In that event, the moon was describled as a bright round moon- 一轮明月 or round moon - 轮月H19279:
Surprised! Surprised!
This event can happen on a full moon day or maybe around the full moon day
I would disagree that 一轮 does not infer the shape of the moon. Just as @plor20 mentioned, if it were a crescent moon, there would be no use of the word 一轮 to describe it. As such, 一轮 implies that it is round. What I do agree with you is that a round moon does not necessarily mean a true full moon. So if we were to be pedantic, then yes, it can be described as the round bright moon, as opposed to the bright full moon.liddi:
Thank you for your verification.
As I mentioned repeatedly in my previous posts, 一轮 will always infer that the moon is round. A crescent moon or any other moon will not be described with "轮“ - I have also verified this with others who are even more fluent in Chinese than I am.
And as I agreed with @solarlunareclipse in the above post, a round moon may not necessarily mean a true full moon. However, it still means that the moon on that night is round.
As such, 一轮明月 (Vol 1 Ch4, when Xiao Yao and Xiang Liu gazed at the moon together), and 一轮皓月 (Vol 1 Ch18 / Chapter 51, when Xiao Yao gazed at the moon the night she found out about his death) implies that the moon on both nights were round. This is also the reason why she was immediately reminded of the moon they gazed together at Qingshui town.
没有多久，一轮明月，缓缓从海面升起，清辉倾泻而下，小六被天地瑰丽震撼，心上的硬壳都柔软了。
在海浪声中，相柳的声音传来：“只要天地间还有这样的景色，生命就很可贵。”
小六喃喃嘟：“再稀罕的景色看多了也腻，除非有人陪我一块儿看才有意思。景永远是死的，只有人才会赋予景意义。”
Not long after that, a bright round moon slowly rose from the surface of the ocean, clear, bright moonlight shining down. Stunned by the breathtaking sight, the hard shell around Xiao Liu’s heart softened.
Amidst the sound of the waves, Xiang Liu’s voice could be heard. “As long as such sights still exist in the world, life is very precious.”
Xiao Liu murmured, “No matter how rare a scenery is, one will get tired of it if seen too often. It is only meaningful if someone was with me to see it. Sceneries are dead, only people can give the scenery meaning.”
-- Vol 1 Ch4
她悄悄起身，看璟依旧安稳地睡着，放下心来。她披上衣服，走出了寝殿，坐在玉阶前。
宫墙外，一轮皓月，冷冷清清。
小夭想起了清水镇的月亮，相柳死时，天上的月亮可也是这样静静地照拂着他？他可有想起他们曾一起看过的月亮？
She got up quietly, and was relieved to see Jing still sleeping peacefully. Putting on her robes, she walked out of the bedroom and sat in front of the jade steps.
Outside the palace walls, a bright round moon hung in the sky, cold and desolate.
Xiao Yao thought of the moon in Qingshui Town. When Xiang Liu died, was the moon in the sky also shining silently down on him like this? Did he think of the moon that they once looked at together?
-- Vol 3 Ch18 (Chapter 51)
blabla100:
Re-reading chapter 51 and there is that scene where AhNian went with the grand emperor to have a few drinks at the thousand year old bar, which made XY think that his dad is planning to reminiscence his past to her. Right after, XY took Jing to a restaurant and ordered a few xuanyuan dishes, while quietly eating. Is xuanyuan the place where she used to play with FFB? Anyway, that also made me remember of that scene with XY and grand emperor where he was drinking some not that great wine and XY thought that he is not actually drinking because of its taste, but because he misses the times that that wine reminds him of. I got even sadder for XY, now she has jing to rely on, yet she still misses FFB / XL, the same way Grand emperor spends his days missing and thinking of the past.
That is a very interesting observation - thank you for pointing it out!
Yes, Fangfeng Bei and Xiao Yao spent those two years in Xuan Yuan City, visiting shops, dancing halls, eating places and gambling dens.
While the White Emperor's memories at the rundown wine shop were tied to Qing Yang, this certainly is similar to how Xiao Yao brought Cang Xuan and Jing to try the grilled meat at the place Fangfeng Bei brought her before. She and Jing ate Xuan Yuan dishes at a restaurant she brought Jing, which meant that she had been there before. And the person with whom she mostly likely have gone with in the past, was the person who knew and introduced her to the best eating places (among other places) in the whole of Xuan Yuan city.
@H19279
Thanks for the info, I was quite curious to know more about who the person that grand emperor misses and who obviously made him happy in the past is. I can see XY doing the same in the future, smiling while remember her trips she had with XL in the ocean, despite missing him. What happened between them, if you can tell me a bit more..
Shaohao met Qing Yang the first time the the Far North in a wine shop. None of them knew the identity of each other. Shaohao was very famous for his blacksmith skill and Qing Yang had a broken sword. Shao Hao was the eldest son of the previous White Emperor but his mom died young when he was born (?). Later his father has favorite concubine who gave birth to a few princes who later competed with Shaohao for crown prince. Shaohao fell out of favor and he travelled to the Far North. SH and QY became friend and later became soulmate. They have more or less similar family conditions, they were both elite and strongest deity. They helped each other to survise the royal fight and they wanted to be the king of their own kingdom (in case of QY, he first did not have political ambition, he was only active in politics after his younger brother died, he needed to protect his mom and his siblings). They were also the biggest competitor of each other. QY protected SH and vice versa. In SH's view YQ was the only one who regarded and treated for whom he was, not because of his power or title. YQ arranged the engagement between SH and Ah Heng to protect his mother's status as well as Shao hao's position in Haoling's palace. Shaohao also felt guilty that he was the indirect cause for QY's death. When QY died , he realized how precious QY was to him, how good he was. Shao hao thought that QY was ruthless as him (he poisoned his father for the throne) but he was wrong. QY had never changed and still the nice guy that he had met in the wine shop in the Far North
Thanks a lot for the moon analysys!!! I will definetely check everything out, the symbolism part of the story was always something that interested me a lot. I never get bored of looking for clues and meanings, lol.
It's hard work to search for all the events with the moon in the book. Thank you for your summary of those moments.
You're welcome, hope it's useful! Thanks for reviewing the post, H19279.
This event was not the one that XL took XY to see the moon on the ocean. The excerpt corresponds to WXL's appointment with XL after the night when injured XL came to his room for healing and he drew charcoal on XL's face.
I reread the text and you're right that it doesn't correspond to the moon on the ocean. It actually corresponds to when Xiao Liu uses Chuang Zi's marriage as an excuse to come see Xiang Liu after several months of not seeing him. Xiang Liu kicks Xiao Liu out of the tree during this encounter. I'll need to edit this in the original post.
And I just found out that the event that all of us (by default) thought that it was full moon when XL took WXL to the ocean to watch the moon doesn't specify the as FULL MOON in the Chinese text. This event happen in the last part of chapter 4, on Chuanzi's wedding day.
Good catch, I'll have to add this event as likely or possibly happened during the full moon.
As I mentioned repeatedly in my previous posts, 一轮 will always infer that the moon is round. A crescent moon or any other moon will not be described with "轮“ - I have also verified this with others who are even more fluent in Chinese than I am.
Thanks for verifying liddi! I think we're all in agreement that using "轮" in the context of the moon gives a connotation of round. I'll search the text and add those references to the post.
As such, 一轮明月 (Vol 1 Ch4, when Xiao Yao and Xiang Liu gazed at the moon together), and 一轮皓月 (Vol 1 Ch18 / Chapter 51, when Xiao Yao gazed at the moon the night she found out about his death) implies that the moon on both nights were round. This is also the reason why she was immediately reminded of the moon they gazed together at Qingshui town.
Agree on "一轮明月" on the day that XY and XL gazed at the moon together means the moon was round. I'll have to do some further thinking about "一轮皓月" when XY found out about XL's death. As you noted, the description seems to imply a round moon. However, because the YaoJing wedding was calculated to be on a waning crescent moon and this event was supposed to happen a few days later, I'm not sure that timing aligns with a round-looking moon. A few possibilities are: (1) there is a mistake in the calculation of the moon phase for YaoJing's wedding, (2) "a few days" actually means around 15 days (3) this is an imprecise use of the term "一轮" to refer to a non-round moon.
