Through John Tang's "tearful memories", Hongyi finally understood John Tang's excitement to a greater or lesser extent, and had his own clear conclusion - the so-called "John Tang did not do his best to rescue Ann and Li's two priests" should not be in line with the facts.

Why? Hony has three understandings:

First of all, after Ann and Li were captured, Hauge asked him if he knew John Tong, and An Wensi replied: "He is my eldest brother." It was because of this response that the two missionaries were treated well by Hauge and ordered his subordinates to take proper care. This shows that after An Wensi and Li Sisi were taken prisoner, they were not abused by the Qing army because of Tang Ruowang.

Second, when John Tong learned of the capture of Fathers Ann and Li, he immediately wrote a memo asking for their release. However, at that time, Fu Fanji, the head of the Jesuit mission in northern China, considered that it was inappropriate for John Tong to propose the rescue of the two priests at that time, so he prevented John Tong from delivering the fold to the regent Dorgon. This is because as a Jesuit as a whole, if the rescue of the rebel officials was proposed at that time, it was likely to affect the newly established position of John Tong in the Qing court, and would not be conducive to the long-term development of the Jesuits in China.

Third, the analysis of the twists and turns of Tang Ruowang in the sixth year of Shunzhi (1649) can also see the original reason: "I hope that there are two fellow believers in Guanglu Temple, who were retained by the emperor's grace and brought from Sichuan, but they did not know the plot and never went to the temple to see, because they obeyed the imperial court law and forbade it." Now the parishioners from other provinces have come to Beijing slowly, wanting to live with Wang, hoping that they don't know their fate, and they can't stop him, hoping to ......be cautious and cautious." From what Tang Ruowang said, "Because of the prohibition of the imperial court law" and "Hope is cautious", it can be seen that he did not intend to rescue An Wensi and Li Zhisi. Rather, it was a cautious response by the Jesuits to gradually adapt to the Qing dynasty. His caution was based on an analysis of the chaotic situation in China at the time.

At that time, it was the early days of the establishment of the Qing government, the situation was very unstable, and the few missionaries who had already entered the imperial court were also precarious, although John Tong, who was instructed by the Jesuits to enter the Qing court, began to be trusted by the Shunzhi Emperor, but the regent Dorgon, who held the real power of the Qing court, was still suspicious of Western priests, and the slightest carelessness would make the efforts of the Jesuits would be in vain, and even the entire church would be implicated. Therefore, he believed that he should abide by the laws of the Qing Dynasty and strive for a legal opportunity to enter Beijing, so as to ensure the safety of the Jesuits in China. Consolidate the initial results they have achieved.

Based on the situation at the time. John Tong's approach of taking the overall situation into account is undoubtedly correct. But what made John Tong "bitter and hateful" and "deeply wronged" the most was Anwens's continuous attacks and slanders against John Tong, which finally caused a big storm in the Chinese diocese at that time, and this storm even affected the upper echelons of the Jesuits in Rome.

A report on the attack on John Tang, drafted by Fu Fanji on May 20, 1649 and signed by An Wensi and others. It was sent to Yang Mano, then vice president of the mission society in Hangzhou[1]. The main content of the letter reads: "Father John Tong is a Jesuit who has taken the oath to keep the Four Commandments. If a warning given to him in advance according to the canon will be of no avail. He will be expelled from the Society of Jesus for his unrepentance and disobedience to the rules of the congregation. The report also lists 11 counts, including acceptance of official positions prohibited by the Church and congregations.

In August of the same year, Avens completed an essay in Latin against the missionaries serving as the Governor of the Qin Dynasty and compiling the Chinese Almanac. Win the support of a part of the Jesuits. As can be seen from his defense of his position in the Chang Xianzhong Mansion, he was not opposed to missionaries taking up secular positions in China. But in order to drive John Tong out of Beijing, he even offered to make Wei Kuangguo his replacement, which contradicted his use of the Catholic creed of the "Four Precepts" to attack John Tang.

Therefore, Hongyi decisively concluded that Avens's opposition to secular office only provided a high-sounding reason for him to settle his personal grievances with John Tong.

"Tang Lao Marfa, you have been wronged! But, I, Xuan Ye, still unswervingly believe in your holiness! Hongyi didn't know how to comfort the old man, so he had to take it for granted that he used the highest word of praise between other clergymen - "holiness"! But as soon as the clinker said this, John Tang really burst into tears!

