Red flames soared into the sky,
Half of the stones of the church building were charred black,
And all the bones of the church in Luster were burned.
The rebellion of the church soldiers was completely suppressed.
The next day, the church bell rang for the first time at eight o'clock in the morning, and it rang nine times.
The people of Bona opened the window and saw a shocking scene:
Starting from the gate of the outer city of the palace, there was a long line of people kneeling, like densely packed ants,
All of them were black-clothed priests.
They were held by swords and knives,
And burned by their own hands the bonds of atonement that people who were not monks usually had to go to the church and spend a lot of money to buy.
Piles of bonds of the eleventh tax were taken out of the church by the soldiers, thrown on the street, and set on fire.
Thick smoke billowed into the clouds.
A policeman with a gong in his hand shouted along the street:
"The bonds have been paid -
The bonds have been paid - "
Allan I issued a decree that from now on, in Luster,
The secular law was superior to the divine law,
The people were free to believe in God without going through God's messengers.
After a while,
The whole of Bona shook.
A large number of people poured out of the street,
Waving the bonds in their hands and throwing them into the fire.
In a steady stream,
A large number of citizens poured in from all directions of Bona,
They were all here to burn the bonds of the eleventh tax.
Beggars, peddlers, craftsmen, and other civilians,
Cheers thundered, "Long live His Majesty Allen!" "Long live His Majesty Allen!"
The wooden windows on the second floor of the low shops on the street were pushed open. Through the greasy and dirty windows, in the dim houses, excited faces poked out one after another. "The good emperor of the third level!" they shouted, waving the account books in their hands.
The nobles in gorgeous clothes shrank behind the beaded curtains of the incense carriage, avoiding the black and gray smoke. They watched the scene cautiously and in shock, whispering to each other.
Hathaway put down the curtain and ordered Coachman, "Let's go back."
The carriage rocked back and forth. Outside, cheers and curses mixed together like thunder.
She knew that at this moment there was a steady stream of townsfolk coming from all parts of Bona to burn the promissory notes of the Eleventh Tax.
The extreme fatigue in her body and the high excitement in her mind made her squint her eyes and lean against the soft pillow. As she swayed, she seemed to have fallen asleep again, as if she had returned to her teenage years.
At that time, her father was still alive. He was the brother of the old emperor and a grand duke of a country with countless lands under his command.
She and her younger brother were his only legitimate children. The two siblings were born with extravagance and extravagance. Furthermore, she was doted on by her parents. Her father had always loved her talent and treated her much better than her younger brother.
Most of the time, they stayed away from the dirty city and lived in luxurious villas in the countryside.
On the lush green grass, her younger brother ran his horse recklessly. She sat under the sun in the attic of the villa, looking out and reading, sweetly fantasizing about the face of her beloved.
But her carefree life as a young girl ended on the 60th birthday of the old emperor, her uncle.
At the dazzling ball, the Pope and her uncle came together, but the assassin suddenly pounced on the nobles wearing gorgeous feathered masks. Outside the palace, there was a sudden gunshot.
The Pope was immediately hit by a sword, and the bullet hit her uncle, the emperor.
The nobles dressed in luxurious clothes turned around and ran, but they were trampled by the crowd, or screamed as the assassin pierced their hearts.
Blood and cake spilled all over the ground, and wine and corpses were everywhere.
When the world was turned upside down, she hugged her younger brother and shrank in a corner. She blankly watched as her father, wearing armor, came in with the guards and hugged them.
The cold armor stuck to her delicate skin. Her father didn't even care about his wig falling off, completely revealing his old white hair. "Don't come out."
But her father never came back.
When the riot started, the people were in a frenzy. Not only did they rush into the monastery, but they also robbed the lands of the nobles.
Her father died in the battle to protect the imperial court. They were sent to the carriage together with her cousin Allen, and hurriedly fled the country.
The former princes and grandsons changed into rough clothes and disguised as commoners, just to escape the disaster.
In the past, there were many servants, but on the way to escape, there were only a few third-class nobles, not very loyal generals leading the troops to protect them.
