The Fall of the Golden Empire (Novel) (Volume 1) "Bloody Sunset" by Zhang Baotong
The King of Quito led more than 12,000 soldiers and 20 to 30 women and princes all the way south along the marching road on the banks of the Marañon River. In the evening, they came to a place called Patas and stopped to camp. There is a house here for the Inca royal family and princes, with a total of six not very large rooms. The king and his concubines lived in these houses, while the princes lived in temporary tents.
The sun has set over the mountains and dusk has fallen. The river bank and the marching road were filled with guards at posts five and ten. The soldiers set up camping tents along the flat banks of the Marañon River next to the marching road. King Quida took the queen, prince and concubine along the river bank and looked at the scenery by the river.
The Marañón River is the main tributary of the upper reaches of the Amazon River, originating from the Andes Mountains in western Peru. The total length is 16oo kilometers. The upper reaches pass through the deep valleys of the Andes, the middle reaches are filled with rapids and waterfalls, and the lower reaches pass through sparsely populated tropical rainforest areas. Near Nauta it joins the Ucayali River to form the Amazon River. The river is flat, spacious and fast-flowing, with green grass and trees on its banks, which is a rare sight in the Andes.
They came to a bend in the river and watched a small boat drifting in the river. There was an old man rowing a boat and a young girl sitting on the boat, singing an ancient song. Although I couldn't understand the song, the tone was very simple and melodious. The king and everyone listened carefully.
At this time, someone brought Huayahualloka, the governor of Chimborazo Province, from the camp. His hair was disheveled, his face was gray, his clothes were wrinkled, and he looked tired. He looked tired and dusty. He walked over quickly, hugged King Quida's legs, crawled on the ground and cried loudly.
Because the king was listening attentively to the song of the girl on the boat in the river, someone suddenly rushed towards him and hugged his thigh. He was startled. When he saw that it was his closest friend, Prince Wayavaloka, who had returned from Quito, and When he was crying like this, he knew something was wrong. The king hurriedly helped the prince up and said, "Is my mother dying?"
Maharaja Wayavaroka burst into tears and said, "Princess Palia has passed away."
Hearing this, the king, queen and concubines were all stunned in silence.
Prince Wayahualloka added, "The day I returned to Quito, the princess had not eaten for several days and did not even have the strength to speak. As soon as she saw me, she asked, 'My prince, where is he?'" , is he okay?' I said he is fine, he is directing the decisive battle with Huascar. So, he can't come back right away, but he will come to see you as soon as the battle is over. The princess sounded very She was so happy that she started to eat some food and asked me to tell her about the king. I told her how the king commanded the army to defeat Huascar's 40,000 army, and how he marched into Cusco. She told her everything. She seemed very happy. However, a few days later, she stopped eating and became unconscious. She often called, "Prince, Prince, my Prince, where are you?" Some servants and I kept guarding her. By her side. A few nights ago, she suddenly called me to her bedside and told me that she was dying. She couldn’t wait until the king came back and asked me to bring the king’s brother Vaipalkon to you. This. I said, Princess, don’t worry, your words are the King’s words, and I will definitely obey them. Then the Princess fell asleep, but at dawn, the Princess did not wake up again. "
The king couldn't help but burst into tears as he listened. He wanted to cry loudly, but he couldn't cry in front of others, as it would make others feel that the king was weak and fragile. So, he wiped his eyes with his sleeve, made a strong appearance, turned around and walked quickly towards the campsite. At this time, the queens and princesses next to them were already crying loudly.
King Quida returned to his dormitory. He closed the door and lay on the bed, letting his eyes gush out like water. He knew that his mother was the person who loved him most in the world, and she would sacrifice everything for him. However, he did not let his mother see him for the last time. This regret can only stay in his heart forever.
After a while, there was a knock on the door. He thought it was Queen Anna Maya who wanted to comfort him. However, he did not let her in because he did not need comfort. He was a man, the king of a country, and knew how to face this matter. What he needs now is to calm down and say goodbye to his dear mother in his mind.
At supper the queen came into the house without knocking, and seeing him still weeping, she sat down on the bedside, took his face in her arms, and kissed him on the forehead. The king felt as if his mother was kissing him, so he hugged Princess Anna's waist, leaned his face into the queen's arms and cried. The queen did not persuade him, but kept kissing him. After a while, the king felt much better, so he hugged the queen tightly and said, "My mother is gone, and you will be my only relative from now on."
"I will treat you like a mother," said the queen.
