Holding the jade bell diligently like colorful sleeves, but in the past, I was drunk and beautiful. Dancing low to the moon in the heart of the willow tower, singing to the wind under the peach blossom fan.

After we said goodbye, we met again and again, and shared our dreams with you several times. There are only a few silver and red photos left tonight, as if the meeting was a dream.

(If some elements can’t be inserted, just forget it. Don’t force it.)

blabla100

Nov 10, 2023 09:43 am

@windiaaa

Oh, I see. So they only met once, but he keeps dreaming of her and in his dreams they met again and again? What's left of their love is only a few photos, as if even their real meeting was just a dream?

windiaaa041293

Nov 10, 2023 09:46 am

@H19279 @blabla100

Partridge Sky: Colorful Sleeves Holding the Jade Bell Attentively" by Yan Jidao. This poem describes the joy of meeting a lover again after a long separation. The work does not directly describe and express the scene and joy of reunion, but writes from "back then" when they first met, describing the scene when they first met, the two loved each other and enjoyed it to their heart's content. The next film is about missing each other after farewell and meeting again. First, he uses the reunion in a dream to describe the pain of parting and the depth of lovesickness, and then uses the real reunion as a dream to write about the surprise of unexpected encounters after long separation. The whole poem is full of eroticism and lingering thoughts of separation. The writing seems imaginary but also real, seems real yet imaginary, the heart of the words is twists and turns, deep and graceful, don't hate the sorrow of separation, overflowing outside the words.

Original article
Partridge
Tianyan's
colorful sleeves held the jade bell diligently, but in those days they were drunk and beautiful.
Dancing low to the moon in the heart of the willow tower, singing to the wind under the peach blossom fan.
After we said goodbye, we met again and again, and shared our dreams with you several times.
I only have a few silver photos left tonight, as if I was afraid that the meeting would be a dream.

Note:
Colorful sleeves: refers to singing girls wearing colorful clothes.
Jade Bell: Precious wine glass.
Pin (pàn) but: willingly, not caring. However, modal particle.
"Tonight" sentence: Du Fu's "Qiang Village" in the Tang Dynasty: "In the late night, I hold a candle, and I feel like I am sleeping in a dream." Whatever is left, just do it and enjoy it. Silver lamp (gāng), silver lamp.
Translation
Translation 1
Back then, you were diligent in urging me to drink wine and often held up the jade cup. I drank so much that I was drunk and blushing. Dancing gracefully until the moon fell from the treetops outside the building, I was too tired to shake my peach fan after singing joyfully.
Ever since that parting, I have always missed that beautiful encounter and hugged you in my dreams so many times. Tonight I hold up the silver lamp to take a closer look at you, fearing that this encounter will be in a dream again.
Translation 2
I still remember the time when you, dressed in fine clothes and holding a jade cup in hand, frequently came to persuade me to drink. I was willing to get drunk for you until I was drunk and my cheeks were red. That night, she sang and danced without any sleep, until the bright moon above the willows had slid down the building, and the wind under the peach blossom fan had become weak.
Ever since we parted ways with you, I have always imagined meeting you again, and how many times have I met you in my dreams. Tonight I really meet you again, but I just hold up the lamp to look at you, and you still suspect that I am in a dream again.
Translation 3
The singer in colorful clothes held a wine glass in her hand and encouraged me to drink. At that time, I was willing to get drunk and my face turned red. They danced, feasted, and sang until the bright moon dropped from the willow branches on the rooftop. They sang so happily that they were too tired to swing their peach blossom fans.
Ever since we parted, I have always missed meeting you again, and how many times I have been dreaming of you. Tonight, if I hold the silver lamp in my hand and shine it carefully, I'm afraid we meet in a dream.

