Ch.45Fall (2)

The Kheshig gathered separately in the open space.

The reason they were assembled separately was because there was a special order to be given to them.

“When the war begins, you will have something separate to do.”

The Kheshig merely rolled their eyes in response.

I continued my explanation to them.

“In this battle, our ulus will gain various experiences facing settled peoples.”

To be precise, this was our first encounter with a settled nation since the unification of the ulus.

Because of this, it became immediately apparent that the Mongols had many shortcomings.

The biggest problem was the lack of discipline.

If outsiders heard this, they might wonder how the Mongols, essentially a massive military state, could lack discipline.

But the discipline I was referring to was military doctrine.

It would instruct the army on how to behave in operations, campaigns, battles, and engagements.

Thus, rather than strict, standardized rules, the main purpose was to establish common methods for carrying out military missions when war broke out.

For this reason, military doctrines were typically easy to understand and concise.

As a simple example, saying “the army becomes the victor of ground warfare” meant that in our military doctrine, the army’s combat scope was considered to be ground warfare.

Of course, in modern warfare, battles take place in various locations, making clear distinctions difficult. But the point was simple: the army aims to win ground battles.

Similarly, the Mongol army needed to distribute roles that each person should take,

and inform those performing these roles what goals they should have.

“However, in this battle, our forces had many shortcomings. In particular, some warriors who should have been focused on combat were instead focused on plundering.”

Hearing my words, Munglig couldn’t help but blush.

Although I had ordered the plundering, if the entire force focused on looting, they could be vulnerable to enemy counterattacks.

The fact that Bulqa, the field commander directing the battle, was ambushed by enemy soldiers should never have happened.

A commander being attacked by a single soldier could rapidly transform into a situation where proper command became impossible.

“Therefore, I will issue basic guidelines according to the missions assigned to all forces. The first to receive these will be you, the Kheshig.”

If I suddenly ordered the entire army to change, there would inevitably be resistance.

So I planned to start changing things slowly, beginning with those around me—my personal guard, the Kheshig.

“From now on, the Kheshig, as my direct subordinate unit, will carry out special orders.”

When the words “special orders” fell, the Kheshig looked at me with puzzled expressions.

Looking at them, I pulled out a club I had prepared in advance.

“This is a club called an Ordo.”

In modern terms, this was a club commonly used in the Ordos region, which corresponds to Inner Mongolia.

Unlike Outer Mongolia, the Inner Mongolia region was home to the Chahar people, who practiced semi-farming and semi-nomadism.

As a result, they often used these hollow wooden clubs to thresh harvested grain.

On the outside, it looked like a large, threatening club.

But in reality, it only made a loud noise and didn’t hurt at all.

This made it an excellent weapon for intimidating enemies.

“You will use these Ordos to bring young boys from conquered territories.”

This was essentially abduction.

The reason for this abduction was not only to prevent the children’s parents from resisting and to ensure stability in occupied territories, but there was another purpose as well.

“Young boys… you say?”

“Yes. They will grow up to become Kheshig like you.”

The purpose was to train these children to become new Kheshig.

In some ways, this was similar to the Janissary system that would later be used by the Ottoman Empire.

They would draft children from different religions, cultures, and regions, educate them in the Ottoman way, teach them the culture, and make them loyal to the ruler.

This method was used not only by the Ottomans but by other empires as well.

However, there was one difference—it didn’t matter if they weren’t of noble birth.

“Brother… won’t the khans of other tribes object to this?”

Munglig cautiously approached me with this question.

This was because the current Kheshig were essentially equivalent to nobles in settled societies.

But now I was talking about abducting local boys regardless of their origin, which could potentially cause the existing privileged class to object.

“I understand your concern. But you who are training now will become commanders of the Kheshig. Therefore, you’ll need forces under your command.”

“Ah…!”

“I see…”

At my words, the Kheshig’s eyes began to gleam.

Although they were all Kheshig, the heirs of khans before me were destined to serve not as ordinary soldiers but as commanders like Munglig.

So even if new Kheshig were brought in, there would be a difference in rank, meaning they wouldn’t suffer any loss.

“In the battle with Western Xia, you will conscript boys from occupied territories. How many troops you’ll have under your command will depend on your efforts.”

The more children the Kheshig abducted, the more troops they would be able to command.

More troops meant a higher standing for the Kheshig present here.

This was because more followers meant more military achievements and spoils of war.

Of course, the spoils had to be shared to prevent internal discontent.

But deciding how to divide them and who got more was the superior’s authority, so either way, it was advantageous for the Kheshig.

“Everyone seems to understand. Do you know what you need to do in this all-out war with Western Xia?”

