Chapter 33 The Great Expedition Those who frequently kill people know...

Lilith, her heart pounding with excitement, stood on the deck, the Adriatic breeze ruffling her red hair beneath her black sun hat. The bright sunshine illuminated the azure sea, and the billowing white sails propelled the ship toward the Italian port of Mestre, where they would replenish supplies before sailing upstream along the Brenta River.

"Sailing to unfamiliar continents by sailboat, then venturing into the unknown by carriage—we're just like adventurers in a chivalric romance novel, aren't we, Heinrich?"

Heinrich stood expressionless behind her, holding a parasol for her. The shade beneath the parasol barely concealed the dark circles under his eyes caused by excessive overtime and lack of sleep. The shadow cast by this sea was far more painful than Lilith's whipping. He yawned, trying to clear his mind of the memory of being attacked and thrown into the sea, and did not respond.

“I’m talking to you.” Lilith was quite dissatisfied with Heinrich’s indifferent attitude. “You haven’t forgotten our agreement, have you?”

"ah…?"

Heinrich quickly recalled everything that had happened in the past two weeks. After Lilith formally decided to accept Elena's investment and strategic plan to expand the branches, she immediately held several meetings with Elena to discuss the details.

Cecilia was busy planning her trip to Rome and Zurich, contacting the accompanying caravans, and helping Sister Clara and Tata align their calculations. They named this project "The Great Expedition," aiming to emulate the Venetian Republic's conquest of vast wealth in distant lands during the Fourth Crusade. Heinrich, meanwhile, was busy adjusting the valuation model repeatedly based on constantly changing values, while also helping William adapt to his new work environment.

The journey to Rome by carriage with the goods took three weeks, while the trip to Zurich took about two weeks. Therefore, after a week of preparations, Elena and her men, along with Cecilia, left first, while Lilith and her entourage went to the St. Lucia dock to see them off.

Cecilia cried all day. She finally took off her black and white maid outfit and put on a newly tailored gray gown, looking exceptionally elegant and poised. She held Lilith's hand tightly, repeatedly reminding her of various things to be careful about, until Elena repeatedly reminded her that the ship was about to set sail. Only then did she reluctantly let go, watching Lilith disappear from sight along with the Venetian coastline.

Over the next week, Lilith continued her work, sending notices to several of her most important clients about her upcoming business trip. Heinrich also completed his final preparations and awaited the departure date.

They were about to depart from Venice with a fellow caravan, first by merchant ship from the lagoon, crossing the coast, and traveling along the Brenta River directly to Padua, a city in northern Italy. There they would switch to land travel, traveling by horse-drawn carriage northwest, crossing vast plains, passing through Verona, Brescia, and Como, all the way to the Sprüngen Pass to cross the Alps, and finally heading north from the Swiss Plateau to Zurich.

Accompanying Lilith were not only Heinrich, but also a translator who would meet them in Padua, as well as a large amount of goods, mainly wool from Florence, silk from Constantinople, and a small box of precious spices to be given as a gift to the local agent in Zurich.

Aside from a small amount used to bribe checkpoints, buy food, pay post station fees, and a small emergency fund hidden in their cargo, they wouldn't carry much gold. Although they traveled with a well-trained armed caravan throughout, carrying large amounts of cash could still easily lead to unnecessary trouble and even danger.

Lilith didn't pack most of her valuable jewelry in her luggage; she only wore a ruby ​​wedding ring, a solid gold family crest ring, and a pair of simple pearl earrings. Her clothes were also mostly simple styles, all black, to highlight her aristocratic status without being too ostentatious.

Of course, the most important items in all the luggage were the money order to Zurich, a letter of introduction written by Elena, her contact list of local contacts, and a letter of greeting drafted with William's help to the Schmidl family's agent in Zurich. This agent would arrange all of Lilith's living arrangements in Zurich in the same manner as Mrs. Schmidl.

