Aztec Eternals

The setting sun slanted westward, reflecting the picturesque red glow. The breeze goes east, full of the fragrance of flowers.

After leaving Montezuma Palace, Shilot went to a new home not far away. Passing through the Beast Zoo, passing through the city lake in the palace area, and came to a priest's mansion with a white stone and red roof.

Not long ago, my grandfather moved from Teotihuacan, and he moved out of Avit's residence and lived here. Arvitt has been quite busy since his ascension. Except when they first came out, the two had a special dinner for one night, and they hadn't seen each other several times in the past few weeks.

In crowded occasions, the king must maintain solemnity and majesty, 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 were quite a few warriors, about one or two hundred, and a dozen longbowmen. Most of the samurai were familiar faces from Teotihuacan, and the longbowmen were followers of Shulot. After all, the family has been away from the capital for a long time, and those who can be trusted should still be brought from the holy city. The warriors did not remove their armor and were fully armed. When they saw Shulot returning to the house, they all saluted. Shilot also bowed slightly.

Beneath the calm exterior of the capital, there is a turbulent undercurrent. Large and small nobles have fief private army and family samurai. It is impossible to settle in the center of Mexica's power without a certain amount of force. What's more, grandfather is carrying out a huge religious reform, which will definitely damage the interests of the great nobles and some priests in the future, and there will be no shortage of enemies.

Before entering the room, Shirault heard a continuous "chirp" sound. There was a surprise in his heart: Little Golden Eagle actually knew that he was back and called to welcome him?

Immediately after the young man stepped into the house, he saw little Avellot hiding in the innermost layer of the wooden box nest, screaming in horror and helplessness. Not far away, there is a small green snake with its head held high, separated by a layer of wooden boards, "hissing" intimidating the small golden eagle.

Shulot laughed dumbly. Well, a golden eagle terrorized by water snakes.

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

After regaining his freedom, Shulot went to ask the elder for a little green snake. Snakes were common pets among priests and heralded 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 pale yellow medicine for external application of snake venom. A bottle of light green potion for internal use and needs to be carried with you.

Afterwards, 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 the servant. The little green snake will swim in the lake in the city during the day, steal beautiful tropical ornamental fish, and sometimes bring one to the teenagers. At night, it will come back on time, frighten the little golden eagle, and then find a warm place to sleep.

Sherlot looked at little Avellot again. The little golden eagle is five months old, and its body is gradually growing. Its wings are full of new brown feathers, and it can flap and fly a small section. And when the feathers turned fully grown black, it was free to soar 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 Avellot flapped her wings happily, slammed into the boy's arms, and then kept yelling "yoyo". The boy's hands sank, and he quickly caught the little golden eagle, feeling the warmth and softness of its feathers. Then, the young man gently rubbed its head, and the little golden eagle swung around in coordination. Well, Arvet trains it well. It's just that he's been too busy recently to be distracted.

"Maybe, I should invite Avit here to have a casual chat." Sherlot thought to himself.

Silent all night and slept well. Early the next morning, Gilliam visited in plain casual clothes. Shirot placed the small golden eagle on the high stone platform, and then called to Bertard and a few followers. The group simply went out in a low-key manner.

The market in Tenochtitlan is still prosperous, with merchants coming from all directions and dispersing like flowing water, it seems that nothing has changed.

However, Scholot knew that the merchants were the most frequently used spies of the Mexican ministries. The Texcoco royal family was destroyed, and the power of the Mexica Union was consolidated. This astonishing news must have been spread by the businessmen of various ministries. On the contrary, the religious reform has just begun and is still in the pipeline, so it is not too conspicuous.

Gilliam took Shilot to a secluded bay in the capital. There are two boats waiting here. Gilliam saluted the invitation, and Shilot went aboard with Bertard. The guards were in another canoe. Afterwards, the light boat drove fast, and the three of them went to the Qinanpa group 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 Mexicans built a large area of ​​chinampa floating fields in the lake, with neat canals in the middle. The Mexica Valley is warm enough, and Chinampa is not lacking in moisture. As long as the fertilizer is replenished in time, it can be planted all year round.

The three boarded the royal chinampa. Shulot looked around and saw hundreds of farmers working on different blocks, all year round. Floating fields in lakes are labor-intensive agriculture that requires intensive cultivation. The royal family and the great aristocracy had a large number of skilled peasants attached to them, as well as slaves engaged in planting. Nobles have strong control over subordinate farmers, and slaves who are good at planting are also very expensive.

It's December, and I've just finished harvesting cocoa, avocados, and vanilla. The royal family's chinampa is again planted with staple corn and soybeans, but pumpkins have yet to be sown. There is also a dedicated area where various spices and peppers are grown. The floating fields in the lake are lush and lush, in stark contrast to the empty farmland on the lakeshore in the distance.

