#liwei wang

[damselettc]

this is a tag dump !! ( ignore. )

[c-cw-f-saeko]

tell me your name (tesso and seonhee headcanons 2/3)

they moved out of the way so i could take a picture of mt. fuji -> loose recreation of this image 

hi !! i thought i’d finish this tesso and seonhee (separate and together) headcanon masterpost. it covers their individual backstory, how they met and how their relationship grew.

btw i made another headcanon masterpost about the liumang here 🤩 it wouldn't be a bad idea to read it before this one !

i warn that this is the ultimate yapping session LOL so it's long and very image heavy OOPS! there are more than 30 images, i wanted to add more but will stop there for now. check the bottom of the post for some straightforward headcanons (and a TLDR).

also, please pretend the entire timeline makes sense.....i won't beat myself over ageless characters not fitting 100% with documented events 😭 (imo seonhee is 34 and tesso is 37 currently) nvm my guess for seonhee but tesso is surely 37

also, the two fics i wrote heavily tie to this (don't mind the last one). i won't say you need to read them to understand, but i recommend reading them (BC I COOKED!) it'll be linked when needed.

- wang tielin

not completely accurate because he shouldn't have his scars but i'm too lazy to re-do the texture from scratch... sorry tielin 💔

birth name is wang tielin

born in japan. lived in the countryside with his uncle for the longest he could remember.

vowed to his childhood friend to live on the straight and narrow no matter what (hahaha)

a promise to keep was to become rich and share with their family when they grow up.

went to school just because, but had no plans nor dreams in particular. never stirred trouble.

was always kinda bland, but made an effort to become and dress "cooler" after coming to kamurocho (look at the fit please 😭 it was definitely a phase). this is part of the stuff tesso left behind (including his real name). would've preferred no one he knows today met him during that time.

zhao tried time and time again to make tesso show him pictures of him when he was younger but tesso claims to have none. zhao even got seonhee on the task and was ready to put down a good chunk of cash to make it happen. unfortunately for him, tesso was a nobody that truly came out of nowhere according to the geomijul (seonhee just lied 🤩 sorry tianyou).

-> long before the liumang

he came from some city in the country side where nothing really happens. his aunt and uncle took care of him and sent went to school. he was expected to take on his uncle’s restaurant since he was helping out from time to time and that’s what his uncle wanted anyway. 

how can i put it… as long he found a way to feed himself and have a roof over his head, he didn’t have a goal to attain (like a goal career or whatever). he had no aspirations as in “i guess i’ll live” 😍 

though, he had a close friend called liwei. they spent most of their time at school and outside together doing whatever. unlike tesso, liwei had big dreams of finally making it out go the “boring” countryside and establishing himself in a big city, becoming the wealthiest person of his family to provide for his parents. he had a passion about going to especially kamurocho because it was the complete opposite of their current lives. tesso's response to liwei was mostly -> “i support you!” he kinda admired liwei for having determined ambition. 

-> a bit before the liumang 

though, liwei ended up getting killed because a hit was ordered by a bunch of strangers on seemingly the wrong person. not a lot of clues were left behind, but tesso was adamant about it being a mistake since the two of them always swore on being on the straight and narrow (ironically).

so, tesso decided to leave his hometown in the countryside to find out what happened, who killed liwei and how the mix-up happened in the first place.

it lead him to many big cities (like kamurocho) though he navigated a bit clumsily with his words (talking a bit too carelessly about “i’m looking for such such that killed such and such, not knowing the type of place he was getting into), tesso ends up getting jumped by the local chinese mafia at least twice 😭 the clues he finds leads him into yokohama and bro gets jumped again 😭

all to figure out the true culprit was guys from yokohama's chinatown and going up front to them was the worst idea ever. instead, he joins the liumang (at first for refuge as outsider chinese people were vulnerable to trouble between seiryu/liumang and liumang/chinatown). then, in hopes of giving another meaning to his life and eventually seek justice for liwei’s murder.

-> in the liumang 

won't go too much in detail here, but tesso ends up being recruited personally by zhao as a liumang officer through a fight - given the exploit of him being able to scratch his jacket with his claws (and zhao scratched his face across his nose and cheeks with his sabre 😍)

- sakura, the number one hostess

long ago in kamurocho, seonhee used to be an hostess called sakura. remnants of the jingweon mafia rejected by mainland and local koreans (that later formed the geomijul) survived  the best they could with low-level information dealing. they used cabaret clubs to get info out of the local population. 

moving left and right with her mother, it was lucrative enough for her to be able to fend for the two of them — even if it was temporary, she would be doing it until they’d be able to find some sort of stability. 

eventually, the cabaret club was disbanded due to more prominent gangs taking over kamurocho, basically forcing the geomijul out of the city (to later end up yokohama).

in the move, the geomijul was very unstable; most members falling into despair as they were forced out of of home one more time.

seonhee was one of the few people to step up to rally the remaining people together. if they were wavering in the faith of surviving their predicament, the geomijul wouldn't even survive. she did everything she could to make sure fellow members wouldn't walk astray and find them a new home.

being one of people that proposed lodging the geomijul between the seiryu clan and the liumang and reprise their information dealing activities. it was through her sheer determination and in the success of securing the geomijul in yokohama that seonhee was made leader (despite being that young and a woman) jumping over all the oldheads.

fun fact, after leaving the cabaret club, she vowed to herself to never do that type of work ever again.

- meeting for the first time in kamurocho

bro came dressed like that to the luxury club 😭 first timer spotted!! fresh meat here!!!!!!

one promise he made to himself was to realize one of liwei’s dreams, no matter how futile it was. so, he gathered most of his money and decided to light it up for one night in kamurocho in his honour. he ended up going to the first cabaret club he laid eyes on - the one owned by the geomijul.

given the way he was dressed (lol) and the fact he had never been in the city before, seonhee (the number one hostess at the time) was tasked of  tending his table. she usually handled the most "suspicious" customers. 

that's what she thought at first, but past their initial talk, she really did find out he was just young random dude trying out the cabaret clubs for the first time. 

“is it your first time here?” “yeah, there isn’t stuff like this where i live” and so on. funny enough, he turned the conversation back on her a lot so she could ramble about the city and the type of work she did (life in the countryside is boring and uneventful anyway). it caused her to indirectly talk about the geomijul — tesso couldn’t know, her words still applied to the cabaret club dynamic. “the streets are competitive so we are working hard to stay on top!” and how teamwork was the most important thing at the end of the day, etc.

they had a good time talking and tesso was glad to find out city girls were so friendly. he had the impression that he’d be eaten alive, but he was doing ok so far. 

he touched briefly on the real reason he visited kamurocho (thought to himself it would defeat the purpose to not mention it). though, seonhee was smart to not make him linger on the subject by proposing to toast in his honor. tesso agreed, he was there to celebrate and she had made the right call. 

[sorry for the lack of continuity here but i can't being myself to write more atm. will evetually expand that part into a fic.]

- meeting for the second time in yokohama

tesso was always one of the officers zhao relied on the most. for example, he was leading the men sent by zhao after nanba through the city.

so, after mabuchi's overturned coup-d'etat and seonhee taking over the liumang, zhao named tesso as the most reliable man under him and could definitely provide great support in mending the geomijul and liumang together - zhao assured seonhee she could rely on tesso to bridge the two factions.

seonhee was quick to recognize tesso right away, thinking hard about where she had seen such a familiar face before - and the options were very little. it didn't take long for her to realize that it was the same guy she met at the cabaret club years ago. she thought about playing it cool and pretending they never met before, "he probably forgot anyway" and it's not like she looks exactly the same as she did. but she couldn't really shake off the possibility of him remembering. still, she plays it off in front of zhao

for as long as tesso remembers, the geomijul was a very secretive organization and most liumang didn't even know who the boss was and what they looked like. so he rolled with the assumption of having never met them before. so, of course, when he officially met seonhee for the first time, he didn't recognize her. at least at first 😭

- the underworld post mabuchi

because of fusion of the underworld, there was a lot of re-structuring to (such as combining certain cashflows, identifying businesses to assign new leaders to look after them, etc.) it was challenging especially after mabuchi basically left the liumang in shambles and with a lot of defecting members.

tesso helped out sorting out the mess with seonhee personally; it was easier to go through everything with someone that new the ordeal from top to bottom (thanks to zhao). the little time they had was dedicated to fixing the whole organization. at that time, seonhee relegated a lot of leading responsibilities to joongi while tesso did the same with his subordinates.

that's all it was; hours in a corner of the geomijul (usually in the middle of the night) sorting through hundred of files.

at first, it was awkward. tesso had never seen who led the geomijul before and the reality was very far from this expectations. starting at the fact he didn't even thought the geomijul had a woman at its head because of the rumours running the liumang. a detail zhao never bothered bringing up before they met.

zhao's funky and malleable nature was replaced by something more rigid, stern at times but always stood on business. it was different, but tesso went along with it. her style was definitely gonna bring the liumang and geomijul back on its feet.

still, he spoke to her with the same clumsiness as he did with zhao. distant in his words, just like a subordinate should be to its leader. she didn't mind, especially when she did most of the talking anyway.

that's how their routine was at the start: meet, sort documents, leave — there wasn't anything else more to it.

but, something didn't feel quite right.

the more he heard her talk, the more he was sure to have met her before. the words she used, her tone... it felt so familiar. and he had plenty of time to think about it. there was no doubt, she definitely was that girl from the cabaret club...

he kept it to himself and vowed to pretend he's mistaken. the last thing he could do was to bring it up first and be wrong. he would continue to behave the same as he ever did. given their circumstances, he could assume she had left her old life behind as well.

though, irony seeped from his pores, it was stronger than him. the coincidence was a bit humorous; the two of them meeting again with different names and under these unlikely circumstances. he kept his stun under wraps - or at least tried to.

from lingering gazes when she wasn't looking to the way she held herself, tesso recalled the selfless woman he met long ago in kamurocho. despite the heavy facade she always wore, she played it off well, how, in the midst of her words, always passed others before herself.

even with her bolder style, and it's not like she changed much: she was still as beautiful as ever and had that unwavering aura fit of a born leader.

perhaps, he had made his realization too obvious.

ever since zhao presented tesso to seonhee, she knew they had met before. thus, sat quietly with the intent of pretending she was someone else. however, tesso's demeanour changed out of the blue. he seemed a bit more awkward and careful in his words.

though, seonhee resigned on pretending. "tesso? is that how you call yourself these days?" shortly followed with his real name. she asks, chuckling a bit. perhaps, he could've picked something more subtle. he did abandon his birth name for this alias he wasn't really sure whom give it to him. but it doesn't really matter. it just meant was a completely different man now.

it was a bit ironic; they are able to have to shy laugh about it, the ice is starting to melt between them.

