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sid_guardian2023-08-04 01:52 am
trobadora) wrote in sid_guardian2023-08-04 01:52 am
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GUARDIAN REWATCH - Episode 29
Beginning of episode: Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei are going to see Fourth Uncle
Ending of episode: Shen Wei, Sha Ya and Hua Yuzhu are at the locust tree gate and about to go to Dixing
Important scenes/developments:
- Shen Wei deduces a number from a payphone's push buttons
- Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan discover the jeep and Minister Gao
- flashback: Bai Suxia's and Wang Xiangyang's wedding pics at the jeep
- Vice Minister Guo fetches Minister Gao
- flashback: Zhao Xinci scolds little!Zhao Yunlan about searching the wrong way for their lost dog
- Wu Xiaojun attacks the Pillar; Wu Tian'en saves him
- the SID watches a DVD Wang Xiangyang recorded and deduce the location
- Flashback: Bai Suxia and Wang Xiangyang are expecting a child
- Sha Ya tortures Zhao Xinci and discovers he has two personalities; Zhao Yunlan et al. interrupt Wang Xiangyang's plan to kill Zhao Xinci
- flashbacks: events of Reunion Night for Wang Xiangyang and Bai Suxia
- Zhao Yunlan offers to take Zhao Xinci's place as his son; big confrontation between SID and Wang Xiangyang
- flashback: Zhao Xinci in the hospital
- Wang Xiangyang gives the Merit Brush to Zhao Yunlan and is dissolved into ashes
- SID speculation on the Merit Brush is interrupted by a quake; Ya Qing explains the Merit Brush broke Ye Zun's prison
- Ye Zun kills Wu Tian'en
- Shen Wei takes Hua Yuzhu and Sha Ya to the Dixing portal
- flashbacks: Gu Ban's death, Gu Ban's feelings for Sha Ya
This episode leans heavily into misdirected vengeance, with two major arcs around blaming the wrong person for a death coming to a close. This, of course, ties strongly into one of the drama's main themes around appearances and first impressions being deceiving - a theme that draws a line from something straightforward like "Zhao Xinci did not shoot Gu Ban" to things like "despite this clawed Shadow Man chasing students, Dixingren are not monsters" and "this apparently forbidding figure of cold justice is full of kindness and mercy" and so on. And of course it's also foreshadowing for Ye Zun's own misdirected blame levelled at Shen Wei. I love it!
Assorted thoughts:
- Zhao Yunlan's state of mind:
- You can see the effort it takes him to keep it together during this episode. Every time things are moving and he thinks they have a handle on what's happening, he seems confident enough; every time something goes wrong or they are left without clues again, he visibly struggles. And all of it leads up to the scene on the rooftop where he offers to take his father's place, and finally the separation between Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei.
- His reasoning at the beginning of the episode - that the next clue is with the Snakes because Ya Qing must have helped set up this complicated riddle, and the only link between SID and the Crow tribe is Fourth Uncle - is pretty tenuous. I assume it's half excellent instincts, and half Zhao Yunlan simply forging forward because otherwise he'll lose it again.
- When Vice Minister Guo joins them at the jeep and tells them the Ministry still has no clues despite using all their resources, Zhao Yunlan looks like he's struggling for a moment, very tense. (Then he calls him "Guo-laoge" and tells him to take Minister Gao home.) Afterwards, like last episode at the SID, just before he decided to touch the Sundial, we see him pacing again, muttering bits of info to himself, until he remembers what his father said when he was searching for his lost dog, and starts putting things together.
- On the rooftop, we see Zhao Yunlan stepping forward to sacrifice himself for his father, then shaky and trembling with fists clenched when his father attempts to protect him by playing up his negative feelings about his son, making Zhao Yunlan a less appealing substitute target, and also by being so unpleasant to him potentially lessening his grief if Zhao Xinci does die. And Zhao Yunlan sees through all of this, but that doesn't make Zhao Xinci's words hurt any less. When Zhao Xinci tells him he wishes his son had died instead of his wife, Zhao Yunlan struggles with himself for a moment, then then manages some semblance of his usual dismissive laugh before he voices his own philosophy: "I'm not like you. Instead of having regrets for twenty years, I'll follow my heart in the first place. You need to understand that a sacrifice for family is worth it!"
(We don't see Shen Wei's reaction to that choice of words, but I wish we had!) - And towards the end of the episode, when Shen Wei decides he needs to go to Dixing and he grabs Zhao Yunlan by the arm and drags him out of the group still clustered around the window, when Shen Wei dissuades Zhao Yunlan from coming with him by telling him the SID is in a delicate position and asking him to hold tight no matter what, we again see Zhao Yunlan struggling with himself. And even though the scenes are very different, the tension in him is still similar to the scene when he learned Zhao Xinci had been taken hostage: this is Zhao Yunlan, feeling helpless.
He grips Shen Wei's shoulder: "Hei-laoge, we can only maintain the peace if we're all alive." Shen Wei grips Zhao Yunlan's shoulder in reply/agreement, then leaves. And Zhao Yunlan, after nearly losing his father, is now looking at his boyfriend risking himself, and can't do anything about it. Needless to say, despite the semi-victory of getting Zhao Xinci back alive and gaining the Merit Brush, he's not in the best frame of mind at the end of the episode either. And it' not really because Ye Zun's prison has been broken: it's because the danger to his loved ones is no longer something he's confident he - and they - can handle.
- Investigation/deduction:
- Usually Zhao Yunlan is the main detective on this show - making connections and figuring things out is one of his greatest strengths. And he's not falling down on that this episode either, despite the strain he is under! But at the same time, Shen Wei has a big part making deductions this time.
Shen Wei is the one who first realises the phone from the phonebox is a clue connected to the car key; he's the one who deduces the sequence of numbers from the wear on the push buttons, and when the SID watches Wang Xiangyang's DVD, it's Shen Wei who points out the connection with what they're looking for. (Zhao Yunlan has also figured it out, and they take turns speaking - they're in perfect synch.) - But also, we see the SID come together as a group to figure things out. During the phone number deduction, it's mainly Shen Wei with some help from Lin Jing; during the DVD deduction it's Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan, but at the end of the episode, before Ya Qing reveals the true goal of Team Merit Brush, everyone comes together to try and figure it out. Zhao Yunlan suggests Wang Xiangyang's revenge spree was also buying time for something else; Chu Shuzhi points out Ya Qing didn't seem to care about the Merit Brush any more; Da Qing points out Ye Zun has been quiet lately, and Lin Jing is the one to finally suggest the Merit Brush's purpose was related to Ye Zun.
- Usually Zhao Yunlan is the main detective on this show - making connections and figuring things out is one of his greatest strengths. And he's not falling down on that this episode either, despite the strain he is under! But at the same time, Shen Wei has a big part making deductions this time.
- Zhao Xinci
- The flashback to young Zhao Yunlan shows him as a terrible father. What he teaches Zhao Yunlan about investigation and deduction is great, but how he goes about it is abysmal and cruel. The boy is crying, and what does Zhao Xinci say? "Do you think I will sympathize with you, pity you, or even comfort you?" And then he shouts at him for searching inefficiently and not going about things the right way! And only then does he say anything actually useful about how Zhao Yunlan might actually go about finding the dog. Seriously, this is so needlessly harsh, and also unproductive.
In the rooftop scene, on the other hand, he plays the terrible father - with perhaps too much vehemence, and perhaps it comes too easily to him, but his goal here is clearly protecting his son. And he's surely aware he's hurting Zhao Yunlan, but he does it in order to save him. Zhao Xinci goes on about Zhao Yunlan's faults, then goes so far as to say he wishes his son had died rather than his wife. (He does say he regrets causing his wife's death, so he does have some guilt around his actions at the time, regardless of whether he could have saved her.)
(Zhao Xinci, like his son, uses laughter to redirect things. In his case, it's nasty, cruel laughter, just before he asks, "Does he even deserve to be my son?") - Also, Zhao Xinci, when challenged by Sha Ya on whether killing Gu Ban was just, doesn't say, for example, "I didn't kill him, I was chasing his killer" - he seems constitutionally incapable of saying anything that might de-escalate a situation. :p Instead, what he says is: "Debating the right or wrong of a past event, what's the point? Whatever happened then, your present actions prove that you're wrong." (According to which logic, I guess, all they need to do is wait a while until this can be considered a "past event", and then that wrongness will no longer matter either! :p)
On the other hand, when Zhang Shi speaks, the difference is so stark that Sha Ya immediately picks up on the double personality: "Using violence to beat violence, you think your loved one would be happy about that? A new future is very close. Kid, it's clear you have a choice."
(Just like when he's first kidnapped, I wonder if Zhang Shi here comes out because Zhao Xinci has been electrocuted into unconsciousness, but there's also a later instance where they seem to be switching, when he says, "People have many worrries. With prolonged dwelling comes bitterness. Frustration makes them angry, then resentful, so they do things that shouldn't be done. Therefore the three words 'do no harm' are the greatest good in the world, and the only ones to guard the safety of mankind" - which is so un-Zhao Xinci that Zhao Yunlan is heavily side-eyeing him!) - Finally, in flashback, we see Zhao Xinci confronted with a woman being taken hostage, and though we don't see it, he looks like he's having flashbacks to his wife's death. (Which fits very well with the viewer being reminded of Shen Xi's death in the rooftop scene before!) This time, Zhao Xincvi tries something different than he did with Shen Xi: he gives up his gun, backs away, tries to calm the perpetrator. And this time, the hostage survives! But another person - Gu Ban, attempting to rescue Hua Yuzhu - dies instead. Whatever Zhao Xinci does, things just won't work out for him!
- The flashback to young Zhao Yunlan shows him as a terrible father. What he teaches Zhao Yunlan about investigation and deduction is great, but how he goes about it is abysmal and cruel. The boy is crying, and what does Zhao Xinci say? "Do you think I will sympathize with you, pity you, or even comfort you?" And then he shouts at him for searching inefficiently and not going about things the right way! And only then does he say anything actually useful about how Zhao Yunlan might actually go about finding the dog. Seriously, this is so needlessly harsh, and also unproductive.
- Bai Suxia and Wang Xiangyang:
- In the flashback at the jeep, Wang Xiangyang seems embarrassed that Bai Suxia is taking selfies because "people don't usually take their own wedding pics", but she says they can't afford to hire a photographer. And she's so pleased and happy! Just like with the phone booth in episode 28, she's drawing him out when he's being exceedingly caught up in trying to be normal. But when she steps over the line from "unconventional" to "criminal" - when she wants to simply take the jeep after finding the key, he insists on her leaving it, and coaxes her out of the car. She's a rascal (I don't think I realised just how much so until this rewatch!), and he - at least back then - has limits and ethics. *g* Which is an interesting dynamic: while she's alive, doing the right thing matters to him, but without her, he loses his own ethical grounding entirely, hell-bent on revenge no matter who gets caught in the fallout.
- In the flashback to the rooftop where Bai Suxia announces she's pregnant, Wang Xiangyang is so exuberantly happy! And they both talk about the influence of the SID - Bai Suxia wants their kid to eventually join the SID, and Wang Xiangyang suggests asking Zhao Xinci for a name for their child. They both clearly think the world of the SID, and of Zhao Xinci in particular.
Which is then contrasted with the following scene, with a great cut from this flashback directly to Wang Xiangyang on the same rooftop in the present, all brooding and dark, while Zhao Xinci is being tortured in the background. Great stuff! - We finally get the events of Reunion Night in sequence - from Wang Xiangyang's fruit stand being trashed and his phone stomped, to Bai Suxia and the various taxis, the ice cream lady, and then Bai Suxia unconscious at the hospital, with Zhao Xinci there as well.
- At the hospital, Wang Xiangyang is very agitated and begs the doctor to save her; the doctor is harried and only tells him she has massive bleeding and they don't have enough blood reserves, then rushes off because Zhao Xinci needs a transfusion. I don't blame Wang Xiangyang for misunderstanding in this situation! What I do blame him for: not bothering to learn (or listen to) the truth later, ditching all ethics and committing to murder and destruction, and not giving a damn about collateral damage.
And asoracularmayhem said on discord: "disproportionate response is the hallmark of a supervillain." - Regarding Bai Suxia's blood type, miss_ingno on discord pointed out that it's likely O-: not the very rarest blood type altogether, but they that can only accept blood donations from other O- donors, and as universal donors, their blood can be used for anyone else, so is always in short supply.
- On the rooftop, Wang Xiangyang blames Zhao Xinci for Bai Suxia's death, and for himself becoming like this - but even if the first were actually true, the second wouldn't follow. (As Zhu Hong will point out to Xiao-Guo later!) And he's very shocked when he realises Ye Zun deceived him, but Shen Wei points out that Ye Zun's ability to get his hooks into people depends on their own flaws - he won't let Wang Xiangyang absolve himself for his deeds.
- A bit of dramatic irony: the doctor explains Bai Suxia had a rare blood type and there were only two possible donors in Dragon City - one disappeared in an underground fighting ring, and the only possible donor is already on the way. So Zhu Jiu's "harvesting" of people's life forces at the underground fighting ring is directly responsible for a donor's disappearance - without that, this donor might have arrived in time. So Wang Xiangyang, in the course of avenging himself on the wrong person, allied himself with the very people who may well have caused his wife's death!
- Wang Xiangyang, at the very end, realises he's made a huge mistake. When the Merit Brush zips out of his hand, he forces it back and gives it to Zhao Yunlan before warning them that the door it opened can't be closed again. So he doesn't die in raging anger and violence, but finally turned away from it after all.
- Ye Zun and his pillar:
- Wu Xiaojun, last we heard (episode 16), had been sentenced, and the Envoy was working to shorten his sentence. Now he's free - I assume for the same reason as the Shadow Man, in that he was among those prisoners let free to fight against Ye Zun. At any rate, he's still a hothead, and comes to shout at the pillar and attack it, despite being vastly outmatched, and has to be rescued by his father, even though Wu Tian'en barely escaped after confronting Ye Zun last time.
Later, after the Pillar breaks open and Ye Zun emerges in black cloud form, Wu Xiaojun and Wu Tian'en come to the Pilar again, and Wu Xiaojun once again tries to attack, to no effect. Wu Tian'en says that for the sake of peace in Dixing, they'll hold out until the Envoy returns - but I fail to see how attacking Ye Zun helps any. (Ye Zun, at the end, simply casually kills Wu Tian'en, and says it'll be Wu Xiaojun's time soon.) - When Ye Zun pins Wu Xiaojun down during his first visit, this gives us three things: a) the name of the hospital attacker from episode 2, Gao Tianyu; b) a clear definition of his power (gravity, not telekinesis or something); and c) from Dandan, an explanation that Ye Zun can devour and use other people's energy and powers.
- Regarding Ye Zun's ability to send people to Haixing: in flashback, we see Hua Yuzhu in the middle of a park, calling out asking to be sent back to Dixing. Is that how it works? At a specific location, just call out for Ye Zun? I wonder how he does that. (And despite last week's speculation, given that she wonders if he lied, it appears this is her first attempt at a return, so there haven't been multiple Haixing trips after all.)
- Wu Xiaojun, last we heard (episode 16), had been sentenced, and the Envoy was working to shorten his sentence. Now he's free - I assume for the same reason as the Shadow Man, in that he was among those prisoners let free to fight against Ye Zun. At any rate, he's still a hothead, and comes to shout at the pillar and attack it, despite being vastly outmatched, and has to be rescued by his father, even though Wu Tian'en barely escaped after confronting Ye Zun last time.
