#xz events

[xiaozhan-appreciation]

Xiao Zhan Studio | Weibo Update [2024-01-12]:

[xiaozhanhub]

Xiao Zhan [33/∞]

[anotherdescentintomadness]

When Wang YiBo is Dripping in Finesse

Want a print?

[zhansww]

[xcziel]

apropos of nothing my favorite jing boran thing is the time he walked the red carpet on jackson wang's arm

[svibian]

my delusional ass thinking wyb will wear something colourful tomorrow can't wait to see black suit variation number 529

[accio-victuuri]

Bojunyixiao’s Weibo night 2023/2024 🎉🎉

can you believe we’re here again. no matter how problematic sina weibo is as a platform, their awards night is a day cpfs look forward to because our boys will be attending. even if we know they won’t interact or anything, the fact that they get to attend the same event is enough for us.

i will just include the recap for the past years on here, the 2019/2020 being very short cause i feel like that has been widely speculated and talked about already. then 2021 and 2022. this post will discuss the event and stuff that happened + some commentary + cpn clownery. enjoy!!!!!

I. CPFs team building and showing strength

It would not be fair to exclude this feat that cpfs achieved with the free tickets for Weibo night. Even if we had no idea if both of them will attend, cpfs tried to grab tickets just in case it happens so we will be prepared. In the first round, we surprised all other fan groups with how we dominated and it set the rhythm for the next rounds. Trust cpfs to set the trend and make other fandoms “wake up”. lol. They can say what they want about cpfs but we all know that part of the hate is because they do not understand why we’re still here. They don’t get why we are this strong and a happy group.

My favorite thing that happened was when the top profile photos spelled out BJYXSZD + heart with a mole. It doesn’t stop there tho, the next week/round, we still dominated so Sina Weibo tried to save face by doing some tactics to suppress us. Nevertheless, every week, more of us got tickets because of the help of our little turtle fandom.

There were also efforts to get top comments on Weibo Night posts but I won’t get into that anymore cause we usually do that. But the thought of showing strength “online” as what the boys advertised is sweet.

Years later, we are still as strong as ever and shall remain that way. and that’s all thanks to each and every turtle out there who chooses positivity & makes sure our community remains a safe space.

II. The anticipation and announcements

It’s safe to say that this year, XZ is a sure attendee cause he always tops the voting at this event. However, some were still not sure cause he did not attend other public events last year like 10c starlight or NYE events cause he is busy with filming his projects. On 1/10 evening tho, a rather unsavory rumor made it on HS which was a signal that weibo night was getting desperate and wanted some noise for their event. lol. maybe there are other parties involved, but the intent is the same. I will also just mention the issue that happened on 1/9 with Chunzhen and them withdrawing lottery tickets supposedly won by certain fans. But the next day, Weibo lottery decided to honor the win and gave the tickets. I have no reaction to this tbh, and that’s why i didn’t talk about this separately and at length on my blog. It’s the brand / fandom that i have nothing to do with’s issue. As a turtle, we all know how CZ is with certain things so i’m not surprised that this happened. LOL.

I honestly feel for XZ, he is out there working hard and minding his own business but people and circumstances keep dragging him into irrelevant incidents.

As for WYB, everyone thought he wasn’t gonna attend. This is the same energy as last year. People are busier with grabbing tickets for his SDC6 finals and completely ignored weibo night ( as they should ). There was still some hope tho, cause if you think about it, he attended a lot of platform events. Tencent, IQIYI, GQ MOTY and 2 NYE shows. So why not Weibo Night? I have said it before, but one thing that I loved about WYB attending multiple events by the end of last year was it’s a show of his position and professionalism in the industry. He can go anywhere and be welcomed — he has good relations with almost everyone and that is important in their industry.

I know he is not fond of public events, but i’d like to think he says yes because of his professional relationship with these platforms/companies. I was never a fan of when people flex that their fave “will not go to xx because they did something to him etc.” LOL. That’s not how any industry works. You can’t burn bridges and I’m happy that WYB doesn’t do that. It’s also a testament of how much of a good boy he is 🤍

Anyway, back to the timeline. On 1/10, Weibo announced some winners and the boys are on there. I guess One & Only winning was a clue that WYB will go. Then a so/o account gave a tip that WYB will announce his attendance to an event on 1/11 @ 13:00. So by the evening of 1/10, it was mostly confirmed that WYB will be going.

The next day, 1/11, Weibo Night account started posting emoji clues for the remaining celebrities to be added in their guest lineup. A few hours later, both the boys announced their attendance. What’s different this time tho is aside from the usual copy-paste caption, there is a reminder for everyone to not do any fan activities at the venue. more details was also added in the comment. I guess they don’t want a repeat of what happened last year with the crowds. It caused a delay & cancellation of the red carpet. Both XZS and YBO reposted with more guidelines to follow like no gatherings and light signs etc.

i know weibo dictated the posting time but the 13 kadian is sending me! yizhan! 🫶🏼

The BJYX ST mods also sent out a message to not do any offline support.

There are more fandom drama after the announcement with other groups but i won’t add that here anymore cause it will only rot our brain. && it’s so much better to focus on the boys!

