"Legend has it that the Vatican once kept three special gemstones, all donated by the faithful. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 infoThese gems were investigated by the Holy Council's Advisory Council of the Holy See, which determined that they were miraculous. And the 'R' is one of the three special gemstones. Beatrizzi translated.

Wan Guohou raised his eyebrows in surprise, "So, what does 'R' look like?"

"According to my great-grandfather's description, it could have been a spherical piece of amber. Pietro gestured, and Beatrizzi translated for him.

Wan Guohou's heart moved, "Spherical amber, isn't that what is depicted on the mural of the zenith of the Qianqiu Sect?" he pondered for a few seconds, and then asked, "Has this 'R' always belonged to the Vatican?"

"No, at least, it didn't belong to the Vatican until the mid-16th century. "Pietro gestures," said his great-grandfather, who had been brought to Europe. ”

Wan Guohou was stunned, "I saw a Ming Dynasty monument on the outskirts of Suzhou in China, and a similar amber was mentioned there. In the middle of the 16th century, wasn't that the Ming Dynasty?"

"Chinese dynasties, I'm not familiar with them. All I know is that in 1571, a Chinese landlord who practiced a certain folk religion secretly built an underground palace to worship his god and this special piece of amber. But his son was not religious. More than a decade later, when the landlord died and the family was in decline, his son secretly sold the amber to a wealthy merchant in Guangzhou. And the wealthy merchant, who later converted to Christianity, consecrated the 'R' as a sacred object to Michele Ruggieri, a priest who went to China as a missionary at that time. ”

"Luo Mingjian, a friend of Matteo Ricci. Wan Guohou nodded.

In short, Luo Mingjian later returned to Rome. He had been waiting for the opportunity to meet the Pope in the hope of offering this special relic. Unfortunately, the situation was turbulent, and within a year, the Pope's position changed hands four times. In the end, Luo Mingjian got his wish and offered the gem, but the Pope did not pay attention to it and only recorded it. ”

Wan Guohou touched his beard, "Probably they have seen too many rare treasures, so they don't care about a piece of amber." ”

"But the 'R' is no ordinary amber, and apparently the Vatican later discovered this. It is said that the three special gemstones preserved by the Vatican are all in violation of the laws of physical nature. Believers are unable to explain what they see with their own eyes, so they classify it as "miracle things." They believe that these three gems represent the will and power of God. Pietro gestured for a long time, his face reverent and his movements full of respect.

Wan Guohou blinked, "Like a holy grail, a holy spear or something?"

"I don't know about this, my great-grandfather himself didn't see 'R', only that Morrison put a lot of effort into finding it. "That 'R' has been in the Vatican for more than two hundred years. By the middle of the 19th century, when Italy began to move towards unification, the Vatican, which still held enormous power, felt a crisis. Speaking of which, I would like to ask, Master Hou, do you know that the Hanoverian family has a deep connection with the Holy Roman Empire?"

Wan Guohou nodded, "I heard grandpa say it." ”

"The Hannover family used to be Catholic, and later generations maintained a good relationship with the church. So when Morrison heard that 'R' was in the Vatican, he was thrilled. But 'R' has been recorded as a miracle and cannot be disposed of casually. Fortunately, the situation in Italy coincided with the complex situation, and Morrison took the opportunity to donate a large sum of money to the Vatican, and then Pope Pius IX wrote a letter to the Saints Advisory Council, which allowed Morrison to take 'R'. After translating, Beatrizzi said to herself, "It feels like I bought it from the Pope." ”

Wan Guohou smiled, "If you put this sentence in the past, it will be burned at the stake." ”

Beatrizzi stuck out her tongue.

At this point, Pietro stood up, and for a moment he gestured and asked Beatrizzi to leave.

Beatrizzie was a little embarrassed and said, "Master Hou, Uncle wants me to go to the house now to get something." Do you know sign language?"

Wan Guohou smiled slightly and took out his mobile phone, "We can use modern technology to solve this problem." ”

Beatrizzi looked at Pietro, who nodded as if he understood the words of the Marquis.

