Xiang Liu and Xiao Yao’s Story and Romance

 liddi:

XL: (santa Furball?) ????

If that is Furball as santa (really hard to tell for me!) then could it be signifying Furball taking the big-bellied laughing doll wedding gift and delivering it to... not Sir Bi I guess. To Ah Nian?

 AH :

Thank you so much for the summary!

You're welcome! Again, apologies for another delayed response to Once Promised details.  Have just finished reading Zhong Yi's death along with Yan Zhuan (Zhu Rong) and I find myself tearing up again. Even with 6 more chapters to go, I am beginning to truly see why Tong Hua said Once Promised is a tragedy, but not LYF. 

 AH :

I thought her death was something she chose because Shengnong had fallen. I didn't realize it was more about Nuo Nai. 

Yes. As with almost every other character in Once Promised, their deaths were tragic. When Nuo Nai died, his eyes were still wide open. The dazzling flames that carried the spiritual energy transformed from her life soared to the skies and could be seen from thousands of miles away. Shao Hao, realising who the owner of the spiritual energy of the Shen Nong royal family was, supported Nuo Nai's body up, lifted his head to let his still-open eyes see the flames that shot across the sky like fireworks, burning for him.

 AH :

I'm wondering... in Once Promised, Chang Pu killed herself after Chang Yi died in battle (a death he could have escaped, but he chose to fight and die with his comrades) because she couldn't bear the idea of not being with him, even though her son was still alive and right there

With no reinforcements in sight, Zhong Yi and Chang Pu were ready to face death together, until Zhong Yi heard A Bi's voice in the distance. Just before he knocked her out cold and had A Bi take her away to safety, he told her to raise their son well. She was distraught when she woke up, as they had sworn that they would always be one in their hearts, living and dying together, yet he went back on his word and left her to live on alone. Ultimately she chose to try and kill Yi Peng, and then herself in front of her son, rather than fulfil Zhong Yi's last wishes, abandoning her son first to A Heng, who later entrusted young Cang Xuan to the Yellow Emperor.  

 AH :

So if XL had acted differently and allowed XY to see his feelings for her and to understand how much he did for her and cared for her before he died in battle... might there have been a risk that she would not only be deeply, deeply hurt by his death (perhaps even broken by it, given her trauma as a result of feeling abandoned by everyone else she loved) but that she might want / try to join him in death, following the pattern of the three main women of the previous generation whose stories were told in Once Promised? Meaning that perhaps readers are supposed to understand that Sir Bi and Shao Hao's concerns about tragedy repeating itself were well-founded and XL's approach was necessary to break the cycle?

You make a good point about Xiang Liu's fear that she would be so devastated that she would choose to end her life and follow him. Xiang Liu always wanted Xiao Yao to continue on living well. He repeated this time and again about life being precious - when they gazed at the moon together, when he made her promise to continue on living even if Jing was dead. How many times had he literally pulled her from the jaws of death - when she passively allowed the the albatross demon to seal her at the bottom of the ocean, and when she tried to kill herself along with Cang Xuan, which indicated that these were very valid concerns for her case.  

I do feel that it is more her abandonment trauma, rather than the pattern from the elders, that made her value her own life that much less. I don't think it was a pattern she saw in the three women from her childhood - no one knew that Yun Sang killed herself because of Nuo Nai, and at the time, she would not have known that her mother lived in a terrible, lonely existence for 400 years, and the only thing that stopped her from following Chi Chen in death was the promise he exacted from her. Chang Pu was an example she was very familiar with, one that brought so much resentment and despair to her son. but she too had seen how it affected Cang Xuan, and she once claimed that she would never abandon her own child if it ever came to that.

As for Shao Hao and Sir Bi's concerns, I always thought it had to do with having to suffer the tragedy of watching the one they loved die or be killed by them because they were on opposing sides. At least, I don't think Sir Bi would have been aware of Xiao Yao's abandonment trauma. Chi Chen and A Heng were ultimately forced to take up arms against each other for their people, in spite of their love for one another. While Xiao Yao may not necessarily go on the battlefield, she would have had to suffer the knowledge that her loved one killed those she loved, and vice versa. It was an impossible situation that none could escape from because of their opposing loyalties.

