industrial lord

Chapter 577 Is it too much of a coincidence?
"Aleppo, tell me a joke."

"Sir, your nickname among the people of the Kingdom of Sardinia is 'Grand Duke of the Red Eggplant'."

Frederick was so chilled by the joke that he felt there was no need to turn on the air conditioning in the carriage.

These days he has felt the Sardinians' fanatical love for red tomato, mainly because noodles are the staple food here, and a spoonful of red tomato sauce beats countless condiments.

In recent years, the Kingdom of Sardinia has imported large quantities of red eggplant seeds from the Duchy of Wesson because of the better climate and high yields.

However, the Kingdom of Sardinia did not export any red tomatoes and instead continued to import canned tomatoes from the Wesson Company.

This piece of land is like a red eggplant black hole, it can never be filled.

Frederick didn't want to hear the joke anymore. Seeing that they were still quite far from the Borromeo Library, he asked Aleppo: "What's the latest news in the city?"

Aleppe asked, "Sir, do you really intend to build the railway to the city of Fira?"

Frederick blinked and said, "Go on."

Aleppo said: "Many have read the secret message you wrote to Monsignor Ludovico, and His Majesty Francesco asked me to ask privately if there is any such thing."

Frederick was confused. He had only written an outline of a play, so how did it become a code word for building a railway?

He was silent for a moment before answering, "You report it. Those are just the outlines of the play. Don't read too much into them."

"However, it is forbidden to disclose any information about this matter to the outside world."

Frederick didn't know how this matter was misunderstood, but judging from the king's reaction, it was a serious matter and the Venetians probably already knew about it.

He knew where Fira was when he started chatting with Ludovico that day, and guessed that the railway there would be the same as that to Venice.

This is an unexpected event, maybe we can make use of it.

Before arriving at the Borromeo Library, Frederick remained silent, thinking about the possible impact of this matter.

The Borromean Library is quite large, with a five-story main building and three three-story auxiliary buildings on the left, right and back.

The library has been in decline for a long time now. There are other libraries in the city to go to. There are no readers coming here. The three ancillary buildings originally used for visiting scholars have been rented out to businessmen from other places, and the main building is usually closed.

There were only a few old priests left as administrators. Today, only an old monk named Anthony was able to come out to greet Frederick. The others had difficulty walking.

Frederick arranged for someone to come in advance and gave them some money to hire someone to clean the library. Now the library is relatively tidy.

The layout of the library is the same on all floors, with a vast hall filled with bookcases and desks against the walls.

There are many glass windows about one meter high and half a meter wide on the wall, and transparent glass half the size of a palm is inlaid on the thin iron branches.

But now these are the only glass windows left, the rest have been sold for money to make ends meet, and the window holes are sealed with wooden boards.

Frederick opened a bookcase, and a strong, pungent herbal smell came out.

This herb repels rats and bugs. A strong smell indicates that the cabinet has not been opened for a long time. The smell also indicates that it should be replaced regularly.

I took out a book and flipped through it. It was well stored and not insect-eaten.

Frederick nodded with satisfaction, and Anthony breathed a sigh of relief. These books were the most valuable things in the library.

Frederick turned to Anthony and asked, "Did you sell the books?"

Anthony said seriously: "We are all orphans. Archbishop Borromeo adopted us and we have always regarded him as our father."

"Before he died, he asked us to take good care of these books so that the knowledge in them could be put to good use and not become decorations in the bookcases of the rich."

"We heard that you built the Great Edelweiss Library, and we also heard that you were Aunt Psyche's student, so we thought these books could be given to you."

Frederick nodded and asked, "Do you think I should leave these books where they are, or transport them back to the Edelweiss Library?"

Anthony bowed his head and said, "It's up to you." Frederick thought for a moment and said, "Then let's exchange books. We can send some books over and send some more books back."

"You still live here, and I'll hire someone to take care of you."

Anthony thanked him immediately.

What he feared most was that Frederick would buy the library and then drive people like him away.

Frederick said, "Let's go to the second floor and take a look."

He was a little worried that Anthony and the others would put all the good books on the first floor for him to see, and put those that were eaten by insects and rats upstairs.

The layout of the second floor is the same, but there are readers here today.

A girl of eighteen or nineteen was sitting by the window, quietly flipping through a book. The sunlight shone on her long golden brown hair, making her as beautiful as a painting.

Frederick then randomly checked several book boxes and found that the books inside were basically intact.

When they reached the third floor, Frederick asked Anthony, "Did the reader on the second floor come here often before?"

Anthony replied, "She just came this morning. It's the first time I've seen her."

Frederick turned and winked at Aleppo, who understood and left.

When Frederick reached the fifth floor, Aleppo came back.

Aleppo reported in a low voice: "Her name is Bili Rey, she is 21 years old, and she is a well-known businessman in Milan."

"The Rei family was originally a merchant family of some size in the city. Fourteen years ago, a fire broke out in their home. Except for a servant who risked his life to rescue her, all the family members were burned to death."

"The Rei family's assets were managed by her uncle, but were actually embezzled."

"She was just an ordinary-looking girl before she was seventeen. That year, she suddenly submitted the evidence she had collected over the years to the court. She eventually won the case and not only took back the family property, but also the family property of her uncle's family."

"In the past few years, the Rei family's business has become more and more prosperous under her leadership."

Frederick whispered, "Don't you think it's a coincidence?"

Aleppo nodded. It was indeed a coincidence.

Frederick frowned and thought for a moment, then said, "I even doubt whether she is the real Billy Rey."

"Tell the Duke of Milan and have him investigate secretly."

Aleppe asked, "Do you think there was something wrong with the fire?"

Frederick replied: "In another time and place, I would not be so suspicious."

"His Majesty Francesco knew everything about the railway last night. There's no reason why Venice doesn't know."

"I don't have an itinerary, and the only place you can be sure of finding me is here, and there's almost no defense."

Aleppe has been a killer for many years and is very experienced. He nodded and said, "Indeed, I would do the same if I chose a place that came into contact with the goods."

Frederick curled his lips and said, "Let's go, let's pretend we know nothing."

He went downstairs, deliberately took a walk around the second floor, and then left.

Soon after, Anthony called a group of people over and cursed, "How did you work the day before yesterday? The top of the bookcase was not cleaned, and there is still dust on the windowsill."

"Hurry up and finish the work. If Grand Duke Wesson comes over the day after tomorrow and sees this again, I will let him beat you to death for being lazy even though you have been paid enough!"

(End of this chapter)