Since the Accounting: A Chronicle of the Roman Khanate

Chapter 703 The Gray Patriarch is dead! The Gray Patriarch is dead! Now I will preside over the Holy Scripture
Before the plague arrived, the city of Cairo began to enforce various bans.

At first, most people were dismissive of this. Even Guo Kang's followers and the Romans in the army didn't really care.

In the previous plagues, the Egyptians responded by taking the fight head-on. Everyone must have tried every possible method. Although Guo Kang's various methods saved many people, the name of the Black Death was still too horrifying.

In Europe, the Black Death had an impact on religion and culture. It may not be so exaggerated in Egypt, but most people are still helpless in the face of the plague and can only leave it to fate. Therefore, in the eyes of many people, his response will probably end in failure, just like the various prayers and rituals of the sultans before.

Moreover, the regulations issued by the higher authorities have very strict requirements for various matters. Eating, working, and praying are all restricted. Everyone always feels that this kind of rules is too troublesome, so there has never been much enthusiasm.

However, despite various preventive measures, the plague quickly spread to the crowded city of Cairo. In less than half a month, the effects of these measures were fully demonstrated.

The speed of the Black Death's spread and its lethality were too horrifying. It didn't take long for those poorly managed and unprepared urban areas to begin to see large numbers of deaths.

The situation is obviously much better in places with stricter management, especially in the newly built communities on the other side of the river, which are separated by ditches and canals and people only move around on the construction site, almost cutting off direct contact with the outside world, and even no deaths have occurred.

Guo Kang also formulated a series of strict regulations, further subdividing each block into different areas. He wrote down what functions each area was responsible for and what operations were required for entry and exit, and required everyone to strictly implement them.

Before that, he spent a lot of money to buy a lot of cloth and stockpiled a lot of fuel. Patrol duty personnel, material delivery personnel, even doctors caring for patients and priests presiding over funerals, all had to wrap their bodies with cloth and cover their mouths and noses with thick gauze pads. After work, these things had to be thrown into a big pot and boiled in boiling water, saying that this was the only way to eliminate toxins.

At this time of year, the weather in Egypt has started to get hot. Wearing clothes that do not reveal any skin, and having to cover your face with this thing is very troublesome. Even if everyone is used to wearing burqas and headscarves, it is still a bit uncomfortable to be wrapped up so tightly. However, Guo Kang explained that ancient philosophers have studied that the cause of the Black Death is that something polluted the air. So no matter how uncomfortable it is, you must wear this protective gear to work.

Judging from the results, these methods are indeed effective. In Cairo, because the plague is too frequent, everyone has an impression of the previous situation. In comparison, this time is indeed much better. However, there are still some priests who are worried about this.

This concern is no longer about whether the measures are effective, but about the doctrine: Guo Kang's measures are very strict, but he does not give a logical explanation. At present, his evidence only consists of some remarks taken from ancient sages. It can be said that the whole system was figured out by him, and then forced everyone to implement it. This is too much like a commandment, rather than an ordinary hygiene standard.

It is impossible for people to follow so many sets of rules at the same time, especially some rules related to gatherings, which conflict with the current rules. If this continues, if it succeeds, then everyone will follow his rules. The believers will probably be more convinced of his requirements.

However, these measures were indeed effective, and everyone had no better solution. They hesitated for a while, and then thought of the prestigious Elder Nasreddin who happened to be in the city, so some of them sneaked out and wanted to visit him.

For safety reasons, Elder Nasreddin was specially arranged in a separate courtyard in the city. Every day, the staff would distribute food and water to everyone, and no one else was allowed to come and go.

There were several large pots near the street corner, all of which were used by Guo Kang's men. On weekdays, not only the disinfection work, but also the drinking water had to be boiled before drinking. Therefore, there were many places in the city with blazing fires, which looked smoky from a distance.

Several priests took the opportunity to sneak to the front of the courtyard and began to knock on the door. Soon, the elder's voice came from inside: "Who is it?"

"It's me, Aziz." The leading priest replied quickly, "We came to see you and want to discuss something with you. Can you let us in?"

