Solomon's Private File #184
These stories about Stephen and Solomon take place starting in
1950's. Stephen wrote about his life in letters to a penpal, and then
in a secure blog, in case he lost his memory again, in the master
computer in his school for gifted students, which he started attending
in 2016 in a new incarnation, until his death. Now his son Solomon is
attending the same school, and is writing in his own secure blog for
his future incarnations.
All characters are fictitious, even if some of them might have names
that belong to some actual people, or act like people we know.
Solomon is 22 in this story, in the Winter of 2048-2049.
Solomon's Private File #184 "CNN Chi and the Art of War"
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The Story of Chi and the Art of War
A long time ago, men ruled the land. Women had no power but what they
could influence their men to give them. It is well known that to deny
one something, can cause one to seek it all the more. Some did. Her
name was Chi. She was a daughter of a minor royal relative of the king.
This was in a very big land, divided by many kingdoms, always at war
with each other. Thus, the arts of war were highly developed, and
knowledge and skill in them were highly prized. By men. For men, only.
This, Chi did NOT like. She intended to change that. Chi was very
smart. All children of royalty needed to be smart to survive the
murderous intrigue of the royal court. Sadly, most were not. Chi saw
that. At the age of ten, when boys were to start the serious study of
arms, she decided to do that, too. She asked her personal servant to
bring to her some boy's clothes. She donned them, and appeared in the
class as if she belonged there, and her presence was not questioned. It
was soon discovered that the teachers had never before had such a
dedicated and intelligent student. This was due in part to the planning
Chi had done for this venture. She had learned how to read and write
with all the other children, but had not stopped there. She had her
servant sneak out from the libraries, all the books there on war and
the arts thereof, and of philosophy and the arts of construction. She
found her great memory very useful in learning, and soon knew all that
she could, that was available. She continued this while learning the
physical aspects of the arts of war.
Chi learned the use of the body to strike an opponent, and how to
defend against it, and the use of weapons and armor, and of riding
horses. Soon, she was teaching others, and inventing better and more
effective ways. At the age of fourteen, she was having difficulty
concealing her true gender in class. A boy, an older half brother,
followed her one day, and she was unaware of it until he discovered her
ruse. His surprise at that, broke his necessary silence, which Chi
caused to be the last sound he ever made. Chi knew she would have been
severely punished for what she had done, in masquerading as a boy, and
knew her only hope of avoiding that was to stop her spy from revealing
what he had discovered. But that was not why she killed him. It was an
unthinking act, a reflex. Did she feel bad about what she had done? Not
at all. It was what should be done, and there was no other thought
about it. She wrapped him in a rug, and after donning servant's clothes
from her secret hoard of disguises, she carried him to where he would
be found later, and returned with the rug, and calmly returned to her
usual activities. The boy was discovered a few hours later, having
fallen down some stairs, sustaining a broken neck. The other children
in the royal household shed not a tear for him, for he was severely
disliked. That wasn't unusual, because most were as he was in that.
Chi became more careful, as she became more of a woman. She became
known as the young man Sun, a supremely knowledgeable and skilled
warrior and teacher, and was often sought after for advice in those
areas, but could not always be found, being a private person. At the
same time, she became known in the royal court as Chi, the gentle wise
philosopher, and was sought after for her advice of that nature, which
was found to be very useful to all, when she was not at her private
meditations. One day, she was called to appear before the king, her
cousin. He said, "I have heard good things about you, for your wisdom,
and that you share it gracefully. I would ask your opinion on a thing
I've been thinking about for years. Our great land is divided by many
waring kingdoms. My dream is to unite them into one nation, so there
will be peace." Chi said, "May I speak with painful honesty?"
Surprised, the king said, "In private with me, always." She bowed her
head, and said, "Peace is not our nature. There will always be young
men who need to prove their bravery to themselves and their peers, and
old men to use them to become rich in possessions and power. And women
to push them to do it." He stared at her in awe, and said, "Truly, you
are wise! So my desire will not happen?" She said, "Your desire is not
a bad thing. What is one more war among many? The good of it is in the
noble purpose. Something above the bad in us, to fight for. I feel your
goal can happen, but with much work. My help may be very little, but
you have it for this, willingly." The king looked at her in surprise.
But she was deceitful. She had no care for nobility of purpose. What
she wanted was the opportunity to use and test her skills in war, which
there was some unusual lack of at that time and place. She said, "How
you will manage your generals is a problem. When you are not there to
supervise them, can they be trusted? They are very jealous of each
other." He said, "With a war so great that it will take place in many
areas, that IS a problem." She said, "And it will take many years. Old
men may not survive it. I know of a possibility. May I share it with
you?" He said, "Please." She said, "There is a young man, Sun, who has
excelled in all the arts of war. He may become the best in our history.
