Chapter 274: The Epic of Tunisia
Joseph lifted the pamphlet towards Joan, saying, "You don't need to worry about this. I believe these rumors will soon die down. By the way, your report also mentioned something about the Tunisian tribes?"
"Yes, Your Highness," Joan replied, his face showing a troubled expression at the mention of "tribes." "During the last great uprising, many of the Tunisian tribes sent warriors to join the fight. Now, they claim that they contributed to driving out the Janissaries and believe the government owes them generous rewards. In short, these large tribes are not very cooperative with government orders, and some even delay paying their taxes."
Joseph understood that Joan was putting it mildly; in reality, the native tribes were simply not listening to the government or paying their taxes.
This wasn't surprising, considering that even in the 21st century, many African tribes still operated independently, beyond the control of their governments.
He asked Joan, "How many such tribes are there?"
"Well, at least a hundred tribes..." Joan hesitated before revealing the truth. "In fact, only the smaller tribes with a few hundred people are fully cooperative with the government."
Joseph frowned; it seemed this was a widespread issue. This kind of behavior needed to be curbed quickly. The longer it was allowed to persist, the more entrenched these tribes would become in their ways, making them harder to control.
Ishaq, who was sitting nearby, suggested, "Your Highness, perhaps we could select a few tribes that are most behind on their taxes and send troops to punish them."
Joseph shook his head. At a time when people were spreading anti-French sentiment, sending troops to attack native tribes would only play into the enemy's hands. Moreover, his long-term goal was to integrate Tunisia, not just treat it as a colony, so it was important to minimize conflicts.
He thought for a moment, but couldn't come up with a good solution right away. Sighing, he decided it was better to tackle the easier problem of the rumor campaign first.
He turned to Joan and said, "Please gather Tunisia's best writers for me. The more, the better."
"Of course, Your Highness. In fact, Mr. Hirada is already one of our finest writers."
Joseph nodded. The last report, The Origins of Tunisia, had been written by Hirada, so they were already familiar with each other.
He added, "Also, please start preparing for the Tunisian round of the 'Star of France' competition. You've heard of the Star of France, haven't you?"
"Yes, Your Highness. I read the newspapers from Paris carefully every week. I've been following the event closely. My two sons even entered the competition, and the older one advanced two rounds in the Berry district."
"That's wonderful. If you have any questions about the preparations, feel free to ask me."
"Certainly, Your Highness."
The next afternoon, Hirada, who served as an internal affairs official in Tunis, arrived at Joseph's villa with two other writers.
Hirada had been to Versailles before, so when he saw that the person before him was the Crown Prince, he excitedly stepped forward and respectfully bowed, speaking in flawless French, "Your Royal Highness, your presence fills all of Tunis with light and makes every person in the city feel as though they are hearing the songs of angels..."
Joseph, amused by Hirada's flowery language, which flowed like a river, smiled and gently interrupted, motioning toward the carpet, "Please, have a seat."
Once everyone was seated comfortably on the wool carpet, and coffee had been served, Joseph got straight to the point: "I've asked you all here because I need your help to turn a great legendary story into a novel—or perhaps even a historical essay."
Hirada, well-prepared, took out paper and a pen, nodding seriously. "Please, tell us the outline of this legend."
Joseph had already organized his thoughts the night before, so he began to speak fluently, "A long time ago, across the vast Eurasian continent, there were various peoples: the French, the Tunisian Arabs, the Berbers of Tunisia, and the evil Ottomans and cunning British...
"At that time, the Ottoman Grand Sorcerer Sofan forged a magical ring, known as the 'Ring of Power,' which was used to conquer the wealthy Roman Empire. However, because the ring's power was too great, Sofan was consumed by it, and the ring was lost somewhere on the continent...
"Many years later, a Berber named Froi accidentally found the Ring and learned that he had to go to Constantinople and throw it into the volcano there to destroy it and save the Roman Empire...
"The Ring had a tempting magic that only Froi could resist. With the help of many brave Frenchmen and skilled Tunisian Arab archers, he repeatedly thwarted the attacks of the Ottomans and their British allies..."
The story was grand and filled with heroic romanticism, captivating Hirada and the others so much that they forgot to take notes.
By the time dusk had fallen, and Joseph finally reached the part where Froi successfully destroyed the Ring, and his companions became the greatest heroes of the Roman Empire, the Tunisian writers were all moved to tears.
"Praise our great Rome!"
"As long as Roman comrades stand together, we can overcome any evil!"
"I had no idea our ancestors had such a legendary history..."
Hirada, full of enthusiasm, pledged, "Your Highness, I will ensure that this history shines with the brilliance it deserves! The world will sing of this epic tale!"
Without hesitation, he had already decided to treat Joseph's story as historical fact, completely disregarding the magical elements. Perhaps this was what they called the fervor of a new convert.
The writers were so inspired that they skipped dinner, heading straight to the villa's second floor to start writing. In just three days, they produced a manuscript of nearly 20,000 words titled The Lord of the Ring: Rome's Champions.
Joseph reviewed the manuscript, which covered about half of the first part, and then instructed Amon to have it sent to Joan for immediate printing.
Joan acted quickly. Within a day and a half, the first batch of manuscripts was distributed throughout Tunisia. To make the "epic" more accessible to illiterate Tunisians, local officials were instructed to have people recite the manuscript in public spaces.
The public reaction was swift and overwhelming.
All over Tunisia, people began discussing the adventures of Froi and his companions, proudly recounting the heroic deeds of their ancestors, reliving the thrilling battles, and even dressing up as characters from the story. Anyone who dared to claim that "Tunisians have no connection to Rome" was immediately beaten by bystanders—how dare anyone deny that their ancestors were the heroes who escorted the Ring or that they were the descendants of the great Romans?
As subsequent installments of The Lord of the Ring were released, the Tunisian populace also began to harshly criticize and curse the Ottomans and British as the story's villains.
Soon, two British spies who had spread the rumors that "Tunisians had no connection to Rome" were exposed. The Tunisian collaborators they had hired to spread the rumors were so moved by the story of Froi that they turned themselves in to the police, refusing even to take their wages, and reported the spies.
(End of Chapter)
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