Chapter 101 Chapter Ninety-Nine

Sir Leigh Teabing looked over from the muzzle of his Medusa revolver, staring at Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu, feeling somewhat remorseful. "My friends," he began, "I have done my best to keep you safe from harm since you broke into my house last night. But now your persistence has got me into trouble." He saw the shocked and betrayed looks on Sophie and Langdon's faces, but he believed that they would soon understand that it was this chain of events that brought the three of them to these seemingly unlikely situations. at the crossroads. I have a lot to say to both of you...and a lot that you don't understand.

"Trust me," Teabing went on, "I never intended to involve you. You came to my house to find me." "Really, Sir Ray?" Finally, Langdon reluctantly accepted the words: "What are you going to do? We thought you were in a dangerous situation. We are here to help you." "I'm sure you guys will help me," Teabing said. "There are a lot of things we still need to discuss." Langdon and Sophie stared in panic at the revolver pointed at them, unable to take their eyes off it for a moment. "I just wanted your full attention," Teabing said. "If I tried to hurt you, your lives would be over by now. You broke into my house last night, and I did my best to get you out. I A man of faith, I swear on my conscience, I will only make victims of those who betray the Holy Grail."

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Langdon said. "Who sold the Holy Grail?" "I discovered a terrible fact," Teabing sighed, "I know why the "Holy Grail Document" has never been released to the world. I also know why the Priory of Mount Sion decided not to reveal the truth no matter what. So The millennium passed peacefully, people didn't see any apocalypse, and when the 'end of the world' came, nothing happened." Langdon took a deep breath and wanted to argue. "The Priory of Sion," Teabing went on, "has accepted the sacred task of sharing the truth with the world, which is to make the "Holy Grail Documents" public when the 'end of the world' comes. Men like Finch, Botticelli, and Newton were desperate to protect these documents and carry out that sacred task. But at the critical moment when the truth was about to be revealed, Jacques Saunière changed his mind. The The man who took on the greatest mission in the history of Christianity ended up evading his responsibility. He decided that the time for the truth to be revealed was not very reasonable." Teabing turned to Sophie and said, "He has failed the Holy Grail and the Priory of Sion. , And let down countless generations who have worked hard to make this moment come sooner."

"You?" cried Sophie, and she finally glanced up at him, her green eyes fixed on him angrily, evidently aware of something. "You killed my grandfather?!" Teabing sneered, "Your grandfather and his chief guard are traitors to the Holy Grail." Sophie suddenly felt angry.He is lying! Teabing's tone was ruthless: "Your grandfather joined the Catholic Church. Obviously they forced him not to reveal the truth." Teabing smiled coldly: "My dear, the church has more than two thousand years of experience in suppressing those who try to threaten to expose lies. Since the time of Constantine, the church has successfully concealed the truth about Mary Magdalene and Jesus Christ. If they are now playing tricks to deceive the world again, it will be no surprise. The Church may not again hire crusaders to kill heretics, but their influence will be as good, and the methods will be just as insidious." He paused, as if to emphasize his next point: "Miss Neveu, it has been some time since your grandfather wanted to tell you about your family."

Sophie was taken aback: "How do you know?" "It doesn't matter how I know it. What's important to you right now is to know this." He took a deep breath: "None of your parents, your grandma, and your brother died in an accidental car accident." Sophie had mixed feelings upon hearing this.She opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't. Langdon shook his head: "What nonsense are you talking about?!" "Robert, it explains everything. All the little things explain it. History tends to repeat itself. Every time the church kills someone before they can silence the Grail Documents. With the 'end of the world' As the death of the master is approaching, the relatives who killed the master have conveyed a clear message to him, keep your mouth shut, otherwise, it will be you and your granddaughter who will suffer next."

"But they died in a car accident," Sophie stammered, feeling the pain from her childhood creeping back inside her. "It was an accident." "You're lying to yourself with an evening hypnotic story! You think there are only two left in the family - the master of the Priory of Sion and his only granddaughter - a pair that will allow the church to control the guild I can only imagine how much fear the Catholic Church has inflicted on your grandfather over the years. They threatened to kill him if he revealed the secret of the Holy Grail; they also threatened to kill him unless He made the Priory of Sion to reconsider their previous vows, or they would have to end it immediately."

"Sir Ray," Langdon finally became visibly irritated, "You certainly have no evidence that the Church was involved in the deaths of these people, and you have no evidence that it was the Priory of Sion's decision to remain silent." "Evidence?" Teabing retorted excitedly, "You want evidence that the Priory of Mount Sion was influenced by outsiders? The new millennium has come, and the world is still ignorant! Isn't such evidence enough?" Sophie heard another voice in the aftermath of Teabing's words.Sophie, I must tell you about your family.She realized that she was shaking all over.Could this be the truth that her grandfather had always wanted to tell her?Would he tell her that her family was being plotted against?How much did she really know about the car accident that took the lives of her loved ones?Just some broken details.Even newspaper reports have become blurred.Is it a car accident?Or a hypnotic story for the night?There was lightning in Sophie's head, and suddenly she remembered that her grandfather had always protected her.When she was young, her grandfather never easily left her alone.Even when she was an adult and away from home for college, she felt her grandfather was watching her all the time.She didn't know if there were members of the Priory of Mount Sion secretly taking care of her throughout her life.

