ariiiiih

[ariiiiih]

oh so many good ideas! It's enjoyable to think his new life after the revenge. So many things he can do! I really like the idea that he may be a teacher. Also I guess his teacher was a really really good person. Because study costed a lot and his family was poor, seeing this smart and diligent kid his teacher probably waived his tuition or even paid for his studying. So I'm kind of like to imagine how his teacher influenced him.

He Xuan post-canon being

full of rage, wanting to burn down the world in the moments he remembers that it tolerated someone like Shi Wudu for so long. But then he recalls that the world also has room for good people like Xie Lian, for complicated people like Yin Yu, for kittens like Quan Yizhen. And for real kittens, of course, and someone ought to feed the ones he’s collected on his new island, as well as his stupid old bone fish. So he takes a deep breath and calms down somewhat.

determined to be happy and learning quickly that he can’t force it. He needs to catch up on seven hundred years of happiness to beat Shi Wudu, but the way to this goal is not nearly as clear as it was for his last one. He tries to return to his old life, taking up studying, passes the exams with flying colours, is lost for how to continue. Why did he want to be a scholar? Nowadays there’s hardly a book of note he hasn’t read. He moves on to those of lesser reputation, intent on finding the joy he used to gain from reading.

relieved of the burden he’s had to carry for centuries. At ease in the knowledge that his loved ones, who have entered the cycle of reincarnation ages ago, have finally been afforded justice. Sometimes he wonders if their souls have found each other again, if they have ever crossed his path. For the most part though, he prefers not to dwell on the past.

penitent. It takes a while for the rage to settle enough to make room for regret, but when it does he decides to devote a fixed amount of his time to atonement. Forever. Ming Yi is now only remembered by him and He Xuan will make sure that he is revered. It takes even longer for him to visit the Royal Capital, carrying a rusty blade. Shi Qingxuan recognises it, watches in silent horror as it is turned into dust in He Xuan’s hand. They have no words for each other. Yet He Xuan sees understanding form in bright eyes. They leave it at that.

tormented by hunger. It’s the one pain that sometimes has him wondering if it would be better to… He never finishes the thought. He fought and he suffered and he made it so far not to be defeated by something so mundane, so trivial. And so solvable. So what if he’s hungry? He can eat whenever he wants. So what if he overeats and needs to sleep for a while? He can do that, too. He has beaten every monster that has ever caused him harm and now has all power and all the time in the world.

drawn into messes he never meant to get involved with. One of his scholar clones ends up in the royal court and climbs the ranks, until he gets too close to the emperor – and gets burned. He Xuan considers faking immunity to the poison, but upon reviewing the clone’s memories, decides against it. He enters the court himself, starting the climb anew, but this time with a greater goal in mind. Of the emperor’s sons one has the potential to become a great ruler and He Xuan makes it his job to help the boy realise it. It takes all his attention and the “lives” of two more clones to reach: a revolution not only bloodless, but almost seamless, thanks to diplomacy and policies, leading to an incremental improvement in everybody’s lives.

an undaunted explorer. He desperately needs some time away from society after his decade-long stint in the palace. His cats have all died and his bone fish dive when they see a person approaching who is not wearing red. He Xuan dives after them. It’s about time he embraces his second nature as a water ghost. What may the sea have to offer? A lot, it turns out. So much that, by the time he resurfaces and asks Crimson Rain what day it is, he does a double take and has to add, “And which year?”

sociable. Not regularly, but he’s taken to having dinner with Yushi Huang from time to time, to discuss agricultural policies and weather patterns. Recently, Crimson Rain is insisting on him eating at Paradise Manor once a month, to prevent further questions about the date. It’s downright pleasant, despite the constant jovial nagging about his debt. He tasks himself with making Yin Yu comfortable in his presence and is rewarded for his efforts with a tearful hug three decades later.

a scholar. He plays chess and Go with everyone who’ll have him, but mostly Crimson Rain and His Highness Xie Lian. Yin Yu gets frustrated no matter how patient He Xuan is, Yushi Huang rarely agrees to a game and Quan Yizhen is not interested. He Xuan learns every instrument and, finding his natural singing voice lacking, creates a clone solely for this purpose. He tries to read every new book he finds. He starts writing his own, essays, novels, poetry. The first are fed by his research, the second drawing on the endless well of inspiration that is his best friend and the centuries of second-hand lovesickness he’s had to suffer from him. The last, built on his own feelings.

a teacher. The one human interaction he finds brings him the most joy. Showing others the world in ways they’ve never seen it. He starts by teaching children to swim, hoping to alleviate their fear of his element and being overwhelmed by their natural curiosity for everything else. To his delight, many adults have not lost their love for learning, merely buried it under work and worries, so with a bit of coaxing and a good deal of support to lighten their burdens, they gladly attend his evening classes on anything from life skills like calligraphy and reading to educational topics such as agriculture to even extravagant subjects like philosophy or – his personal favourite – the creatures of the deep sea.

