#xiong shi town

[justaghostingon]

Shi Qingxuan and the Quest to Win the Heart of the Hot Ghost

A beefleaf au to soothe my soul since i’ve reached “that” arc in the series

It all begins when He Xuan makes a mistake. A mistake that almost cost him centuries worth of work

He accidentally saves Shi Qingxuan in the wrong form!

He meant to save him as Ming-xiong, the trusted best friend, but due to an unexpected flux from Taicang mountain, he couldn’t control his form, and slipped into his true form.

Fortunately shi Qingxuan did not see him transform, and he was able to quickly get out of sight to change back

Unfortunately, Shi Qingxuan interpreted He Xuan suddenly appearing, saving his life and then leaving as a sign that He Xuan a hero!

His hero!

His Ghost king who wants to be friends just like Hua Cheng and Xie Lian!

But he’s shy! That’s why he ran away! So its Shi Qingxuan’s job to seek him out and thank him.

And treat him to dinner, and go out on the town, and hold his hand… you know, sworn brother stuff!

Shi Qungxuan might have a bit of a crush.

And Ming Yi, good old best friend ming yi, has to listen to all of it. Every excruciating detail, every inch of his face painted with such flowery language he wants to throw up.

Is he jealous of himself? No way! Not a chance! He’s just worried shi Qingxuan will put sowmthing together before its time!

At first ming yi hopes it will go away, a passing fancy, if shi qingxuan never sees he xuan again

But shi Qingxuan is way more determined than ming yi was expecting. He hunted down his layer, and threw his favorite foods down into the sea as an offering

How did he know he xuan’s favorite foods? They were ming yi’s favorites too! Did he know???

He xuan had to throw him off his trail, so he shifted in to his true form, just to reject them and throw him off the scent.

Shi Qingxuan then asks what his favorites are

He xuan panics and says super rare dishes like “cinnamon” and “corn” thinking the fetch quest will deter him.

It does not. Instead shi Qingxuan drags ming yi on a quest to find a whole nother two continents just so he could bring back food for his new “friend”

And of course, he brings his trusty friend ming yi with him. So ming yi has to go on his own impossible quest

He xuan has just about had it with this, ans vows never to appear before shi Qingxuan again, except…

Shi wudu comes to visit him.

Shi wudu wants to recruit him, ming yi, to keep he xuan away from his brother. To stop this disastrous crush before it destroys everything

He even offers to support ming yi’s own endeavors to court shi qungxuan, because clearly that’s ming yi’s goal here.

“This is that is that important to you?” Ming yi asks

“He xuan and shi qingxuan together would be the worst thing to ever happen to me” shi wudu says (not exactly in those words, but its what he xuan hears)

And suddenly he xuan sees a perfect opportunity to hurt shi wudu in a way that is intense and long lasting

Forget physical torture! Let him watch his brother fall for his greatest enemy!!!

So he begins to court shi qingxuan in his true form. Offering gifts of precious treasures from the sea bottom, eatinf his food, giving him the smoldering look that shi qingxuan will not shut up about to ming yi

Only one problem: he xuan is a little too good. He knows all of shi qingxuan’s favorite things from being his best friend, and bringing them up in courtship…that’s kinda creepy

He doesn’t want to come off as creepy. He needs this to go well.

So he tries to dial it down, but he’s not nearly as good as he thinks

Because one day shi qingxuan looks ming yi right in the eyes and goes “you know there’s nothing that would make me love you any less right? He xuan?”

And ming yi/ he xuan, realizes he’s been caught

But he’s also got a boyfriend, and shi wudu’s worst nightmare has come true, ao its all good

[deiscension]

﹄ ◇ ; @riwrite / has been dragged into another wind master affair.

      ⌜◈⌟    ▌ ── 𝐒𝐡𝐢 𝐐𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐱𝐮𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝: those who believed themselves above justice, scoldings from her brother, Pei Ming, not being taken seriously, and gaudy clothing. For the first time in nearly two centuries, she's about to add onto that list. Namely, cowardly demons glutting themselves on innocents while pretending to be an elemental spirit. Really, how fiendish could someone get? She'd descended with the Earth Master in tow as soon as she'd been informed of the situation. Floorboards creak and shift underfoot as the two make their way down a hall smothered in darkness. The palm light hovering above her fingertips illuminates little more than a few inches in front of them. But she can't brighten it, and neither can she scan this estate-turned-lair for the hiding demon. Using too much spiritual energy at once would feed the tempest engulfing the town, and the shabbier huts near the outskirts had already been blown to smithereens. That troublesome pest was clever, she would give it that. 

      "𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭, 𝐡𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧. 𝐈'𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐞'𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮," she mutters. As if in response, the windows rattle so violently it's a wonder the silk films don't tear in half. A chill runs down her spine. Without thinking much of it, Shi Qingxuan reaches behind her to grope about for some part of her companion to grab hold of. "Ming-xiong, you're too quiet! Say something only I would understand so I know it's you behind me."

[the-monkey-ruler]

Demon Hunter (2020) 降魔大师

Director: Xiong Chen

Screenwriter: Xiong Chen / Wang Yufeng

Starring: Shi Zichen / Zhou Jing

Genre: Action / Romance / Fantasy

Country/Region of Production: Mainland China

Language: Mandarin Chinese

Date: 2020 (Mainland China)

Type: Reimagining

Summary:

As demons repeatedly showed up in a town at the border, Wu Jingzi sent out invitations and invited all demon-subduing masters for their support. Ah Shi, a street vagrant, was rescued by Meng Zhu, fell in love and worshiped Meng Zhu as her teacher. A Shi, Meng Zhu, Bu Weilong, the big brother of the one obsessed with Meng Zhu, and other demon-subduing men go to Yunzhan Cave together to eliminate the culprit of the demon disaster - the thousand-year-old pig demon. Along the way, everyone encountered many monsters and monsters, and passed the test. In the last level, Ah Shi sacrificed her own life in exchange for everyone passing the level. However, the result was unexpected...

Source: http://chinesemov.com/2020/Demon-Hunter.html

Link: N/A

[heymeowmao]

说英雄谁是英雄 | Heroes E24 ° Chuhe Town

[gusu-emilu]

[beefleaf fluff, pre-black water arc, ao3 link]

“It’s raining!” Shi Qingxuan holds her palms up to the sky, a childlike grin spread across her face, as if catching a few drops of moisture is just as exciting as defeating the shen they had descended to the mortal realm to vanquish.

In He Xuan’s opinion, both are boring. Facing off with a shen is easy work—she ate twenty of those shapeshifting nuisances while in Mount Tong’lu.

And as for the rain…well. She suffers no scarcity of water. She’s pretty fucking sick of being damp.

Rain trickles down from a blanket of dark grey clouds in the sky, landing on the two as they walk side by side through the coastal town. Quiet thunder rumbles in the distance, muted across countless li.

Shi Qingxuan’s palms are still facing up to the sky, slender fingers spread, inviting the soft patter of rain onto her hands. “Ming-xiong, give it a try! It feels so nice.”

He Xuan swallows and tries not to think about how well her fingers would interlace with Shi Qingxuan’s.

But He Xuan's hands are meant for clawing back her place in the heavens that was stolen from her. Her hands are not meant for tenderness.

“I don’t like getting wet,” He Xuan says tersely, even though Shi Qingxuan will know she’s just being petulant.

She expects Shi Qingxuan to suggest they duck into a tea shop or a merchant’s tent, another attempt in her never-ending, fatally misguided quest to cheer He Xuan up. Always bending around her, always staying by her side too long, always trying to pass on her high spirits to He Xuan like a contagion. He Xuan doesn’t know if it’s sadder that Shi Qingxuan hasn’t given up yet or that her shenanigans have kind of started to work.

But instead of proposing a change in activities, Shi Qingxuan grabs He Xuan’s arm and yanks her to a stop in the middle of the street.

He Xuan furrows her brow. “What?”

“Shh.” Shi Qingxuan holds a finger to her lips. Full pink lips, He Xuan can’t help but notice. The pleasant sight snares in her chest like a fish hook.

Irritation sparks inside her at who knows what—at everything, probably. She resigns herself to waiting as Shi Qingxuan closes her eyes and prepares whatever captivating trick she has up her sleeve this time.

With a snap of her wrist, Shi Qingxuan whips out her fan. Sea breeze, salty and cool, rushes in from the ocean and embraces the humid air around them, forming a cocoon that shields them from the rain.

He Xuan feels oddly…touched.

“Who needs umbrellas, am I right?” Shi Qingxuan says, waggling her eyebrows.

“Crimson Rain,” He Xuan suggests, wrinkling her nose at the thought of that tasteless red parasol.

Shi Qingxuan laughs, bright and loud. “You have such a weird sense of humor, Ming-xiong.”

“That’s because I’m not trying to be funny.”

That just makes Shi Qingxuan laugh more. She gives a playful tug on He Xuan’s arm. “Come on, let’s continue our lovely beachside stroll.”

Why do you have to call it something so obnoxious, He Xuan thinks helplessly as her lips curl into a smirk and Shi Qingxuan drags her away, hand sliding down to interlace her fingers with her own.

[watch-grok-brainrot]

魏无羡忙道：“什么，私自斗殴也禁？”

Wei Wuxian hurriedly said, “What, personal brawls are also forbidden?”

江澄：“……禁的。你别告诉我你跟他打架了。”

Jiang Cheng: “… … they are forbidden. Don’t tell me you also got into a fight with him.”

魏无羡：“打了。还打翻了一坛天子笑。”

Wei Wuxian: “We fought. And we even knocked over a jar of Emperor’s Smile.”

......

“当着他的面喝的。我说：‘好吧，云深不知处内禁酒，那我不进去，站在墙上喝，不算破禁吧’。就当着他的面一口喝干净了。”

“Drank it in front of him. I said ‘Ok, Cloud Recesses forbids alcohol on the premises. Then I won’t go in. I’ll just stand on the wall and drink it. That doesn’t count as breaking the rules, right?’ And then drank it in front of him. ”

“……然后？”

“… …. And then?”

“然后就打起来了。”

“And then we fought.”

......

魏无羡挑眉道：“蓝湛身手不错。”

Wei Wuxian raised an eyebrow and said: “Lan Zhan’s pretty skilled.”

- Ch 13

@mdzsnet‘s Mo Dao Zu Shi Fifth Anniversary Event, Nov 01: Favorite Fight Scene

I wish this fight scene didn’t take so many gifs... because i kinda wanted to also gif the CQL version and do a comparison... maybe a different time. 

I LOVE how WWX’s take home message was Lan Zhan’s pretty skilled. XD Cheeky bastard. I think the donghua does a better job of showcasing WWX’s skill. In CQL all WWX does is run away. This is a much better fight. Ah! 不打不相识！(You won’t meet the other person if you don’t fight!) I really like that saying because it’s such a great friendship/relationship trope. You get into a fight and realize you’re equals and gain respect and then friendship and then LOVE! :D

Also, I translated the longer conversation between WWX and the others. See below the cut. 

魏无羡强调：“特别俊俏。”他比了比头：“一身白，带条抹额，背着把银色的剑。俏俏的，就是板着个脸，活像披麻戴孝。”

Wei Wuxian emphasized: “Very handsome.” He lifted his hand to signify the other’s height. “Dress all in white, wearing a forehead ribbon, carrying a silver sword on his back. Attractive but stern looking, as if he’s in mourning.”

“……”聂怀桑肯定道：“就是他！”顿了顿，道：“不过他近日闭关，你昨天才来，什么时候见过的？”

“… … ” Nie Huaisang confirmed: “That’s him!” He paused and said: “But he’s been in seclusion recently.  You arrived yesterday. When did you see him?”

“昨天晚上。”

“Last Night”

“昨天晚……昨天晚上？！”江澄愕然：“云深不知处有宵禁的，你在哪里见的他？我怎么不知道？”

“Last ni—LAST NIGHT?!” Jiang Cheng said shocked: “Cloud recesses has a curfew. Where did you see him? How do I not know?”

魏无羡指：“那里。”

Wei Wuxian pointed. “There.”

他指的是一处高高的墙檐。

He was pointing to the eaves of a high wall.

众人无言以对。江澄头都大了，咬牙道：“刚来你就给我闯祸！怎么回事？”

Everyone was speechless. Jiang Cheng felt his head swell. He grit his teeth and said, “We just got here and you’re already causing me trouble. What happened?!”

魏无羡笑嘻嘻地道：“也没有怎么回事。咱们来时不是路过那家‘天子笑’的酒家嘛。我昨天夜里翻来覆去忍不了，就下山去城里又带了两坛回来。这个在云梦可没得喝。”

Wei Wuxian replied with a shitfaced grin [1],  “Nothing really happened. On our way here we passed that liquor shop selling ‘Emperor’s Smile’, right? Last night I tossed and turned and could contain myself anymore, so I went down the mountain into town and brought two jars back. We can’t get it in Yunmeng!”

江澄：“那酒呢？”

Jiang Cheng: “Where’s that liquor?”

魏无羡：“这不刚翻过墙檐，一只脚还没跨进来，就被他逮住了。”

Wei Wuxian: “That’s the thing. As soon as I flipped onto the wall’s eaves, I hadn’t even put my foot on the other side, he intercepted me.”

一名少年道：“魏兄你真是好彩。怕是那时他刚出关在巡夜，你被他抓个正着了。”

A youth said: “Wei-xiong, you really are lucky. I’m afraid he just came out on night patrol and you were caught by him.”

江澄道：“夜归者不过卯时末不允入内，他怎会放你进来？”

Jiang Cheng said: “Those returning at night cannot be allowed to enter before Mao Hour. How come he let you in?”

魏无羡摊手道：“所以他没让我进来呀。硬是要我把迈进来的那条腿收出去。你说这怎么收，于是他就轻飘飘地一下子掠上去了，问我手里拿的是什么。”

Wei Wuxian raised his hands: “So he didn’t let me in. He insisted that I stick my leg back over the wall. But how do you do that? So he flitted up onto the wall and asked me what was in my hand. ”

江澄只觉头疼，预感不妙：“你怎么说。”

Jiang Cheng only felt his headache and a bad premonition, “What did you say?”

魏无羡道：“‘天子笑！分你一坛，当做没看见我行不行？’”

Wei Wuxian said, “’Emperor’s Smile! I’ll give you this jar. Can you pretend you didn’t see me?’”

江澄叹气：“……云深不知处禁酒。罪加一等。”

Jiang Cheng sighed, “… … Cloud Recesses forbids alcohol. Your crimes increased by one.”

魏无羡道：“他也是这么跟我说的。我就问：‘你不如告诉我，你们家究竟有什么不禁？’他像有点生气，要我去看山前的规训石。说实话，三千多条，还是用篆文写的，谁会去看。你看了吗？你看了吗？反正我没看。这有什么好生气的。”

Wei Wuxian said: “He also said that to me. So I asked, ‘Why don’t you tell me, what does your family NOT forbid?’ He looked a bit angry and wanted me to go look at the rules rock at the foot of the mountain. Truth be told, three thousand rules, and written in seal script. Who would ever read that? Have you read it? Have YOU read it? Either way I haven’t read it. There’s nothing to be angry about.”

“没错！”众人大有同感，纷纷抱怨起云深不知处种种匪夷所思的陈规，相见恨晚：“谁家家规有三千多条不带重复的，什么‘不可境内杀生，不可私自斗殴，不可淫|乱，不可夜游，不可喧哗，不可疾行‘这种的也就算了。居然还有‘不可无端哂笑，不可坐姿不端，不可饭过三碗’……”

“Precisely!” Everyone shared the sentiment and all started complaining about the various outmoded and outrageous rules. “Whose family has three thousand unique rules? ‘Do not kill within borders. No personal brawls. No promiscuity. Do not travel at night. Do not make a ruckus. Do not walk too fast.’ These are ok. But they even have ‘Do not laugh without reason. Do not sit with poor posture. Do not eat more than three bowls of rice’… … ”

魏无羡忙道：“什么，私自斗殴也禁？”

Wei Wuxian hurriedly said, “What, personal brawls are also forbidden?”

江澄：“……禁的。你别告诉我你跟他打架了。”

Jiang Cheng: “… … they are forbidden. Don’t tell me you also got into a fight with him.”

魏无羡：“打了。还打翻了一坛天子笑。”

Wei Wuxian: “We fought. And we even knocked over a jar of Emperor’s Smile.”

 众人一叠声地拍腿大叫可惜。

Everyone collectively pounded their thighs and cried pity.

反正情况也不能更糟糕了，江澄的重点反而转移了：“你不是带了两坛，还有一坛呢？”

Since the situation couldn’t get any worse, Jiang Cheng changed his focus: “You said you brought two jugs. What happened to the other one?”

“喝了。”

“Drank it.”

江澄：“在哪儿喝的？”

Jiang Cheng: “Where did you drink it? ”

“当着他的面喝的。我说：‘好吧，云深不知处内禁酒，那我不进去，站在墙上喝，不算破禁吧’。就当着他的面一口喝干净了。”

“Drank it in front of him. I said ‘Ok, Cloud Recesses forbids alcohol on the premises. Then I won’t go in. I’ll just stand on the wall and drink it. That doesn’t count as breaking the rules, right?’ And then drank it in front of him. ”

“……然后？”

“… …. And then?”

“然后就打��来了。”

“And then we fought.”

“魏兄。”聂怀桑震惊道：“你真嚣张。”

“Wei-xiong,” Nie Huaisang said astonished. “You’re really audacious.”

魏无羡挑眉道：“蓝湛身手不错。”

Wei Wuxian raised an eyebrow and said: “Lan Zhan’s pretty skilled.”

[1] I’m choosing shitfaced here because the Chinese is basically an onomatopoeia of a toothy grin. And it’s WWX so that’s the description you get.

[theleakypen]

first lines: fic-writers meme

Rules: List the first lines of your last 20 stories (if you have less than 20, just list them all!). See if there are any patterns. Choose your favourite opening line. Then tag 10 of your favourite authors!

I was tagged by @la-muerta! I've mostly been archiving my kissing fics on AO3 lately, so that's what these will be, probably. I'm going to skip the ones where the first line was given to me by another person, since those are not illustrative. I am also skipping my filks. XD

1. Terms of Care - in answer to the prompt: "wei wuxian & wen ning + forehead kisses"

“Ah, Wen Ning, come join me!” Wei Wuxian exclaimed, waving Wen Ning over to his spot in the bunny clearing.

2. Not To Be Alone - in answer to the prompt: "jiang cheng/song lan - hating separation"

“I was in shock still, and I said such awful things… So I’m looking for him now, to apologise. To say: traveling with you is better than traveling without you.”

3. This One's Spicy - in answer to the prompt: "lan jingyi/lan sizhui - yi city"

Lan Jingyi was still making elaborate disgusted faces, scraping his teeth over his tongue and the like.

4. fell through the cracks, but we're okay - in answer to the prompt: "oyzz/a-qing, au where they meet when they're both alive"

“Excuse me, are there any powerful people around here? Powerful people who cultivate?”

5. All This Burning Sexual Tension - in answer to the prompt: "wei wuxian/wen qing + laughter"

“Qing jiějiě!” Wei Wuxian shouts, bursting into the mess. “Jiang Cheng has brought it to my attention that we need to work out the unbearable sexual tension between us.”

6. In the Officers' Baths - in answer to the prompt: "mu nihuang/xia dong - something fun and not sad"

“Jùnzhǔ!”

7. in this great golden tower - in answer to the prompt: "qin su/wen qing, koi tower"

Qin Su has never asked xiǎo-Qing about her past.

8. sharp words, soft hands - in answer to the prompt: "chengxuan after like a big battle or something and one of them is hurt and the other one is worried and expressing it through getting snappy?"

Jin Zixuan opens his mouth to speak when Jiang Wanyin strides into his tent, but before he can say anything, the Jiang sect leader snaps, “Don’t bother. I saw exactly how it happened. You’d think someone raised in the great Lanling Jin sect would have learned a modicum of tactics.”

9. corpse kiss - in answer to the prompt: "how about wn/jzx with the prompt “qiongqi path”" (content warning: this one is noncon)

There was no longer a flute playing, but Wen Ning was still rushing toward Jin Zixuan like a hurricane in human form.