- Little underrated moments:
- At the end of the phone deduction sequence, Da Qing is standing there poking his fingers into the air as if pushing the phone buttons, trying to follow Shen Wei's reasoning, and finally has an "ah!" moment. So much love for this! (Honestly, I love this whole deduction, and how pleased Zhao Yunlan is with Shen Wei's old-fashioned tech knowledge! But I'd never really noticed the Da Qing moment before. Such a delightful discovery!)
- Ya Qing tells Wang Xiangyang that she and the boss, and thousands of Yashou and Dixingren, will remember his kindness. She really believes this all will lead to something good for Yashou and Dixingren. (She has to, after everything she's done.)
- On the rooftop, that little moment when Zhao Yunlan goes to cover Zhao Xinci, then Sha Ya's power knocks the baton out of Guo Changcheng's hand, and Shen Wei shouts Zhao Yunlan's name and rushes forward to put himself between Zhao Yunlan and Team Merit Brush. ♥
- When all the Yashou are in an uproar after the quake and Ying Chun is shocked that Ya Qing has apparently freed Ye Zun, Fourth Uncle seems to be handling this better than her. "We must look towards Hei Pao Shi. After all, he brought us peace 10,000 years ago," he says. (I wish we had seen a scene between them before Shen Wei left for Dixing!)
- Two little moments from the quake that breaks open the pillar: First, Shen Wei stands up a moment before the ground shakes - he seems to have felt it a moment in advance! And second, when the quake hits, Zhu Hong gets off the table - but Da Qing jumps onto it! Such a cat. :D
- At the locust tree where the passage to Dixing opens, when Hua Yuzhu finally confesses to Sha Ya who really killed Gu Ban, and who Gu Ban was in love with, Shen Wei steps aside to give them privacy! ♥
- Translation note: Lin Jing says he's researched the phone box's history, and some of what he says confused me, so I looked into it.
Chinese: 这个电话亭现在根本无人问津 / 既然没有被频繁地使用
Original subtitles: "no one ever used it for calling purposes" / "if it has not been used much"
Solo's subtitles: "it's never been used for calls" / "ut if it hasn't been used ..."
Viki subtitles: "no one ever bothered with this telephone booth until now" / "if it has not been used much ..."
Obviously we know from the Bai Suxia flashbacks last week and from the wear on the buttons that it has been used. So what is Lin Jing saying? As best I can tell, it's something like: "this phone booth isn't of any interest to anyone nowadays" / "since it hasn't been used much".
Department of nitpicking: the payphone and the jeep
So this is extra nitpicky, even for me, so I'm pulling this out into a separate section - feel free to ignore! But still: I have so many questions about the payphone, and the jeep, and the connection between the two.
When Shen Wei points out the most worn numbers, Lin Jing says there are lots of combinations - and there are if you're going for a phone number with an unknown number of digits! But if you're going for a four-digit number, there are only 24. Now, presumably the SID knew they weren't looking for a longer number because they knew this clue was connected to a car key, so, presumably a number plate - but the wear on the push buttons supports this, and it opens so many questions!
- Does Bai Suxia actually make genuine calls from the phone box, or are they only playacting? Wang Xiangyang tells her to and gives her a coin, and we see her dial (though we don't see the numbers) - but we don't hear Wang Xiangyang's mobile ring, and if the wear on the buttons comes from her use of it, that would mean Wang Xiangyang's phone can be called with a four-digit number. This isn't impossible if there are four-digit local numbers in Dragong City, and Wang Xiangyang has a landline phone that forwards calls to his mobile, but, uh. That doesn't seem all that likely. (But if it's not his actual phone number, what does "5019" stand for instead?!)
- How does the use on the buttons match the jeep's number plates? - The answer to this is actually fairly simple: it doesn't, not in the flashback. Both number plates have a different number during the wedding photography flashback, so presumably Wang Xiangyang, Ya Qing et al. simply switched the number plates to something fitting. But of course that opens a new question: how did Zhu Hong and Da Qing track down the jeep's owner so quickly, with false number plates?
Flashback number plate (front and back): 龙D 5M605
Present-day number plate (we only see the back): 龙A D5019 - And what the hell is going on with the jeep? Zhao Yunlan reports that Zhu Hong and Da Qing checked out the jeep's owner, and it belongs to his ex-wife. When they were divorced, it was abandoned here along with the keys. So has the car really been there, untouched, after all this time?
When Wang Xiangyang coaxes Bai Suxia out of the jeep and then shuts the door, he cuts off one of the roses, and the visual implication is clear that this is the dried blossom Zhao Yunlan finds inside in the present time, which suggests yes, despite making no sense. But perhaps Wang Xiangyang recreated the scene, rose included? He didn't appear to have realised it got cut off ...
Discussion starters:
- What's your favourite scene in this episode? I find it hard to pick between the payphone deduction (more lighthearted) and Zhao Yunlan on the rooftop (more angsty).
- What's your favourite line? Mine has to be Zhao Xinci's "I could just not explain anything to you, but I don't want you to die stupid!" :D
- Why do you think the SID never checked out the contents of Wang Xiangyang's home before? Shouldn't they have done so as soon as they realised who the Master of the Merit Brush was?
- During Wu Xiaojun's first visit to the pillar, An Bai's two friends (An Song and Dandan) emerge from a cloud of black energy. Later, after the quake and the Pillar breaking open, Ye Zun appears as a black cloud, and An Song and Dandan emerge from it somehow, only to then vanish again. Is Ye Zun his absorbing and releasing and re-absorbing them? That's what it looks like to me! Did he eat them, and spits them out again whenever he has use for them?! Or if this is some sort of portal-adjacent power and he's calling them from somewhere else?
- After Wang Xiangyang's death, everyone tries to figure out what Team Merit Brush was after. Why do you think they didn't realise earlier that it was about freeing Ye Zun? After all, Zhu Jiu with his energy-gathering already temporarily/partially broke him free from the Pillar once (when he appeared as an energy projection and Zhao Yunlan got blinded). Freeing him seems like an obvious goal, doesn't it? >
- The energy spectacle in the sky that accompanies/follows the quake also involves a stream of black energy going upward. Is that coming directly from the Pillar? And what do ordinary people make of this spectacle? (The implication seems to be that everyone at the SID is seeing it, so I would assume people can generally see it! And I also assume the uproar among the Yashou is also related to this.)
- At the locust tree where the passage to Dixing opens, Shen Wei has Sha Ya and Hua Yuzhu with him. How did that happen?
Last we saw Sha Ya, she appeared to be leaving from the rooftop. And now, she seems to have no interest in running away, even though her revenge was not completed and she doesn't yet know it was misdirected. Was she captured? Why has she given up on her revenge?
And last we saw Hua Yuzhu, she left the forest. How is she with Shen Wei - especially given Shen Wei doesn't seem keen on taking her to Dixing? He specifically tells her she lived in Dragon City for so long and committed no crimes, and offers to let her go. - Speaking of Sha Ya, she looks red-eyed and drained. Is that emotional, or has all the boosting from the Merit Brush gone away after Wang Xiangyang died? (Or are those boosts permanent, do you think? Is she still superpowered? Can she still zoom into the sky?!)
- And regarding the Merit Brush's enhancements: if Shen Wei learned Sha Ya's power from observing it, would he only learn the basic version, or would the Merit Brush enhancement come across as well? Or do his own power levels mean he can accomplish something similar without enhancement?
- After Gu Ban is shot, Zhao Xinci tells Hua Yuzhu to call an ambulance, but he doesn't know Gu Ban is Dixingren, and the black energy gun shouldn't harm humans. Does he realise Gu Ban is Dixingren, or is he so distracted by the other guy that he thinks Gu Ban is only down because the guy strangled him, and the gun did nothing?