"You can talk at the door." Elder Nasreddin quickly stopped them: "Don't rush over here next time. It's not safe."

"It's okay, we know these people's working hours. They are going to lunch now," the priest told him.

“I mean the plague is unsafe.” Elder Nasreddin said helplessly, “The Black Death doesn’t care about working hours or lunch.”

Seeing that he just didn't want to open the door, the priests had no choice but to speak through the wall: "It's like this, we feel that everyone hasn't held collective prayers for a long time. The activities in the mosque have been forcibly stopped by the Romans. Every time we protest, they say it's to prevent the plague and they have no choice but to do so, so let us endure it for a while. But it can't always be like this, right?"

"You have a good relationship with the Romans. They respect you and are willing to listen to your advice. Could you please take the lead and help us talk to the Romans to resume our prayer activities?"

“We can always pray,” Elder Nasreddin explained. “I pray every day at home.”

"This is different from a public event." The priests still tried to persuade him: "It will be more beneficial for everyone to have a wise man like you lead the worship. In this more formal and solemn occasion, our prayers can also have a better effect on the believers and be taken care of by Hu Da."

"You are too kind to me. But I think praying on my own is also very effective." Elder Nasreddin paused, as if thinking for a moment, and said, "I have been praying like this, and I should have received Hu Da's care - perhaps more than you guys."

"Oh? You are indeed not an ordinary person!" The priests asked hurriedly, "What inspiration did He give you, or what gift did He bestow upon you?"

"He gave me enough wisdom," Elder Nasreddin replied, "to let me choose to follow proper hygiene rules instead of acting recklessly! Do you have this wisdom?"

"Uh……"

The priests felt that they could not hide it from him, so they had to explain their concerns in detail. However, Elder Nasreddin thought that these things could be discussed after the plague.

He also believed that this measure was probably Guo Kang's own idea, and even the entire action might have been promoted and arranged by him. It was very rare for one person to arrange such a large project. Such a person would not act recklessly. Then, he must have had corresponding ideas.

During the plague, everyone should try to suppress the Black Death first. If it can be done, then there will be no problem with his method, and the follow-up matters will also be discussed. As for the specific situation, as long as the plague is over, we will know it all.

The priests had no choice but to disperse.

The elder's judgment was indeed very reasonable. The entire plan to fight the Black Death was indeed carried out by Guo Kang almost alone.

After all, people of this era lacked relevant knowledge. In theory, this was not a fatal problem - in the late Qing Dynasty, a scholar with knowledge, with the cooperation of the court, could also lead officials and people who had no knowledge of modern medicine to defeat the plague.

The problem is, Egypt's "basic organization"... Comparing it with the late Qing Dynasty is an insult to the Qing Dynasty...

The people here lack discipline, and the ability of government officials is also worrying. Guo Kang must make a very detailed plan and constantly reiterate various precautions to everyone. When encountering problems, he often needs to personally lead people to the front line to investigate and deal with them. Even in a real war, the highest commander would probably not "micro-manage" to this extent.

The result was that even a workaholic like Guo Kang couldn't hold on any longer.

More than half a month later, Guo Kang himself fell ill.

He dispersed everyone around him and did not allow anyone else to visit him to prevent infection. Only his assistant Wu Han, as a priest, would regularly bring him food and drinks. After hearing the news, Meltem, Joanna and others ran to the door, but Guo Kang did not allow them to come in.

Wu Han felt that this was a bit inhumane, but Guo Kang said that this was all for a better future for everyone.

"The current progress is pretty good." Guo Kang explained to him: "No matter whether I can survive this time, we should be able to win the war against the plague. Father and Brother Heaven will not abandon us. Even if I am not here, we can continue to work hard and defeat the attack of the Black Death."

"This is the first time after all. So, everything I do during this period will become a model for the future. If I relax and allow them to visit, then others will also feel that meeting with patients is something that can be accommodated. In this way, our ban will be relaxed soon. On the contrary, although it may seem blunt, I am telling everyone that even I have to abide by the rules when I am in quarantine. In this way, at least I can set a better example for everyone."

"Hey, you're already sick, and you're still thinking about these things..." Wu Han said helplessly through the curtain, still wearing a mask, with a buzzing sound in his mouth.

"I think about this because it is indeed more important than my illness." Guo Kang shook his head.

"The Black Death is indeed very serious. Once you get sick, it's hard to predict whether you will live or die. Otherwise, there would be no need to go through so much trouble." He sighed: "But for humans, there are indeed some things that are more important than life and death."

"Logically, no one likes death, because it is the instinct of all living things. However, humans have more intelligence than other creatures. Therefore, people's emotions towards death are not just instinctive fear." "In addition to the disgust and fear brought by animal nature, some people have more complex fears because of human nature. Many dignitaries pursue immortality because they hope to enjoy their power and wealth for a longer time without being ended by death. For these people, death is indeed not a good thing; but on the other hand, there are also many people who even want to end their lives early because their lives are too miserable. This kind of suicidal behavior may exist in animals, but it is probably not so common. This should not be in the category of instinct, but is produced in human society."

"In different civilizations, people have different understandings of death. For example, compared to the Han people, the Indians seem to be less attached to the present world. In early Buddhism, there is an important concept called 'Nirvana', which means jumping out of the cycle of reincarnation. This concept was almost prepared for the Brahmanism of the time. Compared with the Brahmanism's way of improving caste in the next life through practice, it is easier for low castes to accept it."

"I don't quite understand what they are saying, but why don't people of lower castes seek to reincarnate as Brahmins?" Wu Han couldn't help but ask.

"Maybe it's because Brahmins also need to reincarnate." Guo Kang guessed.

"Uh……"

"Think about it, our Christianity even needs to have a special provision in its doctrine to prohibit believers from committing suicide. How far has this gone?" Guo Kang shook his head:

"So, resisting death, clinging to the present world, and being unable to accept that everything will return to nothingness after death is probably a kind of luxurious cultural state. For example, Epicurus believed that death is not worth fearing, and religious beliefs and gods are the source of fear. This is probably because if a person dies cleanly and the soul returns to nothingness, then it is actually relatively simple, because death and the situation afterward have nothing to do with the deceased. On the contrary, if the death is not clean, and the gods interfere with the world, causing the soul to fall into the hands of the gods, then it will be troublesome..."

"Is that so...the Indians and Greeks are a bit too miserable..." Wu Han sighed.

"Yeah, it's like the Warhammer world..." Guo Kang muttered softly:
"So, I think that compared to biological instincts, this part of human beings is more important and has a greater impact." He said, "Biological emotions do exist, but human emotions are much stronger and can be easily suppressed. The Central Plains people who are attached to the present world, after they determine that their value will remain and will not disappear into nothingness with death, will burst out with greater courage than the world-weary Indians and even the Mediterranean people who intend to commit suicide. Throughout history, there have been so many people who refused to turn back, probably because of this."

"As for myself, although the time is not long, I am not bragging, but I have done some things and have been working hard until now. Theoretically, it is not impossible to do more, but I am also very tired. Even if it ends here, it can't be called empty, and I won't feel that it is not worth it." He sighed: "So, I don't have anything to worry about. I should just take care of other people."

Wu Han didn't hear his muttering clearly, and didn't know whether he should ask or not. But Guo Kang had finished his long speech and didn't have much energy left. He asked Wu Han to put down the water and take a rest first, so he could catch his breath.

Guo Kang closed his eyes, and this time, he felt a familiar sense of rising again. Not long after, the sky brightened again. He sat up quickly and found that he seemed to have strength again. He looked up suddenly and saw a middle-aged man with long hair, looking down at him.

"Ah... why are you here again..."

"I was just asking you, how reckless are you?" The other person shook his head and said, "You are too reckless. But that's fine, I'll take this opportunity to borrow you to deal with the plague."

As he spoke, he pressed on Guo Kang's chest. Guo Kang felt a warm current flowing through him, and then he returned to his original state.

