Back in the shop, Wang Qian and Li Kun had already finished cleaning. Zhang Zian told them to go back to school early. After they left, the shop quieted down. Seeing that it was getting late, Zhang Zian pulled down the shutter door and locked it.
He walked to the Holy Cat statue in the corner and squatted down to examine it carefully. The cut section of the nose ring that had been split in half glistened under the light.
Fina opened its eyes and quietly jumped down from the cat tree. Because its movements were so light, Snowy Lionet didn't even notice that the tail in front of it had disappeared …
Old Time Tea also walked over with steady steps, staring at the statue solemnly.
Zhang Zian stretched out two fingers and flicked the statue, making a solid and dull sound. The statue was undoubtedly solid, and the vibration made his fingernails hurt. He only felt that the statue was simple and elegant, and he really didn't understand why Fina and Old Time Tea had such a big reaction.
"Fina, Grandpa Tea, what's going on?" he asked, squatting down.
Old Time Tea signaled Fina with its eyes, "Let Her Majesty explain. I know very little about this, and it's good that I can understand."
Fina squatted down proudly. If you looked closely, you would find that its posture was the same as the statue, except that its fur was too dazzling, and the statue was too simple. Unless they stood side by side like this, it would be hard to notice this fact.
"Thousands of years ago, on the black land, in addition to worshiping the Holy Cat Bastet, there were very few people who believed in darkness who secretly worshiped another god – an evil god in the shape of a cat. It came from the underworld, had no name, and had never been recognized. Only those who were angry and hateful would worship it as a god." Fina raised a cat paw and pointed at the statue, "The only difference between it and Bastet is the nose ring. Bastet doesn't wear a nose ring."
Zhang Zian thought about it and realized that it was true. Some people believed in true gods, and some people believed in false gods. Some people believed in Jesus, and some people believed in Satan. It was nothing more than dissatisfaction with the rulers and society at that time, and they used this method to resist. It was not unusual. It happened in ancient times, and it happened today.
He picked up the broken nose ring from the ground and looked at it carefully with the light, but he couldn't find any clues.
"That's it?"
Fina nodded seriously. "Don't underestimate this nose ring. It has a history of thousands of years, even before my time. It's this ring that makes the kittens panic."
Zhang Zian shook his head. "It's not that I don't believe it. A nose ring from thousands of years ago was still so powerful? Don't tell me that this nose ring is also blessed by the power of faith … "
Fei Na snorted disdainfully, "What does a mere mortal know!" The nose ring was not that simple. It had been bathed and baptized by the flesh and blood of countless animals during the hundreds and thousands of years of sacrificial activities. The sacrificial activities of the evil gods had always been so bloody that the fear of the animals before they were slaughtered was all melted into it. Didn't you notice that the color of this golden nose ring is a little red? "
Hearing that the nose ring had been soaked in flesh and blood, Zhang Zian felt a little disgusted and almost threw it away. However, when he heard that it was made of gold, he didn't want to throw it away. Instead, he held it tighter …
"In short, this is all I know. Today, those worshippers of the evil gods have long disappeared, and even the gods they worshiped are nowhere to be found. It's not worth worrying about. " After Fina finished speaking, it proudly swung its tail, jumped back onto the cat tree, closed its eyes, and began to nap.
Old Time Tea also nodded and said, "The weird things in the West are really interesting. Don't worry, Zian. As the queen said, since ancient times, evil has never prevailed over good. These evil things can only be rampant for a while, and they can't escape the fate of destruction. Good and evil will always be rewarded, and reincarnation is a good thing. If you don't believe me, look up and see who the heavens forgive? "
After that, Old Time Tea also walked back to the electric blanket to drink tea and watch TV.
Zhang Zian stood up with a smile, put the nose ring into his trouser pocket, moved his recliner back to its original position, and started to play with his phone while lying down.
Listening to Fina's story, he always felt that it was not enough. After all, Fina lived in an era too early, and there was a gap of two thousand years between it and the present, so it didn't understand a lot of things. Old Time Tea was born and grew up in the East, so it knew very little about the myths and legends of the West. If it wanted to hear the story to the end …
Zhang Zian's finger that was sliding across the screen stopped, and the pad of his finger pressed on Wei Kang's profile picture.
