I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 1036 Creek Tribal Alliance

"Wait a minute." Cecchili raised his hand to interrupt Father Vigne, "Are you saying that we should attack the port of New Orleans?"

He looked at several tribal elders nearby and laughed at the same time.

A middle-aged man with strong muscles and concentric circles tattooed all over his body stared at Vigne coldly and said, "Are you sent by the Spanish?

"I know what you're up to - as soon as our warriors set foot in Biloxi, your ambush will rush out. Humph, the Americans have used this trick before."

Vigne waved his hands and said, “No, no, you won’t encounter any soldiers, I promise.

"Once you arrive at the port of New Orleans, you can rob as much as you want, especially American ships.

"Everything you steal belongs to you. But try not to kill anyone."

Cheqili laughed even louder: "You promise? You think I will believe you?"

Vigne motioned to the six priests behind him: "We will stay here until your people return to the tribe safely. If anything unexpected happens, you can kill us at any time.

"We can also give you half of those weapons in advance."

Cheqili and others immediately stopped smiling.

Not to mention that these French people were willing to be hostages, just 150 flintlock rifles and ammunition were enough for them to take the risk.

You know, the furs harvested by their entire tribe after a month of hard hunting could only be exchanged for 10 guns at most. Ammunition was not included. The cunning white people sold gunpowder for more than the guns themselves.

This one order is equivalent to their busy work for a year and a half.

Moreover, robbing the Spaniards was something they did frequently and they were familiar with it.

Cheqili signaled the tribesmen on both sides to put away their guns and started to get serious: "What is your purpose?"

"You know, the United States military is threatening New Orleans."

The chief sneered: "So, when we get there, we can help you attract the Americans' attention?"

"No, sir, on the contrary, the Spanish army will stop the Americans in Baton Rouge. Even if the line of defense is breached, it will give you enough time to retreat. I need you to do this..."

Baton Rouge is an important town northwest of New Orleans, bordering Lake Pontchartrain to the east, which together form a barrier to New Orleans from land.

After the priest finished explaining the mission requirements, Cheqili nodded slightly: "I can send 300 soldiers to attack the port after I see those weapons."

"This is far from enough, Your Excellency the Chief." Vigne said, "We need at least 1000 people to make the Americans panic."

“We don’t have that many people.”

"You can seek alliance with the Coweta and Casita tribes. Of course, I will pay them enough."

The muscular man next to him immediately waved his hands: "This is impossible. We have a grudge against each other."

Vigne looked at Chechili and said, "You should know that the most deadly enemy for the Indian tribes is the Americans. Of course, there are also the Spanish.

“And the main reason why you have been defeated repeatedly by the Americans is that there is not enough unity among your tribes.

"The tribes of Ohio formed an alliance and once defeated the Americans. The name of Mr. Turtle struck fear into the hearts of every American soldier.

"If you can let go of the hatred between you and the Coweta and Casita tribes, Americans will never dare to set foot in the Creek easily again. There is even hope of taking back the land of the Altamaho tribe." At that time, Brigadier General Wayne of the US Army took the opportunity to suppress Booker's Rebellion to massacre the Altamaho tribe, expanding the area of ​​Georgia by one third.

In fact, the languages ​​and customs of the Creek and Altamaho tribes are basically the same, so they are distant relatives.

After Altamaho was captured, the U.S. state of Georgia bordered the Indian tribes in the Alabama region, and American raids on the three tribes became more frequent.

"Cooperation..." Cheqili frowned and shook his head, "I'm afraid it will be difficult to do."

"This is an opportunity," said Vigne, "You can use the weapons I provide as a gift to seek peace with the two tribes.

"And the joint attack on New Orleans will allow you to obtain a large amount of spoils, which will enhance your prestige among the three tribes. At the same time, I will continue to provide you with support."

The meaning of his words was clear. If the three tribes could form an alliance, he would support Cheqili to become the leader of the alliance.

Cheqili was finally moved by the possibility of becoming the leader of the little turtle-like alliance, and immediately nodded and said, "I'll give it a try."

The next day, a ship brought more than 450 flintlock rifles to the Creek tribe via the Alabama River - all of which were transferred from Spanish warehouses.

Chechili loaded the weapons onto a carriage and headed for the Coweta tribe with Vigne.

The negotiations did not go smoothly.

The Coweta and Creek tribes had been at odds for years, and there were many cases of sneak attacks on each other. Although their chief, Harjo, did not drive Chekilli away for the sake of hundreds of flintlock rifles, he was reluctant to cooperate.

After a day of fruitless negotiations, Cheqili gave up and prepared to go to the Casita tribe to try again.

Just after they walked out of Harjo's room, an unexpected turn of events occurred.

An Indian youth, about 20 years old, with a sturdy build and three black eagle feathers on his head, stopped Vigne, gave him a standard French chest-touching salute, and said in English: "Respected Father, I am Hatki. I heard that you are from France?"

The priest politely returned the greeting, saying that someone so young who could wear eagle feathers must have a special status in the tribe.

He also said in English: "Yes, Mr. Khatkey. I am French."

The sturdy young man seemed a little excited and took out a piece of paper written in French and showed it to him: "Do you know this place?"

"210 Salona Street. Yes, I know. It's in the St. Antoine district."

"Great!" Hatki immediately took out a $20 gold coin from his pocket and said, "When you return home, can you help me give this money to Miss Anna Sorel de Fraze and thank her for saving me and my sister. She lives at this address."

Without waiting for Vigne's answer, he took out another $5 and said, "Although a holy clergyman like you doesn't care about finances, I still want to give you some hard work money. Please don't refuse."

Vigne did not take the money, but asked in surprise: "You mean, Miss Anna Sorel de Fraze?"

He repeated the name in French.

Hatki nodded vigorously: "Yes, it's her. It seems that you know her, right?"

"Yes, yes." Father Vigne nodded, thinking that who wouldn't know the Crown Prince's rumored lover?

"I will definitely give the money to her properly."

"Thank you very much!" Khatki bowed like a European and asked, "By the way, what are you doing here?"

(End of this chapter)