Serving in the army, I am often moved to tears by news of comrades in the capital and across the realm strivin…
Serving in the army, I am often moved to tears by news of comrades in the capital and across the realm striving for the cause.
Li Yin of Dingzhou, my childhood friend, is gentle by nature. Since assuming command, he has labored day and night, penning more than three hundred dispatches to the front, coordinating provisions and relaying intelligence to ensure that the border troops never suffer a shortage of grain.
Fang Qianshan and I studied under the same teacher. Though his views have long differed from mine, since the war began, he has set aside our disagreements, standing firm against opposition at court so that the soldiers under my command might at least have their fill.
Beyond the court, scholars such as Han Jiangzi, Mu Qi, and Feng Yunchang wield their brushes to awaken the world, undaunted by power; within it, officials like Sang Weihan speak with blade-like candor.
For the written word, and the principles it bears, is the backbone of a nation. It is through the steadfast efforts of such men, within and without the court, that the people of the realm may find, if only for a single night, a measure of peace.