Xiang Liu meeting the Shaman King in Chi Chen's home, and asking how to remove the Lover's bug - note that here, he calls it 情人蛊 Lovers poisonous bug, not 情蛊 love poisonous bug (as described by the Lirong old donkey meat seller), not 同命蛊 shared fate poisonous bugs (as mentioned by the Royal Mother in the leaked script after he destroyed the bugs). So finally we get to hear the correct name of the bug, and everything it implies.liddi:
Nice observation! I need these types of reminders of silver linings when they turn up. ^^
Truly pleased how the pearl scene turned out.
While I personally am not a fan of the new scene, I think it could have been much, much worse. I was happy to see TJC chose to play the emotions in this scene as more contained and controlled.
I wish I felt the same about Xiao Yao and A Heng's reunion. Despite the heightened emotions, it paled in comparison to the time when she mistook Royal Consort Jing An for her mother. It would have been far more effective if we were given a flashback as to the events surrounding A Heng's death and what Chi Chen did to secure a part of her consciousness and seal it in their home. Instead, all we had was a narration that somehow felt lacklustre and flat, which is a shame.
I feel like I'm the only viewer who doesn't like the emotional scenes in the drama where XY yells while crying. ^^"
But I generally agree with the sentiment. I'm glad XY got to speak with her mother at all, but the scene definitely felt lacking compared to the novel version of their meeting.
I am surprised that Hong Jiang would have had Chi Chen's bone token especially since there was millennia-long conflict between them in Once Promised. Can anyone please remind me whether it was ever mentioned in the drama what Hong Jiang and Chi Chen's relationship was like, prior to this? Xiang Liu said that they were not close friends but fought together before. That does not explain why Ch Chen would then give Hong Jiang a token that would compel the Bai Li tribe to fulfil a request.
In general the relationship between the 4 great generals of Sheng Nong was not good. However, in Once Promised at least one time they showed support to Chi Chen. It was the battle in Ze Province where Yi Peng wanted to flood the whole town. Other general showed up (including Gong Gong?) you may check that event. Thus Gong Gong might have the token from Chi Chen at that time
Nice observation! I need these types of reminders of silver linings when they turn up. ^^AH :
So do I, when so many scenes are drastically changed or removed!
While I personally am not a fan of the new scene, I think it could have been much, much worse. I was happy to see TJC chose to play the emotions in this scene as more contained and controlled.
Yes. It was a massive relief that TJC made the decision to portray Xiang Liu as restrained and at peace, which was totally not how I imagined the scene to play out based on the leaked script. And thanks to that decision, Xiang Liu's character and dignity as we know it from the novel is intact.
I feel like I'm the only viewer who doesn't like the emotional scenes in the drama where XY yells while crying. ^^"
Oh I am not a fan of yelling scenes, and that includes when she was trying to protect Cang Xuan from the threat of Fangfeng Bei's arrow. What moved me to tears about the scene with Royal Consort Jing An was her desperation when she was still gagged, the way she clawed and reached for in despair, trying to hold on to the mother she found at last, begging her not to abandon her. I had the same reaction when I heard this scene in the audiobook. However, here, I felt it lacked that same impact. The words moved me - she became child-like again, her bravado when she said she did not have a hard life at all, before finally conceding that she did suffer a little bit, but now she had grown up well, trying to keep her mother from leaving her once more, only able to approach and cling on to her mother thanks to the protection of her father through the peach blossom petals that encircled her. But the scene simply failed to touch me as much - I feel the editing choices played a part in it, some details too fleeting, others too dragged out.
There are unanswered questions too. How did Shao Hao know A Heng had been hiding here all this while, when there is no blazing heat in the area surrounding the place to begin with. Yes, there is a peach blossom forest which was probably not there until their deaths, but these are up to the imagination of the viewers. If Chi Chen kept her fire contained, how would anyone else know she was there when no one could enter the house? And therein lies another question. The Shaman king clearly knew what was in the house. How could he or anyone else have entered prior to this, while A Heng's consciousness was still there? If it was after A Heng's soul had left, how did they know they could finally enter? Inconsistencies like these feel jarring.
