sid_guardian | Guardian readalong: chapters 21 & 22

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Guardian readalong: chapters 21 & 22

Hi, welcome to this week's chapters of our Guardian readalong!

Last week's post (chapters 19 & 20) is here, and you can find all previous chapter discussions on the schedule posts (prologue, 1-16, 17-) or via the !readalong tag.

This week's chapters:

Chapter 21: our heroes continue to be besieged by skulls; Zhao Yunlan talks to Shen Wei about watching him; Wang Zheng disappears and Zhao Yunlan follows with Chu Shuzhi and Guo Changcheng;
Chapter 22: Zhu Hong talks to Shen Wei; Shen Wei follows Zhao Yunlan and fights Youchu; Zhao Yunlan enters the mountain, gives Xiao-Guo the fear stick, sends the others back, finds Wang Zheng and then faints into the Emissary's arms.

The corresponding chapters in the Chinese version on JJWXC and the fan translation are chapters 32-36.

Excerpts

1) Zhao Yunlan's reaction to Shen Wei watching him sleep

When he'd been startled awake, Zhao Yunlan had seen how Shen Wei was looking at him. It hadn't been the look of someone who'd just woken up or someone lying awake because they couldn't sleep. Shen Wei's expression had been calm and content, something complex but gentle simmering in his gaze. Just seeing it made the heart clench. Zhao Yunlan had had the distinct feeling that those eyes had been focused on him, unblinking, for half the night.

If the situation was that Shen Wei was simply deeply closeted-feeling something for him but too afraid to take the first step-well, that was perfectly normal. Zhao Yunlan was rather attractive, if he said so himself. He was financially secure. He didn't let his beastly temper show in front of just anyone, so he often gave the impression of having a great personality and being easy to talk to. With all that, he had always had good luck when it came to romance.

But whether it was animal attraction or Zhao Yunlan's personal traits, or even love at first sight...would any of those really make someone lie awake all night long just to foolishly watch someone sleep? That had to be several lifetimes of entanglement-a love with deep, deep roots.

2) Chu Shuzhi questions Zhao Yunlan, and something is hinted at

Chu Shuzhi chewed the jerky thoughtfully. He was silent for a bit, then glanced at Guo Changcheng, who wasn't following the conversation at all. After some consideration, he said, "Even though you said it was background research for this trip, you must have already had a certain degree of familiarity with sorcery to be able to put this all together so quickly, right?"

"If you can't tell the difference between ecstasy and heroin, how can you be a drug enforcement officer?" Zhao Yunlan said lightly.

For once, Chu Shuzhi smiled. But bitterness was too entrenched in his appearance for any smile to really brighten his face. "In that case, why don't we 'drug enforcement officers' receive employee training?"

Zhao Yunlan's chewing slowed. He turned to stare at Chu Shuzhi, who blatantly stared back.

Guo Changcheng looked back and forth between them without a clue as to what was going on. He was too afraid of them both to ask. He could only shrink in on himself.

Finally, Zhao Yunlan said, "Lao-Chu, you're smart. I've rarely met anyone smarter than you, so I'm not going to waste my breath. You know perfectly well why. Make of it what you will."

3) Shen Wei vs. Youchu

Shen Wei stood under the mountain's slope and surveyed his surroundings. He suddenly extended an arm, palm down, and made a grabbing motion.

His hand was deathly pale. Blue veins were clearly visible through his skin, as if he were an incredibly detailed recreation of a person. Following his movement, the ground trembled. The wind between the mountains grew fiercer and fiercer. It howled as it began spinning into a vortex, slashing toward the clouds like a blade.

With his hand still in the air, Shen Wei peeled back the ground's surface, revealing the chapped, frozen earth beneath the heavy snow. It was then that something crawled up out of the ground and flung itself straight at Shen Wei's back. Arrow-swift, it hurtled toward its defenseless-looking target. A smell started to permeate the air: the stench of rot mixed with a floral fragrance. In a heartbeat, Shen Wei had already pivoted and clamped a hand around his would-be attacker's neck.

