It was announced that the astrologists’ calculations would be provided the next day, after the tea ceremony. And right after that the guests would have to leave for their homes.
Chapter Three
Tossing out a brick to get a jade gem
Shi did not like the ceremony, but it was his duty to be present there, because that moment was to determine his fate. One of those guests was to become a relative of his children. The women were looking at him, and everyone was remembering her wedding ceremony, and it was evident that some women were even trying the role of his future bride themselves, which made their cheeks flush even through the thick layer of powder, betraying them. Their attire and hairdos were incredibly sophisticated constructions, and to describe even one of them you would need as much silk as it took to make their outfit. It was a fireworks of forms, colours, and filigree details. A multitude of embroidered flowers, birds, bamboo shoots, could fit onto a tiny piece of silk, the size of a child’s palm, without making it heavier.
A special pride of each woman was her fan. It served as the extension of her hand, and the extension of her sight, and a magic item of power for each of them. None of them would exchange her fan for a diamond necklace, although their costs were comparable, because the fans were unique pieces of the finest art. Every lady was a virtuoso in using her fan, so that if she were prohibited from talking, the fan would speak on her behalf.
Never in his life had Shi seen so many exquisite granddames. His heart was beating violently, although none of them had incited a desire in him. For him it was the first time that he was confronting the feminine element, something unknowable. It was a different world, infinite and scary. He had a feeling that he was sitting alone, absolutely naked and unprotected, and he felt their sight, and hands stretching out for him, touching him, teasing him. He was doing his best to control himself and look relaxed, but the jade baton did not want to obey him and was responding to their furtive, imaginary caresses.
The incenses were smoky, helping everybody to relax and indulge in pleasant conversation, but they could not suppress the notes of jasmine, cananga, geranium, patchouli, lavender, cinnamon, rosemary, neroli, rose, which made hearts now beat faster, now flutter. These fragrances were thronging the senses, sending the present moment from their minds. The women knew what they were doing. They had been preparing for this visit thoroughly, choosing the best perfumes to harmonise with their bodies. But there were too many of them. Overlaying each other, the scents of their bodies, which combined finest attars and feminine hormones, were awaking the deepest and the most ancient layers of the consciousness. They were causing bellicose excitement in men and making their bodies inject immense amounts of adrenaline into their blood.