Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor Quotes

“He died taking mercury pills that he thought would make him immortal," Tang Taizong said.

"So did you!" Qin Sho Haung yelped without looking at him.

"Allegedly! Sources differ!"

"You know what you did!”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“You cling so hard to morality out of a desperation for others to like you. You think they'd stop treating you like an outsider if you were a good boy who did everything they wanted. This is your greatest weakness. If you want any true power over your life, you must stop caring so much about what others think.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“Zack cracked a smile, but an unexpected pit twisted open his gut. Teasing was a natural part of friendships, so much he'd laughed along when his friends had done it to him, but it wasn't until now that he realized how strange it was that he never felt comfortable doing the same to them. He'd always been too afraid of upsetting them or losing them. It was never equal, like Simon and Melissa were.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“You think they'd stop treating you like an outsider if you were a good boy who did everything they wanted. This is your greatest weakness. If you want any true power over your life, you must stop caring so much about what others think.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“Listen, kid, you are always going to be different. Accept that. Accept that right now. Now matter how you try to fit in, the people around you will never truly see you as one of them. Because you are not. You have your own background, your own heritage, your own story. You cannot earn true respect by pretending to be somebody else. Deep down you know this, or you wouldn't be hungering for the power to stand up for yourself and not pretend anymore.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“Tuōmèng,” Zack repeated in a murmur, the syllables foreign in his mouth. A language that was supposed to have been his mother tongue but wasn’t. His mom never spoke it with him because she didn’t want him to have an accent when speaking English. He never learned because he never wanted to.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“Superheroes are just American myth. They haven’t been passed down long enough to take spiritual form, but if they last another few centuries, I reckon I’ll be playing mahjong with Bruce Wayne on the same ethereal table as George Washington.” “What?” Zack shot to a new level of disbelief. “But superheroes aren’t actually worshiped as real.” “Then what’s Comic-Con, huh?”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“Zack hadn’t expected to like much about China, but as they passed a street vendor plopping batter onto a sizzling grill behind the greasy glass of her cart, his stomach grumbled with a certainty that whatever it was would be delicious to try. And the general atmosphere of the street . . . it was undeniably chaotic, yet there was something comforting about the hustle and bustle, like it was proof of how vibrant life can be.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“Zack repeated in a murmur, the syllables foreign in his mouth. A language that was supposed to have been his mother tongue but wasn't. His mom never spoke it with him because she didn't want him to have an accent when speaking English. He never learned because he never wanted to.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“A wave of hot shame rolled through Zack as he remembered how he had pleaded and begged for a portal-lens before his ninth birthday, then how his mom had burst into tears the night before it, saying how sorry she was that she couldn't get it for him without worrying if they could make rent, and that she wasn't even sure they could afford to stay in New York. That had been the night Zack had realized he couldn't be like other kids anymore, that he had to get straight As and stay out of trouble and never add more to his mom's worries.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“He'd been so much happier when he was little, when he hadn't realized his mom had been lying on those nights when she would make him dinner but not eat anything herself because she had "already eaten." Other kids had been simpler back then too, not noticing or caring that Zack's clothes and shoes were never new, or that he watched free documentaries on YouTube instead of the newest Netflix shows, or that he and his mom never went on any vacations or ate at any fancy restaurants. When she had free time and the sun was shining, she would pack some food and take him for a picnic in Central Park, and that had been enough for him.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“Если хочешь обрести истинную власть над своей жизнью, тебе нужно перестать так сильно беспокоиться о том, что подумают другие”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“«Если хочешь обрести истинную власть над своей жизнью, тебе нужно перестать так сильно беспокоиться о том, что подумают другие».”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“Зак подумал, что эта речь должна сопровождаться хештегом #НеВсеТираныТираны.
Он сглотнул:
— Но ты убил кучу невинных людей, разве нет?
Цинь Шихуан закатил глаза за бусины своего головного убора:
— Я был завоевателем. Конечно, убил. Неужели ты думаешь, что в истории есть хотя бы один завоеватель или хотя бы один правитель крупной страны, на чьих руках не было бы крови невинных? Что ты скажешь о персах, убитых твоим драгоценным Александром Македонским? А как насчет ни в чем не повинных чернокожих или индейцев, страдавших при Джордже Вашингтоне? Если я правильно припоминаю, почти все эти твои американские отцы-основатели были рабовладельцами, несмотря на то что называли себя защитниками всеобщей свободы. По крайней мере, я никогда не говорил такой наглой лжи.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“Но посреди ужаса и сомнений я все лучше понимал одно: если сдамся, то буду до конца своих дней задаваться вопросом: «Что бы случилось, если бы я пошел до конца?». Поэтому я не позволил себе больше сомневаться. И рискнул.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“Страх— это нормальное чувство, которого нельзя избежать. Но ты имеешь реальную власть и можешь сам решать, позволить ли этому страху сдерживать тебя. В твоей жизни возникнут риски, которые придется принять. Они очаруют тебя, и ты услышишь бесконечные голоса, которые будут говорить, что ты делаешь недостаточно, или что исполнить твои планы невозможно, или что именно ты не сможешь это сделать. Но знаешь что?— Его глаза превратились в щелочки.— История не запоминает тех, кто слушает эти голоса.”
― Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor