The Scripts of Zhao
My plans for a leisurely life as a wealthy idler—now that I had escaped Zhao’s pressure and no longer needed to worry about food or shelter—were dashed before they could even begin.
“Young Master, circumstances have been urgent until now, so we postponed this, but there is no longer any need. We shall resume your lessons.”
Having felt the importance of the knowledge valued in this era during my meeting with Lord Pingyuan, I accepted the lessons without complaint. Unlike the later ages, where textbooks were fixed in advance, Han Jing’s instruction took the form of recounting anecdotes, drawing lessons from them, and then debating how matters might have been handled better. It felt at once like listening to old tales and like performing a situational drama by dividing roles, which made the sessions quite enjoyable. The lectures were substantial, offering practical value that could be applied to real situations.
Yet there was a separate problem.
“Young Master, that character is not read as ‘eye’ but as ‘horse.’”
“This one? What are you talking about? ‘Horse’ is this.”
While I was reading aloud from a book, Han Jing pointed out an error. I picked up the brush and, drawing on the calligraphy skills I had cultivated as a hobby in my previous life, swiftly wrote the character for “horse.” When I thrust the elegantly written character toward him to refute his absurd nitpicking, Han Jing tilted his head in puzzlement.
“Young Master, this is the script of Qin.”
“What?”
“We are in Zhao, so I prepared books written in Zhao’s script… It seems we must begin with the characters themselves.”
Because I had been so busy until now, I had completely forgotten. The hanja of this era were different from those I had known in my previous life. This was the Warring States period, before the Central Plains were unified. The script differed from state to state. The form of hanja I knew belonged to Qin, the state that would eventually unify the realm—not to Zhao or Yan. Even Qin’s script differed in places from the hanja I had learned before.
“So I’m illiterate…”
The proud achievement of passing the second-level hanja exam during my school years, when hanja education was emphasized, and the youthful accomplishment that had led me to take up calligraphy as a hobby—all of it was now judged worthless. It had been useless even when I worried about employment in my previous life, and now that I had arrived in an age where it should have been most useful, it meant nothing. Why had I spent so much time on it…?
“How empty.”
Thus began my study of hanja from the very beginning, running parallel to Han Jing’s lessons, which proceeded smoothly. After finishing lessons in the morning, there was no additional study in the afternoon. Though the morning sessions lasted nearly four hours, the schedule was far more relaxed than my previous life, where self-study had been imposed even late into the night, or the lives of Joseon crown princes, who had been tormented by study from dawn until dusk.
‘If I had been born a Joseon crown prince instead, that would have been its own kind of nightmare.’
While it would have been convenient to make use of hanja, the sheer volume that Joseon crown princes had to memorize was on an entirely different scale. Here, anecdotes formed the core, with the source texts used as supplementary material. Joseon education, by contrast, required rote memorization of the Four Books and Three Classics as a foundation, followed by countless other canonical works. Although texts such as the Book of Rites attributed to Confucius and later works like the Analects, Mencius, and Doctrine of the Mean existed in this era as well, Confucianism was not particularly dominant, so their importance was not high. Rather, there was a strong perception that theoretical matters were for subordinates to handle. The foundation of royal education lay in the practical principle that a ruler’s true task was to recognize talent and put it to use. The focus was on how wisely one could respond to the rapidly shifting political situation and how effectively one could identify and employ capable people.
Still, once morning lessons ended, did I simply idle away the afternoons? Not quite. While Han Jing prepared for the next day’s lessons and attended to his duties as steward, I had my own tasks. If the mornings were study time, the afternoons were business time—namely, paying visits to Lord Pingyuan to keep my presence fresh in his mind. My comfortable daily life rested entirely on his patronage. Should my standing continue to decline until I was effectively delisted, he would cut ties without hesitation. Having used another’s power to achieve my goals, the only way to maintain that support was to keep proving my worth.
‘Or I could build an independent foundation and stand completely on my own, but that would be rather difficult.’
Fortunately, Lord Pingyuan’s expectations were not absurdly high. It would suffice if he came to believe that this fellow would not steal his rice bowl, would naturally secure the throne, and possessed enough credibility to keep his promises going forward.
‘Though, now that I think about it, even that sounds quite difficult. If even becoming a village head is that hard, ascending to the throne can’t be easy.’
For now, it was enough to make Lord Pingyuan think I had potential. Yes. He was not seeking immediate results, but rather making an investment in a promising prospect. His attitude toward me was not unfavorable, and there was someone helping me as well.
“The retainers are largely divided into three categories.”
It was Chu Yan. From the first day he had shown me favor, he had taken it upon himself to guide me, explaining various matters.
“The distinction is made through their lodgings. One can tell a retainer’s rank by which residence he occupies.”
“So not everyone is treated equally.”
