San Francisco: 1848
At the beginning of the morning, a thousand golden rays spread over the green grass. A pair of seabirds flew across the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean, suddenly raised their heads, and broke through the clouds, ling to the ninth heaven. After a while, it circled up again, and gently caught an early fish.
There was a rider on the seashore, fascinated by the beautiful morning colors. The dark eyes, reflecting the radiance of the morning sun, looked gleefully across the horizon of the deep sea. California, golden, was his land -- the land of his fathers, and, God willing, of his posterity. His eyes returned from the sea to a church on a distant hill, a sad sign, and a glorious victory, which had been left here in the heyday of the Spanish Empire mark on the land of youth.
Shawn is a descendant of the Spanish aristocracy, 35 years old, tall and lean, with a typical aristocratic face, features angular, elegant, own a kind of momentum without anger and power.
That kind of momentum, I am afraid, is inherited. The history of Shawn's family is very glorious. Since his distant ancestors crossed the sea to this place a hundred years ago, the King of Spain has given him a large and beautiful land that is proud of the world. It has been passed down from generation to generation and is now owned by his grandfather on the Winn farm, the Northern Paradise. One day, Shawn will also take over the management and pass it on to future generations.
The Winns are a proud family, wedded to Spanish traditions. Shawn had seen his beloved land go through many changes, from the all-powerful Spanish government to the Mexican government, from the Mexican flag to the Stars and Stripes a few times when the clouds had swept away.
As things changed, the easy-going aristocratic way of life in Spain faded away and was replaced by the frenzy and greed of the gold rush. San Francisco is a typical city that prospered because of gold mining. But it was a crude boom that smelled of destruction and corruption. The natural environment has been wantonly destroyed, tradition and glory faded, lost under clouds of dust, dazzling gold sand and unending greed.
Shawn's chest churned when he thought about it. He had a feeling that soon his life would change in a way that would test his faith in tradition, in honor. He did not know what it would be, but like all brave young men, he eagerly awaited the challenges life would throw at him.
Cornwall, England
Bess stands on a protruding rock, gazing at the menacing billowing waves beneath her feet. The weather was damp and cold, and even when she pulled her woolen cloak close, it felt chilly. The sea breeze was so strong that her face ached. She had never taken kindly to such bleak winters. She was only nineteen years old and yearned for a world of sunshine and wind.
Bess doesn't know how beautiful she's turned out to be. The waves would not tell her that she had eyes as blue as silver lightning,nor would the sea wind tell her that her fluttering blonde hair was the color of the sun. She was a lonely, lonely girl, with few friends except the wind and the sea.
The weather was getting colder and colder, and she had to find her way home to a house of silence and neglect. On her way home, light snow began to fall, and there were no pedestrians. No one would go out on such a snowy day, she thought sadly. Well, no one would have come if it hadn't snowed.
Her home is almost isolated, the mountain road is rugged, the sea is unstable, the result of land and water dilemma, not to say that the winter is rare, even if it is rare in summer. Some people will come.
Bess sighed heavily and walked slowly into the door. There was no one in the house now except Samet, her childhood nurse and now her companion. Her grandmother had not long died, and her parents had traveled far and wide, occasionally bringing in a piece of paper from a distant country. There were times when Bess feared she would die alone. She wished her parents would come back soon or take her away. She did not want to be alone with the house and Samet. She wanted something new, or someone new.