(Under construction)
Ganchou (巌趙) is the General in the Palace Guard of the Right. During Emperor Kyou’s dynasty, he served as a regimental commander under Gyousou in the Palace Gyard of the Right. Like Gyousou and Gashin, he has close ties to the koushi. His retainers adores him, and Santou describes him as “suffused with empathy and honor”. He spends seven years of Asen’s dynasty without a rank or position but serves as Taiki’s Daiboku for a short period of time.
BACKGROUND
Ganchou is described as a literally large man that is built like a boulder. His past is unknown.
EMPEROR KYOU’S DYNASTY
Ganchou served under Gyousou as a regimental commander in the Palace Guard of the Right. Like Gashin, he rose up the ranks and, as a result, is often seen as politically lacking. When Gyousou chose to leave the army and remove his name from the Registry of Wizards rather than follow Emperor Kyou’s unreasonable orders, Ganchou does the same and follows him. They initially decide to travel to other kingdoms but instead choose to go on the Shouzan for the experience. When searching for groups planning to travel through the Yellow Sea, they come across those in the bodyguard members and, through them, the shushi.
Finding the prospect of wrangling youjuu far more interesting, Gyousou and Ganchou prove their mettle to the shushi first by working alongside the bodyguards and then by capturing progressively complicated youjuu. It is assumed that Ganchou was present when Gyousou caught Keito several years after returning to Hakkei Palace, which is why he is the only other one who can handle the short-tempered suugu.
THE TETSUI CAMPAIGN
Like his colleagues, Ganchou expressed his doubt that they’d be able to accomplish anything that the Provincial Guard couldn’t. However, once Gyousou hands down the orders to not attack or injure any civilians, he places his trust in his commanding officer.
THE SHOUZAN
Ganchou is one of the men who accompany Gyousou on the Shouzan. While he isn’t explicitly named in the anime, he makes several on-screen appearances. When Taiki wished Gyousou well until the next equinox—essentially informing him that he isn’t the emperor—he refuses to believe that Gyousou would ever consider stealing the throne from the new emperor. He is also present when Taiki follows Gyousou down the mountain and swears fealty to him.
THE BUN PROVINCE REBELLIONS
During the Bun Province rebellions six months after Gyousou accedes the throne, Ganchou is one of the generals stationed at Hakkei Palace with the intention of leaving behind people who could potentially protect Taiki from Asen and prevent a coup from taking place. After Gyousou and Sougen mobilize to Bun Province, he doesn’t take the growing rumors surrounding Gyousou’s retainers seriously but agrees that they should be brought to Gyousou’s attention.
When the meishoku occurs and both Gyousou and Taiki vanish, Ganchou is not considered as a pro tempore emperor based on the fact that he rose up the ranks rather than being promoted to a high position upon joining the army. He initially doesn’t question Asen’s position as pro tempore emperor, but once Asen’s betrayal is made clear, he is the last of Gyousou’s retainers remaining in Hakkei Palace. His staff officers and close retainers are taken prisoner in various locations throughout Hakkei Palace, so he stayed under Asen’s control to ensure their safety rather than joining Eishou and Gashin. Asen strips him of his title and assets and transfers his soldiers to other divisions, leaving him in the position of stable hand in the barracks near the Forbidden Gate with the excuse that he’s the only one who can handle Keito. Despite being unable to leave himself, Ganchou helps several soldiers and civil servants loyal to Gyousou escape Hakkei Palace and go into hiding.
ASEN’S DYNASTY
Throughout Asen’s dynasty, Ganchou remains in confinement despite his retainers insistence that he escape Hakkei Palace. His enmity toward Asen remains strong, though he doesn’t blame Asen’s retainers for what happened as they clearly had no idea what their general was planning. He maintains a cordial relationship with General Hinken of the Zui Provincial Guard of the Center, especially since he treats Santou well. Also aware that Rousan is double-crossing Asen, he keeps in contact with her through Yari, a young koushu.
Ganchou first hears of Taiki’s return from Yari and is enraged when he hears that he announced that Asen is the new emperor of Tai due to the Divine Will being revised, claiming that he isn’t qualified for the position. He initially worries that Gyousou has passed away at some point in the past seven years, but Yari assures him that the White Pheasant is still alive. He asks Yari what her boss thinks of the situation, but recieves a cryptic answer.
