CHAPTER 361: CHAPTER 356 EVE OF THE CRIMEAN WAR

"Your Majesty!"

Upon entering the room, Alfred Dariemon immediately bowed to Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta.

Although Dariemon was imprisoned during the coup on December 2 for opposing Jerome Bonaparte’s coup, he still showed the due respect to Jerome Bonaparte.

Setting aside the blemish of Jerome Bonaparte’s dictatorial rule, Dariemon had to admit that Jerome Bonaparte’s administrative methods were indeed much stronger than theirs (the Republican Faction).

The streets of Paris under the dictatorship were being widened and rebuilt at a visibly rapid pace, and the universal suffrage, which was restricted during the Second Republic, was also restored.

Dariemon believed that as more and more people recognized the Republican ideals, the Despot Empire would naturally collapse.

All they needed to do was to wait patiently during this time.

"Dariemon, I have a matter I wish to entrust to you!" Jerome Bonaparte said directly to Dariemon.

"Your Majesty, forgive me for refusing!" Dariemon rejected Jerome Bonaparte without hesitation.

Looking at his former friend, Jerome Bonaparte calmly said, "Dariemon, don’t be in a hurry to refuse! I haven’t even told you what it’s about!"

"Your Majesty, you simply want me to succumb to your government and become its henchman!" Dariemon refused Jerome Bonaparte with a dignified stance.

"You are only half right!" Jerome Bonaparte continued in a calm tone, "I do want you to serve the government, but not as a henchman!"

Dariemon looked at Jerome Bonaparte with a face full of confusion, not quite understanding his intentions.

Which among the current French Government is not a lackey of Jerome Bonaparte, and the opposition in the Legislative Corps is only permitted opposition by Jerome Bonaparte.

"Not long ago, I dismissed a governor of a province and appointed one of your people as governor, you should be aware of this!" Jerome Bonaparte said to Dariemon with a smile.

"I have heard about it!" Dariemon nodded in response.

When Dariemon received the news of Jerome Bonaparte appointing a Republican as a governor, his first reaction was surprise.

Even if the dismissed governor had indeed angered the Emperor, it wouldn’t lead to the Republicans coming to power.

Jerome Bonaparte’s actions were indeed beyond the expectations of Dariemon and most of his Republican colleagues.

"I hope you can help me establish a supervisory department! The main task is to supervise the bureaucracy of the subordinate provinces, to prevent opportunism!" Jerome Bonaparte decided to appoint Dariemon to a position in the Disciplinary Committee: "Aren’t you always advocating for grassroots reach? I can give you this opportunity! As long as you can help me tidy up grassroots affairs!"

Jerome Bonaparte’s generosity surprised Dariemon, and he didn’t understand why Jerome Bonaparte was doing this.

"What exactly do you want to do?" Dariemon asked Jerome Bonaparte in confusion.

"I said I wanted to establish a supranational cabinet! You are also part of my unity goals!" Jerome Bonaparte explained his plan: "I am an Emperor, so I hope France can become stronger! I hope my policies are not distorted by those below!"

Then, Jerome Bonaparte showed a meaningful smile: "Aren’t you opposition also fighting for France’s future?"

"We..." Dariemon, taken aback by Jerome Bonaparte’s maneuver, remained silent for a moment before nodding and agreeing to Jerome Bonaparte’s invitation with difficulty.

He was an opponent, but also a patriot!

On December 10, Alfred Dariemon, one of the future Five Opposition Group, was appointed by Jerome Bonaparte as the head of the Imperial Discipline Inspection Group, with its main task being the inspection of local policies.

After Alfred Dariemon took office as head, Jules Favre, a future member of the Five Group, severely criticized Alfred Dariemon through the newspaper, calling him a traitor to the Republican faction.

Alfred Dariemon also fought back, claiming that he hadn’t betrayed Republican ideals but was achieving them in another way, while accusing Jules Favre’s extreme thoughts and lust for power could ruin the Republican faction.

In the midst of the slander, the Moderate Republicans led by Alfred Dariemon began to break apart from the Extreme Republicans led by Jules Favre.

The budding Republican faction once again fell into endless infighting.

Unaware of the truth, people like Mornay believed the Republican split was something Jerome Bonaparte had planned from the start, and their respect for Jerome Bonaparte grew even more.

As the instigator of all this, Jerome Bonaparte shook his head and sighed, while privately complaining to Augusta.

And so, amidst the exchange of insults, the Discipline Inspection Group was established.

