ghostlyenola

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fake a smile in calm

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Face-off

Part 3 - Cheng Xiaoshi & Lu Guang

page 1 - 2 [coming soon]

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updates on Wednesdays and Sundays, early pages on my kofi (one page every two days) 🌻

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i saw this art by @ghostlyenola and absolutely needed to paint something inspired by it + ive been thinking about joker A Lot

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no trace left

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Link Click screening bits

Oough wanted it to be more comprehensive, but I feel my headache getting worse so I'll get out whatever I have first (pics, screenshots from discord)

A few cosplayers got interviewed in front of the standees by the bilibili crew and got free plushies!

...yea I'm a "cowardly" photo taker sorry xD

Lemme know if you guys want a closer look at the merch in the goodie bag (other than the tbhx ones I've already shown)

As for the director's cut version, there was nothing extra, only cuts

*for EP 1, right after Lu Guang shuts the curtain after the "this is your punishment for changing the past" flashback, the OP plays, then it skips to the end credits which they edit to flow into the middle of Ep 2 (as in, the whole Liu Xiao POV was skipped)

Ok, next up are the interview bits! Y'all didn't miss out on much

My recollection:

Another fan's recollection! (Mizu's friend)

After the link click interview, they played a PV for To be hero x that hasn't been released- maybe they'll release it before EP 1 airs, I'm guessing they wanted us to see it before they showed us EP 1 lol

And then they showed us EP 1- and let's just say I was too stunned to hear much of the tbhx interview afterwards

(I remember that lh0 confirmed that tbhx will be told through multiple povs though! And that any mysteries/questions that arise will be answered through all these povs. Oh, and also he made a joke about how it'll be less 刀/knife(/bladey/hurtful), before proceeding to reassure us that it won't be 刀 at all, which is a lie)(edit to add: low-key a reference to 时光带刀人 joke I presume)

I do have my criticisms, though I think they can kinda be rationalised. Overall I was already very impressed within the first few minutes, and I maintain my high hopes for the series! (Might even have gotten higher!)

@miyamiwu @yingdu-lover @whispersoflullaby

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catch you in time

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one of my favorites from last year ✨

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words literally cannot express how much of an absolute joy sgdlr is to me-

so i made a flowchart.

you’re welcome.

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Face-off

Part 2 - Qiao Ling & Cheng Xiaoshi

page 31 [END PART 2]

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Xia Fei is a green tea bitch (and I love him for it)

But first, a definition from Baidu:

Green tea bitch (绿茶婊, lǜ chá biǎo) = internet slang that initially referred to young models who appear pure and innocent but are actually materialistic and would use their looks to climb the social ladder. Over time, it evolved to also describe those who put on a no-makeup makeup look but claiming it’s natural. Their defining trait is pretending to be harmless, to appear as if they’re broken inside but no one can tell, and looking sickly but serene—all the while actually harboring ambitions greater than anyone else.

WAIT! Stay with me—I’m not saying Xia Fei slept his way to the top. Green tea is more of a vibe. I don’t really know how to explain it. It’s just something you’ll naturally understand after encountering them several times in media. I’ll just show several examples of Xia Fei being green tea to show my point.

My belief in green tea!Xia Fei started from this:

Xia Fei once again acted as an interpreter for Vein. The first time this happened was in YE4, when he was about to explain something to CXS after Vein said he looked tasty.

At first, I just found it really cute that Xia Fei knows his laoban so well that he can act as his interpreter, but then it hit me—

In the finale, how exactly did he know that Vein intended ShiGuang to be his substitute partners in the photoshoot? ShiGuang’s visit was sudden, and their request was even more unexpected. He and Vein weren’t really given the time to discuss it and come to an agreement with what to do.

Sure, XF could’ve inferred that Vein’s “serve me” and “pay with your body” translate to “work as a model.” But where he did get the translation “work as a model with Xia Fei”? Why is he including himself in the translation? Vein never mentioned his name once during the conversation.

We know Xia Fei is brazen with Vein, but he’s still an employee after all, a part-timer even. Can he just manage other people’s work arrangements like this? Not to mention, he’s making ShiGuang work with him. A part-timer saying that two guys are being recruited as models still sounds normal… but automatically assuming (and declaring) that those new guys are going to help him in his job before the boss even says anything? No matter how close Xia Fei is with Vein, considering the boss-employee relationship between them, it doesn’t sound right.

So, I thought… Is Xia Fei really relaying Vein’s meaning? Or is he actually enforcing his own meanings on Vein’s words?

And Vein…just lets him. (“Felix always does whatever he wants.”)

How green tea!Xia Fei could be real

First Appearance

Xia Fei’s first appearance in the show just reeks of green tea. Heck, a tea room was even mentioned:

In this scene, he was openly whining to a coworker about how his boss won’t let him eat snacks. And okay, employees complaining about their boss is normal. But the way Xia Fei worded it is soooo not professional:

“If he catches me sneaking food again.”

It’s as if Vein is personally watching over his food intake. Bitch, how??? Vein was barely in Yingdu. His plane just fucking landed. How is he catching you???

Xia Fei wasn’t just whining in this scene. He was flaunting his closeness with Vein. Green tea energy 🍵🔥

And this is how the show is introducing him to us. They’re not showing us his silly or serious sides first. Of all aspects of his character, they chose to show us this.

The Elevator Scene

Unlike some people, I only go for the best, whether it’s a project or a connection. Isn’t that right, boss?

....Why did he say that?

No, no, the real question is: How could he say that while on the call with Vein???

The allegation being true or not doesn’t matter. What matters is that he did not deny it. In fact, he even fucking owned it, but with some corrections: “I’m not sleeping with that 60-year old guy. Unlike you guys, I only go for the best, like my boss. Right, boss?”