 AH :

Also, the circumstances of Nuo Nai's engagement, the way he ended it, and the consequences that followed feel like they're meant to provide context for TSJ's actions (or lack thereof) in LYF. As if reminding the reader that finding a cruel way to end an engagement you don't want could backfire and result in consequences that are even worse than the ones you would face if you refused to use such methods. Perhaps that context is supposed to make readers feel that TSJ's approach, as frustrating as it was, was better.

I can see the parallels you mentioned, though the circumstances are quite different. The dissolution of Nuo Nai's engagement was not done by himself, but Shao Hao who secretly arranged for it to be done, one that destroyed the reputation of the woman in question, because that was the only way to force the Chang Xi tribe to back out of the engagement - Gao Xin was a nation bound by etiquette and the girl was from the Chang Xi tribe, which no one would cross because of the great power the Chang Xi sister consorts commanded in the harem. Hence only something extreme that violated etiquette could have forced the dissolution of the engagement.

Jing and Yi Ying's engagement on the other hand, had the unwavering support of the Tushan Grand Madam and the eyes of the world, especially when she flew to Qing Qiu in her wedding finery and pledged herself as a part of the Tushan clan, even when her betrothed's fate was unknown. Jing's unwillingness to hurt Yi Ying because he felt she was the innocent party and both he and the Tushan clan wronged her, kept him dragging his feet and never raising the issue for way too long. He later dragged his feet again, not confessing to Xiao Yao what happened between him and Yi Ying, allowing her to find out for herself only when she diagnosed Yi Ying's pregnancy. In his case, he should have at least been upfront with both Yi Ying and his grandmother from the start, even more so when he himself was aware that Yi Ying was repulsed by his body. Of course I concede that he was up against a woman who was already conducting an affair with his brother (which he was unaware of), but if she was a woman without ulterior motives who found him physically repulsive (which was what he thought), there would have been ways around the issue. The engagement could have been dissolved and she could have become an adopted daughter 义女 of the clan, or sworn/blood sister to him, to protect her dignity. They would have been answerable to the Fangfeng clan, but as we can see from the example of Xiao Yao and Feng Long's engagement, there are ways to appease the wronged party, and the Tushan clan is far more capable than most to do so.

 AH :

I disliked him from the beginning due to how casually and unremorsefully cruel he was in Jiu Li.

But if Yi Peng's death could make readers cry for him after everything, I wouldn't put it past Tong Hua to write an ending for Zhu Rong that would somehow manage to make me dislike him less. 

I won't say that his ending made me dislike him less, but it drives home again the spirit that burnt in the hearts of the Shen Nong patriots who would rather die than surrender. His words about the ties of family bloodlines - the roots that define who they were, roots that were not for sale at any cost - help us understand better why Hong Jiang and the remnant army continued to fight for a homeland that was long lost.

After the flooding of Ze Province and Yun Sang's marriage, the Yellow Emperor sent Zhong Yi to attack Yan Zhuan, hoping to secure his surrender. After Yan Zhuan suffered severe casualties from Zhong Yi's sneak attack, he pretended to surrender, but in actuality, set up a formation at Xun Mountain to gather and mobilise underground fire to cause a volcanic eruption, with the intent of luring Zhong Yi and the Yellow Emperor and armies on both sides to certain death. Ultimately, the volcano claimed the lives of the Xuan Yuan and Shen Nong army there, including Zhong Yi:

Finally, Ah Heng found Yan Zhuan on a sunlit hillside. Yan Zhuan was kneeling in the direction of Shen Nong Mountain, performing the most formal ancestral rites of the Shen'nong royal family. The last time Ah Heng had seen such a ritual was at Xiao Yue Peak, when the Flame Emperor was gravely ill and Yu Xiang performed this rite by the campfire. Ah Heng felt a pang of sadness in her heart and stopped in her tracks.

After Yan Zhuan finished his prostration and stood up, he looked towards Shen Nong mountain and said, "The only mistake I made in this life was allowing the Yellow Emperor to exploit my hatred for Chi Chen. I believed the Yellow Emperor’s slanders and incited Yu Xiang to lead the campaign. I did want to become the Flame Emperor, to see Chi Chen dead, but I never intended to betray Shen Nong!"

