Tributary system of Imperial Daxia

The tributary system of Imperial Daxia was a structure built and maintained by successive Daxian dynasties to manage their international relations with various states on the periphery of the empire. As the Daxian state expanded throught the centuries it encountered states and peoples who it was deemed inauspicious to absorb because of their customs, their appearance or because they could serve as useful geographic buffers. Tributary nations were required to submit large amounts of tribute, the specific terms of what was required being inscribed in the Imperial Tallies. In addition to the substantial tribute, tributaries were also expected to heed Daxian dictums on their relations with other states and to provide auxiliary troops for the imperial armies when requested. Inclusion in the system was often involuntary, the result of catastrophic military defeat but sometimes states voluntarily acceded to it to gain the military protection and political support of Daxia. The system survived into the early 19th century until the Qian dynasty began to adopt new and more direct extractionist methods on its neighbors. The Xie created idea that neighboring nations were inferior and their subservience was a natural thing was retroactively justified in the writings of the First Minister of Yang, Heian Xiujian, who wrote down treatises on notions of national belief he called Zhangwo. This concept became one of the foundational pillars of the Empire's expansionist mindset and its extraction of tribute.

History
The use of tribute to establish a relation of subordination between states dates back to the Xie dynasty who first formed networks of patronage with proto-Degei and proto-Hurch frontier tribes to its northwest, receiving tributes of warhorses, tin utensils and concubines. The Xie in exchange granted titles such as Marshall of the Great Wastes and Yellow Khan of the North to the nomad chiefs; titles that conferred political credibility to the holders but at the same time were specifically subordinate to the Xie Emperors. When one of these title holders grew too strong the Xie would usually contrive a reason to withdraw the title and award it to a different tribe, playing the nomads against each other. The implosion of Xie into many states did not stop the practice of extracting tribute, only now it was Daxian statelets doing it to one another. The state of Yang who grew to cover most of the historic core lands of Daxia maintained its own tributary system with the minor states of Mung and Chen. In some cases the system used by the Xie was turned on its head, with frontier Daxian states becoming subordinate to nomad kingdoms in hopes of the latter using their military power inside Daxia to alter the balance of forces. The state of Cao that ended up reunifying Daxia also extracted tribute from defeated states but only for a time, the heavy tribute was meant to fatally weaken these states; they were betrayed and conquered within a generation.

The brief Chen dynasty introduced the requirement that tributary states should render military support to their overlord. Chen's difficulty in subjugating the local Oduniyyad successor states made it demand troops from the King of Nasrad to support their campaign. When the last Oduniyyad successor state of Lakdu fell, around two thirds of the invading troops were non-Daxian muslim auxiliaries. This was not without risks of its own, Daxian history is littered with examples of vassal forces switching sides mid battle or abandoning campaigns after heavy defeats. Internal feuds and power struggles often led to a fracturing of the tributary relation as some cliques or rulers rejected Daxian overlordship and asserted their independence and others asked for Daxian military support to wipe out their rivals. Internal Daxian crisis and dynastic infighting could also encourage disgruntled vassals to attack their overlord, this was the case of the revolt of the Degei confederation during which a disgruntled local chief angry at diminishing imperial stipends roused the tribes into rebellion and devastated the Zhong dynasty for four years before being defeated.

The Qian dynasty oversaw a great expansion of the tributary system in the number of states subjugated and in the degree of control and influence the empire had over them. Qian expansionism resulted in very diverse peoples who were not used to Daxian practices being brought into the imperial umbrella, from Crona to Australis and Polynesia. The tribute of these far flung lands made the Qian court and treasure troves the envy of other imperial powers, the sheer breadth of variety enough to fill many tomes. The Qian also came into contact with Levantians and Sarpedonians who also offered gifts which the Daxians interpreted as offerings of tribute, clearly something was lost in translation as these outsiders had no interest in placing themselves on terms of servitude.

Accession
There were two ways to join the tributary system, by applying in peacetime and by being inducted after being militarily defeated. The sending of embassies in times of peace was when foreign rulers were invited to do obeisance to the Emperor of Daxia and offer up tribute. The offer would customarily be made in three separate occasions, if rejected then an imperial punitive expedition would be organized and dispatched (it could take as long as ten years for it to be dispatched, depending on internal factors). If defeated, the now humbled ruler (or the successor if the previous ruler died) was escorted in chains to the imperial capital of Daguo and paraded before the Emperor's court. A team of auditors would determine the outputs of his realm and craft the relevant tribute scroll, to be marked by the captive ruler with his seal before imperial officials.

