The furious Gaiullius, the shocked Michelangelo, the calm Chuzarazu, the half-frightened Odosses, the frightened Jabari, and the many priests who could and could not figure out what was going on, all kinds of bad breaths rushed out of them, and gathered into a sultry and irritable pressure that filled every corner of the church, forcing back the sunlight that penetrated through the cracks in the door.

"Father Michelangelo received forty-five votes, while Archbishop Gaiullius ...... Fifteen votes...... Strangely, the remaining sixty votes were all cast for Bishop Odoses...... No one gets more than half of the votes, and the result is ......"

Chuzarazu slowly read out the results of the vote count on the parchment, and the real heart-beating drama began.

The final result of the vote was like the stone thrown by Major Selvadak into the sea in Verne's sci-fi "Adventures in the Solar System", which made the boundless sea freeze overnight, and the shock to everyone present was certainly no less than the destruction of ice, and unexpected variables appeared to them, some were surprised, some were happy, some were angry, and some were watching the fire from the other side.

"Bastard, liar!"

With a flushed face and a hair standing on end, Gailius angrily pointed at Jabari, who was sitting in the crowd.

"I'm not convinced! Someone's playing tricks! ”

His sharp voice was almost broken, and his chest rose and fell violently: "I want to appeal, re-election!" ”

"Be quiet, Your Excellency, for this is the Holy Church, the sanctuary of noble souls."

Chuzarazu tried to reassure the emotional old bishop: "You can say anything slowly, but you can't talk nonsense about everything, and you should not be shocked and self-respecting. ”

"Yours too, huh? You nasty old liar, don't think I don't know, venom-covered old toad, you want to join forces to get rid of me, let me guess who else ......"

His eyes swept over the terrified crowd around him and fell on me, trembling his arms raised into the air, and finally he didn't have the courage to speak.

"I know, I know, a bunch of rat-snake hybrids!"

Chuzarazu still looked calm: "Lord Bishop, please pay attention to your words, what you say is far beyond everyone's tolerance. ”

"What do you want to do, ruin me in front of so many people?"

The old bishop pointed his finger at himself, his eyes glaring at him: "Oh no, that's exactly what you want, I can't lose!" I can't lose! ”

He pulled his hair frantically, his voice extremely hoarse, and Chuzarazu motioned for a few of the young priests to hold down the crazy old bishop to prevent him from saying anything out of the ordinary.

"Liar...... You are all liars, God curses you, devil! ”

Gaiulius's hair, which had been meticulously combed, was now like a bird's nest ravaged by a storm, and the black and white bright spots intersected, and it looked even more obsolete, and the little priest who was helpless tugged at the corners of his robe, and no one dared to come forward.

"I can't lose, I can't!"

The old bishop suddenly burst into laughter, and the laughter seemed to have a sharp edge, and it was piercing to the bone.

"Haha...... I see, you've been using me from beginning to end, haven't you? To help that whore's nasty embryo, Alessandro's dirty bed partner! Why didn't anyone squeak, oh, I guessed right, it was Michelangelo, his shameless mother was a flea street man with a broken shoe, and his father was a two-faced scoundrel, and you still wanted to help him cover up, and you didn't hesitate to trample me under your feet for this. ”

"Old immortal thing!"

Michelangelo, who had been shaken out of his own pile of, couldn't bear it anymore, he staggered to break free from the pull of the people on the left and right, rushed up in anger and slapped Gaiulius hard, and threw all his sanity and upbringing out of the clouds.

"Smack!"

The crisp applause not only made the audience fall silent, but also made Michelangelo wake up from a dream, he stared at the staring at the staring five fingers on the old bishop's face in disbelief, and the whole person was petrified in place, unable to speak.

"Stop it! What a system! ”

Bishop Chuzara, who had been in silence for a long time, finally broke out.

"Is this how you set an example for all your brothers? Is this what you put on your robe with such a heart? Is this how you are faithful to your faith? ”

Chuzarazu scolded them in one breath, and the old rickety body turned into a giant sun that spewed thin and spitting flames, scorching everyone to avoid it.

"Lord Duke, I'm very sorry for letting you witness such an unbearable scene, and I need to take care of some family matters by borrowing my knights."