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

"The capital city in the lake has a total of about 9,000 hectares of chinampa. Chinampa is the foundation of the capital city in the lake and the foundation of the Mexica. One hectare of chinampa can support at least 20 civilians."

Seeing the farmers busy planting, Gilliam was in a good mood and showed a rare smile.

Shulotte nodded. He thought about it for a while, and asked a doubt that had existed in his heart for a long time.

"Who are these chinampas in the hands of? How many?"

Jilim pondered for a long time and counted several times in his heart before he answered seriously.

"Recently, the land of the Prince of Texcoco and the nobles is being seized, and I also sent personnel to carefully investigate the land situation in the capital. Only the royal family, princes, high nobles, priests, minor nobles and commoner samurai can grasp the lands of Chinampa. Ordinary commoners, artisans and merchants are not qualified to master the highly productive chinampa."

"Among them, the royal family has about 2,500 hectares, which is the most accurate number. The two princes have 900 hectares. We have just confiscated 500 hectares owned by Prince Texcoco and half of Prince Tracopan's 200 hectares. Hectares. Of course, the two princes also have village fiefs and ordinary farmland outside their respective city-states, which are not counted for the time being.”

"The chinampa of the great nobles is about 2,400 hectares, which is equivalent to the number of the royal family. This number is not very accurate, it is possible to have 2,000 to 3,000, because it is difficult for us to check the fields of the great nobles. The amount of land of the priests The estimated value is 900 hectares, you can go back and ask the high priest for the exact number. The land of the minor nobles is about 1,400 hectares, and the land of the commoner warriors should be about 900 hectares.”

"The land of the great nobles and the priests is connected together. The area of ​​the small nobles is smaller. The land of the commoner warriors is completely scattered, and it can only be roughly estimated."

Shilot nodded solemnly. He pondered for a moment, then asked in surprise.

"The royal family and the great nobles each own nearly 30 percent of the land, the princes, priests, and commoner warriors each own 10 percent, and the minor nobles account for 15 percent. 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 low voice.

"Indeed. The nobles occupy the land and wealth of the alliance, and they also occupy the manpower of the alliance. The royal family and the prince each have hundreds of people, with hundreds of thousands of dependents. The dozens of nobles in the capital have thousands of people, with tens of thousands attached. The priests also have Hundreds of people and thousands of servants. There are also thousands of small nobles, with tens of thousands attached. And there are about tens of thousands of commoner warriors, including tens of thousands of families."

"These six groups are the real 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 leaves on the periphery. The remaining hundreds of thousands of farmers, citizens, artisans, and merchants are just root systems that provide nutrients."

Hearing this, Shilot pondered the power structure of the alliance.

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

The royal family, the great nobles and the priests were generally married and closely connected with each other. This is also the reason why the annihilation of the Texcoco series was extremely shocking and involved a lot. But Texcoco is passed on alone after all, and has less contact with the royal family. If the big nobles of Tenochtitlan are attacked in the future, I am afraid that even the royal family itself will split or even rebel.

In fact, there is not much difference between the minor nobles of military merit and the commoner warriors. Small nobles who have no military exploits are likely to be demoted to civilian warriors, and part of their land will be confiscated. The outstanding civilian warriors will be promoted to military nobles and rewarded with land. None of them have the ability to inherit hereditary, 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 considered the tail end of the ruling class.

Further down, ordinary civilians are strictly restricted, and take the community as a unit to become the basic unit to be ruled. Civilians need to pay tribute, participate in agricultural production, provide manpower, manufacture goods needed by rulers, and provide militia in wartime. In this era, civilians have no right to speak.

After a while, Shilot asked another crucial question.

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

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

"In theory, feeding one samurai is equivalent to feeding three commoners. The maximum feeding limit for 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 classified as enfeoffments. In addition to the commercial tax from the capital and the tribute from the alliance, there will be an extra 2,000 warriors to support.”

"The two princes' chinampa and village fiefs can support a private army of up to 6,000 people, in fact, 4,000 warriors. In addition to the commercial tax of the two cities, it should be able to support an extra 1,000 people. After this internal purge, There should be only the last thousand private troops in the hands of Prince Tracopan."

"Similarly, the land of the great nobles is also allowed to support nearly 17,000 warriors. But the great nobles also need a lot of wealth to maintain a noble life. Their private army adds up to about 10,000, which is equivalent to the royal family's army, and can Mobilize the militia in the villages it owns. Since the troops are scattered among the hands of different families, the royal family will win over some of the great nobles and suppress the entire group of nobles. Let their force be under the command of the king."

