The moon and stars disappeared, and there was no light in the dark sky; the night wind was faint, and the cold wind carried the sound of murder. On the magnificent top floor of the Palace of Winds, lonely wind chimes sounded, and a low lamentation floated. The curtains of the three gods fluttered in the wind, covering the murals of the condor and the hummingbird. Both were covered up at the same time and turned into the dust of history. In the clear light of the candlelight, there was an old and tall figure standing silently in front of the window, speechless like a frozen picture scroll.
Zinzini, the chief minister of Tarasco, was alone, with his hands behind his back, watching the fighting outside the palace.
But in more than half a year, his hair has turned completely white, and his face has grown old... Only his eyes are still as deep as distant stars and as heavy as heavy mountains. He looked at the sky full of fire in the capital, as if he were looking at the last fireworks; looking at the fierce fighting under the palace, he felt the peace of the finale in his heart.
After a moment, two guards came running with heavy faces. Not far behind him, there were more than a dozen warriors with the Hummingbird Family Pattern, most of them walking silently with their heads lowered. After a few dozen steps, the guard shouted loudly.
"Chief, the warrior captain Puap requested an audience! He said he had urgent information to report!"
Zinzini turned around and looked calmly into the palace. There are not many guards guarding this majestic Palace of Wind. Most of the warriors were fighting desperately at the front door, while a few were guarding the retreat at the back door. There were only a few people left around him. Of course, even if there were a thousand more warriors, tonight's outcome would have already been determined.
A dozen Hummingbird warriors quickly entered the palace, their armors stained with blood and their expressions pale and heavy. Puap looked at it quietly, but his eyes met the chief's. That gaze was still as sharp as an eagle, as if it could pierce people's hearts. The gray earth warrior lowered his head guiltily, with a trace of panic on his face.
"Puapu, why are you here?"
The chief's words were calm and deep.
"I...I have urgent information!"
Somehow, facing the calm chief, the gray warrior once again felt fear in his heart, even though the other party was unarmed.
"...Say it."
There was age and fatigue in the deep voice.
"...Chief, I...I'm sorry for you!..."
Puap raised his head and looked at the old chief. Looking at the tired face, he suddenly shed sincere tears and his face was full of guilt. This is the head of the family he has been loyal to for more than twenty years since childhood.
"Chief... someone opened the secret door of the south city and led the Mexicans into the city... I... I lost the south city gate..."
"who is it?!"
The chief's words finally brought with them deep anger, like the roar of an old beast.
"me..."
Faced with the chief patriarch's question, Puap's knees softened and he fell to the ground with a "pop". He burst into tears and explained from the heart. Every word is true, and every feeling is true.
"The defenders' hearts were shattered... There was no light at night... There was chaos... Napier... He... He died in front of my eyes... I'm sorry for him! I'm sorry for the chief! ...Woo..."
A low cry sounded, but Zinzini didn't speak. He looked at Puap who was lying on the ground crying, and after a while he let out a long sigh.
"Little Napier...Oh, little Huitu, get up! At this time, there is no point in punishing you."
Zinzini sighed and rarely said a lot. In this fragile moment, he seemed like an ordinary old man.
"Xiao Huitu, I have no one I can trust anymore... The dozen or so of you have arrived just in time, so I will leave the last thing to you!"
"chief?..."
Puap immediately stopped crying. He stood up and looked at Zinzini carefully, with a bit of fear on his face.
The shouting outside the window became more and more intense, and the whistling arrows hit the palace pavilions, making a muffled "duh" sound. Chief Hummingbird nodded and raised his voice.
"Guard! Bring Prince Sartini and the belongings you have prepared."
Three more guards came in from outside the palace. One of them was holding a crying child, no more than seven or eight years old. Other guards carried several sturdy bamboo baskets.
"Puap, I give you one last task. Take advantage of the chaos to take Prince Sartini out of the city!"
Chief Zinzini waved, and Puap took two steps forward. Then, the chief handed the child's hand into the hands of the dust warrior.
"Xiao Huitu, the other princes of the late king, I have arranged for warriors to escort them away. Sartini is the youngest one, and his birth is the most special. His mother is Tekos, and his maternal grandfather is a man from the Colima Mountains. The great chief. According to the laws of the kingdom, his inheritance rights were originally ranked last..."
Having said this, Zinzini sighed lightly and his expression became determined again.
"Puap, I hand Sartini into your hands. From now on, his life is your life! You must remember that although he is not the eldest son, he is the prince with the most hope of restoring the country! The capital is about to fall. , without the army in the capital, it will be difficult for the generals everywhere to obey the orders of the young lord, and I am afraid they will surrender to the Mexica one after another...