Explanation Comments
Comments
The writer of this article reunites with a singer after their farewell. He uses the encounter to express his hatred. The language is fresh and beautiful, the emotions are delicate and have a strong artistic appeal. It is one of Yan Jidao's most popular masterpieces.
The first part of the poem depicts the scene of drunken singing and dancing with the woman with strong colors and heavy strokes. The singing girl "carried out a jade bell in her colorful sleeves" diligently persuaded her to drink, but she was "fighting hard but getting drunk", drinking hard until she was drunk and blushing. The singing girl danced until the moon fell from the treetops outside the building, singing so heartily that she was too tired to shake her peach fan. There are many gorgeous words in the poem, such as "Caixiu", "Jade Bell", "Zui Yanhong", "Yangliu Tower", "Peach Blossom Fan", etc., which are extremely gorgeous, but they are all from the past "back then". It seems real but illusory, which adds to the dreamlike beauty.
The second film uses sparse line drawings to express the mixed feelings of joy and sorrow of reunion after a long separation. "Several Dreams with You" writes about longing for each other after farewell, recalling the encounter but actually looking forward to meeting again, not knowing where to meet again, and finally thinking about it and forming a dream, which shows the deep love after separation. "There are only a handful of silver coins left tonight, and I am afraid that we will meet in a dream" is adapted from Du Fu's poem "Qiang Village", "The candles are held at the end of the night, and the relationship is like a dream", changing the five-character sentence into a seven-character sentence, and the artistic conception is more light and graceful. The four words "left over" and "still afraid" express the subtle emotions of meeting tonight's true yet suspicious dream in a vivid, lingering and highly contagious way.
In terms of expression techniques, the poet used colorful words to describe the grand occasion of the reunion that year, which seemed real but unreal; the second film used line drawing to express the surprise encounter after long separation, which seemed like a dream but was real, and the sentences were fresh. The dream created by the book is psychedelic and beautiful, and the euphemistic and lingering emotions are described in a delicate and touching way, reaching the realm of love and literature. The whole word only has a few words, but it creates two realms, the virtual and the real, intertwined, both colorful and dreamy. Combined with the harmonious beauty of the sound, it looks ethereal and elegant, with a beautiful literary heart and a wonderful tune, which shows Yan Jixi's lyrical skills. So sublime.
Appreciation Appreciation Appreciation
Appreciation Appreciation
Wang Mao's "Yeke Series": "Yan Shuyuan's "There are only a few silver jars left to take photos of tonight, as if the meeting is in a dream", Gai Yu's Lao Du "I hold candles in the late night, and the relationship is like a dream", Dai Shulun's "Jiangnan Meeting" "Meeting in a dream, resolving doubts, meeting Sikong Shu at first sight, resolving doubts in a dream, grieving each other and asking about the year."
This word describes the intersection of sorrow and joy of lovesickness after farewell and reunion after a long separation. In a few words, the scene and plot change three times, and the emotions also have twists and turns. The color, rhyme, rhythm and story development are integrated into one, vividly conveying the various experiences and feelings of a pair of lovers separated and reunited in love.
"Dancing low to the moon in the heart of the willow tower, singing to the bottom of the peach blossom fan." is a famous saying from Xiaoshan. According to Chao Wujiu (Chao Buzhi)'s "Hou Xiao Lu" written by Zhao Lingju of the Song Dynasty: "Shushu Yuan does not follow other people's language, but his style is leisurely and elegant, so he is a family." This poem depicts the author and his lover drinking and dancing in the past
. life, expressing their sadness and joy of missing each other after a long separation and meeting again today. In just fifty-five words, it describes the tortuous experiences of first meeting, meeting in soul and dream, and meeting again after a long separation. There are both heavy colors such as "colorful sleeves", "jade bell" and "peach blossom fan" in the poem, as well as simple descriptions such as "after seeing each other again, remembering each other, and sharing the same dreams with you several times". The two set off each other. Shows the organic connection between changes in feeling and style. "Dancing low in the heart of the willow tower, singing with the wind under the peach blossom fan" is a famous saying that is widely recited. It not only has neat contrasts, but also vividly and accurately depicts the typical environment of a dance feast and singing feast.
Appreciating
the scene where the writer and his lover reunite after a long separation is a classic among Yan Jidao's love poems.
The first film describes the joy of feasting and drinking when they get together, which is a reminiscence of the good times in those years. "Colorful sleeves" point out the identity of the woman written about. The poet naturally gets drunk when facing a beautiful woman drinking wine, which shows the deep affection between the two. The two sentences "Dance Low" describe the joy of singing and dancing, using intertextual techniques. "Dancing Low in the Willows", on the one hand, is about the long period of joy, the moon has fallen on the willows, but the singing and dancing are still going on; on the other hand, it is also about the slim figure of the singing girl and the graceful dancing posture. "Singing the Peach Blossoms" describes a carnival so intense that in the end I even lost the strength to lift a fan. "Peach Blossoms" describes the charming face of a beauty. This lively scene very effectively highlights the beauty of the past.
The next film is about the joy after reunion. The first two sentences start from the lovesickness after separation. The sentence "several times" highlights the poet's deep love for the singer and the depth of his lovesickness. The last two sentences are taken from Du Fu's poem "Qiang Village", "The candles are held in the late night, and the relationship is like a dream". They describe the intimate and joyful scene after the two reunited, and the artistic conception is euphemistic and lingering. The poet's strokes, from action to psychology to reasons, vividly show the scene of the reunion.
This word has a harmonious sound and beautiful imagery. Recalling the past seems real and illusory; writing about encounters feels like a trance. The combination of virtuality and reality, ethereal and profound, is a rare masterpiece in "Xiaoshan Ci".

About the author
Yan Jidao, courtesy name Shuyuan and Xiaoshan, was born in Linchuan (now part of Jiangxi) and was the son of Yan Shu. Although he came from a famous family, his official career was bumpy and he only served as a few minor officials. In his later years, his family declined and his life was very difficult. He has an aloof and arrogant personality, is upright and bold, and devotes himself to writing. Xiao Ling writes particularly well. His poems mostly describe the sorrow of difficult times in life and the pain of parting and missing loved ones. They are sad, desolate, and pathos. There is "Xiaoshan Ci" handed down from generation to generation.

H19279

Nov 10, 2023 10:40 am

liddi:
However, my point remains that there is no concrete evidence she knew the memories were erased when she was unconscious after the 2nd suicide attempt, and not some time before that since there are 14 chapters between Chapter 34 (when she loaned the mirror to Jing) and Chapter 48 (after her suicide attempt when Xiang Liu showed the mirror to Sir Bi before erasing the memories).

So immediately, XY blamed that XL erased the memory. But she didn’t know exactly when he did it.

“However, it turned out that at some point that she was not aware of, he had erased everything!"

I don’t know if XY didn’t think clearly at that point, she could not recall any specific moment. She knew the memories was intact after 37 years and until chapter 34. However, there were 2 moments which allowed XL to erase the memory without her notice:

1. After XL recued her from the water vortex, he was badly injured and he sucked a lot of her blood. She was fainted after his 2nd blood drink (Chapter 43).

“Xiao Yao said “Hey! Hey! I was just being polite just now. And you’re really sucking again? A demon really is a demon…..” And with that Xiao Yao fell asleep and finally stopped talking

Xiang Liu stopped drinking and lifted his head to stare quietly at the sleeping Xiao Yao in his arms.”

2. And in chapter 48 after the 2^nd suicide. How conscious was XY after he fed her his natal essential blood? Most of us think that she was sleeping and knew nothing going on at that time.

Before that last night of treatment in 37 year under the sea, XY’s condition is better than her condition in the 2^nd suicide. Her breath, heart and sensation (e.g., the wind, the wave, the snow, touching) recovered, she could hear and she could felt her own legs. To wake her up, XL still made a lot of effort, fed her with a lot of blood. From XY’s POV it felt very extreme. She passed out and only woke up the next morning.

Xiang Liu fed his essential soul blood to Xiao Yao, and different than before where it felt like warm flames that chased away the coldness of death in Xiao Yao’s body, tonight his essential soul blood was a raging inferno that scorched Xiao Yao. It was colliding in her body and appeared to rip her insides to shreds before slowly bonding it back together.

Xiao Yao couldn’t cry out but her body violently shook. Gradually her hands could move, her legs could move, and then she painfully cried out as all the soul essence entered her body and she passed out in the midst of unbearable pain.

