Chapter 190: Reconnaissance, Falling City and New Legion

The wind in January comes from the north, with the sadness of frost. She sobbed and flew low, with the unique refreshingness of the plateau, and on the lake of Patzcuaro, she gently raised the dirge of the wind.

Amidst the crying wind, Mexica scout Necali hunched over and hid in the reeds by the lake, carefully looking at the enemy capital by the lake. As a direct samurai of the royal family, he has excellent eyesight, is good at small team fighting, moves as quickly as a leopard, and is proficient in simple digital measurements. He is almost a perfect candidate for a scout! If there is any single flaw, it is that its water properties are very average.

Thinking of this, Necali spat bitterly towards the lake. During the last water battle in Lake Yurilia, he was first forced into the water by several militiamen, and then was kicked hard in the waist and abdomen. He choked on a lot of water and almost drowned in the lake in a very dishonorable manner. Now, whenever he saw the deep lake, he would tremble in his heart.

"Hey, damn Tarasco Kingdom, there are lakes everywhere! When the great His Highness Shulot conquers this place, sooner or later these lakes will be encircled into Chinampa and entrusted to warriors who are good at fighting!"

Necali was born directly under the royal family and has been following His Highness for less than a year. But at this moment, like thousands of royal warriors, he was filled with admiration and obedience to His Highness.

"Since the battle in May last year, the army has surrounded the Huayamo Fortress and is approaching the enemy's capital. His Highness is invincible, like the incarnation of the gods, and has invented many strange weapons. He is truly a great commander! What's more, His Highness has always placed great emphasis on civilians. The samurai has promoted many upstarts from civilian backgrounds. If I make a great contribution, I might be able to receive a reward from Chinampa and be named a respected military noble!"

A bright smile appeared on Necali's face, and bright desire shone in her eyes. After a moment, he shook his head vigorously and looked towards the capital city by the lake with a determined murderous intent.

"A few days ago, many flashy nobles came out of the city. It's a pity that we don't have the manpower. Otherwise, if we catch one back, we can also torture him about the military situation. The north gate and the east gate are closed, and the west gate not far from the lake is also closed. There is dust behind the door. Maybe they are sealing it with earth and rocks. There are many barbarians on the top of the city, and they keep shouting. I think I can understand the general meaning, it seems to be 'corn', 'wine', and 'woman'?"

Necali listened for a while and found that the language of these barbarians was actually very similar to Mexica, and even easier to understand than the Tarasco people. He didn't think much about the reasoning behind it, and he didn't know the history buried in the wind. He just sniffed his nose, and there was a faint scent of food in the air, which made him feel a little hungry. Well, with extra meals at noon, it seems that the Tarascans are not short of food.

Then, Necali frowned and made signs in front of his eyes with his hands.

"One person is tall, two people are tall, five people are tall, six people are tall. Bah, the people of Tarasco built the city wall so high, they are like old turtles in the river! People are only a little bigger at the top of the city. Hey, this person, this person Looks familiar?"

With eyes like an eagle, Nekali stared at Weziti at the top of the city. Looking at his turban that had remained unchanged for thousands of years, his memory suddenly became clear. Then the young scout became furious and spat again.

"It's you, cunning Black Fish! When I catch you, I will kill you in the water! Well, this city actually houses veterans who have participated in water battles. It seems that they will be wary of new weapons. "

Necali frowned again and counted each record with his fingers.

"Fleeing nobles, garrisoned barbarians, closed city gates, tall city walls, sufficient food, and experienced veterans, this city seems not to be easy to fight!"

Thinking of this, Necali looked around the big lake again. What he saw were felled trees, patrolling enemy ships, scattered floating corpses, skinny old and young people, and desolate and silent villages. After a while, he shook his head and raised two fingers again. .

"Well, there are soldiers inside the city and ghosts outside the city!"

After cracking his fingers again, Neka stood up quickly. Finally, he took a firm look at Weziti at the top of the city, then turned north and returned to Huayamo's siege camp.

Traveling alone is always fast and hasty. Nekali lurked day and night, making no noise along the way. He only killed a few wild dogs with red eyes. After these wild dogs have tasted human flesh, they will attack lone pedestrians, leaving bones covered with tooth marks on the countryside. Unlike the weak refugees, the elite warriors easily cut them into several sections with just a few precise blows, adding new fertilizer to this desolate and fertile land.

After traveling for only three days, the mighty Mexica camp appeared in front of scout Necali. In the camp, Marshal Black Wolf's flag was flying high, and thousands of warriors were guarding it. Outside the camp, there are patrol teams spread out for ten miles, and the Huayamo Fortress is semi-surrounded.

