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sid_guardian2025-05-19 02:54 am
trobadora) wrote in sid_guardian2025-05-19 02:54 am
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Guardian Readalong: Vol. 3, Chapters 3 & 4
Welcome aboard for this week's chapters of our Guardian readalong!
Here are last week's chapters (the beginning of vol. 3). You can find all previous discussions on the schedule post (part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4), or via the !readalong tag.
This week's chapters:
- Chapter 3: Zhao Yunlan escapes his father's scolding, keeps falling asleep, and is fed medicine by Shen Wei. Zhu Hong gets a visit from her uncle, who wants her to leave Dragon City. Zhao Yunlan surprises Shen Wei in the kitchen cutting his own chest with a knife, and learns what medicine Shen Wei has been feeding him.
- Chapter 4: Zhao Yunlan sleeps at the SID, and the team gossips about it. Shen Wei brings clothes while he's asleep. Zhu Hong refuses to leave Zhao Yunlan's side, gives him a gift from her uncle, and offers to sever ties with her tribe if he wants her to stay.
Excerpts:
1) Shen Wei feeds Zhao Yunlan medicine
The noise in his ears only intensified, growing from a mere clamor to a cacophony. Zhao Yunlan knew he was dreaming, but the knowledge didn't free him. He remained ensnared in the dream, as if he'd fallen into a bog that was swallowing him up. The more he struggled, the less he could breathe.
Then a bowl that smelled of something raw was pressed to his lips. Ignoring his struggles, the person holding it pried his mouth open and forced him to take the medicine. Zhao Yunlan resisted instinctively, trying to push the stuff back out of his mouth with his tongue. The person seemed to sigh. Then hands cradled his head, and soft lips pressed against his. A familiar scent momentarily quieted Zhao Yunlan's thoughts of protest, and the other person seized their chance to make him swallow the medicine.
Zhao Yunlan's eyes flew open as he started coughing and found himself already home in bed. Dazed, he watched as Shen Wei set down the bowl and brought him a cup of tea that was at the perfect temperature. Shen Wei ducked his head and touched their foreheads together. "Here," he said. "Drink this and rinse your mouth."
Zhao Yunlan accepted the tea. His heavy lashes were lowered, and a trace of cold sweat from his nightmare still beaded his forehead. In a single gulp, he drank the tea to the last drop before asking hoarsely, "Did I catch a cold? Why am I getting sick so easily lately?"
There was a curious pause before Shen Wei replied, "It's nothing. Your time within the Great Divine Tree took too much of your energy."
"Oh." After a long look, Zhao Yunlan continued, deliberately drawing out each word, "I thought maybe..." Shen Wei's spine stiffened, only for him to hear the dumbass conclude, with a bit of a lilting whine, "I was carrying your child."
2) Kitchen scene: Shen Wei is caught
The other side of the bed was empty and already cold to the touch. It was impossible to say how long Shen Wei had been gone.
Startled, Zhao Yunlan sat up and saw light coming from the kitchen. He groped around the floor for his slippers, but when he couldn't find whatever corner they'd been kicked into, he headed for the kitchen barefoot.
Shen Wei was facing away, doing something with his hands as Zhao Yunlan entered. A little clay pot bubbled on the stove. The faint smell of a medicinal decoction wafted from the pot, as if Shen Wei was preparing some grand dish that needed to be stewed overnight.
Zhao Yunlan rubbed his eyes and walked over, rolling up his sleeves. "What are you making? I'll help-" His voice startled Shen Wei, who dropped what he'd been holding.
What clattered to the floor was a knife, dripping enough blood that the clean white cabinets were spattered when it landed. Zhao Yunlan broke off mid-sentence, pupils constricting. In an instant, all trace of sleepiness was gone. Shen Wei had been...had been cutting into his own chest .
3) Kitchen scene: Shen Wei explains
"Long ago...your left soul fire went missing, and your heart's blood became the Soul-Guarding Lamp's wick," Shen Wei responded, very low. "Your spirit was already weak. Your three souls were unstable. And for all that you forcibly elevated me to godhood, the fact remains that I was born from the Place of Great Disrespect. The gui are filthy and inauspicious. If you spend enough time in my presence, I'll start wearing you down. As I do, you'll become deficient in both qi and blood. Ultimately, I'll burn you out until there's nothing left."
