Forbidden City It was that time of day when he visited his royal father, and this evening, Mo Yuan excerpted his Emperor father’s favorite, Zhuangzi’s The Butterfly Dream. The Crown Prince’s manner of linguistic eloquence and verbal expression was refined, smooth, and soothing for a young man his age. Much like a still calm pond…
Nine Heavens White-haired diety, Dong Hua, the Emperor Lord, one of the oldest five Great Kings of Heaven, had never coveted attention, reverence, or praise. His had been a long life, even for an immortal. His long silky hair had once been shiny raven black but now was the color of snow reflective of his…
Nine Heavens Heavy was the musky fragrance of the strong incense that always burned in her front salon. It was deep, dense, and thick that one could taste patchouli and sandalwood’s notes if they breathed through their mouths. “You must gain your father’s favor!” She screeched, and her voice hurt his ears. Sheer fear kept…
Joseon Shao Qing Yuan~ If the Bai family motto is ‘Battle Born and Born to Defend.’ The Shao family motto would be, ‘What a bunch of pretentious phonies! Those Bai bastards aren’t anything special or flawless as they seem. If we dig deep enough, we’ll find some dirt on them. Pure white as their name, my ass! I…
Bai Qian Joseon~ Years ago, Bai Qian and her cousin Crown Prince Won created a secret place to sneak him out to play. In the most eastern section of the palace was an open yard. Within that vast area, neatly stood rows upon rows of brown earthen ceramic containers holding all sorts of pantry stables…
Mo Yuan Since the beginning of our dynasty, every noble family, depending on their merits, is recorded in the royal annals. Their moments of fame and glory, mentioned here and there similar to ink spatters upon the ancient scrolls. Only the Bai family has their own section in the royal library. Close to five dozen…
Joseon His first impression surprised him. She wasn’t what he expected to see. Bai Qian had been a mystery to all, never seen been by anyone other than her immediate family. The stories and rumors were rampant fueled by her father’s false representation of her, making Ye Hua wonder why Lord Bai had painted such…
Shao Wan Imperial Consort Wan understood the reasons many called her the most stunning woman in the entire Dynasty. Full of vanity, she beamed to herself, studying her beautiful reflection and delicate features in the mirror while her eight assistants busily dressed and prepared her for the day. Roughly slapping a hand away from her…
Bai Qian Bai Qian lived without standing on ceremony and rigid customs even though she was Ming’s future Empress. Growing up in a Buddhist monastery had been a peaceful and carefree existence. She was born there and spent her entire life, well fifteen years, within this temple, located a mere two hours walk from Hanyang,…
Some declared the Gods created them in their Celestial likeness. Pure excellence radiated from them more than any of the other royal offspring. Ming’s legitimate identical imperial twins bore the regal poise from generations of royal blue blood breeding. And along with their Empress mother’s unequaled graceful beauty, the young men were devastatingly handsome. From…
Ye Hua The meaning of life? In my humble opinion, it is the most often asked and utterly moronic question in the world. Many seek, but only fools search for something that doesn’t exist. I use the term fools like clowns because my older twin sibling and I find life absurd, comical and nonsensical. Here…
Mo Yuan They say we come into the world alone and depart in the same lonely way. Whoever thought this concept to be true never had an identical twin. I must be truly blessed because I’ve never been alone, even inside our mother’s uterus, my brother has been by my side. Just less than two…
Bai Qian Have you ever felt completely alone? Like a stranger in your own body and living a life that wasn’t yours to live? Wearing foreign skin that didn’t belong to you? Never fitting in or feeling understood? Not knowing who you are? Even the reflection staring back at you in the mirror seemed deceitful…
Zhe Yan’s Orchard~ Countless tales existed about mysterious white-haired Deity Dong Hua’s origins. Some speculated he had one day emerged from a rock. Others said the once overseer who brought order to chaos, the previous Lord of Heaven and Earth was that very rock, and there was some truth to those speculations. The Supreme one.…
The Pavillion of Peonies Too much vanity had once been one of her character flaws, but she had changed. The former her, the more audaciously forward and full of arrogance, haughty woman Bai Qian had once been, might have challenged him. Or at least questioned where Ye Hua was sneaking off to in the middle…