#CHENG QIAN 😭😭😭

[danhoemei]

This was playing when i was reading the end of liu yao vol 2 when cheng qian was [redacted] and I BLEED INTERNALLY EVERY TIME I HEAR IT WHY DID I DO THIS TO MYSELF IT'S SUCH A GOOD SONG BUT NOW I WANNA CRY

[poomphuripan]

Professional Body Double // My Stand In - a Masterpost

Series Title: My Stand-In (ตัวนาย ตัวแทน)

Director: Pepzi Banchorn Vorasataree (KinnPorsche The Series)

Action Director: Khom Kongkiat Khomsiri (KinnPorsche The Series)

Producer: Yuan Wan Thabkrajang (I Feel You Linger In The Air)

Executive Producer: Poppy Parnsuk Thongrob

Episodes: 12

Aired: Apr 26, 2024 - Jul 12, 2024. Every Friday 8.00 PM.

Original Network: iQIYI

Original Novel Title: Professional Body Double (职业替身)

Author: Shui Qian Cheng (水千丞)

Genres: Adult, Drama, Mature, Romance, Supernatural, Tragedy, Showbiz, Angst

Content warnings: Abusive lover, noncon, house arrest

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Official Synopsis

Joe, the stunt man of famous actor Tong, happened to meet Ming. Having developed a deep relationship, Joe didn’t realise that Ming had always seen him as Tong’s replacement. When the truth is revealed, Joe has to take work on a foreign set where an accident takes his life. When he wakes, Joe’s in the body of a young man named Joe who’d met with an accident on the same day. With help, he’s soon living the same life as he was before—with the same people—and he meets Ming once more. In this life, Ming wants Joe back at his side as before and Joe doesn’t know why. Ming, who’s kept all memories of the old Joe, tries to find the truth about Joe’s continued life in order to return Joe to his side and give him the explanation he never had the chance to.

Main characters

Joe (Zhou Xiang/周翔)

Height: 181 cm

Birthday: October 20

Age: 29

Zodiac: Libra

Occupation: Actor, Stuntman, Martial Arts Body Double, Martial Arts Instructor

Personality: Gentle and generous, optimistic and open-hearted, mature and considerate. Independent. Easy going, not very ambitious, caring towards people around him. His parents and sibling passed away when he was 8 years old.

Ming (Yan MingXiu/晏明修)

Height: 188 cm

Birthday: September 6

Age: 24

Zodiac: Virgo

Occupation: Actor, President of a Mechanized Heavy Industry Company

Personality: Haughty, selfish, lacking in patience, stubborn and persistent towards things he has decided upon. Extremely attractive, cold, indifferent. Youngest of the three Yan siblings. Comes from a wealthy, prestigious family with millitary background.

Supporting characters

Sol (Lan Xi Rong): Young attractive popular actor who was once close to Joe. Sol likes Joe. Played by Porsche Tanathorn.

Tong (Wang Yu Dong): A popular action movie star. Tong is Ming’s crush. Tong is dating Ming's sister, May. Tong eventually marries May and becomes Ming's brother-in-law. Played by Mek Jirakit.

Wut (Paradorn Vesurai): Joe's brother-like close friend, who's also his boss.

Jim (Jiang Yuan): Ming's personal secretary and right hand man. Played by Billy Possathorn.

Mike (Yan Mingsu): Ming’s older brother. Played by Inntouch Naphat.

May (Yan Ming Mei): Ming’s older sister. May eventually becomes Tong's wife later on. Played by Shu Nunnicha.

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Where to read the novel

Chinese raw

English translation

Indonesian translation

Vietnamese translation

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Where to listen to the audio drama adaptation

Season 1

Season 2

Season 1 & 2 on YT with Vietnamese subtitles (Note: OP gonna private this video once the series has finished filming, so if anyone wishes to grab a copy/listen to it, now's the time 🤗)

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Production

Director Pepzi and Executive Producer Yuan first posted a photo captioned "Our new series project" hashtagging the Chinese novel title on 16 February 2023 so pre-production starts around February 2023. Yuan tweeted that My Stand In is the series that took longest to cast (8 months). 6 October 2023 was the fitting for My Stand In. Production begins filming on 16 October 2023.