III. Pre show discussion

On the eve of Weibo Night, GG attended an awards show and it gave us some sweet candy. The most interesting to me is the choice of Alexander McQueen and the first two celebrities tagged by the brand on their weibo in 2024. This is giving me Dsquared vibes. Also how it almost mirrors the wedding-ish vibes they had last Weibo night. I know we as cpfs are somehow programmed to seeing connections but honestly, they don’t make it hard.

Late at night too, Weibo started showing opening screens of attendees and of course they didn’t put them in the same group/frame. This is understandable cause they wouldn’t put the top male celebrities together and knowing how both their fandoms hate each other. Also, how the grouping went, WYB’s was more of the “movie group”. That won’t stop me from being a bit better tho. lol. Cause if they can’t put them in the same frame like that, there is just no way they will be on the same stage or even sat remotely close to each other.

A photo from inside the venue also showed the projected commercial on stage is WYB & Chunzhen 😂😂😂😂😂

I can just imagine XZ smiling when he sees.

There were also talks of the both of them being on the second row. XZ was already seated way before the ceremony started, and their names are so close but cpfs were anticipating since WYB was not inside yet. We were all waiting to see if it will happen. WYB is supposedly next to YZ but then we see that Jackson sat there. We joked that he should stay there so WYB’s place will be taken and he will have no choice but to sit next to XZ 😂😂😂

IV. Red Carpet shenanigans

🟢 WYB’s red carpet walk

I honestly didn’t get the whole look tho when some people pointed out that it’s the glam version of what he wears when he plays golf — i kinda got it. For his past platform events like GQ, IQIYI & 10C, his red carpet were really casual. I guess that’s what he wants — to be comfortable walking the carpet. There were also some praising him for going against the norm. Well, I have to say tho that his face really stood out. Minimal to no make up look. He was so handsome! 🫶🏼

🔴 XZ’s red carpet walk

I love his outfit! It’s black but still got that something special to make him stand out. &&& I honestly love the hair! I thought I would cry because of how short it is now but it suits him. I mean, he looks gorgeous in anything but you know what I mean ☺️

CPN: XZ signed his name beside/very close to WYB. granted, there are so many signatures there but i’m wondering if he recognized his husband’s signature. lol. In this simple way, they can be next to each other!

V. Weibo night links

XIAO ZHAN

Photoshoot for red carpet look

Photoshoot for second outfit

Xiao Zhan winning Outstanding Actor of the Year

WANG YIBO

Photoshoot for red carpet look // Photoshoot BTS video

Yibo winning popular filmmaker of the year

Yibo-Official post for Weibo Night

* This is incomplete cause we still don’t have ( at the moment of posting ), the BTS for XZS photoshoot + their photos while receiving the awards.

VI. THE SUGAR RUSH 🍭🍬

• WYB’s personal post of him and the caption. The freakin caption. Look, i know that WYB’s brand is all about being the “cool guy” so maybe that’s why he said in the caption that he likes the HS about him. But the thing is, it’s totally out of character. How many events did he attend with him going so high up the HS with much more interesting tags but he chose this? Also, he really needed to do so that he used his own account??? For a couple of years now, yibo-official is the one that posts for him when he is at an event. So the speculation is this one is personal and amused him so much, seeing that their HS for the same event they are both at matched! Also, when WYB posted that, CPFs flooded the top comments! Understandably so. 💛

• The signed photos which i’m not sure about. I actually saw someone post that earlier and people were clowning about how it can’t be real.

But then, an account posted a giveaway with all the other attendees and it included the couple photo. I’m putting this down as clownery, cause on their end there will always be deniability. The autographed photo was also deleted by the account a bit later, which is actually expected cause it will bring trouble. lol.

• XZS and YBO matching again! Look at how they arranged the photos. How a few of the snaps are not in theme with the rest. Nothing new here!

• The same song and dance of them missing to see each other. As soon as XZ was gone, WYB came in to sit down. Good thing he had Jackson to talk too a bit and he was gone again after 10 mins! Hopefully they could spend time together backstage away from the cameras. 📷

People are pointing out that XZ was checking his phone lol. probably checking if WYB is giving him a signal to leave so they can do their usual operation. These two! Honestly!

• Not really CPN, but a similarity. In the red carpet, both of them didn’t do the “activities” that others were supposed to. If you watched the red carpet, there is a point where they have to choose something from a wall with numbers. there is also a choice to take a photo from one of the “themes” by they both bypassed it. I was rolling my eyes cause a WYB anti was trying to make a big deal out of it, but then XZ did the exact same thing. Some people just don’t understand how celebrities like them operate. Not to say that they are above everyone else, it’s just that they do things differently.

• ZSWW fake rumor account posted at 19:21. At this time the red carpet was already finished. It doesn’t say who is saying which line. I’m interpreting this incident to be something that happened today backstage 🤡🤡🤡

"A kiss, a kiss...

"Oh, okay, let's talk about it later when we get back.”

"There will be a surprise when I go back 😏”

"What?"

“You'll know when you go back”

Then they posted again, at 21:05 with a much longer one but it doesn’t seem be pertaining to today’s events.

• There is a photo/video of XZ talking to Huang Bo! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! and now we’re thinking about how they haven’t cooperated with each other but seem familiar. Yes, we don’t know all their relationship and friends off camera but my mind immediately went to the SDC 3 clowning. That’s most likely when they became close. lol.

