Empire Ascension: The Rise of the Fated One-Chapter 182: Before returning Delhi part -1
In the Rewari Kingdom, after the coronation, many things happened in the week that became the foundation of a new dawn in the region. The first issue he took into his hands was the release of the rebel soldiers who had been captured and forced to stand guard at the border outposts in anticipation of a possible war with the Mughals. However, with the return of the Samrat (emperor) and his forces, there was no longer a need to detain them, and they were disbanded. The kingdom’s soldiers now took their places. This move was welcomed by the local populace, and many families eagerly awaited the return of their young ones.
Next, King Randeep initiated a formal recruitment process for fresh soldiers. Villagers were given the opportunity to voluntarily join the kingdom’s standard army and enjoy the benefits of a stable income, regardless of their previous involvement with the rebellion. However, many were more interested in joining Prince Aditya’s mercenary company, which had gained widespread praise as the key factor behind these favorable changes.
After handling the military matters, King Randeep shifted his focus to the ruined city of Rewari, located just 15 kilometers from Bawal. As promised, he fully supported the city’s rehabilitation. Currently, Rewari housed many villages but lacked fortifications, as its walls had been destroyed and burned during the previous Mughal regime’s rule.
Both Aditya and King Randeep coordinated to design the new fortifications for the city, aiming to attract more settlers and establish it as the capital. Aditya, however, disliked the idea of the kingdom and its capital sharing the same name. Anticipating potential administrative challenges in the future, he sought to make this small but significant change himself. He suggested renaming the city, and King Randeep agreed, deciding to call it "Hemnagar" once it was properly rebuilt.
Leveraging his knowledge from his past life, Aditya pushed the king to base the city’s fortifications on the star forts of Europe, renowned for their resilience against cannon fire and their design that eliminated blind spots. Though Aditya could have recommended supplying cement to expedite the construction, he remained silent, as he had his own reasons for withholding this information. Instead, he was curious to see how long the traditional stone masonry with lime mortar would take to reshape the ruined fortifications of Rewari and transform it into a true city and capital.
While King Randeep was occupied with the city’s rebuilding efforts, Aditya turned his attention to his forces, preparing for their return to Delhi at the end of the week. During the coronation, he was deeply troubled by accusations of corruption and knew such misconduct was not impossible. To address this, he secretly formed a special task force under Puneet, who had quickly risen to the rank of captain due to his leadership skills and contributions. Puneet was assigned the task of overseeing the compensation process handled by Aditya’s mercenary company and to report any irregularities within the week.
Puneet assembled a task force of 200 men, conducting surveillance by randomly seeking feedback from direct beneficiaries. While instances of embezzlement were discovered, they were minor in scale. Puneet diligently included every detail in his report. However, he also uncovered a growing issue: clashes between Muslim factions. Muslims who supported the royal family were being attacked by others who labeled them as traitors.
Thanks to the presence of police guards and the swift action of the mercenary soldiers, these clashes were kept to a minimum. Upon investigation, it was found that the conflict stemmed from deep-seated resentment within the Muslim community. Tensions had arisen because some maulvis, previously seen as religious leaders, were jailed, while others, particularly from recently converted groups, were rewarded. Puneet compiled all the details and submitted his report in just five days.
Meanwhile, Aditya, in his royal chamber, was pleased with the progress reports made in joint training exercises between the Marathas and his mercenary army. While the Marathas were skilled in the use of firearms, they were not familiar with formal battle formations. Through this training, they learned both the strengths and weaknesses of line formations. On the other hand, Aditya’s mercenaries, who had little experience with guerrilla warfare, came to understand how deadly it would be to face the Marathas on their terms. Their recent victories no longer filled them with overconfidence, and they began to approach future battles with greater caution.
Aditya also reviewed the development reports from Khera village, where the number of villagers opting for agricultural experiments using the four-field system had increased from 4 to 18 in just two weeks. Although the results would take time, this growing trust in his leadership was heartwarming.
Another matter on his mind was the management of the village’s soap factory. Aditya had decided to entrust it to the village sarpanch’s daughter, a woman with strong leadership skills, as part of his efforts to promote women’s empowerment. Thanks to Princess Meenakshi’s demonstrated prowess in battle, the villagers, who once believed that women were only suited for household work, did not oppose the idea. This progressive mindset, ahead of its time, was something Aditya cherished about the village.
Although some might claim the villagers acted out of fear of Aditya, he knew it was love and trust that drove their support. He felt deeply attached to the village and wondered how much he would miss them.
Just then, Puneet arrived and handed him his report. Aditya first skimmed through the report on the internal Muslim conflict and dismissed it, confident in his security arrangements. However, when he read the report on embezzlement within his forces, he became enraged. Even though the scale of corruption was minor, Aditya believed that every major scandal began with small acts of greed. Determined to get to the root of the issue, he enlisted the help of Balwindar, who was in charge of training his elite spy network, the "Netras" (Eyes), to investigate the soldiers involved.
For Balwindar, it was child’s play. Within three days, the culprits were identified: several sergeant-rank soldiers from both Aditya’s mercenary company and the kingdom’s army.
Although the scale of the corruption was minor, Aditya showed no mercy. Wanting to set an example, he sentenced the kingdom soldiers to one year in jail, while his mercenary company held its first court martial. The caught soldiers, pleading for mercy in front of their comrades, were stripped of their uniforms and titles. That day served as a stark reminder that the company would not tolerate corruption no matter how small.