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For latest updates on My Stand In series, you can follow YYDS Entertainment on Youtube, Twitter, Facebook, IG, Tiktok.

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Source

[nekoning]

pages of the cancelled liu yao manhua (will forever be missed)

the artist is @原生小白牛 on lofter

[straykats]

been laughing about this for the last idk how long

[bellaroles]

I really enjoy the feud between the Sects and the Imperial family in Wu Chang Jie very much. Not too complex to understand and just the right amount of melodrama for me to enjoy.

Also, I really like the magical weapons in this. Very awe-inspiring. Especially that magic ruler. I want one too if I could get it lol.

[snalsupremacy]

Things I got from re-watching the s2 op way too many times

Spoilers for all of s2

ok, so the items inside the claw machine are an unintelligible photo, the pink bear, a Gameboy, and later a gun and a notebook can also be seen. Imma be so real I have no idea what the Gameboy and Notebook mean.

Though it's psychedelic, the liquid pouring out of cheng xiaoshi is def supposed to be blood

I have no idea which scene this photo is referring to. Could it be one of cheng xiaoshi's unseen deaths?

this frame drives me insane. WHY IS LU GUANG SMILING? IS HE SMILING? AM I READING TOO MUCH INTO IT? IT DEFINITELY LOOKS LIKE A SMILE BUT IDK MAYBE IM OVERTHINKING (pun intended)

The pink bear can actually be seen in xixi's hand! And since she was reaching for Cheng Xiaoshi, I can only assume that this op is saying that he and the plushie bear are symbolically the same

which makes this schene the more confusing to me. Is the horse skeleton thing supposed to symbolize death? Is the way it rips out of the plushie bear a way to represent how it is inevitable that cheng xiaoshi will die?

for some reason it took me a million rewatches to realize this giant metal thing is the claw from the claw machine, once again showing that the bear and him are the same

There's a very brief shot in which we can see Emma, Qiao Ling, Lu Guang, and Qian Jin all watching Cheng Xiaoshi fall.

Other stuff I noticed:

In the first half of the op the video is reversed while the song is normal, but once lg and cxs touch the video goes back to normal and the audio reverses. I think this is used to symbolize how they are experiencing time differently

Someone else pointed this out already, but while in the first op they are "diving" back in time, in this one they are straight-up drowning, showing how they lost control

The lyrics are 100% from Lu Guangs POV:

Take back all my regrets And camouflage it like your silhouette

^Lu Guang pretending that he doesn't know cxs is dead

Time is like music Play it 'til the end and then reset

^Lu Guang resetting the timeline every time cxs dies

Knowing it all, am I destined to fall? Like once you did for me

^ Despite knowing what will happen, Lu Guang continues to fail to stop his death

I think everyone noticed this but once Li Tianxi and Li Tianchen's identities are revealed, the hood comes off from the op and their faces are visible. Ops that change midway through to reflect the change in plot>>>>>>>

Conclusion

I'm really not that good in analysis and this op fascinates me just as much as it confuses me. Why is Qiao Ling turning her back on Cheng Xiaoshi's fall?? Why is Lu Guang's face not visible when they try to reach for each other?? What the hell is that notebookk😭what crime scene is in the photo?! So many questions and I genuinely don't know if they are supposed to be un-answered or if I'm just stupid(┬┬﹏┬┬)

Anyway this is my fave op ever. of all animated shows I've seen. and I've watched a lot man. yeah.

[sgdlr-asdfghjkl]

Link Click Musical update 143

(March 10th wyh&srb and 11th tcp&dgy encores)

Big big thanks to @chocolatexiaoshi and @/bhd322418 ('钵🐼' on twt) my lovely consultants who translated parts from encore videos 💖🙇‍♂️

I wanted to know what the actors said at certain moments as ad libs and in closing speech, so I asked my fellow Chinese fans for help 🙏 So let me share what I've learnt ^^ (links to both vids I'll be refering to are in the replies).

