Crusade against the Pope

Chapter 424 A Day in the Life of Garys

They rode in a carriage back to the newly built palace at the foot of the Temple Mount. After having a simple meal, Garys went to take a bath.

He washed off the dirt and dust on his body, and also tried to wash away the blood that had stained him over the past six months.

However, no matter how he washed, he only felt more tired. After finishing his bath, he fell on his bed and fell into a deep sleep.

When he woke up the next day, Gaillis felt that his wife and daughter were so cute that he couldn't help but kiss his wife's forehead in his arms.

Then, I started to busy myself for the whole day.

The first thing is naturally to wash up.

Through Garys' unremitting efforts, he has successfully used a boar bristle toothbrush and a toothpaste made from glycerin, shell powder, sea salt and other substances.

Glycerin is not a difficult chemical to produce. In fact, it was originally a by-product of soap production.

Garys had forgotten many details of his previous life, but he was sure that a boar bristle toothbrush was harder than a nylon toothbrush.

Moreover, it has poor resilience, is easy to bend, and will have some odor after long-term use.

Basically it needs to be replaced once a month.

Although it is still impossible to promote such luxury goods nationwide at present, for Garys, they are already basic daily necessities.

The closer daily necessities are to future generations, the more sense of accomplishment Gérice feels.

After washing up, another servant brought breakfast.

The food for the meal was relatively simple, just an egg, porridge made from bread crumbs and cabbage leaves, and a cup of coffee.

The taste is not good, but it is not bad either. At least it is clean and healthy.

The current royal palace in Jerusalem is not actually very luxurious or huge, it is more like a mansion.

In terms of land area, even with the garden, it only covers a few hundred square meters. Now it has been completely stripped of its administrative attributes, leaving only the part for living needs.

This is also related to the current political ecology of the kingdom.

Although the Kingdom of Jerusalem still retains a monarchy, Gelis itself has an influence that transcends secular regimes.

But the Kingdom of Jerusalem was not a dictatorship in the strict sense.

The basic workings of its politics, in most cases, rely on governments and parliaments at all levels.

Whether it is Gérice or Isabella, if they want to influence national policies and the direction of progress, most of the time, they also indirectly express their views through the group of parliamentarians or through mobilizing public opinion.

Rather than conveying instructions directly by giving orders.

Gellis himself has also worked hard to separate himself from the political level in order to build a political structure that can operate independently.

As far as the current situation is concerned, it can be said to be partially successful.

At least the palace was no longer considered a center of power, but just a residence.

Officials at all levels have their own superiors to report to, and they will not all come to ask Garys or Isabella.

When there is no need to deal with government affairs, Garys's day is actually quite leisurely.

The morning was basically spent reading books and newspapers to learn about what was happening in Jerusalem these days. In the afternoon, Gailis slipped out alone and wandered around the streets and alleys of the city.

This kind of wandering is not aimless.

More importantly, it gives Garys the opportunity to observe people directly without the help of any medium.

The holy city of Jerusalem is a city that is always bustling with people and has no shortage of pilgrims.

This was especially true after Garys recaptured the city.

During the Old Kingdom of Jerusalem, although Christian pilgrims flourished, the number of Muslim pilgrims was never large.

This is because after the Crusaders conquered Jerusalem, they believed that the magnificent Al-Aqsa Mosque was Solomon's Temple and forcibly converted it to other uses.

The name of the Knights Templar, the Temple, also comes from this.

In addition, the Al-Aqsa Mosque was also used as the royal palace of the former Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was during the reign of Baldwin III that part of the mosque was granted to the Knights Templar to serve as the headquarters of the order.

This was undoubtedly a humiliation for the Islamic world, and the first thing Saladin did after conquering Jerusalem was to clean the mosque with rose water.

When Gairis recaptured Jerusalem, although some people in the kingdom proposed to use the mosque as a royal palace again, Gairis refused.

The reason is clear. Since Saladin and successive Islamic rulers have never destroyed the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, out of the principle of mutual respect, there is naturally no need to interfere with the holy places of Muslims.

In addition, Ghairis clearly admitted that he inherited the aspirations of the Prophet Muhammad, so the holy place for Muslims should naturally be the holy place of the Jerusalem sect. If it is used as a royal palace, it would not be in line with the religious spirit.

Therefore, the building's function as a mosque was retained and a relevant committee was established to operate it.

With the religious sentiments of Muslims being satisfied, more pilgrims came to Jerusalem.

In fact, the reason why many pilgrims come to the Holy Land is no longer simply to perform the Hajj.

The emergence of newspapers and the "cheap" books brought about by the popularization of printing not only benefited the residents of the kingdom, but were also regarded as commodities themselves by many merchants and began to be shipped abroad.

As the only country in the entire western part of Eurasia that could provide a large number of cheap books, the Kingdom of Jerusalem did not make much gold and silver from it.

Yet it has achieved unparalleled cultural influence.

Many stories about Jerusalem are circulated in many places, including the Mediterranean coast, the two rivers of Syria, the Red Sea, and the Indian Ocean.

In those stories, Jerusalem became a place where wealth gathered, a treasure land where countless people made their fortunes, and there are many myths and legends about it.

For a time, this place became a golden city and a city of dreams.

Coupled with Jerusalem's already strong religious influence.

A steady stream of outsiders are pouring into this city and this country, bringing vitality and wealth.

Even though the Holy Land is currently at war, the streets of Jerusalem are not at all deserted.

Apart from the occasional mention of the war in the Sinai Peninsula, everyone always has their own topics to talk about, whether it is about their own livelihood, their children's studies, or the prices of many commodities.

But overall, Jerusalem is not busy. After all, it is not a city known for its handicrafts.

According to the later definition, this place should be considered a tourist city.

(End of this chapter)