Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!
Chapter 692 - 363: The King’s Life and Overview of the Kingdom

Chapter 692: Chapter 363: The King’s Life and Overview of the Kingdom

The tropical April marks the end of the dry season. Cloudy weather gradually increases, and the air carries a hint of moisture. As the foremost event of the year, the busy spring plowing is about to begin.

Waves of messengers ran throughout the Kingdom of the Lake. Heading north, they passed through fields teeming with life and lakes dotted with fishing boats, till they finally reached the Rivermouth fortress, delivering reports from all over the kingdom into the hands of the king.

In the central courtyard of the fortress, Xiulote sat cross-legged, flipping through documents from different regions.

Calling them ’documents’ might be a bit of a misnomer; they more closely resembled illustrated books with captions. The resilient bark paper was painted with figures in various actions—some holding weapons, some with farming tools, others clutching cotton or corn, some mining stones, others smelting metals, and some praying. Beside each figure, there were various counting symbols and native pseudoscripts, with a few boxed Chinese characters. The kingdom’s written language had been popularized for less than two years, and even the simplified native pseudoscripts were only mastered by some priests, with even fewer familiar with Chinese characters.

Since literacy had not yet become widespread, the ’illustrated books’ were somewhat voluminous. Large scrolls of documents piled up on the two desks in front of the king—one pile reviewed, the other awaiting inspection.

The two desks were short, solid wooden stumps, hard in texture, dark green in base color, and with unique, naturally occurring patterns on the wood surface that varied with the grain. At first glance, the two solid desks resembled dark gemstones, exuding a sense of weight and antiquity. In fact, due to the wood’s hardness, the kingdom’s craftsmen used methods for processing gemstones to polish them. This wood would become the priceless and treasured Mexican blackwood, known as ebony and persimmon wood, in later generations.

In this era, persimmon wood was considered quite valuable. It had a peculiar fragrance and was endowed with religious significance, often planted near temples. The persimmon wood featured varied textures and its dark colors gradually diffused like the surface of satin or a naturally formed inkwash painting.

Xiulote was particularly fond of the pattern of this wood, so he had the craftsmen create some furniture from his memories to place in his living quarters. These pieces reminded him of his distant homeland. After reviewing documents for a while, he reached out and picked up a deep purple teacup from a small ebony table next to him.

The deep purple teacup was newly fired by the official kilns of the Capital City. To supply the Royal Family, craftsmen used heated charcoal to produce stoneware, something between pottery and porcelain. Although Xiulote had pointed the way, the porcelain technique was still a long way off, with even glazing technology still in exploration, producing only occasionally some fine stoneware.

"The unglazed fine stoneware does remind me of Yixing’s purple clay pottery," he mused.

Xiulote examined the beautiful texture on the surface of the teacup and its subtle purple sheen, his face breaking into a smile. Under the guidance of the Divine Revelation Priest, the kingdom’s pottery craftsmanship was making slow progress, just like other handicrafts. He then lowered his head and took a sip of the kingdom’s specialty hibiscus tea. The tart taste immediately reverberated in his mouth, accompanied by a faint floral fragrance, refreshing his spirit.

Hibiscus, also known as Roselle (Flor de Jamaica), is mainly produced in tropical Africa, but is also native to America, especially the variety from Jamaica is the most famous. In later-day Mexico, it is a common beverage found in any market, where the dried hibiscus tea is visible. It also has a slight stimulating effect, which the king used to alleviate fatigue.

A few steps away, Bertade also sat cross-legged with a bronze sword by his side. In front of him was a desk, upon which lay paper, pen, and seal. The political structure of the kingdom was rough but streamlined, and important matters were decided by the king with a single word.

"Bertade, reports have arrived at the Palace from everywhere, updating on the population count and preparations for spring farming. Only the report from Zicao County in the south is vague."

Xiulote frowned, tossing the wooden tablet portfolio in his hand onto the desk. This portfolio was still in the traditional style of the Alliance and the Kingdom—bulky wooden boards with abstract drawings, and a few ancient pictographs without specific numbers or explanations. The king glanced at it and was immediately displeased.

"Your Highness, Etalik, who is stationed in Kulamo City, wrote that the Great Nobility of Zicao County appear submissive on the surface but actually create many obstacles to the kingdom’s administration. Led by the noble families of Guramo and Zotol, they secretly band together. With their interference, the spread of the Chief Divine faith is extremely slow, and the priests are unable to take control of the villages, often under attack by bandits..."

Bertade spoke calmly, detailing the situation in the south.

"Last year, when the army campaigned to the north, the southern nobility already showed signs of unrest and held frequent gatherings. Citing a flood in the Tarsas River as an excuse, they reduced their tribute following the autumn harvest. Fortunately, Ezpan’s second Spear Legion is stationed just south of the Capital Region, preventing the southern nobility from taking any significant actions."

"Guramo of the Zicao Family, Zotol of the Palm Family... Are they honored nobles who surrendered after the western campaign?"

Hearing this, Xiulote asked in a cold voice.

In the Nava language, "Zotol" means palm, and "Guramo" refers to the Zicao hibiscus. Zicao County was named after Kulamo, showing the long history of these families.

"Exactly, they were among the Great Nobility granted lands at the frontier during the early establishment of the Tarasco Kingdom. Through over two hundred years of inheritance, both families have deep roots in Zicao County and are intermarried with many other nobility."

