#look I like him and it seems like he has parallels to Xiao so. he baby

[mysterialistic]

Okay, I have a theory about the mysterious blonde woman.

I find it really interesting how she’s paired with Liu Xiao here. To me, this could symbolize one of two things: that they’re allies or, on the contrary, that they hate each other. Personally, I lean more toward the latter.

Now, we see two women in this PV, and I honestly think they’re the same person. In the first image, she appears younger and is wrapped in bandages, possibly from a fire that may have killed her family—or so she believes (we’ll come back to this later).

The reason I believe they’re the same woman—besides the obvious parallels, lol—is that we see the same blonde woman in a white dress in another image. And guess who else seems to appear in that picture? Liu Xiao. His hair shape and color are nearly identical. I’m 99% sure it’s him.

As for their relationship, I’m not sure if it was romantic or platonic (not really important for now, lmao), but there’s definitely a connection. I lean more toward them not being on good terms in Yingdu. The blonde woman hasn’t been introduced as either a villain or an ally of Liu Xiao in any promotional material. Meanwhile, we know Liu Xiao is highly manipulative and indifferent to others—he only uses people as puppets. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s somehow tied to the fire or has done something terrible to her.

Now, about the family connection… I completely agree with the theories suggesting that this mysterious woman and Xia Fei are related somehow. They look way too similar—similar eye shape, same eye color, the same hair color (whether Xia Fei is blonde or has black hair is still unclear, lol), and even very similar earrings. Either way, I highly doubt this resemblance is just a coincidence.

These similarities make me think they’re related, though Xia Fei might not even know it. Maybe we’re heading toward a soap opera-like twist where the blonde woman believed her entire family, including her younger brother, died in that fire. If that’s the case, it’s very likely Liu Xiao knows the truth—that they’re siblings—and that’s why he’s so interested in Xia Fei. He’s likely manipulating Xia Fei for some greater, sinister purpose.

This could also explain why Xia Fei is seen living alone and juggling multiple jobs. If he’s an orphan, he’s had to fend for himself, which would make him quick to accept a modeling job that could solve some of his financial problems.

So yeah, that’s my theory! Is it a bit exaggerated? Maybe lol. But honestly, when is a better time to theorize than when the hype is building? I can’t wait to see how this all unfolds in the end.

[shadowed-dancer]

I understand Gaming is probably pronounced "gah-ming" (or something similar). I know this. I get it. When I saw his name, that was my instinctual pronunciation because I knew it wouldn't be pronounced like the English word. It's a lovely name.

HOWEVER

That does not change the fact that having to search "genshin impact gaming" makes it infinitely more difficult to find what you're looking for.

[ajaxbell]

Fangs of Fortune (Bai Ze Ling): perfect on pure aesthetics alone, but also it will tear your heart out while being very gay.

I was lured in to this show by Tumblr gifsets and friends on Bluesky talking about how queer and poly this show is. I'm old and I've been in fandom more than half my life. I know how to read queer subtext. I'm also pretty well versed in cdramas, so again, I know how to read subtext. So I went into this ready to, well, read the subtext.

But no this show is just puts the queer it right there in the text. The vague information we have about Chinese censorship repeatedly left me asking, 'wait how are they getting away with this?' Like some of these jokes and implications are just so blatant it seems incredible this show ever made it to being broadcast. It just feels very much like queer media made for queer people even if t's more subtle than something western like Queer as Folk.

Even without the heavy coloring of gay this show is incredible and so much more than I expected from the title and the promo. The premise is essentially the death of the goddess, who governed relations between humans and demons, leads to an influx of demons in the human world. This brings together the goddess's disciple, Wen Xiao--seeking to restore the goddess's power. WX's childhood sweetheart, Zhuo Yichen--seeking to restore the demon-hunting bureau after the powerful demon Zhu Yan killed his father and brother. It opens on Zhu Yan, in human disguise as as Zhao Yuanzhou, volunteering to help the imperial court restore the demon-hunting bureau to quell the chaos. They are joined by Pei Sijing, a retired female general from the rival demon hunting sect, and a very young doctor (and comic relief) named Bai Jiu. It starts off as a sort of monster-of-the-week with a grim Scooby gang doing detective work and fighting monsters. Each major demon has a mini arc that relates to the larger case (restoring the power of the goddess to balance the realms), and they are repeatedly blocked by either the demons or the rival demon hunting sect. Each mini arc also acts as a mirror or parallel story to slowly revealed backstory of all the main characters as well. In true cdrama fashion it's a mix of adventure, intense emotional drama, romance, and comedy. And queer and poly jokes and romance. It also has a kind of manga vibe in the way the comedy is woven into the more serious story, and in the fantastical depiction of the characters and how the story unfolds.

It is also just insanely beautiful. Every single shot is lovely. The costumes, make up, and hair are incredible. The casting director made all the major demons inhumanly beautiful. The sets are spectacular. The effects are nicely done. Every bit of has the vague surreality of a fairytale. The perfection of each shot ads to the manga vibe, as if we're seeing each critical storytelling panel come alive. There's recurring water-based special effects that are just gorgeous. Based on aesthetics alone this show would be worth watching to me. That it is combined with a complex, very emotional story is a spectacular gift to the watcher. A lot of the negative reviews of this complain about the staginess or that it's overly contrived in how each scene is shot. But I think it's gorgeous, works perfectly with the storytelling, and if we criticize art on whether it achieves the goal it intended then this show is doing exactly and perfectly what it means to do and doing it beautifully.

Additionally the acting is also very good, but Neo Hou is the stand out for sure. I enjoyed him in Back from the Brink, especially the later part of the story, but in Fangs of Fortune he's transformed, utterly embodying the role, the way Dylan Wang is Dongfang Qingcang in Love Between Fairy and Devil. Neo Hou has the right look, a slightly uncanny beauty perfect for a gorgeous immortal not of this world. The show does incredible things with his styling between the various looks and personas the role requires. But in acting he somehow manages to utterly transform his face and demeanor to manifest each aspect of the character as story demands changes from him.

There is a lot of crying in this drama. Like early on I joked that there was going to be a character crying a single perfect tear in every ep. Lol nope. Multiple single perfect tears per ep and many outright full on sobbing scenes. This show is just waiting to rip your heart out and you see it right from the beginning. But it was such sweet pain all the way through. Just a truly engaging and utterly wrenching set of intertwined stories.

My only criticism is that the pacing falls apart in the last 3 episodes. But overall the story is solid through the end, though like so many cdramas, it's saved by the epilogue.

You should absolutely watch it if you want the chaotic bi polycule (it's her, her girlfriend, her boyfriend, her boyfriend's boyfriend who is also her boyfriend, their two idiot sons, and her boyfriend's ex-who is also eventually sort of his boyfriend again), or if you want your heart torn out and stomped on. Or even if you just like really gorgeous cinematic things. Also if you watch, please don't skip the ending credits, as they change as the arcs change, and the radiant joy Tian Jiarui has as he dances is an excellent antidote to the emotions of each episode.

[accio-victuuri]

EXCUSE ME WHILE I LOSE MY MIND. 🤯🤯🤯

so here i was so excited to see what xiao zhan has for us and boom! one of the photo(s) is what looks like — a pig? i’m so nervous. lol. what are you doing xiao zhan? you sneaky little shit i love you. out of all the things you can share in that beautiful place, you chose that one. we all know who is the little piggy, our bobi. and it makes me think of that artwork clowning, what looked like a pig nose too in the sole of the shoe. so this seems familiar. maybe that made him think of his 🐽.

and the fact that he posted after yibo-official did their usual ones. and i guess what completed this is after he shared, yibo followed suit.

plus i found it interesting that wyb seemed to be in a good mood, someone shared a video of him taking the elevator after wb movie night and going him. he waved. 👋🏼👋🏼👋🏼 and i’m like — oh, he is in good spirits. now i think i know why. and did you both talk about posting that close to each other??? 😏

EDIT: and some are noticing that the 🐽 is photo 2 and the one with his parents is 11. it’s parallel to each other. that is his family right there. i really wish so bad they get and abroad together — them + the parents!

thanks @thatip for sharing! the plates has a lot of designs but he chose to post the 🐽.

[welcometoteyvat]

things i personally would like for ga-ming because i'm biased:

him and yun jin as long distance friends/acquaintances; for one they're the two poster children of liyue traditional performing arts, and for another they both seem to like tea. i hope yun jin teaches him how to get more customers/paying clients bc OTL mans lion dance troupe is struggling. hc that gaming brings her new tea shipments fresh from yilong port/chenyu vale :3

him and chongyun. somehow fandom (ie at least 3 ppl) has collectively had the same delusion that he and cy will interact and im here for it. them vying for xiao's attention or being claymore training buddies or whatever i just need them to have voicelines together

on a similar note if gaming likes spicy food. HAHAHAHA another person who triggers chongyun's yang energy...........

but from what we know of xinyue kiosk's cuisine style + the fact that gaming's canto, it seems unlikely that he'll prefer spicy stuff (maybe a seafood special dish????). so maybe they'll be ok having dinner together

they already look like they're plugging gaming and xiao interaction but IT WILL COME TRUE. TRUST. the whole "donning/taking off a mask" parallel, lion dances bringing good luck vs xiao's task of subduing evil during lantern rite, and his concept art waving at xiao and calling him senior/adeptus or whatever, anyways I need this to be in game. it would be SO FUN because this means xiao is literally just collecting pyro kids (hu tao, xiangling, now gaming) who've simply decided to like him. he could bring a lantern rite performance to wangshu inn since he travels anyway and xiao doesn't like the crowds

xiangling gives him free food and guoba likes him. don't have much thought behind this one i just want the pyro users to hang out and idk lion dancers should get free things i think. she provides cabbages for him during his shows (she swears on this kind of thing for wanmin's good luck and growing fortunes)

idk what else. i just need him to get integrated into liyue 6ang (xinyan xiangling hu tao chongyun xingqiu yun jin group)

i'll be thoroughly shocked if any of these actually come true but i can daydream

[joyouslee]

Fangs of Fortune - thoughts about Li Lun

Spoilers up to Ep 9 below cut

I'm starting to wonder if Li Lun isn't (wholly) a villain? Why would he make it clear to Zhuo Yichen that Zhao Yuanzhou was forced to/ had no choice but to kill his father and brother? If he's trying to sow discord among the team, why would he give Zhuo Yichen an excuse to forgive Zhao Yuanzhou when Zhao Yuanzhou is himself admitting his guilt each time he's asked?

