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sid_guardian2025-03-08 03:30 pm
facethestrange) wrote in sid_guardian2025-03-08 03:30 pm
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Guardian Readalong: Vol. 2, Chapters 5 & 6
Hi, and welcome to this week's installment of the Guardian novel readalong! ♡
Here are last week's chapters, and you can find all previous discussions on the schedule post (vol. 1 part 1, vol. 1 part 2, vol. 2), or via the !readalong tag.
This week's chapters:
- Chapter 5: Zhao Yunlan brings Shen Wei with him to the hospital. Guo Changcheng sees a ghost of a legless man outside the window, which turns out to be a reflection of what happened in the past. Zhao Yunlan explains talismans to Guo Changcheng and uses one to open GCC's third eye. Guo Changcheng accidentally kills a ghost tormenting one of the victims and cures her. The victim is a mundanely terrrible person, and Shen Wei stops Zhao Yunlan from punishing her too much when he erases her memories. The legless ghost is targetting humans who didn't directly wrong him, so SID has the authority to deal with him.
- Chapter 6: Despite the team's confusion, Zhao Yunlan wants Shen Wei to stay at the scene. Everyone gets a task and they set out to lure and trap the ghost. Shen Wei volunteers to participate in setting the trap, and knows a lot more about it than anyone expected him to know. Zhao Yunlan admits that Shen Wei is not an ordinary human, but doesn't reveal his identity.
The corresponding chapters in the Chinese version on JJWXC and the fan translation are 51, 52 and 53.
Excerpts:
1) The ghost that Guo Changcheng sees
As he scrambled out of their way, Guo Changcheng happened to catch a glimpse of someone outside the window—the sixth-floor window!
What he was seeing was clearly impossible. Every instinct Guo Changcheng possessed told him that something was off; his pulse raced. But human nature being what it was, fear robbed him of the ability to look away.
It was a man outside the window: skinny and hunched, wearing a ragged knit hat that revealed frostbitten ears and a shock of white hair. He was bundled in a large cotton jacket…and he was floating in midair, entirely lacking his legs!
Guo Changcheng could see that the man’s legs had been chopped off just below the pelvic joint. The hacked stumps were plainly visible, with short lengths of bone jutting out from the rotting, bloody flesh. Blood seeped inside the building through the window frame, dripping and pooling on the floor. It seemed as though the bleeding would never stop.
Yet not a single passing doctor or nurse noticed a thing. It was like no one could see the man silently staring into the inpatient area.
Half of his face was caked with dirt and blood. His eyes bugged out as if he were a terrifying wax figure. He just kept staring coldly at all the people coming and going, one corner of his cracked lips tugging upward. His expression was indescribably resentful.
2) Shen Wei explains Guo Changcheng's ability to see reflections of the past
After a sweeping glance at Guo Changcheng, who was standing a bit away from them, Zhao Yunlan briefly summarized what he’d been told.
Shen Wei listened, then thought for a moment before answering seriously. “His third eye hasn’t been opened, but there’s something quite unusual about him. I feel as though he’s able to see echoes of the past through reflective surfaces.”
Zhao Yunlan’s eyebrow shot up. “What do you mean?”
“Think back to when we first met at Dragon City University, when I suddenly arrived and interrupted your investigation,” Shen Wei said. “The night before, when I heard that an accident had taken place at the school, I suspected it might have something to do with the escaped Hunger Ghost. I sent a puppet to investigate the victim’s dorm room. The puppet left before daybreak, but later, when this young man climbed into the window, a fascinating connection sprang to life between him and my puppet. I felt him looking through the glass and seeing my puppet climbing out the window the previous night. That’s why I came. At the time, I didn’t realize you were there.”
To be precise, he’d been unaware because the shit-stirring Chaos King of the Gui had purposefully interfered with his ability to sense Zhao Yunlan’s location.
When Guo Changcheng had written his report about the incident, he had mentioned seeing a skull in the window, and something about there being a person cloaked in black in the skull’s eyes. But since most of the report had been useless bullshit, Zhao Yunlan had dismissed it and used the paper as a coaster.
“So you think there may actually have been some legless person—or ghost—peeping through this window?” Zhao Yunlan asked. “Not now, maybe at some point last night or even before?”
“Mm-hmm. Didn’t you say that the two new poisoning victims were sent here at midnight? If I’d hurt someone, I might also want to come and see for myself exactly what happened to them.”
3) Guo Changcheng accidentally cures the victim
Zhao Yunlan slapped the yellow paper talisman down onto her, causing a massive ball of black gas to spew from her body. It shot up like a menacing geyser, only to be knocked partway back when it hit the ceiling. A contorted face took shape in midair, mouth wide open as it howled hysterically at them.
It all happened in a flash. One moment Zhao Yunlan had been delivering a lecture on theory and now they were in a haunted house. Guo Changcheng screamed and bolted for the door. But Director Zhao, as though he had eyes in the back of his head, dragged Guo Changcheng back by the collar.
Keeping a firm hand on Guo Changcheng, Zhao Yunlan studied the black mist. “Weird,” he murmured. “Why is there so much resentment?”
“Ghost!” yelped Guo Changcheng. “Ghost, ghost, ghost!”
Zhao Yunlan snorted. “Like you’ve never seen a ghost before? Why would I have ordered you to join me if I wasn’t expecting any?”
A powerful bolt of electricity burst from Guo Changcheng’s pocket. With the wisdom of experience, Zhao Yunlan immediately let go and backed out of the way. The black shadow hanging in the air met the same fate as the huge knife in the Hanga tribe’s secret tunnel.
“We hadn’t asked it anything yet! No one told you to kill it!” Zhao Yunlan slapped the back of Guo Changcheng’s head.
Guo Changcheng was on the brink of tears. “I-I’m scared…”
“Can’t you hold it in for a while?” Zhao Yunlan demanded.
From day one, Guo Changcheng had both feared and respected his boss. Even if Zhao Yunlan unleashed a toxic fart, he would treat it as a divine utterance and think the boss had made an excellent point. So upon hearing this, Guo Changcheng made an immediate attempt to obediently contain his terror.
He tried until his face was beet red, but he couldn’t stop trembling with fear. Voice thin as a mosquito’s buzz, he said, “I…really can’t hold it in.”
The pointed side-eye Zhao Yunlan gave him lasted until Guo Changcheng was shaking badly enough that there was a real risk of another 10,000-volt discharge. And then, unexpectedly, his heartless boss laughed. “You sure do keep things interesting.”
Guo Changcheng only blinked. It seemed like a strange compliment.
“Don’t bully him,” scolded Shen Wei.
Meanwhile, the stricken woman finally managed to do more than gawk at them. Moving with great difficulty, she knelt on the bed and bowed to Guo Changcheng. “Thank you, Immortal. Thank you, young Immortal!”
4) Zhao Yunlan is very discreet (sarcasm) and also very discreet (no sarcasm)
The hospital hallways were always full of people. Between being tall, full of physical grace, and an overall hottie, Zhao Yunlan generally drew attention to begin with, but publicly touching and grabbing hold of another man quickly drew curious stares from all around.
Shen Wei swiftly assessed the situation. “We’re in public,” he said softly. “Have some discretion, please.”
Zhao Yunlan responded by turning to glare at the onlookers. “What are you looking at?” he asked, unfazed. “Never seen a couple of hot gay guys before?”
Shen Wei and Zhu Hong were both stunned speechless for a moment, and then they spoke almost at the same time. “It’s not appropriate for me to be here while you work,” Shen Wei said.
More quietly, Zhu Hong said, “That’s right, Director Zhao. Our internal regulations…”
“I’m the one who set the regulations,” Zhao Yunlan interrupted her. “If I’m unhappy with them, I can change them any time I want. Besides, what they say is that we need to keep outsiders from witnessing or participating in our investigations. He’s not an outsider.”
Shen Wei froze, momentarily sure that Zhao Yunlan was about to reveal his identity. But instead, Zhao Yunlan lowered his voice so that he sounded like an annoying brat. “He’s not an outsider— he’s my partner.”
