RICE ON HUMAN HEADS
POV: HEAD OF THE ROYAL MAIDS SU MING
LOCATION: LUOYANG IMPERIAL PALACE
TIME: EARLY IN THE MORNING
If you had any misgivings about the young prince's statement and predictions the previous day, today forced you to render absolute tribute to the boy's perceptive powers. For while you were still sleeping a servant you had assigned to watch the king came to your room in a haste with the news that a visitor had come to see the king.
"And who is this visitor?" You inquire
"He called himself lord You zo my lady" the servant replied
"Did he come bearing gifts?"
"Yes my lady. He said it was piglet that has been suckled by a human. The son of heaven seems to like it."
"Prepare a bath water and ready the clothes I prepared yesterday, we must inform the prince"
"Yes my lady" the servant said and left to carry out his task
As soon as he left, you quickly hurried up to the prince's room with the intention of waking him. However on opening the door instead of a sleeping boy, you find a wide awake prince who was busy drawing a lot of ....things on a lot of paper and binding them.
"You are late." He says as soon as you open the door.
"I take it you know about our pet snake?" You ask.
He nods
"I woke up the moment he entered the palace and I have been awake ever since. Has he presented his gift to my father?"
"Yes your highness. The servant said it is piglet suckled with human milk. Your father seems to like it" You explain
The prince's eyes lit up in fury
"PIGLETS PIGLETS, he would take people's mothers to raise PIGLETS."
"People's mothers my prince?" You ask in confusion"are you talking about those children whom you brought here that can bearely stand due to lack of mother's milk? Have this lord you zo been using their mother to breastfeed piglets?"
"Do you still think I was wrong in burning his granary?" He asks in a sarcastic tone
You could offer no reply to that.
"Where are my clothes I asked you to prepare?"
"You will receive them after you use the bath water my prince." You say with a bit of anger in your voice
"Very well." He said lightly and then pulled out a large chest from a conner of the room you had not noticed before.
"Get some servants to count the money in this chest into five silver tales per bags before I come back. And see to it that not one will be missing."
So saying he walked out of the room and towards the bath water we had prepared for him.
When he left you not only saw to it that his instructions were followed to the letter but you also personally began arranging his room. Luckily prince Liu XIE was a tidy person so most ....well more than most of his things were already well arranged. The only things that seems out of place were those books he was working and as you put them in place curiosity got the best of you and you tore them open.
Inside you see that it is a book of matial arts. However the styles inside was so complex yet the processes so simple that you begin to wonder what sort of martial art was that. This led you to open more of the books and you find that the martial style was based more on formation combat than individual combat. This is buttressed by the fact that the martial book provides formation for infantry, calvary and archery and show how they can support each other. The few private moves in the book were simple but one look at them made it clear to you that if you were the one who was caught by such a move than you would be taking tea with your ancestors.
"Formations from Sun Tzu's art of war"
You turn back to see a young prince who was well dressed in a blue garment.
"I pened those down because I felt they were still useful"
"Useful?" You ask in disbelief
"Those formations are far more simpler yet far more advanced than the ones in the art of war my prince. May I ask why you have pened them down my prince?"
"I wish to train myself in them what else?" He replies casually
"After all if I know my enemy and I know myself, I will win a thousand battles."
You wish to train yourself yet you create a manual that is based more on formation fighting? Who do think you are fooling? What do you really wish to do with those manuals? And why is it so secretive that you have to lie to me about it?
Of course you dare not ask these questions out loud.
"Is that why you are creating the lin kwei? To know your enemy?"
He nods
"About the lin kwei, how are the children doing?"
"They are hungry." You reply with a hint of pride
"They wish to learn everything in the world and to reach out and grab more."
"So I take their lessons are going well?"
"Far too well if you ask me." You reply
"They have no aversion to killing anything with it's back turned, they are willing to learn the courtly manners and they are all gifted liars and deceivers. My personal pride though is that their loyalty seems to be absolute."
