Ch.260Knowledge (1)

The book records stories of founding monarchs traversing battlefields. However, most of a monarch’s duties take place at a desk.

Why am I saying this?

“There are more documents for you to process.”

“…There’s still much work left.”

Documents were piled up like mountains.

The thought of processing them all made me dizzy.

“And after you finish the paperwork, you’ll need to go out for field inspections.”

I couldn’t help but sigh deeply at the official’s words.

“Let’s take a breather first.”

“There are still many documents that need your review, Your Majesty.”

“Must I complete all of them today?”

“Of course.”

“Then I’ll leave it to you.”

“W-what?!”

Despite the official’s protest, I immediately left the office.

As soon as I exited, the official followed, but the Kheshig stopped him.

“What are you doing!”

“You’re in the presence of Gurkhan!”

“Documents! Documents! If I don’t process these documents, I’ll die! How can I see anything else!”

“Has this man gone mad!”

“He needs muscle control to come to his senses!”

Muscle control?

That sounded strange just hearing it.

“It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been subjected to muscle control! All I see are documents!”

And so began a fierce(?) physical struggle between a document-obsessed official and the Kheshig.

Normally in such confrontations, an official who only handles paperwork would be easily overpowered, but he was holding his own against the Kheshig.

Seeing this made me feel how physical fitness had truly become part of everyday life.

“Oh no. This isn’t the time for this.”

I might get dragged back to the office if I kept watching this fight absentmindedly.

Even if I escaped that fate, my wives might catch me and drag me back to the ger, so it was important to leave now.

Anyway, I barely managed to escape the palace.

As soon as I got out, I exhaled a long sigh, feeling the sense of freedom.

“The outside is definitely better.”

In my original world, I preferred staying indoors.

But after being fully settled in Yesugei’s body for decades, I had completely transformed into an extrovert.

“Though calling this extroversion might be a stretch.”

A monarch’s life was quite difficult.

Not only was it impossible to separate work and life, but there were many restrictions on whatever one did.

As a monarch who should be an example to all, it was difficult to enjoy luxury and pleasure.

As a monarch who must look after the people, I always had to devise ways to show compassion to them.

As a monarch who must lead the army, I had to work to broaden my military vision.

As a monarch who must govern officials, I had to constantly monitor them.

As a monarch who must ensure the regime remains stable, I had to continue producing heirs.

Because of this, a monarch’s life was more like a life belonging to something rather than an individual life.

While I was catching my breath outside thinking about these things, I spotted a familiar face in one corner.

Running with his upper body exposed, it was Munglig.

“Come on! Run properly! You are the Kheshig who protect Gurkhan!”

“We are Kheshig! Kheshig!”

“The invincible royal guard!”

“Mongolia’s finest army! Kheshig!”

It was just like a military drill.

In truth, Mongolia was like a massive military camp.

The distinction between ordinary citizens and warriors wasn’t clear.

Additionally, the decimal system itself was both a military system and a social system, so it wouldn’t be wrong to view the entire country as a militaristic state.

“In the medieval period, it might be acceptable to advocate militarism for expansion, but for better development, changes will be necessary.”

Ancient Sparta was also militaristic.

They prioritized military power and invaded other countries to supplement their lack of labor, technology, and resources through plunder.

They even sacrificed the state for the military, making them closer to true militarism in the purest sense.

In this respect, the Ulus couldn’t be described as complete militarism.

However, if this continued for generations, it would become completely entrenched, and like ancient Sparta or modern Prussia, the military would inevitably create an abnormal structure for the state.

“Then the military would appropriate all the fruits of labor, and we would continue only to wage war.”

The military was often referred to as a group that consumes without producing.

This was because despite consuming vast amounts of food and resources, they produced no physical results.

Of course, one could argue that the spoils obtained from conquered nations after war were results.

However, this wasn’t something the military produced but rather something taken from others, so it was different in nature.

The reason I’m explaining this at length is simple.

“After conquering the Song Dynasty, we’ll need a system transformation.”

The Ulus was a nation that rose from the Mongolian steppe by mobilizing military power.

With that formidable military power, they invaded other countries and made them their territory.

Thanks to this, the Ulus was able to obtain treasures that were difficult to acquire on the steppe.

“But after conquering the Song Dynasty, things will be different.”

The Song Dynasty was an enormously large country.

So it was clear that all sorts of chaos would follow after its conquest.

