Chapter 16 Chapter fifteen

This inn is called "drinking a pot of free wine".The boss is obese and taciturn, and everyone around the prison knows that he looks like a philosopher, so when Jia Boye asked him about the room reservation procedures, plus a bucket of hot water for bathing and changing clothes, he was expressionless and simply replied: "There are three copper coins in total." Feeling that Jia Boye seemed to want to bargain, he immediately went on to say: "Please pay first." Taking out the pocket of the only pair of trousers left on his body, Jia Boye took out a wallet that was too flat, and then took out the only coin from the wallet, a meager rial silver coin—after paying the bill, he carefully Counting the thirty-one copper coins given to him by the innkeeper.

In less than an hour, he appeared in the hotel lobby with a brand new look.Although the clothes on his body were not gorgeous, they were clean, fresh and fit well.He was dressed in black from socks to coat, except for the shirt.Now all he needs to do is find a shave and get a makeover.Afterwards, he'll mull over his enigmatic future. Just as he was about to head out, a burst of tangy pork broth gripped his palate.He is hungry. Without further ado, the innkeeper pointed to a table in the corner.Jia Boye sat down on the low table, and said the name of the dish he wanted in one breath: "A bowl of corn soup, a jug of Cadiz, and an olive bun."

"There are four copper coins in total, and please—" "Pay the bill first, I know." Within a few minutes, there was not a drop of soup left in the bowl, the bread was eaten up, and even the wine was finished.He thought the soup was really delicious, the bread was superb, and the wine was even more intoxicating.If he still feels dizzy now, it's because he's overexcited!I don't know how long it has been since he enjoyed such a meal? Although already a little drunk, he ordered another jug ​​of wine. When he drank the remaining wine in the glass with melancholy, when the copper coins in the wallet flew to the innkeeper's palm like flies, he suddenly felt that freedom was not as charming as expected.

"Excuse me, my lord, may I ask for your advice?" The man speaking was very tall, with shoulders almost as broad as a coolie's.But his face was delicate, his beard was neat, and it could be seen that he had been carefully trimmed. His sharp hooked nose added a sly air to him, and he couldn't hide the cunning in his bright eyes.His forehead was lined and his skin was tanned by the sun. Beside him, stood another dark-skinned man who was slightly shorter than him.The latter had a charmingly contoured face, full and round cheeks, intelligent, alert, confident but not conceited eyes.His lips were thin, his chin was smooth, and in his right ear he wore a large gold earring of the kind worn by sailors.Jia Boye thought to himself that this was probably a black man that is not often seen in Spain.

"Gentlemen?" he answered immediately, lifting his chin. The taller white man smiled and nodded politely, then took out a chair from under the table and sat down generously. "My lord, when you walked in disheveled and filthy, we were sitting in that corner. Now you have reappeared like a brand new coin, gobbling up this disgusting bowl of lard soup, gorging on this A piece of old dough that has been sitting for three days, and drinking this cask of inferior wine as if invited to a king's wedding banquet. I said to my companion Sai Batian, Hey, this man must have been in prison!"

After blinking his eyes and smiling at the black man who was always standing beside him, he continued to lower his voice and say: "And it's not short! We don't want to bother you, on the contrary..." Jia Boye stopped for a few seconds and did not speak.Afterwards, he stood up abruptly, and raised one hand in a threatening gesture; but at the same time as he did this, he suddenly felt very tired, and finally had to sit down on the small bench again, mocking himself. "It's not short. But I'd like to know another thing. If you don't mind, may I ask your name?"

Before answering the question, the tall man waved his fist, called the innkeeper, and ordered a jug of wine. "My name is Bedo de Gandía, and my friends call me 'Greek'. This is Sebastian de la Couz, who looks a bit like a slave because of the color of his skin, and he and I We have traveled many places together." The Negro agreed with his introduction with a wry look, and then spoke for the first time: "It's the waiter, my lord!" Jia Boye couldn't help but make a displeased expression. "Where are you from, gentlemen? Why do you call me your lord?"

The Greek stared blankly at Sai Batian, and the two were really taken aback. "Isn't that what people call a gentleman?" Jia Boye laughed out loud. "That wasn't done ten years ago!" He smiled and looked them over carefully from head to toe: the two men were wearing trousers, shirts and tailcoats--the style was as old and rigid as their behavior, and the materials on the clothes had long since been overused. Fades white with brushing. "We only left Indiana at the end of last month to come here." "what?" "We think it's a strange country there," interjected Sai Batian, the black man.

"I see!" Jia Boye muttered to himself, suddenly becoming very curious. The Greek pointed to the sun-baked prison gate at the other end of the little square, and said: "Our captain, Mr. Francisco Pizarro, who had sailed with us for more than ten years, was locked up in a common old debt dispute. As soon as our ship arrived at the dock, he was arrested by the police. A covert arrest. What an abomination! He's been in jail for three weeks, the poor fellow. We're here to wait for him to get out." The eye sockets of the two sailors suddenly cast a shadow of sadness.Jia Boye couldn't help showing some kindness.

