Chapter 510

Zhao Bao tried hard to act as the straight man for the Great King, "Your Highness is joking again, since we've met, should I now go draw the curtains?"

The Great King, taking advantage of the bright light, again sized up Yang Fang, "That's right, this cousin doesn't resemble, the Wei family's eldest cousin looks just like me!"

Yang Fang also realized, he lifted his head to glance at the Great King then quickly lowered his head; he roughly guessed what the Wei family's younger cousin looked like, those eyes were just like his great-aunt's.

He wasn't sure about the Great King's temperament—does the royal family really have someone so blunt? This guy isn't surnamed Wei; his surname is Bai Li.

Yang Fang was still thinking about how to be polite without seeming either too unlucky like the Great King or too fawning, before he could speak he heard the Great King impatiently wave a hand, "We're all our own people, skip the small talk, come, look over here, I want to show off my treasure to the Southern Xie and Northern Yang~"

Yang Fang: ……

Xie Tu: ……

Zhao Bao: ……Sorry, I really tried.

After Zhao Bao lowered the curtains, the only thing lit in this room was this huge sand table, with a faint warm yellow light on its sides.

The Great King turned on his flashlight, Yang Fang blinked, what the hell is this?!

It's much brighter than the lanterns lit at night in the Northern Border Prince's Mansion!

To the people of Jin, this outdoor flashlight is no less impressive than later generations looking at laser weapons……

Yang Fang examined it closely; this was even more marvelous than the little night lamps in Wanxiang City, after all, the thing in the king's hand looked too small. The king waved the bright flashlight around the sand table haphazardly—the sand table was so large he used his outdoor flashlight as a laser pointer, his face lit with excitement as he said: "Do you know where we are standing now?"

Xie Tu: "... Lantai Hall?" Xie Gongzi thought it was a lead-in to the topic.

The king laughed, finally getting a chance to look at the renowned Jiangnan gentleman Xie Gongzi with a dull, uncomprehending stare: "Xie Tu, you are the top scorer in my first imperial examination; speaking like that makes people doubt the value of the northern border's exams!"

The king looked sympathetically at Yang Fang on his right, anguished: "Where did you place the fourth-place candidate beside you!" The top scorer is already this dim-witted; isn't the fourth-place even worse?

Yang Fang: ……

Xie Tu: ……

The king swept his gaze over everyone equally, and no one dared to answer anymore. The king's train of thought is hard to fathom.

The king excitedly adjusted the focus, pointing the beam straight at Youzhou in the north of the sand table; as the light hit it, they saw a small red flag there, behind which lay an exquisite miniature architectural complex.

"This sand-table map was crafted by skilled artisans I found overseas. Our current position is right here—this is the Northern Border Prince's Manor~ this city is our Youzhou! Familiar, isn't it?"

"The blue area to the east is the Bohai Sea; opposite the shore is my Liaodong Commandery. Returning to Youzhou, look north at the mountain range—do you recognize it? The Yan Mountains—further north these flat grasslands are where the Eastern Liaodong Xianbei and Western Liaoning Xianbei reside~"

Yang and Xie were shocked: "It's actually a map?"

"Not easy, but we can make it out. Heading south: Taihang Mountains, Luoshui Pass—this is Hongnong, and just beyond is Chang'an."

The two of them had no attention to spare for following the king around the map; their eyes were practically glued to the sand table.

Xie Tu noticed that this three-dimensional map clearly marked the mountains and rivers, with some strange script notations all over it. The king pointed to Chen Commandery for him to look at; elsewhere he wouldn't understand, but Chen Commandery was extremely familiar to him.

Outside Chen Commandery there is a modest hill called Deer Terrace Mountain; the Qingyang Academy lies on its mid-slope. He knows this mountain inside out, could never mistake it—yet it's terrifying how such a tiny mountain… its contour is spot‑on!

And what about the other places… the mountains, deserts, cities, and even oases beyond Shangyang Pass—are they all correct?

