Chapter 563: Bullshit Prophet

Salt Lake City in December 1858.

The morning sun shines through the blue sky over the city, and the blue sky and white snowflakes complement each other, as if the whole city is covered with a layer of silver gauze.

Large flakes of snow fall, dancing softly in the air until they land on branches, roofs and streets.

The eaves on both sides of the street are covered with crystal clear icicles, flashing faint light, a thin layer of snow accumulates on the roofs, and ice crystals hang on the windows, reflecting the weak sunlight. It seems that every corner of the city is embellished with ice sculptures.

Salt Lake City residents put on heavy winter clothes, hats and gloves to keep warm, put on coats and walk out of the house to start a new day. The air exhaled by pedestrians on the road quickly condenses into a white cloud in the cold wind.

The snow on the road was already two or three inches thick. From time to time, horse-drawn carriages passed by with noisy bells to remind pedestrians to get out of the way, leaving two deep ruts on the snow-covered road.

This seemed to be another ordinary winter day for the residents of Salt Lake City.

Except for the cathedral in the center of Salt Lake City, which was built in 1848, this most magnificent building in Salt Lake City was particularly lively today.

In the Salt Lake City Cathedral, the core figures of the Mormon Church, who were in high spirits, gathered in the Salt Lake City Cathedral today to celebrate the birthday of their new elder. At this time, everyone in the church was celebrating and imagining the bright future after the eight elders who were outstanding and officially appointed by the federal government joined the church.

This sky in Utah is still the sky of Mormonism.

"Congratulations, Elder Stanford."

Cai Mingsheng, who came uninvited, congratulated the smiling Stanford in a weird way.

Liang Shaoyu also came uninvited.

"So it's you two, rare guests, especially Chief Inspector Cai. I didn't expect you to take time out of your busy schedule to come to Salt Lake City to celebrate my birthday. It's such an honor." Stanford didn't seem to notice the anger on Cai Mingsheng's face, and he added with a smile.

"I still prefer you two to call me Governor Stanford. Of course, if you two are willing to call me Your Excellency Governor Stanford, that would be even better."

"Mr. Liang has returned to California. Your Excellency Governor, not only did you join the Mormon cult, but you also celebrated your birthday here with great fanfare. I want to see how you explain to Mr. Liang then." Cai Mingsheng snorted coldly, his words and attitude were quite unfriendly.

"Don't worry about that." Stanford still said calmly.

"I will give Mr. Liang an explanation, and I will also give you an explanation for the cases you have on hand."

Stanford is an extremely smart person. He guessed that Cai Mingsheng came to him most likely because of the crimes committed by Mormons in California.

"Elder Stanford, I think these pagans are very disrespectful to you! This is the Salt Lake City Cathedral, our territory. The chief police officer of California has no right to bark on our territory." Beth rubbed her slightly painful mouth and said to Stanford.

"I'll have someone drive them out!"

Beth held a tall glass in her hand. The brown-red wine in the glass swayed with her steps, and the brown-red liquid in the glass seemed to be likely to spill at any time.

Mormonism advocates abstinence, but those cumbersome religious rules are used to restrain the lower-level believers and avoid waste of resources. You know, in the inland areas of the West, especially before the opening of the Pacific Railway, tobacco, alcohol, and candy were no different from luxury goods, and only a few people could enjoy them.

Mormon elders and their relatives are not bound by strict religious rules. Just as most legal provisions are used to restrain vulnerable groups. In Utah, Mormon religious rules are laws for the vast number of lower-level believers.

"No need, Elder Beth, visitors are guests, and they are also my old friends." Stanford said without any concern, showing great generosity.

"Elder Stanford, almost everyone has arrived, please give a speech." Brigham Young came to Stanford with a smile.

"Since everyone is here, please take a seat and listen to me talk for a while." Stanford glanced at the full seats.

It seems that the Mormon Church still gives face to his new elder. Basically, all the core leaders who can come are here.

Stanford walked up to the podium, cleared his throat, and asked Brigham Young loudly: "Brigham Young, when and where were you on September 11, 1857? What did you do?"

Brigham Young?

In Utah Territory, no believer dared to call the prophet by name, including the powerful elders. His position in the Mormon Church is supreme and unique, not just an empty shell.

Brigham Young was caught off guard by Stanford's sudden name-calling. He was furious.

"Stanford, what did you call me just now?"

Brigham Young was furious and slammed the table. The church members who had just sat down stood up one after another. Hundreds of eyes stared at Stanford, and the air was instantly filled with a murderous atmosphere.

"Yang! Brigham! Please answer my question!" Stanford shouted Brigham Young's name loudly, without any fear.

"Stanford, are you tired of living? Prophet! I am a prophet, please call me a prophet! You are a man who has no respect for superiors and inferiors!"

Brigham Young threw the wine glass to the ground, using anger to cover up the fear in his heart.

He had a good memory. He could recite the Mormon scriptures by heart, remember the likes and dislikes and past of every Mormon elder, remember the property of the wealthy believers in Utah County, and even remember all the beautiful young female believers in Utah County.

He certainly knew what happened on September 11, 1857.

Stanford's harsh questioning in public made Brigham Young panic. Stanford was a very smart and smooth person. What was his intention to ask him questions in front of so many Mormon middle and high-level people like interrogating a criminal?

Pull him down from the altar and replace him?