The condition in the 2^nd suicide is she had no breath, weak heart beat and still need live support from the blood spelled shell. Hence, to recue her, XL would have done more drastically than last time. However, the description made it look simple, (he fed blood for about 10 minute, then it was done. She just looked asleep). I think she also passed out this time. Did XL have to do extra work to make her further unconscious. Maybe not. He was surrounded by Lie Yang and Ah Bi. However. I think she didn’t aware what was going on after he fed her blood. On the other hand, last time it took so many year to recover each of her sensation, and then 1 drastic last feeding to wake her up. This time, XL could recue her with only one blood feeding. Did the poison damage her sensation? Maybe not. This poison killed human without pain (CX and XY were just like falling into sleep). So I guess the poison mainly attacked the breathing, weakening the heart. Thus, the shell supply "spiritual energy" to sustain her lives. It is likely that her sensation after the suicide was fine. Huh, then for sure she could feel him coming and save her.

@windiaaa041293’s question reminded me to compare her state of mind in chapter 22 and 48. TH did not write anything about her mind this time. It didn’t mean she didn’t know anything. In chapter 22, first she was in the darkness for very long time (from her POV) then she first felt the warmth, then she felt her heart that got gradually stronger. Time passed and she felt XL’s heart beat.

The warmth entered her time and time again. She didn’t know how much time passed but her heart gradually got stronger. It was like the flickering sole flame had a cover placed over it, so even if the light wasn’t as bright at least the flame was no longer in danger of being extinguished.

One time as the warmth entered her, Xiao Yao felt another heart beating. Her heart soared as if she was encountering an old friend.

So, if her situation in chapter 48 is better than the moment quoted above, she could feel XL’s heart beat when he came to the shell to rescue her. And then she should know he rescued her again.

I also wonder if she ever looked up her mirror during 7 years after Jing died. She saw Left Ear everyday, teaching him, her mind stabilized. She still recalled XL when seeing Left Ear? She kept the mirror by her body. Is there any moment she looked at the memories again (Between chapter 43 and 48)?

P/S: Does this part in chapter 48 illustrate TH's "writing without writing" technique

H19279

Nov 10, 2023 10:44 am

windiaaa041293:
ah yeah... thanks for visiting, and thanks for the advice.^^

I think it's very good advice. You can open a separate discussion/folder. Then it's easier to check it when they have time to read long analysis and explanation of the chapter titles.

Nov 10, 2023 11:31 am

liddi:
He held out his hand to Xiao Liu who immediately grabbed hold of it and slid off the back of the condor. Furball was afraid of water after all, so it immediately flapped its wings and flew far away from the surface of the ocean.

Xiang Liu strolled with Xiao Liu, treading the waves against the wind.

There was not even a sliver of light, the sky was dark, the ocean pitch black with nothing ahead of them and nothing behind, a vast world where the winds blew and the waves swelled. Xiao Liu felt so insignificant as if he would be swallowed up by a wave at any moment, and he subconsciously tightened his grip on Xiang Liu's hand.

Xiang Liu suddenly stopped. Xiao Liu did not know why he did, but he did not ask. Instead he involuntarily leaned closer to Xiang Liu, accompanying him as they stared towards the east.

Not long after that, a bright 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."

No one could tell if Xiang Liu heard Xiao Liu's words, but he did not respond in any way.

-- Vol 1 Ch4

<3 <3 <3

Thank you for providing your translation liddi!

I really prefer the novel version of this scene. As meaningful as Gourd Lake (the location used for the drama adaptation of this scene) is for the two of them, I love that he was already brining her to the ocean this early on in the novel.

And nothing compares to being in the middle of the ocean at night. The ocean and the night sky are so vast, and a single person is comparatively so miniscule.

While the drama had XL extend his hand to XY when she was still on the shore of Gourd Lake, the drama has XL extend his hand to XY when she is on Furball's back and he is in the middle of the ocean. Even though XY was a great swimmer, we know from chapter 13 that if XL had left her stranded in the middle of the ocean, she might not have been able to survive. And yet, without hesitation, she took his hand and joined him on the ocean's surface. She trusted him to not abandon her and to return her safely to shore. Even though she has trust / abandonment issues, and even though it was very early on in the story.

And while it's nice that the drama shows XL looking at XY's hand holding his, the novel telling us that XY involuntarily leaned closer to XL and that the hard shell around her heart softened because of the breathtaking sight that XL took her to see feels deeper and more meaningful to me.

windiaaa041293

Nov 10, 2023 11:41 am

"afraid that the meeting would be a dream"

The colorful sleeves hold the jade cup diligently, but in those days, the beauty was drunk and beautiful.

Dancing low to the moon in the heart of the willow tower, singing to the wind under the peach blossom fan.

After we said goodbye, we met again and again, and shared our dreams with you several times.

I only have a few silver photos left tonight, as if I was afraid that the meeting would be a dream.

-------------------------------------------------- --------------------------

Yan Jidao (May 29, 1038 - 1110), a famous poet in the Northern Song Dynasty, was born in Shahe, Wengang, Linchuan, Fuzhou (now Jinxian County, Nanchang City, Jiangxi Province) with the courtesy name Shuyuan and the nickname Xiaoshan. The seventh son of Yan Shu, together with his father Yan Shu, are called "Er Yan". His style of writing is similar to that of his father, but his attainments exceed him. He specializes in romance, and is particularly famous for his clear and beautiful language and deep emotions. He expresses emotions directly and writes more about love life. He is an important writer of the graceful school. There is "Xiaoshan Ci" left in the world.
Note :
Partridge Tian: Ci brand name, one is "Sijiake" and the other is "Yu Zhonghao". There are 55 characters in double tone, rhyming with flat tone.
This poem is divided into two parts. The first part recalls the beautiful reunion that year, and emphasizes the emotional intensity of the first meeting; the second part describes the surprise of unexpected encounter after long separation, which seems like a dream but is real.
Colorful sleeves: Refers to singers wearing colorful clothes.
Jade cup: precious wine glass.
Pin (pàn) but: willingly, not caring. But: modal particle.
Dance low to the moon in the heart of the willow tower: low is the verb used to make...low; the singer dances gracefully until the bright moon hanging from the top of the willow tree shines in the center of the building and sinks; the singer sings softly and reaches the bottom of the fan The wind subsides (stops when you are tired), and the singing and dancing last for a long time. Peach Blossom Fan, a fan used as a prop during singing and dancing, is painted with peach blossoms.
Same as: get together. .
"There are only a few silver candles left to shine tonight, and I am afraid that the meeting is in a dream": It comes from Du Fu's poem "Qiang Village", "The candles are held at the end of the night, and the relationship is like a dream". Leftover: Read "Jin" and just care. The rest: all the rest.
Yinzhi: 釭 (gāng): lamp. silver lamp

liddi

Nov 10, 2023 11:42 am

H19279:
XY always carried the mirror next to her body (meaning she kept it inside her dress, in the drama it was kept just in front of left side chest. Haha, she kept his image, her dearest memory of him next to her heart). There was a line mentioned this (I don't remember where). Additionally, in the novel, the mirror was inside a sleeve of her robe. However, @liddi, you can check the original text to see where the mirror flew from (it is not clear where it actually flew from in the version I read)

怀 can refer to bosom or being in someone's arms. In this case, it should refer to bosom.

The text says this:

相柳招了下手，小小的狌狌镜从小夭怀中飞出，落在了相柳手中，他凝视着狌狌镜，迟迟没有动作。
With a wave of Xiang Liu's hand, the small xingxing mirror flew out from Xiao Yao's bosom and landed in his hand. He stared at the mirror for a long time without making any move.

***********
相柳催动灵力，镜子里的画面倒退着一点点消失，就如看着时光倒流，一切都好像要回到初相逢时，可谁都知道，绝不可能！

相柳面无表情地看着镜子，獙君却眼中尽是不忍。

直到所有关于他的记忆全部被毁掉，相柳才微微一笑，把镜子原样放回了小夭的怀里，就好像他从未动过。

Xiang Liu harnessed his spiritual power and the images in the mirror gradually rewound and disappeared. It was like time had turned back, everything seemed to have gone back to how it was when they first met, but as everyone knew, it was no longer possible!

Xiang Liu stared at the mirror without any expression, but Sir Bi's eyes were filled with regret [for them], unable to bear it.

After all the memories were erased, Xiang Liu finally cracked a slight smile, and returned the mirror back into Xiao Yao's bosom in its original state as if he had never touched it before.

-- Vol 3 Ch15 (Chapter 48)

I don't recall anywhere in the novel that says that it was hidden in a sleeve in her robe. The only reference to her hand was when the Gao Xin king looked at the calluses on her hand before she withdrew it to keep the mirror, then saw Xiang Liu's image and realised who he really was. Which part of the novel did you see it stated it was in her sleeve?

Nov 10, 2023 11:48 am

HeadInTheClouds:
The descriptions ("sad", "devastated" and "crying") match up with the actions and emotions of TSJ that are described in the text when he is transferring power to her.
I see. I would argue that despite the fact that it wasn't described explicitly, the knowledge of the Lovers Bugs would imply that Xiang Liu would have been just as devastated and probably even more devastated than Jing (if we're going play the devastation/suffering Olympics :-)). Because Xiang Liu is experiencing Xiao Yao's injuries and desperation he knows just exactly how frightened and close to death she is. Plus, he has to deal with his own fear and heartbreak of knowing exactly how much the person he loves is suffering. It's a double whammy of devastation.

As I said, the way XY describes the spiritual power ("sad", "devastated" and "crying") matches up with the actions and emotions of TSJ that are described in the text when he is transferring power to her.

Tong Hua shows us, clearly, that TSJ was sad and devastated, and that he was crying, at the time that he transfers spiritual power to XY.

Could XL also have been sad and devastated at the time when the particular spiritual power in question was transferred to XY? He very likely was. Could XL also have been crying? He could. Perhaps crying metaphorically in his heart if not actually shedding tears. But we can only speculate about this, because Tong Hua does not provide confirmation by showing us or telling us.

I'm not trying to suggest that either one of XL or TSJ was more devastated than the other, or to set up a suffering Olympics comparison. I don't see any value in viewing the amount of devastation XL and TSJ would be feeling at that point as a competition. I'm sure they were both extremely devastated.

My point is that Tong Hua showed us that TSJ was sad, devastated and crying when he transferred spiritual power to XY, and then she has XY use those words to describe what XY felt from the transferred spiritual power. Which (among other reasons) leads me to conclude that Tong Hua intended the reader to understand that the spiritual power was transferred from TSJ.

HeadInTheClouds:
No, we didn't get any explicit mention of transferring spiritual power via the Lovers Bugs, but we know that XL could guide XY's heart via the Lovers Bugs, so it's not impossible to extrapolate that he could intervene in a similar, physical way. In addition, there was mention of being able to kill someone across vast distances using poison bugs, which would support this theory.

I agree with some parts of this.

We know that the bug connection enables several things to happen, even over long distances. XL could definitely sense XY's pain, and he could probably also sense her fear, all the way in QS town when she was assassinated. As you mentioned, XY could also sense XL's heartbeat through the bug connection, and that heartbeat guided her heart to keep beating.

As liddi mentioned, XL makes reference to certain powerful individuals being able to do certain things with a poisonous bug where a great distance is involved.

liddi translated that comment as:

Xiang Liu glanced at her in disdain. "Someone like you would even dare control a poisonous bug? The most skilled controller of poisonous bugs can take a person's life from thousands of miles away. Did you think that those poisonous bugs would need to slowly climb mountains and cross ridges like you?"

Koala translated that exchange as:

Xiao Liu couldn’t believe it. “The bug is planted into your body? That fast?”

Xiang Liu rolled his eyes at Xiao Liu. “Someone like you dared to control a bug? A truly powerful voodoo master could summon a bug tens of thousands of miles away to kill someone. Do you think all bugs are slow pokes like you, ambling across mountains and ridges?”

If I understand liddi's comment correctly, she interpreted XL's comment as meaning that a powerful voodoo master would be able to transfer spiritual power to a poisonous bug that is thousands of miles away (perhaps a poisonous bug that is inside the heart of a person who is thousands of miles away) in order to take a life. I do not share this interpretation of XL's comment. liddi noted that if that was the case, then it would be likely that, given how powerful XL is, XL would be able to transfer spiritual power through the bug connection to save XY's life.

