The Fox of France

As Viktor concluded his words, Bishop Torres gracefully bowed to Pasha Benharden. Acknowledging that Benharden was a non-believer, the Bishop tactfully omitted religious phrases like "May God be with you" from his greetings. Despite earlier referring to Viktor as an "evil infidel" and a "snake spewing venom" when conversing with Pasha Benharden, Bishop Torres maintained a polite demeanor when facing the real person.

However, Pasha Benharden would have preferred a less courteous approach, especially at this moment. Not only did the Bishop disrupt his mood, but the swift arrival of the Papal envoy left many of his arrangements unprepared.

Regardless, he had to display utmost hospitality. Pasha Benharden expressed, "Welcome, Bishop Torres. We have been anticipating your arrival for quite some time."

After exchanging pleasantries, everyone took their seats, and maids served coffee. Pasha Benharden inquired, "Consul Treville, Bishop Torres, your late-night visit surely pertains to official matters, doesn't it?"

Viktor smiled, responding, "Pasha, as we agreed last time, once the representative of the Holy See arrives, we can commence the process of identifying slaves. So, we came to discuss with Pasha when this work can officially start."

Naturally, Pasha Benharden sought to delay this as much as possible. He first suggested that Bishop Torres should rest due to the long journey. Then, he claimed that his side was not fully prepared. In short, various reasons were given to postpone the identification work; tomorrow was too soon, the day after was rushed, and even a week later seemed impractical.

Hearing this, Viktor adopted a relaxed tone, mentioning the depletion of coal and ammunition supplies by the French fleet during their prolonged mission at sea. The ships urgently needed to return to Toulon for resupply.

A sudden withdrawal of the French fleet at this point would inevitably prolong the siege of Tunis. With the war halfway through, each additional day meant increased expenses for the Empire. The value of a few Christian slaves seemed negligible compared to these costs.

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However, Pasha Benharden was not easily intimidated. Despite being aware of Viktor's uncle, Admiral Treville, commanding the French fleet, he doubted that France would go to war over such a trivial matter. Furthermore, if such a situation did arise, it would be the Empire's interests that suffered. Pasha Benharden believed that, under normal circumstances, France would not allow severe damage to national interest for personal gain. Additionally, the current Consul Treville bore the name Treville, not Bonaparte.

Therefore, Pasha Benharden insisted that he understood the needs of the French fleet but hoped they could return to the battlefield after refueling and restocking ammunition.

Seeing Pasha Benharden's firm stance, Viktor had no immediate solution. However, Bishop Torres interjected, "Respected Pasha, besides the matter of starting the identification process as soon as possible, there is another thing I would like to trouble you with."

"Pasha, feel free to speak. You know, the Ottoman Empire has always been very tolerant in religious matters. We are willing to facilitate requests from people of faith," replied Pasha Benharden.

"Since there are so many faithful followers of God settling here, they certainly need a church," Bishop Torres said. "I hope to purchase a piece of land from you, Pasha, to build a church."

"Wasn't the land already allocated for the construction of the church?" Pasha Benharden asked.

"Ah, respected Pasha, the situation is like this: the location of that piece of land is problematic. It's too close to the harbor, too noisy. So, I hope to buy another piece of land from you for building the church," explained Bishop Torres.

Pasha Benharden paused for a moment and then smiled, "Bishop, did you sell that piece of land to Consul Treville?"

In the original plan, the land allocated to the Holy See for the construction of the church was quite close to the port and, in terms of value, was one of the higher places in the entire city. Selling that land to someone else and using the money to build the church in a cheaper location could indeed be profitable.

Though Bishop Torres did not confirm this speculation, he did not deny it either. Instead, he said with a smile, "In addition, the size of the church and how much land to buy depends on the number of believers. So, I still hope to start the identification work of the faithful as soon as possible."

Pasha Benharden now completely understood the other's intention and thought, "I must stand firm; this infidel is trying to corrupt me. I must stand firm and not easily agree unless he can offer a truly tempting price."

So, the negotiation quickly shifted from discussing when to start the identification of slaves to where to buy a piece of land, how big the land should be, and at what price per unit. Pasha Benharden even had a map brought in, and everyone discussed it together. In the end, Bishop Torres and Pasha Benharden agreed on the sale of a piece of land in the city at a price clearly higher than the market value.

After this deal was concluded, the attitudes between the three of them improved considerably. Even Pasha Benharden felt that if every disturbance could lead to such results, he would be willing to be disturbed more often.

"Respected Pasha," Bishop Torres spoke again, "Regarding the matter of identifying slaves..."

"Ah," Pasha Benharden smiled, "Although this matter is a bit troublesome, if it's on me, I

will definitely satisfy you, Bishop. Well, tomorrow is a bit too rushed; how about starting from the day after tomorrow..."

After everything was settled, Viktor and Bishop Torres bid farewell and left.

In the carriage on the way back, Viktor sincerely said to Bishop Torres, "Your Excellency, today I've truly learned a lot from you."

"Oh, it's nothing. Those infidels are not gentlemen by nature, so dealing with them is all about interests," Bishop Torres smiled. "In addition, Mr. Consul, I don't know what offer you would give me for the original site of the church. It should be slightly higher than the price negotiated with that infidel just now, as I don't have the money to pay for the price of that land."

Honestly, buying the original location of the church at a slightly higher price than the newly negotiated one was economically justifiable.

"But, Your Excellency, I don't have that much money," Viktor said.

"Ah, that's not a problem. Our Holy See also has a bank. We can lend you the money, and I can guarantee favorable interest rates..."