- When the perpetrator takes the gun and tries to fire it at Zhao Xinci, nothing happens. It's not just that it has no effect on Zhao Xinci - it looks like it's out of bullets, and doesn't shoot at all. But we've never seen it actually need ammo, and Zhao Yunlan uses it freely in YOHE. Does it need time to recharge? *g*
Let's talk about episode 29!
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Scene discussion:
Family Huddles (SID team) by
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Yes, and lol that both of them are blaming Zhao Xinci for things he didn't do. (I wonder if the show included his terrible parenting in this episode to stop us from thinking him ill-used, like, "he didn't do those things, but he doesn't deserve too much of your sympathy." *g*)
and also by being so unpleasant to him potentially lessening his grief if Zhao Xinci does die.
I don't think that's it? I think he's trying to piss Zhao Yunlan off so Zhao Yunlan will withdraw the offer (which is the part Zhao Yunlan remarks on) and trying to make Team Merit Brush think that ZYL is a bad substitute because the Zhaos are on such outs that ZXC won't care what happens to ZYL. But I don't think ZXC is actually trying to break the relationship; to me, there's something in his expression that says he's hoping Zhao Yunlan will see through all this and play along. (And I don't think being unpleasant would even start to lessen the grief; wouldn't it make it worse, because there's no closure, no chance to make things right?)
then manages some semblance of his usual dismissive laugh before he voices his own philosophy: "I'm not like you. Instead of having regrets for twenty years, I'll follow my heart in the first place. You need to understand that a sacrifice for family is worth it!"
I love how he starts that so quietly. ZXC has been yelling terribly hurtful things, and Zhao Yunlan says quietly, almost gently, "Old man, you are old now. I can see through what you're thinking. You don't want me to take your place, so you're trying to make me angry." And his voice gradually rises until the final, heartfelt shouted "worth it!" ♥
(We don't see Shen Wei's reaction to that choice of words, but I wish we had!)
Oh. Yes! *sniffles just from thinking about it*
He grips Shen Wei's shoulder: "Hei-laoge, we can only maintain the peace if we're all alive."
Do you think he just means "be careful", or does he have an inkling of Shen Wei's plan? He knows Shen Wei isn't healing properly, and he must have connected that to the kitchen knife scene, and be feeling somewhat responsible for it.
And it' not really because Ye Zun's prison has been broken: it's because the danger to his loved ones is no longer something he's confident he - and they - can handle.
Oh, yeah, great point. Things are escalating so badly, and there's nothing he can personally do to stop it (except let Shen Wei go). *pets him*
The flashback to young Zhao Yunlan shows him as a terrible father.
Srsly! I really hope this is post-Shen Xi, and Zhao Xinci is dealing with a ton of other stuff, because if this is his baseline parenting mode... /o\ /o\ /o\ (ZYL turned out amazingly well-balanced, considering!!!)
Zhao Xinci, when challenged by Sha Ya on whether killing Gu Ban was just, doesn't say, for example, "I didn't kill him, I was chasing his killer" - he seems constitutionally incapable of saying anything that might de-escalate a situation. :p Instead, what he says is: "Debating the right or wrong of a past event, what's the point? Whatever happened then, your present actions prove that you're wrong."
Zhao Xinci and his chronic inability to be even 1% conciliatory, and on top of that, Zhang Shi is patronising as hell. /o\ (My notes for this are, "Oh, Zhao Xinci!! Sometimes you need to admit fault and atone! The whole culture of self-criticism really passed you by, didn't it?" (Really interesting contrast with Shen Wei's willingness to take responsibility and meet people (especially ZYL) halfway.)
Whatever Zhao Xinci does, things just won't work out for him!
Ha, so true!
Which is an interesting dynamic: while she's alive, doing the right thing matters to him, but without her, he loses his own ethical grounding entirely, hell-bent on revenge no matter who gets caught in the fallout.
I think he was probably a good person all along until his world fell apart and Ye Zun messed with his head. I don't think it's just the loss of Bai Suxia, here -- it's the petty tragedy of how he lost her.
I don't blame Wang Xiangyang for misunderstanding in this situation! What I do blame him for: not bothering to learn (or listen to) the truth later, ditching all ethics and committing to murder and destruction, and not giving a damn about collateral damage.
I mean, I think he's weak and angry, but the former isn't his fault, and the latter is part of grieving. I feel like a lot of the rest is attributable to Ye Zun and Ya Qing who planted bitter seeds and nurtured them. When Ya Qing found him, he was just curled up and moping, right? And having Ya Qing helping his vengeance must have made it seem more reasonable, too, I think. (I don't know why I'm being apologist for him; maybe GCC's influence? ;-p)
Fwiw, I thought Shen Wei was saying Wang Xiangyang was vulnerable because of the anger and despair in his heart; I didn't think he was blaming him?
So he doesn't die in raging anger and violence, but finally turned away from it after all.
Interesting that the main three bad guys' deaths that we see (Zhu Jiu, Wang Xiangyang, and Ye Zun) are all redemptive in some way. Zhu Jiu's the least, maybe, but he was at least giving himself to something greater he believed in. And Ye Zun's redemption/turn-around doesn't come till after, but still. One of the show's themes. :-)
Wu Tian'en says that for the sake of peace in Dixing, they'll hold out until the Envoy returns - but I fail to see how attacking Ye Zun helps any.
Maybe they hope to weaken him, or at least buy time until Shen Wei could arrive?
At the end of the phone deduction sequence, Da Qing is standing there poking his fingers into the air as if pushing the phone buttons, trying to follow Shen Wei's reasoning, and finally has an "ah!" moment.
Hee! Great catch. That's adorable! :D
What's your favourite scene in this episode?
I mean, depends on your definition of "favourite", but I'm going with Zhao Xinci and Zhao Yunlan yelling at each other on the roof.
Last we saw Sha Ya, she appeared to be leaving from the rooftop. And now, she seems to have no interest in running away, even though her revenge was not completed and she doesn't yet know it was misdirected. Was she captured? Why has she given up on her revenge?
Excellent questions! I wonder whether, now the Merit Brush is deactivated, Shen Wei can sense her dark energy?
More to follow. :-)
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Yup, that's how I read it. It's a very common ploy in drama.
This seems to be a specifically Asian thing. I've come across it a lot in Japanese drama, and they even have a term for it: kishoutenketsu; you gain understanding and then there's a lot of forgiveness. As a Westerner I find it very frustrating.
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Oh, good to know it has a name!
Can I ask why you find it frustrating, and if it frustrates you in Guardian too? Because I feel like it fits the general themes of the drama so well!
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Okay, let's go back. The first time I encountered this was in a Japanese drama (魔女の条件) in which a woman is put through hell by her family just for going out with a younger man. And in the end, she does everything to reconcilie with those assholes and I'm just, NO. I felt like I wanted to take a shower to cleanse myself of this shit.
(If that sounds like a strong reaction... yes, it was. It's a 'me' thing, maybe. But the friend I watched it with at the time was equally WTF, even if she might not have felt soiled by it.)
So since then I've been... well. Aware. Borderline watchful. IIRC the end of Princess Monoke was a bit like this. And defo the end of Everything Everywhere blah blah, though there I found it justified and welcomed it because nobody had actually been truly awful to anyone anyway.
Guardian... hm, that's tricky. Wang Thingie is clearly just... intellectually challenged, and I don't blame him for what he did; he gets a pass. Ye Zun, I know he suffered immense trauma, but then he went on to inflict it on other people too (I keep thinking of the state of Israel and how all those Jews who suffered so fucking much now inflict the same suffering on the Palestinians), and okay, I can deal with him being forgiven now he's dead, but if fanfic keeps him alive I really don't want to see him redeemed without LOADS of therapy and maybe being shut up in a closed institution. The guy is dangerous. So personally, I don't like to read fic in which he's just suddenly redeemed and part of the crowd.
