Somewhere in the Earth Kingdom was a coal mining town. To the casual eye it is a Earth Kingdom town nestled at the foot of the mountains under the stewardship of Lord Dong Zhuo. Much of the town's wealth and prosperity owes much to the coal mines under the mountains. It is towns like these that are the resources that create the wealth and power. But the story of this town is a long, sad and almost forgotten story of those rule it. Except for those whose families were there at the beginning.
Long ago, the vast steppes, its streams, rivers and forests that surround the town, was once belonged to the lords of the Uesugi clan of the Air Nomads. But the war changed everything, when the Earth King asked for volunteers and promised great rewards for the men who will serve him. The old king was a good and honorable man, and the Uesugi clan always welcomed his ambassadors warmly, and exchanged wine in friendship whenever they came to visit. So when the old king asked for their aid to defend his kingdom from the Fire Nation, all of the men of the Uesugi left to fight. Most believed the king would marshal a great and mighty army, that would humble the Fire Nation. They thought it was going to be a short war, and they would be home in time for the summer harvest. But sadly, most of them would never return home.
On the day of Day of Ash, the Uesugi fought Fire Lord Sozin and his imperial guard, whose firebending were mighty under Sozin's Comet. It was a great and terrible battle. The Uesugi's descendants still recount the battle, through songs and ballads, of the great warriors who fought and died there. Kageyasu, master of horse archery. Tamekage, once the Earth King's Royal Sword Instructor. Norimasa, the right hand of the Uesugi. Sadamitsu, the valiant Prince of the Uesugi, who delivered a grievous wound to Fire Lord Sozin. The Uesugi were victorious of course. But it was a pyrrhic victory that left the Uesugi, and their allies too weak to drive out the invaders once and for all. When the Fire Nation came again, the Uesugi were put to flight.
Weakened and without an heir, the old Lord of the Uesugi submitted to the Earth Kingdom to administer his lands, before he died of a broken heart. The old Earth King died, his son and heir soon followed in death, and a child was crowned king. In their greed, the Ten Attendants had the lands of the Uesugi confiscated. And then, strangers from the Earth Kingdom came. At first they were only a few, a trickle flowed from the steppes, then they came in the hundreds, and then the thousands. Soon it was not long until they numbered as many as the stars in the heavens. And the once proud and strong Uesugi were humbled.
This is the legacy of the Hundred Year War...
A middle aged woman crept up the stairs to her son's bedroom. It was first day of work and it was important for him to get used to waking up so early now.
"Wakeup. Time for work." The mother gently shook her son on the shoulder. Her son arose groggily and got out of bed still half asleep.
"Got some breakfast. Your father expects you to be up and about."
The boy, just had his thirteenth birthday yesterday. His grandmother died just a few months ago and he now to get a job right away to help pay for the funeral. He was a man now and it did not bother him in the least and he can finally start making some money, and help put food on the table. Now his mom and dad did not have worry so much, and they seemed glad to see him to become old enough to work. Albeit reluctant to let him work in the mines. The boy had two older brothers, one of which died in the mines, and the other died of whooping cough when he was six. He has two sisters, both still living, with one having the good fortune of getting married when she was thirteen when he was eight years old. She moved away to another village to live with her husband's family. The other was working in the big house of Lord Dong Zhuo, who lived a mile and half away from town.
"Shinichi my boy. It's your first day, but don't get nervous." Shinichi's father said him when they were having their breakfast. The sun still hasn't risen yet but their work shift would start in an hour, and the foreman would likely fire a person if they showed up late too many times. Shinichi heard stories from his parents and grandfather of the foreman firing someone on their first day. A lucky man who was squatting nearby asked for the job and was given it. That squatter is now living in an apartment, close enough for him to throw a rock at the front of the shaft. The poor fellow who was fired has lost his home and is now squatting near shaft, waiting for his chance. "Just stick to your cousin Kenrou, he'll make sure you'll stay out of trouble."
"Here Shinichi, I pinched this from the big house," said young girl who was a couple years older than the boy. "It's leftovers and it's a day old. They were going to throw it away but I saved it."
"Miyako," rebuked the mother. "You can lose your job that way. You have a job that a lot of girls want. You're lucky you're not a boy. Back in your grandfather's day, there were men who would break an arm or a leg, just so that they could have their job."
"It's my day off today mom. Besides, I asked Nakamura-san if I could have and he said it was all right."
"Well. Just be careful. If you lose your job we're going to find a husband for you."
"But I don't want to get married," protested Miyako. "I'm fifteen. I know that all my friends are looking for husbands, but I don't want to get married."
"Just don't lose your job. It would be a long time before we will have enough money for your dowry. No man would marry a woman without it, no matter pretty or young you are." The grandfather said somberly, his voice was scratchy and coughed frequently. To clear his throat he spat into a bucket that his daughter-in law provided to keep the floors reasonably clean despite the coal dust from outside.
