Saint Laurent Prison Warden

Chapter 137: Testing and Confrontation
Joe Maile...

Richard remembered it all at once.

The media was divided into two camps over the debate on whether the Silver Cross should be awarded to him.

Among them, the group supporting the award was obviously smaller in number, but they were extremely enthusiastic in speaking out. They published articles at every turn, and could publish five, six, seven, or eight articles a day. There was even a time when the public had the illusion that the number of people supporting the award was greater than the other side.

This is not the case. In fact, most people think that since Richard himself said he did not deserve the Silver Cross, it would be a normal option to cancel his Silver Cross and give him another honor.

However, the voices of those in the media who supported awarding the medal were so loud that the debate was forced to continue until Dean Hank was assassinated, and they used this incident to turn the tables and allow the Silver Cross Medal to continue to be awarded.

Richard had always been wondering why these people, who had no relationship with him at all, insisted on awarding him the Silver Cross.

Later, Dean Hank gave him some advice during a conversation, and he finally understood.

Those who stand on his side are essentially neo-liberals who advocate individualism.

This is an emerging group that emphasizes "liberation of the mind, personal interests above the collective, unity of power, and elite supremacy". Its members are mainly young people with strong talents, representing the new generation of power in the Silver City-State.

They were all five-ring mages who had risen in the past hundred years. They had enough force, but they did not have the power that matched their force. Their common desire for power made them stick together involuntarily. Most of the young people, including Xingge, were members of this faction. So they were not actually helping Richard, but Xingge.

Helping Richard is just a way for them to stick together for warmth.

However, this kind of help based on interests should be limited, but this is not the case for Qiao Maili.

In the debate a while ago about whether he was qualified to receive the Silver Cross, Qiao Meili clearly stood on Richard's side, debated with many people in the newspaper, and criticized those who did not want to award Richard the Silver Cross.

He was very active in gossip media such as "Rose Digest", "Silver Age Weekly" and "Rainbow Daily", and debated ruthlessly with a group of master legends. His words were sharp and merciless, and he didn't care whether those he offended would be retaliated against, just like a sword drawn from its sheath.

Qiao Maili's level of activity even made many people wonder if he was paid by Richard to speak for him.

If Richard really wanted the Silver Cross Medal, then needless to say, Qiao Maili should be his great benefactor, and it would not be excessive for Richard to kowtow to her.

The problem is, Richard doesn't actually want the Silver Cross!
This thing is a hot potato for Richard. Although it tastes good, it carries huge risks.

There are currently no flaws in Mr. Capa's cover-up of him, but as long as any evidence of his treason is found, the Silver Cross will turn into a bomb and kill him.

As one of the highest honors of the Silver City-State, the Silver Cross is sacred and important.

Celebrities can have their reputations ruined, but the recipients of the Silver Cross cannot. If the news of Richard’s reputation ruined were to be exposed, it would be a slap in the face of the entire Nine Rings Magician Senate.

No one in the Nine Rings Magician Senate would allow the winner of the Silver Cross to have any stain. If there is any stain, they will definitely destroy the winner and his past completely before the stain is exposed to ensure the winner is flawless.

But no matter what, the Silver Cross Medal was already in Richard's hands, and the established facts could not be changed. Richard had to pretend to be very happy and grateful to Qiao Meili.

So Richard suddenly became enthusiastic.

"So you are Teacher Qiao Maili! Oh my God. Teacher Qiao Maili, I am your fan. I have read all your articles and comments in the media and newspapers.

You really, you really hit the nail on the head.

To be honest, I always felt that I was not worthy of the Silver Cross. But your editorials and articles made me realize that I do not represent myself, Richard, but a symbol of thousands of good men who take care of women and are willing to sacrifice their lives for women. It is not me who received the Silver Cross, but the purest love.

Thank you for speaking out for me and pure love in the media. I never thought we would meet under such circumstances.

Please forgive me for being rude to you just now. How could a man with a noble soul like you lay hands on a young girl?

You support me so much, which means you must be the kind of pure love warrior who is willing to die for pure love. We are natural allies. "

Seeing Richard's attitude suddenly change 180 degrees, Qiao Meili was very satisfied. He straightened his collar and said with a smile:

"That's right, this is my true role model. Mr. Richard, I have always considered myself a man, but I have seen too many dirty men in reality.

They were rude, cruel, selfish, and shameless, which even made me disgusted with my own identity as a man.

But after I heard about your deeds, I suddenly realized that you are a real man, a role model that I and all men should learn from.

It is not great to block the shackles of the stigmata. What is great is the moment when you voluntarily give up the Silver Cross for the Lord of Star Song City. At that moment, true love defeated honor and wealth and became a dazzling light that illuminated the darkness.

As you said, we are all pure love warriors and allies with the same values. So what you mean is that you are willing to go back to Rainbow City with me and accept the title of [Friend of the Rose]? "

"No. I didn't say that." Richard said quickly: "If you really mind my offense to you just now, then I will express my apology in another way in exchange for your forgiveness, but I will definitely not go to Rainbow City with you."

"Why?" Qiao Meili frowned, looking very unhappy. "Could it be that even you, Richard, are prejudiced against our Rose Union like those dirty guys?

Yes, I admit that there were some extreme individuals in our Rose Union who did some extreme things for a while. But we have cleaned up our internal affairs, and those extreme elements are dead or alive and no longer pose any threat. The Rose Union is now a very harmonious organization, and there will no longer be any persecution of biological men. "

"No...it's not a question of whether I'm scared or not." Richard rubbed his nose.

