I Became A Black Merchant In Another World-Chapter 259: Newspapers, Deception, and War (3)

In the early evening, as people finished their work and either headed home or gathered with colleagues for a drink, loud cries echoed throughout the streets of Florence.

"Newspapers! Newspapers!"

The citizens of Florence stopped in their tracks upon hearing the new term "newspaper."

Since there was nothing particularly pressing to do at home, and drinking with friends or colleagues would probably involve the same old conversations, any new thing was welcomed, as long as it wasn’t something harmful or a money-grabbing scheme.

Dario, a member of the Florence Carpenter's Guild, was among them.

"Newspaper? What’s that? From the name, it doesn’t sound like something you can eat."

The man holding a newspaper looked around at the gathered crowd and grinned.

"This is called a newspaper. It’s a book printed every 1st of the month, containing interesting events from around the country, incidents involving nobles, and messages from His Majesty the Emperor to us."

"As I live and breathe, all sorts of things happen. I never thought the Emperor would speak directly to people like us. It’s not for sale, right?"

Fabio, who was responsible for distributing the newspapers, had started with the goal of giving every person one copy each month.

However, reality wasn’t as simple as it sounded.

The printing process, using a metal movable type press, had its limits, and there were also difficulties in sourcing cheap paper, as opposed to expensive parchment.

Because of this, distributing one copy of the newspaper to every person once a month wasn’t feasible. As a temporary solution, Fabio had hired someone to read the newspaper aloud to people.

"Even if you can’t get paper, finding a sheet with writing on it is difficult, even if you have money, right? If you want, I’ll read anything you want to hear."

In a world where the only entertainment came from drinking and engaging in mandatory defense duties with wives at night, people like Dario had no reason to filter out any information.

They didn’t need to pick and choose what they heard. Simply remembering the words spoken and bragging about them to friends, colleagues, or family was plenty entertaining.

After all, it was just idle gossip, not serious knowledge that would give anyone a headache.

"Read everything from the start."

The man reading the newspaper made a circular motion with his finger.

"Can this be done by mouth? The newspaper I’m holding right now is rather rare. It’s something only someone connected to the Rothschild Barony could obtain."

"Damn it, you’ve gotten so greedy."

Among the nobles, the Rothschild Baron was notorious, known as 'the son of Satan,' 'the one who would become a professor in hell if there were a university,' and 'the man who would sell anything for money.'

Among the citizens of Florence, this same view was shared, as the nobles constantly cursed the Rothschild Barony, making the name synonymous with a noble obsessed with wealth.

And today, another line was added to this infamous reputation.

"So, are you not going to listen? You’ll regret it if you walk away now!"

There was almost no entertainment, no exciting gossip to be had in the Tuscany Empire.

In rural villages where serfs lived, a story about a neighbor’s cow giving birth to a calf could be the talk of the village for days.

If someone in a neighboring village was rumored to have cheated, that would become the gossip for a month.

Florence, the city with the most people in the Tuscany Empire, wasn’t that bad, but still, interesting news was not something to be missed.

With resigned looks on their faces, everyone handed over a few coins for the story.

Dario, not expecting much, handed over his coins as well.

The man holding the newspaper cleared his throat and began reading.

"Let me start with the message from His Majesty."

At those words, everyone perked up.

The man had delivered on his promise, so they intended to reward him if he kept going, or else, they would show their displeasure.

No words were exchanged, but everyone’s intentions were clear.

"Right now, the Tuscany Empire is in a very dangerous situation."

The Emperor hadn’t personally declared that the Empire was on the verge of collapse.

But to see such a statement written in a newspaper, of all places!

Dario and the others swallowed nervously, leaning in.

If Fabio had seen it, he might have thought about setting up a popcorn stand near the group of newspaper readers, considering how captivated they were.

"On April 5th of this year, the wicked Count Guillaume of the Kingdom of Lyon sent the thieves’ guild, Black Death, to raid the Rothschild Barony’s Bío Village. Thanks to the swift action of Baron Rothschild, the damage from the Kingdom of Lyon’s actions was contained before it could escalate."

The man reading the newspaper deliberately paused here.

He then held out his hat to the audience.

For those addicted to the dopamine rush of sensational news, there were two choices:

Pay and hear the next part or leave.

But those who had become hooked on the thrill couldn’t resist finding out what came next.

Dario and the others swore under their breath and tossed coins into the hat.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

Half a story, part of the story, etc...

"Such a despicable man! I can’t believe he stopped here!"

"Ugh, you greedy bastard! Alright, I’m giving you money, take it!"

"Don’t eat this and go eat more, really, it’s so disgusting and pitiful."

The man reading the newspaper, hearing the complaints, resumed his story.

"I am fearful. I fear that the evil, demon-like Kingdom of Lyon’s king and Count Guillaume will attack my people with guns and swords. I am concerned that they will ruin your peaceful lives, plundering, assaulting, and kidnapping your children and wives, just as the thieves’ guild steals from the innocent."

In truth, an enemy’s invasion was a foreign concept to those who hadn’t experienced frontline combat or war directly.

However, the plundering by thieves’ guilds was a much more familiar tale to the citizens of Florence.

Even in Florence, there were times when people were unfortunate enough to be ‘killed’ by thieves in dark alleys.

Some crazy criminals even raided homes in groups.

So when the Emperor spoke of the fear of such things happening, images of the Kingdom of Lyon’s army invading naturally came to mind.

Dario shuddered at the thought of it.

"But I will not just tremble in fear. I will fight to protect you and the safety of the people of Tuscany."

After hearing such desperate and gloomy words, when the Emperor proposed a solution, cheers erupted from all around.

"This is it! This is it!"

The interruption didn’t stop anyone; after all, everyone shared the same sentiment.

It felt like finally washing down dry bread with some refreshing wine or milk.

Who could resist that feeling?

"I will use my own funds and the imperial treasury to completely crush the evil, devil-like Kingdom of Lyon, who dares to plunder my people. This is the burden and the honor I must bear for you."

At this point, it was important that the Emperor hadn’t disclosed the exact amount of money he was using, but...

For those who had tasted the refreshing pleasure after days of only consuming dry bread, such details didn’t matter.

The Emperor was using his wealth and power to protect them!

It was enough to stir the hearts of the citizens gathered there.

"However, there is not enough money to wage war yet. Many nobles will voluntarily pay taxes and send soldiers to fight alongside me to protect you. But that alone will not be enough. So, I have one request of you."

Dario, already thinking that he could contribute a gold coin for the Emperor’s efforts, felt his resolve strengthen.

‘The Emperor wouldn’t speak like that unless he was serious.’

So, he thought, even if he donated a gold coin, it would be for the sake of protecting himself.

Others around him felt the same way.

"You too, fight alongside me. I won’t ask you to take up arms and go to war. Instead, I ask that you buy war bonds to cover the cost of the war. If we win, you will be paid back with interest, either in money or in property from the enemy nation."

Everyone was already thinking about contributing to the war effort.

And the idea of simply buying war bonds was so appealing.

By purchasing war bonds, they could show loyalty to the Emperor and make money in the process.

‘This is a total win-win!’

"Those who wish to invest should ask the officials."

There were other bits of news conveyed, but Dario’s mind was consumed with this one detail.

If they won the war, money would multiply, and they could secure their own safety through stocks.

And since everyone felt the same way...

The war bonds sold out at an incredible speed.

So much so that even the Emperor was shocked.