My impression of that comment from XY was not that she thought that XL and FBB were the same (if she thought there was no difference, then why would she hope for Left Ear to be more like FFB than XL?), but rather that, whether Left Ear became more like XL or more like FFB, she would accompany him all the same / either way.AH :
My interpretation as to why XY wants LE to be more like FFB than XL is not because she likes FFB more as a person, but because FFB is free. There is a lot of mention of freedom when LE won his freedom.
Bei crooked his long legs and put his hands behind his head and leaned back “Forty years ago he made a deal with his slave owner. If he helped his owner win for forty straight years, then the owner would grant him his freedom. Tonight if he wins, he gets his freedom.”
...
That slave really was so weak! Likely because he was about to gain his freedom, his owner saw him as a losing proposition so never spent money to heal his recent injuries.
...
The skinny weak slave actually moved but still couldn’t get up. Everyone got excited and stared at him. Xiao Yao loudly called out “Get up, get up, get up! If you get up then you’ve earned your freedom! Get up, get up!”
...
Some other folks also knew about the slave’s deal with his owner so in the chatter in the arena, soon the entire arena knew he had endured for forty years and this was his final step towards freedom.
...
Xiao Yao laughed out loud in joy and turned around and hugged Bei and excitedly exclaimed “Did you see that? He won, he’s free!”
...
Xiao Yao walked and talked “I was thinking that when you escaped the slave death match arena, wouldn’t it have been great if I was the one who saved you! If that was the case, then I would let you only be Fang Feng Bei! I really hate that I wasn’t born a few hundred years earlier. I would definitely find you in the slave death match arena…….”
-- Vol 2 Ch 6 (Chapter 23)
When XY sends LE and Miao Pu off, she tells LE she wishes for him what XL couldn't have. I interpret this to be freedom.
Xiao Yao watched them leave and silently sighed. She had wanted to be their secret matchmaker and watch over them for longer so Miao Pu and Left Ear could take their time to develop, but things were beyond her control and she didn’t have much time left now. Xiao Yao silently wished them well, for Left Ear and Miao Pu to support and take care of each other – Left Ear and Miao Pu, fare thee well! I wish you what Xiang Liu couldn’t have, what Jing and I couldn’t have, you guys have to be happy forever.
-- Vol 3 Ch 14 (Chapter 47)
My interpretation as to why XY wants LE to be more like FFB than XL is not because she like FFB more as a person, but because FFB was free. There is a lot of mention of freedom when LE won his freedom..solarlunareclipse:
I have the same view on this matter too when XY said so to Left Ear in chapter 44. FFB is XL without duty and responsibility with Shen-nong army which made him as her family enermy and dictate his ending fate that one day he would die with the army.
After knowing FFB as XL in chapter 17, she considered FFB as another side of XL, not an indiviual apart from XL.
If XY had favor toward FFB, why at that half unconcious moment it was XL's image emerged in her mind. For XY, Jing and YSQ were 2 distinctive individuals but FFB and XL were just different facets of one person. She struggled to answer the question if she was willing to marry Jing but quickly answered "YES" to YSQ althought at that moment Jing/YSQ had got married to FFYY. She refused to answer who she wanted to accompnay most because FFB or XL was still one person regardless the name XL, Nine-Lives or FFB. He was always himself.
Xiaoyao still had a dream of lovers finally getting married. She once prevented Xiang Liu from dreaming, but when Xiang Liu left, Fang Feng Bei came, and it was impossible to prevent him.windiaaa041293:
So, why did Xiaoyao refuse to let Xiang Liu enter the dream before, but now let Fang Fengbei enter the dream?
I disagreed with this. During the time in Xuan Yuan, XY treated FFB as friend. The perfume that she made is expressing her longing for XL (FFB just showed her the shop). The main ingredient of that "Dream" perfume is lotus essence which reminded her about Xiang Liu. And the feeling, the smell of the perfume, "somewhat absent, distant yet close",matched her feeling to XL "it makes people want to get close but is afraid of him".
