I Became A Black Merchant In Another World-Chapter 326: One Ghost, Labor Standards Act (4)

In a small factory in Ricossi, Bruno, who had worked himself to the bone, felt as though he might collapse, but despite the exhaustion, he had a sleepless night.

"I really didn’t get a wink of sleep."

Normally, after over 13 hours of grueling labor, Bruno would fall into a deep sleep the moment his back hit the floor, but today was different.

Today was the highly anticipated morning of April 14th, and as promised to his fellow workers, he had to take action.

He wasn’t planning to beat the foreman and the factory owner senseless, nor was he intending to stab them with a spear in retaliation.

But speaking up to those lofty figures about wanting to live like a human being was a terrifying and nerve-wracking task.

"Bruno, are you really going to ask that one-legged bastard to improve our working conditions today?"

Bruno spat out a curse in an attempt to hide his fear.

"Are you going to live like this for the rest of your life? Damn, you’ve got slave mentality so deeply ingrained it’s in your bones."

"What if you get fired here?"

"I didn’t say I’m going to half-kill that bastard, did I? I didn’t say we should burn the factory down. I just want to live like a human being. I’m asking for a raise and for them to reduce our working hours. If those assholes are human too, they won’t just kill us, right?"

"Yeah, they’re just some worthless bastards. What are they gonna do?"

The Toscana Empire is a country based on a rigid class system.

Therefore, even between employers and employees, there exists a significant "class difference" that’s hard to overcome.

This is especially true between the bureaucrats and the serfs.

If a bureaucrat demands outrageous taxes from a village, the village chief might protest, and if that doesn't work, he may even beg the baron for mercy.

But who in their right mind would try to suppress someone who’s rightfully protesting?

"And this time, we’re not the only ones protesting."

"What do you mean?"

"Other factories in our domain and even workshops in other domains are protesting too. People everywhere are thinking the same thing."

There will always be differences in language and culture.

But the standards of beauty are nearly the same all over the world, and food that tastes good to me will likely be just as delicious to foreigners.

The hatred for unbearably harsh working conditions is felt the same way across the entire Toscana Empire.

That's why the Rothschild family’s agents had been quietly working behind the scenes, preparing for today’s action.

"We can't keep living like slaves."

Bruno steeled himself once again.

It wasn't easy to protest against figures as imposing as the foreman and the factory owner, but if he didn’t act now, nothing would ever change.

"Rise and shine! Get ready for work!"

At those words, the workers, who hadn’t had a wink of sleep that night, hastily dressed and headed outside.

As soon as the foreman arrived at the factory, he barked orders in a loud voice.

"Start working! If you don’t meet today’s target, you’ll regret it! Got it? No lunch today until work is finished!"

Normally, they would have just cursed inwardly and carried on.

They were just lowly workers, and if they didn’t follow the foreman’s orders, they’d be severely punished.

Being beaten was bearable, but getting fired meant the end of their lives.

So, they wouldn’t have thought about resistance or protest.

But today, instead of quietly heading to work while silently cursing, the workers cautiously watched Bruno.

Bruno swallowed hard and steeled himself.

"If we keep living like this, death is better."

No, death would be better.

"Foreman," Bruno spoke up.

Robert glared at him when he heard that.

"You have something to say?"

"We’re being overworked for more than 13 hours a day, and we only get two meals. But now, you're telling us to keep working through lunch? Are you trying to kill us?"

At first, Bruno thought his voice would fail him.

But once he opened his mouth, it felt as if someone else was controlling his body, and his words flowed freely.

Though he tried to keep his emotions in check, was it because of the resentment from all the exploitation?

His voice trembled with anger, and tears started to flow from his eyes.

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"You go to church so faithfully, yet why don’t you listen to Deus’s teachings? We’re people too, people!"

"So what? If it weren’t for our factory owner, you’d be frozen dead in the streets!"

"Isn’t it just taking advantage of us because you know how miserable our situation is? You pay us a silver coin and a half every month, work us for 13 hours, and then feed us slop like pig slop."

"Has this bastard lost his mind?"

Robert had never experienced an employee talking back to him before in his entire life—no, even before he wore the foreman’s armband, not even during the guild days when he was a craftsman.

Back in his craftsman days, if an apprentice dared to defy him, he’d beat the hell out of them, send them home, and that would be the end of it.

After the guilds were gone, he luckily became the foreman in his hometown city, where he was in charge of teaching unskilled workers the basics, and if they didn’t listen, he’d beat them.

‘Things I could never have imagined back in my day are happening right now.’

"You little peasant bastard, talking nonsense because your stomach’s full? What are you doing, why aren’t you beating the hell out of this bastard?!"

Normally, everyone would have followed the foreman’s orders and beaten Bruno senseless.

But today, instead of beating Bruno, the workers sided with him.

"Can’t we live like humans too?"

"Can’t we go out into the city, save some money, attend mass on Sundays, have a drink, and maybe even get married one day?"

"Did Bruno ask for anything unreasonable?"

Robert was dumbfounded.

The benevolent factory owner and himself, who had taken in these peasant bastards, given them work, fed them, and provided shelter.

And now, these little beasts with black and brown hair dare to protest?

He’d heard that in the Holy Empire, some were even denying Deus’s teachings, and now, he was sure the world had gone mad.

‘Are these bastards insane?’

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"Shut your mouth! You better work properly, or neither you nor I will survive! What’s so unreasonable about my request? Don’t you know that everyone else works 13 hours a day and lives in huts? What have I done worse than anyone else?!"

Then, Robert had an idea.

When apprentices defied him, if he half-killed the instigator, the others would fall into line.

And then, he could work them to the bone, keeping them on edge, until their heads cleared of any useless thoughts and they got back to their proper state.

‘Even complex machines get fixed when you hit them.’

"Are you bastards asking to die?!"

Robert grabbed the club he used to keep the lazy workers in line.

It felt heavy and cold.

With this, he could return the abnormal work environment back to normal.

‘I’ve done everything these bastards wanted.’

And he began to beat Bruno mercilessly.

"You ungrateful bastard, protesting? You should die! I don’t know who your parents are, but they must have been trash to raise a piece of shit like you."

Following the rule of "strike first, strike hard," Bruno, struck with the club, collapsed to the ground, his body bruised and bleeding.

The other workers, witnessing this, felt their anger explode past the breaking point.

Having protested justly, only to be beaten like animals, they no longer wanted to live this way.

"If I have to die, I want to take those bastards down with me."

One worker’s mind, consumed with the anger of this idea, was now set.

"Shit, this life is better off dead!"

He said that and grabbed Robert, starting to beat him.

"What are you doing? If we keep living like this, wouldn’t it be better to burn the whole factory down and hang ourselves? At ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) least it’ll be quick!"

Everyone around them agreed.

13-hour workdays, six days a week, and the only food available was a strange porridge made from flour and barley flour.

No matter how hard they worked, their lives would never improve.

Living like this, dying was the better option.

"Let’s destroy everything!"

With that command, the workers began to destroy the factory.

Machines were smashed to pieces, and everything in the warehouse was destroyed.

Within moments, the factory looked unrecognizable, completely ruined.

About an hour later, the head of the local militia, along with all his men, arrived at the factory.

"Fire into the air! If they resist, shoot to kill!"

The sound of gunfire and thick smoke filled the air.

When the workers realized that the military had arrived, they stopped resisting.

They had achieved their goal of destroying the factory, and the courage that had driven them earlier had evaporated.

"Arrest everyone and throw them in jail!"

And this incident occurred simultaneously across the Sforza Duke's domain.

No one knew who orchestrated it.