The Ministry of Antiquities was a candy shop. Renjie thought everything on the shelves looked delicious. Some objects were jade, some were bronze, some were gold – but all were old and mysterious. Dressed in Warakirikoban finery, the Fourth Prince ran from one treat to the next.
"So shiny!" he exclaimed each time.
The Minister of Antiquities indulged the prince's every whim. A squat, burly man from the Northwest Territory, the Minister's powerful physique might have appeared misaligned with his academic function. Hauling jade, bronze, and gold around was demanding work, however; and then there was the need to protect what had been hauled.
The Minister performed most of the heavy lifting himself. It was his own fault. Although he had assistants, he also had a type – and that type was "pretty thin." Thin, pretty men and women swirled around the archives like butterflies. Each one carried an object in need of classification or memorandum in need of signing. Of all the butterflies, however, not one was thinner and prettier than Renjie.
"The Fourth Prince has a good eye," said the Minister of Antiquities.
With each compliment, he appreciated Renjie's behind.
Renjie appreciated being appreciated.
"What we need," said the Fourth Prince, "is a record of which objects came from what part of Jade Palace Mound."
"We have records for everything on display," said the Minister. "Many records were lost during the Strife of Ten Brothers and One Tyrant, however. Recreating them is a laborious process. Very laborious. Very time consuming."
"Everything on display is a start," said Renjie. "Our mission, should we choose to accept it…."
"And we should," said the Minister.
He appreciated Renjie's behind.
"We should!" agreed the Fourth Prince. "Having chosen to accept it, our mission is to identify the best place to start looking for relics of the ancient giants."
"It's a challenge," said the Minister. "The ancient giants stood on average sixty feet tall. At ten times the height of a man…."
"An unreasonably tall man," said Renjie.
The Minister was not as short as Renjie, but he was shorter than six feet.
"At ten times the height of an unreasonably tall man," agreed the Minister, "even an ancient giant's hairpin would be like a sword."
"Do we have any ancient giant hairpins?" asked Renjie.
"We do!" said the Minister.
"So shiny!" said the Fourth Prince upon seeing one, "and because it's on display, that means we know where it came from?"
"We do!" agreed the Minister.
He waved. A thin, pretty young woman produced documentation. The hairpin came from a location on top of Jade Palace Mound. It had certainly been moved there by something much shorter than sixty feet tall – sometime during the last ten thousand years.
That was a start.
The Minister led Renjie to an enormous table. On the table rested an enormous model of Jade Palace Mound. Originally constructed during the Qianqiu Dynasty, the model had been updated throughout most of recorded history. The first twenty years of Great Yao, however, were too turbulent for models.
"Fortunately, Jade Palace Mound has changed little," said the Minister. "Not too long ago, we were able to bring the model more or less up to date."
Renjie did his best to peek inside every crevice in the model. He was familiar with most of them, and applauded the model's attention to detail. The Minister of Antiquities credited most of that detail to the artisans of the Lechun Dynasty. That state was not administered well during that dynasty, the Minister conceded, but the skills of its professional classes were top notch.
The Minister and his butterflies developed an approach to their mission.
Thin, pretty experts identified giant artifacts, fragments of giant artifacts, and human artifacts modeled on earlier giant ones. They rated each specimen and collected the documentation pertaining to the best ones. Small dots made out of sticky material were given numbers and stuck on the model.
Plain objects found on features inside the Mound's crevices were weighted most highly. It was assumed (for expediency) that these objects had been dropped or discarded close to where they ended up. It was further assumed (for expediency) that they had been lost or discarded during the Arkhanate period. On account of being plain, it was felt that later occupants would have been less likely to collect and move them.
Fragments discovered in drainage basins were also given priority.
These objects were only discovered because they were not plain. Potentially, they provided greater insights into which areas of the Mound should be considered "valuable." The fragments had been moved by rushing water, however, making it difficult to place their origins. Hydromancers from the Ministry of Works were asked to help trace the flow of water through the Mound.
As information came together, Renjie leaned more and more on the enormous table – and began to wiggle like a cat preparing to jump on a mouse. This provided the Minister of Antiquities numerous opportunities to show his appreciation. On several occasions, the burly man appreciated Renjie so much, his hand lifted the Fourth Prince's off the floor.
It gave Renjie a little thrill.
Whenever he went climbing around on the actual Mound, the Fourth Prince occasionally found objects. He rarely collected them, however. His purpose in climbing was to climb. Furthermore, climbing in bare essentials left Renjie only one place to put anything – and he had never found a "bath toy" on one of his climbs.
"Has the Ministry of Antiquities ever found a bath toy?" Renjie asked the Minister.
After elaboration, the Minister appreciated Renjie's question for a long time.
"Yes," he said. "But not for giants."
"Oh, zut!" said Renjie.
"Giants do not have the same internal structure we do," said the Minister. "Their bodies are scarcely different from animated statues. Certainly, they don't procreate. That fact played an important role in their downfall."
"Lucky for us!" said Renjie.
The Minister agreed.