"Thanks nee-chan for the cake. I'll have it later." Shinichi said to change the subject.
"I'll put it in your tin." Their mother added as she placed it in the tin and sprinkled a pinch of sugar. She had to use it sparingly since it was so expensive, even though it was a little luxurious she still felt guilty for not having a proper birthday meal for her son. They had use the money to pay the rent, otherwise their landlord would have evicted them. "Now, make sure you keep your tin and your tea shut up tight while you're down there. Otherwise the rats will have it." She then placed some mutton in a separate tin and poured tea into a flask.
"Here, don't lose these," Shinichi's father handed him two nails.
"What're these for?"
"You'll find out. You aren't nervous are you?"
"No. Should I?"
"When I was your age I was ten when I started working. Never saw the light of day until my sixteenth birthday and I got married to your grandma." Grandfather's eyes were then downcast.
"Thanks, grandpa."
"Here you are," the mother placed Shinichi's tin and tea in a cloth bag. "And take this with you. Always remember that God is always with you, even in the dark." Shinichi's mother placed an Air Nomad rosary in his palm, and closed her son's fingers with her hands.
Shinichi and his father arrived at the work site. Someone was standing on a wooden box and shouting on the top of the lungs, as a large crowd as quickly gathering around him.
"Look around? Look at where you're working!" The man on the soap box shouted. "The men who own these mines are treating you like slaves and pay you pittance. Look at that boy over there, on his first day of work and may never see the light of day again. His own father, his own flesh and blood is sending his own son down there and may never see him again. Do you want that sort of future for your children? To never go to school? I say to those fat cats, those lords, and those robber barons..."
Shinichi was curious and wanted to approach the man but his father stopped him.
"I don't want to see you with that lot. Mark my words, they'll bring trouble. See, look." Kenichi pointed at a handful of Earth people sharply dressed as they weaved their way through the crowd of miners.
"Stop that man!" one of the Earth people shouted. "Someone grab him!"
"...we must speak with one voice! That we will not put up with the unsafe working conditions! We will not put up with their unfair treatment of us!" The man shouted but fell as a stone was thrown at his head causing him to fall from his perch. The Earth people pushed the others away from the man. But instead of helping the man back onto his feet, the Earth people surrounded him and started beating him.
"This oughta teach you from putting thoughts into people's heads!" shouted one of the Earth people as he clubbed the man's head and body.
"Let's go." Kenichi turned his son away and made a beeline to the foreman's office.
A man approached them who kept coughing.
"Kenichi. I thought it's your day off today." The man coughed.
"It is. I just wanted to see my boy off on his first day."
"Is this Shinichi? I remember you when you were just a knee high," the foreman stooped and lower his hand near his knee to emphasize the point.
"Are you the foreman?" Asked Shinichi.
"Yes I am. Call me Oogi."
"Is it true that you've fired people just for being late, Oogi-san?"
"Yes. Yes I have," Oogi nodded and looked at Shinichi straight in the eye. To press the point, he pointed at some squatters who were loitering near some rusting machinery. "You see those poor fellows over there? They were late for work and they lost their jobs. Now, they're waiting for someone to give them a job. So don't you be late."
"Yes Oogi-san. Do you have a cold?"
"Nah, just a little coal dust. It gets everywhere and sticks to everything. It's not like we can anything about it. Oh, and here's your gear."
"It's just a hat and what's this attached to it?"
"Don't touch that! If you break it you won't get a new one. This "hat" is what they call a hard hat, it can save your life. And this here," Oogi pointed, "is what they call an electric light. We don't use torches anymore. Since this little here creates light without burning anything. Which means it won't ignite the methane."
"Methane?"
"It's a odorless, tasteless gas in the mines. Even a small spark can ignite it and cause an explosion. It's what causes cave-ins. With these, that won't happen. Just stay close to your partner and listen to your elders, you got that?"
"Yes Oogi-san."
Shinichi handled the hard hat and electric with great care as he and his father walked over to the mine shaft where the elevator operated. A boy about Shinichi's age was standing looking at the other miners pensively, while clutching his hard hat and his lunch kit close to himself.
"Hey Shinichi," said the boy when he noticed his friend.
"Hey Akira. It's your first day too?"
"Yeah. My dad get hurt and so I have to be the man of the house."
"Is he alright?"
"He's okay, he pisses and moans all day. My mom nags him all the time. How's Miyako?"
"She'll all right."
"If you two are done chatting," said the elevator operator. "We have work to do."
The boys obeyed and filed into the lift.