He also revealed Zhao Yuanzhou's relationship with the Baize goddess - he knew how close they were, like siblings. The revelation really seems like something that would actually help his relationship with Wen Xiao, not hurt it. (And the way Li Lun said it - it was more like, you were so close with her, and yet everyone still thought you evil. Like Li Lun felt angry on his behalf. )

We know that he did something that ZYZ was very angry about - presumably killing the prior Baize goddess. Even locked away (by ZYZ?) he's still powerful enough to come into the human world and possess people/ control weaker demons.

ZYZ said that he made an oath to protect the Wilderness. There's the scene in Ep 4 with ZYZ and Li Lun where their blood mingles and the tree grows that parallels the original goddess' oath with Cheng Huang.

Did Li Lun also make the same oath with ZYZ? Did ZYZ promise "forever" at that time (to protect the Wilderness together with Li Lun), which would explain Li Lun's bitterness towards ZYZ's promise to Wen XIao when he said, do you mean just now or forever? (beyond the very jealous ex vibe he continues to exude)

Li Lun thinks being human is better than being a demon, and got Cheng Huang to open the Kunlun Gate so that demons can enter into the human world. Perhaps from his perspective he's saving the demons he can, letting them go someplace better than the place that is dying due to the lack of the goddess' protection.

The quote from Bai Jiu's mother about love turning to hate but still containing love... that seems like it's a good description of Li Lun. He loves ZYZ, but hates that ZYZ wants to return demons to the Wilderness, or hates that he's planning on getting killed?

Li Lun's the one who's obsessive and unhinged, but from ZYZ's expression whenever Li Lun shows up, and how well he knows him, it's clear he has strong feelings about Li Lun as well. There's a lot of disappointment, but why would he be disappointed unless he had high expectations before? ZYZ never really uses any lethal force against Li Lun, either - he's mostly defending the others.

What is the Eye of Truth? Did ZYZ give his to Li Lun? Does Li Lun carry a part of ZYZ with him always???? I'm going to go feral if this is what happened.

Ahhhhhhhh I'm turning unhinged and obsessed about this show!! With all the twisty motivations and reversals in this drama, I'm so looking forward to finding out their story. I don't think that after all these other stories are full of people who are doing bad things for good reasons, that there isn't a good reason for Li Lun, too.

[canary3d-obsessed]

Restless Rewatch: The Untamed, Episode 38 part one

(Masterpost) (Pinboard)  (whole thing on AO3)  

Warning! Spoilers for All 50 Episodes!  

OK But Why?

This tale-within-a-tale is excruciating, yeah? So let's start off by considering why it even exists. Yi City feels like, if not a fully separate story, a pretty complete arc that can play as its own little movie. And it's incredibly sad, in every direction. While it may have begun life, in its originally-written form, as a different story exploring some of the same themes, MXTX placed it in the novel deliberately, and the producers of CQL included it deliberately. Why? Other than the, you know, catharsis of a well-wrought tragedy?

I think the answer is that it tells a set of parallel stories, alternate versions of the stories our main characters inhabit, with different outcomes driven by the character's choices. There's an obvious parallel between Lan Wangji's grief and Song Lan's, and another clear one between Wei Wuxian's core donation and Xiao Xingchen's eyeball donation. 

And there's an important comparison to be made between Xue Yang and Wei Wuxian, two demonic cultivators. They share some formative experiences, but have followed radically different paths, shaped, at a key moment, by another person's choice. 

Overall, the Yi City story illustrates how choices made in a moment affect not just an individual life, but ripple outward into other lives. So be prepared for me to point out parallels even more than usual, as we go through these episodes.

Empathy

We start off learning about Empathy and how it’s sooper dangerous, which means of course Wei Wuxian is totally down for it and probably invented it.  He gathers the kids around and assigns Jin Ling to be the person in charge of supervising and deciding when to pull him out of the matrix link. 

Jin Ling is surprised and reluctant so teacher’s pet Sizhui jumps forward and volunteers. 

Wei Wuxian asks Jin Ling for his Jiang clarity bell, which is on a tassel that used to be Jiang Yanli’s. 

(more behind the cut!)

Once the bell/tassel is out of Jin Ling’s hand, however, he changes his mind and snatches it, and the responsibility, back. 

It seems like Sizhui might recognize this tassel? 

It’s like the one Jiang Yanli gave Wei Wuxian when they met up before her wedding, which means Wei Wuxian would have had it with him during their year in the burial mounds. 

Jingyi disapproves of Jin Ling’s mind-changing, which is a little unfair since JL didn’t actually say “no” prior to Sizhui putting in his oar. (Sizhui is entirely loveable, but he is also a pushy brown-noser just like Lan Wangji was at his age. He just does it so sweetly that nobody minds.)

Sizhui, also like his Lan dad, has made it his life’s mission to manage a loudmouth hothead’s temper for him. 

Heading into empathy with A-Qing, we get flashes of bits of the story that we're about to see in depth. Then we jump to "ten years ago" which, given the way this series does math, probably means seven years ago.

Side note: A-Qing has managed to keep her hair looking pretty cute despite being 90% dead. 

Splish Splash

This particular section of the Wuxia River of Sadness is reserved for people who are contemplating the total mess they have made of their lives (gifset here), but A-Qing didn't get that memo, so she's having a nice time splashing joyfully without a care in the world.

A-Qing isn't about drama or being depressed, even when things are pretty difficult. She has found a big rock to sit on and is having a nice day hanging out on it.  

Then she goes skipping along singing "la la la la" (which is the same sound in Chinese as we make in English when we're singing and don't know the words, incidentally). Ok, show, we get it, she's happy and carefree. I sure hope she doesn't get involved in any weird relationships.

Grifting

She sees a couple of women walking on the path and she starts pretending to be blind. In the book, this pretense was facilitated by her having completely white eyes, but in the show she has normal brown eyes, until she actually is blinded by Xue Yang. So her entire pretense of being blind is to unfocus her eyes a bit and wave her hands around...

...with frequent intervals where she thinks no-one is watching her, and she acts 100% like she can see. Somehow she is almost never busted for this. 

The ladies give her a steamed bun and whisper loudly to each other about how pitiful she is. 

Then she heads into town for a little grifting, picking a wealthy douchebag as a mark. She bumps into him and steals his money bag, which he doesn't notice because he's too busy creeping on her. 

She's annoyed and disappointed that he doesn't have a lot of money.

Hey Pretty, Don’t You Want To Take a Ride With Me

Next she bumps into (and robs) Xiao Xingchen, who is actually blind, so he doesn’t notice her noticing how extremely pretty he is. 

He does notice that she has robbed him, however. 

Did you know if you have your eyes removed or even just damaged so you can't see any more, your eye sockets and/or tear ducts will bleed pretty much forever? Yeah, me neither. 

Xiao Xingchen immediately takes charge of A-Qing, telling her to walk more slowly and then telling her - kindly - to return his money purse. Before she can answer him, the rich douchebag comes back to yell at her and try to hit her. Xiao Xingchen stops him and smooths over the situation, and then lectures Ah Qing about stealing and how it's bad. But he tells her to keep his money, so - mixed messages, bro. 

She calls him gege and says that since he's blind and she's blind, she's going to follow him forever. He’s like, okey dokey, and they walk off together. Is she really the first person (since Song Lan) who’s had this idea about him? He is *very* pretty, after all.

It's unclear to me if she's calling him gege in the sense of “orphan girl who wants a family,” or in the sense of “mostly-grown-up woman who would like to Hit That.” Xiao Xingchen appears to take it as the former; he is too gay virtuous for the other option.

Two seconds after they decide to stay together, they encounter Xue Yang lying injured by the side of the road. A-Qing pretends she didn’t see him, and almost successfully wangles a piggyback ride out of Xiao Xingchen. 

But then he hears Xue Yang and immediately decides to rescue him, like the do-gooder Xue Yang despises him for being.

Xue Yang gets the romance-tropey piggyback ride that A-Qing was hoping for. Girl, the time to stop trying to seduce your gay male friend is 5 minutes before you started, ok?  

So...why was Xue Yang lying by the side of the road with a stab wound? Who gave it to him? If Jin Guangyao was sick of him, he would have stabbed him 100% fatally, and he wouldn't have let him hang on to Tiger Seal 2.0. And presumably Xue Yang wouldn’t think of him as a friend any more. It’s a mystery.

The new throuple decide to go to the creepiest abandoned walled city that has ever existed, and head past all the regular houses to set up camp in the morgue, for some reason. Not even inside one of the buildings; just out in the courtyard with a bunch of possibly-occupied coffins. Xiao Xingchen is so fucking weird. 

Each Unhappy Family is Unhappy in its Own Way

Xiao Xingchen gets to work patching Xue Yang up, and Xue Yang wakes up and recognizes him. A-Qing explains that they are blind and tells him not to be rude about it.

Xue Yang takes a second to process the situation, and then decided he’s going to hide his identity and make nice with Xiao Xingchen. Proving that found family can also have hideous toxic dynamics.

Xue Yang is very careful to keep XXC from touching his hand, since that would give away his identity. He has a...prosthetic finger? He wears a black glove and keeps his pinky finger straight so we know it's a replacement, or injured, or something. 

I think this is a concession to Wang Haoxuan having ten functional fingers and the show having a limited CGI budget. In a real sword-based society, missing a finger is probably not particularly uncommon, and he would probably just rock the nine-fingered look without having a special glove.

At this point, the complex interactions of the trio get rolling. Xiao Xingchen is honestly kind, Xue Yang is fake-kind, A-Qing is fake-unaware with Xue Yang and is unable to make Xiao Xingchen understand the problem, and Xiao Xingchen is genuinely unaware of everything. 

We spend a fairly large amount of time with Xue Yang and Xiao Xingchen playing happy families. As part of his false persona, Xue Yang adopts a coy and whiny tone when talking to his pet white-clad cultivator, remarkably like another demonic cultivator we know.

I’m pretty sure Wei Wuxian has never managed to cop a feel while his sweetie climbs up a ladder, however. 

Then again, neither Lan Wangji nor Wei Wuxian has ever needed a ladder to get onto a roof, so maybe it’s just a lack of opportunity. 

This relationship, on the surface, is cute and sweet, which just makes the reality of it more disturbing. It’s super uncomfortable to watch, but there’s more than manipulation happening in these interactions. As Xue Yang flits around doing domestic tasks like patching the roof of the crappy outdoor shelter that they absolutely do not need to be using, he tells Xiao Xingchen various true things about his early life, and we begin to see what shaped him. 

