Chapter 14
A light drizzle fell, slowly extinguishing the flames and leaving only charred firewood and acrid smoke. The bound old woman gradually calmed down, raising her head to let the raindrops fall on her face, her lips moving slightly as if she wanted to say something.
The people of Edinburgh watched this scene in silence, filled with awe and shock.
Faced with such a miracle, what is there to argue about?
The old woman tied to the iron post and placed on the fire is undoubtedly innocent; anyone who dares to question this is possessed by the devil.
Just then, the sound of horses' hooves rang out, and Mary Seton arrived with the Scottish Guard.
As soon as the soldiers arrived, they immediately obeyed the Queen's orders and began to rescue the innocent old woman.
Having recovered from his injuries, Albert disregarded the lingering heat and rushed forward first. He kicked away the still-sparkling pile of firewood, then untied the knots, picked up the wronged old woman, and carried her down from the sinful execution platform.
The Earl of Boswell and the others formed a tight guard around Mary, with armed soldiers standing in a ring to protect the queen's majesty.
Mary also got quite wet in the rain.
The young queen's expression was calm and composed. Fine, glistening raindrops dripped from the ends of her hair, slid across her snow-white skin, and landed on her long black dress, leaving dark stains.
But in the eyes of the onlookers, this did not diminish the Queen's image at all; on the contrary, it added a touch of divine grace.
Mary stood at one end of the soldiers' encirclement, while John Knox stood alone at the other end. His deputy, John Craig, had hidden far away in the crowd when things went wrong.
"Do you have anything else to say, Reverend Knox? Or are you still going to go against God's will and insist that this old woman is a witch, and choose a sunny day to burn her at the stake?" Mary asked.
John Knox had a lot to say; he wanted to curse, to clench his teeth and rage, to tear the witch’s hypocritical face apart.
It's important to know that not only God can control the wind and rain, but also the devil!
But under such circumstances, John Knox couldn't bring himself to say a single word from the truth.
"I...I..." Knox struggled several times before he could barely say, "...I have nothing to say, Your Majesty. Since there is already a being unknown to mortals spreading power, then you can naturally take this woman away for interrogation."
Mary nodded, and then defined today's farce.
“I hope you will not make the same mistake of slandering innocent people again. In addition, to prevent wrongful convictions, if there are any more witch trials in Scotland, I and the elected civilian representatives from Edinburgh will participate in the investigation,” Mary said.
After saying that, Mary led her entourage away.
John Knox, dressed in a black priest's robe, watched the Queen's departing figure, clutching the pure silver cross in his hand, and silently reciting Latin words to drive away the devil.
The power of the devil is terrifying.
...
The Queen arrived in haste, traveling in a carriage drawn by four fine horses in order to speed things up, while the Scottish Guards soldiers all rode on horseback.
In theory, carriages are reserved for the Queen and other people of high status, but this old woman named Anna was no longer able to ride a horse.
Although the rescue was timely, the old man's legs were burned, swollen, and blistered, making it impossible for him to stand independently; he could only stand with the help of others.
Albert touched the old man's forehead and found it to be extremely hot.
"……His Majesty?"
Albert cast a pleading look at him.
Mary nodded and said, "You carry this old woman to the carriage and ride with me. Once we get back to Holyrood Palace, immediately summon the court physician to examine her."
"Thank you so much for your understanding," Albert said, bowing his head in relief.
The carriage was only so big that after Albert squeezed in with the old man in his arms, the four maids had to borrow some soldiers' horses and then ride back to Holyrood Palace.
On the way back, Mary was in a bad mood. She rested her head against the window and stared silently at the narrow, crowded, low houses outside.
Seeing the Queen like this, Albert, sitting opposite her, shifted uncomfortably and asked hesitantly, "...Excuse me, may I open the car window? Perhaps that will make you feel better?"
Mary paused for a moment, glanced at the dirty, smelly old woman Albert was holding in his arms, and then realized that the Italian had misunderstood something.
Since the Black Death ravaged the world more than a hundred years ago, coupled with the preaching of Catholicism, ordinary people began to refrain from bathing again in order to avoid contracting diseases and to save firewood for heating water. Over time, almost everyone carried an unpleasant odor.
In France, some refined nobles would outwardly follow Catholic doctrine and not bathe, but would wipe themselves with a damp cloth every night. Other nobles who rarely bathed would spray a lot of perfume to cover up their body odor.
Mary belonged to the former category. Regardless of which half of her soul was in her previous life, she could not accept being covered in dirt. After returning to her own Scotland, she went even further, taking a hot bath every few days, which led the servants in the palace to gossip about her obsessive-compulsive disorder.
