by Yvonne Wang
The busiest place on campus has to be the school auditorium. Today, the world-renowned Asian history professor Scott Popovich is coming for a lecture, the topic of which is “The Expansion of the Mongol Empire and its Impact on the World.” This seminar is a part of the 14th Academic Conference of Asian Culture organized by the School’s Mongolian Students and Scholars Association.
It will be another half an hour before the lecture starts. Interested students are sitting down and filling more than half of the auditorium. Other than local American students, there are many international students too. A huge school emblem hangs on the auditorium wall, reflecting the prism light from outside the window. Noisy chatter quietly flows along. As time goes by, there are more and more people.
On the 12th seat in the sixth row, one male student with a backpack by his feet is sitting quietly and alone. He is looking down to review the notes in his notebook, which is filled with cell structure drawings and explanations. He has black hair and dark eyes, a straight nose and thin lips. He concentrates on his reading without a sound or a word. His breathing is long and continuous and his bearing seems deep and empty.
It seems that someone is closing in from the left of him . . . .
He raises his head and only sees a female student squeezing through the sea of people, finally finding this empty seat next to him. She strokes her long brown hair and politely bents down to ask in English, “Excuse me . . . . is anyone sitting here?”
“No.” He shakes his head in reply.
The girl with the hint of a smile carefully removes her bag, trying not to touch him, then sits next to him slowly.
Her gorgeous eyes are like the moon, her snowy cheeks are pure and beautiful. But—that pair of eyes, one is as blue as a celestial lake and one is as dark as a quiet night.
Have seen them somewhere . . . .
Just as he is stunned, she also turns her head to look at him. Her cherry-like mouth is slightly open and her willow-like brows are somewhat in a frown, a look of gladness gradually grows and flows forth from her eyes. She pleasantly raises her empty fist and hesitantly says, “I . . . . seem to have seen you somewhere before.”
His face looks lost; he wrinkles his brows recollecting.
The two look at each other, an aftertaste is stuck in the air.
“Oh, I remember.” The young woman smiles, pointing at him and saying: “You were at the Chinese Cultural Festival last time—performing swords on behalf of the Martial Arts Association . . .”
“Yes.” He pauses, and suddenly wakes up, nodding and responding: “You are the one who went to help the Chinese Student Association prepare the holiday party . . .”
Truth has come to light, both smiled shyly.
“Yes, my name is Angela, what is yours?”
“My name is Tory.”
She sees the notes in his hands, written in both Chinese and English, so she asks: “You know Chinese? What’s your major?”
He also glances at his notes, in a voice as pure as jade: “Oh, I am an international student from China. I am a medical student. And you?”
“I am also at the medical school. I am an international student from Poland.” Angela smiles smartly and delicately, her blue and dark brown eyes sincere and clear: “Also, my minor is Chinese.”
“Really, you are a medical student too? Why do you want to learn Chinese?”
“Because when I am a graduate student I want to specialize in Chinese medicine.”
“Perfect, me too.”
Their eyes meet, simple and straightforward in their sheer expression of feelings; they look pleased and speak happily.
Soon, the spotlight hits the podium, Professor Popovich walks up. The murmurs throughout the auditorium gradually quiet down, each student listens carefully.
“Hello students! Today we will explore the history of the Mongol Empire and its impact on the world. The Mongol Empire’s expansion toward Asia and Europe was the world’s earliest and largest in scope in terms of a ‘globalization’ movement. It changed the history of hundreds of nations on these two continents, also contributed to the cultural, economic and technological exchanges at that time . . .”
Forty minutes later.
“From this we can tell that it was because of Ögedei’s sudden death at that time that led to the Mongols withdrawing from Europe. We have no way of knowing whether Batu had plans to continue to invade Europe at that time. But the facts are that since they withdrew from Europe, complex power struggles took place as a result of selecting the new Great Khan in Mongolia; hence the Mongol armies never returned.” The Professor’s voice is clear, succinct and loud, occasionally accompanied by hand gestures. He elaborates ecstatically: “How were Batu, Baidar, Kadan and others’ armies doing in the battles in Europe? We all know they can be summed up as being: ‘invincible’. Poland and Hungary fell easily. At that time, the Knights Templar leader Armand wrote to King Louis of France, believing that the European military forces simply cannot resist the Mongols. King Louis and Austrian Grand Duke Philip were already prepared to fight to death, waiting desperately by the River Danube. As we have just said, the Mongols’ sophisticated weaponry and flexible tactics were invincible in medieval Europe.”
“Therefore, we can practically have predicted that had Ögedei not died, Batu and others could have proceeded westward in total, and in one fell swoop occupy all of Europe. In that case, Europe’s history will have to be rewritten. This is the way history is, a lot of subtle details and coincidences that affect the overall picture of the future. How did Ögedei die? There are numerous hypotheses among the historians but never a clear answer. But we may very well imagine that had Ögedei died 20 years later, what would have happen? How would that have impacted our world today?”
