The cold wind of January, blowing through the broken gate, made people feel chills all over. When the surrounding civilians heard the sound here, they all extinguished the lights and locked the doors and windows. No one showed up, and no inquiries were made. The lonely starlight shines on the humble houses in the suburbs, as if at the end of the world.

"Woo, woo! Damned devil! Help! Sheriff, help!  …"

"Columbus, stop shouting. The agreement you signed with your own hands, even if you call the sheriff, you still have to pay back! The merciful Lord will not allow any injustice!"

With a smile on his face, the Jewish merchant Eleazar took out a ledger made of parchment paper from his thick linen robe. Then he opened the ledger and turned from the last blank page. Soon, the Jewish businessman turned to the page of the latest record. When he saw the spices, ivory, and gold ornaments on the transaction record, he paused, nodded in satisfaction, and didn't care about the shouts under his feet.

"Haha, goods from the Southern Continent! At this price, as long as they are transported to Venice and found by the noble councilors of the city-state, the profit will be doubled! And if they can be connected with the extravagant bishops of Rome, then the profit will be tripled! . ..”

Eleazar thought for a moment, smiling. In this transaction, he used the manor mortgaged by a ruined nobleman and the upstart captain who returned from the voyage to make a good deal, which was equivalent to earning two ends. And this kind of business, as long as the voyage continues, there will be more to do in the future!

"Tsk tsk, the Moors in the peninsula are about to die. Their orchards and farms will all fall into the hands of the knights of the southern jihad. Haha, knights who don't understand arithmetic are the best for business!...However, these Casti The knights of Leah and Aragorn are too fanatical, so I have to find a local businessman to replace me and buy the spoils. The profit here is huge!"

"...By the way! After the holy war is over, there will be a large number of holy war knights who will be dismissed and will no longer receive the salary of the kingdom. They have no Moors to grab, and many people owe money to buy weapons, plate armor and horses. A lot of debts... At that time, there will be another batch of mortgaged manors and houses. However, it is still a bit troublesome to collect debts from these knights who can kill people. You can only rely on... the priest of the trial office!"

After flipping through the account books, within a dozen breaths, Jewish businessman Eleazar had two more good ideas for making money in his mind. For him, making money is an innate instinct, and the best money-making people are the low-level townspeople and the middle-level low-level knights.

Over the past few decades, the Holy See has become more and more corrupt, and its ties with various Jewish business groups have become much closer. When the bishops of the Holy See are short of money, they will ask the business group for it. In return for taking money from various business groups, the powerful priests at all levels will also provide other conveniences. After all, if there was no huge church power behind the Jewish business group that lent money, it would have been torn to pieces by nobles from all over the world. And these business groups themselves actually acted as white gloves for senior priests and city-state nobles.

The current pope, Innocent VIII, lives an extremely luxurious life and has more than a dozen illegitimate children to support. He was often short of money, and even secretly pawned the Pope's triple crown and the treasures of the Holy See to the Jewish business group in Rome. Of course, this news can't be leaked, it's a dead end!

Thinking of this, Eleazar shivered, wishing he didn't know these terrible secrets.

"Compared to us who extend loans and help civilians, the corrupt Holy See is the one who will really go to Hell!..."

After a while, Eleazar finally found Columbus' loan records. With a smile on his face, he read to the captain who was pressed to the ground with his face pressed against the mud.

"Columbus, eleven years ago, you borrowed 20 ducats, deducting a 25% advance payment, and the annual interest rate was 48%. Five years ago, we did a calculation, and the interest accumulated into the principal was 210 ducats. 3 grosso silver coins, 16.5 copper denae. Then, unable to repay the loan, you signed a new loan agreement, agreeing to the loan amount of 211 ducats, and agreeing to increase the annual interest rate by half after default.”

Speaking of which, Eleazar fumbled around and took out a loan agreement with complete procedures. He showed a devilish smile, shook the life-threatening paper in his hand, and put it back. Then, indifferent words came, without any emotion.

"A loan of 211 Ducats, with an annual interest rate of 60%. Five years of accumulated interest into the principal, that is..."

Eleazar stretched out his hand, picked up the pen and paper on the table, and casually calculated on Columbus's letter. Multiplying 211 by 1.6 five times is daunting..

"2212 gold ducats, 9 grosso silver coins, 21.8 copper denae."

Eleazar sneered and pronounced the sentence. He looked at Columbus, whose face paled instantly, as if looking at a dead person.

"2000 gold ducats?"

Columbus was distraught, talking about this terrible figure. At this moment, it seemed like a heavy mountain was pressing on his back, and it was also like a bottomless abyss splitting open at the soles of his feet.

"...Eleazar, you...you devil!"

Eleazar was unmoved. He looked at the wooden table, glanced at the two ancient books, and looked at the unfolded map, not paying attention. Then, his eyes saw the clay beer bottle under the table, the small basket of bread in the corner, and the paper and ink for writing.

"Huh? Columbus, it looks like you got some money?"

After a slight pause, the Jewish businessman stretched out his hand and took a piece of exquisite letter paper, which turned out to be made of parchment.

