The Great Ying Empire's traditional specialty

"Ah, thank you for saving Great Britain a whopping Pound Sterling 40,000!"

As the "strongest firepower" of the opposition party, the Whig Party, Charles James Fox snorted, stood up, and said in a strange tone, "But this little "contribution" is far from making up for the strategic mistakes made by you and the Prime Minister, which led to the huge losses we suffered in North Africa. 🍭💜 🐜★"

He gestured towards the hundreds of members of parliament sitting behind him. "I believe the Tory Party must give Parliament an explanation for this!"

The Tory Party are currently the ruling party in the United Kingdom.

However, they did not have an advantage in approval ratings over the Whig Party, largely due to King George III's special favoritism towards William Pitt the Younger and his use of the Royal House's influence to forcefully push the latter into the position of Prime Minister.

The Whig Party have always been dissatisfied with this, and since William Pitt Jr. came to power, they have seized every opportunity to attack the Tory Party.

The Duke of Leeds took a deep breath, thinking that what was bound to happen had finally happened. Fortunately, he had discussed countermeasures with the Prime Minister yesterday, and now it was up to him to perform.

He glanced subtly at the head of the Intelligence Department beside him, then raised his hand to interrupt Fox:

"Representative Fox, please clarify the facts before you rush to accuse me."

"The actual situation?"

"Yes," the Duke of Leeds nodded confidently. "The situation in North Africa is entirely under the control of His Prime Minister and myself. We were already informed of the France movements in Tunisia. Isn't that right, Mr. Butler?"

The intelligence chief immediately stood up:

"That's right. We discovered the France operations months ago."

Upon hearing this, the councilors began to whisper among themselves.

Of course, the Duke of Leeds and his men were actually completely unaware of France's strategy in Tunisia, only learning of the dramatic changes that had occurred there from recent France newspapers. However, for politicians, lying is a basic skill.

"Control?" Fox scoffed dismissively. "You mean sit idly by and watch the France reap huge profits in Tunisia?"

The Duke of Leeds immediately shouted:

"No, why would you think the France have benefited? Quite the opposite, the current situation in Tunisia is the opportunity I've been waiting for!"

Fox rolled his eyes at him:

"Did you drink before you came here? What nonsense are you spouting?"

The Duke of Leeds, unperturbed, raised his fists and declared eloquently, "Now we have the opportunity to repay the France for everything they have done to us in North America!"

"No one in the world understands the grave dangers of Colony unrest better than we do. Tunisia is like a dangerous swamp teeming with Crocodile, and the France have entered it like inexperienced hunters."

"They only have 3,000 troops there. We just need to rouse those wild beasts, and we can kill them!"

The senator James, instinctively asked, "What are you going to do?"

The Duke of Leeds shrugged. "Details of the operation cannot be released at this time. You can request permission from His Prime Minister to learn more."

This is perfectly normal practice. The United Kingdom can get inside information about France Cabinet Meeting attended by only a few ministers, while it's even easier for the France to obtain intelligence from hundreds of the United Kingdom MPs. Therefore, they won't reveal specific plans during Parliament questioning.

Fox exclaimed, "I have no interest in the details of the plan. I just want to know how long your grand Tunisia plan will take and what kind of results it will bring us."

"In a year, no, even just a few months, the France will be out of Tunisia," the Duke of Leeds said confidently. "Or, the French Government will have to invest huge sums of money there, eventually bankrupting their Finance."

The United Kingdom MPs generally understood that managing Colony was extremely costly, especially when embroiled in counterinsurgency wars, which yielded no profits and required continuous financial outlay. United Kingdom had been in this predicament when the United States sought independence, and now it was time to make the France experience a similar hardship.

The Whig finally stopped their attacks, Fox made a final threat:

"I look forward to your success. But if you still cannot resolve the Tunisia issue, I believe you should resign."

The Duke of Leeds smiled easily. "Of course, but that depends on how Mr. Hollis executes it."

George Hollis was the United Kingdom consul in Tunisia and a Whig.

Before Fox could say anything, the Duke of Leeds immediately added, "Oh, and also, to better deal with the France in Tunisia, we need some funding. About Pound Sterling 300,000..."

