Xiang Liu and Xiao Yao’s Story and Romance

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What are you all having for lunch? Or dinner?

In the novel, I thought they were both aware of each other's feelings by the end (although Xiaoyao was more insecure than Xiang Liu about it imo). But in the drama Xiaoyao seems entirely oblivious of Xiang Liu's feelings for her (I think Yang Zi even said that she acted Xiaoyao assuming that Xiang Liu has no feelings for her, although that contradicts the "how could she not know his intentions" she said about the underground casino face-touching scene). Drama Xiang Liu also seems really insecure about Xiaoyao's feelings. There are so many scenes where he is almost crying over her surface-level rejection, and he often seemed genuinely jealous of Jing (almost crying about Xiaoyao having feelings for/being sad about Jing).

But the Lover's Bug is such a poignant plot device that I feel like there has to be some deep implications behind it. Both Xiaoyao and Xiang Liu do so much double-speaking when it comes to the Lover's Bug, it has to be intentional. In the novel anyway. There really isn't that much information in the drama about it. When does Xiaoyao even find out that it is called the Lover's Bug?

I thought this part was an interesting change:

 liddi:

XY: Xiang Liu, you are really a heartless Nine-headed demon, a cruel and unscrupulous monster.
XL (calmly): You knew from the start what kind of person I am. Since you dared to make deals with a monster, then you should have the courage to face the consequences.
XY (deflated): You are right! The deal we had was completely fair. If I had to do it again, I would still choose to move the bug into you. It is all my own fault...

To me, this sounds a bit like a subconscious admission of "I don't regret getting involved with you, if I had to do it again, I'd still choose to fall in love with you", but I'm not sure how much drama Xiaoyao knows about the bug at this point.

I hate that their conversation on the boat wasn't included in the script. The one after Xiaoyao and Jing met the Voodoo King and learned about the nature of the bug. I thought it was very meaningful.

From Chapter 37 - with my humble interpretation of what they're really trying to say:

The merpeople’s song reached her from the depths of the ocean and
Xiao Yao’s heart lurched and she ran to the ship’s bow to stare out into
 the distance. Under the silver moonlight a white haired white robed man
 was walking on the waves towards her.
 
He said nothing and Xiao Yao didn’t speak either. The two of them,
one on the ship and the other on the water, they listened together to
the song of the merpeople. The song spread out on the water’s surface,
melodic and pure, touching deep into the soul like a passionate entreaty
 in darkness, like a longing sigh that shatters the heart, it made the
soul rise and fall with the song.

When the song ended Xiao Yao softly said “So beautiful!”

Xiang Liu softly concurred “Yes.”

The merpeople’s song was in a pitch that very few people on earth
could hear so in that split second Xiao Yao felt that her heart was
intimately close to Xiang Liu and there was nothing she couldn’t share
with him. She said “My daddy is Qi Yo.”

Xiao Yao laughed back “I just came back from a trip to Jiu Li. The
Voodoo King told me all the specifics about the bug inside our bodies. I
 don’t remember any of the specifics of what he said but the one thing I
 do remember clearly is that the two bugs live and die together. Which
means our lives are connected. If I’m in trouble then you’re not going
to get off scot free!” ["I'm too embarrassed to talk about the fact that this bug means that we're in love and our hearts are connected, so let's use the fact that our life and death are connected to talk about us being in love in a roundabout way"]

Xiang Liu smiled at Xiao Yao and didn’t seem surprised at all. ["I've known that I'm in love with you all along, are you finally catching on now?"]

Xiao Yao was shocked and asked “You’ve known all along since the beginning what kind of bug this was, right?” ["Wait, you knew from the beginning that we're in love? You're been consciously in love with me from the very beginning?"]

“What if I did?” ["So what if I'm in love with you?" LMAO]

“The Voodoo King said ‘the doves don’t fly alone in the sky, the pair
 of mandarin ducks in the water die together’. If I die then how can you
 live?” ["Wait, Xiang Liu, so you really ARE in love with me?"]
 
“Why don’t you ask the question in reverse – if I die, then how can you live?” ["Xiao Yao, why don't you ask yourself if YOU are in love with me?"]

Xiao Yao tried to stay calm and plead with him “I don’t know who dies and who lives so that’s why I’m asking you. Tell me!” ["Seriously though, does this mean that we're in love or what? Can you please give me some explicit confirmation for once?"]

Xiang Liu’s expression was sly and acted really nonchalant “How would
 I know? You’re the one who learned some voodoo. This is the first time I
 played with a bug. But no need to fret, when either you or I die then
we’ll know what happens, right?” ["What do I know about love? I'm just an innocent little demon who is in love with only you and only you. Unlike you, who is emotionally entangled with Tushan Jing as well. Shouldn't you know more about love than I do?"]

Xiao Yao was so frustrated by him she was nearly hopping up and down
in fury “You broke the spell on Zhuan Xu so how could you not want to
how to break the spell between us?” ["XIANG LIU, WHY WON'T YOU TELL ME CLEARLY IF YOU'RE IN LOVE WITH ME OR NOT?"] 

Xiang Liu smiled until his eyes were slits “I don’t want to know!” ["I don't want to admit to you that I'm in love with you and I have no intention of changing my behavior"]

Xiao Yao wearily asked “What do you want then?” ["So you ARE in love with me, but you don't want to be with me regardless? Why? Why be in love with me but not want to be with me? What is your intention?"]

Xiang Liu’s body was slowly sinking into the water “Other than
checking on how my wares are doing in your body, what else do you think I
 want?” ["I have no intention of telling you my intentions" lol]
 
“Hey! Don’t go!” ["Xiang Liu, why do you always keep me guessing?!"]

 blimarch:

I hope so because to me, that the least she should have tried to do. 

But I still stand by my position that she should have wanted to see what it was like herself and stake her all. We're in the world of poisonous bugs and conveniently customized on the spot solutions. Like the heart for a heart in Once Promised or any xianxia parades to defy life and death (even if LYF is not xianxia, it's still pretty close universes). I'm always like "Where the heck does all these very convenient spells and magical objects come from and very conveniently present themselves as solutions when the situations seems irrevocable?"

My hidden message in a nutshell: "Please Tong Hua, revive XL! (and not in a modern reincarnation, please)" 

To live or die... when it's his lives, it should be his choice. XL chose to die. And, unlike most people, he got to choose how he died. He arranged everything so carefully. I hate the idea of anyone taking that away from him. Not respecting his choice and forcing him to live. Undoing all the the things he arranged... 

It reminds me of Sir Bi's promise in chapter 48.

-----

Chapter 48:

Sir Bi took out his precious medicine. “Do you want me to heal you?”

Xiang Liu smiled. “Such medicines are of no use to me.”

Sir Bi anxiously asked, “But you…..your injuries….what can I do for you?”

Xiang Liu casually said, “Don’t be like this, you know that facing down the Xuan Yuan army, one more or one less lives of mine doesn’t make a difference!”

Sir Bi’s face fell and he grew silent.

Xiang Liu added “You can do one thing for me.”

Sir Bi immediately agreed.

“If later people ask about the bug in Xiao Yao, just make up a believable lie.” Xiang Liu smiled like it didn’t bother him one whit. “Xiao Yao once said that she never ever wanted to see me again in this life and this lifetime. After tonight, she and I truly have no further ties. I also never want to see her again!”

Sir Bi stared forlornly at Xiang Liu before saying, “I will ask the Royal Mother to help lie that she removed the bug. Don’t worry, what happened here tonight, only you and I know outside of the Heavens. I will never ever let Xiao Yao know the truth! I will not ruin all that you’ve done for her and carefully arranged.”

Xiang Liu’s face was ashen and he continued to clutch his chest wound, but he smiled and tried to bow. Sir Bi had nothing he could say further, so he bowed back low as a promise that he would forever keep this secret and not fail all that Xiang Liu had done.

Xiang Liu looked at the horizon and saw a sliver of light coming as dawn was arriving. He stood up shakily. “It’s time for me to go.”

 kitty_momo:

I thought this part was an interesting change:

 liddi:
XY: Xiang Liu, you are really a heartless Nine-headed demon, a cruel and unscrupulous monster.
XL (calmly): You knew from the start what kind of person I am. Since you dared to make deals with a monster, then you should have the courage to face the consequences.
XY (deflated): You are right! The deal we had was completely fair. If I had to do it again, I would still choose to move the bug into you. It is all my own fault...
To me, this sounds a bit like a subconscious admission of "I don't regret getting involved with you, if I had to do it again, I'd still choose to fall in love with you", but I'm not sure how much drama Xiaoyao knows about the bug at this point.

It's pretty close to the original. XY thinks to herself that, even if she had to choose again, she would still transfer the bug to XL (to protect ZX) and make the promise that she made to XL (which he invoked to take her away from her wedding). 

-----

Chapter 32:

When the first snowflakes fell, it was the first snow of the Winter. Xiao Yao reached out her hand but the snowflakes were too wispy and melted the moment it touched her palm.

Xiang Liu walked into the room and closed the window for her.

Xiao Yao opened it. Xiang Liu closed it again.

Xiao Yao opened it again. Xiang Liu closed it again.

Xiao Yao went to open it again but Xiang Liu used his power and Xiao Yao couldn’t open it at all.

Even since she left Chi Sui Castle, Xiao Yao had been calm but now she couldn’t endure it any longer and punched the window violently before glaring at Xiang Liu.

Xiang Liu coolly said “What kind of person I am, you’ve known all along. Since you dared to make a deal with the devil, you ought to have the courage to accept the consequences.”

Xiao Yao was taken aback because Xiang Liu was absolutely correct. Their deal was completely fair. Even if she could do it over and knowing the consequences of today, to protect Zhuan Xu she would still choose to move the voodoo bug into Xiang Liu. It had simply been too long since Xiang Liu asked her to fulfill her end of the bargain. She had also seen Fang Feng Bei as real, so their relationship was covered by this tender sweet layer like a gauzy veil. Xiao Yao simply forgot that their relationship was always just a transaction, so no matter what he chose to ask of her, she had no right to be angry.

Xiang Liu sat down and started drinking wine and stared at Xiao Yao. There was a conflicted look in his eyes, unclear what he was thinking about.

Xiao Yao finally spoke. “When can I leave? What is your plan?”

Xiang Liu didn’t answer her question and just tossed a jug of wine to Xiao Yao “This wine is specially made strong liquor, one sip and it’ll knock a person out.”

There was no brazier lit in the room so Xiao Yao was chilled. “No matter how strong the wine, it won’t let me drink my woes away!”

She picked up the jug and took a big large gulp. The strong wine hit her throat and burned its way down to her belly, instantly warming her body and relaxing her mood.

Xiao Yao continued to drink and Xiang Liu kept her company and also silently drank.

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

 nathsketch:

I'll pretend I didn't see this. This never happened. Not in my world. All lies.

At least he survived in an alternate universe! Seriously, this AU is incredible.

YaoLiu Nation is amazinggggg 

 blabla100:

You're right, and IMO there are 2 more scenes în chapter 29 that are quite telling. The discussion XY had with the yellow emperor:

Yep, that discussion definitely provides more insight into XY's feelings in that chapter. 

 blabla100:

"On the other side of the gambling hall, Fang Feng Bei watched as everyone rushed over to one table. He casually got up and sauntered over only to smile and shake his head when he saw the little mountain of coins in front of Xiao Yao.

Everyone was in different outfits but all wearing the same dog face mask and it was impossible to see who was who, but Fang Feng Bei was just different and Xiao Yao immediately knew that was him.

Xiao Yao glared at Fang Feng Bei and placed all her winnings on one bet….and then promptly lost."

So in other words, if you place your bet on XL/FFB you are going to end up losing everything, but she was willing to take the risk regardless, hence the crystal globe, which btw, I belive she started colecting the ingredients for it like 4 years prior. Perhaps she was contemplatong the idea ever since?

I'm not sure I would read that scene in the gambling den as implying that betting on XL/FFB will mean that you will lose everything. 

Earlier in the scene, before FFB walks over, we are told that XY is gambling recklessly because she wants to cause a scene, but TSJ is secretly watching her through the water mirror with Lie Jie Chang (the Li Jie tribe leader who owns the gambling den). It seems like the house is letting XY win despite all her reckless bets and without putting a stop to her roll because they've been told to. And Lie Jie Chang expects TSJ to cover his losses. 

-----

Chapter 29:

The two men politely offered her a dog faced mask and opened the door to show her into the long corridor. Xiao Yao put on the mask and entered the den. She sat down at a table and released all her emotions as she gambled and realized that the rule to have everyone wear masks allowed people to release feelings they normally would never show.

Xiao Yao kept winning and her bets kept getting bigger without any desire to stop. She was hoping to cause a scene, just like the Yellow Emperor said, she could be impetuous and do what she wanted for once. But oddly the house did nothing, Xiao Yao kept winning and no one came to stop her. The other gamblers started crowding around her and watched her bet and followed suit until everyone was winning along with her.

Xiao Yao was getting bored, did Zhuan Xu have some sort of agreement with the Li Jie tribe leader that during his wedding the doggies couldn’t cause a scene in the castle?

Xiao Yao didn’t know that in another room, the Li Jie tribe leader Li Jie Chang was sitting before a water mirror watching her every move with interest. He said to Jing “Who is that girl? Last time when you hid out at my place getting drunk for days, it couldn’t have been because of her?”

Jing said nothing and just watched Xiao Yao, the water mirror reflected the flower. It could only be viewed and not touched.

Li Jie Chang grumbled “That girl is sure crazy when she gambles, I run a little business so you’re going to have to give me back all that money!”

 blabla100:

the crystal globe, which btw, I belive she started colecting the ingredients for it like 4 years prior. Perhaps she was contemplatong the idea ever since?

I do think the timeline for her creating the ice crystal ball is interesting. She creates the scene inside the ice crystal ball shortly after ZX takes the throne. She was engaged to Feng Long at that time, but no wedding date had been set. Sealing the ice crystal ball would take two to three years, but it was only when Feng Long wanted to set a date for their wedding four years later that she went to retrieve it. She wrote to her father that she would visit him to confirm the wedding as soon as she had taken care of one thing: retrieving the ice crystal ball and sending it to XL. 

So it wasn't an impulsive act. The scene she created four years earlier was something she stood by. 

We know that shortly after she got engaged to Feng Long and shortly after ZX took the throne, XY already anticipated that she would not  be sending poisons to XL anymore after she got married. She told him so earlier in chapter 29, right after her big loss at the gambling table. She had likely already created the ice crystal ball (her "last" poison creation for him) by that point and sent it away to be sealed. 

-----

Chapter 29:

Xiao Yao silently took off her dog face mask as did Fang Feng Bei.

Xiao Yao asked, “You already know I’m engaged?”

“Something so newsworthy, it’s hard not to know even if one doesn’t want to know! I forgot to say congratulations!”

Xiao Yao silently stared at Fang Feng Bei for a few moments before shaking her head with a smile. “I need to discuss two things with you.”

Fang Feng Bei played with his mask. “Tell me.”

“The first is making poisons for you. I can still do it now but after….I’m married I won’t be able to anymore.”

I realized I didn't understand Lao Sang's identity the first time I watched the drama. It seemed like a detail that would be worth mentioning in this thread, because I feel like a lot of viewers interpret XL's reputation and personal experiences (and Chi Chen's reputation) as an indication that all demons in Dahuang are reviled and looked down upon by all deities... and I don't think that's exactly the case. 

It seems like most demons (who aren't very talented generals who kill many people and fight for Sheng Nong against Xuan Yuan) are treated similarly to low-level deities (like Lao Mu and Jing Ye). Some are slaves, some are servants, some are soldiers, and some run businesses. They aren't from noble or royal families, so they aren't treated like nobility or royalty. In cases where a noble deity family has mixed demon and deity lineage (like the Tushan clan), their demon lineage is viewed as more of an asset than a detractor. 

So to get to the detail I noticed today... in the drama, the servant who was with CX from the very first episode (Lao Sang, referred to by CX as A'Sang) is a wood demon. Specifically, he is the spirit of the jasper mulberry tree that XY "watered" with wine in episode 1. CX introduces Lao Sang to XY after he learns of her true identity in episode 14 (https://youtu.be/vw8j4rBF9EY?si=8a4iODeOxOr-0qb3&t=1675). 

Although they changed a few details, CX's close servant being a wood demon is generally consistent with the novel, where Zhuan Xu's two closest people are Xiao Xiao and Jin Xuan. Jin Xuan was a female wood demon who was part of the intelligence gathering network built by XY and CX's eldest uncle (the eldest prince of Xuan Yuan who likely would've inherited the Yellow Emperor's throne if he had lived) and maintained by a woman named Zhu Yu (who was also a wood demon) who was very close to their eldest uncle. I'm not sure of her exact relationship with him in Once Promised (he was definitely married to Sheng Nong Princess Yun Xang), but she killed herself to be with him in death (although I assume there's more to it than that) and his grave is covered with dogwood flowers that are the manifestation of her spirit. 

----

Chapter 15:

All their relatives who loved them were laying right here! Zhuan Xu knelt down and bowed to all the graves one by one and Xiao Yao followed suit. When he got to their eldest uncle’s grave, Zhuan Xu bowed an extra three times and said about the dogwood flowers growing all over “This should be the manifestation of Auntie Zhu Yu who was a dogwood wood spirit who gained human form after thousands of years. She chose to kill herself to destroy the demon soul and remove all her god powers. I was at Gao Xing by then and didn’t understand why but Master told me not to be sad. He said Auntie Zhu Yu got what she wanted and passed in peace to be with our Eldest Uncle.”

...

“I hope so. When Eldest Uncle was alive, he built a vast information network that Auntie Zhu Yu ran. When he died, the network only listened to Auntie. When your mom died, Auntie Zhu Yu was still alive but it stagnated. About a hundred years ago she did bring Jin Xuan to Gao Xing to find me. She handed the network to me per Auntie’s orders before she left for battle. Jin Xuan is also a wood demon. If I am to sit in Eldest Uncle’s spot, then Jin Xuan would sit where Auntie Zhu Yu sat. But whether she is absolutely loyal to me, only time will tell!”

-----

My understanding is that TSJ is also part demon. Like all members of the Tushan clan, he is a descendant of the original nine-tailed fox. And yet they are one of the most wealthy, powerful and respected clans in all of Dahuang.

-----

Chapter 8:

Jing said “The Tu Shan clan aren’t simply from the God tribe. One of our ancestors was the far-reaching original nine-tailed fox..."

-----

Chapter 34:

According to ancient legend, the nine-tailed fox was a godly creature like the phoenix, but it was also a vicious beast that can devour beings. The Tu Shan clan’s god was an ancient ancestor’s spiritual essence keeping watch over its descendants, and since Yi Yang was a goddess, her blood to feed to the clan god would be precious and greatly beneficial to the Tu Shan clan.

-----

Chapter 9:

“One day I met a man and he candidly admitted he was a demon and was gravely injured and was seeking medicines. He talked to me so I talked to you. Initially I was very wary so I sat far from him and ran away after a few words. After a long time and I kept testing him, he never expressed any ulterior motive towards me. So I talked more to him and he wasn’t afraid of my changing face. He changed his face and I changed my face and we had a competition and had a great laugh about it. In front of him I didn’t feel like a monster, I didn’t feel scared so I gradually trusted him. One night he caught me and wanted to take me away. The snake demon got mad and wanted to stop him but he killed it. He took me to a far-off Southern place where the mountains were tall and perilous. He hid me in a remote cave where he built a nest and a cage to raise me in. He said he was the Nine-tailed fox, a hundred years ago my mother’s………friend cut one of his tails off. He was greatly injured and his powers were severely diminished. Because of my special body, he wanted to raise me for tens of years to become the best medicine.”

-----

Chapter 16:

Jing asked “Have you ever been to Qing Qiu?”

“No, for a while I hated the Nine-tailed fox and legend has it the Nine-tailed fox came from Qing Qiu so I hated Qing Qiu as well. Twice I bypassed it.” Xiao Yao suddenly was very worried “The Nine-tailed fox I killed, it wasn’t one of your relatives?”

“He probably was.” The Nine-tailed fox was very rare, and the few existing ones really were all relatives of the Tu Shan clan.

“What?” Xiao Yao’s mouth dropped open.

Jing couldn’t help but burst out laughing “Relative or no relative, he had it coming based on what he did to you. Even if someone told my grandmother about it, you’re still in the right.”