States could also accede to the system of their own volition and even preempt imperial embassies in order to do so. The kingdom of Chu sent envoys bearing a treasure trove to the court of the Shang dynasty and a wooden tablet bearing the submission of the king of Chu to the Emperor; supplicating for his aid and protection. The king of Chu in this manner gained Shang military support to fight off a challenge for his throne posed by his half brother.

Obligations
All tributary states were required to submit tribute in the form of crops, alcohol (nomads gave fermented milk known today as Slozo, crafted items (pottery, clothing, utensils, weapons, jewelry), animals (horses, cattle, pigs and exotic beasts such as elephants) and derived products such as skins and valuable tusks, slaves (eunuchs, concubines, mute servants, soldiers), minerals (usually in ingots or as coins) and gemstones (cut ones were preferred but especially large uncut ones that could be shaped by imperial gemcutters were also accepted), spices, salt and any other natural resources as could be found on the land. The tribute was set down on the imperial tallies at the beginning of the year and had to be delivered before the onset of winter. The amount of tribute was subject to changes and variations depending on the specific need of Daxia, tributary rulers had no way of knowing until their delegations looked at the amounts on the tallies the next year. The Qian dynasty mostly phased out tribute in kind, instead requiring tribute be in the form of gold or silver coins. The Grog Fleet began as a convoy of ships transporting the tribute of the tribes of Australis to the mainland before being repurposed for the transport of imperial grog.

During and after the era of the Chen dynasty tributaries also sent troops to assist imperial armies on the field of battle. These auxiliary troops were usually a mix of foot soldiers and light cavalry and as a layer of extra security these troops were led by a member of the tributary state's royal family (commonly a son or a brother of the ruler, sometimes even an heir). In this manner the empire had an important hostage to minimize the risk of treachery while on campaign. Nonetheless even with precautions there are many historical instances of a tributary forces quitting the field without orders or joining the enemy at pivotal moments, due to resentment or opportunism or simply to survive a campaign going badly. Several important figures in nations around Daxia served at one time as auxiliaries with imperial forces, such as Darukh Khan who was a cavalryman and who rose to become the Marshall of the Great Wastes some fifteen years before his famous revolt.

The third obligation was that of formal recognition of the Emperor of Daxia as the overlord of the tributary state. Vassal rulers were forbbiden from using the title of emperor or any local equivalent such as Khagan. To do so was not only a break of the tributary compact but a direct challenge to the primacy of the empire. Tributary states had their own coinage but oftentimes they minted commemorative coins depicting the reigning Daxian emperor; the coins were sent alongside the yearly tribute as an additional form of homage.

The fourth obligation is the most vague and less understood and there was great discrepancy in how each dynasty interpreted it. Tributaries were supposed heed the dictates of the empire in their dealings with third parties. The majority of the dynasties had a very loose interpretation often reduced to a simple mantra of 'do not conspire with our enemies', in all other respects vassal states were free to conduct their affairs as they saw fit.The Qian dynasty conception of this obligation was that they had a right to dictate the foreign policy of all vassal states, including if they could use royal marriages as a tool in foreign policy and with who they could carry them out, or demanding that permission to wage war on a third state first be requested from the imperial court. The Qian interpretation lent itself to much greater involvement (or meddling in the eyes of the tributaries) to the point that some vassals operated more as provinces than independent entities. The Qian even began appointing Imperial Viceroy's to safeguard their interests in some especially important subject states.

Benefits
The benefits of joining the tributary system were manifold. Tributary states gained the right to trade with the empire (all relevant taxes and duties still applied), which was the largest market of eastern Audonia and had the biggest agglomerations of people, in addition to being the only nation with access to eastern goods. (Levantia and Sarpedon are located east of Daxia, therefore Daxian sources call it the East). The potential profits of engaging in commerce with Daxia could potentially dwarf the cost of giving the yearly tribute, so wily rulers made optimal use of trade missions and merchant networks to gain back their 'investment' and then some on top of that. As has been noted the Qian dynasty made significant adjustments to the system and began closing off avenues of profit by increasing taxation and duties on foreign goods making the tributary relationship more economically one sided.

The political recognition and support of the empire was also very useful in helping local rulers cement their positions and intimidate and discourage internal rivals from attempting a power grab. Often times a veiled threat of armed intervention was enough to maintain the status quo for a few more years. Especially loyal and valued vassal states whose rulers were granted titles by the imperial court could also expect monetary stipends to reinforce their loyalty, in rare cases the monies kept being dispensed in a hereditary manner, a very rare form of praise for a particularly loyal royal line. Being a vassal of Daxia was also seen as enhancing the prestige and pedigree of a dynasty and could be an extra leverage in interactions with other states outside the system.

