"Zhao Yunlan felt around on the coffee table for the bandages and medicine that they’d brought back from the hospital."
I find it kinda funny that the hospital went 'there's nothing medically wrong with your eyes at all, but hey, have some random medicine and bandages for shits and giggles, now go away'. :P
I absolutely love Zhao Yunlan's experiment with the taxi driver and figuring it all out about the merits so quickly (and wondering about the earthquake!). He's always so unassumingly smart and it's wonderful!
I already talked about the unfairness of what happens to Shen Wei's merits (and I probably will again, lol), but now I paid attention to something else - at the beginning of the chapter it specifically says that ZYL can tell apart ghosts from living people specifically by the layer of merits - ghosts don't have one. So I guess this only refers to the actual ghosts who used to be living people, because Shen Wei is referred to as a ghost a lot (including by himself in these chapters), and he clearly has the layer of merits. Is it a translation thing? Or just another one of those differences between actual ghosts and gui/youchu, like with the ghost army? Or is it because he's partially a god? (If it's explained somewhere later, I forgot. :P)
"What was revealed was some naked, inescapable truth that stabbed into the heart, setting off cascading waves of pain.
“I knew you’d come after me right away,” Zhao Yunlan said smoothly. He was almost able to keep the tremble out of his voice. “It’s good that you’re here now. Come inside with me.”"
Ahh, Zhao Yunlan on the verge of crying but pretending that he's not, and also I think comforted by Shen Wei's presence for real, but also he wants to cry about Shen Wei, ahhh. /not coherent, I just love them so much ♡♡♡
"Zhu Hong unwound his bandages with trembling hands. When she saw his eyes, still bright but not quite able to focus, her own eyes reddened.
Zhao Yunlan’s fingers twitched, but he remembered he couldn’t see and shouldn’t grope blindly toward his female employees. A tad embarrassed, he lowered his hand again. “Which of us is blind here? I haven’t shed a single tear, so what are you getting emotional for?”
1) How does he know if he can't see her?
2) Zhao Yunlan, ily, TWO VERY SHORT PARAGRAPHS AGO it was you crying about Shen Wei. xD ♡♡♡
"Daqing made an affirmative sound but glanced at Zhao Yunlan. He had the sudden suspicion that Zhao Yunlan knew something.
But Shen Wei was too worried to think straight and didn’t notice. He barreled on to his next question. “How long will it take him to recover? What medicines does he need? Where can they be found?”
One look at Shen Wei told Daqing that he was genuinely worried. The cat sighed to himself and continued."
I just love this interaction, Shen Wei worried out of his mind (by something that already doesn't even seem like that big of a deal, but it's Zhao Yunlan, and SW is blaming himself too), and DQ slightly exasperated about it and all clear-headed.
“And that reminds me—Zhu Hong, I’ve told them to set up a private room for you on the third floor. For now, when you can’t transform easily and need to rest, stay there. Don’t take any leave.”
This is really considerate, aw!
"“Cat slutterer.” Sangzan was fully aware that his pronunciation wasn’t good, so he made a determined effort to correct himself. “Deeractor… Director… Director Zhao slutterer!”
Zhao Yunlan chuckled and didn’t bother asking any further."
Lol, ZYL just went 'ah, DQ being an asshole, that explains everything, moving on', and THEN, when everything was done:
“And I’ll go kick that fatass Daqing for you.”
♡♡♡!
"The title on the book’s cover was plainly visible to the Heavenly Eye. The book flipped itself open before he even had a chance to touch it. He noticed something at once that hadn’t been so apparent the last time he’d read it: a page had clearly been ripped out. To his Heavenly Eye, the torn page seemed to seep a purplish-black blood."
This is a cool af image, and also him noticing the missing page with his heavenly eye was a part of the plan and not a flaw in it, wasn't it?
"Sangzan shook his head. In a rare instance of perfect pronunciation, he said, “I don’t.”
“Neither do I,” Zhao Yunlan said slowly. “As the one possessing the Soul-Guarding Order, all I wanted was to fulfill my duty of watching over the Mortal Realm, but some people just don’t want to let me live in peace.”"
"In Sangzan’s mind, Zhao Yunlan was halfway to being a savior. Sangzan might have been a self-taught conspirator, but one of the greatest qualities of his people still ran bone-deep: he knew when to love and when to hate."
All of this is SO GOOD. I just really love all of the ZYL and Sangzan's interactions! And ZYL being smart af and figuring everything out and asking for help. Definitely one of my favorite scenes in these chapters. Other than, well, this :D :
"When the curtains on the room’s huge floor-to-ceiling window were open, the room was flooded with winter sunlight. With the heat cranked all the way up, there was no need to wear layers for warmth. The office held two giant taro plants, green and plump, and a tank by the door contained a relaxed, carefree silver arowana.
