Aztec Eternals

"Sugar! It is a blessing from the Lord and the embodiment of goodness in the world. It is like the nectar of an angel when you enter the mouth! This is the most sacred gift, it is white gold and it is a universal medicine!"

On the green coast of Brazil in the New World, in the barren colonial camp of Natal, Bruno closed his eyes, recalling the sincere praise of "sugar" from the Catholic world, and softly recited it with the heartfelt pursuit of the European aristocracy. .

"Ah! Praise white sugar! Its sweetness can balance the body fluids; its smoothness can purify the turbidity of the soul. It is a symbol of holiness and wealth, and it is a beauty that only the noble can taste!..."

good! In this era of Europe, the vast majority of Catholic nobles, clergy and wealthy businessmen are undoubtedly the real "sweet parties"! The remaining 95% of civilians are low-class people who have no access to "sugar"!

As the saying goes, "God comes first, then heaven, and gold and sugar come first." In the European continent ruled by the "Sweet Party", "sugar", like "spice", has been endowed with a fourfold aura of "religion, medicine, wealth, and status" and is inviolable.

In religion, "sugar" is sacred, a "white miracle" that soothes the soul, and can be made into "holy cookies" or directly smeared on "saint sculptures". In medicine, "sugar" is regarded as a universal medicine. No matter what disease you have, doctors will add "sugar" to the treatment prescription. As for wealth and status, let alone that! Throughout the Middle Ages, “sugar” was known as “white gold,” a luxury product imported from the mysterious East. Its price is 20 times that of European local honey and twice that of African pepper. One pound costs at least 6-12 gold coins, which is as expensive as red dye!

"O Lord of Light! The 'white sugar' wealth produced by the sugar cane plantations in Madeira Islands is almost 30% of the value of the goods shipped back by the Royal Navy from all the colonies in West Africa! Where sugar cane can be grown, it is the real 'white gold' Mint! ...And Father Faria actually said that this new continent could probably grow sugar cane? Wouldn't that be a gold mine planted in the soil?

At this moment, Bruno was shocked! He looked around at the forest, sea and red soil, and the boiling desire in his chest seemed to be rolling and burning like a mountain fire. But soon, he captured two key words, which were the prerequisites for turning this wild forest sea into a white gold mine...

"Respect the wise, kind and generous priest! Did you just say that growing sugar cane requires fertilizer and manpower?"

"Yes! The Lord testifies that I have been to the sugar cane plantations in the Madeira Islands. In fact, many large monasteries in Lisbon have tried to plant sugar cane, but no one succeeded... This is the nectar given by the Lord. There is no So easy to obtain! You must have a hot and rainy climate and fertile enough land to grow..."

Speaking of the sacred "sugar", Father Faria's rough face also showed a bit of yearning. Even if he is a monk who restrains his desires, he still likes "holy sweet pastries" and the "spiritual purification" brought by sugar. Well, just like the priests of various tribes in Central America, they all like divine smoke.

"Baron Bruno, the red land here is actually good for growing grains. But to grow sugar cane, it needs to be more fertile. To make the fields fertile, it is nothing more than introducing livestock and poultry, using cows, horses, sheep and chickens. Pour the manure on the ground after it is cooked. The best ones are cow manure and chicken manure. Horse manure is also quite acidic. It needs to be mixed with grass, dead leaves, wheat husks or sawdust and then composted. You have to mix in some lime..."

As a monk who farmed his own land, Father Faria was no stranger to farming and was even considered proficient in it. After all, the cheese and wine from the Monastery of Our Lady have always been popular goods in the Lisbon market. He talked about the techniques of fertilizing the land, and then talked about the problem of manpower with a smile.

"God bless! As for the manpower for farming... Baron Bruno, this still has to fall on the converted native tribes! You know, growing sugar cane is real hard work, much more tiring than growing grain. If you want this colony to produce sugar ', you must first have enough 'Food'. Only by developing the colony to a scale of three to four thousand people and tens of thousands of acres of fields can we have a foundation to develop sugar cane plantations that produce 'white gold'! And relying on the sweet residue after sugar cane extraction, You can also make wine, which is easier to sell than sugar..."

