Chapter 471: The exploration of the kingdom in the lake, the first voyage of the old militia!
In mid-December, the exploration fleet was completed. They set out from the mouth of the Tarsus River and headed northwest along the southeast coast. They passed the coastal villages of the Tekos tribe in the south and stopped twice for supplies.
This is the boundary of the Fire River Plain, only one hundred and twenty miles away from Fire River City. After hearing the news, the messenger from Fire River City came over day and night and asked about the purpose of the fleet. Chihuaco simply responded with a few words, saying that
I went out to sea to look for the holy land of seabirds, and left under the uneasy eyes of the messenger.
Then, the fleet continued northward. It was the end of the year, and cold winds came from the northern continent. It was almost difficult to rely on wind power for navigation along the way, and they could only rely on rowing. Everyone rowed large galleys, in order to save their strength,
They can only row for 8 hours a day, covering about 120-140 miles. Including the time for rest and replenishment, it was not until the beginning of January that the fleet traveled 1,400 miles and reached the mouth of the Leman River.
The Leman River surges down, and at the mouth of the river, it creates a vast riverside plain. The water and soil here are extremely fertile, and the population and villages are also quite prosperous. There is a small town of Tekos near the sea, which is known by the local people.
People call it Three Rivers City.
Because there are three rivers from south to north, dividing the fertile river plains. And the small city surrounded by three rivers is naturally called Three Rivers City.
The fleet anchored in the prosperous city of Trois-Rivières for two days, trading gems and cloth, replenishing some food, and recruiting an enthusiastic Tekos guide.
After everyone had supplies and went out to sea soon, they encountered sudden strong winds and big waves. The low galley was instantly penetrated by the waves, and it rose and fell on the sea, as if it was about to topple over. This was the first time that the veteran militiamen encountered such wind and waves, and they immediately
The three souls were so frightened that they came out of their bodies and quickly led everyone to dock.
On the day they docked, the newly recruited Tekos guide disappeared. The old militiamen searched for half a day, but could not find any traces, and an ominous premonition suddenly arose in their hearts. Everyone camped on the high ground by the coast and rested for two days. When the wind blew slightly,
became smaller and the waves became slightly gentler.
At noon on the third day, the old militiaman became more and more uneasy. After thinking about it, he suddenly realized that if he went to Trois-Rivières from here, it would take about three days!
"Everyone get on the boat! Everyone get on the boat! Push the boat back into the sea, and then move everything back to the boat!"
Huitu Puap was a little confused, but looking at the anxious old militiamen, he still chose to obey.
"After all, Lao Qi is not good at anything else. When faced with danger, he can escape faster than anyone else! ...According to His Majesty's words, that means being favored by unpredictable fate."
Sure enough, in the evening, the disappeared Tekos guide reappeared, bringing with him three to four hundred warriors from the Tekos tribe. Each warrior held a spear in his hand, carried a throwing javelin on his back, and even carried a rare hunting bow. They saw
When they arrived at the fleet, they raised their javelins high, took out their bows and arrows, and rushed over with a roar and a roar.
"Feathered warriors of the Kingdom of Tarasco! Where to escape? Leave your heads behind!"
"Damn the Condor Tribe! They actually extended the evil hands here. Their hands and feet must be cut off!"
"Yes! There are also gems, gems! Leave the gems on their ship, this is the chief's order!..."
Chihuaco looked at the sudden appearance of the enemy and was inexplicably horrified. He immediately gave up the little water left on the shore and led everyone back to the boat. Then, he asked Puap, who was familiar with the Tecos language, to hold up his shield and shout
.
"Warriors of the nearby Tekos tribe, we have no hostility... This is a misunderstanding! Misunderstanding! We are not feather warriors, nor are we from the Condor tribe... We are from the Lake Tribe, from the Mexica Alliance!
"
Hundreds of enemies swarmed to the shore, with ferocious expressions on their faces, trudging through the water towards the three moored galleys. Their number was three or four times that of the expedition fleet. Some warriors rushed towards the sailboats,
Throwing the javelin with all their strength, some warriors took out their hunting bows and shot arrows at Chihuaco's position.
A hail of arrows and javelins came, instantly injuring three or four sailors. The Prepecha warriors on board the ship also took out their big bows and began to fight back decisively.
Seeing the enemies shouting and fighting, Chihuaco finally understood that all negotiations were in vain. And the real purpose of this group of enemies was probably the property and gems on the ship. The old militiaman looked at the still undulating waves on the sea.
He looked at the enemies rushing towards him again. He had no choice but to give orders loudly.
"Set sail! Paddle with all your strength and sail toward the northwest!"
The kingdom's expedition fleet braved the waves and headed northwest at full speed along the coast. The Tekos warriors chased them on the shore for a full day before they let out an angry roar and were completely thrown away by the fleet.
After this encounter, Chihuaco no longer dared to rashly supply supplies to the Tecos tribe in the north. If he was really short of food, he would go to a small village tribe, make a quick transaction and leave.
Even so, they were attacked once by the Tecos. On the surface, the village elders on the shore were kind, procrastinating, and trading with everyone, but secretly they contacted nearby villages. Not only did they want to launch an attack on the shore, they also organized more than 20
Canoe Raid.
