Chapter 24 Chapter Twenty-Four

Many people gathered in the square in front of the Korcampata residence. When he arrived, although Jia Boye focused on looking for the figure of Francisco Pizarro, and he recognized him immediately, he still took a look at Puma City in the mountains, that place like a treasure box.He has never understood the power of eternity better than at this moment - keeping him far away from the stinking pig smell, making him far beyond the humiliation of the victor's arrogance.From there he caught a glimpse of the Eternal Power breathing powerfully in its slumber, but the cougar was about to spring up, roaring wildly.

In the center of the almost perfect outer wall of the mansion, several niches were dug into which mummies were placed.Jia Boye recognized the mummy of King Wanya Kapac, and a certain feeling arose in his heart. "Paul requested it," Bartolomeo said quietly, leaning on Jaboye's side. "The orthodox Inca king cannot be separated from his ancestors." Jia Boye nodded slightly, his eyes still on Francisco Pizarro who had protected him in the past. The Governor had never looked so skinny; he seemed to be thinner, but he still had the strength that radiated from him.He was dressed in black except for his hat and socks, which were white.The only sign of wealth on the whole body is the fine collar placket around the neck.His black eyes were focused on the man who was facing him: the man was sitting on the white Diana, looking like an Inca king, and Jia Boye recognized that man as Paul.

The king who ascended the throne in Kuskov was half the same blood as his elder brother Manco, and appeared to be of the same age and height.However, unlike the angular silhouette carved by the King of Stone, Paul is round and fat.He didn't look bulky, and his face gave off an air of sluggishness, of a free life; only his eyes expressed a strong, unassailable willpower, and a kind of quick-witted intelligence. The two were able to converse on their own without the need for a third party interpreter, because Paul could speak Spanish fluently. Just when Jia Boye and Bartolomeo mixed into the circle gathered by the Indian generals and the third-rate Spanish nobles, Francisco suddenly turned his head to face him.

Seeing the old captain's sunken black eyes, Jia Boye seemed to have some kind of old feelings in his whole body.He froze all over, trying to force a smile, then nodded slightly. "General Paul, before I can help you, I must first understand," Francisco continued, "what are the chances of winning?" "Governor, I'm pretty sure the odds are pretty good..." Paul's tone of voice still had the hoarse Caecchi accent.Jia Boye heard the Spanish nobleman behind him spit and mutter: "Sooner or later, this running dog will let us all be buried in this damn jungle..."

"Because of your brother Gonzalo's insistence, I came back for reinforcements, for Manco's army is strong and well-disciplined." Hearing the word Manco, Francisco's eyes lit up. "Are you sure we can beat this son of a bitch?" "I can't call my brother a 'son of a bitch,'" Paul said politely, "although I think he did make regrettable mistakes and should not fight irrationally to the end. But in return To your question: Yes, we can defeat their army. But there is a premise..." Paul paused intentionally. "What premise?" Francisco said impatiently.

"Governor, you understand very well how much you need our army to lead you through the jungle," Paul's eyes flashed a challenge, looking down at all the Spaniards, "if your brothers Anando and Gonza If Luo was present at the time, you can testify that how many times you have seen my loyal eyes, and it is always the key to victory..." "General Paul, I have no doubts about that. We know what we owe you. And you know exactly what you owe us..." Pizarro's eyes glide across Paul's forehead to symbolize the king's fringed hair ornament. "A good friendship is based on treating each other as equals," said the daunting Paul, his tone suddenly softened, "Governor, I want to say that this trip must be up to me, with my own army and reinforcements." Only by taking the road through the jungle can we meet with Gonzalo and ensure a complete victory for this expedition."

"When are you planning to leave?" "Tomorrow or tomorrow night... time is running out! Governor, think about it, the sooner you win, the sooner you can rule your beautiful city - Lima..." "And you, you can govern your favorite city of Cusco." "Of course I can't be indifferent to the city where my ancestors lived," Paul replied, pointing cautiously to the row of mummies standing in an alcove looking at the two of them. "Okay, General Paul. In the name of the governor, you can recruit the troops you think you need." "Governor, I need the Yongja, not the hill people. Because they come from the humid side..."

