Mediterranean hegemon

After talking secretly all afternoon, Contini finally returned to Rome as the lights began to turn on. The first thing he did was to report to the impatient Mussolini.

"Calais, how was the conversation?"

"I feel good about myself and believe that the conflict between the pope and the government will be resolved soon. Of course, what I met with Pius XI today is a preliminary framework, and you will need to communicate with the Holy See again for the specific terms. and confirm it.”

"What are the general terms?"

Contini blinked: "The talks are based on one principle: God's things belong to God, Caesar's things belong to Caesar, the Pope's things belong to the Pope, and the government's things belong to the government..."

This flattery made Mussolini very comfortable: God of course refers to Pius XI, and Caesar vaguely refers to Mussolini.

Historically, the final agreement between the Pope and the Italian government on the settlement of the Rome problem was in the "Lateran Agreement" on February 11, 1929. Contini was fully aware of this, so his planning was centered around this From the core:

First, the Holy See gives up its claims to the rest of Italy and will no longer expand its territory. Italy recognizes the independence and permanent neutrality of the Vatican;

Second, the Pope recognizes Fascist as the legitimate ruler of Italy, recognizes Rome as the capital of Italy, and Italy recognizes that the Holy See governs the secular power of the Vatican. The Pope does not participate in international conferences, but can participate in non-political conferences;

Third, the Italian government promises to establish Catholicism as "the only religion in the country" (but will not oppose or persecute other religions, or interfere with freedom of belief). The choice of archbishops and bishops lies with the pope, but it must first seek the consent of the government. The government's permission has no political implications. religious activities, the church prohibits its internal members from participating in any political party activities - which is tantamount to supporting the merger of the Catholic Party into Fascism;

Fourth, the Holy See has jurisdiction over religious matters, and the Italian government allows the amendment of civil law to expand the provisions of church regulations to the level of marriage;

Fifth, the Italian government will compensate the Holy See for the financial losses and associated interest it has suffered since 1870. Churches, villas, palaces, ancillary buildings and real estate owned by the Holy See all enjoy tax-free treatment.

Compared with historical agreements, the memorandum reached by Contini is slightly different: regarding the amount of compensation, the historical total is about more than 90 million U.S. dollars, and Contini’s price is 120 million U.S. dollars; regarding the right to education, Contini believes that in addition to Except for the vocational schools established by the church, the Holy See is required not to interfere with other general teaching. However, the Italian government has also promised not to arrange content in the field of basic education such as "atheism", "religious revolution" and other words that irritate the Holy See. In the secondary and above education system , because the object of education has matured, these views and the creationist view can be jointly proposed for students to freely learn from.

"Very good, very good..." Mussolini was very satisfied with this, and then changed the subject and asked, "You said you just donated money to the Pope?"

"Pius XI attended my baptism ceremony, and my father also had friendships with some members of the Vatican, so I donated 2 million lire..." Contini smiled, "In return, the Vatican gave me some reputational convenience. Instruct me to issue the Twelve Apostles Commemorative Edition, the Cardinal's Signature Limited Edition and the Pope's Signature Limited Edition motorcycles that have been openly and seriously approved by the Pope. Among them, there are 24 Twelve Apostles Commemorative Editions, 12 Cardinal Limited Editions, and the Pope's signature. Only 1 car.”

Mussolini laughed loudly: "You have to sell the car signed by the Pope at a higher price, otherwise how can it reflect his dignity?"

"The price is 99,999 lire, and the proceeds from the auction are planned to be donated to the United Group Scholarship Project."

In fact, the economic cooperation between Contini and the Holy See goes far beyond that. The Pope is not a group that lives in a vacuum, and has heard a lot about the prosperity of the United Group. The Holy See has huge wealth, which is mostly hidden in the palace. Or sleeping in the bank, the Holy See also hopes to find a way out of investment, but due to the special status of the Holy See, they cannot obviously intervene in business, so they must find "white gloves" that are powerful and can ensure benefits, Europe Established consortiums would not cooperate with the Pope, and the Pope was afraid of the risk of the investment being in vain when investing in unknown companies. However, the cooperation with Contini hit it off.

