song:
Being trapped in a 15 year promise is apparently not a condition. Lol. Anyway, I'm pretty sure it's XY who has to constantly wait for him, not the other way around, but okay.

And don't forget! In the drama (ep 14, ~15:10) after TSJ tells XY to not let another man enter her heart, the next scene is XL. Don't tell me the editors didn't know what they were doing lmao. Even TSJ deliberately said that to XY because HE KNEW XL had a chance too.

Remember the story Xiao Yao told Xiang Liu about her time being kept as a prisoner by the Nine-Tail Fox, who wanted to eat her? The 15-year oath is a parallel allegory of that imprisonment. Instead of physical imprisonment, the oath serves as a prison for her heart, keeping her from loving freely. Additionally, while the sole reason for capturing Xiao Yao was to eat her, TSJ's oath is intended to own her, and keep her by his side.

The issue at hand is not the obvious symbolism TH has created in her story. It is the staunch misinterpretation of a few viewers and novel readers who have decided to blatantly ignore and invalidate TH's work, or are incapable of deciphering and interpreting it. In terms of the viewers, many of them have been blindsided by Deng Wei's interpretation through the changes in the drama. These same viewers also fail to understand film theories and how film techniques are used to showcase or accentuate storytelling. It is, at most, unfortunate that they walk away only understanding YaoJing, the cheapest love story TH has ever written. XY love stories with XL and CX are definitely more beautiful, well thought of, and tragic.

 song:
"The"15 Years Promise for Jing" demonstrates patience, empathy, and a healthy approach to romance, making it the clear winner in the game of love gestures."

Jingers must not understand empathy and what it truly means to have a healthy romance. Oh dear! What I have come to understand when dealing with fans of Jing and YaoJing is that many of them aspire to be like Xiao Yao and to have someone like Jing—a yes man, a nice guy type. The problem with yes men and nice guy types is that they ALWAYS require a strong exchange of emotional labor and kindness in return, so maybe Jingers must have a lot of emotional labor and kindness to spare. LOL.

In my interactions with Xiang Liu and YaoLiu fans, I've noticed that many of us don't aspire to be like Xiao Yao. We understand Xiao Yao as a woman with severe emotional and psychological issues. Some of us have already settled in love and have dealt with men who resonate with the attributes that all the male leads have. For many of us, if we were Xiao Yao, we simply wouldn't make the same decisions that she did.

 song:
if y'all wanna know what a real anlaysis looks like, go check out the LYF facebook page (the name has been temporarily changed to Love Endures Cast Updates). Many of them are XL fans but their analyses are not biased like the ones you guys put out. If you have to constantly mention how terrible another character is in order to make your favorite look better, then there's clearly an issue.

Hello there, fellow FB group member! Unfortunately, I am extremely biased against Jing. Hahaha. But my analyses are not that biased because I draw my conclusions from TH's writings and incorporate cultural references that are prominent and relevant to TH's text. Many Xiang Liu fans don't make up things to fulfill their love for Xiang Liu, although Jingers may feel differently. LOL. But I'd take any essay on XL over the crap that's in the YaoJing forums...comparing YaoJing to herbal medicine and Jing to the sun! What blasphemy.

 HeadInTheClouds:
These are good example of how cultural information are embedded in its language. Not even the best, most careful translation can successfully transmit these information. The Vietnamese language surrounding the Lovers Bugs fairly screamed roamtic love and not whatever friendship or familial love that some people like to claim. 

The cultural inferences surrounding the Lover's Bug, aka the Heartbreak Bug, are a nuisance because 'Love' and 'Lover' don't have the same cultural impact in English. Simply put, 'love' and 'lover' are overused plain language words. In English, you would use a different way to describe love and lover to bring the same impact as the Vietnamese words you describe. It is the same with Chinese characters because each character carries not just the word but also the whole cultural understanding of the word.

