Chapter 156

Guo Wei's spirits lifted, and he almost thought he had misheard.

Wang Family?

South of the River, Wang Family.

That mysterious family that stirred up the North, funded the Three Garrisons Allied Army, and drove the Khitan people back, then vanished mysteriously.

As for this family, Guo Wei's feelings were extremely complex.

On one hand, he admired, admired the family's heavenly wealth and clever tactics. They achieved feats countless heroes could not, without shedding blood, relying only on money and strategy.

On the other hand, he also felt wary.

He feared the family's unfathomable strength and their ancestral precept of "never marching north." A force with such immense power yet no interest in the Central Plains throne is like a tiger lurking beside one's bed—you never know when it will wake, or what it will do upon waking.

Since his ascension, the Wang Family has remained quiet. They seemed to have vanished completely from the North, except for the merchant ships still coming and going on the canal, proof of their existence; no other news arrived.

Guo Wei had also sent people to Yangzhou, trying to establish contact, but they were politely refused on the grounds that the family head had recently died and was observing mourning, refusing visitors.

Now, at his wits' end, they actually sent someone over voluntarily.

What do they want?

Are they coming to laugh at his misfortune, or to take advantage of the chaos and tear another piece of flesh from the Great Zhou?

Countless thoughts flashed through Guo Wei's mind.

But he was Guo Wei, a warlord who had climbed out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood. He quickly suppressed the turmoil in his heart and restored the emperor's composure.

"Summon." He said only one word.

No matter their purpose, he must see them. He wanted to see what medicine the Wang Family of South of the River was selling from their gourd.

Moments later, a scholar in green robes, led by a palace attendant, entered the study without arrogance or humility.

The visitor was none other than Su Qin.

After several years apart, his appearance had hardly changed, only his gaze was deeper and more composed than when he was in Wei Prefecture.

"Subject Su Qin pays respects to Your Majesty of the Great Zhou." Su Qin did not kneel, but simply made a deep bow to Guo Wei.

Guo Wei's eyes narrowed slightly.

He did not kneel.

Since his ascension, Su Qin is the first to dare not kneel before him.

Normally he might have flown into a rage, but today he did not.

For he knew that Su Qin represented not himself, but the Wang Family of South of the River, which regarded even the Khitan cavalry as nothing.

The Wang Family had the right to do so.

"Mr. Su, no need for excessive courtesy." Guo Wei rose from behind the desk, even personally walking down the steps and offering a supportive hand, "You have come far and endured hardship; please take a seat."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Su Qin also did not stand on ceremony, sitting down openly in the chair beside him.

"I don't know what advice Mr. Su has come to offer this time?" Guo Wei asked directly. He did not like beating around the bush.

Su Qin smiled faintly: "This humble one has come this time by the order of my family's Head of Family, specially to offer congratulations to Your Majesty."

"Congratulations?" Guo Wei was stunned, "What joy is there?"

He is now so worried his hair is almost turning white; where is there any joy?

Su Qin did not answer, merely clapped his hands.

Outside the door, immediately several eunuchs lifted several huge wooden boxes and walked in.

The boxes were opened, and the room filled with light.

In the first box, it was not gold or silver, but an enormous map.

The map was painted on the finest Silk, more than three times larger than the one hanging in Guo Wei's study. Moreover, the content on the map was detailed to an astonishing degree.

Mountains, rivers, cities, and passes were marked clearly.

Guo Wei's gaze was instantly drawn to it. He quickly walked up to the map and examined it carefully.

He saw Zhongyuan, he saw Jiangnan, he saw Bashu.

Then his gaze went past the Great Wall. He saw the Khitan grasslands, the deserts of the Western Regions, and even further west, those he had only seen in ancient texts, the states called 'Persia' and 'Da Shi'.

This was not the end.

To the right of the map lay a vast blue ocean he had never seen before, dotted with countless islands.

One narrow, elongated island nation was heavily circled in red, with the two Chinese characters 'Japan' marked on it.

And beside Japan lay an even larger landmass, marked with names he had never heard before, such as 'New Gold Mountain' and 'Spice Islands'.

"This... this is..." Guo Wei's voice trembled.

He felt that his previous understanding of the world had been completely overturned at this moment.

"Your Majesty, this is the 'Map of Myriad Nations' painstakingly created over twenty years by my family's Head of Family, gathering countless human and material resources." Su Qin's voice echoed slowly, "The Zhongyuan beneath our feet, though vast, is merely a grain of sand in the vast sea compared to the whole world."

Guo Wei's heart was greatly shaken.

