Since the Accounting: A Chronicle of the Roman Khanate

Chapter 766 The Greatest Mongols
Following this series of events, the local soldiers became famous. Within the Wu Kingdom, they were even used as a model for other newcomers to learn from.

The soldiers of the Wu Kingdom came from a wide range of backgrounds. Moreover, because the King of Wu and others were not very good at leading troops, the training of soldiers in various regions was very "free and unrestrained".

Initially, the King of Wu and his followers were as anxious and disoriented as stray dogs. Their various endeavors were limited to what they could manage, with the primary goal of attracting people first.

Limited by objective conditions and the actual capabilities of the Wu King's team, their institutional development often relied solely on memory and instinct to create a rough framework. Many aspects lacked concrete content; they were simply shells created based on the Ming Dynasty's system or the content of the Zhou Rites, which the Wu King favored. The core remained rooted in local traditions, even allowing the people to improvise and explore their own ideas—the goal was simply to get it running quickly. Specific details would be addressed as problems arose, and modifications would be made gradually.

The advantage of this was that after surrendering to the Ming Dynasty, the local burden would decrease significantly, allowing the influence of the Wu Prince's Mansion to spread very quickly in the early stages. However, the disadvantage was that the foundation of the Wu Kingdom was far less solid than that of the neighboring Purple Horde Khanate, which also had a strong oriental influence.

Later, after her career began to improve, Princess Ma started working in Dadu, hoping to invite people from the Purple Horde to go there and give them some guidance.

Normally, Princess Ma doesn't concern herself with any affairs of the palace.

Before Zhu Yunwen led Qi Tai, Huang Zicheng, and others westward, he specifically told her that although only their family remained in Dadu, making it essentially a shelter for women and children, it was still nominally the royal palace. Therefore, even without many people to command, they had to maintain appearances. For this reason, she could act independently, doing what she deemed necessary without waiting for messengers. Otherwise, by the time the messenger found him, things would likely be over.

Princess Ma doesn't feel there's anything she can do, but she says she has always valued etiquette and rules, and even in the West, she has always upheld the virtues of womanhood and never done anything against propriety.

Moreover, now that Zhu Yunwen himself is leaving, he has placed the mother and child here. A woman and a child, alone overseas, are in a very dangerous situation. Their only reliance is the prestige of the Ming Dynasty and their own upright conduct, which they hope will deter unscrupulous people and gain the approval and sympathy of virtuous people, thus ensuring their safety. Therefore, they must treat others with even greater benevolence and righteousness, strictly adhere to dignity and etiquette, and refrain from doing anything out of line themselves.

The verbal requests Zhu Yunwen has made are far too casual. Such flippant arrangements will only breed disdain, even if others know they are genuine. Therefore, she demands that Zhu Yunwen and others formally draft an order, ensuring all necessary procedures are followed.

Others found this explanation plausible. Therefore, at her request, Qi Tai and Huang Zicheng drafted the document, which Zhu Yunwen himself copied, signed, and stamped. The copies were then sent to various relevant departments in the Qin Dynasty. The process of document delivery, public announcements, and filing was publicly conducted at the Baisaihan Palace, the Ministry of Rites, and the Niangniang Temple, ensuring everyone was aware of it. Only after all this was completed did Zhu Yunwen and his entourage depart.

Everyone assumed that her grand display was an attempt to solidify her authority through these procedures and documents. According to the announcement, she would be the current head of the Wu Prince's residence. However, after this, Princess Ma went into hiding, rarely engaging in any public activities. She even seldom appeared in public to manage the daily operations of the residence.

Zhu Wenku was still young at the time, but Princess Ma still dumped all the work on him. When others asked, he would say that he was not feeling well and was experiencing some acclimatization issues, so he needed to rest.

As a result, Zhu Wenkui had to start handling official duties from a young age.

The children from wealthy families who often played together had plenty of free time for entertainment. People like Tuohuan and Li Xuanying had time to stroll around the streets, causing trouble everywhere just like the stereotypical rich young masters. Even Guo Kang, following his own interests, spent his days making things at the Niangniang Temple.

Only Zhu Wenkui was constantly working overtime and never had a moment to rest. When people asked him about it out of curiosity, Tuohuan and the others could only say that it was probably a tradition in their Zhu family... and that they couldn't offer any other help.

