Aztec Eternals

It was afternoon outside the window. The slanted sunlight poured in from the window, illuminating the dignitary in the house. In the face of things beyond cognition, the deep faces finally revealed true feelings: there are surprises, contemplation, puzzlement, worry, and fear. Shulot looked at the expressions of the crowd, with his back to the light of the sun, like an apostle walking out of a myth.

Looking at the mysterious smoke and the young man under the sun, everyone was shocked and lost their minds for a moment.

After a while, Avit spoke first, with great interest.

"Sholot, this burning salt, the nitrate in the soil, is very similar to the Tarasco's Stone of the Dead. How should it be used?"

The young man smiled confidently.

"Burning salt and earth nitrate, plus dead stone sulfur, plus charcoal powder, you can make an epoch-making epoch! ... Well, the potion of fire can easily ignite ships on the water. The Raiders of Tarasco is coming, it can help We have the upper hand!"

Halfway through the conversation, Xiulot changed his words. He is still not sure about the explosive power of the original gunpowder, and it will take time to find a suitable gunpowder formula, so he only briefly described the effect of gunpowder on combustion.

"The potion of fire can burn on water? Shulot, is it true?!"

Hearing this, Avet looked serious and looked at the boy with piercing eyes.

At the beginning of the new year, the political group is already discussing the offensive route after the autumn harvest. The Alliance is about to mobilize tens of thousands of warriors and militiamen to conquer Tarasco across the country and start a real war of gods.

The failure of the Otomi War last year is still vivid. The huge army needs an astonishing supply of food and grass, and a stable and efficient logistics transportation line must be established. In this era, convenient water transportation is the only option.

But unlike the Otomi, the Tarasco occupied the fishermen's lands of Mikencho. They have an equally large boat division, which has always made the Mexica Alliance deeply afraid. If you can't gain enough advantage in water warfare and suppress the enemy's attacking fleet, the water supply line will be out of the question.

Avit's eyes became dark. He recalled the topography of the land of Mikenche, between the north and south rivers, there is a large lake in the middle, the rich core is a flat lakeside valley, and the solid periphery is rolling mountains and hills.

A few years ago, on his first expedition to the west, he encountered a fleet of Tarascos shortly after traveling along the Balthus River. The Mexica boat division and the opponent fought repeatedly, and the warriors and militiamen fell like rain, but no one could gain a real advantage.

The army was forced to abandon the waterway and go ashore, and could only storm the forts on the eastern front of the Tarascos in the complex and narrow mountains. It was a long bloody battle, the logistics were difficult, the terrain was dangerous, and thinking about it was like a nightmare.

Feeling the pressure in Avette's eyes, Shulot nodded cautiously and explained seriously.

"Gunpowder can burn in water. Gunpowder doesn't need air to burn. When it burns, it produces a lot of gas and high temperature. The air that expands at high temperature can push away the water and provide space for continued burning."

Avit's eyes were confused for a moment. Fortunately, his intelligence is different from ordinary people, and he often chats with young people, so he can vaguely understand it now.

On the other side, the three warrior ministers looked at each other blankly as if they were listening to a scripture from heaven. They were skeptical and could only attribute it to the magic of the priest.

The intelligence officer returned to the corner at some point. His perspective is different from that of ordinary people, and his eyes stay on everyone's face. After just a little observation, he was sure that Shulot was full of confidence and did not lie. Then, he quietly observed everyone's expressions, speculated on everyone's psychology, and then firmly remembered their characters.

After a long while, Avit was slightly joyful, and ordered in a deep voice.

"Sholot, my student, the gunpowder you mentioned was crucial in the Tarasco war. If you can really develop the fire that burns in water, it will be the first achievement of this Western Expedition! What do you need? ? The alliance will do its best to support you!"

After finally waiting for this promise, Xiulot smiled and saluted seriously.

"King, I need the big salt mine in the south of the capital until March to collect the raw materials for making earth nitrate. In addition, I need a wide research and development center, because it involves burning, it is best to be far away from the city. I have many other ideas To try it out, you need to form a new crafting center dedicated to researching useful new technologies."

"What! The Great Salt Mine? That's it."

Hearing the key words, the royal nobleman Iscari finally recovered from his absence. He spoke hastily, glaring at Shulot.

King Avet glanced over indifferently, with severe pressure and majesty that cannot be offended. Iscari shut up instantly. He lowered his head, angry in his heart.

Shulot didn't pay attention. The young man was thinking silently in his mind. Recently, he had a lot of enlightenment in the artisan area, and there are quite a lot of scientific research projects in the plan.

The engraving and printing of jade craftsmen and the firing of glass by stone craftsmen must be tested as soon as possible; the clay mold casting of goldsmiths and the porcelain of potters are temporarily put on hold; hurry up to collect nitrate from saline-alkali land, improve the production process of soil nitrate, and try to extract urine nitrate ; Use charcoal, sulfur, and soil salt to develop original gunpowder and explore more powerful formulas.

