Taiheiki

Chapter 343 Measures
"What is the third thing? Why do you say that?" the Queen asked.

"The third thing is that your husband is safe and sound, but he has fallen into the hands of the Gou-chō people. The Gou-chō people have taken your husband hostage, isn't that a lot of trouble?"

The Queen nodded silently. Yu Wen's words struck at her deepest anxieties. In a theocratic state, the king not only held supreme secular power but was also a projection of the divine in the real world. If the king fell into enemy hands, the impact on the nation would be unimaginable.

“I understand what you mean!” The Queen nodded. “If a third scenario does indeed occur, then a new king should indeed be established as soon as possible to stabilize the people’s hearts! However, we have just suffered a defeat, and although we have recruited a considerable number of new soldiers, but—”

“You don’t need to worry about that!” Yu Wen said with a smile, interrupting the Queen. His somewhat impolite behavior made the Prime Minister beside him widen his eyes, but his next words made everyone hold their breath.

"So that Your Majesty may know, the first batch of reinforcements arrived this morning. We learned from them that five days ago, Duan Jiong, the Chief Secretary of the General's Office of the Great Han, led a large army from Longbian in Jiaozhi and will soon arrive in your capital. When that time comes, why should we worry about the Gou-ting people?"

"So that's how it is?" Although she was already somewhat prepared, the Queen was still both alarmed and frightened upon receiving concrete information from Yu Wen. If the Ju-ting people were the enemy, then wasn't the "Chief Secretary of the General's Office" mentioned by the Han envoy also a potential threat? But at this moment, how should she face this emerging new force?

"What's wrong? Judging from Her Majesty's expression, she doesn't seem very happy about Chief Secretary Duan's arrival?" Yu Wen asked.

"What are you saying, Lord Yu!" The prime minister, who was standing to the side, hurriedly interjected before the queen could react, "Now that the Han army has arrived, our country is safe. How could the queen not be happy? She is clearly stunned with joy, isn't she?"

"Yes, yes!" The Queen also realized what was happening and quickly smiled apologetically, "That's right. I was just stunned with joy, and I'm sorry to have made you laugh. May I ask what official position this Chief Secretary Duan holds in your country?"

"Well, how should I put it!" Yu Wen thought for a moment and then said, "In our Great Han Kingdom, the most important person is naturally the Emperor. However, the Emperor is still young and unable to preside over the government, so the Empress Dowager is temporarily in charge of the government on behalf of the Emperor. General Wei Cong has married the Empress Dowager's cousin and is the Empress Dowager's chief minister, just like the prime minister of your country. And this Chief Secretary Duan is the prime minister of the General's staff."

"So, this Chief Secretary Duan is the prime minister of the Han Dynasty?" the Empress Dowager asked.

“That’s not wrong!” Yu Wen nodded.

"Such a distinguished figure has actually come to a small southern border country like Funan!" The Empress Dowager said with a wry smile, "General Wei really thinks highly of our country!"

"Hehe!" Yu Wen chuckled twice but remained silent. The Queen saw this and felt increasingly uneasy. She thought to herself that if this fellow wasn't lying, then the Han Dynasty must have something on their mind. Otherwise, why would Chief Secretary Duan lead troops to rescue a small southern border country, let alone arrive at such a convenient time? If that's the case, then Funan Kingdom would be like a piece of meat on a chopping board, either eaten by the Ju-ting people or by the Han people.
Thinking of this, the Queen felt a deep sorrow: "The country is broken and the nation is in ruins. I never imagined that a nation that has been passed down for hundreds of years would come to this state. What virtue or ability do I, a mere woman, have to bear such a heavy burden?" She couldn't help but sob as she spoke.

Despite having mentally prepared himself for all sorts of possible scenarios, Yu Wen still felt a pang of sympathy when he saw the Queen weeping before him like an ordinary, frail woman. He subconsciously raised his head, casting an inquiring glance at the Prime Minister, only to see Samba shaking her head slightly, realizing that this was merely an act by the woman.

"This woman is far more troublesome than her husband!" Yu Wen thought to himself, but said aloud, "Now is not the time to weep. I urge the Queen to quickly prepare for the establishment of a new monarch and for the defense against foreign enemies!"

