The Ladder of Knowledge

One day in early winter, November, as the year drew to a close, Zhou Ming and over a thousand farmers from the Glan Territory were sent by the lord to the Saint Marne Monastery, located over a hundred miles south of the territory, to perform a month-long "Love Work" for the church.

This form of "Love Work" was similar to the three days of weekly labor done for the lord during the busy farming season. It was also a form of unpaid voluntary labor, only the recipient of the service had changed to the church.

However, incredibly, none of the farmers in the territory resisted this "Love Work." Some even cheered with joy upon hearing about it, packing their belongings and preparing to go to the monastery to work without needing much urging from the lord. They were very enthusiastic.

After two days of travel, they arrived at Saint Marne Monastery. After just one day of work, Zhou Ming understood why the farmers enjoyed doing "Love Work."

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

There were also many priests and monks with eyes full of compassion, walking among the farmers, praying for these lost sheep, and comforting their souls with gentle words. It was so comfortable here, almost like heaven... even though the amount of work required each day was not light.

As expected, there's a reason why the church in this world is above the king. In terms of winning people's hearts, the church is simply miles ahead of those lords!

This also explained why, during years of good harvest, farmers didn't store their surplus grain and bread but instead sent it all to the monastery.

It also explained why many elderly farmers, as they approached the end of their lives, didn't leave their hard-earned wealth to their descendants but instead donated it all to the church, hoping to ascend to "heaven."

It wasn't that these farmers were ignorant or foolish, but rather that the lords in this world oppressed and exploited them too severely. As a result, they had no sense of security regarding their private property. Instead of being stripped of it by the lords through various means, it was better to give it all to the church for spiritual solace.

During breaks, while participating in collective prayer, seeing the farmers prostrate on the ground with such devout expressions, Zhou Ming understood that to conquer this world, the enemy more formidable than the lords was this church, which had gained the support of almost all the common people.

The power of the people is great, Zhou Ming had never doubted this. Facing these farmers who had been brainwashed by the church and were often organized for collective prayer, Zhou Ming knew that simply using force would not be able to shake this power.

Furthermore, seeing the various exquisite reliefs and colorful patterns painted on the walls and ceilings inside the monastery, and the various parchment books filling the library, Zhou Ming knew that the church not only monopolized faith but also monopolized knowledge and art... and these things were more important than military force.

Knowledge, I need to understand the knowledge of this world, the more the better!

Upon seeing the library, Zhou Ming, who immediately wanted to "arm" his mind, earnestly pleaded with Sister Mary, who was in charge of managing the library. After repeatedly assuring her that he would not damage the books, he finally gained Sister Mary's permission to enter the library.

Gently pulling out a thick parchment book from the bookshelf, similar to an Oxford dictionary, Zhou Ming eagerly began to read.

On the book, these tadpole-like letters and characters, except for a few dozen, were completely unrecognizable.

I should have asked Madam Madeline to teach me some cultural lessons earlier. She knows many words. If she could have guided me and taught me these phonetic characters, I wouldn't be unable to understand.

Unfortunately, he had made the wrong choice, and the opportunity to ask Madam Madeline for help again was gone... He didn't want to run into her son, Edward, in the castle.

"Child, what are you doing?"

At this moment, an old man wearing a gray robe and a kind smile had quietly appeared 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 this old man. He was Father Robert, who stood before the altar and prayed during the prayers these past few days – a benevolent priest with great prestige among the believers.

"No need, child. I see the desire for knowledge in your eyes. Do you want to understand this book?"

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

"Yes, Father, I really want to understand the beginning of this book. What does the first page, the first paragraph mean?"

Zhou Ming appeared "eager," placing the book in front of the priest and looking at him intently, hoping he could help clarify his doubts.

"This passage means: God is above, the messenger is below, and it is hereby declared to the world that in the beginning, the heavens were dark, and the earth was formless and void, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, 'Let there be light...' "

Father Robert was happy to guide this lost sheep, pointing him towards the right path from the Holy Father Scripture, this religious treasure...

Time passed quickly.

An entire night passed, and the candle burned down to its end. In that single night, Zhou Ming had memorized a full four hundred words.

"Child, your talent amazes me. In just one night, you've learned what others take half a year to learn."

Father Robert said with a look of astonishment. He had taught many students, some of whom were intelligent, but none were as intelligent as Zhou Ming, who could understand over ten pages of the Holy Father Scripture in one night.

This child must have a connection with God; he must be an apostle of God left in the human world. Perhaps, this child even has the qualifications to become his priestly attendant.

However...

In this child's eyes, there didn't seem to be that kind of devotion and piety towards God, but merely a simple interest in the words themselves.

"Respected Father Robert, may I come again tomorrow? Can I learn more from you about the things in the Holy Father Scripture?"

Zhou Ming, his face still flushed with excitement, looked at Father Robert with anticipation and asked.

"Yes, child, as long as you are willing to come."

Father Robert smiled kindly. As the most devout apostle of God, he would not abandon even the most insignificant lost lamb, even if this lamb was not yet devout enough.

"Thank you, Father, thank you, Father!"

For the better part of the following half-month, no matter how tired he was from working during the day, Zhou Ming would arrive at the library on time every evening to seek guidance from Father Robert.

In just over twenty days, he was able to understand the church classic Holy Father Scripture, which had a vocabulary of tens of thousands of words, recognizing over 90% of the characters within it.

"God! This child's talent is truly too high. If he could become an attendant following me, he would surely inherit my mantle in the future and pass on my devotion and understanding of God..."

"But..."

"This child is the son of an ordinary farmer. Even if he inherits my mantle, he will be suppressed and ostracized within the church..."

Father Robert was somewhat moved, but also very hesitant. Like the knight class, the monastic class also primarily came from the nobility. Those from commoner backgrounds were extremely rare, and only in the poorest and most remote parishes did priests from commoner backgrounds have a slight chance of making a name for themselves.

For example, Father Robert himself came from a fallen noble family that had lost its title. He had served Saint Marne Monastery diligently for over twenty years and was only a Blessing Elder, ranking seventh or eighth in authority within Saint Marne Monastery, and was still severely ostracized. If Little Ryan...

Ultimately, Father Robert dismissed the idea.

Zhou Ming did not know that an opportunity to change his destiny had slipped through his fingers, but having learned a great deal of knowledge and received a handwritten notebook from Father Robert, he felt that his trip had been a huge success on the way back to Glan Territory.

"If there's another chance to do Love Work in the future, I must ask Father Robert for guidance on some more questions!"

Having found a staircase leading to the palace of knowledge, Zhou Ming naturally wanted to climb higher through this staircase.