H19279:
In general the relationship between the 4 great generals of Sheng Nong was not good. However, in Once Promised at least one time they showed support to Chi Chen. It was the battle in Ze Province where Yi Peng wanted to flood the whole town. Other general showed up (including Gong Gong?) you may check that event. Thus Gong Gong might have the token from Chi Chen at that time
Yes - the flooding of Ze Province is among my favourite chapters in the entire novel thus far, which I have translated here:
The Siege of Ze Province Part 1
The Siege of Ze Province Part 2
The Siege of Ze Province Part 3
The Siege of Ze Province Part 4
It is very unlikely that Chi Chen gave Hong Jiang the bone token then, based on the event as it played out in Once Promised since Hong Jiang, Yan Zhuan and Luo Jia came and left swiftly. Hence my thought that in the drama, they had it changed such that the enmity between Hong Jiang and Chi Chen was not as bad as in the novel, which would allow the possibility of Chi Chen having given him the bone token before. However, I can't recall whether the drama ever mentioned what that relationship was like, prior to this scene. Do you remember?
Oh I am not a fan of yelling scenes, and that includes when she was trying to protect Cang Xuan from the threat of Fangfeng Bei's arrow.
!! I'm not alone!
What moved me to tears about the scene with Royal Consort Jing An was her desperation when she was still gagged, the way she clawed and reached for in despair, trying to hold on to the mother she found at last, begging her not to abandon her. I had the same reaction when I heard this scene in the audiobook. However, here, I felt it lacked that same impact. The words moved me - she became child-like again, her bravado when she said she did not have a hard life at all, before finally conceding that she did suffer a little bit, but now she had grown up well, trying to keep her mother from leaving her once more, only able to approach and cling on to her mother thanks to the protection of her father through the peach blossom petals that encircled her. But the scene simply failed to touch me as much - I feel the editing choices played a part in it, some details too fleeting, others too dragged out.
That makes sense to me.
There are unanswered questions too. How did Shao Hao know A Heng had been hiding here all this while, when there is no blazing heat in the area surrounding the place to begin with. Yes, there is a peach blossom forest which was probably not there until their deaths, but these are up to the imagination of the viewers. If Chi Chen kept her fire contained, how would anyone else know she was there when no one could enter the house? And therein lies another question. The Shaman king clearly knew what was in the house. How could he or anyone else have entered prior to this, while A Heng's consciousness was still there? If it was after A Heng's soul had left, how did they know they could finally enter? Inconsistencies like these feel jarring.
Completely agree.
Hence my thought that in the drama, they had it changed such that the enmity between Hong Jiang and Chi Chen was not as bad as in the novel, which would allow the possibility of Chi Chen having him the bone token before. However, I can't recall whether the drama ever mentioned what that relationship was like, prior to this scene. Do you remember?
In S1 Ep11, they didn't include XL's lines from chapter 35 about Chi You and Gong Gong's relationship. They added a line where XY asked why Chi Chen would choose a dead-end path, and swapped in XL's line about dying on the battlefield.
-----
Chapter 35:
Xiao Yao’s eyes opened wide and she asked, “Did you ever meet Qi Yo?” Maybe because Xiang Liu was also a world renowned demon devil, it was easier for her to talk about Qi Yo with him.
“No, when I started to follow my adoptive father, Qi Yo was already dead.”
“How was the relationship between Gong Gong and Qi Yo?”
“Really bad back then, almost hated foes. But after Qi Yo died and my adoptive father would pay respects to Zhu Rong, he would always also pay respects to Qi Yo.” Xiang Liu laughed in mockery, “You can’t have expected those guys to have been on good terms back then. If they got along, then Sheng Nong would have never been destroyed.”
