The Problematic of the Unproblematic

Chapter 5 - He who conquers others is strong. He who conquers himself is mightywritten by kakashi
edited by Bunny

Feng Zhiwei opened her eyes. Where was she? It seemed to be morning and she was on a bed, only… this looked oddly familiar… The Prince of Chu’s residence?

“Why am I here? Was yesterday a dream?” she murmured.

“What did you do in your dream?” a languid voice she knew all too well said from nearby.

kakashi: In the last episode, we had swords. In this episode, we have...a sassy Demon Princess! And much, much more. Read on, my friends.
JoAnne:  That is the look of a princess who understands subtext...or at least it's the look of a woman who knows she's now got two hot guys to play with.
Panda: The Demon Princess is a firm favorite.

Chapter 53written by kakashi
edited by LigayaCroft & Panda

Right after stepping into the sanctuary of her chambers and closing the door behind her, Shao Wan let out an extensive sigh that had been building up inside of her for the better part of the long day. She felt nauseous, a feeling intensified by the dull, persistent headache pulsating behind her eyes. She had not eaten any proper food after waking early this morning- there had been little time between meetings. Besides, nothing they served had appealed to her, even just the smell of the spices routinely used in Demon food upset her stomach. For lack of any better options, she had nibbled on dried fruit and sweet, sticky pastry she had washed down with tea, but all it did was make her feel bloated and ungainly. At least she wasn’t throwing up anymore these days, but that was only a small consolation.

kakashi: It's an absolute disaster, I don't even have Chen Kun pictures this week. Oh wait, found one.
JoAnne: It's a good one. I think it will fill the bill.
Panda: Look at that profile!! Mark also had some pretty pics out today, will post in comments :) Wanted to start Trap, but couldn't because any time not spent watching Nirvana in Fire with the hubby, was spent marathoning The Eternal Love 2. I had no idea how much I had missed the Horny prince and season 2 was even more madness! I forwarded all the boring court stuff and laughed myself silly at all the antics. Recommended for a fun, light watch. 
SakiVI: I watched both Painted Skins.  I like the second one better. In the meantime, what's with steadily rising fevers that won't come down without taking both Advil and that arthritis-strength Tylenol together? It was so uncomfortable, and a bit like watching a shipwreck on my thermometer.  Even with meds, I could feel it trying to break through, like I had a …

Chapter 6 - The Realm of TrialsPart 5

written by Lala Loop
Consulting by Bunny
editing by kakashi

How she had made it back to the safehouse, how she still had the heart to go back, Bai Qian was not sure. But she was standing in front of the kitchen stove once again, soaked from a brief and sudden downpour that had happened when she was about a few yards away from the protective shield. Perhaps she could have made an effort to avoid being drenched, but she was not at all interested in her own comfort or safety at the moment.

Chapter 4. All Roads lead to Prince of Chu’s Residencewritten by kakashi
edited by Bunny

Avoiding Feng Zhiwei and her cumbersome questions quickly turned into a game Ning Yi enjoyed immensely. He had other things to worry about, but Feng Zhiwei was so delightfully naive. But not only that, she was also persistent and a very fast learner, forcing him to change his strategies several times a day. Soon, he found himself waking up in the morning with his mind immediately turning to situations she could use to ambush him. That led to him designing counter strategies to throw her off successfully should such situations really arise. Excellent training, exactly what he needed to learn how to plot faster than anybody else in town.

Chapter 52written by kakashi
edited by LigayaCroft&Panda

To Ye Hua, Fuxi was primarily one thing: an awe-inspiring Primordial from the dawn of time. He was a legend of yore, their Creator, blessed be, whose legacy they lived and breathed every day.

Learning about his true heritage had changed nothing about this. Fuxi may be his “father” by blood but he would always be the venerated Father Immortal to him first and foremost. Maybe that was the reason why Ye Hua had never asked Mo Yuan anything personal about his childhood, about growing up with the God who had created the Celestial Tribe.

JoAnne: In search of things to calm my brain (and warm my hands) I am knitting a scarf.  For those who knit, it's the Zick Zack scarf, using two different self-striping fingering/sock yarns.  (If you choose the right color combos it ends up looking like a Missoni knit.  The jury is out on mine.) You can see a bunch of them (it's a very popular pattern) on Ravelry, plus the pattern itself is available for free. In other news, most of my drama-watching happened on the weekend. Today I watched six inches worth of scarf.

kakashi: Happy Birthday, Chen Kun!

Trotwood: I'm only sort of diving back into drama watching. There are things I planned to watch but I'm not sure I'll have the energy to ever catch up. So many meetings and trying to adjust to the 14-hour time difference didn't help either.

Panda: Happy Birthday Chennie 😍😍.

SakiVI: I inadvertently celebrated by watching the lesbian love story he was in, Painted Skin: The Resurrection. It was really good.

kakashi: I really like it when men brandish great swords.
JoAnne: Yeah, but they have to know what they're doing, otherwise it's just awkward.
Panda: Oooooh great ridged swords, sign me up.

Chapter 6 - The Realm of TrialsPart 4

written by LalaLoop
consulting by Bunny
edited by kakashi

When Bai Qian opened her eyes, it was unusually quiet. During their time at the safehouse, there had never been a morning where she’d woken up before Moyuan or the sprite. One of them constantly went out tasting any berry he could find and planning mischief, and the other seemed to possess some unique magic that enabled him to wake up before the sun everyday. No matter how hard she tried, Bai Qian was always the last to get out of bed. Whenever she did, there would always be noises around the house, very quiet noises - the tea kettle, book pages being turned, windows being opened - but there usually were noises.