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Jade did not know her father very well. It was the custom in noble families for the father to attend to his work and the family's financial matters, the mother to deal with the children and the household affairs. In recent years Tiger had seen a great deal of their father, as he was being groomed to become head of the household himself one day. But the other children—Jade and little Mountain Wind, her younger brother—were entrusted to their mother's care. On feast days and at other family celebrations their father might honor them with a small gift or perhaps tell them stories of the wonders of the King's court. Otherwise, the children left him to his business, and he left them to theirs.
    So it was with great trepidation that Jade had approached him that evening. She knew that what she had to say would not please him, and it would serve to remind him of her recent dishonorable behavior. But after two days and as many sleepless nights, she knew she no longer had a choice in the matter. She had to speak.
    "Yes, thank you, Father."
    "Please come in." Jade stepped into the room, and her father closed the door behind her.
    It was a beautiful room. The walls were hung with precious scrolls by the most famous of the country's writers and artists. A rare tiger-skin rug covered part of the floor. And in a specially made niche stood the wondrous ivory ball.
    She looked at it now, as she sat on the floor before her father's low table, and its familiar puzzle comforted her. Her own ivory ball was in her pocket, as a reminder of her father's rarely shown affection. She took a deep breath and bowed her head.
    "Honorable Father, I am sorry to disturb you this evening. But I have something to ask of you."
    Her father did not reply. He merely gestured with his hand for her to continue.
    "When I behaved so dishonorably the other day"—Jade kept her head bowed and did not look at her father—"I did so with no one else's knowledge. Servant Cho did not know that I was in the cart when he left the house."
    Jade paused. She had rehearsed her words many times in her head, but now she was coming to the most delicate part of her speech.
    Her father waited.
    "I do not question my honorable father's wisdom in his actions. But I humbly request that he allow Servant Cho back into our household. With your permission, I would like to explain why."
    Jade's father was silent. Unsure of what to do, Jade finally decided to take his silence as permission.
    "When Servant Cho saw me at the marketplace, he showed great concern for our family's honor. He ran into the marketplace at once and bought cloth to cover me. He made sure that I was hidden from the eyes of strange men all the way home. In every way he acted as a loyal servant to our family. I do not wish him to be punished for my mistake."

    That was all. It had taken Jade so long to find the words, and only a few seconds to say them. She could do nothing now but wait.
    After what felt like an eternity, her father spoke.
    "Right behavior is indeed important, Daughter. It is one of the Five Virtues. Your brother has been learning much about them. Right behavior, good form, wisdom, faith, and love. They are small words, but they hold all that is good about men."
    He rose to his feet. He fetched the ivory ball from its place on the shelf, seated himself again, and began turning the ball slowly in his hands as if studying it closely. But Jade could see that his thoughts were elsewhere.
    He started to speak, then hesitated. At last he seemed to make up his mind about something, and spoke. "You saw the men on the road the other day? The strangers?"
    "Yes, Father."
    "Those men, they do not believe in the Five Virtues. They speak of other laws, other kings, other lands. There are those who are angry that they should dare challenge Confucius' teachings, but our King wishes to understand these men. At his request I have spoken with them myself on many occasions. And though we have many differences, there are