Chapter 487: Destiny Hanging High

Harboring a slight sense of trepidation, Harry walked out of the airport under the escort of the delegation. The journey from Chengdu to Shuntian was too far, so he had to borrow Muggle transportation, which was both novel and vaguely felt a bit shameful for a native old Union Jack.

The motorcade began to drive toward the city center. Harry was no stranger to cars. He looked out the window somewhat blankly. The suburbs of Shuntian stood with a large number of factories, emitting white smoke that did not dissipate for a long time. Between factories, towering tower frames of unknown meaning stood on patches of wasteland, and several dilapidated sheds were dotted among them, not knowing if there were residents there.

Gradually, they approached the urban area. Two-story and three-story small buildings began to appear around, and then turned into large buildings with seven or eight stories high. Then, some high-rise buildings also began to come to his side from afar, and were constantly thrown behind in the driving of the car.

"Are we in the city center?" Harry asked.

"A while longer, we haven't entered the Fifth Ring yet," Lin Shuanghe explained. "You will see it when the time comes. The city wall of Shuntian is not high, but the moat is very wide. We have to cross the bridge for at least ten minutes."

"It takes so long?" Zhang Qiu questioned. "Why don't we use the Floo Network?"

"The old ancestor is in seclusion, the White Jade Capital is under martial law, and the network channels inside and outside the city are broken," the driver explained for her. "So we use the secular way to enter the city."

"Martial law?" Zhang Qiu suddenly sat up. "Does that mean we can't go up either?"

"Yes, our itinerary in Shuntian is entirely in the secular world," Lin Shuanghe said. "You can stay in the Guest House with Harry, and the meeting with the Prime Minister is tomorrow afternoon. Today you can take him for a walk on the street."

Zhang Qiu showed a painful expression: "I'm not familiar with this place at all!"

"So, does the Wizarding World of Shuntian have a separate name?" Harry understood their words a bit. "And we can't get in for the time being?"

"That's how it is," Zhang Qiu sighed. "And it floats in the sky all year round, physically separating wizards and Muggles, so Chinese wizards will be more contemptuous of Muggles."

"I admit there is a bit of contempt, but it is not malicious. More is, pity," Lin Shuanghe began to try her best to save the diplomatic image. "We have always taught capable people to take saving the world as their ideal, that is to say, most wizards believe that they have an obligation to help Muggles, although many people will say this is a kind of contemptuous alms, but the fact is that we did help them..."

"I understand," Harry didn't care too much about this point. "It's just that I'm more curious about the Wizarding World floating in the sky."

"The secular world will be soon too," the driver suddenly said.

"What?" This time, even Lin Shuanghe, who had been talking endlessly to introduce Chinese culture to them, showed a look of surprise.

The driver was a middle-aged man who was very well-informed. He said plainly: "The Indian army has entered U-Tibet, and the vanguard has less than forty kilometers from Shigatse."

"They really come?"

"Perhaps in these few days, the news of the fall of Shigatse will spread to Shuntian, and the Prime Minister will definitely decide to go to war," the driver said in a tone of watching the fun. "This foreign friend came at the right time. You might see a grand scene that many people don't have a chance to see in their lives."

Harry's attention had never been on the grand scene. He was just surprised by the outbreak of war, because he couldn't hear any news in the West.

"What is the fall of Shigatse?" Harry asked nervously. "Has China been invaded?"

"After Yanayev announced the existence of the Iron Curtain, we carried out a large-scale troop mobilization, shifted the focus to the north, and frequently had border frictions with Soviet Russia," the driver introduced to him. "So, under the instigation of some people with ulterior motives, the coalition forces of Annam, Zhenla, and Malacca entered Guangxi and besieged Nanning Prefecture; Lancang and Dong-yu entered Yunnan from two routes, and are currently confronting the Ming army; the Indian army is the most aggressive, and in the absence of the Ming army, they defeated the local armies of the three major Dharma Kings many times. Shigatse should not be able to hold."

"This sounds terrible," Harry swallowed. "You are equivalent to fighting six countries at once."

"Eight," Lin Shuanghe added. "Our main force is confronting the US and the Soviet Union at the same time."

Harry looked out the window. He knew he was about to enter Shuntian City because the towering drawbridge heralded the arrival of the moat. He was worried about the situation in China and couldn't help asking: "This is too terrible. If they fight here, can the moat still work?"

The other three people in the car laughed loudly immediately, and Lin Shuanghe was the first to come back to her senses.

