Bianhua Ch. 04

Bianhua

The birth of a rose in bloom

Part 4

It had been well after midnight before Alana's parents had allowed me to go home to my place. Each of them had asked a lot of questions to us as a couple. Alana and I politely danced around them by not revealing too much.

Not because we did not want them to know everything, but because for now, the timing was not right. We did not want to overwhelm them with too much information.

We told them a bit about our meeting Fen and Suling at the spring prom but did not disclose their history or their relationship with me. I did explain that they and I had grown up in the same village, so part of that evening had been a walk down memory lane for me, and a learning experience for Alana.

Alana said, "the experience had given her a better understanding of my growing up years. That allowed her a deeper understanding of what made me the man I was today. Fen and Suling are cousins who are becoming my friends."

I explained that their daughter and I had gone to help them because of our growing friendship, out of a touchy situation. The result of the situation would take time, to see if our efforts today had paid off. With human behavior being the way it was, I said, we could not be sure how people would handle it once they got over the initial shock.

Ian because of his excitement from learning that his daughter and I had realized that we were indeed a couple had to tell Bonnie about what I had said to him. He went into great detail explaining the heated emotional state he caught us in.

When he had walked out of the barn to give me the gears as he explained it. It had been a complete surprise to him. Bonnie responded by giving him the I told you so look that all women have seemed to master so well. Ian got the message because suddenly he became very quiet.

"I was worried for years that when Alana became of age that our daughter was going to have great difficulty in finding a male that she could relate to because of how old-world she is," Bonnie said. "That first day she met Dirk I saw that fear in me changing, but I could not understand why. The more I learned about her boyfriend the more I understood that he walked with the beat of that same drummer that our daughter did. He's more, old-world than, our daughter is."

"I noticed it too," Ian said. "It had been a long time since I'd seen her that excited about anything. I was really upset that she wanted to talk to a man we did not know in private when we were at the hospital because that was not like the daughter I knew. Up until then, she stood back quieter and more reserved because she watched the world instead of being involved in it. It was a shock to see her being so open and bold especially with someone she had just met."

"Dad, I knew by then, where my relationship with my future husband was going," Alana explained. " Remember I had spent the day with Dirk and saw a gentleness in him that is kept well-hidden but is reflected in everything he does. I had questions, that I needed answering because of his behavior with me."

"The way he explained his conduct towards me, and his outright honesty showed me gave me invaluable insights. I concluded that my feeling that he was a kindred old soul was justified." Alana went on saying, "From then, it's just allowing time to set in place what I already knew would be."

"It seems meeting Dirk gave Alana confidence that she didn't have before. She started to open up to him in ways I never thought possible. It was at that point she decided not to take life so seriously," Bonnie added. "The releasing of the eagles by them taught Alana that all things were possible if she had the confidence to reach for it. Thanks to Dirk she has started to develop a belief in herself that is amazing, but it was not until the night of the prom that I saw how far our only daughter had come. To me, she was a flower in full bloom. When she came home that night, I knew she had found her one and was in love."

"Dad when Dirk and I admitted our feelings to each other before arriving at the prom we had a long talk about what kind of life we wanted to build. We found our morals, values, and views coordinated with each other," Alana explained. "The rest was easy, the hardest part for both of us so far has been to keep our vows to remain virgins until we get married."

That was when I notice the look of pride that Ian had towards both of us. It told me that his acceptance of us would never be in question.

"Alana told me that Dirk was going to have three women wanting him involved in their lives but there would only be one that he was in love with," Ian said. "That struck me as a strange statement and still does. I asked how she knew. She replied I have owned his heart since he gave me his ring to wear. My insight about my future husband and our walk-in life has already been written."

That statement had been a complete surprise to me because from the day I had seen her sitting beside her father on the horse I had known that there was something about her that had perked my interest. Expressing my personal feelings was difficult and would always be because of my upbringing. I could see how she was slowly working her magic on me.

"Chuir sé i gcrích mé," said Alana in Gaelic. Which means he made me feel complete. "Until he came into my life I walked as if there was part of me missing. Meeting Dirk that first day gave me an inner feeling of being complete. It did not make sense, but it does now. What Dirk does not know is that Fen is going to start to teach me Cantonese during the school year because that way I will at least be able to catch a bit of what he says in that language."

"Do you think that is necessary," I asked. "Cantonese can be a hard language to master because a lot of the pronunciation deals with the way you say it. Screw it up and you're saying something different."

"If I can master Gaelic," Alana replied. "I'm sure that in time I will be able to master it. Besides, it's clear that it's always going to be part of our lives. It took the handling of a situation where Cantonese was needed for you to finally admit your love for me."

********

We had gone to Richmond and had spent most of the day shopping the finer furniture stores. Some were known for the quality of their restored antics. Alana's taste was quite pacific. Each piece we ended up with was of top quality and built to last. It was not hard for me to see where she was going in the design of our living space. A touch of the old English Victorian period could be seen in everything she picked.