Leisurely guqin music flowed through the speakers. The office was spacious, and its two occupants had each claimed half. After watering the plants, Shen Wei sat and read a book. He was temporarily serving as Zhao Yunlan’s assistant until his injured eyes recovered.
Zhao Yunlan had asked Shen Wei to mix a bowl of cinnabar and was now sitting at the table with the cinnabar and a thick stack of yellow paper, practicing drawing talismans with his eyes closed. The first ones he drew were a mess, but as he slowly got used to drawing blind, the activity went from an idle time-killer to a way to relax and calm his mind."
♡♡♡!!! I'm quoting everything, all of it, because this entire image, this entire concept, this entire FEEL of this scene, ahhhhhhhhh, I just can't. ♡♡♡ The description of the sunny office with both of them just being relaxed and happy and doing their thing has always been one of my most vivid mental images from the novel (along with the Hanga arc scene with Shen Wei creating the huge curtain around them and Wang Zheng). And that's before all the SOFTEST KISSES EVER which I already flailed about. :D Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh. ♡♡♡
"Whether because Shen Wei was already used to Zhao Yunlan’s flirting or because of Zhu Hong’s presence, Shen Wei didn’t put up a fight. He simply smiled with a playful “Oh, shut up” in response."
Shen Wei being playful is so rare and adorable. :)
“We’re not the same at all! I like you so much.”
Aww. AWWWW. And then SOFTEST KISSES EVER not gonna requote them again but it's tempting. :D ♡♡♡ And also it's finally Shen Wei kissing Zhao Yunlan first, without any extra circumstances like being drunk or ZYL being asleep. :) (And I still want Zhao Yunlan's POV on being kissed like this. ♡♡♡)
And Shen Wei is panicking that (exasperated again :D) Daqing saw them, and I'm just like, '... he only saw that you're THE SOFTEST AND SWEETEST PERSON AROUND, that's not particularly shameful', but it's Shen Wei and *gasp* a kiss, so I get it. :)
"Daqing raised his tail, gratified by Zhao Yunlan’s misfortunes and the pleasing thought that, no matter how lovely Shen Wei looked right now, Zhao Yunlan was denied the sight of him."
DQ is such an ASS omg. xD xD
"The change in his posture was like night and day. He went from sitting boldly on his swivel chair, looking powerful and domineering, to shrinking into a ball."
I hate both of Zhao Yunlan's novel parents with a fiery passion, and this may be all I'll ever say about any of their scenes.
"The question hit Shen Wei right where it hurt. After a bit more silence, he shook his head.
To his surprise, Daqing let out a sigh of relief."
DQ just really doesn't have a high opinion of humans, lolol.
"Daqing stared up into his eyes, struck by the sheer weight of the sincerity he saw there. Many, many years had passed since he’d seen such sincerity in anyone. For a moment, he was too shocked to move."
AW! The pinky swear scene is really lovely here too. ♡
"“What did the old lady say? I want to eat her pan-fried little croakers!”
“Eat my ass and fuck off. Don’t trip me.”"
Lololol, and also 100% with Zhao Yunlan here.
"Zhao Yunlan bent down and grabbed Daqing by the scruff of his neck, tossed him aside, and then slapped him on the butt."
An impressive feat while blind. :D
"Zhao Yunlan wore a pair of sunglasses and carried a cane, and Shen Wei somehow managed to spare one hand to guide him while carrying a lacquer box in the other."
And now he wears sunglasses (and I can only see their drama versions here :D), lol, why did he even have the bandage. :P
The fox yao's aesthetic is so cool!
"I was just thinking about how traditionally our relationship has progressed."
LOLOLOL. ♡♡♡
"However, Zhao Yunlan’s shame was nowhere to be seen."
Always my fav Zhao Yunlan ngl, and also is it ever anywhere to be seen. :D :D
"Angry with embarrassment, Shen Wei shook off Zhao Yunlan’s hand. But then, seeing Zhao Yunlan’s hand grasping aimlessly in the air, he gave in after a moment’s hesitation and subtly took hold of it again."
I love that they were holding hands in the first place, and I love this even more. ♡♡♡ (And this may as well be where I subconsciously got the idea that drama Shen Wei fixed Zhao Yunlan's sock after all in episode 8. xD)
"Not too far away, there was the sound of a rough duet between a qin and a xiao. The melody was somber, but the players were obliged to conjure a lively atmosphere in spite of it. The overall effect was somewhat unsettling."