extremely busy, all the time. Dinner invitations, bringing justice to tyrants, fish care, watching over the royal courts, gardening, exploring the ocean, running small errands for grandmas and sometimes Yin Yu, big ones for Crimson Rain and occasionally Yushi Huang, teaching classes, studying, painting, writing, talking, laughing, eating, sleeping, living. He barely ever has time to flirt.

in love, again, though he fails to recognise it at first, mistaking the feeling for something else long sought-after. It takes, to his great shame, Crimson Rain pointing out his stupid grin and asking in jest which of the serving girls at Paradise Manor he fancies, for He Xuan to admit that he was thinking about Yin Yu. Never one to hesitate when a goal presented itself so clearly, he confesses his feelings to Yin Yu. That he is happy around him. That he is drawn to him. That he wishes to share more with him. Another hug would be nice, for starters. And smiles. It comes naturally, when he is with Yin Yu. Yin Yu is stumped, stutters, turns away, falters in the doorway. But he comes around, though He Xuan only gets a hug next time. Yin Yu wants to take it slow. He Xuan is content as long as Yin Yu is satisfied. Neither of them is the type for a grand romance. They both have their work, other people in their lives, and now, eachother.

happy. Three hundred years have passed and He Xuan denies being the last one to realise, as Xie Lian likes to tease him, that he isn’t still here because of a long-dead tyrant, trying to prove a point.

in this world because he wants to be.

[ariiiiih]

About <辜(Gu/Guilty)> (a TGCF AD song)

The last two versions of 辜 are really great, so I wanna share some thoughts and provide some supplementary materials.

The first one in episode 17 is a ballad version. As Xintong (新桐, TGCF AD’s music monitor) said in her webio, “[it’s] to unfold and highlight He Xuan’s mood from his perspective.”

This version is sorrowful but soft, and the lalala childish humming at the end, which sounds like a nursery rhyme, gives this song a sense of purity and innocence. In the blackwater arc, which consists of horror, anger, hatred, and despair, this feeling never appeared. Then, why use this song, this feeling to express HX?

The song was like out of the story, just like the feelings that HX never directly expressed. Actually, the warmest and touching scene in this story, from the RoEW to the end of revenge, was told in the first extra of TGCF----HX’s family, who gave XL a bowl of Yuanxiao and wished he would reunite with his family:

“Do you not have the money?” the owner asked. Still stricken, Xie Lian couldn’t reply, but the owner simply said, “Forget it. I’ll give it to you for free, considering how tragic you look. I'll be packing up once you’re done, so hurry home. Today is Yuanxiao, the day for family reunions!” …

The little girl was biting on her spoon with her head tilted. “When is gege coming home? I wanna wait until he’s back before digging in.” “He’s so late,” the owner chimed in. “Coming home so late on Yuanxiao; how outrageous!” “He’s working hard. He’Il be home soon,” the old woman chided. “Don’t scold him when he comes back. Miao-er! Miao-er, stop working. I feel awful always needing you to help out. Come here, and let’s eat together.” “Not at all!” the young woman replied. She cleaned the last table before sitting down with them to share yuanxiao. They seemed to be waiting for another member of the family to join them, and the four of them chatted and laughed all the while.

And the tragedy of this family in TGCF AD, when HX’s sister said “Gege, let's be brother and sister in the next life” and when his father told him “Son, father’s going with your mother,” was heartbreaking.

So, this ballad version of 辜, from He Xuan’s perspective, was like He Xuan remembering his family, his life, and all the happiness and suffers in it; it was like He Xuan looking back to the path that he had walked so far over hundreds of years and the three lifetimes of man, god, and ghost; and lamenting the people who had been involved in this fate-switching incident, the lives of those who had died innocently and tragically. Humming is a primitive expression of feelings, compassionate and pure like a god, while the mourning for those low-level, insignificant mortals shows the idea that gods should not love only abstract humans, but real people.

As an avenger, it's easy to think of HX's anger and hatred. But when they are stripped away, we can find that deep in his heart, the feeling and reason of his revenge that we easily overlook, is the pure love between him and his family, the warmest and the most joyful past. This love may seem ordinary, less splendor than other ghost kings’ beliefs or the relationship with Shi brothers, but it is this love that supported him to resolutely carry out an extremely long and lonely revenge that no one has ever done. Even though he would never rest and would suffer forever and he knew it, some people were worth doing that for.

That’s why I like this version. It reminded me of “true voyage is return”. The character of He Xuan is very complex but easily flattened and stereotyped because his inner self and his inward exploration are hidden, and this song shows the neglected side of He Xuan, a more human and even divine side.

The last version in episode 18 is an omniscient perspective (I haven’t seen the translation yet, so I tried to do it by myself, sorry if it sounds weird in English).

运数又何为 命中误

What fate has done,

A mistake in life.

似这般无妄劫 怎可渡

Like this undeserved trial,

How can it be passed?

