The Twelve Kingdoms: Dreaming of Paradise

by Fuyumi Ono

  "Eh?"

  "Spring."

  Taiki looked at where Gyousou was pointing. There was a big plum tree overhanging the balustrade just outside the window. Two small white flowers were blooming on the branch closest to them.

  Tai's long winter was finally drawing to a close.

  Jougetsu

  he man stood beneath the symbol of Imperial power. "Any government that indulges itself will stray from the Way."

  The throne's dais rested on four columns inlaid with gold and silver. The pearl blinds surrounding the throne were raised, but the throne itself was empty. Behind the bejeweled seat, a silver-white screen engraved with flying dragons illuminated the scene.

  Following long-established precedent, the ministers knelt on the floor of the spacious Gaiden, their heads almost touching the weave of the carpet. They understood the seeming pointlessness of paying their respects to an empty throne, as did the man standing beneath the throne facing them.

  "From the start, we valiant citizens of Hou, mere ministers and bureaucrats that we are, could not think ourselves free to do as we pleased, even when His Highness, the Royal Hou, was no longer with us."

  The man speaking had all but seized power in the Kingdom of Hou, yet he placed his chair beneath the dais and under no circumstances would set foot upon it.

  The man's name was Gekkei. The late Royal Hou had appointed him Marquis of Kei Province. Four years before, he had banded together with the other Province Lords to overthrow that same Royal Hou.

  "In order to bring order to the Imperial Court, it became necessary to reach beyond our jurisdictions. Having brought chaos upon us, it was our duty to bring it under control. Four years have passed and the Imperial Court is now in order. After this, without exceeding our authority, without resorting to tyranny, we officials of the Court and the Kingdom shall, to the best of our abilities, manage the present situation and solemnly work toward the coronation of a new king."

  Several of the ministers and officials in the broad hall arrayed before the empty throne cast their eyes downward, as if in shame or self-reflection.

  "Amend or abolish even one law and we usurp what is by right the power of the king. Sadly, many harsh laws established by His Highness continue to needlessly torment the citizens of Hou. In these cases, let the news go forth that no one need fear censure if they are not enforced. That is as far as we can allow ourselves to go. The responsibility for abolishing laws is better entrusted to the future king. Rashly eliminating and writing laws is not within the scope of our authority. Shouyou—"

  The man he addressed lifted his head. Gekkei looked at him and said, "In the same way, after this, we must be careful about going beyond what has already been established. Nor do I foresee any scenarios which would require us to do so. While His Highness enacted many harsh laws, he dealt with corrupt government officials with equal severity. There is no denying that his anti-corruption campaigns crossed the line. But his efforts meant that Hou has largely escaped the poisonous snakes nurtured by depraved politicians. Despite this reduction in their numbers, there are yet ministers and officials of great virtue left to serve in the Imperial Court. We hope no further culling will become necessary. The duty of governing the Kingdom rests upon their shoulders. The duty given me is that of governing Kei Province, not the Kingdom. I firmly believe that a mere Province Lord inserting himself into Imperial matters would constitute straying from the Way. My continued presence in Youshun Palace should not be condoned. Do you beg to differ?"

  Shouyou dropped his gaze. "A kingdom has need of a king."

  "His Highness no longer lives."

  "Somebody must stand at the head of the ministers to unite them, to engage in Imperial affairs with resolve and determination, put the laws in order, govern the citizenry, and guide the Imperial Court. Else the kingdom will continue to falter."

  "There is no other lord of the ministers but the Royal Hou."

  Shouyou looked up at Gekkei. "The Royal Hou does not sit upon the throne because we were left with no other choice but to commit regicide."

  "Shouyou—"

  "We do no deny that there is no greater sin than that. As a consequence, Hou today is a despised kingdom of outlaws. Only the Royal Kyou of the Kingdom of Kyou has recognized this government, and then only privately. It otherwise does not exist officially. And yet do you so despise the thought of leading it as well?"

