Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!-Chapter 1792 - 1286: I Have Good News for You

"May the Chief Divine protect us! A message from the Capital City! A message from the Capital City!..."

The messenger from the Capital City rushed into Zicao City and then split into three teams, heading respectively to the camp of the Purple Grass Army, the main temple of Zicao City, and the Southern Shipbuilding Department. Soon, the samurai in the city began to mobilize, and the Southern Shipbuilding Department became a hive of busy activity.

"Orders have come from the Capital City to assemble the fourth batch of ships heading north!"...

"What?! Wasn't it said that this year's expedition to Mistek Coast was to prioritize supplementing the Purple Grass Navy, and the northern exploration support would be paused for two years?..."

"Witness the Chief Divine! The Divine Revelation Place from the Capital City sent a messenger and presented the Royal Decree from His Majesty! The latest Royal Decree!..." 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Ah... but all the oar-sail ships owned by the Shipyard have been delivered to the Purple Grass Navy..."

"There is a directive to draft all two Wind God Shuttle Ships, plus all nine newly built Water God Sandboats, to form the fleet heading north! The Wind God Shuttle Ships will go north this month, bringing dozens of skilled sailors, supporting all the way to the forefront of the Western Sea. The Water God Sandboats will be slower, carrying goods and hundreds of people relocating to supplement the settlement points on the Northern Continent..."

"Almighty Divine! Two Wind God Shuttle Ships, nine Water God Sandboats, and all new ships must be drafted? Will the Shipyard be emptied all at once, not even a single large ship for transporting timber left?"...

"Use small twin-hulled boats to temporarily cover! Then requisition a batch of large dugout canoes, let the sailors run a few more times... Besides, aren't there still the second batch with five Wind God Shuttle Ships and twenty Water God Sandboats under construction in the shipyard?...

"The second batch of large ships has just started building! The sandboats need three to four months, perhaps only able to launch after the autumn harvest. And the Wind God Shuttle Ships take even longer! Building five at once, skilled craftsmen are simply insufficient, relying wholly on Gold Shipwright and Sail Maker Pyo, sometimes even requiring rework... Even with ready-made keels, it would take until next spring! And besides, hasn't the northern route already been scouted? Why continue to support the fleet? If the crew is insufficient, who knows, they might draft us up and send us thousands of miles north to the Northern Continent..."

"Shut up, where is all this talk coming from! This is the decree of His Majesty! ...ahem! Let me tell you quietly... This draft does not involve us; the Purple Grass Army will send two hundred samurai, the Chief God Priest will mobilize a batch of devoted and fearless Tekos believers, and then supplement with some captured Mistec young men... May the Chief Divine protect us! Hurry and get to work!"...

"Ah, yes! May the Chief Divine protect us! Follow the Divine's guidance, to conquer the Northern Continent!"...

The chaotic discussions echoed lowly within the Shipyard. The craftsmen and apprentices were busy to the extreme, yet the order was not chaotic, rather quite structured. These seasoned craftsmen, who had been working under military regulations in the Shipyard for several years, are indeed the Kingdom's most precious wealth. They need not worry, no matter how lacking the crew, they won't be sent to the Northern Continent.

Unless... the Kingdom plans to expand the shipbuilding workshops on the Western Sea Coast into a true Western Shipbuilding Department, right at the Golden Bay Port, which integrates the Miwock Tribes...

"Ah?! Let me join the fleet heading north to visit my hometown, and gather with the Miwock chieftains... Hmm, it's time to go back and see. See the once small Golden Bay Port, see the North Bay Tribe where I was born, see the Miwock Bay Area tribes converted to the Chief Divine..."

Cedar Shaman's expression was complex, muttering words with a slight tremble in his wooden staff. After a while, he took a deep breath, collected his expression, and walked firmly out of the shipyard. Before leaving, he took another glance at Kim Sun-su, the "Craftsman Master" commanding dozens of shipworkers in a frenzy, hesitated for several moments but did not speak.

"Forget it, Old Jin is doing well! He's commanding so many craftsmen and mentoring so many apprentices... The shipyard couldn't let him go..."

The heavy shaman wooden staff swayed in the air, never touching the ground. It soon swayed out of the Shipyard, without any obstruction. It leisurely drifted past the logging territory on the outskirts of the city, past shallow rivers and streams, until it was stopped by samurai, but soon allowed passage again.

"Greetings, esteemed Northern Priest! Captain Qi is inside there, in the tomato field..."

"Alright... may the Chief Divine protect you!"...

Next, the wooden staff rose a little higher, crossing over harvested soybeans and peas, over the second planting of rice and millet, and over the traditional trio of corn, beans, and squash. Finally, it reached its destination, striking heavily into the soft vegetable garden soil, giving a thundering call.

