I Am Louis XIV

  Chapter 515 The Archbishop of Toledo and the Duke of Don Juan of Madrid (Part 1)

   The archbishop folded the secret letter and burned it on a candle. The priest looked at his face that was distorted like a devil because of the lack of flesh and skin, and trembled and felt pain in his heart: "Sir..."

   "You go out."

   "My lord, the people of Toledo will not surrender, we will fight for God to the end."

  The archbishop turned his head and looked at the priest. The priest involuntarily lowered his head and did not dare to look at him. "Go out." The archbishop repeated.

When the priest stepped back and slowly left, the door was locked again, the archbishop stood up, stood in front of the mirror and carefully observed himself, then took off the heavy golden cross, the bishop's crown robe, and put on He wore a black uniform, with only a wooden cross tied with a linen rope hanging around his neck, and covered his face with a large thick hood - going out the door like a pious and humble ascetic.

   Without alarming anyone, he took to the streets of Toledo. Toledo is an ancient city, before it was recaptured by the Catholics, it was ruled by the Moors and Berbers and the Visigoths, both the Moors and the Berbers, and the Visigoths It was not until the eighth century that it finally converted to Catholicism, and the city left many traces of sin under their administration, which fortunately have now almost been removed or replaced, such as the Cathedral of Toledo standing in front of the archbishop. .

The Cathedral of Toledo was originally a pagan temple. In 1226, the then Castilian King Ferdinand III and the archbishop jointly placed the first stone on the ruins of the temple and changed it to a larger place. Thus began the construction of the church, a gigantic project that continued into the sixteenth century, with five halls, eighty-eight columns, and large and large stained-glass windows with stories from the Bible; spectacular The choir pulpit enclosure and seating were made by the most famous and intelligent craftsmen of the time, and the fine carvings reproduce the scene of the Catholics taking back the city from the pagans; the octagonal hall, which was completed at the end of the sixteenth century, is the The beautiful building dedicated to the martyrs and the disciples of **** by Pope III was used as a reliquary, filled with all kinds of relics, from the skeleton of St. Louis, to the statue of San Juan, to the cross of Bishop Mendoza. .

   Kings and queens were crowned here and their sarcophagi were placed here.

Here are gathered many priests who came to pilgrimage and fight, either from all over the place earlier, or driven out of their churches and monasteries by the French, some timid, or who thought money, honor and faith The priests, whose lives were not as important as their lives, fled back to their homes, where there are nowhere to go, full of resentful priests, they can't believe that they have taken away power and status like this.

Louis XIV's army treated these clergymen better than the local nobles or officials, as in France, in conquered or surrendered cities, the clergy recognized only those appointed by the French King Louis XIV. The priests, if they can't show the king's appointment, even the apostolic priests and even the bishops will be expelled. They will either continue to seek the support of the French king, or they will only be gathered under the command of the Archbishop of Toledo, and they will go to France. People wage holy war!

The archbishop understood at a glance that those who returned home and hoped to get a better chance in the future were all local priests in Spain. They were either the second sons of the lords, or brothers. When Carlos III came to the throne, if their fathers and brothers could A firm position can also get new appointments from Louis XIV or Carlos III; most of those priests who ran to Toledo in anger were mostly members of the Roman Church, or relatives of bishops, or The prince in red had enough bribes, and now they met a king who was unwilling to obey the Roman church, and couldn't come up with more money, of course, they had to gamble - maybe King Louis XIV of France would be concerned about the church's reaction and talk to them. What about compromise?

The archbishop did not pray, although there were many priests here who were reciting scriptures aloud, shaking icons, and bowing reverently - crucifixion, which is to imitate the moment when Christ was crucified on the cross. They are all thrown on the ground, their limbs are spread out, and their jaws are against cold stones... Kneeling in this posture for an hour is like being on a "extremity rack". This way of kneeling is indeed used in the monastery. The use of this kind of admonition is very popular because it can cause great suffering.

   But to outsiders, the monks here are really pious.

When they left the cathedral and came to the street, the black robes of the priests were still visible from time to time. They either stood in the square and preached, or they were naked and beat themselves with bitter whips with iron pieces hanging at the end, or they showed people. Louis XIV's "criminal evidence" - literature, cosmetics, tolerance for Protestants, etc., are all demonic traces left by this ungodly king... They obviously intend to repeat the story in the city of Leon, it is a pity that, Let the archbishop see that there are not many who believe in them.

Seeing the confusion on the faces of the priests, the archbishop was about to laugh out loud. They probably thought that Toledo, the religious center of Spain, which has never been transferred, should be well incited, but the residents here have passed by. With regard to Carlos II and the Inquisition, the credibility of the Roman Church has been reduced to the lowest level - that terrible thing is only a few years away from now, and people's memory is not so bad.

Although the initial riot was quelled, even if the Archbishop was given the power without any restraint, he would spend the rest of his life to wash away the filth and sins that Carlos II brought to the people, not to mention, in Louis XIV for the card. Before the coronation of Los III, he was still fighting with Duke Don Juan, the nobles of the Habsburg faction, and the Patinho family.

The people’s love for God is unquestionable, but it is difficult to say about the church. They don’t understand the inner feelings, entanglements, and differences between the adults of the Inquisition and the adults in the church. The sharp whip was used to beat and deter the people, and now it has to bear the damage caused by the backlash of this weapon.

   "A bunch of ignorant beasts!" A priest preached until his mouth was dry, but he got very few responses, so he couldn't help but curse and spit.