"Holy Mother! Gather thousands of people and develop tens of thousands of acres of fields?..."

After hearing this prerequisite, the fire in Bruno's heart was finally poured with a basin of cold water, and he instantly calmed down a lot.

Obviously, sugarcane plantations are projects with large investment, "high infrastructure" and huge output, and should not be considered in just a few years. At most, try planting a few acres of sugar cane to see if it can survive. In the early days of the colonial development of Natal, if you wanted to make a fortune, you still had to rely on felling mahogany trees and extracting dyes...or taking great risks and plundering or smuggling from the Sipangu natives!

"Manpower, manpower...convert the native tribes?...After all, the priest still wants to convert the natives, spread the faith, and open up a new parish!..."

Bruno calmed down and quickly understood the intention of the priest's words. It was nothing more than a big pie, asking him to restrain his sailors and soldiers so that the priest could naturalize these yellow-skinned "Tupi natives" in the New World. But as a new sailor, he was not so enthusiastic about spreading religion, at least not as much as pursuing wealth. He even hoped to obtain slaves from the plantation, and after opening up the fields and estates, they would work until they die of old age, with no way to escape! …

"God bless you! Perhaps, compared to these natives running around in the jungle, these aborigines with tribes behind them... another cheap product on the West African coast is more suitable for my Natal pioneering territory... those really useful strong slaves! After all, it only takes a month or even less to get from Sierra Leone in West Africa to this New World port with a favorable wind! I can even take the navy and do it myself..."

Thinking of this, Bruno lowered his eyes and secretly hid these calculations that were not easy to confess to the priest in his heart. And Father Faria glanced at Bruno, frowned and thought about it, and then asked again.

"Baron Bruno, this exploration and development of the New World colony seems to be much faster than the colonization practice on the West African coast! And the royal family and your eager attitude?..."

"Ah?"

"Before I came...I heard that the holy King Joao was ill and had not gone to the Lisbon Cathedral for worship for several months!"

"."

Bruno was silent for a moment, and his thoughts returned to reality from the shining gold coins. He smiled bitterly and nodded in response.

"Yes! Bless you, your majesty's condition is indeed not optimistic... Your majesty hopes to verify the southern route of the new Atlantic route as soon as possible and hear a clear good news... This is also the reason why I immediately went south to explore after arriving here! It's a pity that the southern coast of the New World is as desolate and vast as the southern coast of Africa, and there is no end at all..."

"As for me... I also hope to develop this colony as soon as possible with your majesty's support! After all, later, if there is a new majesty... I don't know what attitude he will have, whether he will give such full support..."

"Ah, that's it! Baron Bruno, the support of the royal family is indeed crucial... Of course, for a possible new world and a vast new diocese, both the Lisbon Church and the Roman Curia will also be very excited and willing to provide sufficient support! But the Curia must know first..."

Father Fayal pondered for a while, made a cross, and asked meaningfully.

"Baron Bruno, before I came, Jorge da Costa, the Cardinal of the Holy See and Archbishop of Lisbon, sent someone to tell me that the place I was going to was a newly discovered overseas island of the Kingdom of Portugal... His Majesty Joao did not seem to tell Archbishop Costa, let alone inform the Holy See, that the Kingdom had discovered a new continent?..."

"Uh..."

Bruno was speechless for a moment, hesitated for a few breaths, and then smiled reluctantly.

"Respected priest! Archbishop Costa is old, almost 90 years old... He is spending his old age in the Holy See, and His Majesty Joao may not want to trouble... trouble the Archbishop to worry... What's more, His Majesty Joao is also in poor health, and perhaps he didn't expect..."

"May the merciful Lord bless His Majesty Joao!..."

In just a few words, Father Fayal has confirmed the attitude of the Portuguese royal family and tasted the hidden hostility between Portugal and Castile. He pursed his lips, and after a moment of silence, he sighed.

"God is my witness! This new jungle continent is so vast, and there is the possibility of communication with the new Atlantic route. It is understandable that His Majesty Joao wants to monopolize it, delay and conceal it..."

