Focus on: Episode 5: Wu Tian'en and Shen Wei meet on the street

[sakana17]

Location of scene: Episode 5, 17:18-19:12
[Note: English translations from the subtitles QCed by solo and from Viki]

Context: Wu Tian'en was just questioned by Zhao Yunlan in a cafe. When Zhao Yunlan asked if Wu Tian'en had ever heard of Dixingren, Wu Tian'en noticed someone walking outside the cafe window.

Wu Tian'en is walking down a street. He stops and looks nervous.



There is someone standing behind him, a few metres away. Wu Tian'en asks who it is and what were they hinting at/trying to tell him by being outside the cafe just now. (刚才在咖啡店外, 你在暗示我什么？)



There's no answer, and Wu Tian'en turns around and uses his power to quickly go past the person, who is Shen Wei. Shen Wei stands motionless.





Wu Tian'en is now behind Shen Wei and doesn't know who he is.



He attacks, sending dark energy at Shen Wei's back.



The attack is repelled and Wu Tian'en stumbles backward. Shen Wei, still facing away, says, "Back then your teleportation had a limit of a hundred steps. I'm afraid even that is beyond you now." (你的瞬间移动当年就有百步的限制，现在恐怕更力有不逮了。) Wu Tian'en looks suspicious, trying to figure out who this is.

Shen Wei turns around and removes his glasses.



Wu Tian'en is startled. Shen Wei tells him that physical exertion in old age is hard. "Don't overdo it." (人老了，不以筋骨为能，不要再逞强了。)



Wu Tian'en casts his eyes downward. He falls to his knees to kneel before Shen Wei.



Shen Wei: "Stand up. Since you chose this path back then, no need to kneel to me now." (站着。你当年既然选择了这条路，现在就不必跪我。)





Wu Tian'en looks up at him. "Sir, I never thought I'd see you again. Of all of us back then, only I am lucky enough." (想不到我这辈子还能看到您。 当年一批人, 结果反捯我有这个运气。) He coughs.

Shen Wei goes over to him and takes his arm to help him stand. He asks if Wu Tian'en is unwell. Wu Tian'en says it's nothing and asks if his affairs have bothered Shen Wei. (我的事也惊动您了呀? )





Shen Wei: "This place has its own rules. I will not interfere in matters between you and the SID. I only came here to tell you, no matter what you plan to do, Zhao Yunlan is someone you must not touch." (这里有这里的规矩，你和特调处之间的事情我不会插手的。我到这儿来只是想告诉你，不管你们以后打算怎么做，赵云澜这个人，你们不许动。)



Wu Tian'en seems surprised and asks if Shen Wei is shadowing Chief Zhao. (赵处长? 您在跟踪他呀？)

Shen Wei tells him he doesn't need to know that. "I will give you enough time to take care of your business. I hope you will have no regrets." (我会给你足够的时间处理好你的事情。希望你不要给自己留下遗憾。) He turns and starts to walk away.



He puts on his glasses. As he's walking he says to himself, "Then how much time do I have left?" (那留给我的时间，又还剩多少呢？)





He continues walking and without breaking stride, extends his arm and casts dark energy at two men in suits (Mr. Huang's men) lurking in a doorway who had apparently witnessed the Shen Wei and Wu Tian'en's meeting.



The men look confused for a second then go back to watching Wu Tian'en as Shen Wei strides away.

I like Wu Tian'en a lot. I love this scene between him and Shen Wei because of the hints it gives about their past. Once Wu Tian'en knows the person in front of him is the Black-Cloaked Envoy/Shen Wei, his hostile & suspicious manner changes completely. He kneels to Shen Wei, but Shen Wei tells him to stand and even helps him up. The "no need to kneel to me now" doesn't come across harshly, just acknowledging that Wu Tian'en chose to stay in Haixing instead of returning to Dixing and to the Envoy.

I'm always curious about the mission Wu Tian'en was sent on. Favorite theories? Headcanons?

Wu Tian'en never expected to see Shen Wei again, but feels he's lucky[*] that he has. [* Does 运气 unambiguously signify good luck/fortunate here? Anyone know?]

Wu Tian'en doesn't recognize Shen Wei from the back, but he does recognize him when Shen Wei turns around without his glasses on. Could Wu Tian'en have seen the Black-Cloaked Envoy's face in the past, without the mask?

