Epoch of Twilight Chapter 1 MissionTscht. As the door of the bus opened, Luo Yuan disembarked, following the flow of the crowd. His white shirt had long been drenched in sweat while dirt and stains formed abstract art on the fabric. Commuting daily was a nightmare for Luo Yuan, and this unavoidable routine was testing his limits on a regular basis. Roadway Regular Font' title='Roadway Regular Font' />Its getting hotter these days, Luo Yuan thought while he pulled at his damp shirt. The hot weather combined with todays difficult client had made him even more agitated. Roadway Regular Font' title='Roadway Regular Font' />There is no disputing it. Place a regular driver in a regular BMW 5 Seriesan all new car for 2017and then have that same regular driver hop into a regular 7. Youre all set to leave for your welldeserved summer vacation when you realize you havent prepped your home at all. Heres a list of all the energy vampires. RNodes. For many of the features IRIS provides, a model of the road network topology is required. This model consists of a set of roadway nodes, or rnodes, which. Jaden Smith, cofounder of boxed water startup Just Good Inc., has launched a legal war with another startup selling mayonnaise. According to Bloomberg, Smiths. Luo Yuan tucked his briefcase under his arm and walked briskly towards the Jingyue Residential Area. The Jingyue Residential Area was near Donghu Citys suburbs, more than 1. However, rent prices in the area were far from cheap. Luo Yuan shared a house with a young couple. It was a fully furnished 2 bedroom house, and he only had to pay CNY1. CNY3. 00. 0 monthly rental, which was considered a very good deal for a first tier city. Although the location was not very convenient, his housemates were decent and they were quite nice to him. He breathed in the smell of freshly cut grass before seeing a few workers mowing the lawn in the residential area. Whats going on Didnt they mow the grass just two weeks ago Luo Yuan felt puzzled before he looked over at the lawns that had yet to be mowed. Roads%20RegularT.gif' alt='Roadway Regular Font' title='Roadway Regular Font' />Only then did he realize that the grass had grown extremely fast, and was reaching about half a foot already. The trees in the area also seemed to have grown taller and looked very bushy and dense. He then began to notice how odd the weather was. Lexie Readable formerly Lexia Readable was designed with accessibility and legibility in mind, an attempt to capture the strength and clarity of Comic Sans without. One of the most significant facets of City government involves boards committees. The City of Dunedin currently oversees 28 active boards, committees, agencies and. It was still hot when they were already approaching December. Most of the maple trees in the area were usually bald by this time of the year, but this year they strangely seemed to have grown lusher. There were many theories about it on the news, from equatorial counter currents to sunspot activity, some had even said that it could have been a supernova explosion from a nearby planetary system. A simple search online could produce all sorts of arguments and hypotheses complete with photos and solid proof. All were equally logical yet headache inducing and, at the end of the day, taken as gospel. Better leave it to the scientists. What is there for an ordinary citizen to think about Luo Yuan shook his head. A few minutes later, the aroma of a home cooked meal greeted him as he opened the security screen door. Just as he changed into his house slippers, Zhao Yali came out of the kitchen. She looked surprised that it was not her boyfriend. Roadway Regular Font' title='Roadway Regular Font' />Recovering with a smile, she said, Oh, Yuan, its you. Lets have dinner together. Ive cooked an extra portion today She went back into the kitchen, obviously still busy preparing. Zhao Yali was actually quite young. She was 2. 7 years old, just four years older than Luo Yuan. Lifestyle Redesign Implementing The Well Elderly Program. She had fair skin, a slim figure, and a charming smile on her delicate almond shaped face. She looked like a typical Jiangnan canal town lady. Sure, I get to save money that way, Luo Yuan accepted her invitation with a big smile. What about Bro QiangHow come hes not back yet He usually gets off from work quite early. I was thinking Id play a game with him while I waited for dinner, Luo Yuan added as he saw that there was still a pair of slippers laid out. Zhao Yalis boyfriend, Chen Weiqiang, worked at the Forestry Bureau and his workload was usually quite light. He started work at 9 0. He hardly ever joined any social gatherings. It was quite strange for Luo Yuan to not find him home at this hour. All you do is play games Zhao Yali accused haughtily, still in her apron, I know both of you gamed until 1 0. I was sleeping last night. Why didnt you stop him. Luo Yuan smiled and replied, Alright, Ill try to stop him next time. I cant promise Ill succeed thoughHes an addict. He cant force you if you dont want to play Zhao Yali retorted. Zhao Yali actually knew her boyfriend well enough to realize that she could not put the entire blame on Luo Yuan. To put it nicely, Chen Weiqiang was a family man. But he was