CH-061

61. He was not happy, nor did he want to speak

The fire incident at the Harvest Festival came to a smooth conclusion as Shu Li had expected.

After all, this was a small village affair. The villagers were simple-minded and their thoughts were relatively straightforward, so it never escalated into a major conspiracy of intricate human schemes. Not like Carson City, where every action required balancing the interests of various factions.

Things were far too simple here.

Although Shu Li quickly guessed the truth, he was still unwilling to reveal it directly, preferring to act in the name of the Lord God.

There were many reasons for this.

One was that Shu Li did not want to expose his own abilities. Up until now, although all the events he encountered were resolved based on his own observations and judgments, finding the truth before making the best choices, he always attributed everything to the Lord God's name. This way, no one would see him as a threat requiring special caution, and at the same time, they would be wary of the Lord God's favor over him.

Another was that Shu Li did not want to create enemies or grudges. In matters like exposing someone's crimes, even if you get a reputation for being clever, what of it? He was still an outsider in this village. The villagers would naturally favor their own over what's right. At best, they'd make the person admit fault, but they would rarely truly side with an outsider. He didn't want to oppose others just to make a splash. But by borrowing the Lord God's name, he was blameless no matter what he did.

With the Lord God's name, no matter how he stirred up trouble outside, he could still return to his peaceful life, still counting his daily necessities like firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar, and just get on with his days.

Shu Li returned to the pulpit and was about to pack up the Bible when he noticed that some villagers had left, but others remained seated.

Suddenly, someone stood up: "Father Alis, what meaning does theology have for us?"

This broke the silence in the room and made the atmosphere in the church subtly tense.

"If it's because attaching ourselves to the church lets us live a better life... but in fact, without theology, we could still live well. We know how to make our lives better. So what meaning does the Lord God have for us?"

Shu Li instinctively glanced at Bishop Holm.

Bishop Holm's eyes were bright, seemingly anticipating how Shu Li would respond.

Shu Li: "..."

To be honest, as a non-believer, Shu Li had no particular interest in proclaiming theology.

Although there is a saying that "the end of science is theology," like that scientist who picked up an apple and spent his later years studying theology, or statistics saying that up to 80% of the greatest known scientists had theological backgrounds, Shu Li, like the colleague who asked the question, did not believe in theology.

He was indifferent either way.

He still felt the same now.

It wasn't that he had suffered because of believing in theology and thus rejected it.

It was simply not a habit.

As long as it doesn't affect one's personal physical and mental development or society, believing in a religion is just a personal choice.

Like whether one prefers sweet or savory tofu pudding, it's just personal preference or habit.

However, the role Shu Li was currently playing was that of a devout clergy member.

So he simply lowered his gaze slightly and spoke calmly: "The Lord God is our Father. We receive His庇护 and love, and we grow under His watch. Just as we grow up in a family, we need our parents' support, but when our wings are fully grown, we can become independent from our parents and live without them."

As he spoke these words, he unconsciously glanced at Leslie.

Leslie was looking up, listening intently, "..."

Shu Li paused, then said, "Just because we are independent from our family, or can leave our parents, and it no longer affects our happy lives, can we ask what meaning our parents have for us?"

"We cannot, or rather, we would not actively say so. Because we acknowledge the existence and contributions of our parents to us, so even after leaving them, we wouldn't ask such a question."

Shu Li fixed his gaze on the questioner, "Yet, knowing that the Lord God is our Father, you still ask such a question. This indicates you do not acknowledge the Lord God's existence. You have no faith at all. No amount of explanation would be useful, would it?"

The man didn't back down, even showing a defiant spirit, "Isn't that precisely your responsibility as clergy? You need to proclaim the Lord God's goodness, then we would naturally be willing to follow, wouldn't we?"

He couldn't understand why Father Alis, who seemed so clever, couldn't grasp his implication.

The meaning of his words was so clear.

