having a comeback or excuse for everything one is told, being smart in the sense of having a smart mouth

daybreak, the first light of dawn / rays of hope, prospects

incense (A perfume often used in the rites of various religions)

climate / season / weather

headdress, crown / order, rank / Synonym of 年爵 (“an annual salary in the Heian period”)

thick / heavy / kind

official bulletin, communique; public announcement

intersecting; crisscrossing

to intersect; to crisscross

(rare) roving bandits