"Well, I'll be back as soon as possible. Beatrizzi said, "Master Hou, I'm out of company first." ”

After Beatrizzi closed the door, Wan Guohou took out his mobile phone and began to type words on the screen. "You don't mind talking like that, do you?" he handed Pietro his phone.

Pietro smiled, handed the phone back to Wan Guohou, and walked over to the table, bringing two pens and a notebook. Then, he returned to Wan Guohou and sat down, handed Wan Guohou a pen, and began to write.

He writes very quickly and beautifully. After he finished writing, he handed the book to Wan Guohou.

"There are some things that I must say to you, and only to you, and I hope you will understand. ”

After reading it, Wan Guohou glanced at the old man in surprise, and then wrote in his notebook: "Did you deliberately let Beatrizzi leave?"

Pietro saw this and nodded.

"There's something about 'R' that no one else should know, right?" Wan Guohou wrote.

"Yes. ”

Wan Guohou frowned slightly, "I beg your pardon, I still think it's a little unbelievable." The Church is generally very careful about the identification of miracles, and some miracles can be investigated over hundreds of years. "How, then, did 'R' come to be considered a miracle as a piece of amber?"

"I don't know exactly what the identification was, but in short, the Saints' Advisory Board later determined that the amber was a miracle. "Perhaps, for you, it may be hard to imagine, but I will tell you that Cotton is also convinced of this." ”

Wan Guohou looked at Pietro, whose hair was also long, but instead of being braided like a gondola's gondoliers, it was scattered over his shoulders. Like an old man of his age, Pietro's hair no longer has a youthful sheen, but is replaced by a grayish-white calm.

Pietro read Wan Guohou's expression, and he blinked, as if he was not surprised by Wan Guohou's reaction. When he lowered his head and went to write, Wan Guohou still stared at him. His eyes were filled with astonishing vitality and patience, probably because he had been deaf in both ears for many years, which made his gray-blue eyes look particularly smart. He had almost lost the ability to speak because he had not spoken for many years, but he was still a strong man—with bulging muscles on his arms that were rolled up and a very athletic physique.

Pietro wrote: "Actually, it was not only Cotton who believed it, but Sergio also believed it, and so did my great-grandfather. I, too, believe. ”

Wan Guohou wrote in shock: "You all believe that 'R' has divine powers?"

"Yes. ”

Wan Guohou glanced out the window a little confusedly, and then looked around at the furnishings in the room, he couldn't believe that a man who had experienced so much wind and rain would tell him something strange and confusing.

"With all due respect, are you an atheist?"

"It doesn't matter. Pietro wrote, "My actions and my beliefs are consistent and do not conflict at all." ”

"So, have you ever seen R''s divine powers?"

"Unfortunately, no. But I know that divine power exists. Pietro wrote with awe, "Also, I beg your understanding that although I know what 'R' can do, I can't tell you. ”

Wan Guohou looked at him in shock, and subconsciously said, "Why?"

Pietro read the lips, took the notebook, and wrote: "Because I once swore to my great-grandfather that I would never tell anyone the secret of 'R'." Even in the face of Hanover's descendants, I can't say. ”

Wan Guohou sighed, he remembered what Pennington had told him, "Actually, what the 'Unbenevolent Society' is really looking for is 'R', not the Amber Palace. ”

"It's a dangerous secret, isn't it?" Wan Guohou wrote.

Pietro looked at the handsome young face in front of him with indescribable care. On this face, he saw the legendary golden eyes, as well as the faintly recognizable silhouette of Hanover in an old photo album preserved by the Greco family. At the same time, he also clearly saw the trust, care, sincerity and anxiety in the eyes of the other party.

Pietro raised his left hand and pressed it against his chest, indicating that what he said was true.

