Ten days later, a grand banquet was held at the Palace of Seville. The royal chef meticulously followed the method provided to them by Agape, using a series of steps such as soaking in salt water and drying in the sun to prepare a bumper harvest of pepper fruits. In order to show their flattery to the emperor and empress, the royal chefs worked hard and used all expensive and rare ingredients to create a perfect "pepper feast".
Sauces made from vinegar, fermented fish sauce, rue, pepper and honey are spread on kid, suckling pig, venison, beef, chicken, duck, goose and tender quail, while poultry is stuffed with pepper and dried fruits. , a sweet and spicy sauce drizzled with crisp vegetables; served with mulled wine made from pepper, honey, mint and thyme; and after the main meal, there is pepper wheat flour pie - stuffed with fish and lamb , and spice-roasted preserves topped with milky buffalo mozzarella.
Although Charles I liked simplicity and had no hobbies worth draining the treasury in his life, he had nothing to complain about this ancient Roman-style extravagant pepper banquet. This just shows that his investment in the plantation is completely worthwhile, and it is foreseeable that Spain will receive huge returns for this in the near future.
At the banquet, high-ranking officials and dignitaries rushed to attend. Many people were impatient and wanted to establish a good relationship with the future manager of the plantation. However, when they saw Agape standing next to the bishop of Burgos, and the stern and harsh old man looking at everyone with a critical look, no matter how courageous others were, they could not bear it. I'm about to shrink back.
"Compliments, boasts, flattery..." Juan Fonseca twisted his thin lips and spat out some harsh words, "Look at them, Agape! This is the environment you have to adapt to in the future. , the mediocre people you have to face. Although I don’t want you to see this, but the matter is here - His Majesty is likely to award you a title on the spot. In other words, you must step onto the political stage that belongs to you.
" Gapay touched the stiff collar uncomfortably, it tickled his neck, and turned the cuffs unfamiliarly to prevent the angular cufflinks from scratching the embroidery on the coat.
"I don't know," he whispered in embarrassment, "I don't have any background, I was just born in a small fishing village. I'm not even a noble, not even a commoner! I... from the bottom of my heart, I feel that I You don't belong here."
"Uh, little country bumpkin." The bishop looked like he wanted to roll his eyes, but because this behavior was very undignified, he restrained himself, "Yes, you were born in a small fishing village. Little slave, even though His Majesty the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire and all of Spain personally holds your hand and calls you a friend, even though his queen also admires you very much and wishes to take your daughter as her own, even though you Meet the Bishop of Burgos, who is here now, lecturing you like an annoying old man, oh, and, even though the Portuguese ambassador gave your daughter a gift at the royal wedding Diamonds worth the annual Spanish national tax - but yes! You are a little slave born in a small fishing village, that's all, I have no objection."
Agape: "...Ah, um, okay? "
This time the bishop failed to restrain himself.
At the banquet, the emperor's behavior did not escape the bishop's prediction. When the banquet reached its climax, with everyone toasting in celebration and praising the delicacies in front of them, Charles I stood up and loudly announced his decision.
——Agape was officially awarded the title of knighthood and the title of owner of the Seville Palace Plantation. From today on, he is not only an honorary citizen of Spain, but also its true viscount.
"Well, this is strange." Privately, Juan Fonseca said to himself, "I thought he was a baron."
At the same time, in Agape, accepting everyone's praise and blessings, And bathing in their envious, jealous, and disapproving gazes, Gerald stood in front of the greenhouse door and as expected saw the lax guards and some drunken flowers. Craftsman, gardener.
He had been keeping a close eye on Sherman's movements. Not long ago, his cousin took the initiative to deliver a private message to him, asking him to come to the greenhouse of the Seville Palace to meet him alone.
Not surprisingly, the banquet is in full swing right now, and the spicy aroma of pepper can pass through the moat. Everyone is immersed in the joyful mood of the emperor and queen, and naturally relaxes physically and mentally. Even the soldiers guarding here are slacking off, not to mention that there are A sincerely mischievous Scot, he was sure to use his silver tongue to persuade the crowd around the greenhouse to neglect their duties.