Shen Wei concerned about Wu Tian'en's health is <3 and always reminds me of bb!Shen Wei worried about his troops in ancient Haixing.

Shen Wei's directive that "Zhao Yunlan is someone you must not touch." <3 Until I looked at the Chinese subtitles, I hadn't realized Shen Wei is using plural you here. Does he mean Wu Tian'en and his son, Wu Xiaojun?

I like Shen Wei giving Wu Tian'en time to take care of things, because the Envoy could immediately take Wu Tian'en back to Dixing. And also telling him not to have regrets. I was thinking about what kind of regrets Shen Wei thinks Wu Tian'en would have, and I felt like this was another warning, that Wu Tian'en shouldn't hurt anyone (or, once he knows the truth, take revenge) while he's settling his matters. It's not clear how much, if anything, Shen Wei knows about Wu Xiaojun and what happened to him, but I imagine it's enough for Shen Wei knowing that Wu Tian'en is involved in a SID case to be concerned about what Wu Tian'en might do.

The "how much time do I have left"! ;__; On the one hand, it's nicely ominous, but on the other hand, why at this particular moment is Shen Wei thinking this? Maybe because of what he just told Wu Tian'en about "enough time to take care of your business" and not having any regrets. Maybe Shen Wei is, in effect, telling himself the same thing. Also possibly he's been thinking, ever since he met Zhao Yunlan, about how much time he has before Zhao Yunlan time-travels to the past. And/or it also kind of feels like he's simply wondering how much longer he has to live. ;__;

Shen Wei zapping Mr. Huang's lackeys without breaking stride or even looking at them is so nonchalantly badass and I love it so much! Since they continue to spy on Wu Tian'en, did Shen Wei simply erase their memory the meeting they'd just witnessed? Or altered it in some way, so that he wouldn't be remembered/identified?

Come discuss this scene! Thoughts, theories, ideas, plot bunnies, squee, fanwork recs... Anything related to this scene welcome!

Comments

[nnozomi]

This is great! So much to think about in this little scene. I have just one or two things.
--Shen Wei isn't masked (with mask or glasses) when he's talking to Wu Tian'en, but at the same time he obviously is; it's not at all the same face he wears once he gets to the point of taking off his glasses in Zhao Yunlan's apartment. He's, like, manifesting the Black-Cloaked Envoy's mask as an invisible aura.

--Poor Wu Tian'en. Like little Zheng Yi, he's someone else who has been doing his best without a whole lot of good choices anywhere.

--"how much time do I have left," wow, I never picked up on that. I like your analysis a lot; especially the part about how much time before Zhao Yunlan time-travels to the past. Increasingly it gets to me that for 3/4 of the whole show Shen Wei doesn't know when Zhao Yunlan will disappear to become Kunlun or whether he'll ever come back from it...

[sakana17]

it's not at all the same face he wears once he gets to the point of taking off his glasses in Zhao Yunlan's apartment. He's, like, manifesting the Black-Cloaked Envoy's mask as an invisible aura.

Great point! Yes, this Shen Wei without glasses is different from the one we see later, with Zhao Yunlan. Maybe it's that aura that Wu Tian'en recognizes when Shen Wei turns around, if Wu Tian'en hadn't seen him without the mask before.

Increasingly it gets to me that for 3/4 of the whole show Shen Wei doesn't know when Zhao Yunlan will disappear to become Kunlun or whether he'll ever come back from it...

;__; There's such broad scope for fannish interpretations, since the show doesn't definitively tell us what Shen Wei knew about the time travel and when he knew it. I lean towards Shen Wei not knowing much for quite a while, even if he suspects or reasons that certain things must be so. Not knowing when it'll happen would have to be a big concern for him, and then the uncertainty of what happens afterward...

[china_shop]

Ah, this is such a great post, and those caps with the Envoy look on Shen Wei's bare face? Just awesome!! ♥ ♥ ♥

(Sorry in advance that this comment is a bit muddled and riddled with questions.)

I'm always curious about the mission Wu Tian'en was sent on. Favorite theories? Headcanons?

