Queerness in Daolin

Queerness in Daolin has a long and complicated history, which is reflected in the current legal and social situation. Gay relationships are outlawed and shunned, but not completely nonexistant, however trans rights are protected by Daolese law and alchemical hormone treatments are well-researched and widely available for the ruling elite.

Early History
Homosexuality, unlike in Ortus, had no longstanding history of oppression prior to the Imperial Reforms of Emperor Taoyan. The Tsung monarchs of Daolin were known to have kept a harem of men, a tradition adopted by their viceroys of the Mailu river cities, including the Yuhai dynasty which came to rule Daolin as a whole. It was, however, little-frequented until the reign of Empress Xinhua, the first Empress Regnant of the Yuhai dynasty. She was also the sole trans ruler of Daolin.

Martial same-sex love
Same-sex love was, and remains, common within the Daolese military hierarchy, due to the lack of women and the abundance of lustful young men. Before the Imperial Reforms of Emperor Taoyan, this became a formal part of the Daolese military system. Novices submitted to their superiors, who then taught them martial skills and warrior etiquette, in a system designed both to uphold the hierarchy and reinforce "brotherhood" bonds. Garrisons were expected to avoid female prostitutes as they were considered untrustworthy and likely to be spies. When returning home from military service, soldiers were expected to marry women and settle down, but many remained with their military partner.

Decadence Era
The Decadence Era could be considered a golden age in queerness in Daolin, were it not for the crippling poverty and exploitation of queer peasantry. Daizu overtook the Haikei as the dominant cultural influence over fads across Daolin, as a merchant-run city with a powerful new ruling elite. The terraces of Daizu had always been dens of prostitution, one of the empire's only legal prostitution districts. Following the downsizing of the Imperial Forces of the Realm by the ruling elite of Daizu, many destitute former soldiers were driven here and found no other work but as prostitutes. More still came to find work in Guansi Theatres, many of which doubled as cabarets during the day, where the ruling elite of Daolin came to associate them with high culture. Male prostitutes came to be a status symbol within the city, and as female slaves were considered untrustworthy, male slaves came to be favoured for sex by their masters.

Imperial Reforms of Emperor Taoyan
Following the eventual death of his great grandfather, signalling the end of the Decadence Era, Emperor Taoyan became the legal ruler of Daolin, without a need for a regent. Power was returned to the emperor rather than the merchants of Daizu, who instituted a series of reforms to restrict their power and return the Haikei to its role as the core of Daolese culture. Among these reforms was the criminalisation of homosexuality and the abolishing of the longstanding male harems throughout the empire, with serious punishment for those who failed to obey. The emancipation of slaves, both male and female, also affected homosexual activity amongst the merchant class.

Present-day situation
Homosexuality remains illegal, but homosexual trysts are common and servants often secretly serve as prostitutes to their masters, in order to curry favour and earn higher wages.

The Golden Blight
In the Golden Blight, the oldest slum in the Haikei, law enforcement has very little reach and the people are typically resistant to the moral decrees of the court, so it has a reputation as a haven for queer individuals.

Yushui Yuhai
Yushui Yuhai, present Emperor of Daolin, is gay, a fact that is little-known but widely speculated due to his lack of contact with his wife, Empress Deisi Edun. The term aesthete, denoting one who has a great love for natural beauty, music, or arts, is commonly used for such individuals, as in those who are queer but not openly so, and who do not convincingly display attraction to the opposite sex.

Female queerness
Female queerness is less discussed in Daolese history. It has always been discouraged, viewed as a scheme of untrustworthy women, but not always addressed in legislation. It was, and is, largely invisible.