He had always thought he was contending for the center of the world, but now it seemed he might merely be vying for the position of village head.

Su Qin did not give him much time to be shocked.

He gestured to the servant to open the second box.

Inside lay a strangely shaped cylinder made of brass.

"This object is called the 'Thousand‑Li Mirror.'" Su Qin picked up the cylinder and handed it to Guo Wei, "Through it one can see distant scenery. The Wang Family's fleet relies on it to discern direction on the boundless sea."

Guo Wei half‑believing, half‑doubting took the Thousand‑Li Mirror, imitating Su Qin's manner, placed it before his eyes, and aimed it out the window.

The next second, he drew a sharp breath of cold air.

Only then did he see, far outside the window, the face of an Imperial Guards soldier on the palace wall appear clearly before his eyes; he could even make out a pockmark on the soldier's face.

"A divine object! Truly a divine object!" Guo Wei exclaimed.

He immediately realized the immense military value of this thing. With it, could one not discern enemy movements from a hundred li away?

The third box contained various colorful spices and several pieces of clear, sparkling stone, like crystal.

These are pepper and cardamom produced from the overseas spice islands, and these few pieces are cane sugar produced from the Southern Ocean; their flavor far surpasses that of Zhongyuan's maltose.

Guo Wei picked up a piece of cane sugar and put it in his mouth; a pure and intense sweetness instantly exploded on his taste buds.

He had spent his whole life as a soldier, later became an emperor, and had eaten every delicacy under heaven, yet this flavor was still something he had never tasted before.

Looking at these three 'gifts,' Guo Wei fell silent.

He finally understood why the Wang Family looked down on his Zhongyuan throne.

When your vision encompasses the whole world, how could you care about the gains and losses of a mere patch of land?

When your wealth can be endlessly obtained from overseas, why bother fighting to the death with a pack of warlords on this muddy Zhongyuan land?

"Su..." Guo Wei let out a long sigh, resettled himself on the dragon throne, looked at Su Qin, his eyes becoming infinitely complex, and said, "Wang Family, what exactly are you trying to tell me by showing me these?"

He knew the main topic was coming.

Su Qin's smile also faded.

He stared into Guo Wei's eyes and said slowly, "My family's Head of Family says that Your Majesty is a ruler of great talent and strategy, a wise monarch who hopes to end this century of chaos and restore a unified golden age."

That high hat sat comfortably on Guo Wei, but he knew there would surely be a 'but' afterward.

"But..." Su Qin shifted his tone, "A great dynasty is like a giant ship on a long voyage. It needs not only a wise helmsman, but also an heir who can inherit the helmsman's will, continue to steer the ship, and ride the wind and waves."

"Otherwise, once the helmsman grows old or meets with misfortune, that giant ship will instantly lose its direction and be swallowed by wind and waves."

Here it comes!

Guo Wei's heart sank sharply.

As expected, the Wang Family people have come for the matter of the state's foundation.

"My family's Head of Family has heard that Your Majesty is worried about this matter." Su Qin's tone was full of "sympathy" and "understanding," "Therefore, he has specially ordered this commoner to come and relieve Your Majesty's worries."

"Relieve worries?" Guo Wei gave a self-mocking laugh, "My sons are all dead. Besides myself, who else in the world could share this worry for me?"

"Your Majesty, you are wrong." Su Qin shook his head.

"Oh? Where am I wrong?"

Su Qin rose to his feet and walked up to the enormous "Map of All Nations".

His finger landed on the narrow, elongated island labeled "Dwarf Country".

"Your Majesty, do you know how my Wang Family managed to completely bring under control this rebellious island nation in just a few short years?"

Guo Wei shook his head.

The Wang Family's operations in Dwarf Country are their top-secret matter. Although Guo Wei had heard something about their overseas expansion, he knew nothing of the details.

"We rely not on slaughter, nor on conquest." Su Qin said slowly, "We selected a Dwarf person as an agent, then we supported him to become the new ruler."

"As for whether he is the person of the noblest bloodline in that country, we don't care."

"All we care about is whether he can faithfully carry out our will and bring the greatest benefit to our Wang Family."

Su Qin turned around, looked at Guo Wei, and said word by word, "Managing a family and governing a state are actually the same principle."

"Your Majesty." Su Qin's gaze turned sharp, "Lineage is certainly important, but before the realm and the altars of the gods, before the well-being of all under heaven, it is worth nothing!"

"What you need is not someone who carries your blood but might plunge this country into an abyss of mediocrity."

"What you need is someone who can inherit your ambition, continue your great undertaking, and plant the banner of the Great Zhou across all under heaven!"