He hesitated for a moment, but still clicked on Wei Kang's profile picture, took a picture of the Holy Cat statue, and sent it to him. At the same time, he asked, "Professor Wei, do you know the origin of this statue?"
It was almost dinner time, and Zhang Zian didn't think Wei Kang would reply so soon. He was about to go to the buyer show on Taobao to look for a few pictures to see, but he received a message from Wei Kang within seconds.
Wei Kang: "This is the Gayer-Anderson Cat. The original is in the collection of the British Museum. This is a replica, right?"
Zhang Zian forgot to ask Snowy, and now he knew the origin of the statue.
He replied, "Yes, Professor Wei, you have a good eye. I'm sorry to bother you, but are you having dinner? "
Wei Kang: "No, I'm still at school."
Zhang Zian looked at his watch. It was already 7: 30 at night, and the professor was really working hard.
He replied, "Hurry up and go for dinner. Your academic research won't grow legs and run away. It's not worth it if you hurt your body."
Wei Kang: "Okay, I'll go in a while … Hey, that's not right. Where's the statue's nose ring?"
Zhang Zian took out the broken nose ring from his trouser pocket, took a picture, and sent it over.
Zhang Zian: "I accidentally broke it. Professor Wei, you are very knowledgeable. I would like to ask you, does this statue represent the Holy Cat? "
Wei Kang: "Most people think so, but occasionally there are voices of doubt."
Zhang Zian: "Why do you doubt it?"
Wei Kang: "The reason is very simple. There is only one Holy Cat statue in the world with a nose ring, and it would make people suspicious. There is another Holy Cat statue in the British Museum, and it personifies the Holy Cat. It has a cat's head and a human's body, and it wears a gorgeous golden dress and shawl. It only has earrings, and no nose ring. In addition, there is another Holy Cat statue in the Walters Art Museum, and it only has earrings and no nose ring. "
Zhang Zian was speechless. Professor Wei was indeed a professor, and he lived up to his reputation. He had all kinds of allusions at his fingertips, and they were all reasonable and convincing.
He thought about his wording based on what Fina had said, and cautiously wrote, "Professor Wei, I'm just making a wild guess. If I'm wrong, please don't blame me! Is it possible that … this statue is not the real Holy Cat, but some mutated evil god? "
After sending the message, he held his phone nervously, waiting for a reply.
He thought that Wei Kang would scold him and say that he was being whimsical, but Wei Kang quickly replied, "We can't completely rule out this possibility. It is not uncommon for cats to be worshiped as evil gods in history, and the most famous one is Baphomet. This legendary demon is second only to Satan in Christianity, and it is said that it was secretly worshiped by the famous Knights Templar in the form of a cat. As early as a few thousand years ago, the Jews were enslaved by the ancient Egyptians for a long time, and I don't need to explain the relationship between the Jews and the Bible, right? "
Wei Kang's words were a bit vague, and Zhang Zian didn't understand it at first. After staring at the text for a few minutes, in his mind, two lines connected a few key words.
The first line was: Ancient Egyptians — Jews — Christianity — Knights Templar.
The second line was: Cat God Bastet — Mutated Cat of the Underworld — Demon Baphomet.
Zhang Zian suddenly understood, and then thought about the persecution of witches and cats by Christianity in the Middle Ages. There seemed to be an inextricable connection, and the fog of history gradually became clearer in front of his eyes.
Wei Kang seemed to deliberately give him some time to think, and after a while, he continued to send a message. "Of course, how many of these things are rumors and how many are facts is unknown. Unless the people from that time come back to life, no one will know what the truth is, including this Holy Cat statue."
Zhang Zian replied, "I understand. Thank you, Professor Wei. It's a wonderful story!"
After that, he turned off the phone screen, looked at the isolated Holy Cat statue in the corner again, and sighed softly.
Whether it was a real Holy Cat or a fake Holy Cat, whether it had been worshiped by tens of thousands of people or baptized by flesh and blood, it didn't matter now. The long river of history could bury everything.
As the saying goes, "How many things have happened in the past and in the present are all in conversation."
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