The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 836 Velasco
The prison where the missionaries were held was filled with the stench of straw and excrement.

The unique body odor of the red-haired barbarians mixed with the smell of feces and urine around them made people extremely uncomfortable.

Missionary Velasco had been detained in such a harsh environment for three days.

Three days ago, Velasco was the rector of the Paulist Society's Huguang Diocese and the director of the Daqi Qintian Observatory.

He was specifically responsible for helping the royal family observe the stars. Although the Imperial Astronomical Observatory was not a lucrative job, the government affairs were easy and he had plenty of time. He did not have to participate in complicated political struggles and could live a leisurely and comfortable life.

The change happened during the recent celebration of Empress Dowager Cisi.

The youngest son of the empire's founder Liu Zhaosun, King of Han Liu Qian, was impeached by the censors because the gifts he presented to his mother were far below the standards expected of a prince.

In addition to the issue of vassalage, the King of Han was criticized by his brother, Emperor Guangde, on the charge of being unfilial.

Being deserted by his friends and relatives, the little prince, who was most favored by the retired emperor, quickly lost his power. A number of missionaries and officials of the Imperial Observatory who were previously close to the King of Han were implicated and imprisoned one after another.

Velasco was one of them.

It would be difficult for an ordinary person to survive for more than two days in this dark prison, let alone an elderly missionary.

However, Velasco held out for three days.

The reason why the Suoyi Guard arrested the missionaries was that Velasco had told the King of Han about Christian doctrines and incited the young prince to betray his teacher and ancestors.

Tianzhu Sect was banned in Da Qi.

Since yesterday, Velasco has begun to calculate the probability of being executed or released by the Qi people.

Catholicism was not allowed in the Great Qi under the rule of Emperor Guangde.

Although this was completely legal during the reign of the Emperor.

Since Emperor Guangde ascended the throne, he took advantage of his father's bloody battles on the frontier and calmly changed many of the empire's policies.

Emperor Guangde had a natural aversion to Europe, not because of so-called racism. Besides the fact that his father had imposed the daughter of the King of Sweden on him, which made him feel uncomfortable, Liu Kan was most worried that the vassal kings would collude with foreigners and do things that would threaten his throne.

In recent years, the Great Qi had made great achievements in artillery casting, astronomy, and calendar science, especially in cannon and gun making, surpassing Europe in technology. The empire's desire for European civilization was no longer as urgent as it had been during the reign of the Emperor.

In other words, most of the Europeans stranded in the empire were no longer of much value.

This is the fundamental reason why Emperor Guangde excluded the red-haired barbarians and announced a ban on religion in the country.

The development of events also confirmed Emperor Guangde's concerns.

The emperor's younger brother, King Liu Qian of Han, ignored his brother's ban on missionary work and summoned Velasco repeatedly.

According to the report of the Suoyi Guard, the content of Liu Qian's conversation with the Spanish missionary included the climate and ethnic groups in Europe, military training, and bastion construction. The two had a very pleasant conversation and often talked until dawn.

As a result, Belasco was thrown into the imperial prison, charged with colluding with the princes and using astronomical phenomena to mislead the people and plot rebellion.

He was sentenced to beheaded.

~~~~~~~
"If I'm released, it means I can still be useful to the emperor of this country, such as in astronomy and calendar, or in diplomacy."

Velasco comforted himself by thinking that after the empire conquered Annan, the Nanzheng army intended to continue advancing towards Manila.

There were a considerable number of Spanish soldiers stationed in Manila. The communication between the Qi army and the Spanish army required someone to act as a bridge. Velasco, the director of the Imperial Observatory, was undoubtedly the best candidate.

The missionaries knew that this barbaric and warlike country needed them, and needed them to spread the gospel of God to its ignorant people.

Unfortunately, Velasco missed the best time to preach in Qi. That was more than 30 years ago, when Taizu established this regime. At that time, the territory of the empire was far from being as vast as it is today.

However, at that time, both the emperor himself and the civil and military officials of Tianxin City were very interested in European affairs. Even the monks and Taoists near the capital expressed interest in learning about the Lord who was crucified.

Later, with the frequent wars and the competition for maritime trade between the imperial army and European countries, the relationship between the empire and European countries became increasingly tense, and developed from commercial competition to military competition and competition between colonies.

The world in the seventeenth century could not exist without the European countries, nor could it exist without the Great Qi Empire.

What connects East and West are the teachings of the Velasco faith.

Another episode in the celebration of Empress Dowager Cisi was the gifts presented by European powers. In the eyes of the conservative and stubborn Emperor Guangde, this was a provocation, a naked provocation to the power of the empire.

A black shadow scurried past the missionary's feet. It was a rat crawling over from other cells. Judging from its red eyes, these rats had recently devoured human flesh.

"Lord, please take me out of this hell."

Velasco crossed himself in front of his stained prison uniform.

Hearing footsteps in the distance, Belasco quickly adjusted his mood and forced a smile on his face. He used to be an official of the Imperial Observatory and knew the importance of appearance.

The cell door creaked, and sunlight climbed into the damp and cold cell through the skylight, shining on the missionary's dirty face.

Two jailers in black official uniforms covered their noses and looked inside.

"get out!"

Velasco suppressed his anger and struggled out of the prison door, dragging his cold anklets.

The missionary's smile remained unchanged, but his steps were a little unsteady. He spoke fluent Henan dialect and asked nervously:

"Excuse me, officers, am I going to be released?"

"Take it!"

After the red-haired barbarian walked out of the prison, the jailer impatiently closed the door.

"Go wash up! There's someone waiting outside!"

A jailer stopped and pointed to the courtyard of the Pacification Office, which was separated from the imperial prison by a wall.

The sun filled the entire courtyard. On the bluestone slab in the center of the courtyard stood a large vat filled with clean water, with two buckets beside it. A few steps away, on a mat, lay a stack of clean clothes and a pair of official boots.

"Go get cleaned up!"

Bathing like this in public is extremely disrespectful.

Velasco hesitated and did not move forward.

The jailer pushed him impatiently: "Hurry!"

The missionary stumbled and his legs were still shaking when he got up. He had heard that some death row prisoners needed to take a bath and change clothes before execution because the officials supervising their execution were very powerful. It would be disrespectful if the prisoners' stench disturbed the officials.

"Am I going to be beheaded?"

"Hahahaha!" The jailer laughed loudly, and the creepy laughter echoed in the corridor:
"Red-haired barbarian, you're afraid now! You weren't like this when you instigated the King of Han to rebel!"

Without saying a word, Velasco walked silently to the water tank and began to slowly wash himself under the supervision of two jailers.

(End of this chapter)