also known as a geek. He had no social life. He always left for home right after his working hours and spent the rest of his day gaming until midnight. She tried to stop him but failed most of the time. Okay, well go to bed before 1. Luo Yuan felt that they had been staying up really late recently as well, and always felt sleepy during lunch time. He went to his room to get some clean clothes and then headed to the bathroom for a shower. Afterwards, he started a game of Dota. He realized that the sky had already gotten dark after just one game. Zhao Yali came into his room just as he was about to start another one. Yuan, lets have dinner. We dont have to wait for him anymore, she said softly with a worried expression on her face. Have you given him a call Luo Yuan asked. I have, he didnt pick up Zhao Yali tousled her hair a bit before saying, He did say that hell be inspecting the forestry situation in Gaotang Town with his superior this morning. Perhaps hes still busy. Never mind. Lets eat first. Luo Yuan stopped asking and the two of them sat down at the dining table. Zhao Yali was a very good cook. There were five dishes and a bowl of soup on the table, all of them looking and smelling delicious. Oh, this Old Duck Soup is my favoriteIve liked it since I was in college and Ive been missing it. Let me try this first Luo Yuan helped himself to a piece of duck fillet. How is it Did I add too much salt Zhao Yali asked nervously. Are you kidding You couldve been a head chef with your culinary skills Its such a waste that youre only cooking for Bro Qiang, Luo Yuan complimented her. Zhao Yali laughed and chided, Stop flattering meTheyre just regular dishes. Have some more if theyre so delicious. The heavy earlier atmosphere was replaced by a harmonious one as they joked throughout dinner. It was when the dinner came to an end that Zhao Yali started to worry again. She took out her phone and redialed her boyfriends number, her expression turning darker. Whats the matter Luo Yuan asked. His phone has been switched off, Zhao Yali replied quietly. Maybe it ran out of battery. Besides, Bro Qiang will probably need to entertain his colleagues after the inspection. With his alcohol tolerance, I bet hes already passed out, Luo Yuan comforted her while smiling. Thats true. His alcohol tolerance is the worst. All it takes is a bottle of beer to knock him out Zhao Yali looked slightly relieved when she entertained that possibility. Luo Yuan heard a beeping machine sound coming from within him. His facial expression changed slightly as he summoned up the system silently. A green framed hologram screen hovered in mid air at the same time. CharacterLuo Yuan. Occupation Foreign Trade Sales Representative, Qimei Trading Co. Ltd. Experience 9. Energy 1. 0 1. Dexterity 1. Physique 1. 1 1. Intelligence 1. Sensitivity 1. Determination 1. Skills Science 1. Math 1. 4, Mandarin 1. English 1. 6, Finance 1. Programming 9, Dancing 1, Painting 3, Gaming 6, Negotiating 9, Socializing 7, Cooking 3, Driving 1, Hand to hand Combat 4. Special Skills Identification. Pending Attribute Points 0. Pending Skill Points 4. Pending Mission Level F Become Assistant Regional Manager of the Foreign Trade Department at Qimei Foreign Trading Co. Ltd. in 1. 2 months Cancelled. Optional Mission Level F Investigate the reason of Chen Weiqiangs disappearance in 5 days AcceptDecline. When You Should Spend 7. Or 1. 50,0. 00 On A BMW Sedan. Hello, my somewhat wealthy friend. Youve worked hard in your life to earn your riches. You deserve nice things. Things like a 2. 01. BMW 5. 30i. Youve earned it. Go on, get it. Oh wait, youre not somewhat wealthyyoure stupid wealthy Well, then. Fuck everyone. Get an Alpina B7. Heres what 1. 50,0. BMW sedans. There is no disputing it. Place a regular driver in a regular BMW 5 Seriesan all new car for 2. Series, and the experience is virtually the same. Big comfy throne for a chair. Same BMW interface. Those neat and nifty and extraordinarily nerdy gesture controls to make the radio louder or quieter. Thats almost what makes the 5 Series so good. You sit there and you think, Oh, thank GOD I didnt buy the 7. Because if you did, youd end up just looking like a showy dunce who likes to spend money. But when you add Alpina into the mix, things get a little more interesting, and a lot more expensive. Full Disclosure BMW wanted us to drive both the BMW 5 Series and the Alpina B7 so bad that we asked for them, and they said, okay. We picked them up from their garage here in New York, and both of them came with a full tank of gas. Whats The Difference They both come from Germany, they both have turbocharged engines, and theyre both built on the same modular platform. They both feature gesture controls, which allow you to wave your hands in the air, much as you would if you didnt even care, to turn the volume up down. They both also feature a regular volume knob. They both have extraordinarily comfy seats. They both have at least one BMW badge, somewhere. They both have heads up displays so large, its as if all 4. Waldseemller Map is spread across your entire face when the GPS system says its time to make the next turn, right up until it disappears again is that a road hazard, not being able to see the road Maybe. Im