Great post again! And such a great episode! *flails*
Cong Bo discovering the camera feed makes me wonder - has Zhao Yunlan just completely forgotten about it? Did he ever actually watch the feed after installing it? It can't have been on his mind much. (Would he have removed it if he'd remembered? Would he have admitted it to Shen Wei, or gone about it secretly?)
Also, regarding Cong Bo watching the video feed - he's all OMG when he sees Shen Wei use his powers, but it seems like that's more "OMG I actually have this on video" rather than reacting to the powers themselves. I still can't make sense of what actually counts for a big thing with him!
and orders the Dijun's Register to be brought to him, not realising that it's missing and the Regent will appeal to the SID for help recovering it
Or perhaps it wasn't actually missing at this point, but the Regent didn't want Shen Wei to have it, so he arranged for it to disappear! Honestly, I wouldn't put it past him.
if Shen Wei hadn't joined the SID by now, he might not have heard about the Regent's visit and the subsequent field trip to Dixing until it was too late, so phew!
Do you think Zhao Yunlan would have gone if he hadn't had Shen Wei with him? I think a lot of his overconfidence is related to thinking he's untouchable with Shen Wei by his side. (Would he have taken someone else along?)
And is that Xiao Quan?
Looks like him to me! Yay for consistency in minor characters. :D
I love the immediate switch in Shen Wei's facial expression, body language, and behaviour when he notices the smoke messenger approaching! And then after he dismisses the messenger, from one moment to the next he switches back to Professor Shen mannerisms- So impressive! This episode is really excellent for showing off the contrast between his two personas.
Shen Wei has asked the Regent about Zhu Jiu and (presumably) Ye Zun.
Ah! I was wondering who the "relationship between Zhu Jiu and that man" bit was referring to - Cong Bo might have been possible, but Shen Wei seemed pretty confident last episode that they didn't seem likely associates. But it's also a bit strangely phrased if it's referring to Ye Zun, isn't it?
Regarding the smoke messenger, I love the way Shen Wei tells it to speak quickly and it actually speeds up! Very cool. I also love that he apparently asked about the effects of the hallows on humans! ♥
but they later manage to use Cong Bo's other mistakes to clear Shen Wei by inference.
Clear Shen Wei? I thought they just made sure Cong Bo wouldn't make things public by a) deleting the footage from his drive and b) shaking him out of his smug confidence in his "whistleblower" self-justification.
Also also, Zhao Yunlan has changed his hair(!!!!!) (because he's in love).
So much love! And not just because Zhao Yunlan looks so much better with the new hairdo, LOL.
Honestly, most of the time I think this is too soon for them to actually get together (though I've written it, and even incorporated the hairstyle change) - and I think that makes it even better. Because they're not even together yet and the change in their relationship is still such a milestone for Zhao Yunlan, and a commitment, even if the committed romantic relationship is only aspired to. ♥ ♥ ♥
Also, I love the way Zhao Yunlan sits there so tensely, not looking at Cong Bo. And he tries to poke at Cong Bo a few times, looking for a potential avenue of attack, but Cong Bo very definitely has the upper hand here.
The apology scene!! *flails like Kermit* Shen Wei isn't wearing his glasses, and I can't get over Zhao Yunlan managing to sprawl on stools, and then sitting on the couch like that. asd;lfkajsdf
Hee! I love that Shen Wei is without his glasses, and Zhao Yunlan without shoes or socks - they're both in a very informal, private mode. And they're both tense when the scene starts, and it comes out in both their body language in diametrically opposed ways - in how contained Shen Wei sits, how spread-out Zhao Yunlan sits.
I don't read Zhao Yunlan as at all casual at the beginning. He's trying to read Shen Wei's reaction to see if it's anger or something else. He knows he's fucked up. I think he half-expects Shen Wei to be disappointed in him, maybe even to stalk off like he did after the failed old-books affair, or to want to.
Yeah, agreed, all of this!
Shen Wei apologises (which I always attribute to a cultural expectation of self-criticism)
Also agreed!