Necali rubbed his eyes, looked at it carefully for a moment, and then burst into low cheers. The Fortress of Huayamo is already covered with Mexica flags, with images of hummingbirds and suns fluttering in the wind. The fortress has been captured!

"Praise the Lord God! He gives us victory in the war, and we spread the glory of God for Him!"

Necali lowered his head and prayed devoutly for a moment. Then, he took out the scout's talisman, passed through the patrolling warriors, and went straight into the commander's tent. Inside the tent, His Majesty His Majesty was holding a novel quill pen, writing words and symbols like a book from heaven.

Necali didn't dare to interrupt and waited for a moment. He didn't reply in a deep voice until His Highness finished his work and asked.

The breeze blew by, taking away the drifting sounds. After listening patiently to the military information, Shulot asked a few more questions, then smiled slightly and praised.

"From the small details, we can see the whole picture. Nekali, you are very good! It's not easy to travel all the way. Let's go to the logistics camp to get some food and drinks."

Hearing this, Nekali was happy. He knelt down respectfully and took this rare opportunity to praise loudly from the bottom of his heart.

"Husko Volcano goes straight into the sky, and there are eagles flying above it! Your Highness, you are the highest eagle in the sky. We follow you on the earth until the end of the world!"

Xuluot was stunned. He looked at Nekali's rough and sincere face, stared for a moment, and nodded slowly.

"Very good! Nekali, take a good rest, there will be opportunities for you to make merit later!"

Nekali then stood up and walked back to leave respectfully. Watching the big tent close again, the young commander smiled and said to himself.

"Not bad, the morale is high and the army can be used!"

Thinking of this, Xuluot stood up, came to the window of the curtain, and looked at the fortress in the distance. The traces of smoke and fire were still clear in the fortress, and the bodies of the defenders had not been cleaned up. Dark red blood coagulated on the top of the city, and the damaged wooden ladders were scattered under the city wall, and the brutal battle was vaguely visible.

In fact, the Huayamo Fortress was captured by the army just yesterday. All 500 Tarasco warriors died in the battle, and most of the 5,000 Tekos militia surrendered. This fortress is made of stone, built of granite and blue bricks, and has a very solid structure. Its area is not large, only half of the estuary fortress, but the height of the city wall is seven or eight meters. If the fortress has sufficient garrison, it is actually difficult to capture it in a short period of time.

Therefore, after Xu Luote captured the estuary fortress, he gathered troops and attacked southward almost without stopping, and surrounded the Huayamo Fortress in one fell swoop. He marched so hastily that he didn't even have time to reward the legion after the great victory. He was worried that the Tarasco army would gather in Huayamo and give him another siege for several months, resulting in heavy casualties.

Fortunately, the remnants of the northern troops of Acamparo did not wisely retreat immediately, and the enemy reinforcements in the Lake Chapala region did not decisively speed up their march. When tens of thousands of Mexica troops rushed to the front of the Huayamo Fortress and cut off the northern passage, there were only 500 warriors and 5,000 unruly tribesmen in the fortress. There was an obvious gap between these warriors and the militia, lacking a strong commander and unable to trust each other.

Then, the Mexica army besieged the city for two weeks and built siege wooden ladders. The Tekos tribal militia was brave enough to go out of the city, shouting and howling, and launched a risky raid. The raid was effective at the beginning, defeating the Otomi militia who made the wooden ladders in one fell swoop, killing three or four hundred people. However, when the longbow warriors gathered and fired volleys and the war stick warriors approached from both wings, the Tekos militia could no longer reach. They retreated in panic and were shot to death in large numbers at the gate of the city, leaving nearly a thousand bodies.

The attack was successful at first but then failed, and the morale in the city dropped sharply. Xiuluot did not hesitate and sent two thousand crossbowmen on the second day, shooting at the top of the city from sixty steps away. The Mexica Legion gradually suppressed the top of Huayamó City with the advantage of the range of crossbows. Then, the remaining two thousand dog descendants were driven up again. They set up wooden ladders and threw pottery caltrops that could explode at any time, blowing the defenders and their own morale into the valley.

The Tekos militia came from the western mountainous areas, fighting bravely but with ignorant beliefs. They lived in areas with frequent volcanoes and were familiar with the smell of burning sulfur, but had never experienced such a loud new weapon. In their hearts, the new weapon was endowed with divinity, coming from the "roar of the god of fire", the "messenger of the god of death", or the "demon under the volcano", all of which were irresistible.