"Hold on tight," said Shinichi's dad as the elevator gate closed, but they could still see him through the iron grate. "It's a long drop. The first time is always the hardest. Be safe now." Shinichi and Akira immediately obeyed and the elevator jolted, as it practically dropped down into the mines much faster than they had expected. Shinichi felt like his stomach was going to his throat.
"Watch yourself," said one of the miners gruffly after Akira bumped into him.
The elevator felt like it was falling into a blackness that no light would ever penetrate. But the elevator slowed down and came to a stop as it reached the bottom. The gate opened and everyone filed out turning on their light. In the darkness men moved about, silhouetted in by their electric lights that scanned about the mines.
"There you are," said a familiar voice when a light shined in the boys' faces. Shinichi's light flashed back to reveal a blackened face, smeared with sweat.
"Kenrou?" Shinichi had always seen his father and grandfather in similar appearances. But it was a shock to see his cousin in such a state. Kenrou was always immaculately dressed whenever he saw his cousin.
"In the flesh. You two are with me today. Oogi's orders."
The trio walked quietly to the where they needed to be. Along the way everyone was so informal and they frequently heard curses and profanities mixed in with regular speech. The smell of humanity was overwhelming and it was stuffy. All of the miners were men and worked half naked and their bodies were smeared with sweat and coal dust. They approached the ponies that were to pull the train behind them.
"Do we get to handle the ponies?" Akira asked hopefully.
"Nah. That someone else's job. Your job today is shoveling." Kenrou thrusted two shovels in front of his charges and led the way further down the mines. They passed many men, some of them were Earthbenders, but Kenrou led them further down into the mines.
"You'll get to work with Earthbenders later on. But don't expect to become friends with them. They think they're all high and mighty since they're the only ones here who can Earthbend, and they like to be paid more than us. If it was up to them, they would all of us sacked but the top brass wouldn't have it."
"I wish I could Earthbend," said Akira.
"Well, I wish I could Airbend that way I can simply fly far away from here and never look back. But we can't have what we want, can we?" Kenrou said sarcastically..
"Will we run into any badgermoles?" asked Shinichi.
Kenrou stopped for a moment.
"Nah. I did run into one before. But I figure it was more scared of me, than I was of him. Then again it was a small one. Probably a baby. And turned out that there was a whole nest of them. But we were able to scare them off though. You have your nails?" Kenrou asked when they reached their work station.
"Nah, my mum gave them to me just before I left. I didn't know what they were for so I threw them away." Akira replied.
"You did, did ya?"
"I have mine," offered Shinichi taking out his nails.
"Follow me." Kenrou ordered and the two boys followed. Kenrou took out his nails and wedged them into a support beam overhead. Which is the only thing that is really keeping millions of tons of granite from from crashing down on their heads. Air Nomads should never be made to go underground, the mountain was a dark, forbidding and dangerous place. All too many of them have died there, crushed to death, and buried alive while working the mines. After driving the nail into the beam with his bare hand, Kenrou hanged his kit on one nail and then took off his shirt and hanged it onto the other. Taking his pick axe he stood in the middle of the tracks. The boys stared at him as realization dawned on them.
"Do you have any extra nails?" Akira asked hopefully.
"Just share with me," Shinichi offered and they stood beside Kenrou who was patiently for something.
"So...what are we waiting for?" Asked Shinichi.
The answer came with a thundering noise that filled the tunnel. There was something very large moving very fast towards them. Shinichi immediately felt frightened, but Kenrou calmly pushed his cousin out of the way, but forgot about Akira who was standing still in the middle of the tracks.
"Akira! Stop the horses!" Yelled Kenrou but Akira didn't move as a team of horses were trotting him and were about to trample him.
"DAMN! STOP!" Kenrou cursed and ran towards the ponies. It was the first time Shinichi had ever heard his cousin swear. Kenrou grabbed the bridle of one of the ponies and managed to make the teamsters stop. Akira was still standing there watching the whole thing.
"Easy, easy there boy," soothed Kenrou. "Good boys, good stop."
"Akira, you all right?" Shinichi asked his friend.
"Yeah..." Akira finally stepped off the tracks. Shinichi shined a light on his friend and noticed his pants were damp. "Did you just piss yourself?"
Akira turned red with anger, but before he could say anything Kenrou said, "Hey. Whatever happens down in the mines, stays in the mines. Got that?"
And with that they went to work with Kenrou using his pick axe to loosen the coal deposits and the boys shoveling them into the train. After some time, Kenrou left to another person with a pickaxe to help. When he left there was huge pile of coal there to shovel, so the boys were kept busy. But Kenrou was gone longer than they had thought he would be and eventually their lights went out.
"Shinichi, I can't see."
"They must have done this on purpose. Oogi-san must have known he had given us bad lights, and that they would go out like this."
"Never, mind, let's keep shoveling I guess."
"I'm tired though."
"Stop being such a baby."
