In late November 1485, at the mouth of the Congo River, where the indigenous chieftain Soyo (Soyo) ruled, it was a fishing village near the sea.

The turbulent Congo River rushes into the Atlantic Ocean here, and instead of forming the usual estuary delta, it washes out deep drowning valleys along the coast. Relying on the rich fishery resources in the estuary, the tribal people settled here and formed a peaceful fishing village. In the usual days, the children in the village are running and the women are busy, full of vitality.

As the sun went down, three caravels anchored on the bank of the river. The aboriginal fishing village was dead silent, and the smell of blood was everywhere. The carnival massacre has just ended, and the animal desire to vent is temporarily satisfied. At this moment, one or two hundred fresh corpses, regardless of gender, age or age, were piled up on the altar in the center of the village, covered with thatch.

"Haha! To kill the heretics is to save their souls! Haha! To rob them of their property, it is given to us by the Lord!"

Boatswain Diego laughed and yelled freely, and personally lit the thatch in the altar with the torch in his hand. The twenty or so sailors around also looked satisfied and set fire to the indigenous huts. Behind the sailors is a large bag of looted property. Seven or eight young dark-skinned women, disheveled and strung together with twine, were kneeling in front of the burning village, weeping in despair.

The raging fire quickly rose, destroying all the evidence. Afterwards, the sailors divided up the looted property, carried bags of food, and dragged the staggering woman to the boat by the river.

The food on the exploration fleet is running low. Taking advantage of the opportunity of landing supplies, the boatswain Diego gathered nearly 30 sailors from three ships, assembled five pairs of breastplates and three arquebus guns, and attacked the fishing village of one or two hundred people.

Facing this group of fierce sailors, ordinary aboriginal villages were powerless to resist. The sailors first knocked down three indigenous warriors with matchlock guns, and then the armored sailors killed Ding Zhuang first, and the rest of the sailors surrounded them from all sides. In just a few quarters of an hour, the peaceful village turned into a killing hell. The sailors wielded scimitars and skillfully slaughtered the villagers, not letting a single person escape alive, lest they attract the warriors of the native chiefs.

Of course, Diego wasn't worried about the native warriors. The fleet will soon sail into the Atlantic Ocean and embark on a long journey home. Even if there are indigenous warriors chasing them, they will not be able to catch up. He laughed at this thought, and called out to the sailors in the other two ships.

"Foda-se! It's a fun day! But there's not much aboriginal gold here. When we get to the Gold Coast, we'll come out and do it twice!"

"Okay! Captain Diego, listen to you!"

"Foda-se! It's cool to follow Chief Diego!"

"That's right! The guys have finally come out of the devil's land alive, and they're even quick at killing people!"

"Ha ha!"

Hearing the compliments from the sailors on each ship, Diego laughed with satisfaction. Then, he pointed to the indigenous women beside him.

"Come on, divide each boat into two, take them back and have fun!"

Hearing this, the sailors on the other two ships looked at each other in blank dismay. They were a little moved, but no one dared to accept it. In the era of great navigation, the rules on ocean-going sailing ships were very strict. In order to boost the morale of the sailors, the captains of various countries would tacitly allow the sailors to go ashore to plunder, but they would never allow women to board the ship. In fact, even a ferocious pirate captain would never allow women to exist on board unless he had degenerated to a certain extent.

"No. Chief Diego, you should keep the woman! It's getting late, we have to bring our belongings back to the ship."

The sailors on the two ships hesitated for a moment, but decided to refuse. After saying hello, they hurriedly boarded the sampan and returned.

"Foda-se! These gutless hyenas!"

Diego cursed a few words in a low voice. If it is not in a desperate situation, it is not so easy to encourage the sailors to rebel. It seems that we need to contact them a few more times before killing all the nobles on board. Thinking of this, he curled his lips, swung his dagger fiercely, and shouted at the trusted sailors.

"Foda-se! Let's go! Bring the woman, we have the final say on the current flagship!"

More than a dozen sailors laughed and laughed, first threw their belongings and food onto the sampan, then dragged the woman to another sampan, and then rowed to the flagship together.

As a light exploration sailboat, the Caravel sailboat has a low profile. Seeing the sampan approaching, the flagship dropped a three-meter-long climbing rope ladder.

Diego raised his head, grabbed the rope ladder, and climbed to the boat first. As he climbed, he shouted in doubt.

"Matim, why are you standing on the deck with so many sailors?"

Quartermaster Mattim's expression was stiff, and the corners of his mouth twitched. He paused for a while, and then replied loudly.

"Guys can't wait, I want to see the harvest of your looting!"