• Heaven’s choice cause WYB was sat at #23 ( Love Zhan )

• This time, both of them left the venue after they received their awards. XZ didn’t stay like he did the previous years. Good for them! It’s better to spend time together 🤍 I know that most of us expected what happened today, them not being in the same place at the same time. Tho some may see that in a negative way, I actually see this as an example of trying to keep their private life separate from the public. Tho a big part of their lives are on camera and that’s how they met. I think what they are doing is really to reserve the time they have & are seen together in private. Maybe some can’t see it that way and will be frustrated but at the end of the day, we have to respect their choice.

• XZ’s 2nd outfit is by Balmain! He tends to wear this at events that they both attend 🥹🥹🥹

• It’s now XZ’s turn to see the cpf headband light signs! Lol. I hope he saw it. We all know that he is near sighted sooooo….

====

If there are post event CPNs, i will do a separate discussion. See you in the next Weibo Night! ✌🏼

[goldrosh]

in the last sugar rush post from 2023, @accio-victuuri asked us to list our top 5 cpns from last year but since I'm late I thought on doing a post. thank you for those recopilatory monthly posts, btw! they're very helpful and when you read them you also relive those beautiful moments. and overall for always keeping us updated about everything going on with our boys.

so here's my top 5 cpns from 2023

the inner mongolia saga: I decided to call it like that for everthing that happened from the moment xz went to film there. it started with yb's first selfie of 2023 and all the clowning about him perhaps visiting the loch set, the infamous black cloth, all the speculation about him owning a leica camera, the confirmation of him owning a leica camera, xz's birthday post that also had him posing with a leica camera, the camping pic, and everything culminating with yb's own pics taken in inner mongolia. honestly, september and october were such busy months to being a clown, I love how everything just developed little by little and fell like pieces of a puzzle.

the suspicious change on xz's filming schedule: when ybo reported that yb won't be able to participate in the star of the one and only promo period, everyone got worried, since when yb takes days off while sick? the next day tho, some reports came in; after days of going to film at a certain early time, xz was going a little bit late. "interesting" said every turtle in the world, "let's see how this continues". and boy, it did continue, casually until yb's recovery. a happy coincidence.

anniversary?: when we all thought nothing was toping the inner mongolia saga, november 19 happened. and to think everything started very innocently with yb updating his douyin and then everything scalating into the possibility of them sorting out the seriousness of their relationship one november 19... I honestly loved how everyone started to bring up years of clues and how it just made sense.

wedding outfit: this one is very self explanatory, their weinbo night outfits that strangely looked like wedding outfit. I would have loved to see them both walking out the red carpet but we all know how weinbo loves to self sabotage I mean I enjoy when they do that but not that night! I like to think that the reason why they chose those outfits is because their first weinbo night is also called "divorce night" and, after years of not attending the same event, they wanted to give us a wedding night. yes, I am that much of a clown, thank you.

ybo's birthday post: this one hit me so hard that I still tear up whenever I read "yb, the sunset is very beautiful". to most, that post it's just a very well written birthday wish, but if you're like me and believe xz wrote it then knowing that these two boys love each other so deeply is reason enough to warm your heart. "time does not have a pause button, yet you seem to hold the password for the occasional pauses in the world". cry with me 🥲

honorific mention to: THE hat (yb made it hard to ignore lmao), everything is lovely and its promo (at first I wasn't trying to read too much into the colors that were used to promote the ep but then the bone necklace appeared and changed my mind), mysterious driver (just so you all know I'm totally sold on this) and overall this year that seemed to have them together for longer periods of time.

[bzhitstruth]

About hints and patterns

Throughout the history of GGDD, we have noticed that they sometimes act as messenger birds for each other - one hints at some event, and then it happens to other. This is a direct hint.

But there is another type of hints - when the event that one of them hints at has already happened before, but we don’t know about it yet and don't understand this hint. But then the other person tells us about this event, and only then does it become clear to us that the hint has already been made. If we don't consider this a coincidence, then we will have to admit that such information could have been known to another person only through personal communication, because it was not publicly known about it.

I want to recall a few examples of such cases, they occurred over a not very long period of time - less than a year.

All this is fake, CPN and empty thoughts. Clownery. 🤡

DD's “Water show” — GG's vlog

On July 10, 2023, the event was held in Beijing dedicated to the premiere of One and only. DD participated in it, he danced and splashed water on the audience. While dansing DD made a couple of gestures that the turtles paid attention to - the “figure eight” and the famous “chongya” gesture. Everyone, of course, remembered the meaning of these gestures and was glad that DD made them. But then it turned out that he did them for a reason.

On July 11, GG’s vlog was released, and suddenly both of these gestures appeared in this vlog. Can this be considered two coincidences that occurred within 24 hours?

No one, of course, knew in advance what would be in GG’s vlog, the vlog was filmed a long time ago, but it turns out that DD knew this the day before the vlog was released.

Leica

October 3, 2023 DD, while in Paris, shows off his Leica camera. The turtles remembered that once upon a time GG also had Leica, and assumed that DD probably received the gift from GG.

