A strong long wind blew from the eastern sky, and the wind chimes on the high platform jingled again, like a fierce prelude to a movement.
King Suangua stood on the high platform, silently looking at the eastern sky. The summer wind in the rainy season was so dull, and the moist water vapor rushed towards his face, indicating that a new heavy rain was coming.
After a while, King Tarasco sighed softly. He lowered his head, stared at the bronze arrows of the long bow on the ground, and spoke slowly and solemnly.
"Zinzini, how are the master craftsmen doing with their research? When can these Mexican longbows be imitated?"
The chief minister showed an invisible smile.
"Your Majesty, I have summoned the master craftsmen in the capital to study together for two days. According to the masters, the manufacturing technology of this long bow is not complicated. The craftsmen only need to make an approximate imitation of the existing shape.
.I just issued a strict order before coming here, asking the craftsmen to start making it, and the first copy can be made within two or three days at the earliest!"
Suangua nodded with satisfaction. He looked at the chief minister and asked seriously.
"Zinzini, the stone fortress in the south is crumbling, and the danger is like accumulated bird eggs! The warriors on the front line need this powerful new weapon. Can we build a thousand longbows in two weeks? Can it be done?!"
The chief minister thought for a moment and replied calmly.
"Your Majesty, you can't do it. This is impossible!"
Hearing this, the king's eyes widened, waiting for the chief's explanation.
"The technical difficulty of the Mexican longbow can be overcome. However, its bow body is long and wide, and the wood is hard. It is very labor-intensive to make! We lack skilled bowsmiths, and the initial stage of large-scale manufacturing will be very slow. At the same time, this long bow
The draw force of the bow is extremely high, and the arrows used must have strong shafts and neat shapes, which are also extremely difficult to make! In addition, high-quality feathers are expensive, and high-quality wood has large gaps..."
Zinzini patiently recounted the story one by one, ignoring Suangua's increasingly gloomy expression. Finally, his voice suddenly became loud and clear.
"Your Majesty, the most critical point is that both longbows and feathered arrows require a lot of labor. And the Lake District is mobilizing on a large scale to fight, and our manpower is almost exhausted!"
Hearing this, Su Angua's face froze. He asked seriously.
"Tell me in detail!"
The chief minister saluted respectfully, then stretched out his right hand and counted his fingers one by one.
"The Grand Patzcuaro Lake District has a total population of more than 900,000, and more than 200,000 young men and women. At this time, the north and the south were at war at the same time, and the border was full of war. Two months after the war began, including the militia, the number of young men and women was reduced to 30,000 to 40,000.
The kingdom has already mobilized 50,000 militiamen to join the battlefield, and another 50,000 will be recruited in the future. Many of the remaining men are in the fiefdoms of nobles and nobles, making it difficult to forcefully recruit them. These people can only maintain the most basic autumn harvest... Your Majesty, purely
In terms of national strength, we are only three-fifths of the Mexican Federation."
Suangua remained silent. He knew in his heart that, including the vassals that paid tribute to the Mexica Alliance, the kingdom's national strength was only half of that of its huge enemy. The king pondered for a moment, listening to the chants of the priests in the wind, and spoke slowly.
"The nobles are gathering together, waiting for the priests to perform the sacrificial ceremony. I will discuss the prophecies of the gods with the priests and elders. The gods will inevitably say that the nobles, big and small, jointly contribute manpower and material resources to resist the invasion of the believers of the alien gods. This will be pious.
The embodiment of it or not!”
Zinjinni was startled for a moment, then thought for a moment, then his expression changed drastically. He spoke hastily.
"Your Majesty, nobility is the foundation of the kingdom..."
Su Angua waved his hand to stop him, his expression cold and hard.
"Jinjinni, I have my own sense of discretion! Can the thousands of craftsmen in the capital be able to allocate a group specifically to make longbows?"
The chief minister lowered his head, calculated for a moment, and then answered.
"If we stop the maintenance of palaces and temples and forcibly recruit craftsmen from the royal family, we should be able to gather two to three hundred people."
Hearing this, the king frowned slightly.
"This number is too small! Draw another 300 people from the bronze weapon craftsmen and switch them all to making longbows and arrows."
Zinzini was busy calculating again. Then, he answered hesitantly.
"If this is the case, the daily output should be more than fifty longbows and more than a thousand arrows. It will also require nearly a thousand people to cut wood and handle chores... Is it just a shortage of bronze soldiers?"
Su Angua nodded and waved his hand in decision.
"Just do it like this! The militia guarding the fort does not need bronze soldiers. Allocate a batch of bronze tools to the craftsmen, let them improve their bow-making skills, and make them proficiently as soon as possible. The warriors step up supervision and work day and night. Also, urgently select warriors who are good at shooting.
The militia and militia are listed directly under the royal family, and priority is given to equipping them with longbows!"
The chief minister quickly drew abstract longbows and figures on the wooden board, marked counting symbols, and wrote down the king's instructions.