"Foda-se! As agreed in advance, the food will be returned to the ship's warehouse, and the property will not be yours! As for the women, we can have fun together!"

Hearing that there were women, the corners of Matim's mouth twitched even more. He said nothing, waiting for Diego to board the boat.

"Haha! Guys on board, just follow me, Diego, eat and drink and..."

Diego boarded the boat excitedly, and was about to continue shouting, but his words stopped in an instant. His complexion turned pale in an instant, and even his fingers trembled.

"Martim, you..."

Matim lowered his eyes and sighed quietly.

Two steps behind him, five musketeers squatted in a row, holding loaded matchlock guns in their hands, all aiming at Diego who had just boarded the ship. The fire door cover on the matchlock gun has been opened, and the lit matchlock is hanging on the metal faucet, burning slowly in uncertain light and dark. Only a few steps away, as long as the musketeer gently pulls the trigger, the deadly buckshot will shoot out, piercing Diego's breastplate, and then shooting a burst blood hole. On both sides of the musketeer, there are ten elite soldiers, each wearing breastplate or leather armor, holding a sharp machete in their hands, ready to go.

"Matim, my brother! Tell me what you want! What do you want? I will give you all the looting along the way! I will let you be the leader on the ship!...Boys on the ship, my boatswain Diego , but I have never been sorry to you!..."

Diego trembled all over, raising his hands in fear. He shouted with all his strength, trying to persuade everyone on the boat. Behind him, four of his cronies had just boarded the boat before they were forced to throw up their hands in surrender. The rest of the sailors stayed on the sampan, watching the situation on board in fear.

"well!"

Quartermaster Mattim sighed. He turned around slowly, revealing a familiar face behind him. Only now did Diego the boatswain see that the noble knight Bruno was holding a dagger tightly against Martim's back.

"Foda-se! Bruno! It's you!"

Diego was stunned for a moment, then his eyes were about to split open, and he roared angrily.

"Foda-se! Fuck you! That night in the cabin, I should have chopped you to pieces!  …"

Bruno's eyes were cold, and he looked at Diego contemptuously, as if looking at a barking defeated dog. He waved violently at the elite soldiers in armor and ordered sharply.

"The captain has an order! Boatswain Diego launched a rebellion and betrayed the kingdom! They are evil people who believe in the devil! Take them down!"

Hearing this, the ten elite soldiers all looked at the captain's cabin at the stern. Captain Diogo looked solemn, sat calmly at the door of the captain's cabin, and nodded to everyone on the deck. Soldiers rushed up from both sides, ready to capture the boatswain Diego and his trusted sailors.

"Foda-se! You are the guards on the other two ships! Foda-se! Diogo, it's your loose dog!"

Seeing the captain appear, Diego screamed in despair. With a roar, he fiercely waved the scimitar in his hand.

"shooting!"

"Bang! Bang!"

Under Bruno's order, the two musketeers pulled the trigger directly, and a white eye shot out from the tail end of the matchlock gun. Two lead bullets were fired rapidly, one hit Diego's knee and shattered the fragile patellar joint, and the other hit his arm, **** and **** his thick upper arm.

"ah!"

Diego let out a miserable scream, the huge kinetic energy exploded in his body, and he fell to the ground covered in blood. The elite soldiers swung the iron handles of their daggers, knocking down the sailors behind them to the ground, and then took out tough hemp ropes to tie Diego and the sailors tightly.

Seeing this scene, Matim could no longer stand still. He knelt down on the deck with a "plop" and hugged Bruno's calf.

"Brother Bruno, I have never treated you badly! You are a noble knight, so please spare my life! From now on, I will be your dog, and I will obey you in everything!..."

Bruno frowned, raised his foot, and kicked Matim to the ground.

"Get lost! The captain is in charge now! Matim, if you want to live, crawl to the captain!"

Afterwards, Bruno couldn't wait to take two steps forward, and walked in front of the howling and rolling Diego. He looked down at the other party's miserable situation, and laughed.

"Haha! Diego, how is it? How does it feel to be hit by a musket? Come on, let me check it out for you!"

As he spoke, Bruno stepped on Diego's knee, causing him to curl up in pain, like a boiled red shrimp.

"Tsk tsk, the knee is broken! Oh, the arm is broken too!...It hurts so much that I didn't cry, what a tough guy!"

Bruno had a victorious smile on his face. Then, with a fierce look in his eyes, he raised his foot, aimed at Diego's lower body, and stomped down heavily with all his strength!

"Foda-se! Let you miss my wife!"

"Ahhh!"

An unusually stern howl was squeezed out of Diego's mouth, making people feel chills all over. Nearly ten steps away, the head chef, Haroldo, shivered deeply, as if he heard the sound of some kind of egg breaking.

On the other side, Quartermaster Martim trembled all over. He struggled to climb to the front of the captain's cabin, and after a few steps away, he fell to the ground and begged the captain.

"Dear Captain! Noble Royal Knight! I beg you, for the sake of following you loyally for more than ten years, please spare my dog's life! Even if I am a coolie sailor..."

"Oh? Martim, how long have you been with me?"

Diogo looked calm, with deep eyes. He reached out to stop the guards around him, and stared at Matim under his feet.

"I...I have been with you for thirteen years...beginning as a sailor apprentice..."

Matim lay on the ground, his voice trembling.

"Yes, thirteen years and six months. It was the 1472th year since the birth of our Lord **** Christ. At that time, I had just become a captain. We followed the respected navigator João Santarém in the Gulf of Guinea Annobon and Príncipe were found in..."

Diogo lowered his eyes and fell into the long memory.

The European continent was generally calm that year. The Portuguese in the west explored the Gulf of Guinea and the Gold Coast; the Grand Duke of Moscow in the east married the subjugated Byzantine princess, Sophia. And in the unknown Eastern Dynasty, a unparalleled master was just born, and his name was Wang Shouren.

After a while, Diogo smiled lightly, with a vicissitudes of life.

"Matim, the Lord said, don't use time to test the loyalty of human beings, but give them a chance of redemption. Now, let the Almighty God judge your fate!"

With that said, Diogo took out a newly minted Portuguese Cruzado gold coin. The coin features the crowned Portuguese coat of arms on the obverse and the sacred cross on the reverse. He said gently to Matim.

"Matim, I will throw this gold coin and let the Lord judge you. If the royal coat of arms is facing up, then I will hang you bloodless and hang you on the mast of the bow according to the laws of the kingdom. .If the holy cross is up, I will forgive your previous sins according to the teaching of the Lord and give you a chance of redemption. How about it, is it fair?"

"...Captain, very, very fair..."

Looking at the gold coin in the captain's hand, Matim turned pale and responded tremblingly.

"Then, I'll say one, two, three, and the trial will officially begin."

A Madonna-like smile appeared on Diogo's face.

"Come, pray to the Lord devoutly!"

"one,"

"two,"

"three!"

Diogo tossed the gold coin high with his left hand. Matim's eyes spun up and down along with the gold coin, just like his beating heart. Then, Diogo stretched out his left hand suddenly, and then covered it with his right hand, and the gold coin suddenly disappeared from the air.

Matim's knees were shaking, and his forehead was covered with sweat. He knelt on the ground, praying devoutly, while trying to raise his head, looking at the surface of the gold coin. However, the gold coin was tightly covered by the captain's big hand, and nothing could be seen.

Diogo withdrew his left hand and raised his covered right hand slightly. He glanced at the gold coin on the back of his hand, and a mysterious smile appeared on his old face.

"Tchau!"

Matim's knees went limp and he almost collapsed to the ground. In Portuguese at this time, Tchau has two meanings of greeting and farewell, which is equivalent to "hello" and "goodbye" in Chinese.

"Ha ha!"

Diogo rarely smiled happily. Then, with a solemn expression, he solemnly said to Matim.

"Congratulations, Martim! It's the cross, you survived. God witnesses, I forgive you all your previous sins!"

"Ah! Thank you, I sincerely thank you for your kindness! Dear Captain, I am your eternal servant!..."

Matim was so excited that tears filled his eyes, and he lay limply on the deck, his sailor suit was completely soaked. He hugged the captain's calf, grateful.

Diogo shook his head slightly. He looked at Matim seriously.

"Don't thank me, but thank my Lord! It is the merciful Lord who heard your prayer and gave you the chance of redemption! From now on, you must devoutly believe in my Lord and redeem your past sins!"

"Yes, yes! Praise the Lord, He is the light of the world. I follow His guidance, I will not walk in darkness, I will have the light of life..."

Matim was incoherent, and it was the first time he prayed so devoutly. Diogo listened quietly, with a smile on his face. After the other party finished praying, he calmly ordered.

"Matim, my old friend. Go! Execute Diego and his cronies for me, and redeem your sins with your own hands."

"Yes, according to your will, my master!"

Matim knelt down on the ground and kowtowed heavily. Then, he turned his head, stood up, and walked in front of Diego with a fierce expression.

Bruno frowned when he saw Matim striding forward. The quartermaster had only spoken to the captain for a moment, and it seemed quite different. He stepped back, watching the behavior of the quartermaster.