The thing he had grabbed was a youchu. Pure aggression flooded Shen Wei's gentle, handsome face.

The youchu struggled feebly. Gurgling noises came from its throat.

"Rules are rules," Shen Wei said mildly. "Your kind brazenly crossed the boundaries and left the forbidden area without permission. The penalty is death."

The youchu's feet could no longer touch the ground. It kept struggling, writhing like a fish out of water. Its twitching hands came up in a vain attempt to pry Shen Wei's hand off its neck. Shen Wei's fingers tightened. The youchu in his grasp jerked violently a few times and stopped moving, turning rigid.

4) Fear stick time!

Guo Changcheng swung the baton-like thing. Nothing happened. It was like a little flashlight. Of course, it never crossed his mind that his boss might be messing with him. Instead, he assumed he was too dense to understand Director Zhao's explanation. Guo Changcheng had always been the biggest critic of his own intellect.

But Zhao Yunlan didn't seem inclined to go over it again. After his cursory explanation, he'd set off into the cave with his flashlight, forcing Guo Changcheng to jog to keep up. Guo Changcheng didn't know whether to ask questions or just keep quiet. Common sense told him not to enter a dangerous situation without fully understanding something, but...as he looked at Zhao Yunlan's towering back, all he could think was that if he asked, his boss would absolutely curse him to hell and back.

The mere thought of Zhao Yunlan's anger inspired pure terror. As the feeling washed over him, a blinding spark shot out of the little baton with no warning, heading straight for Zhao Yunlan's back.

Fortunately, Zhao Yunlan was on edge and alert. At the unexpected noise, he threw himself to one side. That scorching hot spark shot farther into the cave.

Again in perfect unison, Chu Shuzhi and Zhao Yunlan exclaimed, "Holy shit!"

Chu Shuzhi looked at Guo Changcheng in awe. This useless piece of trash had actually done something that most SID employees didn't even dare contemplate: fucking up their asshole leader.

5) The Emissary sends a ~~sticky note~~ letter

The Soul-Executing Emissary had always been a wordy writer. He was incapable of getting to the point without a polite preface, all but inquiring after the health of every one of Zhao Yunlan's aunts. Only after all that preamble would he address the topic at hand, and that would be concise, demonstrating his grace when it came to complex matters.

This letter, on the other hand, was clearly rushed, with no introduction or conclusion. It was terse enough that it could have been a sticky note.

"Danger. Do not give chase. Hurry back."

Chu Shuzhi craned his neck. "Why would the Emissary send a letter here? What happened?"

Zhao Yunlan folded the letter and stuffed it into his pocket, thinking things over. The Emissary usually sent his "Lone Soul" notices to the SID office. If there wasn't a genuine emergency, he wouldn't have tracked them down out here. After all, he didn't want to be seen by unrelated parties.

Why did he suddenly...

And...how did he know where Zhao Yunlan was?

Questions

How are you enjoying the Hanga arc so far? Which is your favourite bit in these chapters? Favourite parallel with or difference from the drama? Did you cheer when Xiao-Guo zapped Zhao Yunlan? (I did! :p) How do you think the students are feeling about smashing those skulls? Given that Zhao Yunlan has realised Shen Wei isn't human, should he be more worried? What's with all the milk?

(As usual, these are just conversation starters - feel free to answer all, some, or none, and to say as much or as little as you like!)

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Before I comment with a few notes of my own, here are two sections that are in the JJWXC version but not in the official translation:

During the night they're being menaced by skulls:

Danger has just passed, and the tall bamboo guy is looking for more trouble, "Professor, can I go take a few pictures... I'm not going outside, just beside the window."

Shen Wei really wants to know how this kid grew up to have such a sense of adventure.

A grabby, dirty hand comes for Shen Wei's shoulder, and Zhao Yunlan leans forward, lowering his voice, "It's not against the rules to take pictures, but you have to know: it's said that cameras can capture the souls of people. Do you want to bring a few ghosts to keep as pets?"

