Tianshangjing, the capital of the Wei State, was a place that had never been associated with the word "tranquil." For the citizens of the capital today, this was especially true.
Early in the morning, the teahouses and restaurants along the streets were packed to capacity. Everyone was discussing the same thing: the Saintly State Preceptor of years past—Lord Tianshu—had appeared!
Tianshu was an invincible myth in the hearts of the Wei people.
Thirty years ago, the late Emperor of Wei was incompetent and depraved, indulging in wine and women all day while neglecting state affairs. The officials in court, led by the great aristocratic families, acted independently, forming factions for personal gain. The nation's strength dwindled daily, and the common people lived in misery.
Among the four nations, Northern Yue remained isolated and self-sufficient, while Western Ze and Eastern Ling launched a pincer attack. Even at the height of its power, Wei would have been no match for them; the declined Wei was merely a piece of meat on a chopping block, utterly defenseless. In just one month, more than half of its territory was lost.
There was only one inevitable end for Wei: total annihilation.
However, the outcome was unexpected.
One could only wonder if the ancestors of the Wei family had truly manifested their spirits.
That year, the Crown Prince of Western Ze personally led the campaign, with the renowned scholar Xin Muyi serving as military strategist. They reached the capital of Wei one step ahead of Eastern Ling. It was then that Tianshu emerged out of nowhere, using a single city to bury a hundred thousand troops of Western Ze.
Overnight, the tide of victory was reversed. For decades afterward, Western Ze never dared to invade again.
Later, Tianshu led the army to resist Eastern Ling.
Despite a shortage of soldiers and provisions, he fought the Eastern Ling God of War to a standstill. The conflict lasted a year until Eastern Ling, wary of Tianshu, was forced to withdraw its troops.
In the truest sense, everyone understood what it meant for one man to rival a million-strong army!
Though the external threats were removed, the civil and military officials of Wei could not rest easy. This was because the late Emperor had passed away in haste before the war between Tianshu and Eastern Ling had even ended, appointing the then seven-year-old prince to the throne.
Everyone said, "Tianshu has achieved such merit; how could he be willing to serve under a mere child?"
Great chaos was bound to erupt!
In the following years, Tianshu held absolute power. He implemented new policies and restructured the government. The court was purged until blood flowed like a river. Everything in Wei was decided by him alone. Almost everyone was certain he intended to crown himself Emperor.
Yet, just as the court began to stabilize and he stood at the absolute pinnacle of power, he left a single letter and vanished without a trace.
"Great chaos" my foot! There was likely no official in history with a greater conscience than him!
The people found a new way to describe the late Emperor of Wei: "He truly stumbled upon a stroke of heaven-defying luck!"
For an emperor who had been incompetent and useless his entire life, the most correct decision he ever made was likely handing the nation's power to Tianshu. Everyone in Wei sighed in collective realization.
The last place Tianshu was seen was atop the highest mountain outside Tianshangjing, which he named Mount Bushe—the Mountain of the Unparalleled.
The current Emperor of Wei, grateful for his immense service, bestowed upon him the title of Saintly State Preceptor. Yet, he never appeared again. It was as if his presence was solely to help Wei survive that existential crisis; once the crisis passed, his mission was over.
Since then, the legend of Lord Tianshu on Mount Bushe has been passed down through the generations.
***
At this moment, in the Governor’s Manor of the Capital, the person responsible for stirring up this city-wide storm was still talking incessantly.
"My Lord, this old man is truly not lying! I really saw Lord Tianshu!"
The expression of the Governor sitting on the bench did not change in the slightest. He could no longer remember how many times he had heard these words today. "Oh..."
The white-haired old man standing below was flushed with excitement. Seemingly oblivious to the Governor's coldness, he continued his vivid narration: "Last night, I got up in the middle of the night and saw a light on the long stone steps of Mount Bushe. Curious, I walked over to take a look, and I saw Lord Tianshu carrying a lantern, walking up the mountain!"
