Tang Dynasty Good — Man

The soldier left.

Gao looked at the man’s hollow eyes. "I have no horse," he said. "But I have half a bowl of millet porridge and a blanket woven from nettles. You are welcome to both."

The soldier wept. He confessed he had deserted the army after being ordered to burn a village of farmers who had refused to pay a corrupt governor’s tax. "I am no longer a warrior," the soldier said. "I am a coward and a traitor." tang dynasty good man

That night, the corrupt governor’s men arrived. They were hunting the deserter. They kicked down the door of Gao’s hut and found the soldier hiding beneath the altar where Gao kept his ancestor tablets.

"If you harm this man," Gao said quietly, "I will walk to Chang’an and present this token to the throne. I will tell the Son of Heaven how his captain tortures peasants and hunts hungry ghosts." The soldier left

The soldier fell to his knees. "Why? I am nothing to you."

Gao stepped between them. "This man is not a soldier anymore. He is a guest in my house. In the Tang Dynasty, even a criminal who shares your salt is your brother." "But I have half a bowl of millet

He handed the soldier the jade token. "Take this. Go to the eastern province. Start again."

The soldier refused, but Gao closed the man’s fist around the jade. "I have no family," Gao said. "My grave will be dug by strangers. But if you live one honest day because of this token, then I will have left a mark deeper than any tombstone."

One bitter winter, a starving soldier crawled into the cemetery, his armor rusted to his flesh. "They call you a good man," the soldier hissed. "Give me your horse, or I will take your life."