The bamboo guy trembles in fear after Zhao Yunlan's eerie, ghost-story-telling tone.

Zhao Yunlan smiles and continues, "I guess you could bury them in flower pots, and then whenever midnight comes they will come out and start munching at the pots, munching at your table, and munching at your bed..."

Zhao Yunlan has yet to finish, and the bamboo guy twitches in discomfort.

Shen Wei's mouth quivers, "Are you alright?"

The boy's face looks uneasy, and he stutters, "I... I... I have to pee."

So scared that he's wetting himself; Zhao Yunlan is surprised. Soon, he laughs wildly and mockingly.

"It's only three hours till sunrise." Chu Shuzhi says, "My talismans can last for five hours, don't worry... but you better wait till the sky is bright to go to toilet. If something wants to bite you, pee on it; virgin pee repels evil spirits, it might not kill them but they would probably get a brain concussion."

More of Zhao Yunlan musing about when he might have met Shen Wei before, and why he can't remember:

Before ten years of age, he didn't know anything, probably even had trouble telling men from women, so nothing could have happened then. For the periods when he was older, his memories are clear and in sequence, he remembers everything precisely.

There are indeed ways to mess with someone's memory, for instance hypnosis, or other secret techniques that Zhao Yunlan can think of. But these methods only prevent the person from recollecting the altered memories. Human experience is incredibly complex, and only that person himself can know in detail what happened.

For instance, if a guy had a car accident, when he looks back, he will realise the accident happened because he was running late. And why was he late? Because he had a stomachache and was stuck in the toilet. Why did he have a stomachache? Becayse he ate too much oily foods. And why did he eat so much? Because his fast food coupon was gonna expire...

If he keeps going, he would remember who gave him the coupon, was it from someone else or did he just get it on the streets, et cetera.

Every minute detail in someone's memory can be recalled from interconnected events. No matter how smart you are, you can't possibly figure out all the trivial details in a chain of events and alter them one by one.

If someone's memory is manipulated, these details will be obscured, and when that person tries to recollect them, it would appear unnatural.

Coincidentally, Zhao Yunlan is an expert in memory.

Since he was little he knew how fragile and crucial a person's memory is. When Da Qing handed him the Guardian Order, the first lesson was teaching him to regularly reorganise his memories through meditation. Zhao Yunlan is certain that he didn't know Shen Wei before they met.

Conversely, the brief conversation between Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei when he asks him if he was watching him, and Shen Wei agrees to talk after they get back, isn't in the JJWXC version - there, he only thinks that he'll talk to him in the morning.

Here's the bit from the official translation (it's interspersed with the introspection that's in both versions):

Shen Wei silently came over and handed him a thick jacket. Zhao Yunlan accepted, wrapping it around himself and his cat. As Shen Wei turned to leave, Zhao Yunlan spoke, too quietly for anyone else to hear. “Earlier, were you watching me?”

Shen Wei stopped in his tracks. [...]

“We knew each other before, didn’t we?” Zhao Yunlan asked quietly. “You told me that you’d encountered me once during a case, but that wasn’t all, was it?” [...]

Shen Wei was facing the other direction. His back was so still that he seemed to have become part of the night.

Zhao Yunlan’s cigarette finally reached the end of its life. Distracted, he stubbed it out and rudely threw it out the window. It hit a jumping skull square in the forehead, and the white bone instantly turned black. The skull fell to the ground, twitched a few times, and stopped moving.

“After we get back, can we meet up to talk?” Zhao Yunlan asked.

Shen Wei said nothing for a long time. Just when Zhao Yunlan was resigning himself to not getting a response, a low voice came from the darkness. “All right.”

Ooooh, thanks! I never read the JJWXC version, and I always like knowing what the differences are. :D

Damn, they're really ganging up on the kid, but it's hilarious tho. xD (So much of the banter here is so good, I tried not to get sucked into re-reading because I'd never finish my comment, but so many lines are just too funny, and it turns out that even more of them got cut. xD)

Yeah, priest is very very good at banter and humour! So many funny lines. :D

Sorry - what is "JJWXC"?