The wild geese were mournful, and the trees were frightened. Her younger brother was young, and during the escape, he fell ill and died.
The young cousin painfully knelt in front of the thirteen year old her. "Hathaway, I beg you."
In the distance, the lecherous man who had been lusting after her for a long time stared at her, his obscene gaze sweeping over her body.
She closed her eyes, hugged her brother's cold body, and a line of tears flowed down. She gently abandoned herself, who used to follow the rules of a maiden.
That night, she took off her clothes that represented her status as a noble lady. There was no sacred wedding, no blessings from many relatives, she walked into the general's tent and became the so-called Mrs. Brown.
The carriage suddenly stopped.
She woke up in a cold sweat and was already at the gate of the mansion. Someone greeted her from afar. "Madam, there are many distinguished guests today."
In the hall, vulgar cosmetics filled the air, and nobles with white faces stood there.
When they saw Hathaway, they shouted, "Your Excellency! What does His Majesty mean? Back then, we invited His Majesty to return to the country and supported His Majesty to seize the first class. Now that His Majesty has taken away most of the land deeds of the church, when will he reward the meritorious officials and return the land we lost in the banquet countercurrent to us?
Everyone's eyes were full of anxiety.
She knew what they were thinking.
In the banquet countercurrent, it was said that the people rioted against the tyranny of the church. In fact, after the people smashed the monastery, they had already rushed into the nobles' territory.
Many nobles fled the territory like stray dogs and lost a lot of land.
Later, after the church returned to Luster, they took the opportunity to loot the burning house and "bought" a batch of escaped nobles' land at a low price.
The reason why they supported the royal family to attack the church was nothing more than to take back the church and the land that the mob had snatched in the banquet countercurrent.
She took off her gloves and threw them on the sofa. Hathaway stared at them coldly. "What's the hurry? You've been waiting for so long. What's the difference in a little more time? Do you think the royal brother cares about your little land? "
Being swept by her gaze, the person who spoke couldn't help but feel a chill on his neck. Only then did he remember that Mrs. Brown in front of him was an Archduchess.
If one were to say who lost the most land in the banquet countercurrent, it would be this Archduchess. So much so that in addition to the rewards from the palace, she could only rely on her husband's pitiful earldom to survive.
"When it's time for rewards, no one will be short. You'd better deal with the scandals in your own territories. The news of the Arch-Cardinal's death would soon spread to the other provinces. His Majesty's attack on the church will not be limited to Bona. Which one of you is colluding with the church in your territory at this time? "She paused for a moment and sneered." Want to reward? Tsk! "
When the group of nobles dispersed, Hathaway ordered the maid to clean up the hall. She sat on the chair and heard the maid report that His Excellency Earl Brown had returned drunk again with lipstick marks on his face.
She said indifferently, "Take him down and clean him up."
Vaguely, she could still hear Andre's drunken curses, "Bitch … Bitch …"
She clenched the quill in her hand, her gaze deep. She thought, soon, soon. She endured shame and endured until she returned to her homeland. The days she had waited for for a long time were about to reappear.
Father, brother … I will take back everything the family has lost.
*
In the basement of the coffee shop.
Even underground, the ground tremors caused by the parade outside could still be felt.
People shouted, "Long live His Majesty!" In the coffee shop, white coffee foam crashed together. Workers and students sang and danced together. "Cheers! To His Majesty! "It was like a festival.
The ceiling of the basement trembled slightly, shaking off the dust.
Bard pondered over the decree issued by Allan I. "He is ruthless. The person who issued the decree can convey his devotion to God without going through the oracle. It is equivalent to removing half of the shackles of the scripture."
Hubert said, "It is a good thing. At least with one less church, freedom is much more relaxed. "
This news was not bad. Even the people present who hated the royal family felt relaxed talking about it.
Only Crémont, who had always been soft-hearted and sympathized with all the misfortunes in the world, had a good relationship with all social classes. When he talked about the archbishop's self-immolation and the heavy casualties of the poor church soldiers, he sighed. "Why did it have to be like this?"