"Master, my lord has endured so many hardships, the plagues in South America, the storms in the Pacific Ocean, and the war in Macao have never broken my will to be faithful to God and Mary! But they ...... But they have caused me to suffer unjustly! …… Thank you, my master......" John Tang said thanksgiving!

Seeing the old man behaving like this, dragging Hongyi, who is more than two years old, really doesn't know what to do!

"Old Marfa, don't get excited, drink your saliva and speak slowly!" Hongyi is in a hurry, and he can't say anything.

It turned out that in addition to slandering John Tong for violating the canon, An Wensi also spared no effort to attack John Tong's "private life". It was precisely the master's sentence of "holiness" that aroused Father Adam's infinite grievances, and then just like confessing in the confession room, John Tang thought that Xuan Ye, the "angel saint" he had long identified, told the truth-

It turned out that in his report to Rome, Avens had accused John Tang of "not only liking women, but also indulging in men", and "exposed" many specific facts of John Tong's "filthy life". Among them, the most prominent is the so-called "basic relationship" between him and his servant Pan Duxiao!

"Huh? Is there such a thing? Alas! And so it is with your fellow brothers...... Hopefully, Avens's misrepresentations will one day be corrected by himself......"

Hongyi was really speechless when he heard this! You know, in fact, the matter between "gays" was not news in 17th-century Europe, but it was a big problem that had to be avoided by the Jesuit priests who believed in "serving the Father alone as a virgin"!

As for whether this matter is there or not, Hongyi really can't judge! Not long before the crossing, Hongyi was still reading a biographical novel written by a German about John Tang, "In the Shadow of Heaven - John Tang in the Eyes of a German". Although it is a novel, the historical materials of this book are very rich, and it is only an artistic reprocessing and re-creation between historical materials.

As mentioned in this book, many of John Tong's contemporaries expressed dissatisfaction with Father Tong's private life. Even Zheng Zhilong, the "North Drifter" at that time, said: "Father John Tong is not a Jesuit priest like other priests at all, and he is not even as good as a secular Portuguese in Macao." [2] Perhaps, before the promotion of priesthood, John Tong and his close friends had some too "close" behaviors, and they were eventually taken into the long river of history by John Tang and disappeared without a trace.

Moreover, some later experts also believed that although there was a conflict between Avens and John Tong, Avens was known for his "integrity and honesty" and was a strict precept, and one of the precepts of Catholicism was not to lie. Therefore, some people in the church later attacked Avens for fabricating facts and framing John Tong out of thin air, which is an inaccurate evaluation of Avens, and it is entirely possible that it is out of the position of the church and to maintain the missionary cause in China and the overall image of the church. The "experts" also believe that there may be a narrow-minded side of An Wensi, but it is impossible to fabricate facts and frame John Tong. In a word, in the past, the Church has always taken a non-public, acquiescing, or cover-up attitude towards the shortcomings of the clergy's private lives, which is a complete apologetic mentality.

Hongyi, who was worried about the ape-hearted horse, was slandering a little personal privacy of Old Marfa, but he heard that John Tang on the other side had also opened his mouth:

"Hmmm! What the master said is very true! I also believe that God and the Vatican will clear my name. After all, those who are turbid are turbid, and those who are clear are self-purifying! ”

"Alas! Why is it so complicated for the Western clergymen to belong to the same sect and should be like brothers to each other? It seems that the relationship between you Westerners is quite similar to that between Hanchen and Hanchen, and between Manchu and Manchu - both interdependent and jealous. ”

Seeing that Tang Ruowang's mood had improved, Hongyi turned his eyes and thought about it, and commented with "ulterior motives"!

(End of chapter)

"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] Yang Mano (1574-1659), also known as "Yanxi", was a Portuguese Jesuit missionary. He was the first to introduce the Galilean telescope and his discoveries to China. In 1615, Yang Mano published the "Tianwen Luo" in Beijing, which clarified the phases of the moon and the principle of eclipses, solar terms, day and night, and the movement of the sun, and introduced the astronomical knowledge discovered by Galileo Galileo about the four moons of Jupiter, the surface of the moon, the waxing and waning of Venus, sunspots, and the Milky Way composed of many stars

[2] See Min Mingwu (West) and Yang Ping, trans., "Chinese Dynasty History, Politics, Ethics and Religion", in The Chinese Landscape in the Perspective of Iberian Literature in the 16th and 17th Centuries, Elephant Publishing House, 2003, p. 264. (To be continued......)