Mushu and ShiShi spent the next few days strolling the grounds and getting to know one another and their respective families better.
From Mushu, ShiShi learned that while not of particularly high class, the Fas were a very well respected local family. They didn't have a specific trade, but while some explored business endeavors such as acupuncture, most made their livings as farmers. The home was elevated by Mulan's father, the brave veteran, Fa Zhou, who fought heroically under General Li's battalion before being crippled in battle. The home was then raised into an even more glorious rank after Mulan's heroism saved China from the grave threat of the Hun army. Mushu himself was one of many Fa guardians, but (by his own account) he was the most decorated in the house, and he had single-handedly guided Mulan to victory.
From Shishi, Mushu learned that the Lis ancestry followed that of many brave captains and generals; some even considered the family the protectors of China. For as many generations as could be recalled the Lis have been present, preparing soldiers for the rage of war and leading troops into battle.; it was the family's calling. As such, the Lis were of incredibly high social status and well respected throughout society. Shishi considered himself the best guardian in existence, so he found his role protecting the Lis to be perfectly fitting as they were the best family. He had helped to guide and protect twenty generations of them, but had been closest to Shang's father, General Li. The mere number of names to ShiShi's credit intimidated Mushu greatly.
"So you've guided Fa Mulan. Who else?" the lion curiously inquired.
The dragon thought back. It had been 500 years since he'd even been allowed to guard the members of his house and at the time of his initial departure, he by no means had left on good terms. Oh, poor Deng...
"Oh no one important," Mushu shrugged off, "definitely no one who could top my girl anyway."
ShiShi could tell his answer was incomplete but chose not to further press the question; at least not now . The two decided to continue into the house and see how matters were progressing for the young couple and Shu. The tension between them had been no secret since Mulan and Shang's marriage; specifically, Shu's blatant disapproval of pretty much everything Mulan did.
It was early morning and the house was overall at peace. Shu entered the family dining room to find her son sitting at the table intently studying some military charts and paperwork. She turned away from him and found Mulan fastening a belt onto a faded green shirt while dawning a worn down pair of pants.
"Now where do you think you're going?" she asked with a scornful look on her face.
"You'd rather me stay here with you? Because I can..." Mulan snarkily replied. Shang's mother still intimidated her, make no mistake, but one can only take so much ridicule before allowing themselves to snap back.
Her remark earned a low grumble from Shu as she prepared herself to walk away.
"If you really must know, I am going to my parents' house. I have chores to do," Mulan explained.
"Preposterous! You're married now. You've a new house and family to worry about."
Shang looked up at his mother unsure of what to say. This wasn't going to end well...
Mulan was a bit taken aback by the mere notion that Shang's mother even bothered to consider her family, but the implication that the Lis were her new family and that she no longer belonged with her parents just angered her.
"I have responsibilities at home. My home ," she asserted firmly, "my mother and grandmother are by no means built for physical labor and my father can hardly walk. It's always been my job to rake and pull weeds from around our field. I intend to do this once a week ... until the season is over at the least!"
"Can they not simply hire someone to take up this menial task?"
"What difference does it make?" Mulan asserted as she flung a small pouch over her shoulder.
"Shang," Shu called.
Oh great.. Shang slowly raised his head, clearly not wanting to involve himself in the matter if he didn't have to.
"Please explain to your wife the ridiculous nature of her intent to travel clear across town to ... garden !"
Shang rose from his seat and stationed himself in front of his wife, "Mulan, it is absolutely ridiculous for you to travel across town every week to garden," he firmly stated.
Mulan stood silently with her mouth agape in utter shock at Shang's position in the argument. Really? I know she's your mother, BUT REALLY!?
"...without an escort, of course," Shang added with a wink and small smirk.
Shu shot him a look but he had already started down the hall and declared he'd be ready to leave momentarily.
"Li Shang!" she called angrily before finally taking a seat and massaging her temples in defeat.
"Well... that was... interesting..." ShiShi remarked, turning to the small dragon next to him.
"Aren't they cute? I think they're adorable!" Mushu replied, leaning his weight against the lion's large forelimbs.
"Fa Mulan most definitely, as you said, 'plays by her own rules'..."