In addition, the folder contained a copy of the cargo transportation insurance contract that the Condalini Bank had gifted to the Canaro Bank. Although Lilith had many complaints about Lorenzo, she wasn't going to pass up such an opportunity. A contract notarized by a money exchange would give Lilith more peace of mind than a marriage vow witnessed by a papal priest.

More than personal grudges, Lilith was concerned about the rapid rise of the Condalini family bank due to its insurance business, which was attracting a large number of traders with foreign exchange needs. Therefore, she seemed to have mentioned developing new innovative business lines as soon as she returned from opening the branch. But that would have to wait until after her return, and seemed unrelated to the "agreement" Lilith had just mentioned…

"Hey!" Lilith shouted, interrupting Heinrich's thoughts.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Heinrich frowned and shook his head. “Madam, I really don’t know what you’re talking about…”

"Horse riding! Horse riding!" Lilith shouted angrily at him, the sea breeze ruffling her hair, the scarlet strands sticking to her face like an angry octopus with its claws outstretched. "You promised to teach me to ride a horse, have you already forgotten? Men really are untrustworthy creatures. You don't even know how to ride a horse!"

"So that's what you were talking about." Heinrich breathed a sigh of relief. "Of course I can teach you. I promised you."

How did you learn to ride a horse?

“I used to travel with caravans, and riding a horse is the most basic skill.” Heinrich recalled his experience of leading a wedding procession to Venice, and couldn’t help but shiver under the scorching sun. “Just like the caravans we are about to join on our way to Zurich, each caravan will be equipped with an armed squad of at least three to five people to protect the merchants and their goods.”

"I've heard these trade routes are usually very dangerous. Have you ever encountered bandits before? Which was scarier, the one we met in the Castro district of Venice?"

“Those must be bandits from the wilderness. Criminals in the city need to evade the pursuit of law enforcement officers, and even their weapons have to be smuggled. Unless they have nobles backing them up, they will be subject to layers of restrictions. But thieves in the wilderness are completely lawless. They can kill someone and just leave the body aside, and wild wolves will come to help them destroy the evidence, chewing up and swallowing even the bones.”

Lilith pondered seriously, “That is indeed very convenient, even more convenient than throwing it into the sea… If it is thrown into the sea, it will float if not handled properly, and if it is unlucky enough to drift to the law enforcement officers, it may cause trouble… But, don’t the local lords who control those mountain roads care about anything?”

“They live in a castle, and the manor is guarded by private mercenaries. As long as the bandits don’t come near them, they can simply ignore what’s happening outside.”

"I wonder if my husband's family were also such irresponsible lords?"

“The Schmidl family is a newly noble family, granted a title by the emperor only in the last hundred years. Although they are also fiefdom nobles, they are quite different from traditional feudal lords. Because their family businesses rely on commerce and the free market, they are more similar to the urban nobles of the Venetian Republic. They actively maintain market stability and social order, and are not old-fashioned supporters of the old order.” Heinrich defended his family without hesitation, only realizing afterward that he seemed to have said something he shouldn’t have.

"Oh? How do you know more than I do?" Lilith glanced at him suspiciously.

“William told me.”

"Okay. That kid... he's quite capable, but he's too naive. He's not good at reading people and just keeps his head down and works. But I really need a practical person like him right now. If my fiancé were also such an obedient, silly little boy, it wouldn't be so bad."

"So this is what your ideal marriage partner is like?" Heinrich raised an eyebrow.

"No, I was just kidding. Actually, I don't want to get married at all. Marriage is the second biggest trap in a woman's life, and the first biggest trap is having children. Have you noticed that beautiful love stories often only happen before marriage? If they happen after marriage, then the person you fall in love with will definitely not be your husband or wife, making marriage seem like a constraint and shackle. Oh, by the way, did you bring my copy of 'The Decameron'?"

"I brought it; you specifically told me to bring it."

"Then read me a story. The ship is still a long way off, so read me a story to pass the time."

