The Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian): Wonders of the Orient

^and the japanese even more so
 
I just remembered a game of mine from long ago i had ever wonder except the great wall and they were all in my capitol
 
Hikaro Takayama said:
With all those Modern armor you have (especially with the bombers and jet fighters helping out), you should be able to roll right over india.

Well true, although jet fighters have pretty crappy bombard capabilities (in Vanilla at least).

Ansar_the_King said:
How do you make the pictures fit? I cant seem to do that in Paint.:(

Not sure I know what you're talking about there, Ansar. Which pictures? If you're referring to the world map, it was a rather annoying process of trying to align all the pixels up with each other from the multiple screenshots I took. I later found out it's much easier to do in a vector graphics program like Fireworks, but the method is still the same.

IronMan2055 said:
I just remembered a game of mine from long ago i had ever wonder except the great wall and they were all in my capitol

Neat! Which civ were you, and what difficulty was it? Maybe you should write a story about it too :)

Update coming up soon....
 
I meant normal pictures. Like the pics you post, I cant seem to make them post-size, like when I post a pic, the post is widened because the picture is big. How do you resize them.
 
Ansar_the_King said:
I meant normal pictures. Like the pics you post, I cant seem to make them post-size, like when I post a pic, the post is widened because the picture is big. How do you resize them.

What screen resolution are you using? 1024x768?

Most of the pictures I get are just parts of screenshots, I cut out the rest of the background, just select, cut and paste in your paint program.

As for the bigger screens, I usually put them in as thumbnails, or enclose them in spoiler tags when appropriate.
 
Chapter 38: Descent of the Whirlwind



In June Heaven's armies chastise the corrupt and evil,
Seeking to bind roc and whale with a league-long cord.
Red glows the far side of the River Gan,
Thanks to our wing under Huang Gonglyue.

A million workers and peasants rise up,
Sweeping Jiangxi straight towards Hunan and Hubei.
To the Internationale's stirring strains
A wild whirlwind swoops from the sky.


"March from Tingzhou to Changsha," Mao Zedong (A.D. 1893-1976)​

The western front was quiet now, even though China and Japan were still technically at war. The PLAN fleet remained on patrol around the southern seas, while Tokugawa continued to hide in his "temporary" capital at Ise. The only activity in the arena was some sporadic bombardment of the islands, just to remind the Shogun that they were not yet safe.

But Japan showed no signs of surrendering, and Agent Tong reported that Tokugawa still made his daily speech to his citizens urging them ton continue the struggle from the islands, with hopes to retake the mainland sometime in the future. Useless, thought Mao, looking at the stolen military intelligence that his spy had sent him. The Japanese do not even have any boats.

It was now at the end of 2042 AD, and seven years had passed since the overhaul of the People's Liberation Army made possible by rocketry and aluminum. Each year leaflets were dropped on the Japanese islands urging them to surrender, but no response was ever heard. Only the population of the island cities dwindled as the Japanese people grew weary of the war and Tokugawa's unpopular government.

In the meantime, economic advisor Liu Shaoqi complained that excessive spending on the military was draining the national treasury at an alarming rate, but science advisor Deng Xiaoping continued to come to Mao each year requesting additional funds for "a project of utmost importance." Mao grudgingly approved his requests, but at the year-end budget session in 2042 AD, Liu informed him that if something wasn't done quickly, the remaining bits of the treasury would be gone.

Minister Deng did not show up at that meeting. With no other choice, Mao proposed to cut all funding for scientific research that year. There were no objections.

But there was one suggestion, made by foreign minister Zhou Enlai: he could always ask the Indians for some financial assistance. "The Indians are not only a religious people," commented Zhou, "but also are very talented in commercial activities. I'm sure that the Mahatma will have plenty of gold to spare for us, and he ought to be agreeable since we have enjoyed friendly relations for such a long time."

Hearing this, Mao immediately dialed up Gandhi. "We request a loan of gold from India," he said. "If you agree, we will make sure to pay you back with interest in the future."

"I am sorry," came the reply from Delhi, "but we are facing economic difficulties of our own as well. We are unable to help you."

Mao turned to Zhou, who was shaking his head in disgust. "That liar," he grumbled. "The Ministry of State Security knows that Gandhi is making plenty of money each year. He's probably just saving up the money so he can upgrade his military."

