Chapter 52 - 51 Tour Guide
"Why await the phoenix’s flight amongst the three mountains year after year, when this place here has always been Ying Province.
Chang’an is right in front of us."
The gray-clad servant boy tasked with escorting the scholars on their tour of Chang’an puffed out his chest, leading the way with a proud expression. Behind him followed scholars from Yizhou, Xuanzhou, Xiangzhou, and several other State Mansions.
Song Shaoyuan, Zhai Yiming, and the others gazed up at the formidable city walls, which seemed to soar into the clouds, and let out heartfelt sighs of amazement.
"Everyone, please follow me. We are now at Mingde Gate, on the southern side of Chang’an."
The gray-clad servant boy, named Wu Shiqi, reminded Li Ang of a tour guide from his Otherworld memories. He smiled as he led the scholars from the various State Mansions along the main road, guiding them into the queue for the city gate tower.
Chang’an’s population could reach a staggering three million. Every day, a vast number of envoys, officials, merchants, farmers, and laborers needed to enter or exit the city.
It was now just past Chen Chu (around 7:00 a.m.), and long queues had already formed on the roads leading to each city gate tower. These lines only continued to lengthen as time passed.
"Chang’an City is square in its overall shape, with three city gates on each of its four sides: east, south, west, and north. The northern gates are Guanghua Gate, Jingyao Gate, and Fanglin Gate. The eastern gates are Tonghua Gate, Chunming Gate, and Yanxing Gate. The western gates are Kaiyuan Gate, Golden Light Gate, and Yanping Gate. And the southern gates are Anhua Gate, Mingde Gate, and Qixia Gate.
These twelve city gates connect to six main thoroughfares, which are the primary traffic arteries in Chang’an City.