This is an alternative name for a province in western China, now known as Qinghai, which literally means “blue sea”.  Kokonor Lake, located in Qinghai, is the largest saline lake in China.

The area of Guanxi, meaning “west of the passes”, refers to the area around the capital city of Chang’an.

Before China’s unification under the Qin dynasty in 221 B.C. there were several competing smaller kingdoms.  Han and Qin were two of these kingdoms. Han was located east of famous mountain passes that separated that area from the power base of the Qin dynasty, with its capital in Chang’an. The Qin dynasty itself only lasted about 15 years after unification due to its draconian rule, but soldiers under Qin rule retained a reputation as strong fighters.

Soldiers of that time commonly wore a white head cloth, similar to what is still worn by some peasants in China today. The implication is that the conscripts were so young that they didn’t know how to wrap their head cloths, and needed help from elders.

Located near the Tang capital city of Chang’an, site of the modern city of Xi’an in Shaanxi province, in central China.

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