"Blessed by the Lord God, let's set sail!"
The morning light was beautiful and the sea surface was sparkling. Two intact long ships rowed towards the east under the rising sun. The old militiaman Chihuaco took the sailing priest Mecat to judge the wind direction and raised the sails on the bow and stern of the ship.
The wind-receiving area of the horizontal sail is relatively small, and the angle it can receive the wind is also small, but it is the simplest to manufacture and apply. At present, the alliance's navigation technology is still at a relatively low level, such as complex triangle sails,
I'm afraid it will take a long time to explore whether it's a longitudinal sail or even a spinnaker.
The two long boats took advantage of the wind, and the sailors on board rowed hard. In just two hours, after traveling fifty or sixty miles, a large green island suddenly came into view. Around the big island, you could vaguely see
Some small canoes and the nearest seaside village on the island.
"Captain Chihuaco, this is the Big Island of Scales! Those small boats are all Taino fishermen. Their fishing skills have always been very good. And that village is where the Taino people live." Kuba said
, we can visit directly and they will be happy to welcome us!”
When it comes to "welcome", Mayan businessman Tikalo hesitated. On the way from the plateau, the "welcome" from various ministries along the way was frightening. Chihuaco turned his head and looked at Kuba deeply.
I only saw the joy of seeing the village on the face of the Cuban guide.
As the fleet approaches, the villages on the shore also become clear. The Taíno villages can be seen at a glance. There are no fences or walls to protect them. They can perhaps be described as settlements. Most of the settlements are a cluster of low thatched huts.
In the middle are several large huts with round spires. In the center of the entire settlement, there is no iconic temple or altar. Instead, around the large huts, there are some wood carvings, pottery carvings, and stone carvings with paintings on them.
Indiscernible patterns.
On the outside of the settlement, there is a circular square surrounded by stones. I don’t know what it is used for. Further outside, there are small fields near the river, scattered over a wide area. There seem to be other fields in the fields.
There are many strange mounds of earth. On the tidal flat near the seaside, there are several small weirs and dams. There seems to be something moving in the weirs and dams.
Looking from a distance, one or two hundred Taíno villagers were busy in various parts of the village, and the atmosphere was very peaceful. A few fishermen rowing canoes were the first to find traces of the long boats. They waved loudly at the fleet.
shouted, and then separated two people and went to the village to inform. Within a moment, the village was boiling with people walking around everywhere.
"Blessed by the Lord God! Put on your armor, set up your bronze spear, and raise your long bow! Get ready for battle!"
Seeing the changes in the Taino village, Huitu Puap's expression became stern. With a murderous look in his eyes, he ordered in a deep voice and was ready for battle.
As if unaware, the four canoes rowed closer and closer, entering the range of the bow and arrow, until they reached the edge of the longboat. The Taíno fishermen on the boat then put down their oars and stood up, revealing their tall figures and lack of clothes.
upper body. The leading Taino fishermen looked at the longship warriors and sailors who had set up their weapons and raised their longbows, showed a bright and simple smile, and shouted loudly.
"Yaya Yaya! Piragua'? Guaricoque'? Anatanama! Uicu'? Wacosi?"
"Ah? What is he talking about?"
Chihuaco, the old militiaman, rubbed his head and looked at Tikalo and Kuba. Kuba looked at the fishermen, stayed for a while, and translated word for word.
"The great spirit of divinity! The long ship? Coming to our land? Flowers and butterflies! Fruit wine? Cassava juice?"
"What? What does this mean?"
Chihuaco looked confused, but Kuba spoke directly and said a few words in Guanahani to the surprised and surprised Taíno fishermen. Then he relayed it with a complicated expression.
"Great spirit, blessing all people! Long ship, you came to our village, are you coming to our village? The beautiful flowers will welcome the flying butterflies! Come on, you want to drink the new brew
Fruit wine, or freshly pressed cassava juice?”
"..."
Hearing Kuba's translation, the old militiamen Chihuaco and Huitupuap looked at each other, and their expressions changed a little. The Taino people seemed to be very friendly, but I don't know whether it was true or not. Huitupuap thought for a while, and then
He made a gesture to ask the warriors to lower their weapons. Chihuaco touched his chin and said gently.
"Tell him that we are friends from the land of Maya! We want to go to the village, talk to the village chief, and trade some water. Please ask the villagers not to be nervous and alert, we have no ill intentions..."
Kuba exchanged a few more words with the Taino fishermen. The fishermen were obviously a little confused. He scratched his head, rowed the boat, and led the two long boats to the coast where the crowd gathered. Until he reached the edge of the coast, the old man was surprised.
Waco was surprised to find that the one or two hundred villagers gathered at the beach were not alert at all!
The Taino villagers did not hold wooden spears, stone spears, stone axes, or hunting bows in their hands. They did not have any weapons except flint knives! And the dozen or so villagers standing at the front
, while holding several large straw baskets, inside which were long cassava flour cakes, fresh palm fruits and guavas, and clay pots filled with water!
"Friends in the longboat! Flowers welcome butterflies, trees welcome birds. We welcome you to our village!"
An elderly Taíno village chief, wearing a short feather crown, raised his hands,
He came forward happily. There was a simple and sincere smile on his face. There was also no spear in his hand, only a handful of tobacco leaves rolled into long strips, and the spear made of rolled tobacco leaves, "Gao Xiba Spear"
”.
"Come, friend! Light last year's tobacco leaves, let us share the divine tobacco, Cohiba, and communicate with the gods! The great spirit of the divine, the immortal ancestors, are watching the meeting of the two tribes. In the mother
In the blessing of God Atabea, let us drink water together, wait for the moon, and continue the tribe!"
"Ah? This...this welcome is really different from the previous one!..."
Chihuaco, an old militiaman, boarded the shore and looked at the Tainos' warm welcome. His smile was dull at first, but soon became sincere.
The tall Taino village chief opened his arms and gave him a hug. Then, the older village chief couldn't wait, lit a long Cohiba, held it in his mouth, took a deep breath, and suddenly felt refreshed. Then
, he lit another "tobacco spear", stuffed it into Chihuaco's mouth, and shouted with a smile.
"Cohiba! Blessings from the Mother Goddess and Ancestors! Tobacco from the Guanahani people! Welcome friends!"
"Hiss! This smell?...Ahem!"
Chihuaco, an old militiaman, widened his eyes, took a deep breath of the rich sacred smoke, and then couldn't help coughing. The surrounding Taino villagers laughed kindly, and the village chief made another smoke puff.
demonstration.
Amidst the laughter and divine smoke, the old militiaman took a few more puffs, and his whole body gradually relaxed. His thoughts became active, and his spirit became a little hazy. A smile couldn't help appearing on his face, and an inexplicable thought flashed through his heart.
idea.
"We sincerely welcome friends and share sacred smoke and food. It turns out that the Taino people are really a kind tribe!... But what will happen to such a kind tribe if they encounter the white-skinned evil demon predicted by His Majesty?
"
This chapter has been completed!