Vol 4 Chapter 119: People of Florence

A servant murmured while walking on the street with an empty basket. From time to time someone rushed past him, he immediately evaded and stared at those approaching with a watchful eye.
The basket was covered with a cane cover, covering the things below strictly. When the servant walked through the crowd on the street, he saw two people he knew before, but now he dare not say hello to them, and even try to hide The acquaintances were afraid that they would recognize him.
The servant walked through an alley beside the baptistery, passed through the alley filled with various garbage, came to the back street, and walked into a very old house.
Hearing the door ringing, Gulvio Pazzi turned to look at the door and saw the servant rubbing in through the crack of the door. His thin eyebrows were wrinkled, and then he looked at the man with his arm. basket.
"How come today so late," Pazzi asked a little bit dissatisfiedly. "Don't you know that I have been working late these days, if you don't want to do a good job I can send you away immediately, now I'm willing to find a hard work for a bite There are a lot of people working. "
"I'm sorry, I can't do anything. I have to be careful on the way. You know that people on the street are going crazy. They have started to stop passersby on the street. Anyone who finds something valuable on their clothes will be punished. It was regarded as a violation of the 'Anti-Luxury Law'. If they were allowed to see that I took these foods, they would definitely question who I was giving. "
Pazzi looked at the servant coldly. He actually knew that the servant was right. Today, the streets of Florence are a bit uneven, especially the supporters of Savonarola. As the servant said, today ’s People are going crazy.
Encouraged by Savonarola, the Florentines began to self-discipline and poor and slowly became a hatred of wealth and all hedonism.
It is illegal to have an extra lace on the clothes. It is illegal to have too much texture on the boots. It is illegal to sit on the carriage with gorgeous decorations. It is even illegal to take the servant to go hunting.
As for holding banquets and dances, it has long been regarded as an extremely depraved performance and has been forbidden and abolished. Even if one or two more delicious dishes are eaten in the family, it is a violation of the anti-luxury laws that obey the poor.
It is up to all Florentines to maintain this decree. According to the new Florence regulations announced by Savonarola, people have the right and the obligation to inform the government of any violations of the decree that they have seen, and such acts of whistleblowing have been Given a rather noble name-"Eye of the People", in the face of this just act announced in the name of all Florentines, the son accused the father, the wife accused the husband, and the servant accused the master is not considered shameful, and It was given a high reputation by the eyes of the people.
It is also under this nominal agitation that some Florentines took to the streets. They randomly investigated and detained any Florentines whom they considered suspicious or not pure enough in the name of the
Eye of the People
. They wrote down these The name of a person is also confiscated and destroyed in public at the same time as all "bad things" that they regard as violating anti-luxury laws. This may be a complex jewelry, maybe just a few more on a woman's hat Knotted silk ribbon.
In short, Florence is already on the eve of a terrible chaos, but Sazi knows that this chaos is not really terrible.
"Take the food." Sazi asked the servant to take the basket with food in front of him.
As the Treasurer of Florence, he is not too worried about food. Although there have been rumors of famine since the beginning of winter, at least he still has something to eat.
He sent his servants out for more important things.
"How is it inquiring?" Sazi asked while drinking wine.
"I heard the old man, and those people seem to be ready to fight against the consul."
The servant kept his voice as low as possible. Even in his own home, he still looked around cautiously, seeming to be afraid of a corner where someone was listening to the conversation between them.
"A group of rebels?" Pazzie picked up a piece of chicken and put it in his mouth to chew gently. "Tell me who they are."
"Some businessmen also have low-level officials who have been treated unfairly before, and others are citizens who have been punished by the eyes of the people," the servant shrugged. "Many people are also quite mixed."
"It's very complicated," Pazzi picked up the white bread and tore it lightly. Now there is not much flour available for making this type of white bread on the market. In addition to the occasional black market, most people can only You can only eat rough buckwheat bread. "It seems that this month you can have the honor of being honored by the Eye of the People."
"Master, do you want me ... to whistle?" The servant asked with some uncertainty.
"Yes, those people try to conspire to overthrow the correct leadership of the consul. This is absolutely not allowed. All Florentines must follow the direction given by the consul piously and follow the path led by the consul. What changes all this is the evil way, which must be eliminated. "Pazi looked at the servant firmly." You are a servant of my family, you should understand this truth better than anyone else, don't forget our Pazi In order to resist the cruel rule of the Medici family, the family paid a price. This is the glorious tradition of our Pazzi family, so it is the most normal thing for you to go to inform. "
The servant was a little dazed but nodded quickly. It was unquestionable for him to listen to the master's instructions. As for the meaning of this, he didn't care.
"And the lord, the Columbus exchange," the servant remembered the incident and reported, "I heard that some Florentines went to the exchange, they said that Columbus was a profiteer, and he violated many anti-luxury laws and canons. , Some people saw that he should do business in the morning when he should do Qi Kai and do confession in the evening. For this matter, the Florence Guardian has decided to fine him for walking along the Arno River after walking 7 bridges. . "
After hearing the servant's words, Sazi frowned again. He knew that the group called the Guardians of the People was a popular organization composed of a group of followers of Savonarola. These people depended on the support of the consul. At some point, not only did they exercise the power of the government, they even became able to punish those found guilty by themselves.
