Aztec Eternals

The Valley of Mexico in November is peaceful and joyful, like the flower **** on the Avivet trees by the water, with the fragrance of pine and cypress in the breeze.

The fleet carrying Avit's king flag and warriors went south along the Tempon River, and the warm sun rippled on the river. Riding the boat in the breeze and flowing water, in just two or three days, I entered the prosperous and beautiful Valley of Mexico, the territory actually ruled by the empire.

The Mexica villages along the way have already completed this year's harvest and tribute, and the fields are sown with bean. Prosperous villages have enough bean seeds to sown to restore soil fertility for a richer year.

Under the salute of the villagers along the way, the king's fleet continued southward and entered Hartokan Lake a week later. Shulot looked far to the east, which was the direction of the holy city of Teotihuacan. A day away is where you were born and grew up.

This is already the core area of ​​the Mexica people, and boats of Mexica people are constantly swaying, carrying the village elders along the way, and presenting fresh vegetables, fruits and precious light wine to the fleet.

The melodious singing surrounds the fleet all the way, which is a bold confession of the girls' admiration for the samurai. They are like floating lotuses in the water, wearing only a thin white coat in the autumn wind, dancing gracefully on the bow of the boat, showing their graceful posture to the warriors. When night falls, warriors slip away from the rear of the fleet from time to time to meet the girls on the boat to enjoy the bright moon, the stars and the joyful songs.

In the safe hinterland of the empire, Avit did not restrain the warriors.

Continuing south, the fleet entered the base of the Mexicans, the Texcoco Lake District with 1.5 million people, the direct territory of the three capital cities, and the most prosperous and prosperous place in Central America.

Along the way, the villages are densely covered, the smoke rising continuously from both sides of the river, the distant ocarina and the low drum rhythm are faintly heard in the autumn wind, accompanied by the singing of the community warriors and priests. Xiulote sniffed a few times, smelled the spicy aroma of roasted turkey, and the fragrance of roasted corn, and suddenly felt a little hungry.

This is a banquet held by the elders of the village in the community hall, where the villagers gather for various sacrifices, offering food, birds, ears of corn, sage, beans and wildflowers. The samurai and village chiefs gather together and enjoy the many festivals in autumn with joy.

Shulot tasted it carefully again, and in the aroma of the food floating not far away, there was also a special fragrance, similar to burning sandalwood, with a quaint and distant charm.

"What kind of aroma is this? Are the villages in the lake area rich enough to use expensive spices?" Shulot was a little surprised.

"Spice is not an expensive item. In addition to the output of chinampa and the collection of forests, the alliance also has a steady stream of Mistec, Zapotec in the south, and Vastec in the northeast. A large number of spice tributes have been collected. In the rich lake area, even commoner senior warriors and wealthy ordinary merchants can use spices.”

The noble priest Ugos answered with a proud smile. Among the army, Avet must maintain his majesty, and Gilliam has always been stern. Hugos, the noble son from the capital, became a tour guide for Shulot, telling him about the beauty and richness of the lake area in the capital.

"This should be a blessing banquet for the elders of the village community. In the final stage of the banquet, priests and high-ranking warriors will light the fragrant cobalt resin, pray to the gods and ancestors, and wish for a good harvest in the coming year."

The Lake District is the foundation of alliance rule. The villages here are closely grouped into well-defined communities, Karpoli, similar to the Qin Dynasty's householder Qimin. Each community is governed by four elders, usually feudal military nobles, commoner senior warriors, and capital-appointed temple priests.

Whenever the horn of war is blown, each village community needs to provide a 200-strong warrior and militia squad. The level of well-equipped warriors is proportional to the wealth of the village. In general, the closer the village was to the capital, the richer it was and the more warriors there were.

This is already the hometown of many samurai in the fleet. They were born here, received military training in the capital, completed the selection and assessment, and then joined the legion directly under the royal family to become a noble samurai.

The fleet continued southward, and the air was filled with all kinds of comfortable floral fragrances, and the cocoa fruit ripened, similar to the faint freshness of lemons. Xiulott looked around, and in the lake area here, the foundation of the prosperity of the Mexicans, the floating fields in the lake, Chinampa, can be seen everywhere.