The old man was a mix of surprise and joy, but the Governor remained uninterested, responding lazily, "Was he also dressed in black robes and holding a folding fan?"
"Yes! Yes!" the old man replied hurriedly.
What the Governor wanted to say was that these days, there were plenty of "impostors" dressed like that. They could be seen everywhere on the streets; it was no longer a novelty.
Not just anyone wearing black and holding a fan could be Tianshu. But that person was certainly bold, actually daring to go up Mount Bushe?!
The old man watched the Governor for a while before finally catching his drift. He said firmly, "My Lord! This old man is really not deceiving you! I saw Lord Tianshu in my younger years!"
"Hmm?" The Governor snapped back to attention and looked at the old man. "Did you see what he looked like?"
"Last night, he turned back and glanced at me." He held up a finger, unable to restrain his inner excitement. "With just that one glance, I recognized that the person before me was Lord Tianshu!"
He spoke with absolute certainty and conviction.
The Governor twitched an eyebrow, feeling a hint of doubt. "You've really seen Lord Tianshu before?"
The old man nodded emphatically. But his next sentence made the Governor realize that this old man was either suffering from failing eyesight due to age or was simply out of his mind.
"Decades have passed, yet Lord Tianshu's appearance hasn't changed a bit. He looks exactly as he did when he was young..." His eyes shimmered with tears of excitement and nostalgia.
The Governor no longer wanted to speak. He relaxed his back, leaned against his chair, and stared ahead with a numb expression.
"Exactly the same," my foot!
No matter how god-like Lord Tianshu was, he was still human. Decades had passed; if his appearance remained unchanged, then he really would have to be an immortal.
Besides, after all these years, no one even knew if Lord Tianshu was alive or dead. How could he possibly appear on Mount Bushe?
The Governor scoffed inwardly, but he maintained a polite facade and endured another half-hour of the old man's rambling before finally seeing him out.
By then, it was already noon.
He returned to the back hall and, remembering something, turned to ask the butler, "Is Ziqi back?"
The butler hesitated for a moment before answering, "The Young Master did return, but... he left again later."
Instantly, the Governor’s expression changed. "Which of his 'fair-weather friends' has he gone to fool around with now? Is it that Ye Zhao again? Go! Send someone to bring him back to me!"
The Governor’s surname was Jiang. He was a middle-aged man who looked refined and scholarly, tall and thin. At this moment, sitting in the seat of honor with a dark, stern face, he appeared somewhat rigid and harsh.
The butler complied repeatedly and hurried to find the young master.
Governor Jiang was in his middle age and had only one son, named Jiang Ziqi. One could tell how high his expectations were for this son just from the name.
Unfortunately, as Jiang Ziqi grew older, he became increasingly unworthy of his name. He had become a famous dandy in Tianshangjing. His best friend was Ye Zhao, the only son of Vice Minister Ye Yuan of the Ministry of Revenue—another good-for-nothing.
The two were birds of a feather, sticking together since childhood like brothers sharing the same pair of pants. They had infuriated Governor Jiang more times than he could count.
There is a saying that "a doting mother spoils the child," but in Vice Minister Ye's case, it was the complete opposite. Vice Minister Ye pampered his only son like the apple of his eye, never bearing to scold or beat him. He treated him like a precious treasure every day, truly fearing he would break if held too tight or melt if kept in the mouth.
This was famous throughout Tianshangjing. As for how Vice Minister Ye's reputation for spoiling his son spread, it started when Ye Zhao was a child.
Years ago, when Ye Zhao was a seven-year-old boy, he often dozed off during lectures given by his sixth tutor.
Finally, one day, the tutor could endure it no longer. He stormed off in a rage, leaving behind a parting shot: "He has no heart for learning! If he is like this as a child, he will be no better when he grows up! He is destined to be another useless dandy!"