Shen Wei dropped his gaze, hiding his ink-black eyes under lashes like crow feathers. Barely audible now, he said, "All those thousands of years ago, Shennong said that, as a King of the Gui, my life was fated to both begin and end badly. If you insist on protecting me and keeping me at your side, I'll inevitably kill you."
"So the 'medicine' I've been drinking has your blood in it... The purest blood from the tip of your heart." Zhao Yunlan's lips trembled. "That's your way of replenishing my 'lamp oil'?"
Shen Wei looked at him with a faint, soft smile. "Every part of me is dark, down to my very soul. Only the very tip of my heart is clean, and that's where I've kept you-where the blood runs red. I'll gladly use it to protect you."
4) Zhao Yunlan's dream
If it was at all possible, Zhao Yunlan wanted to regain Kunlun-jun's powers and true memories. Failing that, he at least wanted to know what was up with all these lies among truths, shrouded in layers of mystery, and learn what had motivated it all. He couldn't act rashly without seeing the full picture.
Shen Wei... The name alone overwhelmed Zhao Yunlan with worry. It was as though a flame was burning in his heart, steadily eating away at his energy, but he had to hold it in-and not only that, he had to seem outwardly peaceful while he was at it, as if he had everything under control.
He'd noticed at times that if he was just sitting there and no one else was around, his brow would furrow subconsciously. The same scene kept unfolding in his mind, no matter where he was or what he was doing: in some cold, dreary place, without a single beam of light or sign of life, Shen Wei was half swallowed by an endless darkness. Helpless to do anything but look up, Shen Wei desperately strained to glimpse the emerald seas and azure skies, but they were beyond him. His vision couldn't pierce the unending, absolute blackness. Sooner or later, inevitably succumbing to disappointment and despair, Shen Wei was slowly sucked away into the darkness...
Zhao Yunlan jolted awake as someone abruptly nudged him. He found his heart racing and his forehead beaded with sweat.
5) Zhu Hong's confession
Zhu Hong found her real feelings tumbling out of her mouth. "Director Zhao, just give me the word. One word and I'll sever all ties with my tribe and follow you to the end, through hell or high water."
It was as if she'd handed her whole life over on a silver platter, leaving her scared of Zhao Yunlan's response, but also anticipating it. However, a declaration of love was never guaranteed reciprocation. In the end, Zhao Yunlan still wouldn't meet her eyes.
"What do you mean?" he asked. "You and I have known each other for years, and we don't have any grudges against each other. Why can't I wish you well? As long as you're doing well, that's what matters to me."
The light in Zhu Hong's eyes flickered out.
Questions:
Do you like the worldbuilding around borrowing years? What do you think about the kitchen scene, and how it was adapted in the drama? Which is more intense? Which do you like better? Is Fourth Uncle right to make Zhu Hong leave? Do you think Zhao Yunlan actually wants Zhu Hong to stay, even if he won't say it? Does it help with understanding what's going on that Zhao Yunlan is actively trying to puzzle out what's true and what's a lie?
(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!)
Our current schedule (which is also where you can sign up to host a post - please do if you can!)
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Yeah, I definitely think this is very different. It's only the "not that busy" part that is funny to me - I'm sure under normal circumstances this level of activity doesn't lead to (much) exhaustion for him, but it should probably still count as "busy" regardless. :D
"This is making me really appreciate that in the drama (iirc) she's politicised and says she has to stand with the SID. Being part of the team and protecting the world is a core part of her identity, on top of her crush. (The equivelent scene is in ep 30, 34:27.)"
Thank you for the time stamp and an excuse to rewatch. :D Yeah, the SID is not in danger in the novel, and they're not even involved in protecting the world all that much yet (or at least they don't know how much they're involved) - at this point this is still just a regular case, a regular job and regular co-workers, and she doesn't seem to care about them all that much, compared to how much she cares about Zhao Yunlan. I like the drama version better too, ftr. :)
"I guess I wish he'd distinguish between harmful and evil/filthy/wrong, though? Like, think of it more like an allergy and less like a judgement. You know?"
I feel like this quote ("Every part of me is dark, down to my very soul. Only the very tip of my heart is clean, and that’s where I’ve kept you—where the blood runs red."), unlike many of his other quotes, was pretty free of judgment? Just facts. Oh, unless 'clean' is a judgment, it could be. He does have a problem with his hands being not clean enough.
