flstandardbreds Chapter 234 The Foundation of the Nation
Chapter 234 The Foundation of the Nation
The moment the two men shook hands, John felt a huge force, as if his hand was tightly clamped by a pair of iron pliers. However, the force gradually weakened, as if the other party was intentionally controlling his strength.
Mozgus on the other side let go of his hand and looked up at the castle, and couldn't help but sigh:
"It is both solemn and elegant. This is the second time I have seen such a sacred building besides the Holy City."
John, who was standing next to him, took advantage of the time when Mozgus was admiring the castle to observe him closely again. After confirming that his face at this moment was different from his mortal state after becoming an apostle, he whispered to Pros beside him:
"What do you think of this person? Is he easy to get along with?"
"Fortunately, it's not as terrible as the rumors say, but it's a bit tiring." Pros said as he shook his right hand, as if Mozgus had crushed his bones before.
"I mean, what does this person think of our place? Did he say anything to you along the way?"
"Hmm..." Pros thought about it carefully and said uncertainly:
"He said he wanted to visit the prison?"
"Oh, that's good." John roughly understood Mozgus's mental state after hearing this. Although he is extreme at the moment, he is not hopeless and should still be able to understand what people say. As for visiting the prison, this may be an occupational disease caused by his years as a judge.
After John had a clear idea in his mind, he walked over to Mozgus who was still not satisfied and said:
"Your Excellency the Inquisitor, how about we go in and have a chat?"
Mozgus was also very satisfied with John's attitude, so he came to the meeting room accompanied by John. After the two sat down, Mozgus spoke first:
"Earl John, you already know the purpose of my visit, so I won't introduce it in detail. Next, I will use my own way to judge whether you are the one chosen by the Lord."
"That's natural," John responded, while thinking to himself what he would be judged by, morality, reputation, or what he did.
"By the way, Count John, I heard that you have an army specifically responsible for eliminating cultists. Can I go and take a look?" Mozgus suddenly asked John.
"I'm afraid that won't work. They are currently carrying out a mission to eliminate the cultists near the southern part of Midland. If we write a letter to order them to return now, it will probably take half a month."
"Is that so? May God bless them on their journey." Mozgus said a little disappointedly, and then he asked John and exclaimed:
"Although I have lived in the King's Hall since I was a child and have only worked in the Inquisition after graduating from the seminary, I have also visited many countries due to missions. To be honest, even before the plague, except for the capitals of various countries, the territories you manage are very outstanding in terms of public order and the mental outlook of the civilians. Even some parishes in the King's Hall may not be as good as a village under your rule."
“Thank you so much. All my achievements are due to the support of the King of France, His Majesty the King and the people of the territory.” John responded as modestly as possible to increase the other party’s favor.
"No, no, no, the courage to reflect on our own mistakes is one of the good qualities bestowed upon us by the Lord." Mozgus waved his hand and continued:
"Many people in high positions in the King's Hall are unable to do this. Although they control power and wealth, they are unable to concentrate these resources to do things that benefit the Lord. This is also the reason why the King's Hall has never been able to completely eliminate all heretics."
Changing the subject, Mozgus looked at John and asked:
“So how did you achieve this?”
"The civilians in the territory, they are the key to my being able to get to where I am today." John responded without hesitation.
"That's why, although those people are the ones that the priests need to appease, they are poor and ignorant. With just a little bit of favor, they will leave the Lord's embrace and become bandits and thieves or even join heresy. In many cases, the ones fighting against the Fawang Hall are not the enemies far away in the East, but these potential heretics."
Mozgus was very surprised to hear this. In his opinion, if he wanted to truly spread the Lord's faith to the entire continent and eliminate all heretics, he had to gather all the resources in the hands of those powerful people, so that he could guide the common people to completely throw themselves into the arms of the Lord and become the cornerstone of spreading the faith.
"You are right. Some of them are ignorant. Some of them have given up their beliefs for some interests and even taken the wrong path. But these are also reflected in the nobles. Even because of the above reasons, their ignorant and selfish behavior will cause greater harm." John rejected Mozgus's idea and then explained:
"I have read some books about the lives of living saints. Many of them were born in families without wealth or power. This shows that the Lord loves everyone equally, no matter rich or poor. There are also people with wisdom and courage among the common people, and those ordinary people can give back through various forms of labor."
"The reason for the situation you described is probably because they do not identify with the land they live in, the people they obey, and the faith they accept. This problem has been exacerbated by the plague. To solve this problem, I think we should first provide them with food and shelter when they are helpless. Otherwise, they will be running around all day just to survive, and I am afraid they will not have time to listen to the teachings of the priests."
While listening to John's words, Mozgus thought about his previous definition of civilians. Was he really wrong? Still doubtful, he continued to ask:
"If what you said is true, there were many enlightened monarchs in ancient times, then why was there not a single one of them who could fulfill the mission given by the Lord to spread faith to mankind?"
"Those monarchs do have the power to change the world, but they can only be in office for a few decades at most. It seems like a long time, but in fact, they can only accomplish a few things. Moreover, their power is only to make their armies strong, the treasury sufficient, and to make opponents bow their heads. They do not focus on improving the lives of civilians. Moreover, once they die of illness, their successors will not be able to preserve the achievements of their predecessors." John continued after explaining:
"If you don't believe me, I can accompany you to visit my territory in the next few days to see what the territory is like under my civilian-centered governance."
So within a week, John took Mozgus to visit the Count's Castle and other places in Franche-Comté. The soldiers in uniform armor, the endless fields, and the civilians living and working in peace and contentment amazed Mozgus. At the same time, John also took Mozgus to see the prison he had been thinking about. Since the apostle who released the plague was killed, John fulfilled his promise and let those people return to their hometown through the North Port on the merchant ships of the Principality of Is, but a small number of people were still stranded in the North Port.
"I think I know whether you can become a living saint. I am leaving now. Thank you for your care these days."
A few days later in the morning, after saying goodbye to John, Mozgus boarded a carriage and headed south. Looking at the carriage going away, John walked towards the Earl's Castle with anticipation. After all, spring was here and there were a lot of things to keep him busy.