Matim remained silent, and took a tough hemp rope from the surrounding sailors.

"Foda-se! Matim, what are you doing!"

Boatswain Diego was lying on the deck covered in blood. He watched Martim approaching with a grip on the rope, and let out a horrified howl.

"Matim! Fuck me!  …Uh! Uh! Ho!  …"

Bruno's heart trembled. He watched Matim half-knelt down indifferently, put a rope around Diego's neck, put his knees against the opponent's spine, and then suddenly exerted force with his arms!

Boatswain Diego struggled desperately, his legs thrashing violently. Matim didn't move at all, and he didn't show mercy. There was even a redemptive smile on his face. In just two or three minutes, Diego's face was covered with bruises, his eyes popped out, his long tongue stuck out, and he became limp and motionless.

Matim reached out to check Diego's breath, and nodded with satisfaction. Then, he continued to hold the rope and strangled the remaining four of Diego's cronies one by one. Then, with a relaxed expression, he went to report to the captain.

The wailing of dying echoed on the ship, shaking the hearts of all sailors. Diogo looked indifferent, scanning the crowd on the deck. Everyone bowed their heads in awe and saluted the respected captain. The lion has come out of the cage, once again ruling the jungle on the ship, controlling the life and death of everyone.

Diogo's eyes lingered on Bruno's face. The noble knight bowed his head in awe. The line of sight shifted immediately, and fell on the fat face of the chef Haroldo. Haroldo knelt down, and then the carpenter Ivo...

After Diogo glanced around, the boat was as quiet as no one. He spoke calmly, and his voice fell into everyone's ears.

"Before, in order to persuade me to return to the voyage, there was a rebellion on board."

Hearing this, many people's hearts tightened. Bruno held his breath, and quietly touched his dagger.

"The mastermind of the rebellion is Captain Diego and his cronies. The other participants were forced to coerce. The merciful Lord grants salvation to all, and I will forgive everyone else, including those who looted without permission. sailor!"

"Hoo... Praise the Lord! Praise the captain!"

Heavy exhalations sounded on the deck, followed by chaotic prayers. All were relieved when the pious captain swore to the Lord that he would not be held accountable for the mutiny. Because, they believe, respected Captain Diogo, will never violate the sacred oath.

Under the gaze of everyone, Diogo stretched out his left hand, drew a sign of the cross on his forehead and chest, and prayed for a moment. Then, he said firmly.

"Almighty God gave me a revelation! The route to the East is not far away, just go around the south of the African continent! There is the mighty Presbyterian John, the rich India, and Seris, which is full of silk! Just discover the route to the East , the generous king will reward each of you! Your names will also be passed on to the ears of the Holy Pope, and a place will be reserved in heaven! This is your only chance of redemption!"

Hearing this, the expressions of the sailors changed. They had a vague premonition. Sure enough, the next moment, Captain Diogo stood up slowly, and ordered that he could not be disobeyed.

"Pack up the sampan, raise the sails, and hang the corpse of the rebel on the three masts! Adjust the course, raise the semaphore, and tell the entire fleet! Let's continue exploring and turn to the south! Our Lady bless us!"

"... Our Lady protect us!"

There was a few breaths of silence on the deck. Then, low voices of prayer came from among the sailors. Everyone followed the captain's order and got busy again. Bruno exhaled silently, bowed his head and walked to the side of the ship. He watched the restless sailors on the sampan and shouted.

"The Lord testifies! The captain has forgiven your sins! Bring food and belongings, UU reading www.uukanshu.com hurry up and board the ship. Women are not allowed!"

The eight or nine sailors on the sampan looked at each other and nodded. In the wild tropical jungle, in the land of the devil, leaving the fleet means death! Without hesitation, they pulled out their scimitars, cut the throat of the indigenous woman, and kicked her into the Congo River. The billowing river flows into the vast ocean with reddish waves, just like the everlasting jungle.

After a brief busy period, the three Caravel sailboats turned slowly, driven by the northeast monsoon in winter, against the Benguela cold current, and headed south with difficulty.

Everything is under control. Diogo turned around slowly, walked into the dim captain's cabin, and closed the hatch silently. On his face, pain and exhaustion finally appeared. Afterwards, he smiled lightly and loosened his clasped right hand. The Cruzado gold coin was finally revealed from the back of his left hand, and the one facing upwards was the royal family's emblem.

"Praise be to the Lord!...for he has done marvelous things. With his right hand and holy arm, he wrought salvation...Amen."

Diogo recited softly, this is a psalm of praise, the Lord's salvation, Cantate Domino.

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