After the men were gone, Big O'Hardy asked Qasim, "I know you, I know you, you're a poet, a philosopher, I've seen your poems. I also know that when you were in Isfahan, you read a book of Avisina three times, and you were able to read it in its entirety."

Casim shuddered, and he looked at Big O'Hardy alertly, still not saying a word.

Seeing this, Big O'Hardy took two steps forward and reassured him, "You don't have to be so nervous, can it be that your tongue that sings the praises of all things has been cut off and you can't say a word again? If you had been afraid, you wouldn't have written a psalm like that."

"What psalms? I have not written any psalms, and I will not write psalms."

Big O'Hardy smiled, he waved his hand, let everyone out, there were only three people left in the spacious room, he turned around and took out a notebook from a bookcase, no cover, no patterns, no decoration, and handed it to Qasim, "This is what my uncle is going to use as a poetry book, the paper here is the best paper from Oriental China, you touch it, it is very soft, smooth, like silk."

Kasim glanced at it, resisted the urge to touch it, and looked at Big O'Hardy in bewilderment, he feared it was a trap.

"Take it, I hope that my uncle's unfulfilled wish will be fulfilled by someone. If you think of any psalm, don't say it with your mouth, but write it on it, write it on."

"If I had written it, I might have died tomorrow." Qasim still doesn't take the book, "I believe that there is always a place in this world where poets are allowed, and I want to go there."

"Where?" Big O'Hardy asked.

"China, the China of the East, can you help us get there?"

"Will they accept non-believers?"

"Yes, many of them don't have faith, maybe they have faith, they believe in freedom and strength; The freedom of the individual, the strength of the nation. I want to go and see, can you help me?"

"If you accept and agree to my request, I will help you."

"Good!" Qasim took this notebook, it was very thick and simple, maybe he could write down all the poems he could think of in his life, and when he was old, he would open it again, what a happy time it would be.

"I have one last question!" Big O'Hardy looked Qasim in the eye and asked, "Why don't you be religious?"

"No, I'm religious, *** discerning!" Qasim hung his head, not daring to formalize O'Hardy's eyes.

"I see, may *** bless you and find a place where you can sleep peacefully even if you don't live peacefully with ***." O'Hadi sighed and said, "Don't forget, how much *** has blessed you with the most precious things, wisdom, health, handsomeness, and intellectual curiosity, including the desire for freedom, and compassion for the weak, I hope that after you understand the wisdom of silence, you will still have the courage to speak freely."

"In this world, there will always be a place where I can speak freely, I just praise, I never condemn." Qasim was full of longing for Daming, and he believed that there, he would definitely be free. ….

"If you do find such a place, I hope you will be able to tell me, know that we live in a time full of fear and mystery, and until you find such a place, please understand that silence is golden."

That night, Qasim and Abu stayed at O'Hadi's mansion to rest.

They stayed in the guest room, Abu curled up on the carpet, while Qasim lay on the bed, the moonlight seemed to shine on his bedside, and he could not sleep for a long time.

At the head of the bed, there was an unlit oil lamp, and next to it was the unadorned notebook, empty, and no one had left a word on it.

In the morning, when the first rays of sunlight came in place of the moonlight, the slave girl came in with breakfast in her hand, her new clothes wrapped in a turban, and her voice was as clear and gentle as a lark, "After the Fajr prayer, the Lord will make a judgment in the council chamber."

The council chamber was already crowded with people, Scarface's leg was bandaged and carried in, along with a group of hooligans with him, bystanders on the street, beggars, and friends of Daming

We're here too.

"Welcome! Friends from the Ming Dynasty, distinguished guests, in the traditional knowledge passed down by the prophets, we need to be very respectful of our guests, with sincere enthusiasm, warm embrace, to welcome their arrival!"

O'Hadi's words drew everyone's attention to Liu Zhong and the others, and these people also got up and bowed one after another, and then sat down one by one.

Scarface sat in a chair with a small stool in front of him, and his legs rested on the stool, looking very embarrassed and at a loss.

O'Hardy asked the people who were sitting next to him to leave, and politely and respectfully invited Liu Zhong to sit beside him, and said apologetically but respectfully, "Yesterday, I know what happened on the street. We are sorry that our distinguished guest came to Damascus and encountered such a thing. The guests of the Ming Dynasty are courteous in every region, and every region and country wishes to be able to see the Ming people in their own land, but you have been disturbed in the streets of Damascus and have seen a terrible scene."