Bertade pulled out a scroll of maps and unfurled it to examine.

"Your Highness, after last year’s autumn harvest, the population of Zicao County, which numbers over 200,000, paid only a quarter of the Tribute to the Kingdom compared to the Capital Region. The Great Nobility only paid some token tributes. It is said that during the era of the Tarasco Kingdom, this was already the case. They neither paid Tribute nor taxes, controlling the populace and the land, merely providing military service."

"Hmm, I understand," Xiulote replied, lowering his eyes and nodding without speaking further. The power of the southern nobility had always been etched in his mind; it was just that the sudden outbreak of the northern campaign had taken almost a year, delaying his previous plans.

After finishing his hibiscus tea and refilling his cup, all the documents had been reviewed. The King then spread out a new map of the Kingdom and patiently began to mark down the reports from various regions on the map.

It had been two years since the founding of the Kingdom of the Lake, and the situation in each county had been sorted out.

In the northern Rivermouth County, after settling 60,000 Canine Descendants, the population had reached around 210,000, all firmly under the control of the Preaching Priests. The influence of the nobility in this land had been the most thoroughly cleansed, so the vast majority of the populace had been incorporated into the Kingdom’s civilian settlement system. The farmers paid a third of their produce in taxes each year and complied with the labor draft.

The belief in the Chief Divine spread quickly in Rivermouth County, with compost and new agricultural tools becoming commonplace. Last year’s autumn harvest increased by 20%, with each Milpa producing nearly 100 pounds of corn and beans, and 200-250 pounds of pumpkin. In this way, just three acres of land could roughly sustain one able-bodied adult. With the current land productivity, if the Kingdom reduced the tax from thirty to twenty-five percent, each household could afford to raise an additional child.

After pondering for a while, Xiulote made a note on Rivermouth County, "Pop. 210k, Able-bodied 50k, Directly under the Kingdom, Major grain-producing county, Lerma River shipyard".

Next was the Patzcuaro Lake region in the Capital Region, with a population of around 280,000. As Sage Jatili became involved in politics, more and more Prepetcha elites joined the Kingdom’s governance, managing every aspect of the Capital Region. As a precondition for the participation of Prepetcha elites in politics, the belief in the Chief Divine had completely covered the Kingdom’s upper echelons.

The Capital Region established a large number of military settlements, gathered the Kingdom’s finest groups of craftsmen, and vigorously mined the copper and coal mines to the southwest of Qinganbate, even establishing the Kingdom’s first university.

The Capital City of Qinchongcan was the political and religious center, as well as a hub for workshops and culture. South of the Capital Region, the city of Ihuatzio was an important commercial center, the largest in the world for copper mining and gemstone trade. It could be said that the output from the Capital Region supplied the Kingdom’s standing army and provided the best bronze equipment.

Xiulote drew several circles, then annotated, "Pop. 280k, Able-bodied 70k, Directly under the Kingdom, Copper mines, Coal mines, Bronze, Gemstones, Workshops, Markets, University."

Then, the vast southern region of Zicao County was rich in precipitation and stored copper and silver, yet it was where the Kingdom’s rule was weakest. Zicao County’s southern border was marked by the Tlaxcala River, whose branches irrigated the lands along their course, offering excellent agricultural conditions, as well as plentiful fishing and mining resources that had yet to be developed. The county seat, Kulamo City, lay along the Tlaxcala River and was an important center for trade, frequented heavily by southern tribes.

Recalling the estimates from Etalik, Xiulote wrote, "Pop. 200k, Able-bodied 40k, Nobility autonomy, specifics unknown. Foreign trade center, seaport."

West of the Tlaxcala River led to an outlet that flowed into the Pacific Ocean, a mere three hundred miles from Zicao County’s Kulamo City, the nearest channel to the ocean. At this thought, his mind was flooded with plans for exploration, and the fleeting image of a person. Moments later, the King looked up slightly, turning his gaze northward.

The territories of the three Otomi states in the north had already been marked, with Otapan State "Pop. 200k, Able-bodied 30k, Nobility autonomy, Mountain city ancestral land", Guamare State "Pop. 140k, Able-bodied 20k, Nobility autonomy, Western Guamal Canine Descendants." The furthest north, Pamus State, was "Pop. 80k, Able-bodied 15k, Semi-autonomous, Wilderness outpost."

Even though these figures were estimates, they demonstrated the Kingdom’s control over the local areas. All in all, if the vassaled Otomi forces were also included in the Kingdom of the Lake, then the nascent Kingdom would have over 1.1 million people and more than 200,000 able-bodied adults, spanning 500 miles east to west, and nearly a thousand miles north to south!

Ambition burned fiercely in the King’s heart. His expression changed as he couldn’t help but stretch out his hand, touching the Lake Capital City of Tenochtitlan to the east, which had the world’s largest population, the most fertile valleys, and the most powerful Alliance.

Then, his hand gradually moved west, caressing the Chapala Lake Region, an area with equally rich soil that would be known in later times as the "River of Stones", the "Valley of Fortresses", the location of the great Guadalajara metropolitan area. Finally, the King brought his pen down and drew a bold, red circle around Kulamo City.

"After the autumn harvest, I shall visit this place!"