In that scene, XY uses a spell to transfer the poisonous bug from CX (who was up in Five Gods Mountain) to XL (who was with XY out in the ocean off the shore of Five Gods Mountain). XY was shocked that the transfer was completed so fast. In that context, IMO, the gist of XL's comment (in response to XY's comment) seems to be that he is not surprised that the transfer was completed so quickly, because poisonous bugs can move quickly in other circumstances, and he snarkily gives an example: a very powerful voodoo master could cause a poisonous bug to cover thousands of miles to kill someone. The implication seems to be that the poisonous bug in that case would not slowly amble across mountains and ridges on its way to complete that task - it would complete the task reasonably quickly despite having to cover thousands of miles (or tens of thousands of miles, depending on the translation).

I agree with liddi's interpretation that this comment isn't just saying that a powerful voodoo master would be able to send a poisonous bug across a long distance. That it seems to also be saying that a powerful voodoo master would be able to do something more over a great distance. But I disagree with the interpretation that the "something more" would entail transferring spiritual power to the poisonous bug or to another person via a poisonous bug connection. To me, XL's comment only seems to suggest that the powerful voodoo master would be able to control the bug, even from a long distance away, to take certain actions. Actions that would not necessarily require a transfer of spiritual power.

To me, controlling a bug from thousands (or tens of thousands) of miles away is a totally different concept from one host transferring spiritual power to another host via the bug connection between them. So I still don't think anything in the text supports the idea that the bug connection can act as a conduit for the transfer of spiritual power. When the hosts are together, spiritual power can be transferred between them as it normally would be between any two people - no bug connection required. When the hosts are apart, I still don't see anything in the text as supporting the idea that they could transfer spiritual power to each other using the bug connection to bridge the gap.

HeadInTheClouds:
In my original post, my argument was that by the time Jing got there XY's body was cold and lifeless because she was already in hibernation

I still disagree with this interpretation.

HeadInTheClouds:
Even before that though, XY's 5 senses were gone before the transfer of spiritual power. Not because she was going into hibernation, but because she was dying.

We partly agree here.

The text says that XY was unable to see, hear or feel the spiritual power that was transferred to her, which occurred before XY locked herself up.

IMO, XY's inability to see might have meant that she couldn't open her eyes as a result of her weakened state / closeness to death.

The fact that she couldn't hear or feel the transferred power though... that doesn't seem like it would logically result from her being close to death. Perhaps she went into shock after the attack. That could cause her to disassociate and lose her ability to hear or feel. That could also provide an alternative explanation for her inability to see.

-----

Fact Sheet III – Trauma Related Dissociation: An Introduction

Sometimes trauma-related dissociation causes physical symptoms which cannot be explained by a physical disease or disorder. These symptoms can include:

Unexplained loss of function after a trauma:

loss of senses such as sight, hearing, speech;
loss of movement or feeling in a part of the body, including paralysis or complete numbness; or
loss of skills such as temporary inability to remember how to drive a car or cook food

HeadInTheClouds:
I also don't read it as she stopped sensing XL's heartbeat through the Bugs, but rather because of her severe injuries, even with his support, her heartbeat was slowly dying because she was dying.

Before XY locks herself up, she can sense XL's heartbeat. She first began to sense XL's heartbeat just as her heart was about to stop. So I don't think we can conclude that XY's heart weakening would cause her to stop being able to sense XL's heartbeat.

After XY locks herself up, there is a long period when she cannot sense anything, including XL's heartbeat. Then she begins to be able to sense the warmth of XL's essential blood when he transfers it to her. She senses that many times ("time and time again"), but she isn't able to feel XL's heartbeat again until after her heart becomes strong enough that it is no longer in immediate danger.

-----

Chapter 22:

She could vividly sense her heart slowly weakening, but just as it was about to stop, she heard another heart beating. It was strong and powerful, leading her heart so that it wouldn’t completely stop. It was like a sole flame in the palms of the hand, seemingly about to be extinguished at any moment, but still flickering weakly with life.

...

She really had no strength left, so that even the weak sole flame that was keeping her heart beating was too much to sustain. Even with another heart guiding her heart, still the heartbeat grew weaker.

Suddenly power coursed through her, unending streams of power that allowed the weak heartbeat to continue beating.

...

Xiao Yao wanted to see who was so sad but didn’t have the strength. She could only follow the guidance of the other heart and slowly locked herself up. Just like a flower blooming, the reverse process was to return to being a bud, into a seed, back into the soil, laying in the Winter to wait for the Spring to arrive.

...

In the unending darkness, Xiao Yao felt like a hundred years had passed. If her conscious could commit suicide, she would have killed herself. But she could do nothing other than stay like this forever. She started to hate the person who saved her.

One day Xiao Yao suddenly felt something, like a little bit of warmth entered her body from the outside. It slowly took away the icy cold and Xiao Yao greedily clung onto that warmth.

Every so often the warmth would flow into her. Even though the waiting was long, but the warmth always came so even the long wait wasn’t scary anymore.

The warmth entered her time and time again. She didn’t know how much time passed but her heart gradually got stronger. It was like the flickering sole flame had a cover placed over it, so even if the light wasn’t as bright at least the flame was no longer in danger of being extinguished.

One time as the warmth entered her, Xiao Yao felt another heart beating. Her heart soared as if she was encountering an old friend.

HeadInTheClouds:
This rush of power was what helped her heartbeat to follow the guidance of XL's and took her into a state of hibernation when she could not sense anything (physical or otherwise), but is conscious of her own thoughts.

XY's heart was weakening and was about to stop completely until she sensed XL's heart beating through the bug connection. For a while, the guidance of XL's heartbeat was enough to help XY's heart to keep beating weakly. But after some time, she didn't have enough strength. Even with the guidance of XL's heartbeat, her heart was about to stop beating. At that point, the transferred spiritual power gave her enough strength to allow her heart to continue beating.

I don't think anything in the text suggests that the transferred power helped XY go into hibernation.

-----

Chapter 22:

She could vividly sense her heart slowly weakening, but just as it was about to stop, she heard another heart beating. It was strong and powerful, leading her heart so that it wouldn’t completely stop. It was like a sole flame in the palms of the hand, seemingly about to be extinguished at any moment, but still flickering weakly with life.

Xiao Yao felt that she heard Xiang Liu snarking at her: Just this and you’re going to give up?

Xiao Yao retorted back at him: What do you mean just this? If you’ve been poked so many holes in like a sieve, air passing through both top and bottom, even if I don’t want to give up I have to give up.

She really had no strength left. So that even the weak sole flame that was keeping her heart beating was too much to sustain. Even with another heart guiding her heart, still the heartbeat grew weaker.

Suddenly power coursed through her, unending streams of power that allowed the weak heartbeat to continue beating.

She couldn’t hear it, couldn’t see it, couldn’t even feel it, but she felt sad because the spiritual power was so sad and devastated. Even the power was crying and Xiao Yao couldn’t even imagine how heartbroken the owner of the spiritual power was.

Xiao Yao wanted to see who was so sad but didn’t have the strength. She could only follow the guidance of the other heart and slowly locked herself up. Just like a flower blooming, the reverse process was to return to being a bud, into a seed, back into the soil, laying in the Winter to wait for the Spring to arrive.

HeadInTheClouds:
Even if we say that Jing arrived before she went into hibernation, Jing's transfer of power would be a physical act so XY would have felt it via bodily sensation, but because XY could no longer physically feel, that power that she "feels" could not have been his, but through the intangible sensing via the bugs. This is not some clear, precise channel - but a nebulous, elusive thing.

I believe we share the same interpretation that, when TSJ arrived, XY had already lost her ability to see, her ability to hear and her ability to feel her own body because her body was on the brink of death.

As you acknowledged, at that point XY still had the ability to sense intangible things, like XL's heartbeat through the bug connection and the emotions imbued in the spiritual power that was transferred to her.

You seem to be assuming that the only way that XY could possibly sense the emotions imbued in the spiritual power that was transferred to her would be through the bug connection. I don't agree with that assumption and I don't see why XY would need the bug connection in order to sense the strong emotions imbued in the spiritual power that was transferred into her.

HeadInTheClouds:
If XY was feeling XL's devastation through the bug connection, I would expect her to feel those emotions in her heart, and to feel them at least as early on as when she starts to sense XL's heartbeat through the bug connection. And not only when the spiritual power is transferred to her.
XL is very adept at hiding his feelings from XY. When she was struggling to keep on fighting, she could sense his snarkiness designed to tap into her stubborn desire to win. The moment that he transferred the spiritual power was also when XY was close to death; so in his devastation he let down his guard. Why did she not think that the spiritual power was from Xiang Liu? Maybe because she's an idiot :-)? Haha, it's probably because this wasn't something that crossed her mind - girl was too busy trying not to die :-)

"... she could sense his snarkiness" makes it sound like you interpret this as XY sensing XL's emotions. If that's the case, I don't agree with that interpretation. Snarkiness is not an emotion. Koala translated that line as "Xiao Yao felt that she heard Xiang Liu snarking at her: Just this and you’re going to give up?" Hearing (even in one's mind) a snarky comment is not the same as sensing an emotion related to snarkiness, like annoyance.

I agree that, at a time of extreme emotion, it would likely be possible that XL could let down his guard in a way that would allow XY to sense his emotions, similar to how she sensed his heartbeat when his control slipped in chapter 26. However, as I mentioned before, if that was the case here and XL let down his guard so that XY could feel his sadness, devastation and what XY described as power "crying", I would expect XY to feel those emotions in her heart, through the bug connection. I wouldn't expect her to attribute those emotions to the spiritual power that was transferred to her.

HeadInTheClouds:
Why did she not think that the spiritual power was from Xiang Liu? Maybe because she's an idiot :-)? Haha, it's probably because this wasn't something that crossed her mind - girl was too busy trying not to die :-)

Let me acknowledge your tone-signaling smiley faces first before responding to this. I see them and acknowledge that you aren't being super serious with this comment. <3 ^^

In my usual fashion, I will still give this comment a semi-serious response because it raises another good point, which liddi also touched on. XY was able to recognize XL's thoughts through the bug connection and that the heartbeat she sensed was XL's heartbeat, but she couldn't tell who transferred the spiritual power to her. If the spiritual power was transferred to XY via the bug connection, she should recognize that the spiritual power came from XL. If XY was sensing the sadness and devastation of the transferred spiritual power through the bug connection, she should recognize that the person who transferred the sad and devastated spiritual power to her was XL.

liddi's comment noted that perhaps XY was stronger when she recognized the heartbeat as XL's, and that perhaps XY couldn't recognize that the transferred spiritual power as XL's because she was so weak at the point when the power was transferred. I don't find that line of thinking convincing. XY's weakened state affects her physical senses, but it doesn't seem to affect her ability to sense things through the bug connection. XY heard XL's heartbeat and thoughts when her heart was about to stop. She was almost at her weakest point, and XL didn't boost her physical or spiritual strength at that point. He just used his words to encourage her emotionally, and his strong heartbeat to guide her heart, and that was enough to keep her heart beating weakly for a while. The spiritual power was transferred at a similar point (when XY's heart was on the brink of stopping again), but in that case the spiritual power would have provided XY with a small boost to her physical / spiritual strength. Enough to enable her heart to continue beating. And XY's weakened state did not prevent her from recognizing that the transferred spiritual power was sad, devastated and crying. So I don't think the idea that XY may have been too weak to recognize that the transferred spiritual power was from XL makes sense.

liddi also noted that perhaps XY didn't expect to sense such devastation from XL, especially after he was just snarking at her, and that's why she couldn't tell that the spiritual power was from XL. That line of thinking would make more sense to me if XY woke up later and sensed that spiritual power had been transferred to her, but had no awareness of how the spiritual power was transferred to her. Then XY's expectations would be relevant to her trying to figure out who made the transfer. But from what I understand, you believe that XL used the bug connection to transfer spiritual power to XY at a point in time when XY was still following the guidance of XL's heartbeat through the bug connection. It seems completely illogical to me that, at a point where XY was still following the guidance of XL's heart through the bug connection, she would be completely unaware that the spiritual power transferred to her was transferred to her from XL via the bug connection. If she was aware, then her expectations about XL's emotions wouldn't give her amnesia. They would cause her to go into denial. Which doesn't match up with how the scene plays out. She wanted to see who was so sad. That indicates curiosity, not denial.

