Chapter 22 Chapter 21

The night was dark.Late summer storms rumble north of Toledo. Jia Boye sank into a sofa, sleeping very soundly.A few pages of paper filled with exaggerated Greek handwriting slipped from his fingertips and scattered on the ground with a red checkered pattern. A clatter of chains, like the loud sound of handcuffs in a dark prison, broke into his nightmare.When he woke up, he was sweating profusely.He opened his mouth, his chest was burning like fire, and he jumped up from the sofa. He stared wide-eyed, looking puzzled at the terrifying black shadows in the room. Once, in a nightmare, he saw himself stretching out his hands to the fat judge, begging him to spare Madame Fangska, lying at his feet, disheveled and torn, with her shoulders bare!

No, he's already sober!At his feet there was only a pile of papers covered with words, which he stepped under his buckled shoes. He cursed his cowardice and those lingering hallucinations.But just as he knelt down and was about to pick up the paper on the ground, he heard a rustling sound.A real voice. After he stood up straight again, he saw a body appearing in the candlelight.On a fierce face as smooth as a mask, there are two eyeballs blacker than the night. "Hullo!" he cried, almost dying of terror, and at last recognized Filipino the Indian. "What are you doing here?"

He sneaked into the house like a cat, his strong and dry legs like a sportsman were covered with only a pair of patched underwear, and a brown blanket was draped over his shoulders. pride.He smiled. Jia Boye hid the fright in his heart and casually picked up the papers on the ground.Finally, he patted his sleeves and asked: "What the hell are you trying to do?" Filibilo put away his smile and said in a high-pitched voice characteristic of Castilians: "The captain wants to see you." "Now, in the middle of the night?" "The captain said, I want you to come now!"

His tone was firm, as startlingly chaotic as the grammar in his words.But the Indian's eyes were solemn and incomprehensible, which made Jia Boye feel uncomfortable. "Why does he want to see me?" The Indian smiled again and said: "He didn't tell Filibilo what he thought." Jia Boye couldn't help correcting him: "No, you should say: 'Mr. Francesco didn't tell me...'" The Indian opened his mouth and did not answer.He acted foolishly, causing Jia Boye to continue in a haughty tone: "You have to learn Castilian well, Philippilo, otherwise, you won't be able to be an interpreter at all!"

Filipino made no reply.Jia Boye shrugged, rolled up a few sheets of paper written by the Greeks, and decided to keep them, maybe Mr. Francisco would like to know the contents.After that, he re-buttoned his jacket and walked towards the door: "Hey, let's go!" he sighed. The Indian accompanied him all the way to Francisco's door before turning away.Jia Boye only knocked once on the door, then pushed it open impatiently and entered.Just as he stepped over the threshold and was about to say hello, what he saw made him speechless with fright. About fifty candles were lit in the house, brighter than daylight.Francesco Pizarro kneels in front of a large canopied bed, bowing his head to a statue of the Virgin Mary with the Child and Rosary.For this prayer, he puts on his battle robe again!

His iron armor, shoulder pads, and leggings were rusted and covered with battle marks, but they still gleamed in the candlelight.On the ground at his knees rested a helmet and a longsword with a carefully carved brocaded orb and a trefoil at the base of the hilt. Amidst the sound of the rain that was getting louder and louder, Jia Boye was dumbfounded, and heard Mr. Francesco's devout prayer: "Holy Mary, I have never forgotten you! You always put your hand on my shoulder. It is you who guide my ship in the storm and keep me from all pitfalls. Dear Mother, listen to me, You are the voice that guides me. I know that you ask of me more than that. You want to shine your strength and light on the golden walls of Peru. Oh my beloved Mother, I know that you will lead me where Go there! Please let King Charles receive me and listen to my appeal! Because of you, I get up early every day and wait patiently! Kind Virgin, please don’t abandon me, I will definitely put Peru in the In your arms. I will definitely do this, because I will always be your dearest child... Amen!"

