Ch.214Syria (6)

# The Great Capital of the Ulus

A serious atmosphere permeated the Great Capital.

“They want us to stop the Mongol Pirates’ activities?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The envoy from Japan bowed as he answered.

In response, Khasar, who was managing state affairs in the Great Capital on behalf of Yesugei, wore an expression of disbelief.

“Coming here out of nowhere and demanding we stop the Mongol Pirates’ activities. Such rudeness is unprecedented.”

“I apologize for my directness, but my country knows that the Mongol government is behind the Mongol Pirates.”

At the Japanese envoy’s words, which suggested they knew everything, Khasar couldn’t help but rebuke him.

“Even if that were true, this is not a matter to be discussed so confrontationally with the Ulus, which is clearly the Empire of the Heavenly Mandate. Above all, Japan has never paid tribute to the Ulus.”

To Khasar’s rebuke, the envoy immediately retorted as if he had something to say.

“My country, like the Ulus, has paid tribute to the Song Dynasty. Therefore, we see no need to separately pay tribute to Mongolia.”

“How insolent!”

Khasar slammed his fist down, expressing his anger.

The envoy was essentially saying that Japan and the Ulus were equals, which was unacceptable.

Of course, the envoy’s words had some merit.

The Ulus had also paid tribute to the Song Dynasty.

However, the Ulus had defeated the Jin Dynasty and claimed their heavenly mandate.

So while it was true they paid tribute to the Song Dynasty, they deserved respect as an empire.

Japan’s disregard for this diplomatic protocol left Khasar no choice but to be furious.

“I apologize if I’ve offended you. However, my country has received titles from the Song Dynasty, so we believe we also deserve respect.”

At the envoy’s sophistry, Khasar glared at him.

Then he ordered the envoy to leave.

“I’d like to kill you for insulting the Ulus in place of Gurkhan, but I’ll spare your life. If you value your life, return to Japan immediately.”

“I will not leave until you give a definitive answer that you will stop the Mongol Pirates’ piracy.”

“What?”

“This is not merely my country’s will. The Song Dynasty has also conveyed that they will not overlook this matter.”

With those words, the envoy took something from his breast and handed it to an official.

After checking it for poison, the official presented it to Khasar.

“…from the Song Dynasty…!”

Khasar gritted his teeth.

He now understood why Japan was being so aggressive.

The Song Dynasty was behind Japan.

They were instigating Japan to check the Ulus.

Khasar could immediately understand the reason.

The Song Dynasty was currently overwhelming the Jin Dynasty.

If the Jin Dynasty disappeared, the Song Dynasty and Mongolia would share a border.

From the Song Dynasty’s perspective, which wanted to recover its lost territory, the Ulus, which occupied the North China Plain, could only be an enemy.

For this reason, the Song Dynasty was trying to use Japan to check the Ulus.

From the Ulus’s position, dealing with Japan alone wouldn’t be difficult.

But facing the Song Dynasty as well would be challenging.

Therefore, Khasar couldn’t make this decision alone.

“Provide the envoy with accommodations.”

“Thank you for your consideration, Your Majesty.”

The envoy bowed in gratitude.

At this sight, Khasar could only glare at the envoy while grinding his teeth.

* * *

Muqali proposed to Queen Tamar of Georgia as suggested by Gurkhan.

Upon receiving this proposal, Tamar accepted Muqali’s offer as if she had been waiting for it.

“Gurkhan was right.”

Muqali crossed himself and invoked the names of God, Tengri, and his ancestors.

This was because, as Gurkhan had predicted, Tamar welcomed Muqali.

The reason wasn’t just that Tamar was under pressure from the nobles.

One of the reasons Tamar accepted Muqali’s proposal was the alliance offer contained within it.

Muqali had no intention of co-ruling Georgia with Tamar.

From the beginning, his target was not Georgia but the land of the Cumans.

All he needed was the legitimacy that Tamar possessed.

So he proposed an alliance where he would exist only as the consort of the Queen of Georgia without interfering in Georgia’s internal affairs.

In other words, he would leave the governance of the Kingdom of Georgia entirely to Tamar.

Additionally, he promised that as Tamar’s ally, he would use the forces led by Gurkhan to deal with the nobles who were rebelling against her.

Of course, in return, he would receive supplies and the personal troops of the subdued nobles as slave soldiers.

This was an offer that Tamar would welcome with open arms.

“And it benefits us too.”

Stable supplies were needed for the campaign against the Cumans.

Since those supplies could be secured from Georgia, it was an absolute gain for the Mongol army.

Of course, to obtain this, they would have to deploy troops to eliminate Queen Tamar’s political opponents.

“We need to move quickly.”

