#Tianshan couple goals

[pomme-fraise]

Tianshan boyfriends being cute~

Simply love the non-verbal communication between those 2 ❤️

Also could we ask for the next Christmas special in July? 😭🙏 Sure it doesn't make sense, but look at them husbands~ I don't want to wait another 6 months

[oopstheregoesthatlifeofmine]

tianshan being domestic while zhanyi are the angsty ones

how the tables turn

[capdesuro]

환: 是时候猎杀狼了. ✨

[elfaery]

Chapter 411

I have so much to say about today's chapter, but since I can't organize my mind like always, I'll just list my thoughts here: 

Tianshan is officially married, which will make their separation more painful to watch 

Jian Yi's parents are such couple goals. I believe Mama Jian said she wouldn't leave her lover even though she knew who he really was (since I think during their conversation she wasn't a mother yet and they didn't have Jian Yi until after but this only my opinion). However, Jian Yi’s dad was the one who left them instead as we saw in older chapters (probably dead or killed now, I don't know...). That's why Jian Yi asks Xixi not to leave him. And we know that he will be the first to leave later. As others have said, Jian Yi's parents probably foreshadow the future that awaits these teenagers. And I can add that history can repeat itself.

Someone has already explained the absence of father figures in 19 days but I can't find it. You know I'm just curious what their dads were like - - uhmm daddy issues hitting hard

To conclude, Old Xian is evil, bribing us with fluff and then beating us with angst, and I'll never be ready for that...

[rafasbiscuits]

five comfort characters, five tags

thanks for including me to be one of the special five tags @kingfisherprince and @yoellglia I'm so honoured omg🙈

ANYWAYS. Five characters only is IMPOSSIBLE. I have tons but..these are what pops up in my mind first.

1. Peter Quill!! Honestly idk if he's number 1. But this are not by rankings cause I'm picky about comfort characters and they're all number 1. I love Peter he's so funny, so charismatic and soooo baby, (and so traumatized wow) The first time I saw him I KNEW he was going to be my favourite Guardian along w Rocket and Groot.

2. Dean Winchester. Hello my traumatized baby, look at him. He's so sweet and cute, despite all that trauma and stuff going on in his life he's still so kind and he tries not to continue the trauma chain and I'm so proud of him. He's my fav SPN character along with Bobby Singer, Crowley, and Castiel <3

3. (omg suddenly there's too much characters in my head) UHHHH. OKAY MO GUAN SHAN!! MOMO FROM 19 DAYS MANHWA. yes. I mean the whole manhwa is my comfort manhwa, I'm always sooo excited for new chapters but momo is my fav lil kitten he's so agressive and cute and baby, always getting into fights and definitely has some sort of freaking PTSD or something but He Tian's there to love him. So it's fine. TianShan couple goals.

4. Charles Xavier. Again, all of this is not ranked and if it was, Charles will be up a little bit. Charles Xavier, fav telepath and a cutie pie. He has mommy issues, and daddy issues ig, and in the comics he probably traumatized his son I mean. Look at his son. But that's besides the point! He's the sweetest, in terms of characters I relate to Erik more, and I'm more of an Erik Lehnsherr mindset cause c'mon. Mutants are superior idc but Erik is more serious than Charles, not my thing nono. So I have to have my sweetheart Charles here. Him and that tree scene is so cute, him when he found out that girl has a husband was even MORE cute. He's the cutest I can't-

5. Sam Wilson. Fav buff guy, smol smol bean 🤏🤏 I want to keep him in my pocket. He's doing great, unlike all the other characters I don't think he is that traumatized despite almost dying in an explosion, got dusted by Thanos, his best friend growing old( like rotting old) and giving him the responsibility of being Captain America and the whole states in his hand, and he definitely had identity crisis for a while. But that's just common marvel trauma. anyways, he's the guy, he's the cutest, him and his lil wizards, aliens and stuff speech was so cute. His whole character is a comfort.