The Queen nodded: "Your Excellency is right, but my mind is in turmoil right now, and I am unable to discuss matters of state and military affairs. I will trouble the Prime Minister to do so!" With that, she stood up, bowed to Yu Wen, and retreated to the back of the house.

"What a troublesome woman!" Yu Wen turned his gaze from the Queen's retreating figure and said to the Prime Minister, "She's much more troublesome than her husband!"

"Yes!" The prime minister gave a wry smile. "To be honest, if I hadn't handled things properly yesterday, I'm afraid I would have been beheaded!"

"Her head was severed from her body, she wanted to kill you?" Yu Wen frowned. "I didn't realize that."

"She didn't say that at the time, but judging from her actions and words, I suspect she would do it!" The prime minister sighed. "After all, the king and so many others didn't return, while I returned safely, even on your ship. I guess she must have already decided to kill me then!"

"So how did you manage to save your life?" Yu Wen asked.

"I suggest she immediately appoint her son as king and take charge of the state affairs herself!"

"Hehe, I see!" Yu Wen laughed. "Indeed, if she wants to preside over the country, she needs someone to handle state affairs for her, and you are indeed the best candidate!"

"I suspect she also considered your envoy!" the prime minister sighed. "To put it bluntly, although your envoy's troops are few in number, they are truly well-trained. At this time, whoever has troops in their hands has the confidence!"

Yu Wen smiled, thinking to himself that this old man wasn't stupid, but smart people were easier to deal with. After thinking for a moment, he said, "I'll leave the matter of establishing a new ruler to you. I won't say anything more. But how many soldiers and armor do you have left to defend against foreign enemies?"

“There are over 500,000 able-bodied men around the capital. Even if only one out of every two men is conscripted, there are still over 200,000 men left. So there’s no need to worry about manpower. There’s also plenty of food and weapons in the warehouses, but—” “There are no officers, right?” Yu Wen asked.

"Yes!" the prime minister said with a wry smile, "That's what worries me!"

Yu Wen remained silent. Contrary to popular belief, Southeast Asia, located in the tropical and subtropical zones, was sparsely populated in ancient times. Many rainforests and mountainous areas were uninhabited. However, not all of ancient Southeast Asia was sparsely populated. Agricultural areas suitable for rice cultivation, such as the deltas of Java, the Mekong River, and the Chao Phraya River, formed densely populated agricultural regions. The area around Tonle Sap Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia, was particularly well-developed, with flat terrain making it a natural rice-growing region. Fishing and agriculture flourished there, enough to support millions of people. This was the birthplace of the ancient Funan-Chenla Kingdom.

Such a developed rice-growing industry supported an astonishing agricultural population. During the dry season and off-season, the rulers could conscript a sufficient labor force to repair irrigation works, religious temples (Angkor Wat), and wage war. Therefore, for the King of Funan, manpower was never the problem; the problem was the military nobles who served as officers. In the recent defeat, Funan's military nobles suffered heavy losses, and no matter how many soldiers were conscripted, they would be nothing more than a rabble.

“The soldiers can elect their own officers!” Yu Wen said.

"What do you mean?"

“It’s very simple!” Yu Wen said, “If a squad has ten people and no ten-person captain, then let each of the ten people choose one person from among their own group to be the ten-person captain. If there isn’t a hundred-person captain, then let the ten ten-person captains choose one to be the hundred-person captain. Wouldn’t that work?”

"This, how can this be?" The prime minister said with a wry smile, "Soldiers are soldiers, and officers are officers. How can we let the lowest of the low, who should be soldiers, become officers? Isn't this like using iron as silver?"

Yu Wen had been in Funan for some time and knew about their caste system, so he laughed and said, "It's just a temporary measure. Who told you you don't have enough upper-class people to be officers? You can make it clear in the law that lower-class people can only be captains of ten men or captains of a hundred men at most, and officers above that can only be upper-class people. You can also tell the farmers that if we win this battle, those lower-class people who become captains of ten men or captains of a hundred men will be upper-class people forever, and their children can start as captains of ten men when they join the army. They will definitely fight desperately!"

"This, this is indeed a good idea!" The prime minister nodded, then smiled bitterly, "However, if we do this, I estimate that both Brahmins and Kshatriyas will hate me to death, and I will be reborn as an animal after I die!"