Xue Yang (like OP) is obsessed with candy. In Xue Yang’s case, he was a hungry street kid who loved candy but couldn’t usually have it because of poverty. We learn that he has skills in patching up inadequate housing because he did it growing up. 

And we learn that he was beaten a lot. 

So he and Wei Wuxian have these things in common - except now Wei Wuxian gets his sugar from alcohol, not from candy. And Wei Wuxian’s handyman skills are used to make a home for his former enemies in the burial grounds, while Xue Yang’s are used - also in a cemetery, of sorts - to manipulate and trap his enemy. 

I Want Candy

In classic predator form, Xue Yang uses candy to lure A-Qing into coming within stabbing range, because he thinks she’s faking her blindness and wants to test her.  

I find him super attractive right here in spite of his evilness. I’m pretty sure it’s because he’s offering candy. (OP goes and gets a jolly rancher out of her purse). 

After calling her over, he draws his sword with a super-loud "sshshk" noise that she inexplicably doesn't notice, and she bravely walks up to, and nearly on to, the point of the sword. 

This shocks him and convinces him that she's really blind. He sits her down with apparently sincere gentleness, and gives her candy, while quizzing her about her hot gege.

A-Qing tries to warn Xiao Xingchen about Xue Yang being a bad guy, pointing out that he's a cultivator and won't tell them his name. (She can’t say “also he tried to stab me” because she’d have to come clean about being able to see.) Xiao Xingchen, because he is a condescending prick--albeit a very sweet one--pats her on the fucking head and laughs off her extremely useful warning. 

Xiao Xingchen came out into the wider world with a set of ideals that he lives by, apparently without examining them. He’s humble, kind, frugal, and wants to eradicate evil. He also believes that the majority of people are good like him, and that detecting evil is simple--as simple as following his sword toward it. He doesn’t allow A-Qing, who is experienced in the wider world, to teach him anything, preferring to keep his ideals untarnished.

Contrast this with Lan Wangji, who also starts his journey into the wider world with a set of ideals (codified as rules), but does not make the mistake of assuming that other people shares his beliefs. Once he’s away from the Cloud Recesses, he follows Wei Wuxian’s lead when dealing with new people, rather than insisting on doing things the way he did back home. In general, he is open to having his beliefs challenged, even when it makes him upset or uncomfortable. As a result, he grows into a righteous man, not a naïve one, and he’s fully capable of identifying enemies even when they appear to be friends.

Bonus: 

In this brief long-distance shot we learn that A-Qing sleeps in a coffin, which is some next level goth girl shit. 

Soundtrack: 1. Hey Pretty by Poe 2. I Want Candy by Bow Wow Wow 3. Cheap Thrills by Sia

[affiesque]

So, after surviving a crappy year, I decided my reward would be yet another rewatch of Desire Catcher. I know this fandom is kinda tiny, but I always enjoy reading other people’s random thoughts and observations so I thought I’d throw mine out there too.

There are, of course, a bunch of different crime-related plot lines in the show, but this is basically going to just be me yelling about Luo Fei and Lu Fengping, seeing as I remain obsessed with them. I’m always up for discussing these two nerds in love, so feel free to tag me or message me (*waves to @thinkonce-acttwice!*). I’m at about the halfway point now, so I’ll post again once I finish the rest of the episodes.

Overall, I really like Desire Catcher - the various bits of plot don’t quite come together in the end, but for me it’s more about the relationships and themes of revenge, regret, and forgiveness. So, lots of angst, which I’m always a big fan of, and which I suppose says something about me…

Luo Fei! Light of my life, the silent, broody, lone wolf cop - ACAB, of course, but he’s firmly in sad (not-so-little) man territory, which is catnip to me. Plus he has a collection of black leather jackets - need I say more?

Lu Fengping! Other light of my life - Luo Fei’s future boyfriend, I mean consulting hypnotist, the more outgoing, “quirky” one. He’s always in light colors, dashing around with a lollipop in his mouth (I know there's a cute connection with his mom about them, but that aside, “oral fixation vibes” anyone?), teasing everyone around him - contrasted with Luo Fei’s dark colors, grim expressions, and workaholic nature. Though it’s interesting that as the show goes on it becomes clear that some of Lu Fengping’s affectations are really a mask he puts on to hide his pain (yay, angst!).

Their first real meeting happens over a meal; it’s dark, it’s raining, there’s thunder in the distance - foreboding and romantic all at once. There’s definitely a teasing/flirty vibe there, though Luo Fei seems wary of Lu Fengping - in fairness, Lu Fengping is sort of using him for info on his mom’s murder case, though it gets a lot more complicated than that as time goes on.

While there’s a lot of emphasis on their differences (e.g., dark vs. light), it’s interesting to note how similar Luo Fei and Lu Fengping actually are, even if they don’t see it yet. For example, Luo Fei has trance-like visions as he imagines what happened at a crime scene, much like how Lu Fengping sort of walks around in someone’s mind/memories when he’s hypnotizing them.

So I know this is mainly about the boyfriends, but I want to say that I love all the other members of the investigation team too, especially Liang Yin - definitely not a fan of the “woman suffers for man pain” thing, but they do give her a couple of moments of reclaiming her agency, which I liked.

Luo Fei and Lu Fengping kind of dance around the whole I-know-you-know-more-about-my-mom’s-death thing for most of the first half of the show, at least until it all comes out when Lu Fengping hypnotizes Luo Fei (and WTF suggesting that Zhang Yu - you were supposed to be the show’s moral compass!). Like I get that by this point they’re becoming closer, feeling more open to each other, but still - you’re just rooting around in his brain without permission, my guy. Yikes.

I’m a big fan of parallels and I think we get a pretty significant one here between Luo Fei/Lu Fengping and the story of the relationship between Xiao Xifeng and Tu Liansheng. While you could certainly read it as just two longtime friends, the flashback scenes of them raising the abandoned kid together certainly give off a “couple-y” vibe. Given that the show can’t come right out and say anyone is actually gay/queer, to me it’s a way of floating the idea out there and letting people draw their own conclusions.

Speaking of reading into things, I had to go there and look up the various books shown strewn around Lu Fengping’s apartment. There were two romance novels (“Crimes of the Heart” by Allie Harrison and “Yesterday’s Bride” by Charlotte Walker), another female-centric novel (“Things to Make and Mend” by Ruth Thomas), a financial memoir (“The Age of Turbulence” by Alan Greenspan), and, my personal fav, some gay French shit (“Remembrance of Things Past” by Marcel Proust). Kind of an odd combo of things, but there are some bits that do seem to fit with the themes of the show - lots of misunderstandings, mistakes, not wanting to lose the people close to you. The Greenspan book is more of an outlier, but it does have the theme of “the invisible hand” - it’s mainly an economic term, but you could extrapolate it more generally to people acting on instinct, rather than in a calculated way, sort of like how Lu Fengping’s mom acts to save Liang Yin, setting off a chain of events (kind of a stretch, though). And I guess I don’t have to say much about the Proust - feels like the kind of book you’d use as shorthand for “some gay stuff is happening here, folks.” Plus, the book deals with memory and how people can perceive the same thing in totally different ways, which seems relevant to the mom’s death story line.

Getting back to the gay stuff, there were definitely a few things that made me 👀. First, when Lu Fengping says “no problem” a little too forcefully when Luo Fei tells him to wait outside while he changes - like, “don’t worry, bro, I totally don’t want to see you naked, nope, not at all, hahaha” (combine that with his comment “You don’t like men? Haha, neither do I!” in a later episode to Liang Yin - feels like he’s protesting a bit much). Second, they’re always kind of flirty with each other, even if it’s subtle. There just seems to be a bit of subtext in a line like “You’re in a pretty unique situation” when Luo Fei sees Lu Fengping facedown on the floor at one point, not to mention the looks they give each other when Lu Fengping ends up stumbling to his knees in front of Luo Fei (and you can’t tell me that that was a totally accidental push on the part of Lu Fengping’s mentor - he totally ships them too, IMHO). Third, you can’t overlook the jealousy that rears its head when Luo Fei sees Lu Fengping getting flirty with the (eventually evil) nurse, or when he thinks Lu Fengping brought a girl home to his apartment. Fourth, there are several bits of convo that play around with subtext and seem aimed at the audience with a wink and a nudge. For example, there’s the bit in the car where Lu Fengping brings up marriage (sure, it’s in reference to a different character, but Luo Fei has a justifiable WTF reaction), asks if Luo Fei has a girlfriend, and basically tries to set him up with a female client of his (who, it should be noted, sounds suspiciously like Lu Fengping himself - “very outgoing; your personalities complement each other very well”) in the span of about 10 seconds. Luo Fei gives him his best “bitch, please” look and ditches him - I’m with you on this one, boo. Then there’s a weird bit of dialogue when they’re searching a suspect’s very neat and orderly apartment - Lu Fengping says “A man living by himself can keep a place like this clean. He wouldn’t be that thing…” - long pause, pointed look at Luo Fei - “OCD or something like that?” The audience knows at this point that Luo Fei’s apartment is just as well-kept, and there seems to be an implication that Lu Fengping is actually referring to the stereotype of gay men being very neat. And how could I not mention the fight scene in the gym - beyond the groping, grunting, and full-body contact of their grappling session, the looks they give each other afterward, the small smiles when the other isn’t looking, Lu Fengping thanking Luo Fei for bringing flowers to his mom’s grave - it’s a lot.

DATE NIGHT! (Sorry, I just get really excited about this part.) So here we have Mr. Uptight, known-to-not-drink-with-his co-workers-ever Luo Fei agreeing to go out with Lu Fengping after work and proceeding to get shitfaced (or does he…? He seems suspiciously sober after Lu Fengping puts him to bed and leaves the room). It’s tropey (drunken piggyback ride), it’s sweet (Lu Fengping tearing up when he sees he’s been added to the work group chat), it’s typical man shit (drinking instead of talking about feelings). They’re both just so tender and raw right under the surface and it makes me slightly feral, ngl. Also, the bit with Luo Fei’s parents there in the morning - I love how Lu Fengping immediately charms them and how they rush off like, “oops, sorry son, didn’t realize you brought a 'friend' home - we didn’t mean to interrupt!” And, of course, Liang Yin’s knowing smile when she sees them show up to work together the next morning; at this point in the show I’m not sure there’s any character who doesn’t ship it…

On a sad note, poor Xiao Liu - all he wanted was for his boss Luo Fei to be proud of him. Sure, he fucked up a couple of times, but he still didn’t deserve to get stabbed to death like that, nor just become another brick in the wall of Luo Fei’s “man pain.” (Also, WTF Luo Fei - do not throw papers at your subordinates - not cool, bro.) I’m probably reading too much into things, but there was kind of an undercurrent of Xiao Liu having a little bit of a crush on Luo Fei - he seemed so sad that Luo Fei had drinks with Lu Fengping almost immediately after meeting him, while Xiao Liu had been waiting to do that with Luo Fei for years. Interesting to note too that Xiao Liu also favored lighter-colored clothing, much like Lu Fengping (more of the light vs. dark trope).

