Aztec Eternals

The setting sun is slanting to the west, reflecting the picturesque red clouds. The breeze goes east, full of the fragrance of flowers.

After leaving Montezuma Palace, Shulot went to his new home not far away. Pass through the beast zoo, pass the lake in the palace area, and come to a priest's mansion with white stone and red roof.

Not long ago, his grandfather moved from Teotihuacan, so he moved out of Avit's house and lived here. After Avit took the throne, he was quite busy. Except when they first came out, the two specially had a banquet for one night, and they haven't seen each other a few times in the past few weeks.

In crowded occasions, the king must remain solemn and majestic, and Shulot must also maintain etiquette. If it weren't for the lovely Alyssa as a bond, the two would probably gradually separate from each other.

The new mansion is not big and there are not many servants. There are quite a few warriors, about one or two hundred, and there are more than a dozen longbowmen. Most of the warriors are familiar faces from Teotihuacan, and the longbowmen are followers of Shulot. After all, the family has been away from the capital for a long time, and trustworthy people still have to be brought from the holy city. The warriors did not remove their armor and were fully armed. When they saw Shulot returning home, they saluted one after another. Shulot returned the salute slightly.

Beneath the calm exterior of the capital city, there is a turbulent undercurrent. All the nobles, big and small, had fiefdom private armies and family warriors. It is impossible to settle in the center of power in Mexica without a certain amount of force. What's more, grandfather is carrying out a massive religious reform, which will definitely damage the interests of the great nobles and some priests in the future, and there will never be fewer enemies.

Before entering the room, Shulot heard continuous "chirp" sounds. He wondered: The little golden eagle actually knew that he was back and shouted for welcome?

Immediately after the boy strode into the house, he saw little Avelot hiding in the innermost layer of the wooden box lair, screaming in horror and helplessness. Not far away, there is a little green snake with its head held high, "hissing" and threatening the little golden eagle through a layer of wooden boards.

Shulot laughed dumbfounded. Well, a golden eagle terrorized by a water snake.

Xiaoqing can't do anything through the wooden box. It "hissed" for a while, and when it saw Shulot returning to the house, it swam over nimbly. Immediately, it got into the boy's trousers, wrapped around his calf for a warm rest.

After regaining his freedom, Shulot went to ask the elders for the little green snake. Snakes were common pets of priests, heralding the favor of the gods. The elder pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly and said nothing. He just gave the boy two bottles of light yellow medicine for external application of snake venom. A bottle of light green potion, for internal use, needs to be carried with you.

Later, Shulot kept the little green snake at home, and put a priest's copper ring on its tail to prevent it from being accidentally injured by servants. The little green snake would go swimming in the lake in the city during the day, eat beautiful tropical ornamental fish secretly, and sometimes bring one to the boy. It comes back on time at night, scares the little golden eagle, and then finds a warm place to sleep.

Shulot looked at little Avilot again. The little golden eagle is already five months old, and its body is gradually growing. Its two wings are full of brown new feathers, and it can fly a little bit by flapping. And when the feathers become fully grown black, it can soar freely in the sky. Its volume is many times that of the little green snake, but it is still a little timid and does not know its own strength.

Seeing Shulot coming, little Avilot flapped his wings happily, crashed into the boy's arms, and then kept yelling "Yo Yo". The boy's hand sank, and he quickly caught the little golden eagle, feeling the warmth and softness of its feathers. Then, the boy gently rubbed its head, and the little golden eagle swayed back and forth in cooperation. Well, Avitt trained it well. It's just that he's been too busy recently and has no time to be distracted by it.

"Perhaps, Avette should be invited here for a relaxing chat." Shulot thought secretly.

No words all night, sleep well. Early the next morning, Gilliam visited in plain casual clothes. Shulot put the little golden eagle on a high stone platform, and then called out to Bertard and several followers. A group of people went out in a simple and low-key manner.

The market in Tenochtitlan was still bustling. Merchants came from all directions and dispersed like water. It seemed that nothing had changed.

However, Schlott knew that merchants were the most frequently used spies in the Mexican ministries. The Texcoco royal family was destroyed, and the power of the Mexica Alliance was integrated. This astonishing news must have been spread by the merchants of the various ministries. On the contrary, the religious reformation has just begun and is still brewing, so it is not too eye-catching.

