I love all of the main characters in Desire - including our two fabulous assistants. However, most of my favorite interactions from Desire happen between the worsties.
Their interactions bring a sort of comic relief to the series that I appreciate. Sarcasm and sass just speak to me on a spiritual level. I love it so much. It's an ongoing problem for me as a parent.
As grumbly and tsundere as Shen Wenlang is, he cares for his "psycho" friend. After all, he visited on his own accord when his worstie landed in the hospital.
On his end, Hua Yong at least finds Wenlang amusing. There's no way he'd get away with talking so openly to Hua Yong otherwise...
And as I've been working my way through the pheromone signatures of each character, I've found Shen Wenlang and his scent amusing too.
Standard caveat: Cultural differences are pretty much guaranteed anytime you talk about flowers or fruit. I also do not know the authors' original intentions. This is just the interpretation that I'm running with in my head.
Shen Wenlang's signature smell is an iris. That's the flower on his hand. However, we know from Sheng Shaoyou that alphas may have a secondary layer to indicate their power. No one had mentioned it for Wenlang so, even though I am trying to avoid spoilers, I dug into the early chapters of the novel.
His layered scent is described as Iris and Burning Incense.
Based on the color pattern of the pheromones, he's obviously meant to be a white iris. White irises are pretty common in ornamental gardens, but they are more rare in nature. So that rarity and elegance fits an S-class Alpha.
They can carry all kinds of meanings - purity/wedding, funerals/respect, protection against evil. Many of these meanings would make sense for Wenlang. He's tried to keep himself pure (from those scheming omegas), he has a tragic past (so I'm told), and in some ways he does serve as a protector...for both Gao Tu and Hua Yong. Yes, he arguably fails at it in a lot of ways. But he still has that role.
Many of his "harsh" statements actually come from the fact that he doesn't know that Gao Tu is an omega and is assuming that the omega is out to hurt Gao Tu. Prejudiced? Yes. Verbally lashes out when upset? Yes. Intentionally cruel to Gao Tu? Absolutely not...at least in the series so far. Novel could be a different beast.
The real fun (for me) comes when you think about the various species of white iris. In my head, Shen Wenlang is an Iris confusa.
(Iris Confusa: CC-BY-4.0)
The Iris confusa is a species of iris native to Western China that is rarer than several other species of white iris. It's a resilient flower fitting for someone who had a tough home environment. It's used in traditional Chinese medicine for breaks/sprains. There's even a patent to turn it into medicinal tea although it doesn't seem to be widely used for that purpose. In short, it's useful. Much like Wenlang is used by those around him. Yeah, there's a whole essay in that.
For people that enjoy color theory, it comes in white (Wenlang's color) and blue (Gao Tu's color). Many of them are white with blue-ish specks on it. Wenlang's high compatability with Gao Tu programmed in.
The "confusa" epithet comes from the Latin word for "uncertain" or "easily mistaken". This is where I started laughing 😂. Because if there's one thing Wenlang definitely is...it's confused.
Since the flower has "orchid-like" blooms, it's often mistaken for other types of plants. Its Chinese name even references this as it supposedly means flat bamboo orchid. Hmm...almost like Shaoyou mistakenly blaming Wenlang for all of the things that Hua Yong (the orchid) has initiated.
When researching the flower, I kept coming across poorly worded descriptions saying things like "the plant's ability to be easily confused". Now we know it wasn't the plant itself being confused in those cases of misidentification. But the phrasing stuck in my mind. Because, yes...Wenlang is easily confused. But like the actual iris, it's not completely his fault. His friend is lying to him.
So Wenlang's pheromones had already indicated that he would be personally confused and mistaken for others. But what about the burning incense?
Well...that's a bit trickier. Because incense comes in all kinds of scents including sage (Gao Tu's scent). We do know that this relationship has burnt Gao Tu. But that feels like a stretch.
The most common scents for Chinese joss sticks seem to be sandalwood and agarwood with adjectives like "rich, authentic, woody, and smoky" attached to them. And that works really well for Wenlang. He is rich and true to himself...even if we don't always like it. He does have a moral code he operates by. Out of all the "powerful" characters, he's the only one that has primarily used his pheromones as defense. Both Shaoyou and Hua Yong have used theirs to harm others.
But since we don't have a specific scent named, it's probably better to focus on the "burning" part. That still leaves room for things like purification, cleansing of negative energy, respect for ancestors, and more.
In many cultures it is associated with making merit and improving yourself (and your karma). If there's something Shen Wenlang is definitely going to need in the coming episodes it's to pay for past wrongs, purify the negative, and become a better partner for Gao Tu.
He's got a lot of atoning to do for the pain his words and prejudices have unknowingly caused. His pheromones were just getting a head start on the process.
Hua Yong is an orchid (mantis)
Sheng Shaoyou: When a Fertile Bride Becomes A Pirate's Booty
Gao Tu: Even his Pheromones Have Identity Issues
