it's sad how life just goes on and no one stops to look back and miss those times. i dont post much, only when i want to. so dont expect too much from me.
My version of the English subtitles for the epilogue/easter egg of 《山河令》 because the youtube subtitles were giving me hives lol.
Notice that Deng Kuan’s son is practicing Wen Kexing’s family’s sword technique, Qiuming Eighteen Forms, so Wen Kexing probably taught Chengling (and maybe the other 18 disciples of Siji Manor) eventually, for it to be passed down.
And of course, Wen Kexing is quoting Sunzi’s Art of War to argue with his A-Xu haha.
There’s also a comparison vid floating out there somewhere showing how this final sparring session between Wen Kexing and Zhou Zishu is actually a mirror of the first time they sparred over the lake in ep6, except that Zhou Zishu is using Wen Kexing’s moves against him.
For all of you finishing up Word of Honor on YouTube today, if you want to really, fully, appreciate this show, and all the fun little tidbits that a Western viewer with little or no knowledge of Chinese culture and/or language might miss, then I highly recommend AvenueX’s Word of Honor videos on YouTube. Please be aware that these contain major spoilers, so watch after you have viewed the show.
Lip Reading for SUGAR! Word of Honor’s REAL Lines! by Episode 15
Flirt Like Wen Kexing! Word of Honor’s Literature/Poetry/Cultural References Ep.1-14
More Word of Honor's Literature/Poetry/Cultural References Ep.14 - End [CC]
MORE Lip Reading for SUGAR! Word of Honor’s REAL Lines! Full Drama
SO MUCH Hidden Meaning in Their NAMES! Characters’ Names Explained -Word of Honor
Word of Honor Special #20 - Live Stream
Word of Honor Finale Talk #21 - Live Stream
Word of Honor Final Review - Edited from Apr 22 Live Stream
wen kexing + outfits, in order of appearance (4/4)
[id: twenty-one gifs of wen kexing from word of honor/shan he ling in twenty-one different hanfu outfits. all of the outfits are in shades of green, blue, purple, and red. most of the outfits consist of yichang robes paired with dachang outer robes. a few of them are yuanlingpao robes. the colored caption reads: wen kexing + outfits, in order of appearance (4/4) /end id]
and then the angsty part, as puppy-eyed Wen Kexing stares at Zhou Zishu’s retreating back:
知己 (zhī jǐ) - the word that Wen Kexing uses in the last gif - can be translated as “bosom friend”, “confidant”, “intimate friend”, or “soulmate”. These don’t really have quite the same poetic depth as the Chinese meaning, which literally is “to know oneself”, referring to people (whether it’s platonic or romantic is quite ambiguous in the Chinese meaning, as compared to the English translation “soulmate” used here which is usually more romantic) who are so close that they know each other as well as they know their own self and heart.
知己 is often used in Chinese literary poems and quotes, and one of the more famous ones is “海内存知己，天涯若比邻” (which also has the same “天涯” (tiān yá), meaning “boundaries of the world”, as the one in “tian ya ke” - the name of the danmei novel the show was based on). The phrase means that as long as you have a zhiji within the four seas, even if they were far apart from you, you would still be able to feel their closeness and warmth, as if they were right by your side.
Watching Word Of Honor with knowledge in Mandarin hits different. My Mandarin is nowhere good but the English subtitles do no justice to the imagery depicted in Mandarin.
In episode 21, I noticed details in Jiang Cheng's and Wei Wuxian's conversation that seriously fucked me up. It fully changed the way I understand Wei Wuxian's mindset and Jiang Cheng's attitude towards him. Because – OOOF – shit is actually much darker than it seems on first (and second) re-watch.
So let me dive right in:
(major spoilers below the cut)
This conversation takes place during the time Wei Wuxian re-enters the public sphere. After spending three months in the Burial Mounds, he has just met his sister and all the other cultivators again. Gossip is already spreading about his new found craft, and we see the beginning of what will be Wei Wuxian's ostracization from society – another social death. This trajectory is apparent to everyone, especially Jiang Cheng, who, as we know, is all about public relations. So, when he and Wei Wuxian are alone, he engages him in an an awkward conversation, with the goal of assimilating Wei Wuxian back into 'normality'. First mentioning Wei Wuxian's change in attitude towards Lan WangJi and then abruptly changing the topic to Yiling when Wei Wuxian smells the bait.
The thing is, people have been talking a lot about what happened at Yiling. How horrible and mysterious the deaths were. Even Yanli didn't get an answer when she asked. So nobody knows for sure what happened in Yiling except for Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji and Jiang Cheng. What all the rumors have in common though, is how difficult it was to identify Wen Cao's corpse. You know, the guy Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng asked Lan Wangji to leave to them. Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian must have had an (maybe silent) agreement to not mention it to anyone, because now, when Jiang Cheng does, he triggers the following reaction.
Wei Wuxian just STARES him. This is not a surprised stare. This is his -
- you-wanna-fuckin-die-stare! Because Jiang Cheng followed the traces of corpses to Yiling, he saw the aftermath of Wei Wuxian's revenge and he went along with it. Jiang Cheng was there in Yiling WITH him for killing Wen Cao in a way that was apparently so gruesome that it is a topic of concern among people who kill other people. Now, Jiang Cheng has had his revenge, but Wei Wuxian is the one carrying the burden of it – socially and mentally. So, when Jiang Cheng mentions Yiling, Wei Wuxian stares at him like: "GO ON, WHAT ABOUT YILING BRO?!" It is basically a threat. Outwardly, Wei Wuxian will continue to be the brother who takes Jiang Cheng punches and scolding, especially when Yanli is around, but Yiling is where he draws the line.
Jiang Cheng immediately shuts up. And deflects into his role as clan leader.
It is safer for him to tell him off as a clan leader than to push the hard boundary Wei Wuxian just set. Jiang Cheng knows what Wei Wuxian is capable of and he is SCARED. It is easy to miss how fucked up this conversation actually is, because of Wei Wuxian's hilarious mocking faces. We also know that Wei Wuxian has a habit of masking pain and vulnerability.
With this, both have found a role within which they can navigate their relationship. For Jiang Cheng it's the clan leader, for Wei Wuxian it's the unruly disciple. Especially Jiang Cheng will enforce this role whenever they are alone and border the brother-zone again. (For example, when he visits Wei Wuxian in Burial Mounds.)
Wei WuXian has threatened Jiang Cheng and, from that point on, it clear to both of them, that despite what they are outwardly portraying, Wei Wuxian holds more power over Jiang Cheng than the other way around.
And this is not an empty threat. Look at happens immediately afterward:
Are you seeing this?
Right after Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian establish their new association, Wei Wuxian's gaze goes to Jiang Cheng's 丹田 Dantian and he just LOOKS AT IT for a while. Long enough to make Jiang Cheng uncomfortable. Even though Jiang Cheng does not know that it is Wei Wuxian's Dantian, this stare should be enough to remind Jiang Cheng of another secret they promised not to tell anyone. When Jiang Cheng nervously asks him what he's looking at, Wei Wuxian shakes his head, but goes on to say:
Wei Wuxian would never outright mention that Jiang Cheng is indebted to him, but it is clear that he mocks Jiang Cheng's high and mighty attitude towards him – the one who enabled him to stay in his position. With this, Wei Wuxian basically tells Jiang Cheng that it is inappropriate for him to question his methods, and flexes with his power over him.
We'll never know what happened in Yiling, and what Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng did to Wen Cao, but it seems severe enough for Wei Wuxian to blackmail Jiang Cheng if he threatens to disturb Wei Wuxian carefully re-constructed conscience.
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