Lothar reached out and habitually patted Hogg on the shoulder.

The touch from the palm of the hand is a coldness that is even worse than Prajna, which makes people feel creepy. But it didn't pass through the other person's body as expected.

It seems that Captain Hogg, while looking like a ghost, is actually physical.

"Captain Hogg, let me tell you a little bit about the current situation."

Lothar had a long conversation with Hogg, including his next appointment to sail the ghost ship on the Red Sea, clear out pirates, maintain shipping routes, and guard the port of Ella.

Hogg grinned, revealing the yellow teeth of a man accustomed to wandering on the sea: "Sorry, my lord, although I would gladly accept your appointment, I suspect that once I have made too many appearances on the Red Sea, those Saracen merchants will probably prefer to go overland rather than enter the port of Ella." ”

Lothar frowned: "This is indeed a problem, the reason why I want to take back the port of Ella is to collect the merchant tax here, if the merchant ships are cut off, the revenue here will have to be cut off by three-quarters." ”

"But the ghost ship you piloted can't be included in my naval fleet, because my identity, on the surface, can never be pointed out as the dark lord who drives the ghost ship, even if it is true."

Captain Hogg was silent for a moment, then said, "My lord, I will try to get the right measure to let merchant ships in and out, and weed out pirates on the Red Sea—but as you know, merchant ships are pirates if they fly the black flag, and I can't guarantee that I will complete the mission." ”

"In short, the protection of Ella Port is the most important, and the pirates can be suppressed if they can, and there is no need to force them."

Lothar said in a deep voice.

He chatted with Hogg for a while about the idea of forming an offshore fleet such as galleys.

He got up and decided to take a look at the development of the Order of St. Lazarus, which had been relocated to the Temple Mount.

He also had to spend some time trying to get the Patriarch of Jerusalem and let him give the title of Archbishop of Alain to Uldin.

With the independence of the Church in Jerusalem, as long as the patriarch is convinced, he should be fine, without going through the papal city.

Of course, Uldin could not leave Jerusalem, as he had to enter the palace from time to time to treat Baldwin IV.

This was not a big deal, and William, the Archbishop of Tyre, was also in Jerusalem every day.

…

Temple Mount.

Pious pilgrims support each other as they climb the mountain.

Dressed in shabby linen and with a green cross pinned to his chest, the ascetic stood at the door of a chapel and guided pilgrims to the prayer rooms that had been converted into consultation rooms.

This is the new territory of the Order of St. Lazarus on the Temple Mount.

Lothar sat in the innermost room, in the room belonging to the Grand Master.

Uldin sat across from him, bowing his head humbly, "My lord, it's a pleasure to see you again. ”

"I'm happy too."

Uldin raised his head and looked Lothar up and down: "I haven't seen you for a long time, and the dark aura on your body has become more and more intense. ”

Lothar frowned, "Do you have anything you want to persuade me?" ”

Ulding shook his head with a smile and said, "My lord, with Ms. Jeanne by your side, I don't believe that you will fall into darkness, but the power of the dark attribute is very serious for the erosion of people, you must be vigilant." ”

Lothar couldn't help but laugh, "I thought you had faith in me—you had faith in Jeanne." If you care, I'll be vigilant. ”

"Let's talk about it, how is the Order doing? I remember the last time I went back to Jerusalem, it seemed pretty good. ”

Ulding was noncommittal: "What do you think? ”

"On the way here, I saw a lot of pilgrims, and there were many monks wearing green crosses in this small church."

"It is true that the Order's growth is relatively rapid, but the donations we receive are so small that even if every member of the Order follows the ascetic life like me, it is still a little difficult to make ends meet."

Lothar chuckled in her heart, "You don't want me to pay for you, do you?" ”

He did have some savings now, but that was the money he used to build the Red Sea Fleet.

Originally, it was planned to build a merchant fleet in the Mediterranean, but now that the port of Ella was occupied, and with a talent like Captain Hogg, it was natural for him to change his mind.

Urdin said sincerely, "My lord, we are the Order of the Poor, but it takes a lot of money to collect herbs, feed the monks, and treat the pilgrims for free. ”

"The size of the Order can be expanded in a short period of time to what it is now, and it would not have been possible without these initiatives."

Lothar frowned deeply: "Those poor pilgrims who have nothing to do, even if they donate, they can't donate much - is there still the suppression of the Knights Templar?" ”

Ulding shook his head, "No, sir. Grand Master Gerald is a devout believer, and the Order's largest donor to the Order today, after you and His Majesty the King—he seems to want to win us together against the Knights Hospitaller. ”

"Like the Knights Hospitaller co-opting the Teutonic Knights against the Templars?"

"That's right."

Lothar's fingers tapped on the table, "Tell me more about your current predicament." ”

Uldin pondered his words and spoke, "The Order's best skills are new forms of medicine, but the beginning in Jerusalem was not smooth. ”

Scholastic medicine of this era tended to be "spiritual healing", that is, the sick were admitted to church asylum and repented and prayed day and night.

At most, the clergy perform some rituals, recite some theological texts, anoint some holy oil or drizzle a few drops of holy water, or take a handful of clay and apply it, and so on.

In addition, it is the doctrine of "fluid balance" that prevails in the world.

This doctrine probably originated in ancient Egypt, but it was also prevalent in Europe, and it was believed that the human body was sick and attributed to an imbalance of body fluids.

The most well-known remedies for this doctrine of "fluid balance" are phlebotomy, enema, and vomiting.

Sometimes the wound is also burned with a soldering iron.

Although there are also crooked beatings, such as rinsing the wound with a soldering iron and hot oil, and disinfecting it.

But unless it is the use of calming herbs such as opioids, the process is tantamount to torture.

In the military, the vast majority of people die because of this treatment.

Those who survived also lost half their lives.

Even Baldwin IV, a king, had to go through this kind of torture, which shows the prevalence of this type of treatment.

Probably due to its location on the border between East and West, a fusion of Greek and Oriental medicine, the Saracen and Jewish doctors of the Levant mastered the art of medicine in this era.

But their exclusivity meant that they were seldom willing to treat the infidels, and Christians were reluctant to accept their treatment.

This is also the dilemma faced by the Order of the Redemption of St. Lazarus, although Ulding has healed some powerful people with his special abilities, but it still cannot change people's perception of new medicine in a short time.

"So, most of the Christians who are willing to believe you are low-level pilgrims with no long life, and there are not even a few of them among the burghers?"

Uldin nodded, "That's right, my lord." ”