Chapter 717: The Holy See's Interests
Pius VI gripped the armrest of his chair, suppressing his anger.
"Are they to fire bullets at the Holy See, and I must simply allow it?" he demanded.
Chiaramonti lowered his head.
"Your Holiness, Austria is extremely important to the Holy See... Moreover, we have yet to confirm that the assassin was sent by the Holy Roman Emperor."
"Who else could it be?" Pius VI gritted his teeth. "Besides him, who would dare such a thing? And it happened right after I refused his demand to publicly clarify the Crusaders matter! What a coincidence that would be!"
Chiaramonti weighed his words carefully before continuing.
"Your Holiness, souring relations with Austria would lead to many troubles. It could even cause a schism within the Holy See."
Hearing this, much of the fire in Pius VI's eyes instantly died down.
He knew well that Muzarelli held considerable influence within the Holy See. Not only did he manage one-third of its finances, but nearly thirty cardinals belonged to his faction—the Roman Curia only had seventy cardinals in total.
If he were to clash with Austria, Franz II might very well support Muzarelli in splitting the Holy See!
Yes, Austria truly had the power to do so. Among the Catholic nations of Europe, France had largely distanced itself from the Holy See. Spain, though loyal, couldn't even manage its own internal affairs. Liège, Cologne, and even newly aligned Poland were simply too weak.
Therefore, Austria's influence over the Roman Curia was absolutely not to be underestimated.
Pius VI took a deep breath, looking at Chiaramonti.
"So, what is your counsel?"
"This incident is actually an opportunity," Chiaramonti replied. "For you—oh, no, for the Holy See—eliminating Archbishop Muzarelli as an unstable element is the truly important matter.
"As long as you firmly assert that Austria was the mastermind, European nations, out of sympathy and respect for you, will condemn Austria, or at least remain silent.
"Under such pressure, Franz II will have no choice but to abandon Muzarelli and reach a compromise with you."
Pius VI's eyes lit up. As long as he could bring down Muzarelli, forgiving the Holy Roman Emperor was certainly acceptable.
Chiaramonti continued, "Of course, while taking a firm stance with Austria, we must also offer them certain benefits.
"What Franz II cares about most are the rumors concerning the Crusaders.
"This time, Muzarelli refuted these rumors in the name of the Holy See. We need not contradict him. Constantly changing our stance would only damage the Holy See's prestige.
"Afterward, you merely need to declare that Muzarelli never received your authorization, and the resentment of the Eastern European faithful will not affect the Holy See. At the same time, the Austrians will be satisfied."
Pius VI smiled. "It seems we should actually be thanking Archbishop Muzarelli."
He then looked at Chiaramonti. "Once the assassin's identity is confirmed, you will go to Vienna on my behalf."
"It would be my pleasure to serve you, Your Holiness."
...
Two days after Pius VI's assassination attempt.
Paris.
Versailles.
Lamarck withdrew the syringe from Camelia's arm, then looked up at her and asked,
"Mademoiselle Delvaux, how are you feeling?"
"I feel like I could prance around like a deer in the garden now," the maid replied, curtseying slightly to him. "Thank you for taking care of me during this time. Without you, I would never have recovered so quickly."
After nearly ten days of treatment with Penicillin and Glucose, her lung infection had almost fully healed. Apart from her pretty face being slightly thinner, there were no signs of her serious illness.
Dr. Lamarck glanced at the empty glass vials on the table and smiled faintly.
"I didn't do much. All credit goes to His Highness's invented antibiotics, and of course, the miraculous syringe."
He leaned in a little closer, whispering,
"That was a precious medicine, nearly 30,000 francs per injection. Now, less than two grams remain in all of France."
Camelia froze, stunned.
She recalled receiving seven injections in total, meaning that to treat her, the Crown Prince had used medicine worth 210,000 francs!
A wave of warmth surged through her heart, and her eyes instantly welled up. Turning to Joseph, who was visiting her, she performed a solemn curtsey.
"Your Highness, I truly don't know how to thank you. Such precious medicine... You are the kindest person to me in this world, besides my grandmother..."
Seeing the young lady about to cry, Joseph quickly said with a smile,
"Dr. Lamarck exaggerates too much; you needn't worry about it. Many rabbits also used this medicine before you, in fact."
Camelia's delicate face remained earnest. "Your Highness, you saved my life. How can I ever repay you...?
'Oh, right, I must first repay you for the cost of those medicines.'"
Although this little heiress was quite extravagant in her daily spending, she still had a fortune of 280,000 francs and could indeed afford the Penicillin.
Joseph smiled, waving his hand. "The price of the medicine isn't calculated as Dr. Lamarck said. However, if you truly wish to contribute, consider it an investment in the Paris Pharmaceutical Factory."
He then suddenly remembered something. "Ah, and the Herriot family compensated you 300,000 francs for this incident."
Eman immediately took out several bills of exchange from a wooden box and brought them over.
"So much?"
Camelia was quite surprised.
She had truly done nothing yet possessed astonishing wealth—all compensation secured for her by the Crown Prince. The last time it was Baron Walter, this time it was Count Herriot.
She then recalled Perna telling her yesterday that she had been appointed president of the newly established Royal Military Medical University and would be busy with school matters, asking Camelia to take good care of His Highness, the Crown Prince.
'How I envy Mademoiselle Perna, to be a woman and become a respected university president,' a thought flashed through Camelia's mind. She looked up at Joseph and said,
"Your Highness, I'd like to donate this money to the Royal Military Medical University. Consider it my thanks for Mademoiselle Perna's care."
Joseph was quite moved. This girl truly knew how to repay kindness; 300,000 francs, donated without hesitation.
'Wait a moment, she seemed to say she wanted to repay me too...'
Just then, Clauzel lightly tapped on the door. "Your Highness, Monsieur Fouché has arrived. He says he has something very important to discuss."
Joseph instructed the maid to rest well and quickly headed towards the reception hall.
Fouché, seeing the Crown Prince arrive, promptly saluted by placing a hand over his chest. He then produced an urgent dispatch and presented it, stating gravely,
"Your Highness, the Pope was the target of an assassination attempt the day before yesterday."
"Oh?" Joseph unfolded the secret report, frowning slightly. "How is the Pope? Who was the assailant?"
Fouché replied, "The Pope dodged the bullets and was not injured. The assailant was a young officer named Schmitz, reportedly an Austrian."
Yes, after Chappe's optical signal tower completed its tests, Joseph immediately allocated funds for large-scale construction of signal towers. Over the past two months of building, dozens of signal towers from Paris to Lyon had been completed and were already transmitting information.
This was why news from Rome, nearly a thousand kilometers away, could reach Paris in just two days.
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