Chapter 230 — Yeongu's Request 1
Lastly, Yeongu requested the prohibition of atrocities.
He stepped forward, offered proper courtesy, and spoke in a low but distinct voice.
"I report to the Great Khan.
The reason this humble general dares to offer these words is that I hope Jin will not follow the path of Liao.
That Liao has reached its present situation is not merely because of one or two defeats.
A greater reason is that it oppressed and despised the many peoples it ruled and treated lightly the resentment that accumulated.
Even the Xi and Balhae people could not give their whole hearts, and the many groups of the steppe and the borderlands followed only through fear, not loyal devotion.
Even in the law of the steppe, there is calculation.
Fairly compensating cooperation as cost, and dividing shares according to military merit, have existed since ancient times.
But killing the powerless, trampling those who have surrendered, and harming the wives, children, and old people of tribes that have submitted are neither law nor calculation.
They are ominous seeds that hasten the catastrophe to come.
Since the Great Khan has founded a new country, he can no longer remain merely the leader of many tribes.
If Your Majesty wishes to build an empire, you must make those who submit into your people, rescue those who surrender from death, and cause them to fear Jin's military command while also trusting Jin's law.
Only when you recognize the lives of fellow human beings, and take account of their different customs, languages, and laws, can a country stand for long.
This is why Liao established the Northern Administration and Southern Administration separately.
With Khitan law alone, it could not govern the Han Chinese, Balhae people, and many prefectures and counties, and the farming people and the people of the steppe could not be driven under one law.
Though that system in the end collapsed through the arrogance of the north and the corruption of the court, its original intent must not be lightly discarded.
If Jin wishes to bring down Liao, it must establish a law broader than Liao's.
It must establish military orders stricter than Liao's, yet extend grace more upright than Liao's.
Declare to all under Heaven that atrocities against all submitted peoples are immediately forbidden, and those who violate this must be dealt with by military law, regardless of how great or small their merit may be.
If the Great Khan accepts this will, this humble general will spend all the strength that remains to help Jin's work.
But if this will is not accepted, this humble general loses the justification to remain here any longer.
A country built upon the blood of the powerless cannot become a country this humble general serves.
At that time, I will truly leave everything behind and go."
The generals felt weary at Yeongu, who was still saying the same thing.
No matter how good the words, if heard again and again, they become tiresome and exhausting.
He had left because he disliked that, and now that he had returned, he was saying the same thing again.
Some may have wanted to shout at him to stop now.
No matter how great his merit, what could not be done could not be done.
When Yeongu finished speaking, the hall was quiet for a moment.
The fire in the brazier burned low, and damp wood made small sounds within it.
The generals examined one another's faces.
No one opened his mouth first.
At that moment, a general of tribal-chief origin seated on one side breathed out roughly.
He was a broad-shouldered man with a thick neck.
Beneath his leather wind cloak, old iron-piece armor showed, and at his waist hung a blade blackened by the touch of many hands.
His face bore the deep wrinkles particular to a man who had long lived on battlefields, and open dissatisfaction floated around his eyes.
He raised the hand that had rested on his knee and struck the floor once.
A dull sound rang inside the hall.
He observed courtesy, but anger was already mixed into his voice.
"I report to the Great Khan. Jungnangjang Lee's words may sound plausible to those who know letters. But to those who have gathered men on the field and fought, they are words that chill the blood."
Several tribal chiefs raised their heads.
Faces listening to his words turned in his direction and showed agreement.
Yeongu looked at him in silence.
The general continued.
"We have not come to this place for nothing.
Each of us has provided horses from our villages, bows from our stores, and able-bodied men from our households.
Some sent sons, some sent younger brothers, and some gave as warhorses the horses that would have carried them through the winter.
Those who go out and die on the battlefield are our people.
Those who receive spears at the front are our people.
Those who bleed first after climbing over fortress gates are our people."
His voice grew louder.
"What is the price for that? Spoils.
Horses, cattle, sheep, grain, silk, ironware, and slaves are the price.