When Zhao Yunlan does explain why it's his fault, he seems annoyed/reproachful enough at himself that I think it's easy for Shen Wei to let it go? Shen Wei doesn't say "It's not your fault." He lets Zhao Yunlan's apology stand and shifts the conversation from blame to "we need a solution."
Yeah, Shen Wei immediately switches to practicalities - and I think some of that is that he's not interested in apportioning blame and more concerned with resolving the situation quickly. He always prioritises the practical. But Zhao Yunlan taking responsibility and being genuine and serious here definitely makes it easier for him. I think if Zhao Yunlan looked like he wasn't taking this seriously, Shen Wei would definitely be furious.
(Also, neither of them mention Shen Wei's job at the uni, which is definitely toast if this comes out. I wonder if Zhao Yunlan even thinks about it in this moment?)
The more I think about it, the more I love the fact that Shen Wei is the one with the phone. Because Cong Bo's threat is in an area Shen Wei has no way of dealing with via his own MO, and Zhao Yunlan gave him a situation-appropriate weapon. Shen Wei is the one who wields it, who decides how and when to show the footage to Cong Bo. He doesn't look to Zhao Yunlan for cues. Zhao Yunlan isn't saving him.
All of this is so good! I love it so much.
Also, I find it fascinating how Shen Wei talks to Cong Bo - it isn't quite his Professor Shen voice, and isn't quite his Envoy voice either; it's somewhere in the middle.
(Also, I 100% believe Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei are deliberately playing good cop/bad cop, but I don't know how much that's just headcanon on my part. :-)
It's my headcanon too!
There's so much compassion in it -- and to someone who was threatening them real harm! They could have crushed Cong Bo, but they didn't. This is Shen Wei seeing Zhao Yunlan do the equivalent of letting Zheng Yi and Tan Xiao skip off into the sunset together.
♥ ♥ ♥
Cong Bo's scoops are a lot like the way the show itself provides more information in retrospect to change the context of things.
Yes! And when Xiao-Guo writes about it in his diary, he basically spells out one of the show's main themes: "The underlying truth of things is not always what we see."
Zhu Jiu is still healing. Ya Qing shows up and says a Yashou is watching her. Does she mean Ying Chun? Ying Chun's spies?
I assumed she meant Ying Chun, yeah.
Zhu Jiu also says "I can't die from a little injury like this" - which emphasizes again that it's a very serious and even potentially fatal injury. Zhu Jiu is really struggling with it!
Another interesting point: Zhu Jiu for some reason is back at the lair where we've previously seen him, which Chu Shuzhi and Shen Wei have also visited. (Presumably Zhu Jiu doesn't know that they know it, and they don't know he's come back ...?)
I feel like ZYL finally drops his performance here and in the apology scene. Like, here, he's still gently teasing, but it's much more genuine and soft, and I think Shen Wei gets that, and that's why he's prepared to relax and reveal things about himself.
Yes to all of that!
I think his request for compensation is transparently and deliberately inappropriate, because the point of it is to re-enact that scene and show that he's learning, he's paying attention, he wants to get this right.
♥ ♥ ♥
Also also, the bit when Zhao Yunlan is asking about Shen Wei's power and being all interested in Shen Wei and warm and complimentary is so very Kunlun-esque, I can't imagine that doesn't take the sting out of everything else ever, as far as Shen Wei is concerned.
Oh, that's a good point! And also, Shen Wei doesn't answer immediately at first, but wants to know why Zhao Yunlan is asking - and the way Zhao Yunlan answers reassures him.
Oh, and given what Shen Wei says here about his powers ("but it's subject to the restrictions of the Guardian Order and of black energy itself, so what strength I can display here is quite limited") makes it very understandable that Zhao Yunlan thinks nothing can endanger him in Dixing if Shen Wei is with him. He's already so powerful in Haixing!
Zhao Yunlan in the SID lab, contemplating groping the Hallows even though he recently passed out TWICE from touching the Awl. I really like that he's thought it through, though, and decided the stakes are high enough to justify it. ♥
Yeah, it makes sense here from his point of view!
