Inca Elegy (Novel) "The Fall of the Inca Empire" (Volume 2) by Zhang Baotong
The fall of Quito marked the disintegration of the entire Inca Empire. With Quischis killed by his men and Ruminawi defeated and fleeing, Atahuallpa's Quito army was gone. Especially after Almagro incorporated Alvarado's army through peace talks, the war in the entire Peruvian territory was basically over.
At this time, Pizarro knew nothing about Almagro's recruitment of Alvarado. Because he was worried that Alvarado would lead his troops to land from other places along the coast, he handed Cusco over to his brother Juan. and Gonzalo took care of it, leaving 90 Spanish soldiers as the garrison of the capital, and then led some Spanish soldiers and the Inca King Manco and his Inca troops to leave Cusco and rush to Hoha, because from here you can Access to coastal areas.
However, when they arrived at Haoha, they received news that Almagro had peacefully integrated Alvarado's troops. Moreover, General Alvarado also wrote to him asking to meet with him. After hearing the news, Pizarro suddenly felt his heart in his stomach, feeling that the world was peaceful and there was nothing to worry about anymore. He began to consider building himself a Peruvian Governor's Palace, which was also the new capital. Although the city of Cusco is large and prosperous with a large population, Cusco is an inland city with no outlet to the sea and is not suitable as a capital.
The Haoha Canyon is surrounded by mountains, has a pleasant climate, simple folk customs, concentrated residences, convenient transportation, and is accessible in all directions. The river can directly connect to the sea. It is an ideal place. Moreover, the infrastructure is relatively complete, and more importantly, the Haoha people are very friendly to the Spaniards, unlike the Incas and Quitos who both have a deep hatred for the Spaniards. Therefore, Pizarro had a very good impression of Haoha and wanted to build a capital here. However, after several field visits, I felt that this place is far away from the sea, and the river is narrow and navigation is limited. In particular, the land leading to the seaside is almost surrounded by mountains and mountains, and the road is steep. For an adventurer who relied on the ocean and voyages for colonial expansion, the ocean was the lifeline, so he wanted to build a new city on the seaside as the capital of the country.
He had heard Hernando talk about Pachacamac many times, saying that it was a seaside city with beautiful scenery, mild climate, wide territory and a large population. He decided to stay in Haoha for a few days and then took people to Pachacamac for an inspection. Therefore, he decided to let Benalcasal go to Quito to guard, and let Almagro return to Cusco after completing the collection of Alvarado's troops, and wrote a letter to Alvarado. The general went to Pachacamac to meet him.
Pizarro stayed in Haoha for a few days and participated in a large-scale hunting event held for him by King Manco. Thousands of wild animals were surrounded on a royal hunting ground not far from Haoha. The scene was better than that of Chalcuchi The horse hunting scenes held for Atahualpa are much larger. Then, he left the Inca king Manco behind and asked him to lead his troops back to the Cusco garrison, while he took his people to Pachacamac. Led by locals, they sailed about 150 kilometers west along the river and came to the Pachacamac Canyon area where Hernando had gone. The canyon here is wide, with a river passing through it. The bean forests and vegetable fields are like green dreams. The beautiful small lake lies quietly under the golden light. Standing on the top of the mountain and high slope, you can see it at a glance. That boundless sea glowing with golden light.
When Pizarro came to this spacious and flat river valley, he felt like when the first Inca king Manco Capac and he and his sister Mama Oculo came to Cusco, there was an immediate feeling. A feeling given by the gods. So, he excitedly shouted to the people around him, "We will build our capital here."
Not long after they arrived in Pachacamac, General Alvarado took a boat from San Miguel to Pachacamac to meet Marquis Pizarro. Tumbes is a coastal city in the north of Peru, and Pachacamac is located on the Pacific coast of Peru in the south, about 1,320 kilometers apart. The journey by boat takes almost two weeks. Pizarro sent people to the port in advance to wait for Alvarado's arrival.
On the day Alvarado arrived at the port, Pizarro sent his secretary to lead a cavalry and infantry squad to the port to greet him. The port was ten or twenty kilometers away from Pizarro's residence. The welcoming team welcomed Alvarado through a wide road to the front of a very luxurious princely mansion in Pachacamac. At this time, Pizarro walked out of the house quickly, held tightly the hand of Alvarado who had just jumped off the horse, and said happily, "Welcome, hero of Spain." Varado followed Cortes in conquering the Aztec Empire in Mexico and was regarded as a hero by the Spaniards.
Alvarado said with some embarrassment, "I'm ashamed, I'm so far behind you." Pizarro took Alvarado's hand and led him into the spacious room. While looking at the other party carefully, he said enthusiastically, "You are much younger and more handsome than me, with a dashing temperament, graceful demeanor, fair complexion, and blond hair. No wonder the Aztecs called you 'Son of the Sun God'" '. Moreover, I heard that you returned to Spain after conquering the Aztec Empire in Mexico. You were warmly welcomed by the king and people. You also married a beautiful daughter of a wealthy Spanish family. You can be said to be the most successful man in the country. One of the adventurers. How can I say you are worse than me?" Pizarro was wearing a military uniform and looked majestic and heroic, but his appearance was unattractive. In addition to his age, he obviously lacked the joy and chic demeanor.
Alvarado said, "As far as I can see, except for Cortes, no one can compare with you, and you have obtained much more gold and silver than we did in Mexico. There is no one who doesn’t envy you.”
Pizarro finally said, "It can only be said that our luck is better than yours." After that, he asked Alvarado to sit down.
