The Twelve Kingdoms: The Shore in Twilight

or sudden change, and quietly created a sound rule of law.
    In the closing years of his reign, the treasury was bankrupt and the kingdom impoverished. Even then it was said that compared to other kingdoms, the corruption of the national government of Tai was held to a minimal level.
    And then, as if waiting for an opening, bureaucrats of abject character devoured the regime.
    After King Kyou died, though the plundering spread far and wide, Tai could be said to be holding its ground. There remained many thoughtful and informed province lords and general and officials.
    Gyousou was the best of them all. Originally a general of the Palace Guard, he was a trusted and favored retainer of the late king. He was well-versed in the operations of the government. He was possessed of many talents for which he was widely revered.
    And in the provinces, so was the legendary army of Gyousou, and its commanders and officers.
    Taiki pledged himself to Gyousou and he ascended the throne. He quickly organized the Imperial Court and guided Tai into a new era. Gyousou was said to have been preparing all along to occupy the throne. And in a sense that was true.
    He understood that King Kyou would soon lose the Mandate of Heaven. Whether or not he was enthroned as the new king, he knew that the stormy seas ahead could not be avoided, and that in order to keep the listing ship of state from sinking, a man of his abilities must stay lashed to the wheel.
    Gyousou sought out and trained accomplished officers and commanders. The duchy of Saku County he ruled became Tai in miniature. Though the civil and military officials were mere county authorities, they comprehended the intricacies of Imperial polity and grasped the conditions of the kingdom better than the Rikkan. In the waning days of King Kyou's reign, they spread far and wide throughout the kingdom, serving as bulwarks shoring up the faltering regime.
    At the same time, many more figured out that the days of King Kyou were numbered. Risai as well saw that King Kyou's regime was taking on water and would soon sink beneath the waves. The water would be up to their necks before long. Of this she was sure, but that was the only thing she could be sure of.
    She hadn't really thought about what must be done after the King died, and how to bring it about. That it must be thought about had strangely not arisen in her thoughts. Gyousou wasn't like that. In that respect, there was a big difference between people like herself and Gyousou.
    Gyousou went to the Imperial Court and did his best to keep things afloat. After King Kyou died, his subordinates arrived to buoy up the sinking realm. They became the flagships of the new dynasty. Gyousou's Imperial Court was laying the strong keel of a new ship that would be nothing short of revolutionary.
    Following the coronation of the new king, the Imperial Court was typically thrown into chaos. Finding the right people to serve as ministers of the Rikkan usually required a considerable amount of time, but that wasn't true of Gyousou. Compared to most kingdoms, Gyousou organized his Imperial Court practically overnight. It was an unprecedented accomplishment.
    The incident began half a year after Gyousou's coronation. A large-scale rebellion broke out in Bun Province in the north of Tai.

Chapter 9
    " A n insurrection in Bun Province?" were Risai's first words.
    When she entered in Inner Palace, the chief retainers had already gathered there. Answering the call to assemble, Risai had rushed to the Inner Palace.
    Daishiba Haboku of the Minister of Summer said in response, "From the beginning, Bun Province has been a territory festering with one problem or another." He drew his hand through his salt and pepper beard.
    Located directly north of Zui Province in the northern quarter of Tai, Bun Province was a land beset by harsh winters. Jou Province spread out across the northeast corner of the island. The winters there were as bad, but Jou was blessed with arable land and expansive forests.
    The craggy land in Bun Province, in contrast, made for poor farming and yielded sparse forests. Its occupants barely scraped by mining the gemstone fountains that dotted the land. However, those gemstone fountains had been exploited so long by so many that they were running dry. Bun Province was cold and poor, the government was in shambles, and the hearts of its people ran wild.
    Or so the rumors said.
    Nowadays, Bun Province was beset by rebellions and civil strife. The