Post by Cao Cao on Oct 29, 2009 15:45:01 GMT
The Eldar’s
Hsiang Yu had once been the regional Osoth of a small provincial city in You – Fulon had been its name – and it was a religious courtship that now no longer thrived in the northern provinces. He didn’t much care; the city was too small to have funded the Osoth’s teachings to begin with and he had found an even better spot to preach his experiences of life to.
The spot was in the city of Xu Chang, a capital city that had undergone a revolution over the years he had stayed there. Cao Cao, the regional landowner and governor had agreed to the man’s wishes when he was provided with a bag of gold, a tribute left from the men who had once lived in Fulon. Now, the city was in ruin, no one knew why – but he assumed it was something to do with denying Yuan Shao’s edict when he was in power. After then, the city starved itself to an early grave and those still willing to exist migrated to the richer provinces to the west and south.
Some had followed his own path and started setting up small tributes to the Osoth faith, whilst others denounced its logic and moved on to the more traditional faiths adapted by the Chinese populace. Either way suited him, he was happy in Xu Chang, especially now that he had acquired his produce.
The produce was a series of historical scrolls, retrieved from a tomb in northern You and then brought back before Cao Cao in accordance to the law in his region. ‘Anything of potential value should be reviewed by the lord of the land’ that was the law, a law that although he hated – he followed by the book. He knew that he could have sold his produce on the black markets, made a small fortune and ran off to another city to repeat his scams, but he had ideas, ideas that required the favour of Cao Cao.
“It’s beautiful isn’t it?” He whispered to the man beside him, who –after a brief examination dismissed the scrolls.
“They’re old, but they’re not valuable.”
Hsiang smiled at the response. “So Cao Cao will not need to see them then?”
“No, they’re yours.”
The man Hsiang spoke to, who was actually in fact a treasure official working for Wei looked over the scrolls again and then flicked his hand in the common expression that meant ‘move along’. Hsiang happily obliged.
He had expected at least another man to review the product, but now he had been given the green slip and was released into the richer part of the markets, where nobles and collectables often purchased the most ridiculous of items for an even more ridiculous price. It was heaven for men like Hsiang, who sold products, preached and then annoyed people. It was his ‘simple way of living’, a living he’d become quite accustomed to.
“Greetings.” He spoke out to a nearby merchant, who nodded in response. Hsiang showed the man his goods and then stood in awe, “This is a very rare relic, how much would you pay for it?”
“I don’t know.” The merchant replied, “A few thousand perhaps.”
“Good, then it’s sold.”
The merchant gazed up at the man, who was still smiling, “It’ll take time to make sure it’s authentic.”
“Oh, there is no need for that.” Hsiang moved closer as he spoke, as if to whisper, when he suddenly grabbed the man’s collar towards him, “This is a very important document containing our history; it is also invaluable to a collectable like Cao Cao. Imagine how much he would pay you for this great item.”
“But,” The man struggled and then the grip around his collar was released, “I know nothing of this document, I need to examine it.”
Hsiang moved in again, this time he grabbed the man’s ear and slammed it down onto the open wooden desk, “Listen, carefully – that document cannot be opened so many times, I found it behind the rotting corpse of a famous general. It is a historical diary of some sort, the print on the top of the scroll proves it.”
He pointed quickly to the scroll, released the man and then held onto the wooden slab. “See,”
“Yes.” The merchant held a hand to his face that was now red with the coming bruise, “I’ll take it. Just don’t touch me again.”
“Oh, I won’t.” Hsiang beamed his response, fixed his robe and then shook his sleeves down, “It was nice doing business with you.”
He took the bag of coins, counted half of them and then calculated the rest quickly by multiplying, “Now send Cao Cao here. He will love what you have for sale.”
The man nodded and Hsiang turned on his heel and walked casually away. The first part of his plan had been a success, oh goody.
