Chapter 75 Where are the three generations?
King Yan sighed: "What kind of map is this?"
He Xi did not answer directly, but asked: "You are all familiar with classics. May I ask about the Four Solstice of Summer?"
"Heluo was exhausted and Xia died." The prince said: "Xia should be centered on Heluo, probably in the west of Henan and southwestern Shanxi. Of course, when it comes to vassal states, I don't know how many there are."
He Xi drew a circle with a pencil, enclosing the western Henan, southern Shanxi, and part of Shaanxi.
This circle made many princes sound surprised.
Because they couldn't understand the map before, but now that He Xi put pen to paper on the map, they had a reference and they immediately understood something, but there were still more things they didn't understand. The reason was simple. They understood what He Xi had circled. But they couldn't admit that the Ming Dynasty's territory was only this piece. Beyond this, what were the so many blank places?
But before they could ask questions, He Xi asked again.
He Xi asked: "The four best days of Shang?"
The prince read the most and said, "That's a lot. The Shang capital moved many times along both sides of the Yellow River. Almost Hebei, Henan, Shandong, Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Huaihei were all part of the Shang Dynasty."
He Xi followed the prince's instructions and drew a circle on the map.
He Xi continued: "So how much territory does Zhou have?" He Xi circled it on the map before the prince could say anything.
Compared with the territory of Xia and Shang, there are different opinions. There are many versions, which are not very fixed. Zhou's territory was much more fixed. What He Xi delineated was the territory of the six kingdoms that Qin Shihuang had just unified, which was the total of the seven heroes of the Warring States Period.
That is to say, there are no Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan and Guizhou in the south. There is no Loop in the north.
Then He Xi drew the territory of Qin, the territory of Tang, the early and late periods, and the present territory of Ming Dynasty on the map. As for the territory of the Song Dynasty, I'm sorry, He Xi feels a little embarrassed. He Xi did not draw it.
He Xi finished this together. He Xi asked: "What is the difference between the three generations having descendants?"
King Yan said; "What you mean is that each of the three generations has expanded the territory, and the basic territory of the later generations has been fixed. Although there was some expansion, once there was a change of dynasty, it was all lost. The real stability is only the ten territories within the pass. It’s just three provinces.”
He Xi said: "Yes. Does King Yan know why this is the case?"
King Yan frowned slightly and said, "Is it because of feudalism?"
He Xi said; "Yes, there have been many interpretations of feudal policies since ancient times, but in my opinion, the essence of feudalism is expansion, and it is the king of Xia and his people. If you except this, the other explanations are not enough to explain the three generations. There was no land like this in such a small land. Why was China’s territorial expansion limited after the Qin and Han dynasties? This is the key.”
He Xi looked at the kings and said, "Your Highnesses, do you understand what your Majesty means?"
King Qin said: "I understand this truth, but you have so many drawings on this map? What do you mean?"
He Xi did not answer him directly, but continued to draw a circle, including the territory expanded by the Mongolian Western Expedition, as well as the khanates that are still there at this moment, such as the Golden Horde and the Ilkhanate. Of course, when He Xi drew the picture, he made it a little larger and included the entire West Asia, as well as Europe, Russia, Poland and other places. Even Egypt was included.
Then the various khanates were marked on it. Then he began to say: "This is the world map. The whole world is included in it, and this area is where the remnants of Mongolia are. Your Highness, King Qin, I remember that King Qin's concubine is Wang Baobao's sister. If King Qin doesn't believe it, you can Send someone to inquire."
King Qin looked at the map intently, feeling drunk for a while, and said: "No, I can trust you."
It wasn't just King Qin who felt drunk. King Yan couldn't take his eyes away, wishing he could jump out of his seat and study it carefully.
At this moment, although He Xi didn't say anything. But these people all know what He Xi stands for.
That is, like the Mongols, they divided feudal states outside the Han area and made them real princes.