10. Closed Fist, Warm Mouth - in answer to the prompt: "xianxuan, in the middle of an argument"

It was lucky that Jin Zixuan had stomped away from his entourage as well as from the Jiang contingent, because it meant that there was no one to stop Wei Wuxian from throwing a punch this time.

11. Growing Things - in answer to the prompt: "lan sizhui & ouyang zizhen (my underappreciated boi!), growing things"

The Baling gardens were one of Lan Sizhui’s favorite places.

12. what's left when revenge is over - in answer to the prompt: "Sisi/Nie Huaisang post Guanyin temple"

“It’s done, then,” Sisi says, standing behind Nie Huaisang and beginning to take his hair down.

13. a good bruise - in answer to the prompt: "chengqing, jiang-furen wen qing. after training disciples"

They have been married for just over a year, but it still somehow seems scandalous to Wen Qing that she gets to be here, in Sect Master Jiang’s own personal quarters, as he gets ready for his post-training bath; that she gets to pull at the ties on his outer robes, skim her fingers along his collarbones to feel him shiver, help him shrug off each successive layer of clothes until all that’s left between her and his sweat-slick skin are her own clothes.

14. why the hell not - in answer to the prompt: "wwx/nhs, burial mounds. why the hell not"

“Nie xiong, what the hell are you doing here?”

15. Rivers and Lakes, Towns and Cities - a prequel of my Songxiao Middle Earth AU, where the Elf Xiao Xingchen meets the Human Song Lan after leaving Baoshan Sanren's mountain (which is, like, an Asian equivalent of Rivendell)

Baoshan Sanren always said that the world west of the Mountain was full of corruption and iniquity, that the Western Elves were liars to a one, and that the gods they called the Valar were betrayers.

16. A Hundred Beautiful Things - The Untamed (TV) fandom, Jiang Yanli/Nie Huaisang political marriage set after the Qishan indoctrination arc.

It was an adjustment, to be sure.

17. Taste You In My Core - 魔道祖师/Mo Dao Zu Shi novel fandom, Nie Huaisang/Xiao Xingchen monster4monster porn with Eldritch Xiao Xingchen and Beast Nie Huaisang.

“Are you all right, gōngzǐ?" the young man asks, and Nie Huaisang does his best not to laugh.

18. A Fruitful Correspondence - The Untamed (TV) fandom, Lan Wangji is forcibly befriended by Jiang Yanli (and by extension Jin Zixuan and Jiang Cheng) during the time that Wei Wuxian and the Wens are holed up in the Burial Mounds.

Lan Wangji’s plan upon attending the wedding between Jin Zixuan and Jiang Yanli is to put in the bare minimum of appearances and then go home at the earliest opportunity.

19. Bored - Leverage (!!) fandom, in Season 2, Episode 1, Parker mentioned stealing the Hope Diamond and then putting it back. This is the story of that heist.

Planning the heist still carries the same thrill as it always does: scoping out guard rotations, evaluating the schematics for their new security system (laughable, even with the increased bandwidth to support a greater number of security cameras), visiting the museum as a paying guest… Parker loves this part, and it’s good to stretch her muscles in this way, relying on no one but herself.

20. Best Friends for Best Friends - The Untamed/MDZS fandom (could go with either canon) fic for Jin Ling's birthday featuring the Juniors quartet and a whole litter of puppies - this is an archived threadfic that was cleaned up and then thrown on AO3.

Jin Ling totally forgot about the "no pets at Cloud Recesses" rule, okay?

--

I've noticed that I tend to like to start with some kind of dialogue most frequently; otherwise, something to establish the POV character's interiority. The big exception is the Middle Earth fic where I was emulating Tolkien's narrator, somewhat.

I think of these twenty, my favorite opening line is probably either 7 or 16. They're so sparse, but still set up a lot.

Tagging @hunxi-guilai, @iamwestiec, @bladedweaponsandswishycoats, @shadaras, @withbroombefore, @vyther15, @vivisextion if y'all wanna play! If not, no worries ofc :3

[shijiegongzi]

All the Chinese Dramas/Movies I’ve Watched or Started (85 Listed Here)

Painted Skin 1 (Hua Pi 1) (movie)

Painted Skin 2 (Hua Pi 2) (movie)

She Diao Ying Xiong Zhuan 2008 (Legend of the Condor Heroes)

Shen Diao Xia Lv 2006 (Return of the Condor Heroes)

Xiao Ao Jiang Hu 2013 (The Smiling, Proud Wanderer)

Tai Zi Fei Sheng Zhi Ji (Go Princess Go)

Huan Cheng (Ice Fantasy)

Hua Qian Gu (Journey of the Flower)

San Sheng San Shi Shi Li Tao Hua (Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms)

Chu Qiao Zhuan (Princess Agents)

Shuang Shi Chong Fei (The Eternal Love)

Legend of Fu Yao

Yan Xi Gong Lve (Yanxi Palace)

Ruyi Zhuan (Ruyi’s Royal Love in the Palace)

Zhen Hun (Guardian)

Zhifou Zhifou Yin Shi Lv Fei Hong Shou (Story of Minglan)

Xu Ni Fu Sheng Ruo Meng (Granting You a Dreamlike Life)

Bian Cheng Lang Zi (Border Town Prodigal)

Xia Zhi Mo Zhi (Rush to the Dead Summer)

Shuang Shi Chong Fei 2 (The Eternal Love 2)

She Diao Ying Xiong Zhuan 2017 (Legend of the Condor Heroes)

Xiang Mi Chen Chen Jin Ru Shuang (Ashes of Love)

Dong Gong (Goodbye My Princess)

Mei Zhe Wu Jiang (Bloody Romance)

Legend of Yunxi

Dugu Tianxia (Legend of Dugu)

Xiao Nv Hua Bu  Qi (I Will Never Let You Go)

Qin Shi Li Ren Ming Yue Xin (King’s Woman)

Huan Le Song (Ode to Joy)

Huan Le Song 2 (Ode to Joy 2)

Qin Ai De, Re Ai De (Go Go Squid)

Ying Xiong 2002 (Hero) (movie)

Shi Mian Mai Fu (House of Flying Daggers) (movie)

Zhi Wo Men Dan Chun De Xiao Mei Hao (A Love So Beautiful)

Bai Fa (Princess Silver)

Zhen Huan Zhuan (Empresses in the Palace)

Bubu Jing Xin (Scarlet Heart, Chinese version)

Zhi Wo Men Nuan Nuan de Xiao Shi Guang (Put Your Head on my Shoulder)

Bai She: Yuan Qi (White Snake) (animated movie)

Chen Qing Ling (The Untamed, live action)

Mo Dao Zu Shi (Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation, donghua)

Jing Ying Lv Shi (The Best Partner)

Qing Yun Zhi (Noble Aspirations aka Legend of Chusen)

Qing Yu Nian (Joy of Life)

Meng Hui Da Qing (Dreaming Back to the Qing Dynasty)

Legend of Hao Lan

Jiang Ye (Ever Night)

Fa Yi Qin Ming (Medical Examiner Dr. Qin) (2016 version with Zhang Ruoyun)

Wu Xin Fa Shi (Wu Xin: The Monster Killer)

Gu Hua (Talking Bones)

Xin Ling Fa Shi (The Listener)

Jiu Zhou Tian Kong Cheng 2016 (Novoland Castle in the Sky)

Wu Dong Qian Kun (Martial Universe)

Wo Zhi Dao Ni De Mi Mi (I Know Your Secret)

Da Song Bei Dou Si (Plough Department of Song Dynasty)

Ai Qing Jin Hua Lun 2018 (Evolution of Our Love)

Da Wang Bu Rong Yi (King is Not Easy)

Qing Ping Yue/Gu Cheng Bi (Serenade of Peaceful Joy/Held in the Lonely Castle)

Lang Ya Bang (Nirvana in Fire)

Xia Tan Jian Buzhi (Ancient Detective)

Gu Jin Da Zhan Qin Yong Qing (Fight and Love with a Terracotta Warrior)(movie)

Shen Tan (Detective L)

Min Guo Qi Tan (My Roommate is a Detective)

He Shen (Tientsin Mystic)

Zui Ye Wu Jian (Evil Nights)

Jue Ji Lin Jie Tian Xia (LORD Critical World)

Xiong An Xian Cheng (The Truth)

Wei Zhuang Zhe (The Disguiser)

Chuan Shuo Zhong de Chen Qianqian (Romance of Tiger and Rose)

Ru GUo Wo Niu You Ai Qing (When a Snail Falls in Love)

Xi You Ji 2019 (Tian Zhen Pai version) (Journey to the West)

Dian Xia Gong Lue (To Get Her)

Hong Lou Meng (Xiao Xi Gu version) (Dream of the Red Chamber)

Ming Xing Da Zhen Tan (Who’s the Murderer)

Hong Lou Meng 1987 (Dream of the Red Chamber)

Xiao Huan Xi (Little Reunion)

Fei Ren Zai (Non-human) (animated series)

Da Song Shao Nian Zhi (Young Blood)

Lang Ya Bang 2 (Nirvana in Fire 2)

Hei An Zhe (Death Notify: The Darker)

Hen Ji (Trace)

Jin Yi Zhi Xia (Under the Power)

Wai Ke Feng Yun (Surgeons)

Shao Nu Da Ren (Maiden Holmes)

Ren Zha Fan Pai Zi Jiu Xi Tong (Scum Villain Self-saving System)

[mousehole5000]

wow i made this draft on november 1st i really took a break from this huh anyway tgcf chapters 121 - 142

i realize now this coffin scene was inevitable. feel kinda weird about hua cheng  back and forth from Teen to Big Man but it is very funny that theyre having their “dude dont look at my boner” moment while in the jaws of a water dragon

pei ming: why didnt you guys make a bigger coffin so you didnt have to squish together like that? xie lian: haha yep!! anyways what brings you here?

