No Contest

The bird ignored him, but flapped to the chair back when it arrived. Its sprained leg seemed to be getting stronger, and it hunkered down for a nap.

“Chiun,” Remo said, “I need to know something about one of the old Sinanju Masters. Something that is not in the scrolls.”

Chiun’s look was a mixture of delight and suspicion. “You have searched the scrolls?”

“The ones we have with us,” Remo said. “But I’m sure it’s not in any of the histories I’ve read.”

Chiun was still suspicious.

“It’s about Yeou Gang’s sleazy reputation. How come it was forgotten in just one generation? I mean, was there a war or some catastrophe that wiped out all the kings and emperors of the time?”

Chiun was quietly surprised that Remo had seen this missing detail in the story. “There was no catastrophe,” he admitted.

“So, what did Yeou Gang do? Hire an image consultant?”

“He trained one,” Chiun said reluctantly. “His pupil knew of his shame, for Yeou Gang did not hide it. His pupil was Yeou Gang the Younger, who was more wise than his father yet bore him a great respect, for the shame of Yeou Gang the Elder had forged in him a deep passion for the tradition of Sinanju. Yeou Gang the Younger resolved to renew the esteem of Sinanju, and to do so while his father lived. He accomplished this while undergoing his Rite of Succession.”

The Rite of Succession was one of the two major ritualistic undertakings by Sinanju pupils. The first, the Rite of Attainment, made the Sinanju pupil a Master of Sinanju. The Rite of Succession made a Master into the Reigning Master. Officially, this was the position of highest rank in the Sinanju tradition. When Remo went through the Rite of Succession and was named Reigning Master, he became, theoretically, the Sinanju boss. Which meant he had authority over any other Masters that were still living. But this was only a theory.

But during tine Rite of Succession, Remo had been ritualistically presented to all the global leaders and had engaged each nation’s most skilled assassins. The battles were ceremonial in nature, but they were battles to the death. The result of such an exercise was that all the world’s most powerful rulers were made to know of the skills of Sinanju. The ceremony also decimated the ranks of the world’s skilled assassins and thus made the Sinanju Masters even more in demand.

Remo’s Rite of Succession was one of the most efficient in all of Sinanju history. Prior to the development of air transportation, the rite would last for years simply due to long travel times.

“Yeou Gang the Younger went first to the palace of Saras, a Harrapan king, where he easily defeated the greatest warrior that was pitted against him. As Yeou Gang the Younger and his father took their final tea with the Harrapan court, the young Master heard one member of the court use a disparaging word in references to Yeou Gang the Elder. The young Master silenced the one who said the words, on the spot. This was somewhat of a surprise to the Harrapan emperor.”

“I guess it would be,” Remo agreed.

“The one who was silenced was the emperor’s aunt,” Chiun explained.

“Even more of a shocker.”

“Yeou Gang the Younger stood before the emperor’s court and declared that he would suffer no insult. The husband of the slain woman protested, saying that she was repeating words that were common in the kingdom. Yeou Gang slew the husband, too. This was cause for alarm in the court, and there were those who called the young Master impetuous and murderous.”

“Uh-oh.”

“Yeou Gang the Younger suffered them not to live and the emperor called for his royal guard to put a stop to the decimation of his friends and family.”

“Uh-oh again.”

“Soon there were more bodies than living men in the court of this emperor. After the soldiers were dispatched, Yeou Gang the Younger asked the court if there were others who wished to repeat the foul disparagement they had heard of the great Sinanju house, or if there were those who felt they might someday be tempted to repeat such disparagements.”

“Any hands go up?”

“None,” Chiun said. “Yeou Gang the Younger then informed the fawning emperor that he would return to the kingdom at some unspecified future time to question the court about rumors regarding the great Sinanju assassins. The emperor understood perfectly. As soon as the Masters departed, the emperor made the defamation of the Sinanju masters a crime punishable by death. Yeou Gang the Younger repeated his performance more than one time during the seven years of his Rite of Succession journeys, but word spread well enough even in those days.”

“Yeou Gang the Younger was a real player,” Remo said.

“The shame of his father was wiped away. Sinanju prospered. The Harrapan king so feared the return of Yeou Gang the Younger he moved away with his court and allowed his power to wane before he again faced Yeou Gang the Younger.”

“I love a happy ending.” After a while, Remo asked, “How do you feel?”

The old man’s eyebrows popped up. “What manner of question is that?”