Honorable mention of Iruka, Shinya Hiragi, Gojo, Loki, Shuri, and more I can't think of rn (I just woke up guys)

Tagginggggg hmmmmm. I wish to tag as much as I want but it's 5 and I have to play by the rules so sorry other mutuals, yk I love you all so much. Tags: @thefrootloopman @swaggypsyduck @janesurlife @tam-is-blogging @ponderingrabbit-blog (if u guys liked this post and I didn't tag u, in my mind I did, in another universe I did, IM FEELING GUILTY RN U GUYS ARE SPECIAL TOO OKAY!!! I'll tag u guys in another ask game I PINKY PROMISE)

[mopillow]

I seriously need a TianShan/Addams family crossover

The dialogues suits them

[ohrightgaypeople]

chapter 325 is just couple goals EVERYWHERE

and I'm not complaining

my Tianshan and Zhanyi need were well fed~

[notthatiwilleverwriteit]

Do you have any Intimate moments that you wish would happen/could happen if given a chance between mo and he tian. And you think he tian and mo will ever be intimate because I kinda have a vibe that he tian would be scared to pull anything more then a kiss on the cheek

Hello, dear anon!

Geesh, I sure kept you waiting! Sorry about that, dear anon. Thank you for your patience.

Regarding that last question about Tianshan ever being intimate in the future, I have answered a similar ask:

Do I think Tianshan will ever sleep together?

A lot of the intimate moments I wish would happen I know won’t most probably happen in the comic. The censorship laws snuff those wishes out pretty effectively. Also, many of the things I imagine in my head are tinted - if not fully colored - with my own personal tastes when it comes to being intimate. In my head, the dynamic of Tianshan fits those tastes. Teasing, possessive, powerplay, balancing the pleasure and a bit of pain from being a bit rough...Cough, cough.

I’m going to try to focus on canon things, but I hope you’ll excuse me if these get away from me a little.

“Do you have any  Intimate moments that you wish would happen/could happen if given a chance between mo and he tian”

If we are talking about purely sexual things, I very much hope we will get a do-over of this (ch. 175):

I have never really been fond of that kiss - for obvious reasons, I hope - but I do think it was a good point of development in their relationship. I am not against it being a part of their story. But I hope we will one day get a consensual Tianshan kiss in the comic. If it happens, I’m expecting MGS to be his usual tsundere self about it and get angrily flustered. I’m also expecting HT to be pushy and take the lead. But I need the kiss itself to be something else than HT shoving his tongue in out of the blue. I want them both to be on the same page about what it means.

Regarding things that are more about intimacy and less about sexual stuff, I hope MGS and HT will get more and more used to having the other one physically close when they’re feeling vulnerable (ch. 291, 318, 319):

I think Tianshan has made remarkable progress when it comes to physical closeness. MGS has lowered his guard and allowed HT to comfort him and himself to rely on that comfort. HT, on the other hand, has always been very physical but it has been rather one-sided. He has learned to let MGS get close to him when he’s vulnerable, too, and not just the other way around. He has also shown glimpses of those softer, needier sides of himself.

I wish this development will hold and keep going forward. For example, I would love to see them sleeping in the same bed “consensually”. Nothing sexual would need to happen. I would just love to see them being physically close like that. And maybe HT would try to cuddle and MGS would angrily swat him away but lets him reluctantly stay when HT just wants to be close. Just to be there. I personally tend to imagine Tianshan as a spooning couple. It allows them to be close but not force them to face each other. MGS could pretend he’s just sleeping and what HT does is his business while secretly enjoying the warmth and secure hold. And HT could draw as much physical contact as he is starving for and be possessive about it.

In general, I think physical contact that stresses intimacy is potentially one way to keep Tianshan developing towards the romantic direction while still keeping clear with the censorship laws.

The rest of these are some smaller details that I have personally enjoyed and wish will continue to happen.

HT and MGS’s hips:

I will always live for HT’s neck kink, but him touching MGS’s hips is a very close second in my books. There’s something sexy, possessive, and intimate about that. Strong arms wrapping around MGS’s waist and palms cupping that titillating arch of the hipbone. It’s also a soft and affectionate gesture with just enough pushiness to fit HT’s character.

HT pins MGS down:

I know I just said I want their next kiss to be consensual, but listen, I still want HT to remain his pushy self. This is the kind of powerplay, push-and-pull dynamics that I imagine in my head when it comes to Tianshan spicing things up. HT isn’t springing things on MGS before he’s ready for them but he does push and nudge things forward and is his dominant self. In my head, whatever sexual things they do as older are consensual, but HT won’t stop at every turn to ask for permission. He can be affectionate and soft with MGS but they won’t always use kid-gloves with each other when it comes to spicy things.

