Yan
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Yan, formally called Great Yan (大炎), is a Terran country located at its easternmost border between Higashi, Kazdel, and Ursus. It is an imperial monarchy ruled by an emperor titled the "True Lung” with a large, centralized bureaucracy of mandarins under the order of the Six Ministries. Being a vast empire, the Lung race governs multiple races who have their ancestry traced back to the Hundred Clans united by the emperor.
One of the classical nations that have existed since ancient times, Yan is well-known for its history and rich, diverse traditional culture bound by its extraordinary, venerable natural sceneries and bustling cities that support its robust economy. The current dynasty rose from the aftermath of the Great Hunt against the godlike Feranmuts that deemed the "mandate of heaven” belonging only to the mortals, and its victory against the "gods” brought a long period of social stability along with its distance away from the tumultuous Terran hinterland before its opening-up in the Crystallization Age.
Yan demonstrates both a soft and harsh side in terms of social governance through its highly venerated legalism, or Yanlü. Its government demonstrates toleration and even endorsement of racial diversity within its border.[2] Yanese treatment of the Infected is lenient, though this comes with the cost of limited freedom of mobility, as it is often the case in other nations.[3] While Yan has not been active in military activities thanks to its appearing stability, its military might is still formidable thanks to its constant alert against the Feranmuts.
The Yanese language is similar to Chinese, specifically Mandarin, in our world, along its unique regional topolects. But somehow, both have distinct grammars and accents even though both are mutually intelligible enough with each other.
History
The Hundred Clans
Since ancient times before the common era, the eastern side of Terra was already inhabited with several tribes along the fertile Liangjiang region. The foundation of the Yanese dynasty could be traced back to the Tribe of Yan under the leadership of its eponymous leader, Yan the Chieftain, who was anointed as the first True Lung. Together with his wife, Yan brought civilization to the tribes through teachings of languages and distribution of lands to the Hundred Clans, the Baishi (百氏), under him. For many years, the Hundred Clans obeyed Yan's order through tributes and military services provided by the local lords leading the clans.[4] Among the known clans, the clans of the Lung were given the leadership among other clans, and the Kylin clans were nominated to become the leading sorcerers who spread the knowledge of Arts to the common folks.[5]
Unfortunately, Yan suddenly passed away after exhausting his Elder trait for building civilization. Along his collapse brought along a ferocious civil war, known as the "War of the Hundred Clans (百氏之乱; Baishi-zhi-luan)" by historians. The old feudal system collapsed, and the lords competed against each other over large swarms of land without the chieftain's leadership. Nevertheless, a rising Ture Lung claimed himself as the new emperor over the lords. With his large army and sharp political reforms, he was able to unite the Hundred Clans under the one sovereign which in turn ended the civil war. It was after the war that the centralized imperial system was established which persists in the modern era through generations of bureaucratic rearrangement.[4]
The War of the Hundred Clans brought a strong impact onto the Yanese. They abandoned feudalism that fragmented both the land and the government. What came forward was a centralized imperial court that fully obeys the True Lung and fully unites the Hundred Clans, and this centralized bureaucracy continues to be practiced in present days.
The Great Hunt
Historically, Yan had a deep, eternal struggle with the primordial, godlike Feranmuts. Being fearful of Their power, the Yanese worshiped them as almighty and wrathful beings, but the imperial court had shattered such belief following the rise of an energetic, notable, yet controversial True Lung. The young emperor had been fermenting the idea of subjugation of the "gods," believing that the misfortunes of the mortals were caused by Their neglect and that the mortals had the right to rule themselves. Among all the "deities," Sui was the one who had the longest history of interaction with Yan, and Its disdainful and prideful manner further reaffirmed the emperor's idea. Nevertheless, the True Lung sometimes borrowed Their power for political purposes to bide his time, such as quenching the War of the Hundred Clans through Sui's power to test Its loyalty.[6]
The discovery of the "Ruin of the Gods" where Yanese scholars uncovered bones of the Feranmuts further proved the emperor's mind that those "deities" were not completely immortal.[7] After centuries of preparation, the young emperor embarked on the "Great Hunt," a grand conquest against prideful "gods." Under the guise of an autumn ancestral ritual, he lured Them to the festival while quietly gathering up his loyal army to surround Them. Starting from the killing of a weakling, it suddenly escalated into a full-scale war. And to everyone's surprise, Sui betrayed Its kin and joined the emperor's forces out of Its own selfish interest, but the keen emperor already knew Its trickery, and he turned his blade onto It for Its manipulation.[8]
The Great Hunt did manage to fully subjugate the Feranmuts, exalting Yan to become one of the Terran nations that dared to challenge the "gods." Those "deities" who dared to stand against the emperor were either brutally slain or being banished from the empire forever, and Sui was punished by being imprisoned underground. Nevertheless, the pyrrhic victory resulted in many consequences. Countless innocent lives of the mortals were claimed, and the Yanese army suffered from severe loss in a ratio of three-tenths.[9] Most importantly, the north of Yan was completely corrupted by the northern demons, aka. the Collapsals, because the army enhanced their fragments against Sui, forcing Yan to build heavy fortifications to guard their further psychic pollution.