Interesting, thought Mao. He decided to try one more time. "We are willing to negotiate," he told Gandhi. "What are your terms?"

"It will not be possible." Gandhi had raised his voice, something the Indian leader had never done before. "Besides, we really don't trust you enough to pay us back."

We really don't trust you enough. These words stung Mao. He thought the Indians valued their long friendship, but when he heard this he felt that everything between himself and Gandhi had been lost. Then he recalled, from a time long long ago, when Indian horsemen suddenly and deliberately trespassed into Chinese territory near Hangzhou, and remembered that once, Gandhi had been his enemy too.

He looked at Zhou again, and the foreign minister, as if sensing what was on his mind, nodded. "Yes, Chairman," said Zhou. "It's payback time."


The PLA commanders in Japan, Zhu De and Lin Biao, were recalled from their duties there. The resistance in the captured Japanese cities had been put down by now, and there was no longer any need for their leadership in that region. Zhu was transferred to Hangzhou, where most of the new modern armor units had been upgraded, while Lin was sent to Nanjing, to prepare the southern enclave for action against the Indians around them.

From atop the Hawa Mahal building in Jaipur, Indian foreign minister Jawaharlal Nehru was observing the vast expanse of desert before him. Many years ago oil had been discovered in the Jaipur desert, but now the supplies had been exhausted and the oil derricks were rusting and crumbling from neglect. Indian farmers still gathered a meager harvest each year from the irrigated parts of the desert, and sometimes there would not be enough food in the city, especially when the dust storms struck during the harsh winters.

It was January 16, 2043, and temperatures were at record-breaking lows. Nehru felt the strong wind chill, forcing him to pull his coat tighter around himself. From the corner of his eye, he spotted the rising dust and sand from the desert, and knew that the city had been targeted by Mother Nature once again.

He sent out an order to one of his assistants, asking the citizens to clear out of the streets and seek shelter before the storm hit. But as he continued to stare at the approaching whirlwind, a sudden chill went down his spine. This was no ordinary storm. Beneath the fierce howling sounds of the wind, he could faintly but unmistakably hear another noise. It was the rumble of gasoline engines.

Nehru's jaw dropped open. He scrambled down the building and over to the local government headquarters, where he relayed an urgent message to Delhi: "The Chinese are coming after us!" Then he dashed to the Jaipur train station, where he pushed and shoved his way through the crowd of terrified citizens that had already gathered there to evacuate.

"Do not despair," he told them. "Our mechanized infantry will hold them back, no matter how strong a force they bring. There is no military in the world that defends their cities better than ours." As he said this, a shell exploded in midair, showering parts of the city with shrapnel. Nehru could not tell if it came from the direction of the whirlwind, or if it had been launched from the Chinese battleship that had now entered Jaipur harbor. Fearing for the worst, he too squeezed his way onto the overcrowded train.

Through his binoculars, Zhu watched as the train left the city. Then he ordered the attack. It was true that the Indian mechanized infantry were formidable defenders, as many of his own armored units were cut down by enemy fire before even reaching the city. Still, he knew that he had much more strength in numbers, and it would only be a matter of hours before the PLA troops broke through.


Within a week, Nehru escaped to Lahore, where a larger defense force had assembled but was equally unprepared for the upcoming Chinese attack. He had just arrived when a shadow darkened the skies above him. Looking up, he saw a huge, gleaming aircraft, the latest jet fighter model from Guangzhou, slice through the air, dropping a deadly payload in the distance. It was immediately followed by heavy bombardment from a Chinese artillery battery assembled in the hills to the west. Nehru did not stay for long. He caught the next train out to Delhi, bypassing the other Indian cities on the way.

Lahore was the center of India's coal industry, making it of great strategic importance to Gandhi. Indian cavalry routinely partrolled the border with China, but they did little to deter Zhu. "What kind of idiot rides into the battlefield on horseback?" he said to his troops. "Run them over!"


Only ten days after taking Jaipur, on January 26, 2043, PLA forces entered Lahore. The fleeing defenders had left some useful equipment behind, some of which the soldiers identified as being Indian varieties of artillery. There were a few others, in long aluminum tubes, and Zhu had never seen anything similar to them before.

