Machiavillainess

48. The City’s State


One precious lesson her father had taught her before his passing was that the truth was less a single thing and more the composition of facts. Rarely did a simple answer truly answer a question, nor did a simple question ask everything it should. To that end, he had ensured she would never carelessly ask why, because such a question gave power to the very person being questioned.

The truth was not subjective and mathematics provided such an example. At the same time, mathematics proved how truth followed from the facts.

Such facts, on the other hand, had to be subjective. They had to be observed by people and recorded by people and chosen by people and presented by people. Thus, no matter how careful, these facts could never be truth. Even if one would choose such facts that may be observed by several people, these acts naturally distorted the facts. For example, a merchant would do well to keep an accurate account for himself, yet be ready with a different account for a regular inspection.

Countless truths could be built from the endless possibility of facts available. Wisdom, in her opinion, was the comprehension of this fact. The understanding that a truth's merit lay in one's agreement with the facts upon which it was built.

If she asked someone a question as simple as, "Why?" then she did not care for the answer. No, she cared about something much deeper.

In the quiet of her office, the mayor put down the papers with a heavy sigh. "I fear the city cannot cover these up-front costs," he said, his hands clasped.

"Why?"

At her question, he hesitated a moment, but could only give her an answer. "We have been following My Lady's… approach for years by this point. A well-kept secret, it is the case we have little in the way of coins lying around," he said, his hands apart. "If My Lady demands it, we may take out further loans. I do ask that she demands it. We cannot be said to be following My Lady's approach if we take out loans for something that is this costly, this distant, and with little direct benefit to the city."

Her lips curled, eyes narrowed in amusement. "Mr Mayor has so little faith in me. Of course, I would not demand it. Let us put this aside for the moment and instead consider how else Mr Mayor has failed me."

He winced, yet bowed his head. "If that's what My Lady wishes to discuss."

"Oh, pray do not think so little of me," she said lightly. "Since when do such jokes not amuse My Mayor?"

Although he dared not say, his glance was not subtle.

She tutted and turned to the side. "Dear, do try to appear less intimidating. Perhaps Sir Ludwig could provide lessons."

The mayor had felt like a voyeur at first, only to, by the end, look over at the man beside her with a kind of mutual sympathy.

As for the prince, he only gave a chuckle at her antics.

With that addressed, she turned back to the mayor, a fresh smile upon her lips. "For the city not to have money, is it that the guilds are resisting?"

His mouth pressed into a thin line. "Resisting is, I suppose, a way to put it."

"Of course I am well aware of the little games they are playing." She let out a breath, her hand over her mouth. "Pray tell, Mr Mayor, how is it that the city would collect taxes from an unwilling business?"

"Well, the changes My Lady put in place state that we would petition the courts. They would confirm the failure to pay and bailiffs would seek to either demand payment or otherwise confiscate goods of sufficient value."

He felt in her words her usual games, yet her prompt did little to help him achieve clarity on this issue. After all, the guilds merely did not cooperate, which thus made it difficult to actually prove any particular craftsman or business did not properly report their accounts.

A moment, then she brought her hands together in a soft clap. "As such, the city may make… agreements with them to not bring the matter to court in exchange for… cooperation. For example, I know many rely on goods brought in by the Nelli family—goods which are more expensive due to tariffs. I am sure Mr Mayor has the imagination to consider this further," she said, ending with a small smile and light tone.

Of course, she was not wrong in thinking so. "We would lose out on the tariffs and gain back in taxes. Even if we assume that these amounts are equal, it is not clear to me what the purpose is. Tariffs are easier to collect and harder to cheat."

"Are they truly?" she asked lightly, then waved him off and spoke as usual. "Mr Mayor is not wrong to be wary. In truth, I would expect to make an initial loss. However, one should consider that this brings goodwill from both the guilds and the Nelli family, and that it moves the burden of taxation to small businesses that are less able to cheat us."