That panel probably divided people but I found it kind of hot.

Eye contact that could cook food:

I know everyone was swooning over their crotches being pressed together, but how about them looking at each other like that?!

HT: “What?”

MGS: “You know what! Move!”

HT: “Nah, don’t feel like it.”

I love these kinds of “I fucking dare you” staring contests in my OTPs.

“you think he tian and mo will ever be intimate because I kinda have a vibe that he tian would be scared to pull anything more then a kiss on the cheek”

As I said, I already answered this kind of question, so I won’t go into the “will they” part deeper than this. I think they will. Based on the fact that Tianshan is the endgame relationship and I don’t expect them to be celibate the best years of their lives. I have never seen sex between Tianshan as something impossible. They have made a lot of progress in the comic, so I can’t see why they couldn’t get to the sexual intimacy too at some point. It’s an entirely different matter, though, will we ever get to see it because of the censorship. But I don’t have difficulties imagining it.

I find your notion about HT interesting. It was left a bit unclear to me why you think HT would be scared, but I’m assuming because you don’t think he would want to push MGS’s limits? Like he did with their first kiss?

I do agree that despite the seeming power imbalance of their relationship, MGS actually has more control than might first meet the eye. HT might be pushy and physically dominant but needs to tread a careful balance. He wants MGS to trust him, and that can be destroyed if he crosses limits that MGS isn’t ready or willing to cross. Also, HT isn’t looking to bend MGS to his will or force him. In fact, he’s trying to very hard to not become like that. So, MGS might be the type who needs coaxing, but HT can’t bulldoze as he wishes.

All that being said, I don’t think HT has lost his confidence. I’m not saying he couldn’t be hesitant (that would actually be very interesting) but if he’s holding back, to me it comes more across as him not wanting to mess up again. Overall, I think HT’s goals are quite firmly locked, it’s just the matter of carefully carrying them through.

But I think it’s also important to take into account that we don’t know how experienced HT is when it comes to going further than kissing. Regarding that, there is one panel especially that always makes me think of that (ch. 276):

HT “pressing randomly” always makes me think that maybe he actually isn’t that skilled with what comes after kissing. He’s all smooth and suave but when he has MGS’s naked backside in front him, he kind of...swings it. And goes for the “attack”. Because the boys are rather young, I believe MGS will be HT’s first in many ways. And he perhaps wants to act more confident and skilled than he actually is. (Now I’m picturing him doing “research” about sex between guys because he wants to blow MGS’s mind. Similar to how he wanted to learn the guitar.)

Overall, I find this side of HT very interesting. I wish we could see more insecure HT.

Thank you for your question, dear anon!

[casually-inlove]

Zhanyi and Tianshan, and their respective roles in the story

I’m sure that everyone remembers that 19 days originally started as a story that revolved around Jian Yi and his stoic childhood friend Zhan Zheng Xi, their comedic adventures and that lighthearted yet painful subplot of unrequited love that Jian Yi had been harbouring for years.

So then, what’s the point of introducing Tianshan and giving them no small amount of screentime? Let me play the Captain Obvious for a bit.

The answer is simple: we are meant to compare and contrast these two relationships.

In literature and other media, this technique or a trope is called “Foil”. To put it even simpler, it’s akin to a backdrop against which we are meant to view something. Television, particularly romantic comedies and dramas, often invoke a similar method by providing an “alpha couple” and “beta couple”, with an alpha couple being the main focus. The viewer is meant to compare the romance (and its obstacles) between these two pairings.

Now the peculiarity of 19 days is that with OX storytelling method, we don’t really have a fixed alpha couple anymore: the focus of the story switches between Zhanyi and Tianshan to the point where each becomes an alpha couple for the time being. In other words, they switch from alpha couple to beta couple and vice versa.

Why providing a foil is a good technique? Well for once it serves to underscore the unique traits of each character. By focusing on interactions between two different couples their personalities (habits, verbal manners, behaviours, etc) are brought forth.

