Angst of the Emperor

Angst of the Emperor

fiction
edward w pritchard

The emperor was Riding in a chariot with his bodyguard on a packed gravel trail along a small river, after a spectacular battle success over an equally matched adversary. The Emperor was standing very straight in his chariot when he glanced across the bodyguards muscular fore-arm on the reins and the emperor noticed individual glades of wild grasses growing along the River. Suddenly the Emperor's being was irreparably changed and he wanted to stop the chariot and get off to look at the grass he had noticed. Being Emperor and in charge of everything this was duly done.

The Emperor walked awkwardly forward for 10 or 15 feet and wavered to the right away away from the river, across the packed road, and sat at the foot of a small bush and stared intently at the blossoms of the plant for two straight days.

As the emperor was being followed on the path by his tired victorious army and entourage, his actions sent the countryside in a turvy.

Because it was considered very unhealthy to interrupt an emperor at a time such as this, when he was exhibiting erratic or unpredictable behavior over a day passed before anyone sought to intervene. Finally the head General walked up to the bodyguard and asked him what should be done as the men were tired and hungry. The general was wary because he had previously worked for another emperor before this one, and seen several excellent men lose their heads in similar circumstances. In fact that is how he had initially became a general.

The bodyguard out of respect for the men cautiously approached the emperor and asked him what he was doing.

The emperor replied that he was waiting for the blossoms on the bush to bloom.

When the bodyguard reported this to the general, the general spoke to several other important people and by consensus it was decided to do nothing for now.

Finally, one lowly Buddhist monk, who was hungry and thirsty decided on the second day to approach the emperor and ask him what the emperor was doing.

Again the emperor replied that he was sitting waiting for the bush to bloom. The Monk replied to the emperor, that the emperor sitting in front of the bush was disturbing the bush and it would never bloom while he sat there.

The emperor then stood up, walked stiffly back to the chariot, and the entire army and entourage continued on to the victory celebration