Upon hearing Tan Shihuai's question, Li Ru looked down at the sheepskin map in his hand.

Upon seeing the unfamiliar symbols in the picture, Li Ru immediately shook his head.

"Your Majesty, I have never seen this kind of script before!"

"Alas! I never imagined that someone as learned as you, sir, would be unable to understand this text!"

Although Tan Shihuai's words carried a hint of a sigh, there was no sign of disappointment on his face. However, his eyes glanced at the other parchment scrolls on the wooden shelf.

"Your Majesty, this map appears to be a route map. I wonder where it came from?"

Noticing the change in Tan Shihuai's gaze, Li Ru immediately changed the subject and inquired about the origin of the painting.

"Oh, this map? We seized it when we joined forces with the Han Dynasty to wipe out those Shi people. We kept it because we saw that there was writing on it..."

Tan Shihuai withdrew his gaze and began to recount the origin of the painting with a smile.

Li Ru was slightly taken aback: "People from the Stone Kingdom?"

"That's right, that's what the Han people call them. These guys suddenly migrated from the west, but their appearance is very different from the people of the Western Regions. They're ugly and disgusting!"

Tan Shihuai's words were full of disgust and contempt for the Stone Kingdom people who had strange beliefs and ate humans.

Li Ru's expression shifted: "Could it be that they came from a place further west?"

Tan Shihuai: "It should be!!"

"So, this map must be their migration route!"

Li Ru looked down at the map in his hand, focusing his gaze on the starting point of the route at the far west of the map.

Tan Shihuai nodded: "I think so too, however, the places on the map are too far away, no one knows where they are at all."

Upon hearing this, Li Ru's expression hardened, and his gaze slowly moved back and forth across the map, carefully comparing the marked locations.

Seeing that Li Ru, who was usually calm, had a rare solemn expression, Tan Shihuai also put aside his other thoughts and stood quietly to the side without saying a word.

In his view, something that could make someone like Li Ru take it so seriously must be extraordinary.

After a long while, Li Ru finally looked away from the map, his face regaining its usual calm.

Tan Shihuai hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "Sir, have you already identified the areas marked on this map?"

"Your Majesty, during the Han Dynasty, I consulted a map of Zhang Qian's route to the Western Regions, and many places on it match this map!"

"Oh? Is that so?"

Tan Shihuai raised an eyebrow, immediately becoming interested, and leaned his head closer.

"Excellent, Your Majesty, please take a look!"

As he spoke, Li Ru extended his slender finger and pointed to a marker in the eastern part of the map. "To the north here is a river, and then a wetland. Judging from the terrain, this should be the Wusun Kingdom in the Western Regions."

"oh?"

Upon hearing this name, Tan Shihuai's gaze sharpened, and he stared intently at the spot Li Ru was pointing to.

Although Tanshihuai had always traded with the Wusun people, his understanding of the location of the Wusun Kingdom remained very vague.

Upon seeing the location pointed out by Li Ru, Tan Shihuai was unconsciously drawn to it.

Li Ru, who was constantly observing Tan Shihuai, saw this situation and confirmed in his heart that there was indeed some kind of transaction between the Xianbei and the Wusun Kingdom.

Then, Li Ru's finger moved eastward away from the Wusun marker, introducing the countries and places along the way one by one, which made Tan Shihuai's eyes light up with admiration.

Finally, Li Ru stopped when he introduced the last place the Shi people had settled.

"So, sir, what do you think is the westernmost point on this map?"

After listening to Li Ru's introduction, Tan Shihuai turned his attention to the westernmost point on the map.

Li Ru said solemnly, "Based on my deduction, that place should be the Great Qin in the far west!"

"The Qin Dynasty??"

Upon hearing this name, Tan Shihuai was momentarily stunned.

Li Ru smiled and said, "Your Majesty, please do not misunderstand. That Great Qin is not this Great Qin. Historical records say that its people are all tall and well-proportioned, resembling those of China, hence the name Great Qin..."

"Heh~, to receive such praise from the Han Dynasty, this Qin Dynasty must be quite extraordinary!"

Upon hearing Li Ru's explanation, Tan Shihuai suddenly understood, but couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.

Even the powerful Xiongnu during the reign of Modu Chanyu were despised by the Han Dynasty and called barbarians. Now, this country in the far west can be described as similar to China. Although it still carries a hint of arrogance, it is clearly the highest praise the Han Dynasty has given to foreign countries.

Li Ru smiled. "Indeed, according to legend, this Great Qin is a vast and resource-rich land, abundant in gold, silver, and rare treasures, including luminous jade, moon pearls, amber, glass, and turquoise..."

"Hearing you say that, sir, this Great Qin is truly a rare and wonderful place!"

Upon hearing Li Ru's description of those rare and precious treasures, Tan Shihuai couldn't help but praise them.

"Yes, and most importantly, although these Qin people are warlike, none of their rulers throughout history have been figures like the First Emperor, nor do they have the Great Wall or numerous city walls for protection. They only have castles that are similar to fortresses. In the north, there are also some grassland tribes..."

Li Ru then explained the weaknesses of the Qin Dynasty to him.

Tan Shihuai's expression shifted: "Oh? So, this Great Qin has no natural defenses against the steppe cavalry?"

Li Ru: "That's absolutely right!"

Upon hearing this, Tan Shihuai's eyes lit up, but then dimmed again: "Sigh, such a good place, yet it's so far away, what a pity!"

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