As for Princess Ma herself, she was a devout Buddhist and often visited the Niangniang Temple to chant scriptures and meditate. Later, when news came that King Wu had messed up in France, she began to contact other people to see if there was any way to help him; King Wu then organized a group of people to make a comeback, and she began to lobby people to persuade him.

The Niangniang Temple was not only a religious facility but also an important social platform. High-ranking officials of the Purple Horde held various ceremonies there. Elders, high-ranking officials, and their families also frequently visited the temple. Therefore, many people were familiar with Princess Ma, who was practically a resident there.

Later, Princess Ma approached Baisaihan and the Guo family. She said that as a woman, according to ancestral rules, she should not interfere in the affairs of the royal palace. However, her husband demanded that she come out to do things at this time, and even issued official documents, making it known to everyone, so she had no choice.

Now that the Wu Fan system is in its infancy, she saw the information compiled by Zhu Wenkui and found that many regulations were extremely incomplete, even hastily prepared. This couldn't continue, but the King of Wu and others had already done their best; it was impossible to cover everything. Therefore, she hoped to borrow some people from here to investigate the Wu Fan's current controlled areas, see what specific problems existed, and see if Taixi had any experience in solving these problems, so that they could make adjustments.

This requirement isn't too high. Moreover, the Purple Horde inherited many aspects of Roman law and, like the ancient Romans, was very proud of its legal code and institutions. Even if you don't directly approach them, they sometimes actively try to promote their laws, let alone in the current situation.

Therefore, thanks to her efforts, the Khanate quickly dispatched an envoy in an unofficial capacity. Led by the reclusive scholar Mr. Huang, who had long lived in seclusion and refused to serve in the government, the envoy brought a group of local officials to the area to investigate. They also brought a copy of the code of law and various regulations of the Purple Horde Khanate for their reference.

Of course, some people think the matter is not so simple—for example, Guo Kang.

In everyone's eyes, Princess Ma was a traditional Seres noblewoman, very gentle and reserved. She was also very quiet in the temple, and never got into conflicts with others or joined any cliques.

Since the Temple of the Queen was also a social platform, it hosted many activities for Greek noblewomen. They argued, fought, and formed cliques daily, engaging in bickering and jealousy for various inexplicable reasons, creating a stark contrast. Many high-ranking officials even felt that Seres women like Princess Ma were truly cultured, unlike some local women who, despite receiving considerable education, were essentially street shrewish and beyond redemption.

However, Guo Kang believed that this person was definitely not simple. He had previously tested the steam-powered "Heavenly Brother" at the Niangniang Temple, attempting to use a robotic arm for forging. The machine was extremely noisy, and Guo Kang wanted to meet the deadline, so every Monday at the end of the week, the "Heavenly Brother" would start working on time, clanging and banging things.

Not only were the priests annoyed by the noise, but even the boisterous Greek noblewomen couldn't stand it and had to cancel their usual social time after the worship service. They had no interest in even the usual rituals of self-praise, sarcastic remarks about other noblewomen, or having their cliques flatter them, and hastily left the temple.

The continuous complaints put immense pressure on Lama Wang. In the end, he had no choice but to have Guo Kang move most of the equipment to the outskirts of the city, which is how the plan to build the "Holy Light Wish" monastery began.

However, even in this environment, Princess Ma remained calm and composed, as if the chaotic noises didn't exist. Guo Kang was astonished when he discovered this, feeling that such composure was something no ordinary person could possess.

Furthermore, he told his family that he felt Princess Ma used "womanly virtues" as armor and weapons. With these, she would be well protected. Neither Greek noblewomen nor other busybodies could easily find a reason to harass her family, thus reducing much trouble.

She usually stayed at the Niangniang Temple, so she was very familiar with the high-ranking officials of the Purple Horde. Moreover, it was precisely because she didn't interfere in affairs on a regular basis that her actions at crucial moments were all the more effective. Everyone knew that she wouldn't casually meddle in official business, so if she had to step in, it meant the situation must be very serious. This actually increased the weight of her words.