I don't even know anything about instrumental music, but I like the vibe of this!
"Inside was a pedestrian street about a hundred meters long. Along the sides were roads paved with long stone slabs, and between them was a long, narrow river crossed by a little stone bridge, on which a stage had been assembled."
I could never picture the layout of this for the life of me, and I just need to move on or I'll get stuck on it for 10 minutes like I did the first time around. xD
"Hearing that, the thin winter jasmine vines suddenly exploded with growth, instantly spreading all over the bridge like a flower carpet. Countless narrow, fresh buds burst into life, blooming everywhere. From among the flowers, a girl rose.
She was human from the waist up, but her bottom half was still made of flowering vines."
"But Winter Jasmine had already shifted into a tremendous number of vines. She quickly curled up along the entire stone bridge, wrapping each post in flowers. Together with the fine dusting of snow, the bridge seemed to bloom with life."
Yay, Ying Chun gets to go all out with her aesthetic without any need for cgi. :D :D SO PRETTY.
“Uncle Black Cat said the Guardian is a dreamboat. So, dreamboat gege, why are you wearing such large sunglasses?”
:D I love her. :D :D
"Winter Jasmine giggled as she looked closely at his eyes before asking Fourth Uncle, “What’s wrong with the Crow tribe? Why are they going around messing with mortals for no reason?”"
Can she tell what happened just from looking at his eyes? Or does she know it from DQ?
“But you kids shouldn’t worry about such matters. Concentrate on cultivating. When spring comes, bloom properly.”
I kinda love the concept that there are ways to bloom properly.
"Who’s this ‘Mountain God of the Great Wild’? God of which mountain? I’ve never heard of Buzhou also having a Mountain God."
Was hoping that Zhao Yunlan would go to the Yao market to heal his eyes ALSO part of the plan to bring back his memories? He wouldn't have heard this otherwise. (And of course he puts it together with what the crow said!)
"Had Guo Changcheng been there, he would have recognized this half-yao man as the one he’d nearly run over the other day."
This is really cool, and also it confused me because I thought that guy was a ghost, but I think it doesn't actually say that anywhere? (Also, more than half of this volume takes place in two days!)
no subject
I find it kinda funny that the hospital went 'there's nothing medically wrong with your eyes at all, but hey, have some random medicine and bandages for shits and giggles, now go away'. :P
I absolutely love Zhao Yunlan's experiment with the taxi driver and figuring it all out about the merits so quickly (and wondering about the earthquake!). He's always so unassumingly smart and it's wonderful!
I already talked about the unfairness of what happens to Shen Wei's merits (and I probably will again, lol), but now I paid attention to something else - at the beginning of the chapter it specifically says that ZYL can tell apart ghosts from living people specifically by the layer of merits - ghosts don't have one. So I guess this only refers to the actual ghosts who used to be living people, because Shen Wei is referred to as a ghost a lot (including by himself in these chapters), and he clearly has the layer of merits. Is it a translation thing? Or just another one of those differences between actual ghosts and gui/youchu, like with the ghost army? Or is it because he's partially a god? (If it's explained somewhere later, I forgot. :P)
"What was revealed was some naked, inescapable truth that stabbed into the heart, setting off cascading waves of pain.
“I knew you’d come after me right away,” Zhao Yunlan said smoothly. He was almost able to keep the tremble out of his voice. “It’s good that you’re here now. Come inside with me.”"
Ahh, Zhao Yunlan on the verge of crying but pretending that he's not, and also I think comforted by Shen Wei's presence for real, but also he wants to cry about Shen Wei, ahhh. /not coherent, I just love them so much ♡♡♡
"Zhu Hong unwound his bandages with trembling hands. When she saw his eyes, still bright but not quite able to focus, her own eyes reddened.
Zhao Yunlan’s fingers twitched, but he remembered he couldn’t see and shouldn’t grope blindly toward his female employees. A tad embarrassed, he lowered his hand again. “Which of us is blind here? I haven’t shed a single tear, so what are you getting emotional for?”
1) How does he know if he can't see her?
2) Zhao Yunlan, ily, TWO VERY SHORT PARAGRAPHS AGO it was you crying about Shen Wei. xD ♡♡♡
"Daqing made an affirmative sound but glanced at Zhao Yunlan. He had the sudden suspicion that Zhao Yunlan knew something.
But Shen Wei was too worried to think straight and didn’t notice. He barreled on to his next question. “How long will it take him to recover? What medicines does he need? Where can they be found?”
