Life in a Simulation - Chapter 20

One day in early winter, in November, as the year was drawing to a close, Zhou Ming, along with over a thousand farmers from Granling, was dispatched by the lord to the Saint Maern Monastery, located over a hundred miles to the south of the territory, to perform a month-long “charity work” for the Church.

This form of “charity work” was similar to the three days of weekly labor the farmers provided for the lord during the busy farming season, essentially a form of unpaid, obligatory labor, only now the recipient was the Church.

Incredibly, however, none of the farmers in the territory were averse to this “charity work.” In fact, some were so enthusiastic that upon hearing about the opportunity, they would cheer and eagerly pack their belongings, ready to head to the monastery without any prompting from the lord.

After a two-day journey to Saint Maern Monastery and just one day of work, Zhou Ming understood why the farmers were so fond of charity work.

The spacious and bright cathedral, the clean and tidy accommodations, the free hot water in the bathhouse, and the three delicious and warm meals a day…

There were also the priests and monks who walked among the farmers with eyes full of compassion, praying for these lost sheep and soothing their souls with gentle words, making the place feel as comfortable as heaven… even though the workload each day was not light.

“Indeed, there is a reason why the Church in this world is above the king. In terms of winning people’s hearts, the Church is far ahead of the lords by a wide margin!”

This also explained why, during years of bountiful harvests, farmers did not store the extra grain and bread but instead sent it all to the monastery.

It was not hard to understand why many elderly farmers, after years of hard work, did not leave their accumulated wealth to their descendants but donated it all to the Church in the hope of ascending to “heaven.”

It was not that these farmers were ignorant or foolish; rather, the lords of this world oppressed and exploited them so harshly that they had no sense of security regarding their private property. It was better to give it all to the Church for spiritual solace than to have it taken away by the lords through various means.

During the breaks, while participating in collective prayers, Zhou Ming saw the farmers prostrating themselves on the ground with utmost devotion and understood that to conquer this world, the Church, which had won the support of the vast majority of the common people, was a more formidable enemy than the lords.

The power of the people is great, and Zhou Ming had never doubted this. However, facing these farmers who had been indoctrinated by the Church and frequently organized for collective prayers, he knew that it was impossible to shake this power with brute force alone.

Moreover, seeing the exquisite reliefs and colorful patterns on the walls and ceilings of the monastery, as well as the vast collection of parchment books in the library, Zhou Ming realized that the Church not only monopolized faith but also knowledge and art… and these things were more important than military power.

“Knowledge, I need to understand the knowledge of this world, as much as possible!”

After seeing the library, Zhou Ming, eager to arm his mind, earnestly pleaded with Sister Mary, who was in charge of the library, and after promising repeatedly not to damage the books, he finally obtained her consent to enter the library.

Gently pulling out a thick parchment book similar to an Oxford Dictionary from the shelf, Zhou Ming eagerly began to flip through it.

On the pages, the letter characters, resembling tadpoles, were mostly unfamiliar to him, with only a few dozen recognizable.

“I should have asked Lady Madeline to teach me some basic education. She knows many characters. If she could help me get started and teach me these phonetic scripts, I wouldn’t be unable to read them.”

Unfortunately, he had made the wrong choice, and there was no chance to ask Madeline for help again… He did not want to run into her son, Edward, in the castle.

“Child, what are you doing?”

At that moment, an elderly man dressed in a gray robe and with a kind smile on his face had quietly stood behind him.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Father Robert. I was just looking at this book. I’ll put it back right away!”

Zhou Ming recognized the old man; he was Father Robert, who had been standing at the altar leading the prayers during the past few days—a compassionate priest with great prestige among the faithful.

“No need, child. I see the thirst for knowledge in your eyes. Would you like to understand this book?”

Father Robert smiled, his magnetic voice carrying a soothing power.

“Yes, Father, I really want to know what the beginning of this book means, the first page, the first paragraph.”

Zhou Ming feigned eagerness, placing the book in front of the priest and looking at him intently, hoping for enlightenment.

“The meaning of this passage is: ‘In the name of the divine, with messengers below, it is hereby declared to all people that in the beginning, the heavens were dark, and the earth was formless and void. The divine spirit moved upon the face of the waters, and the divine said, ‘Let there be light…'”

Father Robert was more than happy to guide this lost lamb to find his way forward from the sacred scripture, the “Book of the Holy Father.”

Time flew by swiftly.

An entire night had passed, and the candle had burned down to its end. In this one night, Zhou Ming had managed to memorize four hundred words.

“Child, your talent amazes me. You have learned in one night what others take half a year to grasp.”

Father Robert expressed his astonishment. He had taught many students, some of whom were quite intelligent, but none had been able to understand more than ten pages of the “Book of the Holy Father” in just one night like Zhou Ming.

This child must have a special connection with the divine; he could very well be a divine apostle who has strayed to the mortal world. In fact, this child even had the potential to become his priestly squire.

However…

The child’s eyes did not seem to hold that kind of devotion and piety towards the divine; he was simply very interested in those written characters.

“Reverend Father Robert, may I come again tomorrow? Can I learn more from you about the ‘Book of the Holy Father’?”

Zhou Ming, his excitement still evident on his face, looked at Father Robert expectantly.

“You may, child, as long as you are willing to come.”

Father Robert smiled kindly. As the most devout servant of the divine, he would not forsake even the most unremarkable lost lamb, even if that lamb was not yet pious enough.

“Thank you, Father. Thank you so much!”

…

For the following half month, no matter how tired he was from working during the day, Zhou Ming would come to the library on time every evening to seek Father Robert’s guidance.

In just over twenty days, he was able to understand the Church’s sacred scripture, the “Book of the Holy Father,” which had a vocabulary of tens of thousands of words, and he recognized more than 90% of the characters within it.

“God! This child’s talent is truly extraordinary. If he were to become my squire, he would surely inherit my mantle and pass on my devotion and understanding of the divine…”

“But…”

“This child is the son of a common farmer. Even if he were to inherit my mantle, he would face suppression and exclusion within the Church…”

Father Robert was tempted, but very hesitant. Just like the knightly class, the monastic class mainly originated from the nobility, with very few coming from common backgrounds. Only in the poorest and most remote dioceses did priests from common origins have a slim chance of rising to prominence.

For example, Father Robert himself came from a fallen noble family that had lost its title. After serving Saint Maern Monastery diligently for over twenty years, he was still just a Blessing Elder, ranking seventh or eighth in the monastery’s hierarchy and facing severe exclusion. If it were Little Layne…

In the end, Father Robert still dismissed the idea.

Zhou Ming was unaware that an opportunity to change his destiny had just slipped through his fingers. However, having acquired a great deal of knowledge and receiving a handwritten notebook from Father Robert, he felt that the trip had been immensely rewarding on the way back to Granling.

“If there is another chance to do charity work in the future, I must seek Father Robert’s guidance on more questions!”

Having found a ladder to the hall of knowledge, Zhou Ming naturally wanted to climb higher through this ladder.

Life in a Simulation - Chapter 20

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Hate that cliffhanger, don’t you?

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