XY wanted to see who was so sad (i.e., who the owner of the spiritual power was). But she didn't have the strength. This suggests to me that the reader is supposed to understand that the owner of the spiritual power was physically with XY when he transferred the spiritual power to her, and XY wanted to see who he was, but she didn't have the strength to open her eyes and look.

These two points further convince me that TSJ was the person who transferred the sad and devastated spiritual power to XY.

-----

Chapter 22:

She really had no strength left, so that even the weak sole flame that was keeping her heart beating was too much to sustain. Even with another heart guiding her heart, still the heartbeat grew weaker.

Suddenly power coursed through her, unending streams of power that allowed the weak heartbeat to continue beating.

She couldn’t hear it, couldn’t see it, couldn’t even feel it, but she felt sad because the spiritual power was so sad and devastated. Even the power was crying and Xiao Yao couldn’t even imagine how heartbroken the owner of the spiritual power was.

Xiao Yao wanted to see who was so sad but didn’t have the strength. She could only follow the guidance of the other heart and slowly locked herself up. Just like a flower blooming, the reverse process was to return to being a bud, into a seed, back into the soil, laying in the Winter to wait for the Spring to arrive.

...

One time as the warmth entered her, Xiao Yao felt another heart beating. Her heart soared as if she was encountering an old friend.

Xiao Yao wanted to laugh: Xiang Liu, is it you? I’ve healed you that many times, now it’s finally your turn to repay me.

...

In the unending darkness, every time Xiang Liu came to heal her became the only time she felt like she was still alive, because she felt another heart beating.

HeadInTheClouds:
My thought is that Tong Hua had set up the Lovers Bugs which allow a unique connection between XL and XY, and allow him to know when she's injured. This scenario is the perfect opportunity to showcase this connection. And yet, I'm asked to believe that Jing or CX was able to sense XY's danger first and with a lot of time in advance? I find it a bit difficult to swallow this supposition.

I still don't understand this train of thought.

As far as I can recall, TSJ's ability to sense that something terrible is about to happen only leads him to come to XY's aid once in the whole novel. I can't think of any other instances where it's used. He had some trepidation about going to QS town when Hou set a trap for him (and ended up killing him), but I don't recall that being tied to his ability to sense calamities.

CX's ability to sense when one of his loved ones is close to death comes up once when his father dies, once when his grandmother is close to death, and once the first time someone tries to assassinate XY. His sensing ability doesn't allow him to help XY in any other circumstances, including Xing Yue's attempts to have XY assassinated in chapter 43 and chapter 44.

Notably, in chapter 43, XL came to XY's aid even though she wasn't injured or in physical pain. He must have sensed her emotions through the bug connection, or the fact that she was drugged. And in chapter 44, CX didn't know that XY was in danger until XL sent him a message about it.

So my point is, CX and TSJ's sensing abilities are really only used once in the whole novel (in chapter 21). If those abilities allowed them to realize that XY was in danger before XL realized XY was in danger, I don't think that in any way diminishes the uniqueness or value of XL and XY's bug connection. The bug connection still allowed XL to know that XY was in danger, and ultimately allowed him to save her. And XL uses the bug connection frequently throughout the novel, not just once.

Without question, the connection between XL and XY is unique. Out of the three male leads, only XL can feel XY's pain. Only XL can comfort XY by sharing her pain and heartache. TSJ and CX can help keep XY alive long enough for XL to arrive, but only XL can actually save her from death thanks to the bug connection. And so much more.

@liddi, I apologize for paraphrasing your comments instead of quoting them. HeadInTheCloud was responding directly to my comments, and her responses were on a different page from your comments so I couldn't quote them both in one response, and I didn't want to cover things twice (once is already too much text ^^").

Nov 10, 2023 11:54 am

Kokuto:
It's interesting that the art in the first edition and the art in the second edition with XL feature scenes that never occurred -- unless the attack of the sea gull demon involved them walking on water?

H19279:
No, he was badly injured at that time. She wore wedding outfit

liddi:
They did walk on the waves after he saved her, when they rose from under the ocean, to look for Miao Pu. However, unless I remember wrongly, there was no full moon at the time. And that scene occurred in Vol 3, which is after Vol 2, where this bonus picture was a part of.

H19279:
It was a fullmoon that day. But XL had his clothes damaged (I guess) and for sure they don't have such relax mood to walk after he was badly injured. She wore wedding robe, meaning long, red dress

I agree that the poster does not depict the scene from chapter 43.

As mentioned already, XL and XY do stand on the waves under the full moon in that scene, but XY is in her red wedding dress, XL is injured and his clothes are torn, and they do not hold hands in that scene.

-----

Chapter 42:

Miao Pu opened the chest and took out a red wedding dress with gold thread. “Miss?” Xiao Yao opened her arms “I want to wear it!”

Miao Pu bit her lit and opened the dress for Xiao Yao to put on.

...

Xiao Yao walked to the window to look up at the full moon. Jing picked a full moon night for their wedding, so they had a round happy ending. But today the round moon didn’t shine on a happy ending pair.

...

I’ve already put on my wedding dress and said my vows to the moon.

-----

Chapter 43:

Xiao Yao bowed three times to the moon and was standing up when a little white bird landed on the window sill.

...

Xiang Liu’s clothes were torn and messy, and his face and neck were covered in injuries.

...

Xiang Liu vaulted into the ocean without a care about Xiao Yao’s reverse psychology negotiating tactics. Xiao Yao anxiously jumped into the ocean after him and grabbed a lock of his flowing white hair.

Xiang Liu turned around and glared at her, so Xiao Yao let go with a smile. “You help me find the seagull demon and I agree to your price.” The seagull demon chose to let the whirlpool swallow her up forever, clearly she knew this ocean expanse very well. Only with Xiang Liu’s help could Xiao Yao hope to find her quickly.

Xiang Liu rose up from the ocean to stand on the waves. His white hair like the clouds, his white robe like the snow, the silver moonlight made him look even more noble and ethereal, except his expression looking down at Xiao Yao was filled with an evil smirk. “Any price I want?”

