A crisis can sometimes be a turning point in life for those who are prepared.
For instance, when a pandemic struck, causing middle-class and working-class Americans to dive into the Hudson River en masse in despair, billionaires doubled their fortunes. Similarly, during the IMF crisis, those who foresaw the signs and hoarded cash to buy up real estate ended up sitting on mountains of wealth.
“A crisis is a blessing for some,” they say.
Those who profited back then probably couldn’t understand the lamentations of those devastated by the pandemic or the IMF crisis.
It’s reminiscent of how the British Empire, in its glory days, starved millions to death in Ireland by forcing them to grow only potatoes for "efficient management" (exploitation) and carried out heinous acts through the East India Company—yet for the British, these remain as “glorious accomplishments of their ancestors.”
“No matter how corrupt I might be, I wouldn’t stoop to spreading a plague in my own country for profit...”
But some fools, acting on their own whims, have disrupted my plans and spread a plague.
And I can't miss the opportunity to turn this to my advantage.
No, perhaps this is my chance to send all those bastards to meet Deus himself—it would be the proper way of the Jianghu.
“Chloe, I have something I’d like you to do.”
Hearing my words, Chloe smiled slightly, as if intrigued. But upon seeing my extremely serious expression, she responded earnestly.
“Yes, Master.”
“If my prediction is correct, in the worst-case scenario, the plague will reach Florence.”
Chloe stammered as she asked, visibly startled.
“P-plague?”
Diseases like cholera, typhoid, or even something like COVID-19 are dangerous to us, but they’re not necessarily fatal.
In reality, these diseases have a mortality rate of 1%, or less than 0.N%. But in the Tuscan Empire, without antibiotics or oral rehydration therapy, waterborne diseases can easily wipe out half the population of a village.
On the continent of Albania, it’s not uncommon for tens of thousands, sometimes hundreds of thousands, to perish in epidemics that occur every century.
“Yes, a plague. There are already rumors circulating among merchants about outbreaks.”
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freeweɓnovēl.coɱ.
“This is really serious.”
“And while it’s still just my speculation, I believe the plague will break out in towns or cities with poultry farms owned by rival families or trading companies.”
In rural areas, when peasants raise animals like chickens, cows, or pigs, they take extreme care in managing the waste.
Unlike Joseon, Ming, or Japan, where human excrement is commonly used as fertilizer, in Albania, livestock waste is preferred as fertilizer.
However, waste from poultry farms likely won’t be used as fertilizer. Transporting it to nearby rural areas is costly, so dumping it into rivers would be much cheaper.
“Chloe, to prepare for any eventuality, manage the purchase and storage of sugar, salt, firewood, and long-lasting food supplies for our household. You’ve been diligently learning, so you can handle this, right?”
“Yes, Master.”
Clenching her fist tightly, Chloe nodded.
This task would usually fall to my first wife, Erica, but this level of work can be entrusted to Chloe. It’s not particularly complicated, so Chloe can handle the logistics, and Erica only needs to approve the final decisions.
Shortly after, Kris entered the room.
“As you instructed, I’ve checked our current stock of sugar and salt.”
“Good work.”
“We currently have about 1,000 tons of sugar and 8,000 tons of salt in reserve.”
“How much of that sugar is necessary to keep Café Medici running?”
Kris tilted his head, calculating.
“Considering it’s July, we’ll need another 300 tons to keep Café Medici operational across the entire empire.”
With 700 tons of sugar remaining, there should be no shortage when it comes to producing remedies for plague-stricken cities or towns.
“But why do we need so much sugar, exactly?”
“Soon, diarrhea-inducing illnesses will spread nationwide. Sugar and salt will become key ingredients in fighting these diseases.”
In pre-modern societies, most plagues involve diarrhea as a primary symptom. Typhoid, dysentery, and cholera are deadly precisely because they cause relentless diarrhea, dehydrating people to death like wrung-out rags.
Without the aid of advanced technology like antibiotics, simply preventing dehydration can save thousands, even tens of thousands, of lives.
“You’re saying sugar and salt are medicine?”
“When people die from diarrhea-related diseases, it’s ultimately due to dehydration. If we can replenish their fluids, most can survive.”
Even if my memory of the correct ratio is slightly off, or people criticize me for making strange remedies, it doesn’t matter much.
In this empire, whether royalty, nobles, or peasants—if they catch a diarrheal disease, the only ‘cure’ is prayer. That’s the accepted norm.
As long as my methods aren’t utterly nonsensical by this world’s standards, no one will morally condemn me.
‘In our empire, they treat the sick emperor by bleeding him and performing exorcisms, so what?’
The important thing is, the Baron Rothschild would be remembered as someone who selflessly used expensive sugar to save lives, without seeking any reward.
If I could reduce the mortality rate from half to just 1%, even by a tiny fraction, the image of me as a greedy merchant would be completely erased.
“If you believe this is the right course, Baron, I’ll follow you wholeheartedly. I’ll begin preparations for large-scale transportation of supplies immediately.”
“Please do. Also, while I’m away, protect the Rothschild Trading Company alongside Sebastian.”
Kris sighed deeply instead of arguing.
“Where exactly are you planning to go?”
Predicting a plague and then saying I’m leaving—obviously, there’s only one conclusion.
‘They’ll think I’m heading to the frontlines to fight the plague.’
“Some idiot decided to set up a poultry farm near a major city close to the capital. That city will definitely be hit by the plague.”
The more populated an area, the more vulnerable it is to disease.
That’s why I’ve been ensuring strict sanitation in major cities, including the capital, under the guise of producing gunpowder.
Though it was unintentional, the average lifespan in the Tuscan Empire might have increased slightly.
‘But there’s no solution against water source contamination.’
“Whatever it takes, I must prevent the plague from spreading to the capital. For your sake too, Kris.”
Some fools might claim they’d willingly die for the woman they love.
But that’s utter nonsense.
Both the woman I love and I must survive.
Kris blushed slightly at my words.
“Baron...”
For a brief moment, the atmosphere turned rosy, but now wasn’t the time for that.
“I’ll leave for Pisa immediately. Deliver this to Erica while I’m gone.”
“Yes, understood. But what is this book?”
“It’s a manual I wrote on how to handle diarrheal diseases. Gather second or third sons from noble families who want administrative roles and drill this into their heads.”
This is the power of authority.
When a problem arises, knowing the proper solution means you can simply force it to happen.
“When the plague spreads, assign those who’ve learned this as relief team leaders and send them to each city. Once they’re deployed, other nobles might complain, saying, ‘Why should we listen to him?’...”
Naturally, there will be objections.
From the nobles’ perspective, using an unproven treatment method is baffling.
But there’s an easy way to deal with such problems.
“Tell them that if my intervention worsens the situation, they can sue the Rothschild family for damages.”
With a duke and the emperor backing me, even if the measures produce minimal results, anyone who sues me will find their skulls metaphorically cracked in retaliation.
This is why cozy relationships between business and politics are beneficial.
With that, I mounted my horse and headed straight for Pisa.
Arriving there, I drank water from the River Libordo, the city’s primary water source, and...
“This water tastes strange. Things might be worse than I anticipated.”
The odd taste and smell of the river water signaled that it was already unsafe to drink.
Yet the oblivious citizens continued to use this water for drinking, brewing, cooking, and even laundry...
‘This city is bound to have an outbreak.’
I decided to address the problem quickly and decisively.
“Damn it, where’s the bishop here?”