Lilith turned and walked into the cabin, sitting opposite Heinrich by the window. Heinrich opened the book according to the bookmark he had left last time and began to read to Lilith in the sunlight streaming through the window.

“Wrong,” Lilith suddenly interrupted him. “'Still' is 'ancòra,' not 'àncora.' That means 'anchor' in 'anchor', the stress is wrong, and the meaning of the words is completely different.”

"I'm sorry. Italian is not my native language."

"I know you're learning pretty fast. Your accent is much more authentic than when you first arrived. Keep reading."

Heinrich continued reading. The book tells the story of an honest and brave young man who is robbed of everything by bandits while traveling as a merchant, but because of his handsome appearance, he is taken in by a beautiful and kind-hearted widow and spends the night with her. [Note] The section on their passionate encounter is described in great detail, making Heinrich blush and his voice grow softer, even making Lilith feel a little embarrassed. Especially when he reads about the widow giving the young man her late husband's clothes, Heinrich feels a little sweaty when he thinks about the shirt Lilith had sewn for her fiancé.

"Stop reading," Lilith interrupted urgently. "It's inappropriate to read this in public."

Heinrich closed the book somewhat awkwardly.

"Have you ever...done that kind of thing before? The kind described in books...something a little embarrassing to talk about?" Lilith suddenly lowered her voice, covered her face, and asked him seriously, as if they were whispering some business secrets.

"Of course not."

"Really? A slave as good-looking as you, wouldn't she be..."

“I am not a slave to that kind of thing.” Heinrich took a deep breath.

“Alright.” Lilith sighed, seemingly disappointed, yet smiling smugly. “Then can you summarize for me what happened in the end?”

"In short... the protagonist eventually returned to his hometown successfully. And the thugs who punished him received their due punishment." Heinrich quickly turned the pages and summarized the rest of the plot, telling Lilith the ending of the story.

"More than that, I'd like to know what happened to the male protagonist's cowardly servant who deserted his master in the face of battle?"

"Him... let me see, it seems that he was taken back by the male lead in the end."

"I really hate this forced happy ending. If you ask me, this guy should have been killed along with those three bandits. Heinrich, if we ever encounter any danger in the future, you absolutely mustn't abandon me and run away. Otherwise, if I survive, I definitely won't let you off the hook."

“Perhaps this boy is just trying to appease the servants first, and then take his revenge when he gets home,” Heinrich said quietly. He looked up and saw the boatman outside the window already using ropes to secure the boat to the wooden stakes on the dock. “The boat has arrived, we can get off now.”

“We’ll see the horses soon!” Lilith stood up excitedly. “Let’s go!”

Heinrich packed the books into his small bag and then helped his mistress slowly walk toward the docks of Padua. Padua is a medium-sized town in northeastern Italy. Although located on the Apennine Peninsula, it has been part of the Venetian Republic's mainland territory since the early 15th century.

The establishment of the University of Padua in the 13th century attracted many noble children and the sons of wealthy merchants to settle in this small town. Although it cannot compare to the bustling prosperity of the lagoon, its picturesque setting nestled against the mountains and beside the water, with its exquisite and quaint buildings, has its own unique charm.

Lilith's leather shoes touched the soil of the Apennine Peninsula for the first time. She curiously held up her umbrella and looked around at the nearby town and the endless hills in the distance, waiting for Heinrich to meet the goods and luggage with the people sent by the caravan.

Suddenly, a gaunt, ragged beggar ran towards her, muttering to himself. He was covered in rags, dancing a strange dance, and his voice was as shrill as a broken bellows. Lilith felt frightened and instinctively backed away.

"Ha! My beautiful little noble lady from Venice! Look at those green eyes of yours, still able to smile like crescent moons! But you have no idea that a bloody calamity is about to befall you!"

[Note] This refers to the second story of the second day in Boccaccio's Decameron.

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Author's Note: Beggar: Actually, I'm not crazy, just a college student driven mad by my thesis (just kidding).

The next update will be on Friday!