Without a Plan

A is the son of a loyal martyr. He loves martial arts, hates studying, and hates B, just as every struggling student hates a top student. B is the emperor’s son. He loves political maneuvering, hates martial arts, and hates A, just as every top student hates a struggling student. Whenever the two see each other, they silently exchange the same thought. “An ignorant fool,” B thinks as he looks at A. “A sanctimonious hypocrite,” A thinks as he looks at B. They have loathed each other since the first time they met, at the age of ten, and their animosity has only grown more intense. Yet their positions prevent them from openly falling out, though in private neither makes any effort to hide their dislike. The news that A and B can’t stand each other gradually becomes an open secret among the people of the capital. Then one day, someone happens to see the two people who were supposed to be unable to coexist leaning affectionately against each other. For a moment, everyone can only marvel that the world is full of wonders, and that even oil and water can mix. But the world always has something stranger in store. Another day, A and B make a spectacular elopement... No, they break into a forbidden place, break someone out of prison, and flee! The streets of the capital are littered with dropped jaws. During their escape, A rides ahead, holding the reins and waggling his eyebrows at the person behind him. “You’ve called me an ignorant fool at least eight thousand times since we were kids, if not ten thousand. And in the end, I, the ignorant fool, rescued you. Are you going to keep saying it?” B answers without hesitation, delivering the eight thousand and first repetition: “Ignorant fool.” A raises an eyebrow and immediately reins in his horse, ready to turn around and settle the score. But suddenly, the person behind him wraps both arms around him. B rests his chin on A’s shoulder and whispers in his ear, “So what if you lack skill? Skill without principle leads nowhere. With principle but no skill, you can still learn it.” “I’ve seen countless techniques in the capital, but not one of them compares to you, who have no skill at all.” Theme: With principle but no skill, you can still learn it. With skill but no principle, you get nowhere.