Many people exclaimed, and then they turned strange eyes on Scarface and the others.

O'Hardy and the others were almost in a state of emotion, and then they raised their hands and pressed them down, signaling everyone to be quiet, "Fortunately, our distinguished guests handled it properly and did not cause a big disturbance in the bazaar, I want to thank our distinguished guests, your character and behavior are really our example."

He took a deep breath, "I really can't imagine what the consequences would have been if there had been a conflict at that time, and if this had been known to our Khan, I'm afraid all of us would have moved our heads."

Speaking of this, Liu Zhong also felt that it was enough, and he smiled and said to Scarface, "I think there should be some misunderstanding in this. We have specially invited Mr. Qasim and Mr. Abu to Daming as guests this time, and they are also my honored guests."

"Who would have thought that we would see this clash on the street and we would have to fight back in self-defense, we didn't want to cause such bloodshed, but as O'Hadi said, we did it this way to prevent more serious consequences." ….

Qasim's face was flushed, he himself was so excited, naturally he didn't notice that Abu, who was sitting with him, had his hands on his knees trembling slightly, and he didn't notice that the emotions rolling in Abu's eyes were surging, but he was restrained by him.

"They're just useless poets!" Someone screamed, very dissatisfied.

"They're amazing scholars." Liu Zhong corrected, "In my Ming Dynasty, people who excel in all fields, regardless of background, origin, or nationality, will be respected. We invited the two of them because we are about to hold a selection of the Ming Royal Award, and all inventions and creations that have contributed to mankind are eligible to participate, with a prize of 10,000 taels of silver, and you can also participate if you are interested."

Hiss!

In the huge conference hall, the sound of inhalation sounded.

Someone couldn't help but ask, "Regardless of nationality?"

"Yes, regardless of nationality, as long as you have contributed to mankind, you can apply and participate in the selection." The indescribable pride in Liu Zhong's tone, in his bones, the arrogance of being a Ming man exuded, and it also made people see his unusual personality charm.

No one cares about yesterday's riot anymore, everyone is amazed by Daming's generosity, broad mind, and charming charm like the fragrance of roses, and many people began to ask questions, asking about the situation of Daming, and Liu Zhong answered them one by one.

The more O'Hadi listened, the more frightened he became, and he turned to Liu Zhong solemnly and said, "My most distinguished guest, dear friend, I hope that no matter what you have experienced in Damascus, even if you have a very bad impression of Damascus, I hope you can still remember me as a friend."

"It's nature!" Liu Zhong said, "If O'Hadi can spare time, you are welcome to go to Daming, and I will look forward to the day when I can fulfill the friendship of the landlord!"

The arrival of the Ming people was like a spring rain in Damascus, and in an instant, the news spread everywhere, and the spices, silks and porcelain they brought were snapped up.

And Daming welcomes everyone to go, big

The news that the Ming Royal Award will be open to everyone, regardless of nationality, and anyone who has contributed to humanity can apply for the award, has also spread to every corner of Damascus overnight, and with the monsoon, it has flown to many countries and cities.

Liu Zhong and others began to purchase in Damascus, and when they were about to return, Zhu Gaoxian received a tip from Saihazhi.

"Chen didn't expect that Ping Jiangbo would actually do such a thing, did he forget that he was a Ming man?" Saihazhi couldn't believe that Pingjiangbo Chen Xuan would actually join forces with Ulubo, intending to unite the countries in the west to deal with the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Gaoxian smiled and handed the fold to the dog, "It's a good thing to collect!"

He got up and moved his muscles around the room, "It's not Ping Jiangbo who joins forces with Ulugh Beg, he doesn't have the qualifications and energy yet. What happened to His Royal Highness the Grand Prince in prison?"

"Fat!" Saihazhi thought for a while and said, "His Royal Highness the Great Prince has to drink Coca-Cola every day, and if you don't give it to him, you will make a big fuss. The emperor made a decree before, not allowing His Royal Highness the Great Prince to touch the drink, and the ministers did not dare to give him a drink."

"Then let him out, I'm afraid there aren't many people in the prison to serve him, the great god, after you go back, invite him out, what should you do!"

Saihazhi was puzzled, "But, is that all there is? What if His Royal Highness the Great Prince comes out and doesn't give up?"

。.

Xingyue Yangtze River