This is a very special day for Ansu people.
The Day of Peace and Ling.
Every year on the 45th of Frost Moon, festival activities all over the country will start as scheduled. On this increasingly cold day, Ansu people will spend the last bit of food and energy that can be used to squander. To commemorate their ancestors and relatives and friends who have returned to the world of the dead.
Although many contemporary people have forgotten the original meaning of this festival, hundreds of years of tradition have made the 45th of Frost Moon a special date mixed with mystery, prayer, hope and commemoration. The Su people all firmly believe that the door to the Kingdom of the Dead will open on this day, and the souls that have passed away—whether they went to the temple of the God of Death, the sacrificial site of the Blood God, or the kingdom of some other god— Everyone can get the chance to return to the world on this day. These souls will come along the road paved with death chrysanthemums to celebrate this festival with the living. They will also appear beside the bonfire at night to express themselves in an amorphous way. The form of smoke, fire or shadows accompanies those who are thinking of them.
Therefore, although this is a day to remember the dead, the Ansu people will spend this day in a festive way. They will decorate the door of their home with flowers, and place flowers on the fireplace or directly opposite the door. Grass rings are hung on the walls, grand bonfires are lit, and people sing and dance around the bonfires - they celebrate this day because they firmly believe that the souls will come home to see them on this day.
In addition to commemorating the deceased, All Souls Day also has another meaning for Ansu as a northern kingdom: it means the end of most social activities.
The 45th of the Frost Moon is the last day for the Flowing Fire constellation to cross the celestial line. Its arrival means that winter is approaching - there are still more than ten days before winter starts, but the weather in the Northern Kingdom is already cold. To the extent that it is no longer appropriate to continue wasting energy outdoors, the nobles may still hold a few emotional winter feasts on snowy days, but for commoners who are short of food, fuel, and clothing, this is their best time of the year. Last chance for a big outdoor event.
After careful calculation, people took out fuel and food and gathered them together to cheer up their spirits in the form of one last celebration and pray to the souls of their ancestors for good weather and simplicity in the next year. The people of the country have simple thoughts: praying to the three gods of fertility is the privilege of the fertility priests, and asking the druids for a harvest will cost a lot of money. It is better to light a bonfire in this last festival before winter. I pray that the deceased who may have entered the kingdom of gods can help me - bless myself to gain three to five kilograms of food in the coming year.
People celebrate the annual All Souls' Day with such simple wishes, and then hibernate after the All Souls' Day, just like the ancestors who have returned to the kingdom of the dead, and then take the next step. It lay dormant quietly during the long cold winter.
In the city of St. Sunil, the delicate fragrance of the death chrysanthemum is filling the streets and alleys. Although the entire kingdom is still mired in the quagmire of war, All Souls Day has still arrived as scheduled.is coming - rather, it is precisely because the torrential rain of war is pouring down that people urgently need this festival to comfort the souls who are about to go on the road.
White flowers have been planted in front of every house, and decorative straw ropes or flower vines are hung under the eaves of each house. Adults carry the collected firewood to the nearest home. In the square or open space, preparations are made for the evening bonfire, while the carefree children surround the adults, shouting and yelling, consuming their physical strength and energy by playing and playing.
This kind of scene is not only unique to civilian neighborhoods, but also has a similar scene in the magnificent Silver Castle.
The servants are preparing a huge bonfire in the courtyard. The knights polished their spears and swords and decorated them on the corridor leading to the courtyard. They wore white long skirts and silver-haired shawls. Victoria Wilder stood in front of the courtyard entrance, holding a white death chrysanthemum in her hand, and carefully pinned the flower to Wales Morn's chest.
"Your Highness, I hope you will remember the glory of your ancestors." The duchess looked at the heir of the Moen bloodline in front of her and said in a calm and indifferent tone.
Welsh Morn glanced down at the small white flower on his chest, smiled slightly self-deprecatingly, and then lowered his head: "I will remember it."
Victoria The Duchess looked at Wales Moen's expressionless face and suddenly said: "Your Highness, do you know why the patriarch of the Wilder family wears the death chrysanthemum for the heir of Moen's bloodline every year on Easter Day? "
Welsh Morn's eyes seemed to flash for a moment, but he still spoke calmly: "This is because the Wilder family protected Morn's bloodline during the most critical moment of the kingdom—— Just as ancestors are worth commemorating, this friendship is also worth commemorating."
Victoria looked into Wales's eyes. There was no pressure in her eyes, but the duchess still seemed to have an innate winter temperament. It would create unspeakable pressure. Under normal circumstances, no one could hold her gaze for more than ten seconds - but the middle-aged man opposite her resisted it. During the ten seconds of staring, Wales ?Moen did not look away, but looked at the duchess openly.
Victoria seemed to show a smile. She withdrew her gaze and looked at the huge pyre that was beginning to take shape in the courtyard: "...I also asked Prince Edmund the same question. Do you think he is How to answer?"
"...I don't know."
"'This is to let every descendant of Morn know that it is because of the existence of the Wilder family. "You are qualified to commemorate your ancestors in this Silver Castle, not in the stables in Beishan County," these were his exact words," Victoria said indifferently, "That was three years ago, when our great The founding hero has not yet emerged from the grave."
Welsh Morn did not say a word, just stood there without saying a word.