March 10th, night: Wu Yihan, Shu Rongbo, Qian Anqi

During 'Guiding light', by the end of CXS&LG part, Wu Yihan wishes Shu Rongbo 'Happy birthday!' and hugs him :>

They laugh a lot (more than usual) during the closing speech >< I recommend you watch it, because Qian Anqi starts talking in English at some point (to srb's utter confusion) and along with Guo Zhenyan they insist on singing 'Happy birthday' together, it's cute :>

Around 8:50 timestamp, Shu Rongbo jokes 'If you like our musical, you can help us promote it more. If you don't like it, please send me a message quietly 🙏'

Then Wu Yihan explains they are going to take a picture together (forbday post on musical's weibo). It goes: 'Please turn on your phone's flash and take a photo with us', but according to 钵🐼 he said wrong words. As in being too excited and stumbling on a formula (?), that's why they laugh ^^'

March 11th: Teng Chunpeng, Du Guangyi, Wu Hanglu

Here I was curious about the changed lyrics that were picked in a Valentine's Day Project (@chocolatexiaoshi explained 🌟). The whole song is based on a word play, so it's hard to fully grasp by non-chinese speakers BUT I'LL TELL YOU ANYWAY BC IT'S COOL 😤🔥

The deal with 'Words can't convey the love' is that CXS is possesing Chen Xiao and is supposed to confess to Liu Meng. He starts saying 'I like'-/Wǒ xǐhuān/我喜欢' and backs off by saying a different phrase with similar pronounciation to '喜xi'.

In original lyrics he says sth like 'To do laundry and cooking/ Xǐyī zuò fàn/ 洗衣做饭' in first verse. In second verse it's 'I like your outfit today/Xǐhuān nǐ jīntiān de chuān yī dǎbàn/喜欢你今天的穿衣打扮'.

The special encore version was: 1) 'Scrambled eggs with tomatoes/ Xīhóngshì chǎo jīdàn /西红柿炒鸡蛋', 2) 'I like to add three bowls of rice/Wǒ xǐhuān zài jiā shàng sān wǎn dàmǐ fàn/ 我喜欢再加上三碗大米饭'. It's a reference to how Cheng Xiaoshi loves delicious food, so it looks like he's panicking and starts babbling about food ><🧡

HOWEVER at the very end, Teng Chunpeng says full 'I like you/Wǒ xǐhuān nǐ/我喜欢你'. Which doesn't happen in a main plot script, only this one time (coincidentally when Lu Guang's actor is in place of Liu Meng hmmm).

I hope the translation was comprehensible >< As a reward look at Shu Rongbo and Wu Yihan covering the candle flame with their hands 😭💖 I really really like the imagery, it fits shiguang so well ;w;

Once again, thanks to choco-xiaoshi and Bo🐼 for explaining things to me 💕

Okay byeeee :>

[mobumi]

What are your shiguang fav moments? And what are your fav personal headcanons about them?

Ah yes, another one like this, thank you anon! Shiguang is definitely a new favorite of mine! whether it's platonic or romantic, their relationship is just incredible, they're soulmates 🥰

Fav shiguang moments:

When CXS is in Emma's body and Lu Guang comforts him and it's like they're lying next to each other, Lu guang holding CXS's shoulder 🥲

Cheng Xiaoshi doing their usual hand clap so softly in s2

Lu Guang screaming when CXS got shot and beating the shit out of Qian Jin

LG hugging CXS when he comes back from the earthquake mission a sobbing mess

The moment CXS reaches out for Lu Guang in the opening 2 and when they touch he's thrown back in time. I just love it, especially with the music and after s2's ending it shows how tragic this is

The sequence where CXS is imprisoned, crying his eyes out because he thinks LG is dead 😭 so much angst but it was such an emotional and memorable moment for me