With Zhanyi and Tianshan we get two dramatically different relationships with inherently different arcs, so much that, in fact, one might consider them “inversions”.

Zhanyi is a childhood friends-to-lovers kind of story. Their relationship is fairly healthy, based on mutual support that dates back to their kindergarten days. We have the steady love of Jian Yi and his deep emotional attachment to Xixi, who in turn plays the role of the knight in shining armour by always wanting to protect Jian Yi. They share common ground, and while there is/was a subplot of “defrosting” ZZX, their relationship is already going steady.

Tianshan of the other hand started off the shaky ground, with outright hostility and even some violence. Not only they had never interacted before, but they are also different as day and night, or rugs and riches. Their story is about curbing their violent tendencies, finding the good in each other and building trust (which they don’t have from the beginning, unlike Zhanyi). These are the key ideas for this relationship.

What’s more, both couples have different development patterns laid out for them. If Tianshan is about building trust from scratch, Zhanyi is apparently about losing trust and then having to rebuild it.

Why? Let’s look at the very premise of 19 days. From the very beginning, we’re told that Jian Yi disappeared on the second day of high school and had been absent for 3 years. At some point, ZZX asks him about what happened, and so Jian Yi tells him. What’s peculiar is that ZZX reaction to the story of kidnapping is that of disbelief. 

It always seemed strange to me, especially considering the fact that we have seen precedents of kidnapping before and ZZX is well aware of it. The first time, when a shady old man kidnapped Jian Yi, and right now when Jian Yi is told to stay at He Cheng’s place. Both times ZZX is aware of what’s happening, yet in the future, his reaction is similar to hearing the truth from Cassandra. Cassandra’s truth is the trope that implies that nobody believes the one telling the actual truth (named after Cassandra The Prophet from Greek mythology, who was cursed to utter accurate prophecies that no one ever believed). It seems to suggest that ZZX no longer believes Jian Yi. It may also mean that these “kidnapping” attempts had become so frequent, that ZZX doesn’t take them seriously anymore, and thinks that Jian Yi is being a boy who cries “wolves!”. Did the disappearance hurt ZZX? Undoubtedly. Did he think that Jian Yi was pulling a prank or simply pulled a disappearing act? Sure. Future-set chapters seem to be dedicated to ZZX learning to trust this new Jian Yi, and them trying to pick up their relationship from shambles, but right now Zhanyi faces the calm before the storm.

If I were to make schemes for their relationships, it would look like this:

Zhanyi: start > the fall > the rise

Tianshan: start > the rise > the fall

Zhanyi starts off steady and friendly, but then comes “the fall”, i.e. Jian Yi disappearing without a word, which pretty much shatters what they have been building so far. Their goal after his return would be to get back on track and fix everything that went wrong between them. Now, if OX truly planned Tianshan as the inverse of Zhanyi, then their story arc will be a flip of Zhanyi. They start off being enemies, then they’ll slowly build trust, and then, presumably, comes the fall. Not sure what it is yet, but possibly He Tian leaving abroad, which might set them back a bit.

Back to the point. We, as readers, are meant to find contrasts between these two types of relationships and their story arcs. There are also other significant differences that OX supposedly wants to implement. As such, one of the OX latest artworks is a visual metaphor for the intrinsically contradictory natures of these couples. 

OX used dramatically different colour palettes and symbolism here. Where Zhanyi is light and more comedic, Tianshan is darker due to initial violence and drama. Tianshan is marked by black and has this low-key BDSM vibe running, whilst Zhanyi has this angel/priest theme, symbolizing their purity. The illustration is quite a bit representative of sexual vibes of two couples. Tianshan has a bit more physical undertones to their interaction compared to more innocent Zhanyi. It is further accentuated by the future-set specials: whereas Zhanyi share a tender indirect kiss for Xmas, He Tian openly presents Mo with condoms, etc.

I wouldn’t be surprised if – provided OX hints at sexual interaction in future-set chapters – physical intimacy affected their relationships in fundamentally different ways (again, for readers to compare and contrast). For instance, whereas for Zhanyi it would lead to solidifying their bond, for Tianshan it could bring about more complications and further pondering on the thing going on between them.

All of it is absolutely pure speculation that is based on the supposition that thematically OX created these couples as foils to one another. 