"How can you so sure of that?" He asks in a voice full of skepticism
"These are children who grew from the slums your highness. They seem to understand that nothing comes for nothing."
"So they see their training as their way of paying for the benefits they enjoy?"
"Yes and I dare say they would not trusted us if we had asked nothing of them"
"It is really a sad thing if children less than the age of ten can know this lesson"
"Sad for china but good for us as these children will make very fine assassins given enough time." You add without remorse
"Keep training them as you see fit I will draft you a manual tomorrow. Time may be on my side for now but from what I know that will not always be the case." He says in a tone that can not be disobeyed.
"Yes your highness." You reply
"On that note, tell me truthfully Su Min how do I look?"
You take a few steps back to observe his attire and you begin to see why he is favoured by his father. His blue garment complemented his sharp jawline and his sea blue eyes beautifully and the dark sandals he was wearing joined well in giving it a regal touch. You also notice that the garment had the embroidery of a young dragon and you had personally chosen they to remind everyone that this was the blood of the emperor. All in all his attire was aimed to be both intimidating and impressive and you know that if he was a bit older the palace ladies would swoon over him.
"You look ready my prince"
"Good." He replies with fire in his eyes
"Let's go kill a viper"
When you got to the throne room you had expected to see only lord you zo but instead you see the heaven listening to his request with two other enuchs by his side. This surprises you to no end but the young prince seemed to have expected it.
"Those are regular attendant Zhang Rang and Zhao Zhong. My father once referred to both of them as his mother and father so it makes sense that they are by his side so early in the morning." He explains
"I just hope these cunning foxes won't stand in my way"
You turn to lord You zo and he was saying
"Great son of heaven. May your reign be long and healthy. May you continue to surpass your enemies and may the mandate of heaven continue with you. I come to you today because I have suffered a most grievous wrong. Yesterday when I sent my soldiers to collect taxes as is my right, they were brutally attacked by mere peasents and what is worse not only did they not stop at attacking my soldiers but these peasents even went as far as attacking my home burning my granary and endangering my family." He Kow-tows with false tears in his eyes
"Please my emperor give the mandate I need to remind these peasents their proper place. Give me the mandate to teach them a bitter lesson. Give me the mandate or else peasents everywhere will take up swords against their masters."
"Give him the mandate o son of heaven." Both enuchs chorus
"Give him for the good of all china"
"And may I asked what exactly caused the revolt?" A sharp voice rang out
You all turn to see the prince who was looking like the epitome of confidence itself.
"Greetings to the son of heaven." He said to the emperor
"May I be permitted to speak?"
"Speak your mind" the emperor replies
"Thank you father." He then turned towards the eunuchs
"Men, fathers, we all know that no peasent revolt has ever happened out of thin air. There must be a reason, a grievance that has made them to take action and in my opinion lord You zo has yet to tell us what that is."
"And what if there silly grievance is that they are dissatisfied with my rule?" Lord You zo says a little defensively
"What did you do to make them dissatisfied?" The prince counters immediately
"Did you ask for taxes before they are due? Did you have your soldiers harrase the people of the crannies? Or maybe you tore mothers from their babies and forced them to breastfeed piglets did you not?"
"How dare you!" Eunuch Zhang Rang stands up in a fury
"How dare accuse a virtuous man of such a despicable act?"
"How dare you speak to your prince that way?" The emperor booms
"Have you forgotten who you speak to Zhang Rang?"
"Please forgive me my emperor." Zang Rang says as he sat down in concealed anger.
"Besides my emperor, he just gave us piglets fed in human milk." The prince continues
"May I kindly ask where he got the human milk from?"
"Those were from women who volunteered to feed my piglets my prince."
You could hear the immense anger in his voice but you could see the strain he took to suppress it.
