The first step of the coming-of-age ceremony was to bow before the Altar and honor the ancestors. All the young men and women participating were expected to attend; even the envoys from other tribes would nod their heads as a sign of respect.
Jiang Qiu's gaze swept over the crowd, finally landing on the group of girls arriving with their mothers. "There are fewer and fewer girls coming of age in the tribe."
Because the relationship between the North Snow and Xibing tribes was growing increasingly tense, fewer smaller tribes sought marriage alliances with the North Snow Tribe. As a result, the birth rate had been steadily declining for the past twelve years.
With the birth rate down, the number of girls naturally decreased as well.
However, this year was different from the past few. Rumor had it that the Young Master of the South Mountain Tribe, who had also recently come of age, was planning to choose a marriage partner from the North Snow Tribe.
