Daily Life
Despite being a nation run by the military and perpetually readied and on the brink of war, life within the Haina Empire is rather peaceful. The majority of the populace (nearly 90%) resides in small towns and villages that are spread out among the rural areas, using one of the five major cities as hubs. Most of these towns usually will number about 300-500 people, thus insuring that they are at least sustaining a Mou-ko (300 man unit) for defense.
Whether urban or rural, most of the day’s events are ritualized for the populace. Somewhere around dawn the people will take their morning meal, usually only consisting of wheat cakes, fruit, and rice tea. Every able bodied man then meets at a local assembly field or courtyard and engage in some type of military training or drill for at least one hour (in accordance with law). They will then separate and go to their respective professions. Each person takes about one hour in the early afternoon for personal meditation and growth. It is highly encouraged for all citizens to be familiar with and actively engaged in the arts and sciences in some form or other. So, it is not uncommon to see battle hardened soldiers and farmers painting, performing a musical instrument, or practicing a new crafting technique. This practice is legally granted to slaves, also. Families will gather before sunset for a large evening meal. This meal contains more wheat and barley cakes, onions, beans and bean sprouts, potatoes, mushrooms, onions, dumplings, rice, and seafood (if available). Meat is a very rare and expensive commodity and is usually reserved for either the wealthiest of citizens, or cured and stored as a military ration. Shortly after sundown, citizens will gather at the various temples and shrines to pay homage to the gods for a safe day and the blessings in their lives. They then retire to their homes and pray at private shrines to their ancestors.
Women follow the same general daily practice as men, but focus their efforts toward the only socially acceptable living allowed, that of homemaking and child rearing. It should be noted however, that just because women are not legally permitted to bear arms or armor that they should not be considered helpless. Many women secretly gather throughout the day and practice unarmed combat techniques and train in the art of fan and cloak combat. As such, many of the most skilled martial artists and monks in the Empire are women and most of the Zhi-Fu (Women of Worth and Privilege) come from these backgrounds. If discovered, husbands and fathers generally turn a blind eye to these activities, seeing the value of having a wife or daughter with some measure of being able to defend themselves.
The general clothing style for all citizens is generally the same, consisting of cloth shoes (or leather boots for active military personnel), loose pants, a short tunic, and padded jacket. Priests, scribes, and scholars tend to lavish themselves with a longer, fuller sleeves and robes than the usual short cropped tunic preferred by soldiers and laborers. Of course the variety of colors and materials vary greatly, depending on wealth and social standing (which, of course, is determined by rank). Peasants and lower ranking soldiers wear rough wool or hemp in simple earth tones, while the wealthy wear fine cottons and silks with a variety of hues and shades. The only colors not generally accepted are black and white. White, as the color of death, is reserved as a funerary color, or as the color worn by certain members of the military.