Double-headed eagle!

The double-headed eagle of Eastern Rome!

Although the Turks also had a double-headed eagle in their coat of arms, they did not have an eagle flag, which in the Ottoman Empire was somewhat a symbol of rebellion, especially in the Balkans, where it was used as a symbol of resistance during the resistance to the Ottoman Empire. All branches of the Orthodox Church have adopted the double-headed eagle symbol, because it is the state religion of the Eastern Roman Empire, and the emperor has granted the right to use the double-headed eagle as a royal symbol.

The Caucasus may not have been part of the Roman Empire, but the Roman Empire still had some influence here, just as the Armenian church used the double-headed eagle emblem, and they were also granted the right to use the double-headed eagle by the emperor.

While the flames of Baku were still burning, Hait and the others on the shore saw several sampans arriving on the shore, and those Ming soldiers lined up to greet those who came from the sea.

A big shot for sure!

As the thought crossed Hayt's mind, he saw from afar the man who was dressed in armor and had a golden double-headed eagle presmeared with a shining breastplate. And beside him, double-headed eagle flags fluttered.

"Who is he?"

As Haitt was talking to himself, he heard a priest shouting excitedly.

“Kayzer-i Rum！”

When he excitedly shouted this title, the priest had already taken the initiative to bow down, and his actions caused many people to kneel down as well.

“Kayzer-i Rum！”

Indeed, the double-headed eagle was the coat of arms of the Roman emperor, and the one with the double-headed eagle badge on the cuirass must have been the Roman emperor. The Armenian Orthodox Church was canonized by the Roman Emperor.

Perhaps, under the rule of the Persians and Turkmens, these Armenians could only live cautiously as pagans, but this did not prevent the priests from recalling the past hundreds of years ago, and although it was the Romans who brought destruction to Armenia, the common faith allowed them to enjoy a certain freedom, and under the pagan rule they were only a group of inferior people.

“Kayzer-i Rum！”

In the face of the Armenians' voices, Zhu Heyan had a smile on his face, although his appearance was completely different from these Armenians, but it did not prevent him from treating these people as subjects, and even took the initiative to talk with the priests enthusiastically.

"May God bless their souls!"

When praying for those who died in the war, Zhu Hehao offered to go to the church to pray for them, which not only the priests were extremely excited, but even the Armenians were even more excited to shed tears, and they who had been living in this area as pagans for the past few hundred years were naturally full of affection for this Roman emperor who had the same "faith" as them.

Of course, these people never knew that the flexibility of the Ming people in their beliefs did not know that this was just a performance. But even a performance was enough for Zhu Hewei to win the support of these Armenians. Even after praying in the church, he took the initiative to order the release of all the prisoners - according to the military habits of the region, he also allowed his men to plunder the city, and most of the surviving inhabitants of the city were reduced to slavery. And his "pardon" saved many believers from becoming slaves.

"A believer in the Lord must not enslave another believer!"

In the face of the benevolence and generosity shown by the emperor, Bishop Andrei seemed a little emotional.

"Your Majesty, your mercy will be spread by every believer, and every Armenian will spread the Emperor's mercy to any Armenian wherever he lives, and I believe that all Armenians will become His Majesty's supporters and faithful servants."

For thousands of years, the Armenians lived as merchants in this region where East meets West, and they were the most important merchants on the ancient Silk Road, although this trade route has long since declined, but both in Turkey and in Persia, there are a large number of Armenians, and since they are the main source of troops of the New Persian Guard, neither Turks nor Persians can leave Armenian merchants. Now what Bishop Andrei is talking about by "spreading" is actually a euphemism telling Zhu Hewei that he can become a patron of the Armenians.

As a bishop, Andrei was no stranger to history, and he certainly knew that the Roman emperors were never the patrons of the Armenians, and even that they were the ones who destroyed Armenia, and the Byzantine Emperor Basil II invaded the newly restored territory of Armenia. Not only did he depose the Armenian royal family, but he also demolished fortresses and walls throughout the country as a precautionary measure. Many native armies were also disbanded under the coercion of the Byzantines.

And this undefended state attracted a large-scale invasion by the Seljuk Turkic forces. Many of the inhabitants were killed in the catastrophe, and the whole of Armenia was devastated.

Later, Armenia chose to fall to the Crusaders, but the Armenians provided the Crusaders with almost everything they needed. Everything from intelligence, water, rations to auxiliary troops. However, the results were not very good, and then they chose the Mongols, but the Mongols stopped at Baghdad. Later, they have been in the shackles of aliens, which also makes them urgently need new external forces to help them break the shackles.

When the Ming Dynasty eliminated the Manchus and expanded its power to the Western Regions, it had already affected the Caucasus. It is impossible for Armenians, who have a global vision, not to be unaware of the enormous opportunities behind it. Even this opportunity was made possible by Andrei - he arrived in Daming two years ago, asked to see the king of the west, and spent the night in the palace with him, which led to today's march to Baku.

"Bishop Andrei, I am the Emperor of Rome!"

Staring at Andre, Zhu Hewei did not have any unusual emotions because of the pancakes he painted, he knew that all this was just "nothing" and had no actual meaning.

"Armenians, like all Caucasians, are my subjects, and every one of them will receive my asylum!"

The emperor's answer made Andre slightly stunned, and he asked rhetorically.

"Do you include the infidels?"

