Aztec Eternals

Elder Ugel walked quickly, ignoring the traces of the war all the way, to the still fortified Hirotepec camp, and then went straight into the commander's tent.

In the big tent, Ocelor was discussing with the officers about the follow-up rewards. Seeing the old friend who came in directly, he shook his head helplessly, and told the officers to retreat first.

Soon, there were only two people left in the camp. Ugel took off the heavy stone crown, dragged the commander's treasured black bear skin, spread it on the somewhat cold ground, and then sat down on the opposite side of Othello.

Seeing his old friend's no-nonsense behavior, Othello's eyes twitched.

"Ugel, this is the spoils of war when I conquered the northern dog descendants. It is smooth and complete, fine and soft. Don't break it for me."

Because of the name, Othelor, unlike other commanders, does not like to collect jaguar furs, but prefers bear and wolf skins from the north.

Ugel tilted his body, felt the solid and soft touch, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Yes, this leather is tougher than a jaguar, and it sits up well."

After admiring, the elder priest looked at his old friend and laughed.

"Othello, are you still short of skins? The king and the high priest want to control the important city in the north. You will probably stay here for a long time, and maybe you will be entrusted here directly. If you want bear skins at that time, go directly to the north Just hunt!"

After hearing these words, Othelol's face became serious. He pondered for a moment before opening his mouth slowly.

"This is exactly where I hesitated. King Avit sent an envoy to ask me what I thought, but I didn't think about it for a while. Ugel, I haven't returned for two years. What is the situation in this capital now? The news has continued in recent months. It has been reported that I have indeed heard many important events!"

Hearing this, Ugel's fat face was serious, and he shook his head and sighed.

"What's the situation in the capital now? I can't figure it out. In my opinion, this is a murderous situation!"

As he spoke, the elder priest stretched out his thick fingers and counted them one by one.

"You see, in the enthronement ceremony, thousands of Otomi people were sacrificed. Did not sleep well!

Then within a few days, the Texcoco family was uprooted and thousands of nobles were sacrificed. This is so miserable that most nobles have nightmares. And it’s not over yet, when the New Year’s ceremony is over, the remaining one or two thousand little nobles and warriors will be transferred to you, and people will be panicked at that time.”

Hearing this, Othello thought for two seconds, and then naturally interrupted.

"This change is actually very good! The 20,000 Mexica warriors will be disbanded soon, and most of the royal army will go south. Only 5,000 Mexica warriors will be left in Xilotepec City, and there will be more than 4,000 Ottos. Mi Jiangbing. The northern important town is located on the frontier, and there are hundreds of thousands of Otomi in the state. If there are two thousand more Mexica nobles and warriors, I will have the core force to rule this place, and the situation will be more stable .

When these exiled aristocratic warriors came here, rewarded them with mansions and lands, married wives and concubines, they would naturally settle down. And in the ocean of the Otomi people, they can only rely on the alliance! "

Ugel thought for a while, then nodded.

"Yeah, the elders are always right! Listen to me. Before I came, the High Priest had just promulgated the Noble Law, and then the temple guards dispatched thousands of people and arrested more than 20 people in the city-state of Tracopan. Hereditary nobles, the reason is to hinder the alliance's tribute. These more than 300 people will be sentenced to sacrifice. When I bring back the more than 1,000 Otomi nobles here, the New Year's sacrifice will be another big sacrifice!"

"What? January has already passed, hasn't the New Year sacrifice started yet?"

Othello was visibly taken aback. Then, he pondered for a moment and said again.

"Abolish the Texcoco royal family and clean up the Tlacopan family. So, the royal family has unified the Lake District?"

The priests and elders were slightly moved. He shook his huge head.

"Yeah, the royal family has unified the Lake District, and so has the High Priest. The immortal sun hangs high, the young jaguar is good at fighting, and now there is a cunning old fox. This step by step is obviously planned! Although there are still There are many nobles, big and small, but there is no leader among the wolves. Even if these nobles make a lot of noise, they can't accomplish anything great!"

Afterwards, Ugel thought for a while, and continued talking.

"As for postponing the New Year's sacrifice, that's what the elders wanted, not because of the new religious reform. This time, many ceremonies have to be greatly changed, and the priests in the capital are all busy. The elders also demand that the sacrifice be grand enough, Waiting for the sacrifice from the north as soon as possible

I thought, instead of being busy in the capital and worrying about it all day, it would be better to take this errand and go north to see old friends. Let's relax here and live a comfortable life. Who knew that this city fell so quickly, I received an urgent report on the way, and hurried along the way, and I was exhausted when I arrived here last night! "

Othello nodded knowingly. He smiled and handed Ugel a wooden board full of graphics, and then fell into deep thought.