One look at Shen Wei told Daqing that he was genuinely worried. The cat sighed to himself and continued."
I just love this interaction, Shen Wei worried out of his mind (by something that already doesn't even seem like that big of a deal, but it's Zhao Yunlan, and SW is blaming himself too), and DQ slightly exasperated about it and all clear-headed.
“And that reminds me—Zhu Hong, I’ve told them to set up a private room for you on the third floor. For now, when you can’t transform easily and need to rest, stay there. Don’t take any leave.”
This is really considerate, aw!
"“Cat slutterer.” Sangzan was fully aware that his pronunciation wasn’t good, so he made a determined effort to correct himself. “Deeractor… Director… Director Zhao slutterer!”
Zhao Yunlan chuckled and didn’t bother asking any further."
Lol, ZYL just went 'ah, DQ being an asshole, that explains everything, moving on', and THEN, when everything was done:
“And I’ll go kick that fatass Daqing for you.”
♡♡♡!
"The title on the book’s cover was plainly visible to the Heavenly Eye. The book flipped itself open before he even had a chance to touch it. He noticed something at once that hadn’t been so apparent the last time he’d read it: a page had clearly been ripped out. To his Heavenly Eye, the torn page seemed to seep a purplish-black blood."
This is a cool af image, and also him noticing the missing page with his heavenly eye was a part of the plan and not a flaw in it, wasn't it?
"Sangzan shook his head. In a rare instance of perfect pronunciation, he said, “I don’t.”
“Neither do I,” Zhao Yunlan said slowly. “As the one possessing the Soul-Guarding Order, all I wanted was to fulfill my duty of watching over the Mortal Realm, but some people just don’t want to let me live in peace.”"
"In Sangzan’s mind, Zhao Yunlan was halfway to being a savior. Sangzan might have been a self-taught conspirator, but one of the greatest qualities of his people still ran bone-deep: he knew when to love and when to hate."
All of this is SO GOOD. I just really love all of the ZYL and Sangzan's interactions! And ZYL being smart af and figuring everything out and asking for help. Definitely one of my favorite scenes in these chapters. Other than, well, this :D :
"When the curtains on the room’s huge floor-to-ceiling window were open, the room was flooded with winter sunlight. With the heat cranked all the way up, there was no need to wear layers for warmth. The office held two giant taro plants, green and plump, and a tank by the door contained a relaxed, carefree silver arowana.
Leisurely guqin music flowed through the speakers. The office was spacious, and its two occupants had each claimed half. After watering the plants, Shen Wei sat and read a book. He was temporarily serving as Zhao Yunlan’s assistant until his injured eyes recovered.
Zhao Yunlan had asked Shen Wei to mix a bowl of cinnabar and was now sitting at the table with the cinnabar and a thick stack of yellow paper, practicing drawing talismans with his eyes closed. The first ones he drew were a mess, but as he slowly got used to drawing blind, the activity went from an idle time-killer to a way to relax and calm his mind."
♡♡♡!!! I'm quoting everything, all of it, because this entire image, this entire concept, this entire FEEL of this scene, ahhhhhhhhh, I just can't. ♡♡♡ The description of the sunny office with both of them just being relaxed and happy and doing their thing has always been one of my most vivid mental images from the novel (along with the Hanga arc scene with Shen Wei creating the huge curtain around them and Wang Zheng). And that's before all the SOFTEST KISSES EVER which I already flailed about. :D Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh. ♡♡♡
"Whether because Shen Wei was already used to Zhao Yunlan’s flirting or because of Zhu Hong’s presence, Shen Wei didn’t put up a fight. He simply smiled with a playful “Oh, shut up” in response."
Shen Wei being playful is so rare and adorable. :)
“We’re not the same at all! I like you so much.”
Aww. AWWWW. And then SOFTEST KISSES EVER
not gonna requote them again but it's tempting. :D ♡♡♡ And also it's finally Shen Wei kissing Zhao Yunlan first, without any extra circumstances like being drunk or ZYL being asleep. :) (And I still want Zhao Yunlan's POV on being kissed like this. ♡♡♡)And Shen Wei is panicking that (exasperated again :D) Daqing saw them, and I'm just like, '... he only saw that you're THE SOFTEST AND SWEETEST PERSON AROUND, that's not particularly shameful', but it's Shen Wei and *gasp* a kiss, so I get it. :)
"Daqing raised his tail, gratified by Zhao Yunlan’s misfortunes and the pleasing thought that, no matter how lovely Shen Wei looked right now, Zhao Yunlan was denied the sight of him."