"You suspect that he was being manipulated," Langdon said, his eyes widening at Teabing, full of suspicion. "So you just killed him?" "I didn't shoot. Saunière was actually dead years ago when the Catholic Church took his loved ones. He finally surrendered. Now he is finally free from the shame of not being able to fulfill his sacred mission." Pain. He had to choose between the two, you think. He had to do something. Would the world be willing to be deceived forever? Would the world allow the Church to put their lies in the history books forever? Will the world allow the Catholic Church to exert its influence through murder and robbery? No, we must take some contingency measures. Now we are preparing to carry on the legacy of M. Saunière and right the terrible mistakes that have been made." He paused After a while, he said again: "And it depends on whether the three of us work together."

Sophie was skeptical: "How do you know we will help you?" "My dear, it is because of you that the Priory of Sion could not make the "Holy Grail Documents" public. Your grandfather's love for you made him have no courage to challenge the Catholic Church, because he was worried that the Church would treat his only relative The fear of retaliation frustrates him. Yet he never finds an opportunity to explain it to you, because you repel him, tying his hands and making him wait patiently. Now, you must clarify a fact to the world, To comfort your grandfather's spirit in heaven."

Robert Langdon had given up trying to prepare to bear the burden.Although countless questions flashed through his mind, he knew that there was only one thing that was important to him right now--letting Sophie get out of here alive.All his guilt, all the guilt that he had mistook for teabing, was now transferred to Sophie. I was the one who took her to the Château de la Villette, and I must take responsibility for that. Langdon couldn't figure out whether Ray Teabing had the ability to brutally kill them in the chapel.In the course of his misguided quest, though, he must have been involved in the killing.When he thought of this remote house surrounded by thick walls, even if the gunfire rang out, he couldn't hear it from outside—and to make matters worse, it was still raining outside, Langdon became uneasy.Besides, Teabing's crime he just confessed to us.

