The Last Lotus

Chapter Four

Chapter Four

Around an hour later, a knock can be heard at the doorway of the small home. Kyan has been too invested in his own thoughts to do too many investigations of the small place he will be calling his home for an unprecedented amount of time. He was thinking of all the ways this meeting could go wrong. He could slip up and say something completely outrageous to his father who seems to think he needs to succeed at his studies and be the perfect son, just like all of the things his present-day father always expected from him.

He lets out a small sigh in defeat as he rises from his spot upon the small cushion in front of the  desk, making his way towards the door to greet his unwanted guest. As he opens the door, the figure revealed on the other side, has him rather startled that he almost lets out a gasp.

It looks like his father. The same strong features, bushy eyebrows that he knew growing up, but he looks slightly different from the man he knows. This man holds his hair up in a bun on the top of his head, much like Song Yan does. A small hat is covering his own dark ball of hair on his head. A light sky blue color with that small cloud pattern embroidered into the material. He is sporting a long and greying beard that would have been unusual for his father who always chose to stay clean shaven.

He wears a pair of light blue robes that match Kyan's own, but seem to be a slightly darker shade, more of an ocean blue, rather than a sky blue. The small difference in color must have been something due to different positions in their village. His father who is above him in ranking, and most-likely the highest ranking in the small village.

Kyan nods politely towards the older man, realizing he has been staring for a little too long. "Hello, father I hope that your morning was well." He moves out of the doorway so that the older man can pass through and into the home.

The man smiles politely at his son as he makes his way into the building. "I've just gotten over a meeting with the leader of the Chen village. He was willing to allow an alliance between our two villages by offering one of his daughters into marriage," the man says casually as he takes a seat on the cushion at the small dinner table in the middle of the home.

Kyan suspects where this conversation is already headed as he takes a seat in front of the man at the table. "Marriage?" Kyan asks the other man simply, really hoping that he is wrong about the direction of where the conversation is heading.

It was rather common in ancient China for young men and women to not be able to choose who they were to marry. That decision fell ultimately on their parents. More their fathers than mothers, though they usually had a bit of say as well depending on the family dynamic and time-period. Usually marriage was used for things like alliances and treaties, and not anything as small as love. Back then you had to learn to love who you were chosen to be with, or be miserable for the rest of your life. It was just another sad part of history that made Kyan so glad that he grew up in the time period he did.

"Yes, and I thought it was the perfect time for you to finally get married." 

Kyan knew that this declaration was coming. There was no other reason for the man to bring up such a topic unless it pertained to him, himself. He knows that he has no right to deny the man either, since it is ultimately his decision who he is to marry. Plus, in ancient times it was extremely frowned upon to look down upon your elders in most countries, but China seemed to take it to a whole other level.

So, instead of speaking his mind, he just nods at the other man. "If that is what you think is best, father," he says meekly.