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Guardian readalong: chapters 11 & 12
Dec. 14th, 2024 01:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
china_shopHello! Welcome back (or just welcome!) to our readalong of Guardian! Whatever translation you're reading, whatever language you're reading it in, please join in our discussion!
Previous read-along posts, all still open for comments:
This week's chapters are 11 and 12 of the official translation, starting with Zhao Yunlan & co returning to the SID, and taking us up to the end of the Reincarnation Dial arc.
Chapter 11: When they return to the SID, Zhao Yunlan explains Xiao Guo's working conditions and benefits; the Soul-Executing Emissary pays a visit; Zhao Yunlan and Lin Jing interrogate Li Qian while the Emissary and Xiao Guo look on.
Chapter 12: Li Qian says the Reincarnation Dial turned her grandmother into a monster, and Xiao Guo tells her the truth; the Soul-Executing Emissary leaves to find the Dial; Zhao Yunlan arrives in time to hear a monster deliver a message from his master to the Emissary; the Dial is missing.
Excerpts
1) Guo Changcheng sets the lowest bar imaginable for himself
Compared to an evening of being chased by the Hunger Ghost, scurrying and clambering all over the place, lao-Wu’s papier-mâché face seemed downright kind. Guo Changcheng smiled weakly and kept his real feelings to himself. “I-It was great…”
Lao-Wu laughed, bright and clear. “It’s okay if you’re not used to it at first. Work hard and learn. You’re alive! You have potential!”
For the first time, Guo Changcheng realized that even he had an advantage in this workforce: he was alive.
2) Our first impression of the Soul-Executing Emissary
The guest’s slim body was entirely wrapped in a black robe that hid even his hands and feet, and his face was concealed by a veil of black mist. Nothing else could be discerned through all the inky blackness. He first stopped at the door, then bowed to Zhao Yunlan from a distance, hands together. His long sleeves swept the tops of his feet as he spoke. “My apologies for the disturbance.”
Zhao Yunlan held up a yellow paper talisman, lit it, and let the ashes fall into a cup of hot tea. The ashes dissolved in an instant, taking all the heat from the cup with them. In the same moment, a steaming cup appeared in the black-robed man’s hands.
[...]
As he passed by, Guo Changcheng caught a scent. It wasn’t the rotting smell they’d encountered at the hospital; it wasn’t foul at all. It was a very light fragrance that reminded Guo Changcheng of midwinter at the foot of the Daxing’anling Mountains far to the north. It was the scent that accompanies the first breath when you push open the door and walk out into the morning after a whole night of snow. It was the scent of endless, eternally unmelting snow: pure and impossibly cold, tinged with the last fragrance of dying blossoms. The scent carried far into the distance, all the way to the end of the road of life.
The Soul-Executing Emissary spoke softly and eloquently, like a scholar in a period drama. Objectively, other than the eerie black mist concealing his face, he was unremarkable. But as Guo Changcheng came fully awake, he was filled with an unforgettable fear—a fear that was baseless and irrational but rooted in his very soul.
3) A monster delivers a message
The monster turned its neck stiffly under the blade and looked in Zhao Yunlan’s direction. It replied to the Emissary but didn’t answer his question. “My master asked me to convey a message. My lord, you have performed your duties meticulously for centuries, each day like the one before. You’ve avoided the person enshrined at the tip of your heart much as you’d avoid raging floods and savage beasts. To all appearances you are the epitome of self-control, but don’t you truly fear being unable to control yourself?”
The Emissary said nothing, but the coldness emanating from him grew heavier.
“My master has tremendous sympathy for your deep feelings, my lord, and went to the effort of having him brought before you. He wished to see if you are truly without desire, without—”
This time, the Emissary didn’t let the creature finish. His blade flashed, turning the wart-covered head into a fountain of blood.
Questions
What do you think of the working conditions at the SID? Did reading about Xiao Guo's merits change your opinion of him? Can Zhao Yunlan make good tea, or is the Emissary just being polite? What's your impression of the Emissary based on these chapters?
You can see the schedule and sign up to host a post here.
Previous read-along posts, all still open for comments:
This week's chapters are 11 and 12 of the official translation, starting with Zhao Yunlan & co returning to the SID, and taking us up to the end of the Reincarnation Dial arc.