He could be your agent, to travel between places of battle to witness,
offer advice, and report to you." The king said with some excitement,
"I have heard of him! The reports are as you have said, but I had not
believed them. I will ask that he be brought here." Chi said, "May I be
excused? Men of war frighten me. How I will be for him to witness, will
not show your court well to him." He said with unusual gentleness, "I
understand. You may leave with my great blessing." And that she did.
In time, Sun was brought before the king, with the leader of the
school of war, and other teachers from there. Sun was polite, but the
king saw in him something extraordinary. He moved like a caged tiger,
smoothly and powerfully, but under careful control. The king was very
impressed. He asked the leader of the war school, "Tell me about this
man, your student Sun." The leader said, "We have nothing more to teach
him, rather that he is now teaching us." The astounded king said, "Show
me how this can be so." They were prepared for that, and arranged for
the teachers to fight Sun with and without different weapons. He
defeated them easily, but what impressed the king the most, was the
grace with which he did it, and that he never changed his serene
expression or appeared fatigued. Then the King asked Sun questions
designed to draw out his opinions on difficult situations that can
happen in war, and was very impressed by his answers. All were
dismissed.
The king thought for a long time. Months. During that time, he
conferred with many of his advisors, but in a way that they could not
know his intentions. One day, the king summoned his official advisors,
the generals of his armies, his senior inspectors, and Sun, who's youth
looked very out of place among that gathering of old men. That they
felt he did not belong there, added to that. The King was amused. So
was Sun, and they knew that of each other, and shared even more
amusement, but secretly. Then the king expressed his desire for a
united land, and asked them how it might be achieved. They all gave
their opinions, except for Sun. Then the king asked Sun for his
thoughts, and he gave them. All in the room saw his brilliance then, in
astonishment. It can be truthfully said that Sun was a brilliant
person, but he had an advantage the others had not known of. As Chi, he
had long known of the king's desire, and had much time to create and
prepare his presentation. All were VERY impressed with Sun, who was
then introduced by the king. They had heard of him, and were even more
impressed, except for one relatively young general, who could not hide
his disbelief and contempt.
The king said, "Sun is to be my eyes and ears in this war, and my
voice to you in the field when it is needed. You would be wise to
follow his advice, and not just because I command it." The disbelieving
general became very angry, and was unable to hide it completely. The
king stared at him, causing the others to draw away from him, but Sun
did not move. The king said, "I will have you all know that I have not
before discussed any of this with Sun. He did not ask for this
position, and I am not asking for him to do it now. I am ordering it.
General Yat! State your objections!" The general said, "Majesty, I must
protest! This child is not competent to even hold my shield." The king
said, "You have not heard of him?" Yat said, "I have, but have not
believed what was said." The king said, "It was the same with me, until
I learned more. If I say it is true, will you believe?" Yat could not
answer. The king said, "You are widely known as one of the best
fighters in the land. You will use your sword, and Sun will have no
weapon, and you will fight. This will prove to all here, what is
correct and what is not. Make room, and be ready to begin on my
signal."
They did fight, Yat and Sun. Rather, Yat fought furiously, and Sun
avoided all attacks, effortlessly. The sword never touched him. After
that became obvious, the king called out, "To the death!" And then Yat
was on the floor, still in death, his head smashed open. Sun was beside
him, calm as ever. He bowed to the king. All looked in awe at Sun. They
did not understand what he had done, it had happened so fast. Generals
who had never known fear, learned of it that day.
Preparations were made for war. Sun was given a jade plaque, making
him an emissary of the King. Away from the court, he had the full power
of the king, but only senior officials knew of it. Chi asked to see the
king. She said, "There is going to be war. I am greatly afraid. Is
there a place I may go to, that I can be free of this?" The King said
gently, "There is. To the West, we have a palace that will be far away
from all the war. We will send you there. But what of a husband?" She
said, "If I were to marry a prince or king, you would not be able to go
to war with that kingdom. If I would marry beneath that station, you
would be dishonored. Therefore it is best that I do not marry." He
said, "Well reasoned. Is this your wish?" She said, "It is." She was
escorted to that distant palace.
On her journey, after only a few days, they were set upon by bandits,
and all were killed but Chi. This was because she had paid them to do
that, so that she may be free to resume being Sun, which she did, after
murdering all the bandits she had employed. Did she feel bad about
betraying her own people, and those she had hired, to death? Not in the
least. It was what should be done.
Thus began the great war of conquest. There were rivers of blood, and
in some places, with thousands dead, that was not an exaggeration. And
the smell, that is best left undescribed. Sun provided valuable
assistance to the generals. Most were grateful for it. Those who
disobeyed him, he murdered. In the king's court, some advisors began to
complain about the troubles the war caused. He murdered them. The king
began to suspect what Sun was doing, but had to approve of it as being
necessary. He was fully committed to his vision of a united land,
because he knew there was no going back. If he did not succeed, his
kingdom would not survive the reprisals. Many times there were people,
some powerful, who were jealous of Sun, who tried to have him murdered.
