by Fuyumi Ono
"My orders stand," Gyousou answered brusquely, ensuring that his was the last word on the subject.
Listening to the details of the campaign, Risai again felt something like a cold wind at her back, an acknowledgement of her frightening lack of second thoughts about bringing down these Machiavellian courtiers in one fell swoop. Indeed, originally King Kyou's favored retainer, Gyousou had thereafter installed his subordinates throughout the Imperial Court. He would already have a firm understanding of what people did and didn't do, who the problem children were and how they should be disciplined.
Since assuming the throne, Gyousou would have already drawn up his plans, who should be removed and who should be replaced. He had undoubtedly foreseen what might happen when those "jackals" were brought to heel. In fact, this "winter hunt" was aimed not only at corrupt officials, but was part of an ongoing strategy to flush the hidden quails, and wipe the slate clean.
Observing the purge unfold, those with treachery and evil buried in their hearts, those who had ingeniously hidden their evil acts from view, would feel the heat and panic and scamper from their holes.
This man-- Risai thought, looking at Gyousou. This man will pull off in a year what takes a new king a decade--even a half century--to accomplish.
Risai felt the chill run through her. Up to that point, she hadn't harbored any second doubts about Gyousou. A general of great renown, Risai as well admired his disposition and temperament, and respected him enormously.
However, for the first time she felt the whisperings of an ill omen in the air.
Even if convinced that these feelings arose solely in reaction to the substance of Gyousou's campaign, she did not doubt his might or authority as King for a second. She simply couldn't help wondering why such dark shadows would descend on her amidst such brilliant splendor.
A short time after that, Kaei suddenly showed up at her residence. It was night and a light snow was falling.
Chapter 13
"It looks like snow," said Kaei with a bow.
Risai escorted her to the parlor of her residence. "Yes, it certainly has gotten cold." She showed Kaei to a chair by the brazier. "I'm honored that you came all the way here despite the inclement weather."
"Oh, think nothing of it." Kaei shook her head. "I'm the one who should apologize for visiting on such short notice. There was something that I wished to discuss at length with you. I came to this decision on the spur of the moment and impertinently dispatched a note to that effect, so I'm pleased that you would so readily agree."
"Oh, it's my privilege," Risai said with a smile.
She offered her food and drink, but Kaei seemed lost in her thoughts. A discouraged expression occupied her white face. On top of that, she looked chilled to the bone.
Kaei appeared in her mid-forties. In terms of her bearing and actual age, she was Risai's senior. Nevertheless, the Kaei who sat before her now looked like a lost child. This did not strike her as a visit made in the name of neighborliness.
"Please excuse me for asking, but what's the purpose of your visit?"
As if awakened from her reverie, Kaei looked at Risai. "Ah, no, I did not have a particular task in mind. I simply wished to talk things over with you."
So she said, except that for the past few minutes she'd pretty much remained mum. Perhaps cognizant of this herself, Kaei began with a chagrined nod of her head. "Nothing that would excuse taking up your time and barging in on you like this."
Risai tilted her head to the side. "Please don't think me too forward for asking, but has something been troubling you, Lady Kaei?"
Kaei raised her head sharply, almost as if Risai had struck her in the chest. An expression of emotional distress--on the verge of tears--contorted her face.
"Please forgive me if I said anything to upset you. I'm afraid my manners are less refined than they should be."
"Not at all," said Kaei, shaking her head. "After all, I am the one making the imposition. To tell the truth, I thought long and hard about what I should say to a person with whom I have barely spoken and then suddenly decided to visit. Your getting right to the point is an enormous relief."
A slight smile came to her face. She ran her fingers along the rim of the wine glass with an air of uncertainty. Unlike a military officer such as Risai, her polished, manicured nails slipped along the edge of the coarse porcelain. And perhaps trembled slightly.
"Are you cold? I could have more wood added to the fire."