"My name is Jaboye Mondreux... No, from now on, I will simply be called Jaboye, so you can just call me Mr. Jaboye. Unfortunately, you only guessed half right. I was still in prison this morning, but not This room..." "And which one?" asked the Greek. Jia Boye looked at him with a smile. "Would you like to talk to me about Indian?" he said wryly. Both Greek and Sebatian are very talkative. "You have to imagine the following scene first, Mr. Jia Boye! In front of you is an endless sea, with hot sand under your feet, and behind you is a large jungle with no exit. Rare birds and beasts are poisoned by arrows and hang on trees. Then roast people dry under the sun!"

"Long time?" "A few months, Mr. Jia Boye! A few months! Then we began to devour spiders, a fatter, flesh-bellied spider, but their stingers must be pulled out, or your mouth will swell; and have to pluck their front feet as they have hairs on them that can get stuck in the throat and make a nauseous vomit! We also ate ant eggs at the beginning...not bad; also some we found on dead trees The very fat worms, black and shiny, are very suitable for frying..." "But what about the livestock you brought with you?" Jia Boye asked. The sight they described disgusted him as much as the wine in the glass. "You can eat these animals, just like during the war, sometimes people..." The two sailors laughed. "It was eaten up! After four weeks on the beach, the pack of dogs we brought was so hungry that we roasted them first. So did the other two horses, gnawed to the bone Nothing. Horrible hunger, I tell you, really terrible. One day, one of us took off his belt and boiled it. We ended up eating the boots too! What a treat!" The black Sai Batian added calmly: "There are also lizards...the taste is not bad, but it's too difficult to catch, and if you are bitten by them, you will definitely die within two hours. So some people choose to starve to death or be bitten to death by lizards..." "Oh my God!" The Greek grabbed Jia Boye's wrist. "However, the captain still firmly believes that we will definitely be able to find the country that produces gold, even if the situation is not optimistic, even on the beach that almost killed us..." The Negro smiled and the Greek stretched and slowly pushed the stool back.The tall man half-closed his eyes and looked at Jia Boye from a height with a gentlemanly and proud expression. "Listen to him, this dark-eyed, tall, thin captain, who says to every rebellious sailor: 'Listen to me, be patient! Patience, friends! Patience, comrades! Zi will definitely come back, he will definitely find the El Dorado that you have longed for, the sea welcomes him with open arms, and the Virgin Mary will definitely guide him in the right direction. Please believe me! In my life, I've lived through worse times than I have now. When I should have fought, I've fought. When I should have waited, I've waited. Look at me: I was the first to find the Pacific Ocean through the woods that harbored vipers and beasts Man. I was also the first to sail across the Pacific to that gold-strewn Biru that the Virgin Mary promised me every night! Be patient, guys! I told you: they will Come back, and they'll find gold! If you really don't know what to do but worry about being hungry and chattering your teeth, pray! Prayer is a battle!  …'" When the Greek sat down again, the entire hall seemed to be drowned in silence.Jia Boye felt that his hair stood on end from fright, his limbs became stiff from being moved, and his heart was lifeless.He asked cautiously: "So did Lutz go back?" Bedo looked at the bottom of the cup and replied: "Yes, three weeks later. He sailed back from the South as easily as a boat on a lake. What a great pirate he was!" "Did he find it?" "Yes, he found it." The Greek smiled slightly. "It's exactly the same as what Mr. Francisco said!" Sebatian nodded proudly. "Where's Bilu?" "Bilu or Peru, whatever you want, Mr. Jia Boye." "A ship full of gold?" "Full ship, full ship! Gold, gold! There are also some Indians that can't be seen anywhere else, world-class costumes, strange animals, vegetables that have never been seen..." "You saw it all with your own eyes?" "Want to check? Just ask Sai Batian!" "I saw it. I swear to God." "So what are you doing here?" "Mr. Francisco came here to ask the king to nominate him as governor. Just like he nominated Captain Cordez!" "But he has to wait until he gets out of prison before he can meet the king!" Sebatian said sarcastically. "Now is not the time to joke." The Greek angrily snapped. The hall fell silent again.When pushing away the wine glass, Jia Boye couldn't help but wonder: "If Captain Francisco becomes Governor, will he go back to Indian?" "Of course! And the sooner the better!" "To conquer that Peru?" "Completely correct." "So he must need some volunteers!" The Greek smiled and bent over. "Hey, it seems that our new friend Jia Boye really wants to take a look at that country, Sai Batian..." At this time, the black man yelled and pointed in the direction of the prison. "Bedo! It's him, look..." The three stood up at the same time.Over there, in the sun, a very thin man in a bright red and gray velvet jacket and faded green trousers was walking around in front of the prison door, The prison gates had already been closed again.He wore a velvet hat to cover his long gray hair, but under the wide brim, Jia Boye was throbbing, believing that he saw a wise eyes that he had never seen before. The discoverer of Peru took another step forward and adjusted his sword belt.It is impossible to believe that he spent three weeks in a dark, dehumanizing cell, because it seemed that he could proudly remain there for a hundred years, forever waiting like a king for others to come to him. Bow and salute. Suddenly, what echoed in Jia Boye's chest was no longer the voice of the Greek Bedo, but that of Captain Francisco Pizarro.He felt as if at this moment he was standing on the vast empty beach with nothing on his body, his head was dizzy with heat, and his limbs were shaking with hunger, but this stranger came to encourage him every day like God, this man With steely perseverance, every word he said, like those crazy dreams of his own, seeped into his heart word by word.