Dumbfounded, Zhu Hong turned away and looked blankly out the window. She had the feeling that she’d just seen the lord of incompetence claim his throne.
5) Lin Jing baits Shen Wei, and Shen Wei knows too much
Silently, Lin Jing looked at Zhao Yunlan and then at the bottle in his own hand. Realizing that he was being baited into becoming a tank to pull aggro, he said, “You did this on purpose.”
Zhao Yunlan didn’t bat an eye. “Yeah, and?”
Lin Jing swept his eyes over the others. The black cat wore a crafty sneer, and everyone else’s expression was unsympathetic and indifferent. He let himself wallow in sorrow for a moment before wheeling around and flinging himself at Shen Wei, who was leaning unobtrusively against the wall. “My liege wishes to sacrifice this humble monk before the flag of battle!” he cried. “Noble consort, I beg you, intercede on my behalf!”
Shen Wei didn’t have the first clue how to respond. As the Soul-Executing Emissary, he was accustomed to people reacting to him like rats spotting a cat. Having never been on the receiving end of teasing like this, he was at a complete loss. He turned to Zhao Yunlan as though asking for help.
Zhao Yunlan, on the other hand, was delighted by this high-quality display of ass-kissing. He averted his eyes, showing no interest in intervening.
After considering his options, Shen Wei held out his hand for the bottle. “I’ll go in your place, then.”
He hadn’t even finished speaking before an ominous stare pierced Lin Jing’s spine. Even if Lin Jing had been ten times braver, he wouldn’t have dared use the “noble consort” as bait.
The fake monk managed a dry chuckle and tucked the bottle into his own breast pocket. “Amitabha. Our duty is to encourage goodness, eradicate evil, and protect people’s lives and possessions. How could I foist this honorable and arduous calling off on someone else? Off I go!” With those words, he darted off at the speed of light.
“Then how can I help?” Shen Wei asked.
Zhao Yunlan replied, “I know a restaurant a bit south of here that’s pretty good. Come eat with me.”
Once again, Shen Wei had no idea how to react.
Zhu Hong ground her teeth. “I’m angry, but I have to bite my tongue.”
Chu Shuzhi fixed his eyes on the ground. “Yup, biting my tongue.”
Daqing simply meowed.
Shen-laoshi, however, had a conscience. “We can’t do that. How about this: you stay here and give orders, and I’ll go hold the Gate of Life for you. Then, if need be, I can assist.”
Everyone went dead silent at his words. Zhu Hong’s brow furrowed, and Chu Shuzhi’s face turned pensive. But Guo Changcheng, the only one confused, piped up. “What’s a Gate of Life?”
Chu Shuzhi ignored the question. Expression serious, he asked, “How did Shen-laoshi know what kind of array I’ll be putting down?”
“Two layers with four gates each, anything that enters is unable to exit. I could extrapolate as much from seeing the places Yunlan pointed out just now for monitoring. However, if the violent spirit’s resentment is too thick and heavy, he could tear through the temporary net. At that point, if the Gate of Life becomes a Gate of Death, it’ll be hard to control. I’ll guard the eye of the array just in case.”
Chu Shuzhi looked him up and down. “Shen-laoshi knows all of this even though you’re just a university professor?”
Questions:
How did you like Zhao Yunlan finally training the newbie, and Guo Changcheng's accidental moment of badassery? Do you approve of Zhao Yunlan punishing the woman? How would you react when you're doing super secret stuff and your boss suddenly brings an apparent outsider to work? And, of course, did these chapters give you any new Weilan feelings? ♡
You can answer as many or as few questions as you like, or just comment without answering any of them at all! And if you see this post and you're not actually reading the novel: Hi there, I always want to know what you think about any of this with limited context. :D
And here is the schedule, and that's where you can sign up to host a post.
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Guo Changcheng was frozen to the point that his tongue was stiff. “D-D-D-D-Director Zhao.” A trail of snot crept down his face. He sniffled it back up, which did nothing to improve his image, and sneaked a confused glance at Shen Wei."