All in all, let's celebrate the diversity. Both relationships are interesting and very fun to compare against one another. There are rises and falls to them. Sometime soon it will be Zhanyi that will plunge into a heartrending drama, and Tianshan would get the calm before the storm.

[notthatiwilleverwriteit]

I don’t usually give these kinds of deeper analyses on the chapters because people who are way better at deciphering how I feel but just can’t put into words usually beat me to it (@casually-inlove and @call-me-ala to name a couple). Writing analyses can also be exhausting, and I tip my hat to those people who take the time and energy to answer all the asks and whatnot. But ch 297 just wouldn’t let my brain rest, so I decided to gird my loins and give you my thoughts.

Yesterday I answered an ask by @i-got-these-words about what was my favorite 19 Days quote, and even though I will stick to my answer, a very strong contender might have come to challenge my original pick. What He Tian said about Mo Guan Shan - and essentially about himself - just keeps on giving the deeper I dig into between the lines. It felt like HT and Tianshan have somewhat come a full circle.

“I chose you because there’s something I admire about you.”

What a nice callback to ch 138 and the origin of Tianshan in general:

HT “picking” MGS is an interesting aspect of their relationship. After the fight with ZZX, MGS’s palpable disdain of HT is surprisingly enough met with HT saying he admires MGS for that exact reason. Imagine finding someone respectable because they look down on your character. And not only that, you choose to pursue that person. I think that says a lot about HT’s struggle to distance himself from his “destiny” and the heritage of his family.

For that, we have to go even further back, all the way to when we just started to see other sides to HT. Why HT is living by himself in his uncle’s empty apartment isn’t fully clear to us. He said it’s more convenient because of school but judging by how tense his relationship with his father is, I bet there’s more to the housing situation. My headcanon is he’s living alone as a truce to ease the atmosphere at home. I also suspect He Cheng had something to do with it. Maybe it had gotten so bad he suggested HT lived by himself and used the school as an excuse to persuade their father.

Be that as it may, the obvious bottom line is, HT doesn’t agree with his father and the world his family is involved with. He’s been raised according to certain principles, but the older he grew the more they sickened him and the more stubbornly he wanted to defy them.

Before HT got involved with the fight between MGS and ZZX, he seemed to be somewhat of a lone wolf. Sure, he had his horde of fangirls but no one knew the real him. This, I think, is especially apparent in ch 115:

It’s as if he’s living a double life. His destined place in the world is in the shadows. The shady underworld he despises so much. But at the same time, the shadows seem to serve as a refuge of sorts. It’s a familiar place. From there he can observe people, deep in thought, and be himself. Out in the open, we rarely see him that serious but rather he often plasters a fake, outgoing smile that doesn’t scare off his classmates.

He doesn’t seem to have any real friends. JY and ZZX appear to be more of acquaintances, maybe something more, but they don’t know much about HT either. The way HT is with JY and ZZX makes me feel like he’s “above” them. He knows more about the world and life in general, he’s not a teenage boy they are despite often acting like they do. The difference becomes clear when JY bumps into MGS and HT steps in to effectively put an end to it. He has the confidence to take on delinquents without hesitation, even openly look down on them.

But he’s not doing that just out of the goodness of his heart. It’s true he wants to help his friend but he’s also on a mission to become something better than his father and brother. He Cheng told him to grow strong, but HT wants to use his strength for good instead to exploit and submit others. The more he will not become like his brother the better he will feel about himself and like he’s not a part of that shady world. His goal is both admirable and selfish.

MGS becomes a project of sorts for HT. Someone for whom he can be the hero he so desperately wants to. But also a living, breathing beacon of light to remind him to not give in to the darkness and use his strength for good. And no one is allowed to corrupt or snuff it out.

But that kind of relationship is quite one-sided. To be a hero and constantly strive to better oneself is exhausting, and in time, HT’s armor appears to have more and more cracks for MGS to see. He can’t just power through of it all by himself and see MGS, who is a person with his own will, that passively. Without necessarily even realizing it, MGS is forcing HT to admit certain things to himself and acknowledge them.

“You are not fake or sneaky, and you don’t cheat.”