Tory was listening intently when he noticed out of surprise that Angela who is next to him raises her hand. The professor invites her to speak. He only sees her bite her lips, inhale deeply. Her blue and dark brown eyes glisten and she says sonorously: “I think that would have made a huge impact on the world. Had Ögedei not died, the Mongol armies would have taken advantage of the opportunity to advance westward, occupying the entire Europe for a hundred years, two hundred years, even three hundred years. They would have erased the local church culture and make people learn Mongolian, in short . . . . our so-called ‘Western culture’ may not exist at all.”
All the students in the auditorium listen with baited breath. Tory turns his face to look at her. Angela’s expression is stubborn and serious. Her pretty face is focused, cautious and resolute.
“There would not have been the Renaissance, major geographic discoveries, the Reformation, the Enlightenment, and the Industrial Revolution. Also there would not have been a constitutional monarchy, the development of capitalism, even socialism, communism. There probably would not have been DaVinci, Bell, Newton, Edison . . . . nomadic culture may have replaced maritime culture. Columbus would not have discovered the New World, so that all of you today — probably would not enjoy modern technology, sitting here in a campus in the United States and listening to the professor lecture.”
Her remarks shock everyone, stirring up a flurry of discussion.
The Professor thought for a moment, is about to respond, then sees another hand raised next to this female student.
Surprised, Angela turns her head. She sees Tory’s insistent eyes sharp, somber face sedate. He opens his mouth, “Professor, I disagree with her.”
“Oh? What are your thoughts?”
Tory’s downcast eyes are then raised to look straight ahead. His dark eyes calm and pleasant as he says: “I feel that even if Ögedei had died 20 years later, our lives today would not have been too different. First, when the Mongols expanded westward, they took a predatory policy rather than wanting to create an executive government. After they occupied the next city, their primary pu
rpose was to obtain local assets, human resources, material resources. They robbed them and then left. They did not emphasize the development of the local habitat subsequently. This point determines how the Mongols could not possibly establish a stable political regime in Europe for the long term.”
“Second, were the Mongols to have really occupied Europe, in addition to North Asia, the Middle East, China and other places, the Mongol Empire would have possessed the entire continent, becoming an unprecedented superpower. Such a large country is very difficult to manage. It is unrealistic and unscientific for such a large country to function, especially under the traffic conditions at that time. The end result would have been that no place was managed well and that each would govern itself. With the combination of the above two points, I believe even if the Mongols occupied Europe in form, in reality they would not have really put a government in place, proceeded with regulating and administration; the duration would also not have been long.”
“Third, even if the Mongols had occupied Europe, Western culture may not disappear for sure. This is just like the British occupation of Hong Kong. What we saw was not that the British culture washing out Hong Kong, but the collision of two cultural plates. In the end, they ultimately prospered in Hong Kong, together. At that time, the Mongolian culture and the European culture were utterly different and each has a long history; therefore the problem of a giant culture swallowing a tiny culture was nonexistent. It is a matter of a clash between two major cultures. Europeans’ habits and languages for thousands of years would still have been preserved.”
“Four, inventions like light bulbs, computers and the like are naturally produced as time advances. I believe that regardless of whether Mongols occupied Europe, we would be living in the world of high tech today. Humanity’s pursuit of a more convenient life would have urged people to explore and search for scientific principles. Mongols civic management was more restrictive, which might have caused people to develop democratic ideas about overthrowing political regimes. Hence there naturally would have been the separation of powers, capitalism, socialism, etc. For these reason I feel that the time of Ögedei’s death would not have altered history much.”
All the students in the auditorium are dumb as they listen; they are completely silent. They did not know whether to believe Angela or Tory.
Just then, Angela glances at Tory out of objection, courageously and stubbornly raises her hand again.
Tory also stares in shock. Looking at the lotus-root like arm next to him, he is rather amazed.
Angela had an air of ease about her as she argues: “Professor, I disagree with him. He just said that the Mongols could not have established a stable political regime in Europe, but the Golden Horde established by Batu ruled Russia for more than 200 years. He said Ögedei’s time of death would not have altered history. But as far as I know, had Ögedei not died suddenly then, Tolui’s son Möngke would not have taken the opportunity to throne himself; the Tolui descendant, Kublai Khan, probably could not have become the Great Khan later either. Had Mongolia been without Kublai Khan, it would not have occupied China. China’s history would have been rewritten, then would there be the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty later? The initial intention of the Europeans in creating the Age of Discovery was to find a new shipping route to do business in China. Were China’s history to have changed, Columbus probably could not have discovered America. Deducing in this way, were the commanding empire occupying the continents of Asia and Europe established, Europe would have been united under one country; currency and language would have been unified. Even if the Mongols were to collapse later, the idea of a united Europe would have continued, then would there have been World War I? Would Hitler have been successful in inciting World War II? So I believe, although Ögedei’s sudden death is just the tip of the iceberg, it was enough to change the direction of history.”