The perimeter of these floating fields is fastened with fences, and the bottom is mud mixed with wooden stakes. Although it is autumn, farmers are still busy planting on the floating fields. In addition to corn, kidney beans, and pumpkins, Scholot saw cacao trees in the process of being harvested, avocados beginning to bear fruit, and all kinds of meticulously tended herbs, all of which were food for the nobility.

The chinampa on the lake can be farmed all year round. Lake Texcoco guarantees the moisture for crop growth, the silt in the lake provides sufficient nutrients, and there will be no low temperature snow in Mexico in autumn and winter.

Now is the dry season, the water channel is shallowly passing through the neatly arranged chinampa, and the water surface is only as deep as one person. From time to time, there are wealthy farmers in white clothes, propping up small boats, exploring fishing nets, salvaging the silt from the bottom of the lake and canals, and then evenly spreading it on the floating fields.

There are still fermenting stalks and leaves around the floating field, and fish swimming on the lake surface, chasing the scattered grains. Every now and then a boat loaded with excreta comes from the southern capital to add to the chinampa. This may be the earliest ecological agriculture.

The sailor continued south for a day, and finally reached the northern gate of Tenochtitlan, the village of Tepiyaga, where 10,000 warriors landed. Next, Shulot has to walk along the long bridge for several miles to the capital city in the lake.

Shulot walked out of the wealthy North Shore village and came to Lake Texcoco. He stopped involuntarily, only to see a beautiful white stone long bridge, accompanied by a dark mud bank, across an endless rainbow, connecting to the magnificent stone capital not far away. People on the long bridge pass by like an ant colony. From time to time, feathered priests and nobles pass by, creating blank spaces in the ant colony.

He estimated in his heart that the stone bridge under his feet was about ten meters wide, and with the embankments of the same width on both sides, there was a road of thirty meters, which could accommodate sixty people to go in parallel, extending for five or six kilometers. And when he looked around, more long bridges and embankments spread in the distance, like the paintbrush of the gods, dividing Lake Texcoco to his heart's content.

Under the sun, the lake was shimmering with sparkling waves, and the long white bridge and the lake were shining together, like a kingdom in the sky. Thousands of small boats carrying goods and people came from all directions, nimbly passing through the stone bridges. When Shuluo looked at it, he realized that the stone bridge and the embankment were ingeniously designed, and there would be special arc-shaped holes at regular intervals, and the boat would shuttle under the feet of pedestrians with the lake water.

"The long bridge is lying on the wave, and there is no cloud and what is the dragon?"

Shulot's eyes were filled with the color of the lake and the water, the pedestrians on the long bridge, the white-stone palace at the end, and the red-roofed temple. This is the grandeur he never imagined!

"Priest Shirott, what are you talking to yourself?" Uggs smiled and looked at Shirott. Every inhabitant of the capital was delighted to see the shock and dismay of the Gentiles when they first saw the capital.

"I'm counting how many long bridges there are in total." Sherlot smiled and quickly regained consciousness.

"There are two main bridges in the north, leading to the villages on the north bank. There are two main bridges in the west, and four branch bridges, from north to south, one leading to Azgar Pozarq, the old capital of the Tepanek, and two leading to Tracopan in the middle and Chapultepec to the south.

There are two long canals in the west! From the foot of the Prepecha Heights in the west, all the way over the mountains and mountains, diverting water to the capital, it is a huge project! Usually only one channel for fresh water is opened and one channel for clean-up is closed. In the south, there is a main bridge and two branch bridges, which lead to the city-states on the south bank.

In the east of the capital, there is a long embankment that extends the entire lake, like the embrace of a goddess, protecting the majestic water capital from the floods and saltwater depressions of the rainy season.

This is the dwelling place of the gods in the world. Is the immortal sun, Traka Eller listens to the will of the gods, and builds the kingdom of God on earth! "

Hugos indifferently described the magnificence of the capital city in the lake. He unknowingly used a gorgeous capital accent, singing the praises of the priests.

"This is the island surrounded by eight bridges and long embankments, where the eagles fell, where the white stones of the lake are, and where the cacti bloom, Mexica-Tenochititlan!"

Shulot praised in his heart, so he also used the low tone of the Holy City to chant to it.

As far as he can see, bridges and long embankments divide the lake surface to the fullest, and there are floating fields in the lake dotted all the way. Hundreds of thousands of canoes flowed through the river, bringing wealth and tribute from all over the world. At the end are endless stone houses, bustling crowds, and the unusually tall Twin Pyramid Great Temple.