一个是琳琅材 一个是凡间骨

One is a precious jade,

The other an ordinary bone.

偏谁得奇缘 放醉入仙府

Yet, who is destined

To stumble into the immortal realm.

做仙的眼无珠 做鬼的有恨难诉

The god has eyes but blind,

The ghost harbors hatred but hard to tell.

骨肉终消散 尝尽悲与苦

Flesh and blood dissipated,

Sorrow and Pain tasted.

这欠命的已还命 赎命的却无人赎

The one who owed a life has paid,

The one who atoned remains unredeemed.

问去去来来谁赢输

Ask who wins and who loses.

叹尘归尘来土归土

Sign, as ashes return to ashes,

And dust to dust.

This song has the style of Dream of the Red Chamber (the greatest classical novel in Chinese literature). Here are the songs in this novel, where you could find some similarities.

Vain Longing: One is an immortal flower of fairyland, The other fair flawless jade, And were it not predestined, Why should they meet again in this existence? Yet, if predestined, Why does their love come to nothing? One sighs to no purpose, The other yearns in vain, One is the moon reflected in the water, The other but a flower in the mirror. How many tears can well from her eyes? Can they flow on from autumn till winter, From spring till summer?

The Birds into the Wood have Flown: The office jack’s career is blighted, The rich man’s fortune now all vanished, The kind with life have been requited, The cruel exemplarily punished; The one who owed a life is dead, The tears one owed have all been shed. Wrongs suffered have the wrongs done expiated; The couplings and the sundering were fated. Untimely death sin in some past life shows, But only luck a blest old age bestows. The disillusioned to their convents fly, The still deluded miserably die. Like birds who, having fed, to the woods repair, They leave the landscape desolate and bare.

Also, in the Bloody Fire Social of AD, the first time we heard Scholar He (*in ancient China we called a scholar ‘Sheng’, that’s where He Sheng came, not He Xuan’s another name), the verse that artist sang also shared a similarity with a song from Dream of the Red Chamber.

(Bloody Fire Social):

世人皆说贺生好

All men long to be He Sheng

功名利禄少不了

With riches and rank that all aspire;

如今贺家在何方？

The kind family of He, where are they now?

荒冢一堆草没了

Their graves are a mass of briars.

All Good Things Must End (first part): All men long to be immortals Yet to riches and rank each aspires; The great ones of old, where are they now? Their graves are a mass of briars.

An interesting coincidence is that “All Good Things Must End” is the opening verse of Dream of the Red Chamber, while “The Birds into the Wood have Flown” is the closing verse of Dream of the Red Chamber. And the two similar songs in the blackwater arc are told from He Sheng's life to the end of He Xuan's revenge, which I personally like as a literary homage.

[ariiiiih]

Ok folks let's try this again.

The trolley problem exists in several variations, but the core idea is that a trolley is about to kill a larger group of people and someone can pull a lever to make the trolley instead kill a smaller group.

The question is if it can be morally justified to make the decision to kill the smaller group even though they would have lived otherwise and only need to die because of this decision.

Some argue that it's always better to have less people die. However, another stance is that human lives and human dignity must not be quantified or weighed against each other. Therefore it is wrong to sacrifice innocent bystanders even if it means less people die in the end.

But enough of the trolley problem, after all paragraph two already showed that it doesn't apply here since a group of five people is being sacrificed for the benefit of just one person. How important that person is to the one at the lever does not matter. One human is not worth more than another. Even if it had been just HX who died, it would have still been wrong of SWD to decide whose life is worth more.

What SWD did - killing five people to save one - was not justified in any way. It's understandable that he wanted to save his baby brother, but his method was plain wrong. Also, saying that the Reverend did the killing and not SWD is like blaming the trolley, it makes no sense at all. The Reverend is like a force of nature. You wouldn't blame a storm for the lives it takes either. You'd blame the people making the decisions that made those deaths possible.

[ariiiiih]

Thank you for your ideas! I didn’t thought about if the monster was the same one as Shi Qingxuan had encountered. Here’s my thought: the “Reverend” of the Empty Words was the most powerful one among this kind of monsters, and it has a special characteristic—curse no matter there were good things were not. So I guess when He Xuan went to the upper courts, he may found the characteristics of the Reverend of Empty Words they both met were same, and since there’s only one “Reverend” of Empty Words, I think he was pretty sure that there’s fate exchange or similar things. And yeah he still needed to find out possibility of it and the direct proof that Shi Wudu did this, and that’s the hardest part, and it’s highly possible that Jun Wu hided the evidence to prevent him from finding it quickly to take his revenge. However, I think it was a bit hard to explain why he decided to devour water ghosts if there’s lack of evidence. Maybe just to make sure when he found out it was Shi Wudu who did this he could act quickly. And I definitely agree with you that he waited until Shi Wudu was vulnerable doesn’t make sense.

