The week before the wedding my uncle and his wife arrived with their children and their families. They stayed at the inn instead of the compound due to it being occupied with so many “dangerous martial artists”. Monkey’s  younger, unmarried sister, Qing Qing, came over every day to help put the finishing touches on the wedding clothes I had sewn for Cao and I. His sisters-in-law and mother rushed around taking care of the daily tasks so Ping-Ping could focus on wedding preparations my father had requested for her to do.

 

“The gods have smiled upon you, Li-Li,” Qing Qing said in a cheerful tone. “You’re a really lucky girl.”

 

“What do you mean by that?” I asked curious to hear her response. “My father is dead and 2 of my brothers are no longer living at home. How is this lucky?”

 

“I know the circumstances aren’t the best but the man you will marry is an answer to any girl’s prayers. He is handsome, a natural leader, successful and he loves you! Li-Li, you have what most girls want but can’t have.”

 

She was right. Cao was what every girl and her mother could want in a husband.  

 

“My husband is probably a short, round man with bad skin,” she sighed. “I will tell you who I think is handsome and a good choice for a husband.”

 

I already knew her answer but I let Qing Qing continue wistfully in her thoughts.  It was a dream that wouldn’t come true for her. The one she adored would not be approved by her father for two reasons, he was a martial artist and a member of the Iron Flag Clan. Qing Qing had loved Luo Xin for about 3 years. She was only 17 and he was 4 years her senior. He would never see her as anything but Monkey’s little sister. She was very disappointed, almost heartbroken when she arrived and discovered Leopard was no longer living at the compound.

 

“Are you sure Luo Xin will not return for the wedding?” she asked forlorn. “He just might surprise you and bring Monkey back.”

 

“It’s too soon,” I replied matter of factly. “It will take at least 30 days for Monkey to travel there and back. He hasn’t been gone long enough yet. I pray every day that they return in time. It seems impossible!” I had resigned myself to neither Monkey nor Leopard returning home ever.  

 

“Time to eat. Would you like to be served in here or the dining room?” Ah Wei, Monkey’s oldest sister in law asked.  

 

“We would like to eat in here,” Qing Qing answered with a smile on her face and a slyness in her voice. “Will you join us?” she asked her sister. “I am sure Li-Li has some questions she would like to ask you about married life.” Then she started to giggle. Qing Qing could be quite mischievous in her own right. I knew she was up to something but I didn’t expect her to drag me into her plan.

 

Of course I had questions, but I wasn’t going to ask them! I wouldn’t say I am a proper Chinese girl but I wouldn’t dare cross the line in this manner. I figured I would learn certain things as I went. If I were to ask anyone, I would talk with Ping-Ping as she was like a mother to me. I wouldn’t ask someone I have just met. I’ll let Qing Qing do all the talking in this conversation. If the conversation happened at all. I don’t expect Ah Wei would answer any of our questions.

 

“What are you upto?” I questioned my young cousin. “Ah Wei is too proper to answer any of your prying questions. I don’t think she will stay and eat with us. Your mother has her on a short rope.”

 

“I just thought you might like to know what to expect after the wedding feast,” Qing Qing explained. “You’re right. Mother will never let her stay and talk with us. Besides, she’s the older and more reserved sister-in-law.”

 

Our meal was brought to us by Qing Qing’s second sister in law, Chen Li-yan, who was just a year older than I was. She had just recently married Monkey’s second brother and was more likely to talk about her experiences. On the tray she carried was enough food for 3 people. She was willing to sit and have her meal with us. This was going to be an interesting conversation, I thought to myself.

 

“Ah Wei is busy helping Mother with the laundry and cleaning,” Li-yan stated as she gingerly placed the food on the table. “She sent me to keep you company. Mother said I was getting in the way so it is better for me to help in here.”

 

Qing Qing giggled.  

 

“One good thing about your marriage, Li-Li, is you won’t have a mother-in-law to tell you what to do,” Li-yan sighed. “No one to criticize everything you do.”

 

“Also, no one to guide me,” I replied. “I am thankful for Ping-Ping who will help me the best she can even though she was never married.”

 

“Ah Wei said you might have questions about the wedding night. You can ask but I may not answer.”

 

“Were you nervous?” I asked

 

“I was more than nervous,” Li-yan stated. “I was terrified. Locked in a room with a man I didn’t know. I was shaking. But Yuan Kuan Tai is very nice and tried to calm me down. We talked for awhile before anything happened.”

 

“What did you talk about?” inquired Qing Qing. “My brother is boring. All he knows are books and numbers. I can’t wait until he takes the next level of Imperial Exams. Then we won’t have to hear him talk about it day and night.” She rolled her eyes as she spoke. She was hoping for a more exciting life with her future husband. A scholar was not who she wanted to marry.

