Looking at the other party's half-smiling expression, He Baolu slowly realized one thing:

These staff members deal with various religious personnel all day long, and their way of thinking is completely different from ordinary people.

The key is that they have no respect for their own religion and gods.

And the members of our own religious churches do not pursue scripture debate like Buddhism and Taoism in China.

Trying to convince the other party from any angle seems to be a useless effort.

He Baolu was silent for a few seconds and then changed the topic:

"Thank you for your advice. Once the documents are completed, can I leave?"

The clerk was not bothered at all:

"Can."

He Baolu stood up and prepared to leave, but after lifting his feet, he thought of another question:

"Excuse me, I heard before that when I receive a notice in the future, I will preach to specific people in a specific place. What is this specific place?"

The clerk replied casually:

"Inside your church."

He Baolu was stunned again:

"Church...According to what I learned before coming to Daming, there should be at least one large church in Johor, but this church doesn't seem to be on Xingzhou Island in the Lion City..."

The clerk explained to He Baolu:

"Yes, it is not on Sin Chew Island where the Lion City is located, but on Batam Island opposite. There are regular ferries to Batam Island at the pier."

Paul Ho is not very sure how far away Batam is, but it is definitely not in the center of the Lion City and Johor:

"Can we apply to build a new church on Sin Chew Island?"

The clerk said naturally:

"No, the entire Xingzhou Island can be regarded as a downtown area. You monks should stay away from the world and go to the pure mountains and forests to cultivate your moral character.

"The mountain closest to the Lion City is on the mainland across the strait to the north, and your church is at the foot of this mountain."

He Baolu felt in his heart that Daming was really being unreasonable.

Your temples and Taoist temples are accustomed to being built in the mountains. You cannot ask our churches to be built in the mountains.

Your ordinary people will not go to temples and Taoist temples for a long time, but our believers have to go to churches regularly to worship!

Then he explained almost subconsciously:

"Our priests do not need to stay away from the secular world, nor do they need to go to the mountains and forests to cultivate themselves. That is the habit of Taoism and Buddhism.

"Our tradition is that we live in cities, and churches should be built in residential areas so that believers can go there at any time."

The clerk responded naturally:

"In the Ming Dynasty, you have to abide by the rules of the Ming Dynasty. Monks in the Ming Dynasty have to stay away from the world and cultivate their moral character.

"If you can't accept it, you can go back to your hometown and don't cause trouble in Ming Dynasty.

“Also, I remind you again that you can stay in the Lion City, but you must find an ordinary job as soon as possible.

"Or go directly to the church and live with other members of your church to wait for the summons from the authority.

"Otherwise, if you stay in the Lion City for a long time without any work, you may be regarded as secretly proselytizing.

"You will be summoned regularly for investigation. If any abnormalities are found, you will be deported."

He Baolu did not ask why he, as a priest, was looking for a normal job. The key was that he could not preach.

I didn’t ask any more about how the believers should go about their daily worship if the church was built in a mountain.

These questions are meaningless now.

He Baolu agreed with a complicated expression, and then left the government office with his new documents.

On the street outside the government office, He Baolu thought about it for a long time and finally decided to go to the church first.

He Baolu subconsciously wanted to go to the station and ask people around him how to get to the church.

But the moment he was about to leave his mouth, he was stopped.

He Baolu was a little doubtful that asking strangers about church matters in public would violate the laws of the Ming Dynasty.

So after hesitating, He Baolu went back to the management office and asked carefully about how to go to the church.

Take a train from the Lion City Railway Station and drive north for more than 20 kilometers and cross the railway bridge over the Strait of Johor.

Arriving on the opposite side of the Malay Peninsula, continue driving inland to the north for about ten kilometers.

Got off the train in a small town and hired a carriage.

Driving more than ten kilometers northwest of the town, we arrived at a mountain village at the foot of a small mountain.

Passing through the mountain village, entering the mountain forest, and running for another two kilometers, we finally entered a mountain canyon.

There is a rather huge yard in the middle of the canyon.

The carriage was at the entrance of this large courtyard. He Baolu, who was a little motion sick, got out of the carriage and slowly moved to the entrance of the courtyard.

The door in the courtyard is locked, and there are two passages on both sides of the door that only one person can pass through in sequence.

Next to the passage are two concierges with small windows.

He Baolu walked along the entrance passage and saw a middle-aged woman in her forties who poked her head out next to the concierge:

"What do you do? Do you know where this place is?"

He Baolu handed over his identity document:

"I am...please look at the file..."

He Baolu swallowed back his words of self-introduction because he remembered the advice he had heard before.

You cannot identify yourself in public.

The middle-aged woman opposite looked at He Baolu’s document, signed it and then came back:

"go in."

He Baolu took back his identity document and walked into the compound along the passage.

In the middle of the big courtyard is a small square, and there is a circle of small yards around the square.

The layout of the buildings in these small courtyards is exactly the same, and they are all traditional Chinese pavilions and pavilions.

There are walls painted with red paint, buildings with cornices and brackets, and majestic and solemn stone statues.

There are wharf plaques hanging on all the courtyard doors, and peach-character couplets hanging on the door frames.

All the small courtyards are different only in their plaques and couplets.

Paul He searched around and found the Roman Catholic "church" in the middle of the courtyard of the Persian Zoroastrian and Tianfang Sunni sects.

To be honest, if it weren't for the signboard, it would be difficult for He Baolu to connect this garden with the church.

Saying it's a temple or a Taoist temple is a little bit more convincing.

There are indeed courtyards with Taoist temple and temple signs hanging around.

This small square and most of the courtyards can be said to be very deserted.

There are only two temples and Taoist temples where people come and go occasionally.

There was no one outside the other courtyard gates.

Not only are there no believers or visitors, but even the priests who should be in the garden will not show up.

He Baolu has already understood that priests are not allowed to go out wearing religious clothes, let alone talk to believers outside the door.

The reason is that it may have an impact on people from other churches.

It may constitute behavior that infringes on the freedom of belief of others.

However, this may also have certain benefits, so that members of various churches will not meet and fight.
Chapter completed!