The military dimension of the tributary system was more arbitrary; support for a vassal was never guaranteed just as it was not guaranteed would be as extensive as required. Imperial armies dispatched to aid tributaries had their own supplies but usually these were a reserve, they expected to be fed and housed by the vassal with its own means. In times of imperial crisis, vassals pleas for help would go unanswered or be firmly replied with stern admonishments to handle the matter themselves. Sometimes in lieu of an army, the empire would send diplomats with bribes for those attacking the vassal, this was particularly effective with many nomad and migratory confederations; the bribes paid to secure peace of mind were tacked on to the yearly tribute to be repaid, the were not gifts.

Rituals
Maintaining the tributary system involved much feting and entertaining dignataries from all across the continent and the Daxians observed certain rituals and formal ceremonies at various stages of the process. As the receiving of tribute was considered a joyful and auspicious occasion, the caravans carrying the imperial tribute were accompanied by musical bands playing trumpets and drums, each local governor had a duty to organize and pay for these music bands and see that they remained while the caravans were in the province. The foreign delegates all had to wear clothing of the same color, and not one vassal state was assigned the same color. This was done for issues of identification and to warn people away from interfering with the caravans (or fraternizing). The ritual obeisance before the Emperor and his court was the most important moment, on the first year of the compact the ruler and vassal-to-be traveled himself to the capital and ritually kowtowed seven times, as seven was a number that signified good luck. He was then given an ornate silver scepter topped with the effigy of a peacock to signify his new status as a vassal under the empire. Afterwards came the solemn session of bargaining and haggling before the Tribunal of Accounts, where the ruler was completely alone and could have no ledgers or documents to aid him; he had to come prepared with a sufficient knowledge of his realm's products and figures or else risk being pummeled into a very disadvantageous tributary arrangement. Next came the reading of the imperial tallies in the Hall of Tributaries where the keepers of the tallies read out the requirements of tribute to the accompaniment of music; after the reading the delegations were given a normal sized copy of the tribute list to take home with them.

Status
In the Zhangwo conception of Daxians as the peerless ideal of humanity, all other nations were lacking and inferior. There are many terms in the Daxian language for outsiders, foreigners and barbarians; epithets applied to most nations that eventually found themselves in thrall to the empire. But giving tribute was seen as a way out, and upwards. Coming under the wing of the greatest civilization and being cognizant of their own inadequacy and inferiority by obeisance and tribute was the first step towards an enlightenment. These nations went from Kakun and Hurd to the Good Barbarians, peoples on the path to joining the Daxians at the pinnacle (a journey that would take them hundreds of thousands of years, by the most generous estimates of learned scholars of the time). The Good Barbarians could be lavished with titles of some consecuence and meaning, with resplendent robes and scepters of office, with tablets engraved with solemn declarations of authority and friendship and if worthy and loyal enough, with the strength of arms of imperial armies. The term of the Good Barbarians is tangentially related to the myth of the 'noble savage' espoused by some Levantian authors when discussing the native Cronans, but in the case of the Good Barbarians all of the positive moral attributes of a people seen as innately inferior were entirely dependent on their subservient attitudes, like a light switch they could be turned off if tribute stopped and they would be relegated once more to the offal pile in the eyes of imperial authorities.

Kingdom of Nasrad
The Kingdom of Nasrad was a state that existed west of the Arik mountain range and was an early vassal of the Shang dynasty. The state was conquered by the Oduniyyad Caliphate and became a battleground between the two empires for decades. The Muslims were expelled when the caliphate fragmented and Nasrad was reinstated as an independent buffer state. Nasrad offered as tribute many ores such as iron, copper, tin and bronze and also tools and weapons made of these materials. On ocassion they also gathered gems in sufficient quantity (too few could be seen as an insult) so that they could be included in the tribute.

Degei Confederation
The Degei Confederation was a nomadic state to the northwest of Daxia proper that existed for several hundred years and alternated between vassalage to Daxian dynasties and hostility and plundering. During the periods that they gave tribute, the Khans of the steppe sent thousands of prized horses that filled the stables of the imperial armies. They also sent goat and alpaca pelts from the vast herds that roamed the steppes, thousands of jugs of fermented mare milk which they drank as alcohol, fine bows of carved yew and sinew and also multitudes of slaves captured in raids in central Audonia. The Degei mounted archers were also valuable and effective cavalry auxiliaries when their chiefs were in the mood to heed imperial summons to war, just as they were effective and brutal at decimating border towns. The value of the confederation as a vassal greatly decline after Darukh Khan's failed rebellion as their numbers were decimated and their unity crushed.