Therefore, he always felt that Princess Ma wasn't simply living a secluded life in Dadu; she likely had some other plan. Compared to those boisterous Greek women, she was probably more capable.

However, his family only told him not to talk nonsense. Besides, he really couldn't tell Zhu Wenku directly. He couldn't very well start by saying, "Your mother treats you like a 'grandpa' who does all the work and takes the blame, while she herself acts like a 'monarch' who chants scriptures; she's more like a member of the Zhu family than you." So, in the end, the matter was left unresolved.

After these events, Wu's local administration gradually got back on track, but the development of his army was still lagging behind.

The King of Wu was not his fourth uncle, and indeed knew nothing about military affairs; he didn't even know how to manage them. His confidants, such as Qi and Huang, also placed more emphasis on building a bureaucratic system and were equally ignorant of and unconcerned about the army.

The reference materials brought by the Purple Horde and the subsequent investigation reports did provide considerable assistance. However, since no one organized and implemented it, the unification of the military system was essentially only nominal.

The most militarily advanced regime in Europe at the time was the Purple Horde. Therefore, the military system of the Wu Kingdom was greatly influenced by them. In closely connected areas, such as the villages along the Rhine with unclear affiliations, or the militia of Tyrolean mountain peoples and southern mountain cities, local officials would regularly organize large-scale joint drills for their soldiers according to regulations. Although the names of different units varied, the specific methods imitated the way the Purple Horde organized its legions. Basically, the more formalized the Ming army, the more Roman it appeared.

However, the implementation in other places is uncertain. Moreover, there are some exceptions. For example, the Mongols in Tyrol did not like the fact that they had allied with Timur against their Purple Horde.

Therefore, during their training, they insisted on using Ming Dynasty terminology and customs, and even obtained information from the Ming Dynasty through the Embroidered Uniform Guard to learn the organizational methods of the Ming army's regular cavalry. This contrasted with the Rhine and Bavarian peoples, who preferred to use Roman terminology and marching practices.

Over time, this also became a habit. It can be said that these Mongol cavalrymen were the army with the strongest "Ming Dynasty" flavor in the Wu Kingdom.

It wasn't until these last few years that the Wu King's Palace truly began to attempt to unify the military system.

Moreover, the person in charge of this matter was not Zhu Yunwen, who had always been relatively lenient with the army, but Zhu Wenkui, the "Little Prince of Wu," who had gradually gained fame in recent years and began to promote further reforms.

The Wu Prince's Mansion in Dadu initially had only a handful of people, so few that you could count them on one hand. Later, the number of people gradually increased, and the functions became more comprehensive, encountering many problems along the way. However, Princess Ma told Zhu Wenkui not to be afraid of setbacks, just go for it, as they had backup plans.

Whenever this situation arose, if it escalated, she would tell others that Zhu Wenkui was young and hadn't received sufficient education as a monarch. She herself was just a woman, knowing nothing of politics and unable to teach her son. Therefore, she felt there was nothing she could do about the mistakes and hoped everyone could forgive her.

This method has always been effective. Moreover, influenced by this series of events—and perhaps also by the habits of the blacksmith's workshop—Zhu Wenkui has become accustomed to admitting and correcting mistakes.

Although he always put on airs in front of outsiders, compared to other princes and nobles, he felt little psychological pressure to admit his mistakes. Whenever he realized he was wrong, he would immediately try to correct it, rarely considering the impact on his reputation. When it came to changing the status quo and making reforms, he wasn't overly concerned with saving face.

After discovering that the army's situation was still quite disorganized, he began to formulate new rules and regulations, attempting to further standardize the training standards in various regions. To this end, he planned to recruit a group of people who understood European armies and had extensive relevant knowledge to help develop a set of flexible and practical systems suitable for the current situation in Wu, applicable to various regions.

The team, as planned, includes scholars specializing in military history, mercenary generals with command experience and research ideas, and veterans with combat experience throughout Europe.

However, the Wu Prince's Palace was short of funds at the time, which led to the plan being cut again and again. In the end, only a few people, including Jessica, were hired through recommendations. Their task was also reduced to training new recruits and compiling a more feasible manual. Old Yang, who is now highly trusted by Zhu Wenkui and commands various troops, was actually hired at that time to do military administrative work.

(End of this chapter)