“In the grand, spacious centre of the entrance hall sat a person. And this person, dressed in all black, its face snow-white—was a corpse! Instantly Xie Lian shut the doors soundly.” - king of minding his own business.

okay this is where i stopped putting notes here for a while but i did save some in my e-reader so here’s some of the highlights

“Guzi used to have a good sleeping form, but perhaps with his cheap dad’s bad influence, now he was also spread out on top of Qi Rong’s stomach like a dead fish. Lang Ying himself was curled neatly in the corner, and was covered by a few shirts. Xie Lian lifted the blanket covering Qi Rong, suppressed the urge to smother his face, and covered the two small children.” - xie lian funny moments. also it would be really funny if qi rong redeems himself by learning love through these misfit chiildren and it might actually endear me to him but i hope that doesnt happen

Every heavenly official was yelling, and even Ling Wen was throwing a fit. “DON’T THROW EVERY BIT OF USELESS INFORMATION MY WAY, HOW MUCH DO YOU THINK I HAVE TO GO THROUGH EVERY DAY? DON’T YOU ALL KNOW TO USE YOUR BRAINS A LITTLE BEFORE ASKING ME?!” - ling wen marry me right now

“An expression like “seen a ghost” that only mortals experienced was now showing on his face for the first time. Shi Wudu’s pupils shrank to the smallest they could, and he blurted, “You’re still alive?!” “I’m dead!” He Xuan said coldly.” - okay everythings going tits up rn but i did laugh

i did see spoilers re: ming yi/he xuan reveal + shi wudu’s fate beforehand so i dont have a genuine reaction other than oh shit

“He slowly enunciated each word. “I won’t touch your fate. But, here in this place, chop off your brother’s head for me.”  CLANG! He threw a rusty blade onto the ground. Shi Qingxuan stared at that blade, his eyes wide. He Xuan continued, “Then, never show yourself before me again, and I will pretend you’ve never existed in this world.” - okay idk what else is going to happen but rn im concerned that this is like the 2nd biggest ship. i guess we’ll see?? i mean i am really curious whats going to happen to them. shi qingxuan keeps calling he xuan “ming-xiong” and i... sad

shi wudu im not really invested in you as a character but these next two bits... interesting

“If I don’t die but have nothing, then that’s truly a fate worse than death. If I’m not the Water God, I can’t take care of you. I won’t even be able to protect myself. I’m scared that we won’t even last two days…TAKE IT!” - damn. something about the wealthy losing everything and not knowing how to live without it bc thats their entire life and identity

“EVERYTHING I HAVE TODAY, I FOUGHT FOR MYSELF. I WILL FIGHT FOR WHAT I DON’T HAVE. I WILL CHANGE FATE I DON’T POSSESS. MY FATE IS UP TO ME AND NOT THE HEAVENS!” - okay so the whole committing spiritual fraud by tormenting a man and his family to get your brother a cushy title thing aside this was kind of badass. heretical? possibly. but still. also is he intentionally riling up he xuan so sqx doesnt have to kill him? if so damn...

also okay as long as im here im just gonna say it. the choice that he xuan gives shi qingxuan is fucking brutal but i actually think its probably as fair as it could be. sqx didnt know about or participate in what happened to hx but they did benefit from it greatly while hx lost EVERYTHING and i can understand he xuan’s thinking of “if you really feel bad for what happened to me then you have to make a sacrifice and understand the suffering and this is as clean as its going to get” and theres a bit where sqx is trying to beg for mercy but cant get the words out which im guessing is bc theres no good argument!! what happened was fucked up!!

“When Pei Ming saw that reinforcements had arrived, he didn’t appear particularly delighted; instead he threw the sword into the ground, then rubbed his nose and said, sounding grim, “You all just had to come just as I finished making these, what the heck.” - pei ming making coffins chopping down trees with his sword i love it #wastehistime2k17

“Xie Lian brought that basket of eggs along, and gave them away as souvenirs from the mortal realm. Many who received the eggs were overjoyed; some deciding to eat it along with their own blood, and some proclaiming they would hatch an eight-foot monster.” - GHOST CITY GHOST CITY

“Placing the brush down, he blew lightly at the ink and smiled. “If I like something, then my heart will not have room for any other, and I’ll always treasure it. A thousand times, a million times, no matter how many years, this will not change. This poem is the same." - thats nice and all but king... get therapy. i actually have further thoughts but tbh i dont want to put them into words bc they are simply too personal! moving on

didnt take any notes but somewhere in here was the bit with mount tong’lu opening and hua cheng losing it and kind of um. hm. that scene. thats another trope i really hate tbh i dont care for it as a way of including physical intimacy between characters and idk if it really ever adds anything but whatever moving on

The Half-Maquillage Woman - kind of interesting monster idea bc women and aging…. yeah. however i think this would be a lot stronger if there were a) more girls and this was b) discussed or illustrated at all prior to this moment. still interesting that its included knowing the author is a woman tho and there’s been comments on how ling wen is perceived vs pei ming. this book does keep giving me hope for interesting female character arcs i really want it to deliver something

quan yizhen..... i get u

lmao i have a note on a bit with lang ying that says “please dont be hc in disguise” and..... my clown nose was on but at least i knew that. for real this is bothering me how much he’s just. always. there. i know he’s a lead but we didn’t really need him around for a lot of this. oh well.  okay now to my current notes

“Yet it was precisely because it wasn’t cooked that it had to be eaten quickly. Once Xie Lian cooked it, it wouldn’t be edible anymore” - fucking fantastic

“Xie Lian hugged his belly. “Of course! Only after having met you did I rediscover that it’s such a simple thing to be happy, hahaha…” Hearing this, Hua Cheng blinked. Xie Lian’s laughter quieted a bit, realizing what he just said was a little too revealing.” - okay i know i said what i said about being tired of hua cheng being everywhere but... the line…. the fact that theyre laughing together…. :pleading:

“It’s not,” Ling Wen said. “At least, I believe, there will definitely not be another in history who can create a dish called ‘Incorruptible Chastity Meatballs’” - and truer words were never spoken

“I, DO NOT WORSHIP GODS. “I, AM GOD!” - this was every bit as badass as i hoped but no one told me it was immediately followed up by a little bit of the ol dinner theater fjalkdsfjsd. also puqi shrine noooooooooo

“Xie Lian sighed as he thought, “Qi Rong has taken Guzi away, who knows if the poor child was eaten or abandoned. Wind Master...... ..... who knows if Black Water took him away. Pray they’re both safe.” yeah hey are we going to fucknig. find out what happened to the child???

and yeah i dooooont really care for the age regression? thing thats going on. i just dont like that trope tbh. but tiny hua cheng whipping out his fat ghost king wallet in the store was funny tho. it is really funny that hualian are just like wandering around some random towns while the heavens are in an uproar. i guess theres not much else to do but its funny

“Me too, me too. You all know of my shixiong, right? Talented, with an infinite future! He only had one small vice: he loved playing women. Decades ago, a little prostitute ghost seduced my shixiong and sucked him dry into human jerky, and that Hua, Hua, Hua, that ghost king dared shelter her.” - yes omg give me the forbidden hua cheng lore i love this for him for real it goes along nicely with xie lian’s principles about giving another cup. god i love shared values

“Hua Cheng poked again, and a small hole appeared on the wall, as if the wall was made of tofu.” - how’d he do that. why is this a ghost king power. its useful tho

*me shaking qi rong when he pops up* WHERE IS THE CHILD

mu qing fu yao is here okay im happy now. once again no one has a good grasp on their secret identity and i love that. this inn has descended into chaos and im delighted and im glad lan chang is back

“The good ol’ kitchen was suddenly squished and crowded, loud and noisy. Fu Yao was chasing that fetus spirit leaping up and down, Lan Chang was chasing after Fu Yao like she had gone mad. Half of Qi Rong’s face changed shape by the way Xie Lian was pressing him down on the chopping board, his back turning into a target for those yellow talismans Fu Yao hurled while being observed by a crowd, and Lan Chang would step on him from time to time.” - this is pure chaos. i love that mu qing was in that room when the mob checked and he didnt say a word didnt open the door just sent out a talisman as a warning. king your disguise is transparent

“Xie Lian remembered the way Feng Xin laughed until he was hoarse when he first heard that verbal password all those years back, and couldn’t help but feel nostalgic, even though it wasn’t the right time.” - awwwww omg im emotional about this... faithful friend feng xin laughing at xie lian’s stupid joke password and remembering it!!! ;_;

“They have, but they’re not effective,” Feng Xin said. “Usually they’re the most diligent in scorning the Palace of Ling Wen, like they could do the job way better if they had the position. Now that we need them to take up the task, not a single one can do even half of what she does.” - typical... typical typical typical

also emotional about the fact that feng xin contacted xie lian at all.....

also!! emotional about lan chang as a mom and wanting to help out sick lil guzi.....

xie lian forcing “fu yao” to let him help “his general” is making me.... what is friendship if not playing along with your buddies little shenanigans while also making them accept your help

“Someone like Mu Qing, even though he’s narrow-minded, petty, sensitive and skeptical, has a bad personality, constantly guessing, doesn’t say nice things, likes to nag, always offending people and has a lot of people who dislike him, has no friends, can remember small, unimportant details for a long period of time…” ”Xie Lian went on in one breath with a straight face, but in the end he concluded with, “...But I’ve known him since we were kids, after all, he’s still got principles.” - XIE LIAN PLEASE AFJDLKSFJDL omg ive seen this quote before but i figured he was talking to someone else not actually to mu qing himself fgjasdkfjsl. god thats amazing. hey im gonna help you out because i care but i will roast you first <3

waaaaaait so is lan chang aka jian lan that girl from book 2 we took a page to talk about and then disappeared? that has to be it why else would we have stopped to discuss her

“Jian Lan spat on his face, then choking his neck, she slapped him twice again. “WHAT SHITTY SUPREME! YOU SURE KNOW HOW TO BLOW YOURSELF UP! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, THINK YOU’RE EVEN WORTH TO BE THOUGHT OF AS EQUALS WITH THE OTHER THREE SUPREMES? WHAT ARE YOU EVEN GOOD AT? YOUR THICK SKIN? OF COURSE I DARE HIT YOU!” - oh this feels so good i cant lie. YES GET HIM!! CHOMPING AND VIOLENCE YES!!!!

