Guardian Readalong: Vol. 3, Chapters 3 & 4

[trobadora]

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.

The corresponding part in the Chinese version on JJWXC/the fan translation are chapters 81-82.

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!)

Comments

[facethestrange]

I just went and filmed my door, lololol, because I understand less and less with every new piece of information. xD :D :D https://streamable.com/xon1rf The link is apparently only for 2 days, but I didn't want to bother with youtube. This is how it works from the outside, everything else is super cool sci-fi to me. ;D (Also Zhao Yunlan's door has a handle and Shen Wei's door has a knob, to make it more complicated. ;D)

[trobadora]

Haha, we definitely need that locksmith lecture, this is so difficult to talk about when you don't really have the terminology!

I've never recorded a video on my phone, but now I feel like I should try and figure that out. *g*

[facethestrange]

"Haha, we definitely need that locksmith lecture, this is so difficult to talk about when you don't really have the terminology!"

Ikrrrrrr. xD I'm so amused that I just briefly wondered if Zhao Yunlan was able to leave the apartment, and I created this monster of a conversation. ;D

[trobadora]

Haha, right???

Anyway, here's my door.

Outside: https://streamable.com/m77jhi
Inside: https://streamable.com/5ft66n

[facethestrange]

Yay, first phone video. :D :D And ooooh, I imagined the regular kind of handle being rigid (like the one you have on the inside), this makes a lot more sense. :D (When you said that, I was like 'why would they make a moving handle and then make it not move'. xD) And now I still don't know if Zhao Yunlan's handle can be rigid, because it looks like a regular one, but apparently that doesn't change anything about how the lock works anyway. ;D Dammit, WHAT A TOPIC. xD :D

ETA: The side view works exactly the same for me, so the difference is literally just the lack of the outside handle, huh. Cool. :D

[trobadora]

Dammit, WHAT A TOPIC. xD :D

Seriously! AMAZING.

The outside handles come in various shapes, but mine is the most common one for flat doors, as far as I can tell.

[china_shop]

*hearts us to pieces*

Okay, I could only think of two scenes where we see people come in or leave Zhao Yunlan's apartment: episode 8 (gastritis) and episodes 30/31 (Zhang Shi reveal). Here's what I've got:

For this one, we don't need a locksmith so much as one of those TV tech people who can take an incredibly blurry indistinct image and make it super clear. ;-p

(Click through for bigger image.) Still not 100% clear, but better. (Whyyyy won't they just show us his inside door? What are they hiding?? ;D)

However, in the latter scene, at ep 31, 10:57, the door was closed by Vice Minister Guo when he left, and now Zhao Yunlan storms out, just using the door handle, which is articulated. He only uses one hand. If it was a spring latch that locked automatically when you shut it, he couldn't do that, right? And when they came in, he definitely didn't stop to snib it unlocked. So I think it must be a deadbolt. Thoughts?

[trobadora]

Ooh, great catch! That looks to me like it has a normal door handle, the keyhole, and additionally a manual knob for locking it lock from the inside.

I think the question remaining question is unanswerable unless we've all forgotten about a scene: is the outside handle functional (in which case it can be opened without a key, so long as it hasn't been manually locked from the inside) or not, like mine (in which case it can't)?

[china_shop]

LOL, now I have more questions:

1. Why do you need a keyhole on the inside as well as a manual knob for locking it?
2. How does Zhao Xinci lock up after himself when he leaves?
3. Is it normal to have a handle that's fixed on the outside but articulated on the inside ETA: When it's the same kind of handle?
4. At the end of ep 14, Shen Wei gets out his key, vaguely moves it towards the lock, and then opens the door with the handle. Is the vague move a TV thing, or is he using dark energy? (Either way, the fact that he unlocks it and then uses the handle to open the door suggests to me it's not a spring latch.)

:D :D :D

[trobadora]

1. No idea! Definitely not a common set-up here.
2. I think he doesn't, and the door is just shut, not locked. But if the handle outside isn't functional, it can't be opened anyway. Which is definitely my sanity-saving headcanon, LOL. The only alternatives are that either he has a key (LOL no), or that he leaves it open for anyone to walk in (I can't imagine him doing that), right?
3. Do you mean like mine? Because that's normal here, and has been for many decades. No idea either, I agree a nonfunctional handle/knob shouldn't look the same as a functional one! That's weird (here).
4. I looked at it frame by frame just now, and you're right, he just vaguely holds the key next to the lock, LOL! But it's hard to catch, and I can see him reaching for the knob but I can't see if he turns it or if he's just gripping it. (I think since it wasn't a close-up, they didn't feel the need to actually work the key. So that part at least is a TV thing IMO.)

(I was typing while you edited! So I'm editing before I'm even posting, LOL.)

[china_shop]

1. Oh! Maybe it's a way to disable the outer lock?
2. He definitely doesn't have a key. Maybe Dragon City is generally safe enough that it's not the end of the world to leave your door unlocked? Though, there are so many enemies lurking around at this stage that it seems like a terrible idea. Maybe ZYL has a key hidden in the hallway somewhere, and ZXC knows about it?
3. If only we could interrogate ask the set designers, lol.
4. (Agreed, but I'm glad I can handwave it as dark energy. Like, the key is just him automatically putting on a show for ZYL, even though he doesn't need to anymore. ;-p)

Hee!

[facethestrange]

"I agree a nonfunctional handle/knob shouldn't look the same as a functional one!"

I woke up to all the comments about locks, lolol, and yeah, the original question is still somehow the one that remains - the outside handle just really looks like it should be a functional one, but who the hell knows in the end. xD I'm loving the rest of the conversation too, but I think I'm personally out of any more thoughts that would make any potential locksmith lurker facepalm and cry. ;D

[china_shop]

*dies* And ah, that's fascinating. When you were talking about deadbolts, I was imagining something old school like the one on my childhood home (which I'm completely failing to find an example of online, argh). Yours looks very secure. Is it more or less the same on the inside?

Here's mine, outside and in, lol:

https://streamable.com/ypjvgn
https://streamable.com/tlqtio

There's a variety of styles around, but this kind is pretty common.

[facethestrange]

Heee, yeah, definitely not old school, the door was made/bought brand new in 2010. :) (And even if it was made in 2025, it would still work the same because that's just how doors work. xD :D Though I'm sure you can buy any style if that's what you want, I've just never met anyone who had any other style. I guess the possibility of getting locked out of your own place is not appealing to people. ;D)

It's exactly the same on the inside - I briefly considered filming it too but it didn't make much sense because the only difference would be the direction in which the door opens. :)

Yours is so fun, the inside having three different modes is blowing my mind ngl, really cool. :D :D :D