Francesco showed great impatience again: "My dear one and only king, do as you think good. You know your Indians well. Go ahead and do it, and I'll wait for you to come home victorious." Francisco first stood up from his chair, and then made a gesture of respect in front of the fearless Paul.From this action, Jia Boye felt the ambiguous interaction between the two of them. Then the Inca nobles all left. There was immediately a burst of discussion among the ranks of the Spanish army. "Don't trust this traitor...he used to be a friend of Almagro..." Francisco motioned for everyone to be quiet.His authority has never been challenged, especially when he is facing everyone.

"Quiet." He said, "We need him, but he also needs us. He is too smart and knows how to use ulterior motives, so he can betray us now. But he wants to get rid of his brother just like us... ..." When he said these words, his tone became sarcastic and joking. "Okay, you all go. I want to be alone, and..." He turned to Jia Boye.The people present began to whisper again.No one knew the Spaniard in Indian clothes.But everyone has heard the story of the heroic warrior protected by the god St. Jacob, the legend of the man who captured the castle alone. Finally, only the old conqueror and Jia Boye, whom he once regarded as his son, were left in the square.

"Well," Francesco said first, "Tell me what's going on with this weird outfit first?" Jia Boye didn't know how long the two had been together. Towards noon the sun was high in the hot blue sky, and then the golden sun slid across the mountains until the darkness of the night kept growing—and they talked all the time. The governor was obviously very happy to see his long-lost partner.He asked Jia Boye about the life on Lake Titicaca, and teased him with those indigenous women; Jia Boye asked the governor to talk about the city of Lima that he worked so hard to build.Especially at the insistence of the Governor, they recalled the past days in Seville, Toledo, the royal summons and the difficult journey.They indulged in the intimacy built on these memories, and the governor felt relaxed, waving his white hat from time to time, using it as a piece of cloth, a hat or a sail in the story, depending on the story he told.