In spite of his concern for Taiki, he refuses to meet with him several times. While Taiki assumes that Chou’un is denying him or somehow preventing the messages from getting to Ganchou, the real reason is because Ganchou was afraid that making contact with Taiki would put his retainers at risk. However, he returns to duty once more when he helps Kouryou escape Hakkei Palace and takes his place as Taiki’s Daiboku. The soldiers standing guard at the Nightingale Villa—especially those who served under Asen’s command during Emperor Kyou’s dynasty—and Keitou welcome Ganchou with sincere respect, contradicting orders to keep outsiders from meeting with Taiki.
When he hears of Gyousou’s execution, Ganchou is enraged, but he is quick to acknowledge that there is little he could do to help his liege. He wants to dissuade Taiki from risking his life to make a statement by bowing to Gyousou in front of the watching civilians, but Yari points out that there was little they could do to change his mind. With that established, Ganchou agrees to let Yari assist Taiki.
GYOUSOU’S RESCUE
On the day of Gyousou’s execution, Ganchou is watching from within the Hall of Supreme Harmony alongside Rousan. True to his promise to Yari, he stays put. After Taiki and the rebel forces under Risai and Sougen strike, he stays long enough to see Taiki transform into a kirin, realizing that Taiki had hidden the fact that his horn had healed even from his allies.
With the aid of the soldiers previous stationed at the Nightingale Villa, Ganchou rescues Seirai and covers his escape to Soukou Palace. It is unclear whether or not Ganchou or the soldiers aiding him escape as well.
RELATIONSHIPS
Gyousou
Ganchou and Gyousou have a very close liege-retainer relationship. Santou describes Ganchou as an older sibling that Gyousou could trust to have his back while Gyousou was like the over-achieving younger brother that Ganchou loved to boast about. This bond of mutual trust and affection was born not only from working closely together but also from Ganchou’s decision to leave the army to follow Gyousou. Ganchou takes genuine pride in serving Gyousou, and as a result was deeply grieved when Asen overthrew Gyousou.
Taiki
Due to Ganchou’s close relationship with Gyousou as well as the fact that he also took part in the Shouzan and Ganchou’s amicable personality, the young kirin grew to be quite comfortable around Ganchou. Compared to his relationships with others, Taiki is able to be emotionally vulnerable around him and worried greatly about him before he was finally able to meet with Ganchou in person. Similarly, Ganchou cares about Taiki not just as the kirin but also as a person, which can be seen in the relaxed manner in which he communicates with Taiki when he was a child and in the overwhelming relief he displays when they reunite seven years after Taiki’s disappearance.
Asen
Before Asen shows his true colors, Ganchou respects him as a capable commander and close colleague of Gyousou. After the coup, he loathes his existence and says he’s not qualified to be emperor since he “stole the throne and butchered his own subjects”. Asen treats Ganchou terribly by stripping him of his rank, financial assets, and demoting him to a stable hand. This treatment is most likely due to Ganchou’s close emotional attachment to Gyousou. However, despair their mutual enmity, Asen doesn’t act when Ganchou leaves the barracks by the Forbidden Gate to become Taiki’s Daiboku or to attend Gyousou’s execution, most likely because Asen believes that there’s very little that Gyousou’s retainers could do that would affect him.
Santou
Despite previously serving at the same rank during Emperor Kyou’s dynasty, Santou regards Ganchou with respect and affection. He’s disheartened to see Ganchou brought down so low by Asen and is later reliever when he finds out that he became Taiki’s Daiboku. During Asen’s dynasty, he makes sure to visit him often and futilely tries to persuade him to escape.
Yari
Ganchou and Yari have a close casual relationship after several years of Yari funneling information from Rousan and the rest of Hakkei Palace to Ganchou. Another reason for their close friendship is because Ganchou earned the respect of the koushu. Both Ganchou and Yari treat each other like colleagues and, even though Ganchou is older and more experienced, he respects her judgement and opinions.
Rousan
While never explicitly stated, it can be inferred that Ganchou is aware the Rousan is double-crossing Asen because he never treats her with distrust at any point. He asks Yari about Rousan’s opinions and, while he complains that some of the things she says don’t make sense, he never discounts or doubts her. During Gyousou’s execution, he takes his frustration out on her, but he still doesn’t lay blame at her feet.
Asen’s Retainers
While wary of the enemy’s soldiers and upset after the coup, Ganchou makes it clear that he doesn’t lay blame indiscriminately because a majority of Asen’s men weren’t aware of and/or involved in what their liege was planning. For example, he treats Hinken with respect and expresses his gratitude for offering him a place under his command because while Hinken was present in Bun Province when Gyousou vanished, he didn’t play a role in the coup. In addition, he initially treats the soldiers at Nightingale Villa with wariness but ends up working with them to help Seirai escape after Gyousou is rescued from his execution.