For this analysis, I’ve used the translation by @yaoi-blcd and it seems they’ve used the word “fake”. I’ve seen a couple of others which had translated it as “hypocritical” (I don’t speak Mandarin, so I can’t say which is more accurate). I suppose there isn’t a big difference between the two but I find “hypocritical” quite interesting.

It reminds me of She Li in ch 294:

SL isn’t wrong in saying that HT and MGS are from different worlds. Or rather, they’re from the opposite sides of the same world; the villains and the victims. MGS’s family has suffered greatly by the hands of people like HT’s family. The connections between those two families aren’t clear but I don’t believe it’s far fetched to think MGS’s father might have been mixed with some shady people. For example, maybe he had had to borrow money from them and then had trouble paying back. And it’s from this injustice and the hardships that followed that MGS’s disdain of HT and people like him ultimately stems.

SL obviously doesn’t recognize HT’s efforts to befriend MGS because he doesn’t believe in that kind of approach (but that’s a whole other story). So, to take out his frustration on something, he goes with the truth even HT can’t deny and reminds HT of his “destiny” and place in the world.

HT might see himself as a hypocrite for trying to play a hero for MGS when he’s in fact meant to be the villain. Does he have the right put himself into the victims’ lives when his side of the world is the problem? This becomes even more of an issue if HT’s family was directly involved with what happened to MGS’s father.

Either way, words like “fake, “sneaky”, and “cheat” yet again speak loudly about the kind of world HT lives in and the kind of people he’s surrounded by. The opposite of those words is what he admires in MGS but is he also admitting those words describe him? Does he already see himself in them?

Which leads me to “You aren’t afraid ‘darkness’.“

This was probably my favorite part of the quote. Obviously, HT isn’t just talking about plain darkness although it’s another nice callback to HT being afraid of the dark.

One of the many things I love about Tianshan is that the power dynamic is actually more balanced than meets the eye. HT might be physically stronger and often push MGS’s buttons but MGS is in no way weak. HT can be quite forceful in his affections, so he needs to be paired up with someone who can push back and hold his own. In MGS’s case, all of that comes down to his pride and not wanting to depend on anyone (which is also mentioned in some of the translations instead of “cheating”).

“Darkness” can refer to the violent criminal world in which HT grew up. Interestingly enough it’s the common denominator in both of their lives. They might be from different sides of the darkness, but it’s still the same darkness they’re both familiar with. And MGS won’t back down when it comes to holding his ground, so he’s tough enough to survive in that darkness.

Also, HT needs someone strong enough to handle him at his worst. The latest case in point, ch 295:

It took me a while see behind that behavior. My initial reaction was to be disappointed because I thought we had gotten past HT being like this already. I didn’t like the way he barked orders and was physical without the usual mischevious undertone. Then I realized that despite being mature for his age, HT isn’t really good at using words. Instead, he often chooses action. It was obvious SL’s threat had upset and unsettled him. And it made him even more uneasy when MGS seemed oblivious to the danger. But he wasn’t being forceful and possessive but in need of reassurance.

He literally went from “bad mood” to promising to kill anyone who gives MGS trouble before we finally got to the root of the problem: he’s worried about losing MGS.

Now, he can’t be that way with the girls or his classmates. With them, he couldn’t act out every time he’s upset about something. Ideally, he will grow out of it or at least work on it, but in the meantime, he needs someone who can handle him at his worst.

It’s also obvious HT carries a lot of darkness in a form of trauma, as in his inner darkness. MGS isn’t a stranger to that either given that he’s also been through traumatic experiences at a young age. HT’s nightmares might scare him but he didn’t run away. Instead, he offered what clumsy comfort he could. This is connected to my earlier point of HT not just seeing MGS as someone who needs protection but also as someone he can rely on when it becomes too much. In the process, HT is “forced” to deal with his problems when he can show them to someone.

As an interesting side note, HT is kind of looking down when he talks about the “darkness”. Is he ashamed of being afraid of the “dark”? It’s a weakness, and I’m sure something that wouldn’t be accepted by his father.

“Don’t abandon me.”

HT finally ends his confession of sorts with the kind of plea we’ve never heard out of his mouth. It’s his greatest fear that’s always been in the background and the motivation to his actions but something he’s never said out loud. Not to mention while openly facing MGS like that.