Ernest raised his eyebrows and said disapprovingly, "Have you forgotten about little Mabel?"
He shook his head and said nothing.
When the atmosphere in the main room relaxed, a voice coldly pointed out.
"The Church is not a good thing. These nobles are not good either."
The door opened and in stepped an extremely young boy who looked about ten years old. The youth's eyebrows were curved and the tips of his eyebrows were naturally lowered. He was like the first leaf of the new year. His facial features were soft and beautiful, so delicate that water could be squeezed out of them. At first glance, he looked a little like Crémont. But when he raised his eyes, he often gave people a fright. His eyes were gloomy and sharp, burning with the fire of hatred, like a sword or frost. His face was gloomy, always with a look of vengeance.
That viper-like demeanor turned the boy's soft beauty into a reptile's cold and slippery.
As soon as he came in and heard the people in the basement talking, he sneered. "When the Church's honor guard went out, a farmer saw them from afar and did not kowtow in the rain. They caught him, cut off his hands, pulled out his tongue, and burned him alive.
Are the nobles any better than the priests?
In their territory, when people pass through their roads and raise dust, they collect a dust tax. When they see a blind man, they amuse him by leading him to a cliff, lying to him that there is a road in front of him and listening to the screams of falling food. The courts and prisons in their territory are filled with old people, women, and children. What crime can a seven-year-old serf's child commit to be sentenced to death by hanging? It's nothing more than taking a garlic from his field and wrapping it around his hungry stomach! They kill innocent people indiscriminately, they are not inferior to the Church. "
The boy said in a deep voice, "This time the Church's land was confiscated. Allen took away most of it, but they still have to reward it. They are going to get the land back. The people will only be more miserable. "
The room was silent. A few young nobles uncomfortably avoided the boy's cold eyes. They knew what he said was true.
Seeing this, Klemont smiled and said, "Frank, you really scared everyone as soon as you came back. Did you encounter any difficulties on your way here? What about the Church's men who were chasing you? "
As long as he lowered his eyebrows, Frank, who was pretending to be gentle, murderously replied, "No. They are all dead. "
"What about Lucian?"
"He is being watched. I will come back after shaking him off. "Frank replied.
As soon as he arrived, the atmosphere in the room became cold. No one dared to sit next to him, and no one continued to talk about the Church.
Bard finally exhaled a mouthful of smoke. The smoke rose in spirals. "Well, what Frank said also makes sense. Now that most of the Church's land has fallen into the hands of Allan I, what will he do next? We can't take it lightly. Let's wait and see. "
*
The commoners cheered, and the nobles looked around anxiously waiting for the promised land.
When the whole city was immersed in this upheaval, Allan I was quite leisurely and elegantly summoned Lin Daiyu.
Other than some rewards, there was nothing else. He just summoned her to talk about the history of the Central Plains.
This young Emperor of the Land of Tai Xi was particularly interested in people like the Qin Emperor of the Central Plains and the Han Emperor Wu.
She spoke until her mouth was dry, and then she had to leave.
When she left the palace, just as she passed through the outer city, she saw a palace minister rushing out. She remembered this person. When Allan I summoned her, this minister had come to see her, but the summons was interrupted for a while.
At that time, the position of the bodyguard was an officer under the military minister.
She once heard Hathaway mention it when she taught her the etiquette of the palace. Although this minister was born in the third class and had a low position, he was deeply favored by Allan. He held a lot of power and had a lot of say in the army.
When she finally boarded the carriage outside the palace gate, she heard a roaring sound.
She was stunned for a moment and listened attentively. She heard the whole city shouting, "Long live His Majesty!"
She suddenly remembered that when Allan I was chatting in the palace, he smiled and asked her, "How old was Qin Shi Huang when he unified the world?"
… What a strange Emperor.
Did he have the will of the Qin Emperor and the Han Emperor Wu?
After thinking for a while, she shook her head.
But, in the Land of Tai Xi, division was the tradition. Luster was no exception. Thousands of years of tradition.
When Qin Shi Huang unified the six countries, it was also because of the Qin Emperor's foreshadowing.
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