#fei du PICKED HIM UP IN LUOS CAR only for luo wenzhou

[mejomonster]

Its another day of me being completely unable to shut up about zhoudu

[evilvillainapologist]

Even the difference in wealth is a big topic in their first introduction. 

Fei Du rich, Luo Wenzhou working class, sure, but let's look at how Luo Wenzhou's (lack of) wealth in particular is portrayed. 

He cannot use his car, because of some big-shot conference meaning he can only use it every other day. Just like every civilian in the city. 

Every civilian? 

Except that Fei Du uses his car on the day of the murder and again on the next day when he picks up Tao Ran at the police station. Already, the rules don't apply to him, while they apply even to a captain of the police department. (Maybe it's just because it's two different cars, but again, something you have to be able to afford)

So what does Luo Wenzhou do instead? Does he hail a ride, like Fei Du would? No, he uses his bike, which is so old-fashioned it would be better off in a museum. 

The food he brings in, too, soy milk and jianbing, which wikipedia tells me is a crepe-like streetfood (that I need to try), screams very much working class to me. 

And while we do not learn anything about Luo Wenzhou's financial situation, his co-workers pretty openly talk about having barely any money left at the end of the month and being too poor to have girlfriends or wives. Luo Wenzhou might earn a bit more as captain, but probably not that much more. 

So Luo Wenzhou is poor, but at the same time he has a handle on his finances. Even when arguing with President "look-at-how-much-money-I-can-throw-around" Fei, he never really strikes me as the person who begrudges his own financial situation much. He makes do with what he has. What little extra he has he has no trouble distributing among his friends in the shape of food and drinks. 

Compare that to Fei Du's father, whose career is littered with corpses, all for the sake of making him more money than he could ever spend in a lifetime. 

[mejomonster]

Silent Reading, chapter 14. The psp scene. I have to say, I appreciate the Justice in the Dark show choices to show various things that (at least not this early in novel) are shown. Like pei su/fei du having dream flashbacks (and the cgi thats not needed but very cool in said dreams and flashbacks), Luo wenzhou actually finding fei du (rather than only Tao Rans verbal explanation in book and audio drama we get to see a full scene of the actual event within Tao rans narration which was just so visually pleasing and cool and the Light symbolism I could go On), the scene where Tao ran actually gives Fei du the psp. I'm just a softie for seeing flashback moments in general so I really appreciate the choice. Meanwhile. Book in general, as usual and part of why I love it, is so info dense with stuff it hints behind the already busy main situation:

Fei Du was of course present as well, though this time he had come purely as an outside observer and was unobtrusively standing behind Zhang Ting. When Luo Wenzhou saw him, he was wearing his beast in human clothing get-up, earbuds stuck in his ears, completely absorbed in playing a game on a very old model PSP.

Luo Wenzhou had meant to bundle up the forces of evil and throw them out, but when his gaze fell on Fei Du’s scratched-up old game machine, his expression suddenly relaxed. In a groundbreaking occurrence, he didn’t open his mouth to pick a fight; almost gently and peacefully, he strolled over beside Fei Du, taking a deep breath to mentally prepare himself—even if he saw the brat playing some violent and bloody assault game, he had determined he would maintain his emotional stability.

But after spending so much time preparing, when he looked over at the screen of Fei Du’s old game machine, he saw a crowd of charmingly naive “big-eyed lamps” running around—this domineering director-general was enthusiastically playing Patapon.

X

Luo Wenzhou held back until he got a “Game Over,” then slowly spoke: “It’s always perplexed me a little, why you’d hang out with Zhang Donglai and his ilk.”

Fei Du shot a glance at him and calmly stuck the game machine in his pocket. “Because I think he lives especially philosophically.”

Luo Wenzhou was unable to distinguish whether these words had a positive or negative connotation.

Fei Du waved a hand at Zhang Donglai, who was running over to him, turned to give Luo Wenzhou an artificial smile, then went to talk to Tao Ran.

(So much I love. How Luo being judgy about what games he plays has to do with caretaking him so long and over concerning that he even Has an opinion on fei dus game choices. That he instinctively Wants to not interrupt fei du even though it doesn't matter, this hint he made a Lot of choices when fei du was younger to try and go easy on him and give him the Lesser stresses of life and the escape moments rather than you know Fei Dus absolutely yikes living reality. Just so much History screams in Luos actions. Meanwhile? I actually love the comment on Zhang Donglan. I do wonder. Yeah he's stupid, he's rude, he's shallow and only into fucking and drinking and having fun like racing cars (which sure paid off for fei du needing to successfully handle car chases lmao). But he's also a rich fuerdai WITH NO trauma or at least not Fei Dus level. He's what fei du would have turned out like, maybe, if his dad had been decent and emotionally supportive and could've helped his mom instead of further harmed her. Fei du already does try to emulate Zhang donglai with frivolous spending, similar party habits, a lack of care if he wastes his family money away, and I do think he likes those traits or thinks there Must be a good point to them or he wouldn't emulate them So much.