Andrei, my friend, as far as I know, in the past few decades, many "Peace Religion" priests have gone into the mountains to preach to those mountain people, and many of them have accepted "Peace Religion", just like here, most of the people here believed in primitive religions, and of course some people believed in Orthodox Christianity, but the arrival of "Peace Religion" made many people around Baku convert to "Peace Religion", But there are still many Ingush, Lezkin, Chechens, a considerable number of whom still believe in traditional polytheism, as well as Circassians, Abkhazians, Abazin, Laz, Adjara and the two Turkic tribes of Karachay and Balkar in the mountains, who themselves believe in Christianity, so why can't we increase our missionary efforts and spread the Gospel of the Lord to them? ”

After the Tatar-Mongol conquest of the Caucasus, it was cut off from the outside world, and the Christian church was destroyed. Many of the local natives returned to their former lives, and polytheism became their religious backdrop again, but Christianity also became part of the polytheistic beliefs of the Caucasians, and some Christian churches were renovated into places of religious activity where polytheism and Christianity coexisted.

Although the religion of peace was practiced by the upper echelons of the Caucasus during the reign of the Golden Horde, the vast majority of the Caucasus' inhabitants remained Christians or idolaters. However, over the past 100 years, the constant policy of strengthening peace religion by local rulers has put tremendous pressure on Christian believers and idolaters in the Caucasus, and many people have refused to convert to peace religion in order to survive in the face of the rulers' repressive policies.

Although Andrei's visit two years ago gave Zhu Hewei an opportunity, he did not fully trust the priest, but sent his cronies into the region as merchants, and had already had an extremely in-depth understanding of the complex situation in the Caucasus.

"In addition to the Armenians, there are the Kartri-Kakheties, the Minglers, the Gulias, the Adjars of the western coast, the Imereti of the western plains, the Swans of the deep mountains of the Western Caucasus, the Raz of the southern coast, and the Persian-speaking Ossetians in the middle of the Caucasus Mountains, all of whom share your faith, who are my subjects, who live in slavery to the Turks and the Persians, and who will in the future be under the patronage of the Roman Emperor, As for the pagans, I believe that with the efforts of the priests, they will also become believers in the Lord, and as warriors of the Lord, they will spread the gospel for the Lord, and they will regain Constantinople, so that the Gospel of the Lord will be spread there again, what do you think? ”

For a believer, the simplest persuasion is to speak with faith, and what better way to convince a priest than to preach the gospel? What could be a more sacred undertaking than to let the gospel of the Lord once again envelop Constantinople?

Obviously, there will be no more, even if he has never had any experience in governance, but Zhu Hehao knows very well how to unite the Caucasians.

"The coat of arms of the double-headed eagle will not unite the Greeks, the Balkans, and they will not submit to the Roman emperor, but they can unite under the banner of faith, "holy war", give a reason to believers, and give a reason to unbelievers, to unite under the banner of religion, for your use......"

Perhaps, the meaning of his father's words at that time did not refer to the Caucasus, but it is certain that since the "gospel of the Lord" can summon the Greeks and Balkans together, then it is bound to summon these Caucasians together, even if they are not believers.

"Just turn them into believers!"

Looking at Andre's back leaving, the corners of Zhu Heyan's lips were lightly raised, and his expression looked a little proud. His eyes were fixed on the red double-headed eagle flag, for which he had no emotion at all. But being a pragmatist does not prevent him from wrapping them all in his own body with a very religious mentality.

As for believing or not believing, it doesn't matter, what matters is that the locals just believe it!

When the flag of the double-headed eagle was raised in Baku, even though Baku had been razed to the ground, the red double-headed eagle flag still caused a sensation in the Caucasus.

Unlike the Turks and Persians, perhaps the "double-headed eagle" and the "Kayzer-i Rum!" They are also outsiders, except that, compared to Turkey and Persia, the "double-headed eagle" came hundreds of years earlier, and as for the "Kayzer-i Rum!" ”

The legends of the mountain people of the Caucasus still remain, and for this reason, they were not considered invaders.

Although only a few mountain people around Baku still maintain their primitive beliefs, they do not show much resistance to the historical legend of the "double-headed eagle", and they have no interest in the conflict between the people of the plains and the double-headed eagle.

At the same time, some of the clergy entered the mountains, and although they were Armenians or Ossetians, they did not prevent them from preaching the gospel to the mountain people, and at the same time they preached the gospel and called on the people to unite under the banner of the "double-headed eagle and cross" to fight against the foreign invaders—the pagan Turks and Persians.

Haring, a priest, has been in the mountains for a month, and for the past month he has been preaching the gospel of the Lord to the mountain people.

"If the master is baptized, I will accept it."

Every time, facing Harlem, the master always said with a smile on his face. The lord in his mouth is the elder of the village, and everyone in this village obeys his orders.

"One day, he will not only receive the gospel of the Lord, but he will also build a church here!"

Haring said, pointing to the Elder's room.

As a clergyman, he was convinced of this statement, and he was waiting for his chance.

"Please make him seriously ill!"

Looking at the elder's house, Haring secretly prayed in his heart that the gospel of the Lord always needs some "miracle", and the best "miracle" is to heal.

"God forbid, I think people get sick all the time."

For the past month, Haring has been observing and testing the attitude of the mountain people. He often walked around the village, and he could be sure that those mountain people did not reject the Lord, and even in their old beliefs, the Lord was there, and it only took a good opportunity for him to make the people in this village become believers in the Lord.

Perhaps, the Lord really heard Haring's prayer, a few days later, the elders in the village contracted the wind cold and fell, facing the seriously ill elders, Haring knew that this was the opportunity he had been waiting for for a long time, maybe the Lord could not save the elders, but the medicine from the Ming Kingdom could save him.

For Haring, this was his chance. An opportunity to show "miracles".

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