The Fox of France

 On the Vatican's side, there was a willingness to make some concessions to regain the French dioceses. However, they were also concerned that these concessions might set a bad precedent for other dioceses. Everyone might start saying, "If France can do this, why can't we?" It would become a model of how to deal with the French, and that wasn't something they were eager to promote.

The Holy See even proposed that these French conditions could be negotiable but kept as a confidential part of the agreement to avoid damaging the Vatican's reputation.

However, the French argued that they were a democratic nation, and their people had the right to be informed and oversee their government's actions. So, these requirements went against the principles of French legislation and were entirely impossible.

Everyone knew this was pure nonsense because both the treaties France had signed with Spain and the ones with Austria and even Prussia contained numerous secret clauses, some so secretive that their existence was a secret itself.

Of course, there were reasons for this, as it was all in the name of "national security," to protect the people. Anyway, as long as you learned how to plot two coordinates on a graph, many things in this world could be justified.

The French delegation's point was straightforward. Making these conditions public would damage the dignity of the Holy See, but it would significantly enhance France's, especially their first consul's, prestige. So, it was simply a matter of choosing between sacrificing French interests and the Vatican's face. The answer seemed quite clear.

So, the French representative did not hesitate to speak up.

As soon as this statement left his lips, the negotiators on the Vatican's side turned pale. This sentence carried a heavy threat.

The statement "Our country initially intended to implement a constitutional monarchy in politics and did not intend to become a republic. But some people were unwilling, and France became a republic" referred to Louis XVI's refusal to accept constitutional monarchy, relinquish some of his powers, and his subsequent downfall, leading to his execution.

The part about "Now, the republican France is willing to accept a constitutional church. Personally, I think this shows a lot of sincerity" was drawing a parallel between the Vatican and Louis XVI. If the Vatican refused to accept a diocese largely independent of the Church, it was akin to Louis XVI's unwillingness to be a constitutional king and his insistence on restoring absolute rule. Louis XVI's refusal to accept the goodwill of the French people had dire consequences, and now, the Vatican was risking the same fate. The question was not just about bringing the Pope back to Avignon; it was about violently reforming the structure of the Church itself.

So, the Vatican requested a temporary recess to consult with the Pope.

Then, later that evening, a bishop secretly visited the French envoy. After bribing the envoy with twenty thousand francs, he finally got a hint. A few days later, an agreement was reached between France and the Vatican.

In this agreement, most of the French demands were met, and the Vatican also saved face. The French agreed to keep the privileges of the French Church confidential, not to be disclosed. However, the agreement also made it public that the French Church had gained some privileges related to national security, but the specifics remained confidential.

With this agreement in place, the Catholic Church was finally able to return to France. However, the priests who had been expelled from France in 1793 found that the most important positions in the French Church no longer belonged to them. They had to go through a new period of study and exams to regain their positions.

During a break in their training, two middle-aged students complained to each other. They had already held mid-level positions in the Church in France, and now they had fallen to the bottom. They couldn't help but express their grievances.

"I heard that all these changes were orchestrated by our new head of the Religious Bureau. I heard he had a mediocre performance at the seminary and didn't even get an official priest's title. But now he's our boss. This is..."

"Honestly, it would have been better to let Talleyrand become the head of the Religious Bureau. Despite being a Church traitor, he was at least an archbishop and a noble. Our new cardinal doesn't even have..."

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" A voice interrupted them from behind. They turned to see another student who had returned from abroad for training, Reynald, a prospective priest.

"Do you forget the fame of our new bureau chief? Do you not know how he climbed to the top? How dare you... Don't forget that being able to return to our country is a rare opportunity for us. In other places, we are outsiders, but in France, even though we are at the bottom now, the French Church desperately lacks trained clergy. The higher you go, the truer this is."

"So, as long as we show enough loyalty to the new regime, our promotion will be very fast. But the premise for all of this is loyalty," Priest Reynald emphasized, "Don't bring your bad habits from abroad back to France - we returned together. If you can't get rid of those bad habits you picked up overseas, it will not only harm yourselves but also implicate me..."

Reynald's face took on a cruel smile as he continued, "I will not allow such a thing to affect me, understand? This is your first and last warning."

With that, Priest Reynald turned and left, leaving the two dumbfounded guys standing there.

The man who headed the newly established Religious Bureau was none other than Joseph Fouché.

To Fouché, the Church was incredibly useful when it came to gathering intelligence. Priests' significant job was hearing confessions, during which they could acquire a vast amount of secrets. However, since the Church had many propaganda functions, direct control over the Church was in the hands of Lucien's "Ministry of Truth." Fouché had to settle for influencing the Church through the Religious Bureau and using it as a source of information.

In a way, Fouché's introduction of such a training program had an important purpose: to develop his network of spies among these trainees.

Of course, according to the Church's rules, priests were not allowed to share the information they heard in the confession chamber. But, if you thought priests kept their mouths sealed, you were mistaken. Otherwise, how would people know about the romantic escapades of Madame Reynaud and Yulian? Utilizing this information at the right moment was one of the techniques that helped the Church grow. So, most of the smarter students in these training programs didn't mind Fouché's recruitment efforts.

As for the newly appointed cardinal, he was a high-achieving seminary student named Oborlan. Of course, that was the official version verified by the Ministry of Truth. Prior rumors claimed that Oborlan never graduated at all. This man had managed to secure a position as a priest by swearing allegiance to the revolutionary government when the French Revolution began. Later, in 1793, he transformed himself into a Rationalist priest, even working as a spy for Robespierre.

After Robespierre's fall, Oborlan naturally fell out of favor. However, he quickly reestablished his connections through his former spy colleagues and gained the favor of Lucien. Consequently, he was promoted continuously. Before becoming a cardinal, he had already become the head of the Records Department of the Ministry of Truth.

Both Joseph and Napoleon knew how important it was to have control over the Church, and the master of intelligence and propaganda, Lucien, wasn't about to let it slip through his fingers. Nevertheless, Catholic clerics were required to be celibate, meaning they couldn't be married and couldn't have legitimate children. This wasn't good for the balance of family heritage. So, the three Bonaparte siblings with the last name Bonaparte couldn't take on this position themselves. Thus, Oborlan was recommended by Lucien due to his prior experience in religious organizations and appointed as the cardinal of the French diocese.

Apart from the cardinal, most of the bishops in various regions fell under Lucien's control. However, most of the heads of religious bureaus in different regions were Fouché's people. After all, when it came to gathering intelligence, investigating conspiracies, and the like, Fouché's skills were leagues above Lucien's. Additionally, Lucien had to handle too many matters personally, and even Joseph and Napoleon felt that Fouché was more efficient in dealing with these issues.

Of course, although Fouché was highly capable, both Joseph and Napoleon didn't fully trust him. So, the Church was still largely under the control of Lucien - the Bonaparte family needed its own intelligence network to balance Fouché.