Tunis City.
A squad of Berbers, dressed in white robes lined with a dark grey studded waistcoat and their heads wrapped in white turbans, slowly walked between the beige, square houses on both sides of the street, escorting hundreds of captives from the Algiers Guard, their scimitars in hand.
A large crowd of Tunisians followed behind, loudly cursing the Algerian invaders, occasionally throwing various kinds of trash at the heads of the captives.
The ambush at Annaba was a great success. Caught between two French forces, the Algiers Guard surrendered in less than an hour.
Joseph had carefully selected some of the captives to hand over to the locals, to be “exhibited” in major cities like Tunis, Sousse, and others.
The official propaganda was that “Tunisia’s closest French friends, with the help of the Rebel Army, had struck a painful blow to the Algerian invaders.”
Indeed, Zemir led the rebel forces in supplying logistics to the Guard Corps and Murat’s Corps, even exerting some effort in escorting the captives—it was indeed help.
Ever since Hussein became Bey of Tunisia, Algiers had frequently sent troops to meddle in Tunisian internal affairs, and atrocities such as killing and looting along the way were commonplace. Coupled with the heavy tributes Tunisia had to pay Algiers, this increased the burden on the lower classes of Tunisian society, resulting in a deep-seated hatred towards Algiers.
When Algiers announced they would send troops to suppress the Tunisian Rebel Forces, claiming to support their Ottoman kin in restoring rule, the Tunisian public was even more outraged.
What they didn’t expect was that before the Algerian army even entered Tunisian territory, their French brothers had already dealt with them and captured many prisoners.
When the news spread, all of Tunisia was shaken!
Having just overthrown the oppression of the Guard and now defeating foreign invaders, people were bursting with pride and self-esteem, celebrating victory in every household.
And both victories were inseparable from the help of their beloved “French brothers.”
Joseph seized this opportunity, having Elder Aly assist with the propaganda. At this point, in the mouths of the Tunisian people, the French Army had indeed become Tunisia’s closest kin and protectors.
More than 200 captives from the Algiers Guard, after being “exhibited” for a week, finally arrived at the square in front of the Great Mosque at the center of the city.
The newly appointed Tunis City Chief Justice, a mere month into his post, along with several officials from the judicial system, nonchalantly sat behind a wooden table, motioned for the captives to kneel in order, and then began to consult a “work guide” to learn onsite how to deal with the current situation.
Yes, after two nationwide “civil service” exams, Tunisia’s administrative and judicial systems had been established following the French model—from the management structure to the habit of using tables and chairs, nearly everything was copied.
Joan brought with her more than a hundred French administrative officials to guide these inexperienced native Tunisians in managing their country, hand in hand.
Fortunately, the rural tribes of Tunisia had their own traditional management models and didn’t require much interference; only the commercially developed big cities truly needed officials. Thus, at least the administrative management of central and northern Tunisia had barely started after a month.
Joan had “policy manuals” drafted for officials of various positions, and it was one of these manuals that the chief justice was currently browsing through.
It took the judge a full 20 minutes to figure out what to do first. The nearly thousand Tunisians around him patiently endured the blazing sun for those 20 minutes.
Finally, the judge began to awkwardly proceed with the trial.
An hour later, no one understood exactly what he had done, but all heard his verdict—”All invaders are sentenced to be hanged!”
In this era, the concept of human rights was non-existent, especially in North Africa, where in the face of public anger, ideas like defense and appeal didn’t even bear thinking about.
Instantly, the plaza erupted in cheer. People wildly chanted the judge’s name, praising the French brothers, extolling the grand victory, and then then gathered around the captives and escorted them to the execution grounds.
The next morning, while Haji Bey was having breakfast, he heard a series of shouts coming from outside Ksar Hellal Palace.
He turned to his new bride with confusion:
“Are there more Algerian captives to be judged today?”
Hafsa shook her head:
“It doesn’t sound like it. And escorting captives shouldn’t take them past Ksar Hellal Palace…”
While they spoke, a servant hurried in, bowing at the entrance toward Haji:
“Great Bey, there are thousands of people petitioning outside the palace.”
“Petitioning?” Haji asked anxiously, “What for?”
“This, I am not sure,” the servant said with his head lowered, “but it seems that the leader is the domestic official Xilada Pasha.”
Xilada was the scholar who had previously “composed” the “Analysis on the Origin of Tunisia.” In the recent “civil service examinations,” he successfully secured a position as a domestic official in Tunis City.
At the moment, Tunisia’s national revenue, finance, and personnel matters were still under “military control,” and officials for this level had yet to be selected; hence the mayor of the capital was essentially the highest-ranking official in Tunisia.
Haji approached the gates of Ksar Hellal Palace with trepidation until he saw the agents from the Police Affairs Department acting as his “guard.” It was the French brothers who had stopped the rebel forces wanting to kill him last time and had saved his position as Bey.
The French guard opened the palace gates, and Haji immediately heard the deafening shouts of the crowd: