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Xiang Liu and Xiao Yao’s Story and Romance

bugei

I think the twitter post yesterday got info wrong about zwy duet with tjc, so just correcting myself. 

Have brushed weibo and cant find more info on it, so it might not be the case. 

but theres a new clip from studio

https://video.weibo.com/show?fid=1034:4953547754635283

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blabla100

@liddi

"Translations can be subjective, and prone to interpretation. In this case, I chose to translate it exactly as it was written that's all." 

Exactly, that is why I am not that sure anymore about this part, the koala's translation did make it look as if she kind of suspected who he really is or at least she had some doubts all along, but the word by word translation you posted does sounds a bit different.

"I do agree that in the drama, it played out as if she was testing the waters by accepting his suggestion, which seems to hark back to her underlying suspicions as to his identity, with her repeated "Who exactly are you?"

That's it, that is the way I interpreted the scene from the drama, I felt as if the implicit person she was addressing herself to was XL. 

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liddi
 bugei:
I think the twitter post yesterday got info wrong about zwy duet with tjc, so just correcting myself.

Have brushed weibo and cant find more info on it, so it might not be the case. 

Thank you so much for sharing. I did see an equivalent video on Weibo this morning but haven't been able to backtrack and find it - Weibo is flooded with too many posts about his birthday. However, I thought the comment on that Weibo post was really funny - something in the lines of Cang Xuan and Xiang Liu singing a sad love song together because Xiao Yao had gone off with Jing lol. 

But seriously. I remember a few years ago, when only one fan came to the filming site with cake and gifts, and he knelt in the middle of the parking lot, blowing out the candle. Am reminded of this when he spoke of very poignantly about traveling on a lonely road, but was never alone, except he didn't realise it at the time. 

https://x.com/tlmssusu/status/1709611898545803458?s=20 

As such, it is really good to see him enjoying so much love and well wishes this year, and I wish him even better things, and greater blessings and joy in the years to come.


 blabla100:
the word by word translation you posted does sounds a bit different.

Yes. For me, it was more than just her prior suspicions. Rather, the fact the text worded it as "it was as if that was how it was meant to be" encompasses the life Xiang Liu should have had,  the life she wished for him, and by extension for them - without conflicting loyalties standing between them. 

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liddi
 luv2bafangurl:
My answer is, I do believe even if XL doesn‘t know he was going to die, he would still gone out of his way to give XY his extraordinary gifts. As I said in another post before, at the time where XL met and got close to WXL, the war already evolved in more or less status quo with small skirmishes but no big frontal battle so the possibility that XL die in a battle was there but not really relevant at that time or must be looked very unlikely. The war is already going on for over 300 years and there seems to be no reason why it can‘t be going on for some hundreds years more or even indefinitely when 5th Prince does ascend the throne.  Actually the possibility of CX to die was even greater during this time as the drama even shown a couple of assasination attempts on CX, which he barely survived. TSJ also not safe and has death threat hanging over his head with TSH and FFYY scheming, even one assasination attempt by FFYY. I‘d argue that all the boys actually have death hanging over their head but only XL was preparing and  gone out of his way to equip XY with things she said she lacks. The Bow, archery skills, saving XY life and giving her ability to breath in water, all  were done in the time frame where CX still struggle to rise in power and not yet succeed, also where XL death seems like a distant possibility/future (his risk of death not greater than CX or TSJ during this time). That make me love him more because he gave XY all those extraordinary things not because he‘s thinking he‘s going to die and leave XY unprotected but because he wants her to have everything she said she lacks of, despite his life or death and even if he is not her Endgame.

Beautifully analysed. Thank you so much. 

I find that even I often overlook the fact that Xiang Liu's brand of love differs starkly from her other suitors. Where they would do their best to protect her from danger be it by making the world a safe one for her, or using all resources at hand to protect her, he is the only one who empowers her to protect herself, so that she need never be reliant on another person to keep her safe, nurturing her and encouraging her to grow stronger while reminding her time and again to cherish life, a life he may not be able to share but wanted her to live to the fullest. The closing passage from Xiang Liu's letter to Xiao Yao from the Zhen Chun video never fails to move me immeasurably, beautifully articulating the essence of his love for her, and I could not have said it any better:

Xiao Yao, I will give you the strength to protect yourself, someone to rely on, and a place to go. Even if that strength hurts me, that person is not me, and I do not exist in that place, if you can experience this world well on my behalf, it is enough.   

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HeadInTheClouds

Translation is a difficult job that requires skilful balancing between what is written and what is mean to be convey. If all it takes is a literal, word for word translation,  Google Translate would have put professional translators out of their job. 

I think this is particularly true when it comes to translating fiction/literature vs. Technical text. When reading a piece of literature, if you are only understanding it as a literal translation of what it's written, then frankly you're doing the author a disservice. Reading comphrension is more than just reading the text; it involves deductions, extrapolations, interpolations and all the other fun things that makes reading such a joy. We bring our own experiences and outlook into reading and these things influence how we engaged with and interpret the work. Of course. It should be done within reason. We can't just ignore the text  to suit ourselves.

A skilful translator has to balance between what is written and what the author is potentially trying to convey without projecring too much of their own interpretation into their translation.  And then if you add in cultural concepts and its impact on language and it gets even trickier. Particularly when you're translating  between two very different cultures. Concepts that exist in Chinese culture may not exist in English speaking cultures and therefore doesn't have an equivalent word. 

This long ass post, all to say that I appreciate people who takes the time to translate works for me to enjoy. Whether it's professional translators, the translation of the book provided here or the fans who spend their time translating XL/XY's fanfictions. You guys are the best. 

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HeadInTheClouds

@liddi

The last quote that you gave if probably the reason why us XY/XL's fan are on this ship. It's XL's selfless love for XY and, in many ways very modern/egalitarian approach to supporting her that really makes me pick him. That and his tragic ending just makes me feel protective and wish he could experience all the love that he himself is giving to XY ?. 

XL, Jing and CX has very different approaches to love. They all want to protect XY (although i would argued that XY will need to do the protection with Jing ?), but her relationship with XL is the most equal, IMO. And the biggest difference is that CX and Jing want to posses her. Jing by extracting the promise of 15 years to ensure that she won'tgo anywhere while he attempt to sort out his shit. CX is even worse, ignoring XY's happiness by killing Jing so that she will be with him. XL, in contrast refused to tie her to him when he feels that  doing so means leading her down a path to a painful outcome. So XL has my vote.  

And, yes, the fact that he's the best looking out of the 3 mls (based on the book description; YMMV in the drama) with that bad boy vibe helps. I'm shallow and I'm not ashamed to admit it. ? 

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liddi

@HeadInTheClouds

It is a fine line between interpreting the text and imposing our own assumptions into it.  Google translate is also not the best gauge of accuracy, sometimes misinterpreting the text at hand. I have found too that at times, accidentally missing out a word in the original text, especially when we speedread, can lead to inaccurate translations. Take for example the text in contention:

Actual text:
就好似一切本该如此    It was as if that was how everything was meant to be

Text missing out the word 该:
就好似一切本如此          It was as if everything was always that way 

which is a totally different meaning, with the omission of just one word.

I recall @MTH123 and I have had separate discussions about translations, including appalling professional ones, where too many liberties were taken in interpreting the text, to the extent where the meaning was skewed or lost. I have also read professional translations whereby the details in the original text were unfortunately lost, sweepingly translated simplistically. It is not easy to translate from one language to another, particularly where a long sentence may be required to try and describe the full meaning of a simple word or phrase. Hence, my respect goes to translators who do their best to honour and capture the meaning and details of the original text while trying hard not to make it unreadable. But given a choice, I would opt for clunky translations rather than inaccurate ones.

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HeadInTheClouds

@liddi

I hope you didn't take my post as a criticism of yours or any other posters translation. It was not intended to be one. Appreciated all the works you guys put in . Its just my general feelings about the diffulties of good translation. It's delicate work.

I'm fluent in 2 languages that are vastly different to each other. When watching CDrama, the differences in the subtitles for language a vs. language b can be drastic and really change how you feel about the dialogue. Shades and nuances often are missing. I find myself reading the novel in both languages to see pick out the differences.  So my hat off to anyone who does this job and does it well, with heart. It is  a tough gig. 

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liddi

@HeadInTheClouds

Oh, no offence taken at all - your analysis perfectly captures what a good translation should be. Your comment about reading the novel in both English and your other language has me curious. What language has Lost You Forever been translated to? From my understanding, the books have been translated to the Thai language - am not sure what other languages they are available in. How do you find the subtleties of the translations, and which do you prefer?   Do you read or understand Chinese too? 

Xiang Liu's entrance is arguably the most dramatic out of the three men, both in the novel and the drama. The drama goes one step further with that breathtaking reveal of his face as the mask melts away. And as you pointed out, Tong Hua's description of him makes him stand out from the rest. In short, he is gorgeous, well except for the time when Xiao Yao decides to give him a makeover lol. 

I am usually not a fan of the bad boy types - if anything, the considerate 2nd male lead is more my type (hence I often suffer from 2nd lead syndrome!) However, it is exactly the way he loves Xiao Yao that seals the deal for me, every single thing he did for her, with no emotional blackmail to tie her to him - just a series of cut and dry transactions - and the lengths he went to for her at such cost to himself, physically and emotionally. He is the reason I was under a cloud of sadness long after I finished reading the book, and it is the what-ifs that sears my heart and stops me from being able to move on.

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nathsketch VIP
 liddi:
In short, he is gorgeous, well except for the time when Xiao Yao decides to give him a makeover lol.

False. Lies. Conspiracy theories. Still gorgeous. ??

Not to mention the charcoal lipstick. Not everyone can rock that shade LOL

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Elise
 bugei:

I think the twitter post yesterday got info wrong about zwy duet with tjc, so just correcting myself. 

Have brushed weibo and cant find more info on it, so it might not be the case. 

but theres a new clip from studio

https://video.weibo.com/show?fid=1034:4953547754635283

Thanks for the link ♥️

Did you know that the actress who plays FangFeng Yi Ying is a YaoLiu supporter in real life?

I find it interesting since her character in the show pushes XY towards FFB ??

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Elise
 HeadInTheClouds:
XL, Jing and CX has very different approaches to love. They all want to protect XY (although i would argued that XY will need to do the protection with Jing ?)

lol I agree with this. Especially with the loss of 7 tails.

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liddi
 nathsketch:
False. Lies. Conspiracy theories. Still gorgeous. ??

Not to mention the charcoal lipstick. Not everyone can rock that shade LOL

You've convinced me with the lipstick shade. Shame on me for being dense LOL!


 Elise:
Did you know that the actress who plays FangFeng Yi Ying is a YaoLiu supporter in real life?

You're right! During an interview, 黄灿灿 said categorically that she is a very strong YaoLiu supporter, and it was also a great coincidence that as Yi Ying, she got to try and push Fangfeng Bei and Xiao Yao together, which suits her YaoLiu sensibilities.

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Elise
 MissUnderstood50:
Good morning @nathsketch! I am trying to catch up with the discussion. I went to peak at the other side and was curious about their conversation. I understand that we all have our perspectives about which ship we are choosing to sail with, but I could not last even a minute reading through their thread. I just got the hell out of that place. I still root for XL, no matter what. At this point, I go with the flow and enjoy the banter here.

LOL. I  spent 2 hours on the other thread since I wanted to see their POV too. Why do I do this to myself? ......... ??? Same, I'm staying on the YaoLiu titanic ship for life ?

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Elise
 liddi:
You're right! During an interview, 黄灿灿 said categorically that she is a very strong YaoLiu supporter, and it was also a great coincidence that as Yi Ying, she got to try and push Fangfei Bei and Xiao Yao together, which suits her YaoLiu sensibilities.

I wonder if we'll ever hear Yang Zi's answer as to which of the three guys she supports in real life though I suspect it's Xiang Liu ?

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