Xiang Liu and Xiao Yao’s Story and Romance

 solarlunareclipse:

She also made him grilled fish after their sea expedition after CX's wedding. There may be other instances as well, but I haven't taken full inventory of situations involving her grilling fish for XL.

 AH :

XY/WXL grilled fish for XL twice: once as WXL and once as XY on their excursion after CX's wedding. 

When they reached the surface it was already sunset. Xiao Yao realized they spent a day and a night under the sea. Xiang Liu took Xiao Yao to an island, Xiao Yao grilled two fishes for herself and roasted a giant suckling pig sized fish for Xiang Liu. She used a conch shell to make a seafood soup. She carried her herb pouch with her everywhere but she didn’t use any seasonings on her fish but sprinkled it on Xiang Liu’s fish. It wasn’t even done cooking yet but the mouthwatering scent wafted everywhere.

Xiao Yao stared at it and started drooling but she didn’t have the guts to eat it and instead docilely ate her two fish.

Xiang Liu took a bite of his fish and made a rare compliment to Xiao Yao “The taste is pretty good.”

(Chapter 26)

Actually, I found the drama made this grilled fish better than in the novel. On the drama, XY said the previous time that she grilled fish for him was when she was still WXL who at that time was alone and felt the world so big with nowhere to go. At the moment of talking when she had home and someone waiting for her but she just wanted to wander the world forever. Thus XY dropped the hint to XL that she wanted to wander the the world forever (with him). It also means that to do so, XL would have to give up his duty and responsibilities to Shen Nong army and his comrade. 

The drama also made XL's intention clearer than quiet XL in the novel as when XY asked about the islands, he said she should get someone else, he would not accompany her. 

There is another occasion related to grill fish between XY and XL. It was in chapter 43 after he sucked her blood but this time, XL grill fish and made the seafood soup for XY. These two scenes are almost mirror of each other. And actually, XL made more generous food for XY (beside grilled fish, soup, he also made seaweed salad).

P/S: WXL/XY grilled seafood (clams, fish) for CX and Ah Nian on their boat trip on the occasion of attending the competition in Chi Shui in chapter 11. The fish was wrapped in lotus leaf and roasted on hot stone. Additionally, the duck neck that XY bought for Jing was also wrapped in lotus leaf

 H19279:

P/S: WXL/XY grilled seafood (clams, fish) for CX and Ah Nian on their boat trip on the occasion of attending the competition in Chi Shui in chapter 11. The fish was wrapped in lotus leaf and roasted on hot stone.

I think XY only grills fish for XL, herself, and their shadow characters. So during this trip to the Chi Shui Autumn Tournament, CX, A Nian, and Hai Tang eat Xiao Yao's grilled fish.

• AN = XL's shadow
• HT is an extension of AN since servants can be considered an extension of their masters. So by extension, HT is also XL's shadow
• CX = XY's shadow

There is one more instance with XY and grilled fish. After running away from her wedding to Feng Long, Xiao Yao spent time at sea with King Gao Xin and A Nian. They did grill fish, but it doesn't specifically say that XY grilled the fish here.

临别前一日，高辛王早早下朝，带小夭和阿念乘船出海，父女三人钓鱼、烤鱼，忙得不亦乐乎。
The day before leaving, King Gao Xin left court early and took Xiao Yao and A Nian out to sea on a boat. The father and daughters fished and grilled fish together, keeping themselves happily busy.

— Vol 2 Ch 16 (Chapter 33)

The lotus leaf used to wrap the fish may be another hint that AN is XL's shadow. AN also conjures up lotuses to cheer XY up after she finds out about FFYY's pregnancy. Feng Long is another character with associations to the lotus and he is another XL shadow character. There are also mentions lotus with Hou, XL's foil character.

 H19279:

Additionally, the duck neck that XY bought for Jing was also wrapped in lotus leaf

After Jing and XY went qin shopping, Jing ordered duck neck and chicken feet and wrapped them in lotus leaves.

碰到卖小吃的摊子，璟要了一些鸭脖子、鸡爪子，让小贩用荷叶包好。
Encountering a stall selling snacks, Jing ordered some duck neck and chicken feet, and asked the vendor to wrap them in lotus leaves.

— Vol 2 Ch 3 (Chapter 20)

This is likely Tong Hua appropriating the lotus to be associated with Jing, just as she does with the moon, the 'Fei Fei' song, and hibiscus flowers. Jing is definitely not a XL shadow character.

