The Fall of the Golden Empire (Novel) (Volume 1) "Bloody Sunset" by Zhang Baotong
Atahualpa was thirsty and hungry, so he took a cup to drink water, but the water was tasteless and he couldn't drink it at all. But he was very hungry, so he went into the house to look for something to eat. There was nothing to eat in the house. He had no choice but to go out and saw tomatoes growing in the field in front of his door. He picked two, rubbed them on his clothes, and ate them. It was okay not to eat. The more I ate, the hungrier I felt, so I picked a few more tomatoes and ate them. After eating the tomatoes, he felt no longer hungry and felt a little sleepy. However, he did not dare to sleep, so he sat on the small stool in front of the door, leaned against the door, and rested relaxedly.
At some point, he heard a sound of people shouting and dogs barking. When he looked in front of the door, he saw a large group of Inca soldiers heading towards him under the leadership of the farmer. He wanted to run, but the blood blisters on his feet were so painful that he couldn't stand up, let alone walk. So he picked up the stool and tried to fight the Incas, but before he could lift the stool, the Inca soldiers shot at him intensively. He whimpered and felt that he was dead and fell into a pool of blood.
He suddenly woke up from his dream and saw a dog sniffing his face. He quickly waved the dog away. The dog ducked back and barked at him. He was afraid that the dog's barking would attract pursuers, so he threw a dry bone in front of the dog. The dog sniffed the bone and walked away bored.
It wasn't until the sun was about to set that the farmer came over from the col with a man. This man is wearing a brocade coat woven from bright red alpaca hair, a bodice woven from green alpaca hair, a feathered apron, embroidered shoes that are clean and spotless, and two hanging earrings. Wearing heavy gold earrings, these are signs of aristocratic status.
The farmer bowed and said to Atahualpa, "This is our mayor, Gina's father, your father-in-law."
Before the king could speak, the mayor frowned, put on a very cold and even angry look, and said to the stranger in front of him who was disheveled, unkempt, and unaccompanied and protected, "Where are you from? Did you find the wrong person?" Obviously he was very unhappy to be called from all the way to see this stranger.
Atahualpa showed his usual kingly demeanor and said in a serious tone, "Aren't you Gina's father?"
The noble mayor said forcefully, "How could it be otherwise?"
Atahualpa said, "I am King Quit, your son-in-law Atahualpa!"
The mayor was stunned for a moment, still a little unbelievable, but his tone suddenly became gentle and he said, "Are you really the King of Quito, my son-in-law Atahualpa?"
Atahualpa sighed first and said, "Yes, I led an army of 40,000 to fight the decisive battle with the Inca army led by Chamul from Cusco, but Kuta Chica stabbed me in the back and betrayed me. They killed me, fought with me together with the Incas, and captured me. I escaped from death row last night. Now, people from Kuta Chica and the Inca army are chasing me."
Upon hearing this, the noble mayor and the farmer hurriedly knelt on the ground and shouted, "I don't know if the king has arrived, but the servants deserve to die."
King Quida asked the two of them to get up, but they still didn't dare to get up, and they didn't even dare to raise their eyes towards the king. The wise mayor said, "If the king has the help of gods, he will survive the disaster and conquer the world in the future."
The king was not interested in this, but said, "Now the marching road is full of Inca soldiers. You can't stay here for a long time. Get me some food quickly so that I can hurry up and get on my way."
The mayor asked the farmer to get the grain and quickly made a fire. After a while, a large tortilla was ready. The king ate it in a hurry without waiting for the hot cake to cool down. He accidentally burned his mouth, but he still chewed it. The more he ate, the more delicious it became.
While eating, he asked the farmer, "How is this cake made? It's so fragrant and delicious, it's even more fragrant than the pig's trotters in the palace. When I return to Quito, I must invite you to come to the palace to be my chef and give me food every day." I make delicious tacos like this.”
The farmer said, "We people in the mountains can make corn cakes like this. If the king likes to eat them, I will make more to eat on the road." By the time the king finished eating, the farmer had prepared all the corn cakes to be taken on the road. . By this time, the sky was getting a little gloomy. The mayor asked the king to take a nap so that he could go on the road again when it got dark.