Mao sent Minister Deng to Lahore, and the science advisor immediately knew what the devices were. "They are cruise missiles," he calmly told the army commander. "We've never found them useful before, but apparently Gandhi likes to have them around because you can use them to fight the enemy without ever bringing your own men into harm's way. You just aim at your target, and then press this button here. KABOOM!"

After the fall of Lahore, Zhu's next target was the port city of Madras. With over 3.3 million citizens, Madras was the single most populous city in the world, but it was deep inside Indian territory and thus lightly defended. Many of the troops serving in the city garrison had never even seen combat before, and went into shock upon seeing the deadly Chinese battleships that had arrived in the harbor. Mahatma Gandhi had never expected an enemy could reach so far in so quickly, and he did not even have any time to bring in reinforcements.

As Deng had instructed, Zhu pressed the button to launch the cruise missile. It wiped out half of the first mechanized infantry division in Madras, and after following it up with more bombardment from PLAN vessels off the coast, he sent in his armored units. The inexperienced Indian defenders tried to resist, but by February 24, 2043, the last of their efforts had failed.


Commander Zhu had conquered three Indian cities in just over a month. Morale was at an all-time high, despite the fact that the heavy combat losses were far greater than those he had experienced in Japan. But at this point, he felt it would be a good time to take a break. Delhi, the Indian capital, seemed just out of his reach.

He turned over the task to Lin, who had long been preparing to make his move from Nanjing. For several months now he had been eying the city of Karachi, the only Indian port on the west coast. During the wars with Japan, Karachi had come under attack from the Shogun's troops many times, but Gandhi was able to save the city by drafting citiznes to defend it. Over the years, he had kept these draftees, giving them new equipment and financial support with each round of upgrades.

"Pfft, conscripts," scoffed Lin. But they held up surprisingly well to the mechanized infantry that he first sent to fight them, frustrating several of their attacks. It was not until March 17, when Lin ordered a few of his fast modern armor divisions to cross the Indus River and attack the city from behind enemy lines, that the city of Karachi finally succumbed to the PLA.


With Karachi brought under Chinese control, Bombay was now a long salient in the Indian front, and it was the only city that separated Lin's forces in the south from Zhu's in the north. The PLAAF dropped huge loads of ordnance onto the city, and although it had a rather small effect on reducing the Indian defense, it at least gave the city's namesake some meaning at last.

Compared to Karachi, the conquest of Bombay was significantly easier. The defending mechanized infantry divisions were better trained but fewer in number, and in only two weeks time they were completely wiped out. By March 31, trains could move freely from Beijing to Nanjing without having to pass through Indian territory, bringing fresh supplies to the southern front.


Reinforcements from the north stopped by Nanjing to refuel before heading through the forest and tundra in the south to seize Hyderabad. Like Karachi, Hyderabad had suffered attacks from the Japanese before, and much of its garrison was comprised of conscripts, but the city they held was so much smaller and less important that they put up a much weaker resistance.

An early thaw in the winter ice turned most of the roads into mud, slowing down the Chinese advance, but it was only a matter of time before Lin's modern armor divisions made their way into the city. On April 14, 2043, the garrison of Hyderabad surrendered.


"Eh, what? Only 4 gold from a city? Maybe Gandhi was broke after all," Mao joked. But the Indians seemed determined to resist further, and there seemed to be no choice but to continue the attacks.

Due to unforseen logistical setbacks in their preparation, the PLA attack on Delhi was postponed until the summer of 2043 AD, but there was one more prize within reach in the south. Bangalore, the infamous city that had tried and failed to build three wonders, was now a center of uranium production. Mao found this quite odd, as the Indians neither knew how to build nuclear power plants nor nuclear weapons, but perhaps the resource was used to power a few of their submarines.

On April 18, only 4 days after taking Hyderabad, the PLA armored divisions laid siege to Bangalore. The Indian defense crumbled before them, and with that, the last source of uranium was now under Chinese control.


There were now only three Indian cities left on the continent, plus two more on the island of Bangladesh. In May, the preparations for the assault on Delhi were completed, and the march on the Indian capital began.