These are literally the opening lines and I'm already quoting, lol, I just love Xiao Guo sfm, this overeager, adorable ball of anxiety, omg. ♡♡♡
Also, is this different in the original version? Because the summary I use to find out the chapter equivalents says this instead: "Guo Changcheng rushes to the hospital early and ends up waiting in the cold for almost three hours before Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei arrive. Zhao Yunlan doesn't blink an eye, used to his strange behavior, but Shen Wei is concerned about Guo Changcheng.", and wow, three hours very different than half an hour, and also Shen Wei being worried about GCC sounds adorable? :D (I can see some other things being different too, but I just feel for Xiao Guo here, lol, so I got stuck on this. xD)
GCC terrified out of his mind when he sees the ghost is also so precious. *CUDDLES HIM* And I love that Zhao Yunlan believes him, even if this is the reason, lol. "Nothing of what he knew about Guo Changcheng suggested that the little dumbass had the intellect and balls to successfully lie to his boss’s face, so he probably wasn’t bullshitting."
"Bitingly cold northwest winds surged inside, but that was all. He felt nothing but the chill.
A nurse rushed over. “Excuse me, sir, but can you close the window? If you want some fresh air, please go outside. We have patients here who need to stay warm.”
Zhao Yunlan quickly closed the window and turned to her with an apologetic smile. The young nurse, confronted with a high-caliber hottie, flushed red. Muttering a half-serious complaint under her breath, she scurried away."
This is so funny to me. :D :D
"At some point, Shen Wei had come up beside him. With a small cough, he deliberately positioned himself between Zhao Yunlan and the retreating young woman, who was sneaking a peek back at him. Zhao Yunlan glanced at him with a hint of a smile. He gave Shen Wei’s scarf a tug and leaned in close. Lips almost brushing Shen Wei’s ear, voice pitched so no one else could hear, he asked, “Did you catch a cold? What are you coughing for?”
Shen Wei took an alarmed step back. If he’d been wearing a long robe, he probably would have gathered his sleeves, lowered his head, and said, “Two men mustn’t openly touch in broad daylight.”
Zhao Yunlan couldn’t help but laugh quietly.
The tips of Shen Wei’s ears reddened, and he abruptly changed the subject.
Soft Weilan, SO SOFT. ♡♡♡ And kinda funny too. :D I love the whisper in the ear so much, ahhh. ♡♡♡
"When Guo Changcheng had written his report about the incident, he had mentioned seeing a skull in the window, and something about there being a person cloaked in black in the skull’s eyes. But since most of the report had been useless bullshit, Zhao Yunlan had dismissed it and used the paper as a coaster."
This is so mean. xD And funny. AND MEAN. *shaking my head at ZYL* xD
"Zhao Yunlan smirked. “You? Hurt someone? You can’t even kiss except in secret.”
Shen Wei was far too much of a gentleman to bear even whispering to each other about such intimate things in public. His ears felt as if they were on fire. In a slightly louder whisper, he scolded, “Don’t talk nonsense!”
Zhao Yunlan shut his mouth but not his eyes. As the saying went, beauties had bright eyes, and those eyes could speak volumes. Director Zhao’s eyes went a step further and conveyed pure lechery. Shen Wei, unable to endure that gaze languidly caressing him from head to toe, turned and escaped to the patients’ room."
Asdfghfdjsklhjkl, Zhao Yunlan's absolutely shameless gaze yes please. :D :D
I also love that it's so obvious to him that the Emissary is not capable of hurting someone that he can even joke about it, AW.
"Unbelievably, this unpredictable boss was settling in to deliver a leisurely lecture while the victim cried out like a pig at slaughter. Guo Changcheng lacked the mental strength for it. With more than half of his attention taken by the screaming woman, it made him feel particularly restless."
Poor Xiao Guo omg, what the hell Zhao Yunlan?? xD
"Completely unprepared, Guo Changcheng felt an indescribable iciness from the talisman. There was somehow a weight to it, piercing him like a sharp knife. His vision blurred and the world changed right before his eyes…but in a way he couldn’t quite identify."