All Father Alis had to do was say one good thing about the Lord God, and they would have an excuse to consider joining the church. The outcome would please everyone.

He stared hard, even winking, hoping the priest would understand his hint.

Shu Li watched the man wink, inwardly frowning, feeling this person was just there to argue. "You are wrong."

One sentence made the man's face freeze slightly.

Shu Li's expression grew even more composed, and he even patted the Bible.

"You ask about the Lord God's meaning because you're considering yourself as part of a buyer's market. Do you think the Lord God needs to look at your wishes, your thoughts? If you don't need Him, the Lord God doesn't care. You don't need Him, and the Lord God isn't concerned."

"But when you do need Him, the Lord God is always there anytime."

Shu Li's hand rested on the Bible, "If you truly wish to understand the Lord God's meaning, you can buy a Bible from me. Only 60 silver coins." After saying this, Shu Li felt that perhaps he couldn't be a qualified clergy member, but he could definitely be a qualified salesman.

The man wanted to continue arguing, but under the pressure of the cost, he slowly sat back down.

60 silver coins, two months' wages for a villager.

He'd better forget it.

He didn't want to buy it.

Father Alis's unyielding attitude made residents from other parishes hesitate.

Did this priest really not see why they were sitting here?

They just wanted an excuse to join the church.

Just as the surrounding people were pondering how to continue hinting at this composed young priest, Bishop Holm raised his hand and slowly spoke: "Even if we buy the Bible and acknowledge the existence and meaning of the Lord God... is the Lord God truly worthy of our following?"

His tone was unhurried, but his gaze was exceptionally sharp.

"He classifies people into different ranks. Some are born into wealth and glory, while others are destined to taste all the joys and sorrows, poverty and sickness. This arrangement itself is unfair and unjust."

"Faced with such a biased and unequal Lord God, is it still necessary for us to follow?"

For someone of Bishop Holm's status to raise such a question was truly puzzling.

But if it was a test of the priest's loyalty to the Lord God, or an examination of his understanding of the Bible, such a question was reasonable.

Shu Li's mind raced, and he quickly formulated an answer in his head.

After all, he had been here for over half a year now.

During this time, aside from not actively going out to preach, being lazy with church duties, slacking off, lying flat, and focusing on food, he had still diligently studied the Bible.

The moment Bishop Holm finished speaking, Shu Li was able to quickly respond: "The Bible states in Chapter 3, Verse 23, that in the eyes of the Lord God, we are all sinners, born with sin. If we were to question the Lord God based on fairness and justice, we should have been destroyed long ago, instead of sitting here pondering the Lord God's favoritism."

"In other words, the Lord God tolerates our unrighteousness, yet we still demand that He satisfy all our needs. This is our own unrighteousness, not the Lord God's unequal favor."

"If the Lord God bestows grace upon someone, that is His grace, not His obligation."

After stating this methodically, Shu Li quickly reviewed his own answer. It was standard, appropriate in measure, and even the citations and length were just right.

But Bishop Holm, upon hearing the priest firmly declare "we are born with sin," subtly changed his expression.

The bishop thought to himself, this young priest has been deeply poisoned by the Holy Church.

Who is born with sin?

Who is born to suffer?

Is merely being alive the Lord God's mercy?

If this were just empty rhetoric, it might be one thing, but after saying it, Shu Li looked at him with bright eyes and a devout expression, which made one think —

This person was beyond saving.

Although Bishop Holm currently worked for the church, he was actually working for Duke Claude, with the mission of overthrowing the current church.

Seeing Shu Li's performance tonight, he had wanted to recruit Father Alis to serve Duke Claude and help shake the foundations of the Holy Church.

But this person now...

Now, looking at Father Alis, who seemed to bear divine favor, he fell into momentary thought, "..."

Seeing Bishop Holm frown, Shu Li couldn't help but feel uneasy and immediately began to reflect on his answer.

A few seconds later, he finally realized the major problem with his response!