Cao Cao had spent most of his evening in the palace, writing documents and signing legislations for the new taxes that he had brought in for the next financial year. It was hard work and he had spent so little time in browsing the cities markets that he had almost forgotten the message that had been left on his desk. A passing gift as it was called from a fellow merchant.
He had thought about opening it earlier, but then Wei Xiadi had pressed him for the new edicts that read the rights of his new laws. It was a simple procedure, every law needed an edict to confirm its existence, then every member of his council had to develop ways to make that law a reality. It was not the hardest thing to do, he had remembered doing similar tasks beforehand, when he was but a marquis of a city or state, granted – they were never this big or this important. But still, he could remember the time when he had in fact done them.
“My Lord.” Wei Xiadi always had a way of speaking, a set pitch or tone that always made him shine when he approached, he didn’t mind; it was soothing at times, listening to the young man’s tales and theories.
“Yes.”
“The council is on a break. We’ve got three of the four edicts completed. They suggested that you take a break also.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” He smiled weakly at Wei, who bowed low at the hip and then turned around to leave. Cao Cao decided to stay and open the letter he had been given.
“Dear Cao Cao.
I recently came in possession of an old historical diary. The text has not been opened but the stamp is legitamte meaning it is dating back at least two to three hundred years. I was sold this amazing product from a passing hermit, who felt it was priceless. As an offering to your excellence, I am prepared to give you this for only a small fee, in which a profit may be sustained to help further increase the cities already expanding economy.
Regards
Wo Long”
“So, this is the product.”
“Yes my lord, is it not divine.” The merchant smiled happily as he passed the scroll over to Cao Cao, who, after having spent some time studying the mark, nodded his head in agreement.
“Indeed it is a fine piece.” He muttered, and passed a bag of gold to the merchant. “I will read this on my return home.”
He smiled, bowed and then left.
“So what is it exactly?” Asked Cao Cao’s advisor.
“A diary of some old origin.”
“Actually it’s a piece of paper, my lord.”
The voice passed from an oldish man wearing a black and yellow robe. He stood just beyond the gates leading into the central plaza, holding an authentic scroll clutched between two bony fingers.
“And who are you?” Asked Cao Cao.
“I am Hsiang Yu and that scroll is a fake.”
Cao Cao studied the scroll, looked at the man and then frowned, “You better speak in jest if you treasure your head.”
“I have come prepared.” Hsiang replied, smiling. “I collect artefacts from Hei Bei, may I be so kind as to examine your scroll.”
Cao nodded, passed the scroll and then gazed back at the guards who had decided to accompany him on his journey. They stood like metallic pillars, unwavering in the disputes of their immediate surroundings.
“yes,” he tore the seal off the scroll and then unwrapped the blocked paper, “It’s blank as I thought, you see.”
He stepped closer to Cao Cao, who had at this point lost interest in anger and had looked down in amusement, “The seal is only half complete, the original seal would look like this.” He produced the small he was holding and gave it to Cao Cao, who compared the two and then nodded, “As you can see there is another line just there which is important, as it represents the third commandment of that rulers reign.”
He screwed the piece of paper up and then gave it to a passing merchant who would later dispose of it properly, “You may have the scroll I gave you, it is authentic, that I guarantee my life on.”
Cao Cao opened the scroll and saw that it was dating back from four hundred years, he smiled happily, laughed and then turned to Hsiang, “Would you like a position beneath me Hsiang Yu, as historian, politician and treasurer of all of my old scrolls and documents.”
Hsiang bowed low, smiled and then nodded, “It would be an honour my lord. But I fear the markets need to know not to sell the liege lord a false document.”
“So what do you suggest we do?”
Hsiang paused for a second, “Kill the man and impose taxation on all sales so that 25% of it is to be given to the kingdom for its funding. All scrolls must be seen by a man of my choosing to make sure it is legitimate.”
Cao Cao nodded, “A grand idea, men.” He turned to his guards, “Kill the merchant and take his funds, it will be spent on Hsiang’s new ideas.”
The men nodded, turned and walked away, “Come to the palace when you’re done. I have some reading to do.”
