The Fall of the Golden Empire (Novel) (Volume 1) "Bloody Sunset" by Zhang Baotong
King Atahuallpa of Quito learned that Commander Chalcuchima and Prince Quischis had captured the Inca King Huascar alive and captured the capital city of Cusco, so he headed south from the small town of Cajamarca to rush to The small town of Haoha, only four hundred kilometers away from Cusco, personally directed the post-war affairs.
However, the road going south can be said to be a thoroughfare to the sky. On the nearly one thousand kilometers of marching road, almost all of it traveled through the high mountains and deep mountain canyons in the central Cordillera Mountains. The average altitude of the mountain range is 366o meters, and there are more than ten peaks over 6,000 meters above sea level. Many peaks are covered with snow all year round and are inaccessible. Although the Incas built a marching road in the mountains and valley bottoms that could allow a large army to march, there were many places where only one person could pass through single-plank bridges and mountaintop paths.
King Quito's escort army first marched along the road along the Marañon River. When they reached a bend in the river, the road was suddenly cut off by a river valley. There was a vertical and steep cliff beside the river. The river valley is narrow and the waves are roaring, making a deafening sound, and the water splashing from the river valley is splashing in the air. The water vapor was very thick, and in the early morning sunshine, a vague and vague rainbow was reflected.
At the end of the marching avenue, there is a rope bridge about 5o meters long leading to the opposite river bank. The rope bridge is made of a wild vine in the mountains and is very simple. The bridge deck is made of several ropes made of rattan, but some wooden boards are placed on the ropes, and there is a rope on each side of the bridge as a fence. Walking across this rope bridge can be an adventure. However, soldiers and farmers have long been accustomed to this kind of bridge crossing, so walking on the cable bridge is like walking on flat ground. However, for the queens and concubines who have never walked across this kind of rope bridge, it is really a thrill and test. Some concubines were even pulled across the bridge tremblingly by the soldiers. When a soldier was pulling Maka, who was only fifteen years old, across the bridge. Maka stood by the bridge, listening to the roaring waves, and looking at the unfathomable water vapor under the bridge. She was so frightened that she collapsed to the ground, started crying, and refused to cross the river.
King Quida, who was sitting on the shore, smiled amusedly and said to the soldier, "Carry her across the bridge."
After hearing this, the tall soldier said to Maka, "Close your eyes." Maka closed her eyes and was picked up from the ground by the soldier and put on his shoulders. For soldiers, it may not be difficult to cross the river alone, but it is very difficult to cross the bridge with a person on their back. Because there are only a few ropes on the bridge, there is a wooden board for stepping on about half a meter away. Moreover, the board is not fixed. If you don't step on it properly, the board will fall under the bridge and people will fall on the rope. If you cannot grasp the rope immediately, you will fall into the river valley and be swept away by the rapids.
Carrying the king's beloved concubine across the bridge, you don't dare to make any mistakes. Therefore, the soldier was very careful. He held the concubine on his back with one hand and the guardrail of the bridge with the other hand, and stepped on each wooden plank step by step, which seemed very laborious and dangerous. A person can cross the rope bridge as lightly as flying. Even if the rope bridge shakes violently, it doesn't matter. However, when carrying another person, the weight of the person is different, and each step is very slow, so the rope bridge hangs very much in the air. The soldier's forehead was soon covered with sweat, and he began to pant before he reached the middle of the bridge. When we reached the middle of the bridge, the bridge shook even more. The soldiers also walked more slowly. This made the king, concubines, princes and soldiers watching on the shore even more worried.
Maka hugged the soldier's neck tightly and kept her eyes closed, not daring to take a breath. However, a long time passed and I still hadn't walked across the river. Moreover, I felt that the bridge was shaking more and more violently, so I opened my eyes to see how far away I was from the other side. However, when she opened her eyes, she saw the soldier carrying her walking in the middle of the bridge. The rope bridge seemed to be swinging in the air, and below the river valley, the rapids roared loudly, and the water splashed on her face. On face and body. She was so frightened that she screamed like she was unconscious. The soldier said to her, "Don't strangle me by the neck." Because he was a little breathless from the girl's hug. However, the girl was so frightened that she hugged his neck tighter. The soldier had no choice but to forcefully open the girl's arm, which made her feel better. He said to the girl, "Don't move, we will be on the other side soon." After hearing this, the girl relaxed a little.