Do you happen to know the Chinese characters that were used for Lover's Bugs/Heartbreak Bugs? I'm not there yet in the novel, so I won't be able to pick it out easily.

Hi guys thank you all for responding my questions =) it seems like the more I watch LYF the more questions I come up with XD
Here I came with other ones about the drama.

1) Well Since XL is a nine headed snake demon he can't be poisoned, then how come he got poisoned as FFB when facing XY for the second time?

2) The time that FFYY threw an arrow to CX how was she aware of the poison bugs issue? Was she the one who planned that assassination or XL's?

3) Does FFYY know the fact regarding that FFB is not her own brother but is XL?

4) Just can't help but keep reaching the conclusion that XY doesn't have XL as the first person in her heart. Just donno she acts as if so. She is like moving back and forth between TJ & XL. I believe the novel was more conceivable that she cares about XL than in the drama for me. She doesn't even try to understand XL's feelings for her. Like after being saved by XL she thought that he did all of that just to get mountain in return though she literally saw those moments herself that he suffered and put a lot of effort into saving her life well I mean who would bother himself for 37 years if it's not outta LOVE. Another instance of her ignoring XL is regarding the time she was frightened of kissing XL yet she easily kissed TJ it's sth that irritates me a lot. Or the times she touches TJ without even thinking, say impulsively. I just can't take it them touching eachothers doesn't feel like a realistic relationship. Am I the only one that thinks about her personality this way ?? Putting it this way that do you guys have the same problem with her CHARACTER predominantely when it comes to XL in the drama? I really wanna know your takes about her behavior and personality regarding XL ????!!!

 Kimiya78:

1) Well Since XL is a nine headed snake demon he can't be poisoned, then how come he got poisoned as FFB when facing XY for the second time?

I think he either used his spirit power or shape shifting ability to control his poison immunity, so that he let himself be poisoned.


 Kimiya78:
2) The time that FFYY threw an arrow to CX how was she aware of the poison bugs issue? Was she the one who planned that assassination or XL's?

She was the assassin contracted, so I imagine she planned it, with the help of her brother -- whose part was to distract CX, apparently.  She didn't know about the poison love bug.  All FFB had to say was wait for him to falter.  He didn't have to tell her WHY he faltered.


 Kimiya78:
3) Does FFYY know the fact regarding that FFB is not her own brother but is XL?

No.


 Kimiya78:
4) Just can't help but keep reaching the conclusion that XY doesn't have XL as the first person in her heart. Just donno she acts as if so. She is like moving back and forth between TJ & XL. I believe the novel was more conceivable that she cares about XL than in the drama for me. She doesn't even try to understand XL's feelings for her.

I haven't read anything but pieces of the novel, mostly here, but I like XY much better in the drama than in the book, mostly because of Yang Zi and her interactions, especially with XL.  Every time they look at each other, I feel their love hits me in the heart like a hammer -- their love is obvious to me.  I could be wrong, cause I am biased, and I don't watch their scenes that much, but I don't feel XY and TSJ share those intense looks.  Instead their reactions seem superficial and artificial, at least on XY's part, like she's playing the part of a sweetheart, as she understands it from stories.

You have to understand that most of XY's actions, especially with XL, are motivated by fear of being abandoned.  And that she lies a lot, especially to herself.  At her core, she knows she loves XL and he loves her.  But she creates these 'rationalizations' and delusions that XL doesn't love her, or love her 'enough' to stay with her, so she can justify pushing him away or transferring her desires for XL onto Jing.  That's why she goes from refusing to kiss XL to immediately trying to kiss Jing -- because she wants to convince herself that she was right to refuse XL, and that Jing's kiss will be better for her.  But even Jing could see, that the person who XY wanted to kiss was XL, not him -- and refused to kiss her.

 Kimiya78:
2) The time that FFYY threw an arrow to CX how was she aware of the poison bugs issue? Was she the one who planned that assassination or XL's?

