"My child, it's enough, but you don't know it yet."
The old man spoke kindly and took out two straw dolls from his arms: "This is the Lord's reward for your piety. Take it with you, and the Lord's punishment will no longer come to our souls and bodies."
Lu Li took it and looked down at the empty eye sockets of the simple straw doll.
The old man handed the other doll to Anna, and Anna responded by opening her sleeves and letting them see the illusory arm.
"It turns out to be the family members." The old man and the four believers bowed their heads slightly and saluted.
In the church during the quiet time, weirdness has a higher status.
Anna had seen the appearance of the followers and knew how to disguise it, and her cloak raised slightly in response.
Lu Li held the straw doll and remained quiet because he did not really believe in the Hour of Silence. When the bells disappeared, Anna gently held his hand. Lu Li, who trusted Anna, chose to follow the believer.
The soles of his shoes stepped on the stones that could be seen everywhere in the wilderness, making a grinding sound, but Lu Li was still there and had not disappeared.
The old man expected to see shock or other emotions on Lu Li's face, but there was only thought on Lu Li's face.
The straw doll allows a non-believer to avoid the ritual of silence. Can this be understood as... In fact, belief is not necessary.
What allows believers to resist the third woe is not faith, but straw dolls.
Lu Li looked at the straw dolls again. The simple ones were as if they were knitted by children, and the rough ones would be pricked by sharp thorns if placed close to the body.
It is not a commodity and has no value.
His eyes swept over the old man and the four believers. Do they also have a straw doll on each of them?
When silence enveloped the entire world, seven figures walked peacefully in the wilderness.
Twenty minutes later, the evil spirit broadcast sounded, and the silence faded away, shrinking back into the deserted oasis deep in the deserted land.
"What is that?"
The old man looked at Lu Li, with childlike curiosity in the corners of his wrinkled eyes.
"Evil spirits broadcast, and they will sense the approaching evil spirits." Lu Li said.
"Interesting little object." The old man said and looked away.
The outline of the village appeared at the end of the front. The old man looked into the distance and said: "There is our companion in that village, and he will find carriages and horses for us."
An hour later, they walked into the deserted and silent village.
Strangely, there is no one in the village, including the companion the old man mentioned.
The oil lamp that is about to dry up in the house is dimly lit, the domestic pigs sleep in the dirty and smelly pen, the wild dogs look warily at the uninvited guests, and the only horse is tied in the stable.
It was as if the villagers here disappeared in an instant.
Observing the unsettling deserted village, the old man made a wise decision: "Take food and a carriage and leave immediately."
After simply plundering some food, they quickly fled the village with their carriage.
After waiting far enough, the old man on the cart whispered: "This is why we need the Lord's salvation..."
They got on the carriage, and as they stepped up, Lu Li saw the straw dolls hanging around their waists - of course they had them too.
The old man talked a lot, or more than Lu Li and the four taciturn believers like Lu Li.
Unlike what Lu Li thought, the old man did not have a higher status in the church, but he was also different from ordinary believers: he was a guide.
Guide the lost unbelievers back to the embrace of silence.
A day-long interaction allowed Lu Li to understand some of the situation of the church during the quiet time: they are expanding the number of believers, but there are very few true fanatics: believers who will be rewarded by the Lord.
Lu Li will be rewarded because he saved the guide.
But Lu Li felt that maybe it was because he saved the old man and the old man had extra straw dolls.
Migrating in the evening, the carriage drove everyone into a dilapidated town.
Most of the residents in the town have moved away, leaving only the townspeople who cannot leave and those who cannot leave, lingering numbly, with people disappearing every day.
They were indifferent to the cloaked group and allowed them to live in the homes of former townspeople.
The place had been looted long ago, and even the wooden frames and chairs had been dismantled into pieces of wood and used for the fire. There was nothing left in the empty living room.
The believers lit the fireplace, went to the dark outside to find some water, and brought it back to boil it into soup.
Bang bang bang——
Just as the night was about to fall, there was a knock on the wooden door and dust fell.
The believers gathered on the floor by the fireplace turned their heads.
One of the believers got up, walked to the door and opened the wooden door.
A bullock cart loaded with goods was parked on the street. A short, fat middle-aged man with a smile froze his smile when he saw the believer's cloak and the figure inside, and quietly took a few steps back: "I'm just a businessman... You guys
Need something or want to sell something?”
Because of his identity, he couldn't help but ask.
"We didn't—"
"Six blankets." Lu Li stood up by the fireplace.
The interrupted old man nodded and thanked him.
"390 shillings." The businessman bid.
The old man frowned, dissatisfied with the high price: "If you are lucky, you can buy them for 90 shillings."
It is unimaginable that a church leader who believes in evil spirits would still bargain.
"We have to take a big risk." The businessman said, smiling and taking the shilling from Lu Li.
When business came to his door, the merchant didn't care whether they were pagans or not. He urged the guards to bring six blankets and asked Lu Li, who paid readily, if he needed anything else.
Lu Li looked at the old man, who shook his head and said, "No need for the child...that's enough."
After closing the wooden door, people returned to the fireplace. Lu Li separated the blankets, and the believers helped the old man lay them out. Some wanted to give their blankets to the guide, but he refused.
The vegetable soup was boiling, and the believers distributed food and ate it quietly.
The hot soup enters the stomach and dispels the chill brought by the night.
Next it's time for mass.
The four believers gathered in a cell next to the fireplace, their shadows stretched into a narrow circle, and strange murmurs overflowed.
The old man did not participate in the mass. He could see that Lu Li was unfamiliar with the church. He did not mind this, but asked Lu Li what he was confused about like an enthusiastic neighbor: "Child, I can see your confusion... Be brave
If the earth asks, the Lord will forgive all the sins of believers.”
The attitude of the guide made Lu Li feel more conflicted about him——
The contact they made on the road made Lu Li feel that they were "not harmful".
They will not attack anyone they encounter, nor will they forcefully proselytize.
In fact, except for the old man, the four believers remained silent.
And this was inconsistent with what Lu Li had seen and heard along the way - they shouldn't be so peaceful.
Is the guide hiding his minions, or has he discovered something?
At this moment, a question suddenly appeared in Lu Li's mind. It should have disappeared as suddenly as it appeared, but before it was extinguished, reason captured it, and human nature reminded Lu Li: Ask him this quickly.