Captain Grant's Children

Chapter 55: Forbidden Mountain (2)
It went like this for 3 whole days.That night, Paganel bit the rope with his mouth and fled quietly to the top of Mount Montganam.Before that, he had seen Karatet's funeral from a distance, and he also knew that the whole mountain would be "forbidden by gods", and this was definitely the best place to hide; this was also a good time to wait for news from his partners.

It's really "God's help"!Glenarvan and others also happened to be on this forbidden mountain.

As for how the three days in the Maori tribe were spent, Paganel said nothing.Then don't think about the past anymore, after all, everyone is meeting again at this moment, which is a blessing in misfortune!Seeing Paganel's embarrassing appearance, his companions also understood him: Hey, entertaining everyone in the tomb.So, everyone followed Paganel into the tomb.The Maori people at the bottom of the mountain roared and became angry when they saw this scene.At the same time, they fired randomly for a while—they could never bear the tomb that was "forbidden by God" to be so desecrated by the fugitives.

The bullets fell on the mountainside one after another, but the insults never stopped.

However, the hatred of the Maori is far from allowing them to break through the taboos in their beliefs.

Lady Helen and Mary were not as worried as before.

The tomb is surrounded by wooden piles, and the woodcut patterns carved on them have the same function as the tattoos on the chief's body - showing the noble status.

In addition, there are many strings of shells and stones hanging between the pillars-these are all things to ward off evil spirits.

Above the tomb is a layer of green leaves, densely distributed, like a whole piece of carpet.In the middle is the raised part-that is the newly built soil layer, under which the corpses are buried.

All the chief's funeral weapons were there.There were guns—loaded in them, and spears, and a fine and beautiful green axe, and lots of ammunition.Apparently, the chieftain had no difficulty hunting in that underworld.

"What a huge arsenal!" said Paganel. "We can make the most of them! It's just wonderful! Let's use them for the dead."

"Hey! These guns are all made in England!" the major joked. "Hey! This is all a gift from the British to the Maori! Tell me, are they stupid? They are even more stupid than the Maori! Even the Maori know how to shoot the enemy with a gun! But we have benefited , take your gun and hit the enemy!" Glenarvan said confidently.

Paganel said again: "The food and drink are more useful to us now than the guns! Look, they prepared all these for Karate." I saw that the tomb was full of food.It is enough for 10 people to eat for half a month.

There are anchovy roots, sweet potatoes, potatoes.There are also several large vats filled with clean water; in addition, there are more than a dozen baskets that are particularly delicately woven.Inside was a rectangular block of green gum—no one knew what it was for.

Is this really God's arrangement?At this moment, this group of hungry fugitives need not worry about their stomachs.

Glenarvan took some things casually and asked Aubine to process them.The secretary is a very conscientious and careful person. No matter what the situation is, he will meticulously cook delicious meals for everyone.But at this time, he really didn't know how to process the grass root, and there was no fire.

Paganel came to his rescue again, and he suggested a solution: just bury the grass roots and sweet potatoes in the soil.

The broken soil on the mountain is more than 60 degrees, which is enough to roast the food.Aubine then stretched out his hand to pick up the soil, but was immediately scalded and shook his hand away.

Later, he put the grass root in the soil, and with a swish, a puff of hot smoke was emitted, and it was sprayed out two meters high, which frightened the chief secretary and turned his head.

"Stop it now!" cried the major.The two sailors immediately came to help and filled the hole with rubble.At this moment, Paganel, who was standing by the side, stared at the hole in the ground with ecstasy, and said to himself: "Hey, hey! Why can't it work? Haha!" "You didn't burn you, did you?" Mike said Booth asked Obiney. "No, no . . . I really haven't imagined . . . Mr. McNabbs."

The secretary was a little embarrassed. "Did you ever imagine that God would be so good to us?" Paganel said excitedly, "There is food, drink, and fire! Hey! This mountain is no less than heaven! I suggest that we can go to the This is to establish a colony, where men farm and women weave, have enough food and clothing, and live comfortably for a lifetime; just like Robinson Robinson! Robinson Robinson on Montganam Mountain! Great! Just in this high fairyland on earth, there is still something missing what?"

"There is no shortage! The situation in front of me at this moment is that the earth's crust is not very strong!"

John made a joke.

"You don't need to worry about the crust at all. It wasn't weak yesterday! It's been years! I don't think there will be any problems until we leave! Don't worry you!"

Paganel yelled with delight. "Breakfast is ready," Aubinet announced, as if at Malcolm Hall.Everyone was seated at once—by the fence, actually—and began to eat what God had provided.There is no one to pick and choose, because there are only grass roots and sweet potatoes.

People have different opinions about the taste made by grass roots. Some people think it is delicious, while others think it is not good.But everyone is full of praise for the sweet potatoes baked in the hot soil, which can be called a delicacy in the world.

While eating, the geographer was filled with emotion: Karate could have such delicious food to accompany him after he died, it was a worthy death!
After eating and drinking, Glenarvan hurriedly discussed with everyone how to escape.

"Why rush?" Paganel said sincerely, "such a good place, why rush to leave? I think we should stay for a few more days."

Lady Helen spoke:
"No matter how good this place is, it's not a place for us to stay for a long time! This is Kabu, and we can't be like Hannibal, who is too happy to leave. The end is miserable."

Paganel nodded his head and responded, "Madame is right! You can't be too happy! Let's sum it up quickly."

"I think we must act quickly!" Glenarvan spoke first. "We must not wait any longer! It will be too late after we eat! Besides, we have all our strength now! I've decided to just tonight." , let’s run down from the eastern ridge, trying to get into the valley and rush through the Maori encirclement!”

"Yes, yes!" Paganel responded hastily, "It's a good idea. It would be best if the Maori turned a blind eye!"

"And what if they both have their eyes open?" John asked the geographer hastily.

"Then we have another brilliant idea!" Paganel replied mysteriously.

"It turns out that in your heart, you already have a good idea?" The major asked with concern. "It's not too early, but it must be!" Paganel didn't continue to say.No one asked him any more.

The only thing to do now is to wait for dark!Only when it is dark can the party move and rush through the Maori encirclement.Looking down from the top of the mountain, it was very clear that the crowd surrounding them hardly moved at all, but the number of them continued to increase.And, they set up a bonfire in three steps and five steps.

Night fell at last.The top of the mountain was completely submerged in darkness, but the bonfire at the foot of the mountain flickered and flickered with red light, surrounding the entire Mengganamu Mountain in the middle.

And the yelling and insulting voices of the Maori people were still scattered in the night sky. 9:[-].

At night, I can't see my fingers.In order to be sure, Glenarvan and John decided to go to the road for reconnaissance first.

So they quickly slipped down the ridge and touched the slope. 10 minutes later.They were soon approaching the Maori encirclement.It was only 50 feet from there at this time.

It can be seen that the Maori lay peacefully by the fire, and did not hear any movement from this side, as if they felt that they were not aware of anything.

The two of them moved on, hands sweating.Suddenly, the left and right sides of the ridge were flanked at the same time, and the gunshots rang out. "Quick retreat!" Glenarvan hurriedly ordered, "The eyes of these bastards are similar to those of cats, so bright! The guns are also very accurate!" The two of them hurried back and climbed to the top of the mountain again.Everyone was relieved to see that they had returned safely.I saw that the hat Glenarvan was wearing was pierced by two bullets, which was so hanging that it almost hurt his head.Looking back and thinking about it, I can't help but feel a little scared.

Never thought that Maori vigilance is so well understood!It seems that everyone can't be allowed to take risks easily. "I think we'll talk about it tomorrow," Paganel suggested. "Since we can't easily touch it, let's see my clever trick!" The night air gradually became thicker, and the temperature began to drop accordingly.Everyone feels very cold.So everyone found Karate's funeral clothes or bedding from the tomb and wrapped them around their bodies to keep warm.The body is warm, the ground is warm, and there is a fence outside to block it. Besides, the whole mountain is "forbidden by gods". What a safe and reliable place it is!

Don't you guys still have trouble falling asleep?

(End of this chapter)