Martin. Sure enough, at lunch, Lud sang David's Psalm to them.

He didn't say anything big at all, even if he used a word-to-one tone, an old-fashioned and solemn syllabic melody, and a half-talking, half-singing recitation style, but because his voice was bright and high-pitched, and had a unique sense of heaviness, even with only piccolo accompaniment, he was still in no way inferior to the Roman singers, and he was very professional, and when he sang, he did not squint and was full of passion, and he would not take the opportunity to peep at how much food was left on the plate, nor would he look at the diners who were not paying attention and stealing wine.

It's Holy Friday, and it's customary to keep a little fast, but since it's full of dignitaries, the food doesn't look shabby even if they do fast – the chef brings them fatty fish, bread and stew, and pickled preserved fruit – including Julio. The Medici are very tasty, the fish is gutted, scaled, gills, fried in butter in a pan, the skin is crispy and then boiled in milk, refined salt and shallots, ginger (just two spices), bread is baked with wheat mixed with bran and oatmeal, lettuce and onions are used in stews, and the pickled preserved fruit is probably the most expensive of all meals, because it is dried apricots marinated in honey.

From the point of view of Guinici and Castelluccio's parents, this meal, especially the bread mixed with wheat bran and oatmeal, was really too incorruptible and religious, after all, in this era, wheat bran was slave food, and oats were usually used to feed cattle and horses—such food, in their minds, was probably similar to the ascetic whip and iron belt, but when they watched Archbishop Lucca eat them, they did not seem reluctant - of course not, the flour used in wheat bread was sifted three times, Not much different from the whole wheat bread of a few hundred years later, the wheat bran is also very finely ground and, like oatmeal, does not account for a large proportion of the flour, purely to increase the taste and satisfy the needs of coarse grains.

Julio. The Medici would not explain to them, after all, such behavior would only make him appear ridiculous and hypocritical, he just had to manage himself and the bodies of those close to him. He was the first to finish his meal, and handed the plate to the monk behind him, and asked him to hand it to Martin, who had finished the meal earnestly. Rudd. Martin. Rod took the plate, which contained only the food used by the archbishop, but it was clear that they were all clean and neat, with bread about the size of a fist, square pieces of fish, stacked with slices of cheese, and four or five shiny dried apricots of honey beside them, no saliva or any sign of a bite.

Little Martin ate every food on his plate with gratitude, and the wonderful taste almost made him swallow his tongue, and when he had finished, the monk added him fresh bread and fish soup, and explained that there were many more of them, and that he could eat as much as he wanted.

So Brother Desi's little brother ate contentedly and presumptuously, and the boy of seventeen, whose appetite was as good as a bull, had not eaten so much for a long time, and when he came to the room where he slept with Brother Desi, he looked as if he had been pregnant for four or five months. Maybe Brother Desi's eyes are too bare, Martin. Rude was a little embarrassed, but Brother Desi endured until Martin's rucksack accidentally fell to the ground, and he couldn't even bend down to pick it up.

"Brother Martin," said Brother Dési bitterly, "though you have not yet truly become our brother, know that gluttony is not a virtue. ”

"Please forgive me," said little Martin embarrassedly, "I have never eaten anything so good during my fast." ”

"I'd rather you don't fast." Brother Desi said.

"Well, are you saying that this is a greater sin than not fasting?"

"That's not what I mean," said Brother Dési, "the Apostle Paul said: 'Food does not please us with God, we do not eat without harm, and we do not benefit from eating.'" Brother Martin, and vice versa, it doesn't hurt to eat, the saint doesn't care whether we eat or not, he cares whether the weak will be affected by his actions, whether his faith and morals will be shaken by it.

'All things are possible, but not all are beneficial; Everything is possible, but not all of it is helpful...... Whatever you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it for the glory of God. ’

If you just want to fast as a kind of hard practice, so that you can convert to God and glorify God both inside and outside, then the form is not the most important, but the divine purpose, and any way to achieve this is beneficial, not necessarily without hot flesh or hunger - in other words, even if you fast harshly, if it does not bring you closer to God and more trust in Him, then it is meaningless.

