The Fall of the Golden Empire (Novel) (Volume 1) "Bloody Sunset" by Zhang Baotong
Early the next morning, Princess Ina asked Haya to report to Prince Atahualpa that the supreme Inca king had passed away. At that time, Prince Atahualpa, who served as the commander of the northern army and the chief guard of the palace, was sleeping in the room of Ziyuan Pavilion with his maid Xiu'er in his arms and covering his head. As soon as he heard that his father was dead, the prince sat in bed for a long time in a daze, seemingly at a loss for words.
Seeing the prince's panic, the maid Xiuya hugged the prince's neck and said in a comforting tone, "Prince, don't be sad. Once the king dies, won't you be the king of Quito?"
Prince Atahualpa smiled sinisterly and said, "I won't feel uncomfortable. I have long been looking forward to your king's quick death." After saying that, he held the graceful lady in his arms and looked at her. Kissing all over the body, he said seriously, "My dear little pigeon, I want to be not just the king of Quito, but the supreme king of the Inca Kingdom. Do you believe it?"
Xiuwei shook her head and said, "But your father has already given the kingship of the Inca Empire to your brother, Prince Huascar. Moreover, the Inca king must be succeeded by an Inca prince by direct blood."
Prince Atahualpa cursed, "What a direct prince with pure blood. One day I will kill all those damn direct families and people with pure blood."
Xiu'er was very surprised when she heard this and said, "The prince must not commit such an offence, or he will be punished by the Sun God."
But the prince gritted his teeth and said, "If I don't kill them all, how can I be the supreme Inca king?" After saying that, he asked Xiu'er to dress and tie him so that he could return to the palace to deal with his father's affairs. funeral affairs.
Returning to the palace from Ziyuan Pavilion, Prince Atahualpa heard the sound of a woman wailing far away from his father's bedroom. He quickened his pace and arrived at his father's bedroom. As soon as he entered the door, he saw twenty or thirty concubines kneeling on the ground, crying together. Princess Yina and Princess Wuga lay beside the king's bed and cried like tears. The mother, Palia, was sitting next to her father, wiping her tears with a piece of flannel. However, the Inca King was silent at this time, with a calm face, without the slightest pain or worry of being tortured by the disease.
Prince Atahualpa stood silently beside his father for a long time, and then asked Princess Ina when the king left. Princess Yina couldn't explain clearly, so she wiped her tears, stopped crying and said, "When it was almost dawn, the king asked me when it would be dawn. I asked the king what he was worried about. The king said that he had something important to tell his family. Explain. I told the king that it was almost dawn, so you should sleep a little longer. The king said that he couldn't sleep. I said that if you couldn't sleep, I would tell you a fairy tale. He said that he was very upset and didn't want to hear it. I I told him, "You should sleep for a while longer. As soon as it breaks, I will ask someone to inform my family to come and listen to the decree." He slept for a while, then woke me up and said that he was really tired. Before he woke up, he asked Princess Anna to explain to his family what he told her last night. This was his last will, and the family must abide by it. I said, please don’t worry, Your Majesty, I will definitely I did as I was told. Then, the king fell asleep. When I woke up at dawn, I saw that the king had no breath, and then I knew that the king had passed away." As Na said, she cried again.
At this time, Princess Anna also happened to rush over after hearing the news. When she saw that her father was dead, she threw herself on his body and burst into tears. After the princess cried for a while, Prince Atahualpa asked Yina and Uga to help Princess Anna leave her father's bed and go to the room where the princess lived next door. Princess Anna stopped crying after being persuaded by Princess Palia and Inauga for a while.
At this time, Haya came and told the princess that Prince Atahualpa was going to summon her. She felt strange and wondered why the prince wanted to summon her. So, she wiped the tears on her face, tried her best to calm down her emotions, and followed Haya to the inner meeting hall next to the main hall where her father usually worked. As soon as she entered the chamber, the princess saw Prince Atahualpa sitting on her father's throne. She almost shouted in surprise, but she immediately came to her senses and pretended to turn a blind eye and not be surprised.
Prince Atahualpa was sitting on the throne, lowering his head and fiddling with the tassel in his hand. When the princess entered the room, he didn't even look at the princess for a while. He didn't even raise his head, and didn't let the princess sit down. He asked in an insinuating tone, "I heard that my father said something to you last night, and also told you that he had a will to announce to his family."
Princess Anna couldn't help but be shocked, thinking about what she said to her father, how could he know? Could it be that someone was eavesdropping? Faced with the prince's arrogance and rudeness, she suppressed her anger and disgust, pretended to be completely ignorant, and asked, "What will? Why haven't I heard about it?" After looking at the prince's reaction, the princess added, "Father, Wang just asked me to chat with him for a while and didn’t talk about the will.”
The prince still didn't believe what the princess said, so he immediately called Princess Yina in to testify. Yina said what she just said again. The prince asked Princess Yina to withdraw. Then, he raised his head high and said with a serious face and a serious tone, "I think Princess Yina will not tell lies."
Princess Anna smiled contemptuously and said, "Does brother suspect that I am lying?"
The prince continued to fiddle with the tassel in his hand and said in a more serious tone, "At least one of you and Princess Ina is lying."
As he spoke, the prince leaned back on the dazzling golden chair, put the red tassel symbolizing the supreme Inca king on his head, then crossed his legs high, and warned with a gloomy face, "I know that my father is very fond of you." You talk about everything, and you often give advice to your father. My father’s will is related to the great cause of the Inca Empire. I am now the king of the Kingdom of Quito, your husband and monarch. You must report it to me sincerely and truthfully. .”
