cicada

Chapter 1426 Roman Turmoil
Rome, Italy.

Weary from their journey, Gu Qi and Gui Youguang stepped out of the train station. Before they could even speak, they saw the square not far away filled with workers and citizens holding up signs.

These people were chanting slogans like "End the war!" and "Children need to eat!" and their expressions were very agitated.

"Looks like we came to the right place," Gui Youguang said in a low voice in Japanese, his tone somewhat gloating.

They spent more than half a month on their journey. During this time, the Allied forces intensified their bombing of major Italian cities, and the situation in Rome became even more tense than before.

Gu Qi glanced at the chaotic crowd and nodded slightly: "Yes, but the decision is not in the hands of the citizens. Let's go to the hotel to rest first, and visit Giovanni tomorrow."

Gui Youguang replied with a "Yes, sir!" and under the watchful eyes of the Italian Carabinieri, the two men and their entourage left the train station in a taxi.

The next morning, Gu Qi and Gui Youguang arrived at a luxury residential area on the outskirts of Rome. The residents here were mostly high-ranking Italian military and political officials, so there were military police patrolling everywhere.

After several rounds of questioning, the two stopped outside a manor. The manor's servants led them to the living room and sat them down, and then they disappeared.

Looking at the exquisite oil paintings on the wall, Gu Qi began to recall the intelligence about Giovanni, which came from the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) and was very detailed.

Giovanni Vittorio, a native of northern Italy, made his fortune through the spice and military supplies trade and by the mid-1930s had already entered the upper echelons of Roman society.

He was not only one of the Italian military's main arms suppliers, but also became the son-in-law of Marshal Pietro Badoglio, the Chief of the General Staff, by marrying the latter's second daughter.

As the son-in-law most trusted by the Marshal and the Duke, Giovanni wielded considerable influence in the military and political high command, even able to sway Badoglio's opinions.

This person often knew the wind direction and made arrangements before the marshal even made a statement, which can be described as having great supernatural abilities.

When disputes arose between the military and the General Staff, Giovanni's words often carried more weight than military orders. It was rumored that several cabinet decisions and the setting of military plans were derived from his private talks with Badoglio.

According to the analysis of the Military Intelligence Bureau, Giovanni was an indispensable key figure in any attempt to destabilize Italy or force it to surrender.

Thanks to the introduction by SOE's intelligence personnel, they would have had a hard time getting in touch with this person, let alone visiting him in person.

Gu Qi glanced at the wall clock, his expression unchanged. It seemed that this Mr. Giovanni wanted to give him a hard time, but unfortunately, he had picked the wrong person.

He stood up directly from the luxurious calfskin sofa and winked at Gui Youguang: "Since they don't welcome us, let's leave to avoid making a fool of ourselves."

As Gucci spoke these words in Italian, a handsome middle-aged white man walked in from outside the door with a warm smile on his face.

"Haha, my friends, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. I had some work to finish just now, I'm really sorry."

The owner of the manor, Giovanni, finally appeared. While greeting Gucci and the other man, he instructed the servants, "Bring the two gentlemen a cup of coffee."

The servant obeyed and left. Giovanni sat down in the main seat, his dark green eyes darting around before his gaze gradually settled on Gucci.

"This must be Mr. Kobayashi. James said you are Japanese, but I don't think so. You look a lot like my business partners from the Republic of China era."

Giovanni cut open a cigar and, with a smile, probed Gucci. As for James, whom he mentioned, he should be an SOE agent.

In fact, apart from that leader, most of Italy's high-ranking officials opposed participating in the war started by Germany, opposed forming an ironclad alliance with Germany, and hoped to maintain good relations with Britain and the United States.

Italian elder statesman and ambassador to Britain, Grandi, once said something quite interesting to those who supported the war: "You will all end up shining shoes for the Germans."

In short, for Italy, this war was more like a war waged by that leader alone.

Therefore, the activities of British intelligence agents in Italy were almost public knowledge, and officials were happy to deal with these agents, which was also a way to leave themselves an escape route.

At this moment, the maid brought in two cups of coffee. Gu Qi and Gui Youguang didn't even touch them. After an awkward silence, Gu Qi suddenly laughed.

"Hehe, Mr. Giovanni, my nationality is not important. What you need to consider now is how to escape Allied trial after the war, isn't it?"

Giovanni paused in his cigar-cutting motion. As a weapons supplier for the military, he would indeed be put on trial if Italy were defeated.

Giovanni put the cigar cutter aside and said seriously, "Fine, you win, but what can you offer me? I don't like boastful liars."

Finally, they got down to business. Gu Qi took out a piece of paper, wrote a message on it, and handed it to the other person. Although this was Giovanni's residence, it was hard to guarantee that there were no listening devices in the house.