And then Shen Wei catches him in the act, giving him a scare. (Does Shen Wei physically force him to put the case back? Hee!)
I love the little jump he does! (And I always thought he put it back on his own, feeling a bit sheepish at having been caught - he knows Shen Wei won't let him touch the Awl, at least not without Zhao Yunlan making a really good case for why he has to first. Which he then tries to do!)
(Also, is it just me, or does Shen Wei's outfit here resemble Ye Zun's fake!Shen Wei outfit from ep 34?)
Just the colours, I think. But yeah, interesting - there's a parallel between the two scenes that I want to look at more closely at some point ...
Also also, Zhao Yunlan is transparently still getting his head around Shen Wei's identities. When Shen Wei catches him going for the Hallows, Zhao Yunlan says, "Hei-laoge, as expected, it's impossible to hide anything from you." And when Shen Wei suggests an alternate plan, he says, "Professor, as expected, grasping the whole picture and looking for long-term solutions." :D
I thought it was a sign of him getting more comfortable with seeing both sides in one person, addressing Shen Wei as Hei-laoge or Professor as the situation/sentiment warrants and easily moving between the two. ♥
Why do you think Zhao Yunlan doesn't tell Shen Wei the guest they're expecting is the Regent? What does he expect Shen Wei's reaction to be?
Zhu Hong is such a messy drunk, aww. The show might be censored, but she knows the truth.
She's so pink in the face, too! How much beer was that? She can hold her liquor pretty well, after all.
Also, I love Da Qing's "nothing's wrong with you, you've got great body temperature"! CATS OMG. :D
LOL at him telling Changcheng he's as a fit as a fiddle: that's the opposite of what he tells anyone else ever.
Haha, right?
Question: the second time they meet, how does that happen? Xiao-Guo is late for work, so he presumably goes as directly as possible, but the Regent meets him from the other side - does he have a teleportation power, or what?
(oracularmayhem on discord jokingly suggested that his power might be appearing where he's least wanted. Of course he'd be dead by now if that was actually the case! *g*)
The Regent is so weird with Xiao-Guo, messing with him for no reason, making himself look pathetic while also being profoundly creepy with intent. Can he tell this is a SID member? (From the red stamp, maybe?)
If it wasn't Xiao-Guo, I'd also wonder why he wasn't picking up on the Regent clearly being from Dixing, what with talking about being "on the surface" and all!
Ahhhh, Chu Shuzhi loses his cool and grabs the Regent, apparently his mortal enemy, and the Regent is so smug about it.
The Regent even deliberately provokes him first, calling him Xiao-Chu and going "long time no see" at him! Can't blame Lao-Chu for losing it. Springing the Regent on him would be bad at any time! And Zhao Yunlan apparently didn't tell anyone he was coming (why?!) - but then he's also very clearly taken aback by Lao-Chu's reaction. Da Qing later implies he understands why Lao-Chu reacted the way he did, but Zhao Yunlan absolutely didn't see this coming, and is rapidly reassessing. (But will still underestimate the Regent for some time.)
The moment the Regent mentions the Dijun Register, Shen Wei arrives and, without missing a beat, demands to know what happened to it. He's so unsurprised I almost wonder if Zhao Yunlan spilled the secret of the Regent's visit over dinner the night before (but I don't really think that).
Yeah, I'm sure he didn't - if he had, I don't think Shen Wei would have left the Regent to wander around like this.
IMO Shen Wei, seeing the Regent, has just switched immediately not only into Envoy mode, but into "show absolutely no weakness whatsoever in front of this person" mode, which is why he shows no surprise either. (And Zhao Yunlan clearly did not expect any of that either! None of this visit is going how he expected it. Not that I'm very clear on what he did expect, LOL.)
I love how Zhao Yunlan says to the Regent, "let's talk in private," and Shen Wei immediately stalks off towards his office. *g*
Zhao Yunlan's office: on the face of it, it's so shocking to see this elder grovelling to seemingly-young Shen Wei. And Zhao Yunlan is watching Shen Wei like a hawk, still figuring him out.