This is the center of civilization where bridges, boats, temples, palaces, warriors, and priests gather, the largest city in the Americas, and a capital city in a lake with a total of 14 square kilometers!

Seirot once asked Avit how many people were there in the capital city in the lake? Avett smiled and told him that the capital city in the lake has 80 Calpolis communities with a population of 250,000 unparalleled in the world.

When the Spaniards first came to the capital city in the lake, they were shocked by the majestic stone city and praised it as "Venice of the New World". However, in Shilot's view, this is just a narrow metaphor.

In this era, the urban area of ​​Venice was only eight square kilometers, with a maximum population of 120,000, less than half of the capital city in the lake, and the long embankment and canal facilities were completely incomparable. Venice can be called "the Tenochtitlan of Europe"!

If Shilot was used as an analogy, the capital city in the lake should be the Han Dynasty Chang'an City with an area of ​​36 square kilometers and a population of 300,000, or the imperial Roman city with an area of ​​15 square kilometers and an estimated population of one million people. In any case, this is the undisputed center of the empire, the most glorious place of Mesoamerican civilization!

With the banner of the king held high, 10,000 elite warriors lined up neatly and went south along the long bridge. Where Wang Qi passed, the pedestrians on the bridge retreated to the depths of the embankments on both sides, kneeling in the lake water that did not cover their calves.

Avette carried the majesty of a king, and Sherlot was by his side. The two walked all the way, as if entering a no-man's land.

He carefully observed both sides, 70% were civilians wearing single-color linen or cotton coats, no hats, and five bodies crawling in the water; 20% were craftsmen and merchants wearing dyed cotton coats and cotton hats, kneeling on their knees; half Cheng is the warriors of all levels and military nobles who knelt down on one knee in bright battle clothes and simple feathers; there are also very few high-level priests and nobles who wear ornamental clothes, high feather crowns, bow their heads and salute.

Wherever the king's flag passed, there were all the subjects of the Empire's submission.

"The sun is shining brightly at the beginning, and the mountains and mountains are like fire. A round will go to the sky in an instant, driving away the stars and the waning moon."

Shilot had mixed feelings in his heart. Thousands of troops are surrounded, and all people kneel, this is the strict hierarchy of Mexica society, this is the taste of power at the top!

The young man under the king's banner was slightly drunk, then he woke up and regained the clarity in his eyes. Then he poked his head slightly and looked at the majestic Avit. The face of the other party was calm as usual, and his eyes were bright, so he nodded in his heart.

Under the retreating salute of millions of people along the way, the army crossed the long bridge, and in front of it was the northern city of the capital city in the lake, the former city-state of Tlatelolco. The city-state was one of the twin cities originally established by the Mexicans on the island in the center of the lake, covering an area about a quarter the size of the main city of Tenochtitlan in the south.

With the expansion of the Mexicans, the capital city in the lake developed rapidly, and the two cities gradually became one. Only an arc-shaped canal is left at the junction to provide the most important fresh water for the cities on both sides.

Shilot went all the way, and in front of him was a staggered bridge and waterway. In the northern city of Tlatelolco, most of the houses are built on small pieces of land in the water, and many are new islands that were later filled. These houses were dwellings of commoners or common warriors, arranged neatly according to the plan.

The staggered waterways are like a chessboard that is straight on all sides, and between the chessboards are the houses that are gathered one by one, like chess pieces dropped by the gods. The foundation of each house is a stone platform to prevent flooding. The walls of the house are made of white granite or red volcanic rock, the ceiling is made of wooden beams and sticks, and a layer of plaster is pasted on the periphery. The housing of the house is similarly straight, roughly divided into bedrooms, kitchen, warehouse, and slave quarters.

Whenever a certain number of houses come together in a block, a small community market and a fully stone-built community temple appear in the center. The community in the city is similar to the Lifang of Chang'an City in the Tang Dynasty, with a population of about 3,000. It has not only economic functions, but also military functions.

This kind of temple is the lowest root system of the imperial tree's rule, the tentacles that penetrate deep into the grassroots, and the cornerstone of the strong mobilization ability of the Mexicans. The same four elders are in charge of a community, pay tribute in peacetime, supervise school-age youths to join the military academy, and convene 100 to 200 warriors in times of war.