Tong Hua 2013 Book Release Weibo Posts

March 10, 2013

送给所有坚强的人：苦难之所以能成为苦难，只是因为遇到它们的人都被打败了。而 我们打败了苦难，并把它们踩碎，揉进自己 的身体里，变成了属于我们的力量，所 以，我们从不会把苦难看作苦难一《长相思》
Dedicated to all the strong people: The reason suffering becomes suffering is that those who encounter it are defeated by it. But we have defeated suffering, trampled it to pieces, and kneaded it into our own bodies, transforming it into our strength. Therefore, we never regard suffering as suffering. — “Lost You Forever”

May 31, 2013

长相思2：小夭默默看着漫天烟花，想必青丘 此刻也是如此美丽，璟大概搀扶着奶奶，和众人一起看着缤纷绚烂的烟花；而清水镇外 的茫茫大山中，应该是黑暗的，萧瑟寒风 中，士兵们围着籍火，就着劣酒，唱一曲故 国的歌谣。相柳大概一身雪白的衣，陪着共 工，默默地穿行在黑暗中，从一个营地巡逻 到另一个营地。
Lost You Forever Volume 2: Xiao Yao silently watched the fireworks filling the sky. Qing Qiu must be just as beautiful at this moment, with Jing probably supporting his grandmother, watching the brilliant and colorful fireworks together with everyone else. Meanwhile, in the vast mountains outside Qing Shui Town, it should be dark. Amidst the bleak and cold wind, the soldiers huddle around a campfire, drinking poor-quality wine, and singing songs of their homeland. Xiang Liu, likely dressed in all white, accompanies Gong Gong, silently moving through the darkness, patrolling from one camp to another.

March 15, 2013

26度-晴: 虽然这里谈的是长相思，可是我还是忍不住要问，孟钰是真的死了吗？云中歌看了好多遍，真的好希望陵哥哥是假死或者孟钰只是掉进了河里，这样的话云歌就不是一个人了。
Reader: Although we are discussing “Lost You Forever” here, I can't help but ask: Did Meng Yu really die? I've read “Song in the Clouds” many times and truly hope that Brother Ling is only pretending to be dead or that Meng Yu just fell into the river. That way, Yun Ge wouldn't be alone.

桐华tonghua: 我不知道…我也希望他活着，能多年后，江湖再见。
Tong Hua: I don't know... I also hope that he is alive, and that they can meet again in the world years later.

March 15, 2013

爱吃肉的黑妞: 你愿意选择相遇还是别离?
Reader: Would you choose to meet or part ways?

桐华tonghua: 遇见了谁, 谁离开了, 其实都不是 我们能选择的。
Tong Hua: Who we meet and who we leave are actually not our choices.

June 2, 2013

古月歌然: 前天看书看到这里, 桐大你这么损自己, 我也是醉了。
Reader: The day before yesterday, when I read up to this point in the book, Mrs. Tong, you're so self-deprecating, I can't even…

桐华tonghua: 哈哈......我损的可不止这一处, 炮灰表哥梗损的是长相思, 小螺在海边说烂俗的一知道绝症就玩隐瞒赶你走偏不走各种作节奏的是云中歌。。。(请这些故事的读者原谅 我, 自嘲打趣, 自嘲打趣。。。)
Tong Hua: Haha... I'm not just self-deprecating here. The cannon fodder cousin's storyline in “Lost You Forever” is self-deprecating, and Xiao Luo said vulgar things by the sea, as soon as he knows he is terminally ill, plays tricks to drive you away, all kinds of rhythms in “Song in the Clouds”… (Please forgive me, readers of these stories, for my self-mockery, self-mockery...)

March 15, 2013

音尘绝萧咽也jasmine: 其实有点困惑的是十七到底是哪一个地方开始发现小六是女子的啊?
Reader: Actually, what's a bit confusing is: when exactly did Seventeen discover that Xiao Liu is a girl?

桐华tonghua: 他之前就知道小六是幻化的形体了, 但他当时万念俱灰, 什么都不在意, 直到小六看他洗澡脸红时, 他......嗯......死了 的心也跳了跳............
Tong Hua: He knew beforehand that Xiao Liu was in a disguised form, but at that time, he was in despair and didn't care about anything. It wasn't until Xiao Liu blushed when seeing him bathe that he... um... even his dead heart skipped a beat...

@solarlunareclipse

Thank you for the translations! 

"紫眸的眼泪0214: 桐大,为什么你书里总有白衣男出现?然后这些白衣男最后又总是炮灰了呢?一直很想问你这个问题?不知道你能不能回答? 如孟九,少昊, 还有相柳...............

Reader: Mrs. Tong, why do men in white always appear in your books? And why do these men in white always end up as cannon fodder? I've always wanted to ask you this question. I wonder if you can answer? Like Meng Jiu, Shao Hao, and Xiang Liu...

桐华tonghua: 少昊是因为整个王族都穿白色衣服啊!!! 相柳是因为保护色, 习惯了.
Tong Hua: Shao Hao wears white because the entire royal family wears white! Xiang Liu wears white because it’s a form of camouflage, and he’s used to it."

I like how TH draw a line between Shao Hao and XL, Shao Hao's love for Ah Heng was unrequited, so by her answer I understand that regardless of both wearing white, they share no similarities and people shouldn't mix them togheter. 

I want to share with you my thoughts and discuss them. When I finished reading Once Promised, I spent a lot of time thinking about parallels. I don't have the English version of OP because I read it in my language, but I'll try to explain.

In the drama, when we first see XL, he stays on the rock and listens to XY's song. Chi Cheng also met Ah Heng for the first time from the rock (or something similar) and fell in love with her at that moment. Ah Heng swam in the lake, and XY was also singing near the water. Later, when XL met XY as FFB, he said something like 'what if I fell in love with you when I first saw you?' I believe he used his new role but told the truth about the past. 

But what about the relationship between XL and WXL? He was really a red flag at first. But when I read OP, I also hated Chi Cheng because he was so annoying at the start of the story and did so many bad things to A Heng. He didn't drink blood, but he was so jealous. To be honest, I didn't like the beginning of their story. But in the end, I cried. 

Ah Heng spent a lot of time creating the red cloak for Chi You. This is similar to the ice ball for XL. When Ah Heng made the red cloak, they didn’t know each other well; it was just the beginning. 

Ah Heng was detained on the mountain with the Royal Mother for 40(?) years because Chi You stole the bow to find Ah Heng (according to legend, this bow can help locate a person wherever they are), but he found her before using it. The Royal Mother knew who stole the bow but wanted a relationship between Ah Heng and Chi You. All these years, Chi You wrote letters to Ah Heng and sent them through A Cian (fox) and Li Yan (bird).

Ah Heng was also like XY, who said she hated Chi You, but in the end, she admitted that she fell in love with him when she saw him for the first time. She knew that the city of Bofu was located exactly in the direction where he was looking. She approached him and asked, “Can you tell me how to get to Bofu?” He looked at her coldly (he saw her already twice) and walked on, and she immediately rushed after him, as if she had gone crazy. Only many years later did she realize that if she had not kept up with him, they would have simply missed each other and would never have crossed paths again.

When Chi Cheng (or Chi You) saved Ah Heng from dying in the end, he exchanged her destroyed heart for his own and died. He used that stolen bow for it (the legend was only a legend, but in reality, this bow can replace lives). Ah Heng remained alone in the peach garden in the middle of the desert, waiting to meet the adult XY. She said that only when Chi Cheng died she truly understood her great love for him, and his heart stayed with her. She said, 'Once I dreamed of exploring the whole world with you, but now I understand – you are my world. But even though we're close, we're separated by life and death. We can't touch each other, and I'll never hear your heartbeat. The pain of missing you consumes me like poison, cutting me like a knife night after night. When the peaches bloom again, my longing and pain have nowhere to go, so I conjure up a sandstorm just to hear your heartbeat again.'

Tong Hua killed me with this. It really seems like the ending of XY and XL.

Yes, Sir Bi is a fox. He always was melancholic and sentimental unlike Li Yang. I adore the moment when XL says goodbye forever to XY and Sir Bi (A Cian) sings a song. This song is sung by Chi You for Ah Heng.
By the way, Chi You has a big bird that has the biggest speed in the world. When CY was injured, this bird delivered him far away to the North. If I'm not mistaken, when XY saw the portrait of CY in the house of her parents, it was CY on the big bird.
I really recommend reading 'Once Promised.' Every story with every couple was interesting, especially with Xiang Cian's parents.
After reading, I hate XY's grandfather so much. So many deaths linked with him. Before reading, I thought Ah Heng and Chi You killed each other, but the Yellow Emperor used his daughter as bait. He knew that Ah Heng had new abilities for destroying a big army after "dying" some years ago. He used everyone in his family.

I watched the first two episodes of Fox Spirit Matchmaker, and it's made abundantly clear that the Tushan Clan are all about the money and merchants.  Apparently it's part of the myth, and just reinforces my belief that the most transactional character in LYF is Jing.

 windiaaa041293:

Is it true that there is an XL in the drama "Filter"?

This was from the little video released when filming for the drama ended. The XL doll with his troll hair styling:-). Some of us are hoping to get XL's Easter Eggs in Filter.