[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-nation-of-ten-thousand-nations":3,"chapter-the-nation-of-ten-thousand-nations-the-nation-of-ten-thousand-nations-chapter-5":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Nation of Ten Thousand Nations",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2332973,4562,"Chapter 5: Baldwin and the Holy Cross Castle","the-nation-of-ten-thousand-nations-chapter-5",5,"\u003Cp>“He is Cesar,” Amalric I said. “He will be your servant.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cesar had no surname; Baldwin guessed the boy might be of low birth, perhaps even a slave—he was right, for only slaves of unknown origin lacked even a prefix indicating their place of birth—ordinary commoners without surnames were still called Joseph of Aman or Barak of Galilee.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But Father,” he still gazed at the boy his own age, whose skin was pale, brows thick, free of any rash or blemish—he was not a leper: “I already have many servants and attendants.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You don’t,” Amalric I said gently. “Do you think I don’t know?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Baldwin turned his gaze to his father; now he could clearly see every subtle detail on the king’s face, and a hot stream seemed ready to burst from his eyes. “You know?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I know,” Amalric I said. “I’ve always known. I’ve been waiting, son. Why haven’t you punished them severely?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I thought I would soon become a monk. Monks don’t need servants,” Baldwin said. “And for these people, being cast out and forced back into humble farming or menial labor is punishment enough.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your understanding of mercy surpasses any of us,” Amalric I said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So take this child away,” Baldwin said. “God gave him such beauty—not to serve a leper.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He serves first my son, the future lord of the Holy City, Prince Baldwin, and only then a leper,” Amalric I said. “And that is his own choice.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How can a commoner dare defy the king?” Baldwin said sorrowfully. “You have armies, clergy, and gold. But these three things cannot dispel people’s fear of disability—or death.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There is one more,” Cesar said, without permission. “A profound favor is worth more than armies, clergy, and gold. Your father saved me—not only my life, but my honor. I am willing to offer even a small service in return.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Baldwin looked at him, Cesar looked back at Baldwin. Though alone in the room, Baldwin wore his stiff face-veil and gloves like a mask—but through the stiff gauze, one could still see Baldwin was a boy of graceful features.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Have you ever seen a leper?” Baldwin said to the boy. “You don’t know how terrible it is. You don’t know what price you’ll pay.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortune’s favor toward Cesar may have exceeded his wildest dreams: he had encountered a ruler like Amalric I—who even offered a former slave the chance to choose—and his son Baldwin did not seem like those pitiful, hateful creatures who blamed others for their own misfortunes—Cesar had seen many such people; you couldn’t even harshly blame them, for they had endured suffering nearly unbearable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was far better than he had imagined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I see it as a trial,” Cesar said. “If I do not fall ill, it means God has sent me to care for you...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What if I do fall ill?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then God means for you to have a companion who shares your suffering.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A companion...” Baldwin said. “Perhaps even a friend.” His resolve visibly wavered; for months he had lost all friends, and now he yearned for pure, deep affection as a desert thirsts for rain: “Very well. If you insist—if God is willing to mercy us...” He looked to Amalric I. “Will you give him a holy office?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No holy office,” Amalric I said cheerfully. “Baldwin, he will be your servant—and perhaps someday your knight and minister.” He continued as his son’s confusion turned to shock, then settled into excitement and joy: “I have not abandoned you. Even with leprosy, you remain my heir, the future king of Jerusalem.” He paused. “Come to me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Baldwin hesitated, then walked over, stopping a step away from Amalric I.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amalric I placed both hands on the boy’s thin shoulders. “Remember this, my son: in Jerusalem, and across the entire Arabian Peninsula, besides God, you obey only one person—me. No matter what others say, as long as I have not deposed you, abandoned you, or ignored you—you need fear nothing. Your future will not change.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Can I believe you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“As we believe in our Father in heaven.