Chapter 20 Chapter Nineteen

As the Spaniards passed through the lush cornfields, they noticed a rounded hill to their left.But, slowly, the hill transformed into a real fortress.Even if viewed from a distance, the wall of the bunker is still very spectacular, and its vertical towering degree is like a natural cliff, which is dazzling.To its right, left, and rear are three towers—two square, one circular—higher than those erected in Castile. In particular, an atmosphere of silence infected everyone. The only sounds in the team were the clattering of weapons, the kicking of horseshoes on the floor tiles, and the friction of belts.Everyone was silent.The horses, restless and trembling from the steepness of the slope, desperately needed the comfort of their riders.

Directly opposite the bottom of the slope are several well-maintained open-air platforms. The straight roads in the city are crowded with men, women and children, and their colorful clothes are very eye-catching under the sun.On a huge square surrounded by countless courtyards and bright quadrangular buildings, some people gathered to stop and watch.Everyone turned their faces to the Spaniards.Gold glistened on the walls.The gold on the clothes of the princes and nobles was also gleaming, and they watched the Spaniard step forward step by step.Farther away in the valley, a stone city is followed by another city made of tents.Over there, too, thousands of eyes turned to look at the open-air altar, from which the new masters of the empire were descending.

The governor walked at the forefront, with a pair of black eyes gliding around, looking at this beautiful city, as if wishing to own every part of it to himself.His brother Almagro the One-Eyed and several important captains walked on either side of him, not even daring to hum. There were no Indian soldiers in the square. "Jia Boye!" the governor shouted. Juan and Gonzalo look back together.Ignoring the jealous eyes of the two, Jia Boye clicked with the tip of his tongue, urging his reddish-brown horse to go to the Governor's black mount. "Mr. Francesco?" "Stay with me. I want you to taste the aroma of victory filling your lungs."

The governor's voice was barely audible.He glanced contemptuously at Almagro and his retinue. "These guys haven't been to Tumbes and Cajamar. They're only here to get the gold. And you're not. I know you're like me. Stay with me, boy, and enjoy the day: it's ours !" Now there are finally houses on both sides of the road.The foundation of the house is mainly made of stone, and the walls are made of mud bricks that have been exposed to the sun.Riding on tall horses, they overlooked the sloping thatched roofs. At this time, about a dozen Indians from the city surrounded them.They seemed to come from all directions, with no fear on their faces.Their looks and clothes are different, and their languages ​​sound very different, which surprised Jia Boye.

The Governor ordered a rest. "Go to the Inca king," he ordered. "I want him to clear the way for us." Jia Boye rode up to the side of the Spanish striker with small steps, completely ignoring the surprised questions from his companions.He could feel Manco's staring gaze from a distance.His shoulders are luxurious and magnificent: the sedan chair is full of stars replaced by jewels, and there is a golden sun and a silver moon.The throne he was sitting on was made of precious wood, decorated with cushions stuffed with colorful feathers of parrots caught from the edge of the jungle.The young Inca king wore a loose yellow cotton coat with pyramids embroidered with gold thread on the piping.He turned his head to the side, pretending not to see him.

In the sedan chair behind him sat Anna Maya, who was wearing a pure white coat and a red belt, and smiled in his direction.But Jia Boye felt that she was out of reach and unattainable, and even suspected that he had once held her in his arms.So, vaguely, he fell into doubt again. He saluted the Inca stiffly, and said in an unfriendly tone: "King of the Inca, Governor Mr. Pizarro respectfully invites you to be our team leader." Manco looked at Jia Boye, as if he had seen through his soul.With a wave of his hand, he told Anna Maya to step forward.They exchanged a few words, quickly and quietly, Jia Boye didn't understand at all.Then she crawled obediently to the Inca king's ankle, which re-ignited the fire of jealousy frozen in Jaberye's veins.

He was furious and turned the horse around immediately.Holding the reins tightly in hand, keeping the back as straight as possible, bringing the king's shoulders to the front of the line. However, as they gradually approached the team, the team members recognized the only king, and there was a round of cheers.Suddenly, the whole city and the sky seemed to hear only one voice, a throbbing voice: "Chapa Inca Manco! Chapa Inca Manco!" The cheers were like raging waves.Even though they are used to it, the hand and chest hairs of all Spaniards can't help but stand on end with emotion.In an instant, the atmosphere of the entire river valley inspired everyone like a hot stone.

Don Francisco Pizarro smiled.A rare wide smile emerged from the gray mustache of his thin face.His eyes glowed like fire, and he looked at the sky, and he knew that his eternal goddess of goodness, the Holy Child and Our Lady, was watching him from above.Excited, he stood on the horse armor and grabbed Jia Boye's shoulders. After the latter came back, he was next to him, so close that his heels touched each other. "Chapa Inca Manco! Chapa Inca Manco!" the crowd continued to cheer. So that all the Spaniards could hear what he said, Don Francisco sat back in the saddle, turned around, and shouted:

