Jade Dragon Mountain Read Online Free

cousin envied him now.
    â€œAs you can see,” said Tulishen, “I am very busy. Dayan is to be the southernmost point in the Emperor’s tour. When the festival is over, he will turn north, and begin the journey back to the capital.”
    Li Du, sensing that some expression of interest was required, asked, “How long has he been away from it?”
    â€œAlmost a full year. And all for this. All to come here, now, to my city. The festival is to be so grand that he has even invited foreigners to cross the southwest borders and attend.”
    â€œDoes this mean that the Emperor has relaxed his policy on foreigners in China?”
    Tulishen shook his head. “It is a limited invitation. It will expire when the festival is over. But when we are so close to the border, why should they not come? The arrogant foreigners will witness the Emperor’s command of the heavens, and know his superiority over their own kings. The Son of the True Dragon has bestowed on my city the great honor of hosting this demonstration. Nothing like it has ever been seen in this distant corner of the empire.”
    â€œHis command of the heavens?” Li Du remembered the schedule he had seen on the wall. “You mean the eclipse.”
    â€œAn unmatched honor, to host the event,” Tulishen repeated. Li Du saw fear in his cousin’s expression, and understood it. Tulishen had always been ambitious, but even he was intimidated by what was being asked of him now.
    The Emperor of China had the power, according to ancient tradition, to predict astronomical phenomena. Displays of this power confirmed the Emperor’s divine legitimacy, and were taken very seriously. The more accurate the prediction, the more effective the demonstration. Members of the intellectual elite, of which Li Du and Tulishen numbered, were aware that for many years it had been the Jesuits at court who had provided the Emperor with a yearly calendar of astronomical events. Their calculations had proven reliable and accurate to the minute. Naturally, public acknowledgment of their role was forbidden, as it would tarnish the pageantry of the Emperor’s predictions.
    And what better way to assert control over a notoriously unstable province than to impress its people with a spectacular festival and an eclipse of the sun? It had fallen to Tulishen to organize the unprecedented event in an area known throughout China only for its disease and barbarism. He would be blamed if the Emperor was disappointed.
    â€œThousands will gather in a field east of the city,” Tulishen went on, with forced enthusiasm. “And the Emperor will appear before them as a deity, on a towering golden pavilion. The foreigners, and the uncivilized people of this province, will know our Emperor’s power. They will not forget.”
    â€œI saw one of the foreigners at your gate earlier today, a merchant.”
    Tulishen shifted his shoulders uncomfortably. “He is the most recent arrival. The first one came three days ago, an old man as bleached as a dead tree on the plains. One of the religious men in black robes, but he did not come from Beijing. He says he lives in India. That is not all he says. The man does not stop talking. Obviously he does not know the more words spoken, the more mistakes made. And that is not the extent of his foolishness. He journeyed here with Khampa traders. I am surprised they did not rob and murder him and his friend.”
    â€œHis friend?”
    â€œA performer who has come for the festival. A storyteller from Arabia.” Tulishen brightened a little. “The storyteller is amusing and speaks good Chinese. I have hired him to perform here tonight.”
    For a moment Tulishen was lost in thought. Then he recalled himself and continued. “There is another one in black robes, but he arrived alone. A young man, unimpressive. He speaks Chinese like an imbecile. And he has a weak stomach—he has not left his room