After several exchanges, the group had already formed a tacit understanding. One after another, they gave their approval, and the Light Screen displayed new text.
[Next update in three months]
Then the next question arose.
What should they send?
Kongming smiled and rose to his feet. "This time, perhaps I—"
"Military Advisor."
Guan Yu stepped forward and stopped him.
Kongming paused, then smiled in understanding. "Ah. Yunchang, do as you wish."
Ah, of course, Yunchang." Zhuge Liang understood. The information from the screen regarding the Battle of Jing-Xiang and Guan Yu's own legacy was profoundly personal.
The green mountains remain, as the setting sun turns red again and again.
Now that all matters after his death had been made clear, Yunchang could finally cast aside all burdens and devote himself fully to restoring the Han. As for the rest of them… how would later generations judge their own endings?
For a brief moment, Kongming found himself lost in thought.
---
Guan Yu carefully took a sheet of paper, laid it flat, and ground the ink.
He held the brush suspended for a long time before finally writing.
Only a few lines.
He gently blew on the ink to dry it, then removed two items from his waist and placed them atop the paper.
With solemn care, he set everything beneath the Light Screen, raised his head, and said in a deep voice,
"Thank you!"
A flash of light.
The items vanished.
---
Ma Liang blinked.
It could even do that?
Jiang Wan smiled faintly and rolled his wrists. "Jichang… ah, Commander Ma, there will be more things to copy later."
Looking around, it was just as he expected.
Even after Guan Yu had made his offering, Liu Bei and the others showed no sign of dispersing.
---
Liu Bei spread out another sheet of paper, inwardly sighing at how liberating it felt to have paper readily available these days, especially during certain private moments.
His hand, however, moved swiftly.
He wrote down the imperial names and posthumous titles that had appeared earlier on the Light Screen, then passed the sheet to Kongming.
"Kongming, this Zhao Ji… is he truly the Emperor of Song?"
""Likely so," Zhuge Liang sighed for the people of that era. "Hūn (昏) means dusk or darkness; it signifies a ruler who has lost his way or his throne.
"The Light Screen mentioned earlier that Song was destroyed by the Mongols. This Zhao Ji may have been captured, hence such a posthumous name."
"A fallen ruler…" Liu Bei shook his head. "Faced with omens of disaster, yet placing his hopes on invoking the name of my second brother to command spirits and deities?"
"What is so strange about that?" Zhang Fei snorted. "Even if Second Brother went before the Lord of Mount Tai underworld hall, he would still be the strongest one there!"
He shot Guan Yu a firm, supportive look.
Guan Yu actually considered it seriously. Next time, perhaps he should ask his elder brother for permission to bring a weapon into this place.
---
Zhuge Liang was still puzzled. "Why did the 'Later Song' emperor's surname change to Wanyan? And what of these titles, Baizong (擺宗) and Huaizong (槐宗)?"
"Military Advisor, you are overthinking it," Zhang Fei declared confidently. "The Light Screen speaks plainly."
Zhang Fei explained with total confidence. "Baizong must mean he was just a 'decoration' (bǎishè)! And since locust trees (huái) represent wealth and luck, Huaizong must have been a rich emperor who knew how to make money!"
"As for that Wanyan Gou, didn't the text say to add 'Ninth Sister' before his name? He must have been a fierce horseback emperor like Zilong!"
"One who drove back the Mongols and restored the Later Song, like Emperor Guangwu restored the Han! Only for his descendants to fail and lose it again."
"And the surname?" Zhao Yun asked calmly. "Even Emperor Guangwu descended from Gaozu. How did Zhao Song become Wanyan Song?"
"What does Wanyan even mean?" Zhang Fei waved a hand. "It probably means 'No Face' (wúyán) He was probably so ashamed of the state of the empire that he said he had no face to see his ancestors, and history just misheard it as 'Wanyan'!"
Liu Bei felt that something was off at every turn, yet somehow all of it sounded strangely plausible. In the end, he could only let the matter drop.
---
Meanwhile, Jiang Wan was reviewing notes.
"The Light Screen praised the strength of the Tang. How could Buddhism become a cause of its downfall?"
Though unfamiliar, the group was not entirely ignorant of Buddhism.