Even though it was located in the heart of India, far from any of its borders, Mahatma Gandhi had wisely chosen to keep a heavy military presence in the capital. "We will never surrender!" he declared, while ordering his artillery to take aim at any approaching Chinese troops. "India shall fight on!"

The PLA suffered some of its heaviest casualties during the Battle of Delhi, losing some of their best modern armor units, but ultimately they were able to overwhelm the Indian defense forces with their superior numbers and substantial support from the PLAAF. Bombers, now veterans from the war with Japan, had Delhi in their range after their carriers had been escorted to the eastern coast of India, where a very large PLAN fleet had already assembled to protect them.

Gandhi, sensing defeat, withdrew to the southern port of Calcutta, where he had already ordered Nehru and his subordinates to transfer most of the Indian government offices, outside of immediate danger. When Zhu and Lin entered Delhi together with their combined forces on June 22, 2043, the Mahatma had already made his successful retreat.


Kolhapur, at the eastern end of the continent, was only a short distance from Delhi. It was here that Gandhi had hidden the weakest of his units, infantry from the Industrial Age. These units had been overlooked during the military upgrade procedure, as enemy troops were never expected to make it this far into Indian territory. But here was the PLA, less than a year after war had broken out.

Chinese armored divisions had little to fear from the assault rifles used by the Kolhapur garrison, which was already in bad shape after offshore bombardment by the PLAN fleet. After a quick resting period following the capture of Delhi, Zhu was on the move again, and on July 7 Kolhapur fell to his forces.


Calcutta was the last bastion of India on the continent now, and it was not in good shape at all. The previous year there had been an accident at the Calcutta oil refinery, leaving much of the surrounding land poisoned by toxic waste. Somehow Gandhi still had the nerve to keep his worker crews on duty cleaning up the mess even while the war raged around him. Quite dedicated, thought Mao when he heard of this. But the job they are doing is nothing close to the performance of our workers, and he should have been able to prevent industrial accidents like this in the first place, by building facilities that are friendly to the environment.

The city had previously been out of the reach of even the PLA's fastest units, as the troops at Delhi and Bangalore controlled little of the railroads leading to the new Indian capital. But the fall of Kolhapur opened up a new path toward Calcutta, and an onslaught of modern armor divisions descended upon the city like a whirlwind.

Calcutta put up some very stiff resistance, defeating most of the Chinese forces that attacked, and barely managed to hold out until Gandhi's birthday on October 2, 2043. The harbor had already been blockaded by the PLAN fleet, but Mahatma Gandhi managed to board his personal jet and fly over to Bangladesh Island with a few of his highest-ranking government officials, where he set up a new headquarters at Bengal.


And so, when the Autumn Moon Festival of 2043 AD came around a few days later, the Chinese people celebrated the completion of their conquest of the continent, and invited the Indian citizens to join them, although most of them were still resisting. Agent Tong in Ise and Agent Gong in Bengal reported that there was still no talk of surrender in the foreign capitals, but for Mao, the struggle seemed like it would be over at last.

... to be continued
 
Sima Qian said:
Here's the one-picture summary for those of you who don't read through all that junk I just posted

Don't even joke! This is not junk. This is a great story!
 
tupaclives said:
Fantastic Update!!! How far are you from reaching the domination limit??
He's playing in vanilla. i don't know if you can see the victory status screen until you win or lose, or the game ends.:)

Sima, don't be crazy, I read every line of this story!;)
 
lol @ all of you, I think I was stoned when I wrote that update, somehow it just seemed to go on forever without my noticing

must have been too much MSG in my food
:eek:

tupaclives said:
How far are you from reaching the domination limit??

Oh, I'm probably well over it by now, but the turn isn't over yet. What if 9 out of the 10 Indian cities culture flip back to Gandhi after I hit end turn?
 
Chapter 39: The Wonders Redeemed



A thunderstorm burst over the earth,
So a devil rose from a heap of white bones.
The deluded monk was not beyond the light,
But the malignant demon must wreak havoc.
The Golden Monkey wrathfully swung his massive cudgel,
And the jade-like firmament was cleared of dust.
Today, a miasmal mist once more rising,
We hail Sun Wukong, the wonder-worker.


"Reply to Comrade Guo Moruo," Mao Zedong (A.D. 1893-1976)​

"Long time no see," said Mao to the figure standing in his doorway. "Where have you been all this time?"