In his answer just now, he lacked concrete, realistic examples. His response seemed more like reciting a standard answer, without his own originality or insight. It failed to resonate with others and fell into cliché.

Worst of all, he hadn't even addressed the core of the question.

Bishop Holm said the Lord God was unjust; was following Him, like following a parent who deeply loved other children, truly worth it for himself?

And Shu Li's response had a bit of a PUA flavor.

Shu Li said, we are the ones at fault first, so it's only natural that the Lord God is unwilling to bestow grace upon us.

How could such an answer be considered good?

Shu Li couldn't help but inwardly lament.

A miscalculation, a miscalculation.

But the regret and distress caused by this mistake did not show on his face.

Shu Li remained composed and confident, as if the flawed and empty answer he just gave was a brilliant finale. After a half-second pause, he said, "Any other questions? The Harvest Festival isn't over yet, and I don't want to waste your time."

The audience fell silent, looking at each other in bewilderment.

Some sighed with frustration, feeling he was a lost cause.

Others still held hope, wanting to try one last time to see if he would finally understand.

Whether to retreat or advance, there was no immediate consensus.

However, as Shu Li's gaze swept over the crowd, he unintentionally met Leslie's eyes from the audience.

It was a somewhat surprised face, the expression yet to recover from the previous coldness. Shu Li had a flash of inspiration — this was a good opportunity to reshape Leslie's image.

He raised a gentle smile and spoke: "Actually, we owe the resolution of this crisis largely to Leslie."

As soon as he finished speaking, he mouthed to Leslie: "Can I say it?"

Leslie was slightly startled and instinctively nodded.

What he thought was: Since he's been seen anyway, he might as well say it.

As Shu Li's words fell, the crowd's attention shifted, and whispers spread rapidly:

"What did Leslie do?"

"I saw him save people; the wounds he touched healed!"

"Isn't that... his mother's divine power?"

"Really? Is it true?"

"Oh my..."

The voices grew, quickly piecing together the whole event. The crowd realized with surprise — they had been misunderstanding Leslie all along.

Thinking carefully, Leslie had never defended himself.

Just like today, when Barry mistakenly accused him of arson, he didn't explain. If not for Finnian and Father Alis clarifying, Leslie would have faced another false accusation.

The Yager family was the first to react, quickly surrounding Leslie and expressing their thanks repeatedly.

And the villagers who had kept their distance suddenly seemed to realize something and surged forward.

"Thank you, Leslie."

"I'm sorry, we misunderstood you before."

"We were wrong in the past. We apologize to you here and hope for your forgiveness."

Thanks, exclamations, and apologies intertwined, but Leslie stood still, as if trapped in water.

He could hear every word, but they all sounded like they were behind glass.

He had long grown accustomed to being avoided and suspected, never expecting to blend in with the crowd. Now, as people flocked around him, instead of feeling happy, he felt a chill creep into his heart.

Strange, and terrifying.

Just as he wanted to step back, his gaze met Shu Li's again.

The other man nodded at him, his expression gentle and firm.

Leslie felt a corner of his frozen heart quietly begin to thaw.

Meanwhile, Bishop Holm wasn't very interested in Leslie's situation, but rather in Shu Li.

Bishop Holm had a new idea. He decided he would try to rescue Father Alis, this lost lamb, and coax him into his own sheepfold.

After all, even if he and Duke Claude wanted to overthrow the current church, it didn't mean they could eradicate it immediately.

Taking away someone's faith is like taking their life.

Change takes time, reform requires a peaceful transition.

The future of the entire continental empire still cannot do without God and the church.

They still needed God.

If they could leverage Father Alis's reputation, it would bring them countless benefits and no harm.

Think about it, if even a person favored by the gods sided with the Duke, wouldn't that mean the Lord God also supported the Duke's actions?

The more he thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed.

Bishop Holm abruptly stood up and said to Shu Li, "Father Alis, I need to speak with you."