It is said, fortune doesn’t come alone while misfortune does not come singly.

Three days after the establishment of the Discipline Inspection Group, good news also came from the Near East, inspiring many.

On December 12, 1852, the Ottoman Empire High Gate (government) issued a new decree: Catholic priests are allowed to hold the keys to the Bethlehem Christmas Church, and they can freely access the Manger Prayer Hall and the Christmas Cave.

As soon as the decree of the Ottoman Empire High Gate was announced, the Holy Land (Palestine), Austria, Rome, the Southern German States, and even the Catholic churches in the France region were all thrown into a frenzy of joy. Catholic missionaries celebrated Vallette’s victory, and even the Pope of Rome made a rare appearance in the square outside the St. Petersburg Cathedral to convey his message to the world. Under his call, Catholic priests in the Roman region also spontaneously came to the St. Petersburg Cathedral to pray.

At the same time, a personal letter of thanks from Pope Pius IX was delivered to the Tuileries Palace through the hands of the French ambassador to the Pope State.

Jerome Bonaparte, upon receiving the Pope’s letter, did not immediately open it. Instead, he found his wife Augusta, wanting to enjoy the flattery from Pope Pius IX together with her.

To receive the praise of God’s earthly spokesman is also a kind of enjoyment. Although the influence of this God of the Human World would gradually diminish over time, the pope of the 19th century still possessed strong influence.

The true loss of influence by the Pope of Rome was to wait until after the consecutive failures of the Austrian Empire and the French Empire.

The failure of two Catholic great powers directly led to a decline in the influence of Catholicism, and the Catholic attributes of the newly-formed Austria-Hungary and the Third Republic greatly declined.

When Pope Pius IX could no longer exert influence on these two Catholic Frances, Rome was destined for decline.

However, the Roman Curia at present was still standing strong, and the Pope did not put down his pride as a "God of the Human World" either.

This is why the praise from Pope Pius IX was all the more precious.

When Augusta saw the words "For the Emperor" written in Latin on the envelope, and the words "Roman Curia" at the bottom right corner, she instantly realized the letter must be from His Holiness Pope Pius IX.

"Is this a letter from His Holiness the Pope?" Augusta asked with a slightly trembling voice of devotion.

"Exactly!" Jerome Bonaparte replied with a tone tinged with pride.

"God bless!" Augusta clasped her hands and closed her eyes in prayer.

Jerome Bonaparte, who had no devout feelings towards religion, did not understand how a believer felt upon receiving a private letter from the Pope. He guessed it was probably akin to a fan receiving a letter from their idol.

"Would you like to open it and take a look?" Jerome Bonaparte pushed the letter in front of Augusta with a smile, asking.

"Can I really?" Augusta asked loudly with an excited tone.

"Yes, you can!" Jerome Bonaparte replied nonchalantly.

Augusta immediately tore open the envelope from Pope Pius IX with her hands, revealing the white letter paper inside.

Opening the folded letter, Augusta saw the letter from Pope Pius IX.

The letter’s content was simple, generally praising France for maintaining the Catholic Church’s status in the Holy Land (Palestine), and wishing that Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta could have a qualified heir.

After reading the entire letter, Augusta returned the letter to the envelope and placed it on the table.

"Do you feel a sense of elevation?" Jerome Bonaparte teased her.

Augusta shook her head lightly, a hint of disappointment showing on her face.

She looked like someone who discovered the gap between their dream idol and the real thing, feeling disillusioned.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

The sound of knocking was heard from the library door, and Augusta quickly got up to open it.

"Your Majesty the Empress!" Seeing that the person who opened the door was Empress Augusta, De Luyis quickly saluted her.

"Thank you for your hard work, Minister Luyis!" Augusta nodded slightly, encouragingly saying, "I won’t disturb you any longer!"

Having said that, Augusta left the library.

After entering the library, De Luyis also saluted Jerome Bonaparte.

"Sit down!" Jerome Bonaparte invited De Luyis to sit.

Once De Luyis was fully seated on the sofa, Jerome Bonaparte spoke again, "What do you think about the Ottoman Empire giving the decision-making power over the Holy Land to the Catholics?"

"Your Majesty, I fear the Russian Empire will take action!" De Luyis answered seriously, "They will absolutely not allow the Ottoman Empire to give the decision-making power over the Holy Land to the French Empire!"

"Indeed!" Jerome Bonaparte replied thoughtfully, "The Russian Empire’s army is bound to take action, while our army is at a critical stage of reform! If Vallette could just delay a bit longer..."