Then, the queen wiped his tears and said to him, "Go and eat quickly. Prince Vayava Loka is still waiting for how to bury his mother, and you want to meet your brother Vaipalkon." "
The king nodded, and then went to the royal kitchen to eat. After eating, he summoned Maharaja Wayavaroka in his room and made detailed arrangements for him on how to bury his mother. By the time Maharaja Wayavaroka left, it was already getting dark. He asked the royal chef to prepare a sumptuous dinner to entertain his younger brother Vaipalkoon who came with Maharaja Vayava Loka.
Vaipalcon is less than twenty years old. He is a typical Inca aristocratic young man. He is well-dressed, with a pair of large earrings on his ears, a luxurious fine wool brocade top, and a tube skirt embroidered with Inca royal lace. He was tall, with fair complexion, and looked like a noble nobleman. Because the king has been following his father in the north and south, fighting and killing since he was a child, and he has a strong military temperament, so he really despises this younger brother who is like a young master. In the past, the younger brother had been living with his mother in the palace, but now that the mother was gone, the younger brother was handed over to him, and this was the mother's last wish. Therefore, he had to comply.
King Quito sat nearby and watched his younger brother eating, and asked, "My mother entrusted you to me, but she didn't tell you what she wanted you to do." Because he didn't know what his younger brother could do.
The younger brother replied while eating, "I told my mother that I want to serve as a palace guard for my brother to protect my brother's safety."
Atahualpa shook his head and said, "You cannot be a palace guard. Only a very careful and shrewd person can be a palace guard."
Seeing that he couldn't become a palace guard, the younger brother thought for a while and said, "Then I can be a general for my brother and follow him to lead troops in war. Is that okay?"
King Quida still shook his head and said, "You can't even be a bodyguard, but you still want to be a general. You think leading troops to fight is fun, but if you don't do it, you may lose your head."
When the younger brother heard this, he became silent. Because he doesn't know what else he can do.
After a while, King Quida said to his younger brother, "Otherwise, you can become the deputy commander of Prince Quiskis." Because he felt that his younger brother was his biological brother after all, and he could not be allowed to hold too low an official position. Higher official positions are not suitable for him, and deputy commander can be said to be the most suitable position for him. In this way, on the one hand, he can supervise Prince Kiskis, but on the other hand, he will not be in charge of anything very important and specific.
When Vaipalkon heard that his brother asked him to serve as the deputy commander of the Prince of Kiskis, he was pleasantly surprised and surprised. He knelt down on the ground, bowed to his brother, and said, "My brother thinks so highly of me. My brother, I will go through fire and water to repay my brother."
The King of Quito helped his younger brother up and said, "I let you take this position, not because of your military talents, but because you are my biological brother. Therefore, when it comes to arranging marches and fighting, you must listen more and more." "Study, don't comment casually, and don't argue or quarrel with others. I will send two people beside you. If there is anything important, let them convey it to me in secret."
The younger brother said, "I will bear in mind my brother's words."
The King of Quito finally said, "I will ask Prince Sifulbasan of Cajamarca to take you to Cusco early tomorrow morning to meet the Prince of Quischis."
While the two brothers were talking, Haya came to report that Commander Chalkuchma and Prince Kiskis had sent someone to report something urgent to the king. King Atahualpa left the kitchen and returned to the council chamber. By this time, it was already very dark. Four or five lamps were lit in the meeting room, illuminating the room brightly. The two commanders were sent from Cusco by a general. The general recounted to the king the decisive battle between the two armies on the plains of Kipaipan and the surprising victory of Chalkuch's horse and the capture of Huascar alive. The king was very happy when he heard this, and said that he would reward the two commanders heavily.
Then, the general said to the king, "The two commanders have completely occupied Cusco, but they don't know what method the king wants them to take against the city of Cusco. Whether they will adopt the same method as Tumebamba." "
Atahualpa was stunned by the general's question because he was not mentally prepared. But he feels that Cusco City is somewhat different from Tumebamba. Tumebamba is a city of betrayal in his mind, and those who betray him must be killed. However, the people of Cusco can only be regarded as enemies, but they are even more hated by him than enemies. Because what he hates the most is the exiled royal family and princes. Not only do they always look down on him, a prince who is not an exiled prince, but they also exclude him from the right to inherit the throne. If his father hadn't been partial to him, he didn't know what would have happened. Therefore, he found it somewhat difficult to answer this question. So he asked the general, "What do the two commanders mean?" The general told the king what the two commanders meant. The king thought for a while and said, "Let me think about this matter and give you an answer tomorrow morning."
