industrial lord

Chapter 558 They were murdered

"Oh no, the young master is dead!"

The latest news brought by the servant made everyone in the living room stunned as if they were struck by lightning.

Baron Monteci grabbed the attendant by the collar and pulled him over, shouting, "What did you say?!"

The attendant said hurriedly, "The monk came and said that the young master died in the church. He is outside."

Baron Montechi immediately asked the monk to come in and ask about the situation.

The monk said that he had just gone to the funeral hall to refill the eternal oil lamp and found Mariodo's body, so he came over to report it immediately.

Lola and Friedkin looked at each other, and they both thought that this was the revenge of the Capuleti family. Baron Capuleti was acting as bait to stabilize Baron Montechi.

Baron Montechi didn't care about anything else and immediately rushed out of the living room and headed for the church.

Baron Capuleti was also confused because he did not arrange anyone to kill Mariodo.

He said to Lola and Friedkin: "Your Highness, Lord Earl, I definitely didn't do this. Even if I did, I would have to wait until you leave."

"I suspect there is some conspiracy behind this matter."

Lola thought it made sense. She was in the city representing the royal family. If she killed a noble so openly, the royal family would take drastic measures.

Friedkin thought more, and in the car on the way to the church, he said to Lola: "Your Highness, I also suspect that there is a conspiracy behind the deaths of Gianozza and Mariodo."

Laura frowned and asked, "You mean, someone assassinated Gianozza and Mariodo one after another to provoke conflicts between the Capuleti and Monteci families?"

Friedkin whispered, “Railroad!”

"In principle, a consensus has been reached on the railway to Weissenburg. Bern will be an important node to the north."

"People in the Duchy of Wessen say 'When the whistle blows, the chest is full of gold coins'."

“It is foreseeable that the city of Bern will develop rapidly after the railway is completed.”

"The Capuleti family and the Monteci family together control 80% of Berne's economy. After the railway is completed, a large amount of profits will eventually fall into their coffers, while other small families such as the Lanzaro family can only get a very small part. The gap between the two sides is getting bigger and bigger."

"If these two big families fight and eventually perish together, those small families will be able to redistribute this huge pie."

Laura nodded and said, "That makes sense. Just now, Mosido said that Gianozza and Mariodo met at the Lanzaro family's ball. It is very likely that he deliberately created conflicts between the two heirs."

Dance parties are important social platforms, and these two veterans have seen many quarrels, show-offs, and escalation of conflicts.

Lola continued, "I think it's very likely that someone created conflicts for them, but it's also possible that kids of their age fell in love with each other at first sight, which disrupted their plans, so they assassinated them."

"But there is a problem. They are all families in Berne City. They must know that the power of these two families has penetrated every corner. Aren't they afraid of being discovered?"

Friedkin sighed and said, “The only explanation is that the Venetians were involved.”

"The assassins from other places act together and then flee far away. It is basically impossible to track them down."

"The two railways of the Osmaga Empire and ours just bypass Venice and go directly to the vast area north of the White Mountains. The transportation advantage that Venice relies on for its development will suffer a devastating blow. They can't just sit there and wait for death."

"I received an unconfirmed news that Venice has sent a secret envoy to lobby Grand Duke Weissen."

"If they can get Grand Duke Wesson to acquiesce and control the city of Bern through the Glove Family, or even exert a certain influence, they can build a railway to Venice."

"In this way, Venice will be able to connect its existing maritime commercial network with the railway network and achieve greater development."

He had read many books and articles written by Frederick and was no stranger to trade networks.

Lola felt that Friedkin's analysis made sense. If the conflict between the two families in Bern intensified and eventually ended in mutual destruction, the Venetians would benefit the most.

Moreover, it was easy for the Venetians to bribe Father Lawrence and Mosido. Money was not a problem for those businessmen.

When the car was about to arrive at the church, Lola said to Friedkin, "Baron Capuleti and Baron Montechi are both around 40 years old. When you go back, tell your father to find a few suitable people of royal blood."

Friedkin agreed immediately. Now that the heirs of both families were dead, he decided to send some women of royal blood to give the two families royal blood.

The royal family could tolerate the struggle between the two families, but would never allow Venice to develop further.

At this time, the church was already crowded with people. The news spread quickly and the patriarchs of the small families in the city had already arrived.

They also thought that the successive deaths of the heirs of the two big families was a conspiracy, and they also thought that they might be blamed, so they immediately came over to prove their innocence.

The clan leaders asked several monks at the door about the situation. After listening, Baron Lanzaro said with certainty: "This must be a conspiracy of the Venetians!"

Earlier, when Mariodo told Mosido how he met Gianozza, there were other people present. After those people fled in all directions, they spread the news of their acquaintance at the ball.

Baron Lanzaro was feeling miserable now, because his daughter was a close friend of Gianozza, so he invited Gianozza to the ball that day. Mariodo came uninvited, so did he dare to refuse Master Montechi entry?
Now Baron Lanzaro can only put the blame on the Venetians, otherwise he would be doomed if the two major families warmed up before the fight.

