Paulie and Pete met in the same auditorium where the council was held.

However, unlike the council, which is open to everyone, the meeting between Poly and Pitt is highly confidential, and even the attendees are only informed of the time of the meeting half an hour before the meeting starts.

In order to prevent eavesdropping and voyeurism, the doors and windows of the large auditorium were closed, making the interior space dim, with only a few candlesticks on the table as the only source of light.

There were not many participants on both sides, sitting on either side of the horseshoe-shaped table, and while waiting for the meeting to begin, no one exchanged words, and there was silence in the room.

Although his seat was requested by Pete, Lawrence knew which side of his ass should sit.

After entering the auditorium, Lawrence separated from Pete and sat on Pauly's side without being embarrassed.

Paulie, on the other hand, was as expressionless as if he hadn't seen Lawrence, just looking down at the minutes in his hand, but he didn't know if he could see it in such a light.

Sitting in his seat, Lawrence had recovered from the surprise that Pitt had just asked for a seat for himself.

"I guess it's because their talks are coming to an end, and Pete really wants me to go back to London with him, so he gave me this kind of treatment."

Lawrence looked at the attendees on the floor, pondering Pete's intentions.

On either side of the horseshoe-shaped table, there were only five or six people sitting on each side, and with the exception of Paulie and Pete, they were all clerks and recorders.

"It's almost time."

The secretary sitting next to Poly looked at his pocket watch and reminded softly.

Poly nodded, took the documents of this meeting from the secretary's hand, cleared his throat, and said solemnly:

"Good afternoon, Your Excellency Pete, our main agreement has been reached, and only a few details remain to be perfected."

"Well, I'll see..."

Pete moved a candlestick closer to him, put on his glasses and looked at the papers, and said:

"The next item is the treatment of the upper echelons after the annexation of Corsica to England."

Pete's voice echoed in the empty auditorium, the shadows of the participants swayed in the candlelight, and the oppressive and solemn atmosphere permeated the audience.

The faces of each of the attendees were blurred in the shadows, but Pete's voice was real and unmistakable, reaching Lawrence's ears clearly:

Corsica was annexed to England.

There was a brief silence in the room.

Pete didn't say anything after reading this, and glanced at Lawrence meaningfully.

Paulie also observed Lawrence's expression out of the corner of his eye.

Lawrence, on the other hand, just didn't make a move as if he hadn't heard anything, and still sat upright in his seat.

The evening breeze whistling outside the auditorium slammed against the closed doors and windows, and the clattering noise echoed inside.

Poly took a deep breath, looked away from Lawrence, looked at his materials, and said in a deep voice:

"So, Your Excellency Pete, what do you think of this matter?"

"I can hereby pledge to remain in the same position as I did at the top of the Corsican government, including you. Of course, the new government needs to have British, and the proportion must be 20%."

Pete said unhurriedly.

"No problem."

Paulie nodded, exchanged glances with Pete, and both motioned for their clerks to write down the treaty and adjourn the meeting before making rigorous legal touches.

"By the way..."Paulie lowered his voice and asked with some eagerness in his eyes:

"What about the award?"

Pete glanced at Paulie and said slowly:

"You will be awarded the Count of Corsica, and if the Cabinet and His Majesty the King attach enough importance to Corsica, you may be awarded the Duke of Corsica."

"Good, good, good..."

Poly nodded, his eyes became a little frozen, and he didn't stop after saying yes three times in a row.

"Oh, yes."

Pete interrupted Paulie's excitement and said solemnly:

"I personally suggest, Governor Poly, that you add a name to that list of applications for the honor."

"Add a name? Who? Poly was stunned for a moment and subconsciously asked.

"Lawrence Bonaparte."

"Lawrence? Why?! ”

Paulie frowned, if this were someone else's, he would have rushed forward and punched hard.

Pete smiled and glanced at Lawrence, and said unhurriedly:

"Don't forget, we promised to honour certain Corsicans of status in order to avoid the turmoil that arose during the merger. To put it bluntly, it is to win over the powerful, and I think Monsieur Bonaparte fits this condition very well. ”

Lawrence listened silently, couldn't help but sigh, and thought to himself:

"Pete, this is forcing me to stuff me with a big gift that I don't want at all."

......

The meeting did not last long, as the regulations discussed were indeed mostly minutiae, and neither Pete nor Paulie argued too much with each other.

As for important matters such as garrisons, trade, customs duties, and immigration, the two men had already reached an agreement in their previous talks.

Although the treaty has not yet been published in its entirety, the day when the Red Cross flag will be planted in Corsica seems to be not far off.

After the meeting, the Briton on Pete's side packed up the papers and left.

Before leaving, Pete deliberately patted Lawrence on the shoulder and dropped a meaningful sentence:

"Consider my proposal again, citizen of England."

With the departure of Pete and his party, as well as the clerks and recorders of the Doge's Palace, only Paulie and Lawrence, as well as Pauly's secretary, remained in the empty auditorium.

"Ahem, Lord Governor, the meeting is over."

The secretary looked at the two who were sitting in place with some embarrassment, and reminded them loudly.

Paulie propped his arms on the table, put his hands on his forehead, closed his eyes and rubbed his temples, and said softly:

"You go to my study and bring the most recent reports from the Southern Legion."

The secretary stood still and hesitated for a moment, but still obeyed Pauly's order and left the auditorium to get the report requested by Pauly.

After the secretary had also left, Lawrence sighed, closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair, and said casually:

"So, Governor, that's what you want to do? Putting the British flag on Corsica? ”

The whirring evening breeze poured in from the gate, and Lawrence's back was a little chilly.

Paulie didn't speak, still rubbing his temples.

Lawrence turned his head to look at Paulie and said:

"Maybe I should call you Count of Corsica from now on?"

"That's enough, Lawrence."

Paulie opened his eyes, but did not look at Lawrence, but said in a flat tone:

"In my eyes, I'm doing what I have to do."

The blood-red sunset shot through the gate into the auditorium, drawing the shadows of Lawrence and Paulie on the ground into two narrow black lines, which intertwined fiercely like two dueling swords.

"And in my eyes"

Lawrence stood up, fixed his gaze on Paulie's face, and said directly:

"You are treasonous, Governor."