I Am Louis XIV

The red-golden autumn will soon pass, and Toledo is about to welcome the Feast of All Saints on November 1. As the most loyal servant of God, from the time of the two kings, that is, the moment when Spain was founded, Both the king and the archbishop worked hard to ensure the purity and uniqueness of Spain's faith.

Later generations often refer to Toledo as the "capital of three cultures", which means that Christians, Moors and Jews in Toledo can live in this city peacefully and freely. After occupying this place, both the Moors and the Jews either converted or died or fled. There is no such thing as freedom of belief. Jewish synagogues and Moorish temples were demolished or converted into churches, and none survived.

Do you want to say that there is a time when the three coexist harmoniously? Really, that is the Arabs (Moors) ruled here for 300 years. It is a pity that such tolerance failed to win the mercy of the Spanish kings. Now you can’t see a Moor in Toledo, the Jews It has also changed from more than 20,000 people in the past to about 1,000 people now.

Their ancestors were either cowardly, unwilling to give up the accumulated wealth, or believed the lies of others. When the two kings expelled the Judahs from Toledo, they expressed their willingness to convert and stayed in Toledo. many. There is no doubt that they soon regretted it. The Queen and King of Spain, who believed in Catholicism, treated the Judas like a fat sheep that could not resist. After entering the weakening stage, they began to devour fresh flesh and blood nakedly, but by this time, these Judahs had no room to resist.

These Jews, because they have abandoned their faith and race (the Jews will not even contact these converts), and cannot integrate into the Christian society - no matter how devout they are, when people talk about them, they will still Say: "That Jew!" Even if they are not fanatics or priests, they will be easily accused by others as usurers, greedy businessmen or liars, and people around them will look at them with vigilance or disgust. It seems that they will do heinous things at any time.

They have suffered all the sufferings of converts, but as they think, the rewards and acceptance that converts should receive are like swaying flames, which seem to be close at hand, but it is impossible to hold them in their hands. will get burned.

About 20 years ago, when Philip IV ruled Spain, there was a small plague outside the city of Toledo. Some people shouted that it was brought by the Jews! They could not touch the Toledo Jews who had fled to Algeria, but they were able to besiege the neighborhood where more than a thousand converts lived. They held torches and brought straw and firewood. Christians during the Black Death generally burned all the Jews here.

Some of the converts who were naive enough came out holding the cross and the icon (the Judean church does not recognize Jesus) in trepidation, knelt on the ground, weeping and begging these Christians, they swore on the graves of their ancestors that they and they are Similarly, the most devout Christians will never do things that violate the teachings and laws.

Immediately they were stabbed and beaten to death with pitchforks and flails, and their bodies were piled on wagons and burned.

Seeing such a scene, the other converts were so scared that they dared to curl up in their own houses, but what was the use? Their houses were not castles, and it was impossible to resist the engulfing of the flames. Fortunately, the Archbishop of Toledo showed mercy. The angry Christians were dispersed (for money's sake), but when the converts came out of the house they found their shops, storehouses, and even the stables, halls, and chapels of their mansions looted.

They wanted to cry, but they didn’t even have the courage to appeal and pursue. In the end, it was luck that saved these people. The plague was not the Black Death, nor smallpox, measles, cholera or other vicious infectious diseases, but a measles. There was a small area of ​​chickenpox, and it slowly disappeared when the bird's beak doctor rushed to the village and isolated the infected people.

This chaos forced some converts to desperately seek a way to leave Toledo, but it was not easy, and the Archbishop of Toledo was unwilling to let these meek lambs go, and he had to squeeze their last bit of blood.

No one thought that the Spanish civilian uprising known as "All Saints' Day" started from these Judahs.

It’s not new to say it—the Black Death can find Jews as scapegoats, and the king and priests have to let one or two, maybe more Jews, be scapegoats. Isn’t it an extremely simple thing?

It was a bloody affair that was first circulated in the taverns and brothels after midnight-it is said that their king, Carlos II, had a very favored royal wife. In order to catch the king's love and attention for a long time, she He did not hesitate to hire a group of black wizards and depraved priests to hold all kinds of evil black masses for her, so as to ensure her eternal youth and infinite charm.

Of course, this kind of black mass is indispensable for all kinds of extremely fragrant and bloody details, from the royal wife bathing in the blood of young girls every day (this may come directly from Elizabeth Bathory of Hungary), to her using male body fluids to smear the body (this may be derived from the fact that Roman ladies used the mud of gladiators to maintain their skin), and then to the usual practice, which every witch has to do, with the devil or the devil's servants. Multiple interactions and more...

This kind of rumors has always been the easiest to talk about and talk about, not to mention, these are easy to arouse people's interest, whether it is at the wine table or on the bed, the burning and focused gaze is the most Catalyst of effectiveness—but I don’t know why, such rumors did not slowly disappear in people’s gossip like other rumors.

No, it should be said that on the contrary, it is not known who, when, and where, someone actually linked these rumors with more and more cases of disappearances and deaths in Toledo.

Unlike the Elizabeth Bathory case that people think, Bathory was accused of abusing servants, doing black mass, etc., probably because she was involved with her nephew Prince Gabriel Bathory of Transylvania Conspiracy against the Habsburgs—though whether the court and the witnesses had slandered her at the Habsburgs' behest, no one knew.

If this royal wife who wanted to win the favor of Carlos II really existed, then the matter would not be brought before the Archbishop of Toledo and Patinho, but people only need to investigate a little, and they will find that this lady It doesn't exist, yes, Carlos II regards the entire court as his hunting ground, so how could he focus on one woman.