CXS wanting to go back in time to eat noodles and rubbing his head against LG like a cat :3

Headcanons:

Lu Guang always say good night to CXS before climbing on the top bed but one day he just kisses his cheek without thinking and CXS is SHOOK

Everyone thinks they're together because they act like an old married couple

Cheng Xiaoshi likes to eat noodles with Lu Guang

He thinks Lu Guang's voice is soothing and when he's stressed during a job, hearing his partner's voice guiding him calms him down

Every time they go out somewhere, just the two of them, CXS calls it a date to tease him and LG blushes

When Lu Guang can't finish his food, he automatically gives the rest to CXS who eats it without question

CXS likes hugs and would hug Lu Guang from behind, startling him every time

Their first kiss is actually accidental. Lu Guang needed to take pictures for his passport and went to a photobooth. CXS tried to photobomb him by sitting on LG's lap while he took his photos, but as CXS turned his head to look at him, LG, completely stunned, turned to him as well and their lips touch.

When they start dating, CXS always makes sure there's no misunderstanding. "You sure you love me?", "...yeah", "why the silence before you answered? lu guang???" But LG is definitely whipped, head over heels, a complete simp

Lu Guang loves to sit on their couch and read a book while Cheng Xiaoshi lays his head on his lap

They're not only clapping their hands, but interlace their fingers before time traveling now

I'll stop there 'cause I can't think about anything else for now. I can't wait for season 3, they are so cute together and I love their trio with Qiao Ling!! 😊

[kuravix]

Losing it over Lu Guang going absolutely feral when Cheng Xiaoshi got shot 😭 All thought left his head, he would've ran straight into a bullet if Qian Jin hadn't run out of them!

[tayasui-mono]

I wanted to like Link Click so badly but season 2 comes with so many inconsistencies, what do you mean you bragged about putting cameras all over the hospital and when you found someone missing, went out running instead of just checking the app? The blind spots in the cameras are so convenient, did Tianxi just materialise into that spot to take Liu Min's phone??? Tianxi goes to the police and they're like "Facial recognition is difficult because she is wearing a mask" GIRL TELL HER TO TAKE IT OFF THEN??? She's at a law enforcement office, like??? The police officer has TWO papers to read and instead of reading them, he waves them around going "why is there not enough information?" And then he reads them HALFWAY through the interrogation and finds out Qian Jin fostered them, you should have used this information TO interrogate, not use it for dramatic plot convenience. I just can't understand why everyone is so useless. And are you telling me Lu Guang didn't KNOW Tianxi was mute until Cheng Xiao Xi opened his mouth?? He could have absolutely warned him with his foresight. What is this season, who wrote this😭

edit: WHATDO YOU MEAN they thought Lu Guang was abducted and DIDN'T CHECK THE BATHROOM?????😭😭😭😭

[raeygina-george]

@gxlexii @knightzp (this one's a bit long sorry) my link click s2 reaction!

(link click spoilers ahead!!)

-i love the way the animation style is shifting to show the chaos and confusion!!!! it looks SO good and conveys emotion so well

-lex u were right this opening is AWESOME

-at first i thought captain qian was possessed by Future Cheng Xiaoshi but i guess his eyes are just naturally yellow adkfjskd

-i knew lu guang would survive ❤️❤️❤️ but DAMN the plot is thickening

-the ending is cool too...... the first season was already so good but the second is really ramping it up so far asjfkjsk

-i love qiao ling

-WHEN CHEN BIN'S WIFE WAS CRYING AT HIS FUNERALLL 😭😭😭😭

-the pink haired person looks really interesting... I'm excited to see what's up with them

-oh god the???? the episode with the pink haired girl's family??????? what the fuck???

-"if i could have forseen all this, i wouldn't have let you experience all this pain" Hello??? (quote from lu guang)

-every time i go "wow this is intense" it just gets more intense.....

