Chapter 31 Chapter Thirty-One

When the duke finally reached a place called the Castle of Piavi, Machiavelli was relieved to learn that his successor was ready to depart from Florence.Piavi Castle is a well-known town with a castle manor and a cathedral.Machiavelli was lucky enough to find a decent place to live.The duke intends to take a brief rest here to regroup his troops.Machiavelli secretly hoped that when the Duke set out again, the new ambassador, Giocomo Salviati, would have arrived.The long journeys on horseback exhausted him, the bad food tormented his stomach, and at the end of each day he was obliged to lodge in poor inns, with the result that he often slept very little.

One afternoon two or three days later, Machiavelli was lying in bed resting his limbs aching from the fatigue of the journey.But he was resting rather unsteadily, for his mind was so confused.Although he wrote daily to report to the Guild what he thought they should know, he had been hesitant to report to the Guild the more important aspects of his meeting with the duke at Senigallia.The duke had promised him money and power, and that opportunity was extraordinary. The ruling group might think that since Machiavelli had reached the pinnacle of his career and would basically never rise again in the future, he must have felt this The temptation is hard to resist.They are a group of villains who have always suspected others with the dark psychology and scheming unique to the master.They would ask themselves what it was between them and Machiavelli that would have made the duke think that the latter was worthy of such a promotion.This matter can be a stain on Machiavelli.Henceforth, one may think that it is prudent not to trust Machiavelli too much, and that, if necessary, it should not be too difficult to find an excuse to fire him.Machiavelli asked himself, just because those people did not do bad things to harm the Florentine Republic, would they believe him that Machiavelli would put the national interest above the personal interest?It seems better to keep silent.But his silence would also pose a problem for Machiavelli, if from where the guild had heard of the duke's proposal.This situation was a bit embarrassing, and suddenly his contemplation was rudely interrupted by a burst of questions like a bell.One was asking the landlady if there was a gentleman named Niccolò Machiavelli living there.

"Lord Bartolomeo." Piero, who had been sitting by the window reading a book borrowed from the master, greeted the visitor. "What on earth is this fellow here for?" Machiavelli asked himself impatiently, rising to his feet. After a while the sturdy man rushed into the house.He threw his arms around Machiavelli and kissed him on both cheeks. "It's really not easy to find you. I just searched for you one after another." Machiavelli broke free from his embrace. "How will you be here?" Bartolomeo greeted his cousin in the same bold manner, and replied:

"The duke summoned me on some business concerning Imola. I passed through Florence and met some servants of your successor. The new ambassador will be here tomorrow. Niccolo, Niccolo, I Dear friend, you saved my life." He embraced Machiavelli again, and kissed him twice more on the cheek.Once again Machiavelli broke free from his embrace. "I'm glad to meet you, Bartolomeo," he began, not very enthusiastically. But the rich businessman interrupted him. "A miracle, a miracle, all thanks to you, Aurelia is pregnant!" "what!" "My dear Niccolo, in seven months I will be the proud father of a lively little boy, thanks to you."

If things had developed in another way, Machiavelli might have felt very embarrassed by Bartolomeo's words, but since things did not develop that way, Machiavelli was too surprised to react. "Calm down, Bartolomeo, tell me what you're talking about," he interrupted, asking, "What have I given you?" "The most urgent and precious wish in my heart has come true. How can you let me calm down? Now I can die in the coffin. Now I can pass on my glory and wealth to my children and grandchildren. Constanza, My sister is angry now!" He laughed out loud.Machiavelli gave Piero a puzzled look, for he was really confused.He was as surprised as he was to see Pierrot.

"Of course this is all thanks to you. If it weren't for your advice, I would never have gone to Ravenna to spend a whole cold night praying at the altar of San Vitale. Indeed, this It was Father Timoteo's suggestion, but I didn't trust him. He made us go on a pilgrimage to many places, but it never worked. Father Timoteo was a good man, a saint, but you have to treat monks with respect. For the most part, you can never be sure if they have hidden motives when they advise you. I don't blame them, they are faithful sons of our Holy Church. If you didn't tell me Juniano The story of Lord Derry Albertelli, I will not go to Ravenna. I believe in you, you only have my well-being in your heart, you are my true friend. I told myself that something happened to a What happened to the venerable citizen of Florence could have happened to me, because I was a man of position in Imola. Aurelia was pregnant the night I returned from Ravenna."

Bartolomeo was excited, and said all the above words again, which made him sweat profusely.He wiped sweat from his brow with his sleeve.Machiavelli stared at him with bewilderment, disgust and irritation. "Are you sure Aurelia is pregnant?" he asked sharply. "Women are often wrong about these things." "Yes, I'm as sure of it as I am of the pages of our Bible. We were a little doubtful when you left Imola, and I wanted to tell you then, but Ole Leah and Katerina begged me not to tell you. Let's not say anything. They begged until it was clear. Didn't you notice that when I took you to say goodbye to her, she looked out of shape Jia? She got mad at me for that later, saying she couldn't stand you seeing her not dressed properly. She was worried that you would suspect that she was pregnant, and she didn't want anyone to know that she was pregnant until it happened I'm sure of it. But you know what women think when they're pregnant."