not one to make moral judgments. You gotta make peace with your own deities. They both accelerate to literally some miles per hour in literally some sort of measurable time. Theyre both about 2. They both will get you to where you going. Really, if all you care about is the basics, along with some hyper tech and some safe, conservative, reserved style and class, theres no reason not to get a BMW 5 Series. It makes a car like the Alpina B7 kind of pointless. But thats where it all ends. Whereas my BMW 5. Big 7which is what the B7 in Alpina B7 stands for, I like to thinkgoes positively insane. Alpina, as you may know, is an independent company that has for decades specialized in developing high performance and high luxury versions of BMW cars, including doing their own extensive modifications to BMWs own engines. Here, Alpina does more of more of more. Eight cylinders, containing 4. V. Two turbos. 6. A top speed electronically limited to right around 1. The B7, like the 7 Series its based on, features carbon fiber in the chassis, too, just to make sure that what looks to be an elephant can truly dance. Its vast in size and scope, with its long wheel base allowing nothing but the most sophisticated, discerning passengers to recline in the big rear thrones, massaged by nothing but the finest air bladders. The bladders are synthetic, BMW claims, but I have a sneaking suspicion they come from animals so fine mere mortals like you and I have never heard of them. They shit gold. Alpina badges are everywhere, even in the electronic instrument cluster. They remind you that this is no ordinary BMW. Its rarer even than a vaunted M. In fact, just inside the door theres a little manufacturers note that this is actually no longer a BMW, not by the German governments definition, anyway. In fact, Alpina claims its changed The adaptive steering. The adaptive suspension. The dampers. The wheels, obviously. The turbos. The exhaust, so now you can almost, sometimes, if youre just whispering amongst yourselves, consider it loudThe intake. The steering wheel leather, which now comes hand stitched in Alpinas traditional blue and green. The intercooler. The pistons, now made by Mahle. The transmission, which Alpina lets you switch around not by paddles, but by buttons on the back of the steering wheel though you can still specify paddles, if you really insist upon itThe very heart and soul of the beast itself. And its got neat little white stitching on the brown leather, too. I didnt have that in the 5 Series, no siree. Which All Adds Up To A Nice Recipe, If Your Budget Can Stretch. If you strip away all the Alpina bits, and just leave a regular 7 Series, you get a very good, very competent, very luxurious car. And thats all pretty neat and fine, were it not for the 5 Series, which really does feel just about every bit as good and lovely as the 7, as long as youre not eight feet tall with consistent NBA contract demands to sit in the back seats wherever you go. If you can only afford a car thats 7. BMW, I suggest the 5 Series. But if you can afford a car thats over 1. Alpina B7. Despite its 4,5. And when it all gets too fast, when it all gets too scary when not even the B7s ionized perfume dispenser can calm you beating heart, your spine pummeled into dust by furiously inflating and deflating bladders, massive platters masquerading as brake rotors behind the gorgeous 2. Alpina wheels haul you back into humanitys normal dimension. Its sort of all astounding how it does it. But Not Everything Is Perfect With These Bavarian Wonders. BMWs self driving system is still pretty crap. It snakes, it slithers, it forces you to constantly put your hands on the wheel. Its silly and pointless. Dont use it. Itll get better, but its not good now. The steering, while vastly improved and much more direct than BMWs early iterations of drive by wire tillers, still doesnt provide much by way of feedback either, even if you shove it all the way from Comfort Plus which can be earnestly compared to feeling like youre driving along a road paved with the backs of particularly plump dogs all the way into Sport Plus, which is like the Sport mode in many cars, but also, Plus. So Should You Actually Get Either OneThis is one of those weird questions. Its not like oh, should I get a Toyota Corolla or a Honda Civic This comes down to an even deeper question about what sort of person you are. Even beyond the silly, entirely, completely inconsequential question of how big is your wallet Maybe it helps that I cant really afford either of these cars, despite my vast blogging riches. But do you want a car that gets you quietly and confidently to your destination, reserved in intent and purpose, to wow only those that get close enough to for you to show off your nifty finger twirling radio tricks Or do you want the sort of car that hears about rising income inequality, the death of the American dream, and any semblance to an end to rent seeking and says, stoutly and resolutely, that to hell with all of it, Ive made my way in this world, and I deserve to be rewarded with nothing but the sensation of buttery soft cow peelings repeatedly shoved forcefully into the back of my headI know which one Id take. But Ill need the money for it somewhere.