"No, I'm not cold at--" She apparently took note of her trembling fingers and hastily clasped the one hand in the other. "I'm not cold. Rather, Lady Risai, I am frightened."
"Frightened?"
Kaei nodded and looked straight at Risai. She appeared to Risai to be scared out of her wits.
"With the coronation of His Highness, the Imperial Palace has become a whirlwind of activity. I really wonder what manner of monarch this is. Never before have I heard of an Imperial Court being reordered at such a pace."
Risai didn't venture to agree with her, but waited for her to come to her point. These were the words whispered all about the Imperial Court. But from the slight quaver in her voice, it was clear that Kaei did not perceive this as reason to rejoice.
Kaei all but blurted out, "Is it really best for him to advance his agenda so quickly?"
"Quickly?"
"It is always necessary to reform and reorganize the Imperial Court. And to banish the criminal and the corrupt. But must the process be accelerated like this? Why can he not proceed more slowly, take the time to scrutinize the landscape and verify the results, and let change permeate in a more relaxed manner?"
"You think him impatient?"
"I cannot help feeling anxious. I mean no criticism of His Highness. Far from it. But as for myself, what I find myself doing terrifies me. I cannot shake the feeling that something important has slipped our minds, that we are forgetting something we cannot afford to. Whether everything can be transformed with such zeal is a question that will not leave my mind."
Risai nodded. She didn't think such concerns unreasonable in the least.
Kaei had originally been the minister-in-chief of Ran Province. Risai had heard that she was reputed to be a wise and thoughtful minister. The few times they'd chanced to meet had left Risai with the impression that she was a compassionate person with a deep respect for civility, prudent in character, and with a fine and attentive nature.
That Gyousou had selected her as one of the six ministers of the Rikkan was only common sense. And yet the question had also reached Risai's ears: But as the Daishikou? The Ministry of Fall was responsible for consolidating and enforcing the civil and criminal statues, and for maintaining public order. At the same time, the Ministry of Fall handled foreign diplomacy.
But doubts were also whispered about that her emotional nature was not a good fit with the mission of the Ministry of Fall.
The Ministry of Fall was a cold, heartless ministry that required the levying of sanctions and punishments, and the issuing of commands and decrees with absolute impartiality. It was said that weeds withered in the face of the freezing frost of Fall and wilted beneath the fierce rays of Summer.
To be sure, Risai felt nothing of a Daishikou's ironfisted intensity from the woman sitting in front of her, looking as fragile as a lost child.
"I'd always been in charge of the Ministry of Education. I came here to do my best for the welfare of the people. I have not accustomed myself to judging and sentencing them. I know it's not simply a problem of getting used to a new role. If it was only my job, I could carry it out well enough. But I cannot help believing that I could not have been appointed to the Ministry by anybody aware of how unfit I was for the position."
And yet-- she murmured to herself. She lowered her eyes. Once again her trembling fingers traced the rim of the glass. "After this, I shall have to judge a great many government officials. And I must do so in short order and without second thoughts. This frightens me. Even in the case of a crimin
al, can such expeditious action ever be good--?"
Risai smiled. "Please. Drink your wine. Warm yourself." She looked on attentively as Kaei nodded and raised the cup to her lips.
"Lady Kaei," Risai continued, "I think it is perfectly natural that you should harbor such apprehensions. To be sure, the Imperial Court is changing at a pace that would make anyone's eyes spin. The pursuit of wrongdoers is an indispensable part of the new Imperial Court, but I can't think of another example where such a fight could be concluded with a single blow. I think His Highness is a remarkable individual with a surprisingly headstrong will."
Risai flashed a wry smile and Kaei responded with a grin of her own.
"We soldiers believe in taking advantage when the opportunity presents itself. When the day of decision arrives, we must seize the day. At such moments, we carry the cause forward without hesitation. That is the way soldiers think. During a war, there is often no time for careful deliberation. Linger too long musing over a matter and the chance of a lifetime may slip away. That is why I can comprehend the decisions His Highness is making. I understand that we are standing at a critical moment in time, and we must act."
