The Biography of Zhuge Liang (2)
They say a person only unleashes their true potential when desperation sets in. And they were absolutely right.
It had taken me roughly ten days to write the first chapter of Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The Biography of Zhuge Liang ran about the same length — and yet I finished it in no more than five days.
Twice the writing speed, and the quality hadn't dropped one bit. The result was so satisfying that even I, the one who'd written it, could barely believe I'd pulled it off in five days.
"Hah... have I reached it? The realm of zero..."
"What kind of nonsense is that now? Master, would you please stop muttering weird things nobody can understand?"
Soso, who'd been snacking on tea cakes in the corner of the room, chimed in the moment I muttered to myself.
"There's a thing called literature, you know. Beyond your comprehension."
I brushed her off lightly and stood up from my seat.
"Where are you going?"
"To get this bound. I'm heading to the bookstore."
"The bookstore? Our guild does bookbinding too. Why go all the way out there?"
"What? You should've told me that sooner!"
"You never asked."
At Soso's words I bolted straight to the guild, handed over the manuscript for binding, and came back. A day later, the finished Biography of Zhuge Liang was in my hands. The moment I received it, I set off for the Jegal Clan.
"This is ridiculously far..."
China really was a vast country. Even though we were inside the same city walls, it took nearly two hours of walking before I finally arrived at the Jegal Clan estate.
"What's your business?"
The moment I reached the main gate, the guard stationed there asked.
"I've come with something I wish to present to the Clan Head of the Jegal Clan."
"Something for the Clan Head, you say?"
The guard looked me up and down. My clothes weren't shabby, but they weren't fine either. Just a young scholar holding a single book. That was all I was in the guard's eyes.
"The Clan Head is a busy man. He doesn't meet just anyone."
Sure enough, the guard waved me off like I was a nuisance.
"I'm not just anyone."
"You think you're the first of your kind I've seen? There's always one of you. The type that only comes to their senses after a few beatings."
The guard's voice hardened, a clear threat in it. This was the moment to push back just as hard. That was the only way to look like I actually had something worth their time. If I flinched at his words, I'd be treated like a common peddler and nothing more.
"And what if I've brought something truly important?"
So I started pushing back.
"What?"
"I'm asking whether you can take the blame if this goes wrong."
"Kh... Even so, I can't just let you in without official business! State your purpose and come back another time!"
"No! I told you this is urgent!"
And so I was locked in a standoff with the gatekeeper when a new voice cut through the noise.
"What's all this commotion?"
"H-Hall Master!"
The man the guard had called Hall Master appeared.
"The Hall Master, I presume? A pleasure. I am Lee Munhyuk, a guest residing at the Cheonpung Merchant Guild."
A Hall Master sounded like someone of considerable rank, so I made sure to be as respectful as possible.
"Hmm... Cheonpung Merchant Guild? What business does the Cheonpung Merchant Guild have here?"
"My reason for coming has nothing to do with the Cheonpung Merchant Guild. I merely had a brief encounter with the Clan Head not long ago, and I've brought something I wish to present to him. That's why I've come."
"Not long ago? Do you mean when the Clan Head brought back those hostages from the bandits?"
"Yes, that's right."
The moment I said that, the Hall Master's face crumpled.
"Hmph! The Clan Head hasn't attended to his duties for days because of that incident, and you have the nerve to show up here."
His gaze turned ice-cold.
"...I am deeply sorry for that."
I had no idea why the Clan Head neglecting his work was supposed to be my fault, but I bowed my head without protest. If I got prideful here, I might actually get thrown out.
"Then be on your way. The Clan Head is busy."
"I'm afraid I can't do that."
"What did you say?"
The Hall Master's brow twitched. I reached into my robes and pulled out the freshly bound book. On the dark blue cover, the characters were written large and bold.
The Hall Master's gaze lingered on the cover for a moment.
"...And what is that?"
"Something I must show the Clan Head."
"You caused this whole scene over a single book?"
Irritation crept into his voice. But I continued, unfazed.
"It's not just any book. Look at the title."
I pointed at the name sitting prominently on the cover — Zhuge Liang.
"Zhuge...?"
The Hall Master seemed to take an interest in those characters.
"That's right. This book recounts the life of Zhuge Liang, the ancestor of the Jegal Clan. I've come to present it to the Clan Head."
"Hmm... Is that so? It seems I misunderstood. Give it here. I'll deliver it myself."
At the mention of a book about the clan's ancestor, the Hall Master's tone softened considerably.
"Thank you."
If the Hall Master himself said he'd deliver it, then deliver it he would.
"Please — I beg you to make sure it reaches the Clan Head."
I offered the book with both hands, respectfully. The Hall Master took it and, pretending indifference, glanced once over the cover.
"You may go."
I bowed once at his words and returned to the Cheonpung Merchant Guild.
Having finished his work for the day, Outer Hall Master Jegal Gang looked at the book sitting on his desk.
The book he hadn't managed to deliver to the Clan Head because of his duties. It was late evening now — an awkward hour to go presenting anything.
"I suppose there's no harm in reading it once before I pass it along."