IDK if any of this makes sense.
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So personally, I don't like to read fic in which he's just suddenly redeemed and part of the crowd.
Personally I like Ye Zun, and I like to see him redeemed, but I don't enjoy it when it's all handwaved and he's one of the good guys now without showing any work for it, either. I want it to be hard for him, and for everyone else! But I do want him to get there.
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https://sid-guardian.dreamwidth.org/448881.html?thread=3889521#cmt3889521
It's not the ubiquity of the trope that gets me, because it's not all that ubiquitous. As for the bad guys, I guess it depends. I'm fine with Wang thingie and even with Wig Guy, but Ye Zun is a different level of challenge for me.
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Yeah, I think that's probably true! And very effectively done, too.
I don't think that's it? I think he's trying to piss Zhao Yunlan off so Zhao Yunlan will withdraw the offer (which is the part Zhao Yunlan remarks on) and trying to make Team Merit Brush think that ZYL is a bad substitute because the Zhaos are on such outs that ZXC won't care what happens to ZYL. But I don't think ZXC is actually trying to break the relationship; to me, there's something in his expression that says he's hoping Zhao Yunlan will see through all this and play along. (And I don't think being unpleasant would even start to lessen the grief; wouldn't it make it worse, because there's no closure, no chance to make things right?)
I agree that he's trying to make Zhao Yunlan angry enough to retract the offer, and to make Zhao Yunlan seem a bad substitute, but I do think he also thinks that this will make it easier for Zhao Yunlan if he dies. I do think that on a fundamental level, Zhao Xinci doesn't understand Zhao Yunlan, and thinks of the breach between them as Zhao Yunlan being stubborn, childish and unfilial, and for once he wants Zhao Yunlan to lean into these traits. I don't think he understands (or wants to understand) how painful the whole thing is to Zhao Yunlan. IMOM he's very bad at looking at things from Zhao Yunlan's perspective.
I love how he starts that so quietly. ZXC has been yelling terribly hurtful things, and Zhao Yunlan says quietly, almost gently, "Old man, you are old now. I can see through what you're thinking. You don't want me to take your place, so you're trying to make me angry." And his voice gradually rises until the final, heartfelt shouted "worth it!" ♥
Yes! This is so good!
Do you think he just means "be careful", or does he have an inkling of Shen Wei's plan? He knows Shen Wei isn't healing properly, and he must have connected that to the kitchen knife scene, and be feeling somewhat responsible for it.
I don't think he has any idea about Shen Wei's plan, but he does know that Shen Wei doesn't prioritise his own well-being. And yeah, I'm sure he feels responsible!
Srsly! I really hope this is post-Shen Xi, and Zhao Xinci is dealing with a ton of other stuff, because if this is his baseline parenting mode... /o\ /o\ /o\ (ZYL turned out amazingly well-balanced, considering!!!)
100% agreed on all points!
Zhao Xinci and his chronic inability to be even 1% conciliatory, and on top of that, Zhang Shi is patronising as hell. /o\
Right? You'd think Zhang Shi at his age would be better at this at least ...
The whole culture of self-criticism really passed you by, didn't it?"
Oooh, that's an excellent point, very fascinating!
I think he was probably a good person all along until his world fell apart and Ye Zun messed with his head. I don't think it's just the loss of Bai Suxia, here -- it's the petty tragedy of how he lost her.
Sure, but people go through tragedy all the time without going on a revenge spree; most people stop short of trying to murder others. But with Wang Xiangyang, all restraint and positive feeling for others just falls away. I don't think we can put that all down to Ye Zun. He's not being controlled.
I mean, I think he's weak and angry, but the former isn't his fault, and the latter is part of grieving. I feel like a lot of the rest is attributable to Ye Zun and Ya Qing who planted bitter seeds and nurtured them. When Ya Qing found him, he was just curled up and moping, right? And having Ya Qing helping his vengeance must have made it seem more reasonable, too, I think. (I don't know why I'm being apologist for him; maybe GCC's influence? ;-p)
Anger is perfectly normal. Murder is not. And yes, he's being manipulated, and yes, he's being used when he's most vulnerable - but still, if he actually was a good person, why did he commit himself entirely to vengeance and murder against multiple people, some of whose terrible crime was being mildly jerkish in the wrong place? Why is there never any hint at all of him struggling with the choices he's making, or any sign of doubt or regret? Even Ya Qing, who is wholeheartedly committed to this business, has her moments.
Fwiw, I thought Shen Wei was saying Wang Xiangyang was vulnerable because of the anger and despair in his heart; I didn't think he was blaming him?
I think he's saying he was vulnerable, and that he could have resisted. Like Zhu Hong says later, "Disaster can strike anyone, anytime. The key question is whether you can make it through the pain and continue on the right path."
Interesting that the main three bad guys' deaths that we see (Zhu Jiu, Wang Xiangyang, and Ye Zun) are all redemptive in some way. Zhu Jiu's the least, maybe, but he was at least giving himself to something greater he believed in. And Ye Zun's redemption/turn-around doesn't come till after, but still. One of the show's themes. :-)
Yeah, I really like this because it ties in so well with the rest of the show! It works here.
Excellent questions! I wonder whether, now the Merit Brush is deactivated, Shen Wei can sense her dark energy?
Oh! Maybe the energy spectacle at the end burns out the Merit Brush's effect, and black energy in Dragon City is back to normal?
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You don't want me to take your place, so you're trying to make me angry.
LOL, thinking about this more, I wonder how much ZYL's quiet control here is precisely to spite Zhao Xinci: you're trying to make me angry so I won't be!!! >:-p (I mean, I don't think ZYL is great at seeing things from Zhao Xinci's POV, either: how is ZXC supposed to feel if his own son succeeds in taking his place here?? They're as bad as each other.)
I don't think he has any idea about Shen Wei's plan, but he does know that Shen Wei doesn't prioritise his own well-being. And yeah, I'm sure he feels responsible!
Ah, that makes sense. Thanks!
You'd think Zhang Shi at his age would be better at this at least ...
He's not the only extremely old person who doesn't act his age. *pokes Da Qing and Da Ji* I wonder if his maturity kind of re-sets with whoever he's living with. He seemed pretty young in his chronologically-first scene. (Something to talk about in a couple of episodes' time.)
Sure, but people go through tragedy all the time without going on a revenge spree; most people stop short of trying to murder others. But with Wang Xiangyang, all restraint and positive feeling for others just falls away. I don't think we can put that all down to Ye Zun. He's not being controlled.
Oh! I just thought, maybe another reason they showed us ZXC's terrible parenting in this episode is because he's kind of a foil for WXY? Like, ZXC lost his wife/family to a tragedy, too, and became hardened and relentless in a different way. It reminds me of ZYL and the Envoy in the Hanga caves:
ZYL: The most basic dignity of a man is to ensure that the person in his heart stays safe. If my love was killed by their hand, killed under a system I established myself, I would hate them more than even the patriarch.
SW: Even if they were cut into a thousand pieces, it could not assuage such hatred.
Neither ZXC nor WXY established the system under which their loved one died, but they were both complicit in it, ZXC with his policing, and WXY with his approval/admiration.
Even Ya Qing, who is wholeheartedly committed to this business, has her moments.
Unlike Wang Xiangyang, Ya Qing is strong, has hope for the future, and isn't literally mad with grief. (And Ye Zun recruited her by playing on her intellect, not on her emotions.) I think if those things weren't true, she'd be just as bad, especially with someone persuasive standing over her, egging her on to revenge and telling her that her victims deserve it.