Xiulott calculated in his heart that there were about ten communities in the northern city of Tlatelolco, far less than the eighty communities in the four major districts of the main city. Therefore, it was finally merged with the main city, accepted the direct management of the royal family, and set up the position of the city lord of Tlatelolco. In this day and age, it is always population and force that determine everything.

After walking for nearly an hour, the army finally came to the center of Beicheng. The centers of the Mesoamerican cities were similar to the Roman city-states, always the towering temples, plus the vast central plaza. After seeing the Twin Pyramid, the Temple of Tlatelolco, which was nearly forty meters high, Shulot turned his attention to the central square as the Grand Bazaar.

Because, in the main southern city that he could see, there was a truly magnificent Temple of Mexica.

The North City is far away from the religious and political center of the main city, and far away from the huge villas occupied by the big nobles, so there is enough space to gather a huge market. The big market here is twice the size of the main city market, and about 60,000 people trade here every day!

The Grand Bazaar is a flat open space surrounded by connected waterways, with rows of arch bridges on the edge. Merchants from all over the world came by boats, transporting goods to the arch bridge. The thrifty merchants slept with the goods under the arch bridge.

According to the different commodities, the market is divided into different blocks. Around the edges are the most common staples of fruits and vegetables, various stone tools and earthenware containers, wooden furniture, firewood and pine strips, monochrome cotton linen and blankets, and ordinary obsidian knives, bone knives, bone needles and textiles awl. This is the daily needs of civilians and is the largest area.

Further inside, there are brightly woven feather cloaks, ornately decorated cloth blankets, exquisite samurai battle clothes, obsidian battle sticks and wooden shields, herbal medicines of witch doctor priests, various dried meat and fish, tigers, deer Deer, coyote, and otter hides, finished cold cocoa and tequila, honey and maple sugar candy, seeing this, Sherlot carefully noted the location and prepared to come over later when he was free.

Between the center and the fringes is a huge slave market, from a variety of sources. Most slaves had their hands tied with ropes, with a loop around their necks and tied to a long pole to prevent escape. A few are slaves sold by themselves, and these people are likely to be arranged in the human sacrifice stadium. Of course, there are exceptions. The big slave merchants have enough warriors to guard them, so they let go of the hands of the young female slaves, allowing them to display freely.

The young man took a few glances, estimated his age in his heart, and silently turned his head.

Going further inside, there is a high-end market guarded by samurai warriors. It is no accident here that Shilot once again saw the slender and divine heads of the Mayans, and their shops always carried the intoxicating smoke of the gods. Then he saw copper axes and needles from the West at a glance. These small copper utensils sell for very high prices~www.readwn.com~ almost close to gold and silver jewelry. He also took note of the location of the store.

Not far from the side is the paving of gold, silver and jade, especially the people in the cloud, the Mistec people have the most exquisite craftsmanship. All kinds of finely crafted gold and silver jewelry, bracelets, rings with gemstones, and the most precious jade necklaces. There are also vastek and totonak merchants from the seaside who sell shell decorations in shimmering colors, high-grade rose and light red sea shells can even be equivalent to gold and silver, and pearls are often only attached to the shell. Giveaway.

Another aristocratic favorite in the high market is the luxury store, which sells dyes, spices and bright plants. Tropical blooms are in full bloom, the air is filled with Totonac favorite vanilla, magnificent carmine in delicate silver bowls, and tangy nepeta, Mexican oregano and taco seasonings.

Shulot walked to the edge of the marching warriors, walked beside the market, and looked at everything in the big market in amazement. In front of him were merchants of all ethnic groups from all over the world, and in his ears were the dialects that were being sold enthusiastically, in his nose was the scent of unknown flowers and rouge, and in his hands was the cool touch of gold, silver and precious stones, and he was dazzled for a while.

It wasn't until his ears fell silent, and when he saw the merchants and commoners of all ethnic groups kneeling respectfully to the king's flag, he smiled slightly, walked back to the mighty marching team, and walked back to the mighty and chilling king's flag.

"The hub of the car hits, the shoulders of the person rub, even the drapes form, the sash becomes a curtain, and the sweat turns into rain." The young man sighed with a smile. He is really a prosperous person, a prosperous market, a prosperous world, and a peaceful world!

The army did not stop. The elite noble chapters just glanced at the affluent big market, their eyes full of confidence that decided the life and death of the merchants. Then they followed the king's flag, full of honor and reverence, and headed to the south, where is the magnificent main city and the towering great temple.