"...Honorable King Isabella of the Kingdom of Castile and León, Holy, Great and Generous Queen Isabella, has ordered the Commission of the Nautical Commission of Castile to issue to Your Excellency a rewarding allowance... 14000 maravedis? (maravedis)..."

After reading this, Eleazar's expression changed.

1 Venetian Ducat gold coin is about 400 Castilian Malawidi copper coins, 14000 Malawidi is 35 Ducats. This is roughly equivalent to the annual income of a senior sailor, or an assistant to a business group. Not a lot, but not too little, enough to live comfortably.

Thinking of this, Eleazar stretched out his hand again and took the ink-soaked letter on the table.

"To the holy, honorable, pious, wise, goddess-beautiful...Queen Isabella?..."

Seeing this scene, Columbus on the ground struggled instantly. He exhausted his strength, like a fish flopping on the shore. That was his hard-earned hope!

"Ah! Damn it, you maggot crawling out of Hell! Don't rummage around!..."

"Slap him on the mouth!"

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

The Slavic attendant stretched out his big hand and slapped Columbus three times in a row, until Columbus was so dizzy that he didn't dare to make a sound anymore.

"What's this?"

Eleazar held the letter and looked at Columbus, who had a bruised nose and a swollen face.

"Don't lie. You only have one chance."

"...that was a reply letter to Queen Isabella of Castile. The Castile Nautical Commission has just sent a sum of money...""

"oh?"

Hearing this, Eleazar's eyes lit up. He stretched out his hand with a smile, beckoned to the Slavic followers, and helped Columbus up from the ground.

"Columbus, since you have money, we can talk again. Bring it! Although you can't afford the principal, you should still have the interest of dozens of gold coins, right?"

"...you!..."

Columbus trembled all over, looking at Eleazar with a kind smile. After a long while, he bent down and took out a jingling cloth bag from the linen interlayer of the leather jacket.

"Um?"

Eleazar took the bag, weighed it, and frowned. He opened it and counted for a while, his expression turned cold.

"So little? Only twenty ducats!"

"...The Nautical Commission of Castile, sent 13,000 Malawidi copper coins. I used some more, and this is all I have left."

As for the 14,000 copper coins designated by the Queen, why only 13,000 were sent? There is no doubt about this, fire loss and handling discounts exist in both the East and the West.

"Columbus, this little money is not enough!"

Eleazar shook his head. he said with a smile.

"I heard from other sailors that you boasted that you married an unmarried Castilian girl the year before last and gave birth to a son in Córdoba, Castile? .. There is always a lack of obedient boys in the courts of the eastern sultans..."

"Ah! No, don't! I beg you, Eleazar... for the sake of knowing me for so many years, give me some more time!"

Hearing about his newborn son, Columbus suddenly went limp. The courts of the sultans do not lack boys, but eunuchs from the world of God. The process of castration violates the teachings of the Xingyue and is also done by the Jews. Therefore, there is indeed a connection between the Jewish merchants and the Sultan's court.

"This, Queen Isabella gave this, it is an annuity! I can receive it every year, and I can pay interest on... thirty gold coins every year."

"Annuity?"

Hearing this, Eleazar was a little surprised.

"Why? The queen gave you an annuity, but it's so small? Hasn't the Castile Navigation Commission been considering your proposal to sail westward, but hasn't approved it?"

"..."

Columbus pursed his lips and remained silent for a while. After receiving the queen's annuity, he spent some days in ecstasy and thought about it. Even though he didn't want to admit it, he was forced to answer.

"The queen's annuity is due to the success of the Portuguese voyage... the year before last, Diogo's fleet brought back the token of the country of Elder John. This news has spread among the senior captains and sailors!... The queen is very grateful There is also a lot of interest in nautical exploration. She generously gave a sponsored annuity to all the captains in the nautical committee who had submitted proposals..."

Speaking of this, Columbus paused for a while, and his expression became fanatical. He shouted excitedly.

"But, only I, only I am right! If you go to the west, you will definitely find India, which is rich in spices, and Celis, which is as rich as heaven! I have sorted out the books, and there are Marco Polo's travel routes and Thomas Lemi's Earth Map!..."

"Mr. Christopher, I'm not interested in these. I'm only interested in gold coins."

Eleazar smiled faintly, stretched out his hand, and weighed the rattling cloth bag again. Twenty ducats, although a bit small, exceeded what he had expected when he came. Moreover, it can be collected many times.

"Columbus~lightnovelpub.net~ This is just interest. I will come to you again when your annuity is paid. You'd better raise more money...otherwise..."

The Jewish businessman shook his head, stretched out his hand, and straightened his black round hat. Then, he turned around and walked away with two Slavic followers.

The cold wind in January blows in the simple hut. The broken wooden door creaked and shook constantly. The winter snow and the icy wind blow into Columbus's arms, making him shiver all over.

Columbus touched his swollen face, sat on the ground, looked at the empty door, his heart was full of grief and indignation. After a while, he gritted his teeth, feeling ruthless in his heart.

"Damn it...can't stay any longer! The Portuguese court is hopeless! And the only one who can accept my voyage plan is..."

Thinking of this, the experienced and heroic middle-aged captain suddenly stood up and looked to the east. The royal palace of Madrid in the East is just thirteen hundred miles away!

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