After all Zhang ting the sister is respectable and not wasting around partying, fei du could've emulated her instead. Or people like her who are his peers. And he does emulate the cutthroat businessmen - people like his dad, for better or worse, people like Zhang tings boyfriend the murderer. But anyway my point is. I do think fei du appreciates the simplicity of Zhang donglan - he's honest, says and does what he wants, always let's people know honestly how he feels, and his goal is to enjoy himself. Fei du struggles to be emotionally open, probably admires it to some degree if he felt it was Safe for him to be open, he probably appreciates a friend so open so he isn't afraid of ulterior motives or being harmed. He really is just concerned with being happy, and i think fei du ultimately would like to learn to do that once his revenge and consuming NEED to keep dwelling on his moms death is completed. One day, if the task doesn't kill him, he will finish that task. And once he does, he'll need a new drive to live and new path to walk. I think while Zhang donglan seems almost innocently naive to fei du, I do think fei du wants to understand that perspective. Cause it's one he's never had. Even as a child he never had an innocent happy time with no worries and no fear. )

[mejomonster]

The upsides to my awful memory are I get to enjoy stuff like it's the first time again. ToT. Silent Reading chapter 20. 1. Fei Du and Luo Wenzhou are SO funny bickering even about to die. Clearly they increase the fighting trait in each other lol. 2. Luo Wenzhou took a bullet for Fei Du! 3. The descriptions are great, love. 4. Fei Du's blood phobia and not having it when he was younger is interesting, the fear is totally incapacitating him here. 5. Interesting choice that Justice in the Dark increased the "romance" or "intimacy" I guess of this scene? By not only having Luo Wenzhou stop Fei Du by grabbing his hand on the gear shift when he's going to run them over, but in the show Luo Wenzhou also says "Dont, you're more valuable than them/they're not worth you throwing your life away" pretty much. I wonder if the drama often will be picking verbal choices to convey their relationship developing. Compared to the book seeming to rely on "I remember this X" or I did this X action (not thinking it was cause I cared but it Was Caring) more often. Anyway massive amounts of chapter 20 quotes below:

Luo Wenzhou was just as surprised as the hoodlums by Fei Du descending from the heavens, but the situation was desperate, and Captain Luo wasted no time; he promptly came to a decision, first shoving Wu Xuechun into the car, then jumping into the passenger’s seat himself. He hadn’t sat down properly yet when the car’s open windows automatically rolled shut, and it started forward with a howl.

Luo Wenzhou was nearly forced backwards against the back of the seat. “Why do I get the sense your mood isn’t very stable… Hey!”

Though Fei Du hadn’t turned to look at him, the smell of blood didn’t rely on a person’s line of sight; it kept floating over in a steady stream.

The little sports car’s acceleration was already dizzying, and next to him was a moving bag of blood to pile dizziness on top of dizziness. With the two combined, President Fei’s brilliant moment went by, and, not at all brilliantly, he was heading right for an electricity pole.

The pitch of Luo Wenzhou’s voice altered, and the veins stood out on the corners of Fei Du’s forehead. In this extreme crisis, he carefully turned the steering wheel and drove clear.

Having survived disaster, the electricity pole unfortunately had yet to relax when it witnessed the car roll up and then down—President Fei had accidentally driven up onto the curb.

Luo Wenzhou buckled his seatbelt as quickly as possible, feeling that he’d just come out of the dragon’s pool and ended up in the tiger’s den—having avoided dying at the evildoer’s blades, he was going to die at the hands of this suicidal driver.

“You’re driving like a maniac!” Luo Wenzhou hollered at him.

Fei Du didn’t even dare to breathe too deeply. As soon as he did, he would smell it. “Who told you to sit in the front! I’m about to throw up!”

Luo Wenzhou: “…”

Being nauseated when faced with a handsome and elegant young man? What was the matter with him?

Cold sweat was pouring off of Fei Du. Soon he simply wouldn’t be able to see the road clearly. At last he couldn’t maintain his airy demeanor any longer and was forced by Luo Wenzhou into letting out a curse: “Blood makes me sick, cover the fuck up!”

Luo Wenzhou froze—he’d always thought Fei Du’s “blood makes me sick” was a joke, because he clearly remembered that he hadn’t had that problem when he was little.

 xxxx

The window narrowly hung on without breaking, but it developed a spiderweb of cracks on the spot.

Luo Wenzhou was provoked by this sight. “This stupid car of yours is flashy but useless. If you have the money, why not get a bulletproof one?”

Fei Du gave the rearview mirror a sideways glance and turned the steering wheel, very skillfully pressing the chain-wielding rider to the side of the road. The motorcyclist didn’t react fast enough, and his front wheel twisted on the curb. He made a few desperate struggles to preserve his equilibrium, but in the end still went flying along with his bike.

