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But in IS it's a 5747, year of Yellow Rooster. Happy new year to both IS and IRL celebrants!
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The Lantern Festival parade was passing by the eastern gate, and nearing its end. Now Rush silently thanked the Chancellor for his timing, and tore off a small piece of the candied bread and chewed on it slowly with something approaching relish. Of all the New Year’s festivities, he liked best the parade with its color and energy and high spirits. The Lantern Festival concluded the New Year’s celebration, and the citizens of the capital threw themselves into it with limitless vigor.
People wearing colorful, giant lion and dragon masks danced in the street beyond the gate. This close to the glass wall Rush could hear the rhythmic beats of the large drums and crashing cymbals they danced to, sounds that would turn the streets into a barely controlled frenzy. He couldn’t hear the staccato string of firecracker explosions, but he knew that the hundreds—the thousands—of flashes around the dancers’ feet were just that. Pinwheels carried on poles spun their red and orange fire well above the heads of the dancers and rained down glowing sparks. As Rush watched, a single stilt-walker passed the gate, a dark silhouette against a backdrop of colorful fire.
“So the Year of the Yellow Horse is upon us,” Sun-Tzu slurred, his voice carrying to several nearby members of the Directorship, who tactfully took it upon themselves to edge further away from the young Liao...
...Rush watched as the first lanterns began to pass the gate, oil lamps with colored shades carried by first a few people, and then dozens more. The sight helped to calm his thoughts, reminding him of the serene beauty that was life’s mate to turmoil. Yin and yang. “So what does the Yellow Horse signify, Celestial Wisdom?”
“It is a good prophecy,” Sun-Tzu said after a moment’s reflection, slurring his words only slightly. “Yellow corresponds to the element earth, and could also forecast heat waves. The Horse is cheerful, perceptive, and quick-witted. It has a love of being where the action is.”...
...Past the east gate, the New Year’s dragon was finally making its appearance. Constructed in two-meter segments of bamboo rods and colored satiny cloth, the serpent danced and writhed its way up the street. It was more than a hundred meters long, each segment supported by a pair of long sticks. Dozens of people worked these rods to brace the dragon and make it move with lifelike grace. Rush knew that the dragon symbolized fertility and vigor... He also considered the New Year. The color yellow was associated with the element of earth. Also prophetic?..
...Then Sun-Tzu turned back to the window, putting on a wistful expression as he watched the tail end of the dragon disappear past the gate along with the last of the lantern-bearers. “Do you know what I like about the New Year, Master Rush?” he asked, his tone now suddenly casual.
“What, sire?”
“According to Chinese custom, it’s a time to begin fresh. Not to forget, or forgive. But the troubles of last year are past and it is a time for looking forward.”
Ion Rush nodded slowly. Was Sun-Tzu offering him a lifeline? “An admirable sentiment, Celestial Wisdom.”
People wearing colorful, giant lion and dragon masks danced in the street beyond the gate. This close to the glass wall Rush could hear the rhythmic beats of the large drums and crashing cymbals they danced to, sounds that would turn the streets into a barely controlled frenzy. He couldn’t hear the staccato string of firecracker explosions, but he knew that the hundreds—the thousands—of flashes around the dancers’ feet were just that. Pinwheels carried on poles spun their red and orange fire well above the heads of the dancers and rained down glowing sparks. As Rush watched, a single stilt-walker passed the gate, a dark silhouette against a backdrop of colorful fire.
“So the Year of the Yellow Horse is upon us,” Sun-Tzu slurred, his voice carrying to several nearby members of the Directorship, who tactfully took it upon themselves to edge further away from the young Liao...
...Rush watched as the first lanterns began to pass the gate, oil lamps with colored shades carried by first a few people, and then dozens more. The sight helped to calm his thoughts, reminding him of the serene beauty that was life’s mate to turmoil. Yin and yang. “So what does the Yellow Horse signify, Celestial Wisdom?”
“It is a good prophecy,” Sun-Tzu said after a moment’s reflection, slurring his words only slightly. “Yellow corresponds to the element earth, and could also forecast heat waves. The Horse is cheerful, perceptive, and quick-witted. It has a love of being where the action is.”...
...Past the east gate, the New Year’s dragon was finally making its appearance. Constructed in two-meter segments of bamboo rods and colored satiny cloth, the serpent danced and writhed its way up the street. It was more than a hundred meters long, each segment supported by a pair of long sticks. Dozens of people worked these rods to brace the dragon and make it move with lifelike grace. Rush knew that the dragon symbolized fertility and vigor... He also considered the New Year. The color yellow was associated with the element of earth. Also prophetic?..
...Then Sun-Tzu turned back to the window, putting on a wistful expression as he watched the tail end of the dragon disappear past the gate along with the last of the lantern-bearers. “Do you know what I like about the New Year, Master Rush?” he asked, his tone now suddenly casual.
“What, sire?”
“According to Chinese custom, it’s a time to begin fresh. Not to forget, or forgive. But the troubles of last year are past and it is a time for looking forward.”
Ion Rush nodded slowly. Was Sun-Tzu offering him a lifeline? “An admirable sentiment, Celestial Wisdom.”
Loren Coleman, "Binding Force"