XY bought a lot of essence drops and made a lot of perfume, She sent 4 types of perfume to Xing Yue, 4 to Ah Nian and she used one for herself. Later Miao Pu liked it and she got bored with it. It was not clearly mentioned when she stopped using it and gave to Miao Pu. She just said she stop using perfume for a long time. This can happen after 37 years under the sea or when she suffered from the depression or after the wedding robbery? Does anyone remember when the perfume was mentioned beside chapter 17 and 43?
For me, "A Haunting in Venice" fits the AU adaptation you mentioned, because there is no relation between the original work and the film, apart from names and the detective. Does it improve on the original work? No. Does it matter? Not to me, because I accept it as totally unrelated to the source material, hence there is no question of butchering. Was it a satisfying watch? Hm.. am ambivalent about that part, but the point is it did not grate on this Agatha Christie fan, because it does not pretend to be something it isn't.
I'm trying to think about what this would look like for an LYF adaptation. One where there was almost no relation between the novel and the adaptation beyond names and one character. Tbh I don't know if I would watch it. They'd have to make a case for what the draw would be, if it wasn't a retelling that either aimed to be a more faithful adaptation or an adaptation that made changes specifically designed to cater to things that I (and hopefully other fans) would have longed to see. I feel like there would be a good chance that I wouldn't be interested.
Novoland:Eagle Flag and LYF2 were examples I named where it claims to be adapted from the source novel, but (potentially) strays away from it too much for the original fans' comfort.
Yes. I imagine whoever came up with the re-writes for LYF thought they were making improvements (unless the edits where entirely made due to censorship requirements or a perception that the changes had to be made due to the change in medium, which seems unlikely), but for the most part they feel, to me, like major downgrades. Not improvements or unavoidable changes due to the medium switch.
Another AU adaptation example I can think of would be the LYF/Healer mashup AU you mentioned. In that situation, in my mind, it would be a universe totally removed from the original sources.
Yep. Many of the dynamics would be drastically changed and many of the character-defining events for each of the main characters would be extremely different or removed entirely. Like, in a multiverse scenario, going and seeing how the characters' story might have played out differently if the paramaters and variables were different. Sometimes an AU only makes minor tweaks to the orignal parameters, and sometimes it makes drastic changes. In this scenario, it would be a sort of middle ground. The world would be mostly the same and some of the dynamics would be more or less the same. But many significant aspects of the story would be different.
And for me, it can work as long as the characters stay in-character.
For this specific little mashup scenario, I always felt that the characters would necessarily be different from their OG versions. That would be part of the point. The events that shaped their characters and traumas and led them to make certain choices would not be the same, so their characters, traumas and choices would not be the same. And that would play a role in creating a scenario where there could be a YaoLiu happy ending. But it's also one of the (many) reasons I'll probably never seriosly sit down and try to turn the scenario into a fic. The number of people who would be interested in reading a very long, full retelling of the story with OOC versions of the characters and such big changes to the paramaters of the story would likely be very, very small.
Fanfics are what-if scenarios after all, and excellent ones manage to sell that alternate scenario to the readers without them feeling that the characters are changed beyond recognition. Believability in the midst of unfamiliar or fantastical settings.
I generally agree, although I think, at least for some readers, it can vary depending on the circumstances. For myself, there are times when OOCness is a huge turn off and I'd immediately stop reading a fic that had it, and there are times where I wouldn't mind some OOCness, or even major OOCness. Especially in certain circumstances, like for certain non-canon ships or fics with a particularly not-serious vibe, if that's what I was in the mood to read.
My interpretation as to why XY wants LE to be more like FFB than XL is not because she likes FFB more as a person, but because FFB is free. There is a lot of mention of freedom when LE won his freedom.
When XY sends LE and Miao Pu off, she tells LE she wishes for him what XL couldn't have. I interpret this to be freedom.
Xiao Yao watched them leave and silently sighed. She had wanted to be their secret matchmaker and watch over them for longer so Miao Pu and Left Ear could take their time to develop, but things were beyond her control and she didn’t have much time left now. Xiao Yao silently wished them well, for Left Ear and Miao Pu to support and take care of each other – Left Ear and Miao Pu, fare thee well! I wish you what Xiang Liu couldn’t have, what Jing and I couldn’t have, you guys have to be happy forever.
-- Vol 3 Ch 14 (Chapter 47)
I have the same view on this matter too when XY said so to Left Ear in chapter 44. FFB is XL without duty and responsibility with Shen-nong army which made him as her family enermy and dictate his ending fate that one day he would die with the army.
After knowing FFB as XL in chapter 17, she considered FFB as another side of XL, not an indiviual apart from XL.
Yes, agreed. I imagine she hoped that Left Ear would have the lifetime of happiness that XL did not have, and would choose a kinder ending for himself than the ending that XL chose for himself. I am reminded of her lament in chapter 51.
-----
Chapter 51:
Xiao Yao’s tears began to fall again and the drops landed on Jing’s hand. Jing said nothing and continued to hold Xiao Yao in his arms.
Xiao Yao murmured, “Even though I always reminded myself that he was Zhuan Xu’s enemy, but I…..I was not prepared for this! I really wish it was all a lie…..he’s so sneaky, he must’ve found a way to stay alive!”
Jing said nothing because he knew Xiao Yao didn’t need his response.
“It’s because he’s so sneaky that he doesn’t want to stay alive! One time he told me, “Actually, to a General, the best ending is dying on the battlefield.” So he chose for himself the best ending!”
“But what a bullshit best ending! He’s the stupidest idiot in this world! He stayed loyal and true to Gong Gong and all his soldier comrades but did he do himself right?”
“I’m the idiot actually. He never cared, so why do I have to be so hurt? I don’t want to be feeling so much hurt…”
-----
I am also reminded of XL's wish for XY in his epilogue.
-----
Xiang Liu stared at the crystal ball for some time longer before his fingernail extended into a sharp knife and he swiftly inscribed two lines of words on the ball in very small letters. Just then the moon shone through the trees and landed on the crystal ball and the two lines of words next to the merman were legible: The ability to take care of yourself, someone to rely on, a place to go – wishing you a lifetime of worry free happiness!
...
Remembering our first meeting in Qing Shui Town, you were full of tricks, with a mouth full of made-up crap. But the only thing you said that was true was: I have no ability to protect myself, no one to rely on, and nowhere to go.
After over ten years of teaching you archery, you now have the ability to protect yourself. You don’t need to use your own body to protect someone you treasure when danger is around. The right man for you. You now have someone to rely on. You don’t have to be all alone anymore with solitude as your companion. The sky is vast and oceans deep. You now have a place to go and don’t need to be chased by people and be without a place to call home.
Xiang Liu thought to himself: Xiao Yao, from now on I can no longer stand watch to protect you. You have to take good care of yourself. Wishing you a lifetime of worry-free happiness!
For XY, Jing and YSQ were 2 distinctive individuals but FFB and XL were just different facets of one person. She struggled to answer the question if she was willing to marry Jing but quickly answered "YES" to YSQ althought at that moment Jing/YSQ had got married to FFYY. She refused to answer who she wanted to accompnay most because FFB or XL was still one person regardless the name XL, Nine-Lives or FFB. He was always himself.
I personally don't think that XY viewed YSQ and TSJ as different people.
Like FFB and XL, YSQ and TSJ are two sides of the same person. One had responsibilities and ties that made it difficult for him to be with her and to put her first. The other did not. My impression was that XY's views of his two sides (YSQ and TSJ) was not different from her views of the two sides of FFB and XL (after it was fully confirmed that FFB was XL).
IMO, she didn't answer the question about being willing to marry TSJ because TSJ was the version of himself that was tied to the Tushan clan. He was married and had a child. He didn't fit the criteria of what she really wanted. Whereas YSQ, at that point, was more of a hypothetical concept than a person. He would be a version of TSJ that wasn't married to another woman and wasn't bound by ties to the Tushan clan. He would have no status, power or wealth, and would be free to choose her over everything else. So she could easily say yes when XL asked if she was willing to marry that hypothetical version of TSJ.