They gripped the Ordos placed before them.

And the Kheshig’s eyes shone with understanding of my orders.

* * *

Boom, bang.

Threatening club sounds echoed across the steppe.

“Come on! Put more effort into it! You boys! The better you swing those clubs, the more boys will join us!”

Using clubs to forcibly recruit new soldiers might seem strange, but in this era, this was normal.

If you ordered someone to charge at the enemy with spears and swords, they wouldn’t readily comply.

Of course, Mongol warriors who had grown twice the size of regular Mongols could forcibly conscript adults.

But adult males might not willingly follow orders.

For this reason, they had no choice but to forcibly conscript young children who were easily intimidated and educated.

“And you call yourselves warriors of the ulus! Even if it’s hard, grit your teeth and focus on training while singing!”

Again, Mongols really loved singing.

They even sang when going hunting.

Using this trait, Yesugei, the Khagan of the ulus, had sometimes turned battle orders into song lyrics for his men to memorize.

Following this, Munglig also made his trainees sing during training.

“Hwoook! Tolailaichachacha! We are Kheshig! Invincible Kheshig!”

“Hook! Hook! Heibbarabpabpabpa Fight to win and if you lose, hwook! Hook! If you lose, die!”

The song included a chorus combining the Mongolian word “tolai” (лай), meaning rabbit or weakling, with “cha” (сайн), meaning to catch.

Another song used the Mongolian profanity “heibba” (пизда), equivalent to the F-word, as its chorus.

The Kheshig continued their training while singing these strange songs created by Munglig.

They removed their upper garments, showing off their impressive muscles as they swung their large, thick clubs from side to side.

“Faster! Move faster! Boys! With those movements, you couldn’t catch even an ant, let alone a child!”

Under Munglig’s pressure, the Kheshig cursed him inwardly.

This was because the Ordos, being made of wood, had considerable weight.

Swinging a club weighing around 10 kg repeatedly naturally overworked the front and rear deltoid muscles.

Additionally, the arm exercises were torturing their biceps and triceps.

Doing this continuously without rest was bound to be exhausting…

But in front of Munglig, the Kheshig gritted their teeth and endured.

“Alright! Rest! Take a rest!”

At the word “rest,” the Kheshig placed their Ordos on the ground and collapsed.

“Huff… huff…”

“I’m… I’m dying. Really… dying…”

“Rather… rather… I think other exercises would be better…”

Munglig smiled contentedly at the sight of the panting Kheshig.

Then he called out to the youngest Kheshig in the corner.

“Mangu!”

“Y-yes, Lord Munglig.”

“Yes. Everyone looks tired, so bring the Misgaragainer that the lord made.”

“U-understood.”

The other Kheshig watched their comrade head toward the ger and sighed, looking up at the sky.

“Haah… haah… At least I’m glad he didn’t call me this time.”

“You were on duty last time, right?”

“Yeah… haah… Making 10 Misgaragainers really brought me to tears. Sniff.”

The Kheshig unconsciously shed tears from the emotional memory.

Seeing this, his comrade patted his back in understanding and offered comfort.

“I understand. I really understand that feeling.”

The Kheshig slightly bowed his head in gratitude for his comrade’s consolation.

Training together had made them like family.

With hellish training every day, they had no choice but to rely on each other.

While they were talking, another Kheshig called Mangu appeared at the training ground carrying the Misgaragainer.

Carrying drinks for ten people, he was twisting his body awkwardly. Seeing this, the other Kheshig stopped resting and immediately got up to help Mangu.

“Give it here. I’ll take mine.”

“Thanks for making the Misgaragainer for us, Mangu.”

“I’ll make it next time.”

“Th-thank you…”

The Kheshig each took their portion of the Misgaragainer.

Mangu, who had been in charge of the drinks, expressed his gratitude to his comrades with a touched expression. A warm atmosphere began to flow through the training ground.

“That’s good to see.”

Munglig was watching this scene from a distance.

He smiled contentedly, feeling that his education was progressing well.

“With this sense of responsibility, they could fulfill their duties even if they become Mingghan (commanders of a thousand) later.”

In Mongolian, the word for “to be responsible” (даая) was pronounced “dai.”

Seeing the Kheshig taking responsibility for their comrades, Munglig became convinced that they would become Mangudai—people who could be responsible for a thousand men.

This was because, unlike ordinary Mongol warriors, they were the elite of the elite, directly raised by Yesugei and Munglig.

Therefore, in Munglig’s mind, no word could better describe them than this title.

The Mangudai, who would later become the core force of the Mongol Empire.

The Ordo Mangudai, meaning “people with clubs who can be responsible for a thousand,” began like this.