"Can this solve the plague directly?" Guo Kang asked in surprise, "Are you ready to take action?"

"Logically, I should have tried to avoid taking direct action. This time, if you had persisted, you should have been able to win." The long-haired middle-aged man thought for a moment and said, "However, even if you don't have much strength left, you shouldn't have fallen ill so quickly in your condition. I'm afraid the power of other guys has intervened."

"In that case, I will also help you, at least to solve the current problem. If you fall, it will be quite troublesome later..."

"Then...can you help a little more?" Guo Kang suggested.

"If I do too much, the other guys won't be able to stand it. You see, this time, I have to rely on you and do it secretly." The other party shook his head and said, "You still have to work harder on your own."

"You just said I was reckless," Guo Kang protested, "and I think I've worked hard enough. I don't know if I couldn't bear it this time because I had the plague, or if I worked myself to death."

"To be honest, I don't really want to work overtime." He suggested: "Why don't you find someone else and I'll retire early. I'm not bragging, but this time I feel like I'm pushing the administrative system of an entire province by myself... God, even if I have this kind of power, I can't hold on. Just let me die for a while."

"Oh, no, you still have so much work to do." The long-haired middle-aged man shook his head again and again: "Okay, you should go back to work quickly. Otherwise, your people will have to start working again."

"No, I really need to take a break this time." Seeing this, Guo Kang didn't want to give in anymore: "Look, I just said down there that I have done a lot of work, so I have tried my best."

"Hey, kid." The long-haired middle-aged man hesitated for a moment, showing a helpless expression, and finally said: "Okay, then there's no need to rush back. I'll talk to Mr. Li as well."

"However, now that you have completed your mission here, you can move on to the next place. As I told you before, my friend Xiaoya was the one who wanted to find you in the first place. In that case, I will send you to him now."

"Hey! Don't, don't!" Guo Kang was shocked: "Don't do that! Brother, I was just joking with you!"

"You said you didn't want to work overtime, and you said you had tried your best..." the middle-aged man with long hair reminded him.

"No, no, I can still work harder. My loyalty to Rome and this world will never end!" Guo Kang had already hugged the other's legs: "Oh, you are so generous--"

“Alright, alright, you scared me…” The long-haired middle-aged man quickly pushed him away: “Go back, go back.”

He pushed hard, and Guo Kang fell back from the floor that looked like clouds with a plop.

On the bed, Guo Kang rolled over and almost jumped up. From his chest, an almost invisible light quickly spread out.

But at this time, he himself did not notice this situation. Because outside the door, with the light, he could vaguely see a large group of people gathered, bustling around. Some were crying, some were shouting, in short, there was a lot of noise.

Wu Han and two deacons stopped them from entering. However, the large group of Russians still looked very excited and even pushed everyone else out of the way.

"We don't care about other holy objects. You must give us all the works on military system by brother Constantine." the leading man shouted.

"Don't get excited." Wu Han had to persuade him: "Besides, what do you want this for?"

"We are his soldiers." Big Ross wiped his tears, "He said that he would expand our army and recruit more people!"

"Yes!" A smaller man beside him also squeezed in and said, "We need to form more battle groups according to his rules! We are not being unreasonable. His related works are very important to us."

"It has to be the original text - to prevent deliberate omissions or tampering." Someone else shouted.

"Yes, it must be his own manuscript! We will pay for the publication and printing of it ourselves!"

Because of the layers of epidemic prevention curtains, people outside did not see Guo Kang had jumped up yet. Wu Han and others did not notice it yet. In order to prevent this group of people from making trouble, he could only respond and said that he would report to Patriarch Wang and transfer the money to them as soon as possible.

The Russians seemed quite satisfied with this. The leading strong man immediately turned around and faced the crowd.

"Everyone, listen up, those who just arrived, listen up too!" He shouted on behalf of the people around him, "Gray Patriarch is dead! Gray Patriarch is dead! Now I will preside over the Holy Scriptures and distribute them to everyone as soon as possible! Do you have any objections?"

Everyone responded and expressed their agreement loudly.

(End of this chapter)