However, following the example set by those above, in order to win the Queen's favor, Mary and other servants in the palace also began to bathe frequently or constantly scrub themselves to keep themselves clean and tidy.
“That’s not the reason. I’m not that fragile… Why is this lady not saying anything?” Mary said.
A flicker of pity crossed Albert's eyes. He gently turned the old man's head in his arms toward the Queen and gestured for the old man to open his mouth.
Mary instantly saw only four upper and lower front teeth and half a tongue still bleeding intermittently from the gaping mouth.
“It’s not just her tongue and teeth; this lady is missing three fingers, and I suspect she also has fractures in her right leg and ribs… I think this old lady may need a long time to recover,” Albert said.
What Albert didn't say was that although the old woman named Anna escaped being burned at the stake today, she might not be able to escape the pursuit of death.
During his time in Italy, he saw many people die from injuries, regardless of whether they were nobles, priests, or commoners. Their wounds would swell rapidly and ooze pus within days, followed by persistent high fevers, and eventually, they would slowly die.
Mary's gaze lingered on the old woman's mouth for a long time, unsure how to describe her feelings at that moment.
All I can say is that she had never felt such disgust and loathing for John Knox—this self-proclaimed righteous Protestant.
Despite being enemies, she harbored both deep hatred and immense admiration for Elizabeth I.
But John Knox only reminded Mary of cockroaches or bedbugs that are impossible to kill.
"May the Lord bless you," Mary said earnestly to the old woman, while making the sign of the cross on her chest.
“This Reverend John Knox reminds me of Giorolamo Savonarola… Have you heard of him? He was a monk from the Duchy of Ferrara who later ruled Florence after the Medici family lost power, establishing a theocratic state. He was also a madman who believed he alone was upholding justice and was incredibly fanatical about religion. After taking control of Florence, he, like Reverend Knox, banned all worldly pleasures, and then, in the Piazza della Signoria of Florence, he set fire to countless jewels, clothes, furniture, and the most precious books and works of art accumulated in the city, many of which were even left by Leonardo da Vinci and Botticelli,” Albert said.
“I know it was a huge disaster for art and knowledge,” Mary said calmly.
In order to find a way to deal with John Knox, she carefully studied the life of Gilolamo Savonalola.
This man later died in a fire, and those who had once adored him were the Florentine commoners who burned him to death, because he had destroyed their property, forced them to live a life of extreme austerity, and left them powerless when famine struck.
Mary also considered this approach: completely loosen the restrictions, grant John Knox the right to spread Protestantism, and then, after he wreaked havoc in Edinburgh, step in in the name of the King to clean up the mess and behead him.
But doing so is too risky and would be very harmful to the people of Edinburgh, so she is still hesitant.
...
Upon arriving at Holyrood Palace, Mary immediately summoned the royal physician to treat the old woman.
This doctor's treatment methods were the same as most doctors of the time, only knowing how to bleed, enemas, and induce vomiting. However, he had one advantage: because he often treated soldiers' wounds, he was very skilled at using herbs to stop bleeding and realigning bones.
Mary instructed him not to use those conventional treatments, and to stop using the gauze and instruments that had been boiled in hot water on the old woman. The rest was up to fate.
Count Maurice was very displeased with Mary's fuss over such a mediocre old woman, and he was even more suspicious of her going to the Maitland family's castle to attend the ball, fearing that some conspiracy was brewing behind his back.
He guessed correctly, but to avoid alerting the enemy, Mary naturally chose to deny it firmly. After arguing for a few moments in a private room, Earl Morley left, suppressing his anger.
Mary followed him into the corridor, and frowned as she watched Count Morrie's retreating figure.
She was certainly not saddened by the so-called sibling relationship between the two. This kinship had always been as shallow as a bubble, and it would burst on its own without anyone else even needing to pop it.
Essentially, Mary and her half-brother were both adversaries and interdependent.
The Earl of Maurice needed her to establish the queen's authority in order to ensure his own noble status as the queen's brother, but he could not allow her to have real power.
Mary was the same; she craved her private army and wealth, needed him to intimidate other ambitious nobles such as the Gordon and Hamilton families, but also had to reclaim her right to rule.
There are no secrets in the Scottish court; French and British ambassadors, spies, and nobles all keep a close eye on everything that happens there.
If word gets out today, everyone will know that the rift between the Queen and her half-brother and guardian has widened.
Well, in her past life, she was content to be a puppet and had a good relationship with Earl Morrie. The price was that she was foolish and naive when faced with rebellion and had no power to fight back. In this life, she wants to take her destiny into her own hands, so it's only a matter of time before she breaks ties with Earl Morrie. It's unavoidable.
Mary frowned for a moment, then sat down at her desk and began writing a letter.
A letter of reconciliation was written and sent to Elizabeth I.
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