After receiving an answer that I agreed with, five knights rushed to the podium and controlled the stunned parties in a minute.

The two of them who were rudely cut off by the knight were like docile domestic dogs, and they didn't see the arrogant appearance of jumping and scolding just now, and they had already understood who they were doing, and if they continued to make trouble, there would be no good fruit to eat, and they might not even be able to save their lives, so they had to hang their heads in frustration, and the patriarch of Chuzara sighed bitterly:

"Hey, the Holy Gate is unfortunate to make such a funny thing in the world......"

As soon as he spoke, he shouted loudly: "Blasphemy! ”

Some people took the lead, and the priests, who were accustomed to seeing the wind and waves, and were good at seeing the wind and steering, beat their chests and denounced Gaiullius and Michelangelo, who had become the target of public criticism, and scolded the most people Antetocompo and others, who had followed the two very closely, and they were busy drawing a line with their masters who had lost power, and consciously stood on the side of justice and justice.

"Take it down......"

Seeing that the fire was almost over, the patriarch of Chuzara waved his hand: "Do not let their filthy souls defile the purity of God's abode. ”

The knight escorted the two away, and the hall slowly returned to quiet, but it became more dull and depressing than during the election, because everyone knew clearly what was going to happen next, and the three rounds of voting that had been done all night were just foreshadowing the plot before Gao Chao's arrival, and in order to put on a legal and fair cloak for the final result, they were all tricked, but they had to cooperate with the performance, false shouts and cheers.

Smart people only care about what kind of benefits the result can bring, and fools insist on principles that do not exist at all, the game of thrones, and never talk about democracy.

Bishop Odosius ascended the podium surrounded by everyone, and Bishop Chuzara gave him a polite close salute and gave up his position in the center, and still in a daze, Odosius wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead in embarrassment.

"Thank you for the Lord's gift, and may God bless the Vatican!"

After holding it for a long time, he finally said a few high-sounding clichés, but in fact, he couldn't expect to say it well.

Chuzarazu grabbed the conversation in time to avoid greater embarrassment: "May God bless the Vatican and the heirs of St. Peter, Amen!" ”

"Amen!" The priests answered the prayer in unison.

"Go and light the fireplace and let the waiting faithful know about this happy event!"

Bishop Chuzara nodded to the celebrant next to him, who walked to the special fireplace in the corner of the hall, where the pine wood was traditionally stacked all year round and the different fuels that produced black and white smoke, with the help of two clergy, the pine wood with special fuel burned brightly, and the rising white smoke drifted out of the chimney along the flue that was very effective in collecting the wind, informing the inhabitants of the city of Rome that the new pope had been elected.

Starting from the cardinal bishops, in the order of the clergy, everyone present congratulated the newly elected Pope Odosius in turn, and kissed his ring, completing the process of transferring power between the old and the new, Odosius gradually adapted to his new role, and the smile he squeezed out became less stereotypical.

"The Vatican is back on track, Lordship Bishop, congratulations!"

I stood up and saluted the patriarch of Chuzara who had come by: "It seems that there is nothing left for me, it is time to take your leave, and thank you for your hospitality with wine and toast." ”

The old bishop hurriedly stopped me, and politely said: "Please stay with the Duke of Liubu, and after receiving the blessings of the bishops, Ni Xia will come over to thank you." ”

He invited me to sit down and said in a pun, "You know what? As the first secular aristocracy to observe the election of the Pope in 100 years, you will be inscribed in the Vatican chronicles, and you will always be remembered by everyone in Christendom. ”

"Nope! It's you, and me. ”

I corrected the error in his words, and the two of them smiled tacitly: "Forgive me, Your Majesty, the Vatican is in turmoil, and it is an eventful time, and I am afraid you will have to work hard for the cause of God......"

Chuzarazu waved his hand indifferently: "I'm old, my body bones are always reporting failures every now and then, and my brain is not very bright, and I can't keep up with the footsteps of Nixia, and it is estimated that the day of my summoning is not far away." ”

He rubbed his wrinkled cheeks, and a few dark age spots were clearly visible: "This is the last major event in my life, don't think about continuing to fight the wind and waves of the ocean on the ship full of holes, it's time to find a clear and gentle river to swim and raft......"

The old bishop made a joke about himself: "If I do not give up on this old skin, I am willing to go to the new convert to Archduke Stephen, and let the lost lamb fall into the arms of God's fraternity." ”

The mysterious person, I stared at him as if I didn't know the person in front of me: "You really don't make me understand......"

After thinking about it for a long time, this sentence still blurted out.

The old bishop's eyes narrowed meaningfully: "If all the things in this world are understood by mortals, won't it be messed up?" My lord, your future is both long and short, so take care of yourself. ”

With that, he bowed his way to his part, and left the open church door, disappearing into the golden morning light.

————————————

The moon in Rome was different from that of his hometown, although it was large and round, it was bright and featureless, without surging emotion, and the light flickered rather dull and wooden.

As I sat on the railing of my balcony heading towards the Tiber, looking at the bright moon in the sky, I suddenly missed my family thousands of miles away in Nijmegen.

Today is September 25th, the fourth day after St. Matthew's Day, and it has been a full month and a half since I led my army out of Constance.

But their efforts are worth it, because Nijmegen is standing at an unprecedented height overlooking the whole world, and I vow to take home every comrade-in-arms who sacrificed their lives, Rome is great and glorious, but unfortunately this is not home, this is the grave of those who fight for power, and it will be my grave.

The weather in autumn is slightly cold in the morning and evening, and you have to add a thin shawl to the robe to resist the wind, otherwise the muscles and bones will be cold, and it will not be good to have a cold.

The autumn sky is still clear and blue, like people's good mood, more refreshing and comfortable, some of the trees on both sides of the streets in the city have yellow leaves, some are still green, and the colorful colors complement each other to be beautiful.

The pomegranates planted in the corridor leading to the gate of the house are full of trees, the red skin is like a batik spinning cloth, and the hands will be dyed when touched.

Rome was unusually quiet and even deserted during the curfew, with many ferries parked at the wharves on the other side of the river, and during this period of war, entrepot trade was almost at a standstill, and the taverns and brothels associated with them were crowded in Yemen, and closed early when the sun went down.

In the face of these thousands of lights, it is inevitable that people will feel a little disappointed in their hearts, and now Nijmegen should also be the harvest season, right?

Looking out of the castle's large windows facing the bend, the golden waves of wheat in the fields rise and fall in the wind, the peasants are happily bending down to reap the happiness of the year, the caravans from afar cross the straight stone paths into the city, and the camels carrying the goods arouse the curiosity of the children, who run and play after the strange-looking beast......

I wrapped my shawl tightly around me, amazed at how sentimental I was as a father.

In the past few days, Kohler's Eastern Route Army has been sending back news one after another, and after several arduous battles, they finally won a decisive victory in the field of Rospins, completely defeating the rebels of the Verona Domain.

The Lombard, who always squinted at a pair of squinting mouse eyes, was cornered, and his head was cut off by his close attendants, leaving his fat body and exposed to the wilderness, announcing the official end of this thunderous rebellion.

The Romans got what they wanted, taking over most of the ports along the Adriatic as bargaining chips in a fair trade, and Vibius and Duke Richard each stepped back and exercised great restraint and forbearance with each other, and Naples was thrown away as a reward in return.

The Normans were ecstatic to swallow this piece of fat, linking their small stronghold in Calabria with the affluent city of Naples, gradually establishing a solid logistics base, and putting the grand goal of an expedition to Sicily on the agenda.

Bishop Bendenik reached an understanding with the newly elected Pope Odosius, now known as John XVII, that the former would be given missionary rights in the occupied cities, while the latter would appoint clergy from the Vatican or allow them to be appointed by the Bishop of Bendenik on their own.

This was an icebreaker during the years of hostility between the Vatican and Constantinople, and Pope John was undoubtedly sending a signal of reconciliation through friendly acts.

As for the enigmatic Bishop Chuzara, he declined the appointment of the Principal Cardinal of the Privy Council and invited himself to serve as Bishop of the diocese with the newly converted Archduke Mazarstephen, in his words:

"It is the duty of a servant of God."

(End of chapter)