Ch.216Return (2)

“Hahaha! Brother, did you see? There’s another statue of us here!”

“…I get it. I get it, so please stop talking about it.”

Munglig couldn’t contain his excitement every time he spotted a muscular statue on the way back to the Great Capital.

I could only sigh and shake my head at his exuberance.

“Since we’re here, why don’t you strike a pose?”

“…No thanks.”

I shook my head as I said this.

Then I left Munglig behind and gazed at the distant Great Capital.

Now that we were approaching the Great Capital, it felt like the statues were becoming more numerous.

“How many of these things did he make…”

Liam, a sculptor from the Caucasus region.

He was a sculptor we met when Munglig and I went to pay tribute to the Jin Dynasty.

With our permission, he had created statues capturing poses of Munglig and me.

The problem was that he had made so many that they now stood like milestones along every road with postal relay stations.

“Don’t travelers use our statues as landmarks, Brother?”

“…”

Roads and postal relay stations had been built along the steppe route from the Persian region to the Great Capital.

This meant many travelers and merchants were using this route.

And as Munglig said, they were using the statues as landmarks.

We had just met a merchant who did exactly that.

He was a merchant from Western Xia who recognized that if he continued south from the statue of me in my Kurultai-opening pose, he would reach the Persian region.

So for travelers, the statues of Munglig and me served as landmarks and guides.

“Isn’t it good that they’re helpful to everyone, Brother? Hahaha.”

“Yes, yes, you’re amazing.”

I sighed and shook my head.

Then I turned to look at the ger wagon.

“Do we really need this many?”

“The more the better, right?”

Munglig said this as he opened the ger door.

Inside sat noble children, looking terrified and meek.

“Have… have we arrived?”

“I… I want to go home.”

“It’s an honor to serve Gurkhan, but this is a bit…”

“Hahaha. We’ll arrive soon, don’t worry.”

Munglig said this and closed the ger door again.

Then he looked at me with a satisfied expression.

“I never expected local nobles to voluntarily enlist their children like this.”

“I doubt it was voluntary.”

I said this while reflecting on the journey we had taken.

We met a messenger near the Kingdom of Georgia and were ordered to return to the Great Capital.

This meant we traveled through the Caucasus, Mashriqa, Iran, Transoxiana, and along the Ural region to enter the steppe route.

The reason we took this roundabout path was simple: we hadn’t yet subdued the Cuman people beyond the Caucasus Mountains.

If we had subdued them, we could have entered the steppe route directly along the Black Sea steppe without having to backtrack.

But since we couldn’t, we regrettably took the long way around,

and were able to replenish supplies and troops from local lords along the way.

While I was receiving troops and supplies, Munglig was meeting with nobles and drafting their children.

“It was voluntary enlistment, Brother. They all immediately pledged to send their children after seeing my muscular pose.”

“…”

How would one feel if a huge man suddenly struck a pose and demanded their children?

In normal circumstances, the obvious response would be refusal.

It was practically robbery.

In this era, noble children were often heirs.

They were meant to succeed their lords and govern territories—equivalent to modern-day chaebol heirs.

Sending such precious children away was unthinkable.

Unfortunately, we weren’t normal circumstances.

I was Gurkhan, the emperor leading the empire, and Munglig was the head of the Kheshig, the core of power.

When such people suddenly appear and demand children, nobles naturally have no choice but to hand them over with tears in their eyes.

Otherwise, they might face unknown hardships for falling out of favor.

Yet the foolish Munglig mistakenly believed they voluntarily enlisted their children because they were impressed by his muscles.

In other words, Munglig had essentially forced conscription.

“I am the Khagan of the empire, and you are my right hand. From the perspective of local lords, we are the core of power, and they probably sent their children with tears in their eyes to curry favor with us. Can you still call that voluntary enlistment?”

“Yes. It was voluntary enlistment, Brother.”

Munglig nodded confidently with a smile.

His confidence left me speechless.

“I merely showed my muscles. And asked if they had any children worthy of the honor of serving Gurkhan.”

“…Well…that’s true.”

Incredibly, Munglig’s words were factual.

Munglig hadn’t demanded children for the Kheshig. He had simply asked if they had children to send.

The lords were the ones who responded by sending their children.

So objectively speaking, it was voluntary enlistment.