- the bridge between the geomijul and yokohama liumang

overall, the union between the geomijul and liumang was welcome by its members. given the situation they both were in - one left without a leader and the other very vulnerable to outside threats. it was worth leaving residual animosity behind and cooperate for the sake of keeping yokohama safe.

so, antagonists to seonhee taking over after zhao were far and between - mainly geomijul oldheads (like seo hancheol 😍 rip bozo) and the few remaining mabuchi enjoyers (like zheng because yes in this timeline bro didn’t get banished out of yokohama).

so, not only did tesso assist seonhee in the merge of the two groups, but he kinda became for the liumang what joongi is for the geomijul: the first commander under the leader and first rep for the liumang. so, in case of trouble or any reference needed from geomijul members, they could ask him if needed. tesso is known to get along with younger folks (canon) so it helps a lot!

overall, the underworld is structured like this:

- factions subordinates (tesso and the geomijul)

yeona calls tesso liumang oppa 😭 she's the one that got tesso to read manga

i feel like yeona would get along well with these two LOL she can get info on joongi from tesso since they work on another level (joongi hides his cringy side from his subordinates). also, she tends to tease seonhee a bit about not being single anymore 😭 in a little sister-big sister type of way. bc like it's not like they ever announced anything, but yeona just picks up on vibes like that 😭 there's banter between seonhee and her, but it's in good faith!! there are so little women in the geomijul, so yeona made sure to stick with

"seonhee unnie, that's your boyfriend isn't it?" she didn't say that, but her eyes kinda did 😭 yeona always knows when something is up about her big sister. this whole exchange happened while tesso was reading his notes LOL 😭

well kinda... because now that seonhee is taken, han-sama (joongi) can stop worrying about seonhee's relationship status.

- advisor to advisor (tesso and joongi)

"Tha- That's not possible! She couldn't have a boyfriend! Some random man from who-knows-where!?" (direct canon quote istg 😭)

"some random man from who-knows-where" that's literally what tesso was to joongi for awhile. 

of course, he knew tesso was one of the closest subordinates of zhao. but he wanted to dig out his history as much as he could before even asking zhao about it. surprise came when he didn’t find much out of the geomijul surveillance system — there was no way to know for sure how nor when he got in the city. however, joongi was adamant about not asking seonhee about it just yet. 

sure, tesso and seonhee never announced they were together (for a very long time). but joongi picked up the smallest changes of seonhee's demeanour and her mannerisms. she tried her best to conceal it, but nothing went past his eye. and it was very clear to him... seonhee was indeed dating that random man.

at first, it was veiled concern but joongi believed seonhee could do better. he thought seonhee could aim for someone more or at least just as good looking than him (im sorry LOL but exhibit A) and someone as refined as her and not so… contradictory in looks and personality (tesso looks rough with a lot of distinctive features but is rather simple). so, first impression wise, it was off to a rocky start. 

despite being the two most important members of the geomijul and liumang, joongi and tesso didn’t really get along. tesso thought joongi was arrogant and preferred dealing with his subordinates instead (like yeona with whom he was able to work well with). 

“don’t mind han-sama. he’ll get over it eventually…” tesso still has no clue what she means by that

the impression of tesso and joongi not getting along wasn't setting a good example for the fellow geomijul and liumang members. while tesso was unsure about the whole thing, joongi struggled moving on for a bit. even seonhee wasn't sure of what was going on between the two.

it took yeona telling on joongi's business back to seonhee for her to set the record straight. no one knows for sure what she has said, but their short discussion was followed by a shy apology from joongi, blaming the geomijul's eternal lack of trust of others for his behaviour and vowed to be as reliable as ever. actually, that was a move from seonhee where she wouldn't let a reason so petty cloud joongi and tesso's relationship further. it was better if tesso didn't know (lol).......

in joongi's opinion, there was too many red flags or dubious points about tesso and couldn’t figure out where nor when they even met (as seonhee never mentioned him before). so, everything came to him as a surprise. 

deep down, the hurt joongi felt was because seonhee didn’t tell him about it first when they shared pretty much everything. he took it as a sign of being unworthy of her trust. understanding it didn’t come from malice, joongi slowly opened up to tesso - it was iffy at first, there was still moments when he was a bit rude despite him. it took time, but joongi trusted seonhee in her decision and agreed that tesso wasn’t so bad after all (“albeit a bit goofy and doesn’t have a presentation as neat as I do”). all that mattered at the end of the day was seonhee’s wellbeing and she seems happy. bro got over himself…

- relationship ladder

(i'm not gonna extend myself too much on this but) the particular thing about them is how the closer they got, the place to work on business changed as well.

this is the fish shop next to eomoni's vow 😭

it started at the corner of the geomijul but surely became eomoni's vow (which is just my first fic LOL) - right at the time when the city was as calm as ever and the liumang and geomijul were combined together. members were more comfortable walking the streets so the need to remain miles of tunnels under the surface wasn't as needed.

still, they usually met in the middle of the night to work on stuff, but just end up eating and drinking the hours away. they got in the habit of playing mahjong against each-other singing karaoke on rare occasion (amongst other things).

next location is qing jin.

omg bro with the three piece suit 😭

it's upgrade from eomoni's vow since the top floor has a dress code 😍 you have to be put together to get in there so dresses and dress shirts are a must.

tesso debated for awhile before inviting her. it was a bit of a bold move, but he knew qing jin would be more of her taste (more spacious, luxurious and an entire different palate) AND it was still very private.

tesso actually picked the artwork (see the tomato picture below) and the room divider is from lin lin

they went a few times, and that was then tesso told seonhee about zhao's apartment complex and eventually advanced the idea to share a spot there. won't go over the details again LOL but you get the idea 🤩

knowing she'd be coming, tesso leaves her sweets 🥹 he's usually more busy on foot (you know assassination quests 🤩), but will drop by before she does if he has other stuff to do for the day.

seonhee definitely spends more time there since she doesn't have to be out carrying missions out on the streets and enjoys the privacy. it's seemingly normal when compared to the gloominess of the geomijul and restaurant row.

- trip to kyoto

this is basically the fic i wrote last year - tesso and seonhee go on a trip to kyoto. (PLEASE READ IT I COOKED!!! 😭) the fic in a nutshell:

i am kidding of course

despite being a higher ranked officer with more responsibilities, he’s always stuck at the “uhhhh taking some time off like that kinda feels unfair” but was bullied convinced by zhao to take some anyway. yokohama had been peaceful for awhile now and his subordinates could run well without him around for a few days.

so take the bullet train to osaka only to come back three days and four nights later. notably, they visit the nonomiya shrine (the shrine of love woooooooohooooo, no it is actually!), tesso dedicates her a poem and they stay in a machiya.

funny enough, i managed to make 3d models pretty close to the original drawings (iykyk) so it's fun!

pretty!!!!!!!!! 😭

- miscellaneous

funny thing they do -> rock paper scissors and they talk to each-other the native tongue of whoever wins for a day. seonhee tends to win often; she's just built like that.

during yua's first year at seiryo, tesso and seonhee attended the parent-student meeting together in place of her uncle (yua's legal guardian at the time). to meet sawa-sensei (yes she lived).

negative trait

tesso : can be too passive | seonhee : lacks humility

positive trait 

tesso: dependable | seonhee: diligent 

strength against the other

tesso: resistant to dominatrix energy | seonhee: resistant to tianyou

their weakness coming from the other

tesso: her cute mannerisms | seonhee: him calling her a specific petname (b......ba......omg i can't [dies of cringe])

serious complaint about the other

tesso: sacrificing health for the sake of fashion | seonhee: sleeps too little

unserious complaint about the other 

tesso: lacks stamina | seonhee: grandpa mannerisms at 37

random quirk

tesso: can fall asleep anywhere | seonhee: rarely laughs from her the pit of her stomach

karaoke? 

seonhee: enjoys anything from koda kumi | tesso: either tone deaf or decent, nobody knows… won’t do anything more than adlibs

hobby they got because of the other

tesso: skincare | seonhee: gardening

seonhee enjoys growing tomatoes, amongst other things. on his part, tesso grows nappa cabbages somewhere on a rooftop in restaurant row (mostly for kimchi ofc).

hobby they don’t share

tesso: shopping | seonhee: running

hobby they tried together for the first time

dancing (thank you yagami)

seonhee is pissed bc yagami made them do something really hard as a tryout. it's not easy, but it's simple at least so they managed!

thing they do when sick

tesso: eats lemons like oranges | seonhee: drinks tea with every single aromatic she can find (ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, peppercorns, etc.)

last thing they fought about

seonhee being frustrated at tesso’s reluctance to take over the liumang, leading her to talk ill of zhao’s ways of leadership. though, seonhee is too proud to apologize first and they didn’t talk to each other for two weeks. even zhao and saeko picked up on the fact they were kinda avoiding each other. 

one thing they struggled with

(especially tesso at the start) treat each-other on equal footing. he was kinda confused at how to behave, whether to be or to not be subservient, like.....

not that it was his second nature, but that's what he used to for the longest time. so, he didn't mind at all.

seonhee was a bit frustrated at the need to spell it out, but it was better that way. at least, everything was clear between them from that point on.

for zhao's costume party [i'll write about this later? maybe?]

(actually seonhee convinced tesso but) they did matching costumes of leon kennedy and ada wong from RE.

TL;DR: i think there are moments when seonhee shares more of herself to someone on equal footing, moments where she's more vulnerable and has room to step away from her idolized self.

i think there are moments when tesso has to put himself first, moments when he must learn to not overextend himself at his own expense.

despite the unlikely circumstances and complicated conditions, i think they would be able to do that together. tesso and seonhee are polar opposites on so many things and i think they can learn a lot from each-other.

i'll make another post with all different outfits they had soon because the volume of models i made 😭

next headcanon post is either going to be ichitesso on dondoko island or yua.....idk yet........

and yes in my book miku was on dondoko island LOL

and before you ask, yes i smoke crack! thank you for coming to my ted talk!