"It's just... Quem semeia ventos, colhe tempestades! He who sows the wind will reap the storm! His Majesty rejected the mediation of Pope Alexander, still insisted on the "Alcáçovas Treaty" of 1479, was unwilling to accept the "New Papal Meridian" that clearly divided the Atlantic with the two kings, and even imprisoned the Castilian captain Columbus for nearly two years... This is really, really too dangerous!..."

Speaking of this, Father Fayal shook his head. The hostile situation between Spain and Portugal, as well as the disagreement with the Roman Church, made him, a priest of the Portuguese Church, really worried.

Please... collect 6... books...!

"Your Majesty's choice... rejecting the mediation of Pope Alexander... is also the will of the entire royal family..."

Thinking of the dangerous situation on the peninsula that was about to break out, Bruno was also a little silent. Last year, King Joao explicitly rejected the mediation of Pope Alexander and did not sign the Treaty of Tordesillas. This certainly did not mean rejecting the "Western Shift of the Papal Meridian" that was beneficial to Portugal, or rejecting the increase of "Portuguese overseas territories recognized by the Holy See".

The key to this dispute was that King Joao insisted on retaining a "supplementary treaty" in the Treaty of Alcaçovas, namely, "Portugal obtains a monopoly on the African coast and the Atlantic Ocean, including future exploration and conquest!". The reply from the two kings of Castile was that this "supplementary treaty" must be cancelled, and both sides should directly divide the world according to the new Papal Meridian...

In other words, with the news brought back by Columbus, the Kingdom of Portugal changed its attitude and firmly believed that there was indeed a "new Atlantic route". In order to retain the nominal monopoly of this "new Atlantic route", King Joao would rather remain hostile to Castile, compete in the Atlantic Ocean, and even go to war... rather than accepting the "270 leagues" promised by the Pope, that is, the "new Papal Meridian" that completely divides the Atlantic Ocean.

"Ah! These vicious, bull-fighting Castilians, these unrestrained and dangerous mad dogs!..."

"Lord! Let King Charles of France invade Italy and the Kingdom of Sicily as soon as possible! As long as France invades the Kingdom of Sicily, the Kingdom of Aragon will definitely not be able to resist joining the war! At that time, the Kingdom of Castile will also be involved in the Italian War, and our Kingdom of Portugal will be able to manage the New World colonies with peace of mind and find new routes to the west to Khitan and Seres!"

Thinking of this, Bruno stretched out his right hand and followed Father Faria to devoutly make a cross. Then, he opened his eyes and looked at the vast Atlantic Ocean, looking at the return route that would be embarked on in two months. He will return again in the fall, bringing more Portuguese immigrants, more naval fleets, and perhaps slaves from the West African coast...

But, what will the Castilians do when the wind is favorable? You know, the Genoese Captain Columbus, who loved to write diaries and was full of nonsense, had already returned to the Kingdom of Castile and brought the news of "discovering the rich India and Sipangu" to the ambitious and heavily indebted Castilian kings...

"Achoo! Who is cursing me? Merda! Is it the group of Portuguese navigators who were slapped in the face by me and whose heads are full of donkey dung? Or, is it the poor German mercenary group in front of us?..."

Thousands of miles away in the Kingdom of Aragon, in a small town on the outskirts of Barcelona, ​​Columbus sneezed loudly and wiped his red nose with the sleeve of his noble clothes. Then, he sat on the Castilian warhorse that was 1.6 meters tall, pulled the reins with pride, and shouted triumphantly to the mercenary captain Reinhard who looked stunned in front of him.

"Reinhard! I, the Admiral of the Castilian Navy, a noble of the glorious Kingdom of Castile, the Queen's most trusted navigation advisor, the great navigator who discovered India and Sipangu, Don Christopher Columbus... I have returned from India and Sipangu and come to see you again!..."

"Gottverdammt! What a hell!"

The mercenary captain Reinhard swallowed his saliva, his face was extremely alert and his expression was extremely solemn. His eyes were fixed on the tall and mighty Columbus... Behind him, there was a cavalry team of 200 people, fully armed, flying the flag of the Castilian royal family, divided into two teams in a charging formation, vaguely surrounding his German mercenary group!