Finally, the soldiers carried Maka to the other side of the river. He put the girl down and lay down on a piece of grass, breathing heavily. Maka also sat on the grass, looking frightened, watching her sister Kuta crossing the river. Her sister was the same age as her, but she was pulled across the river by a soldier. Although her sister kept screaming and crying, she was not as embarrassed as she was.
The most worrying thing is Queen Anna Maya. She is the most important person in the entire Kingdom of Quito besides the King. Her safety concerns the entire kingdom. Therefore, the king sent one of his most capable guards to lead the queen across the bridge. Although Queen Anna was frightened and dizzy when she crossed the bridge, she knew that her status was different and she could not be carried by soldiers or scream and cry. That would be too unbecoming of the mother of the country and would also Let the king lose face. Therefore, although her legs were weak and her heart was trembling, she always remained calm, holding the rope of the guardrail with one hand and the soldier's hand with the other, walking forward step by step on the violently swaying rope bridge. Finally, we reached the other side of the river. After the queen and concubines had crossed the bridge, King Atahualpa did not let anyone care about him. He climbed onto the bridge calmly and briskly, and quickly crossed the river.
On the other side of the river is no longer a marching road, but a two-person-wide plank road built along the cliff beside the river. After walking along the plank road for half an hour, we left the valley and entered a valley slope. Perhaps it is because the temperature in the deep mountains is low, rainfall is scarce, and grassland is sparse on the valley slopes. The vegetation that can be seen is also composed of plants that can withstand low temperatures and night frosts. After walking all day in the mountains, we can only see a few Quechua and Aymara farmers and shepherds.
During the march, they also saw a more dangerous way to cross the river. The edge of a cliff is covered with huge rocks. Below the cliff is a deep river hundreds of meters deep. It is almost three to four hundred meters wide from one side of the river to the other. It is impossible to build a bridge between the two mountains, and it is impossible to swim across them by boat or raft. In this case, the local Indians twisted ramie into thick cables and pulled them in the air from a mountain to a mountain across the river. The two ends are tied to thick trees or solid rocks. Hang a large wicker basket on a cable with a wooden handle as thick as an arm. The large basket can accommodate three to four people. Two ropes are tied to both sides, and the large basket is pulled through the ropes to cross from one bank to the other.
At that time, the concubines stood on the edge of the cliff on the river bank, watching with great curiosity and surprise how the local Indians ferried a cow across the river. They tied up the four legs of the cow and put it in the big basket, while the owner watched it. Then, someone on the other side began to pull up the cable, and the large hanging wicker basket began to slide toward the middle of the river. The speed of the big basket was relatively fast when it started to slide downward. However, when the big basket slid to the concave part in the middle of the cable, it became more difficult and strenuous to pull the big basket.
Fortunately, this method of crossing the river was not used on the royal road, but only on the civilian roads between Indian villages. Otherwise, they would also have to experience this kind of frightening adventure.
They marched towards higher and higher slopes for most of the day, and in the afternoon, they arrived at the foot of a high mountain. The mountains are so high that they are higher than the blue sky. They are shrouded in clouds and mist, and the top cannot be seen. This is the famous Huascaran Peak. The peak is 6768 meters high and is the highest mountain on the way to Cuscu. This mountain peak can be said to be a sacred mountain for the Incas. When people come to the foot of the mountain and look towards the top of the mountain, they can't help but stand in awe.
There is a post station at the foot of the mountain, with a house and a small warehouse. The houses were used to house messengers and princes traveling from Cusco to Quito. The house has seven or eight rooms with simple beds and bedding. There are many corns piled in the warehouse. Serves thousands of people. Behind the house is a huge slope with green grass, which can accommodate tens of thousands of soldiers camping. So the king asked the queen and concubines to live in the house of the post station, and ordered the soldiers to set up tents and camp on the slopes.
After walking for a day, everyone was very tired, so as soon as it got dark, except for the guards standing guard, the entire inn and camp fell asleep. Because they had to climb the sacred mountain in front of them the next day.
At about four o'clock in the morning, the loud sound of trumpets woke people up. King Atahualpa of Quito woke up from his bed, and was served by the two sisters Kuta and Maca. He got dressed, left the room, looked up towards the military camp, and saw that the entire military camp was brightly lit, and the soldiers were having a meal. .