"Southern Japan, as a matter of fact," came the reply. It was science advisor Deng Xiaoping. "I've been going back and forth between the labs at Shanghai, our manufacturing facilities in Changchun and Harbin, and our military bases over in Nagoya and Osaka. Our research is finally complete, that's why I didn't need to come back for more funds at the budget meeting last year."

"Oh? What might it be this time?" Mao was curious what could have been so important a discovery.

"I'm sure you have heard the saying that whatever goes up must fall down," said Deng. Seeing Mao nod, he continued. "Well, this time, we have launched a rocket into the sky, and based on all the observations we took, we've confirmed that it did not come back to the earth's surface. Not until we ordered it to with our electronic control systems, that is."


"An awesome achievement indeed," Mao remarked. "But what good will this do for us? We have conquered the entire continent while you were gone, and there is not much left of the enemy. And why were you in southern Japan?"

"Oh, that is great news," said Deng. "Please forward Commander Zhu my congratulations." He then produced a detailed diagram of a missile, similar to the cruise missiles that the PLA had seized from the Indians in Lahore, Bombay, and other cities that they conquered. Mao examined it carefully. It was slightly larger than a cruise missile, had a much longer range, and most conspicuously, it was marked with a strange symbol.

Mao had seen this symbol once before, in Shanghai when he was attending the scientific symposium for the Manhattan Project. "Do you mean," he asked Deng, "that you have finally devised a method for delivering the nuclear payload?"

Deng nodded. "And as a matter of fact, I have gone a step further. This device does not just exist on paper. No, we have several working models of these tactical nuclear missiles available for you to see right now."

Surprised, Mao wondered how Deng had managed to put those together without anyone knowing. "The materials needed to build these nukes would take several years to gather, refine, and assemble. How did you do it so quickly?"

"We took some shortcuts," responded Deng with a shrug. "It probably wasn't a great idea to skip some of the safety measures for handling enriched uranium, but I'd still say it was worth it. Besides, the Japanese citizens who have been exposed to the deadly radiation probably would have suffered starvation sooner or later anyway."


"Of course," continued the science advisor, "the missiles we built in Changchun and Harbin were done in state-of-the-art facilities (with all the safety mechanisms for our workers) that we had prepared several years before, since we've been expecting this kind of breakthrough for a while now."

"Never mind that," said Mao. "I'm still very impressed that you've gotten this done at all. How many do we have, and where are they?"

"Six. I have given them nicknames as well. We have:
- The Redeemer built in Harbin
- The Atomizer built in Nagoya
- The Incinerator built in Osaka
- The Devastator built in Edo
- The Eradicator built in Changchun
- The Decimator built in Yokohama
They can be transported via rail to any place on their respective continents, and are ready to be launched on your command, Chairman."

"No, no, not yet," interrupted a voice from the hall. Foreign minister Zhou Enlai had overheard the conversation, and now decided it was time to chime in. "Let's try to end this war diplomatically, if possible."

"Well then," said Mao. "What would Shogun Tokugawa say if we told him to surrender or face utter devastation?"

Zhou called up Ise to issue one last threat, but the Japanese leader was furious. "We do not negotiate with terrorists, and we are certainly not afraid of you," snapped Tokugawa. "Get out of my sight."


"I see," said Mao. "Then I suppose Tokugawa has just dug a nice grave for himself."

Minister Deng handed Mao a control panel. "Frankly, I'm curious to see how much damage this thing can do. We will target the largest Japanese city, Sapporo, which until today has been relatively undisturbed by the war."


Mao pressed one of the buttons on the panel. From the launch site at Yokohama, the Decimator took off, hurtling through the air and over the sea toward its target.

The communication line with Ise went silent for a moment, and then all that could be heard was static.

"No response, eh?" Mao wondered how long the Shogun would be able to keep this up. "Next one, please."

The Atomizer launched from Nagoya, straight toward the Japanese city of Hakodate. Its target was not very far away, and the Nagoya garrison could see the rising mushroom cloud on the horizon after the detonation. It was a truly majestic sight.

