Bu Bu Jing Xin (步步惊心) Episode 2 Part III

Bu Bu Jing Xin (步步惊心) > Episode 2 Part I > Episode 2 Part II > Episode 2 Part III

Ruoxi sits beside the pond. She is bored and tries to throw stones to see how far the small pebbles cab skip. With her head tilted to the side, she skips each stone with repeated refrains, “I am bored, I am bored, I -am- bored!” Soon her neck is stiff from her posture. As she is gingerly rubbing her sore neck, she spots a rabbit nearby. She sneaks up to the rabbit in glee, cooing and it and offering it food in order or her to grab it. But before she has the opportunity to catch it, the rabbit runs off. In hot pursuit, Ruoxi repeats her cries to the rabbit “Don’t run!”

At this moment the 8th, 10th and 14th princes are walking across the garden. The 8th prince asks the 1th prince why he wanted Ruo Lan instead of Ming Hui to arrange his birthday. The10th prince tells his older brother not to make wild guesses. Although he enjoyed the past parties that Ming Hui had made for him., he feels that Rouxi would have more tricks up her sleeve and might come up with a fresh idea on how to celebrate his birthday.

Just as the princes are talking about Rouxi, her cries telling the rabbit not to run are heard from a distance before the actual person appears before them but too preoccupied looking for the rabbit to greet them. The10th prince calls her name in delight and darts towards her while the others follow. The 8th prince comments with a smile that Ruoxi is indeed different and impish, while the 14th prince remarks that it would be much better to meet her instead of just hearing about Ruoxi (he has never met her yet), noting that she does seem quite lively.

The 10th prince is behind Ruo Xi when she twirls in mid-step, grinning at the 8th prince, she declares that she is trying to catch a rabbit. When the 10th prince asks to see it, Rouxi looks for the rabbit and claims that it has been frightened away by the 10th prince. Disgruntled, he 10th prince is unhappy for getting blames, but the 14th prince comments that it would not be hard to find the rabbit, as the garden is garden.

Having not met the 14th prince before, Ruoxi looks curiously and the 8th prince introduces the 14th prince. She greets the prince before promptly running off with the 10th price to search for the rabbit together. Smiling, the other two princes follow suit and help capture the rabbit.

The rabbit is soon caught and Rouxi apologizes to the rabbit, which has been placed in a cage, promisng to take good care of it since it has lost its freedom. While looking a the rabbit in its cage, she pensively remarks that they are alike: being trapped in their respective “cages”. A new female voice soon disturbs Ruoxi out of her reverie, saying that the fall must have damaged her. Rouxi looks up and examines the new face, a young woman dressed in fine white and blue silks. Ruoxi asks who she is and the young woman frowns, saying that Ruoxi must have really damaged her brain to not know who she is.

A memory comes to Rouxi as the scene of her falling down the stairs replays in her head, recognizing the vague female form who had laughed at the top of the stairs. Qiaohui’s voice accompanies the memory and Ruoxi concludes that the lady is Mingyu, Minghui’s younger sister. Rouxi keeps quiet and Mingyu angrily accuses Ruoxi of not taking her seriously, and Rouxi agrees. This further incenses Mingyu and she loses her temper exclaiming, “Even your sister needs to speak politely to me, who are you to speak to me like this?” With her sisten being mention, Ruoxi decides to be cautious and not cause more trouble for her sister. She replies, “Oh I remember now, you must be Gorolo Mingyu.” 

Rouxi tries to excuse herself, but Mingyu is intent on causing trouble for her. Mingyu stands forward and demands that Rouxi give her the rabbits because she wants them. But Ruoxi says there are some exceptions but Mingyu continues to demand for the rabbit. Rouxi replies that she has already given Mingyu, peased at the apparent surrender, Mingyu grabs the cage but Ruo Xi pushes her hand away clarifying, “I’ve already given you ‘face’.” 

Soon both girls struggle for the cage, Minghui appears and commands them to stop, asking Mingyu to release her grip. Minghui slyly references the rabbit while looking at Rou Xi, “Saying it (implying Rouxi) is just an animal, why are you fighting and lose your own dignity.” Minghui catches on and drops her hand, agreeing with the hidden sentiment and hisses ‘animal’ at Rouxi. Rouxi plans her revenge as the two walk away….