“As you wish my lord.”
Hsiang Yu had once been the regional Osoth of a small provincial city in You – Fulon had been its name – and it was a religious courtship that now no longer thrived in the northern provinces. He didn’t much care; the city was too small to have funded the Osoth’s teachings to begin with and he had found an even better spot to preach his experiences of life to.
The spot was in the city of Xu Chang, a capital city that had undergone a revolution over the years he had stayed there. Cao Cao, the regional landowner and governor had agreed to the man’s wishes when he was provided with a bag of gold, a tribute left from the men who had once lived in Fulon. Now, the city was in ruin, no one knew why – but he assumed it was something to do with denying Yuan Shao’s edict when he was in power. After then, the city starved itself to an early grave and those still willing to exist migrated to the richer provinces to the west and south.
Some had followed his own path and started setting up small tributes to the Osoth faith, whilst others denounced its logic and moved on to the more traditional faiths adapted by the Chinese populace. Either way suited him, he was happy in Xu Chang, especially now that he had acquired his produce.
The produce was a series of historical scrolls, retrieved from a tomb in northern You and then brought back before Cao Cao in accordance to the law in his region. ‘Anything of potential value should be reviewed by the lord of the land’ that was the law, a law that although he hated – he followed by the book. He knew that he could have sold his produce on the black markets, made a small fortune and ran off to another city to repeat his scams, but he had ideas, ideas that required the favour of Cao Cao.
“It’s beautiful isn’t it?” He whispered to the man beside him, who –after a brief examination dismissed the scrolls.
“They’re old, but they’re not valuable.”
Hsiang smiled at the response. “So Cao Cao will not need to see them then?”
“No, they’re yours.”
The man Hsiang spoke to, who was actually in fact a treasure official working for Wei looked over the scrolls again and then flicked his hand in the common expression that meant ‘move along’. Hsiang happily obliged.
He had expected at least another man to review the product, but now he had been given the green slip and was released into the richer part of the markets, where nobles and collectables often purchased the most ridiculous of items for an even more ridiculous price. It was heaven for men like Hsiang, who sold products, preached and then annoyed people. It was his ‘simple way of living’, a living he’d become quite accustomed to.
“Greetings.” He spoke out to a nearby merchant, who nodded in response. Hsiang showed the man his goods and then stood in awe, “This is a very rare relic, how much would you pay for it?”
“I don’t know.” The merchant replied, “A few thousand perhaps.”
“Good, then it’s sold.”
The merchant gazed up at the man, who was still smiling, “It’ll take time to make sure it’s authentic.”
“Oh, there is no need for that.” Hsiang moved closer as he spoke, as if to whisper, when he suddenly grabbed the man’s collar towards him, “This is a very important document containing our history; it is also invaluable to a collectable like Cao Cao. Imagine how much he would pay you for this great item.”
“But,” The man struggled and then the grip around his collar was released, “I know nothing of this document, I need to examine it.”
Hsiang moved in again, this time he grabbed the man’s ear and slammed it down onto the open wooden desk, “Listen, carefully – that document cannot be opened so many times, I found it behind the rotting corpse of a famous general. It is a historical diary of some sort, the print on the top of the scroll proves it.”
He pointed quickly to the scroll, released the man and then held onto the wooden slab. “See,”
“Yes.” The merchant held a hand to his face that was now red with the coming bruise, “I’ll take it. Just don’t touch me again.”
“Oh, I won’t.” Hsiang beamed his response, fixed his robe and then shook his sleeves down, “It was nice doing business with you.”
He took the bag of coins, counted half of them and then calculated the rest quickly by multiplying, “Now send Cao Cao here. He will love what you have for sale.”
The man nodded and Hsiang turned on his heel and walked casually away. The first part of his plan had been a success, oh goody.
Cao Cao had spent most of his evening in the palace, writing documents and signing legislations for the new taxes that he had brought in for the next financial year. It was hard work and he had spent so little time in browsing the cities markets that he had almost forgotten the message that had been left on his desk. A passing gift as it was called from a fellow merchant.