Muttering to himself, Jegal Gang opened the book and began reading the first paragraph.
The yellow sky that once called itself the Son of Heaven has been forgotten.
Even the names of the soldiers have long since been buried in the sand.
And in an age of chaos where no one cares about such things anymore,
a man was looking up at the heavens.
"Hmmm..."
That first sentence. The raw power hidden beneath an unpolished brushstroke, the force that reached out from beyond the words — it slowly took hold of Jegal Gang's heart.
The stars of the world.
One among them burned brightest of all. A star that swallowed the other lights of the north, seeking to shine alone.
Another star was faint, yet it would not go out. Still weak, still searching for its path, slowly gathering its light.
The last star was steadfast as a river. Guarding the eastern lands, steadily building its strength.
The man gazed upon those stars and murmured,
"All under Heaven begins to tremble..."
"It was supposed to be a biography... so it's a novel?"
But it was unlike any novel he had ever read. The martial arts stories he had encountered until now never opened like this. They just rattled on about what martial arts the protagonist had mastered, or how extraordinary the hero was supposed to be.
But this...
This was different. Truly, utterly different. It was nothing like those martial artists' tales he had read in his youth and long since outgrown as too childish.
"This man who reads the heavens... Zhuge Liang... Was there truly a master among our ancestors who could read the will of Heaven? Or is this, too, merely fiction?"
He felt a brief pang of disappointment as he continued reading — and then Jegal Gang realized something strange.
The protagonist, Zhuge Liang. He read the heavens, yes — but he never displayed the bearing of a martial master. Anyone who had attained enlightenment enough to read Heaven's will should surely possess earth-shaking martial prowess. And yet the Zhuge Liang of this story merely gazed at the stars and spoke of the tides of the realm. At least, until another character appeared — a man named Liu Bei.
When one pays a visit, one knocks three times. Just as that gesture, a door must be knocked upon three times before it will open.
The first visit was a failure foretold.
Liu Bei let out a long sigh on the dusty dirt road, turned around with the gifts he had brought, and walked away. Guan Yu's heavy beard streamed in the wind, and Zhang Fei erupted in loud complaint right then and there.
"Elder Brother is the Imperial Uncle of the Son of Heaven! How dare some village rustic ignore him! After we've come all this way, he should have rushed out barefoot to greet us!"
"Hmm... Liu Bei. Didn't it say one of the world's stars was Liu Bei? The star still finding its path. Liu Bei."
With Liu Bei's appearance, the story shifted. The Zhuge Liang who read the heavens receded, and the narrative became about this Liu Bei trying to meet him.
"Hmph... Of course a man of our Jegal Clan wouldn't be so easily met."
So saying, Jegal Gang turned the page.
On the second visit, Liu Bei was able to meet Zhuge.
"Already?"
The news that they met Zhuge Liang so soon left Jegal Gang more than a little disappointed. Just a moment ago the story had made it seem Zhuge Liang was not easily approached — and now they met him immediately? A plot development that stomped all over the reader's expectations. He couldn't help but feel let down.
But even that disappointment, Jegal Gang realized only after reading the next sentence, had been used by the author.
"At last, today I shall meet Master Zhuge."
Liu Bei spoke with a respectful bow.
"Would you be General Liu Xuande of Xinye?"
Zhuge, introduced to Liu Bei by a page boy, asked.
"I am."
"Then you must have come to see my elder brother. I am sorry to say I am not he — I am the younger brother, Zhuge Jun."
"What?"
Only then did Jegal Gang realize he had been played by the author.
Just a moment ago the text had said "Zhuge," making it sound as though they had met Zhuge Liang, drawing out that disappointment — and before the reader even had time to close the book, the author revealed it had all been a misunderstanding.
The disappointment lasted only an instant, and even that instant had been calculated. A wickedly, devilishly cunning book, to send a reader's emotions reeling in just a handful of sentences.
Feeling as though he had been struck squarely over the head, Jegal Gang turned the next page with considerably more caution.
"I will not leave Xinye until I have met Kongming."
Liu Bei said it firmly to his two brothers, and at those words Guan Yu calmly gathered his thoughts and spoke.
"Elder Brother, that man is nothing but a village rustic. Look at our situation. Cai Mao refuses to release our grain. If we protest, he will use it as a pretext to drive us out. We should be leaving at once — if we linger in this ruined city chasing some country hermit, we will be discarded the moment we are no longer useful."
Liu Bei swallowed a quiet anger and answered him.
"Kongming is no mere rustic. And Xinye is no ruined city! As for Cai Mao, he acts as he pleases only because Elder Brother Jingsheng lies ill. When Elder Brother recovers, Cai Mao will not dare be so insolent."
The book said the northern star was growing ever stronger, that an attack could come at any moment. Internally, too, there were those moving against Liu Bei. And still Liu Bei stubbornly insisted on meeting Zhuge Liang.
Just who was this Zhuge Liang, that Liu Bei wanted to meet him so badly?
Jegal Gang's curiosity only deepened. And wanting to find out, he couldn't bring himself to put the book down.