Princess Anna had long seen through the true nature of Prince Atahualpa, but she did not expect that the prince's true identity would be revealed so completely and completely. But the more this happens, the less she can tell the secret in her heart, because it will not only threaten her life safety and cause many people to suffer, but will also make the prince hate his father and even aggravate the prince's rebellious mentality. Therefore, she thought that she could not say these words even if she died.
She resolutely replied to the prince with a dignified and calm look, "Since the father has betrothed the younger sister to the prince, why should the younger sister lie to her husband and hide the truth?" Then she said to the prince in a solemn and solemn tone, "Father It is true that the king only chatted casually with his younger sister and did not discuss the will." Then he asked, "Hasn't the king's will been announced to the royal family, relatives and chiefs?"
Prince Atahualpa looked at the princess for a long time with hawk-like eyes, and then asked with some uneasiness, "I wonder if my little sister and my father have been chatting about those topics. Can you tell me and let your brother listen?" ?”
The princess blinked, frowned, pondered for a while, and said, "It's all irrelevant gossip, so I can't remember it all at once."
The prince inspired and said, "Don't be in a hurry, don't be in a hurry, think about it carefully."
But the princess racked her brains for a long time and said, "I only remember telling him a story, but I really can't remember anything else."
The prince shook his head and said in a cold tone, "My little sister is so wise and intelligent. How could she completely forget what she said to her father last night? I'm afraid no one can believe it."
The princess explained again and again, "It's just trivial gossip about children's love. Otherwise, how could we forget about it after saying it?"
Just at this time, someone came to report that the high priest Chalkuchma was waiting outside the hall to ask for an audience. Prince Atahualpa said, "Let him in."
Seeing that the prince wanted to summon her uncle, Princess Anna wanted to leave, but was blocked by the prince. The princess said, "I wonder if the prince has anything else to say?" But the prince didn't say anything, he just walked straight over, hugged Princess Anna suddenly in his arms, kissed her and whispered, "My little dove, Don’t leave tonight, just stay in my room.”
But the princess said, "It's necessary." But the prince didn't let her say anything at all, and said, "What's necessary? I am the king of the Kingdom of Quito, and I can do whatever I say." After that, he asked someone to take the princess away. Go to the bedroom next door.
History is like this, sometimes one thing can affect the entire course of history. If Huayna Capac, the twelfth generation king of the Incas, could live a few more days and change his will as Princess Ana Yama said, then the American continent would definitely not be what it is today. . However, there are no what-ifs in history, just like a long river that never returns to the sea.
At this time, High Priest Chalkuchma entered the chamber, and Prince Atahualpa was still sitting on the throne playing with the red tassel that his father had worn. The red tassel is the crown worn by the Inca king, while the tassel worn by the prince is yellow. Of course he did this because he wanted to express directly what he was not comfortable saying. The high priest Chalkuchma himself was a smart man, so before the prince could speak, the high priest walked respectfully to the prince and said with a smile, "The prince summoned me, could it be that he asked me to be responsible for settling the king's affairs?" funeral?"
The prince said in an appreciative tone, "Uncle is indeed extremely smart. Not only did he already know that the king passed away, but he also knew that I would make you responsible for burying the king. However, what I want to know most now is how I can immediately become the king of Quito. The king."
High Priest Chalkuchma frowned, walked around a few times with his hands behind his back, and said, "Why is this so difficult?" After saying that, he walked to the prince's side and whispered a few words into his ear. When the prince heard this, he was overjoyed and said to the high priest repeatedly, "Uncle is really smart!" Then he asked Haya to summon his mother, Princess Palia, to see him.
Princess Paria came in wearing black clothes, with tears on her face yet to be wiped off. When she saw her brother and son together, she thought they were discussing the king's funeral together, so she wiped her face and asked the prince, " What do you want to discuss, Wang'er?"
But the prince said, "I want to be the king of the Kingdom of Quito immediately. For this matter, the assistant minister Prince Chiskis and the commander of the Quito army and his subordinates must come forward to recommend me. I think my mother and Prince Chiskis have a close relationship, so I want to ask my mother to persuade the prince."
The mother seemed a little embarrassed and said, "Although this is not difficult, there is a condition."
The prince frowned and asked, "What conditions?"
The princess said, "I will give my beauty to Prince Kiskis."
When the prince heard this, he couldn't help but feel a little annoyed. He thought that Xiuwei was mine, how could I give it to him casually, so he said, "It's okay if you want another woman. Xiuwei is my person, so don't even think about it."
The princess became more and more embarrassed and said in a tone of explanation and persuasion, "He said that as long as Xiuwei is promised to him, he can do anything he wants. And, I have already promised him."
Seeing the prince's stubborn look, the high priest who was his uncle also persuaded him, "Prince, don't blame your uncle for being rude and talkative. Quito has always been fertile with beautiful women, but there is only one king. If the prince becomes the king, all the people in the country will be the same." Aren’t all the beauties yours? When the prince first became the king of a country, his foundation was unstable. Without the support of the auxiliary ministers and military commanders, he would definitely not be able to do it. Therefore, according to his uncle’s opinion, the prince must give this girl to the prince so that The prince can do his best for you."
But Prince Atahuallpa said, "I am the King of Quito. How can I be considered the King of Quito if I have to accept a woman I love?" With that, he angrily walked away.