-every time i watch the opening i love it more somehow. im obsessed with it, like the song & animation is so good. i imagine it'd be really hard to write a song that sounds good played both normally and in reverse, so im thoroughly impressed

-lu guang just got kidnapped 😭 bro just can't catch a break

-i think cheng xiaoshi is my fav. i like basically everything about him and i wish i had his hair askfjskdkdk

-I LOVE QIAO LING

-OHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! the pink haired girl is actually the pink haired boy!!!!!!! that makes a lot of sense haha

-if any of the main 3 get hurt badly again im going to cry

-NOOOOO LI TIANXI!!!!!! cmon i really liked her 😭😭😭

-at one point during the final fight scene w/ captain qian my brother stopped by, said "i hope they get hit by a train" and left. like. hello?

-okay. okay. yeah. fine then. alright. whatever. sure. yeah. fine. okay. sure

-im just gonna like. go cry. the entire last episode was definitely Something

-i Really like it when character's fates are basically set in stone but they bite and kick and scream and fight for a better ending where everyone can be happy

-i really like Everything in this show actually. it aligns with my preferences so well askfjskd

end review: im chewing rocks im banging my head against the wall. head in my hands. i will never be the same

this show was amazing. if u guys have any other recommendations, feel free to send them my way!

[blanktrouser]

JUST FINISHED THE NEW EPISODE

Spoilers for S2 Ep6 Lee Tian X1 Link Click

WTF IS CHENG XIAOSHI DOING???????

WHERE TF DID LU GUANG GO TO?????!

WHAT TF DOES QIAN JIN HAVE TO DO WITH LI TIANXI?????????

WHY IS CHENG XIAOSHI SO WILLING TO HELP HER??????

Like I get it you know everything about her past and it was clear that she has a horrible backstory bUT SHE ALSO POSSESSED YOUR FRIEND AND LANDLADY QIAO LING AND MADE HER STAB LU GUANG HOW ARE YOU OK W/ HELPING HER AFTER ALL THAT?????????

Some sketchy shit is definitely happening and I’m concerned…

I’m confused and dO NOT WANNA WAIT GIVE ME THE NEXT EPISODE NOW

Also still feel weird about that one scene where she like, feels Cheng Xiaoshi up that felt very uncomfortable to watch 😭😀

[poomphuripan]

10 BL Boys I Want Carnally To Love, Take Care and Cuddle With Every Night

@bunnakit awww thank you for the tag 🫶 as an asexual i can't say i spent much time thinking about fucking anyone (so coming up with this list was really hard ;_;) but if any of these characters propositioned... i would NOT say no 😉

10. Phob (Something In My Room)

if there is an award for cutest ghost of all time in a BL series, i think Phob will take home easily. Phob deserves better sex. my meow meow friendly ghost Phob, i will tuck you in bed my ghost sweetie 🥺🫶

9. Shao Fei (History 3: Trapped)

my righteous cop with a strong sense of justice, i really love Shao Fei so much. Shao Fei doesn't beat around the bush and is really straightforward with his wants, I LOVE HE!

8. Khuafah (Sky In Your Heart)

Khuafah, the HOT CHARMING doctor that you are. i would volunteer to get sick every day just to visit him 🫠

7. Gene (Lovely Writer)

if Gene ever needs to write a straight romance novel, i'm happy to make out with him for research purposes 😉

6. Pisaeng (Be My Favorite)

most patient boyfriend who tries super hard to get you plushies? yea i would bang Pisaeng in a heartbeat, no doubt. in fact, i believe Pisaeng would be considerate and wait for me to be ready (Pisaeng babe i'm always ready for you 😉)

5. Tennoji Haru (Trillion Game)

while Trillion Game is DEFINITELY not BL, but Meguro Ren was in Kieta Hatsukoi so my boy should get a PASS 😤 Haru is confident yet humble, self-proclaimed selfish yet always selfless. god i love competent men *swoons* Trillion Game is out on Netflix, please check out my boy Haru and his boy(friend) Gaku and their start-up adventure together 🥺👉👈.