Pius XI originally hoped that the Pope could invest 20 million US dollars in United Group to take shares, but Contini clearly told him that the regular shares were currently losing money, and he didn’t know when dividends would be paid. It would be better to convert them to preferred shares, with annual dividends. 6%, the Pope agreed after thinking about it - after all, they mainly focus on obtaining returns and have no purpose of controlling the joint group.

Later, during the conversation, the Pope said that he could offer $40 million to purchase preferred shares, but he hoped to give them an additional convenience: to broadcast a half-hour religious program on the radio to spread the "gospel of the Lord." Contini thought for a moment and agreed. The time will be from 9 to 9:30 p.m., which is equivalent to extending the normal broadcast time by half an hour, and promised to extend it to one hour at the appropriate time. Of course, this program has to be approved by the Italian government after an agreement between the two parties is reached, but he believes that the problem is not big. The reason is simple - since the Vatican is recognized as an independent and sovereign country, the Pope can of course also set up a radio station to broadcast. If the Italian government does not It agreed to open a column in IBC, and the Holy See would have to open it on its own.

And if the IBC has officially authorized religious programs, Contini hopes that the popularity of radio in Italy will be faster. At the same time, the influence and coverage of the IBC will continue to expand. He can set up the relay station in the Alps to let the radio station Of course he would not give up this good opportunity to broadcast to Central Europe and expand his influence. Besides, there is nothing to fear about religious programs. He listened to them more in later generations. In this era, religion has far lost its powerful position in history. It has become less harmful in the exchanges between countries, but it has a profound impact on people. For Italy, which has traditional religious beliefs, whether it can properly solve the Rome problem is related to the guarantee of the long-term stability of the country. Especially the people of southern Italy have always had views on the north, so religious acceptance must be done well.

Mussolini was very satisfied with these terms, which basically met his expectations. He patted Contini on the shoulder to express his satisfaction, but soon deliberately said with a serious face: "Calais, you have done a great job in everything else." Well, there is only one thing I want to criticize you for..."

"Tell me, leader, what can I do wrong?"

"Two days ago we held a preparatory meeting for the Fascist Congress. During the meeting, I asked, why didn't Calais come? What do you think they said? Calais is not a member of the Fascist Party yet!" Mussolini pretended to be angry. , "Look at you, I have been in Rome for almost 10 months, and you are not yet a party member! Do you have any opinions about the party?"

Contini quickly cried out: "Leader, you have wronged me. No one has ever organized or mobilized me to join the party. Besides, I have consciously maintained a high degree of consistency with the party and leaders in terms of ideological history and actions. I have long since I am a member of my own party, how can I care about whether I have a party card or not?”

"Okay, I'm not kidding you." Mussolini put away his smile, "After discussion, we agreed that the Young Italian League is an organization of outstanding young people in Italy, and is the reserve army and new force that the party urgently needs. We hope to bring the entire Young Italian League What do you think about the inclusion of Fascism in the alliance to better reflect the party’s leadership and better implement the party’s line and action program among young people?”

Contini thought to himself: This is preparing to annex the Youth League of Italy. Although he had expected it, he didn't expect it to happen so quickly. But he couldn't say anything yet, so he had to express his face with joy and said: "Of course I have no problem. , I will immediately go back to communicate with the backbone of the alliance and tell them this decision.”

Mussolini nodded: "The party will not treat you badly. The party will set up a youth department. From now on, you will be the youth department minister and the youth leader of the party. Regarding this year's parliamentary by-election, the party will also help you get a seat as much as possible. The 20-year-old parliamentarian is unique in Italy.”

"Thank you for your cultivation, leader." Contini had a grateful expression on his face, but he was secretly thinking: No, there are a lot of tricks here. I need to discuss it with the old man when I get home and find out who is sending the cold arrows!