Duke Alvis stood by the window, holding a wine glass in his hand with a smile on his lips.
I was admiring the scenery outside the window when, following the waiter's announcement, Lai Gouer, dressed in local clothes, walked into the house.
Straight to the point, "What's the big deal that the Duke called me here for today?"
Duke Alvis turned around and raised his glass: "Master Lai, please take a seat. I have a great reason to invite you here today."
"Oh?" Lai Gou'er sat directly opposite him, and wine glasses were already placed on the table.
Duke Alvis sat down, put down his wine glass, pushed a document on the table in front of Lai Gou'er, and said with a smile: "In the Holy City, the Archbishop's commission has been issued. From now on, the cooperation between you and me will be extremely smooth. At least in Feka, the power of the Holy See will no longer be an obstacle."
Lai Gou'er picked up the letter of appointment and said in surprise, "The archbishop is of high status. How could Father Soljie, who came from a low-class background, succeed in just a few months?"
Duke Alvis shook his head and said, "Of course it's not that simple. I used a lot of connections to solve it. In addition, the cost of opening up connections..."
"That's easy to say. Of course, it can't be borne by you alone, Duke. Didn't my Dajing's fleet just arrive this morning? This new batch of goods can naturally be negotiated." Lai Gou'er said.
"Lord Lai is so straightforward!" Duke Alvis slammed the table and sighed, "It's lucky to be able to do this smoothly. You know there are many people in Feika who want to compete for the position of archbishop. Soljie has a weak foundation and is really not competitive."
"Who would have thought that our competitors were assassinated by the Brotherhood? It really saved me a lot of effort. Oh... If I hadn't seen you coming from the East with my own eyes, I would have suspected that the Brotherhood was yours, haha."
"It's fate!" Lai Gou'er laughed, and then asked, "This archbishop can work, I don't know the titles of cardinal and chancellor..."
Duke Alvis did not mince words and whispered, "Under the Pope, anyone can buy him as long as the price is high enough! But there is no need for that for now. It won't be too late to bribe a senior executive when the business starts in the future."
Lai Gou'er raised his eyebrows: "How could the church be so corrupt?"
"It's quite corrupt." A trace of contempt flashed across Duke Alvis' face. "I dare say that even the most devout believers will become suspicious after seeing the corruption of the Holy City."
"But this is a good thing. As long as we can handle the top, the rest will be smooth and we can avoid a lot of trouble."
Lai Gou'er nodded.
Duke Alvis asked, "I haven't seen you for a long time. What is Lord Lai busy with?"
"I'm not really busy. The fleet is managed by the people below. I read some books when I have nothing to do and translate some of them. I can send them back to Dajing in the future."
"Oh....It's a pity that I don't understand the language of Dajing. Lord Lai is of noble status and still eager to learn. His family must be well-known in Dajing, right?"
Lai Gou'er shook his head: "Family? I was born a beggar and was raised by beggars. I have no father or mother."
"Uh...no father or mother?" Duke Alvis's brain was a little confused. "Beggar?"
Lai Gou'er often dealt with him, and his words and actions showed that he was well-educated.
After living here for a while, even the local slang and allusions can be used fluently.
During the time we spent together, we established some friendship through business, and I thought that the other party was also from a noble family.
I didn’t expect...such a person turned out to be a beggar?
"I am a beggar." Lai Gou'er said with a half-smile, "Duke, you won't look down on me just because I was born a beggar, right?"
Duke Alvis came back to his senses and stood in awe: "Absolutely impossible! Lord Lai came from a humble background, but he has achieved such success today. This only makes people admire him more. How can I look down on him?"
"Only those petty nobles with shallow backgrounds would look down on people like you. I am just curious about how you got to where you are today?"
Lai Gou'er recalled, "It's all luck. It's all thanks to the support of Lord Fang Zheng that I'm where I am today. Yesterday I received a letter from Da Jing. He has now been conferred the title of Marquis of Jianye by the imperial court."
"It can be said that he was the one who facilitated Dajing's seagoing fleet and the trade between the East and the West."
"In that case, Lord Fang is a man with a unique vision and a remarkable person. I wonder if I will have the chance to meet him in the future."
"I'm afraid there won't be such an opportunity." Lai Gou'er said, 'He is in a high position now, and it's too far to go out to sea. But if there is an opportunity, the Duke can go to visit my Dajing.'
After he finished speaking, he immediately asked, "I heard the Duke mention some time ago that some Orientals had declared war on the Holy See. I wonder if there has been any result on this matter now?"
Duke Alvis sneered, "You asked at the right time. I just received the news. The Pope brought people over, and within a month, both sides had decided to negotiate peace. Now things have returned to normal. The two cardinals who were killed were sentenced by the Grand Chancellor himself and excommunicated."
"It can be seen that this person has great magical powers and unfathomable abilities. I remember you asked me before if I had seen an Oriental person, but I am sure it was not this person. If it was the person you are looking for, it is impossible for him to have such a foundation."
"By the way, who is the person you are looking for?"
Lai Gou'er said calmly, "I just asked casually. He is an old friend of Lord Fang. He is not very important. It would be best if I could find him. I will just do it for the sake of convenience."
"Okay, now that the letter of appointment has arrived, I'll go to Father Solger. I haven't seen him for a while, so this is a good opportunity to congratulate him in person."
After Lai Gou'er finished speaking, he stood up and prepared to leave.
Duke Alvis said, "Wait a minute, there is one more thing. He needs to go to the Holy City to meet the Pope in person within one year of receiving the commission. This is a rule and it is inevitable. I think if you are interested, you can also take this opportunity to meet the Pope together."
"Is there such a thing?" Lai Gou'er thought, "Well, when he is ready, I will go with him. I want to see what this holy city looks like."
Duke Alvis smiled and said, "No problem. I will arrange for someone to see you off when the time comes."
"It's time to eat now. I'll ask someone to prepare it. Why don't you eat first before leaving?"
Lai Gou'er stopped, nodded and said with a smile: "Okay, let's go after we finish eating."
Duke Alvis smiled and raised his glass: "I wish us a pleasant cooperation."
“It’s been a pleasure working with you.”
......
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