This is such a cool description!
"Guo Changcheng was silent, unable to imagine how hearing that might have made the woman on the bed feel."
Xiao Guo is a treasure, my smol bb! ♡ She's an asshole and he already kinda knows that (just without any details yet), and yet he really cares about her, aw.
The whole part about GCC curing her is SO FUNNY, I already quoted all of as an excerpt and I still feel tempted to quote more, lmao, the banter is so witty and I just love everything about it to pieces. :D
"One moment Zhao Yunlan had been delivering a lecture on theory and now they were in a haunted house. Guo Changcheng screamed and bolted for the door."
"Like you’ve never seen a ghost before? Why would I have ordered you to join me if I wasn’t expecting any?"
"A powerful bolt of electricity burst from Guo Changcheng’s pocket. With the wisdom of experience, Zhao Yunlan immediately let go and backed out of the way."
"Even if Zhao Yunlan unleashed a toxic fart, he would treat it as a divine utterance and think the boss had made an excellent point."
Lololol. And how Shen Wei's only line during this scene is "Don’t bully him." :D A+++ humor.
Zhao Yunlan really hates people who harm animals, and I know it's a theme, but it's just a really good theme!
“The hot policemen who came by this afternoon were following normal procedure. They asked about the person selling the poisoned oranges, and while they were at it, they educated certain citizens a little…”
He had to add the 'hot', didn't he. xD
"As soon as he was out of the room, Zhao Yunlan snapped straight back into training Guo Changcheng."
He's so eager to train GCC, aw, Da Qing doesn't have to be exasperated about that anymore. :D
"Guo Changcheng’s pen flew furiously as he scribbled in his little notebook. Zhao Yunlan slowed his speech and let him catch up a bit before continuing."
And he's really nice about it, AWW.
"Guo Changcheng subconsciously patted the jacket pocket holding his stun baton. The corner of Zhao Yunlan’s lips twitched."
Heeee. I love them!
"Shen Wei swiftly assessed the situation. “We’re in public,” he said softly. “Have some discretion, please.”
Zhao Yunlan responded by turning to glare at the onlookers. “What are you looking at?” he asked, unfazed. “Never seen a couple of hot gay guys before?”
His discretion! xD *DED*
"Shen Wei froze, momentarily sure that Zhao Yunlan was about to reveal his identity. But instead, Zhao Yunlan lowered his voice so that he sounded like an annoying brat. “He’s not an outsider— he’s my partner.”"
Being an annoying ass to protect Shen Wei, on the other hand... ♡♡♡!
"Daqing and Lin Jing had been busy whispering to each other. “Look at Shen-laoshi’s wrist,” Lin Jing was saying. “You can see a glimpse of gauze. Our boss is such a beast.”
Daqing’s eyes went incredibly wide, and his imagination had just started to run wild when he suddenly heard his name. Every molecule of his fat started quivering."
These gossiping dorks, BWAH, I love them so much. :D :D
(Also Shen Wei is still wearing the gauze when I'm sure he has healed a long time ago, hmm.)
"In the simplest terms possible, Chu Shuzhi explained it to the rookie who didn’t understand shit. “Violent spirits are all born from resentment. Picture the spirit like the body of an octopus. It reaches out and curses other people with that resentment, which then acts like the octopus’s arms—the spirit can feel each of those people through it.”
Guo Changcheng had been trailing around after Zhao Yunlan for some time by then and hadn’t yet had a chance to eat supper. Thanks to Chu Shuzhi’s explanation, he couldn’t help thinking about takoyaki. His mouth watered and his stomach rumbled noticeably.
This bizarre reaction wasn’t at all what Chu Shuzhi had expected."
I adore them both, and how GCC is apparently not all that terrified when he's sufficiently hungry. xD
"Daqing stood up on a chair by the window on his hind legs to watch as Shen Wei walked out of the hospital and unerringly took his position on the Gate of Life. As though feeling the cat’s gaze, Shen Wei looked up and smiled at him."
