Mythical Three Kingdoms

Sometimes it's very simple to hit a dead end or to step out of a dilemma. Liu Bei, after his initial fervor subsided, felt a chill as he thoughtfully considered the narration regarding Great Qin. Similarly, a single remark from the Zhang Clan allowed Liu Bei to easily escape the predicament he was previously in.

Yes, Chen Xi always deals with issues before they occur. Since he's bold enough to establish such an adversary, naturally, he must have the capability to remove that adversary.

In that case, what's there to worry about? The opponent is indeed formidable, but our victory is predestined, what's to worry about? Even though the process may be arduous, the ultimate outcome will not change.

This is the image that Chen Xi has built up over the years. Any problem ceases to be a problem when it comes to Chen Xi. It could be said that as long as Chen Xi stands, Liu Bei has the courage to confront anyone. Chen Xi is the foundation of Liu Bei's invincibility and the source of his confidence.

The Zhang Clan came out with the scroll of the map. She noticed the muddy handprint on it, clearly from Liu Bei's hand. As for whose map it was, she wasn't paying attention and didn't want to focus too much on it; just doing her job was enough.

At this time, the servants had already set up the cases, and Liu Bei unfurled the scroll, gazing at the vast expanse of land, along with the square inch of the Central Plains, feeling the weight of responsibility on his shoulders.

[Lord Xuande, let me tell you a story. An emperor said to his prince, "Son, what do you see outside the window?" The son looked out the window for a long time…]Liu Bei thought of this and a smile unconsciously appeared.

[Lord Xuande, what do you think the son said?][Of course, it's a nice view!]Liu Bei remembered how he had turned to look out of the window.

[Yes, the prince answered that way, but do you know what the emperor said?]Liu Bei recalled Chen Xi's smiling expression at that moment.

[The emperor might think the son wasn't observant enough.]Liu Bei remembered his foolish expression then.

[That's not it. The emperor calmly glanced at his son and said, "That is my boundless realm."]Chen Xi used the imperial 'I' at that time, without any reservation, but it shocked Liu Bei nonetheless.

The difference between a sovereign and a prince immediately became apparent. It was then Liu Bei realized his view of all things had not reached another level.

Of course, that instance was just Chen Xi engaging in banter out of boredom, but Liu Bei derived a deeper meaning. Chen Xi's words are often thought-provoking, especially for Liu Bei, representing the true mentality of how an emperor should view the world.

Yes, at least Liu Bei thought so. If Chen Xi knew, he might regret his random inculcations.

"This is the complete map of the land under heaven that Zichuan told me about." Liu Bei spread open the land before pointing at the Central Plains for the Zhang Clan to see.

"Mm-hmm." The Zhang Clan looked down at the map but didn't really understand.

"Here is the Central Plains, this is the Yellow River, this is the Yangtze River, and this is the Jizhou where I resided." Liu Bei pointed to a palm-sized piece of land to inform the Zhang Clan, this is Jizhou.

"Ah!" The Zhang Clan covered her mouth in disbelief, looking at Liu Bei.

"This is Jizhou. Our Central Plains are so small; our ancestors worked hard for three millennia for just this bit of land." Liu Bei remarked with a touch of nostalgia as he caressed the map.

"What are those places?" After coming back to her senses, the Zhang Clan pointed to places beyond the Central Plains and asked.

"Those are other countries, as powerful as the Han Dynasty or as weak as our vassals." Liu Bei sighed and said, "Until today, I realize how vast the world is. It is said that under the whole heaven, nothing is not the king's land, but perhaps even the one who said this didn't know how vast the world is."

"I've laughed at Aya Lang's arrogance, yet didn't realize we are much the same." Liu Bei said reflectively, "But one day, I will point to this map and tell my son, this is the land I bequeath to you!"

Because of his trust in Chen Xi, Liu Bei never thought about how Chen Xi might actually have no way to deal with that distant empire of Great Qin. He truly believes that if Chen Xi can have him declare that slogan, then he can certainly handle that empire…

Soon, Liu Bei's military generals arrived nearly all at once, except for a few who had already left; the others had all arrived. By then, the map with the red paw print was hanging in the main hall.

"Lord, for what matter do you gather us?" Gan Ning, quick of speech, glanced around and noticed all were general commanders, not a single vice-general, nor a single civil official, and asked curiously.

"Wait a moment, I'll inform after everyone has arrived," Liu Bei said to Gan Ning with a smile.

Soon, all the general commanders still in Ye City arrived. Liu Bei held a bamboo pole and pointed at the hanging map on the wall, "I've gathered you all here to inform you of something. This is the map of the entire realm. There might be differences, but in general, it's accurate!"

"Map of the whole realm?" All the military generals looked puzzled, called here just to look at a map? What sort of joke is this?

"Is this the Yangtze River?" Gan Ning suddenly looked at Liu Bei with disbelief. He suspected he had seen it wrong, but he was so familiar with the Yangtze River that it couldn't be mistaken; he had traveled there too many times and knew every place and bend.

Therefore, when he saw the one-foot-long Yangtze River on the map, Gan Ning incredulously looked at Liu Bei. Although he spoke with doubt, he was extremely certain.

"This is the Yangtze River; this square foot of land is the Central Plains we tread on." Liu Bei said slowly and immediately all the military generals seemed to have springs under their cushions, jumping up. Whether in disbelief, shock, or fervor, none remained calm.

"Brother, are you sure this is the map of the entire realm?" Zhang Fei jumped up and looked at Liu Bei with a shocked expression.

"There should be no problem. I might have inadvertently seen this map at Zichuan's place." Gan Ning said cautiously, seeing all the generals looking at him, he coughed twice, "I really didn't pay attention at that time; Zichuan just left it lying on his desk…"

"So the world is actually so vast. How long would it take to unify it?" Zang Ba crashed his head on the cases; they talked about unification every day, only to find out today how large the world is.

The room fell silent; they realized how amusing their mantra had been. The world is so big; how many years would it take to unify it? Forget it, our forefathers haven't accomplished in three thousand years; can we manage in one generation?

Liu Bei saw the obvious disheartenment on everyone's faces and somewhat understood. After all, the goal is so large, imposing enough to obscure the horizon; feeling down was only normal. (To be continued. If you like this work, feel free to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote, your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)