After the explosion, five thousand royal warriors rushed out, climbed the city from all sides at the same time, and killed the Tarasco warriors who resisted stubbornly. Soon after, the various Tekos tribes surrendered one after another. By the time the siege was over, Shulot had another 3,000 young and strong captives, and the casualties were only more than 400 royal warriors and the same number of Chichimec dogs.

The young commander looked at the mottled city again, and the scenes of war kept flashing in his mind.

He saw the warriors fighting fiercely again, corpses falling from the towering city, and blood flowing everywhere; he heard the roar of the explosion of the caltrops, the loud shouts of both sides, and the screams before death. Until the last warrior of the garrison died, the Tekos people in groups fell to the ground and begged for surrender. They shouted the name of the god of fire, gave up the last resistance, and gave their lives to the enemy with divine power.

Thinking of the large number of captives, Shulot had a slight headache. In the battle of the river mouth fortress, he had 5,000 more Tarasco militiamen, and now there are 3,000 more Tekos tribesmen. These captives consume nearly 10,000 kilograms of food every day, and warriors have to be sent to guard them, which is really troublesome!

The young commander's eyes changed, and cold murderous intent appeared in his eyes from time to time. After a long while, he shook his head and said to himself seriously.

"Xuluot, killing prisoners is not good. Human heads are not leeks. They will never grow again after being cut. You can face all the cold killings in the battle, but you should not get lost in the meaningless killings after the battle!"

Xuluot's eyes finally calmed down. He stood silently for a moment, then ordered the guards to summon Ezepan, the surrendered general of Tarasco.

The tent door opened and closed, and fresh wind rushed in. As soon as Ezepan entered the big tent, he knelt down respectfully to salute.

"Your Highness, your loyal wolfhound Ezepan is here. You are my only master, and I will pounce on your enemies at any time!"

Xuluot's eyes were deep for a moment. Then, he nodded slightly with an expressionless face, staring at Ezepan calmly.

Ezpin looked calm, put the four fingers of his left hand together, and made a fist on his chest to salute. He was wearing the bright uniform of a Mexican noble, with a silver sun amulet around his neck, and there was no trace of the Tarasco figure at all.

After a while, the young commander slowly spoke.

"Ezpan, the Alliance will definitely conquer the Kingdom of Tarasco. You are the first Tarascan to surrender, and you will have more opportunities than others. You know, I never care about your civilian birth, I only value it. Your talents and the results of your work!”

Hearing these words, Ezpan's heart suddenly surged. He had a vague premonition of something and fell to the ground more respectfully.

Shulot paused, looked down at Ezpin for a moment again, and then said calmly.

"Last month, the Northern Route Army captured the river mouth fortress and captured 5,000 Tarasco militiamen. This month, the Army occupied a large area of ​​Tarasco territory and brought many villages and towns under its control. Yesterday, we captured the Huayamo Fortress , The capital is right in front of us! Ezpan, the Tarascans are destined to become part of the alliance, and they should also serve the alliance!”

Hearing this, Ezpan kowtowed vigorously without hesitation. He suppressed his excitement and shouted in a low voice.

"Your Highness, the Tarascans are willing to be your loyal minions. I am willing to be your protruding canine, the first to bite your enemy, no matter who he is!"

Xiuluo nodded and finally showed a gentle smile.

"Okay! Ezpin, remember your oath. I have high expectations for you, don't let me down. I will hand over to you the five thousand Tarasco soldiers, as well as dozens of warriors who surrendered before. . They have all converted to the great Lord God. Next, Tarasco will send more and more troops.

You need to select suitable manpower from these surrendered troops and form a Tarasco Army loyal to the Alliance! You are the commander of this army! "

Ezpin's heart was racing. He kowtowed excitedly again, tears falling from the corners of his eyes, and his voice was choked when he spoke again.

"Thank you, Your Highness, for dying for you!"

Shulot smiled again and patted the other party's shoulder.

"The equipment of this new legion will temporarily use the equipment captured from the two fortresses. However, the shape of the suit needs to be modified, and the faith of the main god must be determined!"

"For now, I don't expect the legion you formed to participate in field battles. Your early goal is to organize Tarasco troops so that they can be used as civilians for the army. And when their loyalty reaches a certain level, they will You can serve as a local garrison. In addition, you can lead them to inspect the estates of nobles and judge their crimes. As for the brighter future, it depends on you! "

Ezpin bowed again. His head was pressed against the cold ground, but his heart was burning with heat.

"Follow your orders! Your Highness, you are my only sun!"