But the next time a shocking surprise awaits us - at midnight from October 4 to 5, the congratulation to GG appears on his birthday and GG's photos with Leica, and even the camera model is similar. GG’s photos were taken back in the summer, and DD told us that “GG will appear with Leica tomorrow.” In this case, the version of coincidence seems quite weak.

"Do everything for your love"

On November 8, 2023, a new DD endorsement (YaYa) was released. A post appears on the brand’s Weibo account, the text of which contains words spoken about DD: “他为热爱全力以赴” (“he does everything for love”).

On November 9, NARS live stream with GG is released, at the end of which GG gives the wish speech, including saying: “希望大家为自己热爱全力以赴” (“I hope everyone will do everything for their love”).

As you can see, he uses the same phrase almost verbatim. It is not known what of this happened first - the stream was recorded or the advertising text was agreed upon, but if this accordance was intentional, then it was possible to find out the details only through personal communication. It could be a coincidence, but after a few months the following happens:

GG's vlog - Anta advertising

On March 1, 2024, XZS posts Milan vlog, where the viewer is offered the concept of a circle and round objects, the idea of the cycle of life or another interpretation. The image of the moon also runs throughout the vlog.

On March 2, the advertisement for Anta is released, in the video we see a suspiciously similar concept - a round basketball that flashes throughout the entire video and (suddenly!) turns into the moon above building, and the drawing of a lace that resembles the stylized name “border” in GG's vlog. There are even sunset. Even the text for the post uses the same words 边界 (“border”) - 去探索，多元未知的边界 "Go explore diverse and unknown borders” (full video is here).

I don't know what the brand had in mind, unless consider it pure coincidence, but they certainly couldn't make an ad copying GG's vlog concept overnight! Of course, it was known about the “border” and the stylization of the name since the GG's October vlog, but a circle, a setting sun, a ball that turns into the moon? Next day. How?

The Coin

And now, this coin. Five days passed between GG's vlog and the release of Chang Feng Po Lang trailer, but the consistent appearance of the coin that is the "protagonist" of the vlog and the coin that DD rubs his cheek with in the trailer is amazing. If you pay attention, even the sizes of these coins are the same.

I don’t think that the image of the coin in the vlog was subordinated only to the idea of hinting at the imminent release of the series with DD, probably the idea is much deeper, but what do we know about GG’s creative thinking and about his ability to convey a message very subtly?

All this could be considered coincidences if this didn't happen so often and according to the same pattern: event - hint – explanation. I’m sure I haven’t listed everything and there is more, this is just what I noticed.

Perhaps this is one of the things that keeps us firmly in this "rabbit hole" - their connection, which sometimes manifests itself in unexpected ways, their ingenuity to show this connection. I would compare them to the ocean, which always seems to remain the same, but which you never get tired of looking at.

💚❤️.

[bjyxobsessed]

The behind the scenes videos - SO MANY COINCIDENCES! 🔥🤭😆

🍬XZ’s video opens with a tiny video screen (and don’t think I don’t see all those little read and green lights!) and later in Yibo’s video there’s the coordination with the TV props and this shot with the video camera… almost as if they were making it look like he filmed XZ’s earlier 😉

By the way the music in Yibo’s video is Dayflower by Cathedral Bells - gotta love how the Captain hammers 🔨🔨🔨😂

XZ’s video featured a glimpse of a white peony - and we know whose nickname that was when he first started in the industry 😏

And just a little of my own CPN, it seems like the photo shoots where Yibo is rumored to be with XZ or they are getting ready for an event together, we catch these little glimpses of fond smiles… Which seem so reminiscent of interactions when they were filming and promoting that I like to think he’s looking at Yibo 🥹

But the 🍬 to beat ALL other candy is the video XZ dropped on Douyin after the event. Yibo left the venue early (supposedly he had to get back to his filming set - Baby had a LONG day with work in the early morning then prepping for and doing the show).

The post says something like “It happened that as Xiao Zhan walked in, light and darkness meets.” UM HELLO? Yes sir we DID see the two of you in black and white but thanks for hitting me over the head about it 😂

We got soft-focus Xiao Zhan walking around - a house? Hotel room? Like he’s waiting for someone… With the smooth r&b jazzy sounds of Aaron Taylor singing “I will leave the lights on until you get home” before the music transitions to something you keep on your “Sexy Alone Time with Bae” playlist…

YOU CAN NOT TELL ME ALL THIS WAS NOT PURPOSEFUL! Imagine your partner is working so hard, squeezes some time to be able to show up at the same event with you, then has to be right back at work… It’s a rough day for them🥺 Isn’t this just the type of sweet shout out you’d post if you lived in a world where you couldn’t shout it from the rooftops?? 🥹

It’s still hitting me right in the feels… XZ doesn’t drop 🍬candy, he drops 💣BOMBS that destroy with sweetness…

All this and I didn’t even touch on the rumor that some XZ-only fans spotted them together at the hotel or the video from right after the show ended and XZ came backstage, where fans say you can hear him asking his staff where Yibo is…

Anyway, this is all CPN and dreams 😏😉

[xiaozhan-appreciation]

Xiao Zhan Studio | Weibo Update [2024-01-13]:

[xiaozhanhub]

Xiao Zhan [31/∞]

[rainbowsky]

Hi! I've been browsing and read somewhere about some "boyfriend" that xz had in the past called Kyle. Is it true????