Nobody in the Florence government dared to stand up and express their opposition to the actions of those people because they claimed to be "the strongest supporters of the ruling officer and the guards who vowed to defend the ruling officer", which led no one to dare to stand up and accuse these people. the behavior of.
But now Pazzi had to deal with these public guards.
"You have to rescue that Columbus," Pazzi stood up and paced back and forth. "What is his crime?"
"In the early revelation and late confession, I didn't follow the rules." The servant pouted, and immediately looked around carefully.
"That's not a big crime," Pazzi reassured. He knew that if the people's guards really grabbed James Columbus's handle, it wouldn't be as simple as walking the street. After all, that person now It's something that can make the entire Florence in desperation.
"Go get him to pay a fine, and then write a sincere repentance book, maybe other people are not very good, but because he is not a Florentine, things may not be too bad," Pazzi told his servant. "The most important thing is What ’s more, tell him to be careful, do n’t do anything that might stimulate those people ’s guards, especially when paying fines, do n’t make people feel that using money can solve the problem. Know that there are many people in these people ’s guards. It can be moved with money. "
"Observe the old man." The servant responded carefully. He could see that the old man seemed to be in a bad mood.
Despite having instructed the servant what to do, Pazzi decided to go on his own. Although he really did not like the vulgar, low-ranking leaders of the popular guards, those of them are now getting Savonarola There is even a rumor that the leader of the public guardian may formally enter the Florence government for next year.
"If that were the biggest disaster in Florence."
Pazzi sat in the carriage looking at the depressed street, and he felt annoyed in his heart. He knew more than others, so he knew clearly that those were not rumors, but that Savonarola really intended to let those people The Guardian became an official organization in Florence, and it was a Florentine named Machiavelli who is now said to be serving in the army of the Earl of Montina.
Pazzi knew this Machiavelli, and although he hadn't dealt with it very much, Pazzi admitted that he was a very smart and naturally keen observer.
So when he heard that Machiavelli wrote to Savonarola to suggest that he organize a civilian army composed entirely of Florentines, not mercenaries, Pazzi was secretly shocked after he was surprised, he did not know this Did the count change the precursors of his supporters? Because of this, he paid more attention to the actions of the public defenders than others.
The Civil Guard is a purely spontaneous organization formed by the citizens of Florence. The only thing they have in common is the simple dress, or some of them have gone too simple.
These people hate all the extravagant and flashy things. Some of them always carry a pair of big scissors, which is used to punish those men and women with gorgeous clothes.
They will stop people on the street who are regarded as violating the poverty provisions of the canon. After asking their names, they will force them to take off their clothes with various decorations and then click with the big scissors The rattling sound of clothes that may have seduced people into extravagant crimes because of the gorgeous fabrics and exquisite workmanship is almost the same as the tattered beggars on the street.
"We are saving you. Do you know that to resist the temptation of selfish desire to you, and to dedicate a pious heart to our great, glorious and correct governor, only he can lead us to the brightest future and lead us to build The only pure heaven in this fallen world. "
A high-pitched voice came from the street. Sazi looked out of the car window and saw a group of public guards scolding a few people who apparently violated a certain canon, but Sazi noted that their faces Shang did not have the shame that would normally be rebuked, but seemed to be angry.
Sazi knows where these people's anger comes from.
With the cold winter coming a more and more depressed life, Florence in December 1497 is no longer as vibrant as it was a year ago.
It seemed that suddenly everything on the market became scarce. The Florentine people bought the goods almost crazy in exchange for the loss of a large amount of gold. When people woke up from the price fluctuations caused by the unstoppable rise of gold prices, we ushered It was a bigger loss caused by the sudden non-stop selling.
Those who have hoarded the goods have been punished, and they have to resell the goods in their hands to the pizzas who bought in Florence at a much lower price than before.
When they still do n’t understand what it means to hear the talk of
going long
and
shorting
from some pizza merchants occasionally, one seems to be harmless to them, but it is actually pushing them gradually into the deeper abyss Was born.
Encouraged by the pizza merchants, the Florentine merchants began to enter the exchange. From that day on, they no longer only deal with those scattered pizza merchants, but under the direction of the exchange, they began to get involved From the tide of self.
In early December, James Columbus, dormant for a long time, finally took action.
He began to frequently exchange letters with the exchanges in Rome, and the messengers sent by both parties sometimes even sent them again within an hour.
The pile of commodities in the Florence warehouse seemed to suddenly change the owner overnight, and the Florentine merchants got the money back a little bit less than before.
Countless goods were sent to more distant cities, and according to some rumors, the market in many places seems to have panic because of the sudden blockage of the northern commercial road. These goods that were originally accumulated in Florence are depreciating day by day, once changed The owner suddenly became a best-seller, watching the goods thrown away in the warehouse to be transported away, and then looking at the faces of the foreign merchants who came from afar, with a smile on their faces, the heart of the Florentine gradually fell. Bottom.