She collaborated with XL who knew the poison bug connection between CX and WXL. Since XL is also FFB, thus he might aware that FFYY was assigned to kill CX because Fang Feng family worked for CX's uncles who wanted to kill CX. I also don't know XL use his Sheng nong general ID or FFB to plan the assasination. 

 Kimiya78:
3) Does FFYY know the fact regarding that FFB is not her own brother but is XL?

No, she did not know that the real FFB had died and XL took that identity

 Kimiya78:
4) Just can't help but keep reaching the conclusion that XY doesn't have XL as the first person in her heart.

It's very easy to overlook XY's feeling for XL in the novel and it is even harder to see that feeling in the drama. Moreover, the drama tried hard to push for Yao-Jing 1:1 relationship

 I had not read the book before watching the drama, thus I did not aware of XY's hidden love for XL. It was not potrayed on screen as the level in the novel. Maybe it is because of TH's writing technique. But I really had issue with XY's personality after she woke up after 37 years under the sea.  

 Kimiya78:
1) Well Since XL is a nine headed snake demon he can't be poisoned, then how come he got poisoned as FFB when facing XY for the second time?

XL used poison to train and improve his spiritual power. Thus, he probably could reverse or supress some function to make him be poisoned.

 Kimiya78:
1) Well Since XL is a nine headed snake demon he can't be poisoned, then how come he got poisoned as FFB when facing XY for the second time?

He lowers his spiritual powers to evade detection, because some higher deities can sense spiritual levels or one of his head/88 incarnations just has a lower spiritual powers. TH doesn't go into the details of how XL does this. Lmao, so everything is up to speculation. Just let your imagination run wild.


 Kimiya78:
2) The time that FFYY threw an arrow to CX how was she aware of the poison bugs issue? Was she the one who planned that assassination or XL's?

Fang Feng family is supporting CX uncles. This is not well portrayed in the drama. So it's in thier best interest if CX is dead. She planned the assassination with FFB aka XL. Again, not well portrayed in the drama. FFYY doesn't know FFB is XL.


 Kimiya78:

4) Just can't help but keep reaching the conclusion that XY doesn't have XL as the first person in her heart. Just donno she acts as if so. She is like moving back and forth between TJ & XL. I believe the novel was more conceivable that she cares about XL than in the drama for me. She doesn't even try to understand XL's feelings for her.

In the drama, the changes have created this surface feeling. I think the direction and TH's script was supposed to make audience continue to question who XY truly loves. There are unconfirmed rumors that the production was initiated to promote YaoJing, and push YaoLiu to unrequited love. Yet, despite all the changes, YaoLiu was such a beautiful love story that they still couldn't subdue it. 


 Kimiya78:
She doesn't even try to understand XL's feelings for her. Like after being saved by XL she thought that he did all of that just to get mountain in return though she literally saw those moments herself that he suffered and put a lot of effort into saving her life well I mean who would bother himself for 37 years if it's not outta LOVE.

XY's character has many contradictions, whether it was on purpose or an oversight on TH's part, for someone who is pragmatic and street smart, she is quite stupid. 

 Kimiya78:
Another instance of her ignoring XL is regarding the time she was frightened of kissing XL yet she easily kissed TJ it's sth that irritates me a lot. Or the times she touches TJ without even thinking, say impulsively. I just can't take it them touching eachothers doesn't feel like a realistic relationship. Am I the only one that thinks about her personality this way ??

You are not alone. XY is a liar, and she will lie to herself and Jing. XL doesn't put up with her lies, but Jing is just too desperate and emasculated, so he will also play along with her lies. At first, she used her princess status as an excuse not to kiss XL, but later, she reveals in her monologue that it was because of her oath to Jing. In the drama, XY does change her tone around Jing - it becomes alarming because it makes her feel fake. For me, in the novel, her tone remains the same throughout. She doesn't treat Jing better than XL or vice versa. The only person she treats different is CX due to thier trauma and familial bonds.

 Kimiya78:
Putting it this way that do you guys have the same problem with her CHARACTER predominantely when it comes to XL in the drama? I really wanna know your takes about her behavior and personality regarding XL ????!!!

In the drama, XY's character with XL is very consistent with her character as WXL during the QingShui Town Arc. She is most genuine when she's with him simply because, like him, XY truly doesn't care for material things, statuses, or power. XY's sweetness towards CX also feels more genuine because of their shared trauma. Jingers have argued that XY feels like a woman when she's with Jing; however, if faking and hiding who she is makes XY a woman, then I guess I don't know what it means to be a woman.

 H19279:
It's very easy to overlook XY's feeling for XL in the novel and it is even harder to see that feeling in the drama. Moreover, the drama tried hard to push for Yao-Jing 1:1 relationship

I had not read the book before watching the drama, thus I did not aware of XY's hidden love for XL. It was not potrayed on screen as the level in the novel. Maybe it is because of TH's writing technique. But I really had issue with XY's personality after she woke up after 37 years under the sea.

Interesting.  In the drama, I'm the opposite, as I said before.  Everything in the Qingshui Town arc pointed to XY and XL being the main romantic couple, fighting their desire and circumstances, while Jing might be an ineffective 2ML, pining after her.

That's not to say drama XY has made me yell at her on the screen at various times.  lol

 plor20:
In the drama, the changes have created this surface feeling. I think the direction and TH's script was supposed to make audience continue to question who XY truly loves. There are unconfirmed rumors that the production was initiated to promote YaoJing, and push YaoLiu to unrequited love. Yet, despite all the changes, YaoLiu was such a beautiful love story that they still couldn't subdue it.

Yes, I've heard people say that the production was pushing YaoJing as the official and only relationship, but honestly, I don't really see that in Season 1.  I mean, Jing looks like total crap in Season 1.  Even if you didn't watch carefully (or were too delusional) and notice him stalking and how he made XY his sidepiece,  everyone saw just how pathetic and powerless he was, as well as how he hurt XY.  I mean, look how many people jumped the YaoJing ship as the show went on.  Now, Season 2 may be different, if we believe the leaked script.  But the damage has been done.  For many, he's just a passive weakling.

I agree.  YaoLiu still shines brightly in the drama.

 Kokuto:
 Everything in the Qingshui Town arc pointed to XY and XL being the main romantic couple,

Yes, it gave the signals to point out they were the main romatic couple. However, she didn't look so passionate during that time. And then she accepted the 15 year promise and showing all sort of longing and jealousy with Jing and FFYY respectively. Her interaction with FFB is just like to a close friend. Actually the filming of 37 year under the sea was also bad. In the novel, during that time XY only thought and expected, longed for XY's return. There was no single thought of CX or Jing. The drama added her thought of CX and Jing. 

The drama made the scene when she woke up more emotional than the book (like going back to the bed and cried there while in the book she cried on Furball when she dropped off). Huh, I don't know if they changed it because they wanted XL to collect her tear drops and latter use in the final battle and the infamous scene when he sensed XY and Jing kissing each other. 

While TJC showed audience more emotional side of XL, Yang Zi showed very cold XY in my opinion except the scene outside the casino after Left Ear won and became free. 

 plor20:
XY's character has many contradictions, whether it was on purpose or an oversight on TH's part, for someone who is pragmatic and street smart, she is quite stupid.

I don't think it is oversight on Tong Hua's part.  She wrote XY with those contradictions, IMO, to show how XY deluded and lied to herself to 'protect' herself from facing reality and choices.  It's not that she's stupid.  It's that she chooses not to admit what she knows or sees.

To be fair, not many people are self aware or willing to look at themselves honestly.  It's much easier to blame others, than oneself.


 plor20:
Jingers have argued that XY feels like a woman when she's with Jing; however, if faking and hiding who she is makes XY a woman, then I guess I don't know what it means to be a woman.

This 'argument' from Jingers is just insulting and anti-feminist, IMO.  They are literally saying that a woman can only be a woman, if she dresses in frilly 'feminine' clothes, and worse, that she does it to please a man.  Seriously, WTF?

They also overlook that moment when XY tries to kiss Jing, and he refuses, and she asks something like, 'isn't that what men want from women?'  That tells me, that she's trying act like some ideal of a woman, rather than herself.

But again, to be fair, I'm still wrestling with Tong Hua's choice to make WXL male and Jing female coded.  I'm not sure I like what she's trying say.  lol

 H19279:
Yes, it gave the signals to point out they were the main romatic couple. However, she didn't look so passionate during that time.

Part of that is because she was physically a man.  I finally figured out that may also be part of the reason why XL acted so awkward around WXL at times, like when he puts his hand behind her head when they are sharing a moment.  Part of it is Yang Zi's ticklish neck.


 H19279:
And then she accepted the 15 year promise and showing all sort of longing and jealousy with Jing and FFYY respectively.

I didn't see it as longing, especially in the beginning.  She dismisses Jing and their promise to her father.  She keeps falling asleep or getting passed out drunk when her and Jing do get to spend time together.  I'd have to watch it again, but my impression was that she wasn't so much jealous of FFYY, as wanting Jing to live up to his promise and get rid of her, so XY could finally have the promised relationship with Jing.  And again, it may be my bias, I honestly feel YaoJing is artificial and superficial when they started.


 H19279:
Her interaction with FFB is just like to a close friend.

That's how both XL and XY wanted their relationship at the time... but even so,  XY knew there was more there, because subconsciously, or not, she knew FFB was XL.


 H19279:
Actually the filming of 37 year under the sea was also bad. In the novel, during that time XY only thought and expected, longed for XY's return. There was no single thought of CX or Jing. The drama added her thought of CX and Jing.

The drama made the scene when she woke up more emotional than the book (like going back to the bed and cried there while in the book she cried on Furball when she dropped off). Huh, I don't know if they changed it because they wanted XL to collect her tear drops and latter use in the final battle and the infamous scene when he sensed XY and Jing kissing each other.

My limited understanding is that the drama did shortchange the 37 year under the sea scene.  But it did have it's strong emotional beats, regardless, with the collected tears, and with that scene where XL stared at XY's spirit form, right before she got sucked back into her body.  That scene is awesome, for me.

I guess we'll have to wait for Season 2 to see, but I still hope they cut that nonsense about XL feeling jealous enough to throw away the pearl.  I'm fine with him having it with as a final comfort, though.

 H19279:
While TJC showed audience more emotional side of XL, Yang Zi showed very cold XY in my opinion except the scene outside the casino after Left Ear won and became free.

I really need to the book to make that comparison.  But again, for me, the drama made me a YaoLiu shipper, so she worked for me.

 song:
Ugh that Yaojing thread... I told myself I wouldn't go there for my own sanity but here we are LMAO.

SMH.  It's kind of like seeing Cthulhu... you are driven mad, simply seeing the shambling cosmic horror.  lol

 song:
They're saying XL is "taking advantage" of XY by accepting the bugs and not telling her the true meaning of them. Sorry but if not for the bug connection, girlie and her lover would be dead. Ceased to exist. Gone to the great beyond.

XL accepted the bugs in the first place because he loves XY and wants to save her when she's in danger. If XY knew those bugs were for lovers, she'd go into panic and denial and urge XL to remove them asap (like when she found out in the novel.

How conveniently they forget that XY BEGGED  XL repeatedly to get her and CX out of a jam and take on the bug.  Or the fact that XY wanted to take advantage of XL and raised the bug for specifically for XL and tried to plant it on XL first, before CW, without XL even knowing about it.  She only took advantage of CX, because he promised retribution for the A Nian kidnapping.

Oh, so XL was supposed to tell XY everything before she made a decision?  Cause it's not like it isn't her own damn bug and she was using it on people without finding out everything about it on her own, to specifically take advantage of them -- she's just a silly woman who needs a man to do all the intellectual and detective work, to truly be a woman. /sarcasm

Of course, let's also forget the fact that Jing lied about every single thing about himself to literally take advantage of WXL so he could stay hiding like a coward from Hou and his family and his responsibilities for YEARS.  And it's not like there wasn't a possibility that Hou could show up and kill him and WXL and the entire clinic family -- cause even WXL said that was a possibility, that whowever beat and tortured Jing could come looking for him, which is why she didn't want to help him.


 song:
Their thoughts on TSJ's 15 years promise vs XL's bug acceptance scene is also absolutely ATROCIOUS and biased (ノ`Д´)ノ彡┻━┻

"Shi Qi demonstrates genuine care and understanding in his interaction with Xiao Liu, which contrasts sharply with Xiang Liu's manipulative actions."

"He expresses his feelings for her without attaching conditions or expectations, and his willingness to wait for her demonstrates a healthy approach to building a relationship based on mutual respect and understanding."

Being trapped in a 15 year promise is apparently not a condition. Lol. Anyway, I'm pretty sure it's XY who has to constantly wait for him, not the other way around, but okay.

And don't forget! In the drama (ep 14, ~15:10) after TSJ tells XY to not let another man enter her heart, the next scene is XL. Don't tell me the editors didn't know what they were doing lmao. Even TSJ deliberately said that to XY because HE KNEW XL had a chance too.

Exactly.  The whole reason Jing extracted that promise was because he KNEW that XL would just take XY away, like he'd always done!  lol  The 15 Years was a condition.  The No Other Men was a condition.  The Promise was a condition.  And yes, he wasn't the one waiting.  Seriously.  HOW do you not understand who is doing the waiting???


 song:
"The"15 Years Promise for Jing" demonstrates patience, empathy, and a healthy approach to romance, making it the clear winner in the game of love gestures."

OMG.  It's like none of them have had a romance, much less a healthy one.  I mean seriously.  There is NOTHING healthy about an engaged / married man taking advantage of your loneliness and manipluating you into a promise to not date anyone else, for any length of time ... until he got divorced.  Even he knows it is wrong and says he shouldn't ask.  I mean, it's like the plot of every Lowlife Adulterous Scoundrel and the Other Woman story.


 song:
@yaojingers: if y'all wanna know what a real anlaysis looks like, go check out the LYF facebook page (the name has been temporarily changed to Love Endures Cast Updates). Many of them are XL fans but their analyses are not biased like the ones you guys put out. If you have to constantly mention how terrible another character is in order to make your favorite look better, then there's clearly an issue.

I think that's actually a Yang Zi FB group, that changes it names and focus as her new shows start up.

But yes!  This is my point with their comment posting on the main page.  They can't talk about Jing without draggin XL into it.

And yes, most of those Jingers are delusional and totally unserious in their 'analysis' of the show and the book.  Don't bother even reading that mess.

They lost the literal plot once the Statue of Liberty became part of the analysis. I try not to make too much fun of them because I've been noticing a certain proneness to epic meltdowns, but still, it's pretty wild how things are getting crazier and crazier. 

 nathsketch:

They lost the literal plot once the Statue of Liberty became part of the analysis. I try not to make too much fun of them because I've been noticing a certain proneness to epic meltdowns, but still, it's pretty wild how things are getting crazier and crazier. 

Lol...I thought the statue  was  just for that one picture of XY and her straw hat. Did they outright write  a whole academic analysis? ??

And they say XL is a stalker... see, thief shout thief. Just because their idols are no better than XL, they do everything they can to make their idols look perfect, at least in their eyes

 windiaaa041293:

And they say XL is a stalker... see, thief shout thief. Just because their idols are no better than XL, they do everything they can to make their idols look perfect, at least in their eyes

What! The only stalker was Jing lmao! XL is minding his business. It's XY that's always running into him.