Send him to Colima! He has the blood of both the Condor royal family and the Tekos noble chiefs. The great chief of Colima is ambitious and has been seeking a marriage with the royal family... He will regard Sartini as the perfect heir who can inherit the legacy after the kingdom's demise to the greatest extent! This is the last hope..."
"I have suppressed the Tekos people all my life. I didn't want them to peek into the kingdom, so I left Shatini until the end... Your appearance may be the will of the three gods... Take this piece of the chief minister's Jade Talisman, go from the north gate! The arranged boat is at the lake in the north... Also, these bamboo baskets on your back contain gems, gold and silver, jades, feathers... and an inherited wooden board. .at last..."
The chief minister took a few steps, took out an emerald the size of a fist from a hidden compartment, and placed it on the feather bamboo basket. Under the bright candlelight, the huge emerald is transparent and pure, reflecting the breathtaking light, like a gorgeous dream.
Puap's eyes suddenly widened, and his pupils were filled with the sparkle of gems. The eyes of the militiamen were also attracted by this huge gem. Such a sacred gem is absolutely rare and priceless.
"This is a gift to the great chief. It comes from the distant southern rainforest. It is a treasure inherited by the royal family."
The chief's words were calm and stern.
"Remember! You can use any other property, but the gems and princes must be given to the chief!"
Puap lowered his head, not daring to look directly into the deep and vicissitudes of the chief's eyes, and responded in a low voice.
"yes..."
"Puap, time is urgent, take the prince away quickly!"
"Ah, then Chief, you..."
"Walk!"
The chief minister waved his hand and turned away tiredly. He stared at the murals of condors and hummingbirds, watching the condors flying and falling, watching the hummingbirds circling and wailing, and his eyes already showed the will to die. Under the mural, there is an unlit torch and a row of inherited wooden boards.
Chihuaco glanced at Puap, who was in turmoil, and shook his head slightly. He and his brothers winked, then slowly dispersed, approached the sad and weeping guards, and then suddenly thrust out the bronze spear in their hands!
"Uh! Ah! Ah!..."
Several death wails echoed in the vast hall, instantly piercing everyone's hearts. The sharp copper spear was swung and aimed at the vital point without mercy. In just a few breaths, the five guards fell to the ground dead. Bright red blood flows in the royal palace for the first time!
Zinzini turned around suddenly, with huge shock in his eyes. He looked at the always loyal Gray Earth Warrior in disbelief.
"Puap! What are you doing?!"
"Ah... Chief... I..."
Puap was speechless and ashamed, not knowing what to say. Even though he had been prepared, at this moment, he was still unable to control his mind.
"I...Mexica..."
"Pu...ah...Pu!"
Zinzini’s voice was as cold as the bottom of a lake. He let out a miserable laugh, and his eyes seemed to be burning with the darkest fire.
"Ha! I actually misjudged you?! The loyalty and honor of the Huitu family for generations will be destroyed in your hands today!"
"Chief... I'm sorry for you... As long as you surrender!... I guarantee that the Mexicans will accept you and protect your family!"
Puap lowered his head in shame, not daring to look at the chief again.
Zinzini stared at the warrior in front of him coldly, like an eagle looking down at a turkey. Then, he looked at Prince Sartini not far away. Although the young prince was full of fear, he stopped crying and held the dagger at his waist.
The chief minister's eyes showed a bit of relief and expectation, and then turned into sadness and despair. Suddenly, a strong pain hit him from his waist, instantly taking away all his strength!
"ah!..."
The old chief gritted his teeth and let out a suppressed cry of pain. Sweat instantly broke out on his forehead.
"Old man Qi...you...what are you doing!"
"do what?"
Chihuaco smiled coldly and stirred the spear in his hand. Zinzini could no longer stand firm and fell sideways. The bright red liquid flowed out quickly along the wound on his waist and dyed his white hair red.
"What?! Sir, how can you be soft-hearted at this time? How can the chief lord surrender? If the Mexicans accept the lord and let him continue to be high, will there be any way for us people to survive? ? Master, Master, you are really like a stupid squirrel, but when you see an acorn, you throw away the corn in your hand; when you meet a tabby cat, you are too scared to climb the tree... If this goes on, brothers How can I rest assured and put my life in your hands?"
After hearing the words of the old militiaman and savoring the hidden threat, Puap turned his back and finally spoke in a low voice.
"Hurry up, no pain!"
Zinzini fell to the ground and looked ahead helplessly. The wooden boards of inheritance are stained red with the blood of everyone. The veil of the gods no longer flutters. Looking up from the ground, the flying condors and hummingbirds on the ancient murals all fell together.
"Haha, chief, what a great chief! The chief who ruined the village, the chief who ruined my family, you old man with a white head, finally fell into my hands!"