Ye Zun and Ya Qing are heavily invested in turning WXY to the dark side -- they have more to gain from it than he does. I wonder, too, if the Brush is a corruptive influence?
I guess I feel like the show wouldn't have gone out of its way to show us he was a good person if we weren't supposed to believe it, or if we were supposed to think it was only skin deep.
Oh! Maybe the energy spectacle at the end burns out the Merit Brush's effect, and black energy in Dragon City is back to normal?
We'll have to keep an eye out. :-)
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Yeah, that makes a lot of sense to me! Aw, Zhao Yunlan. ♥
I wonder if his maturity kind of re-sets with whoever he's living with. He seemed pretty young in his chronologically-first scene. (Something to talk about in a couple of episodes' time.)
I have a different read on that flashback scene (but yeah, let's talk about that when we reach it), but even so, I think that's a fascinating idea, that his maturity gets reset to some degree with a new host! Or maybe his host's maturity levels affect his own? Hmmm ...
I just thought, maybe another reason they showed us ZXC's terrible parenting in this episode is because he's kind of a foil for WXY?
Excellent thought! Yeah, that sort of thematic resonance is definitely in there ...
It reminds me of ZYL and the Envoy in the Hanga caves
Yep, and Sang Zan is another man who lost someone and changed after that, though in his case at least he turned his murderous revenge on the actual culprits. *g*
I wonder, too, if the Brush is a corruptive influence?
Do we have any clues that the Hallows can be morally corrupting, rather than physical? I don't remember anything.
I guess I feel like the show wouldn't have gone out of its way to show us he was a good person if we weren't supposed to believe it, or if we were supposed to think it was only skin deep.
I really can't see him as a good man. He was naive and well-meaning, but he doesn't seem to have had strong convictions to me. If you think of him as a good man who was only manipulated and corrupted by others, do you think he bears no responsibility for his deeds?
We'll have to keep an eye out. :-)
Episode 30 only gives me more questions on the effects of the Merit Brush's work!
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Ha! I'm sure there was collateral damage, though! And we kind of like Wang Yike, despite her trying to kill Shen Wei, don't we? And I think Wang Xiangyang is convinced (by Ya Qing and Ye Zun, as well as his own stupid grief) that his victims are the real culprits. One of the problems with this kind of everyday tragedy: so many little contributing factors.
Do we have any clues that the Hallows can be morally corrupting, rather than physical? I don't remember anything.
I would say they messed up Ye Zun pretty good, but the Rebel Chief had already done that, so idk. We don't get to see anyone else using the Merit Brush, though; it's hard to say what it does to people. Maybe it's the evil genius of the Hallows family. *g*
I really can't see him as a good man. He was naive and well-meaning, but he doesn't seem to have had strong convictions to me.
I think there are very few unambiguously, purely good people in the show: Guo Changcheng, Teacher Zhang, maybe one or two others? Most are doing their best, but it's complicated in a spectrum of ways. It's like a rainbow of shades of grey.
Wang Xiangyang was prepared to naysay Bai Suxia's high spirits to take a moral stand, even though he knew she was out of his league and she might be put off him. That shows some backbone to me. He just wasn't built to operate on the scale of epic tragedy, grief and power, and his core crumpled under the pressure. Or something. Idk.
If you think of him as a good man who was only manipulated and corrupted by others, do you think he bears no responsibility for his deeds?
That's an excellent question! I keep coming back to Wang Yike. We kind of give her a pass(?) because she was (may have been?) right about her targets (except for Shen Wei), and because tragedy smacked her in the face afterwards, and because it's a touching love story. Shen Wei was prepared to show her mercy, too, so he must have forgiven her.
[Insert all previously mentioned mitigating factors for Wang Xiangyang.] So I don't think he's blameless, no, but I don't think he's responsible for the extent to which everything played out. It would have been nice if, at the end, he'd got as far as "Oh shit, what have I done," but he's slow to put the pieces together, so he's still stuck on "They tricked me??" when he dies. ;-p
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Yeah, but I think mercy and forgivness are completely different things from absolving someone of culpability. I'm not unwilling to forgive Wang Xiangyang, but I can't consider him not culpable, and it sounded to me like you were saying he wasn't culpable.
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Some random notes from me.
LOL at Gu Ban's dying words: "Don't... let... Sha Ya... live resentfully…" He knows her so well! (And probably Hua Yuzhu, too.) And lol that, upon hearing the full story, Sha Ya immediately blames Gu Ban for being a coward. None of it's ever her fault. (I want her to feel remorse for all the misdirected torture. ;-p)
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Hee! Yes! :D
At the DoS, Guo Ying gives orders to soldiers to search for the car. So whatever he told ZYL, he's not only relying on the SID (and the SID might be keeping him up-to-date?) -- or has the SID officially asked for help?
I figure part of telling his people they're not just relying on the SID is that he needs to keep up morale as well, even if he is expecting to rely mainly on the SID's results?
Zhao Yunlan acting like he's never seen a rose or been to a wedding before, lol.
Yeah, that was a bit weird, wasn't it?
An Bai's female friend explains Ye Zun's power! Remember back when we were all theorising about it and basically reverse-engineered it from what we see? I didn't realise the show spells it out!
I feel like that happened with a few other things too - where there's an explicit explanation, but it's not in any of the really obvious scenes, so it's easy to not remember, and feel like you need to figure it out on your own. *g*
And it's fascinating to me that they have such positive feelings towards Zhao Xinci -- clearly he is capable of maintaining reasonable casual relationships with everyone except his own son.
Right??????
Zhao Xinci asks WXY for a reason for his vengeance, and Ya Qing cuts WXY off because she knows it's all bullshit. Ha!
Not that she needed to, given how Zhao Xinci responded to Sha Ya's accusations! Or do you think he would have clarified here? (Would he have clarified for Sha Ya if she'd been the one having to be rescued from falling off the roof?)
Is this the first ZYL hears of ZXC's heart condition/surgery? Shen Wei knows, from the meeting, but...
Yeah, I'm pretty sure Zhao Yunlan had no idea about it until now! Which can't be easy to deal with, on top of everything else.
The Zhaos compete for who'll be the sacrifice. Ya Qing thinks it's a trick, but I think ZYL means it, and so does Shen Wei. *cries*
Yeah, I think he's definitely willing to sacrifice himself. And Shen Wei doesn't try to stop him either, even though he has to have feelings about it. ♥
CSZ's telling Sha Ya "You don't deserve to see [Lin Jing]" sounds almost protective of LJ, aww.
Agreed! :D
When ZYL flings himself to shelter ZXC, is that a move he would have made for anyone, or is it revealing his deep little-kid feelings of still loving his dad? *heartbreak*
I figure it's a little bit of both. He'd have done it for any hostage, but when it's Zhao Xinci he's doing it with extra feelings. *g*
ZXC and ZYL holding WXY over the edge of the roof, in a mirror of ZYL and SW holding Li Qian in ep 2.
Yes, great point! Do you think the mirroring means anything here?
Zhao Yunlan confirms it: "To pull people walking the wrong path back to the right path is why our Special Investigations exists." (I think WXY repenting before he died probably counts?)
I think it counts in their eyes, yeah. And I find this mission statement fascinating because it shows how far off his original mission of "arrest every Dixingren" he's gone. And also how far off what his superiors consider to be the SID's mission.
So, wait, Ye Zun doesn't actually want the Hallows after all, he just wants out of prison? Maybe he's okay with the SID gathering them, and he plans to snatch them afterwards, but given how powerful they're supposed to be when you have the complete set, that doesn't seem like a great strategy?? *confused*
Yeah, that's a good question, I've wondered about it myself. But without someone who can master the Merit Brush for his purposes, maybe Ye Zun thinks the SID is a great place to temporarily and safely stash it, along with the other Hallows? I mean, it's been a while since anyone actually tried to steal the Hallows from the SID, and their chances would have been pretty good if they'd tried while everyone was distracted with the personality change thing. Wang Xiangyang is human, too, so he presumably could have waltzed in there without problem!