The two boys kept shoveling, but because it was completely black, they had hard time putting the coal into the train. They found that by measuring their paces they could put the coal into the train without great difficulty. But the problem was judging the correct height as they accidently dumped the coal onto the tracks, rather than in the bed of the train cars.
"I think that this is a test," offered Akira as he dumped another load into the car.
"What sort of test?"
"To see if we get scared, I guess. See if we're hard working."
"Do you think that they gave bad electric lights on purpose?"
"Yeah. I think so."
"That's really mean of them. But I'm not going to complain. I'm not a big baby."
"Yeah. It's bound to happen anyway. I guess that's why they had us paired up."
"Hey, you hungry?"
"Yeah. Let's eat."
They felt their way to their kits and took out their tins. As they ate, they could hear small creatures scurry in the darkness.
Rats, thought Shinichi as he scarfed down his cake and mutton and closed his tin. Choking, he drank his sweet tea as he felt the rats climb up his leg. Shinichi kicked them off. And after a few moments, they were gone.
"They're gone," said Akira. "What did you have to eat?"
"Mutton, sweet tea and cake."
"You had cake? Lucky you," said Akira with a hint of jealousy.
The two of them started working again. Their muscle strained and ached from the work. There was no way to tell the time or how long they have been down there. And they started to get frightened and scared were they ever going to see the sun again? Were they going to trapped down here and forced to shovel coal for the rest of their lives? Were they forgotten? Unsettled, Shinichi put his hand in pocket, remembering what his mother told that morning. "God is always with you, even in the dark." Eventually Kenrou came back with extra electric lights and shined them on the two boys.
"We just had lunch." Said Kenrou bitterly. "You should have yours, but mind the rats."
"Thanks, I already ate though. Let me see your hard hats." Kenrou said and replaced the electric lights. "By the way. Quitting time. Time to go home."
They adjusted the harnesses and the teamsters so that they were pulling the way they had come in, Kenrou complimented the boys for doing a good job. He even let the boys lead the teamsters along back to the main area. On the ride up the shaft all of the older miners were grinning and started asking questions anxiously, it was clearly a setup for everyone for their first time down in the mines.
"So how was your first day?"
"Were you scared?"
"It wasn't so bad," Akira said as manly as he could but his voice broke.
"Did your light go out?"
"Yeah it did. It was a while before Kenrou came back with replacements," replied Shinichi.
"How long?"
"Don't know it was dark to tell. We stopped to have lunch though."
One of the miners frowned and turned red, "You bastard. It wasn't supposed to be for that long."
"But I was never scared," said Shinichi.
"You weren't?" asked Kenrou.
"Yes, God was with me."
One of the older miners laughed heartily but it was short lived as no one else found it amusing.
"Your mom gave you a rosary too?" Asked Akira.
"Yeah."
Kenrou took off his cousin's hard hat and ruffled his dusty hair.
"That's right. It's in God that we trust."
The other miners nodded with approval.
"Looks like we have ourselves two good miners," said an old miner. "Don't you lose that rosary Shin-kun. It saved your grandfather's life you know."
Shinichi put his hand in his pocket, clutching in his hand to make sure it was safe.
Back at the front of the shaft, they replaced their helmets at Oogi's office and started making their way home. Shinichi's father had returned home a long time ago and it was getting dark. But he knew a shortcut that he wanted to take to get home, rather than by the main road.
If I don't get home soon, I'm going to miss dinner, thought Shinichi mindful of his growling stomach.
Making his way across the schoolyard where the Earth People's children played. Shinichi always liked coming here, the building was new, and he decided that it was nice to look at. It had a new swing set, a new playing field. Everything about the school was new and he heard that all of the students were smart. Only smart people go there he heard one of his friends say. So just out of curiosity, after his school was let out, he went to the school hoping to go there with all of the smart people, so that he might become smart one day. But the adults there who saw gave him nasty looks when they saw him, and told him to stay away and to never come back.
Shinichi did not like his school which was old, and always dirty. The teachers there let the children there do whatever they wanted, and did not seem to care what they did. If there was a fight, the teachers would not do anything and simply spoke a few harsh words, but that was it. Which was alright with Shinichi and the other children who preferred to play and have fun. If it was not for his parents, he would never have done his homework. But now, he was a man and a he has a job to make money, which was better than what the other children were, since all they did was boring stuff.
As he made his way across the school he saw a group of older boys kicking a ball, playing football.
Uh-oh trouble. Maybe if I stay away and go around them they won't notice me. Thought Shinichi.
"Hey look it's one of those filthy nomads!" shouted one of the larger boys.
"Let's get him!" said another boy and they all ran towards him forcing Shinichi to run. But because they were older, they quickly caught up to him. One of them used Earthbending to throw a good sized stone at Shinichi's head, causing him to stumble and fall. He felt a warm liquid started to spread on the back of his head.