I assumed it was the mission (or one of the missions) to retrieve the Hallows. I'm a bit vague on details, but iirc that's the only kind of mission we hear about in canon, and later in Dixing they have this exchange:

SW: What exactly happened that day? Even to this day, you are unwilling to speak of it?
WTE: My lord, it's not that I'm unwilling to speak of it, it's just, I'm ashamed. That night, our team was passing through a forest, when suddenly Youchu surrounded us. I was knocked unconscious. When I woke up, all my teammates were dead.
SW: All were dead? It seems you really don't know anything.
WTE: What do you mean, sir?
SW: Your captain at the time survived the mission. He hid in the human world and committed other crimes. He was shot dead before I could see him. It is a pity. This lead has reached a dead end.
WTE: My lord. I remember when we set out the captain mentioned that his wife just got pregnant.
SW: You're saying he might have living descendants?

I presume the lead that's hit a dead end is Shen Wei's search for the other Hallows? (And I'm guessing the captain is the Mirror Girl's father? Shen Wei tells her, "If you had stayed hidden in the mirror and not used your powers, I could never have found you. But unfortunately, you took the same path as your father. You longed for prosperity and seized love by force. That is the reason for your current misfortune... [Your father] was a competent subordinate with important responsibilities. But unfortunately... [breaks off and softens whatever he was about to say, for her benefit, I think?] Unfortunately... he was keeping an important secret and could not report to me in time." The Mirror Girl says, "He constantly mumbled something. To guard mountains and rivers forever,{山河永镇，天南一方} look to the north. I never knew what it meant." -- Is this when Shen Wei starts making plans to search in the north(west) for the Mountain-River Awl?

It's not clear to me if the captain was a Dixingren that Zhao Xinci shot offscreen, or if his crimes were part of the plot. Was he the one who kidnapped Shen Xi?! Or the one who shot Sha Ya's friend, Gu Ban, with Zhao Xinci's gun? Or was he Ding Dun? And did the captain arrange for the Youchu attack on the team so he could escape returning to Dixing and live in Haixing with his pregnant wife, or did he just take advantage of the attack? *is very vague about plot stuff*)

What were you hinting at outside the café just now?

Shen Wei passed just after ZYL asked about Dixingren. And Wu Tian'en seems to sense his dark energy at the start of this scene. Did he sense Shen Wei's Dixingness from the cafe and think the timing was deliberate to expose him, maybe? Or that he was deliberately calling him out to confront him? He seems defensive and tries to attack (but is repelled). I wonder if he thinks the Youchu attack on his team was orchestrated, and that someone might still be trying to find him after all these years, to finish the job.

Shen Wei's directive that "Zhao Yunlan is someone you must not touch." <3 Until I looked at the Chinese subtitles, I hadn't realized Shen Wei is using plural you here. Does he mean Wu Tian'en and his son, Wu Xiaojun?

At this stage, Shen Wei doesn't know what became of the team, and he probably(?) didn't hear what Wu Tian'en just told Zhao Yunlan, that 20 years and 7 months ago, "I was wandering homeless in Dragon City. When I was at my most distressed and desperate, Mr Huang who saved me." Maybe he thinks the rest of the team conspired not to return and are all still in Haixing, all in touch with each other?

(Was Shen Wei following the SID to warn any Dixingren they encountered not to target Zhao Yunlan, or is Chu Shuzhi keeping him informed about current cases and he recognised the name. If the latter, he might be alarmed because Wu Tian'en was part of the team of supposed deserters, and that's why he decided to meet with him? And even so, Shen Wei doesn't reprove him for that (because choosing a life in Haixing is what he himself has done, too?).)

And also telling him not to have regrets.

Awwww, like Kunlun to the young Envoy! <333

The "how much time do I have left"! ;__; On the one hand, it's nicely ominous, but on the other hand, why at this particular moment is Shen Wei thinking this?

I've always kind of tied that to Wu Tian'en's declining powers and thought it implied that living in Haixing long-term would gradually weaken Shen Wei. Or maybe it's a reference to the impending showdown with Ye Zun...? But:

on the other hand, why at this particular moment is Shen Wei thinking this? Maybe because of what he just told Wu Tian'en about "enough time to take care of your business" and not having any regrets. Maybe Shen Wei is, in effect, telling himself the same thing.

Ooh, I like that! Like, an element of not wasting his remaining time by keeping too much distance from Zhao Yunlan?

Shen Wei zapping Mr. Huang's lackeys without breaking stride or even looking at them is so nonchalantly badass and I love it so much!

Yesssss! A+ stealth Envoying!! \o/!

[sakana17]

I assumed it was the mission (or one of the missions) to retrieve the Hallows.

Yes, I think it's that mission. As you point out, the details of it are sketchy, so I'm always curious about ideas/theories.

It's not clear to me if the captain was a Dixingren that Zhao Xinci shot offscreen, or if his crimes were part of the plot. Was he the one who kidnapped Shen Xi?! Or the one who shot Sha Ya's friend, Gu Ban, with Zhao Xinci's gun? Or was he Ding Dun?

It would be interesting if it's one of these Dixingren! Of these, though, I'm not sure it could be Ding Dun, because he seemed to have been working as the secretary in Dixing until recently, and he isn't killed (as it appears) on Haixing until episode 8. Could Zhang Shi have been the captain?? (The guy he was inside was a criminal and was shot by Zhao Xinci before he inhabited Zhao Xinci... )

I'd never thought about the captain's crimes before. Prior to going on the mission, he had Shen Wei's respect and trust. Perhaps he fooled Shen Wei, or perhaps he changed when he made it to Haixing...

(LOL, this is what I meant about being curious about the mission! Whenever I start thinking about who Shen Wei sent and what happened, I have all kinds of questions!)

To guard mountains and rivers forever, look to the north. I never knew what it meant." -- Is this when Shen Wei starts making plans to search in the north(west) for the Mountain-River Awl?

I've been thinking it is, and when there are the apparent earthquakes, it narrows his search.

Maybe he thinks the rest of the team conspired not to return and are all still in Haixing, all in touch with each other?

Oh, yeah, that's a good possibility.

Another question about the mission that's interesting to me is what Shen Wei did (or didn't do) when the team didn't come back. Maybe he expected that it would take decades to find the Holy Tools, but not hearing from anyone for a long time... He doesn't try to find out what happened? Is it too risky to try to find out? Now I'm thinking about how this must've affected his reaction to seeing the Longevity Dial around Li Qian's neck. Decades after he sent his team to find them, suddenly there's one of the Tools right in front of him.

thought it implied that living in Haixing long-term would gradually weaken Shen Wei

I wondered about that, too. It's interesting that Shen Wei only mentions old age as the cause of Wu Tian'en's declining powers, but it seems the combination of aging + Haixing would be taking a big toll. Wu Tian'en is peppier in Dixing for a while, but even there his age catches up to him eventually.

[china_shop]

He's, like, manifesting the Black-Cloaked Envoy's mask as an invisible aura.

Ooh, yes, that's such a great way of putting it. It's like when he's yelling at the Regent in Zhao Yunlan's office, too.

Increasingly it gets to me that for 3/4 of the whole show Shen Wei doesn't know when Zhao Yunlan will disappear to become Kunlun or whether he'll ever come back from it...

Or how long he'll be gone for. If he was in the past for a significant length of time, how long will Shen Wei have to wait to know if he's coming back? Will he ever know?

[china_shop]

Of these, though, I'm not sure it could be Ding Dun, because he seemed to have been working as the secretary in Dixing until recently, and he isn't killed (as it appears) on Haixing until episode 8.

Good point!

Could Zhang Shi have been the captain?? (The guy he was inside was a criminal and was shot by Zhao Xinci before he inhabited Zhao Xinci... )

Oh, man, that would complicate things enormously! I've always assumed Zhang Shi didn't have much/anything to do with Shen Wei, but if he or his host betrayed him like that... then anything he told Zhao Xinci about the Envoy would be coloured by that past. It doesn't seem likely to me, given what we see of Zhang Shi, but it would certainly be fascinating! :-)

I've been thinking it is, and when there are the apparent earthquakes, it narrows his search.

Oh, yes! Good point!

Maybe he expected that it would take decades to find the Holy Tools, but not hearing from anyone for a long time... He doesn't try to find out what happened?

Maybe when he discovers the captain has been shot (presumably by Zhao Xinci, because it has to be that gun), he infers from the SID's report of the captain's crimes that the whole team has all gone rogue, but he can't find any trace/proof?

