Way of Overlord
Chapter 309: Rise and Fall of Empires

Chapter 309: Rise and Fall of Empires

An empire might be militarily strong but not prosperous, or it could be economically wealthy without having a powerful military.

Ideally, a balance of both would make an empire both formidable and flourishing.

Thus, Aeryon said, the people

That is the most important thing. The people. Whether for army or for the economy it needed people. Not gold, not silver and bronze, but people

Win the people, win the world. But not in the way the Yan empire using that slogan.

Benevolence is not enough. Then what should be use to induce these people to follow to war, to fight for his tribe and to feel it is worth it?

Benefit. Interest.

This also should be added. Honour and fame is good but material things should also be added

That is why the method of Yan would fail and the method of the Kan would succeed

Aeryon said for a military to be strong, there needs to be people to enter the army. For the economy to move and make a difference, people have to spend, to buy, to sell, to trade

The crux of two important thing for an empire is people.

And the ability to organize these people.

But there is also a difference

Aeryon stressed that the people is important because an empire with a strong military but do not think of their people would not last long.

Xun fell because they rule with old laws that the used to conquer the six kingdoms.

The six kingdoms has been conquered, but the rules and laws did not change, the world is still filled with dead, and people are tired of fighting and war and under Xun dynasty, one could not see when this war would end.

All they seek is war and the benefits of the soldiers is cut, the nobles is weak but the power of the emperor is at an all-time high and he uses forced labour to slave away to build his magnificent palace, no renumeration and no compensation.

Even with a slight mistake, an entire family could be implicated and sent to the execution ground

The people at first were fearful of the laws, and fearful of the Xun officials, fearful of dying, but when life has no meaning then there is no longer any reason to fear, and all that is left is the anger

And so, people would rebel from all over the world.

All it needed was a spark of fire.

And that spark of fire is Chen Sheng and Wu Guang roaring to the world "Are kings and nobles given their high status by birth?"

That slogan starts a spark of fire that turns into a prairie fire that enveloped the whole of Xun dynasty.

And finally, the winner is Jiang Han, establishing the Yan dynasty

That is what Aeryon said to him. And after reading the history of Xun Mayeux also agreed with this.

Aeryon teaches him things that is a bit different from the books he reads. The books he reads is about to govern people and country, to aid kings and rules but not to aid the people

But Aeryon told him, helping the people, is helping the ruler.

But not many ruler seems to understand this.

Instead, they twisted words of good advice from wise teachers and modified it according to their own biases of their perspective the world

Honest people to them must not exist because they themselves are not honest.

Good people does not exists and all are motivated by interest because they themselves are greedy and evil

To Aeryon, Yan does not understand the people of the Steppe because Yan rulers look at people like they were tools.

They look at their people like tools and other races like a defective tools. In the end, in their eyes, common people are just tools and all the high-sounding reason they spout from their words are nothing more than to seek fame and fortune

Aeryon told him that a strong military empire neglecting the needs of the people would lead to dissatisfaction.

And when people are dissatisfied they first would talk.

They first would complain.

But then since ethe government and the ruler did not even care about the complaint of the common people, and the common people learns that their words is ignored, what will happen next.

It is none other than unrest and chaos. And when chaos happens what will the rulers do? Kill and destroy.

To them, these tools now outlived their resourcefulness and so they should be reaped. Like a sickle reaping out weeds that had grown too long.

And what is the end result of this?

Rebellion.

This is just one of the things that would happen.

With an empire full of disgruntled population, without attention to the prosperity of the people, poverty all over the country, any empire that is like this would fail to harness the full potential of their country and leads to economic deficiency.

And the most important thing that an empire like this would lose is the people hearts.

People are less likely to be loyal to a government that does not care for their welfare, which can undermine the empire’s stability.

This is what happen to Xun dynasty. This is only but one example. There is many such example littered in the history book.

A strong military empire rises to become an overlord of a region or a continent but because of their harsh treatment, harsh laws, giving no chance for people to heal and recuperate, what happens next is rebellion all over the world and the empire so grandly established destroyed in only two generations.

Mayeux did not know it but Aeryon deduce this base on the history of his own world. In Aeryon world there is many historical example of this.

There was the Assyrian Empire.

Their military might is powerful, its military ruthless.

They used all kinds of terror tactics, including mass deportations and brutal punishment to maintain control over their vast territories.

They heavily focused on military expansion and control but did little to integrate or improve the lives of the conquered peoples.

This led to widespread resentment and numerous rebellions.

The relentless military campaigns and the harsh treatment of subjects eventually led to internal strife and weakened the empire.

Combined with external pressures from the Babylonians and Medes, the Assyrian Empire ultimately fell.

And the Roman empire also face this kind of problem during the Late Empire.

In its later stages, the Roman Empire became increasingly reliant on its military to control vast territories and fend off invasions.

The focus on military solutions overshadowed necessary social and economic reforms.

Heavy taxation and exploitation of provinces, coupled with political corruption and administrative inefficiency, led to widespread discontent among the populace.

The combination of internal decay, economic troubles, and constant barbarian invasions weakened the empire.

And it eventually collapsed.

But the closest example is the Xun dynasty. Aeryon believe that even though this world is different from his world, certain things develop the same and he believes that the Xun is basically the Qin dynasty of this world

Qin Shi Huang united China just like the First Emperor of Xun united the lands of Huaxia.

Since the ancient Huaxia people practiced grand and elaborate rituals, they called themselves Xia (great).

Their dresses were resplendent, so they were referred to as Hua (splendid).

It is the same for this world, where the Yan people before Xun called themselves the people of Huaxia among many other names they called themselves.

But then after four hundred years of rule by the Yan dynasty, they called themselves the Yan people.

Hence, Aeryon concluded that Qin and Xun is the same entity. They also share the same history.

The Xun dynasty of this world, unified the world (Tianxia) through a series of military conquests, ending the Warring States period.

The Xun military was highly effective, using advanced weaponry, organized infantry, and cavalry units to dominate their adversaries.

But, this is a government that did not know when to pull the brakes.

The Xun government followed Legalist principles, which emphasized strict laws, harsh punishments, and total control by the state.

This approach led to severe oppression of the populace.

Massive infrastructure projects, such as the Great Wall and the emperor’s mausoleum (with the Terracotta Army), relied heavily on forced labour.

The population suffered under heavy taxation and forced conscription.

The oppressive policies and harsh treatment of the population led to widespread dissatisfaction and rebellion.

After the death of the First Emperor of Xun, the empire quickly fell into chaos.

The Xun Dynasty lasted only around fifteen years, collapsing due to internal revolts and lack of popular support.

Mayeux of course did not realize the power of the common people.

Mayeux himself has a habit of underestimating the common people.

Underestimating the common people is not a rarity. It is the norm. Because the common people did not have weapon and they are idiots.

And it is not hard to understand why the privileged people think of it like this. In a crowd, even the smartest person could become an idiot.

The common people banded together precisely because they are weak.

And because they are weak they banded together.

And those who are most popular become the leader of an uprising. And the most popular one cut down those who disagree

And so, a herd mentality is formed and so when these mob meet an organized army, they fall with the slightest touch.

But Mayeux did not know that if you gave this mob of people a lion for a leader, then these sheep would become a band of lions that could tear everything in their way.

>>