King Solomon's Treasure

Chapter 12 Solomon's Road (2)
Both sides of the creek are covered with dense and tall maidenhair fern, dotted with clusters of wild asparagus.The brook flowed merrily beside us, the gentle breeze brushed the leaves of the silver tree like lovers whispering, the pigeons cooed all around, and the birds with bright wings fluttered in the forest like birds Crystal gem.What a paradise-like beauty.

The dreamlike scenery, the sense of relief of having escaped from death a few times before, and finally arriving at this long-awaited land, we were all intoxicated for a while.Sir Henry and Ambopa were talking in low tones, now in English, now in Zulu, and the conversation was full of enthusiasm.I squinted at them as I lay among the fragrant maidenhair ferns.After a while, I found that Good was gone, and I looked around to see what he was doing.It turned out that he had just had a bath in the brook, and was sitting on the bank with nothing on but a flannel shirt.Obviously, he still can't change his habit of loving cleanliness, and he is concentrating on grooming.The gutta-percha collar had been washed and the dust shaken from the trousers, coat and waistcoat which he was now carefully folding.He shook his head sadly when he saw the large and small rips and holes in the clothes.The journey was full of hardships and dangers, and the clothes were naturally riddled with holes.Then he took his boots, wiped them with a handful of maidenhair, and took out a piece of grease and spread them on them.This piece of fat was carefully cut off from the body of "Yingku".He polished it carefully, checked it thoroughly through his monocle at last, and put it on to his satisfaction.Move on to the next job.From the bag he carried with him he took out a small comb with a small mirror attached to it.He looked in the mirror and was obviously dissatisfied with his current appearance, so he began to comb his hair carefully, and then looked at himself in the mirror, still dissatisfied.He touched his chin. He hadn't shaved for ten days, and his beard was already very long. "Does he want to shave now?" I wondered to myself.Who knew that he was really ready to shave.First, I took out the piece of grease for wiping boots, washed it carefully in the water, and then took out a small safety razor from the bag.This razor is specially designed for those who worry about cutting their face, and it is also suitable for sailing.Goode picked up the grease and rubbed it vigorously on his face and chin, and then began to shave. While shaving, he kept moaning, obviously in pain.Seeing him struggling with the beard, I almost burst out laughing.In this place, under the circumstances, it seemed strange and funny that he should shave with grease.After spending a long time, I finally finished shaving the beard on the right side of my face and chin.At this moment, a bright light flashed above his head.

Goode sprang to his feet, swearing that if it hadn't been for the safety razor he would have slit his throat.I also jumped up suddenly, and saw a group of people standing less than twenty steps away from me and about ten steps away from Gude, all of them were tall, with bronze skin, some with beautiful feathers on their heads, Wear a short cloak of leopard skin.Standing in the front row was a young man of about seventeen, with one hand raised, leaning forward in the pose of a Greek javeliner.Obviously that light just now was the weapon he threw.

At this time, an old man with the appearance of a soldier came out from the crowd, grabbed the young man's arm and said something to him.Then they came towards us.

Sir Henry, Goode, and Umberpa raised their rifles defensively, but still the group of natives came towards us.I see, they don't know what a rifle is, and that's why they don't care about it.

"Put the gun down!" I yelled at them, knowing that our only chance of survival was reconciliation.They put down their guns.I stepped forward and said to the old man holding the boy, "Hello." I really don't know what language to use, so I plan to try in Zulu first.Unexpectedly, the other party understood.

"Hello." The old man also replied in Zulu.His Zulu dialect, although with some dialect, was understood by Ambopa and I.We later learned that he spoke an ancient Zulu language.

"Where are you from?" he continued. "Who are you? Why are three of you white? The other has a face similar to ours?" He pointed at Ambopa.I looked at Ambopa, and what he said was true.Ambopa's face and figure do bear some resemblance to this group.But I don't have time to think about it.

"We are aliens and have come in peace," I said slowly so that he could understand. "This man is our servant."

"You lie," he replied, "no outsider can pass through the mountains where nothing grows. But it doesn't matter if you lie, if you are outsiders, you will die. Outsiders who enter Kukuana must die. This It is the king's law. Die, stranger!"