I love how Shen Wei stands with his back to the Regent and lets him bow and scrape and call himself 属下, giving a very misleading image of the power dynamics. Zhao Yunlan is so uncomfortable with it! He's never seen SW really insist on his authority, and he has no idea of the true dynamics here. He tries to calm things down, and it almost works - but then the Regent admits to "losing" the Dijun Register, and when Zhao Yunlan tries again, this time Shen Wei actually snaps/shouts at him.
Favourite moment! I love the way Zhao Yunlan just has a complete bluescreen moment there. And then he tries to laugh off just how affected he is by that display. (Zhao Yunlan says he shifted from Professor Shen to the Envoy, but that's not what happened in that moment - he's been Envoying all along. It's an excuse, right?)
Quick switch to the rest of the SID: Lin Jing bugging Zhao Yunlan's office funnily isn't connected to his actual spying, or he wouldn't so casually admit to it here, but it does connect Lin Jing with spying in general! *g*
Zhao Yunlan coughs to warn of Da Qing's approach, and Shen Wei instantly understands and switches gears, and I love it. :D :D :D
Oooh! I never noticed before that Zhao Yunlan's cough was because of Da Qing! But I love how Shen Wei switches into Professor Shen mode for a little bit. ♥
I also love how the Regent starts to sit down, then straightens again and waits for Shen Wei to sit first!
Da Qing is trying to be discreet, but Zhao Yunlan is weirdly cavalier about the Regent knowing their business. Meanwhile, Shen Wei is sitting in his chair like it's a throne. :D :D :D
So much love for Shen Wei in this entire scene!
I think Zhao Yunlan is at his wits' end with the weird dynamic between the Envoy and the Regent, and with Shen Wei actually aiming that harsh tone at him, and he takes it out on Da Qing a bit, trying to gain control of things again and going over the top with it.
(Also, I love Da Qing censoring Zhao Xinci's name when Zhao Yunlan glares at him! :D)
[I have once again exceeded the comment post, so, more to come!]
no subject
Cong Bo discovering the camera feed makes me wonder - has Zhao Yunlan just completely forgotten about it? Did he ever actually watch the feed after installing it? It can't have been on his mind much. (Would he have removed it if he'd remembered? Would he have admitted it to Shen Wei, or gone about it secretly?)
Also, regarding Cong Bo watching the video feed - he's all OMG when he sees Shen Wei use his powers, but it seems like that's more "OMG I actually have this on video" rather than reacting to the powers themselves. I still can't make sense of what actually counts for a big thing with him!
and orders the Dijun's Register to be brought to him, not realising that it's missing and the Regent will appeal to the SID for help recovering it
Or perhaps it wasn't actually missing at this point, but the Regent didn't want Shen Wei to have it, so he arranged for it to disappear! Honestly, I wouldn't put it past him.
if Shen Wei hadn't joined the SID by now, he might not have heard about the Regent's visit and the subsequent field trip to Dixing until it was too late, so phew!
Do you think Zhao Yunlan would have gone if he hadn't had Shen Wei with him? I think a lot of his overconfidence is related to thinking he's untouchable with Shen Wei by his side. (Would he have taken someone else along?)
And is that Xiao Quan?
Looks like him to me! Yay for consistency in minor characters. :D
I love the immediate switch in Shen Wei's facial expression, body language, and behaviour when he notices the smoke messenger approaching! And then after he dismisses the messenger, from one moment to the next he switches back to Professor Shen mannerisms- So impressive! This episode is really excellent for showing off the contrast between his two personas.
Shen Wei has asked the Regent about Zhu Jiu and (presumably) Ye Zun.
Ah! I was wondering who the "relationship between Zhu Jiu and that man" bit was referring to - Cong Bo might have been possible, but Shen Wei seemed pretty confident last episode that they didn't seem likely associates. But it's also a bit strangely phrased if it's referring to Ye Zun, isn't it?