The third visit came on a morning of swirling snow.
They were so short on grain they could stay no longer. And still Liu Bei set out for Zhuge Liang's house with his two brothers, determined to meet him. The sound of three men treading through snow broke the silence of the realm, and at last they arrived at Zhuge Liang's door.
Liu Bei stepped inside, telling himself this was the last time. If he did not meet him now, he would wait until the man returned. It was a shameful thing for a general to do — but Liu Bei's desperation ran deeper than shame. And that day, Zhuge Liang was there.
The long journey. The string of failures that had followed him since Luoyang. All of it was dissolving now, as the door to the room where Zhuge Liang sat swung open. The room was plainer than expected. The furniture was minimal, and even that was crowded out by books packed tight on every surface. Zhuge Liang sat in the midst of them, reading, and only when Liu Bei entered did he lift his head to receive him.
"Forgive me. I heard you made the journey in vain twice already. I was so absorbed in my books I failed even to come out and greet you. I have been most rude."
There had been no time for anyone to run ahead and announce that Liu Bei had come. And yet Zhuge Liang recognized him as though he already knew who he was. Liu Bei, startled, said,
"You knew who I was at a glance."
Zhuge Liang smiled faintly and closed his book.
"The leather boots you wear tell me you ride more than you walk. Your hands bear the calluses of a sword — and yet I also see the calluses of one who holds a brush. And your gait? Anyone can see it is a warrior's stride. And yet the robes you wear are those of a man who has only just left his desk."
So saying, Zhuge Liang rose from his seat and looked at Liu Bei as he went on.
"Of course, such men are not rare. But among them, the only one desperate enough to come all this way without even sending word ahead — the only one who has already failed to meet me twice — would be Imperial Uncle Liu, would it not?"
Liu Bei marveled at those words, and thought to himself: This is the one. I was right to seek out Zhuge Liang.
"As expected of a man of the Jegal Clan. Insight of this caliber could belong to no one else. Indeed, indeed."
Satisfied by the insight attributed to Zhuge Liang, Jegal Gang stroked his beard and turned the page with a look of deep contentment.
Over tea, Zhuge Liang spoke of the present state of the realm as though testing Liu Bei, and then posed a question.
"After Dong Zhuo's death, heroes rose on every side. Cao Cao, once weaker than Yuan Shao, destroyed him in the end and now sits in a seat scarcely different from one who stands above ten thousand men. The Sun clan has long held Jiangdong and built their strength; their power, too, is truly formidable. In this situation, only Liu Biao of Jingzhou is weak — and ill besides. He will not survive this age of chaos. Given all this, I would ask the General's true mind: why have you not taken Jingzhou for yourself?"
Liu Bei answered without a moment's hesitation.
"To take Jingzhou... Of course, nothing would be better. But I cannot. Elder Brother Jingsheng is of the same imperial blood as I. When a brother's house is on fire, the younger does not steal treasures from the flames."
At those words, Zhuge Liang wore a faint, almost invisible smile of satisfaction.
"The Sun clan is strong, yes — but the one who holds the realm in his grip is Cao Cao. To stop him, scattered forces must be joined, so that two may stand against one."
"Two against one..."
Liu Bei murmured, as though turning something over in his mind.
"Precisely. Cao Cao's power is greater now than it has ever been; no single force can match him. But if two stand against one — if the realm is divided into three, and Cao Cao's power is held in check — then the situation changes."
"Divide the realm into three, you said?"
"I did. That way, even if one force grows too strong, the other two can still hold it back. Will you hear it? The Longzhong Plan."
And then came Zhuge Liang's strategy. As Zhuge Liang explained how Liu Bei's forces might yet rise, Jegal Gang's hands trembled with awe. He immediately went and found a map, checking whether the places Zhuge Liang had named truly had such terrain.
"Magnificent... Magnificent... How can this be? Our ancestor was not a man who reached the pinnacle through martial arts. He reached it through wisdom and knowledge..."
Lost in admiration for what he was reading, Jegal Gang didn't even notice he had reached the final page as he turned it.
Chapter 1: The Longzhong Plan
— Complete —
"W-what is this? The outcome! You have to tell us the outcome!"
Jegal Gang cried out at the words written at the end of the book. If the book hadn't been interesting, he wouldn't have been angry. But no matter how he looked at it, this was no childish tale of some martial arts master. It was something entirely new.
And that was precisely what had captured him. Zhuge Liang, the ancestor of the Jegal Clan, portrayed as a man of extraordinary greatness. The chaos of a crumbling age. Liu Bei, a candle flickering in the wind.
And at the end — the Longzhong Plan, a strategy that seemed as though it could break through this very predicament. All that remained was to put it into action — and the book ended. Without showing the results. Frustration surged through him.
"The next chapter! Where is the next chapter?! That's right — if this book was meant to be presented to the Clan Head, then the Clan Head might know!"
In the dead of night. At an hour when everyone else was asleep. Jegal Gang kicked open the door and sprinted toward the Clan Head's hall — to ask the Clan Head the truth of the book in his hands.