Antonio greets Proietti at the start of the story as he arrives and warns him that the princess has become greedy and money hungry since the death of her husband.
At first, she is thought to be old, but Antonio points out that she is a mere 25 years old with a passion for business affairs, taking charge of financial situations wanting to let no one profit at her expense.
Throughout the story, Moravia describes for the reader the way in which the princess is constantly calling the married Proietti at all hours of the day - as if they were having an illicit affair.
He displays angst and frustration at the fact that their relationship never ventures beyond business, to which he replies that she has a piggy bank instead of a heart.
His disgust of the princess's feigned attraction to the new buyer, Signor Pandolfi, and her desire to sell the property at far more than it is worth finally reaches its limits, and the jealous Proietti explodes.