Holding his nose, Fei Du then said, “I’m not the President of the Republic. What bullets am I worried about?”

Of the two of them, one must have been a crow spirit. As soon as Fei Du said these words, a crack came from the car’s rear window. The hair on Luo Wenzhou’s neck stood up. He was the first to react. “The bastards are shooting! Young lady, get down!”

Wu Xuechun didn’t need to be told again; she covered her head and curled up. At the same time, another motorcycle came up alongside them and the rider raised a hand, showing the dark and empty muzzle of a gun. Regardless of the facts, he opened fire.

Luckily there aren’t so many decathlon-running bad guys in this world. This person’s marksmanship looked like he was just fooling around, basically shooting blind—though if you shoot enough, there’ll always be a lucky shot or two. A bullet broke through the passenger’s side window. Luo Wenzhou quickly turned and blocked Fei Du while forcing himself down. The bullet brushed his shoulder and hit the windshield.

This frightening instant made almost no impression on Fei Du’s thoughts or feelings. His brain, dimmed by the smell of blood, really was about to shut down. He had no time to think, and no time to feel. Amidst infinite perils, he freed one hand; able to stand it no longer, he picked up the car’s air freshener and without looking sprayed it right into Luo Wenzhou’s face.

 

Incurring an unwarranted blast of fragrance, Luo Wenzhou was simply ready to kneel in respect for the utterly fearless President Fei’s spirit.

Fei Du spotted a little street with no one in it and stepped on the gas. Spinning the steering wheel as far right as it would go, he executed a turn, not giving the gun-toting motorcyclist any room to follow.

 xxxx

Fei Du swept his gaze in a circle expressionlessly. His face was so cold it was a little frightening. He took hold of the gear shift behind the steering wheel, the engine giving out a brutal roar. The car seemed to be an enraged beast, covered in wounds and entrenching itself, preparing to launch a fatal attack at any time.

Fei Du quietly said, “If I run them over one by one, would that count as excessive force in self-defense?”

The noise of the vehicle was too loud. Luo Wenzhou could only see his bloodless lips moving; he didn’t hear a single word clearly. But he inexplicably understood Fei Du’s expression, and his heart skipped heavily. He instinctively grabbed Fei Du’s hand holding the gear shift.

The hand was very cool, hard, full of cold intensity, like some dull metal.

Just then, police sirens sounded for the second time. Red and blue flashing lights lit up a large portion of the horizon.

His backup had finally arrived.

Using all his effort, Luo Wenzhou managed to unclench Fei Du’s hand from the gear shift. The sound of the engine slowly calmed. Inside the badly damaged car, everything was silent for a while.

Xxxx

(And THIS moment. So I assume they cut this out and combined it wirh ambulance scene in show to get the most bang for rhe time restriction of stuffing as much plot in as few scenes as possible. But for the book? I love it. Fei Du laughs right after this, because Luo Wenzhou apologizes for the car damages. I think he laughs because like... he "hates" Luo Wenzhou only, and yet. Luo Wenzhou is the one Letting Fei Du put all the blame on Luo. Luo puts up wirh all his crap, constantly, and they both recognize Fei Du sure doesn't do it to Tao Ran or anyone else involved. He LETS fei du vent and hurt Him. And in exchange? Luo Wenzhou can kick him and bug him and fight him verbally and Fei Du on some level is NOT taking it personally because if he was then he'd ruin Luos life lmao. He lets Luo ruin his car and its not even a big deal (he doesn't care about money anyway). But like. The whole thing is: Luo is a close Enough person to him emotionally that risking his life for Luo, getting insulted by Luo DURING it, getting shot at for Luo and guns pointed at him, puking cause of Luo bloody, wrecking his sports car--all that for Luo and Luo can't even pay him back or make any effort except "woops you're cars fucked sorry want a banner" lol and kick him while he's dehydrated and exhausted in the hospital lmao. Clearly he DOES think Luo is in his intimate-family sphere like Tao Ran, even tho he "hates" Luo. Because Fei Du would never tolerate all this shit from Zhang Donglan or other friends - he'd get them a lawyer and emotionally support them, hell he's Wild he might even save them in a car chase! But he'd be angry as fuck if they insulted him AFTER he did that and kicked him and basically offered nothing in return but annoyance. He'd be like you aren't even grateful or nice to me what the fuck. Why are you so mean why am I your friend. But Luo he's like oh well the old fucker is just like This. And on some level Puo purposely plays the "bad guy" for Fei Du's sake whether they both wanna admit it or not. And Luo Wenzhou right HERE is asking why they DO have Luo play that role. And Fei Du doesn't wanna examine that any deeper. )

The two of them sat together in silence for a moment. Then Luo Wenzhou suddenly rubbed his nose. Taking advantage of the “friendly atmosphere” of recently shared trials and tribulations, he opened his mouth and asked, “There’s one thing I’ve never understood.—Back then, with your family’s case, there was me, Tao Ran, the medical examiners, as well as the old medical examiners and old criminal policemen specially brought in to make sure our judgement wasn’t mistaken… A whole crowd of people reached the same conclusion, so why am I the only one you’ve made life difficult for?”

