A long time later, I began to understand the value of a golden palace.... more>>

If Wei Zifu loved you, then her story could only have ended the way mine did.

People often said that the limits of love lay in one’s ability to endure – to endure the fact that the man we loved would have three wives and four concubines.

Wei Zifu managed to tolerate. So, she accompanied you by your side for thirty-eight years.

She could accomplish this because she did not love you.

All along, what she wanted was never love.

If, from the beginning, all I wanted was only the precious throne belonging to an Empress, perhaps I would not have lost you as quickly as I had.

Note: This oneshot narrates the true story between Emperor Han Wudi (Liu Che) and his first wife, the deposed Empress Chen Jiao. Their story has been encapsulated into a famous chinese idiom called “金屋藏娇” (jīn wū cáng jiāo), which literally means ‘putting (Chen) Jiao into a golden house’. <<less

The owner of the netherworld inn listens to a ghost recount his life up above before all of it can be forgotten.

A young prince comes to visit an ancient Venerable with news of his aunt's death. He then is told an unexpected tale of the Venerable's... more>> youth. <<less

Set in the Qing Dynasty, the story follows the fate of the precious sabers as a highly skilled Imperial bodyguard named Zhuo Tianxiong attempts to transport them to the Forbidden City under the protection of a security escort agency. When various parties attempt to hijack the shipment, the blades end up in the unlikely hands of two couples: Lin Yulong and Ren Feiya and Yuan Guannan and Xiao Zhonghui. As they are pursued by Zhuo Tianxiong, the senior couple of Lin and Ren are injured and then forced to teach the younger couple of Yuan and Xiao the "Couple's Saber Method" so that they can make use of the Mandarin Duck Blades and escape Zhuo... more>> Tianxiong.

The story then shifts to Zhuo Tianxiong's pursuit of Yuan Guannan and Xiao Zhonghui. When the latter's family are drawn into the fight and a tragic tale is unfolded that involves her father, Xiao Banhe, and his wife Madam Yuan. With the fight for the blades reaching its peak, the characters are forced to face harsh truths and the secret to the precious sabers is finally revealed. <<less

Between the two sides of that other shore, upon the Bridge of Helplessness.... more>>

“Little miss, drink a mouthful of soup. Forget everything. Your next life is a new beginning, without any earthly desires or pain.”

Looking at the soup in Old Lady Meng’s hands, depression rose within me, “But what about that person in my heart?”

Old Lady Meng smiled faintly and said, “Do you see the waters below this bridge?”

“I see them.”

“Do you see the stones in the water?”

I was stunned for a moment, “Stones?”

Old Lady Meng nodded, “Go down there and become a stone. Watch the great changes in the world for seven lifetimes. After seven hundred years, you’ll be able to bring your longing with you as you reincarnate into a new life to look for him…” <<less

A glimpse into an elderly couple's daily life.

O maple leaves as far as the eye can see, could you help me tell him, that I’m still waiting for him to come home?... more>>

In that maple forest, under that tree, it was like a dream.

Following the gentle passing of the breeze, everything vanished into thin air as if it had never existed.

“Jing’er, we’re right in the thick of autumn now. Don’t go outside too much, in case you catch a cold.”

The sunlight was just right at that time, and the maple leaves were still around. A handsome man dressed in white clothing; he’s my husband. <<less

A short story set in the countryside about a struggling hunter and a rich landowner.

Why must I taste all the suffering? Why must I bear all the pain?

A couple ties a red ribbon to a blessings tree.

A collection of riddles. Please exercise your brain.

When they married, he promised to paint her lips with rouge. That year the blossom slowly bloomed. However, over time, blossoms wilt and promises... more>> are broken. <<less

Bai Qingqing, the disciple of the Divine Physician, with goodwill, treats the domineering Prince for blindness, only to render herself at the mercy of him.... more>> In the name of practicing medicine, the doctress makes him have spicy cuisine for every meal as revenge. Seeing him frown upon the food, sweat at the pungent dishes, she is merely stoked! Poor Qingqing is no villain material, she ends up having a soft spot for him. Her tender care for the Prince unknowingly reveals her biggest secret-her true identity. After the prince's eyes are cured, he mobilizes the military with great fanfare to keep her around… <<less

There exist in this world a set of six daggers that carry a terrible curse: the ability to inflict a death beyond time. Those under the daggers' curse shall reincarnate without end, never able to know happiness and always drawn to die once more by the dagger. This is the story of "Raine" and "Marie", two souls bound by the daggers' curse to kill one another, over and over again.... more>>

France, 1243. Lapis Lazuli Castle is the name of an insignificant relay fort nestled away in a forest east of Carcassonne. Its ruler, Count Geoffroy, and his only daughter, Marie, are both believed to be insane. The root cause of their shared madness is the mysterious disappearance of Geoffroy's wife three years ago, which caused Geoffroy to grow detached from humanity and cast Marie into a deep depression. After three years of wandering in a state halfway to nonexistence, Marie works up the nerve to ask her chief bodyguard, Sir Raine, to investigate her mother's death, confiding that on the night of her mother's disappearance, she had witnessed something impossible. However, her investigation only prompts a new tragedy.