4. Charn (Laws of Attraction)

while i can't guarantee that i can give Charn a good time, i believe that as a fellow lawyer i can assist Charn with any case work he got. Like i said, i am a sucker for competent men 😮‍💨.

3. Tangmo (Great Men Academy)

you don't understand how obsessed i am with the og golden retriever, nation's boyfriend, Tangmo. it's been 4? years... i have not let him go... gentle soft boi but great at judo too? i think Tangmo and i should have our wrestling sessions ending up as makeout sessions.

2. Joe (My Stand In)

this is kind of a cheat but i've read the original novel for My Stand In (Professional Body Double by Shui Qian Cheng) and i can confirm Joe/Zhou Xiang is the sweetest soul, most precious, unluckiest gay ever (Ming, you are on sight, watch it sir or imma steal Joe away). i'm super excited for My Stand In because i hope i get to fall in love with Joe once again the way i fell super hard, head over heels for him when i finished this danmei novel within less than 24 hours. (was this shameless PR for Poom Phuripan's new BL series next year? yes, yes it absolutely was 🤗)

1. Khun Yai and Jom (I Feel You Linger In The Air)

if i don't have a gentle lover like Khun Yai Kritsada Palathip or a soft boyfriend like Jom Ravit Pittayanan then what's the POINT. i want both of them so BAD. also isn't it such a crime that Yai lives his entire life the rest of his live in celibacy, having fucked only ONE person (the love of his life) in his lifetime. LET ME IN. i will love both of you equally.

+ bonus: Chef Guy (Bake Me Please)

did you REALLY think i was gonna end my list without current loml, our resident sad boi, considerate and caring Chef Guy? 😅 Guy deserves a spot on here because well i'm absolutely feral for this man. Guy is just the nicest guy and i will literally do anything for him. Guy had me at hello but my heart truly broke when he comforted Peach saying he doesn't want to see Peach who's given him so much positivity, cry 😭.

oooooh that was soooo hard ;_; i love all these characters, maybe one day i need to start listing the female characters i'd totally hypothetically bang too because WOMEN ARE HOT 🔥.

[nekoning]

i love 10 y/o cheng qian because his permanent mood is "this person is so annoying so i think they should die", prime example:

[shixige]

Everyday i check the 'Recent changes' on the PoL wiki, i see Cheng Henian...

I- how much lore does Cheng Henian have??😭😭- HOW MUCH HINTS ARE YOU GIVING FRIENDTIMES?? LIEK BE FR? Y'ALL WANT TO GIVE THEM A TRAGIC DANMEI NOVEL OR WHAT😭😭 CAUSE SOMEONE ON THE TEAM WAS PROBABY WRITING A WHOLE BOOK BUT THE OTHER MEMBERS ARE LIEK, "Nono, just give them hints."

When i first met him in the MMC story i liked him cause he reminded me of Lan qiren🥹(I love Lan Qiren) thankfully he came home unexpectedly or else. (Unlike that ONE physician. I'm looking at you Xiao Qian🫵.)

I also have him for months now but i havent read his story🫠 prob will read after my exam finish🙏

Ps. Keep up the great work to everyone who is updating the wiki🥹🫶 i get so excited knowing someone updated it that i check it almost everyday (I've probably memorized the names who updated it and are always like, "YOOO THEY UPDATED AGAIN!!"😭)

[lunarriviera]

2023 ao3 wrapped

last year @programmedradly and i asked each other some questions, rather than try to field the entire thing. so we did the same thing this year! and here are my answers. i had a wild little annus mirabilis and somehow posted more work than i ever have before, so there was lots to choose from.

•

3. What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)?

tragically, one of my dead doves: the wu xie/li cu fic “you bear your scars, you've done your time.” no one reads it because it's an age-gap pairing, and it's inherently tragic (post-sha hai fucked-up wu xie). it has 17 whole kudos and it fought for every one. but like a lot of my badwrong pairings, it's honestly some of my best writing. i wrote it fast and the action scenes are solid, the dialogue is good and even funny, and the sex scenes are miserable and scorching. oh well, they can put it in my norton critical edition after i'm dead lol.