Usually, we think He Xuan became the Supreme because of his hatred for Shi Wudu, which was also told by Xie Lian(“Hatred was what made Ship-Sinking Black Water”). However, the plots do not actually support this. And I think the contexts that MXTX created for the blackwater arc had some contradictions, or at least made the analysis of He Xuan’s character hard.

He Xuan became the Supreme before he went to the Upper Court (a ghost in a good disguise must be a Supreme—like XL checked HC’s hand and hair), and he went to the Upper Court to investigate what Shi Wudu had done. So, he had no idea about the fate alteration that Shi Wudu did when he went to Mount Tonglu. Then, how could his hatred for Shi Wudu support him to become the Supreme?

Therefore, other things supported him.

I have two possible ideas (one is more abstract, and one is more personal/specific):

First, his hatred for the unfairness and injustice existed in the society.

This was derived from his life experience (chap 53, pp.27-28): the officials hid his test scrolls and exchanged them for blank ones; fiancée and sister were forcibly taken and died; he was unjustly imprisoned…We could see his tragedy was caused by the powerful malevolent officials who bullied and oppressed the common people for their benefit, the unfunctional social system that couldn’t help the citizens seek justice. (Does this sound familiar? Yeah, that what was Shi Wudi had done, which makes me feel he was just a representative of the cause of this kind of tragedy among the common people in ancient China). Such injustice made him hate them, which made his soul unrested, like what Xie Lian said: “He died filled with murderous intent and resentment…I don’t think a soul hammered into shape by such means would easily rest in peace. Instead, he’d thirst for revenge.” (chap 60, pp. 135)

So, He Xuan went to Mount Tonglu to make himself capable of killing unjust people afterlife. 

There’s no direct description, but we could speculate it from the books.

First, each Supreme acted for their 执念(unshakeable and stubborn belief, the closest word I found in English is fixation, some translators will translate it to obsession, but it is not proper here). For instance, Bai Wuxiang hated mortals, so he created ghosts and monsters from Mount Tonglu. Hua Cheng loved Xie Lian, so he kept searching for him for eight hundred years and supported him no matter what happened. So He Xuan must act for his 执念, and killing injustice----the malevolent people who bullied and oppressed the common people for their benefit----is a reasonable action.

Second, in the Puji Shrine, when Hua Cheng looked through the scrolls that Shi Wudu had put for Reverend Empty Words, he pointed out the people he killed, and Xie Lian found they were all lawless malevolently evil tyrants, and he pointed out the people that He Xuan killed (chap 51). Implying by the type of people that Hua Cheng killed and the fact that Hua Cheng knew the people that He Xuan killed, it was highly possible that He Xuan also killed these types of people, just like what he did in the eve of Hanlu when he was alive.

(belike: Hua Cheng (threw a scroll): Have a look. He Xuan (quietly looked through the scroll, pointing to some names): I’ll take those. Hua Cheng (took the scroll back, casually glancing at the names left for him): Good. Half half this time. (they were splitting the kill list)

And why he decided to use “killing” as an approach to punish the unjust? Because the system in the society at that time didn’t allow him to get his just and punish the unjust fairly. For instance, when he tried to seek justice for his fiancée and sister, he got into jail. If the system is not functional, then he would be the one who executes the final judgment.

Second, his love for his family. While his love for his family is obvious, why this is a reason that he went to Mount Tonglu? He wished to bring the truth and just to his love, the innocent family. This is similar to the reason that Hua Cheng became the Supreme for Xie Lian: to be powerful enough to support and protect the ones we love. If He Xuan couldn’t be Supreme, he wouldn’t have any chance to investigate the truth of fate exchange and kill Shi Wudu in the end.

Then, how did his 执念 change as he realized the truth of fate exchange?

But before going into this, I want to talk about a “problem” in a plot that MXTX created.

The fate exchange could be speculated at the very beginning when He Xuan went to the Upper Court.

Let's see what information He Xuan needed to speculate fate exchange: the birth details of Shi Qingxuan; the fact that he has met the Reverend Empty Words; the time that Reverend Empty Words stopped disturbing Shi Qingxuan was close to the time that He Xuan met Reverend Empty Words; they died at the same time, but one became the god, one the ghost. Are those pieces of information hard to collect? No. Because Shi Qingxuan “is not one to hide anything” (chap 65, pp.241), and there’s no point for him to hide these from He Xuan and He Xuan even purposely being close to Shi Qingxuan to collect information about his brother. And is the speculation hard to make? No. See how Xie Lian quickly found the truth of fate exchange? He even didn’t have any information about He Xuan. And He Xuan is smart, there’s no reason for him not to have this reasonable speculation. 

Then, what is the reason let him take the revenge hundreds of years later?

The first thing I thought of was evidence.