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

"The land of the minor nobles can support 10,000 warriors, and the actual number of warriors is also 10,000. Among them, there are 2,000 elite noble chapters, and their equipment is relatively well-equipped. And the commoner's chinampa can support 6,000 warriors. Usually, they will reduce their treatment and, with the help of the community family, try their best to support some more junior samurai.

Villages near the capital will also provide 3,000 commoner warriors. In the end, the civilian warriors numbered around 11,000. Military minor nobles and civilian warriors are the most loyal sources of force for the Alliance! "

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

According to the proportion of land occupied and the coefficient of the voice of the class, it is possible to roughly estimate the influence of all classes in the capital area, plus the force of each class.

So Shilot sorted out his thoughts and summed up the land and manpower of various classes in Mexica.

"The royal family owns nearly 30% of the land and has an influence of about 35%. It has the power to levy business taxes and distribute alliance tributes. The specific distribution is in the hands of the royal family and nobles of different levels, and the king has the right to make a decision. The royal family firmly controls the force of 10,000 taels. Thousands."

Shilot looked at Gilliam, who nodded to confirm.

"The prince has 10% of the land and 10% of his influence. After the large-scale purge, they are now temporarily owned by the royal family, waiting for subsequent division. Similarly, the prince has 4,000 vassal warriors waiting for the royal family to allocate. Prince Tracopan also has 1,000 private troops."

Gilliam smiled slightly: "The elder's action was quick, precise and ruthless, controlling the two princes day and night. They had no time to react, and they didn't have time to collude with force and launch a rebellion."

Shilot also applauded with emotion. Then, he frowned slightly.

"The big nobles have nearly 30% of their land and influence about 25%. But they don't pay taxes at all, and they even withhold business taxes and participate in the distribution of tribute to the alliance. The big nobles are almost autonomous, passing on from generation to generation, raising private armies, and accepting apprenticeships. They are with the country, and they will send troops to fight when the alliance is fighting. Their private army is about 10,000."

Gilliam looked solemn, and he spoke slowly.

"Although the great nobles are the backbone 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 capital, the three cities and the four states of the Lake District, the influence of the royal family is minimal. In the other seven states , the big nobles replaced the royal family and became the actual rulers of the city-state. In the entire alliance, their influence accounted for at least half."

Shilot was stunned for a moment, then nodded slowly. In fact, in Teotihuacan, his own family was the largest priest and nobleman.

"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 well-paid. But the priests are an important force in the maintenance of the alliance. Their tentacles penetrate into every corner of the alliance. A village and community, the basis of the national control alliance, is equivalent to the affairs officer at all levels.

According to the precepts, the priesthood does not have legal inheritance rights. Lower priests were required to strictly observe the precepts and were not allowed to marry. The force at the hands of the priests is the well-equipped and high-spirited Temple Guard of 2,000. "

Gilliam nodded first. The priesthood is the most important network of connections between the states of the alliance. Then he smiled slightly and looked at Shirlot. The marriage heritage of high priests is far too common.

Shirot's face flushed slightly and continued to analyze.

"Military nobles own 15% of the land, and their influence is reduced to about 10%. They cannot be hereditary, so they can be better controlled and directed by the king. They can provide 10,000 warriors. Civilian warriors have 10%. Chinampa. Some of the samurai come from villages near the lake. They have the lowest influence and say, an estimated 5%. They can provide 11,000 samurai."

Bertard listened for a long time, then calmly interjected.

"The life of a commoner samurai is very difficult. The samurai need to participate in labor and go out to hunt to gain income and train subsequent family samurai~www.readwn.com~ Although they are slightly inferior in martial arts, and their equipment is relatively simple. But they have more A strong fighting spirit and a strong fighting spirit to change the future are truly strengths worth relying on."

Shulot nodded in approval. Most of his followers are civilian warriors. They fight bravely, do not fear death, and have higher loyalty. In daily chats, teenagers can feel their desire for victory and rewards. These squat landowners are the future of historical development!

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

Shulot looked at the vast Texcoco Lake and the floating fields on the boundless lake, his heart was up and down. The land is everything to Mexica society, and control over the land controls the Mexica. The strength of all social strata relies on the land, and the struggle of all strata must also be fiercely launched around the land.

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

"In today's Mexica society, the king, the clan, and the great nobles rule the world together. They are connected with each other through marriage, and they respect the powerful."

"And the future of the development of the times is the establishment of a real mature country, the separation of the royal family and the government, the weakening of the great aristocracy, the strengthening of the priestly class, and the rise of military aristocrats and civilian warriors! When metal tools are popularized, productivity will once again be If it improves, the economic foundation of Shang Yang's reform will mature, and a new era will begin."

Thinking of this, the Scarlet Temple flashed from his memory not long ago. He sighed softly.

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