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then I believe you,” Baldwin said. He raised his hand and gripped his father’s arm, resting his head against his chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amalric I quietly leaned against Baldwin for a moment. He felt no fear, nor did he believe heaven could be so cruel—but he knew such moments would grow rarer. When he could delay no longer, he gently brushed Baldwin’s forehead. “There,” he whispered. “Now go back to your little companion.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>——————————\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Amalric I left, the room fell into an odd silence. Neither Cesar nor Baldwin were fond of idle chatter, nor did they know how to begin a conversation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only much later, when they could open their hearts to each other, would Cesar learn that at this time Baldwin still feared eyes filled with fear and revulsion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though Cesar had plainly stated he came to serve out of gratitude, Baldwin had seen too many insincere, clumsy performances before; and as for Cesar, he did not know how to face this unfortunate boy—leprosy, even centuries later, remained a tormenting disease, let alone Baldwin...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was the king’s son, the sole heir of Jerusalem. To contract leprosy meant, in a single night, the world turned upside down—from the heavens straight into the mud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long while, Baldwin stood and walked to the corner. “Can you read a water clock?” He pointed to a complex mechanical device for Cesar. In the monastery, Cesar had seen many timepieces—sundials, hourglasses, candle clocks—and water clocks; the latter were Saracen inventions, but prized by Christians for their precision and accuracy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the king’s only son, Baldwin’s treatment was certainly not lacking. The water clock in the corner was a “receiving type,” so at the top stood a large glass bulb with a rounded belly; below sat a small brass scribe perched on a balance scale, holding a quill whose tip pointed to time markings. “It is the hour of Sext,” Cesar said—roughly two to three in the morning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment he mentioned the hour, Cesar felt his eyes dry and his body weaken. “You sleep on a wheeled bed,” Baldwin said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the name suggests, a wheeled bed was a low bed with wheels on each corner, designed to be pushed beneath the main bed. Considering the prince’s attendant was also a noble, the wheeled bed’s size and materials were no less fine than the main bed: its surface was stretched with leather straps, piled with clean reeds and sprinkled with spices.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since it was still September, no furs were laid—only linen sheets, but two feather pillows were stacked. Cesar wrapped himself in the woolen cloak given by Abbot John, muttered, “May you sleep well,” and slipped uncontrollably into deep, sweet slumber.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Baldwin thought he would surely not sleep tonight—but as soon as the even breathing reached him, he fell asleep at once.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>——————————\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When they awoke, sunlight pierced the room like golden arrows through gaps in the tapestries and windows. Baldwin was astonished he had slept so deeply; Cesar was astonished that a prince’s door could be knocked on so heavily and roughly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He propped himself up warily from the wheeled bed, dagger in hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Baldwin shook his head. “It’s the servants,” he said. “They’ve come with morning water.” As Cesar moved to go, Baldwin called him back and placed a silver coin in his hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cesar was puzzled but took it. He opened the door and saw a short man standing on the spiral staircase, five or six steps away, his feet beside two large copper pots—one emitting a thin wisp of steam from its narrow spout.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He kept glancing around, and even upon seeing Cesar, he did not approach—only stood still, palm open. Cesar tossed him the coin; the moment he caught it, he leapt away like a weasel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He lent Cesar a bit of tooth-cleaning powder. Monks used only plain pumice or shell powder; Baldwin’s was rock salt, dried iris flowers, mint, and pepper.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the last water was poured into the silver basin, visible gray particles appeared. Cesar frowned. Baldwin looked perfectly accustomed. “The water is clean,” he said. “Just a bit of salt added.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After washing their faces and teeth, Baldwin took dates from a gold box and offered them to Cesar. Dates were a specialty of the Arabian Peninsula, sweeter than sugar or honey—and perfect for them. People ate only at noon and evening; growing boys could not endure such a schedule.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After morning prayer, Baldwin usually read. Today he used the time to instruct his new attendant on dress. Cesar still wore the clothes he had left the monastery in: a linen under-tunic, long stockings, and a woolen robe, tied with a thin cord.