The French-German border, 1916. As World War I rages on, Raine and Marie's latest reincarnations live the life of a sub-lieutenant in the French army and a medic with the Red Cross, respectively. The two lovers are reunited at the site of the Battle of Verdun, but no sooner have they met then Raine finds himself faced with a barrage of impossible circumstances. An enemy soldier's head suddenly vanishes, right before his eyes. One of his subordinates reports the same thing happening to an ally. Four more headless bodies vanish from a flooded bunker in the minute he looks away. These baffling events are a prelude to the return of their old tragedy.

Northern Hokkaido, 1989. Kimiyo, age eighteen, is already dying, an inoperable tumor in her hypothalamus leaving her with less than a year to live. Refusing to despair in the face of her tragic circumstances, she spends her remaining days with her friends at "The Library at the End of the World", a private library so called due to its isolated nature. One day, a man named Kito approaches her out of the blue, regaling her with a story about a set of cursed daggers, knights in the 13th century, and the two of them being cursed, fated lovers. Naturally, Kimiyo is intensely skeptical, but the events that come next don't require her to believe in them.

Arriving at the scene of these three tragedies is Snowy, an enigmatic figure of indeterminate gender who claims to be "a detective charged with managing the world's chaos". <<less

A story about the magician who never makes mistakes.

A stingy scholar encounters bandits and has to choose between money and his life. Hmm… better take out the abacus and calculate carefully first.

Since ancient times, the eighteen levels of hell have been feared by all men, but only the evil ones have ever entered.... more>>

I killed countless people in my life. When my soul entered hell, I knew that there was no chance for me to escape the suffering of those eighteen levels.

However, I didn’t expect for the King of Hell to exempt my punishment, only to leave me with three lifetimes of trials.

In one life, my family was all killed and all my limbs were torn off. In another life, I was alone without anyone to help me, and my best friend was killed. I have one more trial to suffer.

At the root of all evil, there’s no one around.

Who was it who exempted you from the eighteen levels of hell, and helped you pass through the trials of three lifetimes?

Only to see a wind chime fall to the ground, leaving behind a single tear. <<less

The notorious imperial court lackey and the meritorious military general were well-known for their mutual dislike, a pair of arch-enemies set in stone. Who could have foreseen the unexpected change in the winds of heaven: the general injured on the battlefield, both legs disabled, and even forced by the emperor to marry his nemesis. ... more>>

With one marriage edict, two people with mutual hostility are forced to marry and live under the same roof. Yet after these long days together, they come to the realization that this fellow is not truly devoid of any saving grace/unattainable and high out of reach. <<less

The Peng Society for Gentlemen — a secret friend-making club for the homos*xual men of the Great Xia Dynasty. Its services were designed to help its members along in their quest for their lifelong partners. Upon paying a monthly fee of fifty coins, members could get themselves listed in The Pengornisseur after providing a self-portrait, a mailing address, their age and hobbies, as well as a self-introduction. All members would receive a copy of the monthly publication, and they could communicate with one another in private using the information in The Pengornisseur.... more>>

Wu Xingzi, a bachelor about to turn forty, worked as the adviser to the magistrate in Qingcheng County.

Qingcheng County was a place with barely any resources. In other words, it was poor. In the list of counties of the Great Xia Dynasty, it had been ranked at the bottom for the past two hundred years.

Wu Xingzi felt that his life was hopeless: not only was he a homosexual, he was also a virg*n. Even his retirement fund was lacking. Worse still, his looks were… forgettable.

He might as well die.

Hence, Wu Xingzi decided to commit su*cide on his fortieth birthday. However, he was unwilling to remain a virg*n to death! And so, gritting his teeth, he joined the Peng Society for Gentlemen and received The Pengornisseur. It was very painful; after all, fifty coins were the sum of his daily expenditure for ten days! He would only pay it once, and he was determined to succeed on his first try. <<less

The journey of a generation’s male empress started because of four words.... more>>

“Send a dowry escort.”

During the 19th year of the Yuanqing Era, Qi Yunruo boarded a carriage and entered through a corner door of the second prince’s estate. Then, across the watery corridor, he gazed at the prince from afar.

———

The promotional record of a young teen married off as part of his legitimate sister’s dowry.

From two people who never met before to two people who could understand each other’s thoughts by just a glance.

There’s a type of happiness sparked when the most suitable people meet in the most suitable place.

Notes:
In order for aristocratic women in imperial China to marry into a family part of the upper nobility, they must be of the legitimate line and must also have a dowry escort that married into that family. That escort would be a “ying” (媵) and could be considered a concubine. <<less

The little princess was caught by a pair of demon brothers and lived a life of brewing sauce.

A small horror story taking place during the establishment of The Republic of China (around 1912)

Song Luan transmigrated into a book called “The Powerful Minister” and became the wife of the Male Lead. In the book, the original owner was... more>> snobbish, abandoned her son, and finally died in a fire. Song Luan, who had read the book, expressed a panic. Then, she prepared to be a new leaf and hug the male lead’s golden thigh. <<less

One leap from the city tower thus fulfills the Marquis of Chang Ye’s triumph in conquering the world, establishing a new era. Yet she only turns into a lonely wisp, accompanying him day and night.... more>>

Note: the title shares the same name as the female lead – Sang Ge 桑歌 meaning mulberry song <<less

The story of the emperor and the little fox.