Colierul de turcoaze (1985)

As they enter the territory of Wallachia, Von Wilensdorf (Alexandru Arșinel), a representative of the Viennese banks, and his daughter Ursula (Marina Procopie) are kidnapped by a gang of six brigands who have tied up the border guards, in an attempt to provoke a diplomatic conflict. The Austrian consul (Eusebiu Ștefănescu) comes to the ruler’s palace to present Gheorghe Bibescu (Ion Besoiu) with an official protest from the Emperor of Austria and inform him that he has one week to capture the kidnappers and free the hostages, threatening that otherwise the Austrian army will enter the country. The men of the Agie set out in search of the hostages. Afraid that the Austrians might enter the country, the “Frăția” organization sends Mărgelatu (Florin Piersic) to discover where the hostages are being held and free them. Carrying a letter of passage from the ruler, which Lieutenant Deivos (George Motoi) had received from his cousin Marițica Ghica, Mărgelatu sets out with Buză de Iepure (Szabolcs Cseh) to look for the brigands. They reach the border crossing, where they find several turquoise beads that Miss Ursula Wilensdorf had dropped on the ground. They follow the kidnappers’ trail and discover the carriage of the Austrian imperial envoy hidden beneath a haystack, with a turquoise bead beside it. They are followed by the Agie’s men and fight them at a place called La Măseaua Stricată. After escaping the arnăuți, the two arrive at an inn run by Jupân Potoroacă and his wife Maria, formerly the cook for the nobleman Vâlcu in The Silver Mask. The innkeeper and his wife tell Mărgelatu that a carriage carrying two strangers had passed by their inn, accompanied by six horsemen who seemed to be comedians. One of the comedians had a very beautiful voice, and Mărgelatu realizes that it is Gonfalone (David Ohanesian), Agatha’s former husband. The innkeeper realizes that he forgot to tell the arnăuți that about fifteen minutes after the comedians left, a woman arrived in a carriage, and Mărgelatu is certain it was Agatha Slătineanu. Taking the road to Bucharest, Mărgelatu and Buză de Iepure reach the estate of Aspasia Șuțu, Agatha’s sister. Buză de Iepure finds several turquoise beads there. The carriage and horsemen had then left for Bucharest. Meanwhile, a delegation of noblemen presents the ruler with a petition setting out the people’s demands in 35 points, but Bibescu rejects it. The person who organized the kidnapping of the two Austrians is Troianoff, who claims that those he works for are ready to give the principality 20 million to establish a national bank. The kidnapping of the Viennese banks’ envoy is intended to persuade the ruler not to negotiate with Austria over the establishment of a national bank. In this affair, Troianoff is allied with Fuad, the sultan’s envoy, who had promised Troianoff 20 percent of the deal. Realizing that the kidnappers not only looked like comedians, as the innkeeper’s wife had said, but were probably actors, Mărgelatu deduces that the hostages are being held at the Momolu Theatre. He gets there, but the actors and Agatha flee with the prisoners in another carriage. Mărgelatu realizes that the hostages were probably taken to the Austrian Consulate, since Agatha is Albert’s mistress; Albert is the consul’s secretary. That same evening, Lieutenant Deivos is visited by Iordache Despa, Rosetti’s brother-in-law, who has come on a secret mission from Vienna. He informs him that Wilensdorf was a decoy meant to put Troianoff and Fuad on the wrong track, while the real envoy of the Viennese banks is called Pater Fortunatos and is due to enter the country the next day at 10 a.m. via the Bariera Prahovei. The next day, Deivos tells Mărgelatu that Pater Fortunatos (Jean Lorin Florescu) is arriving. Mărgelatu waits for the envoy at the first inn beyond the barrier and stages a bluff, making Troianoff’s men follow a carriage other than the imperial envoy’s. Pater Fortunatos reaches the consulate safely, and Mărgelatu and Buză de Iepure find Wilensdorf and his daughter there, in a basement. Gonfalone, Troianoff, and Agatha are captured, tied up, and placed under Buză de Iepure’s guard. Mărgelatu goes to the palace with Wilensdorf and his daughter, and the diplomatic conflict is brought to an end. At the same time, Pater Fortunatos also arrives at the palace.