The Fall of the Golden Empire (Novel) (Volume 1) "Bloody Sunset" by Zhang Baotong
Several princes and ministers became more and more enthusiastic, describing the Inca King Huascar's invitation to Quito Prince Atarielpa to Cusco to discuss changes as a vicious ulterior motive. Seeing that everyone was getting further and further away from the topic, King Atahualpa asked in an emphatic tone, "Everyone is very clear about the situation, but what should we do now?"
Kiskis said, "The king just doesn't go. Let's see what Huascar can do. Are you afraid that Huascar will send troops and bring you here to capture you?"
Luminawi also said, “It is expected that the total number of soldiers in Cusco city is only 30,000 to 20,000, but our northern army, Quito army and central army alone have nearly 100,000 elite soldiers, and they are all well-trained and experienced in many battles. , if we really fight, who is our opponent in Cusco?"
But Gilabamba said in a reminding tone, "Although there are only 30,000 to 20,000 regular troops in Cusco city, once the two sides start a war, Cusco can mobilize more than 100,000 or more than 200,000 soldiers in a few days. A large army. But it is difficult for us in Quito to mobilize any more troops. Therefore, I think this battle is absolutely unwinnable. Not only will both sides suffer, but also, if Quito cannot win in one fell swoop, both sides will lose. The war would be in a protracted and stalemate state. That would be very detrimental to the Kingdom of Quito. After all, the Kingdom of Quito is a small country with a relative lack of manpower and material resources. The Inca Empire was vast, rich in resources, and had a large population. If they could only mobilize two An army of 100,000 people can easily defeat us.”
After hearing this, everyone lowered their heads and remained silent. Chalkuchma said, "Since we can't defeat them now, then we won't fight them. Since we obviously can't defeat them, we won't fight them openly. The king can explain to the envoy that his condition is not yet good." After recovering, I can’t travel far, so I can’t travel long distances to the capital city of Cusco, but you will fully agree and implement King Huascar’s ideas and decisions.”
But Gilabamba disagreed with Chalkuchma. He said, "As for King Huascar's reform laws and the confiscation of the land and property of his slaves, I think you should think carefully before taking action."
Atahualpa asked in confusion, "Why? The late king is dead, so what use are those slaves?"
Gilabamba replied, "Although the former king is deceased, the slaves are the most trusted and closest people to the former kings. These people have received a lot of favors from the former kings, and the land and property have been passed down from generation to generation. Now these people are rare. Tens of thousands of people, and not only do they have great power inside and outside the palace, but many of their descendants serve as officers in the army, and many of their women marry nobles and become the wives and concubines of Inca nobles. If If the king really follows Huascar's actions and confiscates their land and property, then they will no longer be relatives and slaves of the palace and the nobility, but enemies of the palace and the nobility. Therefore, please give your strong support Huascar carried out reforms and asked him to confiscate the land and property of the slaves of the Inca Empire. After the land and property of these slaves were confiscated, they became Huascar's enemies, and at the same time, they became our Quito The alliance of the kingdom. Once we really go to war with Huascar, these people will stand up to help us and destroy and disintegrate them from the inside. Therefore, by doing this, Huascar is actually digging his own grave. , shooting yourself in the foot. And you, my king, must not do this."
Atahualpa nodded repeatedly and said, "What several close ministers said is in my opinion, so I decided not to go to Cusco and ignore Shivascal's so-called agrarian reform. But judging from the situation, no matter what No matter how we deal with it, Huascar will not let us go. He will continue to use tricks to force me to submit, and he will be more explicit and harsh every time. Therefore, in my opinion, we and Cusco This battle will start sooner or later, and I must ask you to be prepared from now on. The prince of Gilabamba must find a way to reserve at least two or three years of food and two hundred thousand animals in the next two or three years. Weapons. Commanders Kiskis, Chalkuchma, and Luminawi must expand their armies to prepare for war, and train them strictly. They cannot let their soldiers sit idle all day long, pamper themselves, and slowly become veteran soldiers."
Several important ministers immediately replied, "The king wisely foresees that the ministers will obey the orders and never forget them."
Atahualpa nodded with satisfaction and waved his hand for everyone to retreat.
One afternoon two days later. Atahualpa summoned Ipiares again. At this time, King Quito was still bedridden, looking pale and listless. Seeing Ipiares enter the room, Atahualpa stood up and sat up, and held Ipiares' hand affectionately. , asked, "I wonder how the envoy has been these past two days?"
Ipiares said hurriedly, "Thanks to the prince's care, envoy, I have good wine to drink, and beautiful women to accompany me. I am extremely happy and can't wait to go home."
Atahualpa smiled and said, "In this way, the envoy doesn't have to worry. He can stay in Quito for a few more days. When my illness is cured, we can go to Cusco with him."