Pausing there, she pressed her hands together before then opening them.

"I speak to the mayor of this city when I say that, when the Nelli family cheats us, it is rich foreigners who benefit; when small businesses cheat us, it is local families of little to modest wealth who benefit."

He stilled at her words, then bowed his head, gently nodding. "My Lady gave this much thought."

Again, she waved him off and gave a chuckle too. "Pray do not think too highly of me. I have always been in contact with Lord Erberg and some others on these matters, which has included much discussion on tariffs and taxes."

A silence began to fall until he couldn't help but chuckle himself. "Please, has My Lady discussed interesting things?"

"It is… something I have mentioned before, that there is rarely something which exists by chance, that everything which continues to exist does so because, in some way, it justifies itself. However, it is a belief commonly held that a tariff essentially exists to eliminate itself.

If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"That is, we have tariffs on cloth so that our local spinners and weavers may satisfy our demand, that foreign producers cannot make a profit selling cloth here. If the tariff is working as it should, then it should collect no money."

She needed not say more. However, in that observation, he found such an absurdity that he refused to comprehend it. "What purpose does a tariff truly hold, then?"

Her expression gave away nothing, her hands neatly folded on her lap, a polite smile on her lips and a distant touch to her gaze. "My correspondents do not particularly agree on an answer to that. Broadly, a tariff is either another tax, or it is to protect local businesses. The issue is that tariffs are poor at both. Or rather, tariffs accomplish those goals at the expense of other locals."

With a sigh, her hand came up, ready to gesture along as she continued. "Reconsider the tariff on cloth. This tariff is also naturally a tariff on clothes, yet generates no money. Rather, it is when people purchase clothes that the tariff on cloth is truly paid, that the guilds and merchants still have their profit and our people are poorer."

"And so a tax," he said, nodding along.

She spared him a smile. "Indeed, except that this tax discourages both foreign trade and local production. The city would not enforce a tariff on cloth if it made no money. As such, the guilds wish to keep supply low, which results in prices that are high enough for merchants to make a profit. Not that the guilds necessarily have this as a conscious goal, but that is a distraction for another time," she said, ending in a titter.

It was a lot for him to take in, not exactly because it was entirely novel, in part precisely because he knew this well. More than others, he had been privy to her guidance over the textile guild. The result of that was clear to see. At least, clear to him.

"To tie up this discussion," she said, "I find it preferable to erode the tariffs. Mr Mayor need not be discreet, that this matter would soon come to light regardless. No, you should use this to create tension between guilds and with the other merchants, that it becomes a compromise to lower certain tariffs."

He gave a chuckle. "My Lady is not worried I would be impeached?" he asked lightly.

Her smile wry, she took a sip of tea, then answered him. "Sir should know best which guilds would be interested in these exceptions. With the support of those, the textile guild, and the Nelli family, could a vote even reach a majority, never mind two-thirds?"

Only at this moment did it dawn on him how important her acquisition of the textile guild had been. "I dare say the assembly wouldn't even bother to convene," he whispered.

She held out a hand. "So, while I expect the city's funds may struggle, we would encourage trade, undermine the guilds, and gain favour with the Nelli family."

In her summary, he found another laugh. "Which makes it all the harder for the city to meet My Lady's request."

"This is this, that is that. That said, for my husband's benefit, would Mr Mayor describe my approach?" Her amusement at the end was far from subtle and all the less so for how she smiled, teacup in hand.

However, he had no choice, taking a deep breath to settle himself. With a thin smile, he turned his focus to the prince. "That is, Sir, we would take on a modest debt if we believe it will be profitable enough to pay for the accruing interest."

"A reasonable thought," the prince replied.

She tittered behind her cup, then took a sip. "I think dear does not comprehend how expansive this is. Or rather, Mr Mayor has missed a key point."

With his own noticeable amusement, the prince said, "Pray tell, darling."

