Volume 1, Chapter 24: Distant Journey of a Thousand Li (1/2)

Volume 1, Chapter 24: Distant Journey of a Thousand Li</e rendezvoused with the other Yong ar’s arradually andforces tasked with blocking the Southern Chu armies forced them to watch from afar as ithdrew As a result, the subsequent march was unhurried and comfortable As a prisoner, I received special treatment and was not required to live with the other captives The Prince of Yong had given the order to allow Xiaoshunzi and h it was only an army tent, it was nevertheless comfortable with the floor covered with embroidered fabric and the walls wrapped in thick animal pelts As a result, the autumn winds were unable to penetrate inside At one corner of the tent was a bed large enough for two to sleep in On the other side was a square pinewood table with two seats On the table was placed a purple granule tea set In the middle of the tent was an elaborate and yet practical copper stove Right now, there was a pot of water placed upon it, causing the entire tent to be co the water come to boil, Xiaoshunzi helped me an to sit up The incidents over the last few years had left h I persisted in practicing the deep breathing exercises to ood health, my illness would still recur fro ical diseases were difficult to treat, especially as doctors found it difficult to treat themselves As a result, I was sickly the last several years Although I would frequently use the excuse to recuperate, my body was truly unwell Xiaoshunzi helpedto convalesce This trip to Great Yong is exhausting I fear that young hed and replied, “Is there any other way? You kno I fell ill The ical In reality, I am already much better It is only that this journey has reo Unfortunately, the Prince of De has already passed away¹ Now that I a past events, I cannot help but wring ht laugh could be heard from outside the tent before a voice said, “I have heard that Sir Jiang is unwell This Prince has coh, the Prince of Yong, Li Zhi, entered He earing the garb of an i behind him were two advisers The three men entered the tent With difficulty, I rose from the bed Li Zhi had already walked over and pushed et out of bed I have heard that Sir has fallen ill Zhi has been busy with military affairs and only noas able to take the ti, he sat down beside the bed, looking atthe two scholars had already sat down, I politely greeted them “Suiyun’s old ailive ’s side is full of talents² I am unaware of how to address you two, sirs”

The older scholar, possessing a delicate appearance, over fifty years old, rose froreets Sir Jiang Sir’s literary talent is acclaihout the world I have had the opportunity to read Sir’s verses and they are deserving of their great reputation, and I cannot bear to roll thearbed scholar who had slender eyebrows and long eyes, and possessed a distinguished and acco He smiled and said, “That day, Sir used the poe of Shu to commit suicide To this day, this one still recites it inZhi”

I quietly returned, “I have long heard of the advisers in the service of the Prince of Yong Guan Xiu of Beihai is adept at the organization of ar is skilled at troop chuan⁵ who is a skilled envoy These three individuals are known as the three distinguished heroes Today, you two indeed justify your reputation⁶ It is a pity that I auished heroes Suiyun can only sigh atZhi smiled and replied, “Brother Gou is not in the arhly esteems Sir That day, Sir followed the deceased Prince of De and ca army encampments Coincidentally, the three of us were not with the army Afterwards, we hurriedly parted ways and did not have the opportunity to sit side by side and have a comprehensive conversation Since Sir has also cohness Presu forward, to raise our wine cups and chat”

I looked at Li Zhi, s htly I only neutrally said, “Although Suiyun is constantly ill, etic If brother has any questions or inquiries, feel free to ask Suiyun Suiyun will answer as best as he can”

After speaking for a short period of ti farewell, departed Li Zhi repeatedly exhortedthat he had already prepared a carriage to carry me on the journey He further exhorted Xiaoshunzi to take care ofneeded

Waiting until they left, I lay down in bed With a sht expect, the Prince of Yong’s advisers were quite sincere But in my eyes, I fear that Gou Lian is narrow- hi ent this time That Gou Lian is also within the encaood Thus, the Prince of Yong did not invite hiand his two advisers exited the tent With a sigh, Li Zhi said, “I was originally under the i an illness Unexpectedly, he is actually bedridden Alas, his health is poor and I have forced hi journey No wonder he always treats this Prince so distantly”

“Your Highness need not be worried,” replied Dong Zhi soothingly, “I saw that although this person is bedridden, his drive is excellent Presuhness brought hih thisYour Ihness, he did not directly refute it It can be clearly seen that this man isn’t someone ill not surrender”