Xiao Yao was silent before suddenly asking, “Xiang Liu, why did you pick Gong Gong? Because he’s your adoptive father?”
-----
So I suppose, in theory, in the drama universe the relationship between Chi Chen and Hong Jiang could have been one where Chi Chen would leave his bone token to Hong Jiang, since no one has come out and said that their relationship was bad. And XL did tell the Shaman King that Hong Jiang and Chi Chen were not close friends.
Actually, I am curious: how did Gong Gong survive the last battle in order to lead the remnant army to retreat to the mountains around QS town? Would Chi You have had an opportunity to communicate with him and perhaps entrust his surviving men and/or his bone token to Gong Gong before the end of the battle?
And it least it answers our question, that YES, XL feels all her emotions / sensations.Kokuto:
Yes. I'm just glad that they cut out the dialogue in the gambling den where he told Jing how they could feel each other's intense emotions.
Yes, it's alot of angst for XL, but at least we have some lightness, like the face pinch and Chubby telling him to keep on pouring!
Mini-Furball scenes are a highlight for me, and we finally see the one where Xiang Liu toasts him. My daughter was shaking her head, seeing Furball drink alcohol from a bowl almost its size LOL. Anyway, Xiang Liu's wine bottle must be like the magic porridge pot, with an unending supply of wine. Certainly the amount Furball drank and asked for refills, would not fit that wine bottle!
Now I need to find myself a Furball plushie.
What bothered me more was XY calling XL a friend.blabla100:
I don't think she was able to call him anything else when he rejected her appeal brutally and unequivocally, even killing off the only alter-ego that could be with her temporarily in her world, since he would not take her away. To call him anything other than a friend (if even that), was something he had made clear to her that he was not interested in.
I find her reactions to his appearances vary from place to place. In the old Lirong donkey meat seller's place, she was exasperated but comforted when she realised he was pulling her leg. In the gambling den, she was smug like pie that she managed to recognise him despite his disguise and kept clinging on to him, refusing to let go. Here she could not help pinching him to ascertain he was real, nor could she help her anxiety that he was risking his life showing up where so many powerful deities had gathered. And her attempt to persuade him once again, hoping in vain that he would finally turn from certain fate.
Here it was just another stick of pain, stacked on his back, that is the price of his love and his desire to see her happy.
This just breaks my heart all over again.
are you talking about the drama or the book?
Both Shao Hao and Xuan Yuan King had thought that the Drought devil was A Heng. However, in the novel she was describled to have the solar energy which could kill people when they tried to get nearby.
From the novel you can see that how difficult Shao Hao could sustain and survise in that desert. None could approach her. Their relationship was cut off. Thus, unless because of XY, he would not risk his life to bring her there.
So by simplify that scene, it makes Shao hao selfish that he did not pass by or bring her there earlier
Both. So, thank you for the clarification.
In the drama, I wonder it's possible he didn't know, cause he seemed as surprised as the others at the peach blossoms whirlwind. He could have taken her there to show her that her parents had made plans and a life that included her. For some reason, I got the feeling that A Heng didn't manifest normally, but did so to talk to XY. Which makes sense, cause A Heng would have to constantly do something to keep her home from burning to the ground, if she was always manifested.
There are unanswered questions too. How did Shao Hao know A Heng had been hiding here all this while, when there is no blazing heat in the area surrounding the place to begin with. Yes, there is a peach blossom forest which was probably not there until their deaths, but these are up to the imagination of the viewers. If Chi Chen kept her fire contained, how would anyone else know she was there when no one could enter the house? And therein lies another question. The Shaman king clearly knew what was in the house. How could he or anyone else have entered prior to this, while A Heng's consciousness was still there? If it was after A Heng's soul had left, how did they know they could finally enter? Inconsistencies like these feel jarring.
Did the Shaman King know A Heng was in the house?
Yes. I'm just glad that they cut out the dialogue in the gambling den where he told Jing how they could feel each other's intense emotions.
