duke Charles and the Fleur des Irises, Lawrence believed that Versailles would not refuse his request for food aid, not to mention that he had just returned from a great victory in the Kingdom of Sardinia.

Of course, although this additional expenditure will inevitably make the already deficit-ridden French finances even worse, compared to turning those white silver coins into delicacies on jade plates and fireworks in the sky in the Palace of Versailles, it is more important to feed the hundreds of thousands of disaster victims on the island of Sicily.

Seeing that Carlo Bonaparte was still hesitant, Lawrence added:

"This matter can be handled by Mayor Josip of Marseille, and you can just provide him with political support within the province."

Lawrence certainly had not forgotten the ambitious alderman of Marseilles who was constrained by his humble origins.

Earlier, when Lawrence was traveling to Ajaccio via Marseille, he had taken time to meet with the alderman and hinted to him that his brother Carlo Bonaparte would not stay in the position of second-level governor of Provence forever.

As for who will take the position of deputy governor after Carlo Bonaparte is promoted, it will naturally be decided by Lawrence.

Given this level of interest, Lawrence knew very well that Mayor Josip would not refuse his request. Further power was an irresistible temptation for the mayor.

Carlo Bonaparte nodded seriously after hearing this. Since his brother had planned everything, he only needed to execute it:
"I see. I'll do it as soon as I get back to Aix. What's the second thing you want me to do?"

Lawrence's expression suddenly became solemn. He gently put down the teacup. Although the servants and guards in this room were undoubtedly his confidants, he still lowered his voice:
"You mentioned earlier that you have taken control of the security affairs in Provence, Carlo. Are the local militia forces also under your command?"

"Yes, the nominal commander of the Provencal militia is a colonel."

Carlo Bonaparte was a little confused, but he answered truthfully:
"But I have nominated a retired officer of the Corsican Defence Force to take over the Provencal Militia. I have known him for many years and he is undoubtedly one of my own."

After receiving a positive answer, Lawrence nodded slightly and said in a deep voice:

"Well, Carlo, I hope you can expand the Provence militia's strength and armaments as soon as possible and reorganize this force according to the standards of the regular army. The larger the better, and it would be best if it could be maintained at a size of more than five regiments."

"what?!"

Carlo Bonaparte raised his head suddenly, and almost lost his grip on the cup:

"Expand the militia? And train them to the standards of the regular army? Lawrence, you can't be unaware of what such an action means in the Kingdom of France!"

Treason, undoubtedly treason, treason that no French king could accept.

As a highly centralized monarchy, the Kingdom of France undoubtedly had extremely strict restrictions on military power in various regions. Any large-scale military operation, even a simple troop movement, needed to be authorized and reviewed at each level.

The reason why local militia forces are able to remain outside this regulatory system is simply because the militia forces are sparsely populated, loosely organized, and insignificant in terms of combat effectiveness.

Carlo Bonaparte was also very clear that if he followed Lawrence's instructions and expanded and trained the militia according to the standards of the regular army without official authorization, such behavior would be no different from raising private soldiers.

"Lawrence, what on earth do you want to do?!" Carlo Bonaparte was suddenly panicked. Even with his experience and knowledge, he couldn't help but panic at this moment.

Lawrence was silent for a moment, then avoided Carlo's questioning and said to himself:
"You can ask the Versailles court to expand the militia on the grounds that the security situation in Nice is dire at the beginning of its return. My friends in the court will approve this request, and then we will have a legitimate reason to expand the army. As for armaments, you can keep some of the arms to aid the Kingdom of Corsica, which should be enough to arm an army of 10,000 people."

"Yes, but!"

Carlo Bonaparte spoke faster unconsciously. He just wanted to persuade his brother to give up this stupid idea:

"Even if the Versailles court agrees to expand the army, it is impossible for me to expand the militia to more than five regiments, not to mention training them like the standing army. Once His Majesty the King finds out about this, our entire family will be doomed!"

Lawrence shook his head:

"Even if the king discovered the abnormality in Provence, it would take several months. It would take more than a year for him to send envoys to investigate thoroughly."

"That's not a long time, Lawrence! One year, twelve months, three hundred and sixty-five days, it just flies by!"

"But His Majesty may not have the time."

Lawrence said this expressionlessly, then stared at Carlo Bonaparte's stunned eyes and said word by word:

"After the Italian War, France will not have any peace and tranquility. The situation will only become more chaotic. By then, I will need an army, Carlo."