With that, Risai smiled. "But asked whether I could be so determined, I do indeed have my doubts. Life is confusing enough by its own nature. Dragging things out makes nothing if not a lot of mud. That is a failing of people like myself."
"Do you not feel a great sense of anxiety, Lady Risai?"
Risai hesitated a bit answering, but thought it better to answer before Kaei caught on to any self-doubts. "I can't say there is anything I'm anxious about. I'm almost speechless with wonder at the sheer determination that has brought us to this juncture. But without a doubt, I have faith in His Highness's unflinching decisiveness. This conviction alone convinces me that purging the corrupt element in one fell swoop is the correct course of action. The faster the Imperial Court is put in order, the faster we can do right by the people."
"Yes, I do understand that," Kaei said with a nod. "However, that sense of conviction--I cannot yet see myself coming into possession of that degree of unwavering belief. By which I absolutely do not mean to imply any lack of faith in His Highness--"
"Lady Kaei, had you and His Highness ever rubbed shoulder before now?"
"No. There had been no personal connection between us in any way. Only the same stories and rumors that everybody else heard." She smiled to herself. "That is why I was so surprised when I accepted the appointment to the Ministry of Fall. I couldn't believe that he even knew I existed!"
"That is the kind of man His Highness is."
"Lady Risai, had you previously been a retainer of his?"
Risai had met Gyousou on Mt. Hou. She had gone on the Shouzan the same as he. That was when she first met the legendary General Saku. Those who entered the Yellow Sea to go on the Shouzan formed ad hoc groups and journeyed across the Yellow Sea as more-or-less organized units.
Gyousou did not join any of the groups. He entered the Yellow Sea accompanied by his own men, and set off for Mt. Hou in his own unique manner.
"So I hadn't set eyes upon him until we had arrived at Mt. Hou."
"I see. Isn't separating yourself from the other parties and forging on alone a dangerous course of action?"
"Under normal circumstances, yes, it is quite dangerous. But not to His Highness, wouldn't you say? I subsequently heard that back in the reign of King Kyou, for at least three years, Gyousou withdrew his name from the Registry of Wizards and took a sabbatical from the Palace Guard. During that time he entered the Yellow Sea. There are hunters who make a living capturing kijuu in the Yellow Sea, and he became apprentice to one of them."
Kaei's eyes widened with surprise. "A general of the Palace Guard became an apprentice?"
Risai grinned. "That is the kind of man His Highness is. Come what may, he was going to capture and tame a kijuu of his own. It was said that he didn't join any of the groups during the Shouzan because he also wanted to go hunting. When I heard that Gyousou had entered the Yellow Sea at the same time as the rest of us, I knew that I was destined to be at best a bystander on the journey."
Risai smiled sadly. Kaei pressed her lips together. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry."
"Not at all. So I was never his retainer. However, I was able to share some wonderful moments with Gyousou-sama and the Taiho at Mr. Hou. That connection must have been what led him to give me a second look."
A general of the Palace Guard and a general of the Provincial Guard--there was a great difference in status between them, but the latter was not a subordinate of the former. So they related to each other as colleagues.
Soon after his enthronement, Gyousou summoned her to Kouki and introduced her to his retainers. Many of them had made the Shouzan with her, and so were familiar faces. After her appointment as general of the Sui Provincial Guard, she found it quite natural to associate with the king's retainers.
"Telling you about this now, I am left with a curious feeling, uncertain myself as to whether or not I am acting as a retainer of His Highness."
"Is that so--" said Kaei with a slight sigh. "The thing is, I find it hard to dismiss what my own instincts are telling me as well. Or rather, you do not strike me, Lady Risai, as a retainer or subordinate. That you chose to follow His Highness from the start, before being compelled to, I feel sets you somewhat apart."