We ended up buying bedroom furniture sets for two of the four bedrooms because she wanted to wait to do the other two until we started having kids. The master would have a king-size bed the spare bedroom a queen. Besides having a huge sitting chest at the ends of the beds for storing winter quilts in, both rooms had a sitting area that looked out over what we were creating.

Our living room and dining room furniture we decided together. The set needed for the kitchen nook had to become a custom order because she wanted the manufacturer to make four stools for the kitchen island to match. Although they would cost a lot more, we both thought it was important.

The store owner moved mountains to get it done. It would be ready and complete for delivery next Friday. I thought the sales rep had been very attentive. The patio furniture we bought I thought was a tad expensive, but she made sure was water-resistant and was made to last. The colors she picked would blend in with the area. In a short time, we would learn her reasoning had been right.

We went to Lowe's to pick our stainless steel appliances. Again, Alana looked at the quality of them along with the manufacturer's reputation. I added a flat grill, a regular barbeque, and a smoker to our purchases before arranging delivery. Taking the time to make sure the patio equipment was all designed to use propane.

Afterward, we called my grandfather at the restaurant to see if we could visit with him. We were shocked to learn that he no longer worked at his brother's restaurant. His brother gave me his cell phone number. The events of the previous day had been life-changing for both. With the restoration of his family's assets, he had decided to retire and enjoy the rest of his days.

Since they would not be home until four o'clock, we made one more stop at a jewelry shop. It took us about an hour for Alana to pick out the right one. Thankfully, they had one in her size. It was not the most expensive, but I had to agree that it was the one that appeared to make her smile the most.

Alana would be returning to complete her senior year wearing her promissory ring. Once she had it placed on her finger, she returned my father's ring to me by slipping onto my finger.

We used to google maps to direct us to La Chey's family home. We met his wife for the first time, learned all about their four children, and the fact that Suling, the youngest was fifteen years younger than her closest sibling.

That was when I learned what it had been like for them in the work camp with my parents. For both Alana and me it was an eye-opening event. The things done by the Chinese authorities weighed heavy on our hearts. Witnessing the execution of my parents had changed them.

Alana got very emotional when my grandfather in seriousness walked me through my parent's court trial and sentence while making it clear that they all knew the whole system was rigged. Their defense lawyers tried their best but knew it was all for show because they all knew what the results would be.

Meiling, La Chey's wife insisted that I called her 'zu mu' which means grandmother. Out of respect for the family's history with mine, I agreed. It was over the sharing of traditional Chinese tea, which is completely different from the Chinese tea served in restaurants that they revealed what they wanted my relationship with Suling to be.

We learned that after we had left the restaurant my grandfather had it out with his brother and his nephew. As a result, a lot of truths had come out about their history with each other. They both agreed to a parting of the ways because the scars carried by both would continue creating more problems on an ongoing basis.

Sometimes because of having the history right in front of you, it stops you from being able to put it behind you. For them that was the case, thus each decided that they must move on with their lives separately to find peace. His brother would be buying out his interest in the restaurant.

At home that night the family had learned about the depth of Suling's and my lifelong relationship. Suling revealed the best and worst of things like those moments when we felt our friendship had been discovered. It gave them insights into why Suling seemed to walk with a different understanding of everything than the rest of her family did. Suling and I, Alana pointed out that we both had been forced by circumstances to grow up before our time.

My Chinese Grandparents wanted me to honor the family by making Suling my consort, but not in the historical sense, but with the values found in our current society. In other words, they wanted me to treat her as a sister-wife. They made their request in English in front of Alana. Alana did not seem surprised. I was.

Alana put a huge smile on Meiling's face when she said, "I have known of Suling's feelings towards my future husband for months grandmother. I was hoping that life would bring her what she wants, a man like the one she compares all men to. Before Dirk and I can make an honest decision, we will have to have a long discussion between the two of us before going towards a final decision."

"La Chey, I am still going forward with my search for the truth," I said trying to diffuse the situation. "I want you to discuss the danger that might come down upon all who are associated with me as I expose the past, with grandmother and your daughter. The next time we talk we will take this discussion further. Alana is aware of the possibility of being in danger Suling is not."

"Dirk, take into consideration what I am about to tell you," La Chey said. "The mental and emotional abuse my brother's son put Suling through for years has made it impossible for her to be able to trust. When she sees an eligible man her first sense is to run."

"Grandfather," I replied. "I know what her older cousin put her through. Remember I was the one that had to deal with the emotional turmoil and mental anguish she faced. There were no secrets that Suling and I did not know about each other during that time."

"As a result, as of right now she does not plan to marry. Even my wife I have disappointed and failed her to a point thanks to the government of China," La Chey disclosed. "There is only one man she trusts without question. We both know that is you. That is why she has decided that she wants you to be the father of her children."