[leodelaiglesia-skates]

My husband started his season this weekend at a competition in China.

Short Program

Guang-hong de la Iglesia - CHN - 97.78 

Gi- joon Khan - KOR - 92.28

NIkolais Januais - LAT - 88.22

Liwei Li - CHN - 78.84

Yejing Wang - CHN - 77.97

Dante Sebastiani - ITA - 74.47

Free Program

Guang-hong de la Iglesia - CHN - 195.04

Gi-joon Khan - KOR - 177.25

Nikolais Januais - LAT - 169.33

Dante Sebastiani - ITA - 156.44

Liweii LI - CHN - 147.19

Yejing Wang - CHN - 144.36

Overall

Guang-hong de la Iglesia - CHN -  292.82

Gi-joon Khan - KOR - 269.53

Nikolais Januais - LAT - 257.55

Dante Sebastiani - ITA - 230.91

Liwei Li - CHN - 225.67

Yejing Wang - CHN - 222.23

[yuriplisetsky-rp]

What a competition! Some great skates at the top. Happy to see my husband win and my boyfriend go into second. Worlds will be intense.

Short Program

Otabek Altin - KAZ - 110.27

Seung-gil Lee - KOR - 107.84

Jean-Jacques Leroy - CAN - 107.80

Guang-hong de la Iglesia - CHN - 107.68

Koichiro Fujiwara - JPN - 100.82

Kyo Fuji - JPN - 99.20

Louis Leroy - CAN - 98.90

Gi-joon Khan - KOR - 95.30

Hiroki Yamaguchi - JPN - 94.44

Justin Hwang - CAN - 83.50

Roman Khasanov - KAZ - 81.76

Alexander Bagrov - USA - 81.15

Yejing Wang - CHN - 78.74

Akihito Hayakawa - USA - 75.39

Ha-joon Park - KOR - 70.27

Daniel Vargas - MEX - 67.66

Ruslan Portnov - USA - 67.61

Liwei Li - CHN - 66.04

Serik Abdrakhmanov - KAZ - 64.51

Jayden Steven Ramoran - PHI - 62.86

Shoi-ming Song - HKG - 60.06

Damian Fonesca - AUS - 55.76

Le Le Wang - MAS - 54.99

Li Wei Yao - HKG - 54.05

Weiling Lei Tee Ng - SGP - 51.12

Li-wei Shi - TPE - 48.85

Georges Macdevitt - AUS - 42.28

Free Program

Guang-hong de la Iglesia - CHN - 216.10

Otabek Altin - KAZ - 215.44

Jean-Jacques Leroy - CAN - 215.21

Seung-gil Lee - KOR - 214.51

Louis Leroy - CAN - 201.14

Koichiro Fujiwara - JPN- 195.76

Gi-joon Khan - KOR - 177.65

Kyo Fuji - JPN - 175.39

Hiroki Yamaguchi - JPN - 168.99

Roman Khasanov - KAZ - 163.04

Justin Hwang - CAN - 156.88

Alexander Bagrov - USA - 156.05

Rulsan Portnov - USA - 147.39

Akihito Kayakwa - USA - 142.35

Ha-joon Park - KOR - 141.13

Yejing Wang - CHN - 139.92

Daniel Vargas - MEX - 134.81

Serik Abdrakhmanov - KAZ - 131.37

Jayden Steven Ramoran - PHI - 117.45

Damian Fonesca - AUS - 110.65

Le Le Wang - MAS - 103.35

Liwei Li - CHN - 102.47

Li Wei Yao - HKG - 93.11

Shoi-ming Song - HKG - 88.99

Overall

Otabek Altin - KAZ - (1, 2) - 324.00 @otabekvoiceblog

Guang-hong de la Iglsia - CHN - (4, 1) - 323.78 @guanghongvoice

Jean-Jacques Leroy - CAN - (3, 3) - 323.01 @jjleroy-rp

Seung-gil Lee - KOR - (2, 4) - 322.35

Louis Leroy - CAN - (7, 5) - 300.04

Koichiro Fujiwara - JPN - (5, 6) - 296.58

Kyo Fuji - JPN - (6, 8) - 274.59

Gi-joon Khan - KOR - (8, 7) - 272.95

Hiroki Yamaguchi - JPN - (9, 9) - 263.43

Roman Khasanov - KAZ - (11, 10) - 244.80

Justin Hwang - CHN - (10, 11) - 240.38

Alexander Bagrov - USA - (12, 12) - 237.20

Yejing Wang - CHN - (13, 16) - 218.66

Akihito Kayakwa - JPN - (14, 14) - 217.74

Ruslan Portnov - USA - (17, 13) - 215.00

Ha-joon Park - KOR - (15, 15) - 211.40

Daniel Vargas - MEX - (16, 17) - 202.47

Serik Abdrakhmanov - KAZ - (19, 18) - 195.88

Jayden Stevan Ramoran - PHI - (20, 19) - 180.31

Liwei Li - CHN - (18, 22) - 168.51

Damian Fonesca - AUS - (20, 20) - 166.41

Le Le Wang - MAS - (23, 21) - 158.34

Li Wei Yao - HKG - (24, 23) - 149.05

Shoi-ming Song - HKG - (21, 24) - 147.16

[craftercat]

The Custom of Killing the Mother of the Crown Prince in Northern Wei (1/2)

This is going to be a two part series. The first part will be looking at the custom of killing the mother of the crown prince, and the second part will look at the influence of Nurse Empress Dowagers.

So when did the custom start? What were its origins? There are two different statements in the records themselves:

Weishu volume 13: 魏故事，後宮產子將為儲貳，其母皆賜死。

"In Northern Wei there was a tradition, that when a son borne by the back palace's concubines was about to become crown prince, his mother would always be forced to commit suicide".

Nanqishu volume 57: 初，佛狸母是漢人，爲木末所殺，佛狸以乳母爲太后，自此以來，太子立，輙誅其母。

"Earlier, Buri (Tuoba Tao)'s mother was a Han woman, and she was killed by Mumo (Tuoba Si). Tuoba Tao used his wet nurse as Empress Dowager, and from then on, when a crown prince was established, his mother would always be executed."

So which is correct? Normally, the Weishu would take precedence, because it was written by the north, while the Nanqishu was written by southerners with limited information who had to rely on intelligence, and were the political enemies of Northern Wei. However, in this case, I don't think that either the Weishu or the Nanqishu is correct. I don't think that Tuoba Si killed Tuoba Tao's mother in the first place, let alone starting the tradition, which I will explain later on.

In terms of why I don't think the Weishu is correct, it's simply because Dai lacked the idea of clear father-son succession and a crown prince. While there were cases of father-son succession, this was not always the case. For example, Tuoba Yihuai essentially designated Tuoba Shiyijian as his successor, and the throne passed between several sons of Tuoba Liwei. And even when they did pass the throne to a son, the son was not always the eldest, such as when Tuoba Fu became emperor before Tuoba Yituo and Tuoba Yilu, and they were the emperor's nephews rather than sons.

With a system of succession where the heir was essentially chosen at will with no clear system as to who took precedent over who, how could there have been a system that revolved around having a clear heir and deciding him early? Especially when the throne often went to brothers or cousins, and not even the son in the first place. Furthermore, there is no record of any of the empresses of Dai having died due to this tradition. Princess Qi and Princess Wang were even able to have political influence as dowagers, especially Princess Qi.

Furthermore, why would Tuoba Gui need to explain to Tuoba Si the purpose behind the tradition if it existed since Dai:

Weishu volume 3: 初，帝母劉貴人賜死，太祖告帝曰：「昔漢武帝將立其子而殺其母，不令婦人後與國政，使外家為亂。汝當繼統，故吾遠同漢武，為長久之計。」

"Earlier, Tuoba Si's mother Honoured Lady Liu was forced to commit suicide, and Tuoba Gui told Tuoba Si: "In the past, Emperor Wu of Han was about to establish his son and killed his mother, in order to not let women later participate in state affairs, causing the consort kin to be chaotic. You will succeed me, thus I am far reaching like Wu of Han, making long term plans.""

There has been speculation that Tuoba Si invented this story to make himself look like the legitimate successor, but if this really was an old Dai tradition, then why couldn't Tuoba Si have claimed that Consort Liu died from the tradition? Why would he need to invent a whole conversation explaining why his mother was forced to commit suicide to make him the heir if it was already a tradition that this happened?

Then if both the Weishu and the Nanqishu are wrong, then when did the custom start? I think the most likely point would be Tuoba Gui killing Consort Liu to make Tuoba Si crown prince. I personally trust the records here: Tuoba Shao had killed his father, which already made him illegitimate. Tuoba Si, then, would be pacifying a rebellion rather than usurping the rightful heir in the minds of the nobility. As well, Tuoba Si never decided to restart the national history project of Tuoba Gui, which would seem like a logical thing to do if he wanted to twist the narrative to ensure his legitimacy.

Furthermore, of the two women before 456 who I think died from the tradition, both were of ethnic groups rival to the Xianbei. Consort Liu was the cousin of the Tiefu warlord Liu Xian. The Tiefu Xiongnu and the Tuoba Xianbei had long been rivals, and it's likely that Tuoba Gui wouldn't have wanted Tiefu Xiongnu influence on his heir. Consort Yujiulu, who I'll get to later, was Rouran. It's likely that the powerful ministers of Tuoba Jun's early reign didn't want a Rouran faction competing for power and used the death of Consort Liu as a pretext to force Consort Yujiulu to commit suicide.

I'm going to explain whether or not I think that Consort Du, Consort Helan and Consort Yujiulu died due to the tradition:

I don't think that Consort Du did actually die due to the tradition, despite what the Nanqishu says. First of all, Consort Du died in 420, and Tuoba Tao didn't become the crown prince until 422, which seems too big of a gap between events. Secondly, when Consort Liu was executed, Tuoba Si was extremely upset and even went into self-exile because he angered his father through his mourning, so it doesn't make sense for him to enforce the same trauma onto his son. Thirdly, Tuoba Si made Consort Du's brother Du Chao a major official in his home province, and he would receive and implement orders from the capital. The tradition was supposed to guard against consort kin becoming powerful, so why would Tuoba Si make Du Chao an official less than 4 years before Consort Du's death? Neither the Weishu or Songshu accuses Tuoba Si of killing her, which makes the Nanqishu claim seem suspect.

As for Consort Helan (or Helai), given that Consort Lin was killed according to the tradition the same year that Yuan Xun was born, it seems more plausible that she was killed. However, I don't think that this was a custom at this point in Northern Wei's history, and Consort Helan didn't have any close relatives who could become too powerful. She only had a distant uncle, Helan Mi, who was granted a title by Tuoba Tao, although he had no real power. Furthermore, Tuoba Tao employed his mother Consort Du's brother in an important position, so he didn't really seem to care about suppressing consort-kin. So I think it's more likely that Consort Helan died from some kind of childbirth issue or childbed infection.

I do find it plausible that Consort Yujiulu was killed due to the tradition by her political enemies. She died in 452, in a very strange sequence of important deaths. On 28 November 452, Baba Kehou and Tuoba Shoule engaged in political infighting and were forced to commit suicide. On 5 December, two of Tuoba Jun's uncles, Tuoba Jian and Tuoba Tan, both died on the same day. On 6 December, only a day after the deaths of her brothers-in-law and barely a week after the political struggle between Baba Kehou and Tuoba Shoule, Consort Yujiulu also died.

Like Consort Liu, Consort Yujiulu was also a part of a rival ethnic group, this time the Rouran. The Rouran had long been enemies of Northern Wei, and Tuoba Tao hated to the point that he changed their official name to a word meaning "wriggling", because he saw them as being closer to insects than people. So Rouran-Northern Wei tensions were high. Add to that she died barely a month after her son became emperor, and only a day after Tuoba Jun's uncles, and I find political execution the most likely scenario. One of the key factions at the time probably decided that they didn't want a Rouran faction in court, and they used Tuoba Gui's precedent to kill Consort Yujiulu, but it's unclear which one.

While Consort Yujiulu's death turned the killing of the crown prince's mother from a one-off into a tradition, it was mostly based around eliminating the influence of rival ethnic factions in court. It was in 456 when the custom found a new meaning:

Weishu volume 13: 太安二年，太后令依故事，令后具條記在南兄弟及引所結宗兄洪之，悉以付託。

"In the second year of Tai'an [456], Empress Dowager Chang ordered to follow the tradition, and ordered Consort Li to list her brothers in the south and her bonded brother Li Hongzhi to entrust to them."

Here, rather than Tuoba Jun carrying out the execution of his crown prince's mother, it is his wet-nurse, Empress Dowager Chang, who does so instead. This was the moment where the tradition became about female rivalries rather than suppressing factions of rival ethnic consort-kin. This instance, and the two afterwards, would be carried out by other women.

Weishu volume 13: 皇興三年薨，上下莫不悼惜。

"[Consort Li] died in the third year of Huangxing [469], and above and below there was nobody who did not mourn her."

This Consort Li was the mother of Yuan Hong and concubine of Tuoba Hong, but her cause of death is not stated. But I do think that she died due to the tradition. She died in 469, the same year that Yuan Hong became crown prince, and she was still young at the time, probably in her early twenties. Given that she was widely mourned, and she was noted for her virtuous character, she was probably not executed for a crime.

As well, although she had given up power, Empress Dowager Feng was still ambitious, and this Consort Li had a powerful family. In fact, even with Consort Li dead, Empress Dowager Feng feared her family to the point that she had their followers executed. She personally raised Yuan Hong and ensured that he never found out who his birth mother was, which showed how much she feared the power of Consort Li's family. So I think it's likely that Empress Dowager Feng followed the precedent of Empress Dowager Chang and forced Consort Li to commit suicide.

Weishu volume 13: 以恂將為儲貳，太和七年后依舊制薨。高祖仁恕，不欲襲前事，而禀文明太后意，故不果行。

"Because Yuan Xun would one day be crown prince, in the seventh year of Taihe [483], Consort Lin died according to the old tradition. Yuan Hong was benevolent and did not want to follow the old tradition, yet he followed Empress Dowager Feng's wishes, and thus he did not implement [his desire to get rid of the tradition]."

This shows that it was the empress dowagers, rather than the emperors, who were deciding the fate of these consorts. Empress Dowager Feng wanted to eliminate a potential rival, Consort Lin, and personally raise Yuan Xun in order to better control him. Even though Yuan Hong didn't want to follow through, he followed the will of Empress Dowager Feng, who had a lot of power at the time.

Ultimately, the tradition was abolished by Yuan Ke, which had several reasons behind it:

Weishu volume 13: 而椒掖之中，以國舊制，相與祈祝，皆願生諸王、公主，不願生太子。

"Of the concubines, because of the tradition, they would all pray together, wanting to give birth to princes who were not the crown prince, or princesses, and did not want to give birth to the crown prince."

After four generations of the mother of the crown prince (or emperor, because Tuoba Jun never got to be crown prince) being forced to commit suicide, by the time of Yuan Ke, none of the concubines wanted to have the crown prince. In fact, some would even have abortions to avoid having the crown prince:

及肅宗在孕，同列猶以故事相恐，勸為諸計。

"When Consort Hu was pregnant with Yuan Xu, the concubines were all afraid because of the tradition, and they advised her with various plans."

Yuan Xu became crown prince at a young age, but Consort Hu was not executed, which essentially ended the tradition. By this point, Yuan Ke probably blamed his lack of an heir in his late 20s to be on the concubines' fear of having a crown prince, and at this point, Gao Zhao was powerful, which showed he didn't really care about the issue of consort-kin.

先是，世宗頻喪皇子，自以春秋長矣，深加慎護。為擇乳保，皆取良家宜子者。養於別宮，皇后及充華嬪皆莫得而撫視焉。

"Earlier, Yuan Ke often lost sons, and because he was now older, he was very cautious and protective. He entrusted Yuan Ke to a wet-nurse and nanny, both taken from good families and appropriate for raising children. Yuan Xu was raised in a separate palace, and Empress Gao and Consort Hu were both not allowed to see him."

The system of raising a child with another woman was common in the Northern Wei dynasty, but it seems to have come from different origins. Tuoba Si separated Tuoba Tao from his mother likely because she was under house arrest, Tuoba Tao likely had Empress Dowager Chang raise Tuoba Jun because he thought that Rouran were not suitable for raising children, Empress Dowager Feng raised Yuan Hong to ensure that he was influenced by her and not Consort Li, and now Yuan Ke was appointing a wet-nurse and nanny to raise Yuan Xu because he thought Yuan Ke would be more likely to survive.

Part of the reason was because Empress Gao and Gao Zhao were suspected to be behind the death of Yuan Ke's first son with Empress Yu, and he therefore wanted to restrict their access to the baby. Yuan Ke could have also spared Consort Hu because he thought that she could act as a counterbalance to the extreme power that the Gao clan and Gao Zhao held.

Thus ended the system of the crown prince's mother being forced to commit suicide. In Part 2, I will be discussing the Nurse Empress Dowagers.

[asianvillehq]

Hey, psiu! Sabia que VERÔNICA HARPER PARK que mora na 3RD STREET do KOTO BOULEVARD se associou a ARKT como INSTRUTORA DE BALLET? Pois é, um vizinho me falou que ela tem 25 ANOS, nascida 01/04/1998 em LOS ANGELES, EUA. Você acredita? Ele é descendente de COREANOS e trabalha como ATENDENTE NA SOUND FACTORY. É verdade, ela me contou tudo! Ainda disse que ela é muito DIRETA e ENTUSIASMADA, mas pode ser um pouco CIUMENTA e BRIGUENTA. Quem diria não é? Com aquela carinha, parecida com a CHO MIYEON pode se dar bem aqui em Asianville. Olha lá, ela tá vindo, disfarça, se quiser saber mais, segue ela no @VERONICA_ASVL me falaram que dá pra saber todas as fofocas por lá! (ooc +18 - informações extras)

Hey, psiu! Você conhece PARK JAEMIN que mora na 4th STREET de CHITHA BOULEVARD? Então, um vizinho me falou que ele tem 21 ANOS, nascido 01/08/2001 em SOKCHO, COREIA DO SUL. Você acredita? Ele é descendente de COREANOS e trabalha como CABELEREIRO NA INK-KIND. É verdade, ele me contou tudo! Ainda disse que ele é muito CARISMÁTICO E ATENCIOSO, mas pode ser um pouco DEBOCHADO E IMPULSIVO. Quem diria não é? Com aquela carinha, parecido com o SEONGMIN - CRAVITY pode se dar bem aqui em Asianville. Olha lá, ele tá vindo, disfarça, se quiser saber mais, segue ele no @ASVL_PJM, me falaram que dá pra saber todas as fofocas por lá! (ooc +18 - informações extras)

Hey, psiu! Sabia que SONG LIWEI que mora na 3RD STREET do CHITHA BOULEVARD se associou a AMCT como INSTRUTOR DE DANÇA? Pois é, um vizinho me falou que ele tem 28 ANOS, nascido 12/07/1994 em SHANGHAI, CHINA. Você acredita? Ele é descendente de CHINESES e trabalha como DONO DA SMOKING HOT. É verdade, ele me contou tudo! Ainda disse que ele é muito AFETUOSO E DIVERTIDO, mas pode ser um pouco TEIMOSO E INCONSEQUENTE. Quem diria não é? Com aquela carinha, parecido com JACKSON WANG pode se dar bem aqui em Asianville. Olha lá, ele tá vindo, disfarça, se quiser saber mais, segue ele no @ASVL_LIWEI, me falaram que dá pra saber todas as fofocas por lá! (ooc +18 - informações extras)

Hey, psiu! Sabia que KIM MINJOON que mora na 4TH STREET do KOTO BOULEVARD se associou a ARKT como ASSISTENTE SOCIAL? Pois é, um vizinho me falou que ele tem 24 ANOS, nascido em 05/12/1997 em LOS ANGELES, EUA. Você acredita? Ele é descendente de COREANOS e trabalha como ADVOGADO NA MINDCHECK. É verdade, ele me contou tudo! Ainda disse que ele é muito SINCERO E INTELIGENTE, mas pode ser um pouco DESCUIDADO E INSENSÍVEL. Quem diria, não é? Com aquela carinha, parecido com SOOBIN - TXT pode se dar bem aqui em Asianville. Olha lá, ele tá vindo, disfarça, se quiser saber mais, segue ele no @ASVL_MINJOON, me falaram que dá pra saber todas as fofocas por lá! (ooc +18 - informações extras)

Hey, psiu! Você conhece SHIN "SEAN" SEONWU que mora na 2RD STREET do CHITHA BOULEVARD? Então, um vizinho me falou que ele tem 28 ANOS, nascido 10/05/1995 em SEUL, COREIA DO SUL. Você acredita? Ele é descendente de COREANOS e trabalha como POLICIAL. É verdade, ele me contou tudo! Ainda disse que ele é muito PRÁTICO e DILIGENTE, mas pode ser um pouco SARCÁSTICO e INFLEXÍVEL. Quem diria não é? Com aquela carinha, parecido com KIM MINGYU - SEVENTEEN pode se dar bem aqui em Asianville. Olha lá, ele tá vindo, disfarça, se quiser saber mais, segue ele no @ASVL_SEAN, me falaram que dá pra saber todas as fofocas por lá! (ooc +18 - informações extras)

[theolympusrp]

OOC: +18

IC:

Nome terreno: Liwei Wang. Nome mitológico: Euadne. Faceclaim: Darren Chen, ator (kuanhung_ on IG). Nascimento: 15 de Janeiro de 1995. Naturalidade: Roma, Itália.