While perhaps not intended as such, Mushu beamed in pride at the compliment.
"What I cannot understand is the girl's persistence," ShiShi explained, "Shu made an excellent point. They could simply hire a worker to do this farming. There is no need for Mulan to go out of her way for something so minute."
"Oh, there's so much you don't know, champ," Mushu jokingly sighed while wiping a tear from his eye, "c'mon, let's follow them. Trust me, this is gonna be fun!"
Following the couple's escape from Shang's mother, they proceeded on what turned out to be a rather pleasant commute to Mulan's parents' home. It was no denying the fact that it was a long distance to travel regularly as the Li house was stationed in what one would refer to as "the wealthier side of town", but the extra effort was no burden at all if it meant making life easier for Mulan's parents.
When the couple arrived at the Fa house, they were greeted by Mulan's mother, Fa Li, who was just as surprised to see her there as Shu had been about her leaving.
"What on Earth are you doing here!?" she asked after drawing the two of them into a hug.
"We came to finish my chores. The field's not going to rake itself," Mulan explained with a smile.
"That's very sweet of you, dear, but there's really no need to..."
"Please, it would be our honor to do so," Shang pressed with a slight bow.
Fa Li looked for a further argument, but knew it would be to no avail. As such, she agreed to the young couple's notion on the condition that they came in for lunch and tea when they were finished. Mulan and Shang eagerly agreed to her terms and then fetched the necessary gardening tools before making their way out to the field.
The guardians observed while Mulan and Shang spent the next half hour outside pulling weeds and raking the land before ShiShi turned to Mushu in frustration.
"Why exactly are we here!? I understand. Fa Mulan is loyal to her parents and hard-working, but I understood that from her initial conversation at home!"
"Shhh, shhhhh!" Mushu demanded, earning a look of anger from his lion comrade as he continued. "Look there!" Mushu instructed, pointing at the rustling of the bamboo surrounding the area.
Mulan and Shang became aware of the noise and set the gardening tools down as they rose to their feet. Through the bamboo, one by one the heads of a familiar troop of little girls peaked out before fully emerging into the flat space.
"Mulan! General Shang! You came!!!" they squealed before rushing to hug the renowned couple.
"Of course! I made a promise, didn't I?" Mulan replied as she bent herself down and lightly tapped the tip of one of the girls' noses, earning a giggle from her.
"My mom said that you couldn't come any more now that you were married," Sha Ron added, "I knew she was wrong!"
ShiShi observed closely, his cat eyes dilating at the scene; the little village girls proceeded to take on various battle stances and fighting positions with Mulan as their coach. She was running the girls through motions and simplified military drills while both she and Shang shared their own training wisdom and battle stories! It was unlike anything he'd ever seen.
"Why!? How... What is she doing??" ShiShi asked the small dragon, refusing to take his eyes off of the spectacle.
"Mulan inspired them," Mushu explained, "she's a hero, and now they want to be like her! She loves teaching the kids what she knows! And the kids love her!"
The lion contemplated the situation for a bit before nodding his head, "Yes... yes, I suppose this is good..."
Mushu looked up at him optimistically.
"This is a possibility I hadn't considered," ShiShi continued, "as the future mother of the next generation of Lis, Fa Mulan could serve quite well teaching the ways of combat and war to the couple's sons... long before formal training would begin for them!"
"Wait... what!?"
"What I don't understand is why she is spending her time educating the female youth instead of focusing her attention on the young men. One would consider such an effort to be... well, rather pointless," ShiShi explained before finally looking away from Mulan's demonstration to face Mushu who stood speechless before him, "...is something the matter?"
"I... I... how did we get here???"
"Last I recall, you are the one who dragged us both out to this field," ShiShi replied, stone-faced.
"No, I mean your whole 'future mother' talk!" Mushu clarified, still extremely shaken by the implication.
"Please! Surely you, a renowned family guardian for generations, know the implications of marriage."
"...I mean, yeah... but..." Mushu was at a loss for words.
He had been so preoccupied with having to let Mulan go, to his pedestal, to his new position as a guardian in a combined temple, that he seemed to have glossed over the fact that Mulan and Shang were now married. They'd be entering a new stage of their lives! His baby girl was all grown up...
