Chapter 12 - Festival Preparations

“Do you want to be my knight?”

A simple question but that concealed many hidden meanings.

The choice of the knight for the young village ladies was a critical decision. It was said that the person who you chose for that night had a high chance of becoming the future lady's husband.

This was because the lively and festive atmosphere of the event, combined with the beauty and charm of the night, created a unique romantic mood. And that was such a rare sight in a rural village like theirs.

But, even if this wouldn’t happen, it was still a crucial moment in the life of the village women. Therefore, it was vital to at least bring a person with whom they felt comfortable.

With the anxiety that gripped her chest, Lei Lei’s eyes were fixed, with trepidation and fear, on Hei, who was surprised by her invitation.

‘Knight? Mom said they were soldiers who fight on horseback, but I don't think this is the meaning in this case. But from how she's behaving, I think it's important to Lei Lei.’

Hei didn’t understand the weight of this request very well. Children usually learned the meaning of couple and love between spouses/fiancés through their parents' interactions. However, Hei had only Bao Bei as an example.

He knew that she had once had a partner and that he was the father of Xing and Ye, but her mother had always preferred not to mention him, saying that it wasn’t yet the right time to talk about him.

Nevertheless, he had seen some couple relationships by observing the various people in the village. He had noticed how men sometimes tried to do romantic actions for important occasions, to be forgiven or simply to thank their partners for their support.

Since Lei Lei had been of great help in these years and because it was at the same time a special event, as described by Lei Bai, Hei decided to follow what he had observed from others.

"Yes, that's fine. I will be your knight for the event. "

At those words, while Lei Lei breathed a sigh of relief and wore a radiant smile on her lips, Lei Bai burst out laughing heartily. "Ahaha, Ahaha, well-done boy. But you better not think it's an easy event. Since you're the couple who will open the dances, everyone's attention will be on the two of you, so you can't look bad. In this regard, you know how to dance, boy?"

"How to dance?" Hei asked, puzzled.

This perplexity was normal. Bao Bei had mostly taught her children about human society in general: aspects like writing and reading were necessary, but things like singing and dancing were left out. Or rather, he had seen these things, but from the forest animals. He strongly doubted that the love rituals used by animals had the same meaning as human dancing or could be appropriate for the event.

Seeing himself being answered with another question, Lei Bai considered it as a no and laughed again. "You don't know how to dance then. This isn’t good. The festival is in a couple of weeks, so we have little time. Listen to me; for this purpose, you are exempt from work. You will have to spend your time learning to dance. Lei Lei will be your teacher. "

"Dad? What?"

"Well, you and Hei are the ones that would dance together. It's more than reasonable for you to be his teacher. Or do you want me to ask one of the other girls? "

"No! Ok, all right. I will do it. Yes, there are no problems. I can do it.” She replied while her face flushed.

This responsibility, although an honor, was also a source of anxiety. That was because she didn’t want to look bad in front of everyone. Therefore, the possibility of getting familiar while she was teaching Hei was an excellent proposal.

"Well, it's decided then. But now, let's eat that I'm hungry. Without food in the stomach, you can't work. "

Once finished eating, Lei Bai locked himself up in his workshop while leaving Lei Lei and He in the main room, which had been cleared of various furniture to make room and proceed with the dance lessons.

"Well, Let’s start then … There are various types of dances, but what is used for the festival is called slow waltz. The dance consists of only three steps, so it is quite simple. The difficulty is to coordinate the steps with the music and keep the movements fluid. The idea is to build a square where the couple dances, and you should also slightly rotate as you move. So, let me show you how to do it. "

After the brief explanation, Lei Lei proceeded to show Hei how to put his feet to advance or retreat while following the imaginary square.

As they had to put their hands over each other’s backs, the beginning was somewhat embarrassing for Lei Lei. She tried to calm her thoughts by sighing deeply as she turned her attention to teaching Hei the moves.

Although he was a bit clumsy at the beginning because he wasn’t very familiar with the style, Hei soon became familiar with the steps. Fortunately, thanks to his training, he had remarkable body flexibility and an excellent balance.

It took a couple of hours, but in the end, Hei understood how to move without looking stiff and without going out of time. Now, all he needed to do was to synchronize his movements with those of Lei Lei correctly. The young girl became happy and amazed that Hei had learned so quickly how to dance the slow waltz.

After all, the festival was only a couple of weeks away. Therefore, the sooner Hei learned the basic steps, the sooner they could practice the real thing.

When they finished their session, Lei Bai had long since finished his job and had been looking at them with a satisfied expression. Then, he cleared his throat and turned towards his daughter.

"Good, I see that things are going well. I would say that for now, it may be enough. You can practice later or in the coming days anyway. Didn’t you have to the herbalist? You should better hurry up."

"Ah, right. With the dance matter, I was just about to forget. Then I'll go. See you later then. Hei, for the lessons, we can try later when I get back, okay?" Lei Lei said as she went inside her home quickly to get her things and went out just as fast to go to the herbalist on the other side of the village.

Once she left, Lei Bai approached Hei and asked in a low voice. "Listen, Hei, there's something I want to ask you, or rather your mother. As you can see, this event is important for the village girls, so the dress is essential.

Usually, the mother sews the dress for her daughter, but unfortunately, my wife passed away many years ago. Even if it's just a bit, I want to make this occasion special for Lei Lei. So, I wondered if you could ask your mother if she could get me the silk with which your clothes are made. I want to give her a beautiful dress to make her happy. Obviously, I won't ask you for free; I'm willing to pay any amount your mother would say."

Lei Bai was usually a straightforward guy, but he was speaking with a slight hesitation in his voice this time. It was evident that this issue was essential to him. So Hei replied, immediately calming him down.

