Chapter 3 Chapter Three At the Gate of Tashbaan

"I am Tekshina Aravis," said the little girl at once, "I am the only daughter of Taikan Kitrash. Kitkosh is the son of Taikan Rishti, who is Taikan Old Ki The son of Tash, the old Kitrush is the son of Tishrok Ilsombuler, and Ilsombuler is the son of Tishrok Aldib, and they are all descended from the Tash god. Yes. My father was the governor of Caraval, an official who had the right to stand in front of Tisrok (may he live long) in his boots. His mother died (peace be upon her from the gods), My father married another wife. My elder brother died in a distant war against the rebels, and my younger brother was a baby. But he said my father's wife, my stepmother, hated me, and as long as I lived In my father's house, she felt that the sun was getting dark. So she persuaded my father to marry me to Taikan Ahosta. And this Ahosta was born in a poor and humble family. With flattery and bad ideas, he won the favor of Tithrock (may he live forever), and now he is named Taikan, and he has served as the parent officer of several cities. In the future, when the current minister dies, he is likely to be selected He is a minister. Besides, he is at least sixty years old, and he is still a hunchback with a fetus that looks like an ape. However, because of the wealth and power of this Ahosta and the persuasion of my stepmother, My father then sent a matchmaker to talk about marriage, and it was a hit, and Ahoshta sent a message saying that we would get married this summer.

"When the news reached my ears, the sun in my mind turned dark, and I lay in bed and cried all day. But the next day I got up, washed my face, and the caregiver put the mare Hwin on Saddle, I took with me a sharp dagger (which my brother carried with him in the Western War) and rode out alone. When I could no longer see my father's mansion, I came to a green clearing in the forest. On the ground, no one lives there. I step down from Mare Hwin and draw my dagger. I unbutton my clothes to reveal the place where I think it is most convenient to stab the navel. Brother party. After this, I closed my eyes, gritted my teeth, and prepared to stab the dagger in the heart. But before I stabbed, the horse said in a human girl's voice: "My mistress, whatever How not to destroy yourself, for if you are alive you will have good luck, but dead people are dead too. "

"I'm not half as clever as that," murmured the mare. "Silence, ma'am, silence," said Bree, who was enjoying the story with all his heart. "She is telling stories in the sublime style of Calormene, and no one in the court of Tithroc has told them better. Please go on, Tekshina." "When I heard my mare speak human words," went on Aravis, "I said to myself: the terror of death has confused my mind, and I am dominated by hallucinations. I became very ashamed, Because no one in my family should be more afraid of death than of being bitten by bugs. So I raised my hand again to kill myself, but Hwinb came in, put its head between me and the dagger, and used the most thorough Talk to me about the truth, reprimand me like a mother reprimands her daughter. Said that I was so strange that I forgot to kill myself, forgot Ahosta, and asked my mare, how did you learn to be like a human He Wenheng, who talks like a daughter, told me what everyone here knows: In the Kingdom of Narnia, there are beasts that can speak human words, and it was stolen from Narnia when it was a foal. and told me of the forests and rivers and fortresses and ships of Narnia, till I swore thus: 'In the name of the god Tash and Azaros, and in the name of Zadina, the goddess of the night I swear, I have one great wish, and that is to live in the Kingdom of Narnia." "My mistress," answered the mare, "you will be very happy if you live in the Kingdom of Narnia, In that kingdom, no girl would be forced to marry against her will.

"We talked for a long time, and I saw hope again, and I was glad that I didn't commit suicide. In addition, Hwin and I made a secret agreement that we would sneak away together, and we made a plan like this. We returned to our In my father's mansion, I put on my bright clothes, sang and danced in front of my father, pretending to be very happy with the marriage he arranged for me. I also said to my father: 'My father, the happiness in my heart , give me a license to take a girl to the forest alone to make a secret sacrifice to Zadina, the god of night and virgins, when the maidens must bid farewell to Zadina's service and prepare to marry , it is proper and customary to make such a sacrifice.' Then the father replied, 'My daughter, joy in my heart, you may do this.'

"As soon as I came out of my father's house, I went to his oldest slave, his secretary, who had teased me on his lap when I was a baby, and who loved me more than Loved the air and the sun. I swore him to secrecy and begged him to write me a letter. He wept and begged me to change my mind, but at last he said, 'When you are ordered, do as you are told.' And follow my All wishes were done. I sealed the letter and hid it in my bosom." "What's in the letter?" asked Shasta. "Don't interrupt, little one," Bree said. "You interrupted the story. She'll tell us everything in the letter at the right place. Go on, Tekshina."

"So I called the girl who came with me into the forest to sacrifice Zadina, and told her to wake me early in the morning. I had a good time with her, and I sang to her but I was in her glass With something mixed in, I knew she was bound to sleep the night and the day. After everyone in my father's house had gone to bed, I put on my brother's armor, which I had kept in the room as a memento. I put all my money and some fine jewels in my girdle, and I prepared food for myself, and I saddled the mare with my own hands, and at the second watch I rode away. The road I walked was not my Instead of heading toward the forest, as my father expected, he headed northeast of Tashbaan.