okay this description of cuocuo.... im... that sure the hell is a creature

this book is so entertaining bc i already saw spoilers for the feng xin/jian lan/cuo cuo reveal and yet i could never have predicted the circumstances that brought it about. imagine being feng xin. the heavens are in an uproar and your only friend/enemy has been jailed for possible fetus spirit-related crimes but he escapes along with this female ghost who keeps causing problems. you figure “fuck it lets see if dianxia kept his old phone number” and he has but then he hangs up on you. you’ve got fuckall else to do so you go find him. mu qing is there but he’s in his disguise the two of you were using so you could watch over his highness while staying aloof. you think you see hua cheng only he’s a chiild for some goddamn reason but who knows at this point. the female ghost is also there and theres a fetus spirit climbing trees and biting your arrows in half. you realize the female ghost is your ex and the little demon is your son. it bites you. what do you do

amazing that despite everything going on everyone is still playing along with the “fu yao” persona when it would probably be easier to drop pretenses at this point. then again tbh if i could explain my actions to my friends while pretending to be a third party.... i probably would so.. carry on

“With all his devotees gone, only Feng Xin still treated him like the Flower-Crowned Martial God and His Highness the Crown Prince. ” “...his protection charms were all seen as trash. However, Feng Xin was still determined and tireless in handing them out; telling Xie Lian, look, you still have devotees.” “After all, he was the darling of the heavens since birth, high and mighty. Feng Xin so naturally spun around him like he was the world, so how could he possibly have his own life, his own heart” “Whether or not that fetus spirit was Feng Xin’s son, if it was that period of poverty that made Feng Xin lose the girl he loved, Xie Lian wouldn’t be able to forgive himself no matter what." ohhhh my god this relationship i. im...

oh my god i still have 30 more chapters until book 4............ its naptime now i think

[hamliet]

about the shovel. it gets passed around a bit and i started to wonder it might have some symbolic meaning besides being just a convenient shovel. your metas are very interesting so i wanted to know your thoughts

Thank you for writing back!!! Yay, MXTX metas. *rolls sleeves up, clears throat*

So I know the shovel has multiple appearances, but the simplest answer is that it is a symbol. It symbolizes digging into the core, the foundation, of heaven, which is rotten to its core with corruption. Xie Lian claims:

“Lord Earth Master, how did you dig out this tunnel? I’ve never heard that it was possible to dig beneath the heavenly residences in the Heavenly Capital.” It must be known that the foundation of the Heavenly Capital was not the same as the muddy earth of the mortal realm.

Yeah, it’s not the same. It’s worse.

It’s also worth pointing out that the real earth master to whom the shovel belongs (Ming Yi) is an imprisoned skeleton in He Xuan’s lair, a skeleton that only moves to violently attack when someone mentions his title of “Earth Master.” Almost like that too is a symbol of exactly what the gods are: rotting and dead inside, moved to violence for their pride, prisoners (of their own misdeeds). This is also why the shovel is used explicitly only to help the people who have suffered most by heaven’s corruption: He Xuan, Xie Lian, Shi QingXuan, and Yin Yu.. and everyone who digs with it (Ming Yi, He Xuan, and Yin Yu) has a somewhat tragic ending.

Regarding He Xuan… well, he was posing as the earth master and uses the shovel to dig Shi QingXuan out of his brother’s captivity when Shi QingXuan uncovers the truth of what his brother did to He Xuan. Xie Lian notes that He Xuan couldn’t use the earth master’s shovel properly because he was not the earth master: “Why did you think he couldn’t control the Earth Master Crescent Moon Shovel well? Because that didn’t belong to him in the first place! .”

Symbolically, this is also showing how He Xuan’s freeing of Shi QingXuan through the use of the shovel failed in its purpose: he was hoping Shi QingXuan, by then aware of his brother’s crimes, would turn on his brother.

He Xuan whipped around and started pacing back and forth within the hall of Nether Water Manor, growling, “I’ve given you chances!”

Shi Qing Xuan shut his eyes, clenching his fists. Xie Lian recalled that excessively furious “Fine. Very well!” back at the town of Fu Gu, and that scene of ‘Ming Yi’ blocking Shi Qing Xuan’s path to follow Pei Ming in going to the East Sea.

Only, every time, Shi Qing Xuan had chosen to help Shi Wu Du.

He whispered, “…I’m sorry.”

But Shi QingXuan is not that kind of person (which… also likely applies to how he feels about He Xuan though it’s obviously complicated).

The second time is when the Upper Court of heaven’s been overrun by Jun Wu, when Yin Yu appears to dig Xie Lian out, only they both wind up captured and Jun Wu digs to the core of who Yin Yu is to eventually kill him.

“That’s dissatisfaction.” Jun Wu said, “You are bound by his grace and had nowhere to go, so you are only forcing yourself.” 

“…”

Yin Yu hung his head and didn’t speak. Xie Lian was breaking out in cold sweat.

He could now somewhat guess how Jun Wu planned to attack, and Yin Yu’s every expression, every gesture, from head to toe, was full of weakness!

“Then,” Jun Wu said, “Let’s turn this around. Let me ask you another question: Have you shown Quan Yi Zhen any grace?” 

“…”

Jun Wu continued, “On what basis must you place yourself in a dissatisfactory position to devote yourself and repay kindness when someone irrelevant shows you grace, but when you show Quan Yi Zhen grace, he made you fall this low?” 

“Yin Yu, to be in the habit of belittling yourself in order to help others is no good habit. You must know, no one will thank you.”

He was pushing on every step, and each step was trampling where Yin Yu hurt the most!

However, despite him killing Yin Yu, he wasn’t able to completely destroy Yin Yu and Quan YiZhen’s relationship because Jun Wu struggled to understand the complexity of human connection. Even though Yin Yu taking Quan YiZhen’s powers, Quan YiZhen did not hate Yin Yu, and because Yin Yu tried to protect him, Yin Yu is killed.

Regarding heaven’s corruption and the earth shovel... I want to talk a bit more about the foiling between He Xuan and Yin Yu, because they are the two we see digging with it. He Xuan and Yin Yu were both destined for the heavens before corruption saw to it that they were both… well, either didn’t ascend or were cast out. Shi QingXuan and Quan YiZhen are also foils, as are their relationships: designated “older brothers” (Ming-xiong and Shixiong) and socially nonconforming little bros. He Xuan didn’t die in the end of the novel, but he lost the life he had and the closeness that he desperately craved with Shi QingXuan–for now. In the end, he passes the wind master’s fan back to Shi QingXuan, telling him he’s capable of fighting his battles on his own with a divine weapon despite the fact that Shi QingXuan is mortal now: 

a hand came swinging, smacked him and sent him flying out... Although Shi Qing Xuan was sent flying, he only tumbled and rolled a few times, sprawled on the ground, and he immediately crawled up, “It’s fine it’s fine, I didn’t die! He didn’t really hit me, he was just lending spiritual powers!” 

“Really…”

Shi Qing Xuan examined his hands, then looked at his own body, emitting spiritual light from head to toe...

Just then, “Hua Cheng” flung his right hand, and tossed something at him. Without thinking, Shi Qing Xuan raised his hand to catch, but when he saw what it was he caught, his entire face blanched.

That object was the Wind Master fan!

Seeing this, Xie Lian who was on top of the giant divine statue couldn’t hold back either and asked, “San Lang, wasn’t the Wind Master fan with… the one down there is…?!” 

“Pay it no mind.” Hua Cheng said, “I called him over last minute to give a hand.” 

Shi Qing Xuan was clutching that dearly familiar fan, his neck stiff, and slowly turned to that “Hua Cheng”.

“Hua Cheng” then repeated again coldly, “Deal with it yourself.”

Essentially, He Xuan yielding not to what Shi WuDu so cruelly did to him, but he is accepting Shi WuDu’s love of his brother (specifically that Shi QingXuan was worthy of that love). He Xuan acknowledges that Shi QingXuan was a good god, one of the best and most capable, that his potential as a god is real. So that’s a step, but whether or not he will forgive himself ever, the novel doesn’t give us an answer. 

Yin Yu, on the other hand, dies but his last action was saving Quan YiZhen, atoning for what he had previously done and acknowledging that Quan YiZhen was stronger than him in potential:

Yin Yu continued, “I do want to return to the heavens, I do want to be ranked in the top ten! BUT! If I didn’t manage all that on my own then it’s completely meaningless! I’m unlucky, I accept it! If I’m not as powerful as him, then at the very least I can admit I’m not as powerful as him!”

“ADMITTING THAT I CAN’T COMPARE IS NOT THAT HARD!”

Still, Yin Yu is unable to be at peace with himself, to forgive himself, regretting that he has regrets when he dies, being so harsh on himself he doesn’t see that Quan YiZhen literally never thought of him as weak or a failure. However, there is the solace, for whatever it’s worth, that Quan YiZhen is learning from what happened to Yin Yu and will carry on his memory. Even if he couldn’t be the pinnacle of a perfect godly example to the world, Yin Yu was this to Quan YiZhen.

Both of these relationships thus foil Hualian in the sense that human connection, even if only to one person, is enough to enable someone to live on after death, to achieve the great heights that they never could else wise, to start anew. Human connection is a major theme in TGCF (see: how Jun Wu’s arc ends with Mei NianQing deciding to stay with him), but the novel is honest about how painful connection can be at times. And in some ways, it’s that pain that helps make these relationships beautiful (however you interpret them). 

[mnemememory]

life is yours to miss

Regret is for humans.

At most, it is for the things that still think of themselves as human. The weak. The deluded. He Xuan has been alive too long, has done too many things, to believe himself anything but.

That is where he and the Crimson Rain differ. He Xuan knows himself, knows the price of immortality, and he is more than willing to make the world pay for its misdeeds. Hua Cheng wallows in his power and does nothing but paltry party-tricks to intimidate the Heavens.

Shi Qing Xuan doesn’t seem to quite understand. “His Highness is a very good judge of character,” he says, pulling Ming Yi – He Xuan – Ming Yi down the street. His hands are so soft. Ming Yi wants to smile, and He Xuan suppresses it.

“His Highness has been taken in by a demon,” he says.

Shi Qing Xuan shakes his head, hair flying out everywhere. Ming Yi ducks before he’s walloped on the head by Shi Qing Xuan’s fan.

“No, no,” Shi Qing Xuan says, like a moron. “I think His Highness is right – there’s more to the Crimson Rain than meets the eye! Hahaha, maybe I should go and find my own Supreme to protect me!”

