by Shan Sa
The Poems of Yan Ni (poems)
The Red Dragonfly (poems)
Snow (poems)
May the Spring Return (essays)
Porte de la Paix Céleste (novel)
Les Quatre Vies du Saule (novel)
Le Vent Vif et le Glaive Rapide (poems)
The Girl Who Played Go (novel)
Le Miroir du Calligraphe (poems and paintings)
Les Conspirateurs (novel)
Alexandre et Alestria (novel)
Copyright
EMPRESS. Copyright © 2006 by Shan Sa. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
EPub © Edition MAY 2008 ISBN: 9780061983139
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1
A.D. 625
2
The deceased’s mouth was filled with grain mixed with pieces of jade or shells depending on his or her social standing.
3
After displaying the clothes, the deceased was dressed in nineteen costumes.
4
This took place the day after the smaller clothing ceremony. The number of garments was strictly related to social hierarchy. In this case, fifty costumes would have been used.
5
A.D. 611
6
Wu in Chinese characters means “warrior.”
7
These would be imperial princesses and the wives of princes and ministers.
8
Known in the West as the “Milky Way.”
9
The Great High Princess is the title given to the paternal aunt of the Emperor.
10
The County Princess is the title given to the daughter of imperial princes and princesses.
11
The Imperial Park had a perimeter of 60km.
12
In the days of the Tang dynasty, executions were carried out once a year in mid-autumn.
13
The Korea of today was once occupied by three kingdoms: Korea, Sinra, and Paiktchei. The Korean kingdom was inhabited by the Tatar Mongols and the Tobhas, who had already defeated the armies of Emperor Yang of the Sui dynasty.
14
One li is equal to a half kilometer.
15
The legendary animal of ancient China has a stag’s antlers, the head and body of a lion covered in scales, and the wings and talons of an eagle.
16
A.D. 674
17
In imperial China, Emperors often presented close dignitaries with their family name, a gesture intended as a sign of supreme favor. Before being called Li Ji, the Great General had had the name Xu Ji.
18
Li Jing Yei, before the family name Li awarded by the Emperor Eternal Ancestor was withdrawn.
19
Built between A.D. 605 and 611 and covering 2,700 km.
20
One jin is equal to a half kilo.
21
According the Annals, 250,000 kilograms of bronze and 1,650,000 kilograms of iron were melted down to make this monument.
22
A.D. 698
23
A.D. 701
24
A.D. 705
