Shulot and Avitt stood side by side on the top of the hill. Neither of them spoke, just watching the sunset completely set and the night slowly falling. Although they had not seen each other for just one day, the two of them suddenly became much strangers.
There is no moon tonight. Dark clouds have covered the sky.
"It's going to rain." Shulot said.
"Yeah. The road tomorrow will not be easy." Avitt smiled.
"Yesterday's battle was a great victory." Shulot said, "What do you think the king will do to reward you after you go back?"
"How can there be any big victory against the Otomi people?" Avitt chuckled. "Besides, the first victory in this battle was Kasar's decisive attack, and then Barda's support. I was just watching the battle from the top of the mountain."
Shulot was stunned for a moment, and then asked hesitantly: "But your perseverance is the most difficult task. And aren't you prepared to gain military merit?"
Seeing the innocent expression of confusion on the young man's face, Avitt finally burst out laughing. "Xulot, what's the use of military exploits?"
"Can I get a reward from the king? Get a higher position?" Shulot thought for a while and asked.
"What does this mean to me?" Avitt asked.
Shulot thought for a moment. Avitt was the king's younger brother, and not long ago he was in charge of the royal family's intelligence and security departments. In TV dramas, such characters seem to have to hide their capabilities and bide their time.
"Then what is meaningful?" Shulot asked.
Avitt did not answer directly, but asked: "Why are there more than a hundred warriors following you today?"
"They seem to be relatives of the deceased in the war, and I presided over the funeral to collect the souls of the deceased last night." Shulot replied cautiously.
"Well, did you have any military exploits yesterday?"
"No." After a moment's hesitation, Shulot finally faced the truth.
"So, what is power?" Avitt continued.
"What is power?" Shulot chewed on this question. As a person with memories of the past, he did not believe in blood or divine power.
"Exalted status?" Shulot thought of King Tisok.
Avitt just smiled and said nothing.
Shulot continued to rack his brains thinking about memories from different eras. Suddenly, a sentence I learned in class suddenly came into my mind: "Power comes from the people!"
Avitt was startled suddenly, and looked at Shulot for a while, then nodded slowly. "You are right, power comes from the human heart. You really have Su Hui."
"Tell me, what is the human heart?" Avitt looked at Xilote seriously.
"An act that makes people respect you." Shulot thought of this era, the daily rituals performed by his grandfather and king, the funeral held yesterday for the war dead, and the sacrifices in the name of gods. Finally, I remembered Zong Zhou’s “rites and music”.
"An act that brings benefits to people." Shulot thought of the cheers of the warriors during yesterday's victory, the importance of productivity, and the power of wealth in memories.
"Long-term unchanging habits." Shulot thought of the inertia of history, the long theocratic era in Mesoamerica, the Zhou Dynasty that extended to the Warring States Period, and the religions that have been passed down for thousands of years.
"anything else?"
There must be something else. Shulot thought about all the memories. The human heart, the human heart is the rule, the legitimacy of the rule, and the source of legitimacy. However, an inexplicable force has blurred his past memory and prevented him from continuing to think.
Perhaps, time will tell him everything.
"I don't know." Shulot stopped struggling and looked at Avitt expectantly.
However, Avitt did not continue the conversation, nor did he suddenly pick up a wooden stick and hit Xilot on the head and ask, "Have you enlightened?"
He just looked at the night sky quietly.
Shulot then looked at the night sky. There were countless stars in the night sky. In the summer nights of Central America, in the medieval campfires, the Milky Way is so bright and the heaven and earth are so vast.
A thousand years of time are just a blink to the starry sky. Can the rise and fall of the human world really cause changes in the stars?
Shulot stared at the purple star in the north. It was located in the center of the northern sky. It was so bright and dazzling that it seemed to have innate majesty. There seemed to be a saying in my ears: "If you control the hearts of the people, you will control the country."
A gust of wind blew by, and a drizzle of rain fell, wetting the feather crowns of the two of them.
"It's raining, let's go back."
Avitt turned around and walked toward the camp.
A night of silence.
The days passed quickly and the June rainy season started to get warm. The constant rain makes walking in the forest even more difficult. There was an additional path in the forest, and the bodies of the fallen Otomi captives stretched all the way to the foot of Xilotepec City. And soon, vegetation will bury the path, bringing life back to the earth.
The Mexica warriors were excited about victory at first, but then their morale was weakened by the endless rain and mountains. Fortunately the road is not long. Soon, the city of Hilotepec was in sight.
If we want to attack Otopan later, this journey will be extended to more than half a month. Shulot frowned and thought, that would be a disaster.
Cassar walked at the head of the procession. Today he is wearing a formal sunstone cloak and a gorgeously unfolded special feather crown. Behind him are a row of flag bearers holding various flags. After that are Jaguar military nobles who have made military exploits, escorting more than 2,500 people. A prisoner named Otomi.
Cassar's usually indifferent face was filled with joy, and Barda beside him was also wearing a formal eagle aristocratic costume, strutting and triumphant.
The team returning from victory approached the west gate of the city of Xilotepec, carrying prisoners. The warriors from all over the world, who had been besieging the city for many days and had nothing to do, cheered and howled enthusiastically.
Shulot finally saw the Teotihuacan team. His father was in full glory, bringing Orosh and a group of familiar warriors to watch the fun.
In the past two months, father and son finally met each other. Shusuoke strode forward and pulled Shulot into his arms. The two of them seemed to have a thousand things to say, but at the same time they didn't know how to speak.
On the other hand, Orosh came up and patted Shulot on the shoulder happily: "Hey, Shulot, I haven't seen you for a while, and you look a lot more mature."
Seeing Orosh's casual behavior, Bertard, who had been following Hulot, frowned, stepped forward, and slightly protected Hulot's side. The two jaguar-strength warriors looked at each other, and then looked at each other, their eyes shining, and their fighting spirit burning like fire.
Shulot quickly introduced both parties. After hearing that Orosh was the teacher who taught Shulot martial arts, Bertard took a step back and bowed his head slightly to the Jaguar to apologize.
When they heard that Bertard was a follower of Shulot, Shusok and Orosh looked at each other with expressions of surprise.
Afterwards, the father and son couldn't wait to share their experiences with each other. Before he spoke for a long time, Shulot saw Avitt standing not far away, looking at the two of them with a smile.
Shulot quickly introduced: "This is Avitsotl, the king's younger brother and my best friend."
Hearing these words, Avitt's handsome face showed a trace of satisfaction, and then he looked at Shusok with a half-smile.
Shusoke's face froze, and a trace of worry that could not be concealed appeared on his resolute face. Apparently he had heard of Avitt.
The two greeted each other.
"Dear Captain Shusok, you really have given birth to a son who is born smart." Avitt praised with a sincere smile.
"Where. Shulot has always been stupid and ignorant of ordinary things. It is just a rumor that he is naturally smart. At best, he is only slightly good at numbers." Shusok explained nervously.
"The king is already waiting for the returning legions from victory. We have to leave first." Avitt smiled again, then turned and left.
Shulot had no choice but to follow.
Before leaving, his father shook his hand tightly and said, "Be careful!"