Yes. The less of Jing, the better I feel. I can't imagine XL sharing such info with Jing.
Mini-Furball scenes are a highlight for me, and we finally see the one where Xiang Liu toasts him. My daughter was shaking her head, seeing Furball drink alcohol from a bowl almost its size LOL. Anyway, Xiang Liu's wine bottle must be like the magic porridge pot, with an unending supply of wine. Certainly the amount Furball drank and asked for refills, would not fit that wine bottle!
Now I need to find myself a Furball plushie.
I really want a key chain Furball fob. Maybe I can find a tiny drinking cup, and stick a cotton ball in it. lol
Yes! That wine bottle never runs dry!
I find her reactions to his appearances vary from place to place. In the old Lirong donkey meat seller's place, she was exasperated but comforted when she realised he was pulling her leg. In the gambling den, she was smug like pie that she managed to recognise him despite his disguise and kept clinging on to him, refusing to let go. Here she could not help pinching him to ascertain he was real, nor could she help her anxiety that he was risking his life showing up where so many powerful deities had gathered. And her attempt to persuade him once again, hoping in vain that he would finally turn from certain fate.
They are simpatico, so their moods play off each other. I find it more telling that despite the horrible break after the wedding robbery, XY still wants to see XL and welcomes his appearances. I know some time has passed, but you would have thought she would have broken completely with him.
Likewise, as we've discussed before, XY won't make a serious effort to try and save XL. When he asked if she was worried about him as a friend ... why not ask how she can help or heck, what can she trade to save his life? So many opportunities missed. sigh
I personally believe the drama made it even more obvious that there is nothing that XY could have said or done to keep XL from going down with his comrades. Maybe in the beginning, when XY was still WXL and when the rebel army was still far from reaching its end, their relationship was leading to a full blown romance, but things got cut short before reaching that point. They were doomed the moment CX came into town.
Probably. But it isn't whether or not she was successful, it's whether or not she tried. The most we got was her saying she wished she had rescued FFB, not Hong Jiang, and that alone hit him and viewers in the heart.
So many people are pissed on how s2 turned out to be, I don't like the changes much either, but I do feel they did keep the general story, just that they chose to alter the line of events, for whatever reasons. Honestly Jing got it even worse, the drama made it even more obvious that he's just a plot device for XY and XL.
Well, they needed to make it obvious, since some people keep trying to dismiss XL as a platonic friend.
I'm disappointed by a few things, but the story continues, so I'm here to see how it plays out. And to see XL. lol
So I suppose, in theory, in the drama universe the relationship between Chi Chen and Hong Jiang could have been one where Chi Chen would leave his bone token to Hong Jiang, since no one has come out and said that their relationship was bad. And XL did tell the Shaman King that Hong Jiang and Chi Chen were not close friends.
Yes I think that is what the drama is going with. It would be far more awkward if they emphasised those two were on bad terms, but still had Chi Chen give the bone token to Hong Jiang. To be honest, I still feel the bone token would have made more sense obtained from the Lirong old donkey meat seller, since he clearly was Chi Chen's staunch follower and subordinate who missed him terribly even after over 400 years.
Actually, I am curious: how did Gong Gong survive the last battle in order to lead the remnant army to retreat to the mountains around QS town? Would Chi You have had an opportunity to communicate with him and perhaps entrust his surviving men and/or his bone token to Gong Gong before the end of the battle?
There was no mention that Hong Jiang was in the final battle at Ji Province. After the flooding of Ze Province, the 3 generals dispersed into different locations, and the Yellow Emperor sent troops after them so he should not have been there at the time. the Yellow Emperor was in heavy pursuit of Hong Jiang when Ban Quan was threatened, after which he rerouted the troops to defend Ban Quan instead. As such, I doubt there was any way Chi Chen could have entrusted the bone token to Hong Jiang at any time during the final battle. Seeing the massacre at Ji Province, the old Lirong donkey meat seller must have been one of the very few Shen Nong soldiers who survived.