The Incinerator followed in close succession, leaving a burning, radioactive pulp in place of the Japanese settlement at Toyama. A PLAN battleship observed the awesome explosion from a safe distance off shore, relieved that they had barely avoided being hit by the missile. One crewman managed to snap some images of the destruction, which soon made their way to Mao's desk.


"Still no word from the Shogun," said Zhou. "We've given him a last chance, and he's turned it down, leaving us with no other choice."

Mao nodded. "Set target to Ise," he commanded.

With another push of a button, the Devastator took off, straight for the Japanese capital. Will Tokugawa survive this one? wondered Mao.

An encoded report came in from Agent Tong, who informed that although there was extensive damage, the Shogun had managed to hide in an underground bunker and avoid the deadliest parts of the blast.


Sure enough, within moments a terrified Tokugawa came begging for peace. He would have offered China control over the other three Japanese cities if Ise would be spared, but Mao was not interested in radioactive wasteland. He accepted the Japanese surrender, ending the fifth Sino-Japanese war on November 1, 2043.


The Treaty of Ise left India as the only enemy left for China to face. Mao hoped that Gandhi had witnessed the devastation of the Japanese islands and would be compelled to plead for peace.

Minister Zhou called up Bengal. "Look at the nuclear winter the Japanese are going through," he said. "If you surrender now, you will spare both of our people this trouble."

Much to his surprise, Gandhi was still resolute as ever. "We do not fear you!" the Mahatma responded.


"Why is he telling us that actions speak louder than words?" asked Zhou. "Is he really asking for it?"

Mao frowned, but proceeded to press the fifth button. The Eradicator flew across the channel to Bangladesh Island, where it buried the city of Chittagong in radioactive fallout.

They waited. Nothing.

Mao sighed. "Here goes the last one," he said, pressing the sixth button. "May the Redeemer bring you to your senses, Gandhi. I hope you will think of all the people in this world who desire peace."


A hoarse voice finally came over the telephone lines, and Zhou could barely figure out that it belonged to the Mahatma. The foreign minister pressed his ear to the speaker and listened carefully for a moment, then leapt up into the air triumphantly.

"Rejoice, we are victorious!" he announced. "The Indians shall fight no more forever." The Treaty of Bengal, signed on December 26, 2043, brought peace to the world once again, and as far as Mao knew, this peace would be permanent.


Why couldn't Gandhi have done this earlier, muttered Mao to himself. Would have saved both of us much trouble. But everything that had to be done was now done, and the message that he had sent the world was clear: the age of China's domination had begun.

Nothing expressed this situation better than the humble acknowledgment Shogun Tokugawa made of Chinese supremacy.


And so starting in the year 2044 AD, there would never be another challenge to Mao again. Japan and India would have their hands full cleaning up the nuclear mess for years to come, while China was the sole controller of the continents in the world.

In Beijing, Mao stared out of his window on the top floor of the palace, admiring the beautiful cityscape. He could now rightfully claim that it was not just the capital of China, but the capital for all the world. They never stood a chance to begin with, he mused. With all the Great Wonders on our side, victory was, and always will be, assured.
 
So you won it? (and a picture didn't show up on my computer?)

I also read everything you post! It's a great story! One of the best ever IMO!
 
Well, good game. I'm guessing you won it. It was practicaly impossible but you did it. :goodjob:
 
Epilogue

Sima Qian hit the "End Turn" button for one last time and watched as everything played out. There were a few Indian ships that he saw moving around, and then he watched as the game cycled through each captured Indian city, describing how the resistance was being put down. None of them reverted to Gandhi's rule.

With a sigh of relief, he finally saw the message box he had been waiting for all this time:


The Grand Historian put down his pen, waited for the ink to dry, and then rolled up the bamboo scrolls that he had just written. His assignment had been a success, and it was now time to show his completed work to the Son of Heaven. He also brought with him the final map of the world, now mostly colored red to mark the Chinese dominions:


"What took you so long?" asked Emperor Han Wu Di upon seeing him enter the palace.

"Your majesty," he said, bowing before the Emperor, "I have followed your instructions to the last detail. Every wonder has been built, in either Beijing or Shanghai, and Chinese domination has been asserted throughout the world." He then handed over his scrolls to the eunuch, who delivered them to Wu Di.