Although the king was very tired and sleepy, he still did not dare to sleep, so he urged the mayor to get on the road now. Seeing the urgency of the king, the mayor did not dare to wait any longer. He put a few corn cakes in a cloth bag, gave the farmer a few instructions, and then started on the road with the king's son-in-law. Atahualpa followed his father-in-law on the road. As soon as he crossed the small stone bridge, he suddenly seemed to remember something and said to the mayor, "I forgot an ornament in the house."
The mayor said, "I'll get it."
The king said, "I'd better go and get it myself." After saying that, he asked his father-in-law to wait by the bridge, and he hurriedly walked towards the farmhouse.
He came to the door of Gina's house again. The farmer just came out of the house and asked him, "Your Majesty, why are you back?"
The king said, "I left an ornament in the house."
The farmer thought that the king's ornaments must be very valuable, so he went into the house to help the king find them. At this time, the room was already a little dark and it was difficult to see clearly, so the king asked the farmer to light the lamp.
The farmer went into the back room, lit the lamp, and carried it over to look for it. The king took advantage of his unpreparedness, picked up a small stool and smashed it on the farmer's head. The king's movements were fast and powerful, just like swinging a battle ax to chop at the enemy soldiers, without any hesitation or hesitation. The farmer screamed and fell to the ground, blood gushing out from his forehead.
He dropped the stool and checked to see if there was any blood staining his clothes. Then he blew out the lamp, closed the door, and hurried toward the path. When he walked to the edge of the bridge, the mayor saw that he looked panicked and his body was still stained with blood. He couldn't help but be a little puzzled and asked, "Did you find the ornament?"
King Quito said lazily, "Found it." Then he strode past the mayor, leaving the mayor far behind.
Of course King Atahualpa knew that he should be grateful to the farmer, but he had to do so because he was worried that the farmer would betray him to the Inca. Once the Incas learned that he and his father-in-law were escaping from the mountain path toward Quito, they would rush after them day and night. That way, he would be captured by the Inca again, and by then, he might never be able to escape. Therefore, for his own safety, he must let the farmer die. Because selling him to the Incas is the best way for a poor farmer to rise to the top and obtain high official status, wealth and glory. It is also a good fortune opportunity that a farmer could never dream of. High office and great wealth are so tempting to poor and lowly people that almost no one can resist this temptation. The reason why the young soldier risked being beheaded and exterminated to release him from death row is the best example and explanation. Therefore, he did not feel any remorse or uneasiness about his actions, and believed that as the commander-in-chief of an army and the king of a country, what he wanted was strength and decisiveness, power and wisdom. No matter what he did, he would never Feel like you are at fault in any way. And others will regard him as extremely noble and great because he is the son of the sun. Therefore, for the king of a country, letting a farmer die is like stepping on an ant.
They followed the mountain roads in the mountains day and night, heading north for about two days and two nights, and it was not until the morning of the third day that they arrived at the station closest to the town of Latacunga. At this time, the noble King Atahualpa was already far away from the pursuit of the Inca, because he knew that the Inca could only reach Gualanda at the fastest, because there was a group of 3,000 Quito soldiers stationed on both sides of the marching road. If If the Inca wanted to force their way through, they would have to fight a tough battle. So, he asked his father-in-law to go to the inn on the roadside to inquire about it. I felt relieved when I saw the people in the inn wearing Quito uniforms.
When the king arrived at the post station, a young postman looked at the king for a long time, then hurriedly knelt down and said, "Supreme King of Quit, some people said that you were captured by the Inca two days ago."
The king sat down on a table and said, "Yes, I was captured by the Incas, but I escaped from death row again." Then, he asked the young postman, "You know Where have the Incas gone?"
The postman said, "The news just came that they have arrived at Gualanda, but the small force chasing the king has been blocked by Gualanda's troops."
After hearing this, the king breathed a long sigh of relief, and then said to the postman, "Hurry to the palace of Quito and bring me some clothes." Because he was about to return to Quito and could not let him go. The people of Quito saw him in a state of embarrassment and indecency.
The postman brought some corn cakes and dried venison for the king and the mayor to eat, and then hurried to the next post station. After the king had eaten, he felt very sleepy. He had not had a good sleep for three or four days. He asked his father-in-law to stand guard in front of the door, fell on the bed, and fell asleep soundly.