The following is a summarised breakdown of sequence of events leading up to the final battle:
- Yu Xiang initiates war against Xuan Yuan
- Yan Zhuan kills Xuanyuan Hui at the battle of Tong Er Pass
- Yan Zhuan kills Xuanyuan Hui at the battle of Tong Er Pass
- Xuan Yuan retaliates against Shen Nong, taking 6 cities in a row
- Yu Xiang is instigated by Yan Zhuan to personally lead Shen Nong army against Yellow Emperor, and is killed by the Yellow Emperor at Ban Quan, while Qing Yang, who had been disguised as the Yellow Emperor as a decoy, is killed by Chi Chen
- Nuo Nai infiltrates the Shen Nong army
- Xuan Yuan marches towards Ze Province - if it falls, Shen Nong's capital Zhi Yi city will also fall
- Hong Jiang tries but fails to unite the vassal lords
- Yellow Emperor proposes marriage alliance with Shen Nong but received no response
- Hong Jiang tries but fails to unite the vassal lords
- Siege and flooding of Ze Province
- 4 Shen Nong great generals unite to protect the city
- Yun Sang escapes Luo Jia and agrees to marriage alliance. Asks for a mourning period of several years
- 4 Shen Nong great generals unite to protect the city
- Xuan Yuan's war against Shen Nong is temporarily halted
- Shao Hao starts reforms in Gao Xin, kills his father, exiles and/or imprisons dissenting voices among his brothers
- Yun Sang marries Qing Yang, Luo Jia surrenders to Yellow Emperor on the day of the wedding
- Xuan Yuan deploys troops to go after Shen Nong remnants who still refuse to surrender, wants Gao Xin to send troops to help trap Hong Jiang
- Yellow Emperor sends Zhong Yi and Chang Pu to attack Yan Zhuan, wants to make him surrender as his bloodline is the purest of the Shen Nong royal family, and his defection would be a major blow to the morale of the Shen Nong remnants
- Yan Zhuan pretends to surrender but sets up a formation to erupt the volcano at Xun Mountain, killing himself, Zhong Yi and armies on both sides of the divide
- Shen Nong remnants morale uplifted by Yan Zhuan's sacrifice and the banner of resistance sweeps through Shen Nong
- Xuan Yuan attacks Ze Province which is defended by Chi Chen - thousands of Xuan Yuan soldiers killed, and their heads were hung on the city walls
- Xuan Yuan troops defeated, forced to retreat to Ban Quan
- Yellow Emperor stops the pursuit for Hong Jiang, reroutes troops to Ban Quan and personally leads the army to defend Ban Quan, but is heavily wounded and defeated by Chi Chen.
- Ban Quan falls back to Shen Nong hands.
- Xie Zu dies; Yellow Emperor arranges for his injuries to be aggravated to manipulate A Heng into not leaving, seeing her mother and 4th brother whom she stayed for have all died
- Chi Chen stationed the Shen Nong army at the border of Xuan Yuan and stops attacking. Demands Xuan Yuan to surrender and promise never to invade Shen Nong again in exchange for peace - Xuan Yuan refuses Chi Chen's demands for surrender
- Yellow Emperor vilifies Chi Chen and malign Yu Xiang's name, accusing him of incompetence in not checking Chi Chen's bloodthirsty ways, which fuels the Shen Nong vassal lords' dissatisfaction with Chi Chen. whose military power had been placed in Chi Chen's hands
- Shao Hao's brothers start a rebellion. Gao Xin signs blood alliance with Xuan Yuan to support them in their war against Shen Nong, but secretly wants to see both Xuan Yuan and Shen Nong suffer massive losses, to ensure Gao Xin's safety
- Xuan Yuan continues to suffer defeat. Yellow Emperor convinces A Heng to lead the Xuan Yuan army against Chi Chen in his stead for the sake of their people
- Chi Chen marches westwards to Dun Wu Mountain, the last stronghold of Xuan Yuan.