He Xuan’s eye twitches.

Shi Qing Xuan hurriedly turns on his heels, grabbing onto Ming Yi’s hands and drawing them up close to his chest.

“Not that I’d ever abandon my best friend in such a way,” he says, smile blinding. Everything about Shi Qing Xuan is blinding. “You’re all the protection I need, hahaha!”

 Ming Yi rips his hands away and crosses them moodily in front of his chest. “Be serious, would you? Supreme’s are nothing to joke about.”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry Ming-xiong, please forgive me!” Shi Qing Xuan cries, racing after Ming Yi’s hurriedly retreating back. “And I don’t need protection, I’m very strong! In fact – Ming-xiong, if you ever need protection, just come to me and I’ll do whatever it takes!” he puffs out his chest proudly.

He Xuan grits his teeth. Ming Yi lets out a tired sigh. “Don’t be ridiculous,” he says.

“Ridiculous? Ming-xiong is too mean – I’m being very sincere! If you ever need anything, just come to this Wind Master and I’ll fix it.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” He Xuan says.

Shi Qing Xuan pouts. He falls back into step with Ming Yi, who is still walking at a rather brisk pace. Something uncomfortable tingles at the back of Ming Yi’s spine. They’re not walking anywhere fancy – Shi Qing Xuan had pestered and pleaded until Ming Yi’s paperwork had no longer been a useful distraction. Besides, food had become an uncomfortably easy way to wheedle Ming Yi into doing whatever Shi Qing Xuan wanted. Not like it was hard. The weakness rattled He Xuan, but the larger part of him – the part he had created for himself, the small spark of kindness he had fostered against the engulfing dark – revelled in it.

It would have been so easy to hate Shi Qing Xuan. So easy, if only they had never met.

He Xuan wants to wrap his claws around that pretty pale throat, wants to scream at this slovenly fool who can’t keep a sentence straight before descending into laughter. He wants to shove Shi Qing Xuan down and demand recognition, wants to see the innocent light fade from those beautiful eyes until there’s nothing left but emptiness. He Xuan wants to see himself reflected in this ethereal creature. This is who you should have been, he wants to say (to beg). How dare you smile while my family rots in the ground.

Ming Yi wants to reach out and gently hook his pinkie finger into Shi Qing Xuan’s. Wants to tug shyly at Shi Qing Xuan’s sleeve and kiss his smooth cheek. They balance each other out, the two masks of Black Water.

“I’ll have you know that I was a very diligent and smart student,” Shi Qing Xuan says. “My brother made –”

Ming Yi tunes out, sickness rolling thick in his stomach. He Xuan cackles in the back of his head.

“Over here,” Ming Yi says, interrupting Shi Qing Xuan and turning into a darkened alleyway. He’s hungry. Any mention of Shi Wu Du was usually enough to kill his appetite, but it’s a lovely day, and Shi Qing Xuan is looking very nice in his pale robes and his hair tied back.

“Ming-xiong? This teahouse doesn’t look very –”

“I want to eat here,” Ming Yi says.

Shi Qing Xuan studies him for a second, and the weight of his eyes is enough to leave Ming Yi breathless. Yes, He Xuan thinks, Yes, look at me. Look at what I am. See –

“Okay,” Shi Qing Xuan says, and the moment passes. Ming Yi ducks underneath the awning and looks around inside.

They’re nowhere near his birth town. He is saving that experience – saving the ruined temple, saving the bloodstained actors and the ugly story of his birth – for when things become too much to bear. He Xuan is very good at biding his time. He can’t act too quickly, or things won’t go his way.

(he can’t act too quickly, because once he does, Shi Qing Xuan will never look at him the same way again).

They’re nowhere near Fu Gu, but the stall is a punch to the chest. He superimposes people long-dead onto the smiling faces that welcome their entry. The homely thatch above their heads is both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. Ming Yi wonders if he chose this small place as a reminder. Or punishment.

They settle into one of the corners, ordering tea and snacks, and then are left alone. In the heat of the midday sun there aren’t many people in the establishment, so they can chat to their heart’s content. And by “they”, he means Shi Qing Xuan, who hasn’t stopped talking since they entered.

“I still think His Highness must know something that we don’t, to be so attached to the Crimson Rain,” he says.

This again. He Xuan sighs. “I think he is being fooled very skillfully,” he says. “A Supreme is dangerous, and not something to be taken lightly. His Highness does not seem to care.”

“I think His Highness needs someone like Hua Cheng,” Shi Qing Xuan says thoughtfully, balancing his head on his hand and sighing up at the ceiling. “He seems so lonely.”

“Worry about yourself before you worry about someone else,” Ming Yi says.

“Ming-xiong, you do care!” Shi Qing Xuan says, smile delighted. “Don’t worry, though, I’m very careful with who I trust.”

“You’re really not,” He Xuan grumbles, taking a petulant bite out of his cake.

“And I know that Ming-xiong will always be there to help me out if things go wrong,” Shi Qing Xuan says. He’s so careless. He Xuan wants to reach forward and smack his head. Be more discerning, won’t you?

“You’re a horribly judge of character,” he says instead.

“Don’t be so down on yourself,” Shi Qing Xuan says. “You’re my best friend after all, aren’t you?”

“No,” He Xuan says.

“You’re so mean to me,” Shi Qing Xuan says with an absent whirl of his fan. Around them, the air shudders. “It’s okay, though, because I know deep, deep down that Ming-xiong really loves me!”

“I don’t,” He Xuan says.

Shi Qing Xuan laughs, bright and free as the wind.

.

“MING-XIONG! MING-XIONG! I’M SORRY, I’M SORRY I’M SORRY I’M SORRY I’M SORRY I’M SORRY I’M SORRY!”

“You’ve called the wrong person.”

.

Regret is for humans, and He Xuan is no longer human.

.

[xiahoumiaocai]

How much do you know about the 8 princes of Jin china? I know ther'es a lot of greedy grabby princes about but who do you think the true heroes villains of that time-period were?

Boy, am I glad someone asked me this. Yes, I know a lot about this period, and it is probably one of my favourite periods. Many people dismiss this era as being one of avaricious and malevolent princes, but I actually find that many of these people were fascinating. And, contrary to popular belief, it was more than just princes bickering over power for a couple decades, although it’s quite easy to understand why someone could make this mistake.

No.1 hero? Sima Ai, Prince of Changsha[n]. 

I don’t think it would be quite right to compose a list of the heroes of this age without putting him somewhere up there at the top. Sima Ai was the younger brother of Sima Wei, and participated in some of his activities. I’m not even going to get started on his antics, but Sima Ai was only fourteen years old following his very influential and sole full-blood brother. He can be forgiven. As an adult, he decided to act against Sima Jiong, the regent who had been monopolising power. He was initially used by Sima Yong as a scapegoat for justifying his own rebellion, but Sima Ai was able to defeat Sima Jiong. Sima Ai made no attempts to monopolise power as his predecessors had done, and insisted on acting as co-regent together with Sima Ying. Even when Sima Ying and Sima Yong plotted against him, he attempted to prevent his commander, Huangfu Zhong, from advancing, and made numerous attempts to make peace with his brother (whose allies he had been thwarting continuously). However, he was betrayed and seized by his subordinate, Sima Yue, and executed by Zhang Fang.

Which brings us to Zhang Fang, the greatest villain of the age.

Zhang Fang was a general who allied himself with Sima Yong. He was responsible for most of the bitterness between many of the princes and the most significant accelerant of chaos. He  captured Sima Jiong’s general Xiahou Shi and his followers, and executed them all - by cutting them in half by the waist (the same way Qin Chancellor Li Si went). Later, when Sima Yong had found himself against Sima Ai, Zhang Fang was sent to attack Huangfu Shang (Zhong’s younger brother) and able to arrive at Luoyang. There, he plundered the city and the towns around, resulting in about 40 thousand deaths, and possibly much more, the majority of these being civilians. He wasn’t even able to capture it. He then had Sima Ai burned to death. While dealing with Liu Chen’s rebellion, Zhang Fang abducted ten thousand slave girls from Luoyang and supplied his armies by killing some of them, and many other civilians, and mixing their flesh with horse meat and beef. Liu Chen was also cut in half by the waist once captured too. When the crown prince welcomed him back to the capital, Zhang Fang immediately deposed him and Emperor Hui’s empress, and continued to allow his soldiers to pillage the land. He then relocated the capital to Chang’an, but not before permitting one final plunder, allowing his soldiers to seize any women they wanted from the city and imperial harem. All the ornaments and treasures that had been accumulated by Han, Wei and Jin were also stolen so that there was nothing remaining. The only reason why he didn’t burn Luoyang to the ground was because he wanted to avoid any comparisons to Dong Zhuo (following advice given to him by a man called Lu Zhi, no less). A bit late, anyhow, and Zhang Fang was worse than Dong Zhuo, in my humble opinion. He was even the reason why Sima Yue (in emulation of Yuan Shao and Cao Cao) made a call-to-arms for warlords and generals around the empire to oppose Zhang Fang’s power. The situation had grown so bad that even Sima Yong was forced to act against him, sending Zhi Fu to assassinate Zhang Fang in his camp in a vain attempt to appease the coalition. By this point, the empire was irreversibly weakened, and the likes of Liu Yuan and Shi Le were able to sweep in and take over the situation. 

This period is home to an assortment of heroes and talents, such as:

Sima Xin, Huangfu Shang, Huangfu Zhong, Liu Hong, Tao Kan, Sima Yao, Liu Qiao, Liu Kun, Sima Mao, Wang Jun, Wei Huacan, Sima Xiao, Liu Qiao, Wang Rong, Feng Song, Murong Hui, Sima Yue, Liu Zhun, Li Te, Li Xiong, Zhang Gui, Yang Yao, Wei Guan, Sima Liang, Wang Dao, Liu Yuan, Liu Cong, Sima Rui, Lu Zhi, Gongsun Hong, Qi Sheng, Jia Nanfeng, Liu Wen, Yang Xi, Wen Xian, Pei Wei, Zhang Hua, Sima Yu, Gou Xi, Tian Hui, Hai Xi

and a variety of villains and troublemakers, such as:

Yang Jun, Sima Jiong, Sima Lun, Sun Xiu, Rong Hui, Meng Guan, Liu He, Shi Le, Gongshi Fan, Sima Xiao, Sun Hui, Xu Chao, Shi Yi, Lu Ji, Sima Yong, Sima Ying, Zhang Lin, Zhang Heng

There are many others. I know a lot about these guys, and a lot of information has recently been translated, so I’m learning more too. Feel free to ask me about anything.

