Eagle’s Glory

While the two of them were talking, a group of people poured into the vestibule through the fence. Although there were only dim lights as the light source in the dark night, it was difficult to see the appearance of these people, but from this pomp, No doubt it must be His Majesty the Pope.

Lucien and Aegron hurriedly stopped the conversation, and then a group of their own immediately moved forward.

As the distance approached, they gradually saw the appearance of this pedestrian clearly.

He was surrounded by an old man. His face was wrinkled, he was wearing a white robe and a small white hat on his head. Prove his identity; and standing next to him is a middle-aged man in a red robe, looking energetic and ambitious, at this time the cardinal is supporting the old man intimately, looking extremely respectful.

It only took Aigron half a second to judge - this is His Majesty Pope Leo XII and his confidant Cardinal Vittorio Esposito.

At this moment, Prince Lucien-Bonaparte turned his head and nodded heavily to him, and then he quickened his pace to meet His Majesty the Pope who was coming.

Aigron also looked at Teresa next to him. The two looked at each other and understood, and then walked side by side in front of the oncoming people.

And this group of people had obviously noticed this young couple with outstanding appearance and too young, so they stopped.

Everyone was watching them, and although their expressions were different, they didn't make a sound, as if they were waiting for something.

"Holy Holy Father!" Aegron did not disappoint them. After walking in front of the old man, he bowed his head and bowed his head to the Pope with a respectful attitude. "I can't thank you enough to see you."

And Teresa also curtseyed to the Pope at the same time. Compared with the calm Aigron, she was a little more excited, "Holy Father, thank you for taking care of our couple all the time!"

Because it was already night, the cold wind in early spring was a little bit colder, and it hurt everyone's face, but even that didn't detract from the enthusiasm of the couple.

The people around the Pope looked at each other, and although their expressions did not change, they seemed to have reached some consensus - for the sake of this, everyone at least had a decent face.

A kind smile appeared on the face of His Majesty the Pope. After a moment of silence, he looked left and right, and then sighed, "What lovely children, God really favors the descendants of those great families."

He spoke in Italian, of course, but Agron and Teresa both had a similar royal education since childhood, so it didn't sound like a hindrance.

After speaking, he took trembling steps, and then helped the boy and girl up together.

Aegron raised his head obediently, knowing that after such a set of etiquette, the two sides have at least temporarily reconciled.

With the help of the dim light, Pope Leo XII looked at Agron and Teresa again, and then said again, "My children, on behalf of all Christians who have freedom and peace, thank you for saving everything our Christian parishioners do."

"I couldn't bear to see the indignation of the pagans slaughtering Christians. It guided me and brought me to Greece. I think this is also the mission given to me by God." After staying in the Austrian court for a long time, Aigron will of course say this scene, "Before going through fire and water, I didn't think about my own safety, and I didn't care about my success or failure. I just wanted to save those poor people from water and fire. Even if I sacrificed my life for this, I have no regrets. Fortunately, in God's With your blessing, with your ardent support, I was lucky enough to succeed. Your compliments to me have inspired me along the way, and I will never forget the spiritual inspiration you gave me and my men. The backbone of our faith, and it is with faith that we can perform miracles."

The Pope couldn't help but smile, although he knew it was just a scene, but he still used it very much in his heart.

In this way, the group of people walked into the mansion from the front courtyard while chatting.

With the help of the bright candles in the living room, Aigron could see His Majesty the Pope and the cardinal more clearly.

Both of them were stern, and because they had maintained a solemn expression for a long time, their faces showed a stiff blue-gray color, as if they would open their mouths at any time to speak out endless religious admonitions.

Regardless of whether they are doing good or bad in private, these senior monks are professionals who have undergone decades of rigorous training, and on the surface they are absolutely majestic.

However, there are some differences between the two.

His Majesty the Pope's expression was serious and even a little grim. Although he was old-fashioned, he still showed a cold indifference from time to time.

Cardinal Vittorio Esposito looked at him with a much softer look.

Aegron knew why their attitudes were so different—

Because the cardinal's "nephew" Leon Esposito was acting as Aigron's private secretary at this time.

Whether the cardinal is willing or not, at this time his nephew has been bound to Aegron's future, and he is very motivated to see Aegron's career going smoothly.

It is precisely for this reason that these days, he has been secretly running to intercede for Aegron, and His Majesty the Pope was able to agree to this private meeting because of the insistence of this confidant.

But of course the cardinal couldn't do everything, let alone make decisions on behalf of the Pope. There was only so much he could help, and Aigron had to find a way to fight for the rest.

After returning to the living room, Prince Lucien-Bonaparte called all his sons and daughters away, so the number of people in the living room was much smaller at this time, and the atmosphere suddenly became serious and stiff. The excitement is gone.

Of course, they didn't come for "family fun" originally.

"My child..." After a moment of silence, King Leo XII spoke again in a solemn tone, "You have already made great achievements, but I want to know, where do you plan to go in the future?"

Aigron knew that the other party knew the question, but he still answered the other party respectfully, "Holy Father, I want to inherit my father's achievements, let a great country bathe in the glory of the Lord, and enjoy abundance and prosperity, of course... My end is at the feet of God, and I will be his humble servant."

When the Pope didn't hear the last sentence, he frowned slightly.