The old militiaman pulled out his spear and pierced Zinzini's old chest and abdomen with another shot. Listening to the chief's painful groan, Chihuaco burst out laughing, his laughter full of the joy of revenge!
"Haha, this shot is for my mother-in-law! She has been with me for decades, and she didn't even have a body when she died! Come on, this shot is for my son. He left his parents and suffered unknown How painful it is, but I can only treat him as dead! Haha, Chief, Chief, does your heart hurt?!"
Chihuaco laughed crazily, his laughter echoed in the palace, and he even cried. He let go of the spear stuck in his ribs, leaned in front of the chief, and pulled out the dagger from his waist.
"Haha, this dagger is for my daughter! She is only so old, but she has already been recruited into the logistics camp! ... Conscripting Ding, Mexica does not recruit our Ding! ... Big Master, if you wave your hand, we will go thousands of miles away and die like weeds!... If you wave your hand again, our village will be gone. When we go back, only an old man who deserves to die will be left...
Chief, you are sitting in a palace like a kingdom of God, and your eyes are looking high in the sky. Where can you see us under your feet? ...Haha, I don’t believe in the three gods, they are all dead! I only believe in brothers! Haha, now, do you feel our coldness on your neck? "
The old militiamen looked like crazy. He smiled with tears streaming down his face. He pulled out the blood-stained dagger and placed it across Zinzini's neck. The sharp obsidian dagger pierced the skin, and the chief minister closed his eyes and put away his deep gaze forever.
"Ah, yeah! Haha!"
Chihuaco used all his strength to press down the dagger in his hand. Then, in the shocked eyes of the militiamen, he stood up with a wild laugh, groped randomly in his arms, and finally took out a bean tremblingly and threw it hard on the chief's body.
"Haha, haha! The biggest bean... is your debt... you have also paid your debt!"
"Lao Qi...you...you...are you crazy?!...Why did you cut off the chief's head!..."
Puap's eyes widened, and he felt an inexplicable fear in his heart as he looked at this familiar yet unfamiliar teammate. Chihuaco that night was dark and bright red as he had never seen before.
"Haha, Lao Pu, how could such a great achievement be missed in vain? We can't take the body away... Wrap the head so it can be taken away."
Their eyes met, but the old militiaman's eyes were clear and clear, with a smile of joy that he had never seen before. He pulled up a piece of god's cloth and wrapped Zinzini's head twice. Then, he held the wrapped head in one hand and the huge emerald in the other, and admired it sincerely.
"Tsk tsk, it's so round and bright! Just like the roundest moon...I, Lao Qi, have never seen such a beautiful thing in my life!..."
Weziti looked at his old uncle and shuddered in his heart. While the old uncle was saying "beautiful" in his mouth, his eyes were always looking at his head. The old uncle just smiled, buried the bloody package and the beautiful gems in the feathers, and then carried the lightweight bamboo basket with feathers on his back.
"Stupid fools, what are you still doing?! Hurry up and carry these belongings in bamboo baskets behind your back. Master, hurry up and knock out the prince next to you. Let's go quickly, the black wolf warriors from Mexico are coming up La!"
The fighting outside the window gradually became silent, but the shouts of killing below the building became closer and closer. Time was running out, and the militiamen obeyed the order and carried bamboo baskets on their backs, carrying heavy gems, gold and silver on their backs, but it made people full of joy.
Puap turned his head and saw Prince Sartini raising his dagger. The gray warrior stepped forward, snatched the prince's weapon, and punched the other man's chin twice, knocking the prince unconscious. Then he personally carried the prince on his shoulders as if he were the greatest treasure.
"Tell me, where is the chief of Tarasco?! Where are the princes of the royal family?!"
In the passage below, the roar of the Toltecs was clearly visible. He grabbed one of the guards and shouted harshly, but the other guard remained silent.
Hearing the familiar shouts, the old militiaman Chihuaco waved his hand, and everyone ran to the back of the palace in obedience. There was an emergency passage there, which was also the path they took when they were let in.
The night is deep, the palace is long, and the shouts and roars are gradually getting away. The old militiamen strode forward and walked quickly to the outside of the palace. Puap followed closely behind, and the militiamen followed behind. The gray earth warrior looked complicated and was in a daze all the way until he reached the entrance of the palace and asked in a low voice.
"Old Qi, where should we go now? Go to the north gate to find the boat on the lake? Or go to the south gate to find Captain Mexica?"
"Neither. Let's go to the east gate."
Chihuaco raised his head with a smile, looking at the capital city that was plunged into fighting and chaos, his chest filled with tears of revenge. He breathed in the slightly fishy night wind, and even his rickety back straightened up, as if a heavy burden had been lifted. In his eyes, there was no madness and turbidity, only brightness and depth.
