Chapter 1464: Chapter 30: Acceptance
[Westwood Province]
[Shi Hu City]
Little Baltz was already impatient from waiting.
But it’s not entirely his fault—he got up before dawn to prepare and started waiting early morning, and now nearing noon, the “guest” still hadn’t shown up. Anyone would have so complaints.
Furthermore, Little Baltz was only fifteen, an age when patience is lacking.
In contrast, Little Baltz’s father, John Baltz, was much more composed.
Other citizen representatives participating in the welco ceremony had already retreated to the shade, but only John Baltz still stood beside the road, like a stone statue, gazing intently into the distance.
Every ti the representatives under the shade glanced at John Baltz’s figure, they couldn’t help but suspect whether the mayor had already been sun-scorched to death.
However, clearly, John Baltz’s ability to withstand the heat surpassed the imagination of Shi Hu City’s citizens.
So, it’s no wonder Little Baltz was just the mayor’s son, while John Baltz could be the mayor of Shi Hu City.
…
The sun blazed overhead, and even though a shade was built, it was still hard to block the heat waves.
For today’s welco ceremony, citizen representatives dressed in formal attire were sweating profusely, their clothes soaked through.
Especially those two young won selected to “offer bread and salt,” wearing full “traditional attire,” were already on the verge of heatstroke.
The person to be welcod didn’t arrive, yet those who ca to welco dared not leave.
In this dilemma, many citizen representatives no longer cared about dignity, stripping off hats and coats, wearing only undergarnts, lying in the shade, eyes blankly staring at the canopy.
Beside many representatives, there was even one or more servants waving fans, also drenched in sweat.
Finally, so activity appeared on the horizon.
John Baltz, longingly awaiting the mont, shed tears of joy.
As if a grave statue suddenly stirred, Mayor Baltz ca to life, turning quickly to the shade, shouting and gesturing on the run:
“They’ve co! They’ve co! Get up! Get up!”
The barely alive citizen representatives struggled to rise, with impressive determination, hurriedly fitting dress clothes onto themselves.
The band, pieced together from inns, bars, and churches across the city, finally had a chance to showcase their talents.
The scattered “Chant of the Holy Mother” echoed inside and outside the city gate, bringing tears to the eyes of listeners stirred by emotions.
It’s a pity the musicians had fasted all morning, producing feeble sounds that didn’t reach divine ears, otherwise, it would have moved even the Holy Mother to tears.
Choosing “Chant of the Holy Mother” for the welco ceremony had a ticulous reasoning.
Red Rose’s music surely couldn’t appear, and Blue Rose’s tunes weren’t guaranteed to be usable, so Mayor John Baltz decided church music was the safest.
Moreover, musicians had at least a passing familiarity with hymns, even if they wouldn’t play by heart, making rehearsals sowhat easier.
Thus, “Chant of the Holy Mother” was chosen.
At this mont, hearing the noise coming from the band’s direction, the mayor felt incredibly thankful for choosing the simplest “Chant of the Holy Mother.”
But the most urgent issue wasn’t directing the band.
It was the flags.
Mayor Baltz, holding his hat and adjusting his belt, took long strides towards the city gate, shouting hoarsely at the top of the wall, “Flags! Get the flags ready!”
As soon as “Chant of the Holy Mother” sounded, the flag bearer, who had been dozing off, was awakened.
Upon hearing the mayor’s voice, the flag bearer quickly poked his head out from the crenellation, “Rest assured! All is ready! When they arrive, I’ll raise the flags!”
“Good, good, good,” John Baltz praised repeatedly and couldn’t help but remind, “Make sure not to mix up the flags! Look carefully before raising!”
…
The flags of the Republic of Paratu had one particular advantage; regardless of which republic—Kingsfort, Rainbow Creek, or Maplestone City—all still used the old republic’s four quadrant flag.
The only difference was in the color:
Rainbow Creek still used a blue background with a white cross;
Kingsfort changed to a red background with a white cross, setting themselves apart;
As for the New Reclamation People, they reportedly used green as the base color.
Thank heavens, this saved Shi Hu City’s tailors a lot of trouble.
The mayor urged them urgently, so the tailors rummaged through their bottom cabinets to find the old republic’s blue flag, repaired the parts gnawed by rats, then repeatedly washed it with li and vinegar, forcibly turning the “blue” flag into a “green” flag.
It’s just that the tailors hadn’t personally seen the New Reclamation People’s military flag, so naturally, they didn’t understand how “green” their “green” flag actually was.
To ensure nothing went wrong, Shi Hu City’s tailors made several “green” flags in varying shades.
However, whether the most “accurate” flag would be hoisted depended on the flag bearer’s skill.
…
Above the city gate, the flag bearer rubbed his sleepy eyes and confidently assured the mayor, “Rest assured about my sharp eyes!”
John Baltz said “good” three tis in succession.
Just after advising the flag bearer, another troubleso matter imdiately ca to Mayor Baltz.
“Daddy, it’s bad!” Little Baltz ran over in a hurry, “Miss Danni fainted! Miss Margit can’t stand up either!”
Old Baltz paused for a mont before recalling that “Danni” and “Margit” were the two responsible for offering bread and salt.
He hurriedly headed with his son towards the shade, and from afar, they saw a group of representatives gathering around the canopy.
Seeing the mayor approaching, the representatives silently made way.
Passing through the crowd, the Baltz father and son felt a prickly sensation on their backs. There was no need to ask; they could feel the resentnt of the representatives.
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