I Am the Crown Prince in France

Chapter 337 Poaching the British

Tipu Sultan flicked the reins of his horse and passed quickly in front of the soldiers. The soldiers beside him immediately performed a gun salute and looked at him with respect.

"Lord Jahanzeb, do you think my army can defeat the British?" Tipu Sultan turned to ask the fat little old man riding a horse behind him.

"Of course, great Sultan." The old man named Jahanzeb raised his wide sleeves and bowed slightly. "Your army is unrivaled, and no one can be your opponent."

He paused, glanced at Tipu Sultan's face, and continued: "However, the British have sophisticated weapons and have warships to cooperate along the coast. If you become enemies with them, your army will also suffer considerable losses.

"Moreover, we have to rely on trade with the British to obtain the gold coins you need to implement reforms."

Tipu Sultan nodded slightly. This Jahanzeb was an important minister whom he had relied on very much since his father's time, so his opinions could not be ignored.

"So, you think I should get rid of those Frenchmen?"

"That's not necessary." Jahanzeb took two steps forward and whispered, "They have brought a lot of weapons and technologies, and you can use these to do what you want.

"As for them wanting to use your power to deal with the British, we just need to keep perfunctory.

“The most important thing for us right now is to teach Travancore a lesson with a force as powerful as shaking mountains and seas, so that other countries will be frightened and will not dare to be enemies with us again.

"The British will definitely choose to cooperate with us after seeing our strength."

Tipu Sultan nodded, raised his hand and pointed southward with his riding crop: "Then we will march to Travancore early next month. As for the French, it is up to you to entertain them."

"Yes, great Sultan."

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

He had been in India for a month and had repeatedly suggested to Tipu Sultan to attack the British. He had even formulated a battle plan, but the stubborn Mysore leader never agreed.

He was here every day except for banquets and was invited to guide the army training, but there was no hope of completing the crown prince's plan.

And his own meteoric rise will also come to nothing!

Lafayette suddenly stopped, gestured to the servant to get his coat, and then said to the attendant: "Go and ask for Mr. Salah."

"Yes, General."

Soon, a man in his thirties, wearing an Arabic robe and a neatly trimmed beard, came outside his house. He stroked his chest and saluted him, and said in French with a North African accent: "General, are you looking for me?" I?"

"Yes. Please come with me to Amba Villa Palace, I have to convince him!" Lafayette strode towards the carriage in the courtyard, "It will be the rainy season soon, and it will be impossible to proceed at that time. Massive battle."

Salah caught up: "General, you have talked to Tipu Sultan five times, and it seems difficult for him to accept your opinion."

"It's that old guy named Jahanzeb!" Lafayette jumped into the car and said angrily, "Every time I talk about the importance of defeating the British, he will say something like 'The British are just here to do business.' , 'They have no ill will towards Mysore' to interrupt..."

"Also, 'the previous wars were all because of trade disputes.'" Salah added, "He is indeed a problem. As far as I know, there are many pro-British forces in Mysore, and Jahanzeb is their representative figure.”

The carriage started slowly, and 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, "Maybe you forgot the instructions His Royal Highness the Crown Prince gave you before leaving. I think it's time to try those methods now."

"Crown Prince?" Lafayette immediately shook his head. Those "special methods" of the Crown Prince were simply a joke.

What about "telling stories to the people of Mysore", "putting labels on those who oppose", "using myths to guide the direction of public opinion in Mysore", "even marrying Tipu Sultan"...

Salah tried: "If you need to be busy negotiating with Tipu Sultan, let me implement these measures of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. What do you think?"

Lafayette scratched his hair in frustration and said absently: "Whatever you want."

When Lafayette came out of Tipu Sultan's palace dejectedly an hour later, Salah did not return to the post house with him, but turned to the west of the city.

With the help of the Intelligence Bureau, Salah, the second French consul in Mysore, successfully met the 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 the former employees of the French East India Company it brought. It has even extended its tentacles to several princely states outside Mysore.

As a Muslim from Tunisia, Salah had a good conversation with General Sheikh Khan, who knew French. The latter served as a member of Tipu Sultan's military reform and went to Europe to learn military technology. He learned French in the Ottomans.

"You are right, Jahanzeb must have received benefits from the British." Sheikh Khan, who was sitting cross-legged on the carpet, looked at Salah and nodded, "But His Majesty the Sultan trusts him very much, and we can't even Criticize him in front of the Sultan.”

The reason why Salah came to Sheikh Khan was because this man was Jahanzeb's political opponent.

Salah smiled and said: "You can definitely let other people come against him."

"other people?"

"For example, small nobles, or even ordinary people."

"I do not understand what you mean."

"Since Jahanzeb is pro-British, then we will make the British lose their hearts..."

Salah and Sheikh Khan continued their discussions until 5 pm, and then they were about to get up and leave. Before leaving, he seemed to suddenly remember something, and said to the latter: "I wonder if His Majesty the Sultan intends to marry France?"

Sheikh Khan immediately showed ecstasy when he heard this and nodded vigorously without hesitation.

You know, Tipu Sultan has been learning from Europe since his father's generation in order to strengthen Mysore. As he continued to contact Europe and learned about the advancement of the West, he inevitably developed a strong admiration for the European powers. Simply put, it is "Jingou".

Tipu Sultan himself spoke English, French and Turkish.

It's just that the European powers were extremely indifferent to him, a native of the Far East and a pagan at the same time. In the end, he had to settle for the next best thing and climb the Ottoman line.

Therefore, Mysore's military training system basically learned from the Ottoman New Army, and also learned a little from people from the British and French East India Company during the period.

At present, France, as the top power in Europe, has expressed its intention to marry Tipu Sultan. How could he not be ecstatic?

But Sheikh Khan immediately thought of a serious question: "Mr. Consul, if you get married, do you need to change your religion?"

"Conversion" means to change one's religious beliefs. Mysore is Islamic or Hindu, while France is Catholic. If there is a marriage, one of the spouses must convert.

Salah smiled and shook his head: "Of course not, General. Mysore can marry an Islamic princess."