Muqali said this as he rose.

Then he headed to the ger to report this to Gurkhan Yesugei.

In front of the ger stood Kheshig guards with massive muscles.

“What is your business?”

“I wish to see Gurkhan.”

“Please wait a moment.”

With those words, the Kheshig opened the ger door and went inside.

After saying something, he soon came back out.

“Would you mind waiting a moment?”

“Is something wrong?”

“A messenger from the Great Capital just arrived and is having an audience with Gurkhan.”

“From the Great Capital?”

“I cannot provide more details.”

At the Kheshig’s words, Muqali nodded.

He bowed his head to the Kheshig in gratitude and then stepped back to gather his thoughts.

“A messenger from the Great Capital…”

Everyone knew that the Ulus was currently on a campaign.

And the one leading this campaign was none other than Gurkhan.

The fact that a messenger from the Great Capital had come to Gurkhan meant that something unusual was happening.

“Is it an issue with the Song Dynasty or the Jin Dynasty…?”

Muqali’s speculation was entirely reasonable.

This was because currently, the only factors that could interfere with the Ulus’s campaign were the Jin Dynasty or the Song Dynasty.

The Ulus was an acknowledged superpower.

To the east, it occupied most of Central China, and to the west, it reached the Balkan Peninsula.

The countless resources and troops from this massive country were more than enough to overwhelm other nations.

However, there were a few countries that could stand against Mongolia.

Those were the Song Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty.

“The Jin Dynasty is close to being a walking corpse, but…”

They were a nation with the potential that once occupied Central China.

Although they had lost much territory due to the Ulus’s attacks, considering the number of troops they could mobilize, they couldn’t be taken lightly.

Even though the Jin Dynasty was dying, they could mobilize over 200,000 troops.

This was an enormous number considering that most countries the Ulus had faced during the Crusade campaign had fewer than 10,000 troops.

“The troop mobilization of Central Chinese countries cannot be compared to the upstart countries of Europe or the Middle East.”

From the Ulus’s perspective, the military scale of feudal countries in the Middle East or Europe seemed like child’s play.

This was because when war broke out in East Asian countries, at minimum tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of troops would be mobilized.

Yet the Holy Roman Empire, which was said to have mobilized the most troops among the Crusaders, had only 20,000 soldiers.

And this wasn’t even a single army but the total number of troops mobilized by the Holy Roman Emperor.

The Ayyubid forces facing them numbered 40,000.

But the Mongol army had 90,000 cavalry alone.

Given this, Muqali, who had experience fighting the Jin Dynasty, couldn’t help but look down on the military scale of Europe or the Middle East.

“If necessary, Gurkhan will return to the homeland.”

Whatever the case, in the current situation, the only option was for Gurkhan to return.

This was because Temujin and Muqali were scheduled to be deployed to the front lines.

Above all, Yesugei was the leader of the nation.

So his return was the most rational choice in the current situation.

Anyway, while Muqali was thinking this, a Kheshig approached him.

After bowing, he led Muqali into the ger.

Inside the ger, Muqali could see Yesugei and Munglig in a serious mood.

As soon as they saw Muqali, they stopped their conversation and addressed him.

“Muqali.”

“I await your command, Gurkhan.”

“You must have heard that a messenger from the Great Capital just arrived at my ger.”

“Yes.”

“What do you think?”

“I believe Gurkhan should return to the Great Capital.”

At Muqali’s answer, Yesugei looked at him with interest.

Then he questioned him.

“I only told you that a messenger had arrived. Why do you say I should return without knowing what the matter is?”

“Everyone knows that Khagan is commanding the Crusade campaign.”

“That’s right.”

“The fact that a messenger has arrived means that Lord Khasar in the Great Capital is facing an issue he cannot handle.”

“Correct.”

“I believe the only problem Lord Khasar cannot resolve is war.”

“Half right and half wrong.”

Yesugei said this with a smile.

Then he looked at Muqali and continued.

“Minamoto no Yoritomo, who calls himself the Great General of the East of the islands, has requested that we withdraw our naval forces.”

“The Japanese?”

“Yes. Since they are also vassals of the Song Dynasty, the Song has also sent an official document demanding that the Mongol Pirates stop raiding Japan from Tamra Island. They’ve expressed their willingness to go to war if we refuse.”

It was an issue involving the Song Dynasty and Japan.

With talk of war, it was a problem that Khasar, who was running state affairs in place of Yesugei, couldn’t decide on his own.

“Above all, we have no intention of complying with their demand.”

The Mongol Pirates were nominally pirates, but they were actually a navy being carefully cultivated by the Ulus.

Abandoning a navy that had been painstakingly developed was out of the question.