After the church congregation watched the young priest leave with the other old man, they suddenly felt adrift.

They looked at each other.

Elder Yager also noticed Leslie's discomfort around people, so he encouraged the others, saying, "Go back to the Harvest Festival! Let's finish this night properly first, then we'll talk."

This made a lot of sense.

Slowly, the crowd dispersed.

But the two children in the front row of the church remained rooted to the spot —

Leslie hadn't wanted to leave anyway, but seeing Finnian not moving, he stayed put too.

Finnian originally wanted to say something to Shu Li, so he waited for the right opportunity. But seeing from the corner of his eye that Leslie also hadn't left, he sat even firmer, even more unwilling to get up from the bench.

After a long while, Finnian spoke first, with a tone suggesting dismissal: "Aren't you leaving?"

Leslie was still thinking about how to bring up Finnian speaking up for him earlier. Hearing this, Leslie replied without looking sideways: "Don't you need to go help your father?"

Finnian didn't turn his head either. "Children don't need to meddle in adult affairs anyway."

Leslie: "You seemed very willing to participate in adult affairs yesterday morning."

Finnian: "The me today and the me yesterday, can they be the same?"

Leslie didn't speak, but his clear, marble-like eyes stared at Finnian, who was habitually狡辩, "..."

Finnian cleared his throat and said solemnly, "I need to make something clear to you beforehand."

Leslie: "Say it."

Finnian emphasized, enunciating each word: "Father Alis's favorite child is me. Give it up!"

Leslie looked back at Finnian for a good while, then said indifferently, "That has nothing to do with me. I'm not interested in that."

Finnian immediately became unhappy and turned his head back too: "Then why are you hanging around Father Alis?"

Leslie said flatly and calmly: "He was the one who called out to me first. He was the one who invited me to eat. He was the one who held my hand. He was the one who actively approached me. I did nothing."

Finnian heard this and thought, this won't do!

Just then, he saw Naxi walking past him. With a wave of his hand, he commanded:

"Naxi, bite him!"

Little fox Naxi pretended not to hear, but hadn't gone far before being picked up by Finnian and forcefully shoved into the stranger's arms, "...?"

"Bite!" Finnian urged.

Little fox Naxi struggled in Leslie's arms, squirming, whimpering "Wah wah wah."

After a while, Shu Li, who had returned at some point, suddenly spoke up, "Finnian, you're still here?"

As his voice fell, Finnian flashed an extremely bright smile at Leslie.

"Did you hear that? He's calling me."

Leslie didn't have time to respond before feeling a sharp pain—Naxi had given him a gentle nip. He couldn't help but let out a yelp of pain. At the same time he instinctively let go, he looked down and found a small tuft of soft white fur stuck to his palm, "..."

Just then, the rapid clatter of hooves—"Da da da da—" sounded from outside the church.

The three turned to look and saw a white steed stop outside the church. Before the horse had even fully settled, the knight had already dismounted, travel-worn but with a sharp, imposing aura.

He strode straight through the door, his black cape billowing.

"Young Master Leslie." His gaze locked onto the target immediately, his voice low and powerful. "So you are indeed here."

It was Captain Roy of the Black Cavalry.

His commanding, imposing presence made the church so quiet you could hear a pin drop. After speaking, he glanced briefly at the church's owner, Shu Li, nodded politely, reservedly, and without familiarity, then strode towards Leslie.

"I am ordered to take you home."

Leslie stiffened suddenly.

He had known this day would come. After all, he had been away from home for nearly half a month.

But his gaze slowly moved away from Roy. He lowered his eyelashes and didn't want to speak.

Just then, Finnian, standing next to Father Alis, gave him a gentle smile, as if genuinely happy for him: "Great, someone's finally here to take you home."

Leslie stared coldly at Finnian, unwilling to speak.

He realized Finnian was right. Someday, they would indeed come to blows.