A Heng thought it was no wonder that Yan Zhuan hated the Yellow Emperor so much. It turned out the Yellow Emperor managed to kill Yu Xiang by deceiving and using Yan Zhuan.

Yan Zhuan looked back at A Heng. "How can a despicable man like the Yellow Emperor understand the ties of family bloodlines. These are the roots of every generation, but he came to negotiate with me about which ministerial position could buy my only roots. I really wanted to totally incinerate him, let him understand that not everything in the world could be bought! Seeing you did not launch a sneak attack and interrupt me paying my respects earlier, I will spare your life. Hurry up and escape!"

Seeing A Heng's perplexed expression, Yan Zhuan smiled, "I am the eye of the formation! Even if you killed me now, you cannot prevent me from activating the formation!" Since his body was the eye of the formation, there was no way to stop the formation from being activated, whether he was alive or dead.

Yan Zhuan activated his spiritual powers, and the five-coloured flame symbol embroidered on his battle robe truly transformed into five-coloured flames, burning under his feet. His body began to glow red, illuminating half the sky. He had actually ignited the Fires of the Netherworld. The flames grew increasingly intense, making his skeleton clearly visible.

A Heng felt the ground shaking beneath her feet. She stumbled backward and looked at Yan Zhuan in horror. Having been burnt by the Fires of the Netherworld herself, she was well aware of the excruciating, bone-deep pain they caused. Yan Zhuan used himself as the eye of the formation, so he naturally wanted to prolong the burning process as much as possible, which mean prolonging the suffering. He actually did not hesitate to endure the pain of being consumed by blazing flames, sacrificing his spiritual and physical being to set up this deadly trap.

Yan Zhuan stood amidst the blazing five-coloured flames, laughing heartily with his arms open wide, "Burn, burn! Shen Nong ancestors, this is the last ritual sacrifice I offer to you!"

-- Once Promised, Vol 2 Ch10  (originally Chapter 13)

And his fellow comrades would later pay tribute to his unswerving patriotism:

Yu Shi asked Chi Chen in disbelief, "That is Yan Zhuan's territory. Could it be Yan Zhuan did not surrender after all?"

Chi Chen shook his head. "Yan Zhuan used his body as the eye of the formation, igniting the volcano and died with the Xuan Yuan army."

The laughter dissipated immediately and everyone's expressions changed. Feng Bo's subordinate, Chi whispered, "Who would have thought that the widely respected Luo Jia would surrender to the Yellow Emperor, while Yan Zhuan who was cursed as a despicable person would rather die than surrender."

Yu Shi looked towards the Southeast without a word, but took off his felt hat. No matter how lowly or humble  a person was, he still had his own dignity; no matter how despicable and shameless a person was, he still had his own honour!

-- Once Promised, Vol 2 

 AH :

Oh, the turncoat that saved the Yellow Emperor's life. Did he have a good reason for his betrayal?

 H19279:

As far as I remember, No, he had no hatred toward ShenNong.
However his personality was not really good. Maybe @liddi remember the excerp where Flame Emperor made comment of his generals' personality. I remember that it was not so positive characteristics.

2nd reason: I think he had crush on Yu Sang. So, when she "married" Qing Yang and moved to Xuan Yuan, he wanted to follow her. 

The Seventh Flame Emperor described his generals thus:

"The Xuan Yuan clan has Qing Yang, Gao Xin clan has Shao Hao, but the Shen Nong clan lacks a capable successor. Yu Xiang is kind-hearted but has mediocre abilities; Yan Zhuan is too greedy and cruel, his ambitions exceeding his abilities; Hong Jiang is too rigid and inflexible, and does not know how to adapt; Luo Jia on the other hand has great potential, but while he appears gentle and humble, he is cunning, overly forebearing and cautious. None among this group of unpromising scoundrels would accept the other. I fear that once I die, they will be busy fighting endlessly and Yu Xiang cannot control them at all."

-- Once Promised Vol 1 Ch9

Luo Jia and Mu Jin (the Seventh Flame Emperor's foster daughter) were childhood playmates. He was described thus:

Luo Jia was delicately beautiful in appearance, with a delicate and weak physique, and had been ridiculed since he was a child. However, when he nearly took Yan Zhuan's life several centuries ago, everyone was shocked to realise that this gentle, beautiful exterior hid a heart even more cunning and vicious than a serpent's or a scorpion's.