Ugel looked at the wooden board. On the top were twenty large boxes, which contained various brightly colored gold, silver and gemstones, feather clothing, and herbs and spices. Below were twenty small figures with obvious female characteristics.

Seeing this, the elder priest smiled, and patted his old friend on the shoulder with his big hand.

Othelol smiled, and then asked questions.

"Religious reform? What exactly is your idea? I think the priests you brought this time are quite useful. After a ceremony, the Otomi warriors are a little bit worried. How about keeping more priests for me?"

Ugel thought about it, and this question is quite difficult.

"Religious reform, that is, God is omnipotent, and priests are also omnipotent! The high priesthood is much stricter than before. The division of priesthood is very clear, and the powers of the grassroots have increased. The temple guards have been added, and new doctrines have been proposed. , Changing the sacrificial ceremony From the upper-class nobles to the middle-class warriors, and then to the lower-class commoners, the control of the priesthood is increasing, and it may not exceed the royal family in the future.

These priests can leave half of it for you, which was supposed to help you stabilize the north. But the other half haven't finished the basic literacy, so I have to go back and complete the thousand characters. You'd better learn characters too. Writing in characters will be much faster than drawing in the future, although I'm still not used to having paper for writing. , that is better than a wooden board, it is fast and convenient to write, and it is also very comfortable to use in some places. "

Othello thought for a while, then shook his head slightly. Immediately, he leaned forward and lowered his voice.

"I heard that the death of the chief priest, Kechar, was related to the religious reform? The elders met with His Highness, and the high priest then took over and presided over the religious reform."

Ugel shuddered subconsciously. He looked left and right, and then behind the curtain, before turning his head to look at Othelol, with wide eyes.

"Where did you hear the nonsense? I personally presided over the funeral of the chief priest. It must have died from the poison of the Texcoco people. What is it called ayahuasca? Just say these words here, If you go out and talk nonsense, you will die!"

Seeing the reaction of the elder priest, Othello smiled knowingly and nodded slightly. He continued to probe.

"Ugel, my old friend. The chief priest is dead, and the high priest is from the holy city, and he is also old. Have you ever thought about taking over the post of high priest in the future? I can support you."

The elder priest was taken aback for a moment, his eyes showed a moment of excitement and greed, and then he thought of the tragic situation of Kechar's death, and his heart became cold.

"Don't, don't! What's so good about that position? On the top is an immortal elder, next to him is an extraordinary king, and below are dissatisfied nobles. It is necessary to hold the power and preside over the great sacrifice, but also to reform the religion and coordinate all parties. Enforcing the teachings and offending the nobles. I was so busy all day that I didn't have any free time. I couldn't eat well, and I couldn't sleep well. In the end, I couldn't say when, and suddenly my head fell off.

I don't want that position, how can it be so easy to be a high priest? Xiutel is old and has had a good life for a few years, but now he is ruthless and not afraid of offending others. I still want to live another ten or twenty years. When you can put one party outside, that will be a hearty experience! "

Othelor carefully captured the details of Ugel's words and thought quickly.

"King, Priest, Nobility, Kingship, Religion, Self-Government"

After a while, the commander spoke cautiously.

"So, the capital is now a pot of hot soup? On the top is the lid of the elders, and below is the firewood of various New Deals. The religious reform, the implementation of the Islamic law, the reduction of aristocratic privileges and the struggle of royal power factions, these firewood are burning. And In the middle, in the gradually boiling soup, are the king, priests, royal nobles and local nobles?"

Ugel was stunned for a while. He chewed it carefully for a while, and felt that he had heard excellent content again, so he secretly wrote it down in his heart.

"Othello, you are really smart, this metaphor is really appropriate! I was in this soup, and I couldn't find a chance to figure it out. By the way, you have forgotten one person, Your Highness."

The commander pondered slightly, recalling the past.

"You mean His Highness Shulot, who beheaded the king and invented the trebuchet, longbow, writing and paper? What major things has His Highness done recently?"

"That must be him." Ugel shook his head. "His Highness has recently invented many gadgets. None of these are important. The most important thing is that he has applied to the king to train a new army!"

Othello was slightly taken aback. He didn't know much about religious matters, but he was very familiar with military matters.

"A new legion? A Hikipilli needs a total of 8,000 people, at least half of which are elite warriors. After repeated battles, how can the alliance gather thousands of warriors now?"

Ugel shook his head again.

"I don't really understand this. I just heard that most of this new army is just militiamen, some shoot arrows, and some hold spears. Now the workers around the capital, mines and saltworks have all been conscripted by His Highness. There are some shortages of masonry. So this time, I have another task to recruit thousands of Otomi from you and bring them back to serve as laborers

By the way, before the Northern Army is disbanded, you still need to go to the Vastecs to coerce them. One is to collect this year's tribute, and the other is to forcefully recruit a group of craftsmen and laborers. "

Oselor chuckled first, followed by the militia army, the commander nodded in agreement with a fierce smile.