"In the reign of Emperor Ming of Han, the monks Kashyapa Matanga and Dharmaratna were invited to preach, and the White Horse Temple was established," Kongming recalled. "In the century that followed, people from distant lands, some claiming to be from Parthia or Yuezhi, came to spread the scriptures."
"By the time of Emperor Ling, hundreds from the Yuezhi had settled in Luoyang, translating texts and chanting sutras. Even now, they remain there."
"They chant all day?" Zhang Fei frowned. "Then how did Tang fall? Don't tell me they chanted the emperor to death."
"That is impossible," Kongming said, shaking his head. "Judging from the wording, Tang greatly revered Buddhism. But once it grew too powerful, it likely became like the great clans, seizing land…"
No one needed the rest explained.
Powerful families encroaching upon the land, leaving the common people with nothing. It was an old sickness of the Han.
Replace the great clans with temples, and the result would be the same.
Chaos.
---
"Oh, I see," Zhang Fei said, nodding. "Chanting all day, no farming, no fighting. No wonder they came to our Han to beg for food."
"And even that wasn't enough. They wanted to seize the people's land too?"
The atmosphere in the hall darkened.
Liu Bei clapped his hands lightly.
"The Tang is far in the future, and we do not yet know all the details," he said with a smile. "Such matters can wait until we have defeated Sun and Cao."
The hall responded in unison.
---
Ma Liang quietly recorded their thoughts, but in his heart, he felt something deeper.
Though they held only four commanderies of Jing Province, no one spoke with inferiority. Instead, an unseen flame seemed to be rising within this side hall, slowly illuminating the land of Jing.
---
At that moment, the Light Screen flickered to life once more.
Everyone turned.
The creator's style remained unchanged. A few images, followed by text.
Looking closely, those were Guan Yu's items.
---
[Light Screen]
[Thanks to our friend for the green jade zhang and the command tokens! Much appreciated. The craftsmanship is excellent, but I do have a question: wasn't the Han using tiger tallies?
Also, I went to see Huahua again for the next video. Sadly, they only let me watch for a few minutes. So frustrating.]
---
The image showed a rectangular jade plaque with tooth-like notches along its edges.
On the front were the words:
"Han, General Who Pacifies Bandits, Guan."
On the reverse, smaller characters read:
"Marquis of Hanshou."
The craftsmanship was exquisite, with beast motifs carved along the edges.
The second item was a bronze token, long and narrow, bearing a large character:
"Command."
Below it were the words:
"Carried by the General Who Pacifies Bandits."
There was also a sheet of paper.
Neatly written upon it:
"A humble warrior of Hedong, Guan Yu, offers this in thanks. Courtesy name Yunchang, of Jie County."
---
Comments began to scroll.
Jiang Wan shot Ma Liang a glance, and Ma Liang immediately began copying.
---
[Server Chat Log]
[HistoryBuff_99: "Hahaha, the uploader's name really suits him (Wenmang/Illiterate). Tiger tallies were for moving whole armies, but you didn't need a Tiger Tally to send a squad of scouts.
These are 'Identification Tokens' (Fúpái). One is a Jade ID, the other is a Copper Command Pass."
Lvl1_Noob: "I didn't know that either. +1. Tell us more, expert!"
HistoryBuff_99: "The jade one is a Qīngyù Zhāng. Officials used them to enter palaces or camps. They were made of gold, jade, iron, or wood. Jade was high-spec. The copper one is a Chuánlìng Pái, used by commanders to send orders through messengers while in the field. Uploader, if you ever sell these, DM me first. I'll buy the set."
Simp_For_GuanYu: "I'm a bit sad though. I wish he'd written 'I am the Great Holy Deity Guan' in the style of Guan Yu's calligraphy."
Gacha_God: "Bowing to Guan Yu is high value-for-money these days. He's the God of War, the God of Wealth, the Martial Saint, and a Guardian of Buddhism. No matter what you're praying for, you can't go wrong with Guan Yu."
Lovecraft_Fan: "What if I believe in tentacle monsters? How do I pray then?"
Cultist_Recruiter: "Sir, have you heard of our Lord and Savior, Cthulhu?"