  "I have said nothing of the sort."

  "Do you regret killing Chuutatsu?"

  Gekkei averted his gaze.

  "We killed the Royal Hou Chuutatsu. As regicides, we all bear that burden together. But I feel no shame for having done so. Not considering the lives lost to Chuutatsu's cruel laws and the suffering they caused. Call it the product of righteous indignation or a mere settling of scores—at least Chuutatsu no longer sits upon that throne. You, the Marquis of Kei, thought no differently. Isn't that why you turned your back to the Way and led this insurrection?"

  Gekkei had no answer to Shouyou's question.

  "To occupy the throne without a Divine Mandate would definitely constitute a de facto usurpation. Are you so afraid of being accused of stealing the crown? If so, then why plot this coup in the first place? If you raised an army and struck down the king out of compassion for his long-suffering subjects, then shouldn't that compassion require you to carry out the kingly duties on behalf of the people, the label of pretender notwithstanding?"

  Hard-pressed to answer, Gekkei looked at the floor instead. At that moment, an undersecretary entered the room. He bowed and approached Gekkei and said something in a soft voice.

  "The Kingdom of Kei—"

  Gekkei eyes flew open. He spun around to face the undersecretary, his flustered gaze passing over Shouyou and the others. Excusing himself, he briskly left the Gaiden in the company of the undersecretary.

  "A personal communiqué from the Royal Kei?" was his first question.

  The undersecretary confirmed this with an affirmative nod.

  "To me?"

  He was a renegade who had trampled upon the Divine Rule of Law, assassinated the king, and usurped the throne. And yet he was being told that he'd received a communiqué from the rightful Empress of Kei. Not to mention that Kei and Hou enjoyed no diplomatic relations of any sort.

  An emissary from Her Highness had arrived bearing correspondence addressed to him? The undersecretary nodded again, clearly no less befuddled than he was. Gekkei gathered his confused thoughts together and instructed the undersecretary to escort the emissary to the palace annex.

  Chapter 2

  Still dressed in his court robes, Gekkei repaired to the palace annex. With an unsettled air, he took his seat at the foot of the table and waited for the diplomatic mission to arrive.

  The emissary was escorted in by the undersecretary. He was wearing rather plain ministerial dress, and his entourage appeared to be ordinary civil servants. Yet he identified himself as a general of the Palace Guard.

  "This is not an official visit. I am here at the personal request of the Royal Kei."

  With that announcement, the general refused the offer to be seated at the head of the table. "My name is Sei Shin, and I bear correspondence for the Marquis of Kei from Her Highness."

  The man handed him the letter. Gekkei looked back and forth between the letter and the Kei General. "Please excuse me for asking this question, but are you sure that I am the intended recipient?"

  Sei gave him a perplexed look. "I was instructed to deliver this to the Marquis of Kei."

  "To me personally?" Gekkei pressed. "Not the kingdom?"

  Sei answered, a skeptical tone creeping into his voice, "We had gathered that this kingdom was being governed by the Marquis of Kei. So the one would be the same as the other."

  Gekkei sighed softly. "In that case, I cannot accept." After instructing the undersecretary to go get Shouyou, he said, "Please, make yourself at home. The Chousai will be with us presently."

  "Ah," said Sei with a nod, though the
conversation to this point had clearly befuddled him.

  "I am nothing more than the Province Lord of Kei. Surely the general understands that a marquis is naught but a marquis."

  "Yes, well, that would be true." The troubled look on Sei's face did not diminish.

  Gekkei could understand his confusion. An kingdom deprived of its king needed somebody to lead it. If a king simply lost the Divine Mandate and abdicated, the customary practice was for the remaining ministers to inaugurate a provisional government and appoint a provisional leader. If there was Chousai, then as the chief minister he would assume the throne. This would not be in name only. The Chousai would climb the dais and rule as king. Though the usual enthronement ceremonies would be omitted, the Chousai would in actuality occupy the throne.