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And isn't that part of the ending, too, offering the gui a way out of that inherently unfair state of being they're trapped in? That's how I remember it, anyway, though I'm none too clear on any details.
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It absolutely is, ITA. And I think that's kinda what I mean - even if he rallied against it, he would still need a way to describe the facts re: what he does to Zhao Yunlan and what his blood is helping with.
And yeah, I'm looking forward to getting to the ending (as well as the other parts of the backstory) so that I can be clearer on just about everything. :D
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But my impression is definitely that the worldbuilding is just stacked against him. His self-hatred is internalising that rather than railing against the unfairness of it all.
Beautifully put. :-(((((
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I feel like there should be a difference, too. I think that's what I was saying upthread when I said I wished he could "think of it more like an allergy and less like a judgement." But now I think![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
trobadora's right, that there is no way to talk about it like an allergy, because worldbuilding, so I should stop wishing Shen Wei was different, and start wishing the cosmology was. ;-p
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Yeah, the SID is not in danger in the novel, and they're not even involved in protecting the world all that much yet (or at least they don't know how much they're involved) - at this point this is still just a regular case, a regular job and regular co-workers
Ohh, I hadn't thought about that. Huh. Yeah, it gives this sequence such a different vibe, because the tension is all "What will ZYL find out when?" and "How will the Magistrate's scheming manifest next?" and "Can ZYL and SW work things out?" and "Will ZH leave the SID?" There isn't the sense that all of this is happening as Doom Closes In, and the outcomes of these questions will affect the fate of the world.
He does have a problem with his hands being not clean enough.
When is that from? I think I missed it (or I've forgotten, which is Entirely Possible).
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I never really thought of this either until you compared the Zhu Hong scenes! As much as I love the drama version, I find this pretty cool too because the SID people are very much in the middle of the shitstorm (though the SID as an institution is not), and the outcomes will indeed affect the fate of the world, but they're kinda still on the brink of really finding out about it. There is the danger and it is growing, but they're still doing their normal everyday tasks, or so they think.
"When is that from? I think I missed it (or I've forgotten, which is Entirely Possible)."
Volume 2, chapters 9 and 10, there's this conversation with Ghost Face:
"“Let go.” Shen Wei practically gritted each word out between his teeth. “Don’t you dare touch him with your filthy hands.”
“Filthy hands?” Ghost Face laughed. “Are yours so clean, then?”
Shen Wei’s expression turned to ice."
And then pretty much immediately after that, Shen Wei doesn't catch Zhao Yunlan because of his literal hands being literally not clean (even though getting stained with cabbage juice is kind of a lot better than falling while blind):
"He was so flustered that he knocked over a plastic broom in the corner, stepped on it, and nearly fell on his face.
Shen Wei’s hands were wet from handling the cabbage. Afraid of getting cabbage juice all over Zhao Yunlan, all he could do was extend an arm to break his fall. Zhao Yunlan fell heavily against his chest.
The apartment wasn’t very big, so the kitchen was very small. It was just barely suitable for one person, let alone two grown men. Shen Wei was obliged to stay in that position and circle his arms around in front of Zhao Yunlan to rinse them under the faucet. His chin rested naturally on Zhao Yunlan’s shoulder.
Zhao Yunlan was suddenly still and silent.
Once his hands were clean, Shen Wei let his arms hover around Zhao Yunlan as he steered him toward the door."
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There is the danger and it is growing, but they're still doing their normal everyday tasks, or so they think.
I find it very easy to be oblivious right along with them. Heh. But yeah, once you know that it's building in the background, it does change the flavour of everything. I guess, too, it's the difference between the novel where it feels like Weilan is the A plot and everything else is the B plot, and the drama where Weilan is woven into everything else and it's all the A plot. Or something. Idk, it makes sense in my head. ;-p
And then pretty much immediately after that, Shen Wei doesn't catch Zhao Yunlan because of his literal hands being literally not clean (even though getting stained with cabbage juice is kind of a lot better than falling while blind)
Oh, that's right! I remember you picking up on it at the time, now. Yes! (Thanks so much for digging those quotes out. <3) I wasn't sure how literally SW meant "filthy hands" when he was talking to Ghost Face (or whether it was like a "getting your hands dirty" kind of idiom), but it does come across as Extremely Literal and Specific in that context, you're right. :-/
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... did you mean that the other way round? Because it very much feels like the opposite to me, LOL.