The Chinese webnovel website where Guardian was first published. A version of the novel is still up there. We don't know which version served as the basis for the official English translation, though I'd assume it's one of the print versions.

Hnnng again with the different versions.
Thank you for doing the comparison! ♥

Yeah, seriously!

I definitely prefer the version in the official translation here - the little conversation between Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan is so good, I love it.

And a few notes! These chapters were a lot of fun to read, and I'm loving all the bits and pieces that made their way into the drama either directly or in modified form.

I love that there are more jacket shenanigans, with Shen Wei handing Zhao Yunlan a jacket, and that Zhao Yunlan naturally assumes the blanket is from Shen Wei as well, and then is quite put out when it turns out it isn't! Hee!

And since I'd been wondering about where Zhao Yunlan's head was at in the last batch of chapters, all the introspection here was very timely. Zhao Yunlan did notice Shen Wei was watching him! Previously the narration made it seem as if he hadn't, which makes me wonder what else he's noticing that the narrative is withholding. But I'm definitely glad that he's noticing things about Shen Wei, even if I'm still wondering why he's so apparently complacent about his own conclusion that Shen Wei probably isn't human, since he has zero idea what Shen Wei's agenda is ...

It was possible that this Shen-laoshi, with his excellent reputation and temperament, was actually a stalker who'd secretly been in love with Zhao Yunlan for a long time due to his good looks. But despite his limited self-awareness, Zhao Yunlan still figured that was basically impossible. In all honesty, it was more conceivable to imagine himself doing that than Shen Wei.

LOLOLOL! I especially like the self-honesty about his own stalkerish tendencies. :D

The little conversation between him and Shen Wei, where he sort of confronts him but also patiently waits him out, is so good! I really enjoyed that.

Lots of exposition about the Hanga and their culture and all, but the bit that caught my eye was this:

So they erected the sacrificial altar at the 'Opening of the Mountain's Soul'

Because I immediately realised I'd seen that name on the map Chu Shuzhi has in the drama:

Shan Hun Kou

It's so interesting to me that in the novel it's Zhao Yunlan who comes prepared, map and research and all, but in the drama it's Chu Shuzhi.

The sequence where Shen Wei fights the Youchu is very cool in both versions, but the novel's doesn't have the iconic transformation sequence, and it's much more physical, what with grabbing it by the neck and all.

Side question: does anyone know the origin of the "doors inside of mountains" trope?

At last, Guo Changcheng felt like he could contribute something. "North, east... Never Eat Soggy Waffles?" he offered.

LOL! I checked the Chinese for this, and the mnemonic Xiao-Guo recites is 上北下南左西右东 - literally, up north, down south, left west, right east - which also explains Zhao Yunlan's following reaction/explanation about how for the Hanga tribe it's the other way round, south is up (up the mountain) and north is down (towards the water).

I was so delighted to encounter the fear stick, hee! I didn't remember it was in the novel, but of course it makes a bit more sense there. I love that they just turned it into a Lin Jing invention and kept it for the drama! :D And seriously, I really enjoyed him getting Zhao Yunlan with it. (In the drama, of course, he hits Chu Shuzhi, but then in the novel, those two have barely interacted so far.)

"I checked the Chinese for this, and the mnemonic Xiao-Guo recites is 上北下南左西右东 - literally, up north, down south, left west, right east - which also explains Zhao Yunlan's following reaction/explanation about how for the Hanga tribe it's the other way round, south is up (up the mountain) and north is down (towards the water)."

Thanks for this too! :D

"‘Soggy waffles,’ my ass.", MY BELOVED. xD ~~Every time Zhao Yunlan says something, I go 'that's my favorite thing he has ever said' and move on to the next one. xD~~

Haha! His dialogue is very fun. :D

(For me, it's Shen Wei. Whatever he does at any moment, THAT ONE is going to be my favourite thing. Right until he does the next thing! :D)

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