The Fox of France - Chapter 486 (Patreon)

Chapter 486: Return Like Lightning

Sultan Selim III was killed, and his cousin, Mustafa, ascended as the new Sultan, becoming Sultan Mustafa IV. Historically, Sultan Selim III, due to his reforms, angered the feudal lords within the country and was also deposed through a coup by his own palace guards. Similarly, Sultan Mustafa IV took the throne.

However, in the original history, the army loyal to Sultan Selim III was not destroyed. As the saying goes, "If the monks can touch it, why can't I?" Are the Sultan's guards the only ones capable of staging a coup? So, the modern army loyal to Sultan Selim III immediately returned to fight. Everyone thought there would be a civil war in Turkey. But unexpectedly, the palace guards, who loved peace so much (to the point of uselessness), disbanded at the first clash, with the soldiers returning to their homes and mothers. Subsequently, Sultan Mustafa IV’s reign ended swiftly, and his brother, Mahmud II, became the Sultan.

But in this timeline, because the army loyal to Sultan Selim III was larger and stronger than in history, Sultan Selim III lived a few years longer than he did historically. However, when he was deposed in the coup, 40,000 loyal troops were still around, but they had been deployed to the Balkans to confront the Austrians. So at that time, these armies could still raise a call to return to Istanbul.

In this timeline, however, Turkey’s modern army had mostly been destroyed by the Russians in war, and the remnants had been sent to suppress the Greek uprising. Even more damning was that after the coup in Istanbul, the new powers that be immediately viewed the modern army unfavorably, arresting the commanding officers and even stopping the supply of essentials including food.

Then, Assad Pasha, who led these troops, boldly revolted. With only a few troops at hand, seizing power was not an option, so Assad Pasha chose to become a ruler of an island. He led his forces to storm a port, commandeering dozens of ships, large and small, and took his army to Crete.

The Turkish army on Crete was effortlessly conquered by them, and Assad Pasha declared himself the Governor of Crete. He sent envoys to other countries and to Sultan Mustafa IV, hoping to gain recognition for his position.

Overall, Sultan Mustafa IV's position now seemed more stable than it originally was in history, at least domestically, because there wasn't an army of 40,000 coming to dethrone him. However, there were more troubling matters, such as not having to face a rebellion army, but instead facing a Russian army of 50,000. In history, the palace guards couldn't stop the rebellion, and now, could they stop the Russian army?

Therefore, after the coup, Sultan Mustafa IV immediately reached out to European nations, including Russia, assuring them that any agreement previously signed under Sultan Selim III was legitimate and would be honored—although one of the reasons for the coup was Sultan Selim III's alleged treachery.

The Russian envoys were told to go to St. Petersburg to meet the Tsar and then carry on as usual.

As the news of the Istanbul coup reached him, Napoleon was pouring a glass of red wine into his mouth.

"Pfft!" Napoleon couldn't control himself and spat the wine all over the table, unable to suppress a cough. Lora quickly got up to pat his back.

After a while, Napoleon caught his breath and asked, "Is the news accurate?"

"Of course, would I have run here if it weren't?" Lucien replied.

"Did you notify Joseph?" Napoleon asked again.

"Of course, I called him before coming. Fanny answered; she said Joseph was discussing something with his students. But she agreed to inform him right away, and he should be here soon."

"That's not certain, discussing things with his students isn't something that can be resolved quickly," Napoleon shook his head. "But he should still come soon, especially since this involves money!"

As Napoleon expected, Joseph arrived quickly.

"What's going on? What happened? I knew it, those Turkish people are worthless mud that can’t be supported!" Joseph burst out as soon as he entered.

"You're right, Joseph," Napoleon had calmed down by this time, "But honestly, didn't we support Turkey because they were weak?"

Joseph was initially furious, but upon hearing this, he paused and then couldn't help but laugh.

"Napoleon, you're absolutely right!"

Historically, supporting foreign proxies or, metaphorically speaking, "raising dogs," has always been a contradictory matter. Dogs cannot be too capable or useful. If they are too capable, they wouldn't willingly remain as dogs; they’d aspire to be equals. But if the dogs are too useless, they also pose a problem because they can't help in times

 of need and would only drag you down. However, considering that raising dogs isn't usually for biting but for the meat, the choice often leans towards the less capable, those that won’t turn against you.

After laughing for a while, Joseph continued, "But these Turkish people, really... The Russians are about to reach Constantinople, and they are still playing these games. However, we can't fully control these fools from making mistakes. The question now is, how should we respond to this situation?"

"Constantinople must not fall into Russian hands," Joseph said.

If Constantinople were to fall into Russian hands, the Russians would control the juncture between Europe and Asia, gaining a pathway into the Mediterranean and achieving a decisive geographical advantage in the Middle East. Joseph certainly didn't want to have just settled the issue with England to the west, only to have a powerful Russia emerge suddenly from the east.