  In any case, a real throne was not the name of a chair that a king happened to occupy, but was the seat of power of he who led the kingdom.

  If a king had not lost the Divine Mandate, then his replacement was a pretender. Kings who had not yet exhausted the Divine Mandate had previously been toppled by those with their own designs on the seat of power. Gekkei and his fellow conspirators could be counted among them. And there were certainly similar cases to found elsewhere of patriots committing acts of high treason in order to remove a wayward king, and with no thoughts of usurpation on their minds.

  It'd always been the case that the chief architect of such schemes had been chosen to sit upon the vacant throne. It was the logical consequence of treason and regicide. Any person who could decide for himself that the king had strayed from the Way and deserved to be replaced by himself was in the very thought committing treason.

  "Then I take it," Sei tentatively offered, "that the Marquis does not intend to stand as the provisional king?"

  Gekkei drew his brows. The words struck at his heart with a force he hadn't expected. "This would be no reason for a provisional king. There exists no provisional court, you see."

  No man who sat upon the throne as the result of revolution could boast of the Divine Mandate. The king with Heaven's blessing had been replaced by one who lacked it, and thus was labeled a "pretender." A pretender's court was a counterfeit one.

  "As much as I hate to say it, you would best call this a counterfeit court. The intent was never to replace the king."

  The general nodded. He started to say something, and then quickly thought better of it.

  "What was that? There's no need to hold back on my account."

  "Well, if you wouldn't mind me saying so, I had good reason to believe the current King of Hou was the Marquis of Kei. Her Highness was operating under that assumption as well. The letter Her Highness entrusted to me is intended for His Royal Highness, the Marquis of Kei. It is not within my authority to deliver it to the Chousai instead. The state of affairs that you describe had not occurred to us."

  Gekkei smiled bitterly. "Yes, I guess it would be natural for he who stole the king's life to steal his throne as well."

  Sei shifted with obviously discomfort. "I wouldn't go that far—"

  "I fomented the rebellion and murdered the king. But that does not mean I did so with any desire to rule in his stead. I am fully aware of the gravity of my sins, just as I know that this unworthy body of mine cannot be allowed to defile the throne."

  At that moment, Shouyou hurried into the room. Gekkei continued, "I see the Chousai has arrived. If you would be kind enough to excuse me—"

  He bowed and departed, brushing past Shouyou as he left the hall.

  Chapter 3

  Shouyou first saw the hard expression on Gekkei's face, and then the bewildered look on the face of visitor from the Kingdom of Kei, who was dressed in ministerial robes. He sensed the awkwardness in the air. But Gekkei's brisk exit afforded him no opportunity to call him back.

  "I am the Chousai of the Kingdom of Hou. I thank you for taking the trouble to travel such a great distance to visit us."

  He bowed, though he could tell that the attention of his opposite was still focused on the door Gekkei had just exited. The man's entourage as well buzzed with audible confusion.

  "What—what was that?"

  "I am truly sorry," Shouyou said with a nod of his head. "I fear I bear no small responsible for the mood of the Marquis at the moment."

  The man knelt and bowed. "I am pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Sei Shin, commander of the Kei Palace Guard.

  "And I am pleased to welcome you here. You must be very taken aback by what has transpired so far."

  "Not at all," Sei said with a smile. "I am sure the fault is my own. I must apologize to the Chousai as well. The fact of the matter is, Her Highness entrusted me with a letter that was to be delivered to the Marquis of Kei. Yet I gathered from the Marquis that the Chousai governs the Imperial Court. In that case, I suppose the letter should be delivered to you. Except that this correspondence touches upon a matter that concerns the Marquis personally. I am left in something of a quandary as to what to do next."

  Shouyou sighed and shook his head. "Please make yourself comfortable and get what rest you need. Your aides-de-camp as well."

  He called for the undersecretary and instructed him to provide quarters for the general's attendants and to see to it that they were taken care of. Then he led the general deeper into the annex, to a courtyard shadowed by a fresh growth of verdant green.