"My child, I will support everything you do out of Christian devotion, but I cannot support you in replacing a legitimate monarch - don't forget that the Capet family has been around ten centuries ago. They are now ruling France. Their legitimacy is unparalleled, and their upholding of the Catholic Church is obvious to all. It must be the Lord's will that the reign of their family is so long that even the most terrible disasters have not ended but only temporarily interrupted it. "

This is to make it clear that he does not intend to do anything for him to regain the throne.

To be honest, this result Aigron was not surprised at all.

Aigron knew that the two people in front of him had accepted a large amount of bribes from him, especially His Majesty the Pope himself, who was extremely greedy, but this did not mean that they would support him unconditionally. They had their own interests and demands. It is even more impossible to ask for anything from them, especially when he has no way of coercing the Pope by force.

"But as far as I know, the kings of the Cape family have not been particularly respectful to the Roman church since ancient times. They tried to invade Italy more than once, insulted the pope, and even once set up another pope outside Rome, which made the church fall into In the midst of unprecedented chaos..." Aegron replied slightly mockingly.

The corner of the Pope's mouth twitched suddenly, as if he wanted to refute, but he knew that this was the truth. The most humiliating dark histories of the Roman Church were really gifted by the Capetian royal family.

However, as expected of the Pope, soon, the old man regained his kind face, and then answered him in a gentle tone, "But similar evils, your father did the same, he caught my ex Paris is humiliating. I have even witnessed such a catastrophe... How can I expect anything from the Bonaparte family in this situation?"

Indeed, this is also true.

Emperor Napoleon yelled at Pope Pius VII. The Pope was forced to crown Napoleon I, the first emperor of the French Empire, but the crown was taken away by Napoleon during the enthronement ceremony, and he crowned himself and the queen himself, which greatly humiliated the Pope. of self-esteem.

In 1809, Napoleon attacked Vienna and annexed the states under the Papal State. Pius VII was furious and announced that Napoleon would be excommunicated (a common operation of the church against those monarchs who disrespected the church in the Middle Ages), and after Napoleon heard about it, He was also furious, sent troops into the Vatican on July 6, 1809, and then arrested Pius VII and escorted him back to French captivity, until after Napoleon's first abdication in 1814, the Restoration Dynasty released him.

The prisoner of Avignon committed by Philip IV has been in the past 500 years ago, but the humiliation caused by Napoleon is close at hand, and the witnesses at that time are still there, and it is obviously the latter who is more impressed—— In this case, how could His Holiness the Pope expect anything from the Bonaparte family?

"Yes, my father has indeed lost his head and committed these blasphemous atrocities, which is one of the reasons why he was finally abandoned by God." Aegron was well prepared for this questioning, so he immediately Then he continued, "But he is him, I am me, I clearly understand why God cares for me and what he wants me to do, and I also clearly understand that the Roman Church is the agent of God's will on earth, I Respect the church, and respect you and anyone in the church."

"Anyone can say such words." His Majesty, of course, did not believe his words, "but it is very difficult to practice."

"But I don't see what the kings of Capet have practiced." Aigron shrugged, "Since Capet and Bonaparte are not much different anyway, why should you care who sits on that throne? At least I've shown with my heart how much I respect you—"

At this time, Aigron finally brought out the fact that he gave the Pope a heavy bribe to show his sincerity in cooperating with the church.

The Pope's face was cloudy and uncertain. Of course, he would not be fooled by a young man's bright lotus, but there was no logical error in what the young man said.

Most of the previous kings of the Cape family did not respect the church very much, and all kinds of evil and "piety" seemed to have nothing to do with them. They fought against each other and even invaded Italy many times to plunder the Papal State.

Emotionally, although the church does not like Bonaparte, it is impossible to say how much it likes the Capet family (that is, the current Bourbon royal family).

"I know the weight of your piety, and my lord must appreciate it deeply." Although the Pope was a little confused, he still maintained a moderate attitude. He hinted that he was satisfied with Aegron's bribe, and then the conversation changed. "However, as a church detached from the state, we cannot and are unable to feel the change of the throne in the most powerful country in the Catholic world. If you want to find clear support from me, I can only deeply Sorry."

"Of course I don't dare to expect the church to lead the horse and pedal for me!" Aigron suddenly increased his tone, as if feeling humiliated, "I am confident that I am destined to rule France, and if God decides to give it to me, then it will be It will definitely fall into my hands, I can just execute God's will, how dare I trouble others?"

In addition to the strong personal will and arrogance of the young man's sudden outburst, the old man seemed to be a little shocked for a while - after all, although he was young, he had already led people to fight several times, and he was used to killing life and death. , The respect and modesty just now was just a deliberate appearance.

There is indeed a bit of the style of the past... Looking at this young man, the Pope thought to himself.

Although this kind of behavior can be called a bit rude, considering that the young man had given him a lot of "donations", the Pope also forgave this little offense.

Of course, the more important reason was that the young man himself said that the Pope and the Church did not need to help, which greatly reassured the Pope.

"My child, what do you hope for?" The Pope calmed down again, and then asked leisurely.

"Holy Father, what I want is very simple." Aigron smiled again, and then bowed to the old man again, "Can you bless me and my wife in public in a public ceremony, and then announce An edict that recognizes our contribution to God as devout Christians?"