"You really think so?"
"Yes. That is why I sought you out. Others would quail from voicing their misgivings. I sensed that if I told them about my fears, they would reject those feelings on the spot. You impressed me as someone a bit different than the rest. Perhaps because you are a woman like me."
"I'm pleased that you would think so," Risai replied. Kaei's misgivings were not at all unreasonable. Gyousou's retainers had served in his shadow for a long time. They understood his temperament and the way he thought. Deep bonds of trust had been forged between them. Those bonds were so strong that at times she felt like an outsider. And if this was true of Risai, it would be all the more so for Kaei. It was only natural for Kaei to believe that she was a stranger in a strange land, gripped by feelings of isolation and alienation.
"My sense of apprehension may well arise out of loneliness and insecurity," Kaei admitted with a self-effacing smile. "When His Highness opines on some matter, everybody, starting with yourself, Lady Risai, seems to catch on at once, as if inferring his meaning and intent from a single word. That is what it seems like to me. I'm the only one who fails to grasp the big picture that he is drawing for the rest of you. Everybody else has taken in the information in big drafts, distilled its essence, and forged on ahead while I'm still checking out my surroundings, half scared to death. I feel like a lost child left at the side of the road."
"I don't think we all automatically grasp every point His Highness wishes to make."
"Do you really think that's the case?"
"Most likely. There is plenty about the way His Highness approaches things that I don't understand. But if that is the tack that he chooses to take, then I'll consider it good enough for me for the time being."
"So you are able to trust his word and follow." There was a touch of sadness in Kaei's voice, accompanied by the echoes of faint misgivings.
"Not that exactly. I don't mean to suggest that I trust unconditionally. I'm afraid I'm not making myself clear, but His Highness and I are different."
"Different?"
"The first time we met, I thought to myself: This is what it means to be cut from a different bolt of cloth. I mean, we simply looked at the world with different eyes. His is a view of the world that people like myself can't really comprehend."
Kaei sunk into her thought for a minute. Then suddenly lifted her head as if struck by a thought. "I knew that the reign of King Kyou would not be a long one. And yet I still could not push my thoughts beyond the world I saw right in front of me. Similar to that, you mean?"
"Yes, like that. I hate to admit it, but I found myself in the s
ame boat. I knew that King Kyou would not rule for a great many years. Tai would fall into chaos. Outlaws and brigands would lead the kingdom into tyranny. I could see that far into the future. But my mind wouldn't reach beyond that point. I didn't even feel the necessity of thinking beyond that point. And worse, I couldn't grasp that that was something I should be thinking about."
"I understand."
"Observing His Highness in action, I think to myself: Yes, that's it. The ship of state was listing badly and taking on water. That being the case, then the human resources should be mustered to man the pumps. Cultivating that kind of manpower and installing where it is needed takes time. I have realized that, mourning your kingdom's fallen state, you must prepare to raise it up. But at the time those thoughts never entered my mind. Such lassitude amazes me even now. I could hear the bells tolling, but could not imagine that they ever tolled for me."
Kaei nodded. "But it was apparent to His Highness."
"That is what I believe. That's the difference between us. My mind couldn't reach that far. My thinking was insufficient. But I'm not saying what I really mean. I would like to believe that, given the opportunity, I would have come to the same conclusions. However, it was an opportunity I simply wasn't prepared to seize."
Risai nodded to herself and continued. "That's what I try to remember when I cannot see for myself the objective His Highness is aiming at. I trust that His Highness can see that which I cannot. If I sensed clear doubts or obvious faults, I would object as well. But I don't have those doubts or sense those faults. That's what comes to mind at those times when I lack understanding. That's what allows me to condone his actions. And when I see the results, I'm confident everything will become clearer and I'll see the end from the beginning."
"I see," Kaei said with no great certainty, again looking at Risai with anxiety in her eyes. "But do you think the Taiho agrees as well?"