-- Once Promised, Vol 2 Ch5  (originally Chapter 8)

The Yellow Emperor sent forces to attack Ze Province after receiving no word about the proposed marriage alliance between Yun Sang and Qing Yang. What actually happened was that both Yi Peng and Luo Jia (Hou Tu) worked together to stop the marriage from happening - Yi Peng wanted to check Qing Yang (and by extension Xie Zu and her other children)'s power; Luo Jia's opposition should be predominantly due to his love for Yun Sang and the belief that the sovereignty of Shen Nong could still be protected. Yi Peng promised that if Luo Jia could detain Yun Sang for 10 days, he would be able to convince the Yellow Emperor to withdraw the proposed marriage alliance. In the end, she managed to escape and announce her acceptance, much to his devastation:

"Your Highness!" Luo Jia cried out from outside the hall, his figure leaping down from midair, heading straight for the entrance of the hall.

Yun Sang looked down from above at everyone as if she had not heard Luo Jia's cries at all. With a clear voice, she announced, “I, Shen'nong Yun Sang, am willing to marry Xuanyuan Qing Yang as his consort.”

The entire hall erupted in joyful cheers and congratulations, drowning out Luo Jia’s heartfelt cries.

In a single sentence, the world changed dramatically, and the bloom of youth faded away.

Luo Jia’s body came to an abrupt stop in the centre of the hall, his face ashen, staring fixedly at Yun Sang. Why? Why can’t you believe that I can protect Shen Nong Mountain? Why can’t you believe that I can safeguard the people of Shen Nong? Why won’t you let me give you peace?

Yun Sang looked at him with a smile, her gaze resolute. I am the eldest princess of Shen Nong, and this is my duty! I have my responsibilities, and you have yours!

The sounds of laughter, congratulations, the swaying figures, and the magnificent, glittering jewel-encrusted palace...

With difficulty, Luo Jia turned around, dragged his stiff body through the noisy crowd step by step, and walked out of the hall.

His mount, the huashe (transformed serpent), waited nearby, but he ignored it completely. Instead, he walked down the steps with stiff steps, heading toward the base of the mountain.

As he descended the winding steps, his figure became shorter and smaller until he gradually disappeared from sight.

-- Once Promised, Vol 2 Ch7  (originally Chapter 10)

He would later lead his army of 80,000 men to swear fealty to the Yellow Emperor on the day of her wedding. After that, he continued to provide assistance to Yun Sang - keeping her abreast of the news, helping her pass messages back to Chi Chen, until he was sent to Shu Sha kingdom after the Yellow Emperor was injured in battle, and was no longer contactable by her. From what I see, there were two reasons to his defection. One was for the love of Yun Sang. Swearing fealty to the Yellow Emperor as a gift on Yun Sang and Qing Yang's wedding served to strengthen Qing Yang's power in Xuan Yuan even more, a situation which would be advantageous to Yun Sang as his consort. Her marriage made her a glorified hostage of sorts as well - Yun Sang was always spied on, and felt that she was an outsider particularly as the war continued to rage between those in Shen Nong who refused to surrender. Luo Jia's presence was advantageous to her, and allowed him to keep her in touch with those who continued to fight for their kingdom. I suspect the Yellow Emperor sending him away was also to circumvent further communication between her and her countrymen, as the war intensified. The second reason, was to continue to protect the Shen Nong people who now lived as a conquered people. This was the same man who, in spite of his animosity towards Chi Chen, rushed to Ze Province at the threat of the flood, to which Yun Sang described him as "may have been confused in minor matters, but did not lose sight of important values and principles."

 liddi:

The only significant Xiang Liu scene would be at the old Lirong donkey meat seller's place where he comforts Xiao Yao after she finds out she is Chi Chen's daughter, and gives her the 6-sided lantern with a description that puts things in perspective. Not sure how does that translate to fish in aquarium.

Did you see this ... crap?  I'm going to be so mad if they give Jing XL's Lantern speech.  MAD.

https://i.mydramalist.com/BdDBb5_3f.jpg

Episode 10 has XL comforting XY in the old Donkey Meat Seller's place, but he didn't have the lantern ... unless it is in his Pocket Of Holding.

 liddi:

In the leaked script, Xiang Liu leaves the lantern with her after she had fallen asleep so he never made any speech about it to her. She woke up when she felt a snowflake fall on her forehead. Upon seeing the lantern he left behind, she wanted to throw it away but Jing caught the lantern, and drew her attention to the words Xiang Liu wrote, which helped her understand her parents' situation at the time. Either way, this is what the forehead kiss was changed to.