The tip of his nose moved slightly, and he suddenly smelled a familiar smell.
——Ripe sesame oil, a special product that will ignite a raging fire when rubbed with a little spark. It was also used during his raid on Molucca.
Gerald frowned and immediately rushed into the greenhouse. Under the dim sky, Sherman Scott was absentmindedly pouring oil on the pepper vines. A series of empty bottles were already hanging on his waist.
"You're here, cousin." Sherman greeted casually, "Look, I finally waited for the God-given opportunity. Everyone was enjoying themselves at the pepper banquet, and I, I just happened to be able to complete the task assigned to me by my cousin. We're here."
"The guards will be here soon," Gerald said. "You have no way to escape."
Sherman smiled: "You are still so dishonest. You agreed to come alone, so why did you secretly call the guards? ?"
"Put down the fire oil," Gerald threatened, "or I will kill you now. I will deal with the unnecessary matters after you die." The
black-haired young man casually took out the fire sickle from his arms and raised it , with a light tap, a spark burst out and was swept to the ground by the night wind.
"I don't doubt your strength, I know you can definitely do it, cousin." Sherman smiled, "But I'm not the kind of person who can just surrender. To tell you the truth, on the way here, I have arranged for a person - a passerby who you have no idea about and can't figure out who he is. I bribed him with a bag of gold, and as for this passerby, he doesn't have to do anything. He only needs to find Agape and then bring him back. A small note was handed to him, that's all."
His smile got bigger, the fire sickle made a flapping sound, and another spark floated down in the wind: "Guess, cousin, can you guess the note? What's written on it?"
Gerald's expression suddenly changed. He subconsciously turned around and ran into the banquet hall without taking a breath. He ran up to Agape and stared at everyone. Strangers approaching him. However, as soon as he turned around, his steps stopped in place.
Sherman is here. If he leaves, who else can control the fire immediately and kill the evil arsonist?
"You still have time," Sherman shrugged. The fire sickle kept ringing like a life-threatening bell. "We are a family. How could I not leave you a choice? I wish you all the best." You promise, as long as you run back now, you will have enough time to stop the note and prevent the identity from being exposed. Of course, you can also stay here and duel me, and prevent me from burning these peppers, um , healthy and perfect pepper."
"Now," Sherman looked at him with a smile, "What are you going to do, cousin?"
At this moment, Gerald's mind went completely blank.
The delaying measures had no effect. He could indeed shout "fire" while pulling out his bayonet and stabbing Sherman straight into the heart. But if he does this, Agape will surely know the truth by the time he returns to the banquet. How will his fate be different from death?
And he can also leave here now and stop that faceless, damn money-greeder from passing the note. But this was Agape's plantation, and Gerald had seen how he served them tirelessly, raising them like a child, and how he laughed heartily during the pepper harvest! They were his prospects, his future. Was he really going to abandon Agape's hard work and let it burn in the fire?
"What are you still hesitating about?" Sherman looked at him curiously. "I thought you would turn around and leave immediately without hesitation! After all, what do these peppers and cloves have to do with you? What does it have to do with your love? How much effort have you put in to get Agape to talk to you like a normal person? Do you want all this to be wasted?" He doesn't want to
, of course he doesn't! Gerald knew deeply how hard-won all of this was. He put on the disguise of a black crow and pretended to be another person, finally able to re-enter Agape's life. In extremely rare moments, he could even see a tiny smile slipping from Agape's lips. These moments, every second they spent together, were more precious than gold.
Sherman was right, Gerald should have turned around and left, letting the pepper and cloves burn in the fire. This was indeed a helpless choice. What's more, he still has money. He has plenty of money. Money can do almost everything in the world. As Black Crow, he wants to help Agape rebuild the plantation. In the end, Agape lost nothing, and he also kept his fatal true identity - it was completely the best of both worlds!
But, but.
For a thousandth of a second, Gerald could only think of one thing in a daze.
——Is this what love looks like? Weigh rationally, calculate coldly, and only consider your own gains and losses. Is this what love looks like?
There is no doubt that Agape will cry, grieve, and be heartbroken, and maybe he will even be depressed. God, his heart is so soft. A fire will burn many things, and Agape's heart will never survive it. In four years, he only did this one thing. This was his career, and at the same time, he relied on his sweat and hope.
"...Pull out your sword." Gerald said hoarsely, "Pull out your sword."
Sherman was stunned.
"What? You... you won't leave?"
In the gap between his words, Gerald unsheathed his sword and his black clothes fluttered in the wind. It really looked like the black crow in the legend of demons and ghosts that avenges the death of all living beings.
Seeing that the plan failed, Sherman only had time to force out a smile. He threw it with his backhand, and the sparks fell violently on the oil-soaked pepper vines, setting off a raging flame in an instant.
The two Scotts were fighting together, but Gerald was not afraid of death, as if he didn't know the pain, let alone the torn wounds - all the torture and torture he had experienced had raised his pain threshold to an astonishing level. high.
The tip of his sword was more like a poisonous snake, biting Sherman's chest, shoulders and neck one after another. The scorching fire rose rapidly, and Gerald roared: "Put out the fire! Someone come and put out the fire! The arsonist is here, I caught him!"
Sherman Scott is a smart man who assesses the situation, and smart people are not I will let myself die here in vain. Seeing that he could not parry someone who was more determined and powerful than him, Sherman chose to give up his left arm and swung five or six fierce swords in succession. This was not only a huge flaw, but also a move for aggressive attacks.
Gerald could not control his thirst for blood. In an instant, he rushed forward and cut his cousin's left arm with a sword, almost cutting off the entire arm. With this attack, Sherman endured the severe pain. , abandoned the sword and ran away from him, jumped over the burning flames in the blink of an eye, and escaped out of sight in the night.
At this time, the gardener and guards who put out the fire hurriedly arrived. They hurriedly scooped up water to put out the deadly flames. Only Gerald knew what to do in the most effective way. He cut the burning pepper vines and other pepper tangles in a few clicks, and tried his best to create a fire break to contain the spread of the fire.
Seeing that the disaster was under control, he dropped the sword in his hand without hesitation and ran towards the banquet hall. He forgot about his injuries and that he was still bleeding. Gerald rushed into the banquet hall and shouted crazily amidst the exclamations of everyone: "Where is Agape? Someone is setting fire to the plantation. !"
There was an uproar of fear, and some people fainted. In the chaos, the old bishop said in a deep voice: "He left! About half an hour ago, someone handed him a note, and he left." It was
too late. Apologizing to the emperor and empress, Gerald ran straight to the direction indicated by the bishop, asking the attendants along the way if they had seen Agape passing by. In this way, he rushed all the way to an empty palace, which should be a small ballroom. Marble columns covered with gold foil supported the observation deck on the second floor.
There was no one else inside, only a strange attendant, who stammered and looked at the crazy-looking Gerald with great fear.
"Where is he?!" Gerald lost all reason and tried to save the attendant's collar with murderous intent. "Where is Agape? What did you do to him!" "
Ah, Sir Gerald!" He stumbled and shouted, "I, I don't know! Please forgive me, I am also taking orders from others, and I am waiting for you here!"
Spare him? How could he be spared? Gerald was going crazy. Various possibilities were spinning in his mind. He didn't know what Sherman would do to Agape. He only knew that in order to anger himself and see that he was losing his temper, Scott was Can do anything!
"What did Sherman ask you to do? Say it, say it now!"
"I don't know Sherman, but someone wants me to ask you a question!" The attendant trembled all over and cried in fright, "He asked me to ask you, and also Do you remember...do you remember the whereabouts of the Eye of Taumas! Yes, that's right, that's the name! He also wants me to ask you, do you remember how you gave away that sapphire ring? Yes!"
Gerald's shoulders trembled, and he seemed to freeze.
Only then did he realize what kind of poisonous plan Sherman had set up.
Behind him, Agape stepped softly from the shadow of the marble columns, holding an open note in his hand, like a ghost on the waves emerging from the thick fog that accompanied the mist.
"If you are curious about what is written on it." Agape opened his lips, his face was bloodless, and his voice was like sleepwalking murmurs. "It said that as long as I hide here..."
"I will... see the whole truth."