By the way, when the first batch of copper mines from the Mayan merchants is sent from the south of Tarasco, they will have to forge copper spears and train spearmen. Bronze armor pieces can also be used to make simple and effective cloth face armor. Now the source of high-quality pike soldiers has not yet been found, and the thousands of miners who are looking at it.

Thinking of this, Shulot opened his mouth to talk, wanting to ask Avit for the gold and stone miners.

The king turned his head just in time, and the eyes full of arrogance have not yet been put away. The boy felt a chill in his heart, and his intuition told him that now is not the time to speak. He waited calmly.

Avit pondered for a moment, his expression calmed down. Immediately, he smiled slightly and promised the boy.

"Sholot, the big salt mine will be handed over to you. If you lack property and manpower, you can apply directly to me. If you have any new creations and inventions, you can come to me and report to me at any time. Prince Texcoco's Mansion in the East After being confiscated by the royal family, it has been left unused until now. It has a large space and many houses, and it will be handed over to you as a new craftsman center. You can also use the old craftsman as the site of the center, anyway, you often go to Kuod.”

Xiu Luote nodded in response, then was slightly taken aback. Avit seems to know his whereabouts like the back of his hand.

"There are two small islands in the salt water area outside the southeast embankment, which cannot be planted with Chinanampa. They can be used as a place for your burning experiment. I will ask the boat division army to cooperate with you. Remember, the flame burning in the water is the focus of your research. Be sure to make usable weapons!"

Having said that, Avit took two steps closer, covering Shulot's figure and blocking the sight of the ministers. He stroked the boy's head lightly and said in a low voice.

"The Western Expedition after the Autumn Harvest is my coronation war. You stand with me and don't let me make the same mistakes as Tisok!"

Shulot raised his head in surprise, looked into Avit's eyes, savoring the true emotion of this moment.

The eyes of the two met, and the memories of the past scenes flooded into my heart. Avette remembered the boy's rescue during the decisive battle, and Shulot remembered the hearty banquet after the victory. The two were silent for a moment, looked at each other and smiled tacitly, as if returning Arrived once upon a time.

"Avit, I will always stand with you." The young man promised, in the name of his ancestors.

Arvette smiled softly. When he turned around and faced everyone, he was already a majestic king.

The next meeting was a bit of an old well, mostly government affairs in the capital, negotiations between the tribes and the city-state, and collection of New Year tributes.

The ministers of state affairs alternately reported on military and political matters, and nobles from outside were called in from time to time. The king made his decision quickly and decisively. Avet was already familiar with the work of the king, and the complicated government affairs were handled in his hands like clouds and water. Occasionally, Gilliam would offer details and additions.

The Elders have relinquished the affairs of the League, which are now the king's business.

After the New Year's sacrifice, the elders will live in seclusion again, no longer interfere with the operation of the capital, but carry out religious reforms behind the scenes. His body can no longer support the high-intensity work, and now he is just trying to live a few more years, suppressing the entire alliance before the king establishes enough authority.

This year's New Year's sacrifice is also much later than in previous years. The priests discussed the new regulations and prepared many changes.

Shulot was sitting next to Avit, quietly watching the busyness of the power center. He is constantly learning, thinking about the principles and perspectives of everyone in dealing with problems, keeping in mind the values ​​​​of the tribal era, and analyzing decisive cases that convince everyone.

This is a whole new field. One day, teenagers will also have to face the same difficulties and challenges. No one can be born a king, the king needs to go through a long road of growth. Fortunately, under the guidance of the elders, the king's door has been opened to him.

When the sun sets, the sunset glow fills the king's palace. The nobles in the outer hall dispersed one after another and joined each other in groups to participate in the banquet. Iscari and Tepopolo also saluted and bid farewell to the king, and walked out of the Palace of Government Affairs side by side.

Avit continued to be busy, thinking about priorities. The king's power does not come from the sky, but from every government decision.

Shulot watched the back of Iscari and Tepopolo leaving hand in hand. He felt a little uneasy. The young man pondered for a long time, and finally discovered the source of his uneasiness. Immediately, he suddenly realized.

"The royal family and nobles are the power of the royal family, but they are not separated from the great nobles, but closely connected! The different classes are never clearly separated, but intertwined and dynamic. The great nobles are not monolithic, but divided. Overall. Therefore, the reforms aimed at the great nobles must not be too radical, but must attack a group of noble enemies, win over a group of partners, and neutralize a group of bystanders."

Having figured this out, Xiulot smiled, and the words of ancient and modern philosophers came to mind.

"The so-called governance lies in how to make our enemies less and less, and make our friends more and more. Governing a big country is like cooking small fresh food, taking no time to rush and taking advantage of it."

Not far away, Gilliam watched silently, analyzing the changes in the boy's expression. This time, he frowned slightly, secretly puzzled.

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