Starting from the long western coast, traveling two to three hundred miles inland, passing through the jungles of the lowland Maya, you will come to a densely populated farmland and villages. In the center of dozens of Mayan villages, surrounded by stars, in the Uzbekistan

Between Smar and Mayapan is Mani City, the capital of the Xiu family.

Golden sunlight falls from the sky and shines on this ancient religious center. The pyramid temples of Serpent God and Quetzalcoatl are right in the center, shining with golden light. And on the thirty-meter-high

Under the pyramid is an open market square. On the east side of the prosperous square, there are temples of other gods. On the south side of the open square, there is a semi-open-air human sacrifice stadium, but it is not yet time for festivals and competitions. It is solemn.

On the west side of the square is a square, two-story palace, which is the most important place in the city-state, the Palace of Xiumemed.

At this moment, a feather-crested leader with narrow eagle eyes and gray hair was standing on the second floor of the palace, proudly looking around his territory. In the temple area on the east side, there are many ancient temples, even inherited from ancient times.

The golden age of the Maya thousands of years ago. In the square in front of you, there was a busy and prosperous market. The descendants and nobles of the city-state hung out and rested here, sharing the beauty of the divine smoke.

"The Snake God Festival is coming soon, and the nobles are all buying goods. We need to collect another batch of corn flour from villages all over the country, make small cakes, and distribute them to the citizens during the festival..."

Xiupan, the leader of the Xiu tribe, stared at the prosperous square, thinking quietly without saying a word. He often looked around the city like this, watching the details in the market, and thinking about the rule of his family.

January is the festival of Quetzalcoatl, and April is the festival of Serpent God. On the festivals twice a year, the Xiwu family will distribute small cakes to the citizens of the capital without discrimination. In these two months, there are also

It is the difficult season of spring famine that best reflects the value of relief.

"Distributing two batches of food every year, although it will cost some money, it can win the hearts of the people in the capital and spread the virtues of the family. Forty-eight years ago, the Tuturxiu people were willing to follow the family to the death and rebel against Mayapan's rule, relying on the family

The kindness given year after year, and the good reputation passed down from generation to generation!"

Chief Xiupan squinted his eyes and recalled the long past. Yes, it had been forty-eight years, and he clearly remembered this number because he was born in that year.

Forty-eight years ago, my grandfather Xiu Asupan bravely launched an army, captured Mayapan in a surprise attack, and slaughtered the brutal Cocom royal family. The family's two hundred years of forbearance finally succeeded! After my grandfather returned to Mani, he was very proud of himself.

, so he named his newborn self Xiupan. The Pan here is Mayapan, which is the standard and model of the Maya people, and is also the royal capital occupied by the Xiu family!

Twenty years later, he also followed his grandfather's example and named his eldest son Xiu Tuer. The Tuuer here symbolizes that after twenty years of cleansing and assimilation, the Xiu clan has completely mastered the

He conquered the prosperous Wangji area and ruled the entire prosperous Tuturxiu!

As the divine smoke ignited, Chief Xiupan's thoughts drifted away. Until a tall and strong young man with a divine face strode into the palace and bowed to the old patriarch.

"Blessed by the Serpent God! Father, you took me from the front line of the Kanur clan's confrontation and called me back to the capital in a hurry..."

Although the young man's posture was respectful, there was a hint of dissatisfaction in his words.

"But something big happened?"

"Blessed by the Serpent God! Xiu Tuer, sit down. Don't be in a hurry."

Chief Xiupan turned around and pressed his palms. Then, he lowered his eyes slightly as he looked at the eldest son who sat down and obeyed the order, but still looked as imposing as a jaguar. The eldest son was brave and good at fighting, and his wisdom was equally impressive. And

The only shortcoming is that he prefers warriors too much and has an impatient and aggressive personality.

"My son, I called you here because of an urgent matter. You should have heard on the Western Front that there is a gem fleet from the Western Plateau, guided by the God of Wealth, all the way along the coast,

Sailing eastward..."

"Hmm? The Nahua people's gem fleet? I have indeed heard about it. But..."

Xiu Tuer thought about it for a moment and nodded. Then, he looked at his old father with some confusion.

"Father, this gem fleet only sails along the coast and cannot reach land. They cannot reach our clan's territory, so what does it have to do with us?"

"...Hugh Tur, they can't get to the shore, but we can go over and meet them on the beach."

Chief Xiupan spoke calmly and looked to the north. Two hundred and seventy miles away from here is the northern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula. The Weiyu Clan and Lu Chong Clan along the coast are all vassals of the Xiu Clan.

"Huh? You want me to go north and intercept this fleet full of wealth?"

Xiu Tuer thought for a moment, and a fierce fighting spirit appeared in his eyes. He immediately stood up, stretched out his hand, and made a gesture of sacrifice.

"Okay! I will take a thousand warriors to ambush the shore! When the fleet docks for supplies, we will launch a surprise attack, sacrifice them all to the gods, and bring back all the gems!"

"..."

Chief Xiupan was silent. He looked at his eldest son who was full of fighting spirit, sighed secretly, shook his head and said.

"No! My son. Witness the Serpent God! I am not asking you to attack the fleet and snatch back the gems. I am asking you to meet them and trade with them!"

"Huh? Trading gems?"

"Sit down, don't be impatient."

Patriarch Xiupan had a sullen face and showed no complacency. Xiutul sat down helplessly again and listened to his father's instructions.