DQ is such an ASS omg. xD xD
"The change in his posture was like night and day. He went from sitting boldly on his swivel chair, looking powerful and domineering, to shrinking into a ball."
I hate both of Zhao Yunlan's novel parents with a fiery passion, and this may be all I'll ever say about any of their scenes.
"The question hit Shen Wei right where it hurt. After a bit more silence, he shook his head.
To his surprise, Daqing let out a sigh of relief."
DQ just really doesn't have a high opinion of humans, lolol.
"Daqing stared up into his eyes, struck by the sheer weight of the sincerity he saw there. Many, many years had passed since he’d seen such sincerity in anyone. For a moment, he was too shocked to move."
AW! The pinky swear scene is really lovely here too. ♡
"“What did the old lady say? I want to eat her pan-fried little croakers!”
“Eat my ass and fuck off. Don’t trip me.”"
Lololol, and also 100% with Zhao Yunlan here.
"Zhao Yunlan bent down and grabbed Daqing by the scruff of his neck, tossed him aside, and then slapped him on the butt."
An impressive feat while blind. :D
"Zhao Yunlan wore a pair of sunglasses and carried a cane, and Shen Wei somehow managed to spare one hand to guide him while carrying a lacquer box in the other."
And now he wears sunglasses (and I can only see their drama versions here :D), lol, why did he even have the bandage. :P
The fox yao's aesthetic is so cool!
"I was just thinking about how traditionally our relationship has progressed."
LOLOLOL. ♡♡♡
"However, Zhao Yunlan’s shame was nowhere to be seen."
Always my fav Zhao Yunlan ngl, and also is it ever anywhere to be seen. :D :D
"Angry with embarrassment, Shen Wei shook off Zhao Yunlan’s hand. But then, seeing Zhao Yunlan’s hand grasping aimlessly in the air, he gave in after a moment’s hesitation and subtly took hold of it again."
I love that they were holding hands in the first place, and I love this even more. ♡♡♡ (And this may as well be where I subconsciously got the idea that drama Shen Wei fixed Zhao Yunlan's sock after all in episode 8. xD)
"Not too far away, there was the sound of a rough duet between a qin and a xiao. The melody was somber, but the players were obliged to conjure a lively atmosphere in spite of it. The overall effect was somewhat unsettling."
I don't even know anything about instrumental music, but I like the vibe of this!
"Inside was a pedestrian street about a hundred meters long. Along the sides were roads paved with long stone slabs, and between them was a long, narrow river crossed by a little stone bridge, on which a stage had been assembled."
I could never picture the layout of this for the life of me, and I just need to move on or I'll get stuck on it for 10 minutes like I did the first time around. xD
"Hearing that, the thin winter jasmine vines suddenly exploded with growth, instantly spreading all over the bridge like a flower carpet. Countless narrow, fresh buds burst into life, blooming everywhere. From among the flowers, a girl rose.
She was human from the waist up, but her bottom half was still made of flowering vines."
"But Winter Jasmine had already shifted into a tremendous number of vines. She quickly curled up along the entire stone bridge, wrapping each post in flowers. Together with the fine dusting of snow, the bridge seemed to bloom with life."
Yay, Ying Chun gets to go all out with her aesthetic without any need for cgi. :D :D SO PRETTY.
“Uncle Black Cat said the Guardian is a dreamboat. So, dreamboat gege, why are you wearing such large sunglasses?”
:D I love her. :D :D
"Winter Jasmine giggled as she looked closely at his eyes before asking Fourth Uncle, “What’s wrong with the Crow tribe? Why are they going around messing with mortals for no reason?”"
Can she tell what happened just from looking at his eyes? Or does she know it from DQ?
“But you kids shouldn’t worry about such matters. Concentrate on cultivating. When spring comes, bloom properly.”
I kinda love the concept that there are ways to bloom properly.
"Who’s this ‘Mountain God of the Great Wild’? God of which mountain? I’ve never heard of Buzhou also having a Mountain God."
Was hoping that Zhao Yunlan would go to the Yao market to heal his eyes ALSO part of the plan to bring back his memories? He wouldn't have heard this otherwise. (And of course he puts it together with what the crow said!)
"Had Guo Changcheng been there, he would have recognized this half-yao man as the one he’d nearly run over the other day."
This is really cool, and also it confused me because I thought that guy was a ghost, but I think it doesn't actually say that anywhere? (Also, more than half of this volume takes place in two days!)
"Shen Wei pulled Zhao Yunlan behind him, gaze growing cold."
He's not there as the Emissary, is he? But the Guardian needs to be protected by him, aw. :D