Mao Jing opened the door, faced the prepared Hive, and slowly shook his head: "This is what he meant."
Beehive wanted to fight for it, but its body was extremely weak.
He looked over Mao Jing's shoulder and saw Laurent, who was smiling at him with a kind face in the room. He understood everything in an instant. Holding back his grief, he walked to the corner, hugging his head and crying in a corner where no one was paying attention.
As Lu Yu and others entered, the door to the room was closed again. The servants who had realized what was happening put their heads close to the ground, and suppressed cries came one after another.
Sera rushed to the bed, held Laurent's hand tightly, and with tears streaming down her face, she begged Laurent to make one last attempt.
"My whole life I have always worked hard for others and for the greater cause of the Theocracy, and I have never really decided anything for myself..." Laurend smiled weakly, "Compared to dying in embarrassment in the struggle, I
I hope the last moment can be more dignified...let me make the decision..."
Laurent's words were no longer choppy, and the old and decayed body seemed to be gaining strength again. Not only did he adjust himself to a comfortable posture, but his face also became much rosier.
This is not a good sign.
"The magic wave is about to begin." Laurende looked at Lu Yu.
Something exploded in Lu Yu's mind, and when he came back to his senses, there was already a lake in front of him.
He understood, and sadness surged into every corner of his body at this moment. The feeling of powerlessness made it difficult for Lu Yu to breathe.
"All the funeral matters have been entrusted to Antonio, and I need you to urge him to implement them. It is inevitable to wait for the condolences from all countries, and the coffin can be omitted for the people to pay their respects... Winter is coming soon, and the weather will be very cold. They should stay at home and collect their funerals.
I sorted the grains that came in and used the spare coins to buy some gifts for my children and loved ones... The Papal City is a long way away, and I am not a god or a saint, so I don't need to make a pilgrimage..."
"I know that such a decision will be misunderstood by the people of the Theocracy and misinterpreted by those who are interested, so the photo scroll is ready."
The items Maojing took out from the hidden compartment were not just photo scrolls.
Laurent personally took the heavy book from Mao Jing's hand - the cover was the symbolic silvery white color of the Theocracy, with golden veins like blood wrapping the blooming flowers layer by layer.
"I have been in charge of the Theocracy for more than eighty years, and I have witnessed too much... many things worth recording are included in it." Laurent stroked the cover and smiled bitterly, "I once thought about handing it to the Theocracy.
The next pope, but...I'm afraid they will take it as a model and put it on the altar with me."
"No experience can be copied unchanged. Everything in the world is changing. If there is a thought that all problems can be solved with a certain method, then the Theocracy will usher in a catastrophe... I have no sympathy for them.
Confidence, but you won’t.”
Laurent handed it to Lu Yu, then touched his head: "There is a real me in the book, at least you can know... There is another Laurent in this world... He is not the Pope, and he is not shining on this land.
The glory is just an ordinary person."
Laurend hugged Lu Yu: "Don't be sad for me, I can finally be free..."
"I know...but I can't help it."
"I see in you the me who did not choose the path of the Pope...help me go on...go farther."
Laurent said in a voice that only Lu Yu could hear: "You care about everyone around you, and hope that they can live with you without worries and happily... Therefore, you long for peace and stability, but
The world is always changing, so you will be worried that changes will take away everything you protect, so your heart has always longed to be strong...not to gain power, but to satisfy that trivial wish-to make everyone happy."
Lu Yu's nose was so sore that he couldn't speak, and nodded slightly.
"Nearly a hundred years have taught me that nothing is immortal, and all good things will be erased and change. I am very worried that one day, you will become a terrible monster in order to protect everything behind you..."
"I wrote down all the answers to stop this in a book..."
"Lu Yu,
Children from a foreign land...Thank you to fate for letting us meet. I firmly believe that you will bring happiness to them and everyone in the territory."
Lu Yu held the book and was reluctant to leave the room for a long time. He stared at Laurend's kind smiling face and closed the door little by little.
Ranwen
At some point, everyone from Guanghui Yuan had arrived in the corridor, standing with sad faces.
Lu Yu didn't say anything and walked straight to the corner.
There seemed to be an empty space in his heart suddenly, and at this moment he thought of Lawrence.
Lu Yu suddenly understood why Clorons was so afraid of decay and death. Perhaps he was not afraid of death itself.
Looking at the book in his hand, Lu Yu knew that from today on, he would not just be the glutton as rumored.
At this moment when the atmosphere was extremely heavy and Lu Yu was feeling a little mad with emptiness, Lu Lu leaned over.
The two people's eyes met, Lu Lu quietly put her hand into Lu Yu's hand, and Lu Yu did not avoid it this time.
Serra in front of the hospital bed cried and accepted Laurend's decision.
"This land is always decaying, and hope is like light... short-lived and charming... Maybe that's why I persist for so long... Just to prove that the glorious era still leaves traces on this world... and I am that trace
." Laurend laughed at himself, "But I also share the price...to feed the God of Glory and the nutrients of kindness."
"I have come to the end of this road. Going further requires not only courage and courage, but also opportunity... I have not been able to wait for that opportunity in my life, and it will be spread all over this land after my death..."
Laurent smiled bitterly, looking helpless.
"You are the best pope in the Theocracy... bar none!" Serra said.
"I would like to believe that the best is always in the future..." Laurent said, "Go after what you want... Love boldly and don't be me... Never."
"I hope you can laugh as much as you did when you first came to me, and like to hum unknown songs, and have a loving smile on your face every day."
"I also hope that you can be confident, strong-willed, and proud...without fear of worldly rules to find the treasure that you truly desire...because you are really beautiful when you are serious and stubborn...it should not be hidden by you."
"I'm afraid that you will be worried about the future, because what you are facing is not people or things, but this disgusting era..."
Laurent's words suddenly became brisk: "But you suddenly brought me a surprise, just like when I suddenly returned home one day and found a lazy kitten lying in the courtyard, letting you stroke it...
La...you have found a good group of companions, and with them by your side, I can finally feel relieved."
"They will not look at you with strange eyes, but will tolerate you, respect you, and protect you as a matter of course... all this is not just because you are their lord, nor because your name is Sera... but because
, they care about you and are willing to make changes for you.”
Sierra burst into tears.
She thought she was hiding it well, but in fact Laurend knew everything.
Laurend suddenly trembled, and he became excited even though his speech was still clear. He stared at Sera's eyes with desire.
"Can...can you call me daddy..."
Sierra did not hesitate and hugged Laurend: "Dad..."
Mao Jing was hesitant to speak, but in the end he didn't say anything. He just watched everything with a smile.
As if she wanted to reveal the family affection that she had not acknowledged all these years, Sera kept repeating it.
Laurent, who was stroking Sera's head, stopped and slowly closed his eyes: "Go out and tell them... give me some time to be alone with Cat Jing."
"As Laurent, I ask them to give me such an opportunity."
Sierra wiped her tears and stood up. She turned back three times and opened the door. The moment she opened the door, her face was filled with frost.
She coldly announced Laurent's final request, ready to punch any naysayers in the face.
No one objected, and the crying gradually became louder.
…
Laurent rested his head on Mao Jing's lap, admiring Mao Jing's smooth and white face, and let out a long sigh of relief.
It is quite now.
Completely quiet.
There are no endless affairs of the Theocracy, no incarnation of glory constantly patrolling, no banquets that must be attended...
Finally it was just the two of them.
He once imagined what he should do at this moment, but when he finally got it, he found that even hugging him hard was a luxury.
"When I was in coma, I dreamed about that forest."
"Where did we meet?"
Laurent gently hugged Mao Jing's waist and yawned tiredly: "I still remember that I accidentally rescued your prey that was knocked unconscious by poison..."
"It's not that it's easy, it's that it's been a lot of hard work... Not only that, you also used a scroll to scrape off my scales." Mao Jing gently pressed Laurent's neck, "Why do I like you like this?
Guy..."
"Yeah...why?" Laurent asked pretending to be curious.
After a period of silence, Laurent's voice began to weaken.
"Take me to see it... I still don't know where the land that gave birth to and raised you is and what it looks like now... Can the wind of the Theocracy blow there?"
"Okay, I will definitely take you there. This time you can no longer use your responsibilities as the Pope to distract me. Wherever I want to go, you must go with me."
"It's up to you to make the decision..." Laurend smiled happily, "Mao Jing... I'm a little sleepy..."
Countless scenes flashed back before Laurend's eyes.
When he was young, he traveled around preaching and spreading the glory of the Theocracy. By coincidence, he met Mao Jing.
Entrusted with important responsibilities in his youth, the youngest pope was considered by the outside world to be just a puppet of a group of senators.
When he was in his prime, he eliminated the internal ills of the Theocracy and swept away those who tried to use him as a puppet. All this took him only four years.
After taking power, he focused on alleviating the harsh diplomatic environment of the Theocracy, ignored the repeated objections, and promoted the birth of the "Glorious Missionary Covenant". The severe ideological conflicts with Solon, Sligo, and Cordzon gradually eased and eased.
The poor living conditions of the people on the border of Theocracy.
For this reason, he was assassinated by those who opposed him and questioned by the Avatar of Radiance.
Undeterred, he held on to his body injured in the assassination and started reforming one round after another.
He didn't change his original intention, but he became cautious and diplomatic.
He requested that when the church be built, it should also be equipped with a lecturer to teach and answer questions for the local people.
He compromised with the nobles in exchange for their support of the basic welfare system.
…
One after another, one after another...the great achievements and great progress that are being sung by others are floating by like clouds and smoke.
Finally, he was in great power and his prestige was at its peak. He no longer needed to compromise, but as he moved forward step by step, he got a glimpse of the root causes hidden behind all the contradictions.
He and Mao Jing sat in front of the bookcase and spent countless days and nights in agony and pain. Finally, he had no choice but to put away those majestic ambitions - he flinched because at that moment, he could not see the chance of winning.
This slight chance of victory may come soon, or it may never appear.
The past is like smoke, passing by for hundreds of years.
Laurent murmured and finished his last prayer, then glanced at Mao Jing's beautiful face with nostalgia, and closed his eyes with satisfaction.
"It's okay, just go to sleep... It'll be fine after a little sleep. Isn't that what you said when you applied medicine to my scales... After I woke up, it was indeed fine."
"Go to sleep... You are really too tired. No one will disturb your rest this time..."
Under Mao Jing's gentle pressure and soft murmur like a lullaby, Laurent's breathing gradually became weaker.
"I'm sorry...I'm really sorry..."
Mao Jing held back tears, rubbed Laurende's inelastic skin, and looked at the silver maple tree not far away.
"You...are really the biggest idiot in the world..."
In the early morning of winter in the year 572 of the Mela New Calendar, Laurent, the thirty-second pope of the Holy Kingdom of Radiance, met with the glorious God of the distant country in the papal tower.
After eighty-one years in charge of the Theocracy, the wise Laurent left his loyal followers forever.
The cry from the Papal Tower is as loud as the wind, and it will blow across every land of the Theocracy.
Today the sun rises as usual, but the light that has warmed the Theocracy for decades has dissipated.