"Don’t worry; there aren’t any problems. I will ask mother to give me enough for you. You don't have to worry about the price, you are my teacher, and you did a lot for me, Xing and Ye that I have so many things to repay you. "

At this, Lei Bai was truly moved. Every day he thought more and more that welcoming Hei in his home and choosing him as his student was the best choice he had ever made. Then, having secured the silk for his daughter's dress, Lei Bai burst out laughing and went back to work with Hei.

The following days were a succession of work, training, and dance sessions. The only moments Hei could rest was during the night with his mother.

Hei told her all the event details, and she willingly provided him with silk for both Lei Lei’s dress and Hei’s new robe. She would do Hei's robe, while a village tailor would do lei Lei's dress.

In addition to the silk, Hei planned to bring a bouquet to Lei Lei. He had seen many men do this, and therefore he began to examine which flowers could best for the occasion.

You should know that Hei had learned how to cultivate plants during these years, and he had planted every species of flower or plant he could get his hands on. As a result, in a short time, the area around their spider web house had become strewn with greenery and other colors, bringing an air of friendly calm to that part of the forest.

Even the other animals and spirit beasts that kept themselves away from that area due to Bao Bei became curious and approached the field of flowers and plants from time to time. But, until they did something wrong or disturb the quiet in the spider web house, Bao Bei wouldn’t attack them, and she would let them get closer.

In the end, the two weeks passed quickly, and the day for the long-awaited event arrived. For this occasion, as the event was in the evening, Bao Bei permitted her children to stay the night there. It was the first time for her, but she thought this time she could let it go. However, just in case, she would sleep on the outskirts of the forest to reach them immediately if necessary.

For the occasion, Hei had an elegant black silk robe with gold and silver patterns. After Bao Bei made the robe, Hei had borrowed dyes from Lei Bai, and, with the help of Ye and Xing, he had dyed the robe and then realized the patterns. Although they were quite simple, the mere fact that they had done it themselves as a family was enough to make the robe unique to them.

Xing and Ye also dressed up for the occasion. Xing had a silver bow behind her back while Ye had a golden one at the base of her neck.

Although they couldn’t dance directly on the stage to avoid frightening or making others uncomfortable, they could still enjoy the festival by standing on Hei's body.

Once they arrived at Lei Bai's home, the latter was standing at the house door. When he saw Hei approaching, he greeted him cheerfully and then motioned for him to stay out for a moment. Soon after, he stepped aside to let Lei Lei go out.

She was wearing a long dark green dress with purple floral patterns. The fabric adhered harmoniously to the young woman's body, enhancing the shape but without appearing vulgar.

Her hair was gathered behind her neck, but they weren’t tied in a ponytail or braid. They swayed a little because of the light wind. On them, there were tied small purple flowers. Those, together with the floral patterns of the dress, gave her a fragrance of freshness and delicacy.

For the occasion, her face was wearing makeup, but only in small quantities. Just enough to enhance her eyes and mouth. For a young woman like her, too heavy a make-up would ruin her beauty.

When he saw her, Hei was stunned. He was used to seeing her every day dressed in simple clothes and without makeup. Even though she was still a beautiful young lady, it couldn’t be denied: today, she was more beautiful than ever.

With small steps, he approached Lei Lei and handed her the bouquet he had prepared for her.

"The dress is perfect on you. You are wonderful today. Here, these are for you. "

Since he knew the unfamiliarity of his student in male-female relationships, Lei Bai had secretly given lessons to Hei on how to compliment a woman and how to behave on this special occasion. After all, he wanted today's evening to be unforgettable for his daughter. At least he owed it to his wife.

However, even though he had received private instructions from his master, Hei really meant the words he had said. He was impressed, and he hadn't told her these words just because he had been told so. Then, he took a small flower attached to a thin thread and tied it on Lei Lei’s right wrist.

"This is a little thought from me, Xing and Ye."

Receiving the bouquet and the small floral wristband, Lei Lei was moved. Clearly, she didn't expect all this. After all, after all these years, she had learned that Hei wasn’t very well versed in these romantic gestures. "Thank you very much, Hei. You too, Xing and Ye.” Then she put her hand near to her face to admire the gift she had received.

At that moment, Lei Bai cleared his throat with a cough. "It's time to go. Let's move."

So the three of them, together with Xing and Ye on Hei's body, moved towards the village's center where the square was.

Due to the festival, the various stalls usually arranged for the market had been removed. Instead, there was a myriad of long tables arranged horizontally with seats on both sides to accommodate all the inhabitants in their place. In front of the tables, a wooden stage had been placed right in front of the village chief's house. That was where the couples would perform for the dance event.

The air that could be breathed in that place was full of intense joy and harmony. The inhabitants had few festivals to celebrate, so they would always welcome these rare occasions with open arms. Everyone was showing off their best clothes, and they were finishing up arranging the various dishes and drinks prepared for the event.

To avoid going through the tide of people, Lei Bai made the complete tour, arriving at the back of the village chief's house. Once there, he sent off Hei and Lei Lei to go and find a place to sit and enjoy the show.

In the village chief’s house, there were already many couples of participants for the dance event. Everyone was very anxious, especially the women, since they were worried about making a bad impression in front of the whole village. Therefore, the atmosphere that was breathed inside the house was different from the one outside.

Seeing them so nervous, the village chief's wife smiled and handed everyone a cup of hot tea to calm their nerves, comforting them with words of encouragement.

It took another hour before the noise outside calmed down, and all the inhabitants took their places. It was now evening, and the moon was illuminating the square with its delicate light, unlike the scorching light of the sun. In order to help with the lighting, torches were placed here and there on wooden posts fixed to the ground.

Everything was ready, and finally, it was Lei Lei and Hei's turn to enter the stage. Then, with the last words of comfort from the village chief's wife, the two left the house towards the stage.