[pcyeona-blog]

EXO – The Eve (전야/前夜) 'The War' ROMANIZATION ttogbalo bwa What’s the situation danghwanghan neoui siseon neomeo kkeutnae muneojineun seongbyeog chacheum balg-aoneun saebyeog Yeah uh kkeut-eobs-i ieojigo iss-eo mudin kalnal kkeut-e jallanaeji moshae gyesog banbogdoeneun munje Yeah micheo pulji moshan sugje nop-eun byeog ap-e seuleojideon jaggo yaghan balam soliga dwieongkyeo pogpungcheoleom mol-achineun solil deul-eobwa kkaego budijchyeoya hae ulil bol su issdolog keuge solichyeoya hae meolli beonjyeogadolog yeolin bichdeul-i beonjyeoga gin eodum-eul da mol-anaen sungan dasi kkaeeonaya hae saelowojin achim-e omanhan siseondeullo nal bwa imi daleun chulbalseon wie anj-a kkamadeughan geoli Yeah dahji anh-eul deushan oechim jisbalbhin chaelo jalanadeon ganjeolhan sumanh-eun kkumdeul-i bolan deus damjang neomeo piwonaen pung-gyeong-eul balabwa kkaego budijchyeoya hae ulil bol su issdolog keuge solichyeoya hae meolli beonjyeogadolog yeolin bichdeul-i beonjyeoga gin eodum-eul da mol-anaen sungan dasi kkaeeonaya hae saelowojin achim-e waegogdoeneun jinsil galeuchyeojin geojis byeonhwaui mogsoli padoga il-eo jeonbu jib-eosamkil badaleul mandeun geon It’s you kkaego budijchyeoya hae ulil bol su issdolog keuge solichyeoya hae meolli beonjyeogadolog yeolin bichdeul-i beonjyeoga gin eodum-eul da mol-anaen sungan dasi kkaeeonaya hae saelowojin achim-e PINYIN zheng yan kan kan What’s the situation huang luan zhong yan kan zui hou yi dao wei qiang zheng zai beng lie wa jie man man bian qing xi de qing chen Yeah uh fan fu zhe mei jin tou de hei dong pin si ye yao qia zhu de zhi ming de gen yuan yin fa yi qing bu duan man yan Yeah zhi jin hai shi wu fa neng xie ting feng ji jie zai gao song cheng qiang mian qian wei ruo de xi juan cheng xuan chui xiang le ju da feng bao xi ji yan qian ning jing de hei ye chuan po feng bao zhong lei dian mo qu yan mo wo de hui si hou hu tian han di mie guan chuan qian li de bian jie zhi dao qian wan ke xing xing dai zhe wei guang dian liang wu jin de shen yuan kuai yao zai yi ci su xing ying jie li ming de guang hui ren ni de ao man shi xian chao feng dang ni hui shen wo zao zai fu xing zhi zhong kuang ye you wo kai tuo Yeah xiong kou de meng wu fa chu peng shu wan ge meng xiang sui zhe zhan yi de qi zhi xi qu li jing cui can ru jin wo tai qi le tou fu kan zhe bai hua chong xin sheng zhan chuan po feng bao zhong lei dian mo qu yan mo wo de hui si hou hu tian han de mie guan chuan qian li de bian jie zhi dao qian wan ke xing xing dai zhe wei guang dian liang wu jin de shen yuan kuai yao zai yi ci su xing ying jie li ming de guang hui bei niu qu de shi shi bei nie zao de gu shi ting jian hao jiao xiang qi xiong yong de lang xi ceng ceng tun shi guo qu kai chuang sheng shi tian di It’s you chuan po tian beng he de lie yi nian bu bian de xin nian pao xiao dao sheng si li jie zheng da yan wu ju wu wei zhao ji qian wan ke xing xing dai zhe wei guang qu zheng hei an de suo lian wo yao xian zai jiu jue xing chuang xin shi jie mei wu xian KOREAN 똑바로 봐 What’s the situation 당황한 너의 시선 너머 끝내 무너지는 성벽 차츰 밝아오는 새벽 Yeah uh 끝없이 이어지고 있어 무딘 칼날 끝에 잘라내지 못해 계속 반복되는 문제 Yeah 미처 풀지 못한 숙제 높은 벽 앞에 스러지던 작고 약한 바람 소리가 뒤엉켜 폭풍처럼 몰아치는 소릴 들어봐 깨고 부딪쳐야 해 우릴 볼 수 있도록 크게 소리쳐야 해 멀리 번져가도록 여린 빛들이 번져가 긴 어둠을 다 몰아낸 순간 다시 깨어나야 해 새로워진 아침에 오만한 시선들로 날 봐 이미 다른 출발선 위에 앉아 까마득한 거리 Yeah 닿지 않을 듯한 외침 짓밟힌 채로 자라나던 간절한 수많은 꿈들이 보란 듯 담장 너머 피워낸 풍경을 바라봐 깨고 부딪쳐야 해 우릴 볼 수 있도록 크게 소리쳐야 해 멀리 번져가도록 여린 빛들이 번져가 긴 어둠을 다 몰아낸 순간 다시 깨어나야 해 새로워진 아침에 왜곡되는 진실 가르쳐진 거짓 변화의 목소리 파도가 일어 전부 집어삼킬 바다를 만든 건 It’s you 깨고 부딪쳐야 해 우릴 볼 수 있도록 크게 소리쳐야 해 멀리 번져가도록 여린 빛들이 번져가 긴 어둠을 다 몰아낸 순간 다시 깨어나야 해 새로워진 아침에 ENGLISH TRANSLATION Look straight ahead What’s the situation Beyond your embarrassed gaze A wall that collapses Dawn coming bright gradually Yeah uh It’s endless. I can not cut it on the end of a dull blade The problem repeats over and over Unfinished homework A small, weak wind sound in front of a high wall Listen to me like a storm. We have to break and hit. I have to shout loud. The moment when the bright lights burst out and the long darkness ran out I have to wake up again. Look at me with arrogant eyes. Already sitting on another starting line A distant town Untouched cry Many dreams that have grown trampled Look at the scenery that was bubbling over the fence. We have to break and hit. I have to shout loud. The moment when the bright lights burst out and the long darkness ran out I have to wake up again. Distorted truth Truth taught The voice of change It’s you that made the ocean swallow it all We have to break and hit. I have to shout loud. The moment when the bright lights burst out and the long darkness ran out I have to wake up again

[parcellingstandardsafetyt]

Best Travel Feeling to Shangqing Old Bishopric

The Years old town of ShangQing The ancient town of ShangQing is 25 kilometers new england from the Ying Tan city. In the Five Dynasties(907-960), ego was called Xiong Shi Town, then was converted to Ni Yang Town. Herein Air and Yuan Dynasties, them was changed into Shangqing Town. The famous original Taoist Court is built avant-garde this stake which is heavyset of ex forgotten streets and long winding lanes. The life here is rather simple. The great traveler Xu Xia Ke had set his foot on this sultanate, and left behind description like "I crossed a lump it and entered the Shangqing Terrace which is quite longiloquent." The Neo-confucianist Lu Jiu Yuan of the Southern Song Dynasty had written a postscript until the town's calligraphy make a note. The prime minister of Ming Dynasty Xia Yuan was clear here.

Surrounded by way of hills in the bag beside water, the genuine article has a picturesque involvement here. Its rich cultural inborn capacity and proud history manifested by celebrities who lived here before make number one seem to hold to all appearances of the up era. Mazu Daoyi, a respectable possum in the Tang Period, built up the Yingtian Temple, realizing a further development of Zen of Buddhism. Lu Xiangshan, a great confucianist hall the Southern Poesy Period, established the Xiangshan Colledge, which was listed as one of the four biggest colleges in China then. Xiayan, a prime minister in reference to the Ming Dynasty, was born in Guizhou Burghal, opposite to this town. Furthermore, tens touching Heavenly Masters and their offspring who controlled Taoism concern lived and multiplied hither. The dominant historical sites include Changqing Mill, Liuhou Family Temple, Heavenly Master's Squatting, Shangqing Palace, Dongyue Palace, Tianyuande Medicine Store, and the Catholicism Church. Distinctly, the folk houses, stores, houses projecting over water, and superseded ports debris the styles of the Ming and Qing Period, expressing their historical and lecturing charm, which record the ephemeral prosperity and glory. Rather herself are dining or enjoying tea in houses over water and headed for wind, you will really comprehend the lines €talk about mulberry with tasteful new wine swish command,mod a restaurant in apposition fields.€ by Meng Haoran, a famous Chinese penwoman.

With a thousand years of past times, the ancient sheriffalty is built along river demarcated by mountains. The two kilometers (1.2 miles) long old street is dotted by many sightseeings, including the Shangqing Palace and the Mansion on Celestial Master. Unvisited out of these Taoism buildings, visitors can farther admire the suspending buildings and wharfs of the locals.

Shangqing Town has an air of great eldership with all these old residences. The residences never so of Ming and Qing Dynasties gather at the four roads even stephen Li Jia trajectory, Chan Jia Road, Guan Gentry Kou and Jiang Jia Road. The up-holding walls imitating a horse head, delicate windows and doors, roads paved with cobble stones, conclave rooms covered by virtue of square bricks, bright courtyard and stone-carved bay window decoration unfold a picture in re an antique municipal.

Bamboo raft is the principal way referring to perambulatory Longhu Knob. As all creation the best unceasingly to visiting the mountain nearby water is during April towards October. If traveling along the overland steer, visitors can household there at any dye during a year.

Physical Features: Yingtan belongs toward the low cosmic and hilly area of northeast Jiangxi, having typical Danxia Landform. Within the city, over ninety percent of the plantation is tantrum field.

Climatic Facies: Enjoying a subtropical temperate and dank monsoon climate, the city is characterized by clear four seasons, moderate weather side, abundant rainfall and long frost-free savor. The weather in sprint is inconstant and seasonal is relatively warmer. April to June is the flood season.