Alright, well, this got away from me a bit… Looking forward to the second half of DC and all that delicious angst. 🖤

[kae-karo]

I saw your tags on the link click post and I love your theory that this isn't the first time lu guang has saved cxs. Would you happen to have the energy to expand on that? I'd... 👉👈 like to hear your thoughts (only if u want to though)

HELLO THANK U FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPAND ON THIS (for context - x) don't get me wrong i ADORE the sentiment in that post, but i am SO far down the "this isn't the first time lu guang has saved cheng xiaoshi" path that i can't come back lmao

before i say anything else, BUCKLE UP cause i have absolutely zero tangible proof and any canon reasoning for this is a stretch that would make a rubber band look rigid, but i can't stop thinking about it and i'm having fun so here we go

first and foremost: hat guy is a time cop ("cop"). hear me out, i promise this is relevant.

also sorry his name is liu xiao lmao (ignore the moment i thought his name was lu xiao and was about to be like he is the physical manifestation of lu guang and cheng xiaoshi's melding of their powers and/or their lovechild and/or their future combined self and/or- etc u get the idea)

AHEM. okay so. the first number of times we see liu xiao (as a kid and a friend of li tianchen) he seems relatively normal? although he does make a comment that stood out to me when i first watched ep9, where he says "i believe in the near future, you will definitely encounter the opportunity to become a hunter". when tianchen asks if they'll meet again, he says "surely we will" - and then, when they do, he reminds tianchen that he said they'd definitely meet again

he proceeds to comment (when tianchen asks if he has any choice) that "it seems everyone has only one path in their destiny, but in fact, it is made up of countless parallel lines...sometimes we want to change it, but we can't." - this specific phrase is spoken over lu guang's memory of watching cheng xiaoshi get shot.

and of course, we can't forget liu xiao's critical line "i wanna bring all parallel lines together, to turn all uncertainties into certainties." i think that's beyond metaphorical, i think he can not only see (in some sense) the parallel lines of a person's fate/futures/etc, but can manipulate them. or, rather, can corral them all into a single line, a single destiny, a single path for every person

now brief reminder that li tianxi was able to see lu guang's memories when she looked at the pic (revealed in ep12) - and she immediately started crying. i know the implication in that moment (ep10) was that she was experiencing lu guang's pain from the wound, but what if it was more than that? what if she saw his memories, too - in ep12, he implies that he went back to the beginning, presumably the start of the season, effectively, to prevent cheng xiaoshi from dying (hence all his careful planning through the season)

also real quick can we talk about how the passcode to his phone was the time (and date?) he went back to save cheng xiaoshi? THEE moment of "he is worth more than my rules". whether this is the first time or the thousandth, i'm still unwell

OKAY so anyway i think i've established that liu xiao has some fascination with timelines and, more precisely, with paring them down to whatever he's determined to be the Correct or Perfect timeline (ie establishing 'certainty') - this is why i call him a time cop like i don't think he's actually executing on some authority i think he's just decided that he has the power and that he wants the world to operate according to his certainties.

ones that lu guang has fucked up by saving cheng xiaoshi. possibly more than once.

for my next act, lu guang's character sheet:

yeah can we talk about age: ? like excuse me ?????? i'm also intrigued by the unknown blood type, but let's ignore that for now lmao

back to his unknown age - why the hell would this be unknown if he's just a guy? cheng xiaoshi has a normal age in spite of his abilities, right? and lu guang's ability is only to view the 12hr surrounding a photo, right?

WRONG. well, right, but also wrong. BEAR WITH ME OKAY cause we're jumping to qiao ling's experience in ep12 now - the moment she held onto tianxi when she died. where we saw...something travel from her to qiao ling. her memories? or her abilities?

now perhaps u, like me, recall lu guang's solitary moment in ep12 where, while covered in blood, he looked at his phone, his eyes turned cheng-xiaoshi-gold, he clapped, and he zoomied back to the past. because he was holding cheng xiaoshi when he died. and thus inherited his power.

OKAY SO why the fuck does that matter !!!! WELL I'M GLAD U ASKED. because we have no problem with cheng xiaoshi's age, right? he's done this 'jump back in time' thing a bunch!!! for 12hr at a time, and then he's back!

okay, but what happens when lu guang, who acquired cheng xiaoshi's power, jumps back to a time before he had cheng xiaoshi's power? now what? how would he jump back (or even be forced back) to his present body and time if he no longer has that ability? wouldn't he now be forced to re-live the hours, days, years after going back to make a change?

in his words, he went back to the beginning, thus he'd have to relive the whole thing, but now, he can make the Right choices this time to protect cheng xiaoshi

but what's a week (or a couple days or whatever it was) in the grand scheme of things? how would his age be unknown if this is the first and only time he's ever done it?

(critical caveat that 'the beginning' could absolutely refer to something far earlier than just the season's start - it could be the beginning of their relationship, for all we know, but let's start here for the sake of keeping this...i'd say manageable but we're well beyond that i am YAPPING)

if his age is so impossible to define, i think it could very easily fit to suggest that he's done this before - possibly many times. so many times that to suggest he's only as old as his physical body would be utterly ludicrous

okay but what in the world would make him want to change fate so often, for so long, so many times? what would make him go against his own rule (*i don't think this was always a rule for him but bear with me, we'll get to that)? well, we know the answer to that :)

so, i don't think this is the first time he's gone back in time to save cheng xiaoshi. i don't think it's the first time he's held cheng xiaoshi as he dies, because that's the way he would've acquired his ability in order to do this (an argument could be made here that he's hidden some facets of his own ability and that he's always been capable of this, but i don't think it was an accident that we saw qiao ling Acquire tianxi's ability)

in fact (if u thought this was all crack theory up to this point, hold onto ur horses) i think the first time he went back in time to save cheng xiaoshi was (seriously, hold on tight) when cheng xiaoshi died with his parents when he was a kid

that's right i'm going all the way baby. i think cheng xiaoshi was supposed to die when he was a kid. why the hell did his parents leave him all alone? to go on some random trip?? like we all agree this is peculiar right???? how does NOBODY know what happened to them, where they were, etc?

now i could go into possible scenarios (lu guang was a kid, too, and didn't know what he was doing, lu guang knew EXACTLY what he was doing and that it would have consequences, lu guang didn't even know he HAD any abilities til he tried to save cheng xiaoshi, the list goes on) BUT the gist of this being: i think lu guang saved cheng xiaoshi. i think he went back in time (into his own body) and figured out the right choices to make (maybe after many tries) to ensure that cheng xiaoshi didn't go with his parents. that he stayed home, for whatever reason, and survived

now why do i believe this, you may be asking? because it's fun, of course !!! and because we have no idea what happened to his parents yet, so i'll continue to theorize in the meantime lmao

you could also alternatively suggest that the going back in time to save cheng xiaoshi doesn't start until after they meet - i mean, hell, look at the situations they get themselves into just within the span of two seasons, they are RIFE with danger. like, cheng xiaoshi could've died MANY times !!!!

but honestly what really sells me is - going ALL the way back to the post that i linked at the start - lu guang didn't hesitate. not only did he already know, but he had no qualms with immediately (still covered in blood) going back to before and doing this all over again. unlike qiao ling, who does not appear to realize she has tianxi's ability, lu guang seems to immediately understand that he has cheng xiaoshi's. that just smacks of experience

(also, an aside: what photo did he use? how far back did he go? there's another route of course - did he go so far back that he's relived his life to such a notable degree that calling him whatever age of his physical body would be missing a notable number of years? in which case, one could argue that this could be the first time, though his immediate knowledge of acquiring cheng xiaoshi's remains unexplained. ANYWAY i digress)

okay back to the point here - lu guang immediately knowing that he has cheng xiaoshi's ability and using it without hesitation, though he does comment on how he broke his own rule. and it sounds like a first-time thing, but consider...

what if this is the first time he's broken it since making the rule?

enter time cop hat guy (i hear u, i promised this was relevant), aka our boi liu xiao who wants to create 'certainties' by (presumably) eliminating branching possibilities in some regard to create single paths/fates/destinies/etc. for lack of a better way to phrase it, a single timeline where everything can be predicted and accounted for (yeah...i suspect we'll be unpacking some of his trauma in s3)

now, different choices mean different outcomes - different timelines, a long list of uncertainties. i think liu xiao aimed to stop that. i also think that his ability gives him some kind of godlike manipulation over timelines (how else would he speak with such confidence about making this future a reality?) assuming, of course, that he has no interference from others with similar abilities

enter lu guang, who has now - potentially multiple times - messed with liu xiao's perfect timeline, one wherein cheng xiaoshi dies (not necessarily with intentional malice, just by virtue of securing whichever certainties liu xiao wants). this, of course, is a problem for liu xiao

and perhaps he makes lu guang's life a living hell - hey, why not go all the way? perhaps he makes a point of manipulating the timeline to kill cheng xiaoshi in new and horrifying ways, again and again, just to watch lu guang play this pathetic game trying to save him by going back in time. perhaps it's entertaining, for a while, but he grows tired of it eventually

so, he proposes an agreement: he'll stop trying to kill cheng xiaoshi, but lu guang has to agree never to manipulate his perfect timeline again (or something similar, you get the idea - they reach a ceasefire of sorts wherein they both, to an extent, get what they want)

thus, the rule was born - whatever they do, they cannot ever change these critical nodes. so long as lu guang adheres, liu xiao won't try to kill cheng xiaoshi

but then someone else does. someone else succeeds. and lu guang breaks his side of the deal, he changes the timeline. he knows exactly what he's doing, what he may invoke, but he does it anyway (i'm fully writing my own au of this story at this point lmao but hey, hope ur having fun if u made it this far)

and so liu xiao returns from abroad, because he has a score to settle

[don't ask me why s3 is set in london and they look like they're teaming up, i'm all for a 'forced to work together' arc but how that fits in with this wildly out of pocket theory is beyond me lmao]

anyway hope u enjoyed this delve into my silly goofy theory !!!! thank u deeply for the ask LMAO

[nutty1005]

Exclusive Interview｜Xiao Zhan: Sheng Yang made me relax a little

Original Article: https://weibo.com/ttarticle/p/show?id=2309404948026623131654 Original Author: 文艺湃

Xiao Zhan receives a lot of scripts and roles, and some of the people around him gives him suggestions to act in dramas that everyone seems to like, like those which has more dramatic conflicts, or the characters are a little more exaggerated, or the proportion of his section is very important, instead of unilaterally looking from his own tastes. But Xiao Zhan’s own criteria for viewing scripts and characters are not complicated. The first answer is to “impress him”, or to say it more tangibly, when he read the first draft of the script of “Sunshine By My Side”, and he saw how Sheng Yang was described in the script, he smiled subconsciously. When he saw some plots between Meijuan and Papa Sheng, he would subconsciously feel sad, resonate and nod.

