It was late at night and the prince's eyes were tired after many hours of reading. He was getting ready to turn in.
A knock was heard at his bedroom's door. The eunuch announced that Secretary Wen asked to meet with him.
Perhaps Lao Wen needed help with the register, the prince thought, and opened the door to receive his guest.
Secretary Wen explained that he finished drafting his assignment and asked for the prince to review it before submitting to the high court.
He did not say it yet, but he also planned to return the little scented pouch to the prince since it was a dowry. If he didn't know, it was one thing. Now that he knew, he could not keep it. But he waited for the review to finish first.
Prince ZiShu was rather surprised, he did not expect his friend to finish 3 days before the deadline. Most previous secretaries could barely meet the time frame. The prince took the draft and glanced through it at first, then he proceeded to read several short passages, and then he became fixated, totally shocked, overly impressed, at a near loss for words. He then returned to the beginning of the document and read it all over again, taking his time now.
The details that Wen Ke Xing narrated in the document were so minute, even the prince himself did not pay attention. The man seemed to have photographic memory. He recorded every distance they traveled down to the nearest li. He described the weather to the point of including the clouds shape. He recounted the number of soldiers and their exact placement in the battlefield with such impeccable accuracy and precision that it was unheard of. Every strategy the prince employed was not only laid out in the register, it was explained clearly and the circumstances were provided in depth. There was a reason for how the task force was split up, why the formation of the cavalry changed from one day to the next, even the speed of the wind was set forth in the section where he discussed crossbowmen and their tactics. He appended a tally of how many soldiers died, the number that got injured, how they got injured. His register not only listed the events that took place on the Song side, but also the Liao side, the military tactics and strategies that the opponent employed. Secretaries did not usually include such information in their registers, in fact this would be the first time ever, if prince ZiShu was right.
Before today, Prince ZiShu thought that Wen Ke Xing was an educated scholar, a skilled martial artist, a close friend with a sweet and childish personality. But after reading the register, he came to acknowledge that this man was extremely intelligent, with excellent memorization skills and exceptional aptitudes to learn and recollect affairs. He had an in-depth knowledge of technology, science, philosophy, mathematics, and engineering. If given the right opportunities, this man could prosper and thrive, exceeding any and all expectations. If promoted to higher ranks, this man could help vastly advance the country, expand its territory to never-before-seen levels. There was no limit as to how far this man's success could erupt, if given the chance.
When prince ZiShu finished reading the last paragraph, he was speechless. He felt like he just relived the battle all over again, just this time, details that he missed were presented to him one by one.
Before tonight, Wen Ke Xing was prince ZiShu's close friend, but nevertheless somebody slightly inferior to him in his eyes. After reading the register however, albeit just a draft, it opened his eyes and at that very moment, the prince felt that he had finally found his equal, somebody that could measure up to him, somebody who had only been lacking a chance to shine. If the circumstances were proper, Wen Ke Xing may outperform him. His successes may actually even surpass that of the prince. ZiShu had been looking for this person all his life, someone that he could proudly say he looked up to and admired, for this person was as smart as him - if not smarter than him. All his life, people complimented him, idolized him, giving him a feeling that he was invincible. But that was not the feeling he wanted. After all, being on top of the mountain felt extremely cold.
