The Human Heart

The sky stretched vast, clouds and sunset glow filling the heavens. Xolotl and Avet stood side by side atop a hill, dressed in elaborate robes. Neither spoke. They merely watched the sun sink completely below the horizon as night slowly descended. Though they had been apart for only a day, they somehow seemed much more distant from one another.

There was no moon tonight, and dark clouds had already veiled the sky.

"It's going to rain."

Xolotl spoke calmly.

"Yes. The road won't be easy tomorrow."

Avet replied with a smile.

"Yesterday's battle was a great victory."

Xolotl pondered for a while before asking softly.

"Tell me, when we return, how do you think the King will reward you?"

"Fighting the Otomi People—what great victory could there be?"

Avet chuckled and shook his head.

"Besides, the foremost merit in this battle belonged to Kasal's decisive strike, followed by Balda's support. I merely watched the battle from the mountaintop."

Hearing this, Xolotl froze for a moment before asking hesitantly.

"Avet, your defense was the most arduous task. And... you don't intend to claim military merit?"

Seeing the pure confusion on the youth's face, Avet finally burst into laughter.

"Haaha! Xolotl, what use is military merit?"

"Hmm... it can earn the King's rewards? Obtain a higher position?"

Xolotl thought for a moment and asked tentatively.

"Oh! And what meaning would any of that have for me?"

Avet smiled gently as he calmly countered.

Silence fell between them. Xolotl thought quietly without speaking. Avet was the King's brother, and not long ago, he had controlled the royal intelligence and guard departments. Someone like that, deeply involved in the struggle for succession, ought to keep his brilliance hidden and bide his time.

Only after a long while did Xolotl ask softly.

"...Then, Avet, what is meaningful?"

Avet did not answer directly. He rubbed his chin and smiled as he returned a question.

"Xolotl, why did more than a hundred warriors follow you today?"

"They seemed to be relatives of those who died in battle, and last night, I presided over the funeral that guided the dead souls onward."

Xolotl answered cautiously.

"Mm. Then did you gain military merit yesterday?"

"No."

After a brief hesitation, Xolotl still faced the truth.

Avet nodded slightly and continued to ask.

"So, what is power?"

"What is power?"

Xolotl savored the question and fell silent in thought. As someone who possessed memories of another life, he did not believe in bloodlines or divine authority.

"Power... is an exalted position?"

At that moment, Xolotl thought of King Tizoc. Without question, the King possessed power.

"Ha!"

Avet merely laughed without speaking.

"Hmm..."

Xolotl racked his brains, sifting through memories from different eras. Suddenly, a line he had learned from a book flashed into his mind, and he blurted it out.

"Power comes from the people!"

Avet was abruptly stunned. He stared fixedly at Xolotl for a while before slowly nodding.

"You are right. Power comes from the hearts of the people. You truly possess wisdom from a previous life."

With a trace of seriousness, Avet looked at Xolotl and asked again.

"Then, what is the human heart?"

"Actions that earn people's reverence."

Xolotl recalled the daily divine rites held by his grandfather and the King in this age, the funeral for the fallen yesterday, and the sacrificial ceremonies conducted in the name of the gods. At last, he thought of Zongzhou's "rites and music."

"Actions that bring benefits to people."

Xolotl recalled the warriors' cheers after yesterday's great victory, the importance of productive forces, and the power of wealth in his memories.

"Customs that remain unchanged over time."

Xolotl recalled the inertia of history, Mesoamerica's long age of divine rule, the Zhou Dynasty that endured into the Warring States period, and religions passed down for a thousand years.

"What else?"

There had to be something more. Xolotl searched through every memory. The human heart—the human heart was rule, the legitimacy of rule, the source of legitimacy. Yet the memories of his former life had grown hazy. The political theory classes that had once seemed least important in school had become truly precious Dragon-Slaying Technique in this era. He could only regret not studying them properly back then.

Perhaps time would tell him everything, and the practice of power would also help him recall those truths buried in textbooks.

"I don't know."

Xolotl stopped struggling and instead looked at Avet with expectant eyes.

Yet Avet did not continue their conversation. Nor did he suddenly pick up a stick, smack Xolotl on the head, and ask, "Have you attained enlightenment?"

He merely gazed quietly into the night sky, silently yearning.

So Xolotl looked up at the night sky as well. Countless stars filled it. In Mesoamerica's summer night, amid medieval campfires, the Milky Way was so resplendent, and heaven and earth so boundless.

To the stars, a thousand years were no more than an instant. Could the rise and fall of the human world truly stir changes in the heavens?

Xolotl gazed at the Ziwei Star in the north. It rested at the center of the northern sky, so brilliant and dazzling, as though it carried an innate majesty. He reached into his memories, and a sentence seemed to echo beside his ear.

"Whoever grasps the human heart grasps this nation!"

A gust of wind swept past, and fine rain began to patter down, wetting both their feathered crowns.

"It's raining. Let's go back."

Avet turned and walked toward the camp. Nothing was said that night.

Several days passed swiftly, and June's rainy season began to show its fervor. The ceaseless rain made the forest even harder to traverse. A new path had appeared in the forest, marked by the fallen corpses of Otomi captives stretching all the way to the foot of Xilotepec. Soon, grass and trees would bury the path, along with the lives returning to Earth Mother.

At first, the Mexica Warriors still carried the excitement of victory. Then, amid the endless rain and mountain forests, their morale gradually wore away. Fortunately, this road of several hundred li was not long. Soon, Xilotepec lay before their eyes.

If they were to attack Otopan afterward, such a journey would stretch beyond half a month. Xolotl frowned as he thought of it. That would truly be a disaster—the natural calamity of the rainy season and the mountain forest.

Kasal walked at the very front of the column, brimming with pride. Today, he wore an official Sun Stone cloak and a specially made feathered crown spread in splendid display. Behind him stood a row of standard-bearers carrying banners of every color. Further back came the Jaguar Military Nobility who had earned merit in battle, followed by more than two thousand five hundred Otomi captives under escort.

Returning in triumph, delight appeared on Kasal's usually impassive face. Balda beside him also wore the formal attire of Eagle Regiment nobility, striding with his head held high and smug delight written all over him.

As the victorious procession marched its captives toward Xilotepec's western gate, the warriors from the various states who had spent many idle days surrounding the city also cheered and howled enthusiastically to welcome the triumphant return.

At last, Xolotl saw the legion from the Holy City of Teotihuacan. His burly father, full of heroic vigor, had come to watch the excitement with Olorosh and a group of familiar warriors.

After more than two months apart, father and son finally met again. Xoloc strode forward and pulled his son Xolotl tightly into his embrace. It seemed that they had a thousand words to say, yet for a moment, neither knew where to begin.

Instead, Olorosh stepped forward, stretched out a powerful hand, and happily slapped Xolotl on the shoulder.

"Hey! Xolotl, it's only been a while, but you look much more mature now, boy!"

Seeing Olorosh's casual gesture, Bertad, who had been following behind Xolotl all along, frowned and stepped forward, subtly shielding Xolotl's side. The gazes of the two powerful warriors, both with the strength of Jaguars, met. They immediately assessed one another, light gleaming in their eyes as battle intent blazed like fire.

"Ah!"

Xolotl raised his brows and hurriedly introduced them. Only after hearing that Olorosh was the teacher who had instructed Xolotl in martial arts did Bertad take a step back and lower his head slightly to the Jaguar in apology.

When they heard that Bertad was Xolotl's follower, however, Xoloc and Olorosh looked at each other in astonishment, their surprise impossible to conceal.

Then father and son eagerly began sharing their experiences. But before they had spoken for long, Xolotl saw Avet standing not far away, watching them with a smiling gaze.

Xolotl's expression turned solemn as he introduced him to his father.

"This is Ahuitzotl, the King's brother, my uncle and teacher, and also my best friend!"

At these words, a satisfied curve appeared on Ahuitzotl's handsome face. Then, with a half-smile, he looked at Xoloc.

"Ahuitzotl... the royal brother."

Xoloc's expression tightened instead. Unconcealed concern surfaced on his resolute face. Clearly, he had long heard of Ahuitzotl.

The two exchanged formal greetings, prayed to the Main God together, and then greeted each other.

"Honored Commander Xoloc, you have truly raised a son blessed with natural intelligence!"

Ahuitzotl smiled sincerely in praise.

"Not at all! Let the Main God bear witness! Xolotl has always been slow-witted and ignorant of worldly affairs. His natural intelligence is merely rumor. At most, he has a slight talent for numbers."

The burly Xoloc lowered his head slightly and explained with some nervousness.

"Blessed by the Main God! The King is already awaiting the victorious legion's return. We must be going first."

Ahuitzotl smiled again, gestured to Xolotl, and turned away. Xolotl pressed his lips together and could only follow.

Before leaving, his father gripped his hand tightly and formed solemn words with his lips.

"Be... careful!"