"Let's beat him up!" shouted a voice and started kicking Shinichi as he tried to get up.
"Stop it! Please!" pleaded Shinichi as tucked in his arms and legs to protect himself. But he was kicked in the back. He pleaded again and again, yelling screaming for them to stop.
"Shut up! My dad lost his job because of you nomads!" yelled the older boy as he brandished a tree branch and hit his victim's ear.
"Come on, this is boring," said one of the boys got tired.
"Oh come on, he still hasn't learned his lesson yet!" said the older boy as he hit Shinichi at the back of his head.
"Yeah, I want to see his nose bleed! I hear that nomads have different colored blood than us!" said another boy.
"Pick him up!"
Shinichi was grabbed by his arms and was hoisted just high for them to see his bruising face. The older boy smirked as he handed his tree branch to a boy just slightly shorter than him. Then in a dramatic fashion he rolled his sleeve, grinning in delight as he saw Shinichi's frightened face.
"Please stop," Shinichi pleaded weakly. "I need to work tomorrow otherwise my mom won't have enough to buy food."
"You're lying. All you nomads are good at it," the older boy said darkly and started pummeling Shinichi in the face. The other boys let go and watched as the older boy kept hitting him again, again and again. Furiously hitting his victim who tried in vain to put his hands in front of him. But it was no good, as the boy kept finding ways to hit him. Then his victim lost his strength and let his hands fall to his side, which excited the older boy as he continued to hit the boy under who was laid defenseless. He kept hitting the boy until he longer was screaming, and until at last he got tired and got up, as his victim lay motionless on the ground, the grass beneath him was covered with crimson.
"Wow," said one of the boys uneasily as the other boys followed his lead, "you're pretty good at this."
"I thought that all Air Nomads were all used to be all Airbenders," said the boy who still had the tree branch in his hand. He was swinging from side to side. He still wanted to see more blood but he wanted a new victim.
"If he was, I'd kick his ass," said the older boy. "Earthbenders are always stronger than Airbenders. Airbenders are weak!"
"Yeah!" shouted the other boys with approval.
"Come on, my mom is making cake, she said all of you can come over to my house!" the older boy started running with his friends in hot pursuit.
A few hours later, it grew steadily dark as a lone figure walked by and stopped abruptly, then started running frantically over to Shinichi, and stood over him.
Kenichi stood at the worksite, in front of Oogi's office. His eyes were red with worry and from a sleepless night of looking for his son who never returned home. He wanted to keep searching, but he would risk losing his job.
"Hey Kenichi." said Oogi as he handed his friend a hard hat with an electric light.
"Hey Oogi."
"Where's your son?"
"Don't know. He's been missing since last night."
"Well, he'd better show up. Do you know how many strings I had to pull for your son to get this job? If he doesn't show up things...things are going to look bad for me."
"Well just cover for him."
"I...I can't do that. You know that," Oogi stepped closer and whispered. A few men in Earth Kingdom attire were gazing curiously at the two now.
"Come on, Oogi. Just this once, for old time's sake."
"Is there something wrong?" said an Earth Person as he walked up to the pair.
Kenichi and Oogi exchanged sharp glances.
"No. Nothing's wrong. We were just arguing about the work schedule for today. It turned out that I misread the schedule. I have two shifts today," said Oogi calmly.
"Well, get it figured out, why am I paying you for?" growled the Earth Person as he stalked away.
"You owe me," hissed Oogi when the Earth person was out of earshot. "Your son better not be playing hooky."
"Thanks Oogi. You really do have a heart of gold," Kenichi replied as he walked towards the elevator shaft.
"I prefer to have a pile of it...Damn it. Curse my heart my of gold," muttered Oogi as he caught up with Kenichi.
Meanwhile at the other side of town. A man sat with his attorney in a courtroom. He was a bit nervous. Anyone would be if they ever set foot in a courtroom and they could stand to lose a fortune, with a single word by a judge. He likes to call himself a good man, a family man. Happily married, with three children, and soon to be a doting grandfather. In business, however...well, treat him right and he will reply in kind. He is a money lender. A dishonorable position in Earth Kingdom society that they are loathe to take up for themselves, which is how he was able to make a living. Making money from lending money. He is not a greedy man, it was simply business, and a man has got to eat and support his family, and the whole town benefited from him lending money. More importantly he is an honest man.
Yet here he was, in court, over a contract that he had with a wealthy merchant in the town. His former business associate, who is now his opposite in court today, is a respected man in the Earth Kingdom community. More importantly, he is also known to be an honest businessman. Otherwise the moneylender would not have even considered lending him his money in the first place. Before they sealed the deal, they went over the necessaries, going over the legal procedures that would make it a legal and valid contract. But now the bastard wants to back out of the loan, and had the audacity to threaten to sue him for damages, because it was a bad deal to begin with.