Girls Generation to Release Album in Europe

Girls Generation will release an official album in France on February 13. Their agency SM delivered the news on February 7 that Girls Generation will release their album "The Boys" through Polydor, the French branch of Universal music. The album will be a special album of their album "The Boys" that was released in the USA last month.

Girls Generation's album release in Europe is an outstanding achievement in the Korean music business. The group Coreana held activities with the group name "Arirang Singers" in France in the 1970s, and they released a single album through Polydor, but Girls Generation will be marked as the first group that a Korean company organized and released an official album for in such a large volume. SM said, "Girls Generation had already proved the possibility of success in Europe when they appeared on 'SM Town Live' which was a joint concert of singing groups belonging to SM last year. Girls Generation has finally begun holding world-wide activities by releasing their album in France."

Girls Generation released "The Boys" last month in the USA and successfully finished their album promotion in the American market with their appearance on the popular talk show on CBS, "David Letterman Show," and another popular talk show on ABC, "Live with Kelly," one after another. The columnist Jeff Yang of America's Wall Street Journal (WSJ) wrote a column entitled "Can Girls' Generation Break through in America?" and the writer predicted Girls Generation’s success while praising their fluent English.

KBS Global

Bu Bu Jing Xin (步步惊心) Episode 2 Part II

Bu Bu Jing Xin (步步惊心)  > Episode 2 Part I > Episode 2 Part II

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After leaving Rouxi to ponder his words, the 4th princes proceeds to the study room where his brothers appear to be arguing. Puzzled, the 4th prince asks what the matter is. The 13th prince takes the opportunity and tells the others, “Good, since 4th brother is here, let’s hear his thoughts on the matter.” The other princes greet the 4th prince as they explain what caused the argument, which is about the 10th prince birthday celebration. The 8th prince explains that the10th prince wants to celebrate in his mansion, but the Crown Prince is also planning on hosting a celebration for the 10th prince, putting them in a dilemma as they do not want to offend the Crown Prince.

Upon hearing the reason, the 4th prince smile and says that since it is the 10th prince’s birthday, the Crown Prince had already given earlier instructions that the celebrations should be as what the 10th prince wants as it is his birthday. And since 10th wants the celebration at 8th’s place, then it should be so.

Happy that he is able to have his birthday celebration in the 8th prince’s mansion, the 10th prince requests that his celebration be held in Roulan’s abode and that Rouxi arrange his birthday celebrations. His requests stuns his brothers and they tease him as they know that he has feelings for Rouxi.

Meanwhile, Ruo Xi is siiting at the staircase where her accident occurred (and caused her to “lose” her memory). She sites there thinking about the 4th princes words. After sorting her thoughts, she leaps up, repeating his words once more and then says, “Bingo!”, raising her finger as she laughs softly in delight.

She saunters off and soon spots the maids playing with a shuttlecock. The young women laugh as they transfer the shuttlecock to one another. When it misses its target, Ruoxi catches the shuttlecock happily; pleased to find something she can play well. Qiaohui asks if Ruoxi knows the game, to which she replies, “A little.” She soon performs advanced kicks with the toy while the maids look on in awe. She twirls and spins, sending the shuttlecock up and out before sitting against the edge of a stone table continuing to kick the shuttlecock. One last flick sends the shuttlecock flying towards the 8th prince who has been silently observing Ruoxi’s performance with pleasure. The maids are alarmed and quickly curtsy to the 8th prince before retreating, leaving Rouxi with the 8th prince.

The 8th prince returns the shuttlecock, while Rouxi sulks that he was watching silently without warning any of his presence. He retorts, that she did not wake him when she saw him dozing in the horse carriage. He then invites her along to a discussion with Minghui (the first wide) and Roulan about the birthday celebrations for the 10th prince. Rouxi follows, tossing the shuttlecock over her shoulder.

When the subject is brought up, Ruolan tries to decline the request to organize 10th prince’s party, stating her inexperience might mar her husband’s reputation. But the 8th prince replies that it is the 10th prince’s wish. Minghui states that since it is their husband’s specific request, Ruolan should accept the task. Roulan finally agrees. The 8th prince reassures Ruolan that it will be a simple affair for the family, where everyone could relax and enjoy themselves.