After reading the note, Giovanni's gaze sharpened instantly. He looked up at Gucci and asked, "Sir, are you joking?"

“No, I never joke.” Gucci said calmly, looking directly at the other person, “That gentleman is no longer suitable for his current position. The Italian people have the right to decide their own destiny and choose their own path in the future.” The room fell into a deathly silence. Giovanni stared at the contents of the note, deep in thought. Gucci pressed his advantage, adding more pressure from the side.

“This matter will benefit both you and your father-in-law. I can guarantee that as long as you are willing to help, your business and your factory will not change in the future.”

This statement became the final straw that broke the camel's back. Giovanni, who knew the situation on the front lines was dire, suddenly had a bright idea in his eyes.

He lit his cigar with a lighter, took a puff, and nodded vigorously: "Okay, it's a pleasure to cooperate."

"Pleasant to work with."

Gu Qi smiled and extended his right hand. Gui Youguang took the opportunity to burn the note. This kind of thing could not leave written evidence, otherwise Giovanni and the others would be at risk.

That afternoon, Giovanni secretly met with his father-in-law, Marshal Badoglio, and afterwards he met with many other people.

These people included representatives of the Italian royal family, members of the Supreme Party Council, army and navy generals, and heads of the gendarmerie and police systems. A political storm was quietly brewing in Rome's upper echelons.

Three days later, the leader received a request from members of the party's Supreme Council to convene a meeting, but he was in a bad mood and did not agree until a day later.

After the meeting began, a large group of military and political figures, represented by union leaders and military generals, suddenly launched an attack, demanding that the leader step down. Even the leader's son-in-law voted in favor.

Looking at these bastards who had recently been shouting "Long live the leader!", the leader suppressed his anger, placed his hands on the podium, and tried to persuade his former allies to support him again.

“If your opinion is correct, and if the great Roman Empire is at risk of defeat, I will return all power to the King.”

"But our ally Germany is developing a new weapon with incredible power, and the situation will soon change!"

He made exaggerated hand gestures, kept turning his head, made eye contact with everyone, and spoke in a very persuasive manner.

But no one present reacted, because they had heard similar things too many times; some even yawned.

Germans? Secret weapon?

If the Germans were really as powerful as the other side claimed, North Africa wouldn't have been lost, nor would Libya have been lost.

The situation has reached a point where no weapon can reverse the decline, unless the Germans can drive the Americans out of the Mediterranean with a single bomb.

The meeting ended with the leader's roar, and the other party went back to work as usual, as if nothing had happened. He even took the time to meet with the Japanese ambassador in an attempt to mediate the German-Russian war.

His secretary advised him to arrest the opposition, but the leader did not heed the advice and continued on his planned journey to Savoy Palace to meet the king.

Upon arriving at the palace, he reported to the king, who had supported him for over twenty years, what had happened at the highest party meeting, but made no mention of the voting results.

The king on the throne remained expressionless, uttering only a single, indifferent sentence that plunged the leader into despair and foreshadowed the imminent collapse of his rule.

“Dear Leader, the Kingdom is now facing enormous challenges. The morale of the army is low, and the Supreme Party Council has no choice but to remove you from your post.”

“Everyone hates you, and I am your only supporter. I am very worried about your safety, so let me protect you.”

Upon hearing this, the leader turned pale and stood there dumbfounded. The king wanted to say something more, but he interrupted him, muttering that everything was over, and walked outside.

When he left the palace, the captain of the palace guard dismissed the bodyguards and escorted him to the nearby gendarmes camp. This news instantly caused a sensation in Rome and even the whole world.

In the city’s most luxurious hotel, Giovanni and Gucci raised their glasses in celebration, simply because Marshal Badoglio had become the de facto new head of state of Italy.

"Cheers, Mr. Kobayashi. I've done everything you asked. I hope you won't go back on your word, otherwise..."

Giovanni's words seemed to be both a boast and a threat, but everyone knew that even without anyone acting as a go-between, this upheaval would still happen.

The loss of the African colonies led to the confiscation of the capital of many Italian nobles by the Allied forces. Someone had to be held responsible for this, and the leader became the perfect scapegoat.

Gu Qi held his wine glass but didn't drink. He nodded with a hint of reserve. He was just a businessman; the Allied forces didn't need to hold a grudge against him.

Having gotten the answer he wanted, Giovanni was overjoyed and immediately started talking about the leader's disgraceful behavior at the meeting, while also taking the opportunity to mock the Germans' new weapons.

"That guy said the Germans' weapons could kill hundreds of thousands of people at once. God, I thought he must be crazy."

Gu Qi seemed to be deep in thought. The new weapon was incredibly powerful, capable of killing hundreds of thousands of people in one go. Why did he feel like he had heard of it somewhere before?