Updates will be sporadic, unlike my other blog 'HypoThought', which I'm hoping to update every day.
Anyway, without further ado, and bearing in mind this a copyrighted work in progress (And as such subject to change at any time, so no complaints, only constructive criticism!)
I introduce, The Silk Princess...
The Silk Princess
I am assured that it is customary to begin a short story by setting the scene, and so it begins.
This particular tale fell in the year of 1669, upon the island locally known as Nippon, however to my English speaking readers I believe that the name Japan would be more recognisable. In the south east of this peculiar island, there fell a principality by the name of Kii, administered over by a Daimyo, or ‘Warlord’ to you and I, by the name of Lord Hatakeyama. His subordinate, Yoshimo Atekayo, was the District Governor for a peculiar corner of this province that was known to the locals as Tenshun. It is here that our story begins and, accordingly, ends – Though we’ll get to that in due course.
It was the eve of the first day of the silk harvesting season in Tenshun District, and Yu Yan was completing his traditional yearly ritual of walking through the mulberry trees, inspecting the harvest and making note of the quantity and quality of the goods. He enjoyed this activity immensely, and found that the evening light, combined with the silence of the mulberry groves and the gentle summers wind provided an entirely pleasant experience, at least as far as any menial job in medieval Japan was likely to be. He whistled as he walked, noting quantity on a wooden tablet he carried with him, overlaid with mulberry paper, as irony would have it.
As Yu Lan continued to mark down his findings, progressing through the grove at a leisurely pace, he mused to himself that this year appeared to be a particularly fine one for the Silk Farmers of Tenshun district, and he found his mind wandering to the rewards of a particularly fine crop. Beef was one of Yu Lan’s most favourite foods, and one which he rarely managed to try, being of the lower classes, and as he leaned against a mulberry tree, taking a break from the ministration of his mulberry paper to consider what he might do with a fine piece of beef, he found himself the subject of a most extraordinary address.
This particular tale fell in the year of 1669, upon the island locally known as Nippon, however to my English speaking readers I believe that the name Japan would be more recognisable. In the south east of this peculiar island, there fell a principality by the name of Kii, administered over by a Daimyo, or ‘Warlord’ to you and I, by the name of Lord Hatakeyama. His subordinate, Yoshimo Atekayo, was the District Governor for a peculiar corner of this province that was known to the locals as Tenshun. It is here that our story begins and, accordingly, ends – Though we’ll get to that in due course.
It was the eve of the first day of the silk harvesting season in Tenshun District, and Yu Yan was completing his traditional yearly ritual of walking through the mulberry trees, inspecting the harvest and making note of the quantity and quality of the goods. He enjoyed this activity immensely, and found that the evening light, combined with the silence of the mulberry groves and the gentle summers wind provided an entirely pleasant experience, at least as far as any menial job in medieval Japan was likely to be. He whistled as he walked, noting quantity on a wooden tablet he carried with him, overlaid with mulberry paper, as irony would have it.
As Yu Lan continued to mark down his findings, progressing through the grove at a leisurely pace, he mused to himself that this year appeared to be a particularly fine one for the Silk Farmers of Tenshun district, and he found his mind wandering to the rewards of a particularly fine crop. Beef was one of Yu Lan’s most favourite foods, and one which he rarely managed to try, being of the lower classes, and as he leaned against a mulberry tree, taking a break from the ministration of his mulberry paper to consider what he might do with a fine piece of beef, he found himself the subject of a most extraordinary address.
To be continued!
Cheerio
~The Thinker
