The decorations in the palace of Luo State had not changed in centuries. Aloeswood incense curled through the air as Luo Chang reclined on a couch, holding the intelligence reports sent by the Hidden Side of Luo State.
"Creak."
Crown Prince Qing of Luo pushed open the door and entered, then quietly knelt before Luo Chang. He took a fresh bamboo slip from his sleeve and handed it to him. Since being confirmed as Crown Prince five years earlier, he had taken over responsibility for the Hidden Side of Luo State from Luo Chang.
Luo Chang turned to one report, paused, and asked, "Master Mo went to Wu State?"
Luo Qing sighed softly. "Wu State wanted to attack Chu State. Master Mo traveled for ten days and nights to reach Gusu and persuade the Marquis of Wu to abandon the idea of attacking Chu. In the end, Wu State gave up its plans to campaign against Chu.
"As Mohist School theory grows more refined, more and more people are joining the Mohist School. Even many Confucian scholars have become Mohists, just as Master Mo did."
Luo Chang fell silent for a moment, then said, "The Confucian School will not be defeated so easily. Its brilliant minds will mend the flaws in its theories. Blending between Confucianism and Mohism has been far from uncommon in recent years.
"Master Mo truly is one of the Sages and Worthies. If all beneath heaven were like him, the Sage King's wish would be fulfilled."
Traveling upstream along the Jiang River aboard a large boat, Mo Di was returning to Shangqiu in Song State. As he crossed from Wu State into Chu State, rain suddenly poured from the sky. The torrential downpour soon soaked him, and he ran bedraggled into the city-the very city he