"He should also be wearing a placard now.Damn it, in a certain fortress in the eastern part of the Holy Spirit Plain, a bonfire was lit to commemorate the father who was most likely killed by him. He finally did not have to humiliate himself in the Silver Castle to accept me putting it on him. Flowers, follow my request to commemorate the deceased." Victoria tilted her head slightly and said to the middle-aged crown prince, "Now this role has been replaced by you, replaced by you again. ”
“I don’t think it’s humiliating. "
"Maybe, but that's not important," Victoria's tone was very indifferent, as if she really didn't care. "Your father is a good king. Frankly speaking, I respect him—— Although he may not be happy to accept my respect. ”
Wales looked at the duchess in front of him with some confusion, as if he didn’t understand why this northern ruler, who always had a cold and distant temperament and rarely spoke at length, suddenly said so many words to himself, but Victoria did not. Not caring about his confusion, he just continued:
"This country has stood for hundreds of years, and dozens of people have sat on that throne, but not everyone really cares about this kingdom, your father Did it... Believe it or not, the Wilder family has always supported him sincerely. "
Welsh opened his mouth, but in the end he said nothing.
"I know what you are thinking. Although you never say it out loud, you also think this is a kind of blackmail. and control." The duchess did not look back at all, but seemed to have seen the subtle changes in Wales's expression, "However, we have our own considerations - everything is for the Kingdom of Ansu.
“The civil strife in the Wrigley Moon a hundred years ago taught us a great lesson. The civil strife was caused by the struggle for royal power, but the absurd life and various misunderstandings of the last king of the First Dynasty during his lifetime Chaos is the real cause of the situation getting out of control. From that day on, we realized that the throne must have a lock.
“The king is supreme, but the king cannot be out of control for the sake of long-term success. For stability, someone must be able to control the situation in time when the royal power is out of control. Therefore, in the Second Dynasty, we established the system of regent dukes. The royal power will be monitored and controlled, but in turn, the king is also checking and balancing the dukes. Power, you know that.
"No one can have absolute power in their hands. Any power must have backup plans. These two points are the lessons the Wilder family learned during the civil strife in Brumaire."
Wales Morn finally broke the silence: "Then have you thought about the changes in Edmund and the Duke of Eastland?"
"...People's hearts are always unplanned," the duchess was silent for two seconds. Then he said, "But this does not mean that the lessons we have learned are meaningless. In fact, Ansu's ability to survive the civil strife in Fog Moon really relied on the regent duke system. This system may need to be improved, but it is still far from It's not time to abandon it."
Welsh fell silent. After a long silence, he raised his head and looked at the duchess in front of him: "...Why did you suddenly say these things to me?"
p>"These words, my father also said to your father before he ascended the throne," the duchess said calmly, "On Easter Day three years ago, I originally planned to tell Edmund "Said."
Welsh's breathing paused a little at this moment.
“The throne has been vacant for a long time. This country has been operating without a king for more than half a year, but it cannot continue to operate like this forever - the nobles need someone to be loyal to, and the king needs a side. Flag, the people need to know who is legitimate." Duchess Victoria turned around and stared into Wales's eyes again, "At first, we thought this war would be over soon, because the Crown Prince has the equivalent of the rebellion in the east. The army has two or three times the strength and supplies, but we did miscalculate. We have reached a stalemate, so we must be prepared to continue the stalemate."
Welsh opened his mouth: "I..."
p>“We cannot wait until the war to be crowned, Your Royal Highness,” the Duchess said, emphasizing the word “His Royal Highness.” “Edmund will soon realize that he will not be able to succeed in the next Entering Saint Sunil within a year, he will crown himself at any time, and the Duke of the East will use his influence to make the nobles of the entire East and half of the Holy Spirit Plain loyal to the new king, and the blind commoners will soon Will admit this - therefore, you must become king before Edmund is crowned."
Welsh Morn's eyes widened slightly, but he had already missed the throne once in a short time. Nei then forcibly regained his composure. He looked at the duchess and said frankly: "How many people will recognize me as the king? How many nobles will be willing to be loyal to me?"
"The Wilder family will We fully support you, and so does the Franklin family. We can get half of the nobles in this kingdom to be loyal to you - at least openly loyal to you."
Welsh thought, and after a few seconds, he spoke again. He spoke: "Then have you considered the biggest variable?"
While saying this, Wales Moen raised his hand and pointed to the death chrysanthemum on his chest.
"I have prepared my trip to the south, and I will personally talk to the founding Duke," Victoria said with a solemn expression, even though this northern ruler, known as the Snow Queen, was I couldn't help but say this with a particularly solemn tone, "I will try my best."
"What do you think the chances are that he will support me?"
< p>Victoria took a deep breath: "...I just hope he won't object."After these words, the two people fell silent together.
They looked at the huge pyre in the courtyard, at the grass rings and death chrysanthemums decorated everywhere, and at the mages and etiquette officers who were preparing for the ceremony.
The sky has gradually darkened, and the dim light means that the time to light the bonfire is approaching.
The really important part of All Souls Day is about to begin.
This is a day to commemorate ancestors and pray for blessings from the ancient dead.
But the ancestor that this festival originally commemorated...has now returned to the world by himself from the other side where the death chrysanthemum is in full bloom.
Victoria Wild walked to the courtyard silently, picked up a section of oak branches placed on the stone table, threw it into the pile of firewood, and then ordered the bonfire to be lit.
Looking at the gradually burning flame, the northern ruler sighed.
It would be great if all you had to do was throw a stick in the bonfire and your ancestors would bless you...