He had thought about opening it earlier, but then Wei Xiadi had pressed him for the new edicts that read the rights of his new laws. It was a simple procedure, every law needed an edict to confirm its existence, then every member of his council had to develop ways to make that law a reality. It was not the hardest thing to do, he had remembered doing similar tasks beforehand, when he was but a marquis of a city or state, granted – they were never this big or this important. But still, he could remember the time when he had in fact done them.
“My Lord.” Wei Xiadi always had a way of speaking, a set pitch or tone that always made him shine when he approached, he didn’t mind; it was soothing at times, listening to the young man’s tales and theories.
“Yes.”
“The council is on a break. We’ve got three of the four edicts completed. They suggested that you take a break also.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” He smiled weakly at Wei, who bowed low at the hip and then turned around to leave. Cao Cao decided to stay and open the letter he had been given.
“Dear Cao Cao.
I recently came in possession of an old historical diary. The text has not been opened but the stamp is legitamte meaning it is dating back at least two to three hundred years. I was sold this amazing product from a passing hermit, who felt it was priceless. As an offering to your excellence, I am prepared to give you this for only a small fee, in which a profit may be sustained to help further increase the cities already expanding economy.
Regards
Wo Long”
“So, this is the product.”
“Yes my lord, is it not divine.” The merchant smiled happily as he passed the scroll over to Cao Cao, who, after having spent some time studying the mark, nodded his head in agreement.
“Indeed it is a fine piece.” He muttered, and passed a bag of gold to the merchant. “I will read this on my return home.”
He smiled, bowed and then left.
“So what is it exactly?” Asked Cao Cao’s advisor.
“A diary of some old origin.”
“Actually it’s a piece of paper, my lord.”
The voice passed from an oldish man wearing a black and yellow robe. He stood just beyond the gates leading into the central plaza, holding an authentic scroll clutched between two bony fingers.
“And who are you?” Asked Cao Cao.
“I am Hsiang Yu and that scroll is a fake.”
Cao Cao studied the scroll, looked at the man and then frowned, “You better speak in jest if you treasure your head.”
“I have come prepared.” Hsiang replied, smiling. “I collect artefacts from Hei Bei, may I be so kind as to examine your scroll.”
Cao nodded, passed the scroll and then gazed back at the guards who had decided to accompany him on his journey. They stood like metallic pillars, unwavering in the disputes of their immediate surroundings.
“yes,” he tore the seal off the scroll and then unwrapped the blocked paper, “It’s blank as I thought, you see.”
He stepped closer to Cao Cao, who had at this point lost interest in anger and had looked down in amusement, “The seal is only half complete, the original seal would look like this.” He produced the small he was holding and gave it to Cao Cao, who compared the two and then nodded, “As you can see there is another line just there which is important, as it represents the third commandment of that rulers reign.”
He screwed the piece of paper up and then gave it to a passing merchant who would later dispose of it properly, “You may have the scroll I gave you, it is authentic, that I guarantee my life on.”
Cao Cao opened the scroll and saw that it was dating back from four hundred years, he smiled happily, laughed and then turned to Hsiang, “Would you like a position beneath me Hsiang Yu, as historian, politician and treasurer of all of my old scrolls and documents.”
Hsiang bowed low, smiled and then nodded, “It would be an honour my lord. But I fear the markets need to know not to sell the liege lord a false document.”
“So what do you suggest we do?”
Hsiang paused for a second, “Kill the man and impose taxation on all sales so that 25% of it is to be given to the kingdom for its funding. All scrolls must be seen by a man of my choosing to make sure it is legitimate.”
Cao Cao nodded, “A grand idea, men.” He turned to his guards, “Kill the merchant and take his funds, it will be spent on Hsiang’s new ideas.”
The men nodded, turned and walked away, “Come to the palace when you’re done. I have some reading to do.”
“As you wish my lord.”