Regarding the smoke messenger, I love the way Shen Wei tells it to speak quickly and it actually speeds up! Very cool. I also love that he apparently asked about the effects of the hallows on humans! ♥
but they later manage to use Cong Bo's other mistakes to clear Shen Wei by inference.
Clear Shen Wei? I thought they just made sure Cong Bo wouldn't make things public by a) deleting the footage from his drive and b) shaking him out of his smug confidence in his "whistleblower" self-justification.
Also also, Zhao Yunlan has changed his hair(!!!!!) (because he's in love).
So much love! And not just because Zhao Yunlan looks so much better with the new hairdo, LOL.
Honestly, most of the time I think this is too soon for them to actually get together (though I've written it, and even incorporated the hairstyle change) - and I think that makes it even better. Because they're not even together yet and the change in their relationship is still such a milestone for Zhao Yunlan, and a commitment, even if the committed romantic relationship is only aspired to. ♥ ♥ ♥
Also, I love the way Zhao Yunlan sits there so tensely, not looking at Cong Bo. And he tries to poke at Cong Bo a few times, looking for a potential avenue of attack, but Cong Bo very definitely has the upper hand here.
The apology scene!! *flails like Kermit* Shen Wei isn't wearing his glasses, and I can't get over Zhao Yunlan managing to sprawl on stools, and then sitting on the couch like that. asd;lfkajsdf
Hee! I love that Shen Wei is without his glasses, and Zhao Yunlan without shoes or socks - they're both in a very informal, private mode. And they're both tense when the scene starts, and it comes out in both their body language in diametrically opposed ways - in how contained Shen Wei sits, how spread-out Zhao Yunlan sits.
I don't read Zhao Yunlan as at all casual at the beginning. He's trying to read Shen Wei's reaction to see if it's anger or something else. He knows he's fucked up. I think he half-expects Shen Wei to be disappointed in him, maybe even to stalk off like he did after the failed old-books affair, or to want to.
Yeah, agreed, all of this!
Shen Wei apologises (which I always attribute to a cultural expectation of self-criticism)
Also agreed!
When Zhao Yunlan does explain why it's his fault, he seems annoyed/reproachful enough at himself that I think it's easy for Shen Wei to let it go? Shen Wei doesn't say "It's not your fault." He lets Zhao Yunlan's apology stand and shifts the conversation from blame to "we need a solution."
Yeah, Shen Wei immediately switches to practicalities - and I think some of that is that he's not interested in apportioning blame and more concerned with resolving the situation quickly. He always prioritises the practical. But Zhao Yunlan taking responsibility and being genuine and serious here definitely makes it easier for him. I think if Zhao Yunlan looked like he wasn't taking this seriously, Shen Wei would definitely be furious.
(Also, neither of them mention Shen Wei's job at the uni, which is definitely toast if this comes out. I wonder if Zhao Yunlan even thinks about it in this moment?)
The more I think about it, the more I love the fact that Shen Wei is the one with the phone. Because Cong Bo's threat is in an area Shen Wei has no way of dealing with via his own MO, and Zhao Yunlan gave him a situation-appropriate weapon. Shen Wei is the one who wields it, who decides how and when to show the footage to Cong Bo. He doesn't look to Zhao Yunlan for cues. Zhao Yunlan isn't saving him.
All of this is so good! I love it so much.
Also, I find it fascinating how Shen Wei talks to Cong Bo - it isn't quite his Professor Shen voice, and isn't quite his Envoy voice either; it's somewhere in the middle.
(Also, I 100% believe Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei are deliberately playing good cop/bad cop, but I don't know how much that's just headcanon on my part. :-)
It's my headcanon too!
There's so much compassion in it -- and to someone who was threatening them real harm! They could have crushed Cong Bo, but they didn't. This is Shen Wei seeing Zhao Yunlan do the equivalent of letting Zheng Yi and Tan Xiao skip off into the sunset together.
♥ ♥ ♥
Cong Bo's scoops are a lot like the way the show itself provides more information in retrospect to change the context of things.
