Inca Elegy (Novel) "The Fall of the Inca Empire" (Volume 2) by Zhang Baotong
Plaza Trujillo is located in the center of Lima. Four streets extend from the square to the four sides in an orderly manner. Around the square are the city's most important buildings, such as government offices, military barracks, courts, hospitals and Christ Cathedral. The Cathedral of Christ is a Spanish European-style building, majestic and with a tall spire.
At the corner of the church and the street, there is a two-story building with a grand and imposing appearance. In front of the small building and inside the house, you can often see some Chilean soldiers wearing rags or naked coming in and out. This was originally the official residence of Almagro, another leader of the Spanish Expeditionary Force. However, after Almagro was executed by Hernando, it was inherited by his son Almagro Jr. The young man had been living in this spacious house since being sent to Lima by Hernando's messengers.
The soldiers of the Chilean Gang are now all unemployed, with nothing to wear, no clothes to eat, and no food to eat. They are extremely poor. It is said that the twelve soldiers they shared in the same room had only one coat. In order not to expose poverty and maintain dignity, the clothes can only be worn by people who go out, and others can only stay naked in the house. Because they are wandering around and homeless, they can only regard this place as their shelter.
Little Almagro was born to his father and a Panamanian Indian woman. He has endured hardships and adventures with his father since he was a child. He has the resolute, strong and impetuous character of his father, and also has the hard-working and unwilling to give in nature of his Indian mother. . It's just that he is still young, having just turned 18. He could have inherited most of the land and property in the Inca Empire left to him by his father. However, these lands and properties were occupied by the Pizarro brothers. His guardian Diego Almarado approached Marquis Pizarro several times to request his property inheritance rights, but Pizarro rejected them all. His answer was that those lands and properties had all been taken away from him because of his father's rebellion. Therefore, right now, little Almagro is empty-handed and has nothing, and is unable to support and take care of the food, clothing, and housing of this group of soldiers.
However, these were soldiers who had followed his father from Spain or Panama after traveling thousands of miles or narrowly escaping death to come here. He could not watch them starve and freeze and turn a blind eye. Moreover, he was young and had little experience. Apart from the soldiers who followed his father, he had no friends and no one to rely on. Therefore, he also hoped that they could help him recover the occupied land and property from Pizarro, waiting for the judgment of the Spanish King and the National Court. Therefore, he could only tolerate these soldiers gathering and making noise at his place.
However, recently, they got a piece of joyful and exciting news: the king has sent a highly respected justice to Lima to supervise and investigate Pizarro. This allowed them to see the savior from the sunken ship that was about to be submerged, and they decided to use this opportunity to make Pizarro return the land and property he had occupied even if they could not bring him down. So, they are now waiting for that moment to arrive.
Starting from the morning, more than thirty soldiers came to the square. They wore dirty and tattered coats, and some of them even had no pants to wear. Their exposed bodies were covered in dust and mud, as if they had not taken a shower for many years. The hair has long been out of shape and stuck into clumps. The beard is also so long that it covers his mouth. Their pungent stench can be smelled from far away.
Out of boredom, when they saw a young woman walking by, they started shouting and making fun of her. The woman was so frightened that she ran away in a hurry like a robber. Gold and women were the main reasons why they risked their lives to come to this strange empire. However, they have not obtained either of these two things, but they have seen light and hope. They very much want to tell the women who pass by them: Don't dislike us, we will soon be rich, and soon we will become the kind of wealthy masters you like. However, in reality, they cannot say this yet, and can only release the depression in their hearts through such methods of teasing.
The sun rose higher and higher, casting a bright golden light on the square. At this time, Picardo, the secretary of Governor Pizarro, came out from the barracks with the horse, and immediately sat his girlfriend, passing by the street next to the square, to teach Anne to ride on the grass in the suburbs. Picardo is well-dressed, noble and elegant, just like an enviable groom. Anne, on the other hand, is gorgeous and dazzling, showing the elegance and nobility of a princess.
As soon as the two of them appeared, they were stunned by these poor soldiers. They stared intently at the two young men who were approaching each other, as if this scene was the dream they had been pursuing at the risk of life and death.
Someone is saying, "Isn't this the bully's secretary Picardo?"
Immediately someone said, "Yes, look how proud and smug he is."
"This guy is really lucky to have such a beautiful lady as his girlfriend."
"I heard that this young lady is the daughter of Judge Perros."
"Oh, all the good things in this world have happened to this bastard."
When Picardo passed by on the road in front of them, someone asked in a provocative tone, "Hey, my friend, why don't you come to arrest us? Stop sending us to the barren mountains and wild valleys?"
Picardo looked at these tramps with very contempt and replied, "That's because Mr. Marquis is merciful. He sees you as pitiful and can't bear to let you suffer any more."
Someone immediately refuted, "If Mr. Marquis was really compassionate, he should not kill Mr. Almagro, and should not seize other people's land and property."
Picardo said, "That's because he betrayed the Marquis, and he deserves it."
Another person said, "The king knows about the bully's crimes and has sent people to supervise and investigate him. Once he is found guilty, he will be relieved of his duties and his property will be confiscated. Therefore, he is afraid and dare not Arrest us again and send us to the barren mountains and valleys. By then, you will also be dismissed from your post, reduced to a poor man, and ridiculed by people."
Picardo couldn't help but feel a little angry when he heard this, because his girlfriend was right in front of him, which would be very detrimental to his dignity and image. So he replied in very vicious language, "Don't get too happy too early. Mr. Marquis is the governor of Peru and the emperor of the Incas. As long as he doesn't leave Peru, no one can do anything to him. I believe The judge sent by the king will also become a good friend of the Marquis. So, stop dreaming." After saying that, he felt that there was no need to waste time with this group of idlers, so he led the horse and left this dispute quickly. place.
However, before he could leave, someone behind him shouted, "You bitch, you're a sycophant."
Picardo slowly walked away with his girlfriend. But the blow and damage they caused to these soldiers was great. Maybe they were happy and complacent too early, maybe the judge sent by the king would become a good friend of the bully. This was what they were most worried about, because Pizarro had the power, resources, and money to please and win over the judge as he pleased. Thinking of this, they no longer had the intention to tease the women who passed in front of them, but gathered together and began to discuss the issues they were worried about.
Someone said, "Will the judge sent by the king collude with the bully and protect the bully? If so, what hope and hope do we have?"
Others said, "It's impossible, because he was specially sent by the king to supervise and investigate the bully. If he protects the bully, we will report him and the bully to the king."
As a result, pessimism and optimism are divided into two groups. As a result, optimists still make up the majority. This made everyone optimistic again, thinking that the judge sent by the king would strictly investigate and punish Pizarro, the big bully who occupied most of the land and resources in Peru.
However, on the afternoon of the next day, another news spread among them. Some people said that they saw Pizarro's adjutant, Chavez, secretly leaving the port by boat with several people early two days ago, and went to an unknown place. So, everyone made some speculation and analysis on this issue. After a heated discussion, someone put together what Picardo said yesterday and analyzed it together, and came to the conclusion that Chavez might have gone to a reception point in the colony, of course with the purpose of receiving the king. The judge was sent.
This conclusion almost knocked down this group of unfortunate and pitiful people, because they were too weak to bear such a heavy blow. Many of them fell to the ground immediately, gasping for breath, feeling that the entire sky was getting dark and the end was approaching.
In the evening, a soldier named Torres even tried to find out from Chavez's maid that Chavez had gone to Tumbes. This disappearance was like a bolt from the blue, completely destroying all the remaining hopes and illusions of the Chilean gang soldiers. This fatal blow left them with no energy to sigh or gasp. This group of people did not leave the square until dark. Although they were hungry, no one went to find food for themselves. Instead, they were worried and troubled about the coming of the end.
A man named Juan de Herada, who had served as a cavalry captain in Almagro's army, called everyone together in the large living room of Almagro's small building and spoke in an extremely serious tone. Everyone said, "Brothers, that bully has sent his adjutant Chavez to the Tumbes Colonial Reception Station to receive and win over the judge sent by the king. Therefore, we cannot do nothing and wait for death. Instead, we must take action and think about it." The method is to make that judge truly take responsibility, act impartially, cry out for our grievances, redress the injustice, and return to us the land and property that the bully took away from us."
Upon hearing this, everyone shouted in unison, "Yes, take action."
But, how to act? But everyone has no backbone. So, Juan de Herada divided the thirty or so people into several groups and asked everyone to brainstorm and make suggestions.
Someone said, "We can also send someone to receive the judge and state the facts to him face to face."
Someone said, "We should try to prevent that judge from being exposed to bullies."
Some even said, "Otherwise, send someone over to kill Chavez and the others."
However, these opinions and suggestions were rejected. Finally, a soldier named Sobrino's suggestion was unanimously agreed upon. That was to send two men in mourning clothes to Tumbes to plead their grievances to the judge and accuse the Pizarro brothers of their crimes. Therefore, everyone recommended that Sobrino and another soldier rush to Tumbes early tomorrow morning.
There is no need to prepare mourning clothes, little Almagro has them here, the ones his father wore when he died. Traveling expenses are indispensable. Little Almagro decided to use all the remaining money at home for the two people who were going out. Because the two of them are everyone's hope. They also have several ships, all of which were left behind when Almagro was still alive. In short, for this matter, everyone decided to make a desperate move.
The night was already very dark, and everyone had not eaten since morning. At this time, there was even less food. However, I couldn't sleep when I was hungry, so everyone started running out to find something to eat like hungry wolves. Half an hour later, a group of people brought a sheep. They snatched this from the sheep pen of an Indian family in the suburbs. When everyone saw that there was meat to eat soon, they gathered around and cheered.
However, a middle-aged Indian chased him from behind and said that the sheep belonged to his family. He knelt on the ground and begged the soldiers to return the sheep to them. Immediately, someone pushed the Indian to the ground and cursed, "Even if I borrow your sheep, when we get rich, we will give you two sheep back."
However, the Indians refused to get up and still knelt on the ground and begged. The Inca people were very poor, almost abject poverty. There is almost nothing in the house except a stove for cooking. There were no tables, no stools, not even beds. They slept on haystacks at night. Therefore, sheep can be said to be their most important property after their houses. In fact, only a few wealthy families have sheep.
Juan de Herada had two soldiers drag the Indians away by force. So the two soldiers immediately picked up the thin Indian and dragged him to the other side of the street. By this time, a fire had started, and the raging fire illuminated half of the square. The sheep had fallen into a pool of blood, and several soldiers were peeling off the sheep's skin and chopping the bones with long swords. The Indians watched and had no choice but to wipe away their tears and leave silently.
