Aya obviously has her own idea on how to change people's mind.
Was it wrong to change people's mind? If so, then why did the world need to be enlightened? Wouldn't it be fine if they just let it be? However, let alone the Western Continent, even in Nine Regions, the King's way of enlightenment was an indispensable part of any ruler. Wasn't it natural to infect and enlighten people with the spirit of chivalry?
However, she was not ready to debate with Wang Lu, because it was impossible for her to win, and even if she did, it would be meaningless.
However, Wang Lu didn't say much. Some things were far more powerful to see with one's eyes than to say with one's mouth.
This small city could not accommodate the weight of people's mind, so the next stop was Dragon City.
Choosing Dragon City meant that their one month journey would finally come to an end. At this time, when Aya thought about it, she was both reluctant and relieved. She had already faintly understood what Wang Lu wanted to do.
However, she believed that after arriving at Dragon City, the real Knight of Brettonia would let him understand that the spirit of chivalry was not illusory. She believed that the former Knight of the Round Table, Bedivere, would not let her down.
However, after arriving at Dragon City, what she saw and heard made her feel as if she had fallen into an ice cave.
Everything seemed to be a replica of that remote town. Only, the scale of things was bigger, and on the surface, it seemed to be more orderly. However, greedy people were still greedy, and decaying people were still decaying. The past order was broken, and the newly established order was clothed with the spirit of chivalry. However, what they did was not much different from Holy Light Religion.
In the past, the church suppressed all four sides of Brettonia, and the believers were a cut above the rest. Now, the ones who were a cut above the rest were the Knights. Not long after the regime was restored, a strict class barrier was vaguely formed. There was a clear boundary between the Knight class and the civilian class, and the Knights were also divided into different levels.
Different levels meant different benefits. High-level knights occupied the richest land, had hordes of servants, and had monstrous power. They were like overlords of a region.
To some extent, the new Brettonia was better than the Holy Light Religion's rule. However, in some ways, the situation was actually worse. Because in order to consolidate the regime, Holy Light Religion took out the resources of other parishes to subsidize Brettonia. However, many of the newly appointed Knights simply began to exploit them.
The replacement of the old regime and the new redistribution of interests were inevitable. However, everything should be fair and just, which was beneficial to the country. In the past, Aya fought everywhere and did everything she could to maintain the fairness of this process. She had once generously released an opponent who posed a great threat to her, but was defeated in the end, and gave him the respect he deserved. She had once severely punished those subordinates who tried to show off their strength after a victory and wantonly plunder. She had even set an example for them. Even though she was a supreme king, she still maintained a simple life.
The Knight's spirit allowed her to be like a spark that set the prairie ablaze, quickly setting off a storm in Brettonia and establishing an unprecedented unified regime. Although for various reasons, the Knight's Kingdom fell apart shortly after it was established, she believed that the future of Brettonia had been found. At least, she and the people who accompanied her in the struggle should be very clear about this point.
"Why?"
Late at night, Aya quietly entered Bedivere's study room. The Master of Dragon City, who had just finished his day's work — also the current Regent of Brettonia — was startled and immediately stood up from his desk.
"Aya?"
Aya did not reveal herself, but asked in a cold voice, "Why?"
She didn't say a word, but Bedivere was very clear about where Aya's anger came from. Just now, he ended his meeting with a famous rich man in Brettonia, who promised to give him a piece of land that was once controlled by Holy Light Religion, along with the people on that land … Compared to Holy Light Religion, that greedy and brutal rich man would only worsen the life of the people on that land.
There were many similar things. Bedivere didn't know how much Aya had seen, but he didn't intend to cover it up.
After a long silence, Bedivere finally said.
"Because these are necessary compromises."
"Compromises?" Aya's voice was full of loss and puzzlement. "You … shouldn't be a person who easily says the word 'compromise'."
Bedivere self-deprecatingly said, "Isn't it? A person who has been struggling at death's door for more than a hundred years under the monstrous arrogance of the church, I'm afraid he's best at compromise. Otherwise, I would've followed the late king more than a hundred years ago. "
This time, it was Aya's turn to be silent.
"The spirit of chivalry requires me to stubbornly resist until the last moment, but in the end, I couldn't bear to see everything of the late king vanish into thin air. Therefore, I compromised. Moreover, I continuously compromised. I surrendered to the opponent that I shouldn't surrender to, fell in love with the woman that I shouldn't fall in love with, and gave birth to the child that I shouldn't have. Today, compromise seems to have become my instinct."