"Listen to this voice, gentlemen. They are cheering for their king, but they are cheering for us, they just don't know it! Listen carefully with your ears: it will be something you will never forget!" Jia Boye trembled all over.In front of him, Annamaya stood next to Manco, almost within reach.Her beauty was incomparable, and he threw the cheers around him into the sky.As she turned to catch his eye, he told himself, yes, the governor was right: he'd never forget this moment. The young Inca king was surrounded by tens of thousands of people bowing their heads.From the high sedan chair, Anna Maya watched this strange sight.All the terraced fields, streets and squares where the sacrificial grains were cultivated suddenly became boxes full of bodies and human heads.The city of Cuzco, the "umbilical cord of the world," is now a piece of fabric patchworked by men and women, like a gown whose pattern has not yet been sewn.From this tapestry of human flesh where no face or pair of eyes can be seen clearly, there is a deafening cry:

"Chapa Inca Manco! Chapa Inca Manco!" "They call on me, do they want me to start a war or maintain peace?" Manco asked in a flat tone. "They want you to be their king." "Will you help me?" Anna Maya smiled. "You are no longer the little boy who was afraid of being isolated and snakes..." "I still do. Will you help me?" Ana Maya looked away from the crowd and looked at him in surprise.Manco was right: he still had the face of a young boy, and the cheers from the crowd did not so much make him look happy as he pursed his lips so that he wouldn't tremble.

"You're home, Manco, back to Cuzco, a city that at one point in the past only made you want to run away and be afraid. Today, you're king, aren't you happy? " "I don't know, Ana Maya. My heart wants to scream, my heart wants to cry. Also, I can't forget that my brother Paul is so far away from me..." "Although you have escaped the turmoil, my lord, there is still some unrest in your heart." Manco's eyes slowly returned to calm. "I'll show you around Cusco," he said, "to see the palaces where my ancestors lived." "I lived there." Manco was taken aback. "I thought you'd never been here." "Sorry my lord, you're right...but because the stones of the capital are so sacred, a few were sent to Dumen Bangba, where I grew up in a sanctuary where I lived with me The umbilical cords of this empire were mentioned to me by the girls of yours... that very night, the night your father Vanya Kapac died, he walked me through the palace where he lived..." "It was my father who brought me to you, didn't he?" Manco took Anna Maya's trembling hand.The young Inca king let go of his hand without saying a word because he felt something. The road by which they entered the city was built along the river, and the clear water rolled down between the perfect stone walls on both sides.Although the road is spacious, it can only accommodate two people walking side by side. They passed through the crowd, cheering like thousands of loud drums, and lined up along the stone palace. When all the Indians saw the Inca's sedan chair approaching, they all held up their hands, palms up, in gestures of admiration. Gradually, Jia Boye was no longer afraid, no longer frustrated by not being able to get close to Anna Maya, and no longer felt like a stranger to her.Perhaps he was not completely intoxicated like the fearless viceroy, but he was nonetheless moved by the reverence, the reverence for the new Inca king, as well as his bodyguards and bodyguards.There are now about a few hundred people around them, and they move forward carefully so as not to bump into each other.No one said a word, only a few murmurs and light footsteps were heard. "Are you dreaming, friend?" Bartolomeo appeared suddenly from nowhere, walked beside his horse, and, pressing his deformed hand on his thigh, raised smiling eyes to him and said: "I think you've come a long way. The prison at Sevier City is eight thousand miles away." "You are mistaken! Here it is always close at hand." Every time he faced Bartolomeo and listened to him, Jia Boye always had a complicated and strange feeling.A strong sense of intimacy drew the two of them closer, and an almost irresistible urge to confide his inner distress to him, but a mysterious voice told him to be careful. They walked to a large square. The ground was no longer paved with stone bricks, but a kind of fine sand, which rattled horseshoes.In the center of the square stands an elegant fountain made of round stones. The small jets of water flow down into the river, dividing the square in two. On the side of the river—the side they had just crossed—there were hardly any buildings, except for a wall that was just beginning to be built.But on the other side, the various main entrances of the palace are boldly exposed.Within the empire, they had yet to see a building comparable to it.One of the main gates was carved from a single block of marble mixed with red, white and green veins; another cylindrical tower with a tapered spire covered a part of the gate, which was inlaid with silver and some. precious gem. Under the perfectly shaped lintel, there is a finely carved king's throne, on which an old king sits, watching the Spaniards from outside.His posture was dignified and mighty, scaring everyone away.Beside him, about ten maids in white clothes were busy up and down thoughtfully, shuttling back and forth like an elegant and moving dance.Two of them fanned him with bright feather fans, and the other two added fuel to the brazier at his feet. What he presents in the whole picture is an awe-inspiring power. The helmet and horses in front of him are just a small episode, which will not affect the existing order of the whole world in the slightest. The crowd walked across the square in silence, stood around the square, holding their breath. "My goodness!" Jia Boye heard Bartolomeo yelling, so he turned to him and asked: "What's wrong?" "Didn't you see?" Bartolomeo said while pointing to the king's throne where the old man was sitting. Beads of sweat slid from Jia Boye's forehead down his cheeks, blurring his vision.During the whole process, he seemed to be looking at flowers in a fog.He saw nothing but a king sitting upon it, surrounded by a few loyal servants. "He's dead!" said Bartolomeo. "died?" "That's a mummy."