We learned that Hua Cheng had speculated Jun Wu purposely controlled the time He Xuan took his revenge: when Jun Wu felt Shi Wudu was a threat to him (and when Xie Lian ascended, like another test for him: will he help Shi Qingxuan hide the truth of fate exchange because Shi Qingxuan is his friend?), he would “leak the fate-switching affair” to He Xuan (chap 119). Based on the analysis above, the truth was speculated a long time ago, so here must have the direct evidence. And we know He Xuan acted quickly when the evidence was found. Otherwise, there’s no way for Jun Wu to control the time of revenge.

However, if it is evidence, then it means He Xuan wasn’t a hundred percent sure that Shi Wudu did fate exchange. Then, his years of hatred for Shi Wudu didn’t hold up. Though it did make sense just based on the plots, it seems to make the story lack tension. From what Xie Lian had thought after the blackwater arc, we could see there’s a parallel he wanted to make as a contrast between He Xuan and Hua Cheng: If Hua Cheng’s love for Xie Lian didn’t change for eight hundred years, then He Xuan’s hate for Shi Wudu should be same. However, this is not the case according to the analysis above.

So, how to resolve this issue?

My first theory is He Xuan actually had the evidence a long time ago, but there’s another reason that stopped him from taking action quickly, some Jun Wu-like reason, you know he had to make sure He Xuan took revenge at the time he wanted.

My second theory is He Xuan’s hatred is more abstract, and Shi Wudu is just no more than another person who fits his framework of injustice, like the tyrants in Fu Gu. So, it doesn’t really matter whether he had the evidence of fate exchange.

So, did his 执念 change as he realized the truth of fate exchange? Not really. Also, it fits “the hundreds of years of hate contrast”.

(I now don’t have other ideas about the reasons that make He Xuan take revenge hundreds of years later now (there may be some beefleaf versions, but you know it is not the case). So, welcome to share your thoughts:)

Hate and love are just like the two sides of a coin, why we hate injustice and unfairness because we care about the people living in this world. Shi Wudu and He’ family is an instance/ representative of this framework. Why he didn’t disappear after killing Shi Wudu? One of the reasons is the unfairness and injustice would never disappear, is his positive attitude toward life. The resistance is an eternal subject, while the love for life is a great song.

People usually forget He Xuan was raised with love, and this family love is powerful. He Xuan himself is a person who fights for a living, and never gives up. He could once get lost, be affected, and suffered by his pain and hate, but in the deep side of his heart, I believe he still finds himself and his direction.

[ariiiiih]

Usually, we think He Xuan became the Supreme because of his hatred for Shi Wudu, which was also told by Xie Lian(“Hatred was what made Ship-Sinking Black Water”). However, the plots do not actually support this. And I think the contexts that MXTX created for the blackwater arc had some contradictions, or at least made the analysis of He Xuan’s character hard.

He Xuan became the Supreme before he went to the Upper Court (a ghost in a good disguise must be a Supreme—like XL checked HC’s hand and hair), and he went to the Upper Court to investigate what Shi Wudu had done. So, he had no idea about the fate alteration that Shi Wudu did when he went to Mount Tonglu. Then, how could his hatred for Shi Wudu support him to become the Supreme?

Therefore, other things supported him.

I have two possible ideas (one is more abstract, and one is more personal/specific):

First, his hatred for the unfairness and injustice existed in the society.

This was derived from his life experience (chap 53, pp.27-28): the officials hid his test scrolls and exchanged them for blank ones; fiancée and sister were forcibly taken and died; he was unjustly imprisoned…We could see his tragedy was caused by the powerful malevolent officials who bullied and oppressed the common people for their benefit, the unfunctional social system that couldn’t help the citizens seek justice. (Does this sound familiar? Yeah, that what was Shi Wudi had done, which makes me feel he was just a representative of the cause of this kind of tragedy among the common people in ancient China). Such injustice made him hate them, which made his soul unrested, like what Xie Lian said: “He died filled with murderous intent and resentment…I don’t think a soul hammered into shape by such means would easily rest in peace. Instead, he’d thirst for revenge.” (chap 60, pp. 135)

So, He Xuan went to Mount Tonglu to make himself capable of killing unjust people afterlife. 

There’s no direct description, but we could speculate it from the books.

First, each Supreme acted for their 执念(unshakeable and stubborn belief, the closest word I found in English is fixation, some translators will translate it to obsession, but it is not proper here). For instance, Bai Wuxiang hated mortals, so he created ghosts and monsters from Mount Tonglu. Hua Cheng loved Xie Lian, so he kept searching for him for eight hundred years and supported him no matter what happened. So He Xuan must act for his 执念, and killing injustice----the malevolent people who bullied and oppressed the common people for their benefit----is a reasonable action.

Second, in the Puji Shrine, when Hua Cheng looked through the scrolls that Shi Wudu had put for Reverend Empty Words, he pointed out the people he killed, and Xie Lian found they were all lawless malevolently evil tyrants, and he pointed out the people that He Xuan killed (chap 51). Implying by the type of people that Hua Cheng killed and the fact that Hua Cheng knew the people that He Xuan killed, it was highly possible that He Xuan also killed these types of people, just like what he did in the eve of Hanlu when he was alive.