The moneylender ignored the threat and tried to collect for six months. But the man was unreasonable as to refuse to pay him and then sued him. The moneylender's lawyer assured him it was an open and shut case, the judge should rule in favor of him. But he will believe it when he actually see the full amount that he lent restored to him.
"All rise!" bellowed the bailiff and everyone obeyed. "Judge Gao Gan presides over this court!"
Gao Gan stood stood before the people in the near empty room, with only the money lender, the merchant and their respective lawyers.
"This is a hearing. So it is not an official trial. So even though my judgement will be carried out, there will be no records of what is said here. So don't hold back with the truth. Now. State your names," Gao Gan commanded to the prosecution.
"Your honor, I am Shima Luong. I represent Merchant Chang."
"Chang? Yes, I recognize you. You have done good service by building that new school for the children of this town."
"Thank you, your honor. I hope that you deliver swift and fair justice," Chang ingratiated himself.
"Yes, I will. And you, state your name."
"I am Ishida Hiromasa, I represent Suyi Fu. He was the one who helped finance many of the public projects in the town, which everyone benefits from."
"Ah yes. The Air Nomads. A nomad lawyer and a nomad moneylender. You are the single most powerful bank in this town. Everyone owes you money. I am not surprised that people like you should choose such a profession."
"Your honor. I only ask for equality under the law, as rightfully bestowed by a high office," Suyi replied.
"We shall see, as we examine the facts of the case," said Gao Gan dismissively and then he sat down. As he had done so everyone followed suit. "Present your case Ishit."
"Your honor?" Counselor Ishida said puzzled to hear his name pronounced differently and then continued. "The prosecution, hence forth known as Chang, entered into a loan agreement with my client."
"Who is your client?"
"Suyi Fu your honor. Suyi entered into a contract in good faith that he would create a loan to Chang. In which it would be repaid in a series of smaller payments over a series of months, until the total amount of debt is paid off."
"How inefficient," remarked Gao Gan. "Why should the borrower be made to make so many payments? Why not make only one payment?"
"It's because of the enormous amount that was asked to be borrowed. Twenty sovereigns in total. As part of the agreement, the borrower was to pay a small interest along with his payment."
"Twenty sovereigns?" breathed Gao Gan. "Where did a nomad get that amount of money? Why with that money, he could built two more brand new schools. Or he could have built a library. Why did he not do that?"
"Your honor, that is beside the point. To get back to the matter at hand. My client and Chang mutually consented into a contract. Not only did he promise to pay the amount that he borrowed, he was to pay a modest fee for each payment that he made."
"He would have to pay extra, even though he did not borrow that amount? He should not have to pay the interest, only what he borrowed. Your client should not be allowed to make any money off what he lent out."
"Perhaps in some people's sense of fairness this would be the case. But my client is running a business in which he expects a modest profit for his investment. With the money that he owned and decided to lend to Chang as well as others to the communities who have come to him asking to borrow money in the past. It has become standard practice for borrowers to pay a little extra of what they borrowed to the lender. And Chang agreed to pay the additional interest. We have it in writing, here it is." Hiromasa handed it over to the bailiff who handed it over to Goa Gan who began to study it with scrutiny.
"I went over half a dozen drafts, including that final draft that you hold in your hand, with Chang before they officially signed it before an official witness."
"Did he understand all of the terms and conditions of the contract of which he was signing? Did you take the trouble to explain every detail, and answer any concerns that he may have had?"
"Yes I did. He never once objected to paying interest. But now, Chang failed, or refused, to make payments for six months in which my client made every accommodation in the hopes of collecting even a fraction of the amount that was rightfully owed to him. By our code of contracts, Chang is legally obligated to do what he had intended to do from the beginning. Otherwise he would clearly be in violation of the contract and the law, that should be rightfully enforced."
"...Oh, very well you've made your point. Counselor Shima Luong. Will you please present your case."
"Yes. Your honor," said Luong as he stood up and bowed low. "As you know very well, Suyi Fu, is a very wealthy man. Twenty sovereigns is a small fortune. But surely he could afford a small setback for his stature."
"Objection!" Hiromasa said sharply. "That is hearsay and immaterial to the facts of the case."
"It is not hearsay," Shima Luong replied cooly, "due in part that it is based on tax records that are archived in the magistrate's office. They are public records, that clearly shows that the Suyi Fu is perfectly capable of recouping his losses over a period of six months. Therefore, it has everything to do with the case, given my client's does not have the funds to repay the debt."
"Your argument is sound. Continue," Gao Gan nodded.
"Your honor. My client's financial health has nothing to do with the contractual obligations that Chang has with my client," Hiromasa objected.