Fei Du laughed mockingly.

“It’s all right. Tell the truth.” Feigning politeness, Luo Wenzhou added, “I won’t be angry.”

Fei Du heard this and spoke, indeed not being polite. He said, “Because that idiotic look of yours, like you think everyone else is blind and you have X-ray vision and can see through everything, is really annoying.”

Luo Wenzhou: “…”

Having heard it, he really was pretty angry.

Just then, Luo Wenzhou’s phone vibrated. He looked down, and his expression at once became very peculiar. The bit of anger he’d felt vanished without a trace.

He held back for a while, then weakly said, “So…you see…”

Fei Du looked at him in bewilderment.

“My colleague says that your car… It’s very seriously damaged, and there may not be a way to repair it domestically.”

“Oh?” said Fei Du. “What about it?”

Luo Wenzhou took a deep breath, threw caution and shame to the wind, then in one breath said, “They say the cost to repair it is really too high, about the same as buying a new one, several years of our reward fund won’t cover it—would it be all right if we gave you a silk banner32 instead?”

Luo Wenzhou regretted it as soon as he’d spoken. He really wanted to pick up the colleague who’d sent him the text message and shake the water out of his brain—who knew what organ he’d been using to think up such a lousy idea!

But Fei Du, after staring for a moment, suddenly laughed—and it wasn’t at all fake, but true helpless laughter.

Luo Wenzhou felt awkward and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

But before he could work through his “hundred feelings mixed together,” his phone rang again; this time it was Lang Qiao.

[mejomonster]

Silent Reading, chapter 41. I didn't mention it but the Tao Ran house party chapters beforehand had soooo much luo/fei stuff including Luo Wenzhou recognizing "hey I think fei du is a grown man now and I think I do have a crush objectively just because it's Fei Du I feel awkward about it hmm I'll examine that later." So again Luo Wenzhous more mature in recognizing his feelings developing. Still didn't choose to act but its still a big development. Especially him shifting to see Fei Du as an equal, as a person who if a stranger isn't a murdering violent bitch Or a poor child who needs his protection, but an attractive charming sometimes rude individual who has his dark moments or withdrawn ones but is also quite handy and smart and pleasant at times. It's that internal decision to stop letting his old biases color how he sees Fei Du, and start seeing him as an equal. Which certainly in part drives his more reliable work afterwards of generally trying not to insult or purposely pick as many fights - you scold a child, but not an adult stranger you just accept them or stop talking to them. You can tell them they hurt you and they either fix it or don't, but unlike a child who you might tolerate messing up frequently an adult you eventually stop fighting them if it's forever. And since that realization Luo Wenzhous shifted to some teasing and ribbing back when Fei Du starts it (and still a bit of "I'm your dad I'm disappointed in your slutty rich boy ways" lol) but he's definitely toned down the picking fights and is now approaching things more positively/cooperatively with overtly warm intent (so more like he treats Tao Ran).

Second? Oh my fucking God I had a breakdown reading this scene Fei Du (as he's now doing) made a sexual innuendo that it's sad Luo Wenzhou sleeps alone, so Luo Wenzhou TOOK THE BAIT and said then why don't you blow ME. IM CRYING

Fei Du!!!! This is why the flirting you did was pandoras box! It was only gonna be a matter of time before your twos penchant to "give back as good as you get" combined with "use sexual innuendos to sexually frustrate him" resulted in Luo Wenzhou getting too into the rhythm and giving back ToT

WOW. And then they both sat there in awkward horrific nonresponse cause like. What the fuck else were they gonna do??? Only way from there is fei du to COMMIT to the path and say he'll keep Luo Wenzhou company that night and go "comfort" him and Fei Du did NOT expect his sex come on to be accepted with a suggestive matching response lmao

So they immediately go to "pay your respects to dad (me)" no doubt hoping if they lean into the ur my surrogate dad the sexual tension SURELY HAS TO DIE RIGHT. Great job guys. Excellent. Yall are doing Phenomenal

Also Fei Du you're literally conditioning yourself to a very specific kink I hope yr that self aware at least. You're gonna have Luo Wenzhou tied to the bed in a year saying "does daddy want another" in between bites and you're both gonna WISH such a statement turned yall off but unfortunately now it's ingrained cayse you fuckers kept calling each other that right in between flirts for MONTHS. GUYS!!! YOURE SO DUMB SOMETIMES

I love them. I think they're great. Fei Du is absolutely streamlining right into this relationship and Luo Wenzhou is literally doing Nothing except chilling. He got a crush? Sure. And he was keeping it TO HIMSELF. Then you had to keep making the sexual come ons fei du, like fucking hell man at Some Point Luo Wenzhou was gonna be like "Well he said he wanted it and I wanted it anyway and if he's happy wirh it Sure" especially in the heat of one of yalls "verbal competitions" so really like. Congrats on creating the awkwardness fei du I love you dearly.