 

“We discussed poetry and his plans for the future. We talked about the number of sons we would have and where we would live when he passes the highest Imperial Exam and is given a government position.”

 

“I already know about Tiger and our future together,” I began wistfully. “We will live here and he will lead our clan. We will have many sons who will follow in their father’s footsteps. The oldest will take over and continue to pass their fighting skills on to the next generation.” My life was all planned out and predictable.  

 

“I am sure these are not the questions you want answers to,” Li-yan smiled. “You are wondering about when a man unites with a woman physically. Am I right?”

 

My face turned the shade of red of the lucky money envelopes the guest would bring on the day of the wedding and my mouth dropped open. I quickly closed it but it fell open again in pure shock.

 

Qing Qing on the other hand giggled. This was her plan all along. She wanted details that I didn’t want. But she would never get the answers she was looking for as there was a knock on the door. Li-yan rose to open it and inquired who was on the other side as she slowly glided on bound feet to the door. It was a servant delivering a package for me. Li-yan opened the door and took the package. She returned to the table and placed the red wrapped box and letter in front of me.

 

“I wonder who it is from?” the three of us asked in unison.

 

Carefully I unwrapped the box, took off the lid and removed the paper. Inside the box laid a delicate gold finger ring. As I the lovely ring, I realized this was another token of love from Cao Feng. Every year, a few days before my birthday, since my hair pinning ceremony at age 15, Tiger sent me a token of his love with a note. At 15, he sent a pair of beautiful mandarin duck hairpins with our names carved on each one. On my 16th birthday, I wore a lavender silk skirt embroidered with pink cherry blossoms he had especially made for me. Perfumed satchels which smelled of the peach blossoms from the grove behind our house were presented to me on my 17th birthday. A pair of pearl earrings arrived on my 18th birthday and on my 19th, a green jade bracelet with the words love happiness and blessings carved on it.

 

“Read the letter,” implored Li-yan.

 

“Out loud so we can hear,” demanded Qing Qing. She knew me well enough to know I would keep this letter private unless asked directly.

 

“Always remember I love you. Cao Feng.” I read aloud. The note was short, sweet and powerful. I quickly put my newest token of love and letter with the others in the jewelry box my father had given me on my 14th birthday. Also in the box were pieces of my mother’s jewelry she had left for me when she died and some jewelry my father had given me.  

 

“You really are lucky,” Qing Qing stated wistfully. “Everything seems to be a match made in the Heavens by the Gods. Your red strings are truly attached to one another.”

 

“Her father and the matchmaker made the match. Of course it is perfect.” Li-yan stated the facts of our society. If your father and matchmaker agreed, it must be perfect. This made Li-yan different than Qing Qing and I. We mostly believed in the traditions of society but marrying for love was more important to us. We wanted to spend our lives with someone who appreciated and loved us.

 

The morning of my birthday and wedding began early as the women of the family woke me before the sun rose and the rooster began to crow. Ping-Ping was the first through the door followed by my aunt and 3 cousins. This is way too early for anyone to be up when the actual ceremony doesn’t take place until evening.  

 

“Your father wanted to make sure your birthday didn’t get lost in the chaos of the wedding,” Ping-Ping began as she was lighting candles around the room. After a few candles were lit, I became aware that each woman was carrying something and were smiling.

 

“To begin your day, your favorite fruit,” my aunt presented me with two perfect peaches. Their sweet aroma gently floated through the air as she placed them on the table.

“We each give to you 2 freshly picked lilies,” Qing Qing said as she placed her flowers in the empty vase Ping-Ping had placed on the table when she first entered the room. Li-yan and Ah Wei followed behind their sister-in-law.

 

A male servant entered the room carrying a long thin red box and a letter. Another love token from Cao Feng? I just received a gift yesterday. I was surprised to say the least.

 

Noticing the puzzled look on my face, Ping-Ping cautioned, “This isn’t what you think it is. Open the letter first and then you will understand.”

 

I examined the writing on the outside carefully and realized at once who the gift was from. The writing wasn’t small and precise like Cao’s but larger with a little flourish.  The handwriting was that of my mother, which brought a flood of memories of her teaching me how to write. Our handwriting was very similar. This gift obviously had been purchased many years ago.

 

Dearest Daughter,

 

We are saddened that you are leaving our home for that of your husband but you have everything you need to enjoy the happiness of life and to bear the burdens and hardships as well. Your flute playing has progressed very well. This gift will help you and your husband celebrate the good times and shoulder the bad ones. Always remember that music can change the tide of the soul.