"It is not your turn to speak. You will speak unless spoken to at this point. Shima Luong was polite enough to allow to speak without any objections. Should you not extend the same courtesy?"
"That is because he had no grounds to object."
"Now you are trying my patience, Ishida. Speak disrespectfully to me further and I will hold you in contempt of court. Now take your seat."
"As I was saying you honor," Shima Luong continued. "Before I was rudely interrupted. In the contract, there is a clause that states that if the borrower is unable to satisfactorily make the payments. The contract would enable the lender to foreclose on any property that the borrower had used to fund his business ventures."
"What were these business ventures?"
"A steel mill."
"A steel mill? That would be a invaluable addition to this town. Why, it is ingenious of Chang to have it so close the coal mines."
"Yes your honor. It is truly a stroke of genius. But, Suyi Fu has also funded the railways that lead to and from town. If Suyi Fu were to be allowed to carry out the contract and foreclose on the steel mill. He would control the town. In fact, if one were to dig deep enough, one would discover that Suyi Fu and his bank has a third of the town paying him money, with interest. I do not believe it is in the best interest of the town, to allow the public be in a stranglehold of debts, or be under threat of losing their jobs, simply because my client owes him a little money."
"Objection, your honor," said Hiromasa. "The counselor is now committing libel against my client."
"He is not committing libel," Gao Gan replied. "This is an interesting case, in which we also need to consider the public good."
"All of this is hearsay, and is once again, immaterial to the case."
"Counselor Ishida, this is your last warning. Speak out again and you will held in contempt of court. Which is a criminal offense, and depending on my mood, you could be detained by the sheriff. Continue counselor."
"Where was I?" Shima Puong pondered.
"Best interest of the town? Citizens drowning in debts? Jobs?" Gao Gan offered.
"Oh yes, thank you, your honor. Suyi Fu had access to my client's financial statements and perhaps knew that my client was in financial difficulty."
"So he was effectively making a bet that Chang would not be able to pay off the debt?"
"Yes. He could have very well have been doing that. Or perhaps, he was planning it all along. And if he was not, Suyi Fu would have profited from the sweat of Chang's brow and his harding workers. Without any effort at all with simply the interests that would accumulate."
"How much interest was Chang made to pay?"
"Six percent."
"That...that is outrageous! Why it is outright sinful! There should be a law that allow only three percent."
"Yes. It is an ingenious gambit. Either way he would win. Heads he wins, tails Chang loses. Is it fair that Suyi fu should profit off of other people's efforts, and their misery? He doesn't produce anything. Should we encourage this sort of dishonorable enterprise? No we should not allow such things to continue. In fact we, I mean you, should throw the book at Suyi Fu and others like him."
"Hmm...very well then. Normally there would be a brief recess for me to gather my thoughts and make my judgement. But given the overwhelming facts of the case! Chang would be forgiven of his debts, and Suyi Fu is to pay for all of the court's costs and the lawyers' fees! Furthermore, he will pay a penalty of twenty sovereigns!"
"That is outrageous! This is not justice!" Suyi Fu rose to feet and yelled at the top of his lungs.
"Make that thirty sovereigns. Ten for being found in contempt of court."
Suyi Fu's temper simmered, turn his back on the judge, and walked out of the courtroom.
Miyako awoke early. She made it a habit of hers to be a early riser and wake before anyone else in the big house. Lord Dong Zhuo did not forgive idleness and wanted everyone to wake up bright and early. So every morning she awoke six in the morning to wash her face and dress. By the time Sasayoko, the head maid, was waking the housemaids, and Nakamura, the butler of the house, was waking the valets, she was already having breakfast. She would like to wake up at her leisure, but she wanted to let everyone know that she was a hard worker, and that she in her own way was indispensable. Each morning she opened the curtains in the living room to let in the sunlight, dusted the furniture, softened up the cushions, swept the floor, and made sure the scullery maid lit the fireplace.
The only problem was, the scullery maid was missing.
"Rin-chan!" called Miyako. "Rin-chan."
"What's all this, why are you yelling child?" Rebuked Sasayoko. "And no honorifics. You know that the Lord hates it when we address each other in such a manner."
"You say it as though it's a bad thing."
"I'd rather not receive his ire. You're new, so don't know, but he's harsh with nomad girls. Especially young pretty ones like herself."
"What does he do?"
Sasayoko winced.
"Just keep your voice down. And stop using honorifics it's a dead giveaway for the lord to single Air Nomads that way. And why isn't the fire not started yet?" Sasayoko pointed at the empty fire.
"Oh. Rin-chan...Rin, was supposed to clean and start the fire."
"I see. Well, she's a bit under the weather, so you have roll up your sleeves and do it yourself today."
"But that's her job," protested Miyako.