Langdon glanced at Sophie, who still seemed to be shaking.Could it be that the Church killed Sophie's family just to silence the Priory of Mount Sion?Langdon was convinced that the modern Catholic Church did not kill people, so there must be other reasons. "Let Sophie go," Langdon yelled, glaring at Teabing, "you and I have to talk about this in private." Teabing laughed unnaturally: "I'm afraid this involves a problem of credibility. I can't afford such a risk, but I can give this to you." He leaned his whole body on the crutches, but there was still no gentleman. He pointed his gun at Sophie gracefully.He pulled the keystone from his pocket, shook it, and handed it to Langdon. "Robert, this is a sign that I trust you." Full of wariness, Robert Langdon didn't reach out to pick it up.Ray Teabing is going to give us the keystone back? "Hurry up and take it." Teabing said, clumsily pushing the keystone over. Langdon could only think of one reason why Teabing would be willing to return the keystone to them. "You've already opened it. You took the map, didn't you?" Teabing shook his head and said, "If I had solved the mystery of the keystone, I might not be here long ago, but would go to find the Holy Grail alone, without your intervention. A true knight learns humility in front of the Holy Grail. He Learned how to act on the signs that came before him. When I saw you enter the church, I knew you were here to help me. Not for my dignity, but for the truth. The service of a Greater Master. Humanity has the right to know the truth of history. The Grail found us, and now it is asking us to reveal it to the world, so we should join hands." Despite Teabing's repeated demands for cooperation and mutual trust, when Langdon stepped forward to take the cold keystone, he kept pointing his gun at Sophie.Langdon grabbed the keystone sharply and stepped back as the vinegar in the bottle gurgled.The dials are still in disarray, but the cryptex is intact. Langdon looked at Teabing and said, "How do you know I won't smash it up now?" Teabing let out a smirk, "You threatened to smash the keystone, and I realized when you were still in the Temple Church that you were just bluffing. How could Robert Langdon smash the keystone?" ?You are a historian, and you hold the key to two thousand years of history - a lost and found key to find the Holy Grail. You can feel burned alive at the stake for keeping its secrets The souls of all the knights of the world. Will you let them die worthless? No, you will not. On the contrary, you will maintain them. You will join the great men you admire, such as Leonardo da Vinci, Botticelli , Newton and their ranks. Every one of them, you will be honored where you are. The keystone calls us loudly, it longs to be free. The time has now come. Fate has given us this A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." "Sir Ray, I can't help you, I don't know how to open it. I only saw Sir Newton's tomb for a while. Besides, even if I know the combination—" Langdon paused, realizing that Talked too much about myself. "You wouldn't tell me, would you?" Teabing sighed, "Robert, I'm very disappointed, and it's also very strange that you don't even agree with me. If before you broke into Villette Manor, I and Remy finished you off, so my task now will be much easier. But at that time, I was desperate and chose a righteous path, which was more open and aboveboard." "Are you being aboveboard?" Langdon questioned, staring at the gun. "It's all Saunière's fault," Teabing continued. "He and his captain of the guard lied to Silas. Otherwise I might have gotten the keystone without any trouble. How could I have thought This master actually deceived me and left the keystone to his granddaughter who has always been at odds with him?" He glanced at Sophie contemptuously: "Robert, fortunately, you participated and gave me some compensation. You didn't let the arch The Heart Stone was locked away in the bank safe forever, but I took it out and came to my house." Langdon thought, where else could I go?Few historians know anything about the history of the Holy Grail, except Teabing and I. Teabing seemed a little complacent: "When I learned that Saunière left you a message before he died, I knew that you must have valuable information about the Priory of Mount Sion in your hands. As for whether it has something to do with Gong I'm not sure if it's related to the Heart Stone, or where to find the Key Stone. However, when I saw the police following you, I suspected in my heart that you might come to my house." Langdon glared : "What if we didn't go to your house?" "I was trying to reach out to you at that time, but anyway, the keystone finally came to the Villette Manor. You sent it to my long-awaited hands, which only proves that my original direction was correct. " "What did you say!" Langdon was shocked. "Sylas broke into Villette Manor suddenly according to the pre-planned plan, and took the keystone from your hands, so on the one hand, he saved you from harm, on the other hand, he also exonerated me, and made you Not to suspect that I'm complicit with Silas. However, when I saw how complicated the password Saunière set up, I decided to use you for a while. Once I know I can do it alone, I may send the Silas came to steal the keystone." "So you chose to attack at the Temple Church." Sophie said angrily, her tone full of regret at being betrayed. The dawn is coming, Teabing thought.Temple Church is undoubtedly the best place for him to take the keystone from Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu, and the church's apparent connection to that poem makes it a specious trap.He made it very clear to Remy - to hide while Silas recaptured the keystone.Unfortunately, however, Remy freaked out when Langdon threatened to smash the keystone.It would have been nice if Remy hadn't shown his face!Teabing recalled the kidnapping game he directed and acted in, and couldn't help thinking regretfully.Remy was my only external contact, but he revealed his identity!Fortunately, Silas didn't know Teabing's real identity yet, so he was easily fooled and led him away from the church, then watched Remy pretend to tie the hostages in the back of the car.As soon as the sound barrier was erected between them, he could call Silas in the front seat of the car, imitate the French accent of the leader, and ordered Silas to go straight to Opus Dei.Then, all he needed to do was make an anonymous phone call to the police, and Silas would disappear from his sight forever. In this way, the loose end line is tied tightly. But even more difficult to deal with is the other end of the loose thread, and that is Remy. Teabing struggled fiercely, trying to make a quick decision, but Remy turned out to be a heavy burden.In the search for the Holy Grail, someone has to make a sacrifice every time.As early as Teabing saw the wine bottles, French brandy and a can of peanuts in the bar cabinet in the car, he had thought of the most appropriate solution.The powder at the bottom of the jar would touch Remy's oversensitive nerves more effectively and deliver him the fatal blow.When Remy parked the car in the cavalry parade, Teabing climbed out from the back, walked to the passenger door, and sat in the front seat next to Remy.A few minutes later, Teabing got out of the car and climbed back into the car again.He wiped away all traces of doubt, and then proceeded to complete the final project.Westminster Abbey is not far away.Although Teabing's leg brace, crutches, and pistol set off the metal detectors, the booby-trappets didn't know what to do when they came across something.Shall we let him take off the brace and climb in?Do you want to search his disabled body?It was Teabing who taught the embattled guards an easier solution - he took out an identity card with an embossed seal that indicated he was a knight of the kingdom, and these poor guys almost fainted from fright , put him in hastily.At this moment, Teabing looked at the bewildered Langdon and Sophie, desperately suppressing the impulse in his heart. He wanted to tell them how he skillfully involved Opus Dei in the impending doom of the Catholic Church. In the conspiracy of disaster.But they'll have to wait a while.Now, they have other things to do first. "Friends," Teabing said loudly in pure French, "it's not that you are looking for the Holy Grail, but the Holy Grail has come to you automatically." He smiled a little: "Now we can only work together, which is clearer than ever Yes. The Holy Grail has come to our door." No one answered him, only silence. He whispered instead: "Listen, do you hear me? The Holy Grail is speaking to us through the centuries. It demands to be rid of the fool of the Priory of Sion. I implore you to seize this opportunity Now, it is impossible to find three people more capable than us to get together to decipher the final code and open this cryptex." He stopped, his eyes lowered. "We have to swear together. Keep our promises to each other. With the heart of a knight, I will try to uncover the truth of history and tell the world." Sophie gave Teabing a deep look, and said firmly, "I will never take an oath with my grandfather's murderer. I only hope to see you in prison someday." Teabing's expression suddenly became serious, and then he became decisive: "Ma'am, I'm sorry for your thoughts." He turned around and pointed his gun at Langdon: "Robert, how are you? What about me, or not with me?"