 

Mom and Dad

 

I unwrapped the flute quickly and carefully. It was much better than the one I already owned. The bamboo was stained red and was polished to look as if it had been lacquered. The words for joy, love, wealth and health were carved in gold along it body.  

 

I put the flute up to my lips and began to play a sad tune in remembrance of my parents who would not be here to celebrate this day with us. After seeing the looks of sadness on the other ladies’ faces, I changed the tune to a happier one to match the occasion. A birthday and a wedding should be celebrated with laughter and dancing, not with tears and sorrow.  As the mood in the room became lively, Qing Qing being the only unmarried girl danced for us. The other women clapped quietly so as not to awaken the still slumbering house.

 

Ping-Ping was the first to notice the sunlight breaking through the windows. “We must cut this celebration short and finish the details before the sun begins to set again.”

 

“There aren’t many things to be done,” Ah Wei stated. It is too early to prepare Li-Li for the ceremony.”

 

“The everyday things still need to be done. After we have completed the morning routine, we can get Li-Li prepared.” My aunt’s suggestion was heeded and the ladies filed out of my room one by one.  

 

I could get some rest but I really needed to visit my parents and pay respects to them. I had gone with my father every year on this day to visit mother. Today was the first birthday I would go alone to visit both of them. I knew I had to slip out of the compound unnoticed and carefully. I shouldn’t see Cao Feng until our ceremony or bad luck would fall on our marriage. I put on my black hooded cape and peeped out the door, holding my breath until I was sure no one was in the corridors.  

 

Quickly and without a sound I made my way down the back staircase and toward the servant’s entrance in the back. I took one more glance over my shoulder as I slid through the back gate and onto the path that would lead me to my parents’ graves. The closer I got to the graves the faster my pace became. When I arrived, I immediately knelt and began taking offerings out of my little basket. After the offering was made and the incense was lit, I kowtowed 3 times. I asked them to bless our marriage and send us many sons. I promised dad we would find his killer and avenge him. I kowtowed 3 more times and left. I didn’t want to be caught outside the compound without an or I would have to suffer the consequences of not only the Iron Tiger but also Ping-Ping and my aunt.

 

“Where were you?” Qing Qing asked as soon as I opened the door. “If someone else had found your room empty, you would be in trouble. Nevermind!” She helped me remove my hooded cape and threw it on my bed. She was in a rush but I couldn’t understand why.

 

“The others are preparing your scented bath and clothing for the wedding.” she responded to my puzzled look. “They will need your wedding gown and the hairpins you will wear. And where are Cao Feng’s clothes?” Her eyes searched the room for his red wedding clothes embroidered with tigers she helped me complete only the day before. I rushed to my wardrobe to remove the cherished garments I had placed with the perfumed sachets he had given me. I wanted the scent to linger on his clothes as he dressed and remind him of me and the love we shared.

 

Qing Qing took the garments down the hall and returned rather quickly. She then removed my wedding attire from the wardrobe and placed them on the bed. Then she escorted me to the bathing room. Inside awaited my aunt, Ping-Ping, Ah Wei and Li-yan who were standing around a hot bath perfumed with cherry blossoms and lavender. During the bathing ritual the women sang prayers of happiness, longevity and many sons over me as they burned incense.

 

When we returned to my bedroom, my aunt, being my closest and oldest female relative helped me dress in the wedding clothes lying on the bed. The red skirt Cao had given me was my favorite part of the ensemble followed by the tunic I embroidered with a dragon and a phoenix to cover most of the skirt. My aunt used the mandarin duck hairpins to capture my hair in intricate buns on top of my head. Ping-Ping presented me with the headdress my mother wore on her wedding day. My aunt pinned the headpiece over the buns with hairpins my father had given me. Lastly, I slid my feet into a brand new pair of ruby red slippers embroidered with the double happiness signs. Ping-Ping covered me with the red wedding scarf to hide my face from view and helped me to  stand.

 

We could hear people approaching the chamber’s outer door just before a loud knock, which I knew belonged to my one true love, Cao Feng. The younger women went to the door and playfully tried to keep Tiger from collecting me. They complained that he was stealing their friend away. After a few minutes of this jovial banter, Tiger presents them with “bribes” in festive red envelopes.

 

Ping-Ping and my aunt escorted me to the door where Cao is patiently waiting. As we walk, the women sadly cry about how much they will miss me  and wish I could stay. Someone places one end of a red sash with a bow in the middle into my hands. The other end is already in the hands of my husband to be. Each woman pats a shoulder and sends me on my way. A band plays joyful music as we make our way to the ancestral hall where the ceremony will take place. Cao and I are guided to stand in front of the altar and the officiant lights incense then asked us to kneel.