Unhappy, Minghui offers her help, stressing that it should not affect the 8th prince’s dignity. Ruolan nods. The 8th prince says that he would be staying at Roulan’s when Minhui asks when he will visit her. In the kitchen, Qiaohui bosses the kitchen staff, asking for fresh fish, and telling them to be vigilant in the food preparation. Ruolan is standing at the door telling Qiaohui not to be too flustered by a simple family meal. But Qiaohui disagrees, saying that since the 8th prince seldom stays over, they must not make any mistakes in serving the prince. She has prepared the ingredients for dumplings since the 8th prince enjoys the dumplings that Ruolan personally wraps.

Rouxi asks why Qiaohui is more concerned about the dishes than her own sister and Qiaohui replies that she does not want Ruolan to suffer under the servants. As the 8th prince seldom stays over, the servants believe that Ruolan is not favoured by the 8th prince. Although Roulan is aware of the servants talk, she does not take it to heart. Qiao Hui adds that it is difficult to survive in the 8tj prince’s household if the Ce Fujin does not have any rank or status, she is anxious to ensure that Ruolan receives the respect she deserves. The10th prince’s birthday celebration would be the ideal opportunity to show off Ruolan’s ability.

Rouxi offers to help with the dumplings, declaring, “We have to to make a successful party for the 10th prince.” Ruolan smiles at her sister’s declaration, “Don’t worry, you are such good friends with him, I am sure he will appreciate the effort. I am well aware of your feelings for the 10th prince.” Ruoxi denies this and Ruo Lan replies that the 10th prince actually wants Ruoxi and not her to celebration arrangements.

Ruo Xi affirms that she is aware of the purpose and says that they are such happy playmates, and she enjoys their time together. Ruolan quietly stuffs a dumpling while listening to her sister assure her that she is taking too much into her relationship with the 10th prince.

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South Korean’S Big Bang To Perform In Hcm City

Source : vietnamnet.vm

VietNamNet Bridge – Big Bang, the well-known boyband from South Korea, is preparing for their first-ever show in HCM City on April 14. Big Bang is among the most outstanding representatives of the Korean wave in Asia. The band was formed by YG Entertainment in 2006. The group consists of G-Dragon, Taeyang, T.O.P, Daesung and Seungri.

Big Bang has released several successful singles and EPs. Their first release, the EP Always (2007), spawned the number-one single "Lies". The follow-up EPs Hot Issue and Stand Up were similarly successful.

After they received the "Artist of the Year" award from the M.net KM Music Festival and the Seoul Gayo Daesang Award, the group expanded their activities into Japan, releasing mini-albums and airplay singles. Their materials did not receive major promotion until the following year with the release of their first physical Japanese single, "My Heaven". Since then, the group has attained considerable success in the country. They became the first foreign group in Japan to receive the Japan Cable Broadcasting Award for "Best Newcomer", and the first from Korea to receive the Japan Records award.

In recent years, the members have branched out to do solo activities: Taeyang and G-Dragon have released solo materials while T.O.P, Daesung and Seungri have started acting (in both dramas and musicals) and participating in variety programs.

Representing Asia-Pacific, Big Bang emerged as the inaugural Best Worldwide Act winner of 2011 MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA) held at Belfast, Northern Ireland. There, apart from Queen, Big Bang was the only winner not from North America. Big Bang show in HCM City will be held at the Phu Tho Racecourse, with the participation of some Vietnamese stars.

TOP's Blue Hair Only the Beginning... Other Members More Shocking Transformation

After the revealing of TOP's striking transformation, many are anticipating the change in the rest of the members styles.

On February 6th, YG posted a picture of TOP, in which he had blue hair and expressed his masculinity. After the release of the picture many fans commented "TOP's stare and hair color captures the attention of the audience", "he can pull of not only silver hair, but even bright blue hair" etc.

However, YG stated that this is merely the beginning. During the phone call with OSEN, YG stated that "Other Bigbang members have gone through a transformation that is probably as shocking as TOP's. We especially put an emphasis on the hair styles and will probably surprise the fans".

Moreover, YG stated "fashion-wise, Bigbang will display a variety of styles. Not only will the members be emphasizing their masculinity as TOP did in the revealed picture, but they will be showing a variety of concepts for their stage outfits".

