25th Year of Emperor Yama
You are Goku Midoriyama, the Lord of Clan Midoriyama.
Thanks to your illustrious father's deeds, the fief of Midoriyama was bestowed upon you on your 15th birthday.
You have always been known as a healthy man who knows no fever and no waste of spirit - some say it is blessings of the divine spirits, some it is the will of the God itself.
The day your fief was bestowed upon you, you also decreed your Adherence - to the illustrious teachings of the Old Master. It puts you in graces of sages and common folk alike, but the fellow nobles as well as clan warriors are a bit dissappointed. The monks who follow the Path of Zen are at odds with those of Konfucian leaning.
You sit on your wooden throne and your servants and retainers, captains and soldiers, relatives and subjects, prostrate themselves before your throne.
Minister of Scrolls presents you the wooden scroll containing the curious writings:
Villages: 1
Castles: 1
Honour: Respectable
Adherence: Decent
Clan Rank: Fourth
Your Honour, as a Lord, must be an example to all; your Adherence to your own beliefs should also be honed; and the lower the Rank, the closer you are to the graces of the Imperial Family.
You know that if you fall to the Sixth, you will be akin to a wealthy commoner, and nothing stops your neighbour or rival or even a traveling swordsman from challenging you to leadership of Midoriyama. Despite all that happens in the future, you must avoid the Sixth Rank.
This is all you know.
25th Year of Emperor Yama, Earth Season
Songbirds chirp happily in the skies while fruit trees slowly adorn themselves with leaves. Elsewhere, peasants sow the first greenstalks and plant the red beans.
You, on the other hand, walk through the halls of your square castle, listening to the sounds of the household.
They seem a little... empty. You might be a Lord, but you own very little.
Perhaps...
A) Voices of scholars could fill the halls?
B) Laughter of a wife and maybe few concubines could break the silence?
C) Some songbirds and laughing cranes would add some music to your gardens?
D) This is as it should be?
As an adherent of the Old Master, it is only natural that learned men and wordly sages dwell in your fort.
You send your servants with the news that Midoriyama Clan seeks intellectuals for employ.
25th Year of Emperor Yama, Mid-Earth Season
One of the guards enters your study and kneels, bowing his head till it touches the bamboo mat.
"Lord Midoriyama, a footpad has arrived at the gates. Your neighbour, Lord Nekogawa, with an entourage of retainers, will soon be visiting your castle. The footpad said that Lord Nekogawa wishes to meet his newest neighbour." You call in the Minister of Ceremonies to ask about all this.
"It is customary for Lords to visit their close friends, long-time rivals, and newest neighbours. He might be willing to strike a business with you, though, given you're freshly ennobled and without a wife."
"Should I refuse him?" You ask, and Minister of Ceremonies grimaces.
"You could, of course, as your are Lord of this castle. Of course, this will endear you to no one within Clan Nekogawa." You wager that you have few minutes before you should prepare to greet Lord Nekogawa - as the Old Master teaches, one should not pose a challenge without learning about those they challenge first.
A) Ask the Minister of Ceremonies how to greet your honored guest properly.
B) Ask the Minister of Ceremonies about Clan Nekogawa and its Lord more thoroughly.
C) Ask the Minister of Ceremonies how to show your Clan's hospitality in the best way.
D) Ask the guard to send the footpad away - you wish to see no guests today.