What the fuck.

(Related post: my understanding of those women’s gossip)

If he had said such words without Vein listening in, I could’ve just interpreted it as him making up stuff so he can snipe at those women. But no! Vein heard everything he said. Vein, who hates lies, heard his Felix implying that he was sleeping with him, the boss.

And all these in a censored Chinese show???

Once again. What the fuck.

Green tea energy 🍵🔥

Xia Fei pairing himself with Vein

In CMedia, the green tea bitch is usually a woman who likes the male lead but dares not confess. Instead, she just tries to keep others away from the ML. When she sees the ML showing interest in the protagonist or anyone else, she would then “casually” display how close she is with ML either as a way of marking her claim over him or to make the protagonist feel that the ML’s actions for her are nothing special because he does it for everyone else.

(Think Kurumi from Kimi ni Todoke trying to make Kazehaya “everyone’s Kazehaya.” That girl is classic green tea.)

The green tea would do this by mentioning, often in a whiny tone, the stuff ML has done for them (“He’s always watching my food intake, he’s so annoying”) or by deliberately showcasing her deep understanding of the ML (“Actually, what laoban meant…”).

With these in mind, we can recontextualize this scene as Xia Fei being green tea 🍵🔥:

The framing here has struck me since I first saw it… The way Xia Fei moved to Vein’s side (putting them in one group), leaving Cheng Xiaoshi (whom Vein just complimented for looking tasty) across them, separate from them, and barely in frame.

I could be overthinking it, but if this were in any other genre, this would be a classic green tea move 😂

There are just too many nods on Xia Fei being more than what he seems

The bus Xia Fei is riding on in the OP contains the words “Look Carefully.”

These are the same words on this art by Yuyu:

(Yuyu is the animation director who posted that “See You Later” art and practice animation featuring Vein and Xia Fei)

In YE6, Jack also warned Cheng Xiaoshi about Xia Fei:

“He’s not as innocent as he looks.”

Oh, and I think it was definitely Xia Fei who tattled to his laoban that Jack released company secrets. After all, Xia Fei’s loyalty to Vein is unquestionable.

Liu Xiao also has something to say:

“If you know each other’s true colors…”

Finally, Lu Guang has always been wary of Xia Fei:

As he should. After all, Xia Fei is so close with the man who killed Cheng Xiaoshi in previous timelines.

(I also believe that Lu Guang never genuinely thought of Xia Fei as his friend, unlike Xia Fei does for him and CXS.)

Conclusion

Let’s go back to the original definition of a green tea bitch:

Green tea bitch (绿茶婊, lǜ chá biǎo) = internet slang that initially referred to young 1.models who appear 2.pure and innocent but are actually 3.materialistic and would use their 4.looks to 5.climb the social ladder. Over time, it evolved to also describe those who put on a no-makeup makeup look but claiming it’s natural. Their defining trait is 6.pretending to be harmless, to appear as if they’re broken inside but no one can tell, and looking sickly but serene—all the while actually harboring 7.ambitions greater than anyone else.

Xia Fei is a model.

Jack says he only appears innocent.

His character profile states that he likes money.

He has the looks.

He did not deny the sleeping his way to the top allegations (re: elevator scene).

He may be narcissistic (This is more apparent in his Rent a Shell PV, and Director LI has stated that the character PVs are a closer representation of what the antagonists are actually like because in Yingdu they are restrained)

Now, all we’re missing is the ambition aspect. What does Xia Fei desire the most? Or rather, who—

It’s Vein.

Vein is his ambition.

He cares about his laoban a whole lot that he’s vowed to uncover the truth behind his death no matter how bizarre it may be.

Xia Fei may be green tea, but it’s all to get closer to Vein. If he indeed slept with Vein (it’s already heavily implied), then it’s not for him to gain fame or status, as a traditional green tea bitch would. It’s simply to be with Vein.

If he’s stepping on others to get to the top (as many characters have hinted), then that’s because Vein is at the top. And he needed to reach him.

Xia Fei is green tea, and I love him for it.

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Whether they are angels or devils, he are undoubtedly "salvation" beings for him.

LINK CLICK

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Happy birthday to our queen

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xia fei noticing vein smoke more when he's quietly stressed so he remembers to bring a lighter around with him in case vein forgets his own

(but it's not only because he sees vein forget that xia fei doesn't. there's something else. something about how xia fei wants to keep seeing how the fire accentuates vein's pride, his confidence, drawing boldness out of his movements like embers at the end of cigarettes.

it's something about how the fire's light curves delicately around the sharpness of vein's jaw, the corners of his eyes, outlines his lips, lands a perfect triangle on his right cheekbone; it becomes the softest thing to ever cradle vein's face. paints him into the personification of those guohua paintings xia fei sees in his office — elegant, fluid, striking.

and sometimes, after vein lowers his head toward the flame, xia fei wishes it's his fingers instead of the glow that graces vein's face. to hold, to covet, to possess someone deemed untouchable.

"need something?" vein would ask after he catches xia fei's gaze training on him for longer than usual. xia fei doesn't know why it catches him by surprise each time; it's vein's trade, after all — noticing things better than anyone else. but xia fei's caught off guard all the same. his breath catches; the fire flickers in a startled blink.

"no," he lies, hoping vein can't see the desire simmering behind his eyes, and kills the flame from the lighter.)

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Oh Yuyu you've done it again... I'm in shambles...

(Post disclaimer: This is a personal secondary creation for animation testing. It does not represent any official opinion and has no CP tendency.)

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Always looking when he’s not aware… I bet Vein actually has the biggest crush on Xia Fei 😎

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Face-off

Part 2 - Qiao Ling & Cheng Xiaoshi

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