Chapter 11: When they return to the SID, Zhao Yunlan explains Xiao Guo's working conditions and benefits; the Soul-Executing Emissary pays a visit; Zhao Yunlan and Lin Jing interrogate Li Qian while the Emissary and Xiao Guo look on.
Chapter 12: Li Qian says the Reincarnation Dial turned her grandmother into a monster, and Xiao Guo tells her the truth; the Soul-Executing Emissary leaves to find the Dial; Zhao Yunlan arrives in time to hear a monster deliver a message from his master to the Emissary; the Dial is missing.
Excerpts
1) Guo Changcheng sets the lowest bar imaginable for himself, 2) Our first impression of the Soul-Executing Emissary, 3) A monster delivers a message
1) Guo Changcheng sets the lowest bar imaginable for himself
Compared to an evening of being chased by the Hunger Ghost, scurrying and clambering all over the place, lao-Wu’s papier-mâché face seemed downright kind. Guo Changcheng smiled weakly and kept his real feelings to himself. “I-It was great…”
Lao-Wu laughed, bright and clear. “It’s okay if you’re not used to it at first. Work hard and learn. You’re alive! You have potential!”
For the first time, Guo Changcheng realized that even he had an advantage in this workforce: he was alive.
2) Our first impression of the Soul-Executing Emissary
The guest’s slim body was entirely wrapped in a black robe that hid even his hands and feet, and his face was concealed by a veil of black mist. Nothing else could be discerned through all the inky blackness. He first stopped at the door, then bowed to Zhao Yunlan from a distance, hands together. His long sleeves swept the tops of his feet as he spoke. “My apologies for the disturbance.”
Zhao Yunlan held up a yellow paper talisman, lit it, and let the ashes fall into a cup of hot tea. The ashes dissolved in an instant, taking all the heat from the cup with them. In the same moment, a steaming cup appeared in the black-robed man’s hands.
[...]
As he passed by, Guo Changcheng caught a scent. It wasn’t the rotting smell they’d encountered at the hospital; it wasn’t foul at all. It was a very light fragrance that reminded Guo Changcheng of midwinter at the foot of the Daxing’anling Mountains far to the north. It was the scent that accompanies the first breath when you push open the door and walk out into the morning after a whole night of snow. It was the scent of endless, eternally unmelting snow: pure and impossibly cold, tinged with the last fragrance of dying blossoms. The scent carried far into the distance, all the way to the end of the road of life.
The Soul-Executing Emissary spoke softly and eloquently, like a scholar in a period drama. Objectively, other than the eerie black mist concealing his face, he was unremarkable. But as Guo Changcheng came fully awake, he was filled with an unforgettable fear—a fear that was baseless and irrational but rooted in his very soul.
3) A monster delivers a message
The monster turned its neck stiffly under the blade and looked in Zhao Yunlan’s direction. It replied to the Emissary but didn’t answer his question. “My master asked me to convey a message. My lord, you have performed your duties meticulously for centuries, each day like the one before. You’ve avoided the person enshrined at the tip of your heart much as you’d avoid raging floods and savage beasts. To all appearances you are the epitome of self-control, but don’t you truly fear being unable to control yourself?”
The Emissary said nothing, but the coldness emanating from him grew heavier.
“My master has tremendous sympathy for your deep feelings, my lord, and went to the effort of having him brought before you. He wished to see if you are truly without desire, without—”
This time, the Emissary didn’t let the creature finish. His blade flashed, turning the wart-covered head into a fountain of blood.
Questions
What do you think of the working conditions at the SID? Did reading about Xiao Guo's merits change your opinion of him? Can Zhao Yunlan make good tea, or is the Emissary just being polite? What's your impression of the Emissary based on these chapters?
Poll #32362 Terminology
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 10
Which do you prefer for the novel?
View Answers
Soul-Executing Emissary
1 (10.0%)
Ghost Slayer
5 (50.0%)
Soul-Slaying Envoy
1 (10.0%)
Zhanhunshi
3 (30.0%)
other
1 (10.0%)
You can see the schedule and sign up to host a post here.