Gilliam took Shulot to a secluded bay in the capital. There were already two boats waiting here. Gilliam saluted and invited, and Shulot boarded the ship with Berthard. The guards were in another canoe. Afterwards, the light boat sailed quickly, and the three of them headed for Chinanampaqun in the lake.

Under the protection of the embankment, the entire Texcokosi Lake is completely controlled, and then divided into several areas by the long bridge. The Mexica built a large area of ​​Chinanampa floating fields in the lake, with neat canals built in the middle. The Mexica Valley is warm enough, and Chinampa is not short of moisture. As long as the fertility is replenished in time, it can be planted all year round.

The trio boarded the royal Chinanpa. As far as Xiulot looked, hundreds of farmers were working on different blocks throughout the year. Floating fields in the lake are labor-intensive agriculture that requires intensive cultivation. The royal family and the great nobles had a large number of skilled farmers attached to them, as well as slaves for planting. The nobles have strong control over the subordinate farmers, and the price of slaves who are good at farming is also very high.

It's December and the cocoa, avocado and vanilla have just been harvested. The royal family's Chinanampa is once again planted with corn and soybeans, but pumpkins have not yet been planted. There is also a dedicated area where various spices and peppers are grown. The lush greenery on the floating fields in the lake is in stark contrast to the empty farmland on the far shore.

Standing on Chinanampa, Shulot could smell a faint smell of river mud and manure. Soil fertility needs to be replenished again when a new batch of staple food is sown. It was the dry season at this time, and the lake was full of small boats to clean up the silt. The villages along the lake have to provide manpower to dig river mud for the royal family and nobles.

"The city of the lake has a total of about 9,000 hectares of Chinanampa. Chinanpa is the foundation of the city of the lake and the foundation of the Mexica people. One hectare of Chinampa can feed at least twenty civilians."

Seeing the busy farmers planting, Gilliam was in a good mood and smiled rarely.

Xiuluo nodded. He thought for a while, and asked a question that had been in his heart for a long time.

"Who are these Chinampas in the hands of? How many are they?"

Gilliam pondered for a long time, counting silently in his heart several times before answering seriously.

"Recently, the land of Prince Texcoco and nobles is being confiscated. I also sent personnel to carefully investigate the land situation in the capital. Only the royal family, princes, nobles, priests, minor nobles, and civilian warriors can control Chinanampa. Ordinary commoners, craftsmen and merchants are not qualified to master the high-yielding Chinampas."

"Among them, the royal family has about 2,500 hectares. This figure is the most accurate. The two princes have 900 hectares. We just confiscated 500 hectares of land owned by Prince Texcoco and 200 hectares owned by Prince Tlacopan. Hectares. Of course, the two princes still have village fiefdoms and ordinary farmland outside their respective city-states, and this will not be counted for the time being."

"The Chinampa of the great nobles is about 2,400 hectares, which is comparable to the amount of the royal family. This number is not accurate, and it is possible to have 2,000 to 3,000 hectares, because it is difficult for us to check the fields of the great nobles. The amount of land owned by the priests The estimated value is 900 hectares, you can go back and ask the high priest for the specific figure. The land of the minor nobles is about 1,400 hectares, and the land of the common warriors should be about 900 hectares."

"The lands of the great nobles and priests are connected in one piece. The lands of the minor nobles are smaller. The lands of the commoner warriors are completely scattered, and can only be roughly estimated."

Shulot nodded seriously. He calculated silently for a moment, then asked in surprise.

"The royal family and the great nobles each own nearly 30% of the land, the prince, priests, and civilian warriors each own 10%, and the minor nobles 15%. So, the land is completely concentrated in the hands of the nobles? How many people are there in each class?"

Gilliam nodded solemnly. He replied in a deep voice.

"That's true. The nobles occupy the land and wealth of the alliance, as well as the manpower of the alliance. The royal family and princes each have hundreds of people, with hundreds of thousands of dependents. The dozens of big nobles in the capital have thousands of people, and tens of thousands of only the priests. There are hundreds of people and thousands of servants. Small nobles also have thousands of people, and tens of thousands of followers. And civilian warriors are about tens of thousands, including families, there are also tens of thousands."

"These six groups are the true rulers of the capital. For the towering sacred tree of the alliance, the royal family is the towering trunk, the great nobles are the thick branches, the priests are the connected bark, and the minor nobles and warriors are the bark." The outer leaves. The remaining hundreds of thousands of farmers, citizens, craftsmen, and businessmen are just roots that provide nutrients."

