"Balsas Rivermouth, three to four hundred li by sea route..."
Xiulote's expression changed. Zicao County in the south was by the Balsas River, and about two hundred li southward was the rivermouth. This route was unexpectedly suitable! It was more convenient and easier than the southwest mountain road, and it spared the need to pacify Chapala compared to the northwest waterway... The King slowly nodded, his decision sealing the merchant's fate.
"Merchant, what is your name?"
"Ah, Your Majesty, my Mexica name is Telali, 'earth's soil'... I hail from the Tlapanec tribe of Xiwatelan, my father is the chieftain of a village on the plains, and I am the second son of my family..."
Hearing the King inquire, Telali breathed a sigh of relief, a dead man's name is of no concern. He confessed everything earnestly.
"Telali, I offer you a chance to serve the great Alliance, the sacred Royal Family."