Also lmao Luo Wenzhous power is to say shit so !!!!! They're both too awkward to speak djjdjf

Quote (I'm still fucking crying. Also on a serious note aww ;-; the cat backstory and Fei Dus fears ;-; ):

Fei Du accordingly stopped the car at some distance. “Do you…uh, need to get vaccinated?”

Hearing this ordinary inquiry, Luo Wenzhou was very shaken—more shaken than if Luo Yiguo had run over to him for a cuddle. He was even a little tongue-tied. “N-no…no need, the last one hasn’t expired yet.”

Out of the twelve months of the year, Captain Luo was in an “unconquerable condition” for eleven and a half of them. The doctor who gave him the vaccine had proposed to get him a “yearly card,” moving from retail to wholesale.

When Luo Wenzhou’s shock had passed, he couldn’t resist taking a cheap hit. “You being so filial all of a sudden makes me a little panicked.”

Fei Du reined in the unusual expression on his face and once again put on his obnoxious drawl. With a smile that wasn’t quite a smile, he said, “Caring for lonely elders is everyone’s responsibility. Tsk, keeping company with a cat in the endless night seems very desolate.”

Perhaps because Fei Du was so improperly dressed, and perhaps because Luo Wenzhou’s good opinion of himself had gone to his head, he felt that Fei Du’s glance, floating over as he talked nonsense, had a touch of seduction to it. Accompanying the hummed “in the endless night,” it truly did inspire reverie. Thereupon his mouth accidentally went a little over the line.

“What,” said Luo Wenzhou, casually taking a liberty, “you’re offering oral consolation?”

Fei Du: “…”

Luo Wenzhou: “…”

As soon as this joke that had gone too far was spoken, the two of them became silent at the same time. Inside the small and narrow sports car, the atmosphere was so unusual as to defy description.

Luo Wenzhou would have loved nothing better than to somehow put those words, which had somehow slipped out, back into his mouth. He was dumbstruck for a moment, then gave a dry cough and not very brilliantly backtracked. “At the end of the year, don’t forget to bring dad a box of snacks.”

Fei Du forced out a laugh. “Should I also burn three incense sticks?”

After this, the two of them simultaneously climbed out, in tacit agreement, planning to forget the preceding awkwardness inside the innocent sports car.

Luo Wenzhou suddenly remembered something. He turned to Fei Du. “On the subject, I remember you quite liked that cat. Why were you unwilling to keep it no matter what afterwards?”

Fei Du put his hand on the car door. His movements paused. The distant lights fell on his exposed forehead and brows; the arcs seemed to have been carved that way, the outlines finely planned.

“A pet?” After his pause, Fei Du said, as if nothing had happened, “I don’t like having pets. They’re so much trouble. I didn’t feel comfortable saying so in front of Tao Ran. Also…”

He looked up, the tip of one eyebrow moving lightly. “What if I have a hobby of sadistically killing small animals? I couldn’t control myself, and I was afraid I wouldn’t have a way to account for myself to Tao Ran, so I had to keep a safe distance. Captain Luo, do you think that’s a reasonable explanation?”

Luo Wenzhou stared, intuitively sensing that these words of Fei Du’s weren’t a disgusting joke, but before he could read the meaning between the lines, the voice of a member of a search and rescue team came over his earbud. “Captain Luo, we’ve found the place where the girl threw the alarm device, as well as some footprints.”

[mejomonster]

Silent Reading, chapter 23. I really liked this whole part. How Tao Ran suspected Fei Du and didn't say it, how without hesitation Luo Wenzhou decided it couldn't be Fei Du (which he'd attribute to logic but realistically Fei Du could lie about being lost so its partially emotional trust he knows Fei Du well enough to say he didn't kill the guy). I love Tao Ran acting cagey cause like... he helped Fei Du too for 7 years but really Luo Wenzhou was driving that boat, and exposed to Fei Du's worse traits (and more honest self), so when it comes down to Fei Du being a suspect Tao Ran is less certain of Fei Du's true personality. It really does remind me in a lot of ways of Flower of Evil in terms of wife/husband and luo/fei trusting. I also love how Fei Du gradually picks up on the suspecting him, how he gets angry but doesn't manage to hide it while still trying to, how he helps them solve it right after this. I think luo/feis most high Click tension is when they're partners practically on rhe same wavelength like in these kinds of scenes.

Also Tao Ran being pissed he's got no idea about what luo and fei did earlier that day during Tao Rans date (a car chase lmao). And Fei Du talking about sex and partying in front of Tao and Luo was just fairly funny. That's his surrogate parents!

