The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.1 / Page 733 (Color Image)

0733	The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.1

CHAP. XXIII. THE PLOT AGAINST ACHMATH

419

surprised, but made haste to go, for he feared the Prince

greatly. When he arrived at the gate he met a Tartar

called Cogatai, who was Captain of the 12,000 that

formed the standing garrison of the City ; and the latter

asked him whither he was bound so late ? " To

Chinkin, who is just arrived." Quoth Cogatai, " How

can that be ? How could he corne so privily that I know

nought of it ? " So he followed the Minister with a

certain number of his soldiers. Now the notion of the

Cathayans was that, if they could make an end of

Achmath, they would have nought else to be afraid of.

So as soon as Achmath got inside the palace, and saw

all that illumination, he bowed down before Vanchu,

supposing him to be Chinkin, and Chenchu who was

standing ready with a sword straightway cut his head

off. As soon as Cogatai, who had halted at the entrance,

beheld this, he shouted " Treason ! " and instantly dis-

charged an arrow at Vanchu and shot him dead as he

sat. At the same time he called his people to seize

Chenchu, and sent a proclamation through the city that

any one found in the streets would be instantly put to

death. The Cathayans saw that the Tartars had dis-

covered the plot, and that they had no longer any leader,

since Vanchu was killed and Chenchu was taken. So

they kept still in their houses, and were unable to pass

the signal for the rising of the other cities as bad been

settled. Cogatai immediately dispatched messengers

to the Great Kaan giving an orderly report of the whole

affair, and the Kaan sent back orders for him to make

a careful investigation, and to punish the guilty as their

misdeeds deserved. In the morning Cogatai examined

all the Cathayans, and put to death a number whom he

found to be ringleaders in the plot. The same thing

was done in the other cities, when it was found that the

plot extended to them also.

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