SCP International

The running ink suddenly got interrupted. Unexpectedly, this appearance of a less than thirty-year-old man belonged to someone who had been over fifty. Spending almost twenty years living in the wild, only befriending with children, had caused his soul to pause on that very day. Could it be that the age of his body depended on his will?

"I cannot write any further, it seems. How unusual." - He placed his pen aside.

"The way of great learning once taught us to illustrate illustrious virtue, to renovate one's self, and to strive for the highest perfection. Only when the point of rest is known can we set our path, only when our path is set can we stay calm, only when we stay calm can we feel secure, only when we feel secure can we reflect our thought, only when our thoughts are solid can we achieve our goal." - A clear voice rang from the other side of the window. - "With thy knowledge, thou shouldst have known this?"

From the threshold stepped in a young woman of about thirty years old, her appearance might not be spectacular but her dignified aura was for sure bigger than all. A simple blue intersecting collar robe draped over her, her hair bundled up high with a hairpin, and though she was on her barefoot, based on the gold order of merit worn on her waist, she must be someone with status in the palace.

"Thou workest for the royal palace, a lady mandarin? What kind of message could an eunuch not be sent to deliver?"

"I, complying the order from the higher up, here to take thee a visit in the Hall of the Righteous Heart. Please come, Ngô Sinh…"

"Call me not by that name. Let us use title here, and refer to me as the Bureau's Assistant Envoy to the Eastern Circuit."

"That would be too wordy."

"Then Assistant Envoy Ngô would be all right. What is thy name?"

"I am from the Trần clan, and I go by the courtesy name of Phi Tuyết."

"A woman who gave herself a courtesy name, that is quite rare. But wherefore would the higher up call me to visit the Hall of the Righteous Heart?"

"Assistant Envoy often isolate thyself, works thou dost during the day, tea thou hast during the night, the higher up considered such as improper, later on when having to work with other people, thou wilt not fit in harmony. Therefore, thou wast invited to gather with other sorcerers for small talks."

"No need to be so troublesome. But if it is what the Chief Bureaucrat has directed to, then I shall comply to that order. Please lead the way, madame."

Along the town near Tả Vọng Lake, the noisy atmosphere could be felt from everyone of every corner. Merchants and craftsmen gathered there, and carriages and goods flooded all over the streets. Across Đại Việt at the time, aside from Phố Hiến, no such flourish city could be found elsewhere. It was hard to believe that this place was once a bloody battlefield between dynasties three years ago.

"Earlier this year, His Majesty announced to the imperial court that he would abdicate the throne in favour of the Crown Prince at the end of the year. What is thy opinion?" - The lady mandarin spoke.

"The Highness' desire cannot be debated."

"It was declared by his Highness himself, surely being curious about the reason should not be deemed as questioning his desire?"

"The remnants of the Lê clan are still everywhere, meanwhile, the region of Thanh Hóa governed by the Nguyễn clan has pledged no loyalty to the current court since the very beginning. Thus, the revival of the Lê Dynasty in Lam Kinh was inevitable. His Highness was the first commander of the previous dynasty after all, but now as a ruler, it is inconvenient for him to lead the combat. So I guessed that His Highness wants the Crown Prince to succeed the throne in order to guard the capital, while he, as Emperor Emeritus, can personally take charge of the army and crush the rebellion."

"How interesting, that thou hast such a profound understanding of political affairs."

"Just some surface level knowledge. Thou must be closer to the higher up, and know a lot more about state affairs."

"'Close' is quite a hard word to interpret…"

"A while back, when I was unable to continue with my memoir collection writing. Thou quotedst a part from the Great Learning to remind me of something. Would thee be so mind to elaborate it further?"

"A memoir is written based on the state of mind that its author has, such state of mind can only appear if there is a known point of rest to aim for. Back then, thou searchedst for freedom, fleeing from the imperial hunt. But now…"

The lady madarin of the Trần clan turned to face him, her eyes seemed so sharp, as if it could stab through the heart of Assistant Envoy Ngô. A rare sight from a woman of this era, even rarer in the eyes of the man before her.

"I think I can continue with my memoir collection now." - Assistant Envoy Ngô answered unconsciously.

"And thy point of rest be?" - Those eyes again.

"I meant, serving the Bureau and the Mạc court is what I am aiming for."

The lady mandarin suddenly bursted a smile, her eyes turned into ridicule, but it soon, very soon, faded away. No one could have noticed that.

"I have always been wondering, though not sure if I could venture to ask thee?"

"Thou art welcome to."

"The Ngô Sinh clan of the Bureau, since the very dawn, had always been loyal to the Lê clan. Wherefore did thee, the last descendant of such clan, choose to serve the Mạc imperial court?"

The Assistant Envoy's eyes suddenly inflamed with murderous light. Surrounding temperature began to rise, his anger condensed until its limit was reached, ready to be materialized at anytime. Blades of grass on the roadside began to spark blazes of fire. Every soul around looked as if they were standing in front of an about-to-erupt volcano.

Strangely however, the lady mandarin standing beside him, whose body was as slender as a willow branch, was scarily calm. A sudden cold wind blew by, bringing in all the icy snow of three winter months, and extinguish both the fire blazes and the murderous anger of "The Judge". It all happened in a split second, so quickly that he didn't even realize his anger was oddly disappearing.

"My clan's loyalty lies in the Bureau of Anomaly Surveillance. My personal loyalty lies in the people's will. Both of which now side with the Mạc clan, of course I would serve the imperial court. Regarding the Lê clan, all dynasties would end at some point. Uy Mục, Tương Dực, though bear the Lê surname, are not the same as Thái Tổ, Thánh Tông."

"Thou art absolutely correct."

The lady mandarin's eyes showed sight of satisfaction, it seemed that she had found who she needed.

"Our destination is here. Please go in first, Assistant Envoy Ngô."

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