Hi Anon,

Fake, fan fiction, CPN.

There were rumors about GG dating a man during or shortly after his college years. I don't remember his name. There were photos of them together that could be seen as 'couple-ish' and some other evidence of them being especially close.

There were also rumors of him dating a woman, also with photos of them looking 'couple-ish' and other supposed evidence.

There were also rumors that he was engaged to a woman at one point. These are based on pretty flimsy circumstantial evidence. For example, there is a photo of him in a jewelry store with a woman. The 'he was dating a woman' people claim he was shopping with his girlfriend for a ring (don't guys usually buy the ring themselves before proposing?), while the 'he was dating a man' people claim a friend was helping him shop for a ring for his boyfriend.

Neither of these interpretations hold a lot of credibility. They could have been visiting a friend at work, they could have been shopping for a friend or relative's birthday, he could have been helping her buy something for her girlfriend. They could have gone there to take shelter from a storm. They could have been doing research for a school assignment. You get the idea - it's all totally made up to suit whatever narrative the storyteller wants to push.

GG also mentions in interviews that his parents were pressuring him to marry (pretty much all people in China are pressured to marry), and in one he even talked about his parents buying him a home for his future marriage. People often run with this as further evidence that he was engaged, but from what Chinese friends have told me it's not unusual for parents in China to buy a home for their son, long before he's even in a relationship.

Not only would any future hoped for engagement first require that he could provide a home for his family, but it's typical for Chinese families (and Asian families in general) to provide for each other in whatever way they can. If parents can afford to get their child a home or help them buy a home, they will. And as the parents age, they will move in with their child's family and be cared for at home by their children.

People will make claims and cook up stories that best support their narrative of who GG is. It happens on both sides of the gay/straight argument. I find all this so pointless.

Even the photos are inconclusive. GG is known to be huggy and affectionate with his friends. Whether he has his arm around a man or a woman, it says nothing about whether they are dating.

We should also remember that a lot of dating rumors - in fact, almost ALL dating rumors - are crafted by people trying to harm GG and DD. Even rumors from the past. So we should be ultra careful with those claims - gay or straight - and take them with a huge grain of salt.

Here's the bottom line as far as I'm concerned: GG and DD's dating history is irrelevant to their current life, and irrelevant to their relationship, and irrelevant to being a turtle. These stories can only ever be speculation and conjecture and theory. Nothing will ever be confirmed. So - from my perspective - it's a waste of time to even bother digging into it.

It's also - in my personal opinion - a bit off limits. Those events took place prior to his becoming famous. Others are free to form their own opinions, but mine is that it's really none of our business. I totally understand the curiosity, but it's just not something I'm going to go digging around for.

Semi-related posts:

GG Sexuality

Likelihood of GG and DD marrying women

[stoopid-turtle]

Consuming Candies Pt. 1: GG and DD are le Gay

Everything is fake. I make up stuff for fun. Do not believe a word of it.

Intro post for this series

I'm a nerd so I feel I need to asterisk just about anything. Basically, this is my list of moments/candies that cemented for me a few things: 1) DD is hella gay; 2) GG is some flavor of gay; 3) that GGDD definitely had a thing around the time of the TU filming; 4) that they're still together.

1 and 2 are needed to establish 3 and, unless you go for a very different timeline than other turtles, 3 is needed to establish 4.

Such. A. Nerd.

I divided this up into 2 posts because I'm incredibly long-winded.

So, #1: DD is incredibly incredibly gay. There is no doubt in my mind. Here's why, in order with the most convincing moments first. Once I accepted these, the following points were easier to wrap my head around.

a) DD checked out another guy's ass at the Tencent Awards Night and exclaimed "Handsome" to his co-star.

Just what it says on the tin. I've watched these 5 seconds over and over, and I can't wrap my head around any other explanation. The man passes by, DD's eyes clearly sweep down, then he says "Shuai!" I'm usually skeptical of lip-readings, but this is unmistakable.

I put this as the most convincing for me because it's not a bts, there's no need for fanservice, it's an official stream of a video and there is literally no other way to interpret this. It's incredibly blatant. He's into men (and, notably, his co-star in LoF is clearly in the know since he makes the comment to her).

(Honestly, it makes me a little uncomfortable, because I've noticed DD has started covering his mouth when speaking to companions at public events, presumably so that fans can't try to read his lips. I'm sure he did not expect that ass-ogle to be noticed by anyone)

b) "I'm not talking about WWX, I'm talking about XZ." I discussed this in my turtle origin story, but this moment in the bts really knocked me over the head with that fact that DD was outright hitting on XZ. There was no way to interpret this as them joking around with the fact that their characters were in a BL relationship (a la the director referring to them as "lovebirds" or someone on the crew calling xz DD's "wife"). DD straight up flirts with GG. Gets turned down because the phrase he used was taken the wrong way. Then calls him "beautiful" (or "fairy-like"). When GG rejects this as not fitting WWX, DD just clarifies that he's talking about XZ not WWX. (Which, wow, what a line. DD is bold)

There's no het explanation for that moment, unless you want to posit that there was an intentional fabrication of fanservice (I address that issue elsewhere).

