12 Chapter 12

Summer, winter and repeat feel like all there is in a year. Spring is awesome other than that there is so little food and it is a short season. Seeing the newborn animals, flowers in bloom and girls in flimsier clothes is nice. I get to try out all the work I put in over the winter and begin my trading walking down to Banks and sometimes even up to Cliff another village east of Banks. Meeting people and earning money.

Then it is summer with all its work long lazy days and fun. Less fun than before since all my friends work hard. I have turned fourteen and marriage have gone from being a nuisance to serious discussion in the family. At least I have established that I might have a girl in the village, but I will probably not stay, I need to go out and experience the world. It is a need in my bones.

Working the smithy or even being in the temple is no rest for me so I have taken to wandering the woods instead. Having sessions out in the wilderness when I can. My problem with this is that I keep having new pupils when my older ones grow out of my teaching and find their own way. And I kind of love teaching. When summer is over there is winter and all the joys of spending time indoors with family and friends.

I meet Xia, daughter of Cu village head of Bank, after my fifteenth birthday. I have seen her around when visiting Bank earlier, but never really met her. A fleeting introduction here and a bump in there does no a meeting make in my eyes. No there is a need for more, an exchange of words with meaning at least. Xia is a beauty to be sure, but not material for my future wife. She is known to be traditional in her views, she is two years my senior and there are others pursuing her hand for marriage both young and old.

"Su, we have decided you shall marry." My father told me one evening. The conviction in his voice hit me harder than the words. It was clear this was not his idea, but he is in on it. "Oh dear, so father you have decided?" I ask him after silence has reigned between us for some time. I am not happy with how this is turning out, they want to tether me to the village and I don't like it. "Yes, we have, we have entered negotiations with Cu to marry you and Xia." He tells me and his words give me a fright, it seems more serious now than before. "Well, have I met this young woman?" I ask him, I know of her, but I do not know her. Fighting this is just necessary if I find her distasteful, their nagging have ground my resistance away. My family do not even need my consent, or for the marriage to be consummated, for it to be legal.

"Su, it is my pleasure to introduce you too Xia, my daughter." her mother tells me and smile looking between us. The room is filled with relatives overlooking this first meeting. I have no idea why, but it is different from all the meetings my brothers had with their wives and similar to how my sisters first meeting were. I don't like it, for either, I am the horny old man, which is bad. Or it is worse and I am the girl that needs protection. "It is nice to finally meet you, Xia," I tell the girl while looking her over. She has been or has prettied herself up, but someone has done their homework. The dress is tight and shows off her boobs and ass to great effect. "Nice to meet you too." She answers me and smiles while blushing.

With a firm hand and glaring at the others in the room we go out the back to have a chat. "So, this is awkward" is my first words when we get out of the stuffy room with all the relatives. Xia giggles a little and smiles at me. "You might say that." she agrees and flutters her eyes at me. "Well, I imagine we will be able to weather the scandal." Her face turns red when I mention it and she tries to hide her face. We talk some more and soon get over our embarrassment getting down to the nitty-gritty. There is one question I need to be answered by her, or rather three.

"I like you Xia and even with how heavy-handed our parents are handling this I don't think I will fight it too bad." I tell her first "but that is if you are of the same mind." She looks into my eyes for some time searching for answers before speaking. "I will go through with this regardless, but you are right in that a mutually agreed upon relationship would be beneficial." I smile when I hear this and forget all the rest I wanted to say. It is clear to me that Xia has a good mind and her body is smashing, such a wife I can live with.

After this first meeting, there are many others both between me and the families about the marriage contract. Also between me and Xia rehashing the contract and renegotiating it for our own ends and means. This makes the whole process tumultuous and hard to follow, especially since there are four negotiations going at the same time. The fathers do their think, mothers theirs, I and Xia ours and then I and the rest negotiate on the negotiated agreements. After seeing and hearing of the trouble I see the villages splitting and betting on who is going to win. Well, in the end, everyone feels like they have won, but I think Xia is the real winner. Not one of my demands on her was she against, but she played well and got all of her own.

"There we are agreed," Cu says finally after we all have gathered in his house for the last day-long session. It has taken more than a month to come to an agreement, but now finally we have agreed. "Xia is to be Su Mings first wife with all the rights and privileges this entails until she either breaks the contract or they come to some other agreements." Cu begin talking through the main points of the contract. "Su will raise either enough capital to buy a farm or buy a farm for Xia to live and run before again leaving the village. Xia will bring into the marriage rights on transporting goods down to Mao, keeping the farm running and supporting her husband in all matters regardless." Cu takes a drink of tea after this last part since the transport rights are a big deal in Bank villages economy. Xia basically brings with her all the lifeblood in Bank and gives it to me with this marriage. "Su also agrees that any mistresses, concubines, bounded or other women he brings into his bed will be in agreement with Xia either before or as soon as possible thereafter. Xia agrees to bring no man into her bed other than Su." Earlier I would have blushed over this part, but we have been over the words so many times that it can no longer even excites me. "I think that is the salient points," Cu says and look around the room. "Are we all in agreement?" Some nod while others smile, some even sounds their consent with an "aye". "Good, then I hereby sign the contract," Cu says and makes three crosses at the bottom, my father follows while I sign my own name. Some men step forward to sign their own name or crosses under it. I am in practice married, only the ceremony is left.

Cu is called the "head" instead of "chief" because of the charter of the village. Most of the people in Banks are bound farmers and the position of the village head is hereditary. This is unlike here in Rapid where the position is up for election and the families are freeborn. This is because Rapid is actually an older village than Bank and was founded when one of the older dynasties in the area fell. I have no idea of the circumstances, mostly since I just am not interested. Being married to the village heads firstborn daughter means that I need to have some Idea. It also means I have to travel to the capital and secure more land and other rights to establish an estate.