People have the audacity to think Cheng Xiaoshi isnāt smart as hell despite the fact it was his plan to be locked up in the photo room. And you know unlike Lu Guang heās running around with no prior knowledge of this current events.
Heās impulsive and does some dumb shit sometimes but dear lord when he locks in itās over.
Do you guys ever randomly think of the painful fact that Lu Guang has seen Cheng Xiaoshi's limp body hanging from the ceiling of their apartment unable to do anything but get him down and soothe him in his last moments while holding back his own tears knowing he's about to dive back again but this time it isn't because somebody else killed Cheng Xiaoshi but because his favourite person, his reason to live, his sunshine making his bitter cold days a bit better with a single smile has felt so miserable he made the decision to take his own life?
the thing about link click is that despite all the time travel and other action-focused stuff, everything is ddriven by love. platonic love, romantic love, familial love (both biological and not). and cheng xiaoshi is the centre of all of it.
emma's fate was all because she loved her family. the noodle ladies found each other again because they loved each other. chen xiao loved so much - his team, the girl, his mother. liu siwen fought every year to be with his true love. doudou's family hung onto hope because they loved their son. xu shanshan and dong yi were an adorable college romance. li tianchen and li tianxi did everything because they loved each other. chen bin loves his wife and unborn child dearly. qiao ling and cheng xiaoshi protect each other because of love. lu guang is doing what he does because of love.
and at the heart of all this is cheng xiaoshi. he tries to convince emma to live. he delivered chen xiao's heartfelt messages. he brought doudou back. he granted chen bin a little more happiness etc etc. none of link click would happen without cheng xiaoshi as the main character, because nobody has as big of a heart as him, and nobody else can shoulder the weight of so much love on their hands
yknow, something i really appreciate about Lu Guang and Cheng Xiaoshi's characters is their respective open-mindedness.
Usually, characters like Lu Guang - who are presented as cold and analytical - are more "rational" and thus closed-minded, but he's very open to other people's beliefs. Tarot, Divination, Ghosts - He logics it out still, yes, but he's never mocking of other people's beliefs, and especially not of their need to believe in something.
I firmly believe this is because he knows where they're coming from. He clings desperately to hope - no matter how illogical or infinitesimal. He comforts Dou Dou's father in part because he understands his desperation, sees himself in this grieving man who falls to his knees and weeps, apologizes over and over to a son long gone, someone who can not hear him. He sees this man who, despite everything chooses to persist, and understands his pain, and he decides right there and then that he will do anything in his power to help (without admitting it, of course.)
Whereas Cheng Xiaoshi is innately more skeptical. He's friendly, but he's also quick to dismiss other people's beliefs as stupid. He's quick to judge because he's always had to make quick judgements. Even though his belief that his parents will come back for him is possibly just as absurd as a staunch belief in divination or the paranormal may seem to him, he believes it anyways, because the only other option available to him would be utter despair.
Cheng Xiaoshi is quick to judge - but he's also quick to learn, and it's easy to convince him. He's a very, "I have to see it to believe it" kind of person. He doesn't believe in divination until Lu Guang shows that he can do it (at least, until it's revealed what his powers actually are). He doesn't believe in tarot, but he still gets scared when the door flings open after the cards warn him.
Cheng Xiaoshi clings to hope as well, but he's also, on some level, aware of the absurdity of it. He hopes, he dreams, but he also prepares himself for disappointment. He can't bring himself to believe too hard for fear of being hurt even more - Which is why he tells Dou Dou's father to move on. He's projecting, yes, but he's also doing what he thinks is the kindest thing he can do in that moment: Offer someone comfort without coddling them, without pitying them. Because Cheng Xiaoshi hates to be coddled and pitied, finds it insulting. So he doesn't lie to Dou Dou's father and say everything will be okay, but he does offer to print any old photos for free.
Lu Guang is open-minded because his only other option would be to ignore possibilities that might one day help someone. Cheng Xiaoshi is more closed-minded, not because he actually believes anything in specific is impossible, but because he wants to protect himself and others from the pain of disappointment.
