Hongyi He
Physical Description
He has a particular affinity for cultivation and so has an impressive neili.
He Hongyi always carries a dao - the weapon of the Nanchang Sect - with him.
Mental characteristics
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Born in the east-north, He Hongyi was raised in relative isolation by his mama and with his elder sister in a building more like a hut than a house. They lived away from civilization but they were visited often, usually by a single person, but sometimes in small groups. His mama raised him to obey and respect the xiake - the tenets of the xia, her teachings only several generations old but revered. His mama taught he and his sister to read, to write, to play go and instruments like the guqin - everything and more - single-handedly.
Arriving at the Nanchang Sect a young man, he asked to be taken in as a disciple and was given over to the tutelage of his shifu, Wu Hai. His fierce intelligence, combined with his calm, patient nature, made him a perfect student and he proved both that he understood his shifu's teachings and could rise through the ranks with relative ease.
He had been a disciple of Wu Hai less than a decade before he was leading negotiations with the martial forces of the Jiangshan where tensions arose. Here he proved himself a capable diplomat and his renown began to spread beyond those of the sect. Not only that but he was also deemed competent, skilled and trustworthy enough to be given students of his own during this time. The first was a boy, an orphan who had been in the sect's care for the past five years, and who needed quite a bit of encouragement in his studies as he had trouble focusing.
In total, He Hongyi has taken on thirteen disciples. And in the eyes of many he would have risen further through the ranks if not the thirteenth, Qiuyue, who was exiled after an altercation which resulted in the murder of a wealthy merchant and the escape of a hulijing.
Personality Characteristics
He Hongyi aspires to do good in the world and to guide his students to success and ensure their happiness.
He Hongyi is very skilled at playing the guqin. His lifelong hobby of playing go has also given him quite the tactician's outlook.
An intelligent man, he likes to play go and the guqin.
Patient and kind, he is emotionally astute and so very quick to offer comfort if he can.
Though very upright and moral himself, he values his position in the Nanchang Sect and his role as a role model to his disciples too much to actively challenge other authority figures in case of making them, and he himself, lose face.
He Hongyi is meticulously clean when the environment allows for it as he values the importance of a good impression. More than his fellows at the Nanchang Sect, he will always make time to stop by a town or city for the sake of a bath. This even extends to grooming his horse when travelling.
Social
The Nanchang Sect, of which he is a part, though not as overtly religious as others, is a Daoist sect.
He Hongyi speaks with a clear, soft-spoken voice.
From years in the Nanchang Sect, he has attained the use of the standard accent, most broadly understood throughout the Jiangshan though can slip easily between it and others with which he's familiar. This includes the formal dialect of the capital city, Xiancheng, as well as Bihaicheng and has retained that of his mother's speech.
He often says 'ah...' when speaking. A thoughtful man, he values speaking the right words at the right time.
History
An orphan, Qiuyue was raised by the Nanchang Sect, which she had been abandoned outside of as a newborn. She was eventually transferred from the general school to He Hongyi's care as his disciple. She was the thirteenth disciple to be given over to him. Her care - her meals, her lodging, her training, her education - became his responsibility from then on.
Considered a problem child, Qiuyue was averse to learning. She didn't like having to sit through Daoist teachings and actively, physically resisted being sat down to be taught to read and write. Because of this, he would sit up with her at night in a vain attempt to help her. As with all of his students, he saw Qiuyue as a daughter but it quickly became clear that out of all of his children, she was his favourite. This sentiment was not outwardly returned.
After the murder of the merchant, when Qiuyue was exiled, against all orders, he stopped her on the road. There he gave her supplies and a dao to protect herself with.
Nicknames & Petnames
He Hongyi calls her 'shisan', meaning thirteen. He used to also call her 'child' when she was under his care, mostly after she said something he found troubling.
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