Add this on top of DD's other comments to XZ, calling him "erotic", asking for kisses, asking for him to sleep with him, declaring his love. A lot of this is joking around, but there's a safety in joking around when you're flirting with someone you like. You can retreat to the joke if they don't like it.

But this moment isn't even a joke. It's sincere. DD's flirting the fuck with GG.

It's not even hard to believe coming off a). DD is clearly into men. GG is very charismatic and seems to attract the attention of just about everybody who meets him (I get serious There's Something about Mary vibes from him sometimes in how people talk about him) (I am old. My references are old). Is it so hard to think that DD would shoot his shot?

He's on a cast with the guy, playing the love interest. They get along incredibly well. DD has a pretty high opinion of himself, to say the least. I'm not at all surprised he'd make a go for it.

There are several moments in the bts where GG teases DD for sending memes of himself (only the handsome ones) or sending (again, handsome) selfies of himself. It is funny, but it also strikes me as someone trying to get some reaction from his crush. It feels a little awkward to have GG openly teasing him about it but DD gets his revenge by showing off the pouty photo of GG, so he clearly managed to deal with it. (And GG clearly agrees that DD is handsome, so DD's text campaign worked)

c) The Nike rainbow shoes and ice cream.

Honestly, I wouldn't have this on here except for this post by potteresque-ire here on tumblr. Within the context in China at the time, and with the response DD received from his fans, it's clear that the rainbow Nikes + Ben & Jerry's were meaningful to DD. It's a shame that the political situation with Nike later required him to fall in line with the CCP and remove it, but I trust potteresque on the context that this post was a Big Deal.

d) His involvement with TU.

I've heard mixed things about the expectations for TU at the time of casting. The landscape for BL was rocky and the production company was unproven, but it was recognized that MDZS was a huge IP and so there was a chance that it could be a gigantic hit. There was also an equal risk that it would completely flop or not be allowed to air. Still, there's a fantastic interview with the non-GGDD cast of TU where the interviewer asks them if they knew that TU was going to be so big. There's a moment of awkward silence until somebody (I think WZC) just says, "No."

My understanding is that WYB was the biggest star they got on the cast. He had other opportunities, no doubt some that were more promising and that didn't result in him losing the support of his homophobic fans. But DD put his hat in the ring anyway.

Why? Maybe he wanted to roll those dice to see if he could sign on to something that would be huge. But he's also gay, and there's every possibility that he just wanted to act in a gay romance.

(This is putting aside some of the speculation that DD and GG knew each other or were even dating prior to casting.)

I bet he saw it as a rare opportunity to play a (censored) gay character, and he was willing to lose fans to do so (much like with the Nike post). DD is bold.

I go into this more when I talk about GG.

(Also, I don't know if he specifically went in for the LWJ role or if, like literally everybody else on that cast, he was trying to get the role of Xue Yang (srsly, what's up with this???), or if he just kept his options open)

e) He has no interest in women.

Just because a guy likes men doesn't mean he also doesn't like women. Except with DD, he seems to have 0 interest in women. At first, I could chalk this up to him being shy, not having much experience around girls, etc. But after a certain point, his clear disinterest has to be taken in consideration with his overt flirtiness and enthusiasm about men.

Basically, he doesn't have a problem with women. They're just not his focus in life or love. He doesn't light up around women. He lights up around men. I know this is real subjective, and that displeases my nerd heart, so the other points matter too, but this is really the heart of things. DD isn't interested in women.

Add onto this some implications he's made that he is...um...not sexually frigid (I tried to find this clip and was unsuccessful. Ah well.) and...well, you can't be shy with women and still be a horndog Leo if you're straight. That horndog energy is being directed somewhere else.

In sum, DD is just really, really gay. Don't hit me with those, "But his hobbies are so dudely" nonsense. Go meet some actual gay guys, list out their hobbies, then get back to me. DD. Is. Gay. Full stop.

#2. GG is some flavor of gay.

GG's always the more puzzling one. DD is so...loud and unapologetic. GG plays close to the vest.

I'm struck by some screenshots I saw of his university peers gossiping about him back in those days. People explicitly said he wasn't gay, so if GG was out back then, he was only out to a few people.

He came from a traditional family, and I get the vibe he was incredibly nervous at the idea of entering a gay relationship. I doubt he "didn't realize" he was gay until he met DD, because I think even the scaredest, most closeted person knows on some level that they're gay. But I think GG might have been set to remain in the closet for the long-haul.

There's an interview of GG done while filming where he's asked about DD (he smiles real big and it's really sweet). He gives the usual response of DD being slow to warm up to people, but when he's asked about his current impression, he exclaims that DD is "a lunatic" (I laugh every time I watch that). Then he comments that DD isn't scared to be "unconventional".

I can't say for certain, but it feels like it's in part a reference to DD being more bold with his sexual orientation. GG keeps things more buttoned up and close to his chest, but he clearly finds DD's lunacy appealing as he signed onto it.

Honestly, GG is hard for me to get a read on. When I see DD outside of the UT bts, I can see the continuity in his personality. I mean, yeah, everything's turned up to 11 in the UT bts because he's clearly infatuated with GG. But he's still a gremlin outside of the bts, just in a more subdued and less targeted way.