After Lola and Friedkin entered the church, Baron Lanzaro stuffed a gold coin into the hands of several monks and motioned them to go in and inquire about the news.

The monks quickly spread the latest news.

"Master Monteci committed suicide for love?!"

"He stuck a dagger in his own chest?!"

"His suicide note said that he and Miss Capuletti were secretly married under the auspices of Father Lawrence?!"

The latest news caused an uproar among the people outside the church. Even operas would not dare to be performed like this.

At this time someone said, "Since they were only married in secret, why did they die?"

Someone nearby said, "That's right. Even if the family disagrees, why not just get pregnant and give birth to a baby?"

The people around nodded one after another. The young people in the Kingdom of Sardinia were free and romantic, and there were many such cases of pregnancy-related marriages. Some people in the crowd had also done this.

Someone in the small group of clan leaders suddenly said, "I heard that not long ago a count from Venice proposed to Baron Capuleti, and the baron agreed to get married right away."

A clan leader nearby also said, "I've heard about this, too. The count is a big shot in charge of the customs in Venice, so Baron Capuleti agreed immediately."

Another clan leader immediately said, "By the way, Master Monteci was in Milan on business at that time, and he didn't come back until the day after Miss Capuletti died!"

They shared their fragmentary information and soon pieced together the main thread.

The boy and girl fell in love at first sight at a ball and got married secretly. When the groom was out on business, a great Venetian noble came to propose marriage. Baron Capuleti immediately agreed in order to curry favor with the Venetian. As a result, the bride committed suicide to maintain her reputation, and the groom died for love.

Many ordinary people who were eavesdropping on the conversation of the old men nearby told others about the situation, and sighs were heard in the square in front of the church.

“What a tragedy!”

Ordinary people don't care about the grudges and hatreds between big families. They just simply feel sorry for a pair of lovers who died together due to a strange combination of circumstances.

So all the mistakes were the fault of the Venetian. If he had not forced Baron Capuleti to marry his daughter to him, the lovers would have been able to get married.

As for why Baron Capuletti was forced, it was very simple. Nearly 40% of the people in the city relied on the Capuletti family's industry for their livelihood. They would only speak ill of the boss if they were hit on the head by the door.

At the edge of the square, an old man wiped his tears and said, "I was bitten by a golden snake that day and could only lie on the side of the road waiting to die. Miss Capuletti passed by and gave me the antidote so that I could survive."

"How could those Venetians be so wicked? Not only did they buy cheap but also sold expensive. Now they have even killed Miss Capuleti, who was so kind-hearted."

A middle-aged man next to him also said: "Alas, last year I went into the mountains to purchase medicinal herbs, and was surrounded by a group of wolves on the top of the mountain. If Master Montechi hadn't passed by while hunting in the mountains, I would have been eaten."

"The young master was slightly injured that day. When I came back, I went to give him a gift to express my gratitude. He accepted the gift of 1 dinar and treated me to a banquet of 5 dinars."

"Alas, I have never seen another person as good as him."

"It's those damned Venetians who have no conscience. They rely on the fact that they are the only ones who can go out to sea. They insist that the first-grade medicinal herbs I sell are second-grade. When I buy things, they even say that the third-grade ones are second-grade ones."

The resentment of the merchants and craftsmen in Bern towards the Venetians came from their daily trade exchanges. The Venetians relied on their monopoly on maritime trade to control the pricing of imported and exported goods, and reaped wealth by buying low and selling high.

The two sides have been harboring grievances for a long time, and today's events were like a spark that ignited the powder keg.

There was a glassware shop run by a Venetian on the side of the square. A young man spat at the wooden door of the shop, remembering that it was Gianozza who gave his mother the money to buy medicine when she was sick.

A coachman nearby recalled that the draft horse that pulled his carriage died of illness, and his family was short of money to buy a new draft horse. It was Mario who borrowed money from several people without interest to help them get through the difficult times. In anger, he took off his shoes and smashed the wooden door.

The shoes hit the door with a dull sound.

The sound was like a signal, and the people around picked up whatever they could get and threw it over.

The situation became out of control. The angry crowd smashed the Venetian shop and destroyed everything inside. They even smashed the eggs in the kitchen and poured the salt into the gutter.

The Venetian who lived upstairs was also thrown down from the window. People stripped him naked and found a wooden stick to hang him upside down.

One, two, four, eight...

More and more Venetian shops in the city were smashed open, and people carried their bosses hanging upside down and paraded them through the streets, shouting slogans asking the Venetian to get out.

The soldiers of the city defense army just watched from the sidelines and only intervened when people tried to smash non-Venetian shops and set fires.

The high-end glass products produced in Venice still have a large market. They have many glass shops here. People take all these glass products to their doorsteps and smash them on the road. Under the street lights, it looks like crystals all over the ground.

(End of this chapter)