"I know that my father, deceived by what I have told him, will not seek me for three or four days. On the fourth day I reached the city of Azim; At the intersection of the roads, the postmen of Tithrok (may he live forever) rode fast horses to all directions of the kingdom. High Taikans have the right and privilege to call postmen to deliver letters. So I went to Azim; Baal The Imperial Post in Dacheng hurriedly went to the postmaster and said, "Master of the message, here is a letter from my uncle Taikan Ahoshta to the Governor of Calaval, Taikan Tetrash." Take these five Krishns, and send him this letter," said the postmaster, "and obey the orders."

"This letter, purporting to be from Ahosta, to the effect that it is: Taikan Ahosta salutes Taikan Kitashta. In the name of the irresistible and indomitable God Tash, venerable , I was on my way to the house to make my marriage contract with my daughter Teksina Aravis, and by the blessings of the gods and fate, I met her unexpectedly in the forest. and when I learned who she was, I became ardent with admiration of her beauty and prudence, feeling that if I did not marry her at once the sun would go dark. A lump. I prepared the necessary sacrifices accordingly, married your daughter the very moment I met her, and brought her back to my own home. We both pray and ask that you Hurry up here so that we may be happy to see you, hear your talk and laugh, and expect you to bring my wife's dowry, which I will get without delay due to my enormous expenses. Because of you Like me as a brother, I am sure you will not be offended by my hasty marriage, which is all due to my great love for your daughter. I ask the gods to bless you.

"After I finished this business, I rode out from Azim; Barda in a hurry. I was less afraid of being chased, but I hoped that my father would send a letter to Ahosh when he received this letter. the tower, or go to him in person, so that by the time the story is revealed, I will have passed Tashbaan. Before the night when I was chased by lions and swam in the sea, and I met you, that part was It's the best part of my story." "And what happened to that girl—the one you gave her the sweat drug?" asked Shasta. "No doubt she was beaten for waking up so late," replied Aravis coldly, "but she was my stepmother's tool, a spy. I would be glad if they beat her. "

"I say that's not quite fair," said Shasta. "None of these things I did was done to please you." Aravis said. "There's one more thing in the story that I don't quite understand," said Shasta, "you're not grown up yet, and I don't believe you're any older than I am.I can't believe you're as old as I am.How can you get married at your age? " Aravis said nothing, but Bree said at once, "Don't show your stupidity, Shasta. They always get married at that age in the Great Tarcans." Shasta grew flushed (although the light was too dim for others to see much of it) and felt slighted.Aravis asked Bree to tell his story, and Bree did.Shasta didn't think it needed a whole lot of embellishment in falls and poor riding.Bree obviously thought it was funny, but Aravis didn't laugh.Bree finished his story and they all went to bed.