"Although those Turkish people have a new Sultan, the previous Sultan had signed treaties with us. What's the name of the new Sultan?" Napoleon asked.

"Mustafa IV," Lucien answered.

"Oh, Mustafa IV, a criminal, a thug, a servile scoundrel, a charlatan king, a thief who stole the precious crown from its stand and tucked it into his satchel! How could they play such a hand at this time?" Napoleon said.

"This is very normal, very common, isn't it? Look at the performances of Philippe Equality during the Revolution, in a sense, wasn't it the same?" Joseph laughed, "But for us, a king who came to power illegitimately might be more useful. His position is unprecedentedly weak; he wouldn't dare to violate any agreements we signed with them, even if they were only preliminary. So, our plans can proceed as originally planned. No, the plans should be accelerated. We need the Holy See's volunteer army to arrive sooner and build defensive fortifications outside Constantinople."

Philippe Equality, also known as the Duke of Orléans, behaved very revolutionary and radical during the Revolution, even among the most radical of the Montagnards. To demonstrate his devotion to the republic, he changed his surname to "Equality" and led the charge in sentencing King Louis XVI to death. However, everyone knew that the Duke of Orléans's actions were aimed at positioning himself to become the King of France. Compared to the Duke of Orléans, Sultan Mustafa IV and the Turkish conservatives were not particularly bizarre.

"You're right, but there's one thing: I think we should start by denouncing them, questioning their legitimacy, until they offer a higher price," Napoleon said.

So, Foreign Minister Talleyrand urgently summoned the Turkish ambassador and made the following statement:

"Your country's Sultan Selim III was an old friend of the French people. France is very concerned about your country's current situation and strongly opposes any use of illegal means to overthrow such a widely beloved and legitimate monarch."

Looking at Talleyrand's stern demeanor, the Turkish ambassador, Ahmadi, couldn't help but think: "You French, who publicly executed your legitimate king, have the audacity to talk about a 'legitimate king'? Besides, Turkey has its own traditions; fratricidal conflict is a time-honored tradition..."

However, he dared not speak these thoughts aloud; doing so might endanger his personal safety and the diplomatic relations between the two countries. So, he explained: "Your Excellency, I know there are many rumors, claiming a coup has occurred in our country, that our current Sultan ascended the throne by killing his predecessor. But these are not true; they are fabrications by our enemies, the Russians, meant to sow discord between our nations. In fact, our former king, Sultan Selim III, had long been unwell. After the shameless aggression by the Russians, his health deteriorated further due to his concerns for the state, and he succumbed to his illness, returning to the embrace of the true God. Before his death, he left a will, bequeathing the throne to his cousin, our new Sultan, Mustafa IV. All of this was done under the witness of God."

"Is that really the case?" Talleyrand asked.

"Of course," the ambassador Ahmadi affirmed.

"So, the rumors about your country's clergy, and the new Sultan denouncing Sultan Selim III's policies and planning to overturn them entirely, are also false? The various agreements reached during Sultan Selim III's reign between our countries are still valid?"

"Of course, our country always honors its commitments. The agreements reached with your country will certainly be upheld..."

Hearing this, Talleyrand smiled, "If so, some misunderstandings between our countries should be able to be resolved. Well, your country has just suffered losses on the battlefield and lost such a distinguished monarch as Sultan Selim III. Your country's situation is quite dire. I heard that your country plans to

 make peace with the Russians? Even considering ceding lands in the Balkans to the Russians? My friend, as a friend, let me advise you. You should know that trying to deal with the Russians by ceding land is like throwing wood onto a fire. The wood won't stop burning until it's all gone. Your country, though large, has limited land, but the Russians' greed for land is limitless. Therefore, I suggest you expedite hiring the 'South Italian Volunteers' from Italy, finish paying them and pull your troops back before it's too late. Additionally, because of your country's recent upheaval, our bankers generally believe that lending to your country has become significantly riskier. Therefore, if loans are extended to your country, the interest rates must be increased slightly. We also require more collateral."

After his meeting with Talleyrand, Ambassador Ahmadi immediately used the telegraph to report the situation back home. He soon received a response; Sultan Mustafa IV fully agreed to the French demands. Thus, a large number of South Italian volunteers soon boarded ships.

To resolve the crisis, Sultan Mustafa IV was much more decisive in selling national interests than his brother, and his asking price was much lower. For example, he completely mortgaged the mining rights around the Persian Gulf to the French to borrow money to hire Italians and purchase weapons and ammunition from France.

Considering the increased loan interest rates, Turkey's ability to repay was indeed problematic. Of course, the Turkish people, tightening their belts, could still manage to pay back. But this was not their usual habit. The Turks were more accustomed to defaulting a bit, but French debts were not so easy to default on. Fortunately, the French were interested in the barren lands near the Persian Gulf and even proposed using the region's minerals as collateral and requested the right to station troops there. The Turks felt that selling the minerals in this area to the French to weather the crisis was not a bad deal after all.

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