5. What work of yours got more feedback than you expected?

readers seemed to like the pingxie kissing fic, which was funny to me because it's literally just…kissing. (i wanted to put in plot and/or sex but mumble was very stern with me: “this is a KISSING fic.”) i guess we all are still battered by canon and just want wu xie dozing by the carp pool and getting kissed.

6. Favorite title you used?

“the subtle fire," with its title from the calamus poems by walt whitman; all its subheadings are from whitman too. sadly otherwise this was the year of taylor, and i exhausted midnights and all the vault tracks. new year's resolution: moratorium on fic titles from tay.

8. Pairing you wrote the most for this year?

somehow there were 18 dmbj fics. 😳 pingxie won out with 9 fics, followed by 6 heihua fics and then a smattering of rare pairs (not to say dead doves lol). there were 5 under the skin fics; at this point i post one of those like every two damm weeks because i'm down that bad.

10. What work was the quickest to write?

probably either of my drabbles—a little rpf prose poem for zhu yilong/unnamed photographer (still my most beloved pairing) or shen wei smoking a cigarette and zhao yunlan being horrified (and a little turned on).

11. What work took you the longest to write?

without a doubt, the 31k guardian fic i just posted. i got freaked out by its complexity and dropped it for a year, and then had to TOIL over all the canon details, because i didn't remember ANYTHING apparently (zhang shi who? fu you? li qian? what?). it took for fucking EVER to finish and i will NEVER write such a plotty monster again. the worst part was when ma gui randomly said, “oh there's a fifth hallow” at which point i was like “there's a WHAT NOW.” ironically that turned out to be the title. i hate characters that TALK and SAY SHIT.

15. What WIP are you taking into next year with you?

the pingxie epic 😭 i'm not sure if i even can ever finish it because it involves google searches like “recent tomb discoveries china” and “can you survive c4 explosion.” also it'll be another dead dove because it starts with wu xie divorcing bai haotian, and the iron triangle being broken up. and that's just the beginning. everyone will hate it, and instead read cute fics about liu sang being a fox, probably.

17. Your favorite character to write this year?

it's gotta be du cheng from under the skin. he embodies what is turning into my favorite character archetype, Big Dumb Hot Cop. so butch. so loyal. so stupid. just a blast to narrate. wu xie and hei xiazi have similar idiot energy but are also paradoxically very intelligent so that's more challenging. (writing xiaoge's dialogue is difficult as fuck. he can't just say "wu xie" ALL the time.)

28. Favorite work you wrote this year?

possibly, after everything, the end (for me) of the zhu yilong/unnamed photographer series. other people may keep adding to it but i needed to let them go. they exist in such a liminal unsettled never-together bittersweet place for me and i felt grateful to have spent time with them, as weird as that is to say. i'll always love unnamed photographer, and his aesthetic yearning. MY ONE RPF SHIP THAT WENT CANON. 😭

29. Favorite line/passage you wrote this year?

indulging myself and submitting a few:

Even Huos had to sleep sometime, or hang upside down, or whatever it was they did to restore themselves. [x]

•

Once he has him flat on his back again, with breathtaking pragmatism Shen Yi drips lube all over him, sinks down on him and then rides him so hard Du Cheng sees not just stars but entire constellations. [x]

•

Xiaoge kissed his hair. "Hold still," he said, and Wu Xie could do that, no problem. He fell asleep that way, curled against Xiaoge’s naked skin, and dreamed he was watching Xiaoge plant moss in the moss garden, in impossible colors: turquoise, bright orange. A richly saturated luminous violet. [x]