Gafsa, in southwestern Tunisia.

"Those bastards!" Hollis, wearing a white turban and a pale yellow Arabia- style robe, cursed under the Liège, "You're fighting for power in London, but you've gambled my future on it!"

"Your Excellency, what did you say?" A tall, middle-aged United Kingdom dressed similarly leaned forward and asked from across the open Carriage.

"Ah... I mean, fortunately, Tunisia are very wary of European, so we shouldn't have much trouble persuading them to oppose the France."

"That's right, absolutely." The tall, middle-aged man nodded. "And their Guard Corps just got beaten up by the France; they're bound to be resentful."

"And then there's the newly appointed Tunisian leader, Bey, who clearly lacks any real power. That's good news for us, isn't it?"

The two chatted casually for another half hour along the rugged road before the Carriage finally stopped in front of a domed mansion on the south side of a town.

The Berber Servant who came out to greet them received the Silver Coin from Hollis and immediately and courteously led them into the Villa.

Hollis then met with Ercuz, the highest-ranking Tunisia Guard Corps commander in the area, who was essentially the mayor.

Seated on the fine Wool carpet in the living room, Hollis exchanged pleasantries with Ercuz in fluent Arabic for a while before getting straight to the point. "Pasha, the France have disarmed nearly ten thousand of their Guard Corps warriors Tunisia City. This is a complete humiliation of the entire Tunisia Guard Corps! We cannot swallow this insult!"

Ercuz nodded calmly, and out of consideration for the several thousand Silver Coin he had brought, echoed, "The navy offended them, yet they turned on the Guard Corps; it's truly outrageous!"

"That's right! That's why we must take revenge on those France!"

Ercuz immediately shook his head. "How could my small force possibly defeat them?"

Hollis hurriedly said, "Don't worry, you don't need to confront them head-on. Just rob France caravans every now and then, and burn down France factories and houses when it gets dark."

"If the France send troops, just say you know nothing about it and pretend to agree to help catch the bandits. They'll leave quickly. They only have 3,000 men in Tunisia; they can't possibly handle this."

He directly copied all the attack methods that United Kingdom had experienced in the United States back then.

Ercuz remained uninterested. "However, there are still significant risks involved..."

Seeing this, Hollis had no choice but to resort to his trump card. "To support the Guard Corps's revenge, I can provide you with 2,000 Riyal."

The Riyal is a Gold Coin slightly smaller than the Pound Sterling; 2,000 Riyal are equivalent to approximately 44,000 Livre.

Seeing that the Guard Corps officer seemed somewhat interested, Hollis gestured to the United Kingdom who had come with him. "This is Mr. Robert. He will come periodically to assess your resistance efforts and will provide you with 500 to 1000 Riyal per month."

Ercuz immediately grinned, pumping his fist and saying, "I've had my eye on those France for a long time! Don't worry, I'll make them pay!"

After leaving the Guard Corps officer, Hollis hurried to a village outside the city, where he visited a large Berbers tribe.

"Your Tribal Chief, you mustn't let the France fool you," Hollis said earnestly. "They say they're buying land, but they certainly won't pay."

"Moreover, the France have a kind of evil magic that allows their Farmland to steal the 'life force' from nearby lands. If they farm here, within a few years, all your neighboring lands will yield nothing!"

The light brown-skinned Berber Tribal Chief frowned and asked, "Are you telling the truth?"

"Absolutely true!" Hollis said, "For the future of your tribe, you must do everything in your power to drive away those France settlers!"

"I know this might cause you trouble, but a kind Pasha is willing to offer you 200 Riyal to compensate for the losses incurred in the conflict with the France."

"But I heard that Bey has already ordered cooperation with the France..."

"Don't worry, Bey's Guard Corps have been defeated; there's nothing to fear."

Before long, the United Kingdom consul left the Berbers tribe and headed to the next city to continue his "stirring up trouble" mission.

Tunisia City.

France Consul in Tunisia Joanne, straightened his hat and stepped into the Kashir Palace.

Upon seeing him, the current Beihaji greeted him excitedly, "Mr. Joan, your prediction has come true! The Younis rebels were completely defeated a few days ago, and Koca has led his troops in pursuit of over a hundred remaining enemy soldiers into the southern desert."

