Scandinavian leftovers

Part 21

The Korean kingdom Silla buried King Talhae. His son Pasa, born to his Persian concubine, succeeded his father. When Pasa heard about the Vesuvius hazard, he send his condolences towards Titus. The Parthian diplomats at his court also informed him about a confederate kingdom in northern Europe that gained economic dominance as an ally of Rome. Also, the council of ministers were surprised at the news.

''Tell me more about this confederation? Is it like ours?''

''Similar. They are a collection of several Norse tribes, communities of Alpine Roman immigrants and Israelites that joined together as one country. They are headed by an Israelite from Rhaetia. They call him Arvid. He has made two diplomatic missions to Rome. His wealth is estimated, considered all his properties, lands, the servants of his wives, his construction projects and his military investments, to be 15,6 million Denarii ...that is around 800 million Korean Zhu coins! That's thrice the national wealth of Silla!''

''That's wealthy indeed! And is there anything else remarkable about this man?''

''He is married to a Korean woman. Her name is Yu. She is from the Mahan confederacy. Her grandparetns, however, are from Silla. They are still alive. They live near the border with Jinhan.''

''What about her other relatives? Siblings? Parents? Nephews? Cousins?''

''They live either in Mahan or here in Silla.''

''Interesting!''

''Sir, do you want us to send an envoy to Scandinavia?''

''How long would it take for the envoy to arrive?''

''By sea, through the Meditereanean, five months. By the Chinese, Scythian and Sarmatian roads, it might take only 42 days. Or, if the horses are quicker, 29 days.''

''Send one in the mid of winter. Then it will arrive in spring. Send her relatives with the envoy.''

''Sir, what do you want us to do about Wa?''

''What about Wa?''

''The archipelago only has around a quarter million people that reside in around 80 countries. That's around 1000 people per country. Each country is an extended village. Above the extended villages there are several kings that function as kingdoms. There are around 30 kingdoms in Wa. Most people, especially the young, die do to hunger caused by crop failure, or by pestilences that break out almost every generation.''

''What does that have to do with us?''

''Your father had a close relationship with the kings of Wa. Trade, however, was stagnant during his rule. Do you want us to send a mission to revive trade?''

''How many people live in Silla?''

''Around 100 thousand people. 101,231. According to the census of last year.''

''How many troops do we have?''

''9039, Sir!''

''In that case, we can send a mission to the Izumo tribe. We outnumber them.''

''Sir, the population of Korea is expected to increase coming generation. There are many young couples breeding as we speak.''

''That's good news!''

''Well, not exactly. The current Silla population might become 800 thousand within 25 years. And within fifty years we will have around 1 million Sillan Koreans. This will bring tensions within the country. We will not have enough farms to produce enough supplies to feed everyone.''

''What else?''

''What else? We need to find a way to control the population...''

''Do we?''

''....''

''Across the sea you have the archipelago of Wa. There's much uninhabited land over there. If we increase too much in population, we will deport people towards Wa. There they can begin a new life and we will be rid of them here. Problem solved!''

''What if we get in trouble with the Wa chieftains?''

''We will deal with that when the time is ripe.''

Pasa said down and addressed the whole congregation.

''Do you really think there are only around 250.000 people in Wa? Their state capacities are far beyond ours. There might be over one million or two million people living on those large extended islands. We, Koreans are around maybe two million over here. Divided in many state-lets, governed by chieftains, shamans and by tribal kings. We are pressured by the Chinese, who have 55 million living within their Empire. Look at the big picture. Population growth is not a problem. It's a necessity. We need more warriors, wives, husbands, tailors, merchants and farmers to deliver our bread. I cannot predict nor guarantee the future of Silla. Maybe the Han dynasty will invade Korea completely and our nation will cease to exist. Maybe the people from Wa will suddenly annex our nation and we will be absorbed into their new kingdom. I can only be certain of today. Tomorrow isn't even promised to me. So how can I promise tomorrow to the people? I tend to be a realistic ruler. By the way, those 100.000 Sillan people aren't all there is. There are also slaves which are not numbered among civilians. I think we have around 300.000 to 500.000 people living in Silla. It doesn't matter. For now, I want us to pay tribute to the King of Scandinavia, just as during my father's time we paid tribute to Parthia. My mother comes from the Parthian Kingdom and due to that we have several diplomatic exchanges with Parthia. Even though we aren't as much affected at all by what happens to Parthia. Whether they are sacked by either Rome or by the Indo-Greeks in India, it's none of our concern. Yet, we even had a Parthian ambassador among us. So, why wouldn't we make effort for one of our own? She is married to a barbarian. Nevertheless, we should be proud that one of our people made it that far.''

''Your thinking, Majesty, is quite progressive.''

''Traditions are useful for predictability, they are useless when faces with change that cannot be prevented. The world is changing. We need to adapt wisely to the changes without losing ourselves, or we will be crushed and annihilated by the changes.''

''What about the Scythians?''

''I haven't forgotten about them. They are a divided people. And as far as I can tell, they will remain divided for a while. We are not China. We are not an Empire. We are a tiny tribal kingdom, sustained by kinship between chieftains, and a sun cult which dominated the world. We will pay respect to the Scythians when we encounter them. We can bypass the Chinese territories and reach Europe with ease. We won't be noticed at all. And even when noticed, we will be mistaken for Chinese. And the Scythians are frightened of the Chinese. So... why should we be bothered with them?''

''It is safer to travel through China, Sir''

''We will. But we will need to increase our tribute also. Do you want that?''

''It's better to remain on friendly terms with the Han dynasty. If they find out that we try to bypass them it will cause conflict.''

''True!''

''It will also cause suspicious of the other Korean kingdoms. And that will not be good for your rule, Sir!''

''Increase the tribute to the Emperor. But keep your mouth shut about our tribute to Scandinavia.''

That same day a small envoy departed from the shores towards China.