conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Give me a description for a book titled The Convict's Sword about Parker's, Akitada, Convict's with the genre: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, Mystery.
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: I. J. Parker's phenomenal Akitada mystery series has been gaining fans with each new novel. The latest, The Convict's Sword, is the most fully realized installment to date, weaving history, drama, mystery, romance, and adventure into a story of passion and redemption. Lord Sugawara Akitada, the senior secretary in the Ministry of Justice, must find the mysterious killer of a man condemned to live in exile for a crime he did not commit. Meanwhile, Akitada's retainer, Tora, investigates the sudden death of a blind street singer, whose past life is a bigger mystery than anyone thought. Told in Parker's clever, vivid prose, The Convict's Sword is a must-read for those who love well-written mysteries in an exotic setting.
conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Delete the last sentence.
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: I. J. Parker's phenomenal Akitada mystery series has been gaining fans with each new novel. The latest, The Convict's Sword, is the most fully realized installment to date, weaving history, drama, mystery, romance, and adventure into a story of passion and redemption. Lord Sugawara Akitada, the senior secretary in the Ministry of Justice, must find the mysterious killer of a man condemned to live in exile for a crime he did not commit. Meanwhile, Akitada's retainer, Tora, investigates the sudden death of a blind street singer, whose past life is a bigger mystery than anyone thought.
conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Give me the first paragraph for this book.
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: The Convict's Sword
  He brushed by the gaping Sakae and went into his office. Nakatoshi was bent over the usual pile of correspondence. He rose and bowed. "Good morning, sir." He added with a smile, "You look more yourself today, sir."
conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Delete the last sentence.
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: The Convict's Sword
  He brushed by the gaping Sakae and went into his office. Nakatoshi was bent over the usual pile of correspondence. He rose and bowed. "Good morning, sir." He added with a smile, "You look more yourself today, sir.
conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Give me five more paragraphs.. End with the sentence ' The boy, a scrawny creature of twelve or thirteen, was awake and staring up at him.'.
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: Tora's face fell. "No. I know who didn't kill her. I figured it was Kata, but she was his good luck charm and he thinks his business is doomed now." He gave a dry chuckle. "He may be right. It will be. He's a gang boss."
  Akitada said, "Apparently not. At least the court is not in session at the moment. The sickness has given us extra time. That reminds me. I'd better explain to my wife about our guests."
  Tamako still hovered in the darkness of the corridor. Akitada closed the door behind him and said, "They don't have smallpox. Just assorted wounds and bruises."
  He was not, could not be certain that they did not have the seeds of the sickness inside them, but he said "yes" as firmly as he could.
  When Akitada returned to the others, Genba was pressing a smelly poultice to his nose and blinking watery eyes. Akitada grinned and went to look at the two strangers. The old man was asleep, curled up under his covers, and Akitada had to lift the quilt to see his face. He looked sick and fragile and vaguely familiar. The boy, a scrawny creature of twelve or thirteen, was awake and staring up at him.
conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Give me the last five paragraphs.
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: Ancient Japan also took most of its culture from China. Ultimately, the Chinese system of government failed in Japan, but in the Heian age it still prevailed and produced a period of unparalleled peace and cultural achievement. The country was governed by a hierarchy of bureaucrats who ruled by Chinese precepts and used the Chinese language. However, the system was never a meritocracy as in China. In Japan only the sons of the "good people" attended the imperial university, entered the government service, and achieved the ranks which assured them of wealth and power. The highest ranks fell mostly to members of one family, the Fujiwaras. They supplied wives and concubines to the ruling monarchs and crown princes and thus were not only closely related to the emperors, but served as regents (and de facto rulers) to the many minor children who ascended the throne. The chancellor, assisted by the three great ministers of the right, left, and center, supervised the Great Council of State, two controlling boards, eight ministries, and assorted bureaus and offices. From the Greater Palace Enclosure of Heian-kyo, this central government ruled the rest of the country through governors appointed in the capital and sent to their provinces for four-year terms.
  One of the many disasters that visited Heian-kyo and most of the country repeatedly was smallpox. This disease was introduced into the islands of Japan through merchant trading with China and Korea and ravaged the population, particularly in densely populated areas. It was early recognized as infectious, but people tended to seek supernatural intervention, or to accept the danger fatalistically. In 737 AD, the Great Secretary of the Right issued a detailed order about the treatment of smallpox. This involved wrapping the victim, keeping him warm, and withholding water completely. Warm rice gruel, seaweed, and salt were prescribed, even when "mouth and tongue fester." There is no evidence that medical knowledge had progressed much by the eleventh century, but by then the disease was becoming endemic; that is, people developed resistance and only the young and those who had never been exposed contracted it. In 1020 AD, the young emperor, who was twelve at the time, fell ill but recovered. Those who survived the fever and festering sores were permanently disfigured and often blinded.
  There is little contemporary information about the common people, but the lives of the nobles are well documented in diaries, novels, and biographies. Men led public lives, usually in the service of the emperor; they engaged in sports, hunting, and literary pursuits, or entertained their male friends at lavish parties. Women lived secluded in their own quarters of the mansion, where they supervised the household and their children, and spent time reading romances, painting, or making music. Customarily, a nobleman had more than one wife and might additionally keep concubines. Women were slightly better off in the Heian Age than they were in later periods, for they could own property and were protected by the continued influence of their own families. Marriages were arranged between the groom and the bride's family, and matters such as her status in the husband's household and her control over her private money were negotiated beforehand. Often a young couple resided with the wife's parents. But a husband could divorce his wife simply by informing her of this decision. He was also free to take other wives. Women rarely left the home, except for family emergencies, service at court, or pilgrimages to temples or shrines. Women of the lower classes, while often poor and forced to labor alongside the men, enjoyed greater freedom of movement and rarely had to compete with other wives.
  For readers familiar with Samurai literature, it should be pointed out that daily customs of the Heian Age differ in some respects from those of later periods. Tea was known, but expensive, and consumed primarily for medicinal purposes. Rice wine was the preferred drink. Foods were simple, consisting of rice, other grains, beans, vegetables, fish and—as hunting was not yet forbidden—fowl and venison. Men did not shave their heads unless they were monks, and women of the upper classes let their hair grow very long and wore many-layered gowns of colored silks or brocade. Although there are references to cotton clothing, cotton was not known at the time, and the material used instead was hemp.
  In the eleventh century, the martial arts were more at home among the provincial nobility, who maintained small armies to defend their lands; however, the court nobles also practiced with swords and bows and arrows. Swordsmiths performed a specially honored craft, working both in government service and independently. It was during the Heian period that sword construction first reached the level of perfection for which Japanese swords are admired. Swords were thought to be imbued with a divine spirit and Shinto rituals accompanied the work of the smith.