After hearing this, I was secretly surprised.I was even more taken aback when I saw someone stretching out their hands to their waists.Each of them had a heavy sword hanging from their waist.

"What's this old beggar talking about?" Goode asked me.

"He said we were all going to die," I said coldly.

"Oh, God," Goode grunted.He has a habit of reaching out to take off the upper row of dentures and putting them back with a snap whenever he encounters any difficulties.Then he did it again out of habit.Unexpectedly, this action became our lifesaver.Almost simultaneously the imposing Kukuana shrieked in terror and stepped back a few yards.

"What's going on?" I was puzzled.

"It's his dentures," said Sir Henry in a low voice, his tone unconcealed with excitement. "He moved them. Good, take them off! Quick!"

Good took off his dentures and tucked them quietly into the sleeves of his flannel shirt.

After a few seconds, curiosity overcame fear, and the group of people slowly walked forward a few steps, obviously they had forgotten their original intention to kill us.

"What's the matter, outsider?" The old man pointed to Goode, who was only wearing a flannel shirt and half-shaven, and asked seriously, "That man is wearing clothes but has bare legs, pale There is a beard on one side of the face, but nothing on the other side, and a sparkling transparent eye, and the teeth can be taken off at will and put back again, what is going on?"

"Open your mouth," I said to Goode.He immediately raised his lips, grinning at the old man like an angry dog.There are two rows of reddish gums in Goode's mouth, like a baby elephant that has not yet grown teeth.The group of people stared dumbfounded.

"Where's his tooth?" they cried. "We just saw it."

Goode slowly turned his head, made a dismissive gesture, and quickly passed his hand over his mouth.Then he turned back and grinned at them.look!Two rows of neat teeth appeared in the mouth.

The young man who threw the knife at him before fell to his knees with a plop, let out a long scream, and his face was full of horror.The old man was also so frightened that his legs trembled.

"I see, you are gods," he said with a trembling voice, "How can it be possible for a mortal to have a beard on only one side of his face? How can it be possible for him to have transparent round eyes? How can it be possible for his teeth to suddenly disappear and appear again suddenly? Gods, please Forgive us."

How can such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity be missed?

So I put on a dignified face, smiled slightly, and said, "I'll spare you this time. Let me tell you the truth. Although we look like ordinary people, we are from another world. We are from..." I paused , "The biggest and brightest star in the night sky."

"Oh! Oh!" There were exclamations one after another.

"Yes, that's true." I smiled kindly, and continued my big lie. "We are only here for a while, bless you. Look, friends, I even learned your language on purpose."

"Yes, yes." The group echoed in unison. "Oh, gods," interjected the old man, "but you are a poor learner."

I glared at him angrily, and he flinched back a step.

"Now, my friends," I continued, "we have come all the way from distant stars to be treated like this. How dare someone throw a knife at a god with moving teeth. You may think we will take revenge, no Will let that disrespectful guy go."

"Forgive him, God," pleaded the old man. "He is the King's son, and I am his uncle. If anything should happen to him, it will be my fault."

"Yes, that's right." The young man insisted.

"You may doubt our ability to revenge." I ignored the two men and continued, "Hold still, I will let you see. You, this dog slave (I deliberately called Ambopa in rude language), will Bring me the talking mill." After I finished speaking, I glanced at the rifle, and then gave Ambopa a wink.

Ambopa stood up, with an imperceptible smile on his serious face, and handed me the gun.

"Here you are, God of Gods." He bowed deeply to me respectfully.

Just before I let Ambopan take the rifle, I spotted a baby kook standing on a rock about seventy yards away.So I decided to take a risk and shoot.

"See that little kala?" I said, pointing at the little kala. "Tell me, can a common man kill it with sound from here?"

"Of course not, God." The old man replied.

"Of course you can't. But I can." I said calmly.

The old man smiled: "I'm afraid even the gods can't do it."

I raised my rifle and took aim.This antelope is not big, and it is understandable to miss the shot, but I know I must not miss this time.

I took a deep breath and slowly pulled the trigger.The little mountain antelope was still standing quietly on the rock.