Ep11 (S02E19) scenes 12-13 - XY realises her real parentage, XL's 6-sided lantern 

Bangs head on table.  Repeat. Repeat.  Him telling the story in the book was so much better.

It is so annoying that the few YaoLiu scenes we get this season, that stalker is constantly showing up and intruding.  grrrrrrr  I know they are going to be angry, but I will be CHEERING when Tushan Hou rids of this troublesome wet weasel, even if it is only for a few episodes.

Even more annoying.  We can't even get a forehead kiss.  Shakes fist at Tong Hua.

@HeadintheClouds

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 liddi:

You have a point there. He is there during the 6-sided lantern scene; when she recognises him at the gambling den, during their meeting outside Dragon Bone prison during Cang Xuan and A Nian's wedding; even when she wakes up from a nightmare about Xiang Liu leading up to the final battle. To be fair, he was there in the equivalent scenes in the novel as well, except he didn't barge into the Lirong donkey meat seller's place but was waiting outside. The only time he isn't around is at Gourd Lake when they sever their ties, and when he destroys the Lovers bug connection. 

grrrrrrrrrr.  It's like dude. CLEARLY they are on a date.  Butt out.   And take your pimp extolling your non-existent virtues, and insulting both of them, with you.

It's like they know that XY will totally forget Jing when she's around XL, so they make him a giant tire with "official CP" written on it and hang it around her neck.

Ah, so the only times we can escape Jing is when XL is destroying their relationship.  Got it.  Thanks alot drama writers.

Eps 9-10 end halfway through Ep11 scene 13 of the leaked script. 

Shao Hao's letter to Xiao Yao never failed to move me immensely. be in the novel or in the drama, showing us again just how much he truly love this daughter who was not even his own. He definitely changed very drastically from the Shao Hao of Once Promised, who did every means necessary in order to secure the throne and protect Gao Xin, even at the cost of his own closest friendships, promises, and the woman he loved. However, his love for Xiao Yao remained consistent and unchanging, and for all his faults as a man, he was a good father and monarch.

Xiang Liu toasting Wen Xiao Liu getting back her Ye Shi Qi is a poignant, lonely scene, beautifully delivered. My heart ached for him and I am glad that at least Furball was there by his side, the only person he could speak to about what was in his heart, when he kept a tight lip even with his adoptive father. 

Surprisingly, the drama did Jing no favours in the scene with Yi Ying, when he readily agreed to her offer to sacrifice her essential blood to the Tushan clan spirit guardian in exchange for him looking after her son. In the novel, he objected vehemently to the various methods of punishment the Tushan elders had in mind, and continued to object when Yi Ying herself offered her essential blood due to the unbearable pain she would suffer, which reflected his soft-hearted nature that forgave easily. Here, he simply appeared callous and detached. 

Ep10 ends halfway through the scene at the Lirong old donkey meat seller's place. We have only gotten to the part where he tells tall tales about his heads trying to eat each other in hunger and I can't wait to see how the rest of the scene plays out. In the novel, she did not even need to look up to recognise him, because their hearts beating in unison told her immediately who he was - which should have been Xiang Liu allowing her to sense his heart. They had parted on such bad terms at Qingshui Town, so the resentment she had for him had not abated. I always felt that had everything gone smoothly in her life, he would have made sure not to appear before her anymore, until the time when he had to sever the Lovers bug connection. The rumours about her being Chi Chen's daughter brought him back out of concern for her well being, and her grief compelled him to make his presence known, comforting her in a way no one else could. Will they give us the tenderness between them that was in the novel? I am not hopeful, but I continue to hope..

Incidentally, does anyone who have read Once Promised know what the Yellow Emperor's history with the xingxing mirror is? In Vol 3 Ch1  (Chapter 34), he told Xiao Yao that his past with the mirror was a long story that he would tell her one day. However, I can't seem to find any mention of the mirror in Once Promised. Or was it known by a different name or form in the prequel?