If these princes were all princes from the middle to late Ming Dynasty, He Xi wanted to convince them. I don’t know how much effort it will take. However, the first generation of vassal kings of the Ming Dynasty were the highest-quality group among the vassal kings of the Ming Dynasty, and they were also the most ambitious ones.
When everyone saw the map in front of them, the first thing they thought of was that their father, the first hero, was not inferior to Genghis Khan. We cannot be weaker than the sons of Genghis Khan.
Yes, if Genghis Khan and Zhu Yuanzhang are taken out separately, who is higher and who is lower? It's hard to say.
When Genghis Khan died, Mongolia had only a few hundred thousand elite cavalry, occupying the entire grassland and some strongholds in the north, but the Jin Kingdom had not yet perished. Only occupy some places in Central Asia. In terms of territory, the territory of the Ming Dynasty left by Zhu Yuanzhang was not necessarily smaller than the territory of Mongolia left by Genghis Khan, not to mention that the wealth of the Ming Dynasty was unmatched by Mongolia at that time.
But why Genghis Khan is more famous than Zhu Yuanzhang is because Genghis Khan's sons established a huge Mongol empire.
Although it hasn't been around for too long. But the impact is huge.
From this point of view, Zhu Yuanzhang's descendants are not as good as Genghis Khan.
In fact, it is not an easy task to establish a country in a strange land. You will encounter many, many difficulties. Even if we don’t talk about visible enemies, we just talk about invisible enemies, diseases, and acclimatization. No matter how heroic you are, you will still be powerless.
But at the moment, they all ignored these things.
Seeing that all the kings were deep in thought, He Xi bowed slightly and said, "Now that I have made it clear, I will resign."
The prince said: "Brother He, you are one of the family members. There is no need for this. I have some confusion here. Where are these places?" The places the prince pointed to were North and South America, Australia, Africa and other places.
To be honest, the Western Regions, India, Southeast Asia and other places had no connection with the Ming Dynasty even in ancient times. Maybe ordinary people don't know it, but the prince, the king of Qin, and this group of people have almost received the highest education in the Ming Dynasty, and they can be said to be knowledgeable.
When explaining that this map is a world map.
The prince understood many things. But these solitary continents with such a large area outside the country have never been heard of before.
He Xi said: "These places are all drawn based on some overseas rumors. The specific situation remains to be verified."
The prince asked with interest: "It needs to be verified?"
He Xi said: "Yes. It needs to be verified."
The prince nodded and said, "I understand. You can go back first. Let us brothers discuss it among ourselves."
The prince didn't believe He Xi's statement yet to be verified. Because he knows very well what kind of person He Xi is. He Xi is generally a very cautious person. If it really needs to be verified, this map should be blank. Instead of painting it.
What an occasion.
It can be said that even if it is a great meeting, it will not be of a higher standard than today's meeting.
How could there be anything to be verified at such a meeting?
However, the prince did not continue to ask. Because the prince knew very well that only the emperor wanted to know everything, but the prince did not. A prince who knows too much may not be a good thing. He only needs to know one thing, and that is the secret of He Xi. His father knows the answer.
If he wants to know the answer, he should get it from his father. Instead of getting it from He Xi privately.
Because He Xi is from his father? It would be an offense to his father to pry into He Xi's secrets without going through him.
However, the prince couldn't bear it any longer.
He knew He Xi had a secret very early on, and because of the above reasons, he kept suppressing his curiosity. But He Xi’s secrets are endless. He couldn't hold himself any longer.
He Xi cursed in her heart and said to herself: "When it is useful, treat me as your brother-in-law. When it is not useful, I am an outsider again."
Although He Xi was so slanderous, he also knew that this attitude was normal in the royal family. A son-in-law is also an outsider in many families, let alone the royal family.
After He Xi withdrew, the real meeting had just begun.
I just don’t know what the outcome of this meeting will be.
He Xi is also looking forward to it.