This map—what divine craftsmanship!

The king lifted his chin, gesturing: "How about it? Our Northern Border is only this big; even the Great Jin, which claims to be the Celestial Dynasty's supreme state, is no larger than this—it occupies just this tiny spot on my map. In fact, this sand table only depicts our vicinity. Put together, the Great Jin and all Northern Border lands amount to less than four percent of the world's land."

The fourth-place finisher, unfamiliar with this way of reckoning, quietly asked the top scorer: "What does four percent mean?"

The top scorer: "…The world's land divided into a hundred parts; we occupy four parts."

The fourth-place finisher began to blush… Ah, it was meant literally—what a silly question.

"So, what are your impressions after looking at it?"

The fourth-place finisher gazed beyond the Great Jin, where vast flat lands stretched out; with the skill of Youzhou's cavalry, there should be hope in a few years, right? But this map… "If the maker of this map isn't one of our own, then he is a grave threat to us—indeed, there are heavens beyond heaven." All manner of meanings of "there are heavens beyond heaven."

The top scorer thought, if the king had this device, it would be another weapon in future wars. The king is already radical enough; he shouldn't have too many ideas, leaving no room for him to show his talent. He spoke conservatively: "We should produce a portable version for military use."

Poor thing—the king showed it off to Zhao Bao and Tong Chen and the others, but they couldn't understand it at all; now at last someone appreciates his treasure.

The king, accompanied by his top and fourth scorers, eagerly studied the sand table for half a day—for instance, the mountain's elevation is accurate, and how to convert it; also, the safe marching route from ShanYang Pass into the desert's depths, and where the southwestern army should attack the Western Qiang with a gentle rise in elevation, while drawing curtains by day and dreaming is especially pleasant.

Usually only the Grand Tutor and Xie Yuan come here; the king never imagined discussing such lofty topics with them. He was delighted, feeling he ought to play with young people after all!

Seeing these two, he didn't need to lecture them; the conversation flowed easily. As they were talking about the jade mines of the Kunlun range, this fellow rolled his eyes and suddenly, with a complete 360‑degree turn, asked Yang Fang: "The world united long must split, split long must reunite. Cousin, who do you think will laugh last among all these rebel kings?"

Xie Tu: ……

Never seen such a chat before.

Yang Fang thought seriously, then said: "The Marquis of Hanshou to the south has accumulated power over three generations, now top‑heavy; whoever sits in Chang'an would find it hard to wipe him out quickly. Previously we commoners thought the south belonged to the Marquis of Hanshou, while the north naturally was the domain of the prince, strong in troops and horses."

The king refused, not asking about the present; he said: "Do you think my Xuanjia cavalry can't defeat the Marquis of Hanshou? Is that fierce general of his really that formidable?"

"No, Your Highness, the issue is time."

"From Youzhou to Hanshou it's more than a thousand li; even if the Youzhou cavalry, accustomed to ice and snow, could adapt to the climate of Hunan and Chu, waging war against Hanshou would inevitably take years to measure. Not to mention other factors, the military expenditure for a campaign against Hanshou would be an enormous sum—today's Northern Border…" He wanted to say the Northern Border, plagued by yearly droughts, couldn't afford it. But seeing the sand table before him, the very Northern Border Prince's Manor where he now stood, he grew uncertain again. No way—the Northern Border prince's resources seem like a riddle!

"…The Marquis of Hanshou now controls much territory inhabited by various barbarian tribes, which for us in the Central Plains is tough to crack—this is my humble opinion." Finally Yang Fang gave up estimating the king's wealth. He felt that the Hanshou, who have harbored rebellious thoughts for three generations, are harder to deal with than the others, and he didn't even mention Chang'an.

The king smiled and didn't object, as if he were just asking casually.

He brought the two to a side chamber for afternoon tea, then the king inquired about the Yang family's situation—how the elders were doing, quite 'mature'. He was so honest that Xie Tu wasn't used to it…