Somewhere In Between

“This Storm you speak of is completely metaphorical, and does not deserve such urgency!”

“That voice is Lin Wei,” Whispers Yi into your ear, “He is the current head of the Lin Family, one of the six Great Houses here in Bei Ma. His brother was one of the fools that crossed me after your father’s ****. Therefore, his brother is not the head of the family anymore.”

“What happened to Lin Wei’s brother?” You ask, perhaps a bit naively. And since speaking in the Court was not allowed for the Emperor, except in exigent circumstances, you practically mouthed the words.

Yi smiles, “He’s suffering a fate far worse than ****.” And she provided no other details.

“Our walls protect us from the demons congregating in the North. The Heaven Spires Protect us naturally from the West. The Celestial Sea prevents enemies from the East. And those tribal barbarians to the South, as much as they try to mimic us, are…inferior. No threat outside our borders has disrupted trade or wealth creation.”

“That is Zhu Fang,” Whispers Yi, “Head of the Zhu Family, another Great House. He’s…very rich.”

The original house member that interrupted talks about your concubines and wife speaks again, “And yet the Hinyu peoples to our southwest have been **** into battle against this New Empire forming in the West. If their forests of miasma cannot repel these invaders, then what? There is an open door to our borders that has never had to be defended before!”

“Ma Jun is the one that called for a court hearing today, he is the one shouting.” Yi’s breath tickles your ear once more, “A bit of an alarmist, but his prowess in battle is notable. He once stopped a horde of demons with a stampede of cavalry when our Great Wall was breached. Women say Jun is hung like a horse too, something they’ll never say about you.”

Yi smiles at her own joke. She’s been awfully mean to you since you became Emperor officially.

“Now-now, Master Ma Jun. Perhaps a compromise can be reached? Let’s have a military analyst sail to the land of the Hinyu, and see if this Western Empire is of any actual threat?”

“That is a great idea, Master Tang Li! I will fund this expedition, so that all our minds can be put at ease. If you’d like, Master Ma Jun, you can join our analyst.”

“Tang Li and Han Lian, respectively,” Yi informs you again. Knowing you have never heard or seen these people before, “Li’s a great ponderer, and Lian is an altruist.”

The deliberations continue for some time, and you ask, “Who’s the head of the last Great House?”

“Song Qian.” Yi says curtly. “He’s not important, and rarely speaks his voice.”

Soon, the Great Houses reach an agreement that a contingent of forces led by Ma Jun would sail for the Hinyu peninsula. It almost seemed like they were just trying to get rid of the master of horses.

“It is settled then!” Proclaims your Chancellor, Zhangnu. “Let us return to the previous matter again. Have the Great Houses any daughters for the new Emperor?”

Your ears perk up again. Yi smiles at your reaction, knowingly. Unfortunately, the Great Houses seem **** to offer any daughters to you as potential wives.

At least I’ll still have my concubines! You think to yourself. That is, until a small commotion started beyond the canvas wall separating you from the court. It seems Song Qian, the unimportant one by Yi’s appraisal, raised a hand with a single digit extended. His offering of one daughter. As if that single action started a bidding war, the other Great Houses jumped in.

Yi’s lips touched your ear as she offered an explanation, “As is custom, your councilors and I have written scrolls describing you in explicit detail to the Great Houses, and petty houses. Their **** shows a lack of confidence in you. Either because of who your father is, or how we described you, I can’t say.” You swear she looked at your groin again as she said that, agitating you, “What’s to gain? A member of their house as Empress. What’s to lose? The ones you don’t choose as your wife become concubines. While still an honorable position in the Imperial house, it does not carry as much prestige.”

“House Lin offers one as well, she’s just come of age.” Says Lin Wei.

“House Ma obliges one. Twenty-one, and a huntress.” Sighs Ma Jun.

“House Zhu offers my beautiful rose flower. Whose thorns are as cunning as they are sharp.” Announces Zhu Fang.

“House Tang has yet to find a suitable daughter.” Moans Tang Li.

“House Han can only offer one, but I wish I had hundreds to provide.” Smiles Han Lian.

“Does House Xue accept these offerings?” Asks your Chancellor Zhangnu from your left. You don’t really get a choice, nor could you speak, so you just nod. It was a nod that was probably only visible through the canvas via shadows, so Zhangnu continues, “Your Celestial Emperor accepts these offerings!”

The rest of court was boring, and adjourned just in time for lunch, a lunch provided by the Palace. As your staff beyond the canvas got to work providing meals for everyone one who showed up, they served you and councilors as well. The once moderately silent courtroom erupted with the voices of hundreds of guests. In the meantime, your council spoke behind the canvas.

“It must have been very shameful for house Tang to lack a daughter to offer.” Said Yaomei, her fox ear twitching slightly.

“Elfkin are not quick to procreate, and the last daughter Tang offered to Emperor Dai did not even get to touch him.” Said Chen.

“Our Celestial Emperor Xue Yun accepted all the offerings, there is no shame on House Tang,” Said Regent Empress Yi, “A shame, an elf wife would be best suited for our Celestial Emperor given his…anyway I’m more curious what you have to say about Ma Jun’s claims of an empire building to the West, General Haojie.”

“Problematic if they continue to be hostile beyond the Hinyu lands, but promising if they’d be open to trade.” replied Haojie.

As usual, they conversed like you were not present. The Emperor rarely had need to speak. You ate your meal and drank your tea. You were then guided by a troop of eunuchs back to your quarters, one of them being your Royal Steward.