Xiao Yao stood up on the waves and raised her chin to look at Xiang Liu. “As long as it has nothing to do with Zhuan Xu, then any price is fine!”

...

Xiang Liu summoned his gold crowned white condor Furball and vaulted on with Xiao Yao.

...

Furball flew all night but the ocean beneath still looked the same.

...

Xiao Yao walked to the edge of the ship and looked out at the wide expanse of the ocean, the wind whipping her red wedding dress around her like a dance, and the red sunset behind her illuminated her vivid color so much that the red dress looked like blood was dripping from it.

The sun gradually set and the moon rose from the ocean surface. Xiao Yao pointed and said to Xiang Liu, “Look!”

Xiang Liu stared coldly at her and didn’t move but Left Ear turned to look at the moon and said, “Very round moon!”

H19279

Nov 10, 2023 11:59 am

@Liddi,

All the text in English of LYF that I've quoted so far was from Lost You Forever light novel - Read Lost You Forever light novel online at lightnovelreader.org (readln.org) . I can copy the text. Because the name of CX is ZX in the translation, I think the site used the edition 2013 which had some variation with the newer edition.

For example, in this 2013 edition and the translation wrote that XL got the mirror from her sleeve before deleting the memory

liddi:
I don't recall anywhere in the novel that says that it was hidden in a sleeve in her robe

Another example is what I asked you in the message if it is written in your book that XY told XL to drink her blood from neck or from wrist while they were on boat in chapter 43. My book in Vietnamese said she revealed her neck but this english translation said she showed her wrist. Small detail but very different meaning

Nov 10, 2023 12:03 pm

windiaaa041293:
Chapter 51 : "Suddenly she remembered, when she was unconscious Xiang Liu discovered the secret of the mirror and ordered her to remove it. When she woke up he never mentioned it again and she thought he forgot, but it turns out when she was unconscious he had deleted it all!"

liddi:
Is this based on the 2013 edition? The text implies differently in the latest edition of the novel:

突然，她想起了，在她昏迷时，相柳发现了镜子中的秘密，还要她将一切删除。等她清醒后，他却没有再提，她以为他忘记了，原来不知何时，他已经销毁了一切！

Suddenly she remembered that while she was unconscious, Xiang Liu discovered the secret of the mirror and wanted her to erase it all. After she woke up, he never mentioned it again so she thought he had forgotten. However, it turned out that at some point that she was not aware of, he had erased everything!

-- Vol 3 Ch18 (Chapter 58)

In other words, Xiao Yao here has no idea exactly when he erased it, except that it happened sometime after she woke up from the 37 years under the ocean. This is different from what the article is implying.

This is how Koala translated that part of chapter 51:

Xiao Yao suddenly remembered something and hurriedly searched herself before taking out the mystical Gorilla Mirror she always kept by her side. Inside the mirror were two memories she saved, and now they were the only things she had left of him.

...

Xiao Yao took a deep breath and used her power to turn on the mirror. But after swiping repeatedly nothing appeared.

Xiao Yao grew frantic. “It can’t be! It can’t be!…..” She anxiously used her power to look into the mirror. But no matter how many times she looked there were no memories of Xiang Liu.

Even the only thing he left to her was gone!

Xiao Yao could not believe it and she angrily kept trying the mirror. “How could this be? How could this be?……”

Suddenly she remembered, when she was unconscious Xiang Liu discovered the secret of the mirror and ordered her to erase it. When she woke up he never mentioned it again and she thought he forgot, but it turned out that when she wasn’t aware he had completely erased it all!

Which seems to match your translation very closely liddi.

Nov 10, 2023 12:12 pm

liddi:
I don't deny that she was aware the memories were still intact in Chapter 24, and even up to Chapter 34. However, my point remains that there is no concrete evidence she knew the memories were erased when she was unconscious after the 2nd suicide attempt, and not some time before that since there are 14 chapters between Chapter 34 (when she loaned the mirror to Jing) and Chapter 48 (after her suicide attempt when Xiang Liu showed the mirror to Sir Bi before erasing the memories).

I agree.

XY knew for sure that the memories had not been deleted by chapter 24.

She might have known that the memories had not been deleted by chapter 34 if she checked the mirror for them around the time she leant the mirror to TSJ.

She was shocked and distraught to discover that the memories had been erased in chapter 51, so she definitely didn't check the mirror for those memories between chapter 48 and chapter 51.

liddi:
It is a compelling thought though, if she believes that Xiang Liu erased it while she was unconscious after the suicide attempt, because it then tells her that he was the one who saved her and removed the bug connection. However, we have nothing to really indicate that, especially when the "However, it turned out that at some point that she was not aware of, he had erased everything!" were her own thoughts, her internal monologue.

I don't think she came to that conclusion.

After discovering that the memories had been erased from the mirror in chapter 51, XY's thoughts indicate that she still believed that their encounter in chapter 46 was the last time either of them saw each other.

-----

Chapter 51:

The last time they saw each other, because of Feng Long’s death, on the very Hu Lu Lake where they once played together she now wanted to kill him and he used Jing’s death to rile her up to get revenge for Jing. That night he nearly took all of her blood just to make a pill for healing. She hated him for being so cold-blooded and vowed never to see him again!

If she knew that it would be the last time they would ever see each other in this life time, she would have said something else. No matter how cold and harsh he was to her, she would never ever have wanted to say what she said to him.

Nov 10, 2023 12:14 pm

liddi:
怀 can refer to bosom or being in someone's arms. In this case, it should refer to bosom.

liddi:
After all the memories were erased, Xiang Liu finally cracked a slight smile, and returned the mirror back into Xiao Yao's bosom in its original state as if he had never touched it before.

-- Vol 3 Ch15 (Chapter 48)

Koala seems to have chosen "arms" for her translation. But I think you're right, "bosom" makes more sense than "arms" to describe her keeping the mirror inside the front of her robes.

-----

Chapter 48:

Xiang Liu waved his hand and Xiao Yao’s precious gorilla beast mirror flew from her arms into his hand.

...

After the memories were erased, Xiang Liu smiled and returned the mirror to Xiao Yao’s arms like he never touched it before.