Then you have Ye Zun himself going for the Hallows not that much later (soon to come), but perhaps things change sufficiently between now and then?
ZYL and SW parting. Shen Wei says, "Promise me," and ZYL looks so young. This is asking so much of him!! *cries* (Does Shen Wei expect to come back?)
Asking so much, yes! *pets him*
And I think at this point, since Shen Wei has no clue how messed up things have become in Dixing, he does expect to return. He doesn't have a reason to think a final confrontation with Ye Zun is already coming. (So my interpretation is that it's not until he finds himself in a fight with Ye Zun, next episode, that he considers this might actually be the moment already.)
Fourth Uncle's reference to Shen Wei 10k years ago is setting us up for YOHE.
Oh, great poing, yes!
Oh, so the east forest was Ye Zun's gate! That explains why Gu Ban's murderer was running that way, too.
Ha, I hadn't put that together, but you're totally right, that's why he was running there! Makes sense.
I still wonder how Ye Zun's transportation thing works, given that there are only two passages between Dixing and Haixing, and at this point one of them is inactive ...
(I want her to feel remorse for all the misdirected torture. ;-p)
Yeah, I really would have appreciated that! With Sha Ya, and with Wang Xiangyang too. (He's all "what, I was deceived by Ye Zun??" and I wanted him to at least go "oh no, what have I done?")
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Maybe? I thought they were keeping the kidnapping secret, in which case morale shouldn't be an issue.
Not that she needed to, given how Zhao Xinci responded to Sha Ya's accusations! Or do you think he would have clarified here? (Would he have clarified for Sha Ya if she'd been the one having to be rescued from falling off the roof?)
Ha, idk, he might have clarified just because he couldn't bear how stupid WXY was being. *g* (With Sha Ya, it's so hard to say; ZXC knows so little of that story -- he might not even have put the pieces together. How would he know that dead guy was called Gu Ban?)
And Shen Wei doesn't try to stop him either, even though he has to have feelings about it. ♥
So many feelings! I wonder what he would have done if WXY had accepted the trade... stepped in? Battle royale: Envoy vs Merit Brush?
I figure it's a little bit of both. He'd have done it for any hostage, but when it's Zhao Xinci he's doing it with extra feelings. *g*
Yeah, agreed.
> > ZXC and ZYL holding WXY over the edge of the roof, in a mirror of ZYL and SW holding Li Qian in ep 2.
> Yes, great point! Do you think the mirroring means anything here?
Maybe that they're on (or will be on) the same side, but ZYL doesn't know it yet? In episode 2, ZYL thought Shen Wei was suspicious, but was curious and attracted anyway. Here, ZYL thinks ZXC is an asshole, but he has filial feelings despite himself.
And I find this mission statement fascinating because it shows how far off his original mission of "arrest every Dixingren" he's gone. And also how far off what his superiors consider to be the SID's mission.
Yes, agreed! They've come so far! :D :D :D
Then you have Ye Zun himself going for the Hallows not that much later (soon to come), but perhaps things change sufficiently between now and then?
Or perhaps Ya Qing's "you can keep it!" is just a ploy to make them lower their guard. It's not like she can take it off them...
And I think at this point, since Shen Wei has no clue how messed up things have become in Dixing, he does expect to return. He doesn't have a reason to think a final confrontation with Ye Zun is already coming. (So my interpretation is that it's not until he finds himself in a fight with Ye Zun, next episode, that he considers this might actually be the moment already.)
*nodnod* That makes sense.
I still wonder how Ye Zun's transportation thing works, given that there are only two passages between Dixing and Haixing, and at this point one of them is inactive ...
Maybe the pillar itself weakens the barrier between dimensions and allows Ye Zun to send people up directly. (In which case, that doesn't seem like a great site for a building development! *g*)
Yeah, I really would have appreciated that! With Sha Ya, and with Wang Xiangyang too. (He's all "what, I was deceived by Ye Zun??" and I wanted him to at least go "oh no, what have I done?")
Yeah, good point. Both of them.
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Depends on how secret it is internally, I guess? Surely someone at the Ministry has to know, other than Guo Ying!
ZXC knows so little of that story -- he might not even have put the pieces together. How would he know that dead guy was called Gu Ban?
I figured she'd reminded him, just before she asked whether he thought it was justified, but you're right, there's no guarantee that he even knows what situation she's talking about.
So many feelings! I wonder what he would have done if WXY had accepted the trade... stepped in? Battle royale: Envoy vs Merit Brush?
Yeah, he'd probably have tried to do something. And Chu Shuzhi could have tried to pull Zhao Xinci out of the way wiht his strings while Shen Wei protected Zhao Yunlan?
Maybe that they're on (or will be on) the same side, but ZYL doesn't know it yet? In episode 2, ZYL thought Shen Wei was suspicious, but was curious and attracted anyway. Here, ZYL thinks ZXC is an asshole, but he has filial feelings despite himself.
Oh, interesting idea! Yeah, they ultimately do end up on the same side, even if it will take until the very end for them to get there ...
Or perhaps Ya Qing's "you can keep it!" is just a ploy to make them lower their guard. It's not like she can take it off them...
She does take off from the rooftop without trying to reclaim the Merit Brush. But then Wang Xiangyang is still alive at that point, so she probably couldn't take it anyway.
Maybe the pillar itself weakens the barrier between dimensions and allows Ye Zun to send people up directly. (In which case, that doesn't seem like a great site for a building development! *g*)
Hmmm. But the pillar has been around for 10,000 years. I'm not sure it works if the barrier has just been weak all this time.
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Probably, but there's a difference between one or two people knowing (and being ordered to stay quiet) and telling a whole unit. Idk.
And Chu Shuzhi could have tried to pull Zhao Xinci out of the way wiht his strings while Shen Wei protected Zhao Yunlan?
Ooh, yes, I can see that. I wonder if it would change anything...
Hmmm. But the pillar has been around for 10,000 years. I'm not sure it works if the barrier has just been weak all this time.
Not weak all the way -- just enough that Ye Zun can use his limited power to send people through? Idk.
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Love this part. Shen Wei getting to use his knowledge of ye olde technology <3
Bai Suxia's and Wang Xiangyang's wedding pics at the jeep
I'm confused by this scene and I think I'm missing something. Why are they excited about a random car? Why do they want some stranger's car in their wedding pics? Why does she want to steal a car for her wedding?!
Zhao Xinci scolds little!Zhao Yunlan about searching the wrong way for their lost dog
I really like this scene.
For one, it is highly effective at characterising Zhao Xinci as an asshole. But it also shows Zhao Xinci trying to be a good parent, in his own way. He genuinely wants to impart some sort of wisdom and useful skills to his son, and it's true that searching methodically has better odds for finding the dog than crying.
It's just that Zhao Yunlan is, you know, a child. Who would greatly benefit from luxuries such as being comforted and reassured.
Debating the right or wrong of a past event, what's the point?
What an infuriating thing to say. "Why don't you stop caring about how you friend died?"
I don't blame Wang Xiangyang for misunderstanding in this situation! What I do blame him for: not bothering to learn (or listen to) the truth later, ditching all ethics and committing to murder and destruction, and not giving a damn about collateral damage
Yes exactly! If Wang Xiangyang had just slowed down a bit before going on a Quest of Revenge, this whole thing could have been nipped in the bud.
If he had asked a doctor at the hospital what was going on that night, that person would have explained blood types to him. If he had tried to sue for malpractice, his lawyer would have explained blood types to him. Hell, if he had talked to anyone at all, there's a good chance they could have cleared things up.