Present days
For millennia, Yan was away from the political heart of Terra due to its distant location, which resulted in its absence from any large-scale conflict in recent history. In turn, Yan only limited its geopolitical affairs on the eastern side of Terra. It primarily acted as mediator of the Higashi North-South War when the latter sent letters to seek help in 631, and the True Lung urged both sides to calm down while condemning the Oniayame's disloyalty to the Kougon.[10]
Nevertheless, as Terra entered the Crystallization Age where Terra underwent massive industrial revolution, Yan had to face a different era which it deem isolationism would not benefit the empire. So, in the year 845, Yan dispatched imperial envoys to various nations. Not only did it open up Yan's border that unveiled the mystery of the east, but also, Yan became active in the geopolitics of Terra.[11] Notably after the Bloodpeak Campaign, Yan once again played its role as mediator by easing the tension between Ursus and Higashi, and it poured huge investment in rebuilding Higashi's infrastructure.[12]
Following the Chernobog-Lungmen and Londinium incidents as well as the Stimmverlust of Empress Hildegard of Leithanien, Yan started to prepare for the worst scenario to come. After a secret meeting held in Terran year 1101, the mandarins decreed the "Twenty-Eight Policies" that ensures Yan's political stability, and two extra laws were hidden from the public in response to the ongoing threat of the northern demons and the unforeseen danger of the Seaborn in its southern coastlines.[13] In the meantime, the current Emperor of Yan, the younger brother of Wei Yenwu, and the Ministry of Rites are working with the fragments of Sui to revive their true form and other ancient Feranmuts. If succeeded, it could bring havoc not only to Yan itself but also to all of Terra.
Notable people
| Heartlander | |||
|---|---|---|---|
- Bai Dingshan
- Meng
- Ruan Weiwei
- Hsi-o/"The Dusk Beauty"(夕娥; Pinyin: Xi'e): A beauty in a particular Yanese folklore who, in order to search for her lost husband, literary flew above to the Twin Moons with the help of the "god" of Mount T'ien.[14] While many of her stories are fictional additions by later generations, many believe she could be an actual being whose story is the first recorded account of a human contacting the Starpod, the "fake sky" of Terra.[15]
- Lien Tzu-hsu☠ (廉子虚; Pinyin: Lian Zixu): An old lady who was Mr. Nothing's martial art master and the head of the descending Lien clan. Being preyed by the local authorities, she was "murdered" by her competitors through a forced suicide.[16] She also had a close tie with Uncle Tung in Lungmen.
- Yan (炎氏)☠: The first monarch and founder of the Great Yan, who named the nation after him. He decided to unify the people in the west to bring order to the wilds, yet he suffered a premature death when the nation was just beginning to prosper.
- Yu Cheng (虞澄): A former Deputy Minister of the Central Judicial Office and Leizi's predecessor, who despite his young age, was considered the most impressive member in the office's history under the Deputy Minister rank. He was responsible for the impeachment and arrest of Langyi's previous magistrate ten years ago, due to corruption allegations. However, it's believed that the evidence Yu presented for the magistrate's impeachment was fabricated.[17]
Places
Districts/settlements
- Dahuang
- Lungmen
- Moushan
- P'o-shan
- Shangshu
- Yumen
- Baizao (百灶): The imperial capital of Yan.
- Jiangqi (姜齐): Mulberry's and Qiubai's hometown. A major northeastern Yanese city which is known for its harsh winter, river settlements, and its alcohol culture where the inhabitants are heavy drinkers. The city has also been infamous for its water banditry where bandit clans build water fortresses and rob local authorities on boats, one of which including Quibai's father.[18] The banditry resulted in a bloody purge that dismantled the village.
- Kou-wu (勾吴; Pinyin: Gouwu): The city where Mr. Nothing tried to escape from and the hometown of the dead Lien clan. According to Dusk, the inhabitants have a culture of fine delicacy and scalebass fishing during late autumn.[19]
- Ni-Weng (泥翁; Pinyin: Niweng): A village under the foot of Mount Hui-ch'i; famous for its jade.[20]
Landmarks
- Mount Hui-ch'i (灰齐山; Pinyin: Huiqi): A mountain that is close to Ni-Weng Village; the place where Dusk hides herself.
- Mount T'ien (天岳; Pinyin: Tianyue): The tallest mountain in Yan. According to the legend of the Dusk Beauty, this was where she ascended onto the moons.[14]
- K'u-t'an River (苦潭江; Pinyin: Kutan): The "River of Sorrow;" the place where young Saga's master was saved by Dusk.[16][21]
- Boulder of Pei-hsïan (北悬巨石; Pinyin: Beixuan): A famous natural site in Yan in which a huge boulder hung itself in midair. Acoording to a legend, the boulder suddenly stood itself after the ascending of an emperor, leading the people to believe that it was a good omen. Sadly, it was destroyed by a Catastrophe a few years ago.[22]
Notable architectures
- Chamber of Heaven's Designs (天机阁; Tianjige): A series of fortifications located at the Northland guarded by numerous soldiers and Tianshi. For thousands of years, it acts as a wall defending the nation against the invasion of the northern Collapsal.
- Chidao (驰道): A.k.a., "imperial highways." They are governmental infrastructure project aimed for Catastrophe avoidance, resource transportation, and helping people living in remote areas. It consists on a series of interconnected roads sprawling across the wilderness, connecting more than a thousand different nomadic cities across Yan, ensuring safety and communication between them.[23][24]
References
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