battles Jochi will become my firm supporter, advisor and reliable companion. So, what else do you have to say? BORTE: There are many things I want to say, O Lord. Just yesterday you were Temujin, but now, by the will of Heaven and Earth, you have become a great Kagan. When the husband becomes a ruler, the wife turns into a palace ghost. GENGHIS KHAN: Do not deviate from the topic; speak briefly and to the point. BORTE: Did you meet Jamukha after his failure to appear at the council? GENGHIS KHAN: Why do you need to know this? BORTE: Even though you consider me a woman and belittle me, unable to reach you, the commoners bring their petitions and complaints to me, respecting me as a Khansha. (Great Khan’s first wife) GENGHIS KHAN: Yes, and so? BORTE: And although I am just a woman, I am still the first wife of the Khan himself. Therefore, many people who cannot reach you transmit their complaints and ideas through me. GENGHIS KHAN: Oh, the Khongirads like pounding down on water in a mortar, but as I said, keep it short and do not stall this conversation over trifling matters. BORTE: Be patient a little, will you, let me tell you, venerable Khan. You are no longer the old Temujin prone to fever; you are the great Kagan, and the Khan befits endurance. If the Khongirads are verbose, then it stems from their desire to bring their thoughts to maturity before putting them into the world. They don’t eat poorly cooked meat. They are not like you, swallowing half-baked, blood-streaked lumps. You too have not yet eradicated the habit of speaking words quickly without considering their meaning. GENGHIS KHAN: If another person were in your place, he would immediately lose his head. BORTE: Then keep in mind, it is much easier to cook meat properly than to cut off the head of your own wife. Or am I wrong? GENGHIS KHAN: (Jumping up enraged) I have no time to start a squabble with my wife! Say what you want to say, and hurry up or get out of here. BORTE: Jamukha will not come to your tent from now on; he will not join you. GENGHIS KHAN: How do you know this? BORTE: I know what you do not. I heard he is now talking between the Naiman and the Tatars.
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