Moreover, due to their overwhelming high cultural level and technological prowess, it would take a long time to fully control them.

This meant creating many disharmonies.

“So I need to prepare in advance.”

There were limits to conquest.

Therefore, even before the Song expedition, the Ulus had to prepare for the coming changes.

* * *

All the world’s knowledge is here.

Under the large signboard with this inscription, numerous scholars were engaged in debate.

“What is a king? Is he merely a being who protects and governs the country?”

“A monarch is a being who leads everyone. Therefore, he must be a perfect being.”

“A monarch does not stand alone. Thus, ministers must help the monarch govern the country.”

Mongolians, Chinese, Goryeo people, Western Xia people, Western Liao people, Iranians, Arabs, Byzantines, and more.

The scholars engaged in debate were all different.

Despite coming from different regions, they could share their opinions through the Mongolian language.

“In Arabia, there is a saying that a king is one who leads horses, so he should naturally be the strongest and wisest.”

“The Greek philosopher Plato dreamed of philosopher-kings. A philosopher refers to one with wisdom.”

“Must one necessarily lead a horse? Even if you lead a horse by giving it a carrot, the purpose is the same. Why must you turn away from education, which is a good means?”

“If you argue that way, wouldn’t it be okay to wield a whip? Then the horse will get hurt and not follow its master’s words. Governance based on rewards and punishments has limitations.”

Their main conversation was about monarchs.

From the perspective of common people or merchants, this might seem like a useless debate.

But discussions about what a monarch should be like were important because they suggested the direction of governance.

“For a monarch to govern smoothly, not only direction but also means are important.”

“Standardized weights and measures and governance systems can provide political stability.”

“Unification of language, weights and measures, and systems sounds easy, but do you know how much administrative power is needed?”

“For the unification of weights and measures, let’s use Arabic and Indian numerals. They’re easy to understand, and everyone here knows them, don’t they?”

In addition to the direction of governance, the means to carry it out smoothly were also topics of their debate.

Within this category were achievements that great monarchs in history had accomplished, such as the unification of weights and measures and systems.

As people with different cultures, histories, and customs gathered to debate, verbal fights occasionally intensified.

“What did you say! What does a young brat know!”

“Ha! You’ve just grown old without accepting new ideas! Can you still call yourself a scholar?!”

The argument between a young scholar and a middle-aged scholar grew fierce.

Seeing this, a young scholar looked at them with a worried expression.

“Shouldn’t we stop them?”

Then an elderly scholar behind him smiled as if to say not to worry.

“You seem new here. Am I right?”

“Y-yes.”

“What’s your name?”

“I’m Yang Gan. I’m from Song.”

The young scholar Yang Gan was originally born in Southern Song.

So he believed that the center of the world was in the Central Plains and that all culture and knowledge originated there.

“Song, eh? Not many scholars come from there. What brings you here?”

“Well… when I was young, I thought I was the smartest. But while exploring the world, I felt a huge wall when I met a scholar.”

Yang Gan had been smart since childhood.

With his outstanding intelligence, he had defeated many scholars in debates.

Because of this, Yang Gan was so arrogant that he believed all the world’s knowledge resided in him.

But a significant event changed Yang Gan.

It was a debate with a Semu scholar.

Hearing this, the elderly scholar nodded and smiled.

“Everyone feels their own wall that way. I too often feel such walls here.”

“If I may ask, what is your name?”

“I am Omar Khayyam. Just a country bumpkin who’s somewhat good at mathematics.”

At Omar’s humble tone, Yang Gan waved his hands.

“I sense wisdom in your words. If such a venerable elder introduces himself so humbly, I would have to crawl on the ground.”

“Haha! You’re an interesting young friend.”

As the two were introducing themselves and conversing, the scholars who had been arguing began to take off their upper garments.

Seeing this, Yang Gan couldn’t help but be surprised.

“Suddenly taking off their shirts. Are they going to fight like that?”

“Don’t worry. Judging by their posture… it’s a muscle battle.”

“A muscle… battle?”

“It’s better to see with your own eyes than to have it explained.”

At Omar’s words, Yang Gan nodded.

He looked at the center of the House of Wisdom where the fight was taking place.

“I can prove my opinion is correct with my biceps! Hah!”

“How can you prove anything with such thin biceps! These are Plato’s abs, youngster!”

And soon, Yang Gan’s face was filled with astonishment.