Liu Heng and Shylock depend on each other for life. Venice is not their hometown, they are just guests in Venice.
Because they have no hometown.
Yes, there is no hometown.
Their hometown has long been occupied, and they and their tribesmen have all left their homes and cannot return.
Why do you say?
Because they are Jews!
Europe is the territory of a certain religion, which is very repulsive to Judaism. Jews cannot even own their own land. They can only live in isolated Jewish areas and can only make a living by engaging in trade.
But most Jews are smart and have business acumen.
This allowed the Jews to gradually accumulate considerable wealth even though they were suppressed, forming a special business class.
These have attracted the covetousness of many people, including rulers of various countries and people from the church.
They used religious methods and ethnic discrimination to suppress the Jews. Some religious leaders in a certain country publicly accused the Jews of being greedy and vicious loan sharks who took advantage of the kindness of Christians to gain profits.
At this time, the gap between the rich and the poor in Europe was serious, and the poor hated the rich. Once they were led, they naturally hated the wealthy Jewish businessmen.
Therefore, Shylock did not engage in loan sharking business, but in the eyes of the Venetians, he was a ruthless and profit-seeking businessman.
Simply.
Liu Heng felt aggrieved by his father in this life.
Sherlock was angry when everyone said this.
Aren’t you saying that I am an unscrupulous loan shark?
Then I will do it for you.
Therefore, when a businessman named Antonio came to borrow money from Shylock, Shylock lent it to him.
But he made a request.
If Antonio fails to repay the loan on time, he will have to cut off a pound of his flesh to repay Shylock in money.
Antonio agreed, and his merchant ship was about to return, carrying many expensive goods.
As long as these goods are sold, not only can Sherlock's debt be repaid, but there will also be a lot of surplus.
Antonio happily left with the borrowed gold coins.
Sherlock sneered behind him.
He was much better informed than Antonio. From another wealthy Jewish businessman, he learned that a riot had occurred in Naples and all the ships passing there had been detained.
Antonio's merchant ship will never return to Venice on time.
When the time comes, he can stand by and watch Antonio cut his flesh.
Shylock and Antonio have a grudge.
Because the idea that Shylock is a loan shark was spread by Antonio.
Antonio regards Shylock as his stepping stone and uses Shylock to express himself.
As soon as this rumor came out, Shylock's image became ruthless and profit-seeking, but Antonio was a kind and good businessman. More people did business with Antonio, and fewer people did business with Shylock.
Shylock's business has been greatly affected, can he not hate Antonio?
Antonio is Shylock's enemy, and Shylock wants to kill him whenever he gets the chance.
Not to mention Shylock's actions were vicious, but Antonio spread rumors about Shylock, ruined Shylock's image, and caused damage to Shylock's business. Wasn't Antonio's actions not vicious?
It's just tit for tat.
As expected, the merchant ship did not return on time, and Antonio could not repay the gold coins borrowed from Shylock on time.
Shylock takes Antonio to court and asks the judge to rule, asking for Antonio's pound of flesh.
In fact, this court dispute was very unfavorable to Shylock. The Duke, the supreme ruler of Venice, was on Antonio's side, not to mention others.
The only thing that is good for Shylock is that even the Duke cannot interfere with court regulations. If Antonio is obviously favored and Shylock's request is rejected, other foreign businessmen in Venice will be distrustful of Venice and leave Venice.
At that time, Venice's economy will be greatly affected.
Liu Heng knew what his father would endure in court. He ordered his servants to prepare some things, and then accompanied Sherlock to the court.
There were many people in the court, all here to watch.
These people were all biased towards Antonio, and some were shouting that the court should rule Antonio victorious.
Antonio is accompanied to court by his friend Bassanio.
They accused Shylock in court of being callous and a devil.
Shylock was calm and composed, insisting that everything should be done in accordance with the provisions of the charter.
Seeing that Shylock was about to win, a young lawyer came to the court.
The lawyer said to Shylock: "You must cut this pound of flesh from his chest; the law allows you, and the court awards you." (Excerpted from the original lines of "The Merchant of Venice")
Shylock laughed, and Antonio and Bassanio paled.
Cut a piece of meat from your chest!
That means Antonio's death.
The medical conditions at this time were very poor. Without antibiotics, even a little trauma could kill a person.
The lawyer continued: "Wait a minute, there is something else. The covenant does not allow you to take a drop of his blood, it just says 'a pound of flesh'; so you can take a pound of flesh as promised, but the person who is cutting the flesh At that time, if even a drop of Christian blood is shed, your land and property will be confiscated according to Venetian law." (Excerpted from the original text)
Shylock's smile froze on his face, and Antonio and Bassanio's faces returned to rosy and began to laugh.
The others also laughed, they all understood what the lawyer meant, and they all praised the smart lawyer.
Shylock said with an ugly face: "Then I am willing to accept the repayment; pay me three times the amount as agreed, and let the Christian go."
Bassanio wants to exchange money.
But the lawyer stopped him and pushed further: "Don't be busy! This Jew must get absolute justice. Don't be busy! He cannot accept other compensation except the punishment as agreed."
She said to Sherlock: "So get ready to cut the flesh. No drop of blood is allowed, and no cut is allowed to weigh more than or less than a pound; if the meat you cut off is slightly lighter or less than a pound, To be more serious, even if the difference is just a hair, or even a hair, you will be killed and all your property will be confiscated."
Sherlock's face turned even darker: "I don't want the gold coins as compensation, I just get my capital back. Is that okay?"
The lawyer refused to give up: "Jew, you can't take any money except cutting off the pound of flesh at the risk of your own life."
Liu Heng laughed angrily.
He used to admire this smart woman, but now, he just wants to beat her up.
"Okay." Liu Heng suddenly said, "I will cut the meat on my father's behalf."
"Carlos." Sherlock said in shock, "Don't come out."
He can hurt himself, but he must not hurt his son.