When Chihuaco saw that the time had passed for the transaction, he decisively took everyone away. Everyone got on the boat, avoided the Tecos warriors on the shore, and had a big fight with the Tecos on the waterway. The Tecos left more than ten small boats.
, fifty or sixty corpses, and the expedition fleet also lost more than a dozen people.
The expedition fleet set out from Trois-Rivières, facing the north wind, stopping from time to time to avoid wind and waves, and to be wary of attacks by the Tekos people. It took more than half a month to travel a thousand miles and arrive at the mouth of a large river. Here.
The east is full of towering mountains, and only the plains by the sea are suitable for farming. Clear rivers flow out of the desolate distant mountains, bringing green vitality along the way.
The local tribe calls themselves the Totorames. They have a small population and live along the coast. They grow corn, beans and peppers, catch fish, shrimp, clams and oysters, and make sea salt. On the seaside at the mouth of the river, they established
A large village was built called Yushan Village.
Chihuaco anchored in Yushan Village for two days and gave the Totome people some cloth, a few gems, and supplied some corn, beans, salted fish and water. The Totome people lived in a narrow area by the sea and did not have much food.
There is plenty of salt. Their language is similar to the Guakili people, and somewhat similar to the Mexica language of the Alliance. It seems that the entire tribe in the northwest wilderness has a similar language.
The old militiaman asked about the situation in the northwest, and the Totome elders told him.
"Further northwest, rowing for many, many days, is the land of the Mayo people! There are many Mayo people, many powerful tribes, and hundreds of warriors! My friends, they know a lot, and they will definitely be able to help
Coming to you!"
In late January, the Kingdom's expedition fleet received guidance and set off again. After several months of sailing, the expedition fleet gradually became richer in experience. Everyone had experience in inland waterways. After adapting to the conditions in the offshore, the supply of fresh water
It becomes more and more orderly, and you can deal with occasional storms without making mistakes.
In fact, this large offshore area is sheltered by the narrow peninsula extending from the Baja California region. The wind and waves are not too big, far less than the real ocean.
When night falls, the ship's priest Mecat will use a strange compass to measure the angle between the bright North Star and the sea surface. It is said that this is a divine creation left to the shipbuilder under the guidance of His Majesty himself. And then
As the fleet continues to move north, the angle measured by the compass becomes larger and larger. At first it was only a dozen degrees, but now it is more than 20 degrees.
In addition, Mecat also has the magical ability to indicate the direction. He uses a thin thread to hang a special thin needle to indicate the direction. The thin needle comes from the Black Rock Mountain and is grinded from the sacred stone. As long as it is hung
If you press a thin needle, it will magically rotate in the air and then point north and south fixedly.
After Chihuaco saw it, he admired it. He thought hard, but couldn't understand the reason, so he could only praise the Lord God.
In February, the expedition fleet finally traveled another seven to eight hundred miles and arrived at the mouth of the river here. They met a large tribe of Mayo people, the Jorem tribe with thousands of mouths. The kingdom's expedition fleet docked at the mouth of the river.
He gave the Yorem tribe a large bag of cocoa, ten rolls of cloth, and a small bag of lake gems.
Chief Kalan of the Yolem tribe received the gift and led hundreds of personal guards to the seaside in person. He saw the huge galleys on the seaside, the strong leather armor of the warriors in the lake, and the weapons of strange metals, and was greatly moved.
He was shocked. Then he ordered a bonfire to be lit and cordially invited the leader of the messengers in the lake to hold a gathering to witness the ancestors.
Chihuaco thought for a long time, observing the relaxed and curious expressions of the warriors on the opposite side, and then led everyone off the boat. In this distant place two or three thousand miles away from the Kingdom of the Lake, the Kingdom of the Lake, representing the south, met for the first time with a group of people.
The leaders of the big tribes meet!
The difficult memories of the past few months flashed through the mind of the old militiaman one by one. At this moment of celebration, a smile appeared on his face, and even the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes eased a lot. He looked at the deer-headed Chief Kalan and raised his hand.
He picked up the gourd bell in his hand, touched it hard with the opponent, and made a pleasant "ding bell"!
Then, he took a deep breath and asked in a deep voice.
"Frog, chief. We, friends! We, brothers! I, the chief, asked me to find seabirds. Seabirds can fly, have feathers, and there are many seabirds. In the northwest, on the small island, where?"
"Huh? Are you looking for...a small northwest island with many seabirds?"
Chief Kallan was stunned on the spot, his eyes flashing, thinking over and over again about the leader's question.
After some contact, he was convinced that these elite warriors had indeed come from afar, did not belong to any large tribe nearby, and had no hostility. But now it seemed that they were sent by the chief of some lake tribe.
, looking for beautiful seabirds and feathers.
The tribe in the lake could not care about the lives of a hundred elite warriors and travel such a long distance just to find seabirds. Then there are only two possibilities...
"Either they are very powerful, like us Mayo people, with thousands or even thousands of warriors! Or in their belief, the feathers of seabirds are very important tributes, and the islands of seabirds are holy places of belief.
Judging from the sturdy ships they ride on and the bright feather crowns they wear, I am afraid they are both!... And a powerful and pious distant tribe..."
Chief Kalan thought for a long time, with a friendly smile on his face and some thoughts flashing in his heart. Then, he looked to the northwest, nodded slowly, and definitely spoke.
"Ahaha, my friend! I know what the chief in the lake is looking for!"