Hearing this, Shulot contemplated the alliance's power structure.

In the Tri-Cities Alliance of Mexica, the royal family is the government of Mexica and performs the duty of leading the alliance. Under the king, the four consuls of the alliance are all public, and he is likely to enter it as an heir. The royal family is also composed of royal nobles of different sizes, divided into many branches, and many are entrusted to foreign countries.

Marriage was common among the royal family, great nobles, and priests, and they were closely related to each other. This is also the reason why the annihilation of Texcoco was extremely shocking and involved a lot. But Texcoco passed on alone after all, and has less connection with the royal family. If the great nobles of Tenochtitlan are attacked in the future, I am afraid that even the royal family itself will split or even rebel.

There is actually not much difference between the minor nobles and civilian warriors with military merits. Small nobles without military exploits are likely to be demoted to civilian warriors and some land will be confiscated. And outstanding civilian warriors will be promoted to military nobles and rewarded with land. None of them have the ability to inherit hereditary inheritance, and the population of each family is only a few dozen people. These warrior classes provide the alliance with the force of war and are regarded as the tail end of the ruling class.

Further down, ordinary civilians are strictly restricted, and the community as a unit becomes the basic unit of rule. Civilians need to pay tribute, participate in agricultural production, provide manpower, manufacture commodities needed by the ruler, and provide militia in wartime. In this era, civilians do not have any right to speak.

After a while, Xiulot asked another key question.

"One hectare of Chinanampa can support at least twenty civilians. Then, how many warriors can be mobilized by each class?"

Gilliam thought for a moment, this was also his concern. He calculated in his mind for a while, carefully estimating.

"Theoretically, supporting one samurai is equivalent to supporting three civilians. The maximum number of people supported by the royal family should be 17,000 people. But in reality, the royal family needs to grow luxury goods, and needs to support a large number of servants, musicians, and singers. Really There are only 10,000 warriors attached to the royal land, of which 5,000 are family warriors, and 5,000 are enfeoffments. With the addition of the capital's commercial tax and the alliance's tribute, an additional 2,000 warriors will be supported."

"The Qinampa and village fiefdoms of the two princes can support a private army of 6,000 people at most, but the actual number is 4,000 warriors. Including the business tax of the two cities, it should be able to support an additional 1,000 people. After this internal clean-up, There should be only the last thousand private troops in the hands of Prince Tracopan."

"Similarly, the land of the great nobles allows nearly 17,000 warriors to be supported. But the great nobles also need a lot of wealth to maintain a noble life. Their private army adds up to about 10,000 people, which is comparable to the royal army. At the same time, they can Mobilize militias in the villages they own. Since the military forces are scattered in the hands of different families, the royal family will win over some of the big nobles and suppress the entire group of big nobles. Let their force be under the command of the king."

"The priest's land supports up to 6,000 warriors, but priests need a lot of wealth to maintain their lives and beliefs, and there are still many donations missing. At present, there are only 2,000 temple guards, and they are not easily dispatched. They will only be used in alliance wars. Send guards to protect the war priests who are going out."

"The land of the minor nobles can support 10,000 warriors, and the actual number of warriors is also 10,000. Among them are 2,000 elite noble regiments, which are relatively well-equipped. The Chinanpa of commoner warriors can support 6,000 warriors. Usually, they will reduce their own treatment, and with the help of the community family, try their best to support some additional warriors of the younger generation.

Villages near the capital will also provide 3,000 civilian warriors. In the end, the number of civilian warriors was around eleven thousand. Military meritorious nobles and civilian warriors are the most loyal source of force for the alliance! "

With Gilliam's analysis, the class power in the capital region gradually became clear in Shulot's mind. He gained a deeper understanding of Mexica society.

According to the proportion of land occupation and the discourse power coefficient of the class, the capital area, the influence of all classes, and the force of each class can be roughly estimated.

Shulot then sorted out his ideas and concluded the land and manpower of the various classes in Mexica.

"The royal family owns nearly 30% of the land, with an influence of about 35%. It has the power to levy commercial taxes and distribute tribute to the alliance. The specific distribution is in the hands of different levels of royal nobles, and the king has the right to make decisions. The force firmly controlled by the royal family is 10,000 taels Thousands of people."

Shulot looked at Gilliam, who nodded in confirmation.