Before these two individuals’ self-absorbed debate concluded, students listening already could not help themselves but become excited. Clap after clap, applause sounded. Even Professor Popovich is cupping his chin and savoring this with interest.
Tory refuses to relent and continues to raise his hand obstinately. His heroic looks glows with a sense of confidence. He takes a breath and says: “Professor, I still disagree with her. Russia was ruled by the Mongols for more than 200 years, but most of Russia is still very close to Mongolia; it can be considered Northern Asia rather than Eastern Europe. Also, just as we witness for ourselves, Mongolia’s impact on today’s Russia is limited, be it in religious belief, language or culture. Similarly, although each country in Europe is small, the reason they became different countries is that they had always spoken different languages, have different histories. Even if Mongolia forced Europe to unify, once political regimes change, Europe will revert back to the original Europe. As for Kublai Khan, the Tolui clan had always wanted to re-seize the position of Khan before the death of Ögedei, no one can say that had Ögedei died later, Kublai Khan would not have become the Khan later.”
“Moreover, there is one very important fact, which is that Mongolia at that time was not a united country the way we understand it now. Mongolia has always had the tradition of feudal turfs with separate management. Genghis Khan divided the land for several of his sons. In the thirteenth century, Mongolia was together composed of the four Khanates and the Great Yuan Empire. The political regime of each Khanate is relatively independent; there were even religions of different faiths. This is also because the Mongolian territory is way too large, so that separate and independent governance is inevitable. Consequently, I believe that the timing of Ögedei’s death did not have much impact on history.”
His remarks completed, Angela’s blue and dark brown eyes sparkle like the night stars; the stronger they become the more they are blunted. She continues to retort impolitely: “After Ögedei’s death, Mongolia was not only focused on the succession of the position of Khan, but its war with the Southern Song Dynasty of China also resulted in its having no time to bother with Europe. The military might of a country is limited. Let us hypothesize that were the Southern Song Dynasty the cause of the Mongols for having no time to attend to Europe, then would Europe also have caused them to have no time to attend to the Southern Song Dynasty? Had Ögedei not died suddenly, then after the Mongols occupy the whole of Europe, the extended military front would have been a burden on the power of the troops; hence whether in the end they occupy China would be an unknown. Naturally, this is a huge impact on history.”
The debate continues and students in the auditorium perk up their ears and listen intently.
Tory gives Angela a look. His pair of black eyes are full of fascination and glee.
She also meets his gaze, clear and expressive.
Why is this person so familiar though they have just met? An opponent? No, a soulmate.
Two days later, the library. In the forest of bookshelves, ancient volumes and new books line up neatly. Between the bookshelves are orderly rows of self-study desks. All’s quiet.
Angela rams into someone. She looks up—before her, his dark hair fall over his strong neck, black locks and tan skin; his scent and breath are all so familiar in such proximity.
“Ah, Tory, it’s you.”
“Sorry,” he supports her with a hand, asking: “Are you okay?”
“Fine— you came here to study?”
“Uh, yes. And you?”
“I . . . . came to check on some information on Mongolia. Um—” Angela suddenly laughs, saying: “I was thinking about how I would continue to persuade you.”
“Yeah . . . ?” Tory is quite amazed. He sweeps with his elongated eyes, quietly confessing: “Actually I kept searching for information on Mongolia online recently, but there are limited sources, so I came to take a look at the library. I did not expect that you are just as interested in this period of history.”
“Yeah,”
Angela is suddenly alarmed. She lowers her voice, saying: “You came to check on information too? Oh, I will not let you defeat me.”
“Good, let’s set up a time for another battle. That’s a promise!”
“That’s a promise!”
Ten months later. Flakes of goose down has stopped flying about on campus. The streets are paved with ice and slippery frost. White sand permeates the sky and giant snow piles accumulate at the feet of buildings. Bare branches wear white snow.
“Come on, be careful.” Tory holds Angela’s hand, hopping over the icy road. He helps her with her hat. The two walk hand in hand.
On campus, a fine couple leaves two tracks of footprints in the snow.
“So cold.” Angela’s out-breath turns into a puff of white mist.
“Yeah, but it will be March soon. Spring is about to arrive.”
“Yeah, spring is about to arrive. What are you doing this summer?”
“Summer, I will return to China.”
“I will return to Poland too. How about if we go to Poland together, then to China?”
“Okay, together from Poland to China.”
A heavy snow ceases to be, in a vast, lonesome expanse of mist—white all over the wilds. A severe wind is crisp and sharp. The winter sun is especially tender and warm, tepidly lighting up the bright scenery.
Endnotes
1Since the passing of the old king, Poland at this time is divided into four dukedoms. King Boleslav V is only the leader in name. His uncles Henry and Conrad and a cousin separately control the rest of the country.