"You would have me believe that a woman would leave her child and come to breastfeed a piglet that she would never taste willingly?" The prince's voice was dripping with scorn
"I maybe a child but I am not a fool lord You zo"
"Those women are the properties of their lords according to the law." Eunuch Zhang Rang says
"Or do you wish to tell me that you don't know the law?"
"I know the law of china all too well." The prince replies
"Especially the one that states that if you sleep with a woman from the king's harem you forfeit your own life"
And just like that eunuch Zhang Rang who has been speaking without end becomes shut up in a manner akin to a sealed chest.
You have to admit, as you watch the young prince hold his own against the two most powerful men at the imperial court you feel a sense of pride swelling within you.
"My emperor law or not, lord You zo dealings with these women does not change the fact that peasents attacked him and his family." Eunuch Zhao Zhong says
"True but if these attacks are caused by his own actions dose that not make him irresponsible and foolish?"
Lord You zo stood up in fury no longer caring about the prince's title
"You think you can rule the crannies better than I?" He yells
"Maybe." The prince replies calmly
"Are you willing to give me the crannies?"
"I do not give anything for free"
"Neither do I accept anything that cost me nothing "
The prince then gave a loud clap and you and another servant began dragging the large chest of tales into the royal hall.
As soon as you open it you could see the greed that flashed across the eunuchs eyes and the shock, surprise and confusion that flashed across the emperor's. Not like you could blame him though because even you are still asking yourself where in china a seven years old could have acquired so much money.
"Are you ready to do business?" The prince asks calmly with his expression changing to one of a devious fox.
"What is your offer?"
"I give ten thousand silver tales for the crannies and ten thousand for your troubles." He says as he brought out two bundled bags
"Do you even know how much I bought that place?"
"Another ten thousand for the crannies and ten thousand for your troubles."
"You know very well that the crannies will fetch you far more than that in the future"
"Ten thousand for the crannies and ten thousand for your troubles."
"The price of grain will only continue to go up. You should compensate me for that."
"Ten thousand for the crannies and ten thousand for your troubles."
"You see when it comes to..."
"Hey you do you not want this money?"
The prince make as though to drag the bundle back but lord You zo stops him.
"So do we have a deal?"
And just like that you see lord You zo pull out an imperial edict that confirms him as lord of the crannies and hand it over to the prince.
"There is just one small question Lord You zo." The prince added
"The women who breastfeed your piglets how much will sell them to me"
"Those women are my property your highness. They are not for sell"
"Those women are subjects of the son of heaven just as you and I." He clarifies
"They deserve better than how you are treating them"
"In the name of everything under the heavens, these women are common peasents your highness. Why would you be so concerned about their welfare?" Zhang Rang speaks after a long vow of silence.
"Because they are subjects of the emperor and the emperor is supposed to love all his subjects is he not?"
You watch intently as the young prince turn to his father with eyes full of hope. You know he hopes for the emperor to make the right decision but even if you were not here you already know the outcome of this decision. The eunuchs have been growing in power ever since the emperor was a little boy and now as a young man he has to be careful to avoid stepping on the more powerful eunuchs so asking him to revoke the property of a lord who is backed by an eunuch? That is like asking the sky to turn yellow.
True to your prediction the emperor took a deep breath and says
"The sale of the crannies is valid but the women will remain the property of lord You zo until he choses to sell them . This is the law and itust be obeyed."
"Is that the way it is? I just bought the crannies your majesty, dose that not make the women from there my property? Should a good lord not lay claims to his property?" The prince asks in sly tone and left the throne room.
You quickly order some servant to carry the remaining tales in the chest into the prince's room and you quickly go to meet him.
Rather than find him crying like a normal seven years old, you saw him intently reading a strange letter. You move slowly behind him and the words you saw in the letter cut you deeper than a sword and struck you stronger than a raging fire.
"Do you still think these issues can be solved by sharing Rice professor?"
He closed the letter and respond with an anger as deep as the ocean floor
"Yes but only if these rice are served on human heads"