The Fei-Zhu (Revised)

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[[The bulk of this post was dreamed up and written by Teithi/Fenean whereas I mostly did formatting and added some minor things. Please direct any compliments towards her!]]

 

The Fei-Zhu

 

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The Fei-Zhu are a subrace of the Hou-Zi race, and are by far the best, at least in their eyes. Fei-Zhu tend to be proud of their culture and their heritage, as well as the many colors of fur they adorns. The Fei-Zhu are much like the Laobai, but typically are smaller, and come in vibrant colors. Many Fei-Zhu are full of themselves, or consider themselves superior than all the other races and subraces.

 

In general, the Fei-Zhu believe themselves to be descended from the traditional nobility of the old Hou-Zi empire, and even Hou-Shen himself, as his second re-incarnation was a golden furred monkey. The Fei-Zhu were a caste of merchants, poets and ministers, so this belief is not far from the truth. Although the Fei-Zhu have been forced to adapt following the collapse of the Empire, they still cling on to their old courtly traditions. This can often be seen as frivolous and useless to the other Hou-Zi races, who consider such practices counterproductive in the life of subsistence and survival that they lead.

 

Customs/Traditions

A Fei-zhu incense burner, used to commune with their ancestors.

 

The Fei-Zhu are not well known for their customs, as they consider many of their previous traditions to be primal, and below them. Much of the customs they still celebrate are upheld through all the sub-races, such as festivals or worshipping Hou-Shen, and many depend on the family of the individual Fei-Zhu. The Fei-Zhu sub-race is very family oriented, and will be quick to slander other races and families. They take pride in their heritage, and often will not inter-marry with the other sub-races.

 

Ancestor Worship & Incense Burning

One tradition involves the honouring of their ancestors, in which they light different incenses to seek guidance or blessings. Various difference incenses are lit to seek different boons from their ancestors, these include the following:

• Amber - Physical Strength

• Cinnamon - Wisdom

• Frankincense - Wealth and Prosperity

• Ginger - Fertility

• Jasmine - Honour

• Lotus - Talent

• Myrrh - Health

• Opium - Dreams and Prophecies

• Patchouli - Happiness

• Rose - Love

 

Female Fei-Zhu are often treated as though they are inferior, and are typically left to the housework and child rearing, but this doesn’t mean they are barred from moving up in the ranks of social hierarchy.

 

Record Keeping

The Fei-Zhu take their bloodlines very seriously. As such, it’s considered the head of each Fei-Zhu family to meticulously document the lives and roles of their members so they will live on with their descendents. As a result, the Fei-Zhu family records are vast and often stretch back thousands of years. It can be a point of pride for a Fei-Zhu to have been descended from a high ranking Minister in the days of Hou-Shen’s ancient court. A common wedding gift for new couples are books bound in leather, so that they may begin to document their lives and family together.

 

Fei-Zhu consider writing an art, and calligraphy an important part of their history.

 

Family Roles

As mentioned before, family is very important to the Fei-Zhu. Their community as a whole is also fairly important, but Fei-Zhu are more inclined to protect their immediate family than the community as a whole. Male Fei-Zhu typically lead the household, and climb the social ladder. Women are traditionally expected to remain at home, but some Fei-Zhu women pursue careers as well. Women are also culturally expected to have knowledge  of the art of healing, as well as literacy. It is important to the Fei-Zhu culture to educate themselves, so they may better themselves as much as possible. Children are important to the Fei-Zhu culture, as they are the future of their race, and the world. Fei-Zhu typically have one child every 2-3 years, and both parents play an important role in the youth’s life.

 

Social Aspects/Careers

The Fei-Zhu do not waste their time with simple soldiery, nor physical labour. They pride themselves of higher intelligence, and set a certain standard for their children. Many Fei-Zhu work to become politicians, scholars, or religious leaders, professions they deem to be honorable. They wish to bring honor to their name and to their families, and many of their choices are dictated by that. Texts and scrolls will often be written by the Fei-Zhu, as every member of their race is educated to some degree.

 

Favoured professions of the fei-zhu typically include the following:

• Merchantry

• Priesthood

• Finer Arts (Music/Poetry)

 

Fine Arts

The Fei-Zhu deem themselves to be top patrons of fine arts. Infact some go so far as to claim to be the creator of practices such as poetry, music, and calligraphy, even claiming that other races such as the elves only imitated such things from them.

 

Many Fei-Zhu will dedicate their lives to improving upon and learning these arts. Poetry, music, dancing, and many more occupy the free time of these monkeys, and many of them have natural talent in these areas. This can often cause conflict with the other Hou-Zi races who consider such practices frivolous in their current state of living. However, Fei-Zhu consider these things to be essential to preserving their ancient culture and heritage.

 

The Erhu was considered the most prestigious instrument of the Hou-Zi court in ancient times, and many Fei-Zhu dedicate their lives learning to play it.

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