Li Zhi s Zhe, this person, is adaptable and flexible⁷ Even if I were to forcibly confer upon him a position, he may not necessarily refuse But to want him to serve loyally—that is a difficult hly, but perhaps there was soree of reluctance As a result, he refused to accoh the Prince of De was the Royal Uncle of Southern Chu, he was so offhandedly denied I am worried that he would also treat hness, be at ease,” coh this person’s heart is as cold as ice, he nevertheless is still filled with hot blood Otherwise, he would not have subhness treats him with sincerity, you will certainly acquire devotion and loyalty I have heard that he distanced himself from the Prince of DeYuan I am worried about Gou Lian’s tempera provocation I’ Suiyun”

“Brother Guan is overthinkingZhi, “I actually believe that if Gou Lian had come, I’m afraid that there would have been unexpected results Although Jiang Zhe, this person, has a cultured and refined exterior, he has an innerant and obstinate⁸ This temperament is quite similar to Brother Gou I believe there won’t be any harmful consequences”

Just as the three were discussing this at length, the person they worried about arrived at the entrance to ant When he had learned that Li Zhi had especially brought Jiang Zhe back by force, and showed concern and care for hiht Guan Xiu and Dong Zhi to check onGou Lian was even ence and wisdom, he understood that Li Zhi and the two other advisers orried that he would offend Jiang Zhe ThisTherefore, Gou Lian took advantage of Li Zhi and co before to arrive at h Li Zhi had coh status within the ar overhihis conaled with e I sue as Sharp as a Sword,” Gou Lian, Gou Yongquan?”⁹

For a , “It is hard to i took the life of the King of Shu, would recognize me, this nobody I ayuan</e of Shu with the lines, ‘Suddenly I becarinding away,’ knew that such a day would come? I see that brother has a wan and sallow appearance and has a disorganized and ill body This should be considered as ‘ away,’ no?”

I quietly answered, “I have long heard that Brother Yongquan was for Chen established a new regiiquan received favor and honor while in his service Later, His I, led a punitive expedition against Zhang Chen Under orders, sire was dispatched as an envoy to the Yong cahness’s awe-inspiringto surrender Afterwards, sire served as an envoy on the Prince of Yong’s behalf without ever failing I wonder if this is because of your original failed diplo convinced by another to surrender as a humiliation, and from that day forward, sire studied assiduously and tirelessly, later gaining many accoh theChen to surrender was an anecdote often told with praise, the reality was that he had gone to convince the Prince of Yong to withdraw his troops and ended up beco Chen to surrender This was unavoidably an incident where he had failed his mission He could not believe that someone would draw blood with one prick¹⁰ Blushi+ng with sha has the appearance of a dragon and phoenix He has a grand and refined nanimity How can he be swayed by mere words? For this lowly one to fail in e Moreover, this one helped rescue General Zhang saved from difficult circumstances This meritorious service is able to uished self, since you know that Great Yong is the legitiiquan’s words are incorrect I stated that General Zhang was illegitimate, because at the time, the Central Plains would be united in no ti General Zhang relied uponof the tied As for h it is a s Suiyun was once the yuan of Southern Chu, a jinshi+ who placed in the top tier I have served for reat favor froe ? Suiyun is aware of honor and shame My former master is still alive, so how can I curry favor to serve a new master?”

Gou Lian rolled his eyes “Since your distinguished self is deter of Southern Chu is currently in our enca headed? Leave alone the fact that I have heard the saying that a virtuous subject chooses histhe death of a virtuous prince In co, is modest and open-minded,¹¹ and respects the wise His actions are clear and decisive He is known throughout the world for his benevolence and righteousness and sagacity Why is your distinguished self such a stickler for tradition¹² and unwilling to surrender and pay allegiance? Acting to such an extent will cause laughter frohed huh a virtuous subject chooses his master, I have never heard of virtuous subjects who serve new masters when their oldloyally served Zhi Bo only after the Zhonghang fa asdid not abandon them¹³ What’s more, Suiyun served not just Zhao Jia, but the entire Southern Chu royal clan The for appointed me to Hanlin Academy The Prince of De used me as an aide This kindness is before h position and great wealth?”

Gou Lian uprightly declared, “Although your distinguished self’s words are precious, your distinguished self has been diso Why do you remain so foolishly loyal?”

I answered distantly, “In the olden days, Bi Gan cut open his heart, but his aspirations did not change Qu Yuan was dismissed fro Huai of Chu, he threw himself into the river¹⁴ Suiyun is not a sentimental person and dares not imitate the behavior of our worthy predecessors Moreover, to covet glory and splendor is one thing, but to surrender and serve a new liege to acquire riches and honor, I dare not do so”

Hearing this, Gou Lian could only kneel and bow, observing, “Sir’s character is lofty and unsullied, which this one adhness has the disposition of a ruler If Sir reat pity But Sir is bedridden, and Yongquan dares not forcibly co capital May Yongquan stop by fros?”