 

“Bow to Heaven and and Earth,” chanted the officiant. Cao and I did as we were instructed. We were asked to bow 2 more times: once to our ancestors and parents who my aunt and uncle stood in for and once to each other. We stood facing each other and Cao Feng removed my wedding scarf to signal the official ceremony was over. We both smiled lovingly at one another before turning to face our guest, who were equally as happy.

 

After the ceremony we were escorted to the bridal chamber by our closest wedding guest. We sat on the bed and drank from the nuptial cup that had belonged to my mother and father. The elders threw happiness-embodying nuts to ensure a lifetime of happiness for us while they bantered playfully about the wedding night and our future children. The biggest laughs came when someone made me blush a shade of red to match our wedding attire and the bridal decorations.

 

We then headed back to the dining hall where everyone would be treated to a 10 course meal which began with long noodle soup to celebrate my birthday. Cao Feng seemed to take special care to not break the noodles and shorten my life. I smiled a thank you to him when he noticed I was staring at him. He smiled back and squeezed my hand reassuringly.

 

In between the courses Cao and his 2 underlings, Gao Deng and Chen Xiang, walked around and greeted guests. I joined them for the first 4 tables of family and important people in town. We were toasted by the the men as we made stops at the tables. Cao and the younger brothers drank wine until we reached the third table when the trio’s cups began to be filled with water. Later I learned this was done to prevent the groom from becoming intoxicated as the wine served was exceptionally potent.

 

Finally after all the courses had been served and the last prank had been played, the guest left the feast. My family, Cao and I lined up by the entrance and thanked each guest for attending the celebration and bid them a good night. We thanked everyone for coming before retiring to our bridal chamber alone. We walked slowly hand in hand to the room we would call our sanctuary as a married couple. I was nervous about what was to happen next. Cao appeared confident and secure in how the rest of the night would unfold.

 

When we arrived at our door, Tiger picked me up and carried me over the little pile of coals left burning to ensure we would have many sons. Once inside the chamber, he placed me gently on the bed and sat down beside me. My hands began to tremble slightly so Cao took them in his and kissed them tenderly.  

“Don’t be nervous,” he reassured me in a whisper as he leaned in to kiss my cheek and then my neck. “Remember, I’ll always love and take care of you. Everything I do is for us.” He pulled me into him and kissed me like never before. This kiss was not like the quick meeting of our lips we would steal when we thought no one was looking. This kiss was full of passion and love. Of hope and promise. As the kiss became more passionate, my lips parted and his eager tongue found its way inside to dance with mine. I could feel his hands quickly undo the buttons of my dress. As the fabric slid away from my body, I suddenly became shy and pulled away.

 

Sensing my hesitation, Tiger began to his own tunic.  

 

“I’ll help you,” I said regaining my composure. I stood and walked behind him to remove the ornate headdress he wore. I placed it carefully on the table, removed my own and sat it next to his. When I turned around to face him, I was surprised to see him standing there, undressed, waiting for me to return to his side where I belonged. Before I returned to my rightful place, I removed the Mandarin duck hairpins allowing my midnight black hair to cascade down my back to my waist. I untied the strings that held my bellyband in place. I allowed the garments that covered the lower half of my body to slide delicately to the floor in a pool of red and quickly stepped out of my ruby red slipper to cross the room to my love. Once I was back in his arms, the passion enveloped us both as we became one.

 

In the early morning hours before the sun rose, I awoke to begin my first day as Lady Cao, the woman in charge of the household. I was now taking over most of the duties Ping-Ping carried out even after my father had died. I tried to quickly and quietly remove myself from my lover’s arms but Tiger had a firm but loving grip on me. As soon as I made a move, the slumbering Tiger was awake and ready to pounce on whoever disturbed his sanctuary.

 

“It is too early for the Lady to leave her Lord on the day after they wed,“ he whispered into my hair. “Stay a little longer. No one will miss you except me.”

 

I turned to face my love and even through the darkness, I could make out the features of his strikingly handsome face. I could feel the heat of his stare and I could feel the desire in his touch as he pulled me closer and held me tighter.

 

“Whatever Chief Cao wants, Chief Cao gets,” The words were barely out of my mouth before his lips covered mine and we became one once more.

 

“It seems the Lord has kept his lady from rising early and completing her morning duties,” Ping-Ping said as I finally entered the kitchen. The sun was just beginning to shine its first rays into the windows on the East side of the compound. “Did you sleep well last night?”

 

My face was a rosy shade of red as I passed the female servants who had already begun their chores for the day. “I slept very well. Thank you. I guess I overslept a little this morning. I’ll try not to let it happen again.”

 

The servants giggled as I spoke. I am sure they are well aware of why I was late coming down. I heard the light footsteps and swishing of skirts go by not long before I was able to convince Tiger to let me go.