The fans' excitement has been growing as Bigbang's comeback was officially signaled. There has been many inquiries if 'Fantastic Baby', which is on the top right-hand corner of the picture that was released, is the title track. However,YG has remained silent to this question.

Source: stoo.asiae.co.kr
Translated by Beau @ bigbangvip.net

Can Girls’ Generation Break Through In America?

Last week, K-pop supergroup Girls’ Generation got an unprecedented U.S. television showcase on “Live! With Kelly,” the Reegeless morning show currently featuring Kelly Ripa and a revolving-door series of daily guest hosts. For those who caught it, the segment offered up one of television’s rare magic moments — not during the musical performance itself, but in the brief interview immediately afterwards.

The Girls had just pulled off a crowd-pumping rendition of their first U.S. single, “The Boys,” complete with their signature precision choreography, and stood posed and slightly breathless onstage to receive Ripa and her cohost du jour, Howie Mandel. Ripa and Mandel congratulated the girls on their Stateside appearance in full-on talking-to-foreigners mode, speaking loud and slow, and making big, evocative gestures with their hands.

Then Mandel decided to pay the girls a compliment. “Your English is very good!” he said to one member — bubbly, effusive Tiffany. Without missing a beat, Tiffany responded in a perfect NorCal accent, “Well — I was born in America.” “I was too!” chimed Jessica, the brown-haired pixie next to her. Startled, Mandel could only repeat, “And…your English is very good!” The other girls burst into laughter as Tiffany defused the awkward situation: “I know, I know, thank you so much, I studied so hard!”

You can’t really fault Mandel. After all, Girls’ Generation is the face of young Korea — the nation’s hottest and biggest-selling female music group. To him, Tiffany and her bandmate Jessica speaking fluent Americanese must have been like hearing Katy Perry suddenly bust out in Khmer.

But Tiffany and Jessica — and the growing ranks of other Korean American performers recruited by management companies like SM Entertainment and JYPE in U.S.-based talent searches — aren’t just a random act of globalization. They’re the secret weapon in Korea’s next push for worldwide youth-culture domination.

Tiffany, who still breaks out in giggles at the Mandel Moment — “His expression was totally funny” — was born in San Francisco and raised in L.A. “I went to an SM audition when I was 15, and ended up getting invited to move to Korea for training. My parents were completely against it, but I convinced them to let me do it. I didn’t know what I was in for, but I knew I wanted to do music for the rest of my life. And it was really tough: Three years of hard work, learning what it’s like to be an idol.”

Korea’s pop training programs are rigorous and all-encompassing: Would-be idols live together in dormitories, going to school during the day and then learning singing, dancing and acting late into the evening. For some, like Tiffany’s fellow transplant Jessica, the process begins as early as age 10.

The management firms pay for everything; leading talent house SM Entertainment has pegged the cost of rearing a single idol at around $3 million, which for Girls’ Generation would be multiplied by nine. Most candidates end up quitting or failing to catch on, but the potential payoff for those who make it is enormous: The Girls are multimedia superstars and blockbuster branding engines with deals to endorse everything from LG phones to Intel processors to Goobne Chicken (a leading South Korean oven-roasted chicken chain). Collectively, they generate a revenue stream well north of $50 million a year — which makes them a pretty fantastic investment for parent company SM.

“Girls’ Generation are easily the biggest girl group in all of Asia,” says Susan Kang, founder and CEO of Soompi.com, the largest English-language K-pop site. “That’s been the case ever since they had their breakout hit “Gee“ in 2009. The video for that song alone has over 64 million views on YouTube, and has been viewed in every country in the world except for a few nations in Africa. Take the Spice Girls in their prime plus Britney in her prime and combine them, and you might get close to how big they are today.”

In Asia, that is: The Girls have topped the charts in Thailand, the Philippines, Taiwan and especially Japan, the world’s second largest music market. And in Europe, where the “SM Town” concert they headlined in Paris sold out within 15 minutes of it being announced.

But Asia and Europe have a long history of embracing media in non-native languages. English is a mandatory part of elementary school education in many Asian countries, including Japan, China and Korea; over half of Europeans can hold conversations in languages other than their native tongue. Here in the States, meanwhile, fewer than one in five Americans are conversationally fluent in a language other than English, and while the occasional non-Anglophone song has cracked the pop charts — six non-English songs have even taken Billboard’s number one slot, the most recent being Los del Rio’s Spanglish hit “Macarena“ — the reality is that those are the exceptions that prove out the rule: If you want to rock in America, you have to roll in English.