"Mr. Francisco, I often ask myself a question." "My child, you ask!" "It's been said that your first few expeditions, when you drew a line on the sand between yourself and others, to show everyone rich and poor, between the ordinary of the past and the glory of the future, when Your partner almost walked away..." "Gale Island." Pizarro whispered like a dream. "It is also said that a total of twelve people crossed the line to stand by your side." "So, what do you want to know?" "I wonder if the rumors of all this are true. If all this is happening from here." Francesco didn't answer for a while.The originally serious expression suddenly turned into a bright smile. "Aren't you a good friend among us?" he asked. "Did you ask the same question to Gandhia?" "He always answers with a smile! And I want to hear the truth from you yourself." But the governor didn't let Jia Boye dominate the conversation—or the conversation between the two was too happy, and it's time to stop now. "I was told," he retorted, "that there was a cavalryman very like you, but instead of wearing your fancy clothes, he rode a white horse, galloping through the Indians' bullets, defying With the flames raging, and with the Virgin Mary at his side protecting him, he alone took down the three towers of the castle. Is all this true?" This time it was Jia Boye who smiled slightly. "Mr. Francisco, you have many friends too. Haven't you asked them?" "In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, they all swear that these things happened and are true, except my famous brother Gonzalo." Jia Boye laughed first, and then the old conqueror also laughed. "These rumors," said the Governor quietly, "some of them are true. . . . I think of several passages of my life like looking through a cloud of fog. Sometimes I wake up in the morning as if I were still in my dear home all night last night Esther Madura lived the life of casting a bell, but all of a sudden, my life just kind of unfolded from there. And then I thought about where I am now, and what I've been through, and then I'm so old .” "But you are here now!" Jia Boye made a gesture, and the scenery under their feet seemed to be on fire, and the lit torch instantly illuminated the low night.For a while, both men were silent, lost in their own thoughts, reminiscing about the times they had spent together in the past. Then, Jia Boye heard the governor talking to himself: "Son, I need you." His body shrank suddenly, as if he had been slapped hard.For all the special affection he had for Mr. Francesco, for all the respect he still had for Mr. Francesco, hearing this made him feel intimidated and unbearable. "Now I'm alone again, you know that. Enando killed Cyclops and now he's back in Spain to prove his innocence to the king...God knows what's going to happen to him. I don't know you hate him, but He's the only one of those fools who has any sense—please bear with my phrasing... As for the rest, you know exactly what I think of them." "In that case, why did you hand over Cuzco to Gonzalo?" Jia Boye's tone was very calm, but it could be heard that there was a sense of reproach in his words. "Despite his worthlessness, he is my brother - the only man I can trust... The generals who came here with us from Spain with ten horses and fifty cavalry thought they could do whatever they wanted , delusional to hold all the treasures of Peru in your hands..." "You want to build a country, but all you think about is war, or war..." "Then what else can I do? Jia Boye, you believe me, I want peace just like you. Listen to me..." Pizarro put his hat on the condescending low wall, from which he could overlook the city, then he took Jia Boye's hand, leaned over to Jia Boye's ear, and said trustingly: "You know I live with a native princess who has been christened Lady Angelina... Actually, I try hard to hide how much I love her! And I have a daughter with her named Ina Gisbeth Heisa , she is my sweet little baby, you can't imagine how much I wish I could run after my daughter every day, I just want to hold her in my arms. I haven't seen her in weeks, I miss her so much, if You know how much I miss her..." Tears welled up in Francisco's eyes. "There is only one thing I want to do, that is to live with them, to have light meals every day, with a glass of wine mixed with water, to maintain my health through simple exercise, just like my parents did when I was young, playing nine Pillar play, playing tennis... You think I like riding a horse through muddy and difficult roads before dawn, you think I like leading armies, dealing with indigenous chiefs, you think I like to spend my brain thinking whether I should Believe in this man named Paul..." "Okay, don't say any more." After these words came out, there was a silence.Francisco picked up the white hat and twirled it in his hand: "Quiet! My boy, you use great words now!" "Mr. Francisco, can't you see?" "My boy, all I saw was some kind of demon, all I saw was a Spaniard dressed as an Indian and saying more than he was supposed to say..." The old man coldly wrote resentment on his face, his body trembling uncontrollably, even though this man had only sincerely played the admirable father role a second ago.Facing him, Jia Boye felt a kind of power that he had never had before, and a sense of happiness flowed through his whole body.When Jia Boye opened his mouth to answer, every word and sentence was full of firm tone: "Have you heard the words of those who stand before you without trembling? Do you know that your soldiers do not abide by the law at all, burn, kill, loot, and abuse slaves? Do you believe that such discipline can be maintained with the Indians? Is it peaceful?" "I must first defeat the hapless Manco, and then