Suangua turned around and looked at the five majestic "House of Winds" Yakata. The sacrificial ceremony had already begun.
Under the Yaka Tower, the nobles stood solemnly, silently watching the solemn and grand ceremony. In front of the Three Temples, the holy fire burned fiercely, and the low-level priests sang loudly. They inhaled the smoke of the Kingdom of God that drifted from the pottery gourds, and in a trance
Dancing wildly in a state of intoxication.
The king smelled the breath in the wind and frowned. He looked away in disgust and looked at the high-ranking priests with calm expressions. These old priests were holding sharp blades and stood at the top of the temple, welcoming one after another who was tied up.
Mexica sacrifices. The number of sacrifices is not too many, but the ritual of sacrifice is very complicated. Each god has different preferences, which correspond to part of the sacrifice body.
Suan Gua looked calm as he watched the blood blooming in front of the temple. His thoughts were suddenly in a trance.
"The Mexica people have always been famous for being good at offering sacrifices, and all tribes in the world praise their piety. I wonder if I will have the opportunity to see the spectacular sacrifice ceremony with my own eyes..."
Thinking of this, the king felt a chill in his heart. He couldn't help but raise his head and look at the southern sky.
Going southeast from the "Palace of Winds", four to five hundred miles away, is Sitacuaro State. The undulating mountains and forests hinder the movement of large-scale armies, and the rivers flowing from north to south are natural marching channels. At the strategic point of the river
The road is dotted with dense stone fortresses.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click the next page to continue reading the exciting content! The summer sun falls from the sky, illuminating the flag on the stone castle. The long wind blows, and the flag flutters with clear patterns, one-third
All are suns and hummingbirds.
Iskali, a royal nobleman, stood on a hill with a three-and-a-half-meter-long commander's flag on his back, staring firmly ahead.
Two hundred meters ahead, there is a small bluestone fortress. The stone fortress is full of bloodstains, scattered corpses and broken arrows. At the highest point of the watchtower is the eagle flag of the Tarasco royal family. A man in yellow armor
The jaguar warrior in the beast helmet, covered in blood, strode to the top of the watchtower and broke the eagle flag. Behind him, the senior warrior in dark green uniform looked solemn and lowered his head to hand over a new flag.
Then, the Jaguar Warrior vigorously planted the flag at the highest point. He faced the long wind and suddenly shouted, calling the name of the Lord God. The flag unfolded in the wind, revealing the bright marks of the sun and hummingbirds. At this moment
, seeing this exciting scene, thousands of Mexica warriors cheered loudly together, praising the victory bestowed by the Lord God!
On the hill, Iskali also lowered his head, stretched out his hands to cover his protruding cheekbones, and prayed a few words silently. Then, with a stern expression and a cold light in his eyes, he calmly called the guards beside him.
"How many prisoners were taken in this battle?"
"Two hundred Tarasco warriors, five hundred militiamen, most wounded."
"Leave no one behind."
Iskali waved his hands coldly, his voice as indifferent as usual. This stone fortress resisted resolutely, facing several times the number of enemies, powerful longbows and stone-throwing bombardments, and still held on for five full days. When the alliance warriors boarded the city
, also suffered more than two hundred casualties...The commander of the South Road was not prepared to give any prisoners a chance to convert.
The guards bowed their heads and agreed, then strode away. After a while, the priests who accompanied the army built a simple altar, prayed to the supreme god, and offered sacrifices. Soon, the sacred chants echoed inside and outside the fortress, and thousands of warriors
They knelt down in front of the holy fire, feeling the comfort of their souls and regaining their will to fight.
Iskali also knelt down and prayed. He murmured in a low voice, but his mind drifted to the capital with the wind.
"It's already halfway through July, and only one-third of Sitacuaro State has been captured. The resistance of the Tarascans is becoming more and more tenacious, and the losses of the warriors are increasing. Dear King, when can you bring
Are you waiting for the army to arrive?"
Changfeng continued to walk. Behind the commander of the South Road, there were continuous wooden camps, all the way to Lazico State, the starting point of the grain road. In the mountains and forests outside the camps, there were many corpses dressed in Tarasco clothes scattered around.
The soil underneath was dyed red. And around the camp, there were shallow mounds where Mexica warriors and militiamen were buried. After a moment of shouting and fighting, there was eternal peaceful sleep, no matter the enemy or friend.
The warm sunshine shines down, treating everyone equally for hundreds of miles, but the appearance of the ground has changed. At this time, the Mexica Valley is full of lush greenery. The wild flowers beside the road are in full bloom, and the green seedlings in the farmland are growing vigorously.
The farmers carefully removed the weeds in the fields and tended the corn, soybeans and pumpkins. They occasionally stopped working and looked at the large groups of militiamen walking by the road, the sharp stone spears in their hands, and the tall bamboo baskets behind their backs.
.This is the militia that transports food to the southern front.
When the warriors in the front row pass by, the brave farmer will whisper a few questions and ask what the Tarascans in the west are like. The fighting two hundred miles away takes place on the enemy's territory, and the alliance's spring plowing
It's just like always. To the civilians of the Alliance, the war seems to be thousands of miles away, the end of the world.
The residents of the capital city in the lake are obviously well-informed. They are talking a lot in the large market of Tlatelolco in the northern city, and the busy caravans bring the latest inaccurate news. Under the guidance of the community priests, the residents of the capital city
Talking loudly, imagining the overwhelming battle situation, and discussing the destined victory.
In the king's palace, Avitt was sitting high on the throne, wearing a majestic robe. He was holding the latest paper book in his hand and was checking the mobilization report of the Texcoco Lake District. Beside the king, Gillim stood with his hands bowed.
, holding a pen and paper, with a solemn look on his face, without making a single sound.
The king had all military maneuvers firmly in his hands. He looked at the counting symbols on the paper and did quick and accurate mental calculations without the need for reporting or help from others. After a long while, Avitt nodded with satisfaction.
"The vassals everywhere are quite honest. The Huastecs, Mixtecs, and Zapotecs all sent their second tribute of the summer. The distant Zapotecs did some tricks,
The tribute is only two-thirds of what the alliance requires. The alliance is busy with farming and war, so it is indeed impossible to send troops to them. However, this is more like a temptation by the vassals and cannot be indulged at will!"
Avitt thought for a moment and made a decision.
"Gillim, dispatch 3,000 elite warriors and 500 Jaguar nobles. Have them make a detour to Mixtec in the south, declare the alliance's strength, and then join the Southern Route Army in the west. At the same time, send an envoy to reprimand
Zapotecs, let them make up for the shortfall in tribute with the tribute after the autumn harvest!"
Gillim nodded and took the order, writing down the will. He asked in a low voice.
"Your Majesty, you will go on an expedition after the autumn harvest. If there is still a shortfall in the third tribute from the South at that time, what should be done?"
The king smiled slightly.
"Then write down the shortfall and compensate it in the New Year's tribute. If there is still a shortfall...the alliance will not raise troops now, but will keep it in mind and calculate it together in the future!"
Gilliam nodded solemnly.
"Your Majesty, once the war started, the consumption of materials was like burning mountains and forests, disappearing piece by piece. The alliance's manpower and material resources were completely tight. If it weren't for the tributes from vassals from all over the country, it would be difficult to maintain. The Tarascans would only be worse than us.
difficult."
Avitt nodded in agreement.
"Reporting some time ago, Iskali's southern route army has made good progress and has captured the outermost ring of stone forts. As long as Sitacuaro is captured, the Tarascans will have no danger of defending! Xiulote
The Northern Route Army also successfully established a foothold on the Leman River and contained a large number of northern enemies. As for how to fight later, it depends on his own performance."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Gilliam bowed his head and saluted.
"The Southern Route Army is the main force of the Western Expedition, and the Northern Route Army is only a partial division after all. As long as His Highness can attract reinforcements from the Chapala Lake area and maintain pressure on Akambalo State, it will be a great achievement!"
Hearing this, Avitt smiled softly. He didn't say much, he just gave the order calmly.
"Gillim, continue to send envoys to the city-states of the alliance to urge them to mobilize warriors who do not need to farm as soon as possible and rush to the north and south front lines. Before the autumn harvest, another wave of offensives must be launched! Similarly, send envoys and scouts to the major forces to test their attitude towards the alliance.
Attitude, observe the military mobilization situation. Tell Acap that he is doing well in the religious holy city of Cholula! Let him continue to talk about theology with the priests and elders there, and send him a batch of special tobacco and holy water!"
Hearing the name of Holy Water, Gillim's hand froze, and his expression finally changed slightly. After a moment, the intelligence officer returned to normal and continued to record in his hand.
Afterwards, Avitt stood up and looked at the mountains to the northwest through the wide doors and windows. He thought silently in his heart.
"Xulot, you won't let me down..."
At this time, in the towering pyramid sanctuary of the distant religious holy city of Cholula, Akap trembled inexplicably. He was wearing a gorgeous robe, with a face like a crown of jade, and a graceful messenger of the gods, talking to a group of hairy-haired men.
The gray old man joked.
The rich divine smoke floats in the sanctuary, exuding a pleasant and intoxicating strange atmosphere.
"Elder Akap, the view of the Supreme God you just talked about is very good, why did you stop suddenly?" A seemingly kind and noble old man sat cross-legged in front of him and asked with a smile.
Acap thought for a moment and felt everything was normal, so he smiled and said in the same gentle tone.
"Dear priest leader, the sacred smoke you burned is so precious that it made me intoxicated and completely forget myself."
The priest leader laughed and waved. Several maids in elegant clothes immediately stepped forward and put more precious and expensive herbs and flowers into the exquisite copper incense burner.
"Then please ask Elder Akap to continue to forget yourself and meet the God above all others in your dream!"
This chapter has been completed!