That’s why Tiffany and Jessica play such a critical role in Girls’ Generation’s quest to crack the U.S. market. According to Soompi’s Kang, “In my opinion, if anyone is going to make it here, it’s going to be Girls’ Generation or 2NE1” — a high-energy quartet currently being mentored by Black Eyed Peas’ Will.i.am, three of whom speak fluent English.

“Having native English speakers is a huge difference maker in reaching the American audience,” says Kang. “It makes it feel less ‘foreign’ to them. And the upside is that big-name producers like Teddy Riley are writing their songs, they’re backed by Korea’s number-one agency, and frankly, the Girls are nine hot ladies. With nine girls, there’s at least one of them you want to date if you’re a guy, or want to be, if you’re a girl.”

So will the nine-lady army of Girls’ Generation succeed in winning American hearts and minds? Absolutely, says Adam Ware, chief of Mnet America — the new U.S.-based sister channel launched by powerhouse Korean music network Mnet.

“There’s a tipping point going on right now, and the Girls are poised to take advantage of it,” he says. “From an industry point of view, you have the brightest minds in the music biz looking around and saying, what is it that Will.i.am and Jimmy Iovane” — the head of Interscope, the Girls’ U.S. label — “know about K-Pop that I don’t? And the answer is, these are talented performers who are attractive in a way that’s sexy but wholesome, who know how to make use of social media. You have young people graduating out of the Disney Channel and looking for something to listen to that’s catchy, positive, fun, and they go to YouTube and they see the Girls. They watch the videos. They learn the dances. It’s amazing: I’ve never seen anything like this, where you have huge crowds of people knowing exactly the hand gestures to do to songs that aren’t even in English.”

That’s the vibe Mnet America is counting on. They’ve expanded from four million to 12 million households in the past year, and can now be seen in nine of the nation’s top ten markets. They, and their parent company, are spending heavily behind the notion that K-Pop isn’t just a fad or niche, but the next breakout pop subgenre.

“Our parent company has really been pushing the concert biz — they’ve packaged some of the top K-Pop groups together in a global tour they call M-Live,” says Ware. “And they’ve really been investing in Mnet America, looking to put us into the role that MTV used to play — the champion of a new and exciting musical genre. MTV was where hiphop really went mainstream, and they’re the ones who made it possible for a lot of the big European artists to cross over. They don’t do that anymore. But when it comes to Asian pop artists, and K-Pop in particular, we will.”

Ware has a good point. It was MTV that made the Scandi-Pop wave of the late-’80s / early ’90s happen: A-ha, Ace of Base, Roxette, The Cardigans, Aqua, and, on the avant-garde side of the musical spectrum, Bjork. Those acts were visually appealing and vocally talented, but frequently language-challenged. If they could make it in America, why not the Girls — who, with two native-born speakers and several other members fluent in English as a second language, are well ahead of their Scandinavian forerunners, many of whom depended on phonetic transliterations for their American releases?

“I don’t think language is a barrier at all,” says GG’s Tiffany. “We have fans from all over the world, who love our music even if they can’t understand it. If there’s one thing that our experience has taught us, it’s that music is really a universal language. It’s something you don’t just hear — it’s something you feel.”

http://blogs.wsj.com...ugh-in-america/

Akanishi Jin, Kuroki Meisa Tied The Knot On February 2

On Thursday, the Sports Nippon newspaper was the first to break the news that former KAT-TUN member Akanishi Jin (27) and actress Kuroki Meisa were getting married. Later that same day, their agencies finally confirmed the reports, revealing that Akanishi and Kuroki already tied the knot on February 2nd.

The official statement did not touch on Sports Nippon’s claim that Kuroki is already 2 months pregnant. If the report is true, their agencies may be choosing to downplay the fact, or Akanishi and Kuroki may be waiting until she enters the stable period of her pregnancy before making an official announcement.

The relationship between Akanishi and Kuroki was just discovered late last month, after the two were seen on a date at Tokyo DisneySea. Kuroki plans to continue with her entertainment career.

Tokyograph