With those, we feed the houses of the dead, buy horses for the wounded, and prepare bows and armor for the next battle.
Our tribes have continued in that way."
The air inside the hall gradually heated.
The Great Khan did not stop him.
Zongwang stiffened his brows, and Xiyin silently watched the general's lips.
"I understand the words that those who submit should not be killed carelessly.
But who can distinguish on the spot between one who has submitted and one who fought against us?
There are those who hide blades even after the gate is opened.
There are those who lie down claiming surrender and then strike the back of the head at night.
There are those who call themselves common people by day and become the enemy's guides by night, striking our rear.
If we are told to regard them all as the same people and withdraw our hands, who will take responsibility for the lives of our soldiers?"
He turned his head toward Yeongu.
His eyes were sharp.
Then he turned his body back toward the Great Khan.
"I know the Great Khan speaks of empire. We too desire a great country to be established.
But an empire cannot be built with empty hands.
Soldiers must eat, horses must graze, iron must be bought, and the houses of the dead must be compensated.
If we are told not to open the storehouses of those who surrender, not to take spoils after capturing a fortress, and to extend grace only to those who submit, what do the men who fought gain?"
At his words, several people murmured low.
Some nodded, and some watched the Great Khan's face cautiously.
With that murmur behind him, the general spoke more strongly.
"The reason we hated Liao was because they pressed us down.
But now, if we are told to honor Liao people, Balhae people, and Han Chinese all as the same people, where are our own people to stand?
If those who shed blood first and those who bowed late are seated in the same place, the hearts of those who fought first will cool."
He clenched his fist.
"Great Khan, you must establish military order.
But military order must not become a blade that takes away every share of the tribes.
If an order forbidding cruelty goes down, the generals will fight with their hands bound.
If after taking a fortress we cannot open its storehouses, if after capturing enemies we cannot make them fear us, if we cannot examine the crimes of those who submit, then will the next fortress fear us?"
He drew in a deep breath.
His final words came low.
"If the Great Khan establishes the law of the Central Plains too early, the people of the steppe will turn their backs first.
Before you gain the distant people, you will lose the nearby tribes.
This humble general fears that."
When his words ended, the hall became quiet again.
That silence differed from the first silence.
This time, it was a silence caused by too many words.
The words of the general from the tribal chiefs were rough, but within them lay the actual calculations of the military camp.
The house of the dead, the wounded man's horse, the bow for the next battle, and the eyes of the tribe waiting for spoils.
All of those were inside his words.
It was a collision with no simple path to resolution.
How could one block their economic activity?
The Great Khan's tiger-like eyes narrowed.
He would have granted Yeongu anything if Yeongu wished it, but Yeongu demanded that the most difficult thing be prohibited.
The Great Khan sat for a long while without speaking.
The light of the brazier shone red beneath his face.
The words of the tribal-chief general were rough, but within them lay the calculations of the battlefield.
Yeongu's words were severe, but within them lay the law of founding a country.
The Great Khan looked back and forth between the two men.
Then he slowly raised his hand.
The murmuring inside the hall sank.
The generals straightened their backs, and the tribal chiefs closed their lips.
Even the hammering sound from outside seemed distant for a moment.
The Great Khan's voice was not loud, but it pressed heavily inside the octagonal hall.
"I have heard all of your words.
The words that those who fight must have their shares are right.
The words that the houses of the dead must be cared for, that horses must be given to the wounded, and that bows and armor must be prepared for the next battle are also right.
There is a reason in the law by which we have lived on the steppe."
The general of tribal-chief origin lowered his head slightly.
The Great Khan immediately turned his gaze toward Yeongu.
"Jungnangjang Lee's words are also right.
To build a country, a hand that only seizes is not enough.
A blade can open a fortress gate, but to rule for long the people inside the opened fortress, law and grace must exist.
Those held only by fear turn their backs on the day our strength weakens.
Was it not because of that that we rose against Liao?"
At those words, the air inside the hall grew heavy again.
The Great Khan leaned slightly forward.