... (Spoken) Who would have thought it? Zhuangzong has sent eunuchs into Shu to kill Guo Chongtao! The news is…
...
(Spoken)
Who would have thought it? Zhuangzong has sent eunuchs into Shu to kill Guo Chongtao! The news is out.
(Sung, 'Crying to Heaven')
Grief and outrage pierce the stars above.
In mourning white, the armies weep the loyal dead.
Good generals lose heart and cast their armor down.
Base flatterers crow with joy at their ascent.
(Spoken)
Honored audience, mark well this tale of rise and ruin:
(Recited)
It was not enemy blades that brought down golden walls,
but slander and corruption gnawing at the pillars.
It was not the realm that failed its sovereign,
but the sovereign who failed the loyal and the true.
...