"The prince has 10% of the land, and 10% of the influence. After the large-scale cleansing, it is temporarily belonging to the royal family, waiting for subsequent distribution. The prince also has 4,000 vassal warriors waiting for the royal family to distribute. Prince Tracopan also has 1,000 private troops."

Gilliam smiled slightly: "The elder's action was fast and ruthless. He controlled the two princes all day and night. They didn't have time to react at all, and they didn't have time to collude with force and launch a rebellion."

Xiulot also praised with emotion. Then, he frowned slightly.

"The great aristocrats account for nearly 30% of the land, and their influence is about 25%. But they do not pay taxes at all, and even withhold commercial taxes to participate in the distribution of tribute from the alliance. The great aristocrats are almost self-governing, passed down from generation to generation, raise private armies, and accept apprenticeships. They rest with the state, and they will go to war when the alliance is campaigning. Their private army is about ten thousand."

Gilliam looked solemn, and he spoke slowly.

"Although the great nobles are the pillars of the country, their power should be suppressed as much as possible. The alliance's control over the great nobles is too low! Outside the lake area of ​​the capital, three cities and four states, the influence of the royal family is minimal. In the other seven states , the great nobles replaced the royal family and became the actual rulers of the city-state. In the entire alliance, their influence accounted for at least 40%."

Shulot was taken aback for a moment, then nodded slowly. In fact, in Teotihuacan, his family is the largest priest and noble.

"The priests only have 10% of the land, and with the addition of religion, their influence is about 15%. Similarly, the priests do not need to pay taxes and are treated well. But the priests are an important force to maintain the alliance. Their tentacles penetrate into every part of the alliance. A village and community is the basis of the national control alliance, which is equivalent to the affairs officers at all levels.

According to the precepts, the priesthood does not have legal inheritance rights. Low-level priests need to strictly observe the precepts and are not allowed to marry. The force mastered by the priests is two thousand temple guards with good equipment and high morale. "

Gilliam nodded first. The priest class is the most important network between the states of the alliance. Then he smiled slightly and looked at Shulot. The marriage inheritance of high priests is too common.

Shulot blushed slightly, and continued to analyze.

"Military nobles own 15% of the land, and their influence has been reduced to about 10%. They cannot be hereditary, so they can be better controlled and commanded by the king. They can provide 10,000 warriors. Civilian warriors have 10% Chinanpa. Some of the samurai come from the villages near the lake area. Their influence and voice are the lowest, estimated at only 5%. They can provide eleven thousand samurai.”

Bertard listened for a long time, and then calmly interjected.

"The life of civilian warriors is very difficult. Warriors need to participate in labor and go hunting to earn income and train subsequent family warriors. Although they are slightly inferior in martial arts and relatively simple in equipment, they have stronger fighting determination, and A strong fighting spirit to change the future is a truly worthwhile force."

Xiulot nodded seriously. Most of his followers are civilian warriors. They are brave in battle, not afraid of death, and have higher loyalty. In their daily chats, the teenagers can feel their desire for victory and rewards. These common landlords are the future of historical development!

In total, in the three cities of the capital, there are 12,000 royal families, 5,000 princes, 10,000 nobles, 2,000 priests, 10,000 minor nobles, and 11,000 ordinary warriors. There are a total of 50,000 warriors directly under the royal family! This is the core force of the Mexica, the absolute power to rule the states.

Xiulot looked at the vast Texcoco Lake and the endless floating fields on the lake, and his heart was full of ups and downs. Land is everything in Mexica society, and if you control the land, you control the Mexica. The power of all social classes depends on the land, and the struggles of all classes must also revolve around the land.

The teenager's thoughts flew to the future and the distance.

"In the current Mexica society, the king, the princes, and the nobles rule the world together. They are married to each other, and they respect the strongest."

"The future of the development of the times is the establishment of a truly mature country, the separation of the royal family and the government, the weakening of the great aristocratic class, the strengthening of the priestly class, and the rise of military nobles and civilian warriors! If it is improved, the economic foundation of Shang Yang's reform will mature, and a new era will begin."

Thinking of this, the Scarlet Temple not long ago flashed in his memory again. He sighed faintly.

"Perhaps, there will be a better way to reduce the cost of future reforms."

I made a simple model today and calculated the data of each class. This chapter is more difficult to write, and it was posted later. Well, hard work for support!