Shen Wei stands up a moment before the ground shakes - he seems to have felt it a moment in advance!
Such a nice detail! I wonder if he simply has superior senses or if this is a special Ye Zun/pillar tracker going off.
So this is extra nitpicky, even for me, so I'm pulling this out into a separate section
Never underestimate my intetest in nitpicking XD
Does Bai Suxia actually make genuine calls from the phone box, or are they only playacting?
I think they are just playing and there's no actual call connected. When Wang Xiangyang puts his phone down, Bai Suxia doesn't notice - so she doesn't hear him any differently, and there's no disconnection sound (if he did hang up).
I thought the different number plates were a continuity error and it was always meant to be 5019. Wang Xiangyang used the number from the Emotionally Charged Jeep on the payphone for... some reason? Idk maybe my theory here is not fully ripened XD
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I think Wang Xiangyang was never supposed to be particularly bright, I'm afraid.
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Yeah, he says it himself in the flashback: "I admit that I am a stupid person." And Bai Suxia says, "Actually, I like the simple-minded person you are."
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Idk why she thinks a jeep would make for great wedding pics!
But it also shows Zhao Xinci trying to be a good parent, in his own way. He genuinely wants to impart some sort of wisdom and useful skills to his son, and it's true that searching methodically has better odds for finding the dog than crying.
It's just that Zhao Yunlan is, you know, a child. Who would greatly benefit from luxuries such as being comforted and reassured.
Or from not being shouted at! Yeah, what he's actually teaching is great, and if he could have done that without the blaming and the shouting and all, it could have been a lovely father-son moment. But Zhao Xinci sucks at bonding with his son.
Yes exactly! If Wang Xiangyang had just slowed down a bit before going on a Quest of Revenge, this whole thing could have been nipped in the bud.
Yeah, we know he was at the hospital multiple times afterwards, including when he claimed Bai Suxia's body. He could have at least tried to confirm his understanding of the situation before committing to vengeance. And even if he couldn't clear it up and wanted vengeance, casting his net so wide as to want the death of everyone involved in the sequence of events leading to Bai Suxia's death - not good.
Such a nice detail! I wonder if he simply has superior senses or if this is a special Ye Zun/pillar tracker going off.
I don't think we ever see him react specifically to anything happening at the Pillar? So I figured it was just that he sensed the quake coming a moment earlier.
Never underestimate my intetest in nitpicking XD
Hee! :D
I think they are just playing and there's no actual call connected. When Wang Xiangyang puts his phone down, Bai Suxia doesn't notice - so she doesn't hear him any differently, and there's no disconnection sound (if he did hang up).
Good points all!
I thought the different number plates were a continuity error and it was always meant to be 5019. Wang Xiangyang used the number from the Emotionally Charged Jeep on the payphone for... some reason? Idk maybe my theory here is not fully ripened XD
I'm not sure it's a continuity error. They had to specifically put Dragon City numberplates on the jeep for the flashback sequence, and put different Dragon City number plates on it for the present day sequence. And I assume they filmed both scenes together, since the setting is the same? And the wear on the phone might be genuine if Bai Suxia used a meaningful number, even if she didn't actually put a call through? Idk either ...
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That would make sense, though they could have had to re-shoot a scene I guess. And… lost the prop? Didn’t think it mattered? Yeah, I admit this line of thought is 100% speculation and a bit of a dead end XD
Under the assumption that it’s not an error and Wang Xiangyang switched out the license plates, I am no less confused though. As you said, how did the SID find the car registration? Very mysterious
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It’s Ya Qing who selects his targets: "Do you want to avenge your wife? Your wife suffered a lifetime of hardship with you. She died before living some happy life. And your child who never got to see the world... Are you just going to let your enemies go and drag out this ignoble existence? I can help you find all of your enemies. And then use your Merit Brush to take revenge. Don't let your wife and child die in vain." (ep 23, 39:34)
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(Given that Ya Qing criticised Zhu Jiu for sacrificing other Dixingren, do you think she justifies her own actions to herself because Wang Xiangyang is human? The power of self-delusion!)
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True! And good point about the parallels -- that's a great comparison, up to a point. But they're different, too. Bao Laosan's grief was years old at the time of his recruitment, and he's moved on somewhat; Wang Xiangyang's is fresh and raw, and he's drowning in it. And from Wang Xiangyang's POV, there's corruption: the doctor prioritised a VIP; ZXC jumped the queue. But from Bao Laosan's POV, ZXC was pitilessly enforcing the letter of the law, which feels like a different dynamic and different flavour of grief?
(Bao Laosan is another example of Dixingren living a marginalised existence in Haixing, actually, isn't he? And he's not scarred like Zhang Danni, and he does later find employment. I guess it's just harder for some people to find their feet.)
Given that Ya Qing criticised Zhu Jiu for sacrificing other Dixingren, do you think she justifies her own actions to herself because Wang Xiangyang is human? The power of self-delusion!
That would make sense! (Plus, didn't they need Wang Xiangyang to be the final energy stack in securing Ye Zun's freedom? She is very ends-justify-the-means.)
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She is very ends-justify-the-means.
Ha! Yeah, it's her number one talent. *g*
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> I'm confused by this scene and I think I'm missing something. Why are they excited about a random car? Why do they want some stranger's car in their wedding pics?
I think it's the glamour and status of a fancy, brand-name car. She's all dressed up (in her rented wedding dress) and wants to show off a little, but they can't even afford a photographer, let alone a beautiful venue. She's all, "Oh, status symbol! That makes up for some of the things we don't have." (I presume it's also product placement, and they're going, "Look how much everyone loves Jeeps!!!" on behalf of the company. *g*)
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Product placement makes sense. Didn’t they edit out the Jeep logo, though? I dug up Dragon City Interior Design's post, which says:
The Jeep logo at the front gets edited out, but inconsistently. What seems weird to me, though, is that the “Wrangler” and “Sahara” logos on the side never go anywhere. Maybe it’s just a problem with the word “Jeep”
So who knows what kind of odd sponsorship deal this was XD
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Thanks for the link to the post! I wonder if there was a product placement deal, but it fell through or got scaled back after filming was complete. (I can't see why else ZYL would have his ridiculous car. *g*)
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I love the payphone deduction because it goes so much against my own instincts where 'tech savvy' is always best. Dino!Shen Wei figures out things nobody with a modern attitude would ever think of! *hearts*
Could not agree more!
Your next questions are very good ones but I have no possible answer to them except perhaps 'for drama reasons'? I haven't read anyone else's replies yet so I may be showing myself up as a dumbo here. :D
GLOBAL WARMING! CLIMATE CHANGE. Or maybe just some capitalist enterprise polluting our environment without penalty.
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Part of why I love it because when he woke up on the present, this was new tech to him as well, but he absorbed that perfectly well! And also, yeah, relevant knowledge is entirely context-dependent. *g*
Your next questions are very good ones but I have no possible answer to them except perhaps 'for drama reasons'?
I thiknk "for drama reasons" is always a safe bet! If nothing else, it's definitely one of the reasons. *g*
GLOBAL WARMING! CLIMATE CHANGE. Or maybe just some capitalist enterprise polluting our environment without penalty.
Ha! Yeah, maybe they just think it's a particularly weird drone show!
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Which is also interesting because, how did he absorb this but not faxes and cell phones? Did he have a limited intake window? And surely he could have observed someone using the internet and 'learned' their skills? Is he deliberately resisting?
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And I think part of the reason is that he absolutely doesn't want to and can't afford to be constantly reachable and potentially trackable, but it's also part of his Professor Shen image, and probably in part it's also that he did a lot of catching-up after he came to present-day Haixing and doesn't feel like constantly doing it again, so long as he can get away with not doing it.
ETA: Btw, just wanted to say I love your icon! :D
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HEEEEE! ♥