re-establish peace and make a treaty with them..." "No, Monsieur Francisco, you still haven't seen it! The atmosphere of war is everywhere, even in our army. And you let them assassinate Almagro..." "At the time I didn't know..." "So you didn't know at the time; dare you say that you also didn't know that Atahualpa was executed? You knew at the time, and you just turned your head, closed your eyes, and waited until it was over. And now in the air Thoughts of revenge spread: each hated his brother, and only dreamed of taking everything from him; I personally believe that force represents power, and there is power with force! Besides, even if you don’t interfere in everything, you are still the same as them! In the eyes of your compatriots who have always obeyed you, you can’t see who is ready to betray you, or even who wants to plot Rebellion, wanting to take your life..." Pizarro wanted to refute several times, but Jia Boye's eloquent long-winded speech made him unable to get in a word.When Jia Boye said the last few words, Mr. Francesco took the opportunity to tease: "Hey, boy, they don't have the guts!" Jia Boye didn't stop because of this exclamation.He continued: "You had the opportunity before, and you have the opportunity now, to go down in history as a founding hero who conquered new lands and founded new nations. And you are destroying it all now." "Jia Boye, I can't help it." The words fell heavily between the two of them like a cry of disappointment. "I know your generosity and courage, and am ready to listen to you. I do not deny that most of what you say is true. And sometimes, at night, when I pray to the Virgin Mary to forgive me for these sins I have committed, Tears will come out of my eyes too. Don't think I'm tougher on you than I am on myself. Nobody knows what I know except the Supreme Court justices! But what you're saying is impossible, do you understand? Impossible ..." "The first purpose of Gong Saluo and Paul's expedition is to capture Anna Maya and seize the golden statue. Is this true?" "Yes, and Manco is still to be captured. But Gonzalo once convinced me that if the princess were in our hands, Manco would be there, and she had the statue, which I did not know What magic..." "After all this, as you said, all will be at peace again." The words that came out of Jia Boye's lips were full of pain and irony. "Do you think the goal of peace can be achieved more quickly by simply destroying what they value as a treasure? Mr. Francisco, it's the opposite: you're just adding more chaos to the war that's already started. Even if you and Manco can make a deal, if you can, then you have to deal with the wise man Vera Omar who has become a warrior, and Ira Tupa. And when these people Die, there are many more upstarts... And when you completely suppress them, you have to face your own army, be careful of the people around you, and you can't trust anyone. Can't you see that if you use this In this way, what you leave behind is the consciousness of war, whether it is the same for the Spaniards or the Indians, they will never be able to break free from such shackles!" "Jia Boye, you don't understand, you are too young. I know all this. But I also know something that you don't know. Over there," he pointed to the west, "they are restless, I heard the news , they are preparing to send another governor. If I don't capture Manco and put down the rebellion before then, I will be all over." "What's over? Power, grabbing, or killing?" "My dream is over." Hearing the last words burst out from Mr. Francesco's pale and thin lips, Jia Boye restrained his impulse and no longer argued.Facing this old man who crossed the ocean and insisted on pursuing his dreams, he had nothing to say: this is the secret in everyone's heart, it is worthy of sympathy, and it is also magical and wonderful. The two men slowly resumed normal breathing.The tit-for-tat anger of you coming and going just now subsided, maybe it dissipated in the darkness, maybe it hid in the crevices of the stones, or maybe it was the mummy who had been watching them all the time calming them down with wisdom. "Let me go out with them," Jia Boye said. "Let me be ordered to negotiate peace with Manco as soon as possible. I know him very well, and you know it. I may be the only Spaniard he is willing to talk to." "No." Jia Boye stood up and took a few steps in the square.All the emotions in his heart turned into an unbearable fatigue-the fatigue of the past few years, and the sadness in his heart because he couldn't persuade the person he loved but hated before him. His eyes fell on the mummified King Vanya Kapac in the dark with a broken nose.An ancient feeling continued to spread throughout his body, and he trembled, as if he had suddenly returned to the terraced fields of Oyangaytambo in a starry night. He turned around. Francisco Pizarro did not move. "Farewell, Francesco." The governor didn't move a single step, but Jia Boye was about to go down the mountain and return to the city. Suddenly, Francisco's voice sounded behind him. "what are you planning to do?" Jia Boye turned around to face him, but Francesco was far away from him in the darkness, blurred, and he could no longer see his figure clearly. "Mr Francesco, I thought about that Galle Island story, and I'll tell you what I thought: You did draw a line in the sand with the edge of your sword, and all had to decide which side to take? " He paused, taking a big breath of the cool night air. "I believe that there comes a time in everyone's life when you draw your sword and draw a line in the sand. I believe everyone makes their choice." "what are you planning to do?" "Do what I'm supposed to do." Just like that, Jia Boye disappeared into the darkness.