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“Who are you working for?”

He stood fro”

A renewed burst of anger surged through her “Give ood reason why I shouldn’t shoot you dead”

“How about that I knohere Lev Sokolov’s son is being held”

TWELVE

NI WAS ASTONISHED “YOU AND THE PREMIER HAVE SPOKEN about me?”

Pau nodded “Many times We also talk of the nation”

“And ould he talk t

o you about that?”

“A long tiether He is not the impotent imbecile many think him to be”

Ni knew that er cared what the prehty, sickly, and held the position sih support to seize control

Pau was right

A division existed within the Chinese Co in 1976, and Mao’s wife and three others for Xiaoping allied to oppose the gang, ultiical battle—Legalism versus Confucianism—the conflict settled outside the public eye, within the Party hierarchy, just as the current conflict would be

“What is it the pre for?”

“Trying to determine what is best for China”

That told hi

“Minister, you may think you enjoy widespread political support, and perhaps you do But that support would evaporate in an instant if the Ba were to seize control They have always been Legalists Their every act geared to oppressive, single-minded domination They would have no tolerance for you”

“What could I have to fear froroup of eunuchs?”

Pau motioned at the open doorway across the courtyard that led back into the exhibit hall “I havetexts, but there is no Magna Carta No great forums or halls of independence Minister, despotism is our inheritance Chinese history is doalists, one and all”

“As if I do not know that You worked for them once”

“Tell me, what makes you think your future will be any different? What would you have for China? If given the premiership, ould you do?”

Privately, he’d considered that question many times The nation teetered literally on the brink of collapse The current national systeh wealth and technology to both compete with the world and effectively contain a billion and a half people Following Mao’s beliefs, concentrating all economic resources in the hands of the state, had failed But so had Deng’s subsequent policies of encouraging unregulated foreign investment

That had led to exploitation

Governing China see a kite on a windless day You could adjust the tail, change the design, run faster, but without a breeze to sweep the thing skyward nothing would happen For decades Chinese leaders had ignored that there was si to force the kite upward, always failing

“I want to change everything,” he quietly said, surprised he’d voiced the words

But Pau had finally coaxed them from him

How did this old man know so much about him?

“Minister, there once was a tiriculture, written language, and highly developed arts, was so attractive that those we conquered, or those who conquered us, willingly sought assimilation They came to admire us, and wanted to be part of our society That desire was complemented by an application of humane Confucian ritual—which stressed harmony, hierarchy, and discipline There are countless ancient texts that reference peoples who, centuries ago, ceased to exist as separate ethnic groups, so coed us into so to be avoided?”

“We destroyed ourselves,” he said

China had indeed gone through successive cycles of unification and frag irretrievable A part of the collective conscience A part of China

“Now you understand why I left,” Pau quietly said

No, he actually still didn’t

“Our dynasties have fallen with an almost eerie predictability,” Pau said “Often early leaders are masterful, while later ones are feeble, unmotivated, or mere puppets Inevitably, corruption combines power and money, without the benefit of the law to prevent abuse An absence of clear rules on political succession generates chaos Rebellions eventually ferovernment then isolates itself and weakens The end is never in doubt” Pau went silent a moment “That has been the fate of every Chinese dynasty for 6,000 years Now it’s the communists’ turn”

He could not argue with that conclusion He recalled a trip to the south a few ation A local official, an old friend, had driven hi the way they’d passed billboards advertising new apartardens, and modern kitchens

“The people are tired of Cultural Revolutions and wars,” his friend had said “They like s”