The breath of spring is getting stronger and stronger.

There was not a single white cloud in the blue sky, and the midday sun hung high in the sky, quickly melting the snow on the earth with its hot rays.

The sound of murmuring water was everywhere on the trunks of the trees and in the grass, and the melting snow flowed one after another, gradually converging into a small stream and rushing towards the bottom of the mountain.

On the treetops, the tender green sprouts are trying to stretch their weak posture in the drunken spring breeze; The grass was already bright green, and the old yellow leaves were almost invisible.

At the foot of Mt. Hoshitori was a soft green meadow, but there was still a yellow patch, a slope, and there was almost no green on the ground within a three-foot radius, and it was full of dead branches and leaves.

Suddenly, the charred dead branches and leaves moved, and the rope fell straight down, and soon a black plank was lifted, revealing a young and handsome face, which was none other than Shiro Masuda.

Pushing the plank away, Shiro Masuda jumped out of the hole and looked around warily.

The kimono on his body was full of speckled mud, and his pants above and below his knees were covered with mud, and he couldn't even see the background color; The hair tied high in the back of his head was also covered in mud and looked embarrassed.

His handsome face no longer gave Chen Liuzi the calmness and calmness he used to see a doctor, his eyebrows and eyes were distorted, and his cheeks were biting loudly, and there was a bit of a hideous taste; When he turned his head to look to the northeast where the sound of iron cannons broke out from time to time, his eyes were full of anger and unwillingness, and his two fists were clenched tightly, as if he wanted to crush something.

After the sound of the rope, four children of the Japanese kingdom who were slightly younger than Shiro Masuda also came out of the hole.

Seeing Shiro Masuda with two eyes breathing fire, it seemed that he was trying to rush back to the northeast, but the slightly older looking child behind him grabbed him, "No! ”

"Father Henk worked hard to create such a space for us to escape," the boy said, his eyes reddening, "but he didn't want us to go back and die!" ”

"That's it! Shiro, we have to go quickly, this secret passage will be discovered sooner or later! ”

"Shiro, Henk's father let us run away so that we could make that dream come true for him."

"That's right! One day, the light of the Lord will be sprinkled on the earth! ”

……

The chattering persuasion of several children finally calmed down Masuda Shiro, and after regaining his usual calm and sanity, he made a gesture to silence everyone, and went to the entrance of the cave to listen intently - there seemed to be movement in the cave, and the pursuers seemed to have discovered the secret passage.

Shiro Masuda's face turned even paler, he stood up straight and gritted his teeth to look around, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he staggered towards the west with his four children.

Yes, Shiro Masuda and the four children are all Chechi Dan, staunch servants of God.

Like Shiro Masuda's father, the father of these four children was also a minor leader among the Chenotan cults, who tragically died in a confrontation with the shogunate and was then adopted by Reverend Henk.

Genk was a Protestant, but an apostate Protestant pastor – a devout Protestant pastor when he arrived in Nagasaki from Holland twelve years ago, but his heart slowly changed when he saw so much human tragedy in this land of suffering.

Five years ago, when Shiro Masuda's father vomited blood and died in his arms, he was completely changed, because he was deeply moved by the dying man's words, "We are all lost lambs of Jehovah, so why do we have to kill each other?" Shouldn't we unite against the infidels who don't know God or repent? ”

From that moment on, Pastor Henk completely abandoned the prejudice between the old and the new religions and transformed into a saint warrior who fought for the Lord!

Under the cover of his superb medical skills, he traveled back and forth with the Kiritan cultists hiding in Nagasaki, and through them, he pinched together the Chechitan cultists in the various domains around Nagasaki, gradually forming a large and loose underground organization.

Last year, in the middle of 1627, Henk gathered the leaders of the clans of Kyushu and the western part of Honshu and decided to officially raise the cross flag in Nagasaki in the spring of 1628, occupy Nagasaki and drive out all non-religious pagans, and make Nagasaki a city of light sprinkled with the holy light of the Lord.

Everything is going on in full swing in the seemingly calm city of Nagasaki, and it seems that there are still three days to go until March 15, when the official event is held, but something happened to Yoshinomaru from Saemon Yatsushiro from Higo. (Crab note: All the specific dates involved in this book are lunar calendars, so please note)

Saemon Yashiro Yoshinomaru is 58 years old, and he is one of the oldest members of the Kirithitan Church on the island of Kyushu, and it is said that when he was young, he served the first and only archbishop of the Catholic diocese of Japan.

What's more, before leaving, the archbishop solemnly handed over to Yoshinomaru the golden cross brought from the holy city of Rome and blessed by the pope with various precious stones, in a sense, Yoshinomaru can be said to be the archbishop's chosen heir, and now, this golden cross carved with a vivid crucifixion scene has become a sacred object for the Cheshitan people on the island of Kyushu.

It was this highly respected Yoshinomaru who fled to the small church where Henk was located at noon today, surrounded by several entourages, and with it, there was an overwhelming number of servants and ashigaru, and the small church was surrounded tightly in an instant.

Caught off guard, Henk only had time to ask Shiro Masuda and the others to open the entrance to the secret passage, and the door of the church was rudely slammed open.

With the roar of the iron cannon, Henk pushed the children into the secret passage at once.

Shiro Masuda's ears echoed in his ears the words of Henk before the entrance to the secret passage closed, "Quick! Run! For the glory of the Lord, for the city of light, live! ”

At the same time, what appeared in front of me was the Xueliang sharp knife raised high behind Henk's father at the moment the door was closed, and the distorted face of Ah Ping who was holding the sharp knife! - This traitor!

It was uncomfortable to walk in a muddy field wearing clogs, but Shiro Masuda didn't notice it at all, and instead he walked more and more firmly, in stark contrast to the four stumbling figures behind him.

Right! Stay alive! For the City of Light!

As Henk's most powerful assistant and the most qualified messenger, Masuda Shiro has met almost all the leaders of the Cheshitan cult in various places over the years, including their right-hand men, who know Pastor Henk's proud disciples, and some of them have received his medical treatment.

So Shiro Masuda understood the meaning behind Henk's father's words - to take up his mantle and continue to win the supreme honor of serving God in this land for the suffering Chechidan!

Heretics, you can destroy Father Genk, you can destroy Saemon Yashiro Yoshinomaru, you can destroy the unarmed Chichidan, but you can't destroy the burning fire of faith in the hearts of all the Chechidans who serve God wholeheartedly! One day, the gates of Nagasaki Castle will be erected with a holy cross held high!

Tears gradually overflowed in Masuda's eyes, and his gaze towards the front became more determined.

In the blurred line of sight, the four big characters of Hoshitori Villa appeared.