Nightingale

he definitely 100% has PTSD from the war, zhao ling is not a man who is okay with or likes to kill, for reasons or not. he never was and i dont think he ever will be, no matter how ruthless he looks like now. sometimes the facade falls and you see the weariness and yearning beneath. its probably why he initially didnt want to join the army at all and was also so angry at a-sen for enlisting. it wasnt just coz he was young. he never wants him to go down the bloody road he's having to walk.

back in his smuggler days, they had so many other options, they could run, they could escape, bluff their way out, live out of the radar, kill only if its really unavoidable and most importantly, they were together at the end of the day. whatever the danger or hardships, they could support each other and enjoy the immediate gratification of the little joys and successes. no one was constantly plotting their downfall for selfish petty or courtly reasons. life was hard but they all are missing it in hindsight, even yucheng had brought it up. a-sen misses his brother zl too im sure, but he's young and watched him violating the code he lived by, failing to save his brothers, and going off to war for 5 yrs. its really a depressing situation overall for all of them.

i hope after this zhao ling quits and gets therapy. then takes his family back to some nice place away from city and lives the early retired life happy. this high status thing aint worth a dime.

pls dont make it worse for me im dying here 🥵😭 i'd sacrifice 500 hairs to see him with his hair down in the wedding night scene
i saw a palace stewardess reuter where his hair came down during a war or sth and good lord it left me reeling for 15 minutes straight.

the freestyle is taking me out🤣🤣🤣🤣

im already grieving for the lost chance, like oh god just imagining lingyun in long untied hair is giving me nosebleed oml so hot🥵🔥

i'd prefer open untied hair tbh 😭😭

uuuf gotta love a cp who dont run outta steam after one go 🤣🤣

the new girl miss wu is smart but forced to dumb down and shut off her brain all her life and be turned into only a dainty pretty accessory to be gifted to some influential man's household. cut her some slack. she gets shut down whenever she tries mentioning an observation or opinion. its not surprising she'd have a skewed view of some things and not get it.

thank you! thats very helpful

lusty marraiges😭😭🤣🤣

legit the only thing zhao ling got out of this whole thing was better status and social standing for tingyun and turned into a convenient weapon for the generals and the emperor. nothing for himself or his brothers. back in his rouge days, a kid like ah sen could still accompany him as long as he didnt get his hands bloody. but now their relationship is strained and he doesnt want him to even understand his choices anymore coz of how mentally damaging they are. his brothers are stuck in the same system and he still ended up losing one of them. once he taught ah sen the code they lived by-
"If words will do, never use your fists,
if fists will do, never spend money,
and if money will do, never risk your life."
meanwhile now he's living a life of killing and risking his life at every step. you can't remain the same person you were once you live through continuous years of killing on the battlefield and then killing for the court.

someone in the comments saying 'how did i end up in someone else's bridal chamber' im cryingg 😭😂

you shouldnt drop the food without the sauce bruh😭 link where?

this really feels suitable for those older historical drama lengths

real. no UwU attitude ever survived on the throne

zhao ling's straighter back is saddled with way heavier and worse burdens than his hunched back ever did. he gotta look out and be wary of way more as a lawful court offcial than he had to as an outlaw. darker side of apparent success.

surely living the life as jiuweijiao couldn't have been worse or more dangerous than this🥲😭😩 they dealt with way less irritating people back in the day too. and it was easier to stuff someone in a sack and throw them in the water

grand secretary tian is so funny lmao cute old man

i have been uneasy about zhao lings current trajectory for a while now, he makes me feel depressed lately. i dont like this tbh i have a feeling he wont actually die but lose himself in the process, i dont think i could handle it.

this was hilarious 🤣🤣