And around here in the novel, Luo Wenzhous pov mentions he's been fighting with Fei Du 7 years and only now maybe is seeing a potential ceasefire. It makes me wonder. If they fought the Wholeee 7 years? Well then. For one, Luo Wenzhou must care an awful lot about Fei Du, because that truth means he's the one that purposely chose to invest in Fei Du's life (and drag Tao Ran into it too) and consistently do it despite the fighting nonstop. When it would've been easier (at least around a year after fei dus moms case was settled) to just let it go and leave Fei Du alone if he was always fighting with Luo. But Luo didn't want to abandon him, apparently, even with rhe fights. A very parental caretaker decision to NOT stop a relationship due to fights, whereas if it was more a concerned citizen only/friend like capacity then constant fighting wouldve been a quite reasonable reason to cease contact. So Luo for some reason has maintained this contact. He felt very sorry about what fei du was going through, wanted to protect him, etc something. Also the obvious implications: it means it caused Luo and Tao Ran to be possibly the most stable healthy familial (or friend or otherwise) long term relationships he's got. It also means, despite the fights, Luo to some degree proved there's at least one person he can be his worst self around or even cruel to who won't abandon him. Not sure if Fei Du sees himself as his dad and Luo as his mom taking the damage in this parallel, or Luo as controlling like his dad (but ultimately a safer healthier version), or it's a sounding board of someone who can confirm or deny he's a monster (Luo tends to do both but it can certainly feed into fei dus own self hate or self love if he wants to interpret it his own way as desired). Curious. I am Really interested as we get more info.

The passage:

He stood in silence for a while, the smiling expression that seemed to have grown along with the corners of his eyes and the tips of his brows cooling. Then he slowly spoke. “Zhang Donglai can’t be the killer. If his fingerprints are the only ones on the tie, it clearly shows that when the killer took that tie, whether he stole it or just picked it up, he was already planning to use it to implicate him.”

His voice was leisurely, his tone no different from his usual one, but Tao Ran, bewildered, sensed his veiled temper.

Starting from the time Tao Ran had called him to ask for Zhang Donglai’s alibi, Fei Du had displayed the indifference of an outsider. Even afterwards, when he’d twice accompanied Zhang Ting to the City Bureau, he was purely accompanying her, purely going through the motions, a mere drinking buddy through and through.

He hadn’t gotten worked up trying to defend Zhang Donglai. He hadn’t even asked of his own initiative what their investigation had turned up, whether Zhang Donglai had been entirely cleared of suspicion.

“I never expected you to get angry on Zhang Donglai’s behalf. I thought…” Tao Ran was somewhat taken aback. He considered his wording. “I didn’t think you were on such good terms with him? It looked at first like you weren’t taking this so much to heart.”

“I’m not angry. I just think that some people have been rather too thorough.” Fei Du tilted his head and smiled at him, seeming warm and calm, then made a slip of the tongue: “Give me some coffee-flavored sesame oil to help me focus.”

Tao Ran: “…”

The “not angry” President Fei’s expression was frank; he had entirely failed to notice he’d said anything wrong.

When Fei Du, frowning, had drained a cup of instant coffee with an expression of deepest suffering, he let out a breath and spoke. “When you released Zhang Donglai, saying that there was insufficient evidence, you actually already had evidence showing he wasn’t under suspicion. Is that right?”

Tao Ran froze.

But next to him Luo Wenzhou nodded. “Right.—The DNA on those cigarette ends you sent over really was He Zhongyi’s. We followed up on that lead and found that he’d gotten on a bus and left Chengguang Mansion to go somewhere else. He wasn’t killed at the club. Zhang Donglai was still making merry in Chengguang Mansion at the time. His alibi is fairly solid. We didn’t clarify this when we set him free because I had a feeling that the murderer was following this case closely. If we released Zhang Donglai so ambiguously, he would definitely have a next move. And sure enough, he delivered this tie to us.”

“If he’s someone who can closely follow the case and plant the murder weapon in Zhang Donglai’s car without being suspected, then the murderer must be among those of us who came to pick up Zhang Donglai when he got out of the ‘little dark room.’ Aside from Zhang Ting and Attorney Liu, all those people also just happened to be at Chengguang Mansion that night.” Fei Du stretched out his legs, half-leaning and half-sitting on Tao Ran’s desk. “Among us, the one most concerned with the case, the most implicated, must be me. Am I under a lot of suspicion?”

“Not much,” Luo Wenzhou answered without pausing to think. “Earlier you couldn’t find north in the West District’s heap of little alleys. The degree of difficulty involved in tossing a corpse there would be a little high for you.”

Fei Du: “…”

Luo Wenzhou said, “That’s enough, President Fei. I know you’re ‘both wealthy and virtuous’ and can afford to eat youtiao. The silk banner’s on its way. Stop throwing a tantrum and speak sensibly.”

Tao Ran looked from one to the next. He was slightly appalled. He had no idea what had happened while he’d been away from his post for the time it took to have dinner.

