Chapter 43: Koman's Double Life

"Sir, the harvest is bountiful." Bokassa reappeared, having been assigned a lucrative task. The brilliant white teeth flashing beneath his dark face revealed just how excited he was at this moment—unlike Koman, who could never dream of such days.

"Send them to Aosta for transit back to the mainland." Koman glanced briefly at the long line of military trucks before pulling his gaze away. He lacked artistic sensibilities and had no inkling of the true value of antiques and fine art.

Yet, he understood the fundamental principle that antiques soar in value during prosperous times while gold is prized in chaos; when the war ended, this batch of museum artwork would undoubtedly skyrocket in worth.

And this was just the beginning. Although Italy was counted among the European great powers, it was a status claimed only by self-proclamation—a great power that couldn't even fool the Great Qing.

Germany, on the other hand, was a genuine great power. Neither its comprehensive national strength nor its accumulated private wealth could be matched by Italy. Operating in Italy was, at best, a small warm-up.

"Lefebvre, the academic materials, machinery, and personnel must also be shipped out immediately. Contact General Duval and tell him to inform the Fifth Army headquarters to prepare cargo ships for immediate departure," Koman instructed Lefebvre. He needed to create a fait accompli, having no time to haggle with interested parties.

Once negotiations began, it would inevitably devolve into endless back-and-forth stalling. France had suffered quite enough losses in the two World Wars, especially since they weren't even the strongest among the major powers—not only unable to settle accounts with enemy nations, but constantly dragged down by Britain and the United States.

Fortunate to be working alongside a trusted comrade, Lefebvre immediately departed to establish contact with the homeland. In truth, Koman had only arrived in Turin a single day ago, and it was impossible to unearth everything he wanted right away.

Yet, grabbing whatever they could devour first was the priority; once the Anglo-Americans realized what was happening and reacted, would anything they had swallowed ever be regurgitated?

Koman did not forget to appease Bokassa, who had contributed so much effort. Making a promise in his private capacity, he assured Bokassa that he would undoubtedly receive his fair share.

"Sir, I am proud to contribute to France." Bokassa was not immune to the lure of wealth, but he still knew how to weigh priorities—truly deserving of his status as the highest-ranking African in the French army.

"France will not forget your service. I will write a report to secure a decoration for you, and your rank can be elevated as well." Koman swept a gaze over Bokassa's insignia, projecting an expression that clearly said *I have high hopes for you*.

From the moment he first encountered Bokassa, Koman had consistently offered sincere assistance. As for Bokassa's notorious reputation, he didn't mind it in the least. Were there really any shortage of dictators in Africa? Let alone Africa, it was a commonplace phenomenon all over the world.

The problems of Africa ultimately came down to whether France itself was willing to exert genuine effort. If France played the role it ought to play, then Bokassa's brutality or lack thereof mattered very little.

As long as Bokassa remained loyal to France, Koman could help him resolve a multitude of issues.

"The Roman Empire certainly possesses a profound cultural heritage." Bokassa was still only in his twenties and had not yet morphed into the humanoid monster he would become decades later; he still possessed a shred of something called ideals.

"There are no eternal victors in this world, only temporary powerhouses. You are looking at the descendants of the Roman Empire right now."

Koman chuckled softly. Even believers in alternative history theories rarely attacked the Roman Empire; at most, they argued that Italy was not the descendant of Rome, but rather of the Germanic peoples.

In truth, none of that mattered. A nation was merely an imagined community. When Egypt wanted to be the leader of the Arab world, it claimed to be Arab, because its language and culture were Arabic, which made complete sense.

Yet when it wanted to draw closer to ancient Egypt, that made just as much sense, since its genetic makeup had genuinely changed very little.

French Africa could not remain stuck in the mire forever; otherwise, the negative externalities would inevitably spill over into metropolitan France. Koman didn't mind giving Bokassa some positive guidance—who knows, perhaps two negatives would make a positive.

Upon hearing the phrase "There are no eternal victors in this world, only temporary powerhouses," Bokassa's eyes lit up, and he clearly resonated deeply with the sentiment.

At a single glance, Koman realized that Bokassa was receptive. Thank goodness he still had a little inkling of philosophy in his belly, which was quite enough to hoodwink this African tyrant.

When they arrived at the headquarters of the 8th Infantry Regiment, the Italian Liberation Army was in the midst of negotiations with the regiment. Koman had originally intended to report their plunder to Celtic, but he instantly realized something was amiss and decided to bide his time.

French and Italian shared common vocabulary, and he managed to gather that the Italians were stirring up trouble.

Koman's expression shifted in a split second, reasserting a carefully crafted, amiable smile as he walked up to the representatives of both sides and summoned the headquarters' Italian translator. "I've been searching everywhere for representatives of the Italian Communist Party to discuss post-war reconstruction work. I never expected to find you all here. Could this comrade please introduce himself first?"

What? Thoroughly bewildered by this maneuver, the Italian commander paused for a moment and had to halt his tirade. "My name is Antonio, and I am a cadre of the Turin Italian Liberation Army."

"Ah, a comrade of the Italian Communist Party! You have established immortal merits in the Italian war of liberation." With a solemn tone, Koman reached out to grasp the other man's hand, shaking it vigorously twice. "Here is the situation: Turin has been ravaged by war. Restoring order and getting factories back to work is a massive problem, and we are here precisely for this purpose."

Antonio found himself slightly overwhelmed by Koman's warmth, yet he couldn't help pressing on, "I've heard that you are arresting many university professors and corporate engineers."

"That issue is not entirely false, but it is far from the whole truth," Koman replied, his expression turning stern. "I believe we can discuss this calmly."

Antonio nodded in agreement. An unfriendly standoff was thus invisibly defused, leaving officers including Battalion Commander Celtic watching the two men depart. After a long silence, someone remarked to Celtic, "Is that your subordinate, Celtic? He handles himself quite well."

"Comrade Antonio, the most urgent task right now is to immediately resume production in the textile industry," Koman said with absolute conviction as they walked outside. "This is the most crucial foundational sector, involving vital matters of people's livelihood, and we can be sloppy about it under no circumstances. The Italian comrades have chosen the wrong path."

"That is certainly very important, but what about...?" Antonio still hadn't forgotten his original purpose. "The question of the automobile factory and the two universities?"

"Comrade Antonio," Koman sighed with solemn gravity. "Intellectuals have always been a heavily affected zone for reactionary forces. There is a saying: the more knowledge one has, the more reactionary one becomes. Therefore, the first thing the Allied forces investigated was whether the professors and lecturers in universities were supporters of Mussolini. As for the metallurgical industry and automobiles, Italy is currently in the midst of war, severely lacking in raw materials and essentially reduced to ruins. How could machinery possibly operate in an environment devoid of raw materials? At present, our priority should be restoring the repair infrastructure as quickly as possible, rather than aiming unrealistically high."

"That does make some sense, but can you guarantee that anyone who is arrested will be released as soon as their innocence is proven?" After hesitating for a long while, Antonio finally let out a sigh and conceded.

The weight on Koman's face was no less than his counterpart's as he responded helplessly, "On that matter, we can only hope that Mussolini and the German forces propping him up surrender as soon as possible. Cleansing the soil of fascism may take some time."