As a result, many local businessmen went bankrupt, and some felt that they had seen a way of making money that they had never had before.
But for the vast majority of Florentines, the end of the year is the worst. The bankruptcy of businessmen, the closure of factories, the increasing number of beggars on the streets of Florence, the same people are living in luxury, or simply saying that there are Money people's hatred has become more and more intense.
There are fewer fish on the market, the ingredients of the bread are getting rougher, the vegetables are too expensive to eat, and more people are facing unemployment.
Savonarola was suffering for his people's troubles. He announced that he would not eat fish and meat until the people did not solve the problem of hunger relief. In addition to fresh water and coarse bread, he refused even more food every day.
He got up early every day, and when it was dark, he climbed to the top of the monastery to pray. He hoped to be inspired by God and tell him what to do to save his people.
But this did not get Florence out of the predicament. Savonarola felt confused like never before, and he even sometimes began to wonder if he was wrong.
But the firm conviction finally defeated the shake. He remembered that even when Christ was crucified, he still had to endure the devil ’s last temptation, and he also thought that Peter had denied the shake of Christ three times when facing death. Eventually he defeated the shaking courage and piety.
When Pazzi came to the monastery, he saw a follower of Savonarola coming out of it.
The man was the one headed by the People's Guardian. He didn't pay much attention to his unique simple dress and wooden cross hanging on his chest. Pazzi paid more attention to the excited look on the man's face.
In fact, every time these people come to see the consul, they will be very excited, but this time Pazzi still noticed a difference.
"God bless you Pazzi brothers!"
The other person greeted him actively, and he could see that his emotions were so exciting that he even faded into the stereotypes that the nobles such as Pazzi had always had.
"God bless you Padric brothers, it seems that you must have received some kind of revelation from the consul."
"Our leader is wise, he is the beacon to guide us and the helm of the ship," the man named Paderick said excitedly. "I did get a revelation. To be honest, I used to be confused. For this I want to In the early revelation and late confession every day, we should reflect on ourselves, and dig out the filthy things in our souls that are full of depravity and selfish desires. Fortunately, our leaders have told me what to do, and now I will go Tell my brothers. "
"Maybe I have something that might trouble you," seeing this person is always in that unusual excitement, Pazzi thinks this may be a good opportunity. "I know a person, a businessman, James Columbus, he seems Your brothers punished you for some misconduct, but this person is now doing business with our city, and the situation in Florence today is not good, we need someone like him, so I want you to allow him to write a A letter of regret, and then pay a fine, I do n’t know ... "
"Just do whatever you want," the man said a little impatiently. He was obviously really anxious and didn't even want to ask more. "I know that Columbus. He is a guy who makes a lot of black money, but now he is not important anymore. We have more meaningful and important things to do. "
After that, the man named Paderick hurriedly greeted and jumped on the horse, running towards the distance.
Pazzi looked at the man's back with some doubt. According to his understanding of these people, they should have been difficult to deal with, and even less forgiving people.
Pazzi thought about it and shook his head. Although Columbus's matter had been resolved, he still had to meet the consul.
For most people, it is difficult to imagine that the supreme ruler of Florence would live in a small, narrow house.
There are no ornate rugs, bright mirrors, or magnificent frescoes or exquisite sculptures.
A wooden table, a few chairs, a hard wooden bed and an old blanket on the bed are all the belongings of the house of Florence's governor, Savonarola, Chino Ramo, Savonarola.
Sazi doesn't like this house ~ EbookFREE.me ~ Every time he walks in, he has the illusion that he seems to have entered another world, which makes him very uncomfortable.
Today he had to come, because he wanted to inform his servant that someone had intended to rebell and asked the consul for an order.
Savonarola is less than 50 years old this year. Because of his years of poverty-stricken life, his appearance looks older than his actual age.
But his eyes were firm, especially now that when he saw Sazi, Savonarola immediately stood up and greeted him.
Sazi noted that the Archon was also very excited, or that Padric was so excited by the current Archon's emotions.
"My friend Gulvio, I know why we feel so powerless and painful now, and I know why our people feel dissatisfied," Savonarola looked at Sazi seriously "because of desire Because of greed and the extravagance of losing ourselves completely, we must purify the world and better purify the minds of the people. "
"What are you going to do, my ruling?" Although he was already bored with these ideas by Savonarola, Sazi asked patiently.
"Purification, thorough purification, I have been inspired by God," Savonarola said loudly to Sazi. "I want to call our people to completely destroy the things that lure them into depravity, and the carpets that are famous for luxury, Ornaments, those so-called art treasures, and all kinds of filthy books that will entice everyone to go astray, I will completely destroy them with a big fire, and the name of this big fire is called a false fire! "
Sazi looked at Savonarola in amazement, he didn't know how to respond to the thought that made him listen to the creepy,
But he knew that if he had hesitated to say something before, now, Sazi finally made a complete decision!