Ser: Semi-deus, filho de Atena. Nível: 2 Dormitório: Andromeda - 10 

Twitter: @euadne_olp. Ocupação: Barista do Garden Cafe (turno 1).

Qualidades: Carinhoso, leal e sensível. Defeitos: Indeciso, orgulhoso e rancoroso. Plots de interesse: fluff, general, crack.

Biografia:

Liwei perdeu o pai ainda muito novo. Com a notícia do falecimento, Atena instruiu uma semi-deusa, que vivia pacificamente entre os humanos, a cuidar de seu menino e a ensiná-lo sobre si mesmo. O garoto, aos seus 9 anos, via sua visão de mundo mudar drasticamente, ao descobrir ser filho de uma deusa. Para a mente de uma criança, tudo parecia mágico e deslumbrante. Lhe foi revelado então, o motivo de ter tanto carinho pelas corujas e por, quase sempre, ter uma por perto quando necessitava de uma companhia. Sem saber de seus poderes, chamava pela coruja, que o atendia sempre. Nunca entendeu como ou o porquê, mas sempre o fazia quando se sentia solitário ou incompreendido.

Durante a adolescência começou a treinar o manejo de armas e a batalhar. Via isso como um esporte e se divertia sempre que aprendia algo novo. Gostava da história de Roma, e o Coliseu era seu lugar favorito para se visitar. A história do lugar o prendia, adorava. Estudava na biblioteca sempre que podia, gostava de ler. O que lhe dessem, leria. Às vezes acordava de madrugada, se sentava na grama e encarava o céu. Contava sobre seu dia, sobre os treinamentos, tudo. Apesar de não saber se sua mãe o ouvia, sempre o fazia. Tinha a esperança de um dia poder encontrá-la. Desde pequeno, sempre que conseguia uma vitória, um avanço, sorria pro céu. Sua responsável sempre soube da sua preferência em conhecer melhor seus poderes em relação as corujas, então, em todo aniversário lhe presenteava com um livro sobre.

Já em sua vida adulta, Liwei se via como um pássaro livre — não que antes se sentisse preso, muito pelo contrário — que tinha um mundo inteiro em suas mãos para explorar. Havia conversado algumas vezes com a mulher que o criou sobre o Olympus. A primeira vez, foi quando começou seus treinamentos. Tinha muitas expectativas sobre o lugar que um dia o esperaria. Trabalhou como florista entre o final de sua adolescência e início da vida adulta. Sempre foi um rapaz doce e amável; o que é contraditório ao seu interesse na história sangrenta do Coliseu.

Habilidades:

01. Mente Alerta: Filhos de Atena são conhecidos como sabichões ou até mesmo ‘nerds’. Não é por isso que devem ser subestimados. Sua agilidade não é comparada à dos filhos de Hermes, mas são rápidos na compreensão de um ataque, sendo assim, sabendo muito bem, como desviar deles, e como os defender.

02. Canção suave: Com essa canção, pode-se fazer um monstro ficar quase inofensivo. Acalma até mesmo aqueles que são sedentos pelo caos.

03. Poliglota: Com o passar do tempo, o cérebro do filho de Athena vai ser tornando mais desenvolvido e anormal dando a ele capacidade de reconhecer e falar qualquer que seja o idioma.

04. Invulnerabilidade mental: Consiste na capacidade que o filho de Atena tem de não ser afetado por ataques mentais. Tornando-se imune a eles. 

05. Telepatia: Os filhos de Atena, conseguem se comunicar com seus aliados e com animais símbolos de sua mãe ajudando em batalhas e guerras, ou apenas, se divertindo com o dom.

06. Justiceiro: Atena era uma deusa que defendia os justos e os merecedores de seus cuidados. Sendo assim, a cria de Atena sempre pensará em fazer justiça, não sendo má influenciada, ou tirada de seu objetivo, que sempre seguirá com sagacidade. 

07. Ofidioglota: Capacidade de conversar com cobras e dependendo de sua relação com elas, podendo até mesmo comandá-las.

08. Teletransporte: Nesse nível, com tal avanço mental, você pode teletransportar, a si e a seus aliados, para outro local, desde que esse esteja visível aos seus olhos, ou que você tenha uma imagem clara do mesmo, mentalmente ou por meio de uma foto.

09. Animais noturnos: Como o símbolo de Atena é a coruja, o predominante animal da noite, seus filhos podem falar com elas, e também com todos os demais animais noturnos. Podem mesmo controlar e fazer que as corujas lhe obedeçam, mas não com os demais animais, apenas entendendo-os e se comunicando.

10. Persuasão: Atena poderia não ser uma das deusas mais bonitas do olimpo, mas era a deusa das artes, e no conceito de seu irmão, Hermes, enganar é uma arte. A cria de Atena consegue manter firmemente uma mentira, podendo fazer muitos acreditarem e dificilmente, ser contrariada. Seu olhar mortífero e sua língua sempre afiada, fazem difícil, a mentira ser desviada.

11. Canção da Noite: O semideus consegue reproduzir um estímulo sonoro bastante similar ao canto de uma coruja, utilizando este artifício para atordoar, enlouquecer, fazer os inimigos voltassem contra si mesmos, baixar a guarda ou até matá-lo.

12. Telecinese: A telecinésia é a capacidade de mover fisicamente um objeto com a força psíquica, fazendo-o levitar, mover-se ou apenas ser abalado pela mente.

13. Olhos de Coruja: Os olhos das proles de Atena assumem uma coloração amarelada, com a pupila se retraindo, ficando de um tamanho mínimo, os olhos penetrantes, a ajudam a ‘enxergar’ além, sendo assim, conseguindo uma melhor visão do campo de batalha, ainda persuadindo o inimigo. Incapacitando-o de contar mentiras, ou pelo menos segurá-las por muito tempo. Causando um ‘medo’.

14. Olhos Expandidos: Além de controlar as corujas que você convocou, você pode unir seus olhos, ou seja, tudo que elas vejam passarão por seus olhos, isso funciona muito bem quando elas estão como espiãs ou guardas.

15. Realidade Artística​: Qualquer coisa que você desenhe ganhará vida ao seu chamado. De um gafanhoto à um Elefante. De uma faca de cozinha a uma catapulta. De um aro de pneu, à um carro zerinho. As invocações estarão sob o controle supremo do Filho de Atena, de maneira a obedecê-lo por completo. Serão feitas de tinta, e portanto é difícil destruí-las.

16. Coruja de Atena: O herói pode invocar o animal sagrado de Atena, a Coruja, para ajudá-lo tanto em batalha como para explorar as redondezas.

17. Guerreiros de Atena: Durante uma batalha, o filho de Athena poderá invocar guerreiros que um dia tiveram como patrono a deusa e isso os torna leais à mesma e aos seus progenitores. Os guerreiros portam armaduras feitas de ouro e lanças feitas de bronze celestial, além disso, são extremamente resistentes a ataques físicos ou mágicos, mas isso não os torna imortais cabendo à prole invocá-los novamente caso “morram”. Seu limite é de 2 guerreiros. 

18. Imaginação Fértil: Com sua grande mente vem grandes imaginações. Imagine um grande dragão te ajudando…e lá ele estará. Serão apenas ilusões, brincando com a mente da pessoa, por isso, não causará danos e ela; não físicos. Só funciona com mentes inferiores a sua. Bem, quase todas são.

19. Metamorfose: O filho de Atena consegue se transformar em uma coruja gigante da espécie Megascops. Não existem restrições nesse poder, o filho de Atena poderá voar, bicar e até mesmo carregar no máximo duas pessoas, uma em seu dorso e a outra sendo segurada por suas patas. Se o filho de Atena morrer em sua forma de coruja, ele volta a sua forma normal desmaiado e sem energia, mas ainda com vida.

20. Marca de Atena: O filho de Atena pode invocar todos os itens sagrados de Atena, sua armadura ateniense completa cobrindo seu corpo, o escudo Aegis em sua mão esquerda, a lança sagrada na direta e o manto de Atena sobre seus ombros, e a mesma aura de sua mãe emanando aterrorizando seus inimigos que acreditam ver a própria deusa diante de si. Após o uso, ficará 3 dias totalmente exaurido e sem poderes para se recuperar desse poder avassalador.

[xuanlw]

tag drop: pairings ! ( pt four )

[deepfriedscallops]

War God: A Compendium

Figured I have to finally make a post for A War God From Another World so that readers (mainly *I*) aren't going crazy with all the worldbuilding that's just become a monster to manage. This will get updated as the fic progresses (since I'm already brainstorming for the next major arc lol).

Cang Qiong

*Note: the previous generation of peak lords use 心 ("heart") for their titles.

