Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

Chapter 1913

The meeting of the Portuguese fleet this day reached an agreement after lengthy discussions. First, the fleet needed to replenish food supplies and prepare for the return voyage.Second, apart from the weapons used by the crew, all "spare military supplies" could be traded with the natives. The two ships totaled 40 standard scimitars, 10 matchlock guns, 10 sets of breastplates, 1 two-pound cannon, and 2 barrels of sealed gunpowder. All goods were sold at ten times the price! One gold per scimitar, 10 gold per matchlock gun, 20 gold per breastplate, 200 gold per two-pound cannon, and 2 gold per barrel of gunpowder. Altogether, this amounted to at least 544 gold ducats, an astonishing 2 kilograms of gold!

Of course, the natives might not have that much gold. If they offered pearls, spices, or dyes, the fleet would accept them as well. However, it requires additional transactions to convert them into currency, which is more troublesome than direct gold.

All the gold exchanged would be distributed according to the goods provided by each ship. Moreover, each ship would keep 30-40% for the Court Chief and the Portuguese Royal Family, meaning it would be handed to the higher-ups. The remaining amount would see the captain claim 20-30%, and the crew would split the remaining 40% according to headcount. Important crew members counted as two shares, ordinary sailors as one, and those involved in the native trade had an extra two shares added in that day's earnings distribution...

In summary, the Portuguese Navy has been "trading" at sea for years, and in terms of profit distribution, it is quite experienced and fair! At least, their captains do not hoard an excessive amount of spoils like Columbus, which would provoke extreme dissatisfaction among the sailors and even lead to rebellion!

After all, European sailors, risking their lives, fearing neither death by storms nor the terrible consequences of their souls "falling," set out to sea with the fleet decisively for the sake of wealth, right? Could it be for the glory of the Almighty? Hmm, perhaps not entirely wrong. After all, the church priests were also deeply obsessed with wealth, and absolution coupons were at the pinnacle of popularity!

According to the current market prices for absolution coupons, "murder," requiring 8 gold coins for salvation. "Murder of kin," an additional 6 gold coins for salvation. "Rape," 6 gold coins for salvation. And various other crimes could be absolved with money.

According to the priests, this was because "Jesus and the saints" possessed near-limitless virtues. The authority to use these virtues lay in the hands of the "Lord's Shepherd," the Church. When a believer purchased an "absolution coupon," the church priest flicked a finger, releasing the virtues of the Saint Heir and saints, instantly absolving you and your ancestors' sins! Hence, the famous phrase that has been passed down through generations, "When the silver coin rings in the bottom of the box, the soul leaps out of purgatory!"...

In such a greedy and depraved religious atmosphere, wealth naturally equated directly to piety. Wealth was truly everything, the "redemption" that the entire Catholic World ardently desired! Shimmering gold was the most sacred wealth, the extreme greed and longing from the hearts of the Lord's people! No matter how ruthless and vile or against doctrine the methods to obtain gold might be, once possessing it, absolution was readily attainable!

"Damn it, why are they in such a hurry? The gold isn't fully in hand yet, and you've already started discussing spending it cheerfully! First, send someone ashore to tell these natives about the 'goods' we can trade! Let's see how much gold they can actually bring forth... May the Lord bless!"

Concerns arose that the natives might not understand the trade goods, so the sailor officer disembarked carrying samples, thoughtfully demonstrated the firing of the matchlock gun, oh no, the "Thunderbolt Little Magic Device." The display of astonishment from the natives made Quartermaster Matim chuckle inwardly, yet not showing any of it on his face. He simply cared about selling weapons to the natives, regardless of whether they could use them or not—it wasn't his concern. Indeed, if they couldn't use them, even better! Who knows what the next visit by the fleet might bring...

"Ah! Quartermaster... they say... they say... they want all these samples! As per the prices set by the fleet... And they want all the weapons, armor, and magic artifacts listed on the ship! They just need a day or two to gather the gold, transporting it over from various tribes!"

"Lord! This truly is, truly a wealthy native tribe!"

No need for Guide Shushu's translation, Quartermaster Matim understood the natives' response. Directly handed over a hundred grams of sand gold, which he weighed and easily concluded that it definitely amounted to 31 gold ducats, perhaps even as many as 40! Counting the refined leather armor traded earlier that morning, today alone, they had acquired over 300 grams of gold from the natives!

A few native militiamen beside them received three samples—a scimitar, a matchlock gun, and a set of breastplate. The militia holding the breastplate examined it meticulously, seeming very thoughtful as he caressed the sturdy steel plate of the chest, his expression somewhat solemn, clearly deep in thought. Quickly, he glanced at the white-skinned demons across, only to see the bearded officer eagerly pulling the Translator Shushu, clutching the gold in his grip as they headed back to the ship!

