Sapangu was a vast island whose inhabitants were independent and idolatrous. It lay so far from the coast that merchants rarely reached it; as a result, gold, reddish pearls, and precious stones were said to abound there.
Kublai Khan soon recognized the value of the island and, determined to conquer these lands, sent a great fleet under the command of two of his generals. From the outset, the expedition was marked by mistrust: the two men despised one another. Upon their arrival, the Tramontane wind began to blow violently, and as the generals refused to cooperate, the voyage turned into disaster. In their attempt to flee, the ships collided with one another, and many were wrecked or left adrift.
Thirty thousand men survived the shipwreck and reached a nearby islet. From there, they watched others sail away, believing them to be dead.
Without food or hope, those who had survived but were thought lost remained on the islet. The inhabitants of Sapangu waited for the sea to calm before setting out to capture the survivors. However, they neglected their own ships, and the castaways seized the opportunity to take them and hasten toward the main island. Upon arrival, being mistaken for the local army, they were allowed through the gates without hesitation. In the absence of the island?s men, they seized the city, expelled the elderly, and took the women to serve them.
The men of the Great Khan held the city for seven months, but without provisions, unable to inform the Great Khan, and besieged by the island?s inhabitants, they were forced to negotiate in order to survive. They surrendered, and thus remained on that island for the rest of their lives.
Meanwhile, Kublai Khan ordered the two generals to be condemned to death for their discord: one was beheaded, and the other was sentenced to die slowly on a deserted island, deprived of his hands so that he could not fend for himself.
