CHAPTER 10 #5
"I made a mileometer to verify exactly how long the journey took," Leonardo shook the round device in his hand. "Isn’t it interesting?"
No, I’ve seen this on car dashboards.
It took them nearly a week to reach Milan.
Sometimes, when Hedy felt tired of sitting in the carriage, she longed for her Ford car.
If she were to jump ahead four or five hundred years, it would take just three or four hours to cover the distance.
But it had to be said that the countryside scenery of this era was like something out of a painting.
The weeping willows by the babbling streams, the farmwomen holding cats, the vast fields of wheat and vineyards—everything was so simple and natural.
She noticed that Leonardo had switched to a new notebook on the journey, and his sketches of bushes and rural landscapes were quite beautiful.
Sometimes, Hedy would borrow a pen and casually doodle on a piece of paper.
"What do these two circles and triangles mean?" Leonardo asked, sitting beside her, looking quite curious. "And the two dots?"
It’s Mickey Mouse.
Hedy thought about the definition of comics for a moment and then showed him a few simple sketches.
No need to depict textures or skeletons, no need to show their relationship with the gods.
Simple lines and circles could convey a lot.
"This is... a mouse? Why?"
She giggled, waving her hand in surrender, giving up on explaining.
Milan was Italy's second-largest city and one of the largest vassals of the Holy Roman Empire.
A grand cathedral was under construction here, and although it had been in progress for over a century, it still hadn't reached its completion.
As Leonardo explained this to Hedy, she was still eyeing the nearby vendors selling trinkets.
Ice cream was unavailable, but dried berries were a good alternative.
"Why hasn't it been finished yet?"
"Because the dome is difficult to design and construct," Leonardo waved his hand, and the vendor quickly jogged over to the carriage, raising his basket to show them what was inside.
"Sir—would you like some sugar cubes? They came from the East, and one big scoop costs just one silver coin!"
"We don't need any medicine, thank you," Leonardo replied, seeing that she had bought some freshly dried fruit, and tried to steer the conversation back to the building. "Actually, the dome of the Florence Cathedral in Florence was only recently completed."
"Medicine?" Hedy, ignoring his point, looked at the clay pot the vendor was holding.
"Are you saying sugar is a medicine?"
"Isn't it used for sore throats or stomach aches?" Leonardo, still admiring the grand cathedral, didn't pick up on the surprise in her voice.
"My throat hurts a bit," Hedy quickly pulled out four silver coins. "Please pack it up a little more, thank you."
——
Milan, the city, has a shape somewhat resembling a chessboard.
The city's layout is quite mature, with churches scattered throughout, giving it a strong religious atmosphere.
If the Apennine Peninsula can be likened to a small sword placed downward with a split tip, Florence lies on the blade, while Milan and Venice are positioned to the left and right of the sword's handle.
To the west lies the dangerous France.
Hedy consciously observed her surroundings, and her mood for sightseeing somewhat diminished.
Unlike Florence, where the entire city has an ochre yellow hue, most of the buildings in Milan are cream white, including its churches.
Florence Cathedral is adorned with a three-colored granite facade of white, red, and green. Although it appears pure white from a distance, as you get closer, the colors’ layered variations become visible, with vivid relief sculptures.
The green, white, and red together form the Italian flag, and their use on the cathedral adds a softer beauty.
Moreover, the red is more specifically a pinkish hue.
When the evening light envelops Florence, the rooftops of the entire city glow with a rose-red hue, and the charm of the cathedral is further highlighted, as if draped in a veil, with a hint of mystery.
When she worked as Leonardo da Vinci's maid, she often stood nearby, gazing at it. No matter how many times she saw it, she was always amazed.
In contrast, the beauty of Milan Cathedral is more aggressive.
Although the dome has yet to be completed, its iconic Gothic spires are symmetrically distributed, and there are over a thousand statues of saints scattered all around. There are probably over a hundred spires.
It looks holy and pure, with no colors other than pure white.
When Hedy and Leonardo da Vinci were gazing up at this cathedral, she suddenly remembered a phrase from Mark Twain.
“A poem in marble.”
“This cathedral was originally proposed by Milan's first duke,” Leonardo said, as he guided her past the sculptors carving the walls, his tone familiar. “He hoped that by constructing such a grand building, he could move God.”