Qing Jing Peak Lord - Jiang Xinqin - 蔣心琴 ("zither")

Bai Zhan Peak Lord - Wang Xinying - 王心櫻 ("cherry")

Qian Cao Peak Lord - Zhou Xinbei - 周心北 (“north")

Qiong Ding Peak Lord - Huang Xinwen - 黃心文 ("literature")

An Ding Peak Lord - Han Xinjing - 韓心精 (“refined")

Liu Qingge - Liu Kang* - 柳康 ("peaceful/healthy/bountiful")

Shang Qinghua - Shang Zhen - 尚真 ("genuine" lol)

Wei Qingwei - Wei Zhixin - 魏志信 ("purpose" and "trust")

Mu Qingfang - Mu Liwei - 木歷維 ("era" and "thought")

Qian He City Arc

Tang Wenzhao - 唐問曌 ("to ask" and "to illuminate/reflect")

Guo Lexin - 郭樂心 ("joyful heart")

Guo Shirong** - 郭实荣 ("truth" and "honorable")

Gongyi Meiyu - 公仪媄宇 (“beautiful” and “universe/roof”)

Tianlang-jun - “Wei Tian” - 魏天 (“sky”)

Other Side Characters

Fan Ping - 範平 ("peaceful")

Chu Zhouyi - 楚周義 ("cycle" and "justice")

Shuang’er / Shuang-jie / Madam Shuang - 霜儿 (“frost”)

Chen Huan’er - 陳焕儿 (“lustrous”)

Location Names

Qian He City - 千河城 (“thousand rivers”)

Jin Hua*** - 金花 (“golden flower”)

Luoyang**** - 洛陽 (“Luo (River)” and “sunny”)

* A bit inspired by Yang Kang (LotCH) in which in that novel, the protagonist Guo Jing and the antagonist Yang Kang were named from a poem referencing the Jingkang Incident (靖康), a historical event in the warring period between Jin and Song. Kang is also often coupled with jian in jiankang (健康), meaning “healthy.”

** Guo Shirong hasn’t been named directly in the text yet, but this is the name of the child ghost in the Qian He City arc.

*** LQG’s hometown, which isn’t too far from Huan Hua Palace but still within view of the Tian Gong Mountains.

**** Literally just ripped from Luoyang, the oldest city out of the Four Ancient Capitals. This is the de facto capital city in PIDW, since Airplane did pull some real locations for his worldbuilding (i.e. the Luo River) so therefore I say so because I can’t be bothered to wring the last of my creative juices to name places.

[acuguy]

Higo (Ficus carica) Hojas: expectorante, diabetes Fruta tostada: bronquitis, catarros pulmonares, coqueluche Hojas en agua caliente y luego machacadas: callos Medicina China: Se enfoca en los meridianos Tai Yin y Yang Ming. Referencias: Nuñez Melendez, Esteban PhD. Plantas Medicinales de Puerto Rico. San Juan: Editorial Universidad de Puerto Rico. 1982. Jie Tian, Yue Zhang, Xiaomin Yang, Ke Rui, Xinyi Tang, Jie Ma, Jianguo Chen, Huaxi Xu, Liwei Lu and Shengjun Wang. Ficus carica Polysaccharides Promote the Maturation and Function of Dendritic Cells. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2014, 15, 12469-12479 SA Hashemi, S Abediankenari, M Ghasemi, M Azadbakht, Y Yousefzadeh, AA Dehpour. The Effect of Fig Tree Latex (Ficus carica) on Stomach Cancer Line. Iran Red Crescent Med J 2011; 13(4):272-275. Ramgopal Mopuri, Muniswamy Ganjayi, Balaji Meriga, Neil Anthony Koorbanally, Md Shahidul Islam. The Effects of Ficus carica on the activity of enzymes related to metabolic syndrome. Journal of Food and Drug Analysis 26 (2018) 201-210. #acupuntura #medicinachina #medicinanatural #plantasmedicinales #hierbas #salud #higo #ficuscarica #taiyin #yangming dr.agujas@gmail.com (at New York City) https://www.instagram.com/p/B71rDxandcP/?igshid=5ukjnz53o7zy

[writinggeisha]

Aiguo                   love country; patriotic

An                        peace

Angúo                  protect the country

Bai                       white

Bingwen              bright and cultivated

Bo                        waves

Bohai                   elder brother sea

Bojing                  win admiration

Bolin                    elder brother rain

Boqin                   win respect

Changpu              forever simple

Chanming            forever bright

Chao                    surpassing

Chaoxiang            expecting fortune

Chen                    vast or great

Cheng                  accomplished

Chenglei               become great

Cheung                good luck

Chi                       the younger generation

Chongan              second brother peace

Chongkun            second brother Kunlun mountain

Chonglin              second brother unicorn

Chuanli                transmitting propriety

Chung                  intelligent

Délì                      virtuous

Déshì                    a man of virtue

Déwei                  highly virtuous

Da                        attainment

Dai                       martial arts sword technique

Delun                   virtuous order

Deming                virtue bright

Dingbang             protect the country

Dingxiang            stability and fortune

Dong                    east; winter

Donghai               eastern sea

Duyi                     independent wholeness

Enlai                     favor coming

Fa                         setting off

Fai                        growth; beginning of fly

Fang                     honest and upright

Feng                     sharp blade; wind

Fengge                 phoenix pavilion

Fu                         wealthy

Fuhua                   fortune flourishing

Gan                      dare; adventure

Gang                    strength

Geming                revolution

Gen                      root

Genghis                just, righteous; true

Guang                  light

Guangli                making propriety bright

Gui                       honored; noble

Guiren                  valuing benevolence

Guoliang              may the country be kind

Guotin                  polite, firm; strong leader

Guowei                state preserving

Guozhi                 the state is ordered

Hai                       sea

He                        Yellow river

Heng                    eternal

Ho                        for the good

Hong                    great; wild swan

Honghui               great splendor

Hongqi                 red flag

Hop                      agreeable

Huan                    happiness

Huang Fu             rich future

Hui                       splendor

Hulin                    people of the Marrim city clan

Hung                    flood; great

Huojin                  fire metal

Jaw-long              like a dragon

Jian                       healthy

Jiang                     Yangtze river

Jianguo                 building the country

Jianjun                  building the army

Jianyu                   building the universe

Jin                        gold

Jing                      capital city

Jingguo                administering the state

Jinhai                    golden sea

Jinjing                  gold mirror

Jun                       truth

Junjie                    handsome and outstanding

Kang                    well-being

Keung                  universe

Kong                    glorious, sky

Lì                         strength

Lei                        thunder

Li                         upright

Liang                    bright

Liang                    good, excellent

Liko                     protected by Buddha

Ling                     compassion or understanding

Liu                       flowing

Liwei                    profit and greatness

Lok                      happiness

Longwei               dragon greatness

Manchu                pure

Ming-húa             brilliant, elite

Mingli                  bright propriety

Ming-tun              intelligent; heavy

Minsheng             voice of the people

Minzhe                 sensitive and wise

Nianzu                 thinking of ancestors

On                        peace

Park                      the cypress tree

Peng                     Roc - the bird of legend

Pengfei                 flight of the roc

Ping                      stable

Qi                         enlightenment; wondrous

Qianfan                thousand sails

Qiang                   strong

Qingshan              celebrating goodness

Qingsheng            celebrating birth

Qiquiang              enlightenment and strength

Qiu                       autumn

Quan                    fresh water spring

Quon                    bright

Renshu                 benevolent forbearance

Rong                    martial

Ru                        scholar

Shàoqiáng            strong and profound

Shìlín                    intellectual

Shan                     mountain

Shanyuan             mountain source

Shen                     cautious; deep

Shen                     spirit; deep thought

Shi                        front horizontal bar on carriage or cart

Shing                    victory

Shining                 world at peace

Shirong                scholarly honor

Shoi-ming            life of sunshine

Shoushan             longevity mountain

Shunyuan             follow to the source

Shu-sai-chong      happy all his life long

Siyu                      thinking of the world

Sueh-yén              continuity; harmonious

Sying                    star

Tao                       great waves

Tengfei                 soaring high

Tingzhe                may the court be wise

Tsun-chùng          middle village

Tung                     all, universal

Wang                   hope, wish

Wei                      greatness; impressive might

Weimin                bring greatness to the people

Weisheng             greatness is born

Weiyuan               preserving depth

Weizhe                 great sage

Wencheng            refinement accomplished

Wenyan                refined and virtuous

Wing                    glory

Wuzhou               five continents 

Xiang                   circling in air like a bird

Xianliang             worthy brightness

Xiaobo                 little wrestler

Xiaodan               little dawn

Xiaojian               little healthy

Xiaosi                   filial thoughts

Xiaowen              filial, civil

Xiasheng              little birth

Xin                       new

Xing                     arising

Xiu                       cultivated

Xue                      studious

Xueqin                 snow-white celery

Xueyou                studious and friendly

Yang                    model; pattern

Yanlin                  swallow forest; Beijing forest

Yaochuan             honoring the river

Yaoting                honoring the courtyard

Yaozu                  honoring the ancestors

Ye                        bright

Yi                         firm and resolute

Yingjie                 brave and heroic

Yingpei                should admire

Yong                    brave

Yongliang            forever bright

Yongnian             eternal years

Yongrui                forever lucky

Yongzheng          forever upright

You                      friend

Yuanjun               master of the Yuan river

Yunxu                  cloudy emptiness

Yusheng               jade birth

Zedong                east of the marsh

Zemin                   favor to the people

Zenguang             increasing brightness

Zhìxin                  a man of ambition

Zhìyuan                ambition

Zhen                     greatly astonished; shake

Zhengzhong         upright and loyal

Zhensheng           may the government rise

Zhihuán                ambitious

Zhiqiang               the will is strong

Zhong                  loyal; steadfast

Zian                      self peace

Zihao                    son heroic

Zixin                    self confidence

[terminaent]

WELCOMING: JIANG “SERENA” YINGYUE

CAREER INFORMATION:

━✧ SIGNED: March 19, 2010 ━✧ DEBUT: February 21, 2015 ━✧ GROUP: Viper ━✧ POSITION: Leader, Main Rapper, Main Dancer ━✧ VOICE CLAIMS: VAVA, Vinida, Jeon Soyeon, Shin Jimin, Jang Yeeun

BIOGRAPHY:

Born in Qingdao, China, Yingyue is the only child of Jiang Liwei, the head of one of China's biggest entertainment investment companies, and the late actress Wang Chunhua. Yingyue began ballet and piano training at the age of six and showed great talent in both areas. With both of her parents being highly influential figures in the Chinese media, Yingyue was able to obtain many resources that would help her expand her talents. Rumors and gossip about Yingyue grew just as fast as her talents did, with many of her classmates saying she wouldn't have any talent if it weren't for her parents' connections. Yingyue's mental health began to deteriorate due to the harsh criticism she faced from her classmates. This, combined with the sudden and shocking death of her mother caused Yingyue to spiral into a deep depression.