I wonder if it's possible that Lu Guang got this hope from Cheng Xiaoshi? We already see the effects of Lu Guang influencing Cheng Xiaoshi positively, helping him be more open-minded, and thus more hopeful, which ultimately culminates in his speech to Emma. Who's light shined first? Or have they always been reflecting one another?
I actually need to talk about how Lu Guang and Cheng Xiaoshi take on characteristics of each other in times of crisis.
Cheng Xiaoshi comes back to find Lu Guang bleeding out and unconscious on the couch and Qiao Ling possessed. You would expect him to do something extreme, right? Youād expect him to tackle Qiao Ling or run to Lu Guang, putting himself in between Lu Guang and the danger. But he doesnāt. He stays put and he thinks and he plans. He takes on a level-headed approach to try and minimize the damage, to stop anything worse from happening.
Lu Guang, upon seeing Cheng Xiaoshi shot, completely forgets about logic. He lunges towards Qian Jin, who is not just holding a gun still, but actively pointing it with his finger over the trigger. He throws himself directly and recklessly into what could very quickly turn into a bad and dangerous situation without a momentās thought. He beats the shit out of Qian Jin, too (everyone cheer) instead of taking any sort of logical route or attempting to de-escalate in any way.
When Cheng Xiaoshi thinks that Lu Guang is dead, he almost jumps back in time but doesnāt, because he respects Lu Guangās rules and wishes. He acknowledges that doing so would break the rules and fundamentally alter the past, so he tries his best to grapple with his feelings and take a logical approach to handling his grief.
When Lu Guang sees Cheng Xiaoshi die, he does jump back into the past. He admittedly tries to be rational, trying not to change too much because he knows the consequences. But then we get him in Bridon arc purposefully creating waves and starting to nudge things off track because he canāt handle or cope with the idea of losing Cheng Xiaoshi again.
And I know theyāre meant to be yin-and-yang, right? Personality, color scheme, everything about their dynamic. And this always strikes me because in each side of the yin-and-yang, thereās the small circle of the other half. And they have that, too, in their personalities. When the other is threatened and they are left to their base instincts and fears to react, they react like each other.
I could argue that they replicate the parts of each other that they admire in a crisis. That they have a sort of unconscious āwhat would Cheng Xiaoshi/Lu Guang do?ā sort of moment in the split second before they react. I could argue that they arenāt completely right without each other, and that shows. Or just that theyāre so ingrained in each other, even their basic instincts reflect this.
I just think itās really interesting and important to acknowledge because neither one of them is a 2D character. They have their archetype but they arenāt pigeonholed into that alone. Lu Guang is actually quite caring and open about showing it, often the opposite of what we see in the quiet, reserved one. And Cheng Xiaoshi isnāt stupid and all forgiving and even recognizes the outcomes of his recklessness, something not typically seen in the brash and outgoing one. They are very multifaceted in their personalities and dynamics and itās even more so in their personal dynamic because of how close they are and how much theyāre able to be truly genuine together.
Anyway, this got more rambly than I meant for it to. I just think itās important to acknowledge the impact theyāve had on each other and how itās demonstrated š«¶š»
People have the audacity to think Cheng Xiaoshi isnāt smart as hell despite the fact it was his plan to be locked up in the photo room. And you know unlike Lu Guang heās running around with no prior knowledge of this current events.
Heās impulsive and does some dumb shit sometimes but dear lord when he locks in itās over.
Do yāall ever think about how if Lu Guang finally breaks the time loop and saves Cheng Xiaoshi, the initial sense of accomplishment and peace will most likely be overcome with a lifetime of intense paranoia and anxiety because heās deathly afraid that maybe itās not actually over, maybe someone or something is still after them, or maybe thereās just a random tragic accident waiting to happen at any point in the future, or maybe he and Cheng Xiaoshi and Qiao Ling are destined to live a quiet life from now on, but the problem is that heās never lived past this moment before and has no idea how to cope with simply living like a normal person and so the fear of the unknown slowly drives him mad? Because I do š
do you think lu guang thinks about the first cheng xiaoshi he left behind
about the cheng xiaoshi that died in the darkroom. that bled out in his arms and lies on the cold floor in the red light, in his own blood, alone among all the photos. a cold and dead cheng xiaoshi, that no one will or did ever come back for
does lu guang think about cheng xiaoshi in different versions? does he ache for the dead one that he left behind? riddled by guilt because he left in pursuit of another? does his heart break for his first cheng xiaoshi that he will never see again? never experience again a true first meeting, first friendship? a partnership that grows, in a timeline unmarred by the knowledge of what will happen?
I know talking about Lu Guang's gay pining is indeed very entertaining. But can we talk about how happy CXS is to finally get a friend, namely "trusted partner"??
Bro got abandonment issues, struggled making friends all his childhood and teenage life. And now he got a person who "randomly" appeared in their life.
The way CXS wakes up and sees a message from LG and his face lights up....as a person who struggles to make friends this shit hits home. He is so happy and content to finally look forward to something... someone...it's so cute.
i adore how fanfiction allows for characters to have happy endings when they couldnāt originally
i understand that some characters need to have bad endings, some characters simply have to die for a story to make sense, to make the stakes real, or just to get that emotional gut punch to the audience
a lot of the best media needs characters to die and it wouldnāt be the best media if they didnāt, if it was just a cop out and āoh by the power of friendship everyone is alive !!ā
but sometimes, you need the character to live
you need them to have a happy ending
fanfiction lets them get that happy ending without hurting the story, it lets you see that happy endings do really exist, it lets you and so so many others be happy for a character who deserved better
the stars look so incredibly beautiful as they are and to change them would ruin the night sky but sometimes you wish you could see a different constellation
lu guang is such an interesting character to me. bc what do you mean he has spent so much time making sure not to make any changes every time they go back in time, but the moment the person he cares about the most slips through his fingers he is willing to abandon everything to try to change their destined ending completely.
Absolutely loving Link Click because the body horror implications are INSANE. Cheng Xiaoshi doesn't just jump into people's bodies, he fully disappears and ceases to exist when he's using his powers. He physically brings his eyes back with him (see him struggling when he jumped to someone who wore glasses) but seemingly every other part of the body is just the original. It will react the way the original reacted. Get flooded with endorphins and adrenaline just like the original. Experience pain. Experience attraction. Experience panic attacks. Man is forced to face both the realities of being pinned beneath someone as they slowly die then waiting four hours for rescue AND the freeing sensation of kicking off heels after a 10 hour shift. He falls asleep and dreams the dreams of his hosts which you would think is a fully cerebral part of the human body and thus wouldn't apply to his powers but you'd be wrong. This leads to several scenes where Cheng Xiaoshi remembers memories of the host body but overlays himself into flashbacks like it happened to him instead. Also all of this is backed by 24/7 commentary of a guy who loves him but cannot meaningfully affect anything happening. 10/10 the vibe of this show is impeccable.
shiguang make me so crazy because they are so so in love but lu guang is a bunch of secrets in a trench coat and has lived multiple lifetimes to save cxs meanwhile cheng xiaoshi doesnāt even know heās bi yet
Link Click POV shift is fucking insane. Like what do you mean we spend the first two seasons with:
Cheng Xiaoshi: I know times get bad, and we've been in some rough scrapes, but I earnestly believe that if I just hope and try my hardest then I can keep the people I care about safe!
And then the second we flip the camera it's
Lu Guang: I have severe ptsd. I lie to my best friends near constantly. Every day I wake up and wonder if everyone I've ever cared about has died in the handful of seconds I took my eyes off them. None of us can do anything and are just fragile creatures in the push and pull of an uncaring universe. It's fine.
the fact that cxs did not go back into time to save lg is SO important to me and we do not discuss it enough !!
cxs is an impulsive empath and the story repeatedly establishes thisā he fucks up timelines and breaks down in tears for people he doesnāt know. his abandonment issues know no bounds and it devastates him to know that he can never quite save anyone. everything in him wants nothing more than to be able to save one person.
but when it comes to lu guang ??? WHEN IT COMES TO HIS CLOSEST FRIEND LU GUANG ? he ACCEPTS his literal best friendās death and does not go back in time to save him because he knows that it isnāt what lu guang would want !!
idk if itās just me ā¦ but it makes me so sick that heās able to overcome his recklessness, grief, and basically trauma responses ALL for lu guang and i am never going to get over this. these boys and betraying their principles for each otherā¦ im crying endlessly
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