Chapter 44: Worthy of being the Merchant of Venice (Part 1)
"...dang——dang——dang——dang——"
"...Ah! May the Almighty Lord grant His mercy and not only save our souls, but also heal our bodies, Amen!"
Since the outbreak of the Black Death in the year since the outbreak of the Black Death, the city of Venice, which has always been in ruins and full of lifelessness, suddenly became extremely noisy on this slightly hot early summer morning. The most eye-catching and gorgeous building in the entire water city of Venice, the magnificent St. Mark's Basilica, is already crowded with thousands of citizens with pious and eager faces, as if all the citizens of this great city-state have gathered. Here it is.
Looking from a distance from the bell tower of the church, each of them holds a cross or a rosary in their hands, and sings hymns praising God one after another on their lips. They are so pious that people can't help but feel a little puzzled—— When did these Venetian merchants, known as shrewd, philistine and unjust profiteers, basically insulated from religious fanaticism and even able to open a bank in front of a church to make usury loans, become so pious?
——The reason is very simple: in front of the St. Mark's Basilica, there are really "angels" showing "divine grace" to them and curing the plague. Although there are still many people who don't believe in "miracles", as the last straw in a desperate situation, no one is willing to let it go.
In the square in front of St. Mark's Basilica, a huge lucky cat statue was erected overnight. If it is in those places with a particularly pious religious atmosphere, this may be regarded as heresy, but it is often associated with Arabs. When dealing with people, Venetians who know that such little things were once considered pets don't think it's a big deal. Especially the gold ducats on the cat's neck and paws made the Venetians very fond of it.
Hundreds of Black Death victims, all black and swollen, were moved to the front of the lucky cat statue by volunteer clergy, waiting in batches for the "angels" to rescue them. The blond and busty school doctor Marikawa Shizuka and the other "angels" with angel wings spread out, with a holy smile of compassion (naturally stupid?), and a strange meowing language, addressed them to They impart favor and salvation from “the kingdom of heaven.”
"...Don't worry, don't be afraid, the power of God will heal your physical pain. (Italian) Meow! Something brighter than the sun, something cuter than the holy cat, in the flow of time Come out, in your great name, I swear in this light to grant equal salvation to these lambs who believe in the Lord! Group healing technique (Japanese)"
In an instant, a dazzling pure white light quietly descended, flooding half of the square in an instant, shining on the Black Death patients who were covered with malignant sores and abscesses and exuded a putrid smell... The crystal clear five-color light was like the best gems. The brilliance shimmered and overflowed on their bodies. Pure positive energy full of vitality spreads everywhere, washing and purifying all diseases and filth.
The vast vitality is overwhelming and drives away all diseases; the holy white light refreshes the heart and heals all wounds.
In a trance, people seemed to see the door of heaven slowly opening above their heads and hear the holy carols sung by little angels.
At this point, the Venetians gathered in the square cried with joy, hugging the patients who opened their eyes in confusion, and burst into tears with excitement. Even those with the weakest ideas of faith were inspired at this moment and became the most devout believers of God in the world.
After all, what could be more effective in breaking down people’s defenses than a great miracle that they witnessed with their own eyes?
"...There is no need to thank us so much, mortals, everything is God's will! Even this plague is punishment for mortals' sins of cat abuse for many years!"
Facing the Venetian citizens' worship and tears of gratitude, the "angels" pretended to be indifferent and handed many plastic cat figurines to people's hands, "...I hope you will never be fooled by those absurd things again in the future. The legend is misleading, be kind to every cat you meet , use dried fish and milk to thank them for their hard work every night. Don’t be blinded by the heresies spread by the devil, continue to abuse cats, increase your sins, and lead to the next destruction..." Marikawa Shizuka is very happy. She said this to the citizens while wagging her finger cutely.
"...please don't worry, we will definitely follow the Lord's teachings and love cats like children..." The citizens of Venice naturally agreed.
"...In addition, if you have underage or unmarried girls at home, it is best for them to practice using the word 'meow' when speaking, so that it is easier to please the gods... In addition, we can also provide atonement here The cat ear hairpins, cat paw gloves of various shapes, and cat tails can make those ladies and ladies look like crosses. Wear it with you, do not feel ashamed, this is a manifestation of devout faith...Finally, although this sacred healing technique can cure your patients and make you healthy at this moment, it cannot prevent the abominable disease from invading your body again. Body, after all, this city has been polluted," Doraemon, who was also dressed as an angel, added.
"...Oh, dear angels, please save us and keep us away from the plague..." The believers immediately knelt down again.
"...Don't worry, don't be afraid. The Lord has given us extraordinary power just to save the world. Hurry up and follow the team over there and put a holy seal on each of your arms. Although it can't Making you immune to all diseases will not be effective for life, but it will at least keep you away from the threat of the Black Death for six months..." Marikawa Shizuka said with a compassionate face, really looking like a saint.
So, thousands of Venetian citizens lined up, rolled up their sleeves, stretched their arms in front of an old man with a straight face, and one by one received the plague vaccine packaged as a "holy seal"... That scene It was truly a joy and a place of gratitude, endless piety and fraternity gathered here, and the highest holiness and faith were sublimated here. Many poets present shed tears of excitement, brewing great poems in their hearts...
※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※
However, just like traditional dramas, since there is a guy who pretends to be a good guy, there is also a guy who plays the villain and pretends to be the villain.
While most of the travelers were standing in St. Mark's Square, pretending to be good people, and giving "the grace of the Lord" to all Venetian citizens, Wang Qiu reluctantly stayed on the bell tower of St. Mark's Basilica to sing bad words. Playing the villain, fighting against a group of old foxes, big foxes and little foxes who care about everything.
"... Please take a look, Your Excellency, Angel. In Venice, a place where faith was once weak, there are so many devout believers all of a sudden. Since being saved, they have embarked on the path of the Lord more firmly. I believe that God You and all the archangels will also be happy about this!”
Standing on the towering bell tower, pointing to the scene of worship and worship below, the Doge of Venice said so proudly.
"...Humph, devout faith is dedicated to God, not to us. We only care about how many gold coins or property we get. As long as someone is willing to pay enough money, we don't even mind giving it to the aliens in the eastern desert. Believers perform miracles”
Wang Qiu turned around and glanced at the Venetian Governor, who seemed to be full of justice, and snorted disdainfully, "...So, please put your little thoughts away! Mr. Governor, this kind of pretended piety has no effect on us. It doesn't make any sense! We are more troublesome than you in dealing with the boss's inspection like this. A hundred times more skilled! In short, we must not lose even one million ducats! Otherwise, since we can save the Venetians from the haze of the Black Death, we can also spread more terror. The plague, let death completely engulf your city!”
Hey, is this still a holy angel? Why is he even more lacking in moral integrity than us, the Merchant of Venice, with only money in his eyes?
With this thought, the Governor of Venice couldn't help but take out a handkerchief and wipe the cold sweat on his forehead, and the several priests standing behind the Governor were so angry that they almost fainted - if the guy in front of him was not an angel If so, they would definitely shout "heresy" and burn each other! But as the people in power in Venice, they must still try their best to negotiate and mediate in order to protect the interests of the city-state, no matter whether the other party is an angel or a devil. Under the look of the governor, the Archbishop of Venice coughed dryly and came up to ask seriously. : "...Your words seem to be very disrespectful to the Almighty Lord! You are abusing the Lord's grace for your own personal gain, aren't you afraid of the Lord's wrath?"