"Hey! Old Corn, what are you doing? You're still pinching off the buds of the red tomato seedlings?"...

"Ah! Who?!"...

The thunderous voice suddenly sounded from behind. Old militia Qi Waco trembled all over, his hand slipped, pinching off all the main buds of the tomato seedlings. He shook with heartache, turned around, and saw a smiling old face with celestial fullness, facial integrity, and broad, smooth, and shiny brows—it was downright unlucky!

"Damn it, what bad luck! Really unlucky! How is it you, Old Woody?!... Walking without a sound in broad daylight to scare people!"...

"Haha! If a hunter walked with noise, how could he catch deer in the woods? But you, Old Corn! You've been farming for two years, and your vigilance has dropped sharply, not at all like when I first met you..."

Cedar Shaman laughed merrily, stretching a hand to pat Qi Waco's shoulder, but the latter dodged it. The old militia glared at Cedar twice, asking aloud.

"Haven't you been hanging around the shipyard all the time? Trying to learn some shipbuilding skills... You don't even like farming, so what are you doing in this field?"

"No rush, I'll tell you later..."

Cedar Shaman waved his hand, crouched down curiously at the edge of the field, looking at the neat row of tomatoes, and inquired again.

"I was standing behind you just now, watching for a while, seeing you picking and choosing... Are you pinching the buds of these red fruits? What's the point of pinching the buds?"

"Ha! Farming stuff, even if I tell you, you wouldn't understand... Hey! Hey! Don't pinch randomly, some of the buds need to be kept!... Alright! Let me explain to you!..."

The old militia sighed helplessly, pointed at the tomatoes in the field, and explained seriously.

"Pinching the leaves on top is called topping, so the tomatoes can grow sideways and thus bear more fruit... Pinching the buds below is pruning, likewise to make the tomatoes bear more fruit... Look at the position of those buds, they're located at the crotch of two branches, even if such buds grow, they won't bear fruit later... So, they need to be pinched off early!..."

"Hmm?..."

Cedar Shaman blinked his eyes, thought hard for a while, but couldn't understand the logic at all.

"Old Corn, why does pinching the leaves on top make these red fruits grow sideways and then bear more fruit?"

"Because if it grows too tall, it'll only grow leaves and won't bear fruit..."

"Then how do you know these buds below haven't grown out and won't bear fruit?"

"Because those are crotch buds! Crotch buds definitely won't bear tomatoes, they'll just grow leaves. If a bud shoots out a little lower, then it can sprout a fruit-bearing branch!"

"Uh... These red fruits are really strange! Why are they like this? Are you just making it up?"

"What! I'm making it up? That's just how they are! I've been growing tomatoes for so many years, don't I know?!..." "Then what's the reason behind it, what determines whether it grows leaves or fruit?"

"This... the reason... Oh well! I'm a farmer, how would I know so much?! Oh, don't just pinch randomly..."

Cedar Shaman asked all sorts of questions, his hands still randomly touching the tomato seedlings. Old Militia Chiwaco couldn't take it anymore, his head was pounding, and he finally couldn't help but shout.

"Alright! I'll tell you why!... That blind one... Ahem, Your Majesty gave me a book, I looked at it for a long time and even asked the Priest to read it to me..."

"That book says there are many tiny cells in crops, so small we can't see them! Within those cells are various kinds of tangled divinities, things dividing and combining, deciding the shape and yield of crops... Then there are even smaller tadpoles swimming around in the cells, making it sprout when it sprouts, making it bear fruit when it bears fruit... It's all mysterious stuff!"

"...! Your Majesty's book? The legendary Shaman's Divine Revelation Book? Invisible cells, divinity and tadpoles?"

Cedar Shaman's hand paused, his eyes widened in surprise. He didn't expect to get such insights from an interrupted conversation. He wanted to inquire further about this 'mysterious book' to borrow and have a closer look. After all, as a knowledgeable Northern Shaman, he indeed had a depth of plant study and might gain some insight, even create his own Shaman Book... But as soon as he opened his mouth, he saw Chiwaco angrily snatch away his wooden staff.

"Old Woody! It's never anything good whenever I see you... Stop interrupting! If you have bad news, hurry up and tell me! I can handle it!..."

"Ahem! It's not bad news, it's good news... I have good news to tell you..."

Cedar Shaman rubbed his hands with a cheeky smile and replied.

"Chief Divine bless us! We're finally going out to sea!..."

"What! Going out to sea?!!..."

Upon hearing this, Chiwaco was thunderstruck, his heart skipped a beat, and his knees instantly weakened.