Facing the tutor he had worked so hard to hire, Vice Minister Ye did not try to sincerely persuade him to stay. Instead, he shot back, "Then my son shall be the world's number one dandy!"
With that, the two parties parted on bad terms, and the story spread far and wide.
One could say Vice Minister Ye's words were spoken in anger, but everyone certainly witnessed his protective, fatherly love for Ye Zhao.
Since he was a dandy, how could there be anything "good" about him?
Even if he were the number one dandy in the world, he would still be an unsuccessful wastrel. A person no one looked up to, whom only his own father would treat as a treasure.
Later, it was heard that the Zhiyuan Academy—having finally decided not to snub him despite his reputation—admitted him. From childhood to adulthood, he consistently swept the last place in every annual exam at the academy without exception. This brought much comfort to other parents who were also worried about their own dandy sons.
Look! At least their son wasn't the most useless one!
Ye Zhao was forever the existence used as a foil, someone to be stepped upon. Over a decade of ridicule and sarcasm had failed to spark any ambition or resentment in him.
Once, at some unknown time and place, someone mocked him: "Compared to so-and-so, you are truly the difference between heaven and earth. How do you still have the face to live in this world?"
Ye Zhao was neither angry nor annoyed. He then became famous with a single remark that shook the capital.
He said: "Since time immemorial, great talents have known only hardship, while dandies have always known only joy!"
Listen to that! He was actually quite happy being a dandy.
Everyone said that Ye Zhao was beyond saving.
He seemed born to wallow in self-degradation, destined to just drift through life.
In his sea of infamy, there was only one "shining point." There was another story about him that was as famous as his doggerel verse.
That year, as he walked down the street, he encountered a girl selling herself to bury her father. The girl was delicate and pretty, looking utterly pitiable.
When this fellow walked past her, the girl happened to "accidentally" trip toward him. Not only did he not take the opportunity to catch her, but he reacted as if he had been struck by a massive fright. He nearly jumped three feet high and then avoided her like the plague.
The girl piteously expressed her willingness to sell herself to him as a slave.
But what did this fellow say?
He said: "My house has no chores, for it already has one idle man. We are wealthy but have no surplus grain; Miss, please find another buyer."
Hahahaha...
Rejecting a beauty who delivered herself to his door—what a lack of romantic sentiment, what "clumsy honesty."
He was truly an oddity!
Observing his behavior over the years, he indeed did not commit crimes or bully others. He simply ate, drank, and played—a useless straw bag, but one who didn't get in anyone's way. This indirectly fulfilled Vice Minister Ye's words from years ago.
Many people laughed, laughing loudly.
Little did they expect that this sole trait that made him somewhat tolerable to others was about to vanish after today.
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 天上京 | Tianshangjing | The capital of the Wei State. |
| 魏国 | Wei State | The setting of the story. |
| 天枢 | Tianshu | A legendary figure, the Saintly State Preceptor. Also the name of the star Dubhe. |
| 圣国师 | Saintly State Preceptor | A high-ranking honorary and political title. |
| 西泽 | Western Ze | One of the four nations. |
| 东陵 | Eastern Ling | One of the four nations. |
| 北越 | Northern Yue | One of the four nations. |
| 辛木夷 | Xin Muyi | A famous military strategist from Western Ze. |
| 不世山 | Mount Bushe | "Bushe" means unparalleled or rare in the world. |
| 京兆府尹 | Governor of the Capital | The administrative head of the capital region. |
| 江子期 | Jiang Ziqi | Son of Governor Jiang, a known dandy. |
| 叶昭 | Ye Zhao | Son of Vice Minister Ye, a famous dandy and the protagonist. |
| 叶远 | Ye Yuan | Ye Zhao's father, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. |
| 户部侍郎 | Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue | A high-ranking official in charge of census, land, and finance. |
| 致远学院 | Zhiyuan Academy | A school in the capital. |