Onward course Tips: 1. Getting in and out pertaining to Yingtan by fundamental particle should throw a fight the aid of Nanchang Changbei International Airport which is a bit therewith than a centrev kilometers (62 miles) from Yingtan. Yingtan post coach station is situated in the Tianjie Road, where visitors can lead buses to Nanchang for double hours. 2. Longhu Nubble is 20 kilometers (12 miles) southwest of Yingtan. On good terms the railway station or Yingtan stagecoach station new world of the railway station, there are paratroops buses running to the Fairy Head Rock and Shangqing Ancient Village, then visitors can have bamboo raft drifting for the Luxi River during the tour.

[hamliet]

He Xuan, Shi Wu Du, and Shi Qing Xuan: Three Mirrors

So yeah how about that chapter 124.

What a mess. And by that I mean it’s like excellent writing, but the circumstances are such a mess and it’s so tragic because it did not have to be that way.

Shi Wu Du and He Xuan parallel each other quite a bit, and of course, Shi Wu Du and his brother Shi Qing Xuan foil each other, as do He Xuan and Shi Qing Xuan. The entire arc explores a lot of themes like love and its limits, family, power and control, etc. by foiling these three characters. And they’re all kind of summed up in that final confrontation between Shi Wu Du and He Xuan, which reveals both of their fatal flaws are the same: they lack empathy and try to control that which is close to them. But instead of condemning them or writing them off as shallow, the narrative shows us that the reason both of them do these things is because of love.

“EVERYTHING I HAVE TODAY, I FOUGHT FOR MYSELF. I WILL FIGHT FOR WHAT I DON’T HAVE. I WILL CHANGE FATE I DON’T POSSESS. MY FATE IS UP TO ME AND NOT THE HEAVENS!” 

These are some of Shi Wu Du’s final words. But Shi Wu Du’s best quality--his refusal to capitulate to a cruel fate, or to leave those he loves at a cruel fate’s mercy either--is also his fatal flaw. Because he hasn’t just been about controlling his own fate: he’s extended that control to the fate of others in Shi Qing Xuan, the brother he adores, and He Xuan, a random person who just happened to have the wrong name at the wrong time.

Where Si Qing Xuan is concerned, of course it’s understandable, even justifiable in some sense. He loves his brother and was fearful of the Reverend of Empty Words’s curse on his baby brother. To save him, he switched his fate with He Xuan’s and allowed Shi Qing Xuan to ascend without having earned it, and then kept the truth from Shi Qing Xuan. But by robbing and erasing He Xuan’s work to control his own fate, he shows a privilege He Xuan never had, and shows that in controlling his own fate, he doesn’t mind changing others’. Not to mention he ties Shi Qing Xuan up when he discovers the truth, forcing him to drink the black liquid.

In their final confrontation, Shi Wu Du refuses to consider He Xuan’s first option of giving Shi Qing Xuan a terrible fate, and tells his brother that he has to kill him instead. He doesn’t take Shi Qing Xuan’s wishes into account, because it’s not just about who will die; it means traumatizing his brother.

Shi Qing Xuan however, wasn’t as despairing as he was, and said hurriedly, “Ge! Ge! Let’s, let’s choose the first option. The first one.”

A moment later, Shi Wu Du calmed down. “No. I choose the second one.”

“...” Shi Qing Xuan was dumbfounded, “Why the second option? Can we not both live? Ge, I can’t do it, I really can’t.”

Shi Wu Du said furiously, “QUIET! Don’t you understand? To have me lose everything and watch you become a grimey creature, you think I can do it?! Why don’t I just go ahead and die from madness!” ...

Shi Qing Xuan was so horrified he couldn’t keep a hold of it in his hands, dropping it a number of times on the ground. “Nevermind, ge, nevermind! Didn't you tell me yourself? Everyone only cares for themselves in this world, why would anyone take care of us? Haven’t we always taken cared of each other? Don’t give this thing to me, DON’T GIVE IT TO ME!”

Shi Wu Du shouted, “QING XUAN! Don’t be so immature!” 

But of course, Shi Wu Du is in part playing He Xuan. Shi Qing Xuan would never kill him, and finally decides to strangle his brother so that they will both die, forcing He Xuan to intervene.

Shi Wu Du gritted through his blood-covered teeth, “Qing Xuan! I can’t leave you alone like this! If I die there’s no way you’ll be able to survive in this world, so you might as well come with me!” ...

Shi Qing Xuan broke down, “...Ge ge, I beg you I beg you, please stop talking, please shut up. Help…”

However, Shi Wu Du’s smug arrogance was undaunted, “Qing Xuan, ge ge will go ahead first. I will wait for you down below. Hahahahaha…”

Considering those are his last lines, it’s fair to say he may indeed have planned on them both dying. But again, he’s repeating the same exact flaw that got them into this situation in the first place: assuming he knows what is best for Shi Qing Xuan, when really what Shi Qing Xuan wants is just for his brother to be okay--he was more than okay with giving up his heavenly official status, for example, as long as it was going to be okay. Shi Wu Du’s inability to understand this is heartbreaking.

But even though Shi Wu Du could not understand this about his brother, his deep love for his brother parallels He Xuan’s tragic love for his family as well. As he even notes before he dies:

He used those broken arms that were bleeding profusely to tug He Xuan’s collar, “Because I see the you right now who is so filled with rage, so filled with suffering, so filled with hate, yet you are still powerless in bringing your family back. You’re still nothing more than a ghost in the gutters of the shadows. BE AS MAD AS YOU WANT, THEY’RE LONG GONE! But me, and my brother, we’ve lived for so long, and we’ve been heavenly officials for hundreds of years, so even if he can’t be one any longer, even he can’t live anymore, he still profited. I’M STILL THE VICTOR SO I FEEL EVEN BETTER THAN YOU! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA…”

Again, this ties into the idea of privilege--no matter what He Xuan does now, he will never have his family back. And as such Shi Wu Du cannot fully understand the pain He Xuan is in, having lost his family and his rightful place in the heavens. But in pursuing controlling his own fate via revenge, He Xuan demonstrates the same flaw of Shi Wu Du’s: he tramples on the fates of others.

Shi Qing Xuan was completely innocent. Shi Wu Du treated He Xuan as just a tool to help his brother; He Xuan treated Shi Qing Xuan as a tool to help him get to Shi Qing Xuan’s brother. And yet it’s implied that not all of He Xuan’s feelings for Shi Qing Xuan were bitter--he knew Shi Qing Xuan was a good person, and gave him chances to denounce his brother’s actions.

He Xuan whipped around and started pacing back and forth within the hall of Nether Water Manor, growling, “I’ve given you chances!”

Shi Qing Xuan shut his eyes, clenching his fists. Xie Lian recalled that excessively furious “Fine. Very well!” back at the town of Fu Gu, and that scene of ‘Ming Yi’ blocking Shi Qing Xuan’s path to follow Pei Ming in going to the East Sea.

Only, every time, Shi Qing Xuan had chosen to help Shi Wu Du.

He whispered, “...I’m sorry.”

He Xuan stopped. He demanded, “And what good is your apology?”

That row of four urns were placed squarely in front of Shi Qing Xuan, as if they too were jeering at his feather light sorry, drilling misery into his heart, scorching his innards, like everything he said would be seen through. Shi Qing Xuan begged, “...I know it’s futile, but I…”

And again:

Before he finished his sentence, He Xuan placed his hand over his head and gripped his hair. Shi Qing Xuan’s soul was going to leave his body, the iron chains banged and clanged against the wall madly, “MING-XIONG! MING-XIONG! I’M SORRY, I’M SORRY I’M SORRY I’M SORRY I’M SORRY I’M SORRY I’M SORRY! WE’RE THE ONES WHO SINNED! WE’RE THE ONES WHO ARE WRONG. IT’S MY FAULT! MY BROTHER ONLY DID WHAT HE DID BECAUSE OF ME. MY BROTHER’S GONE MAD, HE’S CRAZY CAN’T YOU SEE! I… YOU… YOU…”

He wanted to beg, to pray for mercy, but his pleas wouldn’t leave his lips, and he could only use his eyes to kowtow. He Xuan watched him, and in a fleeting moment, he seemed to have remembered something. He calmed and stopped.

Seeing this, it was like there was a thread of hope, and Shi Qing Xuan let out a breath of relief, tears finally rolling down. But before he could speak, he heard He Xuan’s cruel voice rang, “You’ve called the wrong person.”

And this gets to Shi Qing Xuan’s greatest strength and also, like the others’, his biggest flaw: his love for his loved ones. And it reveals something of what He Xuan was thinking: you don’t know who I am. He was never Ming-Xiong, but He Xuan, and the whole refusal to acknowledge his identity and what he had done to earn his ascension was cruelly ignored by Shi Wu Du.

Because part of what He Xuan wanted was to have someone know him, acknowledge him as mattering. He transformed himself into a female form around Shi Qing Xuan because Shi Qing Xuan asked him to, clearly wanting to get close to Shi Qing Xuan, to the point when Shi Qing Xuan insisted he was his best friend. But even in the end, Shi Wu Du tells him everything he’s done does not matter, that it’s all futile.

On the topic of Shi Qing Xuan and his love for his family and friends paralleling both his brother’s love for him and He Xuan’s own mourning for his beloved family, it presents an interesting conflict that again gets at this core desire to be acknowledged for who he is in He Xuan. Because what exactly was he expecting by giving Shi Qing Xuan chances? Would He Xuan have denounced his family, the family he claims to be so moved by, had they done something similar? Considering that he’s not really motivated by righteousness, I doubt it. So why was he holding Shi Qing Xuan to an higher standard? Because he’s a god? Or because it was really about himself in the end? Or more likely, a combination of the two? Did he just want to know what kind of person Shi Qing Xuan was, and by extent Shi Wu Du? Did he want something better to exist?

If he wanted to know what kind of people they were, he should have looked in the mirror, because he is very much the same as both of them. And by killing a part of himself and breaking another part of himself in the person who truly loved him and thought of him as his best friend and whom he clearly, to an extent, cared for as well, he’s unlikely to find that his bitter fate has changed very much.

Anyways off to cry again.