(belike: Hua Cheng (threw a scroll): Have a look. He Xuan (quietly looked through the scroll, pointing to some names): I’ll take those. Hua Cheng (took the scroll back, casually glancing at the names left for him): Good. Half half this time. (they were splitting the kill list)

And why he decided to use “killing” as an approach to punish the unjust? Because the system in the society at that time didn’t allow him to get his just and punish the unjust fairly. For instance, when he tried to seek justice for his fiancée and sister, he got into jail. If the system is not functional, then he would be the one who executes the final judgment.

Second, his love for his family. While his love for his family is obvious, why this is a reason that he went to Mount Tonglu? He wished to bring the truth and just to his love, the innocent family. This is similar to the reason that Hua Cheng became the Supreme for Xie Lian: to be powerful enough to support and protect the ones we love. If He Xuan couldn’t be Supreme, he wouldn’t have any chance to investigate the truth of fate exchange and kill Shi Wudu in the end.

Then, how did his 执念 change as he realized the truth of fate exchange?

But before going into this, I want to talk about a “problem” in a plot that MXTX created.

The fate exchange could be speculated at the very beginning when He Xuan went to the Upper Court.

Let's see what information He Xuan needed to speculate fate exchange: the birth details of Shi Qingxuan; the fact that he has met the Reverend Empty Words; the time that Reverend Empty Words stopped disturbing Shi Qingxuan was close to the time that He Xuan met Reverend Empty Words; they died at the same time, but one became the god, one the ghost. Are those pieces of information hard to collect? No. Because Shi Qingxuan “is not one to hide anything” (chap 65, pp.241), and there’s no point for him to hide these from He Xuan and He Xuan even purposely being close to Shi Qingxuan to collect information about his brother. And is the speculation hard to make? No. See how Xie Lian quickly found the truth of fate exchange? He even didn’t have any information about He Xuan. And He Xuan is smart, there’s no reason for him not to have this reasonable speculation. 

Then, what is the reason let him take the revenge hundreds of years later?

The first thing I thought of was evidence.

We learned that Hua Cheng had speculated Jun Wu purposely controlled the time He Xuan took his revenge: when Jun Wu felt Shi Wudu was a threat to him (and when Xie Lian ascended, like another test for him: will he help Shi Qingxuan hide the truth of fate exchange because Shi Qingxuan is his friend?), he would “leak the fate-switching affair” to He Xuan (chap 119). Based on the analysis above, the truth was speculated a long time ago, so here must have the direct evidence. And we know He Xuan acted quickly when the evidence was found. Otherwise, there’s no way for Jun Wu to control the time of revenge.

However, if it is evidence, then it means He Xuan wasn’t a hundred percent sure that Shi Wudu did fate exchange. Then, his years of hatred for Shi Wudu didn’t hold up. Though it did make sense just based on the plots, it seems to make the story lack tension. From what Xie Lian had thought after the blackwater arc, we could see there’s a parallel he wanted to make as a contrast between He Xuan and Hua Cheng: If Hua Cheng’s love for Xie Lian didn’t change for eight hundred years, then He Xuan’s hate for Shi Wudu should be same. However, this is not the case according to the analysis above.

So, how to resolve this issue?

My first theory is He Xuan actually had the evidence a long time ago, but there’s another reason that stopped him from taking action quickly, some Jun Wu-like reason, you know he had to make sure He Xuan took revenge at the time he wanted.

My second theory is He Xuan’s hatred is more abstract, and Shi Wudu is just no more than another person who fits his framework of injustice, like the tyrants in Fu Gu. So, it doesn’t really matter whether he had the evidence of fate exchange.

So, did his 执念 change as he realized the truth of fate exchange? Not really. Also, it fits “the hundreds of years of hate contrast”.

(I now don’t have other ideas about the reasons that make He Xuan take revenge hundreds of years later now (there may be some beefleaf versions, but you know it is not the case). So, welcome to share your thoughts:)

Hate and love are just like the two sides of a coin, why we hate injustice and unfairness because we care about the people living in this world. Shi Wudu and He’ family is an instance/ representative of this framework. Why he didn’t disappear after killing Shi Wudu? One of the reasons is the unfairness and injustice would never disappear, is his positive attitude toward life. The resistance is an eternal subject, while the love for life is a great song.

People usually forget He Xuan was raised with love, and this family love is powerful. He Xuan himself is a person who fights for a living, and never gives up. He could once get lost, be affected, and suffered by his pain and hate, but in the deep side of his heart, I believe he still finds himself and his direction.