"That's natural! You can take away as many Otomi people as possible in and out of the city. All kinds of labor in the alliance always need new firewood. Now the food is limited, and there is not much food for the common people besides supporting the samurai When I go back this time, you have to help me get more food. The Otomi people are in a great famine. With food in hand, we can not only appease the civilians in the state, but also absorb the Otomi warriors and militia

As for the Vastec people in the northeast, I am about to send warriors to collect food, grass and property, and forcefully recruit some craftsmen along the way. With a stronghold here, the Alliance's control over the Vastec will be further strengthened. I will also send legions to repeatedly sweep up the dog descendants in the north, capture the fertile captives, and eliminate the threat of the tribal men! "

Hearing this, the priests and elders nodded in satisfaction and laughed approvingly.

"Othello, the Vastecs have always been good at dancing and music. Remember to bring a batch of dancers and musicians back for me. Later, I will give you a batch of southern spices and gems."

The commander laughed loudly, and patted his old friend on the shoulder affectionately.

"Ugel, we have known each other for decades, so you don't have to be so polite. You might as well leave me two literate priests, teach me characters, and talk about new teachings. In addition, I heard that the capital is manufacturing longbows on a large scale , can you get me a batch? The price is easy to negotiate. To deal with those ferocious dogs who don't cover their clothes, bows and arrows are the best way to hunt them!"

The elder priest pondered for a moment, then cautiously agreed.

"There is no problem with the priest. When I return to the capital, I will send you a copy of all the compiled books first. Food can also help you get an extra batch. But the longbow is a bit troublesome, and the king and His Highness are staring at it. It is very tight, and each bow must be engraved with a number and put into the treasury as preparations for the westward expedition after the autumn harvest. Now, all the bowsmiths in the capital have been conscripted into the craftsman center, and there is no extra manpower to make privately. However, I Should be able to get you a batch of Tlaxcala bows, which should be enough to deal with commoner hounds.

Othello, judging by your plans and plans, it seems that you want to operate for a long time. Could it be that you are ready to accept the appointment and serve as the city lord here from now on, taking root in this borderland? "

As he spoke, Ugel carefully sized up his friend, his expression becoming serious again.

Othello nodded solemnly.

"Ugel, just now I heard you talk about the situation in the capital, so I made a decision: stay in Xirotpec and accept the appointment of the king! I will try to meet the king in a few years and see if I can hand over The land of the capital was moved to the nearest relatives and changed to enfeoff here.

You think, at the enthronement ceremony, the elder is as powerful as a thunder, with boundless blood. During the religious reform, the power of the king and the high priest expanded, and the nobles were suppressed one after another, causing turmoil. This is already a raging fire, and people dare not approach it.

But now, the High Priest has the power to teach and expand the temple guards. His Highness is also famous and has formed a large number of new troops. These made me even more uneasy, lest there would be another disturbance between the two royal families, and the whole soup would be overturned.

You all know my situation. Although I was born in the royal family and fought for many years, it is only a remote branch. When the king came to the throne, he was neither brought back to the capital as a confidant, nor had any relationship with the high priest. After much deliberation, it is safest to stay in the frontier!

Although it is not as prosperous as the capital city, it is not rough and rough. The Northeast Huastec are weak and wealthy. The Chichimecs in the north are loose and weak, the Otomi in the northwest have just been hit hard, and the Tlaxcalans in the southwest are still far away. Wouldn't it be much more free and enjoyable to stay here and control the lives and deaths of hundreds of thousands of people than to go back to the prison in the capital? !

How about it, Ugel, do you want to come and help me as the leader of the priests here? Let us operate together in the north and create a career! "

Ugel hesitated for a while, quite fascinated. Then, he sighed slightly.

"Ocelor, it's really good to stay here, but I'm afraid the elders won't allow it. Let me find an opportunity to test my mind, let's not talk about it, Ocelor, I haven't seen you for two years, hurry up Good wine and good meat, let's have a good drink!"

Othelore nodded with a smile, he called the guards, brought food and wine, and opened the skylight on the top of the tent. The starlight fell from the zenith, and the two of them stopped talking about their worries and thinking about the future, and just drank until they were drunk with the brilliant galaxy.

At noon the next day, Ugel summoned the priests, leaving half of the staff to form a new Hirotepec priesthood. Then, he summoned the remaining dozens of priests, and escorted more than 1,000 Otomi nobles with 2,000 Mexica warriors. Thousands of people boarded the southbound boat, and the big boat sailed quickly to the capital city in the lake.

Soon, under the witness of the Lord God, the new year will officially begin!

In the new week, I sincerely ask for monthly tickets and recommendations!