Forward the Foundation - Isaac Asimov [40]
Seldon called to him as he paused on the perfectly level crushed gravel walk, "Another marvelous day, Gruber."
Gruber looked up and his eyes twinkled. "Yes, indeed, First Minister, and it's sorry I am for those who be cooped up indoors."
"You mean as I am about to be."
"There's not much about you, First Minister, for people to sorrow over, but if you're disappearing into those buildings on a day like this, it's a bit of sorrow that we fortunate few can feel for you."
"I thank you for your sympathy, Gruber, but you know we have forty billion Trantorians under the dome. Are you sorry for all of them?"
"Indeed, I am. I am grateful I am not of Trantorian extraction myself so that I could qualify as a gardener. There be few of us on this world that work in the open, but here I be, one of the fortunate few."'
"The weather isn't always this ideal."
"That is true. And I have been out here in the sluicing rains and the whistling winds. Still, as long as you dress fittingly . . . . Look-" And Gruber spread his arms open, wide as his smile, as if to embrace the vast expanse of the Palace grounds. "I have my friends-the trees and the lawns and all the animal life forms to keep me company-and growth to encourage in geometric form, even in the winter. Have you ever seen the geometry of the grounds, First Minister?"
"I am looking at it right now, am I not?"
"I mean the plans spread out so you can really appreciate it all-and marvelous it is, too. It was planned by Tapper Savand, over a hundred years ago, and it has been little changed since. Tapper was a great horticulturist, the greatest-and he came from my planet."
"That was Anacreon, wasn't it?"
"Indeed. A far-off world near the edge of the Galaxy, where there is still wilderness and life can be sweet. I came here when I was still an earwet lad, when the present Chief Gardener took power under the old Emperor. Of course, now they're talking of redesigning the grounds." Gruber sighed deeply and shook his head. "That would be a mistake. They are just right as they are now properly proportioned, well balanced, pleasing to the eye and spirit. But it is true that in history, the grounds have occasionally been redesigned. Emperors grow tired of the old and are always seeking the new, as if new is somehow always better. Our present Emperor, may he live long, has been planning the redesign with the Chief Gardener. At least, that is the word that runs from gardener to gardener." This last he added quickly, as if abashed at spreading Palace gossip.
"It might not happen soon."
"I hope not, First Minister. Please, if you have the chance to take some time from all the heart-stopping work you must be after doing, study the design of the grounds. It is a rare beauty and, if I have my way, there should not be a leaf moved out of place, nor a flower, nor a rabbit, anywhere in all these hundreds of square kilometers."
Seldon smiled. "You are a dedicated man, Gruber. I would not be surprised if someday you were Chief Gardener."
"May Fate protect me from that. The Chief Gardener breathes no fresh air, sees no natural sights, and forgets all he has learned of nature. He lives there"-Gruber pointed scornfully-"and I think he no longer knows a bush from a stream unless one of his underlings leads him out and places his hand on one or dips it into the other."
For a moment it seemed as though Gruber would expectorate his scorn, but he could not find any place on which he could bear to spit.
Seldon laughed quietly. "Gruber, it's good to talk to you. When I am overcome with the duties of the day, it is pleasant to take a few moments to listen to your philosophy of life."
"Ah, First Minister, it is no philosopher I am. My schooling was very sketchy."
"You don't need schooling to be a philosopher. Just an active mind and experience with life. Take care, Gruber. I just might have you promoted."
"If you but leave me as I am, First Minister, you will have my total gratitude."
Seldon was smiling