Months later, Yingyue's mental health condition showed little improvement, causing her to become homeschooled in order to be closely observed by her father. Only wanting to see his daughter be happy again, Yingyue's father let her accompany him on business trips whenever she had breaks from school. It was during one of her father's business trips to Seoul where she was scouted by Termina Entertainment. Yingyue was originally reluctant to accept the company's offer, but soon came to the realization that this opportunity could not only help her prove she was more than her parents' money, but would also give her a closer connection to her mother as she had been a celebrity as well.

Eventually accepting Termina's offer, Yingyue began training at the age of fifteen, agreeing with her father that he would have no hand in helping her during the process. Yingyue was determined to be a self made artist and insisted that it was better that the public didn't know who her parents were in order to avoid the assumptions that came with it. Yingyue was known to be a promising trainee as her backgrounds in music and dance helped her exceed the expectations of her company almost immediately. At the age of twenty, Yingyue was set to become the leader of the girl group VIPER. Five years later, Yingyue has proven to be a capable leader and continues to amaze the public with her abilities.

[fumpkins]

You Can’t Squash This Roach-Inspired Robot

If the sight of a skittering bug makes you squirm, you may want to look away — a new insect-sized robot created by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, can scurry across the floor at nearly the speed of a darting cockroach.

And it’s nearly as hardy as a cockroach, too. Try to squash this robot under your foot, and more than likely, it will just keep going.

“Most of the robots at this particular small scale are very fragile. If you step on them, you pretty much destroy the robot,” said Liwei Lin, a professor of mechanical engineering at UC Berkeley and senior author of a new study that describes the robot. “We found that if we put weight on our robot, it still more or less functions.”

Small-scale robots like these could be advantageous in search and rescue missions, squeezing and squishing into places where dogs or humans can’t fit, or where it may be too dangerous for them to go, said Yichuan Wu, first author of the paper, who completed the work as a graduate student in mechanical engineering at UC Berkeley through the Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institutepartnership.

“For example, if an earthquake happens, it’s very hard for the big machines, or the big dogs, to find life underneath debris, so that’s why we need a small-sized robot that is agile and robust,” said Wu, who is now an assistant professor at the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China.

The study appears today (Wednesday, July 31) in the journal Science Robotics.

The robot is built of a layered material that bends and straightens when AC voltage is applied, causing it to spring forward in a “leapfrogging” motion. (UC Berkeley photo by Stephen McNally)

The robot, which is about the size of a large postage stamp, is made of a thin sheet of a piezoelectric material called polyvinylidene fluoride, or PVDF. Piezoelectric materials are unique, in that applying electric voltage to them causes the materials to expand or contract.

The researchers coated the PVDF in a layer of an elastic polymer, which causes the entire sheet to bend, instead of to expand or contract. They then added a front leg so that, as the material bends and straightens under an electric field, the oscillations propel the device forward in a “leapfrogging” motion.

The resulting robot may be simple to look at, but it has some remarkable abilities. It can sail along the ground at a speed of 20 body lengths per second, a rate comparable to that of a cockroach and reported to be the fastest pace among insect-scale robots. It can zip through tubes, climb small slopes and carry small loads, such as a peanut.

Perhaps most impressively, the robot, which weighs less than one tenth of a gram, can withstand a weight of around 60 kg — about the weight of an average human — which is approximately 1 million times the weight of the robot.

“People may have experienced that, if you step on the cockroach, you may have to grind it up a little bit, otherwise the cockroach may still survive and run away,” Lin said. “Somebody stepping on our robot is applying an extraordinarily large weight, but [the robot] still works, it still functions. So, in that particular sense, it’s very similar to a cockroach.”

The robot is currently “tethered” to a thin wire that carries an electric voltage that drives the oscillations. The team is experimenting with adding a battery so the robot can roam independently. They are also working to add gas sensors and are improving the design of the robot so it can be steered around obstacles.

Co-authors of the paper include Justin K. Yim, Zhichun Shao, Mingjing Qi, Junwen Zhong, Zihao Luo, Ronald S. Fearing and Robert J. Full of UC Berkeley, Xiaojun Yan of Beihang University and Jiaming Liang, Min Zhang and Xiaohao Wang of Tsinghua University.

This work is supported in part by the Berkeley Sensor and Actuator Center, an Industry-University Cooperation Research Center.

New post published on: https://www.livescience.tech/2019/08/03/you-cant-squash-this-roach-inspired-robot/

[theolympusrp]

OOC: +18

IC: Nome terreno: Liwei Wang. Nome mitológico: Euadne. Faceclaim: Darren Chen – Ator. Nascimento: 13 de abril de 1995. Naturalidade: Roma, Itália.

Ser: Semi-deus, filho de Atena. Nível: 02 Dormitório: Andromeda - 05

Twitter: @euadne_olp Ocupação: Bibliotecário.

Qualidades: Carinhoso, leal e sensível. Defeitos: Egoísta, orgulhoso e rancoroso.

Biografia:

Liwei perdeu o pai, Wang Donghai (taiwanês), ainda muito novo. Com a notícia do falecimento, Atena instruiu uma semi-deusa, que vivia pacificamente entre os humanos, a cuidar de seu menino e a ensiná-lo sobre si mesmo. O garoto, aos seus 9 anos, via sua visão de mundo mudar drasticamente, ao descobrir ser filho de uma deusa. Para a mente de uma criança, tudo parecia mágico e deslumbrante. Lhe foi revelado então, o motivo de ter tanto carinho pelas corujas e por, quase sempre, ter uma por perto quando necessitava de uma companhia. Sem saber de seus poderes, chamava pela coruja, que o atendia sempre. Nunca entendeu como ou o porquê, mas sempre o fazia quando se sentia solitário ou incompreendido.

Apesar da ausência de sua mãe, nunca se sentiu, de fato, sozinho ou abandonado. Não sabia como explicar, mas sentia a presença de alguém que o fazia se sentir protegido. Sentia que essa presença era de sua mãe. Então, embora não tenha convívio com a mesma, seu amor por ela ainda era enorme. E sempre que ouvia suas histórias, sentia orgulho dela. Liwei sempre foi compreensível, sabia que sua querida mãe tinha um papel importante a cumprir. E que, aonde quer que esteja, ela o estaria protegendo.

Durante a adolescência começou a treinar o manejo de armas e a batalhar. Via isso como um esporte e se divertia sempre que aprendia algo novo. Gostava da história de Roma, e o Coliseu era seu lugar favorito para se visitar. A história do lugar o prendia, adorava. Estudava na biblioteca sempre que podia, gostava de ler. O que lhe dessem, leria. Às vezes acordava de madrugada, se sentava na grama e encarava o céu. Contava sobre seu dia, sobre os treinamentos, tudo. Apesar de não saber se sua mãe o ouvia, sempre o fazia. Tinha a esperança de um dia poder encontrá-la. Desde pequeno, sempre que conseguia uma vitória, um avanço, sorria pro céu. Sua responsável sempre soube da sua preferência em conhecer melhor seus poderes em relação as corujas, então, em todo aniversário lhe presenteavam com um livro sobre.

Já em sua vida adulta, Liwei se via como um pássaro livre — não que antes se sentisse preso, muito pelo contrário — que tinha um mundo inteiro em suas mãos para explorar. Havia conversado algumas vezes com a mulher que o criou sobre o Olympus. A primeira vez, foi quando começou seus treinamentos básicos. Tinha muitas expectativas sobre o lugar que um dia o esperaria. Trabalhou como florista entre o final de sua adolescência e início da vida adulta. Sempre foi um rapaz doce e amável; o que é contraditório ao seu interesse na história sangrenta do Coliseu.

 Habilidades:

01. Estratégia em Batalha: Planejar e estruturar estratégias tão bem feitas, que possuem, cinqüenta por cento de chances de funcionarem corretamente.

02. Canção suave: Com essa canção, pode-se fazer um monstro ficar quase inofensivo. Quanto maior seu nível, melhor o efeito.

03. Perícia com Armas: Atena sendo a deusa da estratégia em batalha, abençoa seus filhos com a perícia dentre armas. Sendo no manejo de lâminas, arcos ou escudos, as proles tem uma boa manipulação, seja qual for a arma. Ainda não são perfeitos, como os filhos de Ares no manejo de lanças, os de Apolo nos de arcos ou os de Nyx no de foices, mas são muito habilidosos. Quanto maior o nível, melhor a habilidade.

04. Mente Alerta: Filhos de Atena são conhecidos como sabichões ou até mesmo ‘nerds’. Não é por isso que devem ser subestimados. Sua agilidade não é comparada à dos filhos de Hermes, mas são rápidos na compreensão de um ataque, sendo assim, sabendo muito bem, como desviar deles, e como os defender.

05. Corujas: As corujas têm afinidade com você, poderão te ajudar em certas coisas. Ganhando seu respeito, elas passam a obedecê-lo fielmente.

06. Telepatia: Os filhos de Atena, conseguem se comunicar com seus aliados e com animais símbolos de sua mãe ajudando em batalhas e guerras, ou apenas, se divertindo com o dom.

07. Olhos de Coruja: Os olhos das proles de Atena assumem uma coloração amarelada, com a pupila se retraindo, ficando de um tamanho mínimo, os olhos penetrantes, a ajudam a ‘enxergar’ além, sendo assim, conseguindo uma melhor visão do campo de batalha, ainda persuadindo o inimigo. Incapacitando-o de contar mentiras, ou pelo menos segurá-las por muito tempo. Causando um ‘medo’.

08. Telecinese: A telecinésia é a capacidade de mover fisicamente um objeto com a força psíquica, fazendo-o levitar, mover-se ou apenas ser abalado pela mente

09. Ginasta: Atena era meia irmã de Dionísio, e assim como as mênades da divindade – menos que elas – As crias de Atena detêm a capacidade de se mover agilmente – Não tanto quanto filhos de Hermes – Podendo ser considerado um pequeno, ‘ginasta’, seus movimentos são precisos e bem calculados, quase nunca dando errado.