“I am the one who has to interpret this character. If I don’t have the confidence to interpret him, or even the desire to do so, how can I have the confidence to bring him to the audience? At least that’s how I am currently.”

Xiao Zhan as Sheng Yang

In essence, Xiao Zhan believed that he and Sheng Yang had the same base color. “Just like the name of our drama, Sheng Yang is a little sun. He has an energy that can turn all bad things into something very good, I think he will always be bright.” Of course, there is also the coincidence that Xiao Zhan and Sheng Yang are also previously from the same industry. But there was a big difference in personality, in Xiao Zhan’s eyes, “This kid is too lively. It doesn’t matter if he encounters difficulties, he will just cheer himself up and continue to move forward bravely.” But Xiao Zhan himself is very different in life, he prefers to be alone and quieter most of the time.

Screenwriter Li Xiao revealed that he met Xiao Zhan during the creation of this character, so he added a lot of Xiao Zhan’s own characteristics to the character of Sheng Yang. Xiao Zhan recalled that when he met Li Xiao for the second time half a year before filming started, and they had a more in-depth communication, “I remember that time she told me that she felt like I was different from before.” What was the difference? Xiao Zhan himself couldn’t answer, “More than two years have passed, people will always grow.”

In addition to his coincidental fate with Sheng Yang, the important reason why Xiao Zhan likes “Sunshine By My Side” was because of the natural style of this drama. Sheng Yang was a young man who dreamed of becoming a designer after graduating from university, who had an ordinary family that was noisy at times but mostly warm, and he met a senior director whom he remembered from 10 years ago again by chance, their paths cross after coincidences. The story did not have the plot of an idol drama., there was work, life, friends and his lady all in his life. “It’s not like the plots I’ve seen before, it’s more natural.”

This seemingly natural script was what Xiao Zhan liked and found challenging. He wanted to make Sheng Yang a living person, not just a character played by Xiao Zhan.

“This was a story that flows like water, it did not have any particularly dramatic conflicts or plots, everything was very natural, just like a story that would happen around you. Acting in this drama was a big challenge for me because I had never filmed such an urban drama, how could I make everyone believe that Sheng Yang is such a person, that he really existed, and was not something Xiao Zhan worked hard to play.”

The story felt natural and the characters were relaxed. Relaxation and calmness wan acting is what Xiao Zhan gained after portraying Sheng Yang, and due to a coincidence of career, Sheng Yang might be the life Xiao Zhan would have experienced if he was not an actor. Did experiencing a life from a “parallel universe” make actor Xiao Zhan relax?

“Yes, but not much. Because the problems Xiao Zhan and Sheng Yang face are still different.”

Photograph from “Sunshine By My Side”

Conversation

There is not much Midas Touch in life, everything requires our own efforts.

The Paper: I also spoke with the screenwriter two days ago, who said that she met you before the script was fully completed, and this had an impact on the creation of the character Sheng Yang. How was the contact with the screenwriting teacher like at that time?

Xiao Zhan: The first time Ms. Xiao and I met was in 2019. Half a year before filming started, we had an in-depth chat and she said that I felt different from before. I said that more than two years have passed and people will always grow. That was the first time that the screenwriter and I established an understanding of each other. Later on, we held three more script meetings to make adjustments to the character of Sheng Yang.

There were two points I raised initially. One was why Sheng Yang was obsessed with this lady for 10 years? Another point was that although Sheng Yang is a younger man, how he could show responsibility and growth in a relationship to convince the audience.

The Paper: How compatible was the finalized Sheng Yang with you?

Xiao Zhan: We are both positive and optimistic, but we have quite different personalities. For example, Sheng Yang can’t help but go physical against his boss. Maybe for Xiao Zhan, I won’t do such impulsive things. I will think of solutions when signs of workplace bullying appears, instead of delaying the matter to the point of being unbearable.

Photograph from “Sunshine By My Side”

The Paper: Then how do you understand Sheng Yang’s tolerance in the beginning, where his superior took credit for his work and had a bad attitude toward him. He never thought of a solution and was just enduring.

Xiao Zhan: I can understand Sheng Yang’s situation at that time. Firstly, he needed this job; secondly, this was life, there would be pressure and difficulties, it might make him feel very tired, but he still had to go to work properly the next day. Because he needed this job, his family conditions did not allow him to do something very outrageous and impulsive, this also caused him to develop a very gentle character.

So I understand Sheng Yang. As for why he suddenly went physical and had an emotional outburst later, it was because (the team leader) had breached the bottom line of his tolerance.

But there is growth in Sheng Yang. In the beginning, he was a diligent and hard-working young man with a relatively tolerant personality. Later, he experienced some things in the workplace and in life, and at the same time, he also met his lady, who encouraged him to be himself, and to face and resist bravely, so Sheng Yang made some adjustments. But even in the ending, we didn’t portray Sheng Yang as someone very successful, someone who had completed a very big project, or someone famous. We still wanted Sheng Yang to be closer to life. After all, there are not so much Midas Touch in life. Everything is hard-earned and requires your own efforts.

The Paper: How do you understand some of the struggles between Sheng Yang and the team leader? If it were you, what kind of mentality would you have when faced with this unfair situation?

Xiao Zhan: I might solve the problem as soon as it occurs. I would look for opportunities to have a tactful chat with my boss. For example, I would feedback to my boss on the current resistance I was encountering from a project perspective. But to be honest, I had never encountered workplace bullying, so I am quite lucky, the seniors and colleagues I had met took good care of me.

Photograph from “Sunshine By My Side”

Acting, sometimes you have to “perform subtraction”.

The Paper: What is the difficulty of Sheng Yang for you?

Xiao Zhan: Actually, in a few scenes, I thought Sheng Yang was a little childish. Would he be accepted by the audience? Would everyone like him? And how to determine the measure of this? How to act naturally? These were the questions I had to face.

In fact, I talked a lot with the director on set. I would sit next to the director and watch him film, or talk about how to perform a certain scene, and the director would also give me a lot of advice. The director inspired me to do subtraction: don’t plan too many things, don’t think about having to act in a lively state, remember your motives, and then do subtraction.

The Paper: I remember that the scene where Sheng Yang resigned was actually quite simple, but some viewers were very sympathetic. Sheng Yang also had red circles in his eyes at the end. Was this a subtraction?

Xiao Zhan: Yes. In fact, we thought about whether we should say something to everyone after Sheng Yang resigned, but later I felt that there was no need to say it. First of all, the incident did happen, so it was useless to say more. Secondly, you had used your resignation to protect the interests of other members of the group, so there was no need to say too much at the moment.

We need to understand the character’s emotions based on his current situation. First of all, his family situation was not very good and he needed this job; secondly, how would he explain to his parents when he returned home? This was a profession that he loved very much and it was more than just a job to make ends meet. And he had already became the chief designer, which was a very rare opportunity. So Sheng Yang felt more sad at the moment. I was also very sad when I was acting, because everything was obviously going in a good direction and he had worked hard, but instead he received this result. In the setting in the script, it was a very famous advertising company. When we were studying design, we would also make a career plan for ourselves, so he must have been very sad to leave this company.

Photograph from “Sunshine By My Side”

The Paper: When thinking about the character, did you do any plan for Sheng Yang that might be outside of the script to make it more consistent with the character?

Xiao Zhan: Regarding the design-related content, I could refer to my previous work experience. The main thing was how to interpret it naturally and not to do too much planning. I had worked in the design industry, so I knew how the condition was like to work. In addition, before filming started, I also sorted out Sheng Yang’s growing environment, as well as his way of getting along with colleagues and superiors at work, and with his parents at home.

The Paper: What do you think of the emotional line with his parents?

Xiao Zhan: I think Sheng Yang would be confused when his parents quarreled. In fact, my parents also quarrel and sometimes I cannot understand too, just over little matters when they obviously care about each other, why do they have to hurt each other in this way? I also had the same questions like Sheng Yang in the drama. But Sheng Yang did not flee and avoid. If he had chosen to flee and avoid, he would not have grown into such a character. In fact, it could be seen from Sheng Yang’s character that his family was a very loving family.

Photograph from “Sunshine By My Side”

Understanding each other, testing each other, moving closer to each other step by step.

The Paper: In Sheng Yang’s eyes, what kind of person was Jian Bing?

Xiao Zhan: She was very independent and sober, like a breath of fresh air, her insistence on design impressed Shengyang the most, and her own high-end aesthetics.

The Paper: When Sheng Yang complained about work to Jian Bing, Jian Bing said to quit, and Sheng Yang fell silent. At this time, he was not brave. Do you agree more with Jian Bing’s statement, or do you agree with Sheng Yang’s hesitation and silence?

Xiao Zhan: I can particularly understand Sheng Yang. After all, work is not something you simply quit. Firstly, Sheng Yang is the team leader of the advertising department of a design company, and he had three projects on hand and needed to deal with three clients. If he was to suddenly quit, he would have no sense of responsibility and have a lack of professional ethics. Because the customer chose you, you would be responsible for the customer. Even in real life, I can’t do this, at least there has to be a transition period. But from Jian Bing’s perspective, she felt that it wasn’t like Sheng Yang couldn’t find a new job. Since the leader didn’t approve of him, he should quit. This was a difference between them. The younger man and older lady were in different social statuses and had different working environments, which would lead to a conflict of ideas. This was also a very real point in “Sunshine By My Side”. Both of them came together step by step by understanding and testing each other.