"Xiu Tur, you have to remember. The descendants of the Mayans in our city-state are different from the martial plateau tribes. They rely on their divinity and brains to rule the warriors and city residents, and manage the territory and city-state! What you need to focus on now

, not to fight on the battlefield, but to enhance one's own divinity and constantly win over allies and supporters!"

"Huh? Focus on enhancing your divinity and winning over allies and supporters?"

This chapter is not over, please click on the next page to continue reading! "Yes!"

Chief Xiupan nodded heavily and explained carefully to his eldest son.

"The news of this gem fleet has spread throughout the peninsula. Every tribe in the lowlands wants to get a piece of gems from them!... You robbed the entire fleet and got so many gems. The city-state

The gems will be discounted and cannot be consumed at all for a while, and the actual benefit will be little."

"What's more important is that if the fleet is robbed, the family will not only be at odds with the distant plateau tribes, but it will also alienate others and make the tribes angry! The eyes of all tribes will be on us, so let us

Become the target of many spear-throwing targets... Remember, a truly smart person will not do such stupid things with small benefits and unpredictable consequences!"

After hearing his father's analysis, Xiu Tuer was stunned for a while and then figured out the key.

"I see! So, you asked me to trade just to get the most gems and leave the rest to other departments?"

"Not bad. This is roughly the idea."

Chief Xiupan nodded, looking at his eldest son who was as strong as a warrior, with a fond smile on his lips. The eldest son was actually very smart, but his personality was too impulsive, and his strong physical instincts often preceded his brain's thinking.

"He still needs to practice more! We can't let him stay in the army forever without looking like a god."

Patriarch Xiupan thought for a few breaths before speaking in a deep voice again.

"Xiu Tuer, you take eight hundred elite Mayan warriors and the family's valuable goods, and go to the northern coast as soon as possible, to the Wei Village of the Weiyu clan, to wait for the gem fleet coming from the east. There are a few kilometers after turning the corner.

The first supply port within a hundred miles, the gem fleet will definitely dock there.”

"Then, the first thing is that you have to try your best to exchange for the largest share of gems, bring it back to the capital, and claim the blessing of the God of Wealth! If the goods are not enough, you can recruit them from the vassal Weiyu clan, and I will compensate them. You

You can also put appropriate pressure on that fleet, but don't overdo it. Even if you don't get many gems, don't fall out and try to form a good relationship with the Nahua people! Because gems are not important, and the Nahua tribe in the west

, could be very powerful.”

"Ah? Father, gems are not important?"

Xiu Tuer scratched his head and looked at his father in confusion.

"The powerful Nahua tribe? Do you know where this fleet comes from?"

"Well, this fleet should come from the Aztec Alliance in the Western Plateau. They are a very powerful force, but they are more than three thousand miles away from us and cannot affect the situation here. We can make friends appropriately... Listen

I say! Gemstones are not important. What is important is to enhance your divinity!"

Patriarch Xiupan paused and spoke quietly, describing the art of rule.

"If divinity wants to gain a foothold in people's hearts, it must hold a grand ceremony and be witnessed by everyone! You don't need to get a lot of gems, you just need to use various publicity to make everyone believe that you are blessed by the God of Wealth.

, got a lot of gems..."

"Similarly, the second thing. This time when you go north, you have to hold a solemn sacrifice at the 'Devil's Tail' on the coast! It is the sanctuary where the gods destroy and create the world. It can also strengthen you.

divinity. After the ceremony, you will stay one night in the 'Devil's Tail'. The next day, you will claim that you had a sacred dream... let's say that the Serpent God's tail crawled out of the ground,

I got into your arms and became one with you..."

"Ah, what? Stay one night at Demon's Tail and make up a sacred dream?"

Hearing his father's operation, Xiu Tuer was dumbfounded and shocked and speechless. He thought for a while and asked the question that had always been in his mind.

"Father, what exactly is there underground at Demon Tail?"

"Underground at Demon Tail, there is an artifact used by the gods to destroy the world. It was there that the gods created the world for the first time in the era before chaos was wiped out! As for the specific artifact, the ancestors of Snake City did not record it. Probably the gods

I didn’t explain it clearly...don’t change the subject!”

Patriarch Xiupan raised his eyebrows, Xiutul immediately lowered his eyebrows, shut up and listened.

"As for the third thing, you have to meet with the leaders of the Tail Feather Clan and Lu Chong Clan, which are vassals along the coast. You have to represent the Xiwu Clan to express your support and goodwill to them. After you have done this, you will arrange for people to spread the word.

Go out and say that you had a great time chatting with the leaders, and even made an appointment to get married..."

"What? Marriage relatives?"

"Yes! Let the news go out first and let all the ministries know. Then, I will arrange for people to propose marriage to the daughters of the two clan chiefs, let you marry two more divine wives, and also win over two external allies."

Patriarch Xiupan smiled and nodded, with kind eyes and a kind look on his face. He had already figured out everything.

"After completing these three things, you will return to the capital with the gems, host the ceremony at the grand Serpent God Festival in April, and do two other things!... One is in the name of the God of Wealth,

Distribute most of the gems to the nobles at the capital's festival. The other is to distribute the customary festival cakes to the citizens of the capital in the name of the Serpent God."

"Huh? In the name of the gods, do you distribute gems to the nobles and small cakes to the citizens? Father, aren't you the one who usually presides over festivals..."

"Everything will be done by you from now on! This is the first year you will be hosting, so the cookies distributed will be doubled. I will also arrange for people to kneel down and salute at the scene, praising your divinity and love for the people! After you see it,

, you must lift the other party up with your own hands, and tell the people in a loud voice that this is not your grace, but the grace bestowed by the Serpent God through your hands!..."
To be continued...