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Bonus 8: Society and life in the Empire
🕑 Added 2021-03-06 19:01:00 +0000 UTCA/N: It's been a while, so it's about time for another one of those! I'm probably going to post it to RR and SH tomorrow. If you have any ideas for future bonus chapters, feel free to suggest them!
I get the feeling I’m not writing these in the proper order. I’ve considered the Empire’s history, geopolitics, and even military, but not its culture or society as such. Well, this is basically my journal, so who cares?
Let’s look at some numbers to start. There are a bit over a billion people in the Empire. That sounds like a lot. Okay, that is a lot. But they’re spread over one whole continent and good chunks of others. If anything, it just goes to show how massive the Empire is. And with cultivator lifespans and the way qi facilitates agriculture, a reasonably heavy population density can probably be expected.
Not that the population was always this huge. We’re just coming out the tail end of a large population boom. They tend to happen in centuries of peace and prosperity, historically speaking, and growth is exponential. The Empire’s population is almost double what it used to be ‘only’ a few centuries ago. Okay, so maybe not that exponential, but for local standards.
The Central Continent, or Sky Continent, houses more than half a billion people. About ninety percent of its land area, excluding bodies of water, can be considered inhabited (or cultivated). The rest falls to qi anomalies or mountain peaks and other inhospitable ground. Though there really isn’t much of that. The continent is a very nice place to live, with a good climate and no large deserts.
Obviously, with this large of a population and territory, there’s going to be a lot of diversity. But Imperial culture is surprisingly unified and widespread, all things considered. Almost everyone speaks Imperial Common as a native language, even if it may be one among several. The calendar, measurement system, most holidays, and cultivation terms are the same. Not to mention things like the legal system which are obviously spread across the Empire. There are still local customs and traditions, but that’s true in any country that’s not just tiny. Even the dialects of Common aren’t that different from each other.
This country doesn’t really have the same concept of citizenship as I’m used to from Earth. Maybe that’s because there just isn’t much immigration. Basically, anyone living in the Empire is an Imperial citizen. Given rights, but bound by its laws.
The humans, at least. Spirit beasts aren’t really considered citizens the same way humans are. I assume that’s partly because most of them aren’t sapient. Those that are tend to be strong, and are generally treated with respect. There’s even a few cases of them going to Imperial courts (both successfully and not). But you wouldn’t expect them to pay taxes or attend school. Although there are always a few exceptions.
Spirits, of course, are even more of a different matter. Suggesting that local spirits are citizens of the Empire would get you more than a few weird looks.
Speaking of the legal system, it seems a bit primitive from my perspective, but is actually pretty advanced considering the feudal elements of the society. My grandmother initiated a fundamental overhaul of the legal system almost two centuries ago. It works with nice details like the assumption of innocence. From what I know of Earth’s history, that wasn’t always a given. At least Mother hasn’t changed things into a jury system, I don’t imagine that would turn out well. There’s a comprehensive legal code. While some of its contents might make me shake my head, it’s still a worthy accomplishment overall.
I mean, while you might get in trouble for fighting the Imperial dominion or insulting the ruling monarch, at least you’ll get a fair trial where that has to be proven. And it doesn’t matter if you’re a noble, you can still be prosecuted for committing a crime. Though in practice, I wouldn’t be surprised to see nobles getting away with more than commoners. But the thought is there.
Let’s take a step back here. There is no constitution, no fundamental limits, nowhere rights or laws are really enshrined and unassailable. I’m personally not really answerable to anyone except Mother. Her own power is, in theory, pretty close to absolute.
In practice, of course, the courts and legal system handle the jurisdiction. Executive power is wielded by the departments and ministries, by people like Chancellor Gen and the ministers down to regional administration. Legislative is a little trickier to pin down. Mostly, they rule by Imperial decree, at least where it counts. There’s no clear separation of powers. Although, to be fair, that’s often not clear in Earth’s parliamentary democracies that I’m thinking of, either.
The Empire is huge, and the bureaucratic apparatus running it correspondingly gigantic. Many things are decided on a local level, since there’s no point in bringing the issues to the capital. There’s some differences in how provinces and regions in the Empire are structured, although the general gist is the same. I won’t go into details here, they’re enough to fill books on their own. Suffice to say that the general structure is similar to the Empire at large, with local departments responsible for various fields. In some places, local nobility also plays an important role, although that varies.
While noble clans still own a lot of land and enjoy traditional privileges and rights, their actual power is more limited than I might have thought. Both de jure and de facto power. There’s no serfdom or equivalent, and they don’t really have subjects per se, not the way feudal nobles did in the middle ages. Their economic clout is still considerable, but also limited and growing weaker by the decade. The only area they’re unquestionably ‘mighty’ is martial strength, i.e. military force. This is because they control a lot of strong cultivators. Those are not just economic boons, but also fighting forces. It’s at least part of the reason nobles are often responsible for assuring the safety of areas, dealing with dangerous spirit beasts and the like, and the power and influence that brings.
Sects play a similar role to noble clans, in all. They’re more focused on learning and teaching, and many of their disciples only belong to them temporarily. Like clans, they can own land and be economically active, but their overall power in those areas is considerably smaller. I usually lump them in with nobles in thinking about these things, which is probably a habit I should get out of.
Education is another area where the Empire is surprisingly far ahead. For a society where ‘secret knowledge’ is a normal thing and clans and sects hoard it, at least. There are schools in almost every town and city, and even many villages. They’re mostly managed by the Imperial government, though sometimes local nobles have a hand in it, as well. The local administration pays the teachers and provides materials.
