China's neighbor Laos itself is divided into three parts: Shangliao, Zhongliao and Xialiao, but there are also two provinces of Huapan and Chuanyuan, which were not originally part of the upper, middle and lower three liao provinces, and were once the territories of the Great Southern Empire (Nguyễn Dynasty of Vietnam).
The mountain kingdom of Muang Pan was conquered by the Great Southern Empire of Vietnam and became a vassal state of Vietnam, and later became the two provinces of Zhenbian and Zhenning, which were later the two provinces of Laos (Hua Pan and Chuan Yuan), which were large in size and very small in population.
The ancient Muang Pan state is currently within the two provinces of Laos, its area is comparable to half of China's provinces (more than 30,000 square kilometers), and the population is only equivalent to a large county (more than 500,000).
The location in the picture above is the location of the ancient Muang Phan Kingdom (ChuanYuan Kingdom), which is also located at the junction of northern and central Vietnam.
After the division of the Lancang Kingdom, three large and one small kingdoms were formed, a total of four kingdoms. The three great powers are the upper, middle and lower parts of Laos, and the small one is the mountain kingdom of Meng Pan (Chuan Yuan).
Since independence in 1707 AD, the Ancient Muang Phan Kingdom was once a vassal state and a direct government of Vietnam, and eventually became two provinces of Laos.
During the Lê Dynasty of the Great Yue Empire, the muang Phuan kingdom was once Zhenning Province, and during the Nguyen Dynasty of the Great Southern Empire, it even included Zhenning Province and Zhenbian Province, which was no longer the concept of a vassal state, but a place directly under the direct jurisdiction of the Vietnamese emperor.
In the current lao territory, Chuanquan and Huapan provinces are also very sparsely populated, and in the provinces of Laos, they are relatively large.
09 Xiangkhoang, Chuanxi Province 14,751 244,684 7 Phônsavan in Phong Sa Bay
07 Houaphan, Huapan Province 16,500 289,393 10 Sang Nu Xam Neua
Chuanyuan Province is known as Zhenning Province, and Huapan Province is Cen Prefecture Manghuman.
The two provinces of Laos are mountain provinces, so they are very sparsely populated, and their combined area is about the same as China's Hainan Province, but the population is only more than 500,000, only a little more than China's large counties.
Sichuan Province has a population of about 14,700 square kilometers, a population of 250,000, and 8 counties, with its capital at Fengshawan.
Huapan Province is about 16,500 square kilometers, has a population of 290,000, and has jurisdiction over 9 counties, with the capital being Sangnu.
The two provinces of Hua Pan and Chuan Quan in Laos were originally the ancient Muang Phan state, and later became the direct jurisdiction of the Great Southern Empire of Vietnam (Zhenbian and Zhenning Provinces).
In the 21st century, laos' provinces of Huapan and Chuanyuan are still very sparsely populated, with an area equivalent to a small province in China (almost the same as Hainan), but the population is only equivalent to a large county in China.