Alvarado was sitting at the table. On the table were fried shredded potatoes, fried green peppers, fried onions, fried red tomatoes, fried fat shrimps, steamed swordfish, llama jerky and chicha wine, and braised pork. Chicken nuggets and caviar. The chicken and caviar were brought from Spain, as there was no chicken in Peru. Pizarro filled two glasses of wine, handed one to Alvarado, then raised the glass and said, "Welcome." When he just heard that the other party landed from the coast of Peru with 500 well-armed soldiers, , the Marquis of Spain and the Governor of Peru were terrified, as if someone stronger than him was coming to snatch his territory. Although Alvarado's arrival with troops was a serious violation, because the conflict had been resolved by Almagro's inclusion, there was no longer any conflict or hatred between the two. . So, he could say the word "welcome" to him.
Alvarado drank a glass of wine in one gulp, and then said in a very apologetic tone, "I'm really sorry, I didn't know in advance that the king had assigned this territory to you. If I knew in advance, I wouldn't have done it anyway. I’ll come and bother you.”
Of course Pizarro knew that he was lying, but he still said very politely, "I don't know what is wrong. I heard that many people died when you crossed the alpine snowfield?"
Alvarado said, "More than 140 people died, which can be said to be a narrow escape from death. Compared with you, my luck can be said to be terrible."
Pizarro comforted him and said, "The flat road is easy to walk, but only the muddy road will leave footprints. Which adventurer has not come out of a narrow escape? But you are actually not bad, taking 600 people with you." The Aztec Empire, which conquered Mexico, gave us a good start. We were also inspired by your adventures and successes to come to Peru. Before coming to Peru, Cortes gave me a lot For his help, I would like to thank him properly if I have the opportunity in the future."
When Alvardo heard this, he said, "Do you know Mr. Cortez?"
"He was a relative of mine," Pizarro said.
Alvardo was startled and said, "Is he a relative of yours?"
Pizarro said, "Yes, I came out earlier than he did, but others are more capable than me. It can be said that I can achieve such achievements today because I was inspired and inspired by him. He is my admirer."
Alvarado said, "It's amazing. Your family has produced two great adventurers."
After hearing this, both of them laughed.
Alvarado stayed in Pachacamac for a few days, and Pizarro accompanied him almost every day for sightseeing in various places nearby. Of course, he also wanted to show off his merits and achievements in front of another Spanish hero. He first took his guests on horseback to a large flat canyon area, pointed to the plains covered with grass and said to the guests, "I am going to build a new capital here. I have already planned it, and the center of the canyon will be used as a city. In the center of the city, build a square there, and build churches, governor's residences, municipal offices and other public buildings around the square. You know earthquakes occur frequently here. In order to prevent earthquakes, all buildings must be built very solidly, and the streets It must also be built very spacious.”
Alvarado said in a puzzled tone, "Don't you already have Cusco as your capital? I heard that it has beautiful scenery, pleasant climate, rich products, and a large population. With such a good place, why do you need to build a new one?" A new capital? And rebuilding one is no easy task."
Pizarro breathed a long sigh of relief and said, "Cusco is very good, but it is located in the inland mountains. This may be more suitable for the Inca Empire, but for a Spanish nation engaged in commerce and adventure, , Cusco is too far away from the coast. Although we established a colonial point in San Miguel, Tumbes City, as a contact point for the troops and overseas, it is thousands of kilometers away from Cusco, and the entire road is in Climbing over the high mountains in the Andes and Cordillera Mountains, the road is steep and the transportation is inconvenient. Therefore, I want to find a gentle canyon area near the southern seaside to rebuild the capital. I have heard Hernando talk about Pagoda many times in the past. Chacamac is said to be a coastal city. It is located on the west coast of the Pacific Ocean. It rarely rains, but because of the humid sea breeze blowing constantly, the roads here are moist, the grass and trees are green, and the plants are lush all year round. Such as spring. So, I wanted to come over and inspect it, and I didn’t expect it to be like this. I am very satisfied.”
Alvarado listened to this, nodded, and said, "That's right. For those of us who are used to venturing out to sea, we still have to live by the sea. However, rebuilding a capital requires a lot of money. and labor.”
Pizarro said, "There will not be any difficulties in terms of funds, but there is a shortage of labor. However, I have already thought about it and am preparing to move the residents from Haoha in large numbers. According to my estimation, we can move from there." One hundred thousand people came." The Haoha people were originally a large tribal group. They were first conquered by the Inca and then ruled by Quito. It was the arrival of Spain that gave them relatively loose freedom and exempted them from taxes. . Therefore, the Haoha people are grateful to the Spaniards.
Then, followed by seven or eight cavalry personnel, the two came to the edge of a valley called the Rimac River. Standing on the hilly slopes beside the river, you can see the river flowing gently and quietly in the valley. One side of the bank is covered by dense woods, and the other side is covered with green and yellow grass. The river flows toward the Pacific Ocean in a twisting and turning direction. It is said that the city that was built later was named Lima because the Spaniards mistook the locals' "Rima" as Lima.
Going further, you can see a desert area. This desert is very vast. Due to the warm and humid air currents of the ocean, there is no yellow sand at all. There is also a vegetable oasis in the middle.
Pizarro also organized troops to conduct shooting and equestrian competitions, and organized Indians to perform songs, dances and music for Alvarado, so that this distant guest could feel the joy of time every day. On the morning when the guest was about to leave Pachacamac, Pizarro personally led the cavalry and infantry squads to the port to see him off. He also organized local residents to sing and dance until he was sent to the sailboat parked in the port.
The departure of this guest seemed to announce the end of his conquest of the New World, and at the same time, the end of his entire adventure. As is the tragic fate of every adventurer, so was the fate of General Alvarado. In 1541, while trying to climb a steep hill in New Galicia, a horse fell from a height and struck him, killing him from his injuries. In the same year, his beautiful wife died in their house in Guatemala after a flash flood submerged his family's residence.
