[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten":3,"chapter-simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-46":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Simulated to Reality: I Once Looked Down Upon Ten Thousand Ages?",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2347061,4587,"Chapter 46: Above the Grand Master: The Map of the Empire","simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-46",46,"\u003Cp>You finally met this Eighth Prince, Prince Jing, who already bears the title “Wise Prince.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the great hall, the principal seat on the left had been reserved, symbolizing honor and status, specifically for Prince Jing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet Prince Jing did not immediately take his seat, causing Liu Jinchan on the right to hesitate as well; both seats remained empty, and all others dared not dare to encroach in the slightest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They all lined up in two rows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Prince Jing Zhou Cheng brought only one servant, Chen Ji, and your long-lost uncle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your uncle arrived today; he had once been a disciple of Sanzhen Gate, but later left the monastic life, married, and had children.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You exchanged formal courtesies with Prince Jing, then you and Lu Yu took turns paying respects to your uncle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Cheng returned your bow, addressing you as “Shaobao,” and made no haste for you and your uncle to reunite, silently waiting to the side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps it had been many years; the once bold uncle, now with streaks of gray hair, the fiery man who once declared, “As long as the northern wind still blows, how can I have a home?”—he seemed changed, aged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your uncle looked at you brothers, smiling with joy, tears glinting in his eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only then did you learn your uncle had a child—a girl.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your uncle laughed, “This girl hates embroidery and needlework; she adores wielding spears and swords, always clutching military treatises, saying she’ll become the greatest female general in Daqing!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course, she idolizes you two brothers, especially you, Shen Zhou.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your stories from the north, she speaks of constantly; each time she tells them, even I am haunted by them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man past fifty sighed softly: “Even I wish I could return to the Lu Family Army, lead troops into the northern wastes, divide roasted meat among fifty men, sing songs across eight hundred li of the frontier.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But I can’t help but worry about them—my wife and daughter—I want to see her married, settled, bearing children. Don’t blame me, nephew.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You sighed faintly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this chaotic age, national grudges and family hatreds—who bears the weight of state and home? In this mortal world, who can afford the bravery of a common man?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your uncle’s figure appeared solitary; he mentioned little of how he entered Prince Jing’s household, merely gently placing your mother’s letter into your brothers’ hands, then vanishing like a shadow behind Prince Jing Zhou Cheng—unobtrusive, never stealing the spotlight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Jinchan called out, and all took their seats; the atmosphere grew warm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Yu stood silently behind you, as he always had—a habit forged by years in the Lu Family Army.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once seated,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>you lowered your eyes, calm and composed, like the stillness of a deep abyss, the steadiness of an ancient pavilion—deep as the abyss, steady as the pavilion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the bearing you cultivated through years of warfare; otherwise, how could you command the loyalty of three armies?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Cheng stared, slightly startled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had spent twenty-seven years in the capital cultivating imperial nobility, royal idleness—yet before you, it seemed laughable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Cheng recalled the military records kept in court: “In the Lu Family Army’s command tent, Shaobao presides over battle, flanked always by Shaoshuai Lu You’an, with twenty-six generals standing behind in pavilion formation, their presence awe-inspiring, every officer in the army focused, never daring to slacken.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ten years of spear and iron, spirit swallowing ten thousand li like a tiger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who could say what grandeur Lu Chen displayed when he led one hundred thousand Lu Family troops northward, banners fluttering in the western wind?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Cheng slowly came back to himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Ji, Prince Jing’s chief attendant, deeply favored, often looked down on court nobles; “Shaobao” was merely a title that changed with each emperor—a mere appendage of shifting power. Haven’t we seen six chancellors replaced in three years, one rising as another falls?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Ji saw your flowing robes, your calm face, your composed demeanor, and thought inwardly: “He carries himself with considerable presence.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, an unprecedented aura struck like a mountain colliding—he staggered, nearly falling to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Cheng frowned slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Ji hurriedly knelt and begged pardon, voice trembling: “Your servant has been disrespectful; I beg Your Highness’s forgiveness.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hmm. Rise.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Ji trembled with fear; his master was lenient in small matters, but tolerated no speck of sand in great ones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You stirred inwardly, glancing at Lu Yu—you felt a strange aura just now, emanating from him, overpowering the eunuch behind Zhou Cheng, then vanishing instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Could this be the realm beyond Grand Master? Colorless, formless—if you hadn’t been so close, you might never have noticed this disturbance in heaven and earth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Yu’s expression remained natural, as if nothing had happened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You smiled faintly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You began chatting with Zhou Cheng; today, he was the central figure of this gathering.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You spoke of Sanzhen’s doctrines, then battlefield tactics; of poetry and verse, then the grand trends of the world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You realized this Eighth Prince lived up to his reputation—his mastery of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism was effortless, seamless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he spoke of your campaigns, his tone brimmed with excitement and pride—as if the glory were his own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He took out a scroll, gently unrolling it—a map of the Daqing Empire’s provinces and prefectures.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Cheng smiled and said: “Shaobao, I know you’ve spent ten years in arms, achieving great military feats. I present this map to you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Chen Ji hurried forward, respectfully taking one end of the scroll in both hands, carefully unrolling the grand map alongside Zhou Cheng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The map stretched one zhang long and two chi wide, as if compressing the entire Daqing realm onto a single sheet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You studied it closely: it meticulously depicted the geography of Youzhou, Liangzhou, Bingzhou, Qingzhou, and Xinxing, as well as Yunzhou and Yanzhou reclaimed by General Lu Chen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every mountain, river, city, and fortress was clearly marked—as if the whole of Daqing lay laid bare before you.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The detail and value of this map were beyond price—truly priceless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet to ordinary people, such a map of the empire would be treasonous; if privately made, it would bring annihilation upon the entire family.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet in the lower left corner, the official seal of the Ninth Prince was clearly stamped—making it a legitimate, transferable artifact.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Liu Jinchan coveted it deeply; this map was worthy of passing down through generations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You did not understand Zhou Cheng’s intent, and gave no response.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, Zhou Cheng tore the priceless map apart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even his trusted attendant Chen Ji was stunned—he remembered how his master treasured this map, never allowing anyone else to touch it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Ji immediately knelt, clutching the torn fragments, voice hoarse: “Master, why?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Jinchan also lamented bitterly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Cheng, after tearing it, laughed: “But I feel this map still isn’t worthy of you, Shaobao!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He eagerly took out another map, slowly unrolling it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This map detailed the vast regions stretching north to Liaodong, south to the sandy seas, west to the Western Regions, east to Longmen—encompassing Daqing, Beifeng, Qianyuan, Han, and Chu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking down upon the world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Daqing lay at the heart of the Central Plains, surrounded by four nations; its territory was vast, yet Daqing held only the Central Plains.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Cheng explained: “Daqing, though situated in the south, prosperous and flourishing, is the richest of the five nations—but also their purse.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Daqing shares rule with southern scholar-gentry, valuing literature over military preparedness,” Zhou Cheng added.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Had it not been for the war between Chu and Han, and Qianyuan’s internal chaos, the four tigers would have long since caged us, feasting on Daqing.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then Beifeng would have marched south to pasture, Qianyuan north to capture the dragon, and Chu’s Flying Tiger Army would have already breached the capital.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Back then, you were only thirty li from Huanglong Mansion—just one step from smashing the dragon’s lair. What a pity, what a tragedy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this, Zhou Cheng’s expression grew solemn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I knelt outside my father’s door for three days and nights, begging for an imperial decree to march.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If Beifeng can march south into Daqing, why can’t Daqing march north into Beifeng?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This heart is clear: the imperial cause will not settle for peace in the south.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1382,"2026-06-21T01:32:57.622Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","ec0208525399a13116ac662d66946c5509db78b39a2baf650fbf62635fba261b","simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-47","simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-45",728,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fsimulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-cover.jpg"]