He had 1000 reasons to refuse the title of Friend of the Rose, but he couldn't say any of them. Either they were too rude or they were related to his own shameful secrets.

Fortunately, Richard had already thought of an excuse to deal with this situation.

He adjusted his expression and gave Qiao Maili an extremely sunny and bright smile.

"I don't want roses, only titles, simply because I don't want to go to Rainbow City. Because Xingge is here.

You know, I am now a useless person without magic. This world is too dangerous for me. Without the protection of magic, I may die at any time in any insignificant conflict.

Therefore, I have decided to spend the rest of my life guarding the City Lord Xingge without leaving her side. Wherever she is, there is love, and wherever love is, there I am."

Qiao Meili: ...

"Wow! So romantic." "Teacher Richard is so good at talking, I love him so much." The maids screamed excitedly. Only Diana looked at Richard with a sidelong look of disdain.

Qiao Maili stroked her forehead exaggeratedly and said in a deep voice: "So this is the reason. On the way here, I thought of many reasons why you rejected our title of Friend of the Rose. But I didn't expect it to be this.

That's right, you gave up the Silver Cross for the Lord of Xingge City, so it's normal for you to give up the title of Friend of the Rose. We were the ones who didn't think it through.

How about this. You wait for me for a while, I will build a Travel City branch of the Rose Federation in Travel City, and then I will personally present you with the title, that should be fine, right? "

Richard: ...

"Well, as far as I know, the Rose Federation does not have the habit of building branches in other cities..."

"Yes. Our Federation has many enemies. If we expand hastily, it will be very disadvantageous to our Rose Federation. Therefore, we are extremely conservative in our expansion into other cities.

But for you, we can make an exception. Richard, you are worth it."

"Ah? Me?" Richard pointed at his nose, feeling a little flattered. "Excuse me, I really don't understand why you want to give me the title of Friend of the Rose so much.

I know very well that I am just a useless person without any magic. If anything, the only thing of value is the Silver Cross on my chest."

"Because you are a symbol. A symbol of men sacrificing for women." Qiao Maili said:

"You underestimate yourself. You have always stayed in the City of Travel and have no idea how popular you are in the Silver City. You have become an excellent social role model, a representative of love and good men. The most affectionate person in the Silver City, the prince of dreams, the guardian of the stars... countless honors accompany you.

Our roses are just titles and will only be awarded to good men who have made significant contributions to women.

You don’t need the Friend of the Rose title, you already have the more valuable Silver Cross. But our Friend of the Rose title needs you to prove our worth.”

"Oh!" Richard understood.

"I understand what you mean. How about this, I will never leave the City of Travel, but if you really build a branch in the City of Travel, then I will come to your branch to receive the award. Is that okay?"

Qiao Maili smiled. "No problem, I'll go to the Lord of Xingge City to apply. But before that, I want to ask for your permission for something."

Qiao Meili looked at Diana and the maids, and said to Richard, "I have heard about your deeds from them and understood the whole process of your helping them.

These maids are either women or refugees from other places who came to the Silver City-State, and they have different skin colors and ethnicities.

This is absolutely true!

Whether from the perspective of protecting women or from the perspective of protecting minority groups, it should be vigorously promoted.

Mr. Richard, I would like to write a report about how you helped them, is that ok?"

"That's... not necessary." Richard quickly waved his hand to refuse. "I help these girls just because of my personal hobby, there's no need to publicize it.

If you write a report about our story, it will definitely have a bad impact on the lives of the little girls.

They have finally been able to lead a normal life, and I don’t want them to be pushed to the forefront by the media again.”

“This…this is such a pity.

Now, the three words "Richard" are the top names in the Silver City. Any news report that includes these three words can have a huge social impact.

Mr. Richard, do you know that if good deeds like yours were reported, it would help many women and refugees who are persecuted like you?

I have just obtained the consent of the maids, and they all hope that more people will know about your greatness and selflessness. You are the only one missing."

Qiao Mai Li blinked and hinted, “I could have done this without your consent, but I don’t want my behavior to disgust you.

If you are worried about affecting the maids, I will conceal their current situation and names as much as possible when reporting, to reduce the impact of the report on their lives. "

"No. Absolutely not." Richard refused more firmly. "If you report it, you won't be able to get the title of Friend of the Rose.

You say you want to protect women and minorities, but the people in front of you are women and part of minorities.

Isn't it putting the cart before the horse to protect others like them in a way that might be detrimental to them?"

"Okay. I'm sorry." Qiao Meili shrugged. He walked to Richard, chuckled, and said, "Although there were some misunderstandings when we first met, we got along pretty quickly overall. Mr. Richard, people like us who are pure in love are natural allies.

Would I have the honor of inviting you to dinner tonight? This place is still too public. I would like to find a more private place to discuss the true meaning of pure love with you. "

"No... Please allow me to refuse. It's not convenient for the two of us to be alone together." Richard said. "If others see it, it will get to Xingge's ears and easily cause misunderstanding."

"Why? We are all men, there's nothing inconvenient about it." Qiao Maili was very angry.

"Yes, we are both men, but I am a straight man and you are a man who likes men.

I'm a conservative and I don't think people of different sexualities should get too close. It doesn't matter if you're a man or a woman."

(End of this chapter)