   The spittle on the archbishop's robe was only a star and a half, but out of pity he reminded: "My dear sir," he said to the priest, "do you know what happened to the last person who called them that?"

"How's it going?"

   "There are still his grease and ashes in the arena, you can see it when you go there," the archbishop described: "It's a black piece, it's clear."

  "..." The priest widened his eyes, he was obviously not a priest of Toledo: "You are talking nonsense. This is Toledo."

"Yes," said the archbishop, "this is Toledo." With a period of laughter, he walked back to his mansion, which was filled with priests, but strangely unnoticed He, he went back to his room, exhausted, he didn't even have the strength to take off his disguise, and he remembered the people he saw, all withered and pale-he couldn't remember what they were supposed to look like, but he seemed to remember Philip In the years when King IV came to the throne, he had just become the archbishop, and it was the time when he was satisfied. At that time, Toledo was not abused to the present. The nobles built their own fortresses in the mountains. Palace, the commoners celebrate festival after festival, from the Torch Festival in St. Anton, to the Virgin of the Virgin, to the Saint's Day with quails and rabbits, the Severa Mountain Festival of mutual charity, in January Carnival in February, the theatre festival in February, Easter pilgrimages, St. George's Day in April, and St. Mark's Day, when people eat egg and sausage pie, and all kinds of pilgrimages... Preacher Remembrance Day, people make big white geese race, dogs and rabbits chase each other, dance, sing, imitate the moment when Christ comes...

   Since when did these all disappear? Of course, they will disappear, when there is no longer a penny in people's pockets, the children are so hungry that their faces are yellow and skinny, the mother will "accidentally crush" the baby next to her when she goes to bed at night; young lovers are forced to say goodbye , the boy made his last cry on the muddy battlefield, the girl was going to do immoral business for the family's livelihood, the priests were shaking indulgences and gold boxes, and they were threatening believers to squeeze everything for themselves and their families to heaven At the last bit of blood and tears...

  Who has the strength, the extra money, and the mind to laugh and have fun?

  Clergy, nobles, kings, they take turns to enjoy this sweet fruit, but who would have thought that it will also be completely dry one day? It used to be as rich as gold on the ground and diamonds on the branches.

  The archbishop could not even blame anyone, including Philip IV, because he himself did not notice. The funny thing is, the first time he noticed that the people of Toledo had retreated to the edge of the cliff, it was because of his own disciple. He was once angry because of Alberoni's betrayal. No, thinking about it now, it should be Fear disguised as anger.

   "Tuk Tuk."

   "I don't want to see anyone," said the archbishop, "Gentlemen, I want to be alone for a while."

  The people outside the door stopped for a while, but didn't leave. A few seconds later, the door was opened, and the archbishop looked over angrily, and then showed a look of astonishment: "Alberoni?"

   "It's me," said Alberoni.

  ————

   "Innocent XI was called by the Lord three days ago and went to his heavenly home."

Louis XIV knew about this news earlier than Archbishop of Toledo. After all, he and Elarius, who had become the red prince, had fast communication means. The time of Innocent XI's death may be longer than that of Elarius. Raleigh knew earlier. After all, the cardinals of the Church of Rome had already controlled the Vatican. Elaru had a weak foundation, and all he could do was to contend with it, and not fall to the level of Barras. .

He also has to protect the former Queen of Spain, the eldest daughter of Leopold I, who was hiding in a monastery in Rome - after all, the former is sensitive, even if she breaks off the engagement with Carlos II, but if someone kidnaps her and forces She admits that Carlos II had a legitimate legitimate child with him—a result that, of course, is difficult to achieve when the marriage has been declared annulled, but sometimes it is enough for them to scramble a pool of clean water.

Louis XIV originally sent Alberoni, who was sent to France by the archbishop, to Rome. He didn't expect this child to play any role, but surprisingly, he did pay for his red shirt in a certain Spanish nationality. The bishop found a job, he was born beautiful (otherwise the archbishop would not have seen a gardener's son at first sight), he was quick-witted, and he was systematically and profoundly taught by the archbishop's side, and soon replaced the other side. The little squire, became one of the "things" that the cardinal often used to show off.

Also because the cardinal often took him with him, on the night when Innocent XI was about to die, although the Pope's residence was closely monitored, the priest who saw him was not surprised, and only asked casually. He told him not to walk around, but he didn't know that the child was carrying a domesticated mouse.

The princes in red have always been very knowledgeable about how to use wizards, and it is not difficult to block the means of wizards. After the widespread use of carrier pigeons, if necessary, there will be more space around St. Peter's Square and the Cathedral. Not even the feathers could fall to the ground, but long before Innocent XI's condition deteriorated to death, Eralio managed to give Alberoni a little house mouse with which to communicate information.

This little house mouse is not a magical creature, nor has any magic been applied to it. The information is not on it, but is directly stuffed into its stomach, so... It can be regarded as a disposable product, but this disposable product can be used in The crucial moment played the most crucial role—Eralius was almost transferred before, knowing that Innocent XI could die at any time, and the Pope election could start at any time. Of course, he would not leave Rome and lose the right to vote and be elected.

Facts have proved that the princes in red are very fast, so fast that others will think that they have omitted a lot of procedures - such as funerals and mass, but they did, but it was very brief, and Elari had time to write a letter to Louis XIV. After handwriting and sending it out, he was imprisoned in the Sistine Chapel.

If the pope election is based on tradition and unspoken rules, it is no different from a huge sale. The princes in red have to bargain, you come and I go, but this election time is surprisingly short and terrible, only twenty-four hours, White smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel.

   (end of this chapter)