Bedivere was filled with emotion. However, the next moment, he changed the subject and unexpectedly took a tough stance. "But in these more than a hundred years, it also made me realize that compromise is an indispensable quality for a politician! Without my compromise, there would be no Dragon City today, and there would be no Brettonia today! Aya, you are the daughter of the Knight King, tell me, is my compromise wrong? "
Aya's voice was somewhat astringent. "That was then, but now …"
Bedivere shook his head. "It's the same, it's actually the same. Just now, although the rich man you saw is tyrannical and greedy, he has powerful influence and strength. The Winter Cold City could be occupied without shedding a single drop of blood, and that's because of him. What he wanted was just a small piece of land and a few hundred laborers, but what he exchanged for was the lives of thousands of soldiers. So, what can I do? For the sake of my own scrupulously abiding by the rules, should I let my soldiers risk their lives? Benevolence is also the basic creed of chivalry. "
Aya said, "You should try to change him, to reform him."
"The human heart cannot be changed." Bedivere wearily said, "Unless we use a spell to turn everyone into a puppet, we must admit that the human heart is not as good as we think."
Aya was surprised that Bedivere would say something similar to Wang Lu's. For a time, she didn't know what to say.
After a long time, Aya tried to say, "That's just because we're not strong enough …"
Bedivere was excited. "Not strong enough? Yes, I'm just an ordinary Knight of the Round Table, so I'm indeed not strong enough. But, isn't your father, the Knight King, powerful enough? In his life, he never compromised, but what was the result? Was it because of the Holy Light Religion's infiltration that people deserted you? "
"How can you say that!?" Aya was unprecedentedly angry. "Do you want to say that my … our scrupulous abiding by the rules are in vain?"
Bedivere deeply looked at her, and then dejectedly said, "Of course, it's not in vain. Without the Knight King's struggle, Brettonia would still be in a state of disunity, with endless infighting and being bullied. But these are two completely different things. "
"The strength of a country lies in the strength of the people's heart. The people's heart is broken, shameless, and insatiable …"
However, before Aya could finish, Wang Lu patted her on the shoulder.
"Enough, don't be hysterical like a literary and artistic young man."
Aya glared at Wang Lu. Her legendary level pressure assaulted his face. Wang Lu's figure slightly swayed, but he didn't budge an inch. "What, are you going to wield your sword at me? Just like what you've done to the people around you? "
In a split second, Aya's anger congealed, and a bone-chilling chill spread all over her body. "No, I …"
"Let's go back and talk."
With that, Wang Lu pushed Aya and then turned around to leave.
After the two of them left, Bedivere stood alone in his study. After a long time, he deeply bent down toward the direction where Aya went.
"Farewell, my King."
— —
"You're wrong about one thing."
On the way back, Wang Lu said to Aya, "He is no longer your subordinate. In the more than one hundred years of your absence, he is the pillar that truly supports the Knight's Spirit in Brettonia. He is the one who single-handedly controls the situation in Brettonia and reunited the country from division to division in just a few months."
"…"
"And you, you're just the daughter of the Knight King, what qualification do you have to criticize him in front of him? Don't you understand the principle of respecting the old and cherishing the young? "
Aya didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She was speechless. Perhaps, as she said, the changes in the past one hundred years were somewhat difficult for her to adapt.
"Perhaps Bedivere has found his way, and perhaps there is a reason for his approach, but that has deviated from the Knight's Spirit."
Wang Lu said, "Of course, because he is no longer a Knight under your command, but a ruler. And as a ruler, he is far more qualified than you. At least, in Brettonia, although the Knight's Spirit has been distorted, inspired by this slogan, the people's heart is indeed united, the country is indeed revived, and unprecedented prosperity is in the near future. "
"At the same time, it will also be accompanied by unprecedented decay."
"That's the norm." Wang Lu said, "There are black and white in people's heart. Even the most heinous people often have a flash of humanity. Saints will also have unbearable selfishness in their heart. Complex people form a complex society. This is an objective reality and law, like the sunrise and sunset. Don't be so obsessed with cleanliness. "
Aya thought for a long time. It could be seen that the confusion in her heart was like a knot. "Perhaps that's just because I'm not strong enough?"
Wang Lu was about to cry because of her stupidity. "Then how strong is strong? According to the legend of the Western Continent, in the era when Gods walked the world, are those Gods considered strong? But I've never heard of anyone who could enlighten the people and make everyone become an Immortal. So, do you have to break through the legendary level, become a God, and then from the God World to the Holy World, and then from the Holy World to the Supreme World, only then can you come back to deal with the problem of the people's heart? "
Aya was somewhat confused. "What are your so-called Holy World and Supreme World?"
"Oh, that's the content of the expansion pack. It's too early to tell you now … But in short, don't you think it's absurd that you have to be infinitely powerful to do something like that?"
Aya was even more confused. "So … all these years, I've been doing useless work?"
"How could it be useless? Without you, there would be no Brettonia today, but today's Brettonia doesn't need you. "Wang Lu smiled." I know you don't understand, so I will seriously explain it to you. Actually, the reason is very simple. It's just that before, you wouldn't listen, but now … "
Aya earnestly asked, "Please give me your advice."
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