Paul said, 'All things are possible for me, but not all are beneficial; I can do anything, but I'm not bound by anything. On the one hand, nothing can separate him from his love for Christ; On the other hand, it means that he can love Christ with everything, and that is freedom, Brother Martin, from the heart but without breaking the rules, you can love Christ in any way, as long as it frees you from the things of love that separate you, God from others, it is right. If it's the opposite, it's wrong. ”

Speaking of this, Brother Desi smiled slightly: "Even today, if you forget to fast, or eat meat because of hunger, I will not rebuke you so harshly, but I am worried that you have forgotten your due moderation because of the delicious food, which is much more terrible than not fasting, because you have not sinned unintentionally, but have deliberately indulged yourself." ”

Hearing this, little Martin could not help but look ashamed, and he knelt down with difficulty, kissed the hand of Brother Desi, his friend and mentor, and then confessed his mistake, but then said that the reason why he had accidentally eaten too much was not only because of the delicious food, but also because the venerable archbishop had instructed the monk who was in charge of the kitchen, lest he would not have enough to eat. And he always felt that this kindness should not be wasted.

"Ugh." Brother Desi touched Martin. The head of Ludd, who had been here for a few months, could understand the mood of little Martin, the archbishop who had always had a great zeal for what to feed, not to mention the Lucca, or the exiles from Romagna, during which time even the crows and pigeons that roost in the church of San Marino were much fatter. "He's a good guy indeed."

"I also heard something in Rome," Martin said. "He used to be Caesar. A close friend of Borgia. He went on to say, "But Pope Alexander VI hated him exceedingly." ”

"Some people may find these two statements contradictory." Brother Desi said, "But I don't think so. "Borgia once had something beautiful and terrible, but it's a pity that they didn't cherish it, which is a blessing for Italians.

Martin. Rudd blinked, a look of confusion.

"It doesn't matter," said Brother Desi, "that you can stay here until you leave for the university in Turgen, and you will understand what I mean." ”

——————————

"When I was in Milan," said Ralph, the captain of the mercenaries in another room, as he devoured it, "there is nothing more painful than not being able to eat as delicious food as yours." ”

"Don't exaggerate." Giulio said mercilessly: "The food in Milan is not bad enough to that extent, and they should have treated you well." ”

"If their food is as good as a woman." Ralph said.

Machiavelli coughed.

Ralph made an apologetic gesture and pushed the plate away.

"Tell me about the specifics." Machiavelli said.

"I'm not as eloquent as your priests." Ralph said, "But this is indeed the most pleasant deal I have ever made, and you can never imagine how crazy they are about artillery, and even if they buy a loaf of bread, they may have to think about it a little longer than the former, and they can buy these things that cost thousands of gold florins or even tens of thousands, but they don't blink." He nodded to Machiavelli, "A total of sixty-two cannons passed through my hands. Sforza bought twenty small guns for positional warfare, and ten more for the castle, and for the same small guns, the Poles had to go fifteen, the Prussians had to go ten, and those who did not want to reveal their identities had to go to the remaining seven, Your Highness, if it weren't for the lack of supply, I could have sold more. ”

"How's the musket?" Giulio asked. He was not at all surprised by people's sensitivity to artillery, not to mention that these guns were still improved by him, the inner chamber was made of ferroalloy, and the iron mold method was cast, which ensured that it was smooth and airless, not easy to blow up, and easy to clean, and the use of artillery by the French and Borgia coalition forces gave him a big advertisement.

"Compared to artillery, it can only be said that it is not satisfactory." "They don't know how to use musketeers unless someone guides them," Ralph said. ”

"Let's hold this for now." Giulio said.

"Can you get more guns?" Ralph asked earnestly, and if he hadn't vaguely noticed the frightening things behind Julio, he might have fled with those golden florins. But even if he is just a handler, he is willing to stay with these yellow cuties for a while longer.

"Not lately," said Giulio, "you go and rest first, and as agreed, you can take your fair share of the commission, and the money order is here." ”

Ralph jumped up, and before taking the bill of exchange into his arms, he looked at the numbers several times, which was quite impressive, he had indeed agreed with Julio before, but he had had had enough of these nobles before, and he felt that even if it was only one percent, it would be dangerous, so he agreed, who knew that this archbishop was really willing to keep his promise?

After Ralph left, Giulio turned to Machiavelli, "You too," he said, "Thank you, Machiavelli." ”

"Please don't say that," Machiavelli bowed to Giulio, "and it's an honor to be able to do a little bit for you. ”

Send Ralph and you can sell artillery to the Milanese, as well as the Poles, Prussians, or Neapolitans, but face Caesar, the commander of the Roman Church Army. Bolgia, King Louis XII of France, Frederick IV of Naples, and Maximilian I of the Holy Roman Empire, Ralph was much weaker, so Machiavelli disguised himself as a Spaniard, Ralph sold sixty-two guns, and Machiavelli sold a full one hundred and thirty.

Of course, they have also paid a lot for this vain name, but these are insignificant compared to the huge gains.