Photograph from “Sunshine By My Side”

The Paper: When was the moment when you felt you most resonated with Sheng Yang’s soul?

Xiao Zhan: I had always been, he resonated with me from the first scene when he went to work. But the most resonant moment might be the scene when Sheng Yang was unemployed and went home to eat dinner with his parents. His mother says what’s wrong, why did he look so tired today? In fact, they don’t know that Sheng Yang was already unemployed, but Sheng Yang didn’t tell them the real reason. I was very sad when I was filming this scene, I couldn’t help but cry while eating, but according to the plot, crying would be weird, so the director didn’t use the scene where I cried in the end. In fact, many working youths are like this. They can be strong or tolerant on the exterior, they report good news but not bad news to their families, I am the same way too. But there may be a moment facing a greeting from your loved ones, especially your parents, and you can’t help but breakdown. So I am very empathetic.

The Paper: Doesn’t his character bring out the liveliness that you don’t have?

Xiao Zhan: It’s possible, so I am very envious of him, he’s a kind of longing.

The Paper: Which scene or line in this drama do you like best?

Xiao Zhan: Independent of each other, no second guessing or suspicion.

The Paper: You have acted in a lot of dramas so far. Where do you think your greatest growth is reflected?

Xiao Zhan: I feel more relaxed and calm. This was also the biggest feeling after filming “Sunshine By My Side”. It might also be because of the subject matter, which required you to be natural and relaxed.

The Paper: As an actor, where do you think your desire for acting starts?

Xiao Zhan: When you see a good script, you have the confidence and motivation to perform it well. It is also a desire to conquer this character that I like. In fact, when filming, I just enjoy the current moment, whether it is sad or happy, just remember it.

Photograph from “Sunshine By My Side”

The Paper: When is your happiest moment as an actor?

Xiao Zhan: The director and I basically sent messages after work every day, sometimes it was to summarize the details from today’s scene that hadn’t been achieved yet, and sometimes it’s to discuss how the next day’s scenes would be filmed and whether there were any ideas. The director always sent me 60-seconds voice messages, and every time he was especially happy and excited to discuss what he was going to film tomorrow. I liked this atmosphere very much. Everyone was giving and creating, and they did it with love. This was what I liked and what I wanted.

The Paper: To be honest, especially you, many youths like you as a young actor, and the roles handed to you were relatively upright, righteous and have no shortcomings, but this seems not three-dimensional and sufficiently enjoyable. What do you think of this situation?

Xiao Zhan: I think this is a matter of career functionality of actors at different stages. There will indeed be some complex characters that are fascinating and challenging. As I grow older, experience more, and my personality attributes become more and more multifaceted, I can try them. But in fact, every character has its own shortcomings and flaws.

For example, Sheng Yang was actually a bit noisy. How do you deal with it in order to turn his shortcomings into endearing points and become the characteristics of the character. There was also Sheng Yang’s stubbornness and lack of vision. These were his shortcomings, but it was also this energy that makes him move forward bravely, so this was also what makes him endearing.

The Paper: Are you the kind of person who needs to work all the time, or do you prefer a relaxed pace?

Xiao Zhan: I should be like many people. I want to take a break when I am working all the time. When I take a break, I will say no, I have to work and I have to produce.

The Paper: Since it was filmed in Chongqing, did you bring your colleagues from the crew to introduce the local delicacies?

Xiao Zhan: I did send some to my colleagues, but they were all rejected in the end. Everyone would say we don’t eat this anymore. It turned out that I had not returned to Chongqing for several years and was already outdated.

The Paper: Do you feel a sense of loss that you are no longer familiar with your hometown?

Xiao Zhan: Don’t feel the loss, the classic ones are the best.

[citadelofmythoughts]

So I kind of already got this with red like roses part two. (Context about the ruby and yang v10 family drama) but I’ve always wanted a slice of Ruby Is Angry With Summer. She loved her mom, she loves her memory, she mocked her outfit partially after her. She feels burdened with her gone. And while she’s sad and upset with her gone.

RLR2 is just. It’s my jam idk. It’s one of the only pieces in early days that showed how Ruby truly felt. Yang has nothing but good things to say about Summer and it’s clear BOTH girls idolize her to some extent. But while Yang lives in the bubble of “mom is still my hero even if she failed bc I know how strong and caring she was” it felt like or maybe I just hoped that while Ruby loved her mom here is laced with “How can you love someone and still be so angry with them”

In a way, in a very very different way that maybe would take a longer post to elaborate on, the way Yang sees Tai and the way Ruby sees Summer TO ME are similar. Not in subject matter but in the deeper more complicated feelings.

Tai was present but not emotionally. He was the fun dad. He seems to have grown from context clues into the nag your kids about life lessons, referencing Ruby’s annoyance at Yang saying she needs to branch out bc she “sounds like dad”. But he was neglectful. And loving a parent who hurt you even by accident, who never Saw your pain and then when they did handled it badly. Someone who tries but it’s wrong or not enough. That’s hard. The memory of super mom Summer keeps Yang going and is probably her version of Bubba Bubba Boba. It was bad. But not always. And that’s why her feeling about him are so complicated.

Whereas Ruby “maybe we don’t have the full picture” seems to give him space to be better / good. Of course dad loves us we know that. I imagine Yang has been the buffer for her since Yang was taking care of Ruby emotional needs growing up, and Tai took them out for fun trips and got them a puppy and taught them. He’s maybe distant until he “gets better” after Summer leaves. But with Qrow being the more visibly unstable one Ruby seemed to put her attention onto him and so Tai is just Dad to her.

But for RUBY, Summer is the omen hanging over her. Yang says in BTC that she believed Ruby was too young to truly grasp what had happened. How accurate that is we don’t really know but RLR2 tells us that even if she didn’t have the words Ruby felt more than ppl thought a toddler showed. Sadness and loss. Betrayal. She has to be the new Summer and she can’t even remember what she truly looked like. She’s perfect in every way. Ways Ruby can never be. And unlike Tai who Yang could potentially have a screaming match at, Summer isn’t here. Ruby’s only outlets for her feelings are fitting and herself, since she looks so much like her.

Their family makes me so sad but I have so many questions. And while a neglectful parent is NOT the same as a dead one, it’s hard to forgive someone who you can’t even tell you’re mad at them. (Not trying to downplay Yang’s own burdens this is more a sad fun parallel of how I personally view the girls and their complicated emotions with their parents)

The Rose/Xiao Long/Branwen family is a troubled one and it's so complicated and messy.

You can love someone but still be angry at them, you can love someone and be disappointed in them. A parent can love a child and still completely screw up and in the process hurt them without meaning to.

[xenajen]

Qiao Ling and thoughts with flower symbolism, spoilers for both seasons

(take a shot every time I say parallel and symbolism)

with so many visuals of Qiao Ling shown with red eyes, it really makes me think that she'll be taken advantage of in s2. Whether it’s being possessed again, or a death plot device, I hate to say it, but she is the boys' strongest and weakest link 

-she knows them extremely well (that Red Eyes took advantage of as we already saw in s2ep1 with the lie) 

-she knows the ins and outs of the case, being around capt. xiao from the start 

-she could very well best Cheng Xiaoshi in a fight or at least evenly match. When they were first taught, she seemed to have a better grasp than CXS (in the special eps!) 

-proximity, she's always close to them 

-the visuals in the op are too much for me to NOT raise an eyebrow. the last frame looks as if she turns her back on cxs falling.  In a sense for betrayal, it seems unlikely that there's a second layer to Qiao Ling at this point-- we know she’s trustworthy, but I think the plot has more to come for her. She’s playing more of a role this season and I always get suspicious when characters are suddenly given more spotlight. the visuals in question:

This also brings meee to another point! The moment I saw her flower was the Hyacinth I was like "oh, okay," but then the s1 finale hit and I was like "Oh... ohhh. Ohhhhh.... oh no..."

If you're not familiar with the legend of Hyacinth from Greek mythology.. the parallels will start paralelling. TLDR;

-apollo fell in love with a mortal, hyacinth, who dies tragically. there are two endings to the story:

-one where apollo kills hyacinth on accident, when they were passing a discus to eachother. hyacinth thinks he can catch it, but fails to estimate apollo's strength, and dies of a head injury

-and another where zephyrus, god of the west wind, is jealous of apollo because he fancied hyacinth, so he pushes the discus with the wind into hyacinth, killing him.

-apollo tries everything, anything he can do to bring hyacinth back to life. in the end, apollo turns hyacinth’s soul into flowers (or, hyacinths), refusing to give him to death. 

-BOTH of these endings reminded me all too much of our current situation and what we know right now.

-the former: not saying lg/cxs represent one or the other of apollo/hyacinth specifically, but how their situation now is made from a series of missteps and overzealousness even, by cxs and possibly lg’s past actions if the timetravelling!lg theory is true; a series of accidents that lead to tragedy when hyacinth oversteps

-the latter; where the two are with eachother, but someone has to come and fuck it up. see: the li siblings; the red eyes is fascinated w/ cxs. i think it's important that Zephyrus kills hyacinth because he couldn't have him. Almost like red eyes going crazy for cxs, obsessed w his power and shit

-ugh here’s the kicker though, hyacinths also symbolize rebirth. Apollo refused to give Hyacinth’s soul to Hades, just like how LG has (possibly) refused to give up and see CXS die in an alternate timeline, deciding to restart(?). 

Back to my part one including Qiao Ling: overall, hyacinths possess a wide array of meanings, and can be color dependent, ranging from “forgive me, i’m sorry”, to jealousy, to sincerity, joy, and rebirth

The question is; why is this QL’s flower? Maybe it’s symbolism of the situation as a whole, maybe an indicator of something more underneath. 

Specifically, red hyacinths represent play, or a more playful kind of love. On a surface level for her character, it can represent her joyful demeanor and dedication, especially to her 2 closest friends. At the same time, mixed with the other meanings of the hyacinth, this can even parallel to the person who possessed her- enamored with CXS to no end, twistedly playful and possessive. 