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“As a monastery page, your attire is perfectly appropriate. But as a prince’s attendant, your dress will invite scorn and mockery—you’re about my build,” Baldwin said. “Just a bit thinner. Tighten your belt.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He opened a chest and had Cesar don a deep green velvet tunic, a leather belt with copper buckles, bright red thin wool hose, yellow silk gloves, then took a pair of deerskin short boots from another chest and hung a short dagger from the leather belt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, he took a heavy silver cross and placed it around Cesar’s neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cesar had always been handsome and upright; now dressed thus, he rivaled Baldwin. When the castle steward, Kram, saw him, he mistook him for some lord’s son.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kram then felt a flicker of relief. As castle steward, he was responsible for recruiting and managing all servants. Amalric I’s direct gift of Cesar to Baldwin had unsettled him greatly—after all, the servants he had previously sought under royal orders had failed to gain the prince’s approval. He feared this might be a bad omen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now, if the king’s standard was this boy, anyone who criticized him for failing to choose a proper attendant for the prince would be unreasonable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kram, acting on the king’s orders, took Cesar to familiarize himself with the castle. Amalric I had already given Cesar a brief description of the Holy Cross Castle’s general layout—but the details, he needed to experience himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cesar’s impression was that this was less a great castle than a miniature city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Later generations always imagined castles—especially ones like the Holy Cross Castle, combining political and military functions—as solemn, silent, and dignified. In truth, fishermen cast nets in the moat; the broad space between outer and inner walls became a marketplace; deeper inside, dusty plazas bustled with noise, horses and mules snorted idly, occasionally lifting a leg to urinate at random.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In open-air ironworks, sparks flew. Black slag stood like signs beside pillars. Weapons and chainmail lay on long tables—finished products, and also samples for display. The blacksmiths and apprentices hammered away while haggling with knights or squires.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In a tent nearby, two leather merchants idly played chess, ignoring several pages who circled a lavishly decorated saddle—pages who didn’t even own their own horses, and certainly weren’t potential customers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A Templar knight in a white robe embroidered with a red cross and a Hospitaller knight in a black robe embroidered with a white cross stood like two bulls not far away, arguing over ownership of a fine Gallic horse. They finally agreed to settle it in a small shadowed patch beneath the walls—with swords.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The knights’ duel drew a large crowd. Kram watched with delight until the end, then signaled the guards—long eager, clubs in hand—to drive out any servants who had gathered for any reason, beating them soundly for laziness and negligence. The beaten servants groaned half-heartedly as they scurried back to their posts—the water room, kitchen, stables, slaughterhouse, and weaving workshop—complaining bitterly amid their companions’ laughter and spittle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The basements of the towers held cisterns, but these were for emergency use only if the enemy breached the castle. The drinking and washing water for hundreds of people and animals fell to the water room. It reminded Cesar of a later-era factory: vast and lofty, chilled by a large stone-built reservoir.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The waters of the Yuedanhe were diverted into the moat and underground channels. After entering the reservoir, the water underwent at least three purifications. The people here appeared more orderly than elsewhere—after all, this was a military stronghold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beside the water room stood three roaring bread ovens. Their fires rarely died—they fed hundreds, even thousands, with bread. The kitchen, like the water room, was tall and spacious, dimly lit, thick with the heavy scent of seawater—salty and fishy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the center stood a massive wooden table, large enough for a knight to ride upon. Opposite the hearth ran a water channel. Hundreds of brass pots, large and small, hung on the walls. Baskets held large spoons, shovels, various cutting tools, and measuring instruments.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone here was busy processing yesterday’s hunt—preventing spoilage in the heat. Whether bird or beast, all were skinned, feathered, salted or smoked for longer storage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",2164,"2026-06-20T20:58:34.857Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","ee925e4eac8bb5232e29a405faa21ab5563f65a13a4043d34eaaf8a24cf93267","the-nation-of-ten-thousand-nations-chapter-6","the-nation-of-ten-thousand-nations-chapter-4",168,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-nation-of-ten-thousand-nations-cover.jpg"]