That said, ShiShi was still a bit blind to the dragon's point. Mulan had changed the world! Changed the perception of what honor meant and how one's worth was defined!
"Because she is teaching the girls that they can be strong too! It's not just boys who need this," Mushu tried to explain. It was to no avail. Every argument he made was met with a counter or a look of pure loss and confusion from the stone lion.
He just didn't understand! This entire family was just so caught on tradition! Calm down, Mushu. Deep breaths. No doubt, with time understanding would grow naturally... He'd just have to be patient.
Training concluded a few hours later, and with the arrangement she had set up, Mulan was able to reassure the girls that she'd be back the same time next week, and their lessons would continue. With that, they made their ways home, and Mulan and Shang helped themselves to lunch with the Fas. The meal was refreshingly enjoyable. Eating at the Li home was still so awkward, but here everyone was so at ease and supportive. Even the food here tasted better; the servants at Shang's home prepared the most wondrous things, make no mistake , but one could just feel the love in the homemade meals Mulan's mother prepared. The family was more than eager to inquire into how Mulan was assimilating into her new home and how Shang was adjusting to the change as well. They offered some recommendations where they could, but for the most part the advice was the same as what they had figured; it would just take time for things to feel natural.
After lunch, the couple proceeded home.
"So this is the new normal, huh?" Mulan said, turning to Shang with a smile.
Shang took a moment to take in the day before responding, "Yeah, I guess it is..." He paused before reaching out his hand and placing it on top of hers, "This was fun, I liked this."
"Me too."
The two rode on and arrived back at their estate a short while later. As they put the horses away, Mulan couldn't help but notice a scratching coming from one of the vacant stables. She peaked over the door and found an anxious Little Brother pawing at the wood.
Seriously...
"Shang, your mom locked up Little Brother again," Mulan stated as she rolled her eyes and picked up the dog. Shu didn't like him in the slightest, but it didn't matter. Little Brother was here to stay.
"Well, just bring him back in I guess," Shang sighed, "I'll try to reason with her."
The two made their way inside where they found Shu leaning against the entrance wall.
"Enjoy your gardening trip?" she asked them, looking down at the couple.
"We did," Mulan responded, releasing the terrier and watching him as he scurried farther into the house.
"Mother, can you please stop locking out Little Brother? He's an indoor dog!" Shang added as he'd promised.
Shu shot him a look before turning back to Mulan, "There must've been quite a mess out there for the amount of time spent there."
Acknowledging that she was getting closer, Mulan's blood began to run as anxiety flowed through her veins, "Yes, we were quite busy ... we also had lunch there..."
"Oh, is that all?" Shu asked her in a scarily kind tone before turning to Shang. "Nothing more notable?"
"Uh..." Shang started, running a hand down the back of his neck, "no. That was pretty much it..."
"You disgraceful lying child!" she finally snapped, her eyes narrowing at her son, "I've come to expect this kind of insolence from her, but I raised you as a man of honor!"
That sentiment hit him hard. She was right... as much of a pain as she could be, it was unacceptable for him to lie to her. She was still his mother...
"You!" Shu declared, refocusing her attention on Mulan, "you are playing a dangerous game! Your actions corrode the very foundation of our society; you have no business with those children!"
"How ... how did you?"
"Please. Nothing in this village gets past me," she dismissed in a harsher version of her usual condescending tone, "things are structured the way they are for a reason!"
Mulan looked to Shang for support, but found that he just seemed ashamed and wanted to distance himself from the situation. Seeing as another fight with her wouldn't change a thing, she simply let out a scoff and stormed off.Shu wasn't her mother; she couldn't simply insult and then order her around and expect her to comply! And Shang... well Shang was a different story... He is her son, they have their own histories to work past, and it wasn't her place to interfere. However, the situation with the kids was her own, and it was her call to make; no one else's. There was no way she was going to let these girls down!
This was something important to them. Important to her! And so what if it went against tradition; so did she! If these girls were ready for the change, then she would be there more than ready to help them!
This was the new normal, and Shu would have to get used to it.