Fei Du stared at Luo Wenzhou expressionlessly for a while; perhaps he was internally cutting him to pieces. He managed to maintain his bearing and said seriously, “Aside from me, the one who most clearly understands the circumstances of the case must be Attorney Liu. The whole affair of the tie may have been staged by him. But he never had any contact with Zhang Donglai before, and it would have been very hard for him to get ahold of Lao Zhang’s tie to use as a murder weapon.—Attorney Liu reports directly to Zhang Ting, and Zhang Ting fits the above requirements better. Also, she came into close contact with the deceased He Zhongyi. You need to go investigate her alibi for that night.”

He paused for a moment. “There’s also a fourth person: Zhang Ting’s boyfriend, Zhao Haochang. He’s a fairly well-known legal advisor, specializing in mergers and acquisitions. He was the one who recommended Attorney Liu to Zhang Ting, and he came with her today. On the night of the murder, he was at Chengguang Mansion and left after the dinner party—”

“You’re sure he left after the dinner party,” said Luo Wenzhou.

The corners of Fei Du’s lips twitched ambiguously. “What do you think? Would you participate in the ‘midnight performances’ in front of your future brother-in-law?”

Luo Wenzhou: “…”

Little whelp!

Fei Du said, “Can you tell me approximately where He Zhongyi went after he left the Chengguang Mansion?”

Tao Ran looked at Luo Wenzhou, saw Luo Wenzhou nod slightly, then said, “He got off the bus at Wenchang Intersection. After that we lost track of him.”

[mejomonster]

Silent reading is so good but the Murder mystery plots are like genuinely involved and my brain is straining

I must’ve been super in focus the first time I read cause I remember like going through 60 chapters in a week

I Remember roughly the 1st cases answer, but it’s still keeping me on the edge of my seat cause I don’t remember most of the details that lead it there! So I’m trying to catch everything! Like??? Somehow I forgot the one memorable part which was the missing guy went to Chengguang mansion and ran into Zhang Donglai fei du’s fool friend. And I remembered Luo Wenzhou bought fei du a psp a long time ago to cheer him up. But I didn’t remember the cell phone! The candies tao ran gave fei du telling him to stop playing and go try to genuinely look for love! I forgot fei du showing up to help Zhang Donglai, I forgot xiao haiyang and the subbureaus corruption scheme and how it all plays out! I forgot how Luo wenzhou exposes it! I forgot Zhang donglai is the directors nephew! THERE ARE SO MANY DETAILS IN THIS NOVEL I CANT EVEN FATHOM HOW PRIEST KEPT TRACK

anyway I’m only back into chapter 10.

I remember Luo wenzhou going into that club undercover, Talking to a prostitute, fighting the corrupt subbureau henchman guy and running out injured with fei du picking him up in a car chase. I remember fei du being scared of the blood. I remember fei du in his psychologists asking about the profession and deciding he wants to get a degree and try out a career in criminal psychology. I remember the interview with the little girl thinking of people as sheep. I remember the bus highjacking with hostages, and the scene with the woman on top of a building and fei du talking her down... I remember tao ran moving in and getting a housewarming gift and his childhood friend stopping by. So many scenes that stick out and YET I also clearly forgot so many great moments and details aaaa I love this novel

[mejomonster]

ok so idk if this will make sense but. 

to me, bai yu IS how i picture Zhao Yunlan. Like hands down, the exact image in my head whenever I read the novel. 

whereas, while i absolutely LOVE zhu yilong’s version of Shen Wei, and think it perfectly matches the vibe i get in the book for shen wei - he isn’t the ‘only’ Shen Wei i can imagine. If that makes sense. (although i don’t think i could imagine any actor doing Shen Wei better)

when i read, Shen Wei as a character is just like? I can picture him in a handful of various ways that are all roughly the same ‘impression.’ But it can vary. Like, I could see Shen Wei calmer or wilder or just ‘slightly varied’ from what Zhu Yilong ended up doing for his performance. I love his performance, and its probably what i’d want if i had the choice over any other way to depict shen wei. But i do think the book leaves more room for variation in what i could picture? if that makes sense.

Yet whenever I read Zhao Yunlan, every single pov moment, every single character near him interacting, every piece we get of him - it just absolutely screams and resonates with the version of him bai yu performed. Like, the depiction in the book is just So Specific to me, so vivid to me, and in my mind only bai yu’s version can really like ‘perfectly’ match what i can picture. Even if i could imagine zhao yunlan looking different, i can only imagine him the same way bai yu did the mannerisms and behavior and tone of the character. it just matches so well with the depiction in the book as i interpret it. He completely embodies what Zhao Yunlan is in my head. I deeply appreciate however the fuck bai yu managed that. I’m not entirely sure if its on the actor, or the writing for zhao yunlan in the book is just Very Distinct to me. But because the writing is so distinct to me, it was critically important that the show Zhao Yunlan could manage to land right - if he was depicted less on-point the whole character would’ve felt thrown/different. Whereas, I do think Zhu Yilong could have approached Shen Wei in a few varying ways, and they all would have probably felt satisfying (maybe because to me, the book leaves more unknowns in what Shen Wei is like at first). 

And now, if anyone’s ever read Silent Reading by Priest? I kind of notice layers of ‘distinctness’ for those characters in the writing too. To me, Luo Wenzhou is just this INTENSELY specific character vibe, and its really hard for me to describe or nail down. As in - I can’t even PICTURE an actor who could maybe play him in my head. He is very specifically depicted the way I read him and interpreted him. I’ve seen the donghua trailers... and I think Fei Du feels right, but Luo Wenzhou I have a LOT of reservations about already based on design alone. (But good voice acting might make that up). While I think Fei Du is a very well defined character as well - his specific personality I think is easier for me to picture many-an-actor managing to depict in a satisfying way. I could see Zhu Zanjin easily handling Fei Du and his layers, Zhu Yilong (except not being young enough lol) could easily handle his traits and range. Liu Chang could probably handle it fine. As long as an actor can grasp the character, its relatively straightforward as long as the characters nuance is remembered.

But with Luo Wenzhou? Damn is it hard for me to figure out how a real person could Nail his character. He’s described as “captain china” as a joke like Captain America. He also has a shitty car and rides his bike to work, often picking up food for his team on the way into work. This man is 30s and aging, but still casual - living in a small apartment with his stubborn cat. He’s out as gay, he has a long time best friend and they both helped half-raise/look after a kid who was a side effect of one of the early ‘death’ cases they handled in their career. He’s both a team leader and a best friend - unlike Zhao Yunlan, Luo Wenzhou is NOT someone who pretends. He’s very forward, he acts like a mentor, like a protective friend, is very nurturing, and grounded about the failings of what can be possible although he wants to be helpful, he isn’t shy about his position as both authority and a more regular person than mr super-rich-Fei Du. I picture someone who looks kind of rough and ‘everyday’ like maybe Wolverine/Logan without quite so much muscles and anger (like Wolverine when he’s fucking off in the countryside). I picture someone who looks relatively heroic, but he can easily blend into the background ESPECIALLY next to Perfect-Hero-TM-vibe Tao Ran or pretty-shady-superrich-playboy Fei Du. 

Maybe I could picture Huang Xiao Ming handle him??? But only if he got scruffed up to be less ‘ideal standout’ and only if he can handle ‘straightforward honest open’ characters as well as he can handle ‘putting up constant acts’ characters. I could picture maybe Xiao Zhao manage the vibe of the characters personality - but he’s not quite old enough, and i don’t think he’s quite buff enough to portray Luo Wenzhou’s sort of beefy-random-guy look. The main Prince in Nirvana in Fire’s actor could maybeee do this role, if he can be messy/more casual in his screen presence. Maybe the kind general in Goodbye My Princess’s actor? The issue with nailing down Luo Wenzhou’s character is - he absolutely steals the scenes he’s in. And Fei Du is interesting Because his chemistry allows him to get equal-presence when he’s interacting with Luo Wenzhou - a testimony to how much they really are close, that Fei Du is both permitted more presence/power around Luo Wenzhuo and also Luo Wehzhou can’t help but start paying attention to him when he’s nearby - dragging the whole story’s attention to Fei Du as a result.  But even though he has a big presence - he is NOT particularly ‘standout handsome hero tm’ type and he’s not brashly-ostentacious like Zhao Yunlan (if anything, Fei Du is). Luo Wenzhou is described as incredibly attractive, and he’s certainly the clear leader to get help from when he arrives on scene. But he also has the ability to blend in more easily to where he’s at - he is at core, a person who feels very regular. He can sneak into bad guy clubs in part Because he can blend into the background a LITTLE better than hero-tm-looking Tao Ran, and draws less attention than people like Fei Du. He has a LOT of that standard police-chief side character in tv dramas (if that chief was sort of handsome but not the main character). He feels much more like Holt from Brooklyn 99 than he feels like Zhao Yunlan (and even Holt isn’t a close match).

Actually... maybe Chu Shuzhi’s actor from Guardian could manage this kind of vibe? The handsome, powerful and somewhat leading, but also able to blend into the background as desired? Beefy and strong a little, but not in the drags-all-attention way (that Zhu Yilong is lol). But Chu Shuzhi in some plain clothes, his hair a little grown out, let him be a bit friendlier and outgoing and in the position of leader, his nurturing tendencies much more outwardly and frequently embraced? THAT might be the closest approximation to how I picture Luo Wenzhou. (Maybe Luo Wenzhuo is a weird mesh of Lao Chu and Xiao Guo’s traits, idk, like i said Luo Wenzhuo feels SO hard for me to nail down as a person trying to embody the personality he has in the book).