None of those plots succeeded in their goal, but did succeed in causing
those plotters' deaths. You know it now. Sun murdered them. It was what
should be done. There were some who plotted against the king. Sun
murdered those, too. It was never discovered that Sun committed all
those murders, but that didn't change the reality of it. It was what
should be done.
After many years, and much hardship and death, the great war was
successful. All the land was united under one king, and he ruled it,
and built many wonders, with Sun still his emissary of death. Yes, that
was what he became, for those who would oppose the king. He ruled
harshly, because it was necessary for so big a land, where orders could
take a month to reach their destinations, and to enable his great
constructions. Success is its own reward, and there was much of that,
in the eyes of the king, but not so much in most of the land. The king
became old before his time. He knew he was going to die. He had
constructed a truly massive tomb. It was unfinished when he died.
Before that came about, he had said to Chi, returned from her supposed
exile, "Will my heir be my equal?" She said, "Must I say?" He said,
"No, you do not. I know." He threw a bowl at her, and Chi caught it
balanced on the tip of one finger. He exclaimed, "I knew it! But I
didn't believe I knew." They exchanged smiles of love, and days later,
the First Emperor of China died, knowing his wisest advisor, and his
greatest warrior, were one and the same person, who had done all she
had done, for her love for him.
But it was not true. Chi was incapable of love. She did what she did,
created one of the most destructive wars in all history, purely for her
own pleasure. So she could employ the arts of war she had learned. To
have power over the mighty, to have her idea of fun. She had no thought
of all the misery she had caused. No care at all for her victims. It
was what should be done. Nothing more. Nothing less. When word was
passed that the Emperor had died, Chi knew her final act was at hand.
She saw no more opportunity to practice her skill, and did not care
that history would not know of her. She took poison, and died, well
satisfied with her life. Why did she do that?
It was what should be done.
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Don and Hawk were crying by the time I was done. We went to break. We
hugged. I said, "I could show images of some of the things that
happened, if you want." The producer said in the air, "I want it, but
management is saying that would be too much now, and we should end this
in 2 when we come back." I said, "Wise." Back from break, Don said,
"We're out of time. Thank you Solomon and Hawk, for spending your time
with us, this extraordinary time." Hawk said, "My pleasure." I said, "I
am here to serve." Then we were off air.
All the staff came into the studio. The producer said, "NOT what I
expected!" I said, "Don asked for it, and I delivered." He said, "But
it was how you delivered it that packed a punch. Your voice, your
choice of words, your delivery! Master story telling." Don said, "The
theme, 'It was what should be done', had a great impact, building
subtly to the end." Hawk said, "And that we didn't know it was China he
was talking about until the end." I said, "Intentionally." Don said,
"I don't know, but something like that. Fitting, maybe. Obvious now,
she would do that." I said, "She couldn't live as just a woman and
court wallflower, after all she had been and done. Going out on top was
her style. Not one to avoid what should be done, she did it." Don said,
"What a life!" I said, "Unusual for her time and place, but there were
many unknown changers of history." He said, "Were you some of them?" I
said, "You know I was. The sneezer was one." He grinned and said,
"True!" We hugged, and Hawk and I ported home.
Mom said, "Very well done!" Galagos said, "Amazing! Her life, and
more, the way you told it." I said to him, "Been a professional story
teller in some past lives. Got practice. Then, I would have told it a
little differently, with cliffhangers for passing the money bowl
around. Yes, that's how we earned a living. People demanding to hear
the rest. A lost art, with TV episodes trying to do it now to keep
viewers past commercials." Galya said, "I don't care. I'll watch you
any day." We laughed, and I hugged and kissed her.
I sent part of me to the office of the President of China. After
greetings, "You may be hearing now of a show I did on CNN. Here it is
in Chinese, dubbed, and a copy with subtitles. Any edits will cause
future difficulties, which I tell all who I give these things to." He
smiled and said, "Warning taken. I was informed of the story. I'll pass
these on." I said, "Here is a crystal for review." He read it and said,
"Wow!" I said, "Er, thank you." More grins. I said, "Publishing is
voluntary. I thought that if you wanted to, it would be best if they
had my language enhancements." He said, "Thank you for thinking of us."
We hugged with love. I also gave copies elsewhere with Arabic and Farsi
translations.
The next day, I received a call from the Chinese antiquities people.
In that conference call, one said, "You know of the tomb?" I said, "I
do. Don't mess with it. Contaminated with mercury. Very dangerous." One
said, "But you could remove that." I said, "Other issues. Open spaces
will collapse at the slightest digging near them, causing more damage,
and the mercury is actually preventing some of that. And disturbing the
dead isn't something my heritage agrees with. For you to be anywhere
near successful in working that site, I would have to be very involved
in it. I don't have much desire to. Better to save it for the future.
It's not as if it's going anywhere soon. I have a feeling at least one
of you smiled at that." Chuckles.
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