"Congratulations, Bey." Joanne wasn't surprised at all.

After cutting off Younis's Ammunition and funding supplies, the rebels' disadvantages in terms of numbers and terrain became apparent, and they were worn down by Koja in less than a month.

Beside her, Hafsa was beaming with happiness as she gestured to her maid to bring out fruits and drinks. She had officially married Haji a few days earlier, and the two were finally united.

After delivering the good news, Haji began asking Joanne about matters concerning taxation and the appointment and removal of officials. Haji was of mediocre ability and lacked any political foundation; he only had about thirty Servant and currently relied entirely on the Army of France for support, with even the palace being managed by the Paris Police Academy students. Therefore, he consulted Joanne on any matter, big or small.

As dusk fell, Joanne emerged from the Kashir Palace and immediately saw Amedee, the newly appointed immigration officer, walking Orthodox God toward her.

"Is there anything I can help you with?"

Amedee simply raised his hat in a gesture of apology, and said urgently, "Baron Joanne, a newly built Workshop in southeastern Bizerte has burned down, and three people have died."

Joanne frowned immediately. There had been dozens of attacks on France people in Tunisia recently. These were the more serious ones; there were probably many more sporadic attacks that hadn't been officially counted.

"Have you found out who did it?"

"Not yet... You know, we're severely understaffed... By the way, I've heard rumors that the Guard Corps in various regions are preparing to retaliate against us."

As they talked, they walked towards their lodgings across the street. Just as they reached the door, Amedee's assistant hurriedly shoved a letter into his hand, forgetting even to bow. "Sir, it seems a caravan was robbed in Susa; seven France and three Sardinians were killed..."

Joanne's expression immediately turned serious. "It seems we must report this back to the country."

Paris.

In the corridor of the Versailles Palace, Joseph listened with a grim face as Joanne described the situation in Tunisia —the situation was getting out of control, and Joan had returned to Paris the day before.

"The Tunisia Guard Corps has threatened to attack all France people?" Joseph frowned at Joanne. "Have they started mobilizing their troops?"

No, not at all.

Who is the person who called for this?

"It seems there isn't a clear leader."

"Oh?" Joseph was somewhat surprised. "Without anyone calling for it, why is the Tunisia Guard Corps acting in such unison? I heard you just say that attacks are happening frequently throughout almost every part of Tunisia."

Joanne said with a pained expression, "Your Highness, it's not just the Guard Corps; it seems there are also Berbers tribes attacking France farmers who went to cultivate the land."

"Didn't the newly appointed Bey issue a decree prohibiting attacks on France people?"

"His Highness, in reality, his decrees only have effect in Tunisia City, and that's only because Lieutenant Colonel Berthier's Lieutenant Colonel is stationed there."

"This situation is a bit troublesome." Joseph shook his head inwardly. It sounded like they were about to descend into a full-blown counterinsurgency war.

No, that's not right. His mind raced. If the Tunisia rulers had no appeal and the region was far from experiencing national awakening, it would be impossible for them to spontaneously resist foreign forces.

Based on this, it's highly likely that someone is secretly instigating this.

Who could it be? An influential Tunisia Guard Corps officer? Ottoman? United Kingdom? Algerians?

He rubbed his forehead. Whoever it was, the first thing to do was to stabilize the situation in Tunisia.

He asked Joanne some more detailed questions about Tunisia, and then the two of them arrived at the Golden Gate of the Conference Hall.

The Guard on both sides hurriedly opened the gate for him, and then stood respectfully on either side with their heads bowed.

Inside the Conference Hall, several Cabinet Minister, who were clearly aware of the situation in North Africa, were discussing it in hushed tones.

Soon after, Queen Mary arrived, and after everyone rose to pay their respects, the Cabinet Meeting on the Tunisia issue officially began.

First, Mirabeau, who was in charge of Tunisia immigration, stood up to speak, "Clearly, news from Tunisia has spread throughout the country. In the past week, almost no one has applied to go to Tunisia, and even some people who arrived in Marseille waiting to board the ship have begun to return home..."