In February 1072, when the two monarchs of the Eastern Empire were still fighting a civil war, a major event happened in northern Rus'. That was the death of Luca Zhdyata, the former bishop of Moscow, now the metropolitan of Kiev, and the head of the Rus' church.
But Rostislav was still glad that at least the teacher saw his daughter before leaving. The teacher had said before that he wanted to see his daughter, but he had never let the teacher do so, and now he finally could.
Rostislav's daughter's name is Koseniya, which means coming from a foreign country. This name was given by her teacher.
Rostislav still remembered the excitement on the teacher's face when he put his daughter in his arms. In the next few days, the teacher's activities were obviously more vigorous than before. At that time, he thought that the teacher's health had improved, but in a few days
The teacher left after that.
Everyone is well aware of the metropolitan's death, and the metropolitan himself has already made arrangements for all parties involved in the future after his death, so the atmosphere of sadness is not very strong, and most of them are reactions like "the boots have finally fallen to the ground."
.
Although the reaction was mostly boots on the ground, the Metropolitan was finally gone, but this does not mean that his funeral will be simple.
In fact, Rostislav buried his teacher almost in the same funeral style as the Grand Duke of Kiev.
The reason why it is almost the same is because the funeral specifications are still inferior to Yaroslav's. No matter how much Rostislav respects the teacher, if the funeral specifications exceed Yaroslav's, then many people will make irresponsible remarks.
Rostislav didn't want to get into that trouble.
This is not good for the teacher, nor is it good for him.
Bishop Luca was buried in Hagia Sophia. His coffin was carried by four important figures in Russia today. The two people walking in front were Rostislav and his son Rurik. Luca was also the
They were the teachers of their father and son, and walking behind were Yang and Vishata, their father and son. Luca was also a family friend of this father and son.
When they buried the bishop, the four of them were very sad. Lord Luca was their old friend, and they were very sad to see this old friend leave.
Many people in the original Moscow court were also very sad, especially Rostislav's two younger sons. They burst into tears. Bishop Luca was also their teacher. They were the least willing to accept the death of this kind old man.
.
But others didn't think so. The funeral gathered the most powerful people in Russia. They could only squeeze out a few tears along with the crowd, and then discuss the changes in Russia's political situation with their friends.
"How disgusting, my father-in-law."
Domhnall, who was standing in the corner, muttered. The captain of the soldiers stood on a high platform near the church and could see the entire ceremony, so all the scenes came into his eyes.
His disgust almost overflowed towards these guys who looked sad on the surface but were actually discussing politics and interests that had nothing to do with death. After all, he still didn't like this scene.
"Don't be too cynical, Domhnall." Gvalan sipped the kvass from the water bag beside him. The old man also had sadness in his eyes, but he controlled it well and did not show it at all.
"You may be like this in the future, and then these words will turn into scolding yourself. The world is like this. I guess many people will use this funeral as an opportunity to meet new people."
"But I still feel bad."
Domhnall said stubbornly, although he has been sitting in the position of captain of the soldiers for many years, he is still so cynical after all, and he still feels subconsciously uncomfortable looking at this.
Especially the one who died was Luca. He had worked with this old man for a long time. The captain of the soldiers respected the old man very much, so he was even more angry.
It is precisely because of this relationship that even though he would be dissatisfied when seeing these things in normal times, he would still hold back rather than speak out.
"That's it, Domnar, don't be too pretentious." Finally, emotion appeared in Gvalan's tone. What on earth is this kid doing? "Do you think Lord Rostislav has completely transformed his personal followers into personal guards?
Are you completely secure?"
"Ah? Father-in-law, this..."
Domhnall was a little overwhelmed by Gvalan's words, and seeing such a reaction, the former soldier captain's expression became even more ugly, but then he relaxed again.
"Forget it, it's not your fault. After all, this is the first time you have faced such a situation. Fortunately, my daughter knows to ask me to teach your boy, so let me come and talk to you."
Gvalan drank the kvass in the water bag in one gulp. It was still a bit weak, not as good as everywhere in the Grand Duke's palace. Then the warden said, "You are being watched by many people right now, do you know?"
"Of course I know this, but as long as I do my job well, Lord Rostislav will see it."
Domhnall said in a matter-of-fact tone. As the captain of the Grand Duke of Kiev's personal army, of course he was aware of those prying eyes, but is there anything strange about this? Isn't it like this in Moscow?
"Before, in Moscow, it was essentially a place of exile, so not many people cared about your origin. But this is Kiev, the most developed place in Russia. My son-in-law, your foreign status is too conspicuous here.
"
Gevalan said in a tone that was full of resentment. He did not expect that this son-in-law was so incompetent and did not react to these things. How insensitive was he to politics? He was obviously so old.
This is really...if the daughter hadn't been worried about her husband and insisted on him running away, God knows when this guy would have reacted.
After listening to Gvalan's words, Domhnall finally showed a look of realization on his face.
Although he is very indifferent to politics, he has already been aware of this aspect after being a captain for so many years. He just lacks someone to point it out.
And after being exposed, he was subconsciously afraid. During the previous period, he was afraid that many people were plotting against him... Fortunately, he did not fall into the trap.
"I have heard some people muttering that the Grand Duke's court is controlled by foreigners. You, Edward, and Mieszko are all targets. Don't forget, my son-in-law, this is Kiev, the capital of Rus."
Seeing the fearful look on Domhnall's face, Gvalan was finally satisfied, and then he continued to educate his son-in-law.
"Abandon all the political experience you have accumulated in the past. Since Lord Rostislav took control of Kiev, the huge benefits he has absorbed are enough to dissolve all the contradictions in the original Moscow court - otherwise, why do you think those close followers agreed to the partition so easily?
Already."
Domnar nodded, he still knew something about this. Lord Rostislav had previously given a huge amount of gold and silver to his followers, and he had also placed several of his followers in important positions in the inner city of Kiev.
If it hadn't been for so many benefits, it wouldn't have been so easy to cut it off.
"What you are facing now is a new situation, the confrontation between foreigners and locals in the palace, the hostility between northern and southern Russia, and God knows whether Vecher will cause trouble... Forget it, you must not be able to understand these, I will teach you
Just a little will do.”
Domhnall's ears immediately perked up. This was the key point for his father-in-law. Although his father-in-law had withdrawn from the political front, no one could deny his wisdom.
"Only stay close to Lord Rostislav, don't associate with anyone else, and always remember that you are a foreigner in the Kiev court. For example, your friend Dil, your contacts with him must be reduced immediately, and from now on you will only stand by Rostislav
Just stay with the Grand Duke, this is the only way to keep the power in your hands."
The father-in-law's answer made Domhnall's mouth twitch unnaturally. He really didn't want to cut off contact with his friends, but under the current circumstances, he had only one choice.
"Yes, I understand."
"This is good, this is good. Only in this way can we preserve the honor and status of our family."
Gvalan sighed. In fact, he regarded Domhnall as a son to a certain extent. After all, this Gael had no parents except for a younger sister. He did not need to consider the interests of his husband's family and was completely serving their family.