The Son of Heaven took his time in reading the report, with an occasional grunt or harrumph here and there, causing Sima Qian to grow uneasy as he stood waiting for a response. Finally it came. "You certainly played a dangerous game here, Sima Qian. Only six more years and you would have failed, leaving the world in the hands of some stupid histograph."

Sima Qian nodded. "And the histograph I have produced is nothing to be proud of, either. In fact, for most of the time the game thought I was losing to the Japanese."


Wu Di frowned upon seeing these figures. "You told me in your report that you conquered all but two of the Indian cities," he said, eying his subordinate suspiciously. "Why don't I see that reflected on these graphs?"

"Your majesty, I'm sure you understand that the cultural score does not disappear until the enemy is completely eliminated. And in the score and power graphs, I don't think you looked closely enough. Perhaps you need to magnify the images a little, and take note of that tiny red line going across the bottom."

Wu Di squinted. "I see it now, but that still doesn't change the fact that your victory was... well... only fair, to be honest with you. Your score comes nothing close to the games I have played in the past, although that is certainly expected. Not a bad performance for your first assignment."


"I am humbled by your assessment," said Sima Qian.

"Ahh, but look at this." The Emperor pointed at another figure in the report. "If I hadn't disabled cultural victory for you, you would have failed miserably, long before you could have achieved domination."


"Maybe I could have done it with fewer Great Wonders built in Beijing," said Sima Qian. "But for most of the game the capital had the greatest production, and it would seem wasteful to build wonders in other cities that needed more important improvements in the meantime."

"Oh really? What wonders would you have not built if I gave you the choice?"

"Quite a few of them, actually," replied Sima Qian. "The Oracle was useless for the majority of the game. The United Nations was pointless because you wanted me to win by domination. Shakespeare's Theater didn't help much either, since there was no chance of being any happiness problems in the capital."

Emperor Wu Di chuckled. "Well I'm certainly glad you have still built them anyway. It's good to know that I have loyal people in my service. How about the other wonders? It seems like you have used Sun Tzu's Art of War and the Manhattan Project to great effect toward the end."

Sima Qian disagreed. "I don't think those were the most important, as a matter of fact. With the amount of work it took to construct Sun Tzu's, I could have built barracks in every city on the continent and still had more production units left over. And the Manhattan Project certainly was never a necessity; I just wanted to use it to put an interesting ending to the report. If there were any Great Wonders that were key to victory, I would have to argue for Leonardo's Workshop, Smith's Trading Company, and the three wonders that doubled scientific research, all of which were built in Shanghai."

"Interesting," remarked the Emperor. "So you made Shanghai the science megacity. And with the Colossus built there too... that is truly a lot of research output."

The Grand Historian smiled. "Or else I may not have even gotten all the necessary technology before the end of the game."

Wu Di then asked a strange question. "Sima Qian, why do you think I had you play as the Chinese civilization?"

It sounded like a trick. There must be some answer that he is expecting me to give, he thought to himself. Finally he said, "You asked me to bring glory to the Chinese people, for we all know that China is the greatest civilization in the world."

"No, no!" boomed the Emperor. "That may be true, but from a strategic point of view, China is militaristic and industrious. I was truly disappointed that you only took advantage of the industrious trait, yet did very little with the militaristic one. When I gave you the assignment, I was almost certain you would not be able to actually build every wonder, piece by piece. No! I wanted to see you fight, war after war, bringing in leader after leader to instantly complete the wonders. That is why I asked you to play as China."

"A horrible streak of bad luck," grumbled Sima Qian. "I did not get a single great leader for the entire game. The random number generator has not been kind."

"Pshaw." Han Wu Di didn't like this excuse. "The random number generator has skewed the game greatly in your favor. Don't you remember how you built the Iron Works? Your opponents have been disgusted with the amount of luck that was involved in your victory, and I myself am quite suspicious of how you managed to pull that off."


"Your majesty, I can swear that I played an honorable game. It was the dastardly Japanese who broke trade deals with me repeatedly, and the Indians who sneaked attacked me in the beginning. Certainly a bit of luck would be appropriate here, would it not?"

"Hmph, maybe," muttered the Emperor. "But be warned, next time I will not be so easy on you. I shall make sure that in your next assignment, luck will not be much help. For now, you have my congratulations on a job well done. You may go."
 
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