"Then you can choose for yourself!" Yu Wen laughed. "Either lead this rabble into battle, get conquered by the Ju-ting people, and become slaves. I reckon the Ju-ting people won't care what caste you are. Or give the lower classes a chance, defeat the Ju-ting people's attack, and then you yourself will become animals after you die. But as far as I'm concerned, the idea of ​​becoming animals after death is hard to say. At least I've never heard of people turning into anything after death in the Han Dynasty. When you die, you're dead, and that's it. It's probably just something your ancestors made up. And if you do that, those lower classes who become captains of ten or a hundred men will definitely be very grateful to you. With such a group of people, you might not necessarily lose!"

Upon hearing Yu Wen's words, the prime minister was struck by a thought. Although he was a Brahmin, the highest-ranking member of Hinduism, born into religious nobility, he had always believed that the higher one's religious standing, the less devout they were. Conversely, the lowest-ranking believers were often far more devout. Therefore, he found Yu Wen's statement that "after death, there is nothing left," to be reasonable. After all, at his age, he had never met anyone who could prove what they were in their past life.

Moreover, just as Yu Wen said, if the Ju-ting people invaded, those barbarians wouldn't bother distinguishing between castes. The lower classes would continue farming and working, but those of us in the upper classes would be caught up in it and certainly wouldn't be able to remain upper-class. Furthermore, those lower-class people who got the opportunity to advance would definitely be extremely grateful to him. With the support of these people, even if the other Brahmins and Kshatriyas hated him, they would be hesitant to take action.

In the blink of an eye, Prime Minister Samba had made his decision: "I understand what you mean, Your Excellency. I will go back and consider this matter, and give you an answer tomorrow!"

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“These are huge enough, aren’t they?” General Gochō replied smugly.

The captured elephant handlers swayed slowly in their crates on the backs of the war elephants, passing by in two rows—the spoils of the recent victory of the Gou-chō people. Ying-feng's mount let out a terrified neigh and retreated. Ying-feng pulled on the reins, trying to steady his mount. How many war elephants were there on the riverside road, where reeds swayed in the breeze, was a question. Ying-feng was interrupted when he counted to forty. He was certain there were no fewer than sixty; the procession of these behemoths stretched endlessly all the way to the bend in the road.

General Gou-cho invited Ying-feng to ride with him on a war elephant, but Ying-feng refused. He couldn't stand the terrifying aura emanating from the giant beast. He recalled Wei Cong riding a white elephant in battle; could he really tolerate such an aura? Or was that white elephant special, lacking this smell?

"It seems that delaying for a few more days for these big guys was worth it!" General Gou-cho laughed. "I can't wait to see the faces of those Funan people when they see these war elephants standing on our side. That will be quite a sight!"

"It seems you've pinned your hopes for victory on these elephants!" Ying Feng asked. "That's not a good thing!"

"Besides these elephants, we also have the King of Funan in our hands!" General Gou-ting cracked his whip twice. "I truly don't know how we can lose. You must understand, the Funan people revere their king as an incarnation of a god, which is truly laughable. Even the emperor of the Han Dynasty only dared to call himself the Son of Heaven, the Son of Heaven. Although he was lofty and great, he was still just a human being. The King of Funan actually considers himself a god? Is there such a thing as a god in this world who is tied to a horse's tail with a rope around his neck?"

Ying Feng smiled and turned his gaze behind him. Just as General Ju Ding had said, the king of Funan, an incarnation of Vishnu, was now naked and barefoot. A leather noose was tied around his neck, from which a long chain was fastened to the tail of a mare. As the mare moved forward, the poor fellow followed behind, barefoot and staggering, seemingly on the verge of falling at any moment.

"What's wrong? Do you pity this guy?" General Gochō asked curiously. "That's strange. It's precisely because of your plan that he ended up in this situation!"

“No, I don’t pity him!” Ying Feng shook his head: “I’m just lamenting the capriciousness of fate. In the morning, he was one of the greatest heroes in the world, even the emperor feared him. But by nightfall, he was bound and killed by a woman with a bamboo sword, and then his entire clan was wiped out. Even such a great figure didn’t know his own fate, let alone us ordinary people?”

"Are you referring to someone from your country?" General Gocho asked in surprise.

(End of this chapter)