"Just help her out a bit. Otherwise the lord will throw her out. Or worse. Just be a dear and try to understand."
"Yes, ma'am," Miyako obeyed.
Meanwhile in the kitchen, Nakamura was checking the lord's breakfast with every attention detail for his old commanding officer. He was an old war vet having lost an eye while leading a brigade to relieve the Order of the White Lotus at Ba Sing Se. The Fire Nation garrison still had a lot of fight in them. And even with the help with the Dai Li who remained loyal to the king, the fighting throughout the city lasted for another two weeks.
After the war, Nakamura was court martialed for crimes he did not commit. Without family and unable to get a job, he tried to open a business but failed. He tried farming, but the crops failed and he had to put up with bandits who took everything anyway, and the local magistrate did nothing to stop it. Eventually he wrote to Dong Zhuo and explained his situation and asked to be employed in his services again. Lord Dong Zhuo was awarded more land and titles, but he had no army nor did he have a commission in the army. But his lordship took him on as butler since he needed someone he could trust his life with, Nakamura decided to pack up and move his family to live in his lordship great estate.
He did not hate the job, on the contrary. It was better than when he was in the army since he only had one person to answer to. He did not have to worry about running a business or the pressures of what the next day may bring. And he longer had to be strict disciplinarian as he was in the army, and only had to do the occasional scolding or quiet reprimand.
He considered himself to be very lucky than most for being in service. His wife was happy to be able to put food on the table, though they would have just enough to through the year. Soon, his son will be of age and he can help his old man in the big house.
Rounding a corner with the tray full of the lord's breakfast he came upon the new girl, Miyako. The head chef was worrying about gathering ingredients for dinner later that evening, and he needed to see what was the matter.
"Miyako," said Nakamura as gently as he could and was a little surprised to see the girl jump.
"Yes, Nakamura-"
She stopped herself from using honorifics, good, he thought.
"Be a good girl and take this to the lord's bed chamber. He wishes to have breakfast in bed."
"Does he usually have breakfast in bed?" Miyako asked curiously.
"No. You may have to check up on him to make he is not sick."
"Well, why don't you do it? I thought only you may be in his bed chamber. And his, um, lady friends."
"I don't have time. I have to get things straightened out in the kitchen. I just want you to take this up to his room, place it over him and leave."
"Do I need to take his temperature?"
"No. You're not a doctor, so there is no need for you to do that."
"Yes sir," Miyako took the breakfast tray and went to the lord's bed chamber. She liked working in the big house, where the lord lives. She was told the house was painted pure white and she was a little disappointed to see it a little grey, evidently the coal dust can even reach the big house despite it being so far away from town. Everyday was warm in the big house, with big roaring fires, being able to eat nice food everyday and everynight. She even gain some weight, much to her embarrassment whenever she came home. She felt a little overwhelmed with how everything in the house was clean and orderly. Everyone worked hard to keep it that way. And it was exciting at times. Sometimes they would have trouble putting together dinner, but they always get it together. Her mother only needed to worry about feeding four people. The head chef has to worry about feeding over three dozen. But still she sends all of her money that she makes back home, everyone has to pitch in.
Miyako quietly crept up to the door and softly knocked on the door.
"Who is it?" a voice said groggily.
"Miyako. The new maid. Nakamura-san...he sent me to bring you your breakfast."
Oh crap, I just spoke in honorifics. Now he knows that I'm an Air Nomad. I hope he's too sleepy to know that.
"...Come in," the voice ordered and Miyako obeyed feeling a little nervous.
Lord Dong Zhuo appeared to be middle aged, as old Miyako's father, but appeared a little bigger and heavier than him. He stood in the middle of the room, wiping the sleep from his eyes. His shoulder length silk-like hair was undone, and he had a gotti that traced his upper lip, and ran down his cheek to his chin. Despite being still in his nightgown he still had a regal air about him.
"Had I known that Nakamura would send a nomad girl I would have been dressed properly."
"I'm sorry sir. Here is your breakfast," Miyako said as she briskly walked to a nearby table and set it and began to leave. But Dong Zhuo was too quick for her as he cut her off and slammed the door, barring her exit.
"There is no need to be embarrassed."
"I just remembered it would be improper for an unmarried woman to be alone with a man," Miyako reached for the door but Dong Zhuo leaned against it trapping her.
"Then you better do as I say."
"I will not," Miyako tried to keep her voice even despite becoming frightened. "Now please let me leave."
"You better," Dong Zhuo pushed Miyako onto the bed. "Or I will destroy you," he said darkly.
"S-someone, HELP ME!"
Dong Zhuo slapped Miyako very hard and laid on top of her. She started crying as her mouth was covered by his large hands, callused by the hours of swinging a sword.
"Silence!" Dong Zhuo hissed. "No one is going to save you."