"That is, to say the city is in debt is rather inaccurate. The city has such incomes that it easily pays its expenses. Even as we move away from tariffs, I do not expect this to change.

"Rather, it is the moneylenders who are in debt, is it not? They are the ones who now lack money and lack any ability to compel its repayment. Of course, that is not to say that we would dishonour a signed contract. In the end, though, we have borrowed such an amount that is very much the moneylenders' problem if we cannot repay."

The prince took a deep breath, quelling the laughter deep in his chest. "I see, it is the moneylenders who are in debt," he said quietly.

With that, she brought her attention back to the mayor. "I will state again that I shan't demand this. I do respect you, that I naturally think myself correct in matters, yet know that even being well-informed does not make one infallible."

Pausing there, her gaze settled on the table and she let out a deep breath.

"I asked this of you because the city has greater leverage with the moneylenders. If the city fronts the cost for the academies, then I would be able to transition that momentum to the grand library," she said, her voice softer, perhaps even weak.

He gave a sympathetic smile. "It is not that I think My Lady has not considered the plan, but that the accrued interest would… interfere with the city. Our income is not that much greater than our expenses—even if we do keep the tariffs."

At his conclusion, she gave a single nod, yet he felt this was not the end of the matter. Or rather, everything he knew about her told him that she had never intended on personally taking on such an incredible debt. As charismatic as she was, as successful as the grand bazaars had been—because he was privy to just how successful—he couldn't see how she would have others fund something an entire order of magnitude greater.

As always, it seemed he simply lacked imagination.

"How long do you think the city could manage with the proposed loan?"

"I suppose… a year," he said, his hand gesturing along.

Her hands clapped together, all the louder for how quiet they had been speaking. "Very well. I had hoped for this to coincide with the city's grand expansion; however, needs must. That is, it is time to establish the city-bank. The city can then begin to consolidate its debts in bonds. Once the academies near completion, we may sell bonds for the library."

For a long moment, her words simply echoed inside his head, then they found purchase and, in the next breath, he let out a chuckle, his head hanging down as his hands came up.

The discussion carried on a while longer as certain details needed to be addressed. Once completed, though, the mayor did not dawdle and left the couple behind.

"Darling is in debt?" he quietly asked.

His question came with equal parts amusement and exasperation. Her answer, on the other hand, came with a flick of her wrist.

"That is, it would reflect poorly on me to be in significant debt. So, as it is, the city holds most of the debt while I own the land. This is an important lesson dear should learn. If we simply waited to have the money to begin a project, we may only work on one at a time. With this approach, we may instead work on as many projects as we wish, only necessary that interest payments do not exceed our income."

"Which is made easier if those projects bring in income too," he said softly.

She gave a gentle laugh. "My husband picks up on these so quickly, I am envious. These lessons took me many years to learn by picking through my father's accounts."

"If I could speak frankly, it is still not clear to me why you are… determined to build this library."

The amusement on her face melted away to reveal a kind of concentration she rarely showed. As if to emphasise that, she took a moment for a sip of tea.

"This approach is actually a poor way to run a city for the very reason dear noted before, which is that a city should rather be using taxes to do things which do not bring in a greater income," she said, not a whisper, but an even quieter voice than before.

"However…."

A corner of her lips quirked into a wry smile. "So far, I have used the city's income to cover the interest for opening businesses that make profit. The mayor is a merchant and so sees nothing wrong with this. For actual city-works, we have relied on the grand bazaars to raise sizeable amounts, such as for putting down new roads."

As always, she said just enough that he could reach the next thought. "Which is why he disagrees with the library."

"This library will pull wealthy people from all over Europe to the city, and they will bring money with them, and they will wish to spend it. Then there are those people less wealthy, yet well-educated, who could be convinced to teach at the academies for lodging and access to the library."

He let out a breath, then gave a nod. "The sort of thing a merchant struggles to understand the benefits of."

"Indeed," she said, her eyes pinched in apparent amusement.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.


Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter