AH

I'll copy two excerpts from the novel that hopefully will clarify this a bit. For context, in Koala's translation of the novel she uses "Jiu Jiu" instead of "Fei Fei".

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Chapter 2:

Xiao Liu wanted to catch a Jiu Jiu - a small animal resembling a civet cat. It had a long white tail and could take away a person’s sorrow. It was popular with the nobles and could be sold for a pretty penny. It didn’t have any attack power, but it was very, very clever. It was easy to frighten and quick to run away. So it was very hard to catch. But Xiao Liu had a way of dealing with it. Jiu Jius loved listening to a young woman sing. A Jiu Jiu would be attracted to the young woman’s sorrowful song and its body would inch closer to help the girl forget her sorrows. Xiao Liu found a suitable spot to set the trap.

He jumped into the water to wash off the poop first, then crawled on a rock and sat down. The rock was warmed by the sun and Xiao Liu sat there fixing his hair and singing. The song was carried by the wind. Xiao Liu sang a song about missing someone forever and never being able to forget.

Xiao Liu’s voice was melodic and the song was sorrowful. So the Jiu Jiu was lured out. Initially it was scared, so it hid in the dark. When it sensed no danger, it could not overcome its natural instinct to help people forget sorrow, so it stepped out and started chirping.

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Chapter 6:

Xiao Liu grabbed his hand and smiled. “I’m a man. Even if you like men, you should find someone better looking.”

“You’re a man?” Xiang Liu’s slightly blood stained lips curved upward. “If you’re a man, how did you lure the Jiu Jiu out?”

Xiao Liu blinked quizzically, “I don’t believe you can’t change your shape as well as your voice.”

“I trust a beast’s natural instinct.”

“If a beast’s natural instinct was so accurate, your Furball wouldn’t have been poisoned by me. There would be no such thing as traps, and hunters wouldn’t need to hunt.”

“What kind of transformation spell are you using? You have very weak powers but it’s completely seamless just like it’s your true form.”

Xiao Liu angrily said, “This is my true form!”

Xiang Liu stared at him, his eyes as dark as ink, and Xiao Liu’s heart started racing. He violently shook off Xiang Liu’s hand and then spread himself open like a dead pig headed to boiling water. “Touch me then, touch me. After you’re done then stop accusing me of being a woman!”

Xiang Liu glared at him. “I’m not interested in your false form.” He released Xiao Liu, turned and walked out of the pool to go lay on the pallet and continued healing himself.

Glad to have made you laugh. ^^

There are a few scenes between Wen Xiao Liu and Xiang Liu that made it clear that Wen Xiao Liu was aware of the concept of men who like other men. For example, when she misinterprets Xiang Liu’s comment about using her body (to make up for it if she can’t make a poison that he requests) she is surprised because she never imagined that Xiang Liu would like men.

So it seems like LGBTQ people did exist in Dahuang, at least in the novel.

For context, Xiao Yao transformed into her current male form over one hundred years before she arrived in QS town. Her transformation is seamless. Even the most powerful deities and demons (including the King of Haoling, Cang Xuan, Xiang Liu and Ye Shi Qi) cannot tell that her false male form is not her true form.

Ye Shi Qi was with Wen Xiao Liu for half a year before he realized she was a woman who transformed into a man. Ye Shi Qi comes to that realization based on how she behaved when he bathed (blushing and running away instead of helping him dress). The possibility that Wen Xiao Liu might be a gay man does not seem to occur to him.

Xiang Liu knew that Wen Xiao Liu was a woman from the moment he first met her because she was able to lure out a Fei Fei, which only women can do.

Winny, in your last comment you said, "Im not talking about ch3 or hundred years ago or later."

But in your previous comment you said, "There's no more background showing Sheng Nong army or XL would viciously suspicious of this one who came to get feifei...there s no such scenes of they encounter several times before, so they are vicious now."

I quoted chapter 3 because it provides part of the background you said didn't exist. Hundreds of years of background.

You said, "But I did say HE HAD THE RIGHT TO SUSPISCIOUS." I agree with that.

You said, "Sorry with explanation of Sheng Nong army before in context, I don't find XL doing as mercy." and "Even if she's true spy, his behavior is not
merciless." I mostly agree with that. The only part where I view Xiang Liu showing some mercy in chapter 2 was when he chose to not kill Wen Xiao Liu. I agree that the mercy shown in that decision was limited (which is why I keep qualifying it by saying that his choice showed "some" mercy), and that his other actions and choices in that chapter were not merciful.

You said, "It's not 100 % evidence she is spy despite her poisoning them." I'm not sure why you've made this statement. I have never seen anyone claim that there was 100% evidence that Wen Xiao Liu was a spy in chapter 2. I have not claimed that, and Xiang Liu did not claim that.

You said, "Its still self defense from her side." I assume you are talking about Wen Xiao Liu poisoning Furball and Xiang Liu? If so, calling that self-defense is a bit of a stretch. Wen Xiao Liu trespassed on Sheng Nong territory. She committed the first wrong. Then she withheld the Fei Fei from Furball. Wen Xiao Liu happily eats meat throughout the novel (in fact, in her very first scene she is eating lamb stew) but she tried to prevent Furball from having his own meal. She could have dropped the Fei Fei if she didn't want a confrontation, but chose not to. Even so, Furball did not attack Wen Xiao Liu at that point and only postured by destroying a rock. That was the point when Wen Xiao Liu poisoned Furball. Then Xiang Liu made his presence known by speaking to Furball, and Wen Xiao Liu immediately tried to poison him. Xiang Liu didn't threaten her before she poisoned him and didn't do anything else to prompt that reaction.

You said, "Anyway i feel like Im repeating loop." Yep.

You said, "But the main fact is you focsuing on his mercifulness and I am focusing his control behavior with her." The only reason my comments in this thread are focused on that subject (mercy) is that Supernova quoted one of my earlier comments without necessary context in a way that mischaracterized my position (to suggest that I thought that certain things that XL did in chapter 2, other than choosing not to execute WXL, were merciful), and then the same mischaracterization of my position was repeated.

https://koalasplayground.com/tag/lost-you-forever/page/7/

IMO, it was more of an abstract kind of self defense, and not a more direct kind of self defense against Wen Xiao Liu's poison.

Wen Xiao Liu's poison (and sleeping powder) had no effect on Xiang Liu, so Xiang Liu didn't need to do anything to Wen Xiao Liu to defend himself against her poison.

But she succeeded in poisoning Chubby, whom Xiang Liu obviously cared about.

She also acted suspiciously by using a false form (the form of a man, even though Xiang Liu knew she was a woman) while trespassing on the remnant army's territory. Her false form was seamless (even powerful Xiang Liu couldn't see through it) and her poison skills were better than the poison skills of Xuan Yuan's best poison masters, which didn't match up at all with the identity she insisted on (just a humble, small-town fertility doctor with low spiritual powers and no political interests or affiliations).

She admitted that she was not "only" Wen Xiao Liu, but refused to reveal her true identity.

From the moment she failed to poison Xiang Liu, she "had been acting the coward this entire time" but when it came to her one condition she didn't back down and suddenly showed that she was a brave person with steely determination. Revealing that her previous behaviour was an act.

Each one of those things made her seem like a potential spy or assassin. Spies and assassins posed a serious threat to the remnant army and to Xiang Liu specifically, and of course he would try to defend himself and his comrades from them.

Winny: “wow...your imaginations are good. Sorry I could not imagine far beyond like that. Because I could not imagine comparing the army to a normal family house getting death threads. Because army station like that, spies should be more common than army home.”

-

AH: You don’t want to answer the question because you think the analogy is not a reasonable comparison to the situation that Xiang Liu and Xiao Yao were in when Xiao Yao was captured by the remnant army, because … why? I’m sorry I’m not following.

*****

Winny: “About her revealing her truth background, I don't think she will reveal it to death.”

-

AH: I agree, I don’t think there were any circumstances that would have prompted Wen Xiao Liu to admit her true identity. Which, again, was very suspicious.

*****

Winny: “But about this particular scene, I still don't find it as "mercy". It is as it is his character or showing so.”

-

AH: Maybe we have different definitions of mercy? The Merriam-Webster dictionary offers a few different definitions for the word. The first definition it provides is: “compassion or forbearance (e.g., refraining from enforcing something) shown especially to an offender or to one subject to one's power”.

Wen Xiao Liu was a suspicious person captured by the Sheng Nong remnant army on their territory. She poisoned Furball, tried to poison Xiang Liu and lied about her identity. In those circumstances, she was subject to Xiang Liu’s power / judgment. When she failed to demonstrate that she was innocent, Xiang Liu could have imposed a harsh sentence on her (e.g., long-term imprisonment, torture, or death). Instead he gave her the option to save herself if she agreed to work for him. He refrained from enforcing a harsher sentence against her. IMO, that squarely fits the definition of showing some mercy.

The lashes and back-stepping came later, and were not merciful.

*****

Winny: “About her his suspension is very right, but at the same time only because she's good at poison and in disguise, did not make sense to say he's almost sure she's spy because after he could at least see she came for feifei. His condor just interrupt her. He was also watching behind. If he really suspenscious why don't he just continue to see what she would rather than coming to get fei fei.”

-

AH: In chapter 3 we find out that Wen Xiao Liu was well aware that there was a price on Xiang Liu’s head and on Gong Gong’s head, and that the price on Xiang Liu’s head was higher than the price on Gong Gong’s head. If a greedy person chose to try to kill Xiang Liu in order to collect the reward that Xuan Yuan was offering for his assassination, wouldn’t that same type of person potentially also consider capturing a highly valuable Fei Fei in order to sell it for lots of money if the opportunity arose? The fact that Wen Xiao Liu tried to capture the Fei Fei (and her subsequent decision to let the Fei Fei go) did not prove that Wen Xiao Liu was not a spy or an assassin.

*****

Winny: “All his kicking and tied her up, including with her trauma, it's normal for her to think she'd get killed.”

-

AH: I’m not sure what point you’re trying to make here? I agree that there was nothing abnormal about Wen Xiao Liu thinking that Xiang Liu would kill her in the circumstances.

*****

Winny: “It makes sense XL wa suspicious of her. But why won't he look at her doing first before concluding. For me I still think at that time he let her go because of that (despite all her abilities) yet also not enough information to dig out who she is.”

-

AH: Xiang Liu did look at Wen Xiao Liu’s actions, and he did not jump to conclusions. There was never a point where he concluded that she was definitely a spy or an assassin.

Xiang Liu waited for his men to provide a report on Wen Xiao Liu, and read it when it arrived. But he was not convinced by the report, and his instincts proved to be accurate when Wen Xiao Liu admitted that she was not “only” Wen Xiao Liu.

Xiang Liu did not have enough proof to know that she was definitely a spy or an assassin. And he did not have enough proof to know that she was definitely NOT a spy or an assassin. He did have enough proof to know that she was extremely suspicious and that she was refusing to reveal her true identity in order to clear that suspicion.

Given the order of events, it seems to me that he decided to spare Wen Xiao Liu’s life after she had her moment of vulnerability where she talked about being a person with no means of protecting herself, no one to rely on, and nowhere to go. We know those words struck a chord with Xiang Liu because he based some of the most important choices that he made over the next one hundred years (e.g., teaching Xiao Yao archery and saving Tushan Jing’s life) on those words, and before he died he based his well-wishes for Xiao Yao on those words, which he recalled exactly even 120+ years later.

*****

Winny: “If you say he would torture her to death to get information, well it's Sheng Nong army reputation (not some violence clan). I don't think XL would go against it to that extend. He did show his well know vicious side already.”

-

AH: I did not say that Xiang Liu would torture Wen Xiao Liu to death to get information from her. I said that we don’t know what other members of the Sheng Nong remnant army might do with someone who behaved the way that Wen Xiao Liu behaved (i.e., like someone very suspicious who did not appear to be innocent). And I said that we don’t know if the remnant army would or would not employ torture to try to find out the truth in those circumstances.

We do know that Wen Xiao Liu told Lao Mu that if he (a Xuan Yuan army deserter who was now an old man and an innocent civilian) went to the Sheng Nong remnant army’s territory to collect plants, he would be asking for death.

*****

Winny: “Yes I do take, the way he did not take any of her plead to be showing mercy. He's just making sure that their deal about working, making poison, he's the one above to take control. (He still find this usefulness of her as well as suspecting her).”

-

AH: I’m not sure if I’ve followed this correctly… it sounds like you are saying that Xiang Liu not doing something was not merciful.

I’ll reiterate my original point, which is that I only view Xiang Liu’s decision to spare her life as showing some mercy. I do not view his other choices in that chapter as merciful. I’ve said that several times, so I’m not sure what part isn’t clear.

*****

Winny: “And no I don't compare normal people or family home getting thread to Sheng Nong army.”

-

AH: You are welcome to come up with a different analogy. The point of the imagined scenario was to get you thinking about how a person would feel in Xiang Liu’s circumstances, because his decision to not give Wen Xiao Liu food or water in those circumstances seems pretty understandable if you think about it.

*****

Winny: “Besides I am not convinced WXL was doing anything else than getting feifei, had poison that condor for protection both to feifei and herself.. So I could not imagine comparing with those scary home intruders.”

-

AH: Of course the readers know that Wen Xiao Liu wasn’t a spy or an assassin. We have all the information. But Xiang Liu and the Sheng Nong remnant army don’t have the same information that the readers had.

In the imaged scenario, you don’t know if the intruder is actually a threat or not. Maybe they were telling the truth about only wanting to steal plants. Or maybe they were planning to harm you like the previous intruders. But they certainly seemed very suspicious. That’s the point. That’s the position that Xiang Liu and the remnant army were in.

*****

Winny: “There's no more background showing Sheng Nong army or XL would viciously suspicious of this one who came to get feifei...there s no such scenes of they encounter several times before, so they are vicious now.Your example stories do not work well with how I see the scene. Sorry.”

-

AH: I strongly disagree.

Wen Xiao Liu knew that in the 300 years between Xuan Yuan conquering Sheng Nong and the time when Wen Xiao Liu was captured by the Sheng Nong remnant army, “The war gradually went from open battles to secret scuffles and underhanded schemes of assassination……..whatever Xiao Liu couldn’t even think of, someone already tried it.” And Xuan Yuan offered a reward to anyone who killed Xiang Liu, and the bounty on Xiang Liu’s head was even higher than the bounty on Gong Gong’s head.

In chapter 3, the spies that Cang Xuan sent into the Sheng Nong remnant army’s territory were discovered and tried to kill Xiang Liu “once and for all.” They managed to injure him badly.

Do you really think that in 300 years Cang Xuan was the first person to send spies or assassins into the Sheng Nong remnant army’s territory? That Xuan Yuan never tried to spy on or assassinate Gong Gong or Xiang Liu, and it was only the Sheng Nong remnant army that ever attempted assassinations? And no one ever tried to collect the bounty on Xiang Liu’s head? Of course not.

When Wen Xiao Liu and Lao Mu spoke about the dangers of venturing into the Sheng Nong remnant army’s territory and possibly encountering Xiang Liu, Wen Xiao Liu specifically told him that she was going to collect spiritual plants, not to scout intelligence (i.e., spy) so she would be okay. That clearly shows that she knew that trespassers who were spies would be treated much more harshly than plant collectors if they were captured.

When Ye Shi Qi insisted on following Wen Xiao Liu into the Sheng Nong remnant army’s territory, she asked him if he was a Shen Nong deserter, a Xuan Yuan soldier, or a Gao Xing spy. She only allowed him to follow her after he confirmed that he was not any of those things. Again, Wen Xiao Liu clearly knew that certain groups, including spies, would be in serious danger if they were caught in the Sheng Nong remnant army’s territory.

~~~~~

Chapter 2:

Xiao Liu said, “The mountains are the territory of the Sheng Nong resistance army. You’re a Xuan Yuan army deserter, going there would be asking to die. Plus you don’t know those herbs. I’ll go.”

Lao Mu replied, “The Gong Gong-controlled resistance army is fair and principled, they won’t harm innocents and even ordinary humans aren’t scared of running into Sheng Nong soldiers. But that Lieutenant General Xiang Liu is very difficult. Rumors say he is a Nine-headed Demon. He has nine lives and his nickname is Nine Lives. He is vicious and brutal.”

Xiao Liu laughed. “I’m not going to scout intelligence. I’m going to get spiritual plants. He may be vicious but he has to follow army rules. Plus I’ll never run into someone as powerful and lofty as General Xiang Liu.”

…

Shi Qi quietly stood still with his eyes lowered and his silence conveying his determination. Maybe it was that their destiny started with pity so Xiao Liu was quick to soften towards him. He asked, “Are you a Shen Nong deserter?” Shi Qi shook his head. “Are you a Xuan Yuan soldier?” Shi Qi shook his head. “Are you a Gao Xing spy?” Shi Qi shook his head. Xiao Liu smiled “Then you can head into the mountains. Follow me.”

~~~~~

Chapter 3:

“How are they?”

“Three died and one escaped back. Master, it’s not that we’re useless but this time it alerted that big demon Nine Lives. But three of our men risked their lives and managed to injure him.”

“Xiang Liu got injured?”

“Our men in the mountains know it's the perfect opportunity to get rid of him once and for all but he can’t be found.”

…

General Gong Gong and Xuan Yuan had been fighting for a couple hundred years now. In the beginning, the Yellow Emperor sent army reinforcements, but the Middle Plains were still not conquered, Gao Xing was to the other side, Gong Gong was in an advantageous physical location so the Yellow Emperor lost all his battles. All he could do was keep Gong Gong cornered and wait for him to surrender one of these days.

The war gradually went from open battles to secret scuffles and underhanded schemes of assassination… whatever Xiao Liu couldn’t even think of, someone already tried it.

Xuan Yuan even announced a reward, and Xiang Liu was the number one bounty on the list, even higher than Gong Gong. The reason was very odd – Gong Gong was nobility from the Sheng Nong royal family so if anyone killed him for the bounty that would incur the wrath of the entire world. But Xiang Liu was fine – he was just a demon, and a hideous freakish nine-headed demon at that. So to kill him for the money reward wouldn’t even cause anyone to have a sleepless thought.

Although it's not all romance all the time (there's war, politics, family drama and other topics too), this is a reverse harem drama and romance is a pretty big part of the story. Is there anything in particular that she is looking to avoid / that would make a drama "too romancey" for her?

Hi Winny Aye. I think our interpretations are not all that far apart.

I agree that Xiang Liu had a reputation for being brutal that was generally deserved and that he even seemed to maintain intentionally. I also agree that his reputation differed from Gong Gong's reputation and the reputation of the Sheng Nong army for treating people (at least innocent people) well. Based on WXL's words, it seems like the remnant army maybe had a rule about not harming innocent civilians. Obviously that rule would not extend to enemy spies or combatants.

When Wen Xiao Liu was captured by the Sheng Nong remnant army, she breathed a sigh of relief because she believed that she would be released after she was proven to be innocent. But she failed to convince Xiang Liu that she was innocent.

Let's recap the information that Xiang Liu had. He knew that the war between Xuan Yuan and the Sheng Nong remnant army had long since devolved "from open battles to secret scuffles and underhanded schemes of assassination" and that Xuan Yuan had promised a reward to anyone who killed him or Gong Gong. And the price on his head was even higher than the price on Gong Gong's head. He knew that WXL's male form was a false form, even though it appeared to be seamless (which should not have been the case given WXL's low powers). He knew that she was a poison master who was able to poison his trusted mount when even Xuan Yuan couldn't. He knew that she also tried to poison him in order to escape from him. After reading the report, he knew that she had maintained her false male identity as a doctor in the town closest to the remnant army's encampments for 20 years. And after she confessed it, he knew with even greater certainty that she was not "only" Wen Xiao Liu.

Xiang Liu spent the past 400+ years maintaining his false identity as FFB, so he would be well aware that a person living with a particular identity for 20 years couldn't be relied upon as proof of anything.

As you said, all of that is not enough information to prove that WXL was definitely a Xuan Yuan spy, but it was extremely suspicious. And WXL refused to reveal her true identity in order to clear the suspicion - with good reason. Imagine if she had revealed the truth: that she was the long-lost granddaughter of the remnant army's greatest enemy, the Yellow Emperor? That definitely would not have convinced him to let her go. And Xiang Liu wouldn't need to be a genius to realize that WXL choosing not to reveal her true identity even when she believed that Xiang Liu was going to kill her for being suspicious meant that her true identity was likely even more problematic or suspicious than leaving her identity unconfirmed.

If Gong Gong or someone else in the remnant army was in Xiang Liu's shoes and knew everything that he knew, would they have executed WXL? It's hard to say, since Lao Mu and WXL's comments on Gong Gong and the Sheng Nong remnant army only talked about how they treated people who weren't enemy spies or combatants. Let's assume that they probably would not have executed her. That doesn't mean they would let such a suspicious person go, with no more questions asked. They might have tortured her to try and get the full truth out of her. Or they might have just continued to hold her prisoner until her true identity could be proved satisfactorily (although I feel like WXL would have kept them waiting a very long time).

But when I say that Xiang Liu showed some mercy when he chose not to execute WXL, I'm not comparing his actions to what Gong Gong or other members of the remnant army would have done. I'm comparing the action he chose to take with the action he seemed to be planning to take (based on what WXL instinctively expected him to do). WXL fully believed that Xiang Liu was going to kill her, as that would be the fastest way to deal with the problem of such a suspicious person who refused to reveal their true identity. But after her moment of vulnerability Xiang Liu offered her an alternative. He said he would spare her life if she agreed to work for him, and he gave her time to think it over. The decision to make that offer is the part I view as Xiang Liu showing some mercy.

-----

Xiang Liu stared at him and tapped his fingers. Xiao Liu started shaking - the primitive instinct of a living being in fear of death. Xiao Liu knew that Xiang Liu had no patience to figure out why he seemed suspicious and would use the most efficient and effective way to solve the problem, which was to the same fate as the Jiu Jiu.

When the aura of death came hurtling over, Xiao Liu tumbled and tried to avoid it while saying, “My lord, I really am Wen Xiao Liu. Maybe I’m not ONLY Wen Xiao Liu, but I have no intention to harm the resistance army under General Gong Gong. I don’t belong to the Kingdom of Xuan Yuan, or the Kingdom of Gao Xing, and not to the Kingdom of Sheng Nong. I am just…”

Xiao Liu paused and thought, “Who am I?”

He raised his head and allowed his entire expression to be seen by Xiang Liu. “I am just someone who has been discarded. I have no ability to protect myself, I have no one to rely on, I have nowhere to go. So that is why I chose to be Wen Xiao Liu in Qing Shui Town. If my lord will allow it, I wish to be Wen Xiao Liu for the rest of my life.”

Xiang Liu stared at him and Xiao Liu didn’t dare to move but the beads of cold sweat came down and there were unshed tears in his eyes because the hard protective shell placed in the last tens of years got forcibly peeled open.

After some time, Xiang Liu calmly said, “If you want to live, work for me.”

Xiao Liu said nothing. Xiang Liu blew out the lamps. “You have a night to think on it.”

-----

I agree that Xiang Liu's choice to not to give her anything to eat or drink on the night that he questioned her was not a merciful choice. I also agree that most of the things that Xiang Liu chose to do to WXL in that chapter were about showing that he was in control - especially when WXL tried to weasel out of his control.

As a further thought about Xiang Liu not giving WXL anything to eat or drink... can I run a scenario by you?

Imagine that you and a few loved ones live in a house with a fenced backyard. In this scenario, you and your loved ones have been receiving death threats online for months, and in the past few weeks people broke into your home and tried to kill you or members of your family on multiple occasions.

Imagine that you come home one day and you hear an unfamiliar voice speaking in your yard. When you walk into the yard, you see a stranger, but they don't notice you. They are on the phone, and you overhear them talking about how they got plastic surgery to look like a different ethnicity and created a new fake identity to match their new look. Then your dog walks out of a dog door from your home into the yard and confronts the stranger. The stranger poisons your dog. You reveal yourself, and the stranger tries to poison you too but misses. The stranger begs for mercy and insists they only came to steal some precious plants from your garden and have no intention of harming you or your loved ones. You incapacitate the stranger and make them give you the antidote for your dog.

Imagine you tie the stranger up and call the police, but some other major disaster is occurring and the police say it will take several hours for them to get to your house to pick up the intruder. You hear the intruder's stomach rumble. You think of the death threats and the previous murder attempts, you think of the intruder's fake identity, and you think of the intruder poisoning your dog and trying to poison you. Would you offer the intruder a snack and something to drink?

In addition to what Kokuto said, I can provide some excerpts from the novel on this point.

-----

Chapter 16:

Fang Feng Yi Yang got off the carriage as did Tu Shan Jing. Fang Feng Bei smiled. “You must be the Young Master of Qing Qiu. I’ve heard the great reputation of my future brother-in-law. Nice to meet you finally.”

Fang Feng Yi Yang said to Jing, “This is my second brother.”

Jing said nothing for a moment, and as someone who once saw Xiang Liu’s “real face” like Xiao Yao, his reaction was likely the same as Xiao Yao when she first saw Fang Feng Bei. A moment later he bowed politely. “Greetings second brother.”

-----

Chapter 19:

Xiao Yao never concealed where she went and Jing knew she was spending a lot of time with Fang Feng Bei but he never said anything or asked anything.

Actually deep down inside, Xiao Yao wanted him to ask. But he likely thought he had no right to stop her so he didn’t ask. He never even mentioned that Fang Feng Bei looked just like Xiang Liu, not sure if he investigated and found nothing suspicious, or he didn’t think it mattered.

Since Jing didn’t mention it, Xiao Yao didn’t bring it up.

Just like that, a year went by in her life.

-----

Chapter 22:

Jing said, “No, I see you as more important than my life. Xiao Yao, you resented me for saying I wasn’t good enough for you yet I refused to let go. Actually, I know that you can go on just fine without me. I know that Fang Fang Bei is more suitable for you. But I can’t let you go, as long as I am alive then I can’t! I’m sorry, I’m sorry…..”

-----

Chapter 23:

“Be quiet!” In that instant Bei appeared to don a full armor, wrapping himself tightly in a deadly aura.

Xiao Yao stared warily at Xiang Liu and then slowly backed up.

She backed into a familiar embrace. “Jing?”

“Yes.” Jing held Xiao Yao and stared at Bei, his eyes full of warning.

Bei’s dangerous aura vanished and he laughed. “I heard you wanted to break the engagement. You just became clan leader, do you think my sister isn’t good enough for you now?”

Jing’s deadly aura also vanished.

...

Jing finally spoke, “Before Xiao Yao was Xiao Yao, I already liked her. You must wonder why I never told you, that is because I could not tell you. Many times I worried that I wasn’t good enough for her. You, Fang Feng Bei, you are better options for her. No matter who gets close to her, I think its better for Xiao Yao. No matter who she chooses, it’ll be happier than with me. I constantly tell myself to give up, but I can’t give up.”

Feng Long felt his anger vanish and another anger rose.

------

Chapter 24:

Jing slowly said, “That night…..I felt that Fang Feng Bei was Xiang Liu.”

Xiao Yao was startled and didn’t want to lie to Jing but also didn’t want to expose Xiang Liu’s secret so she tiredly said, “I don’t want to discuss those two guys.”

Jing said, “I’ll tend the fire for you and you go rest.”

-----

Chapter 26:

Her heart continued to beat wildly and strongly, so much that she felt like all her blood was rushing into her head. Xiao Yao couldn’t control it and muttered under her breath, “Xiang Liu, will you cut it out already?”

Everyone only heard “cut it out already”, but Jing was sitting closest to her and he was completely familiar with Xiao Yao’s voice, so he heard every word she said.

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Chapter 29:

Xiao Yao suddenly realized that when Li Jie Chang was talking about Fang Feng Bei earlier, all the things he was saying were about Xiang Liu. Did he know Fang Feng Bei was Xiang Liu?

That meant Jing also knew now that Bei was Xiang Liu.

...

Xiao Yao was silent for a few moments and then casually said, “Jing knows you’re Xiang Liu now. He won’t tell my Gege, but if Feng Long knows, Gege will find out. You……be careful.”

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Chapter 33:

After she drank the tea she asked, “You’re not going to ask me where I went for the past month and more with Fang Feng Bei?”

Jing said, “I know Fang Feng Bei is Xiang Liu. He ought to have taken you to the Sheng Nong resistance army base in the mountains.”

...

“That day, on the streets of Qing Qiu, you told me you were getting married but there wasn’t a hint of happiness in your eyes. No one forced you so why are you forcing yourself to marry Feng Long. I….I couldn’t let you marry Feng Long like that. I begged him to cancel the wedding but he said no. I wanted to find you but I knew I was pouring oil on the flame. Right when I was at my wits end, I ran into Fang Feng Bei. I remembered that you promised to do one thing for Xiang Liu as the price for breaking the voodoo bug in Zhuan Xu. Since Zhuan Xu became Emperor, the provisions have been scarce in the army base so I discussed a deal with Xiang Liu to buy the promise you made to him. I asked him to beg you to cancel the wedding. But I couldn’t have imagined that he would show up at the actual wedding ceremony to ask you to fulfill your promise. It was my fault, Xiao Yao, I’m sorry!”

-----

Chapter 46:

Xiao Yao glared in rage at Xiang Liu who acted nonchalant and continued to stroke her neck while smiling down at her and talking like it was a random chat between friends. “Even before I knew you, I was already doing business with Tu Shan Jing for hundreds of years...”

The End of the 40 Lashes Scene and the Subsequent Scene in Chapter 2

----

Another twenty lashes were delivered and Xiao Liu’s entire back was covered in blood and he was in excruciating pain. Xiang Liu coldly looked at him and asked, “Any more conditions?”

Xiao Liu was covered in sweat and his mouth was bleeding so he couldn’t say a full sentence. “You… can kill me, but I… still… have one condition.” Xiang Liu smiled with a corner of his mouth and said, “Say it!”

“I….I won’t leave Qing Shui Town.” Xiao Liu understood that Xiang Liu was interested in his ability to make poison and as long as he didn’t leave Qing Shui Town then Xiang Liu couldn’t send him to kill the Xuan Yuan generals and officers. Nor could he send him to kill Gao Xing nobles and royals. Xiang Liu seemed to understand Xiao Liu’s thinking and just stared at him without any expression.

Xiao Liu had been acting a coward this entire time but this time he didn’t back down and looked at Xiang Liu straight back. The meaning was clear: if Xiang Liu didn’t agree to this condition, then kill him now. After a moment, Xiang Liu said, “Fine!”

Xiao Liu breathed a sigh of relief and then collapsed.

Xiao Liu was dragged by the soldiers back into Xiang Liu’s tent and the army doctor removed his clothes and put medicine on his back. Xiang Liu stood at the door of the tent and coldly observed. Xiao Liu laid on a wooden board and docilely allowed the army doctor to minister to him.

When the medicine was applied and everyone left, Xiang Liu said to Xiao Liu, “Make whatever concoction I ask of you. All other times you can continue being your healer in Qing Shui Town. But when I summon you, you must obey immediately.”

“Fine, but it’s like not I will be able to make whatever my lord asks.”

“If you can’t, then you can exchange with your body.”

“Huh?” Xiao Liu never imagined Xiang Liu would like men and carefully said, “My lord is handsome beyond compare. It’s not that I don’t want to service you but…”

Xiang Liu smirked and lifted his foot and stepped on Xiao Liu’s wound slowly until blood started to seep out. “If you can’t make one, then use a part of your body in exchange. The first time, your ears. The second time, your nose…” Xiang Liu upped the pressure. “Don’t worry, I won’t cut off your hands. You need them to make the concoctions.”

Xiao Liu was in so much pain he writhed. “I….I understand.”

Xiang Liu pulled his foot back and wiped the blood away on Xiao Liu’s robe. “You are as slippery as an eel: one moment of not paying attention and all that is left is mud. But my personality, you should go ask around.”

Xiao Liu snarked, “I don’t need to ask around to figure it out.”

Supernova, for the first part of your comment, I'm afraid you are mixing up the order of events. Xiang Liu agreed to Wen Xiao Liu's one condition (that she not be required to leave QS town) after the 40 lashes were administered and before the back-stepping occurred.

After Xiang Liu agreed to Wen Xiao Liu's condition, she collapsed. She was dragged back into Xiang Liu's tent (she was questioned in the tent the night before and she and Xiang Liu both slept in the tent overnight, but she was taken outside for the lashings), where a doctor from the remnant army treated her wounds while Xiang Liu observed. Then Xiang Liu and Wen Xiao Liu discussed the terms of their arrangement after the doctor left. In that conversation, Wen Xiao Liu says that she might not be able to make every kind of poison that Xiang Liu requests and (after misinterpreting Xiang Liu's response) makes a suggestive comment. Xiang Liu takes this as Wen Xiao Liu being "slippery" (the word Xiang Liu uses later in the scene) again to try to get out of complying with Xiang Liu's orders, which prompts Xiang Liu to step on her wounds and to say the line that you quoted. All of that (watching the doctor treat her wounds, discussing terms, and stepping on her back) occurs after Xiang Liu agreed to Wen Xiao Liu's condition that he won't ask her to leave QS town.

I'll copy the excerpt in a comment below under a spoiler cover, as it is a bit long.

----

For the second part of your comment, I invite you to re-read my comment and ask that if you are going to use quotes to suggest that I've said something, that you quote me with the appropriate context. I said, "Although Xiang Liu showed some mercy by not having her executed, he was not going to treat Wen Xiao Liu (who still hadn't admitted her true identity) with kid gloves."

Perhaps you are not familiar with the phrase "treat X with kid gloves"? It means to handle something delicately, often due to a perceived sensitivity. So I very clearly said that only the decision not to execute Wen Xiao Liu showed some mercy, and that Xiang Liu did not treat Wen Xiao Liu delicately with his subsequent actions.

As an aside, I don't see how Xiang Liu knowing Wen Xiao Liu was a woman is relevant to assessing whether Xiang Liu was or wasn't merciful in this chapter. Not executing someone who was behaving like a spy showed some mercy, whether the suspicious person was a man or a woman. I agree that the lashes were harsh and the back-stepping in particular was cruel. The back-stepping is a moment that never fails to make me uncomfortable when I re-read the novel. But I don't think the lashes or the back-stepping are made worse because they were done to a woman (in a man's body). And I don't think either of those things could be framed as merciful if they were done to a man (in a man's body) instead.

Per his promise to the real Fang Feng Bei, Xiang Liu spent four years caring for the mother of the real Fang Feng Bei during her illness before she died. He was a good and caring son to her, and his family members all described him as filial because of it, even hundreds of years later (and despite Fang Feng Bei's reputation as a rake). Xiang Liu told Xiao Yao that he felt like he got the better end of the deal that he made with the original Fang Feng Bei, as (in addition to getting Fang Feng Bei's spiritual power) he got to experience the unconditional love of a mother.

Xiang Liu spent 100 years living as Feng Feng Bei before he reunited with Hong Jiang and joined the Chenrong remnant army. Even after he joined the remnant army, he spent part of his time maintaining his second identity as Fang Feng Bei for another 300 years before he met Wen Xiao Liu. When he was Fang Feng Bei, Xiang Liu kept up the original Fang Feng Bei’s reputation as a rake - he gambled, spent lots of time with women, and partied with friends with similar habits. He learned to be very good at interacting with and charming women, and he was clearly confident and comfortable around them.

When Xiang Liu reunited with Hong Jiang (300 years before Xiang Liu met Wen Xiao Liu), they formed such a close relationship that Hong Jiang adopted Xiang Liu as his son. As Xiao Yao comes to realize, when Xiang Liu originally joined the Chenrong remnant army, he was planning to pay back his debt to Hong Jiang. But over time they (Hong Jiang and Xiang Liu) became so close that paying back the debt became irrelevant because Xiang Liu's choice to fight with the remnant army was now motivated by true loyalty and affection rather than a feeling of obligation to repay a debt. So Xiang Liu was not only capable of developing close relationships with other people, he had done so hundreds of years before meeting Wen Xiao Liu.

Xiang Liu also developed a strong sense of loyalty and brotherhood with his fellow soldiers. After hundreds of years of battle, he attended many funerals, personally cremated hundreds of his men, and would have spent many nights singing and drinking in memory of the fallen. Being around people experiencing difficult feelings (e.g., sadness, grief or a sense of hopelessness) would have been familiar territory for him.

And as we see in the middle and later parts of S1, Xiang Liu is actually very good at comforting Xiao Yao and distracting her from her loneliness and heartache. He will do more of that in S2 (in the episode that adapts chapter 35 of the novel).

Given all of that, why was Xiang Liu so awkward on the occasions when he reached out to touch Xiao Yao in comfort or affection in the early episodes of S1?

Perhaps it was the first time he had developed real romantic feelings (rather than shallow feelings of mere attraction motivated by the fun of flirtation and physical desire or platonic feelings of love for a mother, a father, or brothers in arms) for someone, and the awkwardness came from him trying to figure out how to deal with those feelings as much as it came from wanting (but not knowing how) to comfort someone or show a bit of affection to someone (especially someone he had those types of feelings for).

After you've finished S1, come back and read the next comment.

You're welcome ^^

Glad I could help :)

Great point. That would have been an excellent way to help viewers understand that Wen Xiao Liu's form is the form of a man who looks completely different from Xiao Yao, rather than just Xiao Yao dressing up as a man.

You're welcome ^^

Yes, the fact that they use YZ to play Wen Xiao Liu instead of using a male actor is understandably very confusing for viewers who aren't familiar with the novel. It makes it seem like Xiao Yao is just cross dressing (while still looking very much like a woman dressed as a man) and using a male name, when she has actually transformed her body into a man's body and her transformation is seamless. Not even the most powerful deity or demon can tell that her male Wen Xiao Liu form is not her true form just by looking at her.

For a long time only Ye Shi Qi and Xiang Liu know that Wen Xiao Liu's male form is a false form and that she is actually a woman who has transformed herself into a man. And Wen Xiao Liu doesn't know that they know for a long time. She finds out that Xiang Liu knows she's a woman in episode 10 (but it's not as clear as it was in the novel). She finds out that Ye Shi Qi knows that her face isn't her real face in episode 13 (although iirc it's also not addressed as clearly as it was in the novel). She finds out that Ye Shi Qi knows that she is a woman in episode 14.

I've set out some context and clarifications below if you want them.

40 LASHES

In episode 3, Wen Xiao Liu knowingly trespassed on the Chenrong remnant army's territory. Before he captured her, Xiang Liu knew that Wen Xiao Liu's male form was a false form because she was able to successfully lure out the Fei Fei with her song (which only women can do). Before she was captured, Wen Xiao Liu also poisoned Xiang Liu's condor (Chubby) and tried to poison Xiang Liu in order to avoid being captured. After she was captured, she insisted she was a man named Wen Xiao Liu (which Xiang Liu knew was a lie - because he knew she was a woman).

After the scene where Xiang Liu questions Wen Xiao Liu, the drama shows us a scene where Xuan instructs one of his men to investigate the spies in the remnant army. Later on we see that Xuan sent many spies to infiltrate the remnant army, and those spies tried to kill Xiang Liu. IMO, that scene is included to remind us viewers that Xiang Liu had good reason to be suspicious of anyone who trespassed on the remnant army's territory in disguise, especially someone who was a poison master (Xiang Liu noted that Xiyan's poison experts had tried and failed to poison Chubby before - and yet Wen Xiao Liu was able to do it successfully) who refused to reveal their true identity even under the threat of death.

When Wen Xiao Liu refused to reveal her true (female) identity, Xiang Liu could have had her executed as a suspected spy. But her words convinced Xiang Liu to spare her life. So Xiang Liu told Wen Xiao Liu that she could live if she agreed to work for him, and he gave her a night to think about it. In the morning, Wen Xiao Liu stalled and wouldn't give Xiang Liu an answer. Although Xiang Liu showed some mercy by not having her executed, he was not going to treat Wen Xiao Liu (who still hadn't admitted her true identity) with kid gloves. So when Wen Xiao Liu tried to stall, Xiang Liu had his men give her 20 lashes. When she tried to impose several conditions on her cooperation, he had his men give her 20 more lashes. But when it was clear that Wen Xiao Liu was prepared to die unless Xiang Liu agreed to her most important condition, Xiang Liu listened to and agreed to her condition.


WEN XIAO LIU MAKING POISONS

After Wen Xiao Liu poisoned Chubby, Xiang Liu asked her for the antidote to her poison so he could revive Chubby. After Xiang Liu spared Wen Xiao Liu's life on the condition that she work for him, he did not ask her to make antidotes for him. He asked her to make poisons for him. Wen Xiao Liu initially believed that Xiang Liu wanted to use those poisons against his enemies (so she intentionally created poisons that were useless for that purpose), but she later realized that Xiang Liu was consuming the poisons himself as (rather than hurting him) they increased his power.

The fact that her poisons had no effect on Xiang Liu greatly annoyed Wen Xiao Liu. She took it as a personal challenge. She was convinced that she could poison anyone, even Xiang Liu, and put significant effort into creating the deadliest poisons she could for him. Despite her efforts, Xiang Liu continued to be unharmed, and he was even pleased with the poisons. He told Wen Xiao Liu that was why he brought a gift to Pimply's wedding.

Although Wen Xiao Liu was really trying to poison Xiang Liu, she also found herself revealing things to Xiang Liu that she had never revealed to anyone else. And after she admitted that she was afraid of being lonely, Xiang Liu started to visit Wen Xiao Liu occasionally (seemingly for no reason).


WEN XIAO LIU BEING CONFRONTED BY AH NIAN AND XUAN

The "sister/brother" you mentioned are Xuan the wine merchant (who is really Prince Cang Xuan of Xiyan) and Ah Nian (who is really the second princess of Haoling). Cang Xuan and Ah Nian are not blood relatives. Cang Xuan grew up in Haoling (ostensibly as a political hostage, but it was really a means of protecting himself from his scheming uncles) and considers the King of Haoling (Xiao Yao's father) to be his Shifu. Like Xiao Yao, Ah Nian is the King of Haoling's daughter. Since Cang Xuan cannot treat Xiao Yao well (due to her disappearance) he treats Ah Nian (Xiao Yao's half sister) well in Xiao Yao's place. (Just to be more confusing... the King of Haoling is not actually Xiao Yao's biological father, so Ah Nian is not actually Xiao Yao's biological half-sister).

When Hai Tang (Ah Nian's maid / bodyguard) tormented Lao Mu in episode 4, Wen Xiao Liu poisoned her. Ah Nian brought Xuan with her when she came to confront Wen Xiao Liu to get the antidote for the poison that was afflicting Hai Tang. Wen Xiao Liu asked Ye Shi Qi if he would help her, and he confirmed that he would. Wen Xiao Liu's plan was to let Ye Shi Qi defend her from Xuan's attack long enough for Wen Xiao Liu to see what type of power Xuan used, so she would know which poison to use on him. But Ye Shi Qi did not defend Wen Xiao Liu as expected. Xuan easily defeated Wen Xiao Liu, and Wen Xiao Liu was angry at herself for relying on someone else (Ye Shi Qi) rather than just relying on herself (the way she always had up to that point).


XIANG LIU AND WEN XIAO LIU FLY AWAY AT THE END OF EPISODE 4

Remember how I said that Xiang Liu started to visit Wen Xiao Liu (seemingly for no apparent reason) after Wen Xiao Liu told him that she was afraid of being lonely, and that a temporary companion would do if she couldn't find a life-long companion? Perhaps Xiang Liu was curious about her (he said that he was curious about her later in the novel) and perhaps he wanted to keep her company for a bit to alleviate her loneliness. This is much clearer in the novel, which describes Xiang Liu visiting the clinic occasionally after Pimply's wedding to eat snacks and drink wine (which Wen Xiao Liu poisoned). The drama only shows Xiang Liu attending Pimply's wedding, and doesn't show his subsequent visits to the clinic.

But Xiang Liu also picked Wen Xiao Liu up for excursions on Chubby. Sometimes he had a clear agenda, and sometimes he didn't. One such excursion is shown in the drama, at the end of episode 4. Wen Xiao Liu was upset after Ye Shi Qi betrayed and abandoned her. Xiang Liu took her away on Chubby and the two of them chatted. Wen Xiao Liu's emotions led her to jump from Chubby into the lake below, and later to challenge Xiang Liu to a swimming race. Wen Xiao Liu loves swimming, and the race cheered her up immensely even though she lost. To reward him for winning the race, Wen Xiao Liu roasted a fish for Xiang Liu. But she also teased him about his nine-heads - a very sensitive topic for Xiang Liu. As a warning, Xiang Liu bit Wen Xiao Liu's neck and drank her blood. To his surprise, he discovered that her blood had special properties. Xiang Liu's body is unusual. Poisons don't harm him, but most medicines also don't help him. And yet Wen Xiao Liu's blood could increase his spiritual power and heal his wounds.

Wen Xiao Liu's blood had special properties because of certain foods and drinks that she consumed during the 70 years that she lived on Jade Mountain. Her blood may also have been affected by the measures taken by the nine-tailed fox that kept her captive for 30 years (not Ye Shi Qi, but one of his distant relatives). During that time, the nine tailed fox gave Wen Xiao Liu (who was just Xiao Yao back then) concoctions that caused her high spiritual power to seep into her blood so it would be easier for the nine tailed fox to consume (leaving her with low spiritual powers).

For the purposes of the drama, there's evidence for yes (they are blood-related) and evidence for no (they aren't blood-related), so you can decide which version you prefer.

https://kisskh.at/discussions/lost-you-forever/120191-are-cang-xuan-and-xiao-yao-blood-relatives-in-the-drama

But major spoilers ahead (stop reading if you don't want to know whether there is romance between XY and CX)... CX's romantic feelings for XY are unrequited (XY only loves CX as a brother) and they will not end up together.

That's a really good example that helps show how a certain context can make objectively not-okay behaviour forgivable, in both directions.

In episode 7, QL believed that the JXY in front of him had stolen the body of his JXY. That hadn't been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt, but he had good reason to believe it. In that context, QL choked JXY, threatened her, and forced her into his car. QL didn't leave any lasting physical injuries on JXY, but JXY understandably felt deeply hurt and betrayed. She was furious with QL for a while, but eventually she forgave him (after he stopped treating her so harshly), IMO in part because she understood how he viewed her (as an enemy and a threat to someone he cared about) and why he viewed her that way at the time.

In episode 17, JXY wasn't sure what to believe, but in a circumstance where she felt like she had to choose between believing HBY (who said that her life as a daughter of the Jiang Group was real, and this world was a virtual reality game where QL was a nefarious virus) and believing QL (who said he wanted to help her get home to her world so he could get his JXY back) she chose to believe HBY. So she attacked QL with a brick from behind while he was fighting with HBY. Objectively, she did not need to do that. It was not a justified act of violence, and QL was shocked and hurt (emotionally as well as physically) by the betrayal. The wound she inflicted was severe enough that it still hadn't healed by episode 22 and it might even have contributed to QL collapsing and needing to be hospitalized. But QL didn't hold JXY's actions against her. Even before he found out about the memory replacement, the experiment and how it affected HBY and JXY, QL could see that JXY was struggling to deal with reality and her identity crisis. He knew that she viewed him as a virus (a threat) at that point and understood how she came to view him that way. IMO, QL's awareness of why JXY behaved the way she did made it easy for him to forgive her completely.