“To pray for a place in heaven?”
“No, to pray for a male heir,” Leonardo laughed. “Unfortunately, his son was assassinated shortly after taking power.”
“Well, that's not God's fault,” Hedy shrugged. “He only asked for an heir, he never clarified that he didn’t want a short-lived one.”
The scale of this massive building posed such a challenge to the engineers that all the doorways were left empty, even the central grand door was missing.
If doors were ever to be installed on this tower-like cathedral, they would have to be made of huge bronze, which might not be something people of the current era could manage.
Leonardo da Vinci, guiding her on a walk around, couldn't help but express his sincere thoughts.
“I wonder if I’ll live to see the completion of this cathedral in my lifetime.”
Hedy paused for a moment and swallowed the words that almost escaped her throat.
She had seen it.
It wasn't until 1965 that all the bronze doors of the Milan Cathedral were finally cast.
At that time, she was in Italy shooting a movie, often posing for photos with friends there.
She quickened her pace, walking a few steps in a familiar direction.
From this spot, this angle, she could capture the blue sky and the white spires in a perfect shot.
Back then, she had been holding a blueberry-flavored ice cream, laughing with friends as they stood here, saying they would go to the arcade afterward.
At that time... she never could have imagined a day like this.
This time, everyone had come to the Sforza Castle to celebrate the little duke’s birthday.
The boy was only four years old but had already been spoiled to the point of lawlessness.
The Sforza family, despite their show of care for the brother’s orphaned child, spared no expense in fulfilling his every whim and indulging his bad temper.
Although Hedy had never met the little duke, she had overheard many whispers from the maids to the coachmen after entering the palace.
Everyone knew exactly who the real ruler was and was happy to share in his wealth.
Like the Medici, this lord had also employed numerous painters and artists, developing various celebrations and public performances.
This was a haven for theater, where almost all artisans could earn a living.
As soon as Leonardo da Vinci arrived, his smile seemed brighter than usual, and he became so busy that no one could find him for three or four days at a time.
Hedy, as his maid, found herself with more free time. Once she had prepared the meals and clothes, she would wander around nearby, occasionally browsing through little shops for fresh curiosities.
The advantage of a big city was the wide roads and clear views, where the presence of people gradually diminished.
Standing in front of a tower several dozen meters tall, one could only feel their own smallness, and many of the mundane matters of life seemed to lose their significance in an instant.
Soon, it was time for the little duke’s birthday. Crowds entered the palace, gathered together to celebrate and cheer.
The long hall was covered in vibrant silk, and large bouquets of irises and tulips were placed along the window ledges. Musicians played with great enthusiasm, holding strange-looking instruments.
“—Now, let us all enjoy a performance presented by the master Leonardo da Vinci from Florence!”
With the poet Bellincioni's loud call, a line of masked actors emerged from all directions, singing and chanting prayers in unison.
The little duke slowly appeared in the center of the hall, wearing his coronation robes, with a smug smile on his face.
Next, actors representing different countries began to appear one by one, surrounding him, singing, offering flowers, bowing, or making faces.
The costumes, shining with gold, silver, and powder, were all designed by Leonardo da Vinci himself, making it easy for the audience to recognize their origins.
Poland, Spain, Hungary—
Each time an actor from a different country appeared, the dance around the little duke would change in harmony, as coordinated and unified as a swarm of bees.
The scenery behind the little duke changed repeatedly, even the snow on the Alps looked quite realistic.
Poet Bellincioni raised his wine cup and, amidst the noisy music, shouted again, “Next, the most dazzling performance—The Planet Masquerade!”
The guests dancing with the actors stopped and looked up at the slowly rising curtain.
The dome had been painted to resemble heaven, and the gold powder shimmered even more brightly under the lights.
Behind the curtain, Leonardo da Vinci lit a torch, and the dancing flame quickly followed its pre-arranged path, lighting up the zodiac signs painted on the backdrop.
In that moment, half the hall seemed to burst into fiery brilliance.
The actors portraying the seven planets appeared simultaneously from the lift, beginning their orbit and rotation.
Angels slowly descended, and the Three Graces followed one by one.
Everyone in the audience was transfixed, their applause growing louder and louder.
The ball didn’t end until midnight, with people celebrating for various reasons.