Since there is no such woman, who will the hidden devil possess? Because the city of Toledo has indeed been missing people since the little queen married Carlos II, some people did not hesitate to charge the Austrian woman, and every court seems to be like this , a foreign woman occupying the position of queen bears a heavy original sin, but there are also intelligent people who frown. Queen Antonia is not respected and loved by the king, at least it is well known in Toledo—she can’t even If she walked out of the palace at will, most of the maids around her were Spanish, and without the king's permission, the servants around her would not do anything for her.

The queen and the royal wife are actually a group of poor women...their authority can only come from their father, husband and son.

Carlos II's cruelty and cruelty to Antonia turned out to be a good thing. Not many people believed that Queen Antonia had the right and means to cause such a terrible result. After sorting it out, it was found that there were more than 200 young men and women missing in Toledo, and they were not ordinary fishermen and peasant women. Like Bella in Moliro, even if their families are not so rich, they can still afford their children’s upbringing and education expenses-a large part of the missing people work in the palace, and some are painters and goldsmiths apprentices, college students, choir members and more.

If the investigation continues, not only these children, but also their parents, teachers, or people closely related to them, either disappeared suddenly, or were imprisoned for various crimes.

At this point, neither the Archbishop of Toledo nor Patinho could continue to sit still. When Elizabeth Bathory was convicted, it was determined that the victims were fifty or fifty-one, and there was also a A confession claimed that there were 350 people, but it was regarded as an overly exaggerated joke by the people at the time. But the number of victims trapped in the monastery of Santo Domingo has far exceeded this number.

When he saw this, even Patinho couldn't help but look up and glared at Carlos II. He and the Archbishop of Toledo have been busy making Carlos II's firstborn son be born with an orthodox identity-he even Jose .Patinho was expelled from the ranks of the king's attendants, and he only thought it was a veiled protest...

The Archbishop of Toledo at the side was terrified. His beloved disciple was beside the king. Why didn't he come to repay him? The archbishop had no doubt that this child would betray him, and he didn't think he would sit back and watch the king act like this—then he is now where?

Before he could ask, Carlos II glanced at the document that Patinho threw in front of him, and smiled like a howling jackal: "Ah," he said with that pure and innocent expression. With a hoarse voice, he said, "Is there that much? I don't think so at all."

It would be nonsense to say that the Archbishop of Toledo and Patinho had much empathy for those victims, but if the disciples of the Archbishop of Toledo were removed, if those victims were discovered, it would be a big scandal .

Kings can be cruel and tyrannical, such as the recent Charles II, Westminster Abbey is full of heads, and the people still call him "our happy king". When defending against serious crimes, their stress is greatly reduced if they can find out why the crime happened-this is why "victim guilt theory" was born.

If Carlos II wants to execute one person, ten, even a hundred, or a thousand people, it doesn't matter, but he must give a reason, even if it is an absurd reason, even so, it will inevitably cause some anxiety. Stupid, let alone like this--the sinners in the convent of Santo Domingo... No one would believe that they were wizards, servants of the devil, or committed some unpardonable crime.

The ignorant people don't burn healthy young women or men, which are the property of the family and the lord, and are beneficial. They only burn toothless old women, because they can only eat and can't work.

But Carlos II—his first victims were noble daughters, after the queen mother and the maids around the queen (including a niece of Patinho) were unfortunately buried in the mouth of this beast in succession. In the palace, he didn't do as he pleases—but when he turned his eyes outside the palace, those rude, ugly peasant women and savages couldn't give him enough pleasure, their skin was not fair enough, their voices were not soft enough, Without a sense of shame, Carlos II felt like he was killing a pig when he did it.

Therefore, someone searched for prey for him, court maids at the bottom like Bella, apprentice knights, choir members, university students, artist's apprentices... The more beautiful and promising the better, the more Carlos will be able to meet him. The world is excited—maybe because of a deformed face, an increasingly distorted body, and an unsatisfied thirst for power...

The disciple of the Archbishop of Toledo, Alberoni, perhaps because of Carlos II and the Inquisition's fear of the Archbishop, he was only imprisoned, except that he was almost driven mad by the long, dark and silent detention, covered in dirt, Apart from disheveled hair, he did not suffer any fatal injuries. As soon as he was released, he immediately eagerly wrote something in the hand of the Archbishop of Toledo. Son, you are saved."

But... Alberoni opened his mouth wide and wanted to say something, but because he hadn't talked to anyone for a long time, he couldn't make a sound for a while.

Then he passed out.

The Archbishop of Toledo shook his head. He knew... what Alberoni wanted to tell him were probably two things, Carlos II's intention to seize power and what crimes he had committed.

But the former doesn't make much sense. They have heard about Carlos II, but he is destined to live soon, and they are willing to pamper him so as not to cause complications. As for the latter... he would give one, or many, solemn requiem masses for those unfortunate children.

—————

When Alberoni awoke, he thought he was in heaven, before he recognized that it was a residence of the Archbishop, and that he had slept on the floor the last time he was here, but now he was sleeping on the bed, with a soft woolen blanket It brought him an incomparably warm comfort, like a mother's palm, and the air was filled with the fragrance of myrrh.

He couldn't remember if he said those important things to the archbishop-he was worried that he would not be able to speak after a long time of silence, and he kept talking to the wall to himself while he was imprisoned.

With a "click", the door opened, and Alberoni rolled his dry eyes with difficulty.

He was also a little afraid of the voices from outside, because Carlos II forced him to watch the sentence more than once, and threatened him with the "blossom pear" so that his upper and lower mouths would be torn apart together.

In came Jose Patinho.