I personally don't think her mental resistance and refusal to answer the last question, or to even think about the answer, to the point of giving herself a very painful headache, stemmed from her viewing FFB and XL as one person. She knew they were one person, but that fact alone wouldn't generate so much internal resistance and conflict to answering this question. Since FFB was "dead", she could just name XL.
Instead, I think the resistance stemmed from the fact that she refused to truly let herself think that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with XL. And, more specifically, a version of XL that might actually choose to be with her (i.e., what FFB had been). She couldn't acknowledge the truth about her desire to be with him for several reasons. Not the least of which was that he was still CX's enemy and someone who would fight Xuan Yuan to to the death rather than ever foresake Gong Gong or the Shengnong remnant army. Someone who, for the entire month leading up to this question, was (intentionally) very cold to her - constantly creating distance between them and making her feel that, from his perspective, their relationship was only transactional. Someone who had just "killed" FBB, the version of himself that had been willing to at least be her temporary companion.
Xiang Liu asked, “Are you willing to marry Feng Long?”
Xiao Yao’s expression grew slack, and her voice was soft. “I don’t want to.”
Xiang Liu asked, “Are you willing to marry Tushan Jing?”
Xiao Yao’s dull expression changed and she appeared to try and snap herself alert. The glow in Xiang Liu’s eyes intensified, his voice even gentler as he asked, “Are you willing to marry Ye Shi Qi?”
Xiao Yao murmured, “I am willing.”
Another question was right at the tip of Xiang Liu’s lips but he was actually torn until a moment later he asked, “With whom do you most wish to spend your life?”
Xiao Yao opened her mouth as if to answer but her expression showed extreme resistance as her will refused to let her respond.
-- Vol 2 Ch15 (Chapter 32)
| Kanunu8 2013 Mandarin Text | Koala's Translation | Google's Translation |
| 一个问题就在嘴边，可相柳竟然犹豫不决，一瞬后，他问道：“你最想和谁相伴一生？” 小夭张口，像是要回答，可她的表情非常抗拒，意志在拒绝回答。 几次挣扎后，她越来越痛告，身子发颤，猛然抱住了头：“痛，痛……”相柳用妖术窥探小夭的内心，可小夭的意志异常坚韧，碰到她自己平时都拒绝思考的问题，她会异常抗拒，头痛就是她反抗的爆发。 相柳怕伤到她的元神，不敢再逼她，忙撤去妖力，对小夭说：“如果头痛，就休息吧！” | Another question was right at the tip of Xiang Liu’s lips but he was actually torn until a moment later he asked, “Who do you most want to spend your entire life with?” Xiao Yao opened her mouth to answer but her expression showed her internal struggle as her mind refused to let her say what her heart felt. After multiple struggles she became more and more pained and her body began to shake as she clutched her head. “Hurt…..hurt…..” Xiang Liu had used his power to try and see into Xiao Yao’s heart but Xiao Yao’s mind was too strong-willed. If she encountered something that even she refused to think about, then she would unexpectedly oppose answering it and the headache was the result of her refusal to answer the question. Xiang Liu was afraid that she would injure her soul essence so he didn’t dare push her and quickly pulled back his probe and said, “If your head hurts, rest.” | A question was on his lips, but Xiang Liu was hesitant. After a moment, he asked: "Who do you most want to spend your life with?" Xiao Yao opened her mouth as if she wanted to answer, but her expression was very resistant and her will refused to answer. After several struggles, she complained more and more painfully, her body trembled, and she suddenly held her head: "It hurts, it hurts..." Xiang Liu used magic to peek into Xiao Yao's heart, but Xiao Yao's will was extremely tenacious, when she encounters problems that she usually refuses to think about, she will be extremely resistant, and the headache was the outbreak of her resistance. Xiang Liu was afraid of hurting her spirit, so he didn't dare to force her anymore, so he quickly removed the demon power and said to Xiao Yao: "If you have a headache, just rest!" |
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