Then, he wrote: "Please trust me, knowing the secret of 'R' will not do you much good. In other words, the disadvantages far outweigh the benefits. There's a reason Cotton was reluctant to let posterity know about it. Great-grandfather and I both believed that Cotton had hidden the 'R' at the bottom of the sea, along with the Amber Palace. ”

The Marquis of Wan Guo hesitated for a moment and wrote: "I have found the Amber Palace, but I am sure I have not found 'R'. ”

"Probably because Cotton didn't want anyone to find it. Pietro wrote, "This piece of amber can perform miracles unimaginable to mortals, but it can also bring great pain and harm." ”

Wan Guohou fell into deep thought, and after a long time, he wrote: "However, our enemy, the 'Buren Society', knows the secret of 'R', and has been tracking and persecuting us for the sake of 'R'. ”

"They're going to pay the price. Pietro wrote firmly, "And that's exactly what Cotton tried to avoid." ”

After handing the notebook to the Marquis of Wanguo, Pietro stood up. He walked over to a table, took out a bottle of wine and two glasses from the cabinet under the table, and returned to Wan Guohou's side.

He made an inquiring gesture, and Wan Guohou nodded.

As Pietro poured wine into his glass, Wan Guohou noticed several black-blue marks on the sides of his arms.

"What is this?" Wan Guohou wrote, then gesturing to Pietro's arm.

"The tattoo I left when I first joined the 'Buren Society' was washed off when I quit later. The previous tattoo technique was not as good as it is now, and the washing was not too clean. That's it, I don't bother to care. ”

After Wan Guohou finished reading, Pietro raised his glass and greeted Wan Guohou.

Wan Guohou also raised his glass. He tasted the golden wine, and there was an indescribable feeling in his heart. "Cotton made the right decisions before, and he would never do anything to harm future generations, except for those hateful institutions at the bottom of the sea. Thinking of this, a smile bloomed on Wan Guohou's lips.

After a few sips, Pietro put down his glass, then took his notebook and wrote: "If you don't show up, I'll let the secret of 'R' rot in my stomach." Many years ago, I probably accidentally mentioned the existence of 'R' once, and I didn't expect Beatrizzi to remember it. But no one else will know the story of 'R' anymore. Today, I have already told you all that I can tell you, and the rest is what I am determined to take to the grave. ”

After being silent for a while, Wan Guohou picked up the pen and wrote, "I understand." ”

Pietro looked at Wan Guohou deeply, as if hoping that the other party would understand his distress. The latter tore off the paper from the notebook and handed it to him. Pietro took the paper full of words, walked to the table, then took out a box of matches and lit the paper.

It wasn't until the paper burned to the point that Pietro threw it in the trash. He sighed silently when he saw that the last bit of paper had also burned to ashes, then he picked up his glass and drank it down. At this time, Beatrizzi knocked on the door and walked in, "Master Hou, I didn't delay your time, did I?" she smelled the pungent smell in the air, "Hey, what are you burning?"

"The paper on which I practice calligraphy, nothing. Wan Guohou said lightly. He stared at a large box in Beatrizi's hand and asked, "What is this?"

"Uncle asked me to get it. Beatrizzi said, walking over to Pietro's side. She opened the box and took out a thick, square-shaped notebook from inside.

Pietro made a gesture to hand her notebook to Wan Guohou. Wan Guohou took it, opened it and looked at it, and was stunned, this is an old photo album.

"This is a photo album of the Hanover family that our Greco family keeps. Beatrizzi, translating Pietro's words, "is also the only album." ”

Wan Guohou's fingers trembled a little, he had only seen Mo Aogu and Pennington before, as well as the blurred Cotton. Now, at last, he saw the rest of his ancestors. Those black-and-white photographs with yellowed edges record the rise and fall of a family's glory.

He flipped through these old photos, and a bitter wave appeared in his heart: there were once such a large and prominent family, but now there are only two people left, and the descendants cannot even live openly with their real identities. The sun shines in every corner of the world, but it does not shine on the descendants of the Hanoverian family.

And who is responsible for all this?

He thought about the mysterious 'R' and closed his eyes as he made a big decision.