Once Upon a Time in China – Index

  • Chapter I – My Family in Jiangnan

    The history of my family could be traced all the way back to the First Emperor of Qin (in case you haven’t noticed, Qin, with a pronunciation like cine, is the etymology of the word “China”). When he finally made up his mind to claim the Imperial Seat of All China, a tantalizing ambition which…

  • Chapter II – The Hood

    Hope you’d still remember the Chinese proverb on name, because the knowledge is pivotal for you to understand the tragedy of a species, or “genocide” if you happen to so into the term. Pelodiscus sinensis, or wang’ba as it is known to all people in China, is indeed a curious animal. Like most other peoples…

  • Chapter III – Shining Metropolis

    Shanghai at night, shanghai at night, shining metropolis that never knows the night, Lights on, music on, sing and dance like you could never again. The Hostess wears a smile, yet no one learns her trial: Entertaining folks at night, so as to live through another night. Even if the drink fails, you’d be intoxicated…

  • Chapter IV – Radio-Head Red Guard

    When Qin was still a kingdom in the west, there was a king who employed the service of a counselor. During the interview, the counselor first talked about “the rule of state,” and “the rule of humanity.” Unfortunately, the king was not impressed and nearly fell asleep. Then, to earn his position at the court,…

  • Chapter V – Pet Pals

    August 3rd, 2000, Kentucky Fried Chicken opened up its first restaurant in Jiangnan. “Sorry, we’re late!” Eight white characters on the enormous red slogan could hardly be missed as soon as one entered the plaza. A new global sales record was set — the line of eager parents and kids extended well beyond the restaurant…

  • Chapter VI – Sunset, Twilight

    In the twenty-sixth year of his reign, the Emperor of Qin, then ruler of Qin Kingdom of Zhou Dynasty, overcame his last rebellious peer. “These treacherous, incompetent kings! I treated them with honor and hospitality, yet they repaid with plots and wars. As a mere mortal man, I stood up to restore peace on earth.…

  • Chapter VII – Back to School

    When my son served as a teaching assistant for the lab sessions of Physics 101 in an American University, there was one Asian student having fun by coining all sorts of fake quotations attributed to Confucius. It would be a somewhat difficult task to refute him as Confucianism has shaped the collected subconsciousness of East…