Perhaps it’s symbolism for forgiveness- for what has already happened, or maybe even for what is to come, if she falls into possession again. We have yet to see Qiao Ling’s inner thoughts on the matter, and how she feels about being used to nearly kill LG.

still yet, stay tuned link clickers! anyway's here's cxs doing the fortnite dance to lift your spirits.

end notes

-Apologies if this was dreadfully obvious or smth but I just wanted to put this out there

-how many of you were familiar with the story of hyacinth and apollo?

[that-sims-four-blog]

Homeslice? Probably.

Excuse the delay, though. Had a nasty hangover on Wednesday. And that's not going into my losing interest in this project...

And now, on tonight's episode of Leeb, Leefuh, Lurve:

They're at Geekcon!

...Okay, it didn't go as well as planned, meta-wise. See that Lars? He's the catalyst for ruining the whole plan. And it all started with me thinking, "My God, he looks like he had been cast in The Matrix."

So, I decided to load up CAS to give him some sunglasses. Turns out that I can't find what he was wearing anywhere. Disappointed, I went back to the game, and... oh.

The GeekCon was over, and Makoto was nowhere to be found. Oops.

But on the bright side, though, I found something equally as odd as that—James Hetfield cosplaying as Luigi.

I couldn't quite snap a screenshot of it, but Kotone did manage to get a selfie of herself and him. That's a shame, I suppose.

Meanwhile, after some insightful talk with a ghost, Fuuka managed to come over her fear of death!

I genuinely don't know how she got it... Looking at the time there, aren't you? Well, well, you just caught me sequencing this as if I was editing a movie. Ha-ha. But, yeah, she got over her fear of death.

Yes, that's her silly beanie. That has nothing to do with dying. I thought it'd be silly. Did they become friends, forever and ever? ...I mean, as heartwarming would it be in prospect, maybe.

Mayor Whiskers???? Holy crap, we need to stop HERE, RIGHT NOW, to look at this Mayor Whiskers. Holy Mary Mother of Christ, it really is him.

Over at the Rose-Xiao-Long-Belladonna household, a couple of strangers—neighbors? unlikely—came to visit them. Ruby took the hold of greeting them and starting a little chat.

That's Hector and Hilary Laurent, having their little chat with Ruby, along with another offscreen party whom I forgot the name of. Lavina La Land, that's her name. So, yeah, they had a pretty great chat. ...No, she didn't rip someone's heart out—stop looking at the Moodlets, you.

She would make a good storyteller if it weren't for anyone not taking her grandiose cow-milking and... flowery prose seriously. I bet that she had been reading too much fairy tales.

By the way, Yang also had a shot at chatting with them once Ruby went into the Great Realm of The Offscreen.

Yang, Hilary's proposed to him. I don't know if they're okay with polyamory, but, come on, you have Blake...

You know, James Hetfield seems like the guy to love grilling, including in real life. I am not elaborating, but he seems like he would.

Another parallel with reality: Lars tries a hand at painting.

The result (right) is not really something Lars would paint—it would be much, much more surreal; one is featured in the Some Kind of Monster documentary and, oh boy, it sure is weird—but, come on... he tried. He did try. Appreciate his effort, damn it.

The royalty report came in:

I swear to fucking God, don't look at his hat.

[ichverdurstehier]

wen qing anon here🌼

No,no. If we're talking body modification/desecration,MDZS definitely goes in the opposite direction,as we see various characters whose bodies are very far from how their parents made them(Wei Wuxian&Jiang Cheng core transfer,Songxiao eye transfer,Wen Ning&Song Lan as fierce corpses)

Also many confucian ideals when it comes to how women should behave are misogynistic af,so fuck that guy,sorry.

It might be set in fantasy China but it's very much written by a 21st century woman,so it's not wrong to think of how these characters might be like,in a modern setting

Wei Ying might have even started as a pronoun respecter. He would probably not give a fuck about what people do to their bodies,might even encourage transition. But he also stands up for innocent people,even if it destroys his reputation.

I actually didn't care that much about what trans people do,but I can't stand sexism disguised as progressive thinking. I won't accept the harrassment of women going on right now,and call it justified. If I see an incel gaslighting women,I'm not going to pretend he's a "lesbian" just cause he threatens me and wears a skirt.

Actually that's why I liked MDZS so much. It's very hard to hold on to truth when everyone is peddling lies,but it has characters who do that,and it gives me hope.

🌸🌸🌸😊

Fair point on the body modification. The whole fierce corpses deal is also desecration of a corpse, the eye transfer counts as Xiao Xingchen desecrating his body. MDZS does not really seem to follow that rule now that you mention it lol.

This is going to be a REALLY unpopular opinion on radblr, but I honestly agree with a lot of confucian ideals, except for the sexism. The whole harmony with nature, man is not above nature but part of nature, respect the elders, etc, that vibes with me. And the "no desecrating the body your parents gave you" I think should be implemented over here bco some of the people here look like my sixth grade desk! Anyway back to Confucius. I remember we learned about him briefly in junior year in history class, I was quite irritated to find the quote about one hundred women is not worth one testicle. Is your mother aware you said that Mr confucius? I hope she whipped your ass. Apparently he also said educated women were useless?! What he said about men needing to be better and improve themselves and cultivate compassion and such like.

It's cool that MDZS gives you hope to tell the truth! Tbh I think lan wangji would be 'transphobic' from the start, citing the "no desecration of your body" as to why gender transition is wrong, failing to mention all the confucian rules he breaks daily (I don't have them memorized) Wei Wuxian would try to divert a fight by flirting with lan wangji and then getting a detention, which was ofc his goal all along. Then when a genderist called lan wangji a homophobic slur for being homosexual, Wei Wuxian would really get pissed, say the truth, and get cancelled off to yiling where he starts a vegetable farm while everyone is convinced he's plotting a trans genocide.

Now that I think about it, the paralleles are definitely there.

Anyway anon feel free to dm me! Or keep anonning (is that a word? It is now!)

[accio-victuuri]

From this article : Exclusive Interview｜Xiao Zhan: Shengyang made me relax a little

Xiao Zhan received a lot of scripts and roles. Some people around him gave him suggestions to act in dramas that everyone seemed to like. They had more dramatic conflicts, or the characters were a little more exaggerated, or the proportion of the space was very cautious, and it couldn't be just one-sided. But Xiao Zhan’s own criteria for viewing scripts and characters are not complicated. The first answer is to "impress him", which is more concrete. When he read the first draft of the script of "Sunshine By My Side", he looked at what was described in the script. Sheng Yang smiled unconsciously. When he saw some plots between Meijuan and Lao Sheng, he felt sad, resonated, and nodded.

"I am the one who has to interpret this character. If I don't have the confidence to interpret it, or even the desire, how can I have the confidence to bring him to the audience? At least that's how I am currently."

In essence, Xiao Zhan believes that he and Sheng Yang have the same background. "Just like the name of our drama, Sheng Yang is a little sun. He has an energy that can turn all bad things into something." Very good, I think he will always be bright." Of course, there is also the coincidence that Xiao Zhan and Sheng Yang are also former colleagues. But there is a big difference in personality. In Xiao Zhan's eyes, "This kid is too lively. It doesn't matter if you encounter difficulties. Just cheer yourself up and continue to move forward bravely." But Xiao Zhan himself is very different in life. I prefer to be alone and quiet part of the time.

Screenwriter Li Xiao revealed that she met Xiao Zhan during the creation of this character, so she added a lot of Xiao Zhan's own characteristics to the character of Sheng Yang. Xiao Zhan recalled that when he met Li Xiao for the second time half a year before filming started, he made a comparison In-depth communication, "I remember that time she told me that she felt like you were different from before." What's different? Xiao Zhan himself couldn't answer, "More than two years have passed. People will always grow."

In addition to his fate with the boy Sheng Yang, the important reason why Xiao Zhan likes "SBMS" is because of the natural nature of this drama. Sheng Yang is a young man who dreams of becoming a designer after graduating from university. He has an ordinary family that is noisy but warm at times. By chance, he meets a senior director whom he remembered from 10 years ago. By coincidence, The two met again. The story didn't have the plot of an idol drama. Work, life, friends, and sister were all in his life. "It's not like the plots I've seen before, it's more natural." "

This seemingly natural script is what Xiao Zhan likes and finds challenging. He wants to make Sheng Yang a living person, not just a character played by Xiao Zhan.

"This is a story that flows like water. It has no particularly dramatic conflicts or plots. Everything is natural, just like a story that would happen around you. Acting in this drama is a big challenge for me. Because I have never filmed such an urban drama, how can I make everyone believe that Sheng Yang is such a person, that he really exists, and is not something Xiao Zhan worked hard to play."

The story feels natural and the characters are relaxed. Relaxation and calmness in acting is what Xiao Zhan gained after playing Sheng Yang, and due to a coincidence of career, Sheng Yang may be the life Xiao Zhan would have experienced if he was not an actor. Did experiencing a life like "parallel time and space" make actor Xiao Zhan relax?

"Yes, but not many. Because the problems Xiao Zhan and Sheng Yang face are still different."

There are not so many golden fingers in life, everything requires your own efforts

The Paper: I also talked with the screenwriting teacher two days ago. Meeting you before the script was fully completed had an impact on the creation of the character Sheng Yang. What was the contact with the screenwriting teacher like at that time?

Xiao Zhan: The first time Sister Xiao and I met was in 2019. Half a year before filming started, we had an in-depth chat and she said that I felt different from before. I said that more than two years have passed and people will always grow. That was the first time that the screenwriting teacher and I established an understanding of each other. Later, we held three script meetings to make adjustments to the character of Sheng Yang.

There were two points I raised at the beginning. One was why Sheng Yang has been obsessed with this sister for 10 years? Another point is that although Sheng Yang is a younger brother, how can he show responsibility and growth in a relationship to convince the audience.

The Paper: Is the final Sheng Yang highly compatible with you?

Xiao Zhan: We are both positive and optimistic, but we have different personalities. For example, Sheng Yang can't help but take action against his boss. Maybe for Xiao Zhan, I won't do such impulsive things. I will think of solutions when workplace bullying appears, instead of delaying the matter. To the point of being unbearable.

The Paper: Then how do you understand Sheng Yang’s tolerance in the early stage? His superiors took credit for his role and had a bad attitude toward him. He never thought of a solution and was just enduring.

Xiao Zhan: I can understand Sheng Yang’s situation at that time. First of all, he needs this job; secondly, this is life, there will be pressure, there will be difficulties, it may make him feel very tired, but he still has to go to work well the next day. Because he needed this job, his family conditions did not allow him to do something very outrageous and impulsive, which also allowed him to develop a very gentle character.

