Thus, in Tomsk, apart from being unable to preach the Scriptures in public and to preside over diocesan Mass as a high priest, Avakum was not persecuted much, and even the surveillance was very lax. Despite this, the high priest was reluctant to find himself in his circumstances. But the so-called "show talent meets soldiers", how can he be hard as a priest and learn from him?

In a fit of rage, Awakum proposed to take a trip to the vast wasteland to the east to broaden his horizons, but in fact to get away from the oppressive religious atmosphere for a while. As soon as the matter was raised, the priest of the diocese quickly agreed. It's not that he has a good relationship with Avakum, but he has his own little abacus-

Siberia, especially the Far East, is now a desolate and bitter cold place, and even if you are a high priest, dozens of people will have a great chance of freezing to death, starvation, and lost to death...... Once there has been no news for a year and a half, you can conclude that you have no place to die. Besides, as a dissident exiled in Moscow, who cares about life and death?

At the same time, there were some old men among the military service who had been sympathizing with the high priest and seemed to dare not speak out against the Patriarch of Moscow...... Just take the opportunity of Awakum to kill himself, and pick out those military personnel who are dead set on conservatives to accompany him to his death! However, it is necessary to install a few "own people" who are more active in Nikon, the "convert" of the Moscow Patriarch......

Soon, Avakum set out for the mysterious East, under the "escort" or "guard" of thirty soldiers, a "die-hard" officer called Morozov, and thirty soldiers.

For more than half a year, Awakum stopped and went, saying that it was a "penance in exile", rather than a "investigation trip", just looking at the scenery along the way. While taking notes on his life, he traveled all the way east. A month or so ago, they finally arrived at Lake Baikal, which had not long been "naturalized".

Awakum was immediately attracted to the large lake of Qijun, and he didn't even bother to stay in the cozy city fortress around the lake. Instead, they set up camp on the spot. [1] He began to write his own notes. For more than ten days, one or two "Nikon followers" who had been placed in the ranks had long been complaining. Seeing that the army's morale was unstable, the leading officer Morozov was able to persuade the high priest Avakum to reluctantly embark on the road back to the west.

In fact, it was fortunate that Avakum lingered on the shore of Lake Baikal, otherwise there were more than 40 people in this line. Once you enter any walled city on the shore of the lake, you will have already become a prisoner of the Jidu army! Fortunately, due to the persistence of the high priest, their party has always walked through the mountains, and the number of people is small, so their deeds are not obvious, so they are not discovered by any of the teams that Jidu swept through the Suwu Lake area.

Of course. Awakum, who claims to be the orthodox propagator of the gospel of God, knows nothing about his luck. At this moment, what enveloped him was an inexplicable depression and uneasiness......

Perhaps Moscow's adversary, Patriarch Nikon, is really much stronger than himself? Or maybe the "puppet tsar" Alexei has always been inclined to support Nikon? But these threats, after all, come from the far West...... But why do I always feel that the atmosphere around me is getting more and more wrong? Awakum stood at the bow of the ship and fell into deep thought......

Could it be the willing deviant Cossack behind him? No. He's just an eyeliner, not even a threat in his own eyes! In addition, the soldiers who guarded him were actually his faithful followers, and would never risk harming himself against God's will!

In the Western Siberian region of Nuoda, even if Nikon sent men and horses thousands of miles away to assassinate them, they would not be able to find any trace of more than 40 people in this area! But why does an ominous thought keep coming to mind?

Is it really a bad omen? Not necessarily, in the dark, I seem to have received some kind of oracle, and there seems to be some inexplicable expectations for this uncertain thing - perhaps, the West has become God's abandoned garden, why do I have to go back? This vast Novosibirsk is already full of new dioceses opened by his fellow believers, and there are new converts to God's elect everywhere......

Thinking of this, Avakum's mind suddenly shook, and he seemed to think of something-

What's wrong? I have been puzzled these days, but I have never been able to enter the door. Today a key question finally comes to mind: voters!