[ariiiiih]

yeah i think 2) is more possible. for 1) i don't think hx is kind of person that will check if xl is worthy of hc. xl is hc's belief and love and hx knew how this kind of feeling feels like, and other has no position to really judge/check/involve in it (just like his hate for swd). i think there's a line in their relationship that they won't cross (like hc did help hx hide MY but i don't think he completely agreed with that, he just won't interfere hx's revenge). And maybe he asked this question also out of curiosity just like sqx was curious about what hc feared the most cuz xl seems to be the person that wouldn't regret on his every decision and had his Dao in it.

With the Black Water Arc (and this particular scene) coming up in the audio drama, I’ve been wondering again about the question He Xuan asks Xie Lian during their little party game in Fu Gu:

7seas book 4, page 40, ch. 54 In the Temple of Wind and Water

„Your Highness, what’s the biggest regret of your life?“ Ming Yi asked. Ming Yi was usually quiet and spoke little, but when he finally opened his mouth, he unexpectedly asked a question of such weight. Xie Lian was floored. Was it his disregard of advice and warnings, and his insistent and illegal descent to the Mortal Realm? Was it his hubris in thinking himself powerful enough to create rain for Yong’an? Was it his wishful thinking that he could save Xianle? Or was it his reluctance to kill certain people? He knew it was none of that. It took a moment for Xie Lian to answer. „My second ascension.“

XL doesn’t specify his meaning, but I’d say what he regrets most about this incident is Wu Ming sacrificing himself because of XLs misguided revenge quest.

I have two theories on what HX was going for. 1) is not entirely serious tho, 2) is what I think is likely.

HX is basically Hua Cheng’s younger brother (or older brother or best friend or whatever, essentially his only family, Kiln-forged kin so to speak) and he wants to check if XL is really worthy of HC. Not like there’s much room for doubt, but, y’know, one little test can’t hurt. So he asks, and he already has an answer in mind that he wants to hear, and XL gives exactly that answer: his biggest regret is the time someone else (HC) took the fall for him.

At this point HX is very conflicted over his own (potential future) regrets and seeks guidance from the wise Taizi Dianxia. Bc what is HXs biggest regret going to be after this? Dragging MY into it and getting him killed? Inflicting trauma on SQX? Murdering SWD? XLs answer is clear: of all the things he’s done, people he’s killed (or not), sacrifices he’s made, injustices he’s suffered, his biggest regret is the death (in XLs eyes) of an innocent person who got dragged into XLs mess. For HX, that means the thing he is likely going to regret the most has already come to pass: MY is dead, and although HX didn’t kill him, he enabled his death. XLs answer might also have strengthened HXs resolve to only involve SQX as much as necessary to teach him the truth, since SQX is technically innocent insofar as he didn’t know anything about his brother’s crime. This changes, of course, once SQX does know and tries to protect his brother from punishment. So HX goes on with his plan (and then possibly spends the rest of eternity building temples for MY, the innocent person who suffered when it should have been just him).

what do you think? ^^

[ariiiiih]

Since the blackwater arc in the radio drama of TGCF began (also a new song for blackwater arc, really great!), I plan to write a few posts to talk about He Xuan, and some of ideas are came from the conversation with my friends in weibo and lofter.

(The outline & conclusion is bold if it’s a bit long for you to read:), and all citations are from book 4)

First, his original plan for vengeance.

1. Shi Qingxuan knew the truth of his fate was altered to save his life and five people died because of it, and he turned to be a mortal.

From chapter 53-56 showed the first part of his original plan, which was not disturbed by Shi Qingxuan’s decision and not greatly affected by HuaLian:

The time of the Reverend of Empty Words appear--the day before Hanlu(the official end of autumn)—indicated that He Xuan wanted to show Shi Qingxuan this story. If without Xie lian, He Xuan will be the only friend he would ask for help, like what he did in Ban Yue Kingdom. And He Xuan could draw the teleportation array to take him to Fu Gu and explain the Bloody Fire Social himself.

What he did in the Terrace of Cascading Wine indicated that He Xuan wanted to “tell” Shi Qingxuan the truth (Xie Lian had speculated Shi Qingxuan may see the gory scene from the Bloody Fire Social (chap 60, pp. 133)), and extracted all his power to let him be the mortal that he supposed to be.

2. Shi Wudu’s remorse and death because of his crime.

3. Ming Yi (fake) died.

When He Xuan pretended to be the Reverend of Empty Words, his prophecies were his plan. For instance, at the beginning it said Shi Qingxuan would never see his brother and Fu Gu would be his nightmare, which turned out to be true. So, another prophecy he made at Fu Gu— “Your closest family, your best friend—they’ll all die a disgraceful death because of you!”—could also be his plan/intention, though how Ming Yi would die was not clear (maybe in Shi Wudu’s third tribulation or in the Black Water Demon Lair).

He Xuan asked Shi Wudu to kneel before the altar and kowtow before the urns (chap 65, pp.239), and he said you have no remose (chap 65, pp. 249), which indicated that he didn’t simply seek for punishment, but for Shi Wudu’s remorse.