This is weirdly adorable, AW!!
"She could even tease and laugh at their boss, or go as far as writing smutty scenarios about him on Weibo."
ZHU HONG THE FANFICTION QUEEN. :D
“I want to respect Shen Wei’s wishes,” he explained, “so I really can’t say much. But there’s no need to be concerned about him, so don’t worry. Just treat him exactly like you’d treat me.”
♡♡♡!
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In both the RainbowSe7en translation and the traditional Chinese version I have, it is “almost three hours”, so yes, it is different.
ZHU HONG THE FANFICTION QUEEN. :D
She is one of us!
“I want to respect Shen Wei’s wishes,” he explained
Hell yes, respect his wishes! XD
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Oh, thanks! Damn, that's a long-ass time to stand in the cold. I guess the official translation wanted to be nicer to Xiao Guo, and I don't blame it. xD
"She is one of us!"
And she's even an RPFer, bwah. :D And RPFer of her own boss, hmmmm oh well, GOOD FOR HER. xD
"Hell yes, respect his wishes! XD"
I kinda highkey love how Shen Wei's wishes about his identity are rigorously respected by ZYL, but his wishes about no PDA are just like "nahhhhhh, not those". xD SMH. ♡
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Yep! I quoted it in my comment below, but there's both more GCC, and he's waiting much longer.
I also love that it's so obvious to him that the Emissary is not capable of hurting someone that he can even joke about it, AW.
I do love that he's 100% certain about what kind of person SW is!
These gossiping dorks, BWAH, I love them so much. :D :D
The gossiping is lots of fun! But why do you think they're so ready to believe ZYL hurt SW? I keep stumbling over that.
(Also Shen Wei is still wearing the gauze when I'm sure he has healed a long time ago, hmm.)
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS, this is an excellent point! :D :D :D
This is weirdly adorable, AW!!
RIGHT???? ♥
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I read it as tying into the whole danmei conviction that gay sex has to be rough and dominating, and the assumption (possibly put about by ZYL) that ZYL tops.
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Thank youuu, and I'll get to the quotes a bit later, but damn, POOR GCC.
"The gossiping is lots of fun! But why do you think they're so ready to believe ZYL hurt SW? I keep stumbling over that."
It's on the wrist, so I mostly just thought 'handcuffs mishap', but also rough sex in general, yep. I don't think anyone thinks he hurt him intentionally. (And I'm very glad that the part where Zhu Hong actually thought that a few chapters back was removed.)
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Yeah, agreed. They throw the word "beast" (and other insults and aspersions) around pretty freely, I think. :-)
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Oh yeah, that's such a good point. And it's a good character trait for a person, but it also makes sense for a mountain god. *hearts*
He had to add the 'hot', didn't he. xD
He can't help himself!
(Also Shen Wei is still wearing the gauze when I'm sure he has healed a long time ago, hmm.)
Haha, such a good point. He's probably treating it like a bracelet/love token at this point. A memento of ZYL's tender care.
ZHU HONG THE FANFICTION QUEEN. :D
Hee! (I got it wrong! I wrote a fic where Wang Zheng was the one writing Weilan RPS. *g*)
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He also totally included Xiao Guo in the hot category, whether he meant to or not. :D :D
"He's probably treating it like a bracelet/love token at this point. A memento of ZYL's tender care."
Asgjkfdsdfghjkl *MELTS* ♡♡♡ I didn't think about that, I kinda just glossed over it as 'he had no time to take it off, and now he cannot once everyone saw it', but OMG THIS, this I like a lot. :D ♡♡♡
"(I got it wrong! I wrote a fic where Wang Zheng was the one writing Weilan RPS. *g*)"
:D :D :D Now I'mma need to find that, unless you feel like sharing the link? :D :D She would, lolol (novel Wang Zheng would too, after the Emissary was being weird with unconscious ZYL and she was third-wheeling xD), everyone would, except maybe GCC. xD CSZ would, I'm very sure of that, hahah. :D
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The fic is Transformative Work. Lin Jing starts it, but really, it's all ZYL's fault. :-)
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