•

Xiazi added so much condensed milk to Xie Yuchen’s coffee that he finally had to arrest his hand forcibly. “Stop trying to give me diabetes.” Xiazi’s smile was worse than the cloying milk. “It’s to match the sweetness in your soul, my little flower." “Oh my god,” said Xie Yuchen faintly, as Geya listened, to all appearances visibly entertained. “What do you want? Because I assume you want something. Money? Work? Is this a hostage situation?” Xiazi just smiled harder, but at least he put the milk down, in favor of giving Xie Yuchen another pain au chocolat. “Why does he get all the pastry?” Geya said, sounding disappointed. “It’s to build his strength,” Hei Xiazi told him, and the patently, horribly uxorious look on Xiazi’s face made Xie Yuchen want to hit someone.) [x]

•

Xiao Hua manages to bite back a tart comment about how challenging it is to keep looking younger than forty when one’s companion will never look any older. It takes more than expensive rose hip and argan oil and ceramides; it takes never skipping the gym, and always skipping dessert. It means going to bed at nine-thirty when he’d rather stay up reading, and above all it means not letting Hei Xiazi know about any of these little maneuvers, lest it not seem effortless. [x]

•

As Wu Xie started enthusiastically laying out the details—and why was he awake at this miserable hour?—Hei Xiazi pulled the pillow away from his face and started gently hitting Xie Yuchen with it. “Wu Xie, let me call you back later,” he said, arresting the pillow’s movement with one hand. “I have something I have to deal with here.” “Sure,” said Wu Xie, cheerful. Then: “I bought Pangzi an espresso machine, and he taught me how to use it! Xiaoge’s not here, I wish he’d come home. I had five cups! You should take Hei Xiazi with you, just in case things get complicated. They might. Get complicated, I mean. I'll tell you all about it. When will you call me?” Xie Yuchen fought not to laugh. “After sunrise, probably. Drink some water. And tell Pangzi I’m going to kill him.” [x]

•

Su Wan seems lost in thought for a minute. “I always thought maybe one day I would like guys, but I don’t.” Li Cu elbows him. “What about Hei-ye?” Su Wan looks horrified. “Yali, no! What a thought!” “Okay, okay,” says Li Cu, and drunkenly tousles his hair. “Calm down.” Yang Hao puts out his hand for the bottle. “Hei-ye is pretty cool, though,” he says, which is high praise from him. It’s true. They sit without saying anything for a moment, in silent contemplation of Hei Xiazi’s inarguable coolness. [x]

•

The things about you that other people find unsettling, those have somehow never bothered Wu Xie. You’re spooky, Hei Xiazi told you frankly, once. I am too, but I drown it out by talking. You’re so silent, our little Yaba Zhang. People are afraid of you. Xiazi had been right, and you knew it. But Wu Xie has never been afraid of you, not even once. You think about the first time you came back from behind the gate, how furious and desperate he’d been to know why you hadn’t come straight back to him. Demanding answers, wanting to know why you went, what you saw. And you remember gazing back at him, still mute with the magnitude of it. He could never have understood, but no one could, not even Wu Xie whose intelligence shone as clearly as an aura around him, glowing, burnished—still innocent, still young enough to be passionate. Whereas even at the time you felt every single one of your hundred years lying on you like a burden, like fallen trees pressing you into the loam, the moss, the muck. [x]

•

He’s still half-asleep, is the only thing that could possibly explain why Zhao Yunlan ducks under some low-slung branches and strolls right up to the water’s edge only to see Shen Wei, stripped naked, hip-deep in a pool of still clear water, combing through his unbraided hair with his fingers. Why is this a surprise. What was he thinking. And above all, why is he still walking towards him on automatic, as if drawn toward him, as if not caring whether Shen Wei would see him or stop— Shen Wei startles and looks up, motion arrested. He’s bent at the waist, rinsing bits of dirt and bracken from his hair, skin glowing like wet marble, and Zhao Yunlan suddenly wants him so badly he couldn’t make a fist if he had to. Shen Wei smiles, and Zhao Yunlan will never get enough of that smile, artless and full-hearted. All he can do is smile back, helplessly. [x]