4. Not let Shi Qingxuan know Ming Yi=He Xuan=Black Water.

Based on his original plan, all Shi Qingxuan knew was his fate was exchanged with a person called He Xuan and his brother did this, and because Ming Yi died, there’s no way for Shi Qingxuan to relate his best friend with He Xuan. Black Water may never appear. Even in the Black Water Demon Lair, when his original plan was changed, He Xuan still pretended to be Ming Yi until he couldn’t.

Then, why it was changed?

The main reason was Shi Qingxuan chose to cover up what his brother did, or at least not determined enough to against Shi Wudu. This let He Xuan down.

When He Xuan, Shi Qingxuan, and Xie Lian escaped through tunnels, He Xuan asked: “Was it the Reverend of Empty Words?” Shi Qingxuan answered, “No matter who did it, this whole thing is over and done with.” (chap 58, pp. 114). So, what does “the whole thing is over” mean? Based on current situation, Shi Qingxuan was a mortal, and he decided to be because he knew his fate was exchanged, but he never said anything about Shi Wudu. If thing were just over, Shi Wudu would still be a heaven official that nobody else know his crime, and the justice was not fully executed.

When they arrived at Yushi Country, Shi Qingxuan said again let’s end it here, only Xie Lian asked him and he then told the truth. And he said: “But I must beg everyone here to keep this a secret! Don’t say anything yet! Just for now. Only for now…Give me time to think properly…about what is to be done. Even though I’ve been thinking for days now and still came up empty…Anyway, let me cool my head first.” (chap 60, pp.136).

All these indicated that he didn’t want to tell the truth (at least just for now) in the first place.

So, why he wanted to keep this just for now and thought for days without a solution?

Actually, this matter was not complicated. The crime and evidence were clear. If it was exposed, Shi Wudu would be punished, turned to be a mortal or the worst case, he died. And since Shi Qingxuan had already been mortal, it was unlikely he would receive further punishment (The worst case could also be dying though). Then, what solution did Shi Qingxuan want and kept him from telling the truth? Because his relationship with his brother. He didn’t want his brother to be punished, so he tried to figure out a way that avoided or at least reduced the punishment his brother would receive while also not against the morality and justice. However, Shi Wudu had committed the crime, and there’s no way to have both. This was also proven in his later action, when He Xuan blocked Shi Qingxuan’s way, and Shi Qingxuan decided to help his brother pass the trial first (chap 61, pp. 142-143), which Xie Lian also questioned: “was it really appropriate to help him climb to a new level of power before investigating the matter?”

There’s a Chinese idiom, “大义灭亲”, which means placing righteousness above family loyalty. As Shi Qingxuan couldn’t do it, He Xuan changed his plan, both Shi brothers will be punished in the Black Water Demon Lair.

And why this let He Xuan down?

Because He Xuan thought Shi Qingxuan was the one who would choose justice/righteous over personal benefit (include family relationship). For instance, when they were in the Ban Yue Kingdom, Shi Qingxuan prosecuted Pei Xiu, who was committed a crime by feeding the ghosts by living people. Besides covering his own crime, Pei Xiu did this for Ban Yue, the girl he secretly loved and wished to rest in peace, but Pei Xiu’s relantionship with Ban Yue was not an excuse of his crime. And as Shi Qingxuan not let the ghost Ban Yue compensated for Pei Xiu's crime, it showed that he cared justice more. However, when thing turned to himself, he realized it was hard to choose between family and justice, and that’s where He Xuan disappointed. This was also shown as He Xuan said in the Nethor Water Manor: he didn’t know at first, but after that he was still ignorant? And He Xuan gave chances (chap 65 pp.241-242).

Back to his original plan, even though it was changed, his main goal was almost achieved (1,2,3) besides’ Shi Wudu’s remorse, and for 4, he tried to keep this friendship as much as he could until there’s no way to keep. He still pretended to be Ming Yi until Shi Wudu killed him. I guess if Shi Wudu didn’t, he would let Blackwater kill Ming Yi so Shi Qingxuan would never know he was the reason that his best friend died.

And why he didn’t want Shi Qingxuan know? Because he knew it would be too cruel for Shi Qingxuan to learn this truth (and Shi Qingxuan did broken as he learned it), and telling this didn’t have anything to do with his purpose of vengeance. Besides, I think he want to see, if Shi Qingxuan only knew He Xuan as a stranger not a best friend, what will he do? Will he still want to die for this? Or be the beggar in the end? What he wanted Shi Qingxuan to do was no matter how others related to this matter, it shouldn’t affect the righteous, for a stranger or a friend.  

So above all, it was not He Xuan who betrayed this relationship first, but Shi Qingxuan. I think He Xuan did his best to keep this relationship, but he had his bottom line.

All in all, from his plan and purpose, what he really wanted was the truth to be revealed and justice be executed, letting the criminal knew it was wrong and regretted for it. Rather than physical punishment, I think what he sought was an admit of crime in heart. So to me he’s actually an idealistic person and had his softness in this vengeance.