"It was your support, the way you taught her to think things out, that got her through those trouble times," La Chey said. "When she snuck into the steps of the temple from the back you were always waiting for her. You came to be the calm in the middle of her storm. Her cousin is an abuser of women. I believe he was and still may be an agent for the communist party of China."

"We know that the request we are making cannot be answered today." La Chey said. "If we had not found out by what happened yesterday that you are the "Wuming," I would not have considered my daughters request. Suling has always said since the start of her teenage years that no man but one would touch her but you."

"Alana, you and I both know how special Dirk is to both you and our daughter," Meiling said. "Please use your wisdom to guide him in his decision, but make it clear that is his to make. The last thing anyone of you needs is to feel that you have been trapped into complying because of obligations you may feel you have."

"Dirk, remember I knew your father better than anyone," La Chey said. "He would be proud of the man you have become. Tread carefully because the truth's when you find them may not turn out the way you like."

Just as we were saying our goodbye's my grandfather noticed that I was wearing my father's ring. He leaned in close and whispered so grandmother did not hear, "Your father's ring holds the key to finding the password that you are looking for."

As we drove out of my grandfather's place I said, "You could have warned me. I was walking on eggshells in there. I have no clue as to what to do or what to say."

"Dear I was blindside just as much as you," Alana replied. "I had no way of knowing what Suling had told to her parents. What she told me in confidence was done over time through many phone conversations after we had said goodnight."

"Now it makes sense," I said, "why you were not surprised."

"It's even more complicated than that my future husband," Alana said while sitting right beside me. "With me leaving the family home by the end of next summer mother has decided that she is still young enough to raise another child."

"If your dad is agreeable to that, then I feel they should go for it. They're both healthy enough." I said with conviction and full support. "Your mother is still young enough and has been through it before. Perhaps we could volunteer to babysit for them."

"Dad had a mild case of cancer in the scrotum years after I was born. As a result, because of the radiation treatments, he shoots blanks," Alana said. "Mom wants to conceive naturally as she did with me. After weeks of heated discussions, they have decided that there is only one man that is acceptable to them to give my mother the child she wants."

I had to pull off the side of the road and parked my truck. With what I had been hit with I needed to deal with it before I could focus on driving again.

I looked at Alana and said, "Why did you feel that you needed to tell me that right now."

"Because my future husband," Alana said. "The man they want to impregnate my mother is you."

"Why would they want me?" I had to ask because I was thinking aloud.

"Well my future husband," Alana said. "Both you and my mother are in your sexual prime. Sexually the two of you are compatible. With your sense of responsibility and discipline towards life in general they know it will never be mentioned again once it is accomplished."

"Alana do you realize the emotional involvement we would have going forward," I said. "If I followed through with what both sides of our family requested. It is not just having sex with your mother, but the emotional involvement I would have with the child because I am the baby's father.

"I have a question for you my future husband," Alana said. "How would the monks at the temple handled a request like this?"

"Honestly, in the request of your parents they would have decided what they figured was best for all concerned," I said. "In your mother's situation, they would have found a way to accomplish it without no harm by making sure that the biological father would never be known."

"It also must be noted that Zen monks are not allowed to marry," I said. "It is common for them to have a lifelong consort on the side, out of the public eye. Two rules were set long ago that they all must agree to. All must find their way to support them without using the funds of the temple and their consort shall have all the same rights as a wife."

"How do they accomplish that," Alana asked.

"As soon as a new monk is chosen at the age of twelve, he must live as a monk would full time inside of the temple," I explained. "Like all monks, he is paid an allowance out of the temple funds that come in which is pooled with all others. That money is invested once a month while he is in training for his future use. By the time he reaches the age of twenty, it could be a fair amount. "

"So, in part, they have to prepare for the possibility of finding a consort by living frugal, " Alana said. "This allows them to build a future out in the world on the side. In a way, the monks are living with different cultures all their adult lives."

"The communist party of China banned the practice when they came to power," I said. "Even with doing that they could not stop it. It is and always been a part of China's history and will always be part of its subculture."

"Views on how concubines and consorts were to be treated has been changed like all things are by time," I said. "Until this century they had in part their own caste system based first on education, beauty, trainability, family history, and general knowledge. The children they bore did not have equal standing as their father's wife's children but were looked after according to their mother's stature. It must be noticed that both Christianity and the Buddhist faith now accepted the practice that a man should only have one wife."

"It was Jesus who ended the practice when he walked the earth," Alana added. "Yet there are Christian faiths that still allow it. Why did he change the standing practice?"

"According to scholars it's being long believed that God allowed multiple wives to populate the earth," I explained. "The problem was that man abused the privilege and God saw the harm being done in general by those who failed to follow the principles of his teaching. Jesus ended it because there was enough population by that time to support the continued growth of the overall population."

"That's interesting because even in the animal kingdom in some species it requires more than one mate of the opposite sex to conceive," Alana said. "So, for some living things today it's still practiced."

"What does that imply about our creator," I asked?

"That everything he does is done for a reason," Alana answered. "Even if it takes years for us to understand why."