Results 1 to 9 of 9

Thread: The Foundation

  1. #1
    Senior Member Mandred Skavenslayer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Posts
    1,177

    Default The Foundation

    Li Shiman allowed his son and his concubine help him out of his armour, before slumping down onto his cushioned chair. He was tired but it was a good kind of tired, as it reminded him where he was. Decades of palace comfort had made him soft. Now back on the battlefield, the years had slipped away and he felt young again. His concubine Wu Zhao, offered him a bowl of cold tea, which he accepted gratefully and drank in a single draught. The young girl refilled the bowl and Li Shiman gave her a doting smile.

    Barely into her teens, the girl was the very picture of loveliness and while still far from the full bloom of her beauty, was still one of the most striking of Li Shiman's hundreds of concubines. However it was more than her physical attractiveness that made her his favourite. Fiercely intelligent, charmingly witty and fearlessly bold, in her the ageing Emperor had found a kindred spirit. Looking at her, he was reminded of his younger days and he doted on her like a proud father. He was only thankful that she was not born a man, otherwise he would have had to kill her in order to secure his dynasty.

    His son offered him a silk towel and as Li Shiman took it, his smile taking on a sad tinge. Prince Li Zhi was a good boy, kind of heart and possessing a winning smile. He was the same age as Wu Zhao and the two of them were firm friends. Yet while the girl was smart, the prince was slow-witted. Where she was brave he was timid. Once again the Emperor made a silent prayer of thanks that his concubine was not a man, for there was no way that Li Zhi would have been able to keep the throne with such formidable rival in the world. Wiping his brow the Emperor dismissed his attendance, then asked his son and concubine to also leave:

    “Does your Majesty require anything?” asked Wu Zhao

    “Just a bit of solitude.” replied the Emperor, his doting smile returning to his lips.

    The two of then left and the Emperor was alone in his large command tent. Reaching down he picked up the long straight sword propped up against his chair and unsheathed it. He ran his fingers along the steel blade then patted his growing stomach, which was another reminder of his advancing years. Rising to his feet the Emperor strode to the centre of the tent and started practising with his sword. The Emperor's style was strong, direct and very efficient, befitting a man who had learned how to fight on the battlefield. Then without knowing why he slipped into a sword routine that he had not practised in decades.

    Hao Tian Men's (Heaven Commanding Gate) sword art was highly polished and sophisticated. Although he had only learnt the very basics of the art, Li Shiman was still amazed by its brilliance. Yet practising the art brought unpleasant memories to the surface and he soon stopped. He brought the sword to eye level and admired the blade's exquisite workmanship. A figure appeared on the steel and the Emperor spun around, sword raised just in time to stop a blade that would have otherwise decapitated him. Electricity ran along his arm as he felt the impact of the blow and the Emperor stumbled back.

    The assassin held a slightly curved blade of Koguryo (Korean) design and was dressed as a common soldier of the Emperor's army, but there was nothing common about how he fought. The sword flicked out viper fast each blow striking with the weight forge hammers. The accuracy of each strike was flawless and Li Shiman back away furiously as he evaded the deadly steel, barely parrying the barrage of blows. A part of him wanted to scream for his guards but his pride would not allow it. He was Tang Taizong (the Great Tang Emperor) and he refused to be humbled by any man. Driven to a berserker rage the Emperor struck back with all of his fury, hoping to overwhelm the assassin. His anger though was to prove his undoing, as the sword was knocked from his hand and the assassin struck his chest with a heavy palm.

    Li Shiman felt his rips crack and was sent hurling backwards to land awkwardly on the floor. The air was knocked out of his body, leaving the Emperor without the breath needed to call for the aid he so desperately needed. The assassin's blade came down and Li Shiman stared defiantly into the man's eyes, refusing to shrink from death. The assassin's blade descended in a murderous arc but was stopped by Li Shiman's own sword, which suddenly appeared in front of him. The Emperor barely had time to comprehend what was happening before his rescuer sent a lightning riposte at the assassin, forcing him to leap back.

    Li Shiman's saviour pursued the assassin into the centre of the tent, giving the Emperor a chance to study him. Like the assassin the man was dressed as a common soldier. Neither his height or build were out of the ordinary, and as he had his back to Li Shiman, the Emperor could not make out his features. His skills however were most definitely extraordinary. Swift as the wind, he rained down blows with the strength of thunderbolts, forcing the assassin back with every strike. Incredibly the Emperor realised that his rescuer was using Hao Tian Men sword art, but with a level of skill that was a hundred times greater than what Li Shiman could manage.

    As the duel continued the assassin got more and more desperate as he faced an obviously superior opponent. With no other choice the assassin decided to throw everything into one move. Summoning all of his Qi he ducked under his opponents sword, then turned himself into a human whirlwind, spinning towards the man at fantastic speed, his curved sword whirling around him in a blur. The assassin covered the small space between him and his opponent in the blink of an eye, but it was not fast enough. The man leapt over the assassin's head, then twisting in mid air, he stabbed down, the tip of his sword piercing the assassin's throat.

    The strike was so swift that it took the assassin a while realise that he was dead and he continued spinning until his brain became aware that it was no longer linked to his body. The assassin slumped to the ground in a dead heap. Li Shiman tried to rise but was suddenly struck by an intense pain in the chest, so strong that he lost consciousness.