Brigham Young quickly rejected this idea. Brigham Young had been running the Mormon Church for more than ten years, and his position and influence in the church could not be shaken by Stanford, who had just joined the church and became an elder.

Stanford's charity won the favor of many believers, but his foundation in the church was still shallow and he could not replace him.

Even if Stanford had this ambition and idea, he didn't have the ability.

Since Stanford didn't want to be a prophet, what was the purpose?

Eliminate Mormonism?

A terrible idea flashed through Brigham Young's mind.

Brigham Young suddenly realized that Stanford had gathered all the high-level Mormons here in the name of celebrating his birthday. This was to wipe out all of them!

Oops, Stanford had tricked him! Brigham Young complained bitterly.

This guy is really good at pretending. He has read Mormon classics, spent more than a year, and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars, just to gather all the core figures of Mormonism here today, so that they can be wiped out!

It must be like this!

Thinking of this, unprecedented fear suddenly surged into Brigham Young's heart.

His hands trembled involuntarily.

Brigham Young had been dominating the Utah area for a long time, and fear was a long-lost and unfamiliar feeling for him.

The last time I felt scared was when Kruger slapped me in the face at the opening ceremony of the Pacific Railway.

"Prophet? Bullshit prophet! How dare you call yourself a prophet? Brigham Young! Since you have a bad memory, let me recall it for you." Stanford said coldly.

"On December 28, 1857, you attacked Alexander Donlon's immigration team.

This immigration team from the Arkansas area was heading to California rather than Utah. They were just passing through Salt Lake City.

But you forced them to convert, surrounded them, cut off their water supply, prohibited everyone from trading with them, and prohibited them from leaving Utah.

They refused to join the Mormon cult, so you brutally killed the disobedient young and middle-aged people in the team and the old people who were useless to you.1 40 people, a total of 140 people were killed by you! Their blood dyed the mountain meadows outside Salt Lake City red!

Then you raped the women in the team, forced them to marry, and forced them to become your playthings.

Those children were also taken to the so-called church school for brainwashing.

In addition, you also illegally plundered all their property! You took away their 965 cattle, 164 horses, 106 carts of supplies, and not even a wheel was spared! "Stanford listed Brigham Young's crimes in a stern voice.

This tragic incident outside Salt Lake City last year was called the Mountain Meadows Massacre.

Due to the large number of victims and the serious circumstances of this case, the Arkansas representative and even Buchanan kept pressuring Stanford to investigate the matter thoroughly.

However, this massacre was only a relatively large case of crimes committed by Mormons in Utah. Similar large-scale massacres occurred almost every month.

"Stanford! Let's wait and see!"

Feeling guilty, Brigham Young left the table in anger, taking with him more than a hundred loyal and devoted close-armed believers to leave the Salt Lake City Cathedral.

Stanford smiled contemptuously, raised his hand, and the four machine gun groups ambushed on the roof of the church lifted the copper oilcloth covering the machine guns, quickly inserted the magazines and turned the cranks.

There was a burst of machine gun sounds, and twenty or thirty close-armed believers around Brigham Young were instantly knocked down and died in the snow.

This unheard-of weapon that looked like a cannon shocked the Mormons present.

The quick-eyed and quick-handed Little Bree led a dozen diehard believers to open the church door and wanted to escape from this place of trouble. Unexpectedly, Kruger and his Arizona Infantry Regiment had already cleared out the believers they deployed outside the church to guard, and waited for a long time at the church door.

Three machine guns with loaded magazines and a group of fully armed Arizona soldiers were aiming at them. There seemed to be cannons behind them.

Peregrine saw that the gate was surrounded by fully armed soldiers and wanted to escape from the back door, but he didn't expect that there was also a major of the Arizona Infantry Regiment commanding his soldiers to wait in battle.

"We are surrounded!" Peregrine said with a trembling voice, his face ashen.

"Huh! Prophet? How many regiments do you have?"

Kruger led a whole battalion to rush into the church and seized the weapons of the Mormons in the church.

These Mormons were not professional soldiers, but a group of bullies who only bullied the weak and feared the strong. Their military literacy was even worse than that of the militia in the eastern northern states.

In the heavy siege, facing the professional soldiers who had experienced the tempering of war and were murderous, they did not dare to resist at all.

Stanford successfully captured most of the core Mormons in the name of celebrating his birthday.

At this time, the Mormon sentries at the train station and the main traffic passes in Utah were also disarmed and captured by the Han militia of the Arizona Infantry Regiment and the Utah Militia without knowing it.

The businessmen who often went in and out of Utah felt the most acutely. They suddenly found that it happened almost overnight.

The Mormons who forced them to pay taxes and preached to them tirelessly disappeared without a trace. They were still a little uncomfortable with this sudden happiness.

Is Utah going to change?

In the Salt Lake City Cathedral, 516 middle and upper Mormons and diehard guards were shackled like slaves and driven into the church.

The Salt Lake City Cathedral, once a Mormon holy place, has now become a prison for them.

In order to encourage residents of Utah to report the crimes of Mormons, provide evidence and show their attitude of formally declaring war on Mormonism.

Stanford assisted the young Chief Justice Pauline Pan in quickly holding a public trial in the square in the center of Salt Lake City.

Before the residents of Salt Lake City could react to what was happening, the first group of Mormons on trial were shackled and dragged to the Salt Lake City Square by strong soldiers like dead dogs.