So I understand Sheng Yang. As for why he suddenly took action and had an emotional outburst later, it was because (the boss) had hit the bottom line of his tolerance.

But Shengyang has grown. In the beginning, he was a diligent and hard-working young man with a relatively tolerant personality. Later, he experienced some things in the workplace and in life. At the same time, he also met his sister, who encouraged him to be himself and to face and resist bravely, so Shengyang made some adjustments. But even in the ending, we didn't portray Sheng Yang as very successful, having completed a very big project, or as well-known. We still want Shengyang to be closer to life. After all, there are not so many golden fingers in life. Everything is hard-won and requires your own efforts.

The Paper: How do you understand some of the struggles between Sheng Yang and the team leader? If it were you, what kind of mentality would you have when faced with this unfair situation?

Xiao Zhan: I might solve the problem as soon as it occurs. I will look for opportunities to have a tactful chat with my boss. For example, I will reflect to my boss on the current resistance I am encountering from a project perspective. But to be honest, I have never encountered workplace bullying. I am quite lucky. The seniors and colleagues I have met take good care of me.

Acting requires "subtraction" sometimes

The Paper: What is the difficulty of Shengyang for you?

Xiao Zhan: In a few scenes, I think Sheng Yang is a bit naive. Will he be accepted by the audience? Will everyone like him? And how to determine this degree? How to act naturally? These are the questions I have to face.

We chatted a lot with the director on set. I would sit next to the director and watch when I had nothing to do. We would talk about what to do with this scene, and the director would give me a lot of advice. The point of inspiration is to do subtraction. In many cases, don’t design a lot of things, don’t think about acting in a lively state, just remember your motivation, and then do subtraction.

The Paper: The scene where Sheng Yang resigned was quite simple to shoot, but some viewers were very sympathetic, and Sheng Yang also had red circles in the end. Is this a subtraction?

Xiao Zhan: Right. In fact, we thought about whether we should say something to everyone after Sheng Yang resigned, but later I felt that there was no need to say it. First of all, the accident did happen, and it is useless to say more. Secondly, you used your resignation to protect the interests of other members of the group, so there is no need to say too much at the moment.

We need to understand the character's emotions based on his current situation. First of all, his family situation is not very good and he needs this job; secondly, how will he explain to his parents when he returns? This is a profession that he loves very much, and it is more than just a job to make ends meet. And he has already become the chief designer, which is a very rare opportunity. So Shengyang feels more sad at the moment. I was also very sad when I was acting, because everything was obviously going in a good direction and I had worked hard, but I got this result. In the setting in the script, it was a well-known advertising company. When we were studying design, we would also make a career plan for ourselves, so it must be very sad to leave this company.

The Paper: When thinking about the character, did you do any design for Sheng Yang that might be outside of the script to make it more consistent with the character?

Xiao Zhan: For design-related content, just refer to my previous work experience. The main thing is to be natural and not to do too much design, because everyone who works knows what to do and focus on what you are doing. Just work. In addition, before the filming started, I sorted out Shengyang's growing environment, as well as his way of getting along with his colleagues at work, his way of getting along with his superiors, and his way of getting along with his parents at home.

The Paper: What do you think of the emotional line between your parents?

Xiao Zhan: I think he is confused when his parents quarrel. My parents also quarrel, and I am confused sometimes. I will ask, why do you still quarrel so much after you have lived together for decades? ? You obviously care about each other and love each other very much, so why do you have to hurt each other in this way? So I also have questions about Sheng Yang in the play.

Sheng Yang did not escape. If he had chosen to escape, he would not have grown into such a character. It can be seen from Sheng Yang's character that their family is a very loving family.

Understand each other, test each other, and move towards each other step by step

The Paper: In Sheng Yang’s eyes, what kind of person is Jian Bing?

Xiao Zhan: Very independent and sober, different from some people in the advertising circle in the show. She is like a breath of fresh air. What impresses Shengyang most is her insistence on design and her own high-end aesthetics.

The Paper: When Sheng Yang complained about work to Jian Bing, Jian Bing said to stop doing it, and Sheng Yang fell silent. At this time, he was not brave. Do you agree more with Jian Bing's statement, or do you agree with Sheng Yang's hesitation and silence?

Xiao Zhan: I can particularly understand Sheng Yang. Work is really not something you can do without doing. First of all, Sheng Yang is the design department team leader of the advertising department of a design company. For three cases he has, he has three clients. , there are many contact people at the customer's side. If you suddenly stop doing it, this matter will be very irresponsible, let alone professional ethics. Because the customer has chosen you, you have to be responsible to the customer, so it’s really not just a matter of quitting. I feel like I can’t do it anyway, at least there needs to be a transition period.

Jian Bing didn't comfort him either. This is a point of difference between the two of them. The younger brother and older sister are in different social statuses and have different working environments. Sometimes they have conflicting ideas. This is also a point that I think is very real in "SBMS". It is not the younger brother. As soon as they came up, they met each other. The two of them immediately had something to do. Instead, they walked toward each other step by step while understanding each other and testing each other.

The Paper: When was the moment when you felt you most resonated with Sheng Yang’s soul?

Xiao Zhan: It has always been there, from the first scene when he went to work. But the most resonant moment may be the scene when she goes home to face her parents for dinner after losing her job. Her mother says what’s wrong, why do she look so tired today? What they don’t know is that Sheng Yang is already unemployed, but Sheng Yang doesn’t explain. In fact, I myself am now reporting good news but not bad news.

I was very sad when I went to shoot. I couldn't hold it back and cried while eating. But I couldn't cry. According to the plot, crying would be very strange. In the end, the director didn't use the crying part. It was very correct.

For today's young people, it is more that I can be strong and endure no matter how hard I am outside, but when facing my closest relatives, including my parents, a greeting will sometimes completely break down. So I am very empathetic.

The Paper: Is it because of his character that he has a kind of liveliness that you don’t have?

Xiao Zhan: It's possible, so I envy him very much. It's a kind of yearning.

The Paper: Which scene or line in this drama do you like best?

Xiao Zhan: Independent of each other, no suspicion or jealousy.

The Paper: You have acted in a lot of movies so far. Where do you think your greatest growth is reflected?

Xiao Zhan: I feel that I am more relaxed and calm. This is the biggest feeling after filming "SBMS". Of course, this may also be a problem with the subject matter, which requires you to be natural and relaxed.

The Paper: As an actor, where do you think your desire for acting started?

Xiao Zhan: When you see a good script, you have the confidence and motivation to perform it well. This can also be regarded as a desire to conquer the character you like and win this role. In fact, when acting, just enjoy the moment, whether it is sad or happy, remember it.

The Paper: When is the happiest moment as an actor?

Xiao Zhan: Basically, the director and I send messages every day after work. Sometimes it’s to summarize the details of today’s scene that haven’t been completed, and sometimes it’s to discuss how to shoot the big scene the next day — any ideas.

The director sent me a long 60-second voice message, telling me with great interest what he was going to shoot tomorrow. I really like this kind of atmosphere, where everyone is giving, creating, and doing it with love. This atmosphere is what I like and what I want.

The Paper: To be honest, especially for young actors like you, who are liked by many young people, the roles handed to you will be more upright and have no shortcomings, but this seems not to be three-dimensional and enjoyable enough. What do you think of this situation?

Xiao Zhan: I think this is an issue of career functionality of actors at different stages. It is true that some very complex roles are so fascinating and challenging, but when you return to your role as an actor, you need to think carefully. I feel that as I get older, have more energy, and Xiao Zhan’s personality attributes become more and more multifaceted, I can try some more complex roles.

Every character has its own shortcomings and shortcomings. This kid Sheng Yang is actually a bit noisy. It depends on how you act and how you use it, and it becomes the character's characteristics. He moves forward bravely and breaks through difficult walls, but this means that this person is a bit stubborn. When I read the script myself, I also felt that this child was a bit short-sighted. This may be his shortcoming and what makes him lovable. point.

The Paper: Are you the kind of person who needs to work all the time, or do you prefer a relaxed pace?

Xiao Zhan: I should be like many people. When I keep working, I feel like taking a rest. When I take a break, I say no, I have to work and I have to produce.

The Paper: Since it was filmed in Chongqing, did you bring your colleagues from the crew to introduce the local food?

Xiao Zhan: I sent some to my colleagues, but they were all disliked in the end. Everyone would say we won’t eat this anymore. It turned out that I had not returned to Chongqing for several years and was already out.

The Paper: Do you feel a sense of loss that you are no longer familiar with your hometown?

Xiao Zhan: I don’t feel disappointed, the classic ones are the best.

-END.

[fieri-sentio-et-excrucior]

Ah, thank you for answering!! I think that's all so interesting! I too get the feeling that xuexiao isn't hugely popular but for me, they kind of hit me in the face with their potential and tragedy, so I think it's so interesting to find out what caught other people's interest in them too. Though when I first watched cql, I initially saw the wangxian parallels with songxiao so thought maybe they'd end up a pair, but like you, I never felt they had the same chemistry (despite being wonderful and devoted friends) and Song Lan seemed a bit too cold for a romantic relationship with Xiao Xingchen. Then Xue Yang went bonkers when Xiao Xingchen died and I heard his theme song which drowned me in feels and that was it, I was sucked into the utter pain and delight of XueXiao 😄 and on rewatching and rereading (though I haven't finished reading 😬), I can't stop seeing xuexiao all the way, and seeing Xiao Xingchen & Song Lan as more like Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng.

I also see Song Lan as potentially aro or ace. In that, I also see a comparison to Jiang Cheng - not that I'm aware JC is portrayed as aro or ace specifically, but he's always had such high, exacting standards for a spouse, has never shown much interest in anyone (except I suppose Wen Qing) and doesn't seem particularly bothered by not having anyone interested in marrying him. He seems much more concerned about looking after Jin Ling than searching for a wife. Song Lan of course has a better reputation lol. But he has qualities that remind me somewhat of Jiang Cheng.

I can see why a lot of people enjoy songxiao though, and it certainly is easier to give them a happy ending 😊

If only Xue Yang had fallen for Xiao Xingchen before making him kill those villagers! Like you say, Xiao Xingchen perhaps could have got past the Chang clan, but he was too fragile to bear the blood on his own hands...😭

Thank you, @deathbyoctopi! 😊

Okay here’s an ask game

Send me a ship and I’ll answer three questions based on if I ship it or not.

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