The third day of trading dragged on slowly. The native tribe's gold seemed to arrive in batches. Their transaction with the fleet was conducted in phases as well. First, they presented 700 grams of gold, exchanging for the remaining 9 breastplates first. Following this was over 300 grams of gold to acquire the remaining 9 matchlock guns and 19 sailor's scimitars.

According to protocol, this over 1,000 grams of gold was equally divided between the two ships providing goods, with each ship sharing more than 500 grams! When a full jin of gold was transported onto the flagship, all the sailors burst into jubilant celebration! They had already calculated that this was a huge sum of 150 gold ducats, and after deducting the portions for the royal family and the captain, each person in hand would receive at least 3 coins! Each person!

"Strange! The natives here seem to value armor the most, next the matchlock guns, and the scimitars last? But in the Southern Continent, the native tribes there tend to prioritize weapons first and then armor?"

On the entire jubilant ship, only Scholar Martin frowned, pulling out a feather pen to record information about the natives of this "Haiti Island." He was not lacking in money and accustomed to gold coins. These few gold ducats didn't intrigue him as much as the novel native customs. These days, he had been observing and documenting these, preparing to compile them into travelogues, leaving behind a classic family legacy...

Sailor Chief Haloduo, smiling, sneaked a peek. Confirming that Scholar Martin wasn't recording any private accounts of fleet trade but merely documenting local customs, he felt relieved. As astute as Scholar Martin was, it was unthinkable he'd dare violate the fleet's prohibition. Otherwise, the consequences of blocking everyone's prosperity... Tsk tsk! It would indeed be very unpleasant, as in such deep-sea exotic realms far from order, nobility status held no weight!

Once these easily transportable military supplies were traded, the fourth day's commerce would be the main event. Sir Silvira personally, along with his assistant, carried ashore a two-pound iron cannon, also gifting a barrel of gunpowder. Opposite, the native chieftain dispatched several militia to inspect this "gray shiny Thunderbolt Ritual Artifact" thoroughly. This "artifact" was unexpectedly not cast in copper but rather a long, slender iron tube. But wasn't iron inherently brittle and prone to sand holes? Could iron really be used for casting cannon?...

"Boom!..."

"Crack!..."

The iron bullet shot out with a roar, breaking a small tree the size of a bowl, snapping its branches. The demonstration shooting by the fleet's sailors proved that iron could not only be cast into cannons but also cast extremely well! As the sailors eagerly offered a barrel of gunpowder, looking at the startled native chieftain. The latter did not come to his senses for quite a while, trembling all over in fear!

"This... this!... The magic artifact of the evil demon... terrifying thunderbolt!..."

"Ahem!..."

Fortunately, none of the Portuguese sailors present understood the Taino language of the native chieftain. The only one who did understand kept his head down and said nothing. Then, a native warrior wearing leather armor stepped forward, took out a prepared pouch of sand gold, and dumped it onto a sheep skin laid out on the sand.

"Yellow stones... trade... yours!..."

The shining golden light instantly captured the attention of all the sailors. And that small pile of sand gold was the agreed 200 ducats, even more in weight!

"Ahaha! This cannon was taken off my ship! So these over 200 ducats belong to our ship!... Come here, join me in inspecting the quality of the gold!..."

Sir Silvira laughed heartily, holding the Cross Knight Sword, and walked to the gold. He proudly lifted the sheep skin loaded with sand gold into his hands, inspecting each grain against the sunlight. Several sailors' gazes were fixed on him, focused on the dazzling golden light in his hand!

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Guide Shushu could finally move aside quietly. The ordinary militia also approached, looking down as if watching the sand on the ground, speaking softly.

"Chief Divine bless!"

"Huitzilopo bless!"

"Where does your ship anchor at night?..."

"Ah? The ship's location... uh... from here towards the north, no, northwest! Rowing would take a little half a day, but the sailing ship is quick..."

"Northwest? Rowing a little half a day?... Precisely how far?..."

"Yes! It's in the northwest direction, not close to shore. The specific distance... sometimes it's like half a league, sometimes it's a league... Besides, they are very vigilant at night, extinguishing the torches on the ship..."

"Extinguishing the torches? A league?... Hmm... is it ten li?..."

"It seems so, yes, about right..."

"Shushu!!..."

While they were talking, Sailor Chief Haloduo's gaze turned, his eyes fierce. He silently reached for the scimitar at his waist, striding towards Shushu. Then, squinting his eyes, he glanced at the average-looking, fearful Taino militia, and then at the tense and timid Guide Shushu, asking with some dissatisfaction.

"Shushu, you're whispering with this native, what are you talking about?!..."