Obviously, that line is heartbreakingly sad in and of itself but take a moment to really think about it. Imagine if the worst happened and MGS wasn’t in HT’s life for some reason anymore. What would he have left at that point? To go back to lurking in the shadows and fake smiling through his days? His goal of a better person would become that much abstract again, and he’d lose the one thing that grounds him in this side of the darkness.

It’s a very thin thread for HT to cling onto. I think @mestizo-efp had a good point in their answer about HT looking defeated. He’s used to being ready for anything and everything and is also asking for MGS to keep his guard up. In that light, HT’s plea is almost unfair. Anything could happen, and realistically speaking neither HT nor MGS could do anything about most of those scenarios.

Also, given HT’s somewhat difficult personality and shortcomings, it can also be read as a plea for MGS to put up with him. As in “I know I can be an ass but don’t give up on me”. It’s the fear of MGS losing hope in HT which could be even a worse punch than losing MGS some other way.

So, yeah. This might, in fact, be my new favorite quote.

[notthatiwilleverwriteit]

Saw the previous anon ask. You can correct me if I'm worng, but did you meant that most people stay together because they think it's "true love" but tianshan love is not that kind of love, sure they will love each other in the future and will be together but because they love each other and not because they thinking "oh it's true love so that's why we must stay together"

Good afternoon, dear anon-san!

Just so everyone reading this is on the same page with us, this is the anon ask you are referring to. An anon asked do I think HT would be romantically involved with only MGS in the future, and my answer was a resounding yes but with a Tianshan twist.

Hmm, I can see where my idea may have been confusing. Admittedly, the true love argument wasn’t the strongest point but more like a highly subjective gut feeling. Let’s see if I can be more clear and specific

“did you meant that most people stay together because they think it's "true love"”

For the most part, I was talking about true love in the context of fiction but also about how love is often viewed in the Western world. In fiction, characters are looking for The One, their Soulmate who will fulfill them and with whom they can spend the rest of their lives, soaked in the bliss of not having to be alone. And once they have found their fated partner the story is nicely wrapped up. No story seems to be complete without a fulfilling romance, even if it’s just on the side.

All that discourse isn’t reserved for the fiction but has seeped through to real life as well. (Or perhaps it’s the other way around...) The ideal (and I’d dare to say the expected norm) is to find your one true love and vow to love them until either one of you dies. And if you fail that nearly impossible goal, it sticks the label of “divorcee” on your forehead that will never come off.

What I meant with “true love” was that it is a highly subjective and often passing feeling and yet we’re expected to set out to build a life-long relationship based on it. Of course, I’m not saying those kinds of happily ever afters can’t exist. I do know some couples who have been together for decades and are still deeply in love with each other. Maybe I’m just a really nihilistic individual but to expect everyone to reach that kind of relationship seems highly unrealistic.

But the longest relationship I’ve ever had is with myself, so what I say should most certainly be taken with a sack of salt.

“but tianshan love is not that kind of love”

One thing I would like to remind you about the original anon ask is that it was about HT. I gave my answer according to what I think about his perspective, not Tianshan as a whole.

From HT’s point of view, his relationship with MGS didn’t go down like the stories about true love. His objectives were somewhere else entirely at first, and it could be even said those goals were quite selfish. He didn’t do the good deeds just out of the goodness of his heart but was looking for some kind of proof that he could be something better and furthermore stick it to his father and the legacy waiting for HT.

I think HT wants to stay together with MGS in the future because he gained something unexpected with him. He doesn’t have to hide his “darkness” or moments of weakness around him. MGS can not only handle him and hold his ground but also accepts HT for what he is and offers some much-needed comfort. And losing that isn’t really an option for HT because he would revert back to self-imposed isolation. In other words, playing the solitary hero again.

But now that I think about it more, you could very well argue that HT finding all of what he thought he would never have in MGS is the embodiment of fate and true love. If MGS is the only one around whom HT can be his true self, I suppose it doesn’t get more truer love than that.

Well, damn.