10. Coruja de Atena: O herói pode invocar o animal sagrado de Atena, a Coruja, para ajudá-lo tanto em batalha como para explorar as redondezas.

11. Olhos Expandidos: Além de controlar as corujas que você convocou, você pode unir seus olhos, ou seja, tudo que elas vejam passarão por seus olhos, isso funciona muito bem quando elas estão como espiãs ou guardas.

12. Reflexos Aprimorados: Seus reflexos são tão bons, que faz com que seja raramente pego de surpresa, contendo as pequenas margens de erros.

13. Persuasão: Atena poderia não ser uma das deusas mais bonitas do olimpo, mas era a deusa das artes, e no conceito de seu irmão, Hermes, enganar é uma arte. A cria de Atena consegue manter firmemente uma mentira, podendo fazer muitos acreditarem e dificilmente, ser contrariada. Seu olhar mortífero e sua língua sempre afiada, fazem difícil, a mentira ser desviada.

14. Imaginação Fértil: Com sua grande mente vem grandes imaginações. Imagine um grande dragão te ajudando...e lá ele estará. Serão apenas ilusões, brincando com a mente da pessoa, por isso, não causará danos e ela; não físicos. Só funciona com mentes inferiores a sua. Bem, quase todas são.

15. Metamorfose: O filho de Atena consegue se transformar em uma coruja gigante da espécie Megascops. Não existem restrições nesse poder, o filho de Atena poderá voar, bicar e até mesmo carregar no máximo duas pessoas, uma em seu dorso e a outra sendo segurada por suas patas. Se o filho de Atena morrer em sua forma de coruja, ele volta a sua forma normal desmaiado e sem energia, mas ainda com vida.

16. Marca de Atena: O filho de Atena pode invocar todos os itens sagrados de Atena, sua armadura ateniense completa cobrindo seu corpo, o escudo Aegis em sua mão esquerda, a lança sagrada na direta e o manto de Atena sobre seus ombros, e a mesma aura de sua mãe emanando aterrorizando seus inimigos que acreditam ver a própria deusa diante de si. Após o uso, ficará 3 dias totalmente exaurido e sem poderes pra se recuperar desse poder avassalador.

[rebexart]

Contemporary Tension: Between China and The West

As Modernism and Post Modernism enter the realm of art history, contemporary art begins to create powerful waves, and among the fast-changing currents of the contemporary art scene, paintings on canvas leverage their rich traditions and remain a category to watch for. This Spring, Misho Gallery presents Contemporary Tension: Between China and The West. The exhibition showcases six contemporary Chinese artists living in North America, Sharon Shen from Canada, with Jennie Cho, Jinghua Liu, Rebecca Nie, Liwei Wang, and Deng Pan from the San Francisco Bay Area.

The six artists have distinct perspectives, unique styles, and diverse visual languages. The differences and similarities in the artists’ background allow them to create a confluence of their artwork through exchanges and sparks that arrive at the current breaking in 2019, where it all pours out and presents itself as the Contemporary Tension Exhibition.

Walking into the gallery, you will be greeted by the figurative works of Liwei Wang and the abstract landscapes of Rebecca Nie. Liwei Wang’s contemporary painting series of people and urban subjects employs a unique form, such as characters and backgrounds interspersed. He uses his characteristically exaggerated and robust style of painting to form an image of self-painting, and thus extends his pieces to a spiritual level. Next to Wang’s urban figurative works, Nie’s work picks this sense of spirituality right up and welcomes you further into the exhibition. Flow, transition, and change are the underlying commonalities for Rebecca Nie’s abstracted landscapes. The energetic pattern of flowing lines and the muted, nature-inspired palette of her “Littoral Earth • Interior Flow” series call forth the resemblance between the crashing waves of the Northern California Coast and states of consciousness the artist experiences intimately in Zen meditation. Her multi-media works incorporating visual art, and guided meditation can further guide the visitors into their personal spiritual sphere.

PAN, Deng in front of his paintings.

In PAN, Deng’s exhibition room on the left-hand-side is a display of the most recent big-scale paintings of the internationally recognized painter. From Pan's works, we can easily feel his artistic sincerity and seriousness. His pieces can construct a traumatic art experience and ignite a series of introspections about humanity for the viewers by revealing the spiritual quality of still-life. Lofty ideals in life are inseparable from the expectations and the impact of consciousness. Myriads of objects and shapes construct the form and content of explaining reality and imagination after converted by the artist’s inner feelings and visual language. The realization of Deng PAN’s artistic experience, life experience, and mental states in front of the canvas form the spiritual characterizations of interchangeable individuals. Close up, PAN’s paintings give rich new value to still-life and offer the viewers a feeling of pleasure through his passionate brushwork and color-piled texture. From a distance, the kind of subtle picture effect again gives the picture a fuller and more robust artistic beauty with conceptual depth.

Jennie Cho and Sharon Shen in front of Shen’s works.

The viewing experiences reach a climax in the next showroom with the explosion of colors brought by the works of Sharon Shen, Jinhua Liu, and Jennie Cho.  Professionally trained in Classical music, Shen has been inspired to create "Synesthesia Painting" in that she expresses her understanding of music by using rich and dynamic color combinations. Her paintings incorporate elements of imagination and abstraction while delivering the emotions of music through acrylics and mixed-media work. They are free in form, flowing across the canvas like music notes, creating dreams of hope and fantasy.

Jennie Cho sees life as a series of encounters, so the images of each scene are intertwined.  Cho seeks out beautiful moments in her life in order to bring poetry into her work.  Cho's paintings showcase overlapping layers, gradually flowing lines, subtle colors, and contrasting light and dark.  The process of painting she follows is similar to the emotions of life - from smooth to frustrating, from affirmations to hesitation, and finally that of breaking through.  She presents peace, joy, and the beauty of living in each picture.

Opposite to Cho’s pieces, Jinghua Liu’s paintings delve into multi-cultural ideals, decorative aesthetics, and modernism while exploring positive and negative space. Her artworks contain many layers, color contrasts, and metaphors. To create different visual effects, Liu’s mixed media artworks consist of oil, collage, and ink. The artworks explore multiculturalism and symbolism in the spirit of traditional Chinese art and Western painting. Liu’s sophisticated use of mixed media and fluorescent paint creates a visual feast and journey. Her paintings are an expression of heart and culture, and they merge the philosophies of the Western and Eastern traditions.

Jinhua Liu in with her florescent paintings.

Upon close viewing and examination, it is apparent that the artworks in the exhibition are rooted in but have stepped beyond creating engaging and pleasant visual experiences to construct deeper layers of conceptual and ethereal significance. The artists are expressing meanings beyond visual perception through their work, and these meanings are more than simple narratives or allegories. They step into the realms of spirituality, philosophy, consciousness, cultural history, and the divine. That is precisely the essence of contemporary paintings and the Contemporary Tension: Between China and the West exhibition presented by Misho Gallery (680 8th Street #203A, San Francisco CA 94103).

The artists and the gallery owners.

[newsinsider]

China : The next space superpower ?

A look at the Chinese space program after the country successfully landed a space probe on the far side of the moon, paving the way for a manned mission to the moon. The space program of the People's Republic of China is directed by the China National Space Administration (CNSA). Its technological roots can be traced back to the late 1950s, when China began a ballistic missile program in response to perceived American (and, later, Soviet) threats. However, the first Chinese crewed space program only began several decades later, when an accelerated program of technological development culminated in Yang Liwei's successful 2003 flight aboard Shenzhou 5. This achievement made China the third country to independently send humans into space. Plans currently include a permanent Chinese space station in 2020 and crewed expeditions to the Moon. Officials have articulated long term ambitions to exploit Earth-Moon space for industrial development. The goal would be the construction of space-based solar power satellites that would beam energy back to Earth.

 After the United States threatened to use nuclear weapons during the Korean War, Chairman Mao Zedong decided that only a nuclear deterrent of its own would guarantee the security of the newly founded PRC. Additionally, he wanted China to gain status among the world's powers that—as he felt—did not respect him. From this, he decided instead to only implement his new plan with the Republic of China (present-day Taiwan) as "China". Thus, Mao announced his decision to develop China's own strategic weapons, including nuclear bombs and associated missiles for the warheads, during a Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee meeting held on January 15, 1955. The Chinese nuclear weapons program was designated by the codename of "02".

The Fifth Academy of the National Defense Ministry was founded on October 8, 1956, with Qian Xuesen, who had just been deported from the United States after being accused of being a communist during the red scare, as director. The Academy started the development of the first ballistic missile program, adopted on March 1, 1956 and known as the first Twelve-Year-Plan for Chinese aerospace. After the launch of mankind's first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, by the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957, Mao decided during the National Congress of the CPC on May 17, 1958 to make China an equal with the superpowers (We need to develop the artificial satellite too), by adopting Project 581 with the objective of placing a satellite in orbit by 1959 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the PRC's founding. This goal would be achieved in three phases: developing sounding rockets first, then launching small satellites and in the final phase, large satellites. 

Initially the space program of the PRC was organized under the People's Liberation Army, particularly the Second Artillery Corps. In the 1990s, however, the PRC reorganized the space program as part of a general reorganization of the defense industry to make it resemble Western defense procurement. The China National Space Administration, an agency within the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense currently headed by Sun Laiyan, is now responsible for launches. The Long March rocket is produced by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, and satellites are produced by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. The latter organizations are state-owned enterprises; however, it is the intent of the PRC government that they should not be actively state managed and that they should behave much as private companies would in the West.

According to the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) presentation at the 2015 International Space Development Congress in Toronto, Canada, Chinese interest in space-based solar power began in the period 1990–1995. By 2011 there was a proposal for a national program, with advocates such as Pioneer Professor Wang Xiji stating in an article for the Ministry of Science and technology that "China had built up a solid industrial foundation, acquired sufficient technology and had enough money to carry out the most ambitious space project in history. Once completed, the solar station, with a capacity of 100MW, would span at least one square kilometre, dwarfing the International Space Station and becoming the biggest man-made object in space" and "warned that if it did not act quickly, China would let other countries, in particular the US and Japan, take the lead and occupy strategically important locations in space." Global Security cites a 2011-01 Journal of Rocket propulsion that articulates the need for 620+ launches of their Long March-9 (CZ-9) heavy lift system for the construction of an orbital solar power plant with 10,000 MW capacity massing 50,000 tonnes.