“Well, so many people come. Besides, competition is not always a bad thing. A person’s desire to rise produces corresponding results.”
A structure that encouraged competition by dividing people into ranks. It made sense. No matter how vast Lord Pingyuan’s wealth, providing the finest treatment to every retainer would quickly lead to bankruptcy. Even though their numbers had fallen from three thousand at their peak to a little over one thousand, the cost of feeding them all was enormous.
“Then I suppose I count as a retainer as well? After all, my lodging was also arranged by Lord Pingyuan.”
“Hmm, it is a little different. First, let me explain the lodgings. The lowest is called the chuanshe.”
The lodging the King of Zhao had given me at first had been a chuanshe as well—the lowest grade among guest houses. Even that was above average by the standards of ordinary commoners, which made the gap between social classes all the more apparent.
“Next is the xingshe. From there, the meals become decent. Finally, there is the highest-grade lodging, the daishe, but the number of retainers allowed to stay there is limited to one-tenth of the total.”
“Then you must be staying in a daishe, Teacher Chu.”
“Hoho, who can say.”
“Pardon? Surely you are not in an xingshe…”
“There is one more type of lodging I have not yet mentioned.”
As expected. Given Chu Yan’s career, he was a figure of national renown. Even from the conversation I had overheard with the Wei soldiers, his position had clearly been considerable.
“Those who receive even greater treatment than the daishe retainers are not given shared quarters but private villas.”
Chu Yan spread his fingers wide.
“And a total of five such villas have found their masters. Among those in the know, these five are called the Five Cloud Guests.”
The term “cloud guest” was an elegant epithet for reclusive sages. Thus, a literal rendering would be the five sages who, instead of entering public service, concealed themselves as Lord Pingyuan’s retainers.
“I already know three of them.”
“Oh? Already?”
“Well, since you mentioned yourself, that one is certain, and from his position and manner of speech, the man called Feng Qi I met before also seemed worthy of the title.”
“That much I expected. Who is the other?”
“From what Lord Feng said last time, there was someone named Li Dan who gave instruction to all the retainers. I thought it might be him.”
At my words, Chu Yan’s expression froze. The man who had been speaking with growing excitement only moments before now pressed his lips tightly together, his face turning bitter.
“Teacher Chu…?”
Chu Yan shook his head as if to say he was not angry, then forced an awkward smile.
“My apologies. Yes, just as you said, Young Master. Dan is indeed one of the Five Cloud Guests. You have an excellent memory.”
“Ahaha, I remembered her because she was so young. I would like to meet her sometime.”
“…Young Master. I am afraid that wish will be difficult to fulfill.”
Only then did I realize why Chu Yan’s expression had darkened, and I let out a sigh.
“Don’t tell me…”
“Yes. Dan is dead. Nevertheless, Lord Pingyuan has left the villa he gave her untouched. It is his way of keeping her in his heart forever. Thus, while five villas have masters, there are in truth only four Cloud Guests.”
“How did it happen?”
“As you know, Young Master, Handan was once besieged by Qin’s army.”
It must have been the disaster that followed the defeat at Changping. When I nodded, Chu Yan continued.
“At the time, Lord Pingyuan was overcome with guilt and fell into dissipation. Of course, he had not been idle about the situation—he had already formed an alliance between Wei and Chu with twenty of his retainers.”
Moving an army required preparation. Promising to send aid did not mean troops would march at once. Therefore, Lord Pingyuan had first secured the alliance pact and then returned to Handan. It was precisely then, in the relief of having resolved the matter, that he had sunk into pleasure.
“But with the relief force’s arrival uncertain and Qin’s army surrounding Handan, his behavior was a mistake. Yet none of the retainers dared to remonstrate with him—save one.”
“That person was Li Dan.”
“Correct. Though her appearance was plain, her heart was firmer and more radiant than anyone’s. Only Dan scolded Lord Pingyuan, telling him he should not drown in pleasure but take revenge himself. For a sixteen-year-old girl, she was remarkably bold.”
Lord Pingyuan came to his senses and, heeding Li Dan’s advice, sent even his concubines to the front lines. He personally organized a suicide squad of three thousand and led them out of the city to intercept the Qin forces. Li Dan went with them. She did not return alive.
“Lord Pingyuan clutched Dan’s body and wept bitterly. He later enfeoffed her father as Marquis Li and placed a spirit tablet for her in the villa he had given her.”
After finishing his explanation, Chu Yan paused for a beat before looking at me.
“Do you understand why I am telling you this story?”
“I think you are warning me in advance so I do not make a mistake before Lord Pingyuan.”
“Half correct. The reason I told you this is…”
A reason I had not yet grasped. Chu Yan stated it plainly.
“Because what I have described is precisely the attitude you must adopt from now on.”
As he spoke, Chu Yan’s eyes seemed to gaze not at the present moment, but at some distant future.