The king entered the kitchen, and the royal chef had already prepared breakfast. The king sat at the table and began to eat. Although it is not in the royal dining room of the palace, the king's dining habits remain unchanged. Several concubines waited on him to eat. One person stood in front of him holding a plate with pig's trotters, and the other held it with both hands for him to spit out the chewed bones. After eating the pig's trotters, the king pointed to the plate of boiled corn, and then another concubine brought the corn over for the king to eat. Another concubine used her hands to eat the remaining corn cobs and corn silk.
After breakfast, the concubine brought him water for him to wash his hands. At this time, the departure sedan was already ready outside the house. He got on the chair sedan carried by eight people, waved his hand, and the sedan was lifted up. Guarded by two hundred guards, he marched along the marching road up the mountain towards the top of the mountain. At this time, the concubines and princes also got on the small sedan chair lifted by four people, and followed the king and began to go up the mountain.
At this time, the marching road has become a path up the mountain. But on steeper roads, there are steps built with rocks. The road started out relatively flat, but as we walked, it started to get steeper and steeper, and it became more and more strenuous to walk. When the soldiers carrying the sedan chair walked a certain distance, they had to be replaced. When they reached a very steep place, the king, princesses and princes had to get off their sedan chairs and walk up the mountain.
When we reached the middle of the mountain, suddenly a strong wind blew up, the sky changed color, and soon it started to rain heavily. The marching troops immediately stopped advancing and stopped to take shelter from the rain. The soldiers put a kind of oilcloth raincoat on their bodies and squatted on the ground. The king, concubines and princes were sitting on sedan chairs, their heads covered by soldiers' ponchos made of oilcloth. It rained for about twenty minutes and then stopped. The troops began to march towards the top of the mountain again. Around noon, the sky became clear again, and the sun was so bright that people couldn't even open their eyes. Standing on the mountain and looking towards the distance below the mountain, you can see the peaks rising and falling like waves. However, the wind on the mountain was obviously getting stronger, and it made people feel a little cold. In the shade of some grassy slopes, you can see large tracts of pure white snow.
On a large piece of relatively flat grass before reaching the top, the trumpet sounded, and the soldiers stopped and ate corn biscuits and venison jerky while resting. The king, queen, concubines and princes of Quida sat together, talking, looking at the large tracts of snow around them, and eating alpaca jerky, cooked corn, grapes and fresh pears. The boiled corn is prepared in advance by the imperial chef in the morning.
Dadafarachi is the prince of Cajamarca Province, and he specially accompanied the king to go south. He is a person who likes to laugh and amuse, and can tell many stories. Therefore, he has been walking beside the king along the way, talking with the king, and telling the king many fresh and interesting myths and stories. Now that everyone had rested, the king asked him to tell everyone an interesting story. So, he told everyone a little-known story about the Andes.
He said that there once was a mysterious "Lilliput" in the Andes Mountains. Although the people in this country are very short in stature, they are strong, fierce, and aggressive. They can climb trees on cliffs and run quickly on rugged mountain roads. Their weapons are mainly sticks, stones, spears, bows and arrows. The bow was made of goat horn and the small arrows were coated with potent venom. They have superb shooting skills and are good at shooting cold arrows while running, and they always hit the mark. They often carry baskets of poisonous arrows and hide them in the grass, rock gaps, caves, and trees on the hillside. They ambush people and livestock of other tribes unexpectedly, and dig out and eat the flesh from the corpses of the ambushed prisoners. They even cut off the dead man's head and used a special method to shrink the entire head to the size of a human fist without changing his appearance. They regarded the shrunken heads as souvenirs of victory and hung them in front of their houses, or tied them with ropes as a sign of glory and good luck. The person who hunts the most heads is known as the "hero" of the tribe and is deeply respected and praised by the entire tribe. But the strange and mysterious head-shrinking technique is only known to the adult men of their own tribe, and the secrets will never be revealed to outsiders. Therefore, the head-shrinking technique has become their unique skill, which is completely unknown to outsiders. These "Lilliputians" have long fought bloody battles with the neighboring Arapaho people. They fought more and more fiercely and rarely died, but the Arapaho people were killed by them. However, just when they were about to kill the Arapaho people, a volcanic eruption suddenly occurred in their place of residence, completely destroying their entire home. Therefore, "Lilliput" has completely disappeared since then.
Everyone thought this story was very interesting and asked Prince Dada Falachi to tell another story. However, the wind on the mountain is very strong and the temperature is very low, so we cannot sit for too long. So, soon, the trumpet sounded again, and the soldiers in front and behind stood up from the ground, packed their belongings, and prepared to continue on their way.
