As the largest and most magnificent church in Northeast Rus', the seat of the Moscow Bishop, and a manifestation of Christian power, the Moscow St. Sophia Cathedral has always been bustling.
Pilgrims from all over Northeast Rus' constantly arrive here, and citizens also come to worship from time to time, while during various religious festivals, the crowds here are even larger.
People come here to offer repentance to the Almighty God, seeking blessings and forgiveness.
Besides the scale of the church, what attracts them most are the various magnificent icon paintings within the Moscow St. Sophia Cathedral.
The Moscow St. Sophia Cathedral houses many exquisite icon paintings, including even works by the current Moscow Bishop; if one is willing to pay a high price, one can even purchase one.
There is a strong popular enthusiasm for purchasing icon paintings; many devout villages will spend a year's worth of savings to buy one to worship in their village, while the wealthy are even more generous, buying the best ones.
There are only a few ways to purchase icon paintings, and appreciating and worshipping them is even rarer; many people believe that icon paintings have special efficacy, which naturally leads to an endless stream of pilgrims.
The idea of selling icon paintings was proposed by Bishop Luka Zhidiata; to increase operating funds for the Moscow Church, he personally painted icons and also trained a group of apprentices.
These apprentices have now graduated and can easily produce standard icon paintings, but only a few can create high-quality works.
Recently, the number of converts in Northeast Rus' has been steadily increasing, and naturally, some of these converts wish to visit a Christian temple.
As for these believers, the Moscow St. Sophia Cathedral means they don't have to travel as far, and the travel costs become acceptable.
The arrival of pilgrims has sustained many hotels in Moscow; many such accommodations have been built near the Moscow St. Sophia Cathedral, and this is just one of the many positive impacts of pilgrim arrivals.
However, to attract pilgrims, the best method would naturally be to acquire the relics of saints and place them in the church, but unfortunately, Rostislav simply lacks the connections and resources, and the money is completely insufficient.
He cannot and has no way to spend money on these matters; while the money spent now can be earned back twofold from pilgrims in the future, that is still in the future, and there are many other places where money is needed now.
However, today the Saint Sophia Cathedral was sealed off; the Prince's army blocked all commoners wishing to enter, as a significant ceremony was to be held here today.
The conversion of Adam Dulü, the legitimate heir of Bulgar.
Before the cross engraved with the image of Christ's suffering, Adam Dulü knelt in the baptismal font.
Most of his body was immersed, his upper body bare, his black trousers already wet, and only one person stood before him: Moscow Bishop Luka Zhidiata.
And on either side of the Bishop were rows of priests and choir members, standing ready, all dressed in solemn black robes.
The 17-year-old Adam Dulü had already grown into a handsome youth; his face, his eyes, his lips, all made one sigh at his beauty.
But if judged by the standards of a warrior, this person seemed somewhat delicate, both in his face and his physique.
Many times, looking at the child's excessively beautiful face, Rostislav couldn't help but think maliciously, if he hadn't encountered all this, and had grown up as a follower of Allah, according to the popular love for handsome youths among Allah's followers, his admirers would certainly not be few.
However, none of those present were there because of his beauty; this was, in fact, the least important thing to anyone here; everyone cared about his identity, the identity of the legitimate heir of the Dulu Family.
Seated behind him were the nobles of Northeast Rus', and at the very front were clearly the Moscow Prince and his wife, all dressed in solemn and simple clothing, for this grand temple was a place where all must be humble.
The ceremony of calling names and general prayer had ended; next, Bishop Luka Zhidiata asked the kneeling young man:
"Brother Adam, do you accept Jesus Christ as your personal savior?"
"I do."
"Now I baptize you, in the name of the Father, Amen, in the name of the Son, Amen, in the name of the Holy Spirit, Amen, the servant of God is now baptized."
As Bishop Luka Zhidiata spoke, he skillfully poured the kettle full of holy water, which sprinkled over his head, cleansing his soul.
Adam emerged somewhat disheveled from the baptismal font, and the ready priests immediately held towels to dry the newly baptized man and drape a robe over him, while applause erupted from the observing crowd, a recognition of this convert.
Rostislav's smile was radiant; Adam's conversion signaled the start of the plan; now, they just needed to wait for Bulgar's reaction before deploying troops.
Deploying troops to Bulgar was something Rostislav had been preparing for years; under Akad's rule, Bulgar had become increasingly turbulent over these years; his gold and silver had appeased the Bulgar elite for a time, but could not appease them forever.
Furthermore, more Bulgars had fled to Rus'; most of them were members of the orthodox faction, who, facing Akad's persecution, could only choose to flee and gather under the legitimate heir of the Dulu Family.
The internal situation in Bulgar was also worsening; Akad needed to make room for his supporters, and making room inevitably involved conflict and struggle.
It seemed that battles between various factions and ethnic groups had already begun there; although it appeared these battles were merely some people seizing opportunities to settle personal grievances, their willingness to do so indicated the chaos of the Bulgar situation, as they could not even maintain the most superficial political stability.
It was this situation that strengthened Rostislav's resolve to intervene; now, he had to wait for the Bulgar elites' reaction to Adam's conversion, which might take a few years, as they needed time to accept it and choose between faith and interests, but Rostislav could afford to wait and endure.
As the struggle in Bulgar became more severe, and the civil war among the ruling class intensified in a few more years, they would no longer care about pagans or non-pagans, and moreover, there had always been those within Bulgar who were dissatisfied with the conversion.
The situation in Bulgar was bound to deteriorate; this was a consequence sown when Akad usurped power, and the results were now beginning to manifest, which was most advantageous for Rostislav.
Just as the Prince was contemplating the situation in Bulgar, the church bells suddenly caught his attention, and the Prince then realized it was time for communion.