- Chi Chen retreats to Ji Province, where the terrain is beneficial to Shen Nong warfare and the final battle is played out there
- Both armies suffers heavy casualties due to first the floods that are caused by Shao Hao and Chi Chen's battle, followed by A Heng who lost control after using the sun power within her to evaporate the floods
- The Shen Nong army is ultimately wiped out by the Yellow Emperor who personally led his armies to secretly lay in ambush, waiting for the opportune moment to strike after the battle at Ji Province
- Chi Chen retreats to Ji Province, where the terrain is beneficial to Shen Nong warfare and the final battle is played out there
- The Yellow Emperor ascends to the summit of Shen Nong mountain and unifies the Central Plains
- Pockets of resistance still remain in Shen Nong led by Hong Jiang, Jing Tian and others who resolutely refuse to surrender.
Did the Shaman King know A Heng was in the house
We don't really know. He seemed to be well-acquainted with the house, even set up an altar in front of Chi Chen and A Heng's portrait which was already there when Xiao Yao first entered the house.
Rewatched the scene at Chi Chen's house and realised that the peach forest had been there since the early days before their deaths. Shao Hao seems very familiar with what Chi Chen did here - planting a peach tree each time he missed A Heng, and nurturing it with spiritual powers. It does feel incongruous - how would he know so well what Chi Chen did when he missed his wife anyway?
If a fragment of A Heng's consciousness was sealed here, perhaps it was in the house, but merely hidden from sight, waiting for the day Xiao Yao would come. In other words, Shao Hao and the Shaman King most likely did not know of her existence as well. The only reason Shao Hao brought her to the house was to show her how much she was loved and wanted, and how her parents longed to build their home together but ultimately that choice was taken from their hands. And the reason he never told her in the first place should be exactly how the novel explained it - because he believed shielding her from the truth about her origins enabled her to live a carefree life as a Haoling princess, rather than the daughter of a man universally hated in the Great Wilderness. However, seeing Xiao Yao insist that her parents willfully abandoned her, Shao Hao made the decision to show her their home and set the record straight.
I really want a key chain Furball fob. Maybe I can find a tiny drinking cup, and stick a cotton ball in it. lol
LOL! That is an idea!
I find it more telling that despite the horrible break after the wedding robbery, XY still wants to see XL and welcomes his appearances. I know some time has passed, but you would have thought she would have broken completely with him.
YES! By right their relationship should have been destroyed beyond repair when they parted at Qingshui Town. I guess it helped that the next time they met, she was devastated over being Chi Chen's daughter, and he decided to dabble in stand-up (or is it sit-down) comedy. But it is telling that she forgave him very quickly. The novel shows us this far clearer, when she tenderly touched his white hair and told him to leave quickly since it was not safe for him, to which he gave her a swift forehead kiss that had her thinking had to be an illusion. It was as if the cruel events following the wedding had never happened at all.
Likewise, as we've discussed before, XY won't make a serious effort to try and save XL. When he asked if she was worried about him as a friend ... why not ask how she can help or heck, what can she trade to save his life? So many opportunities missed. sigh
I think to her, the dynamics of their relationship is vastly different from the rest of her suitors. She sees Cang Xuan and herself as equals, supporting and protecting him - relying on each other. In the case of Jing, he was the one who tried to please her, so she is in a superior position, to the point of using herself to seduce Hou and help him untangle the mess in his household. With Xiang Liu, she is often the one who tries to please him - so he is the one who has the upper hand (in her opinion). She could try and persuade or cajole, but she did not believe that she held a place of enough importance to him that would make him listen to her. Which, put in perspective, tells us just how much courage it took, how much self-doubt she had to overcome, to have sent the appeal via the crystal globe, only to receive his cruel response. And still, she could not help her tender reaction to him the next time they met.
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