"Bang!" The little antelope jumped up in fright, and then fell to the ground, motionless, dead.

Immediately, bursts of exclamation burst out from the crowd.

"If you want meat, go and drag it here," I said coldly.

The old man made a gesture, and a follower ran over and brought the little gazelle back in a short while.The bullet hit the prey just in the back shoulder, and I smiled with satisfaction.The group gathers around the young goose, looking at the bullet holes in horror.

"You see," I said, "I never boast."

Everyone was silent.

"If you still doubt our ability," I went on, "stand on that rock, and I guarantee that he will end exactly like this antelope."

No one dared to try it easily, and finally the king's son spoke.

"Is it really that powerful? Uncle, you go over there and stand on that rock. His magic can only kill an antelope, but he can't kill anyone."

The old man did not follow suit, showing a sad expression.

"No! No!" he retorted hastily, "my old eyes have seen clearly. They do know magic. Take them to the king. If anyone still doubts, stand on the rock and see the magic Control the power."

There was an eager disapproval from the crowd.

"Don't waste magic on us," someone said. "We believe it. We have wizards who are far from being so powerful here."

"That's right," the old man replied, and the stone in his heart fell to the ground. "There is no doubt about it. Listen, children of the stars, your eyes will shine, your teeth will move, your roar Hunting. My name is Inverdus, son of Kaffa, former king of Kukuana. This young man is called Skarga."

"This kid almost killed me." Goode muttered.

"Our great king is called Taiwala, and he has a thousand women. He is the supreme king of Kukuana and the guardian of the Way of Solomon. He is brave and powerful, and he commands all armies. Tewala is awe-inspiring."

"Then," I said haughtily, "take us to Tewara. We will not chatter with servants."

"Okay, gods. We will take you there, but the journey is far away. This time we are ordered to hunt for three days. But please don't worry, gods, we will lead the way."

"Well then," I said nonchalantly, "we are immortal, and we have plenty of time. We are ready, and you lead the way. But Inverdus, and you, Skarga, listen to me Don't play tricks with us, and don't try to set a trap. If you dare to use your brains, we'll see at a glance, and you will look good then. Behold the god with bare legs and half beard (Good )? His transparent eye can shoot golden light, not only you will be shot dead, but even your country will be razed to the ground. His teeth that come and go freely can bite you tightly and kill you And your wives and children will be eaten. And the magic tube will teach you a lesson, as long as it roars, you will become a sieve full of eyes. Be careful!"

This long paragraph of threats really worked.In fact, this is completely superfluous, because this group of people have been frightened by our power before and dare not act rashly.

The old man bowed deeply and kept saying "Qom, Qom" in his mouth.I later learned that this was their honorific speech to the royal family, which is equivalent to "Bayet" in Zulu.Then the old man turned around and gave instructions to his followers.The entourage immediately ran over to help us with our luggage, but they dared not touch the gun anyway.They even took Goode's clothes, which, if the reader recalls, were neatly folded beside Goode.

Goode grabbed his clothes and quarreled with the other party.

"Gods with transparent eyes and moving teeth," said the old man, "these things should be taken by servants."

"But I want to wear clothes!" Good roared in English.

Ambopa translated his words.

"No, god," said Inverdus, "will you cover your fair legs (Gud's skin is very white) before the servants? Is it because we have offended you?"

I almost laughed out loud when someone picked up his pants.

"Damn!" Good yelled. "That nigger took my pants."

"You know, Goode," said Sir Henry, "that you are already a figure of God in this country, and you must go on. Don't wear trousers anymore. From now on you will only wear flannel shirts, boots, and Monocle."

"That's right," I said, "and you can only grow a half beard. If you change your image, they'll think we're liars. I feel sorry for you, but really, you have to. Once they get suspicious, Our lives are in danger."

"Do you really think so?" Goode asked dejectedly.

"Yes. Your 'white legs' and monocle are our trademark now. Sir Henry is right, you must carry on. Thankfully you have boots and the weather is warm."

Goode sighed helplessly and said nothing more.It took two full weeks before he got used to this look.

(End of this chapter)