Poaching the British Allies

Tipu Sultan lightly flicked the reins and strode past the soldiers, who immediately gave him a gun salute and looked at him with respect.

"Lord Jahan Zeb, do you think my army can defeat the United Kingdom?" Tipu Sultan turned to ask the slightly plump old man riding behind him.

"Of course, Great Sultan." The old man named Jahan Zeb raised his wide sleeves and bowed slightly, saying, "Your army is unmatched; no one can rival you."

He paused, glancing at Tipu Sultan's expression, and continued, "However, the United Kingdom have superior weaponry and coastal support from their Warship. If you fight them, your army will suffer considerable losses."

"Furthermore, we will rely on trade with the United Kingdom to obtain the Gold Coin you need to implement your reforms."

Tipu Sultan nodded slightly. This Jahan Zeb was a highly trusted minister from his father's time, and his opinion was naturally not to be ignored.

"So, you think I should expel those France?"

"That's not necessary." Jahan Zeb took two steps forward and whispered, "They brought a lot of weapons and technology; you can use them to do whatever you want."

"As for their desire to use your power to deal with the United Kingdom, we just need to keep giving them the runaround."

"Our most important task right now is to teach Travancore with a force that shakes mountains and seas, so that other countries will be deterred from being our enemies."

"And once the United Kingdom see our strength, they will certainly choose to cooperate with us."

Tipu Sultan nodded, raised his hand and pointed south with his riding crop. "Then we'll march on Travancore early next month. As for the France, you'll be in charge of entertaining them."

"Yes, Great Sultan."

In a luxurious building in the South of Mysore City, Lafayette was pacing anxiously back and forth.

He had been in India for a month and had repeatedly suggested to Tipu Sultan that they take the initiative to attack the United Kingdom. He had even come up with a battle plan, but the stubborn Mysore leader had not agreed.

Here, he spends his days either at banquets or being invited to instruct the army on training, but he sees no hope of completing the Crown Prince's plan.

And his own meteoric rise to fame will be nothing but a pipe dream!

Lafayette suddenly stopped, gestured to his Servant to fetch his coat, and then said to the attendant, "Go and invite Mr. Salah."

"Yes, General."

Soon, a man in his thirties, wearing Arabia- style robe and sporting a neatly trimmed beard, arrived outside his house, bowed to him with his hand on his chest, and said in French with a North Africa accent, "General, you wanted to see me?"

"Yes. Please come with me to the Ambavilas Palace; I must persuade him!" Lafayette strode towards the Carriage in the courtyard. "The rainy season is approaching soon, and large-scale battles will be impossible then."

Salah pressed on. "General, you've spoken with Tipu Sultan five times already, and he seems reluctant to accept your opinions."

"It's all that old bastard Jahan Zeb's fault!" Lafayette jumped into the car, annoyed. "Every time I talk about the importance of defeating the United Kingdom, he interrupts with things like ' The United Kingdom are just here to do business,' or 'They have no ill intentions towards Mysore '..."

"And the previous wars were all just trade disputes," Salah added. "He is indeed a problem. As far as I know, there are quite a few pro-British forces in Mysore, and Jahan Zeb is their representative."

The Carriage slowly started moving, Lafayette's eyes suddenly turned cold. "Perhaps I really should ask the Intelligence Bureau for help to make that guy disappear completely!"

"No, no, that's too risky," Salah said. "Perhaps you've forgotten His Crown Prince's instructions before he left. I think it's time to try those methods."

"The Crown Prince?" Lafayette immediately shook his head; the Crown Prince's "special methods" were simply a joke.

Things like "telling stories to the people of Mysore," "labeling opponents," "using mythology to guide public opinion in Mysore," and "even arranging a marriage alliance with Tipu Sultan"...

Salah probed, "If you need to be busy negotiating with Tipu Sultan, then I will carry out His Crown Prince's methods. What do you think?"

Lafayette scratched her head in frustration and said absentmindedly, "Whatever."

An hour later, when Lafayette emerged dejectedly from Tipu Sultan's palace, Salah did not return with him to the inn, but instead headed west into the city.

With the help of the Intelligence Bureau, Salah, the second France consul in Mysore, successfully met with General Sheikh Khan of Mysore. Although the Intelligence Bureau had only been in Mysore for less than a month, it quickly established a usable intelligence network by relying on former employees of the French East India Company that it brought with it. It had even extended its reach to several princely states outside of Mysore.

Salah, Islam from Tunisia, got along very well with General Sheikh Khan, who spoke French. The latter had gone to Europe to study military technology as a member of Tipu Sultan's Military Reform, and he had learned French in the Ottoman.

"You're right, Jahan Zeb must have received bribes from the United Kingdom." Sheikh Khan, sitting cross-legged on the carpet, looked at Salah and nodded repeatedly. "However, Sultan Majesty the Sultan trusts him greatly, and we can't even criticize him in front of the Sultan."

Salah approached Sheikh Khan because he was Jahan Zeb's political rival.

Salah smiled and said, "You can easily have others oppose him."

"Others?"

"For example, the Lesser Nobility, and even ordinary people."

"I don't understand what you mean."

"Since Jahan Zeb is pro-British, then we'll make the United Kingdom lose their support..."

Salah and Sheikh Khan discussed matters until 5 p. m. before preparing to leave. Just before departing, Salah seemed to suddenly remember something and said to the latter, "I wonder if His Sultan is interested in a marriage alliance with France?"

Upon hearing this, Sheikh Khan was overjoyed and nodded vigorously without hesitation.

It's important to understand that Tipu Sultan, starting with his father, began learning from Europe in an effort to strengthen Mysore. As he gained more contact with Europe and learned about its advanced aspects, he inevitably developed a strong admiration for the major Europe powers. Simply put, he was a "European enthusiast."

Tipu Sultan himself speaks English, French, and Turkey.

However, the major Europe powers were extremely indifferent to him, a native of the Far East and a heretic, so he had no choice but to settle for second best and climb the Ottoman line.

Therefore, Mysore's military training system was basically modeled after the Ottoman New Army, and at the same time, it also learned a little from the British and French East India Company.

Now that France, a leading Europe power, has expressed its intention to form a marriage alliance with Tipu Sultan, how could he not be overjoyed?

However, Sheikh Khan immediately thought of a serious problem, "Sir, if we marry, will we have to change our religious affiliation?"

"Conversion" means changing one's religious beliefs. Mysore is Islam or Hinduism, while France is Catholicism. If they were to marry, one of them would have to convert.

Salah smiled and shook his head, "Of course not, Your Excellency. Mysore can marry an Islam princess."