    ####

    Li Shiman woke to find himself sitting cross-legged on the tent, with a pair of strong hands supporting his back. Warmth flowed into his back and he felt the pain in his chest quickly subsiding. When the pain receded the Emperor turned around to see a face he had never expected to see in his life. His short hair had grown long and was speckled with grey. A thick unkempt beard now covered the once clean shaven jaw, but the eyes were still the same. So strong yet so sad. Li Shiman met the gaze of the only true friend he ever had, his heart filling with an odd mixture of joy and guilt.

    The man looked back with the same hostile glare he had given the Emperor twenty years ago. For a long moment the two of them just stared at each other, then Li Shiman spoke:

    “Jiang Feng” whispered the Emperor.

    “Majesty” replied Jiang Feng, in a voice completely devoid of deference.

    Jiang Feng's tone made it clear that he was in no mood for idle conversation and the Emperor could not blame him:

    “My gratitude for your rescue my friend.” said the Emperor.

    “You are NOT my friend and I did not do this for your sake.” declared Jiang Feng angrily.

    “Then why?” asked the Emperor.

    “The same reason I did not kill you twenty years ago. Because our land needs you.” replied Jiang Feng.

    “Do you still hate me?” asked the Emperor.

    “How could I not. You took away the only woman I could ever love, then sacrificed her on the altar of power.” Jiang Feng was almost shouting now in his anger.

    Li Shiman remained silent. There was no point arguing with the truth. Everything Jiang Feng said was true, he had killed the most wonderful woman who ever walked the earth in order to win the throne and although guilt had eating at him ever after, if given the choice he would have done the exact same thing again. How could he expect his friend to forgive him, when even he could not forgive himself. The silence dragged on, until finally Jiang Feng got up:

    “Your injuries are quite serious and coupled with all the wounds you have accumulated in life, it may well prove fatal. I have done what I can, but you are unlikely to see through the year. You had best use whatever time you have left to put things in order.” Having pronounced the Emperor's death without a trace of emotion, Jiang Feng walked towards the tent flap.

    Li Shiman wanted to call after him, to explain how in the last decades he never passed a single night without thinking of the woman they had both loved. He wanted to tell his friend about how he had worked tirelessly to fulfil his promise to be a good Emperor, that he had cherished his citizens like his own children. Desperately he wanted to beg Jiang Feng to stay, but the pride that had stopped him from calling out for help, now also stopped him reaching out to his friend. So he remained silent until Jiang Feng was gone, then when he was sure he was alone, he released the tears he had suppressed for so many years.

  2. #2
    Senior Member Mandred Skavenslayer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Posts
    1,177

    Default

    Would like to thank Icha Parvati for inspiring me to write this short story.

  3. #3
    Senior Member Icha Parvati's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    1,973

    Default

    ah, apologies for the late response, i didn't see this post until just now. Nice work, Mandred, as always nice fighting scenes. Sad that Kong Fung/Jiang Feng hadn't forgiven Li Sai Man after all these years, but for a mental wound that deep, forgiveness doesn't come easily...

  4. #4
    Senior Member Mandred Skavenslayer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Posts
    1,177

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Icha Parvati View Post
    ah, apologies for the late response, i didn't see this post until just now. Nice work, Mandred, as always nice fighting scenes. Sad that Kong Fung/Jiang Feng hadn't forgiven Li Sai Man after all these years, but for a mental wound that deep, forgiveness doesn't come easily...
    Thanks for popping by. Glad you enjoyed it. I thought about reconciling JF and LSM, but in the end decided against it. JF's entire life had been one tragedy after another, with almost nothing ever going his way. So it stands to reason that he would be somewhat bitter. Thus making it very unlikely that he would forgive the architect of so much of his misfortune.

    My thanks for your updates about the upcoming Legend of Condor Heroes, with such a strong supporting cast I can see this being a big hit.

  5. #5
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Posts
    5,405

    Default

    Interesting aftermath. History has shown that one needs to have a "iron" heart if he/she wants to be the leader.

  6. #6
    Member Liljanger's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Posts
    117

    Default

    Is this the same Li Sai Man from Tang DYnasty? Keep up the good work Mandred.

  7. #7
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Posts
    5,405

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Liljanger View Post
    Is this the same Li Sai Man from Tang DYnasty? Keep up the good work Mandred.
    Yes, Li Shi Min = second emperor of Tang Dynasty.

  8. #8
    Senior Member Mandred Skavenslayer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Posts
    1,177

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by wkeej View Post
    Interesting aftermath. History has shown that one needs to have a "iron" heart if he/she wants to be the leader.
    Thanks for the comment. My thoughts as well, a leader needs to make very difficult sometimes even unwilling decisions.

  9. #9
    Senior Member Mandred Skavenslayer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Posts
    1,177

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Liljanger View Post
    Is this the same Li Sai Man from Tang DYnasty? Keep up the good work Mandred.
    Thanks for the support. I am working on my own project these days so I am not planning on running with this story. But glad you enjoyed it.

Similar Threads

  1. The Foundation 《決戰玄武門》 (1984)
    By Omniflame in forum TVB Series
    Replies: 95
    Last Post: 01-07-17, 07:47 PM
  2. Islam: The Foundation of the Middle East Conflict ?
    By galvatron in forum Open Debate
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 11-22-13, 12:32 PM
  3. The Foundation
    By lai23 in forum Mainland China TV Series
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 05-03-13, 07:27 AM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •