Haidaimen, which had once managed the taxes of nine cities day after day, and the Calamus River, where the fragrance of wine drifted every night, had witnessed the Great Li Dynasty's rise to power. First, it had gone from a vassal state to a suzerain state; then, one kingdom had come to encompass an entire continent. Generation after generation, Great Li's civil offices produced renowned ministers, while its border armies produced great generals, all born of a spirit that joined refinement with bold generosity. Scholars took pride in rising from a farmhouse in the morning to the Son of Heaven's hall by evening, while ordinary families were proud to send their children into the army. For a century of Great Li, from court to countryside, it seemed everyone had been striving to prove themselves.
Pei Mao walked with his son along the Calamus River's flower-strewn bank. Differences in age, experience, station, and outlook made father and son consider different questions. Even on the same matter, their views of good and bad, right and wrong, might be as far apart as cloud and mud.
Pei Jing finally asked what had been on his mind. "Father, His Majesty has gone to Northern Juluzhou to discuss an alliance. Why did the National Teacher summon you to the capital, where people can be killed without a drop of blood spilled, at this particular time? Is he going after you?"
Pei Mao nodded. His still-young son was finally speaking less cautiously. Smiling, he said, "Why use an ox cleaver to kill a chicken? If I said the National Teacher's Manor was targeting Pei Mao alone, I would be grossly overestimating my own reputation and achievements, and underestimating National Teacher Chen's cunning and methods."
Pei Jing's heart sank. Afraid that another question would draw an even