"It's impossible to fight here. With those backward armies, they will never see the city wall of Shuntian Prefecture in their lives."

"They will see it," the driver said calmly. "Children, what do you think the moat is used for? Have you noticed that all sixteen bridges entering Shuntian Prefecture can be lifted?"

"Yes, we often have large ships transporting goods in," Lin Shuanghe responded subconsciously.

"Forget it, seeing is believing," the driver shook his head and stopped speaking.

Regarding the national policy of China, Harry could only give more respect. Although he would question the immorality of conventional war, the people of this country seemed to be generally keen on foreign wars, which he had seen several times in Zhang Qiu.

That afternoon, when Harry and Zhang Qiu were strolling on the street, he more deeply understood the impact caused by the war. Almost every teahouse or tavern had people giving impassioned speeches, the people's enthusiasm for fighting was very high, and from time to time, a team of soldiers in military uniforms would run past the street quickly.

"These are just propaganda," Zhang Qiu said with disdain. "The Three Great Camps will never enter the living area."

"Oh?"

"I saw it once, another phase of Shuntian, where all the troops are stationed, and there are various dazzling large weapons," she gestured. "You might not understand, but you can imagine the Room of Requirement—that room that hides things will be temporarily inaccessible because of changes, but the things inside will not disappear."

"You mean, a large magic spell covers Shuntian City, hiding all the troops in," Harry tried hard to imagine that scene, "another room in Shuntian City?"

"Exactly, and they are so hard to promote..." she said, and fell silent again. "Perhaps the Prime Minister of China and Hacker are the same, also wanting to use you."

"But what good is there for me to use?" Harry quickly came back to his senses. "Perhaps his real target is you."

"Clearly, your Muggle regime is using every means to explain the legitimacy of the war to everyone, and they also need to let all parties in the country mistakenly think that they have received Xuanjun's support," Harry said clearly. "So they will block the Wizarding World of the capital. And once the Wizarding World is blocked, outside the Wizarding World, you become the only one who can represent Xuanjun, aren't you?"

"That's how it is, but I think this is not necessarily a bad thing," Zhang Qiu smoothed her hair with relief after a short meditation. "If Britain needs some aid in the future, I believe the Prime Minister will be much more generous than Master."

The next afternoon, Harry met this Prime Minister of China, and finally could ask about his real intention. Of course, what Harry wanted to know more was whether he had planned to explore Xuanjun's little secret together, and why he was so eager to meet Harry.

"Mr. Potter, I can tell you very seriously that our attitude toward Xuanjun is very respectful, even if it is mixed with some complex emotions, but it must be based on respect," the Prime Minister answered the first question very readily. "Everything done today is like a naughty child going to the courtyard to play when his grandfather is taking a nap, or going to his study to flip through things. Please understand that we are not really against Xuanjun."

"I can understand, Prime Minister," Harry still used his habit to address him. In his view, the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister had no essential difference.

"Yes, this is the first thing, and it is not such an important thing. Of course, we welcome you to continue to explore what metaphors Xuanjun's works in his youth have, and also promise you that we will provide help as much as possible. But the second thing is what I want to say more, and I think it is also a more important thing," the Prime Minister said. "We want to use this opportunity to weaken Soviet Russia as much as possible, and it is best to force it to disintegrate, and this matter must rely on the power of the Wizarding World."

Harry's alarm bells rang immediately. He had never thought of being an enemy of Yanayev, not only because of the strength comparison, but more importantly, he was willing to believe that the other party was working hard to practice a certain lofty ideal.

"No need to rush to deny it, Mr. Potter. What I hope you will cooperate on is actually very simple: that is, to use your ideas and technology to try to reproduce our results, preferably together with the Magical Congress, because this will be a very massive project." The Prime Minister proposed a suggestion that seemed to have no risk. "This technology is subversive for conventional warfare, a wonder weapon that one cannot help but bow down before its power, yet the magical knowledge required is very simple. As far as I know, your first-year students can all fluently recite that spell."

"Wonder, weapon?" Harry savored these two words that seemed completely unrelated.

"It is essentially just a wonder, but it can exert powerful deterrent power, forcing anyone who sees it to submit to that kind of wizard's great power—you will soon have this opportunity to witness it."

"So what exactly is that?"

"Floating City," the Prime Minister showed a crazy smile. "After two hundred and twenty-four years of six dynasties, we will witness the Forbidden City rising into the sky again. We will use the Lingxiao Heavenly Palace to declare to this world... the return of the Great Ming."