But I’d still argue it’s slightly different. For example, if you compare Tianshan to Zhanyi it becomes more clear. Zhanyi has that romantic true love/soulmate vibe to it. In ZZX’s eyes, JY is someone completely irreplaceable, and it’s obvious they want to stay the rest of their lives together. Not to mention, Zhanyi has strong promise-related rhetoric that ZZX especially has been carrying with himself since they were little kids. That I see based on true love whereas Tianshan has the same endgame but is considerably less rosy and pure.

I guess the word I’m trying really hard not to use with Tianshan is “dependence“ because it has a somewhat unhealthy sound to it. I fully believe HT wants to stay with MGS in the future because he loves and cares about him, but it can’t be denied his character is also depended on him. ZZX and JY, on the other hand, are almost on the level of being soulmates, so not being together isn’t an option for them either but even if they did part ways in the future, it’s not like either one of them would lose their way as a character.

I really hope I managed to be more clear this time. And as I said, the true love argument wasn’t perhaps the strongest base for it all but that’s the vibe I’ve always gotten from Tianshan. But people are always welcome to question my ramblings and ask for clarification.

Thank you for your question, anon-san!

[casually-inlove]

(Firstly, sorry about my English.)I saw someone saying that tianshian is toxic.  And I kind of agree with that.  Maybe it's just the HT's way, 'cause he acted like this with JY.   And even though Tianshian is my otp, I still think that He is a bit abusive, since he always uses a bit of violence for Mo to do something.  And as much as I wanted their kiss a lot, I still think pushing a kiss is wrong.  I would not like.  But I believe it is not something toxic in itself. +

Maybe Mo is still discovering his sexuality and so their relationship softens. And may He family have helped in the development of this bossy behavior. But comparing to the beginning, HT is much more "affectionate" now. I do not think it's a relationship that is fluid, it's a bit forced. But I really hope they can be a real couple in the future.

Hello there~ Don’t worry about your English, please.

I assume you mean the trollish ask submitted earlier? I just want to reiterate one thing: I’m absolutely chill with people liking characters or hating them -- it matters not to me, everyone’s entitled to believe what they want. However, I fail to see the point of knocking in someone’s askbox just to send an obvious flamebait -- I won’t change my opinion and nor would I heed to theirs, and going around trying to shove opinions down people’s throats via messages is a senseless waste of time and a plain cry for the attention. I'm not talking about your ask – just in general.

As for Tianshan being all-around toxic... well this maxim is getting old. I’ve talked so much about it, ad infinitum, to the point when I’m already tired of repeating myself and I suppose others are also tired of seeing it. Yes, there was a shade of toxicity at the beginning of the manhua -- because OX intentionally created Tianshan to be a foil (something to compare and contrast) to Zhanyi. But saying that Tianshan continues to be toxic is like saying that XiXi still doesn’t return Jian Yi’s feelings. These two relationships represent different literary tropes -- and thus different ideas. For Tianshan the main idea is about learning how to build a healthy bond, learning to come to terms with each other, learning to see past each other’s facades. They begin on bad terms specifically because their end goal is to build a normal bond.

There are flaws in their relationship. Certainly. Both He Tian and Mo Guan Shan are two broken kids with terrible experiences and little to no knowledge of healthy relationships. Do they have a reason to act as they do? Yes. Should we cut them some slack? Yes, -- I don’t know if any of you here had experiences with either bullying or parental neglect (I certainly hope not) -- but it’s not something that would magically heal itself within a course of two weeks. Does that mean that they shouldn’t be called out on some questionable things they do? Heck no. These two need to work on proper communication. These two need to learn to recognize and express their emotions properly. 

Their relationship did undergo quite a bit of change for the past 100 chapters. He Tian right now is not the same He Tian he used to be in the beginning, as you mentioned, he has mellowed out quite a bit. He’s learning. He’s listening. He’s taking baby steps to leave his forceful ways behind -- and that’s commendable, especially for someone raised in a criminal underworld. Same deal with Mo, who’s been viewing the world through the prism of his terrible childhood experiences -- and now he’s slowly beginning to realize that, maybe, just maybe, it’s not a dog-eat-dog world out there.

Whether Tianshan is canon is not even a question. It has been known from relatively early on (based on OX old sketches and illustrations), that these two would be the endgame. It’s a story of a slow burn. We are here for the moment of transformation, when something that was based on a joke (a kiss) grows into something that is based on support and desire to protect.