Chapter 110: Bethlehem
Ever since coming here, Caesar has met quite a few Saracens.
From the battlefield to the court, such as Saladin and Shawwar, but this Saracen merchant is clearly a third kind of person.
He could even be called young, with fair skin, a smooth forehead, and black eyes and black hair that made Caesar involuntarily feel fondness; his attitude was not like that of a merchant, neither humble nor arrogant, mild and courteous—more like a scholar.
“My name is Amin Asamira, I am a merchant; my family has been engaged in the making and trade of soap in Acre for generations. You may have heard of Asamira olive soap—our goods have been supplied to the Romans and the Caliph, the Sultan’s court; the Emperor of Abbas, appreciative of our loyalty and diligence toward him, granted us the best olive grove in Acre.”
“Asamira olive soap,” Caesar said: “Indeed, I have heard of it and used it.” Not exaggerating, it was this that first caught his attention; in the monastery, the monks made soap themselves, but Abbot John used Asamira olive soap for bathing. He had even complained why it wasn’t Christians who invented it, but Saracens who made soap—he had to spend a large sum of money on it every month.
“So, what have you come to see me for?” Caesar asked.
“I have indeed encountered a difficult matter. I was originally in despair and prepared to return to Acre, but later I heard that this city has been enfeoffed to you by Amalric I, and I have also heard of your name—you are a just and wise good person who will not arbitrarily judge a person guilty or innocent based on faith… so…”
“Please speak.”
“My family has been doing soap trade with a merchant in the city of Bethlehem named Lego for several years now, but recently, he privately withheld a shipment of goods and is unwilling to pay the price we demanded…”
“Did you draw up a contract?”
“Yes.” Amin opened his large robe, pulled a copper tube from inside his collar, and then drew a parchment from it. Caesar took it and glanced at it; the contract was written in Latin and Saracen, which he read without much difficulty, and surprisingly, it was an open contract, meaning the price of the soap was not specified, but had to be negotiated based on the quality of the soap before pricing.
“Asamira soap needs to be air-dried for more than ten months; during this time, wind, humidity, and the main materials all affect the quality of the soap,” Jacques explained on his behalf: “So generally, they wait until the goods arrive here, check the quality, and then the merchants set the price.”
As he spoke, Amin also opened the box he carried with him, which contained soap specially offered to the new master of this city. Caesar picked up a piece to look at; the quality of the soap in this box was even better than what he had seen at Abbot John’s, with a surface like gold, an interior like jade, a warm and delicate texture, full of the fragrance of laurel leaves and olives— no worse than industrial products centuries later.
The merchant Lego was quickly summoned here; compared to Jacques and Amin, his posture was much more humble—he was an Isaacites merchant. As soon as he saw Amin, he knew why he had been called before Caesar; because of the previous public trial, he also knew that the Knight of Bethlehem was not the kind of fool who could be deceived and toyed with, so he did not conceal his little scheme.
He honestly admitted his conflict with Amin, but he also said that he had not breached the contract, only that he disagreed with the price proposed by Amin. He brought previous contracts, and the prices on them were indeed different from what Amin said—the latter was at least three times the former. Caesar looked at Amin: “Is it that the quality of the soap is different?”
“I do not wish to deceive you, but Lord, I must admit that the quality of the soap is no different from before.” Amin said: “But if he does not agree to the price I proposed, I will not force him to fulfill the contract, but the problem is, he is unwilling to return the goods to me.”
A sly glint flashed in Lego’s eyes: “Very well,” he looked at Caesar, as if agreeing to this Saracen’s price hike only because of him: “I can buy this soap at the price he mentioned, since he has appealed to you.”
Caesar looked at Amin; strangely, the Saracen did not seem pleased. He seemed about to say something but held back: “Then… so be it.” He extended his hand, and Lego shook it, considering the transaction completed.
After they left, Caesar glanced at the box of soap, calculated the time, “Go call Jacques back.” he said to Longinus.
Longinus went and returned exceptionally quickly; Caesar even suspected Jacques had been standing outside the door waiting for him to be called back.
“Has something happened in Acre?” he asked.
Jacques smiled.
“Sometimes I wonder if I am too good,” Caesar said, propping his chin: “You are not afraid of me; if it were someone else, such as Templar Knight Walter, would you dare to do this?”
“If you mean that one, I dare guarantee he definitely would not detect the trick.” Jacques said.
“Amalric I hanged quite a few merchants in Bilbeis and Fustat because the intelligence they provided was either wrong or incomplete.” Such as those two bridges that suddenly appeared: “And the King issued you passes and charters not just for tax— if something important happened in Acre, and because of your delay and deliberate concealment it caused an unfavorable situation on Ayyarasa Road, I would not begrudge a gallows.”
“We do not have the courage for that, Lord,” Jacques hurriedly said: “We just could not be sure either, but judging from Amin Asamira’s reaction, it should be real.”
“Nur al-Din?”
“Yes, Lord,” Jacques stepped forward and said in a low voice: “Asamira’s goods arrived here a week ago, but suddenly, Asamira’s people raised the price to three times the original, and the quality of the soap did not change. When our merchants raised objections, they even said they were willing to ship the soap back to Acre… that was a bit off, so I sent some people to investigate—”
“What did you find?”
“Nur al-Din fell seriously ill twice; it is said that his Ilghazi sent to Egypt has become Caliph Atid’s Grand Vizier. Nur al-Din demanded they depose Atid and change the faith sect of Egypt’s Saracens, but was refused. He was furious and wanted to assemble an army for an expedition to Fustat, but…”
“Several of our people were executed,” Jacques did not continue: “But the situation in Acre is indeed very tense— Asamira’s merchants not only raised prices, but were even willing to ship the goods back, perhaps because Acre will soon face war leading to an olive poor harvest— olives mature every two years, and the making of Asamira soap requires the freshest olive oil; this soap stored in warehouses will not spoil.
If war really breaks out, their price will surely rise as well.”
“Can you confirm Nur al-Din’s condition?” Caesar asked: “If Nur al-Din dies, the Saracens cannot hide it.”
“We will closely observe the situation in Acre, Lord.”
“If you can give me definite news,” Caesar stared at Jacques: “King Baldwin IV of Ayyarasa Road will give you a satisfactory reward.”