Wu Tian'en is peppier in Dixing for a while

Hee! True -- even after almost dying, too. (It's such a shame he didn't have a chance to raise his son. I want a fix-it for them.)

[awanderingcoyote]

AHhhh. Just a great post!

I love the fifth picture you captured where it shows SW in focus and Wu Tian'en out of focus, and you can see the seriousness on SW's face. Very HPS/BCE set to his eyebrows and eyes.

I'm always curious about the mission Wu Tian'en was sent on. Favorite theories? Headcanons? I always head cannoned it was either some sort of extraction of critical information they needed or a rescue mission of a fellow Dixingren, then everything went wrong. So so so wrong.

The "how much time do I have left"! ;__; I always found this both sad and curious, sad because of the foreshadowing, but curious as to why exactly SW thought his time was limited in some way shape or form. Was it because he always expected Ye Zun to escape and cause trouble? Or maybe just the reality that Haixing and Dixing couldn't live in peace/go to war? Or just PTSD that ZYL/Kunlun would be ripped from him again, much like he was in the past. Such an interesting question! For myself, I always imagined it was because he knew his brother was starting to stir the pot and he knew it would inevitably lead into some sort of showdown between the two.

Since they continue to spy on Wu Tian'en, did Shen Wei simply erase their memory the meeting they'd just witnessed? Or altered it in some way, so that he wouldn't be remembered/identified? - I always assumed he wiped their memory of SW talking to Wu Tian'en. Gotta leave no trace behind XD

Ahh this was such a lovely write-up! Thank you so much for posting it! I love seeing all these scenes discussed!!

[china_shop]

For myself, I always imagined it was because he knew his brother was starting to stir the pot and he knew it would inevitably lead into some sort of showdown between the two.

Oh, yeah, I have that feeling, too, and it would fit with the building mystery of the show and the ominousness. But it does suggest Shen Wei is already uncertain about his chances of success -- or how far he'll have to go to win... (Unless it's just "how much time do I have left before the crisis" versus "how much time do I have left in which I'm healthy/strong/alive", that is.)

[elenothar]

The men look confused for a second then go back to watching Wu Tian'en as Shen Wei strides away.

For some reason I had always assumed that he froze the two guys prior to talking to Wu Tian'en and this is him unfreezing them? Not quite sure where I got that from.

[* Does 运气 unambiguously signify good luck/fortunate here? Anyone know?]

I don't claim expertise, but my little popup dictionary says "luck (good or bad)", so not unambiguous.

Wu Tian'en doesn't recognize Shen Wei from the back, but he does recognize him when Shen Wei turns around without his glasses on. Could Wu Tian'en have seen the Black-Cloaked Envoy's face in the past, without the mask?

This is interesting, because I've been trying to keep track of which Dixingren seem to know Shen Wei is the Envoy and which don't during my rewatch and it's... really confusing me. It doesn't seem consistent at all, though he does seem to give up on disguising himself whenever he's in Dixing halfway through the series. It raised a lot of questions about the Envoy's authority and status and reception for me.

Shen Wei concerned about Wu Tian'en's health is <3 and always reminds me of bb!Shen Wei worried about his troops in ancient Haixing.

<3 I'm always interested in depictions of Shen Wei as a leader and this is a nice microcosm of that.

[sakana17]

For some reason I had always assumed that he froze the two guys prior to talking to Wu Tian'en and this is him unfreezing them?

Oh, that's another possibility! I never thought of that, but it would work. Cool idea.

my little popup dictionary says "luck (good or bad)", so not unambiguous

Thanks! I wondered about that.

It doesn't seem consistent at all

*sigh* I was afraid it wasn't.

It raised a lot of questions about the Envoy's authority and status and reception for me.

I have *lots* of questions, too. On the one hand, there's so much Dixing worldbuilding to play with, and that's kind of cool. On the other hand... I still have questions. :)

[sakana17]

Thank you! I love reading the scene discussions, too.

Very HPS/BCE set to his eyebrows and eyes.

Ah! Maybe that's how Wu Tian'en recognizes him even without the mask & cloak, etc. It's someone powerful and when he turns around, Wu Tian'en recognizes the look in Shen Wei's eyes as the Envoy.