[sandworm101]

Maybe for the rich people. Average people living under pax Mongolia were not free to move about without good reason. Similar statements have been made about Tokugawa Japan; all those stories about wandering samurai. The reality is that while crime was under control only those with social station or government permission were allowed to move about, and then only along prescribed paths/means. England overcame this with the demise of feudal systems. Only then could literally anyone be allowed to walk across the country.

[BurningFrog]

Probably the travel ban for lower classes is part of how you create Pax Mongolia.

[thaumasiotes]

> Average people living under pax Mongolia were not free to move about without good reason.

The legal situation varied, but regardless of the legalities there was no structure in place to enforce this.

> England overcame this with the demise of feudal systems.

Note that at around this time, England started passing laws that prohibited serfs from leaving their ancestral lands, and the reason the laws were suddenly passed is that the serfs had suddenly begun to leave. The laws had no effect on whether the serfs could leave, though; feudalism fell apart because the general population structure stopped supporting it.

[thaumasiotes]

> all those stories about wandering samurai

I don't understand this reference; wandering samurai ("ronin") are bandits, the problem to be suppressed.

[sandworm101]

Ronin are masterless. A samurai with a master could also travel. Many of the stories are about perfectly legitimate samurai getting into adventures while wandering. Or they are about chasing down personal vendettas that involve lots of autonomous travel.