With GG, I struggle sometimes to see the continuity between his personality in the bts and his personality outside it (the wig doesn't help with this. it makes him look like a different person). Granted, I haven't delved into his solo work near as much as I have for DD (and, notably, he doesn't seem to do as much unscripted stuff as DD), but he strikes me as a person who is very adept at code-switching depending on the situation. DD is DD is DD, 24/7. GG is more adaptive to his surroundings.

I imagine that's one of the things that drew GG to DD (beyond the massive flirt-campaign...I mean, who could resist DD when he's going so freaking hard for it?).

Do I think GG's attracted to women? Honestly, not sure. I've not seen enough of his interactions with women or his history with women to say (I've spent way more time with DD outside of TU than GG). But I'm pretty sure he's attracted to men for these reasons:

a) His ideal life painting.

Put aside all the other interpretations people have for that. Just the fact that his ideal life included one (1) other person and that that person is a man is significant.

Admittedly, I don't know the background of the painting. It was used in an ad campaign, and if you watch the full video that showed the painting, the cat and bike elements are shown as inspired by stuff GG saw in a walk. I'm not sure how much creative control he had over the whole thing, and I've not been able to find anything in English about it.

But assuming that he had the freedom to paint his genuine ideal life, or at least enough of it to be the one to choose having a man in there (and why would the hotel specifically ask for a male companion in the painting?), then there's no het explanation for that. GG's ideal life is to be at the beach with his cat and another man.

b) When he wore Pride shoes to an interview.

Not just something that incidentally had a rainbow pattern. Straight-up Pride merch.

IME, allies don't wear Pride merch. Any ally I know who wears Pride merch will eventually come out as LGBT+ at some point. If you wear Pride merch, you're gay. (That's the rule)

Okay, more seriously. I grew up in the grimmer days of the 90s and 00s in US South, before rainbow-washing was profitable and before most studios felt comfortable showing even the slightest amount of gay relationships. Back when wearing a rainbow was a serious statement that would attract notice and might get you beat up (I had multiple friends who were physically attacked. I avoided it bc I am a trickster a bisexual and therefore invisible). Back then, the only people who wore Pride merch were actually gay. I can't think of any exceptions.

Later, as the situation for LGBT+ folks improved in the US (let's put aside the anxiety of the current anti-trans wave), I have seen a couple self-identified allies who wear Pride merch. But in every case, that ally eventually came out as gay. The "ally" label was a useful stopping place in their comfort with being openly gay.

Things may be different in China. I think in some ways, it probably resembles the way things were when I grew up--before gay marriage was legal and when the majority of people expressed disgust with gay people. On the other hand, the homophobia of the US has a strong religious element that doesn't seem to be present in China.

But all that regardless, wearing Pride merch is meaningful. Even now in the US, when rainbows are everywhere. It's definitely meaningful in China, where same-sex relationships are censored in the media.

c) I've discussed DD's overt flirting already, but another part of that "I'm not talking about WWX, I'm talking about XZ" video that struck me was GG's response.

He smiles, crinkles his nose, and shyly looks down. This is such a classic "I'm being flirted with and I'm into it" response (shy-person flavor). No straight guy would react to DD flirting with him like that. That reaction only makes sense if XZ is into being flirted with by men, DD in this case.

d) The BDSM conversation in the cave, complete with GG making an obscene, um, tongue gesture.

I'm trying my best to picture this as a conversation between 2 straight guys, and I'm failing here. The whole conversation is gay. Add in the literal tongue in cheek and it's incredibly flirty and suggestive. Like with C, GG's responses are just...not straight. They only make sense in a flirty context, and not one that's playing with them acting as Wangxian.

e) His involvement in TU.

This follows what I wrote for DD above. XZ was not as big a name as DD was at the time, so he was a relative unknown trying out for a role (for Xue Yang's role, specifically) on a show that may never air.

GG likely didn't have as many options open to him as DD at that time, so you could try to argue that he was just trying out for as many roles as he could.

But honestly, I think anybody who signed onto TU has higher than average odds of being LGBTQ+ themselves. Think about it. If you're queer and in the industry, you have few to no opportunities to play a role that reflects your relationships. You have few opportunities to work on a set that is overtly okay with same-sex relationships (at least, of the fictional variety).

You hear that a BL novel is being adapted and while you know BL novels are mainly for straight women, it's still gonna be a gay romance. Maybe your only chance at being involved in filming a gay romance. Of course you're going to want to be in on that.

Being in the closet sucks. Not being able to be yourself fully sucks. Back when I was a gay teen in the 90s-00s, I would just look up photos of girls kissing online (not porn. just kissing) just because I never saw that and it fed something inside of me that was missing. A part of me that was never reflected back at me. I ached for more lesbian relationships in TV and books, and I watched so many shitty movies/tv shows just because there were lesbians in it.

The media landscape is much better now here in the US, but when I think about how queer folk in the industry in China might feel, I think back to myself as a younger queer lady bursting at the seams to immerse myself in a world that actually had a space carved for me.

So yeah, being on the UT, in of itself, is a signal to me. It doesn't mean that everybody involved with it was gay. But I do think that it means that the odds of any particular person being gay is higher than in a non-BL production.

Admittedly, there's no way to prove this, and who knows? Maybe gay men would be less likely to want to work on a BL production because of the strained relationship between gay men and the boy-love genre. But I kinda doubt that because when your relationships are censored, you'll latch onto anything you can get that even resembles them. I watched countless anime made for horny fanboys because they had lesbians in them. I watched, literally, anything, no matter who created it. I know other gay girls who watched lesbian porn of the type made by and for straight men because they just wanted to see their own desires reflected at them, even if the reflection was a little wonky.

And that's just with watching media. Signing up to act in a project means you also get to connect with other people who are hypothetically okay with gay relationships. Who might even be gay, themselves. Fuck yeah, you're gonna leap on that.

So, yeah. This point is the last for both DD and GG but it's important because it establishes how I think about the production of TU. If the set had more gay cast/crew given the subject matter of the show, is it really so far-fetched that some people would hook up? Or start a relationship?

Once I convinced myself that GG and DD are some flavor of gay, the rest wasn't hard to buy into at all. But that's for the next post. :)

I am a clown and everything I say is fake. Don't buy into it.

Next Post: Consuming Candies Pt 2: DD ❤️ GG and GG ❤️ DD

[wangxianficfinder]

Fic Finder / I'm in the mood for...

Feb 12th

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1. hello!! this is for yizhan fic finder, do u guys know the title of this story: wyb needs a date for an event bcos his date for years found a new partner. his manager suggested finding an escort(?) just for events then he found xz. i think there's a scene where xz do all the talk during that event bcos wyb isnt good with it. then there's a scene where yixing wants xz after wyb's done with him, something like that. i think i also remember the red carpet scene where the reporters shocked about xz and they like him or something, thats he's so handsome or what.

FOUND! The Upgrade Clause by fyredancer (E, 40k, YiZhan, Modern AU, Non-Famous XZ, Sugar dating, Mutual Pining, Blow Jobs, Love Bites, Sex Talk, Happy Ending)

~*~

[jowi8597]

"Cap gesture" & "raised fist gesture" - my comment to the recent bjyx cpn theory

One of the many reasons why mtjjs (Yibo's fans) dislike bjyx/yizhan cpfs so much is that they associate every little thing Yibo does with the other guy (xz), thus diminishing and depriving Yibo of his individuality and uniqueness. If it was just one thing every once in a while, I think most of us would just roll our eyes and let go, but when it happens every day, with every project, performance, commercial, etc., it's very hard to ignore. When you add to this our rational thinking and the knowledge that it's all a lie and that the theories these people create are made up out of thin air, irritation sets in.

Think about it, if you like someone a lot, you won't be able to calmly watch someone try to "erase" your favorite person by presenting them as someone else's shadow.

One of the mean ways to belittle individuality is to identify each little gesture with another person, especially if these are related to the personality and interests that define the essence, the core of this exact human being. Especially the gestures repeated since childhood, which are thus sweet memories, should be sacred.

Why am I writing about this now? I was frustrated to see cpfs trying to identify part of Yibo's dance at One and only promotional event with an unrelated person. It's about the „cap gesture".

The first thing is that this gesture is probably a natural part of the choreography and thanks to the video from another dancer, we can see the context.

"Cap gestures” are quite characteristic for dance / music styles like hip-hop and krump, less for breakdance, but such a fusion of styles is not unusual. When we add Yibo's roots - he's a dancer who started as a b-boy to change his dance style to hip-hop later, we can clearly see the sense of incorporating such a gesture into the choreography.

The "cap gesture” was also often used by Yibo in his childhood.

(here supercute video of 12yo Yibito 🥹)

Cpfs try to convince you that the gesture Yibo did during Ono dance is not a "cap gesture", but more like "finger glasses" (and thus imitating the xz’s gesture), but I don't think it resembles it at all.

We know that Yibo is a professional with a deep knowledge and understanding of streetdance, so to assume that he would incorporate a gesture that has little to do with streetdance into the choreography at such an important moment (promotion of his breakdance film) seems very unlikely.

The second thing I want to mention is another part of cpn. I mean the „raised fist gesture” that Yibo often uses in his performances, and which is also something that cpfs like to „link” to xz.

Well, my question is: was this gesture invented by xz and therefore is it completely unique for him? Answer: of course not! The gesture is a universal symbol of resistance and unity, the first appearance of which dates back to the mid-nineteenth century!

In addition, we also know that Yibo is an anime lover, and this gesture is characteristic of the popular anime "One piece" that Yibo likes.

(gesture from the anime versus Yibo's performances 😉)

(Yibo as his fav character from One Piece anime - Zoro, in Shu Uemura OP campaign)

To speculate that using this gesture would have anything to do with a former coworker is totally irrational. Please, be serious 😂

As for the fact that the „same” gestures appeared in the xz’s Doujin video a day later.. I don't feel like being attacked, so all I could say is that if you take the time and do some research, you'll quickly notice that the "Yibo first, xz later" "pattern” is repeated in 90% of cpn, be it issues of clothes, behavior, posting etc.. Draw your own conclusions! Jiayou! 😉

(Why do I comment on this? Cause I can 😉✌️)