Lately, Yu Ji had spent every day with his brows tightly furrowed.
Worry weighed on his heart.
Since the late emperor's death and the new emperor's accession, factional strife at court had grown ever more blatant.
The new emperor was young and impressionable. Prince of Ancheng, entrusted by the late emperor with serving as a minister-regent, had championed waterworks and led land reclamation. Gradually, he had gained real power and begun to show signs of ruling unchecked. Officials flocked to him, forming a faction.
"Alas..."
Seated at his desk, Yu Ji recalled how Prince of Ancheng's officials had traded barbs with the emperor's faction at court that day. They had cast the original matter aside, until all that remained were attacks on one another.
"The lords of the court ought to govern the realm and order its affairs, to bring Yin-Yang into harmony. Instead, they are tangled in factional politics, caring only where a man stands, not whether he is right! If this goes on, no decisions will be made. Affairs of state will suffer!"
Quiet anxiety clung to his heart, and his face was full of worry.
"With a young ruler, the realm uncertain, and factions fighting at court, how can I turn the tide even if I wish to?"
At that thought, he felt a crushing weight upon him and grew more disheartened still.
His thoughts slowed. Before he knew it, he had fallen asleep.
In his dream, as though fulfilling the saying "What occupies the mind by day enters dreams by night," he found himself in the throne hall. Two groups were trading barbs, every face red with argument.
Judging by their ferocity, they hardly looked like colleagues serving in the same hall. They looked like mortal enemies. As the quarrel wore on, they tore away all