The next day, the four of them, two horses and two men, continued on their journey together.Shasta thought it was much more pleasant when he and Bree alone walked together, for now it was Bree and Aravis who did almost all the talking.Bree lived a long time in Calormene, and always with the Tarkan and their horses, so of course he knew the people and places that Aravis knew.She used to bring up things like this: "If you've been at Chiu Lindley, you've seen my cousin Ali Marsh." And Bree replied, "Oh yes, Ali Marsh Well, he's the only captain of the chariot, isn't he? I'm not a big fan of chariots or the horses that pull them. That's not real cavalry. But Arimash is a respectable nobleman. After Beth, he filled my hay sack with sugar." And besides Bree would say, "I went to Lake Mizril that summer." And Aravis added, "Oh, Mizril I have a friend there, Teksina Rasakurion. What a delight to see. Those gardens, and the Valley of Thousand Fragrances!" Bree never wanted to leave Shasta alone, though Shasta sometimes Almost thought he was being thrown aside.People who have seen so many of the same things can't help talking about them, and if you're there, you can't help but feel left out. Mare Hwin was timid with such a great war horse as Bree, and she seldom spoke.And Aravis, if she could avoid it, would not speak to Shasta at all. Before long, however, they had bigger things to think about.They were approaching the city of Tashbaan, and there were more and bigger villages and more people on the way.They travel almost at night now, and hide as much as possible during the day.Every time they stopped, they always discussed, what would they do when they got to Tashbaan?Everyone has postponed this difficult issue, and now it cannot be delayed any longer.During these discussions, Aravis' unfriendly attitude toward Shasta was somewhat reduced, and people tended to get along better when discussing plans than when chatting. Bree said that the first thing to do is to find a place, and if you are unlucky and get separated while crossing the city, everyone must agree to meet on the other side of Tashbaan.It says the best place is the cemetery of ancient kings, right on the edge of the great desert. "It's like a huge stone hive," it said, "you can't miss it. The best thing is that no Calormene will go near this ancient necropolis, because they think that place is haunted by ghouls." where they fear it." Aravis asked, were there really ghouls?Bree said he was a free Narnian horse and didn't believe in these Calormene tales.Then, Shasta said, he was not a Calormene either, and he had no fear of these old ghoul legends.This was not quite true, but it made a deep impression on Aravis (although the electricity annoyed her at the time).Of course, she said, she wasn't afraid of any number of ghouls.Therefore, it was decided that the ancient cemetery should be the place where they gathered in Tashbaan City. Everyone felt that their discussion had made great progress. Later, he humbly pointed out to You Hewin that the real problem was not They passed through the city of Tashbaan. Where should they gather, but how to go through the city of Tashbaan. "Ma'am, we'll arrange that tomorrow," Bree said. "It's time for some sleep now." However, it is not easy to arrange well.Aravis's first suggestion was that they should swim across the river outside the city at night, and not enter Tashbaan at all.But Bree objected, for two reasons.One was that the estuary was very wide, and it would be too long for Hwin to swim across, especially with a person riding on his back. (It also thinks the distance is too long for itself, but says little about it.) Another reason is that there are many boats on the river, and of course, anyone sitting on deck, seeing two horses If my son swims across the river, he will definitely ask questions. Shasta advocated going upriver north of Tashbaan, where the river was narrower and easier to cross.But Bree explained that there were gardens and playgrounds on both sides of the river for miles and miles, and the Takan and Teksina probably lived in houses there, rode horses on the roads, and held social gatherings on the river.In fact, it might well be the easiest place in the world to meet someone you know and recognize Aravis or Bree. "We had to disguise ourselves," said Shasta. Hwin said that, in its opinion, the safest thing to do was to simply go straight through the city from gate to gate, since it was less noticeable in a crowd.At the same time, however, it favored disguise.It says: "Both shall be dressed in rags, and look like peasants or slaves. The whole armor of Aravis, our horse-shoes, and other things, must be rolled into bundles and placed on our backs, and the children must Pretend to whip us, and people will think we're nothing more than two draft horses." "My dear Hwin," said Aravis contemptuously, "no matter how you disguise Bree, it's not impossible for others to fail to see that he is a war horse." "Exactly, I think so too," said Bree, snorting and pushing his ears back a little. "I know it's not a very good plan," Hwin said, "but I guess it's our only chance. And we haven't been groomed for so long that it doesn't look quite what it used to be (at least, I'm sure I'm not what I used to be.) I really think that if we've got the right amount of scum painted on us and we're walking along with our heads down, like we're tired and lazy - it's rare to lift our hooves at all People may not pay attention to us. Also, our tails should be cut short: not neat and smooth, but unkempt." "My dear lady," said Bree, "did you yourself imagine how awkward it would be when we got back to Narnia in this state?" "Well," said Hwin modestly (she was a very sensitive mare), "but the main problem is getting to Narnia." Although no one liked Hewin's plan, it was still this plan that everyone had to accept.It was a troublesome plan, and involved a certain amount of what Shasta called "theft" and Bree called "raiding."A couple of sacks were lost from one farm that night, and a coil of rope from another the next night; but some old tattered boys' clothes for Aravis were paid for in cash in a village. Bought in good order.At dusk, Shasta returned triumphantly with his old clothes.Others were waiting for him among the trees at the foot of the hill.The hill lay in the path they were going to take.All were excited, for this was the last hill; and when they reached the top they had a view of Tashbaan. "I hope we get over the ridge safely," said Shasta to Hwin. "Oh, I wish so, too, I wish so," Hwin replied enthusiastically. That night they followed the logger's trail, which zigzagged through the forest to the ridge.When they emerged from the forest on the top of the hill, they could see a thousand lights in the valley below.Shasta had no idea of ​​the sights of a big city, and he was startled by what he saw.They ate their supper, and the children slept for some time.But the horses woke the children up early in the morning. - The stars were still there, the grass was terribly cold and wet, and the dawn was just beginning to spread far to their right, across the sea.Aravis walked away a few steps into the woods, and came back looking weird in her new tattered clothes, with her old clothes in her arms.This roll of clothes, together with her armor, shield, cutlass, and the front saddle and the rest of the horse's fine equipment, were packed in several sacks.Bree and Hwin had soiled themselves with filth and only their tails to be cut.The only tool for this purpose was Aravis' scimitar.One of the sacks had to be reopened to get the knife out.Cutting the tail takes a long time and does great harm to the horse. "Boy!" Bree said, "if I wasn't a talking horse, I'd kick you in the face so hard I thought you were going to cut it off instead of pulling it out. That's what I was feeling Hard pull." In spite of the gloom and cold fingers, at last it was all done, and the great bags were strapped to the horses.The reins (they now use ropes instead of bridles and straps) were in the hands of the boys, and they set off on their journey. "Remember," Bree exhorted, "if it is possible, we must always stay together. If it is not possible, we will gather in the ancient king's cemetery. Whoever arrives first must wait for the others." "Also remember," said Sha Jinta, "no matter what happens, you two must not forget your identities and speak humanly."