Yes! And when Xiao-Guo writes about it in his diary, he basically spells out one of the show's main themes: "The underlying truth of things is not always what we see."
Zhu Jiu is still healing. Ya Qing shows up and says a Yashou is watching her. Does she mean Ying Chun? Ying Chun's spies?
I assumed she meant Ying Chun, yeah.
Zhu Jiu also says "I can't die from a little injury like this" - which emphasizes again that it's a very serious and even potentially fatal injury. Zhu Jiu is really struggling with it!
Another interesting point: Zhu Jiu for some reason is back at the lair where we've previously seen him, which Chu Shuzhi and Shen Wei have also visited. (Presumably Zhu Jiu doesn't know that they know it, and they don't know he's come back ...?)
I feel like ZYL finally drops his performance here and in the apology scene. Like, here, he's still gently teasing, but it's much more genuine and soft, and I think Shen Wei gets that, and that's why he's prepared to relax and reveal things about himself.
Yes to all of that!
I think his request for compensation is transparently and deliberately inappropriate, because the point of it is to re-enact that scene and show that he's learning, he's paying attention, he wants to get this right.
♥ ♥ ♥
Also also, the bit when Zhao Yunlan is asking about Shen Wei's power and being all interested in Shen Wei and warm and complimentary is so very Kunlun-esque, I can't imagine that doesn't take the sting out of everything else ever, as far as Shen Wei is concerned.
Oh, that's a good point! And also, Shen Wei doesn't answer immediately at first, but wants to know why Zhao Yunlan is asking - and the way Zhao Yunlan answers reassures him.
Oh, and given what Shen Wei says here about his powers ("but it's subject to the restrictions of the Guardian Order and of black energy itself, so what strength I can display here is quite limited") makes it very understandable that Zhao Yunlan thinks nothing can endanger him in Dixing if Shen Wei is with him. He's already so powerful in Haixing!
Zhao Yunlan in the SID lab, contemplating groping the Hallows even though he recently passed out TWICE from touching the Awl. I really like that he's thought it through, though, and decided the stakes are high enough to justify it. ♥
Yeah, it makes sense here from his point of view!
And then Shen Wei catches him in the act, giving him a scare. (Does Shen Wei physically force him to put the case back? Hee!)
I love the little jump he does! (And I always thought he put it back on his own, feeling a bit sheepish at having been caught - he knows Shen Wei won't let him touch the Awl, at least not without Zhao Yunlan making a really good case for why he has to first. Which he then tries to do!)
(Also, is it just me, or does Shen Wei's outfit here resemble Ye Zun's fake!Shen Wei outfit from ep 34?)
Just the colours, I think. But yeah, interesting - there's a parallel between the two scenes that I want to look at more closely at some point ...
Also also, Zhao Yunlan is transparently still getting his head around Shen Wei's identities. When Shen Wei catches him going for the Hallows, Zhao Yunlan says, "Hei-laoge, as expected, it's impossible to hide anything from you." And when Shen Wei suggests an alternate plan, he says, "Professor, as expected, grasping the whole picture and looking for long-term solutions." :D
I thought it was a sign of him getting more comfortable with seeing both sides in one person, addressing Shen Wei as Hei-laoge or Professor as the situation/sentiment warrants and easily moving between the two. ♥
Why do you think Zhao Yunlan doesn't tell Shen Wei the guest they're expecting is the Regent? What does he expect Shen Wei's reaction to be?
Zhu Hong is such a messy drunk, aww. The show might be censored, but she knows the truth.
She's so pink in the face, too! How much beer was that? She can hold her liquor pretty well, after all.
Also, I love Da Qing's "nothing's wrong with you, you've got great body temperature"! CATS OMG. :D
LOL at him telling Changcheng he's as a fit as a fiddle: that's the opposite of what he tells anyone else ever.
Haha, right?
Question: the second time they meet, how does that happen? Xiao-Guo is late for work, so he presumably goes as directly as possible, but the Regent meets him from the other side - does he have a teleportation power, or what?
