Toussaint Louverdur summoned several of his capable subordinates to discuss the advice that Victor had brought to him, Napoleon, the first consul.

There was a lot of discussion in the face of this series of suggestions. But it's all the same, and I can't make up my mind. At the same time, the "free trade" staying outside the port has also brought a lot of pressure to everyone. Although the "Free Trade" is still outside the port, the "Constitution" is already docked at the pier in Port-au-Prince.

Those captured and wounded Americans were also sent ashore, and through their questioning, they also learned what was happening at sea. Although most blacks knew nothing about these things, Toussaint Louverture learned from these descriptions what a horrific monster the "free trade" still parked outside Port-au-Prince was. Not to mention anything else, once the two sides turn their faces, the "Free Trade Number" can definitely smash the entire port area.

Of course, if it is for independence, in order not to be a slave again, or even just to obtain land, then there is nothing that cannot be borne by this sacrifice. In the original history, when the black rebels faced the French expeditionary force, they adopted a very thorough strategy of fortifying the wall. For example, when the French Expeditionary Force landed in Port-au-Prince, the black rebels set fire to the entire port-au-prince.

But it's always good to lose a little less if it's not necessary. Even black people who have never read any books are not very stupid enough to set fire to tens of thousands of civilians before the enemy army arrives.

After arguing for a while, they finally came to the conclusion that they would not declare independence for the time being, but follow Victor's suggestion to track down the "crimes" of the white slave owners' "collaboration with the enemy and treason". Keep the trade lanes, and then slowly think about which way to go. At the same time, some people were sent to Louisiana to test the waters.

After receiving this answer, Victor proposed that the French army need to build a special military port in Santo Domingo. He explicitly told Toussaint Louverture that one of the reasons why the First Consul was willing to make these exchanges and show so much goodwill was to ensure the security of Louisiana, and in order to ensure the safety of Louisiana, it was necessary to have a reliable military port in Santo Domingo.

Toussaint Louverture was not particularly disgusted with the port itself, but he was very worried about the French garrison in the port. At first, he even asked the French to hand over all the security of the port on land to his army.

Such an unreasonable request was naturally rejected by Victor without hesitation. Victor stated that neither he, nor the First Consul, doubted the combat effectiveness of his soldiers, but ......

"Your Excellency the Governor, let's be honest with each other." "The reason why you are so concerned about the French garrison in the military port is really because you fear that these troops will be a threat to you, or to put it more explicitly, you don't fully trust us right now, and you fear that we will use these troops to jeopardize the security of Santo Domingo," Victor said.

But again, we have the same doubts about you. We are also afraid that you will, in some cases, suddenly fall to our enemies, thus posing a serious threat to our military ports. Therefore, the security of the military port must be controlled in our hands. Of course, for the sake of our cooperation, in order to strengthen mutual trust between us, we can discuss the size of the garrison, the type of weapons equipped. ”

So the two men had a frank discussion about the location of the French military port, the number of troops garrisoned, and the weapons equipped.

After a week-long discussion, the two sides finally reached a basic understanding:

The French army could build a military port in Cap-de-France, and the land garrison of the military port was the responsibility of the French army itself. But the number of garrisoned French troops must not exceed three thousand. In addition, the French troops stationed at the military port shall not be equipped with more than 12 guns of 12 pounds or less. (Governor Toussaint Louvidur considered that artillery of more than this weight would be difficult to move and not very suitable for offensive operations, given the land traffic in Santo Domingo.) Cap-de-France is also relatively far from Port-au-Prince, so it is relatively safe. ）

This location in Cap-de-France was actually the first place where the French landed on the Ile de Haiti, and until 1790, it was the capital of the entire Haitian colony. However, it was badly damaged in the subsequent earthquake. In another time, when Haiti finally became independent, it was renamed Cape Haïtien. In terms of port conditions, this port is also very good. However, Toussaint Louvidur told Victor that there is a problem with the port, and that is:

"Some Americans ran over there, and we didn't have time to kick them out."

Of course, this is just a pretext, and Victor knows very well that these Americans must have gotten there with the tacit approval of Toussaint Louvidour, and even that he seduced these Americans. Because he needs to rely on these Americans to support his cause of independence.

"Oh, at least for now, Santo Domingo is French territory. How could they stay anywhere? Victor said.

"It's just some temporary shelter and ship repairs." "It's just that they're a little bit slower. However, according to our agreement, the construction of your military port will not begin until the land problem has been settled. I can assure you that we can get these Americans out before the port begins. ”

Victor looked at Toussaint Louvidur and said, "Mr. Governor, I can understand that you are not willing to directly tear your face with the Americans at this time. You see them as a way back. We understand this perfectly. However, in this case, I am afraid that those 'traitors' will not be handed over to you for custody, and they will be sent back to France for trial on charges of treason...... If you turn your back on us, we'll have a way back. ”

After completing the basic negotiations and signing a memorandum, Victor returned to the "Free Trade". According to the plan, the FTA will leave Haiti and travel to New Orleans, the capital of Louisiana. Then remediate for a while and then return to Europe.

"Captain Zola," said Victor to Captain Zola as soon as he got on board, "before we go to New Orleans, we need to make a trip to Cap-de-France." ”

"Is there anything wrong with Cap-de-France?" Captain Zola asked.

"It's not a big problem, that is, some Americans are said to repair ships there." "Why can't we not pay a proper visit to them when they gave us such a large corvette?" And, Captain Zola, it is impossible for this ship of yours to stay here for a long time. And after the departure of the 'Free Trade', our naval forces in this sea area are not enough to suppress the Americans. They're definitely going to do it again. It is better to take advantage of the fact that we are still here, so that the American Navy can understand how far they are from the real maritime powers. ”

Captain Zola naturally understood what Victor meant, that is, to take advantage of the "Free Trade" here to deal a heavy blow to the US Navy. In order to change the disadvantage of French maritime power in this area.

"You mean that we go directly to the Americans? Did the First Consul know about this? Zola asked.

"How could the First Consul know these things? But when we set out again, Minister Lucien Bonaparte said to me: 'Victor, you must know that as soon as we intend to take over Louisiana, we will inevitably become enemies of the Americans. On this issue, now that the Americans have already taken the lead, I think there is nothing we need to continue to refrain from. ’”