A thread for novel readers (all the spoilers so don’t click if you don’t want to see)

 liddi:

长相思  Lost You Forever was the last of Tong Hua's historical novels written in 2012.  According to an interview with 书生说 The Scholar Speaks, she felt at the time that it was the most well-written of her works, but upon reviewing it after many years,  she felt that that it was lacking in some areas.  As such, she published a revised edition in 2019 which she tried to address the areas that she regretted in the original. 

May I know whether anyone has read both the original version and the revised edition? If so, can you please share the areas that she revised? It would be interesting to see the progression in her thought process after 7 years. I recently bought the 2023 edition, which should be the revised edition. Have not had a chance to read it properly yet but a quick glance  shows that the epilogue remains unchanged. Thank you in advance!

I've been going back and forth about whether or not to respond to this post and how.

First, it's a great idea to share differences between the 2019 and 2013 versions! I'm pretty sure that I have the 2019 version electronically. I definitely have the 2013 version electronically. I should be able to do a file comparison in Word to readily identify significant differences between them.

Beyond that, I'm a hack at Chinese, so I'm reluctant to try to translate anything for everyone. (I only do it for myself and my husband, who has also been learning Chinese and understands where I'm at with the language.) I'm also super slow (lots of dictionary lookups, checking grammar rules, etc.) So, I can't be counted on to complete anything in a timely manner.

 liddi:

Thank you so much for your response.

You're welcome! The three volumes of the 2013 version are at the links below.

https://www.kanunu8.com/book4/10401/

https://www.kanunu8.com/book4/10515/

http://www.kanunu8.com/book4/10607/

I'm pretty sure the 2019 version is at each of the links below. But, the first link is missing Volume 3, Chapter 16.

https://www.zhenhunxiaoshuo.com/changxiangsi/

https://www.ishuquge.org/txt/100893/index.html

Or, if you prefer a head start on copying and pasting, you can start with my files. They are at the link below. I also included a Word comparison of each volume.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1tBMrrfQhjFHlTvpsXlb0usjMYK--1s07?usp=sharing

It's so awesome that you are able to translate articles and novel excerpts! I started translating subtitles, because I could tell that they weren't very accurate. I do get that translators are required to be concise, allowed to be creatively concise and are given minimal time to translate. So, it's just the nature of the business. I won't even go into machine translations, which can be terrible. I know it's hard for Chinese companies to keep up with all the dramas coming out.

Then, I was so fascinated by Eternal Love that I started translating the book (Three Lives Three Worlds, Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms). Then, I realized that I needed to learn more Chinese, instead of continuing with my hack jobs, lol! It turns out that I do have a little pride, lol. But, learning Chinese is a long, slow process too! It's so tempting to just do another hack job on subtitles for a drama like You Are So Sweet. My husband and I would enjoy it so much more.

 liddi:

Thank you very much for the links and the Word comparisons!

You're welcome! It's very disappointing that the 2013 and 2019 versions are almost the same. Maybe it's an uploading or downloading problem. At some point, I'll download the second 2019 link and see if it's different.

I have to leave for an out-of-town wedding soon, so I'll respond more later!

I finished the novel a week ago but I still have some lingering questions 🧐...

When Xiang Liu took Xiao Yao away from her wedding with Feng Long and took her to Qing Shui Town he asked her something:

Xiang Liu suddenly asked “Do you want to marry Feng Long?”

Xiao Yao’s expression changed, she appeared to try and snap herself alert. Xiang Liu’s eyes were piercing bright and his voice tender and soft as he asked “Do you want to marry Ye Shi Qi?”

Xiao Yao murmured “I do.”

Another question was right at the tip of Xiang Liu’s lips but he was actually torn until a moment later he asked “Who do you most want to spend your entire life with?”

Xiao Yao opened her mouth to answer but her expression showed her internal struggle as her mind refused to let her say what her heart felt.

After multiple struggles she became more and more pained and her body began to shake as she clutched her head “Hurt…..hurt…..” Xiang Liu had used his power to try and see into Xiao Yao’s heart but Xiao Yao’s mind was too strong willed. If she encountered something that even she refused to think about, then she would unexpectedly oppose answering it and the headache was the result of her refusal to answer the question.

Xiang Liu was afraid that she would injure her soul essence so he didn’t dare push her and quickly pulled back his probe and said “If your head hurts, rest!”

Xiao Yao wearily rested on the pillow with her forehead furrowed in pain.

Xiang Liu covered her with a blanket and Xiao Yao suddenly opened her eyes “Why?”

Xiang Liu stared at Xiao Yao and didn’t know exactly what she was asking why about. Was it why he forced her to become a runaway bride? Or was it why he used his powers to probe the true feelings inside her heart?

My question is what was the point in Xiang Liu asking her who she wanted to spend the rest of her life with? It's not like he'd abandon Gong Gong and his army if she confessed she wanted to spend her life with him, right??? 🤔

@liddi I don't want her to forget about him. Doesn't she still have the bow he made for her embedded in her arm with the crescent moon symbol? Even though she doesn't know he made it for her, he still taught her archery for 10+ years and took her to so many places. I don't think that stuff is easy to forget 😭

Plus the last volume is called Miss You Forever which pertains to Xiang Liu so she'll never forget about him 🥹

@liddi I found this quote

“Some people are sad because Xiao Yao never heard Xiang Liu tell her all he did and his feelings. But, all I see when I see Xiang Liu is that he has always been saying I love you. And, Xiao Yao, as his soulmate, how can she not know? She knows. But, she doesn’t pursue. Because some things only spiral into darkness, so she will stay in the light. In the darkness of nights, in the deepest of oceans, dwelling in an all extinguishing blackness, perhaps then you will see the eternal part of her that shall always burn for him.”

For Yao-Liu fans who have read the novel and find it difficult to move on, found this 15-chapter, extremely well-written, completed Chinese fanfic 不负相思意  (loosely translated as ”Fulfilled Yearning") and its extras which picks up after the conclusion of the novel. It beautifully addresses the what-ifs, and is a much welcome balm  for the gaping wound that Tong Hua gave us.

The author of this fanfic actually completed her work back in Aug 2022 based on the original novels (including Once Promised), and not the drama. In her disclaimer, she explained that 30% of the text comes from the source novel, but she has seamlessly incorporated them into her work.

You can find them here  (please remove the spaces since I can't post links)

Main story:

https: // zhuanlan. zhihu. com / p / 555723806

Extras:

https: // zhuanlan. zhihu. com / p / 647800770

@ liddi thanks for the links. I've been searching for some good fanfics!