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I 100% fail at structural analysis, lol. Here's how it seems to me:
Novel: Weilan dominates everything. There's some Guo Changcheng scenes, and a few other SID characters get moments, and there was the mythology dump inside the Divine Tree, but those are all just seasoning for the love story. The parts with Ghost Face breaking the Great Seal and the Netherworld trying to awaken Kunlun feel to me, at this stage, pretty peripheral to the focus of the story, which is largely concerned with Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei figuring out how to be together, given their everything. (The reason I see the plot with Ghost Face and so on as separate is because Weilan really don't seem to be thinking about it that much? The SID reacts to cases, but at least lately, Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan are mostly caught up in their relationship stuff. So the background machinations feel almost entirely disconnected to me.) (Which of course might be my own skewed reading, because the relationship stuff is where a lot of my focus is.)
Drama: because it's not ~officially~ a love story, the relationship plot is completely woven into the "Ye Zun tries to take over the world" plot: Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan become partners as they start to get a sense of the big picture, and they join forces partly in reaction to the building threat. Whatever they do, it's all part and parcel of the wider picture. Weilan is still the heart of it, but that heart only beats because the rest of the body is there. If that makes sense?
That's where I was coming from. Thinking about it more, I think you could easily say that there are two major plot threads in the drama -- Zhao Yunlan & Shen Wei, and Shen Wei & Ye Zun -- and they come together at the end. Is that what you were thinking?
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You originally said that to you, in the novel it feels like Weilan is the A plot and everything else is the B plot whereas in the drama Weilan is woven into everything else and it's all the A plot, and to me it's more like in the novel there is only one plot, and it's all about Weilan or at least Kunlun - everything else is just sketched in around the edges and doesn't rise to the level of a B plot. Whereas the drama has multiple things going on - the Weilan romance which is inextricably tied up with the main action plot, but also (as you say) the SW & YZ secondary strand (which is secondary mainly because it's not woven through the entire drama but only the second half), and the recurring side characters with their own subplots, and the cases of the week on top of that, all of which get more focus than any secondary plot gets in the novel, because 40 episodes of space.
So it feel to me exactly the other way round from how you initially put it. *g* But as you see, I agree with what you're saying in this comment about Weilan dominating in the novel and everything else being seasoning - except that I don't think of the Ghost Face etc. stuff as separate, just more flavouring that the novel cares very little about in its own right. I don't feel like anything is disconnected because to me, it's all there in service of the Weilan plot. *g*
And I also agree that in the drama the main action plot and the Weilan plot are completely entwined, and unlike the novel, neither one is really dominant. It's just that the drama has more going on on top of that - fleshing out so many things that the novel wasn't interested in fleshing out, with subplots that stand on their own even though they also serve to mirror and illuminate the main themes.
Whatever they do, it's all part and parcel of the wider picture. Weilan is still the heart of it, but that heart only beats because the rest of the body is there. If that makes sense?
100%! ♥ ♥ ♥
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everything else is just sketched in around the edges and doesn't rise to the level of a B plot.
Ah right, that totally makes sense (and also explains why I keep forgetting about the rest of it and have to remind myself, lol).
and the recurring side characters with their own subplots, and the cases of the week on top of that, all of which get more focus than any secondary plot gets in the novel, because 40 episodes of space.
Right. Yes! And also, just, the drama seems more interested in worldbuilding-related themes, and that necessarily calls for a wider focus... as you go on to say. *facepalm* *leaves this here anyway*
I don't feel like anything is disconnected because to me, it's all there in service of the Weilan plot. *g*
Gotcha. And yes, now that you say it, that makes total sense.
100%! ♥ ♥ ♥
\o/ \o/ \o/ <3 <3 <3
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Yeah, I think the only person who is being metaphorical (or at least offhanded) here is Ghost Face. (And Shen Wei is reacting to him doing this with his literal hands: "Wholly unafraid, he glanced down and smoothed out Zhao Yunlan’s clothing, which had been blown about haphazardly in the wind.")
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Got it. (Poor Shen Wei.)