In some areas, especially the rural ones, there may be no schoolhouses. Instead, the Empire has a concept of wandering teachers, basically. They’ll do their rounds, visiting small villages, and teaching the children there part of the time. Some of them are paid for by the Empire, some are hired by local nobles. I imagine the ‘curriculum’ reflects that. For nobles, it makes sense as an investment to not just educate their population to increase their skills and value as employees or benefit the economy, but also to foster goodwill and paint themselves in a good light. At least, I’d be cautious of any history or civics lessons they teach.
Not that the teaching more directly sponsored by the Empire will be much better.
Anyway, of course a major part of the schooling is about cultivation. The children are taught all the basics, like the stages and terms. They’re also given practical lessons to get them started with cultivation, like teaching breathing patterns and how to draw in qi and cultivate it. Depending on how wealthy the region is, or how interested the local government is, they may also distribute simple cultivation aids, herbs or pills designed to help them through the beginning of cultivation.
Besides that, what the schools teach is what I’d expect. There’s no legal requirement to attend school, and children from poorer families may only go for a few years. But you can expect everyone to at least know how to read, write, do basic math, and the like. Naturally, schools only teach in Imperial Common. Nobles and wealthy families often home-school their kids. There are usually classes sorted by year, but the details like if there are advanced courses or how exams work can vary locally.
There didn’t really used to be higher education, except for sects and apprenticeship with dedicated scholars. Although I hope the universities we’ve introduced are beginning to change that. I should put some thought into how we may expand it into a system that provides higher education across the Empire. Perhaps with different sorts of colleges. I guess mandatory schooling also bears thinking about. I detest child labor, and while not prevalent, it’s still too common in the Empire. Making sure the children are in school should help, as well as leveling the playing field a little.
Even just from a practical perspective, thinking of all the talent and potential that is being wasted is making me cringe.
Let’s get back on topic. The economy. A field I’ve probably paid less attention to that I should have. As recent events might have shown. I’m just a little hesitant because I know it’s complex and I don’t really understand it. Mother is the one with an economic background (I think), not me. Although I’ve picked up somethings.
The currency is usually referred to as ‘coins’, even when not talking about physical coins. Fair enough. Not that non-physical money is really a thing here, but some valuable items can serve a similar purpose as very high-value currency. Easier than carrying a chest of coins around, I guess. The basic coins are small bronze ones. A few things that aren’t official currency are sometimes used for lower values, like pieces of amber or crystal. That varies locally. There are silver and gold coins, or ones made mostly of those metals, in various denominations.
Most noble clans, and the Crown, store the majority of their wealth in valuable materials and items rather than coins. There are also banks, of the equivalent on Aran. There are places that will hold on to currency and items for a fee. There are also organizations that offer the equivalent of accounts and checks. Those can overlap but might not. Basically, you can fill out a form that promises the recipient that they will get the specified amount from a branch of the bank. It’s still a fairly new system, but growing quickly, and I suspect it will continue to do so. I’m not really sure what introducing computers will do to Aran’s finance system, but I guess I’ll find out.
The economy in general is far less globalized than I’m used to from Earth. But there is still a fair amount of trade. Air travel and storage items are important factors, I assume. A significant portion of the economy is controlled by noble clans, and to some extent sects, and their subordinate companies. But there are also trading houses owned by independent merchants, some of them quite rich. And of course, many mid-sized and smaller businesses. Honestly, I don’t find much of note here, it’s pretty much as I would have expected.
These businesses, tradespeople, artisans, and everyone else often use qi to some degree. They’ll often have affinities and skills or techniques that suit their line of work. For example, you can expect someone working in construction to have earth affinity. Rising higher in cultivation means that you can do more work, and in general means more prestige and more money. Farmers, doctors, and many other professions also rely on their cultivation.
Of course, there are also professions not directly affected by qi, like lawyers, accountants, or store clerks. Mostly jobs not centered on physical work, I guess. I assume the number and importance of that sector is only going to keep rising with time, and as our industrialization continues.
Then there’s entertainment and the arts, which is a big of a mix. Affinities like light aren’t really common in the general population, but you’d find it here. People working as illusionists for theaters, that sort of thing. Musicians might have some air affinity. In general, entertainment tends to be live. There are ways to record music, for example, but those tend to be expensive. And hard to mass-produce. You can’t just copy a file a few times. Although printing presses are common, so there are bookstores, and a wide range of literature. At least there’s that.
While I find the Empire’s style of music a bit strange, I haven’t had much contact with it, so maybe I can’t really appreciate the range of it. Same with art. You have paintings, statues, murals, whatever. No real abstract art or installations, as far as I know. Art, or at least this kind, is mostly a thing for the rich. Music can at least be found in taverns or festivals.
One thing they don’t really have is professional sports. I guess cultivation just makes that too inherently unbalanced. No matter how well someone trains, someone else could beat them just because they’re a stage higher. And it’s not like the really strong cultivators are going to bother with being athlete. But there various sorts of games and sports in the Empire. I haven’t really looked into it, but some involve a ball, some are team sports and some aren’t. This is also heavily influenced by your location and local history, and there isn’t one thing you could consider the Empire’s national sport. Which is probably a good thing for me, or I might have to start caring about it.
All in all, the Empire’s people are just, well, human, when I look at it like that. Even if they live in a fantasy world with magic, at the end of the day most people just want to earn a living, and occasionally go out with friends, watch some entertainment or play a game. The technology they use may be a little different, and there may be people who are centuries old somewhere, but most just live their lives the same as they would on Earth.
Maybe that’s a good thing to keep in mind.
