25th Day of the Ninth Month, Third Year of Kaiyun. Cloudy. Today I went to court and had an audience with the …
25th Day of the Ninth Month, Third Year of Kaiyun. Cloudy.
Today I went to court and had an audience with the emperor, where I presented my plan for driving back the enemy. As expected, it was not accepted. Worse still, General Guo was rebuked because of me. How bitter. How shameful.
At present, the only course left is to head north and visit Du Chongwei, in hopes of securing his support and using it as an alternative strategy to drive back the enemy. Yet I know well what sort of man Zhongwei is. I fear this journey will come to nothing, and am deeply troubled by it.
Before setting out, I was fortunate enough to be seen off by General Chai Rong. His words brought me sudden clarity, and I record them here to remind myself for the rest of my life.
General Chai said, "In former days, Emperor Taizong acted with ruthless resolve at Xuanwu Gate, and only then came the Reign of Zhenguan and a century of flourishing rule. A true man sets his sights high and sees a thousand li at a glance. Why should he waste words on creatures as short-lived as morning mushrooms and summer cicadas?"
What stirring words. What stirring words. Off I go.