After painting the sign, Mr. Francisco Pizarro kissed the statue of the Virgin with his lips and the beard on his mouth. After that, like a young man, he stood up from the ground quickly, picked up the long sword, and turned to face the statue. To Jia Boye. The next minute it was ludicrous to see him in his armor in the room, with his bowl-cheeks and sallow complexion.A mad old man and liar with no brains!Isn't it just an illusion that such an old man can conquer a certain country on the other side of the world? However, Jia Boye still admired him very much. "Do you pray sometimes, young man?" asked Francisco, blinking. "Do you like the Virgin Mary?"

"Well... I think it should be counted." Jia Boye stammered. "You think? Ah! . . . I pray every day. The Virgin Mary saved me countless times. If it weren't for her grace, I would have died. She wants to conquer Peru more than I do!" His voice was rough, but his eyes were gentle, like flames with lingering warmth.He walked across the house, opened a window, and watched a bolt of lightning streak across the night sky.For a split second, blue flashes illuminated his armor like his gray beard.In the thunderous thunder, he suddenly turned around, frowned, looked Jia Boye up and down, and said:

"Bedo, the Greek, told me that your swordsmanship has improved a lot. Very good! If you want to become a conqueror, reading and literacy alone is not enough! He also said that you have a reincarnation mark on your back..." "It's just a birthmark, my lord!" "Ok." He stopped talking, there was lightning and thunder again, after which he suddenly said: "My brother Anando doesn't like you, schoolboy, and he wants me to drive you away." "Why? Just because we talked and wrote to each other?" "He doesn't trust people who've been in prison."

Jia Boye's face turned pale.For this matter, Don Francisco had asked him to come to his room in the middle of the night!Want to dismiss him casually like his father? However, Mr. Francesco's eyes were almost smiling. "Don't be sad, elementary school student! I was in prison myself! Whatever Enando likes to say, it's up to me to decide, you understand? Maybe it's just my brother who is worried that one day he will be put in prison too? " Mr. Francisco made a grimace, and Jia Boye thought he was smiling at him. "For now, you stay with me," said the captain after closing the window.

"Temporarily?" Jia Boye worried. "When are you leaving?" "Let's see. Who knows what will happen tomorrow? Damn it, the king hasn't summoned me yet! . . . What waste papers are you holding?" He approached Jia Boye and grabbed his shoulder hard. "A report of your expedition, by Bedo the Greek, my lord." "Ah! Has he made it all clear?" "Yes...I think...it's very informative!" "It's a lot! And he forgot..." Mr. Francesco's face was covered with wrinkles. Although he was tortured by wind, rain and war, he still showed an extraordinary strength, which made Jia Boye breathless. "Schoolboy, the Greeks tell me that you once saw the king with your own eyes." "That is true." "What does he look like?" "Well...he's not tall, shorter than you, my lord. But not very short, not short, and..." "Forget it! I already knew that! People always laugh at him, and you know why?" "Because of his jaw." "His jaw?" "It's too big. The lower teeth are in front of the upper ones, so he can't close his mouth all the way!" "Poor man." "So, my lord, you must pay attention, because of this, people can't understand what he is saying. Besides, Castilian is not his mother tongue, and he stutters when he speaks, as if he is holding the words in his mouth..." Don Francisco slapped his armor angrily. "No one ever told me about this!" "If you ask, brother, someone will tell you!" "Enando!" Mr. Enando Pizarro opened the door roughly like an Indian, and stared angrily at Jia Boye. "Why listen to this brat's nonsense!" He even put on a disdainful expression. He stepped forward to the light, and suddenly a smile appeared on his lips.He was an elegant, handsome man, and Mr. Francesco was quite different from him.Enando wears a purple tunic, brocade trousers and is heavily perfumed.But his nose is always red, and his eyes are small and restless.Ignoring Jia Boye's existence, he suddenly smiled and opened his hands, as if preparing to hug Mr. Francesco: "It worked, Francisco! It worked, brother! I just had a meal with Minister Luo Kebao, and you will receive a summons notice tomorrow morning!" Don Francisco signed the sign tremblingly, then jumped up, rushed to the Madonna, and put it on his lips. After that, he turned around, his face was full of youthful vigor, and he faced Jia Boye and Anando, shaking the statue of the Virgin in his hand: "It's manifested! It's manifested! Come here, come here, kiss this idol, and kneel before it!"