“They voluntarily enlisted their children to get closer to the center of power. So this is a kind of contract—I lead these young noble children to become excellent Kheshig members, which benefits them as well.”

At times like this, his words flowed like a clear stream.

As I keep mentioning, Munglig wasn’t just a stupid muscle-head.

He was an unparalleled commander who had defeated brilliant strategists in numerous battles against Western Xia, Western Liao, and the Jin Dynasty.

So his eloquence wasn’t surprising.

If I had to compare him to Romance of the Three Kingdoms characters, Munglig was a madman with Zhuge Liang’s brain and Lu Bu’s body.

“Therefore! These children voluntarily enlisted!”

To be defeated by Munglig’s muscular persuasion.

It was strangely humiliating.

Munglig happily struck a pose.

Having lost the verbal battle, I could only sigh and nod.

* * *

We arrived at the Great Capital, the capital of the Ulus.

As soon as we arrived, I reunited with my three wives and fulfilled my mandatory defense…no, I mean I caught up with them, and then immediately met with Khasar.

“You must be tired from your long journey.”

Khasar greeted me with proper etiquette.

I nodded and motioned for him to rise.

“You’ve grown more mature since I last saw you.”

“Running the government has made me grow up a lot.”

At Toghrul’s words, Khasar smiled awkwardly.

Since Toghrul was my anda, he remembered all of Khasar’s childhood.

That’s why Khasar couldn’t help but look embarrassed at Toghrul’s praise.

“It’s undeniable that Prince Khasar has wisely managed state affairs while the Khagan was away.”

With even Elunka joining in the praise, Khasar couldn’t help but blush.

Being still young, he seemed uncomfortable with compliments.

“To become an adult, you must get used to praise as well.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, Khagan.”

After saying this, I took my seat.

Then I asked Khasar a question.

“I heard that Japan demanded the withdrawal of the Mongol Pirates, and that Song Dynasty is behind this. Is that correct?”

“Yes. The Song Dynasty has also sent envoys.”

“Song is moving quickly.”

I frowned as I muttered to myself.

This was because the Song Dynasty hadn’t completely subdued the Jin Dynasty yet.

Of course, I knew why Song was being so proactive.

The Jin Dynasty was currently in a desperate situation.

From Song’s perspective, Jin was seen as an enemy that could be eliminated at any time, ready to fall with just a push.

“It seems like recklessness to me.”

I nodded at Elunka’s comment.

The Jin Dynasty was a nation with resilience. Though defeated by the Ulus, it was led by Emperor Renzong, considered one of history’s wise rulers.

So given the opportunity, it could make a comeback at any time.

In other words, it would be better for Song not to be overconfident.

“They’ll pay dearly for their recklessness. However, that’s not our concern.”

It would be reckless for us to worry about Song’s future as they willingly walk into a fire pit.

It would be far more beneficial for us to focus on making wise decisions and taking advantage when our enemies make such mistakes.

“I’ll meet with the Japanese and Song envoys tomorrow. After that, I’ll decide what course the Ulus will take.”

First, it was important to know exactly what our enemies were demanding.

That’s why I planned to meet them personally.

Only then could I understand what Song was thinking, what strategic goals they were trying to achieve, and how they planned to move.

The officials nodded in understanding.

I gestured for all officials except Khasar to leave, then stood up.

“Let’s take a walk.”

“Yes, understood.”

So I went outside with Khasar.

And we headed to the imperial garden once used by the Jin Emperor.

“Khasar.”

“Command me, Gurkhan.”

“You don’t need to call me Gurkhan here.”

“…Yes, Father.”

I smiled at this.

“How do you find being a king?”

“It’s killing me.”

Now the true youngest son Khasar emerged.

“As your father, I’m concerned. You’ll need to get used to it.”

“Get used to it? You don’t mean…”

“Yes. After resolving this issue, I’ll return to the front lines.”

“I’d rather go to the front lines myself, Father.”

Khasar stuck out his tongue as if tired of being king.

So I teasingly said:

“I guess you haven’t heard about Jamukha yet. If you go, your eldest brother Temujin will drill you every day. Can you handle that?”

“Eek…I…I’ll have to reconsider going, Father.”

I smiled at Khasar’s response instead of answering.

Then I stopped walking.

“Son.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Do you want to be king?”

“…”

Khasar didn’t answer right away.

After thinking for a moment, he looked at me and answered proudly.

“I will do it.”