"I doubt nothing," said Machiavelli. "In fact, I have only been married for a few months, and my experience in this area is also very limited." "I want you to be the first to know because I wouldn't be able to be a proud father without you." He gave every sign of embracing Machiavelli again, but Machiavelli stopped him. "I congratulate you with all my heart. But if our ambassador is arriving tomorrow, I cannot waste time. The Duke must be informed of this at once." "I'm leaving now, but you must have dinner with me tonight, you, and Pierrot, and we'll have a decent celebration."

"I'm afraid it's a bit difficult in this place." He replied with a somewhat blunt attitude. "There is nothing to eat here. If there is wine here, it is probably as bad as the ones we saw along the way." "I've thought about that a long time ago," Bartolomeo said, rubbing his fat palms with a laugh. "I have brought some wine from Florence, a hare, and a suckling pig, and we shall eat and drink well to-night, for the health of my firstborn." Although he had completely lost his sense of humor at the moment, he couldn't resist the temptation to eat a decent meal because he had eaten so poorly on the way out of Imola.So he tried to look amiable and accepted the invitation.

"I came back here to find you," said Bartolomeo. "But before I leave here I would like you to give me a favor. You will remember that I once made a wish to Father Timoteo that if I succeeded in conceiving a child, I would consecrate it on the altar of Our Lady in his church. A portrait. I knew in my heart that I owed my success to St. Vitale, but I did not want to neglect the Virgin. She had undoubtedly done her part. So I decided to ask the painter to paint a picture. The Madonna sits on a magnificent throne with her blessed Son in her arms, and Aurelia and I kneel at either side, our respective hands clasped together at our breasts." He held his The ten fingers of the big hands are clasped together, and the eyes are looking at the ceiling, revealing a devout expression. "I'll have St. Vitale stand on one side of the throne, Father Timoteo suggested, because his church is dedicated to St. Francis, and I should have St. Francis on the other side of the throne. , what do you think of this idea?"

"Good idea," Machiavelli replied. "You are from Florence. You should know which painter to look for. Please tell me who I should place an order for." "I really don't know, those painters are some unreliable, indulgent bastards. I've never dealt with them." "I don't blame you. But surely you can recommend a few." Machiavelli shrugged his shoulders. "When I was in Urbino, people told me about a young painter who was a pupil of Perugino, and they said that he had surpassed his master, and that his painting skills There is room for improvement in the future.” "What's his name?" "I don't know. They told me, but I didn't take it seriously, so one ear goes in and the other goes out. But I bet I can find him out, and besides, I don't think the man will The asking price is too high." "Price is not a problem." Bartholomew waved his hand. "I am a businessman, and I understand that if you want the best, you have to pay a price. For me, only the best is worthy of me. I am looking for a famous painter. If I have to spend some Money, I'll spend the money." "Okay, okay, okay, I'll help you find out about this when I get back to Florence." Machiavelli replied impatiently. When Bartolomeo had gone, Machiavelli sat on the edge of the bed and looked at Pierrot with complete bewilderment. "Have you ever heard of such a thing?" he asked. "This man is sterile." "Obviously it's a miracle," Pierrot replied. "We are obliged to believe in the miracles performed by Jesus Christ and his disciples, and our holy church also recognizes the authenticity of the miracles performed by the saints of the church. But the age when miracles can occur It's over. Even if it's a miracle, why would Saint Vitale help a fat, stupid fool like Bartolomeo?" But while he was saying the above, he recalled what Father Timoteo had said to him, in the general sense that even though the peculiar powers of San Vitale were purely invented by Machiavelli, But as long as Bartolomeo firmly believes in this, this absolute confidence will also make miracles happen.Is this possible?When he had heard the priest say this, he thought that the priest was just making an excuse to avoid further help to Machiavelli without receiving more money. Piero spoke. "Don't talk," said Machiavelli. "I'm thinking." He would never describe himself as a good Catholic.In fact he often allowed himself to dream of the gods of Olympus still living on the mountain.Christianity showed people the truth and the way to salvation, but it asked people to suffer, not to do something.This kind of thinking weakens the whole world, and it turns over helpless lambs to evil forces, because mortal beings think more about suffering harm than protecting themselves from it in order to get to heaven.It teaches people that the greatest good is humility, being willing to be poor and humble and despising those worldly fame and fortune.But ancient religions teach us to strive for greatness, courage and strength. But this moment is a strange thing indeed.This shocked him.In spite of the obstinate insistence of reason, a reluctant inclination began to appear in him to believe in the possibility of a supernatural intervention.His mind resolutely rejected the idea, but in his bones, in his blood, in the fibers of his nerves, there was some doubt which he could not easily dismiss.It was as if those who had believed in Christianity and its miracles generations before him had seized his soul and imposed their will upon him. "My grandfather also had a bad stomach and often suffered." Machiavelli said suddenly. Piero did not know what he was talking about.Machiavelli sighed. "People are becoming weaker and weaker because people, in their humblest state, explain our religion with their passive and lazy attitude. They forget that religion also commands us to love our country and make her Be honored, and make us ready to defend her at all times." When he saw Piero's blank face, he couldn't help laughing. "Never mind, my boy. Don't take my nagging to heart. I'll get ready to report to the Duke, and the new ambassador will arrive tomorrow. Anyway, we can eat from that old fool tonight A good dinner, that's for sure."