(
The Regent is so weird with Xiao-Guo, messing with him for no reason, making himself look pathetic while also being profoundly creepy with intent. Can he tell this is a SID member? (From the red stamp, maybe?)
If it wasn't Xiao-Guo, I'd also wonder why he wasn't picking up on the Regent clearly being from Dixing, what with talking about being "on the surface" and all!
Ahhhh, Chu Shuzhi loses his cool and grabs the Regent, apparently his mortal enemy, and the Regent is so smug about it.
The Regent even deliberately provokes him first, calling him Xiao-Chu and going "long time no see" at him! Can't blame Lao-Chu for losing it. Springing the Regent on him would be bad at any time! And Zhao Yunlan apparently didn't tell anyone he was coming (why?!) - but then he's also very clearly taken aback by Lao-Chu's reaction. Da Qing later implies he understands why Lao-Chu reacted the way he did, but Zhao Yunlan absolutely didn't see this coming, and is rapidly reassessing. (But will still underestimate the Regent for some time.)
The moment the Regent mentions the Dijun Register, Shen Wei arrives and, without missing a beat, demands to know what happened to it. He's so unsurprised I almost wonder if Zhao Yunlan spilled the secret of the Regent's visit over dinner the night before (but I don't really think that).
Yeah, I'm sure he didn't - if he had, I don't think Shen Wei would have left the Regent to wander around like this.
IMO Shen Wei, seeing the Regent, has just switched immediately not only into Envoy mode, but into "show absolutely no weakness whatsoever in front of this person" mode, which is why he shows no surprise either. (And Zhao Yunlan clearly did not expect any of that either! None of this visit is going how he expected it. Not that I'm very clear on what he did expect, LOL.)
I love how Zhao Yunlan says to the Regent, "let's talk in private," and Shen Wei immediately stalks off towards his office. *g*
Zhao Yunlan's office: on the face of it, it's so shocking to see this elder grovelling to seemingly-young Shen Wei. And Zhao Yunlan is watching Shen Wei like a hawk, still figuring him out.
I love how Shen Wei stands with his back to the Regent and lets him bow and scrape and call himself 属下, giving a very misleading image of the power dynamics. Zhao Yunlan is so uncomfortable with it! He's never seen SW really insist on his authority, and he has no idea of the true dynamics here. He tries to calm things down, and it almost works - but then the Regent admits to "losing" the Dijun Register, and when Zhao Yunlan tries again, this time Shen Wei actually snaps/shouts at him.
Favourite moment! I love the way Zhao Yunlan just has a complete bluescreen moment there. And then he tries to laugh off just how affected he is by that display. (Zhao Yunlan says he shifted from Professor Shen to the Envoy, but that's not what happened in that moment - he's been Envoying all along. It's an excuse, right?)
Quick switch to the rest of the SID: Lin Jing bugging Zhao Yunlan's office funnily isn't connected to his actual spying, or he wouldn't so casually admit to it here, but it does connect Lin Jing with spying in general! *g*
Zhao Yunlan coughs to warn of Da Qing's approach, and Shen Wei instantly understands and switches gears, and I love it. :D :D :D
Oooh! I never noticed before that Zhao Yunlan's cough was because of Da Qing! But I love how Shen Wei switches into Professor Shen mode for a little bit. ♥
I also love how the Regent starts to sit down, then straightens again and waits for Shen Wei to sit first!
Da Qing is trying to be discreet, but Zhao Yunlan is weirdly cavalier about the Regent knowing their business. Meanwhile, Shen Wei is sitting in his chair like it's a throne. :D :D :D
So much love for Shen Wei in this entire scene!
I think Zhao Yunlan is at his wits' end with the weird dynamic between the Envoy and the Regent, and with Shen Wei actually aiming that harsh tone at him, and he takes it out on Da Qing a bit, trying to gain control of things again and going over the top with it.
(Also, I love Da Qing censoring Zhao Xinci's name when Zhao Yunlan glares at him! :D)
[I have once again exceeded the comment post, so, more to come!]