Ipiares said, "Of course that's good, but I don't know how the prince's condition is. When will he be able to set off on his journey?"
When Atahualpa heard this, he sighed deeply and said, "To be honest with the envoy, my illness has not improved in the past few days, but seems to have gotten worse." After that, he asked his concubine to give Yipi Ares moved a chair.
Ipiares sat beside Atahualpa's bed, his expression darkened involuntarily, and asked, "What disease does the prince suffer from that makes him so stubborn?"
Atahualpa said, "I heard from the Kachapa wizard that it was a cold syndrome. The body was cold and hot at times, weak and weak, and the illness was not cured for a long time. It really made people anxious and irritated."
Ipiares said, "I heard King Huascar say that you, Prince, have always been handsome, mighty, and strong. How could you suffer from this disease?" The envoy pondered for a while and said, "Prince, there is no need to be impatient. This disease It seems that he still needs to be treated slowly. But when can the prince rush to Cusco to meet the king? "
Atahualpa thought for a while and said, "I heard from the Kachapa wizard that it will take twenty or thirty days to recover. I wonder if the envoy can wait a few more days?"
Ipiares said, "I said I could wait, but the king is waiting for my reply. Therefore, I must leave as soon as possible and return to Cusco."
Atahualpa nodded, then waved towards the door again, asking Haya to bring the two maids. The two maids came to Atahualpa's bed, bowed and then stood aside respectfully. Atahualpa said to Ipiares, "The envoy came all the way to Quito and worked hard all the way. Your Majesty, I have nothing to say. I heard that the envoy loved these two maids, so I sent this The maid gave it to the envoy."
When Ipiares heard that Atahualpa had given him two such young and beautiful beauties from Quito, he was overjoyed. He quickly knelt down and said repeatedly, "The prince of Quito treated me with such a generous gift. The envoy didn't know what to do." Repay?"
Atahualpa quickly asked Ipiares to get up and said very politely, "As long as the envoy returns and tells the truth to my brother Huascar, he will say that I, Atahualpa, am seriously ill and am still in bed. I cannot afford it. I am too weak to walk on the ground for the time being. Therefore, I cannot go to Cusco to discuss state affairs with my brother. Please forgive me for your kindness. As for the changes proposed by the king, I think this is a great move by the wise saints and a great plan to stabilize the people and strengthen the country. . Originally, some of the kings planned this move, but they failed to realize it. Now that my brother is far-sighted and wants to develop his grand plan, it is actually a blessing for the long-term peace and stability of the Inca Empire, the prosperity of the country and the prosperity of the people. Therefore, the younger brother brought millions of people to support the king, and I want to imitate the king’s good advice and implement changes in the city of Quito.”
Ipiares said, "Prince, please rest assured a thousand times and rest assured ten thousand times. Envoy, I will definitely tell the truth to the king so that you brothers can be sincerely reconciled and treat each other in a friendly manner."
Atahualpa held Ipiares's hand tightly and said, "Then leave it to the envoy. If the envoy comes to Quito again in the future, the king will definitely treat him as a dear friend."
Ipiares was moved and replied, "Thank you, Prince, for being so polite."
Then, Atahualpa said, "There is one more thing I want to entrust to the envoy."
Ipiares said, "Please say, I will serve the prince and my envoy will die even if I die."
Atahualpa said, "I wanted to give some gifts to my dear brother Huascar, the Inca king, to express my gratitude. But I know that the king has everything in the world and lacks nothing, so I gave it to the king. To two carefully selected young girls from the small town of Tomewawa.”
After saying that, he asked Haya to bring over two beautiful girls. These two girls are only fifteen or sixteen years old, with beautiful faces and innocent and naughty expressions. This beauty and expression make people intoxicated and intoxicated when they look at it. If you look closely, you can see that the two girls have fair complexions, slender figures, thick buttocks, and high breasts. Her black hair was tied high into a bun with a beautiful golden hairpin stuck in it. She is truly a fairy in a dream, with stunning beauty.
Just one glance at the two girls made the Ipiares envoy feel like he was about to faint. Although he had seen many girls from Cusco, he had never seen such a beautiful girl from Quito. He couldn't help but secretly sigh: The girl from Tomewawa is really well-deserved!
Ipiares rubbed his eyes to calm himself down, and then said to Atahualpa, "The day before yesterday, the prince sent two pure gold beauties to the king. The king felt like he had found a treasure and had people carry them to him. In his bedroom. He didn't care about the gold, but he liked the beautiful and wild demeanor. Today, the prince sent two such beautiful girls to the king. The king didn't know how happy he would be. I had long heard that Tu Mewawa is rich in beauties, and today I really opened my eyes."