Yes, where are God's chosen people who have taken refuge? According to the local priest, after more than ten years of disdain to preach, many Buryats around Lake Baikal have long since converted to Orthodoxy and become devout believers in Orthodoxy under the inspiration of bread and holy sounds! They also said that in recent years, whenever a priest appears, many local Buryat herders will come to seek the priest's blessing and God's protection......

Although he lingered in the lakes and mountains, he did not live in seclusion, but he never found a legendary local aboriginal who believed in God! The priests don't lie, but the herdsmen scattered all over the lake have disappeared in an instant in a few days? It's so abnormal! There must be something hidden in it......

"Father's ......"

Behind the archpriest, a troubled boy called out uneasily, not daring to relax his hands that were tightly gripping the boat, even though he was sitting in the cramped cabin.

"Siscott, what's wrong with you?"

The archpriest no longer had the heart to delve further into the traces of the Buryats, but instantly transformed into a competent father, quickly turned around in the cramped space, eagerly bowed his body, and gently greeted his only son.

In the Orthodox hierarchy, although Awakum is a high-ranking god of the "high priest", he is still a "white god", that is, he is a "secular person" rather than a "black god" of a "full-time person", so he can marry and have children just like ordinary people. This is a common phenomenon in Catholicism and Orthodoxy, so much so that later generations often ignore the fundamental difference between "full-time" and "part-time" between the Orthodox "black gods" and "white gods", and instead take "whether they can get married" as their differences.

The boy named "Siscott" in front of Awakum was only ** years old, but he was very good-eyed and innocent—with blonde hair that was extremely rare among the Rus, and a pair of large dark blue eyes, although full of anxiety and anxiety, were also bright.

Seeing his son, Awakum couldn't help but think of his first wife, and a wave of sadness welled up in his heart. Last year's exile forced the entire family of the originally happy and comfortable high priest to embark on a long journey from the comfort of Moscow. Unexpectedly, not long after arriving in Western Siberia, Alena, who was accustomed to city life, became seriously ill, and in Tomsk, where there was a shortage of medical treatment, despite Avakum's best care, he still failed to snatch his beloved wife from the hands of death! In less than three months, Alena, who had just turned thirty, left behind a son who had just learned about the world, and she died. This uncontrollable loss of his wife also became one of the important wishes of Awakum to decide to go eastward.

Alas, beautiful Alena, I don't know if you in heaven have received the oracle, and who between me and Nikon will finally have the support of the Father and the Virgin? Bless me in Heaven! Rest assured, I will take good care of our son! You see, he misses you a lot, and he has a typical Roman appearance and temperament!

"Father, I'm afraid!" Siscott saw his father turn around as he wished, and he couldn't wait to grab Avakum's big hand, never letting go.

"Afraid? Afraid of what? ”

Puzzled, Avakum hurriedly leaned over to his son and put his other hand around Siscott's shoulder.

"Father, I'm afraid this boat will capsize...... I am also afraid of the woods on both sides of the river, which seem to have many hostile eyes...... Could it be a terrible beast? Siscott asked with a trembling voice, but he wasted no time in snuggling up to the arm of his only relative.

"Siscott, ships can capsize, wild beasts can wreak havoc, but we are God's chosen people, and we should be fearless!"

As the high priest, Awakum did not rebuke his son in the slightest, but only gently encouraged him. Although at this time, his heart was also clouded with an ominous shadow......

(Chapter to be continued)

"A limerick poem. Hidden Head

Reading literature and reading history is only a long breath

I was saying that there was an opportunity back then

The layout is a long-cherished wish

It's hard to come and go

Get up and spend a hundred years

Point out the suffering and diseases of the world

The edge of the town was razed to the sea

Wen'an Wuding tears of joy

[1] In the canonical history, Archpriest Avakum did describe Lake Baikal in his life records. In 1655, on his way to exile, he passed through some places on Lake Baikal. After that, until 1729, Peter the Great sent the Germans to the ? Messerschmitt's expedition to Siberia led to the first official scientific expedition to Lake Baikal.