  "You've arrived at the best time of the year in Hou. Please, have a seat. I'll have some refreshments brought."

  "That would be fine."

  The general followed him into the courtyard. The stone table there was situated to catch a refreshing breeze.

  "It seems that I owe you an apology, General."

  "Not at all. The error appears to be ours."

  "It would be entirely logical of you to seek an audience with the Marquis. I'm sure you find this quite awkward. You having not so long ago installed a duly-appointed Empress in your Imperial Palace, and we—with the Marquis as our leader—having struck down our own king."

  "I've been informed of the Royal Hou's mercilessly tyrannical actions toward his subjects."

  Shouyou nodded. "I know it is an ugly truth to put forth, but during the reign of His Highness, six hundred thousand people were executed, often for the most trivial of sins."

  "Six hundred thousand—"

  It would be said in years hence that the land was covered with corpses. The arithmetic averaged out to at least one from every household in the kingdom.

  "His Highness loathed sin. There could be no forgiveness, no matter how slight the offense. Pick a man's pocket or leave the fields at harvest to attend the fair—the death penalty attended both equally. That's the kind of place Hou was."

  Sei did not challenge this information. He appeared to be well-informed on the subject.

  "At last, the Marquis of Kei called together the other Province Lords and mounted an insurrection. We murdered our King. The Marquis led the alliance. So it would be natural for you to assume that having deprived the King of his life and the throne, the Marquis would then occupy it. And we assumed the same."

  Four years before, the other eight Province Lords answered Gekkei's call, as had Shouyou and the ministers. Chuutatsu was treading a path to extinction. They must arise and revolt. Chuutatsu and Queen Kaka were assassinated. Hourin was killed. The curtain of Chuutatsu's reign was rung down.

  The disease was eliminated. But Chuutatsu had been the rightful ruler. When a king died, the kingdom soon followed him into the grave. Between Chuutatsu's ruinous reign and the fires of insurrection ignited by Shouyou and the rest of them, the Imperial Court was left in tatters. They had to somehow patch things together without worsening the era of the empty throne.

  That had been the goal of the conspirators from the beginning. They had killed the king, sending the kingdom further along its downward path. So it was their duty to set things aright.

  Nevertheless, once Gekkei, the leader of the revolution, had tied together the minimum number of loose en
ds, he passed the reins of government on to the Imperial bureaucracy (now half its original number), and retired to Kei Province.

  "The Marquis hadn't the slightest desire to inherit the Kingdom. His goal all along was to stop the slaughter, not to become the substitute king or rule the Kingdom."

  "And yet the news that reached our ears was that the Marquis of Kei was guiding the Imperial Court of Hou."

  "That was how things evolved. The Marquis believes that, in the abstract, it is an offense against nature that we traitors should rule at all. The real world, however, begs to differ. Without the guidance of the Marquis, everything would unravel. Because he is the leader of our alliance. Having accepted that role, without his direction, the Court would cease to function."

  Being abandoned by Gekkei amidst the chaos following the king's assassination had sent them reeling. They couldn't just come up with another leader. He had called up the ministers and Province Lords, and once the insurrection was accomplished, had organized their allies and directed what they should do. To lose such a critical element threw everything into confusion. Somebody had to step into the role, but nobody stepped forward to shoulder the responsibility.

  The opinions and expectations and complications multiplied. Nobody could get anything done at all. Shouyou finally penned a desperate petition calling for Gekkei's return, the one thing the Imperial Court could agree upon. In response to these frantic cries, Gekkei at last returned to the Imperial Palace. In the four years since then, the Kingdom of Hou had moved forward under his direction.

  "However, the Marquis has sought no position for himself within the government. He refuses our nominations. He says that the job of running the government belongs to the ministers, and he will only help out where he can. In fact, the Marquis is the Province Lord of Kei and normally resides at his palace there. Only at certain critical junctures, and when we request his presence, does he come to Youshun Palace. It works out to him spending about half his time here. And yet—"