Hi, everyone! For those who don’t know me or this blog yet, this is a yizhan/bjyx sideblog I have for gg and dd.
14/04/2022: this update has been long overdue. Due to personal circumstances and real-world related issues, this blog is permanently on hiatus. Because of a hectic work and university workload, I’m dedicating what little time I have to a couple of projects I’ve been working on for quite a long time (not about bjyx sadly). I really can’t keep up so many things at once. So sorry for all the posts I couldn’t finish and the asks that were left unanswered, and I hope for your understanding. Thanks so much for the joy and emotions we shared together, and I hope everything goes well for all ggdd fans everywhere.
青山不改，绿水长流，后会有期!
I mostly reblog a lot of content I like, adding comments to some of them, and I’ve taken to some original posts and answering asks (my ask box is currently closed, when the amount of remaining asks to be answered get back to normal or rl relaxes its grip around me enough, I’ll open it back again).
Things to be taken into account when reading my blog:
Since I think most of you know what yizhan/bjyx means, I’ll add a little bit of my opinion here: I’m mostly convinced of a relationship of romantic nature between gg and dd (I’m working on a post about that). However, I’m a fan that doesn’t know them or any people related to them. We should keep in mind that, while I think I have more than 98% of probability of being correct, there’s still a % left of them being just very good friends (which I’m also alright with!).
I can be asked about almost anything, but there are things I’m not answering, since I’m not uncomfortable talking about them or I don’t find it adequate to write about them. You may find the lists here and here.
I try to keep this blog a space kind and respectful towards everyone. I hope we can all contribute to it!
A list of posts and masterposts useful for new fans:
For new fans, I created a list of abbreviations I hope you’ll find useful. Here.
Prompted by an anon’s ask, I recently started a series of post about gg’s situation in the last few months. You’ll find the masterpost here.
Here is a very good timeline for the most important moments and events between gg and dd!
Why I think bjyx/yizhan is real (3-part series). Here.
These are the posts I want to keep pinned (easier for me to find them too). If there’s any post you think should be pinned too, you may leave a comment on this post!
彼氏力 is a Japanese term coined in anime/jdrama that made it into Chinese netslang, and refers to an index which measures a man’s suitability as boyfriend material.
hi, you. yeah im talking to you. You like my stuff from time to time and reblog once and a while, and I always recognize you in my notes. we’ve never talked, maybe you dont like to say much or you’re nervous or something. it’s okay, whatever it is.
I see you. you mean a lot to me. sometimes when I’m having a hard day, I’ll notice your name once again in my notifs and it makes me smile. im not kidding.
I don’t care if you’re a “ghost” follower or you send me asks all the time. i see you and I love you so much, genuinely and truly. you are really important to me.
Hi! I am a new fan of WYB. I never try to follow my idol's private life until i came across bjyx stuff on twitter and read a lot about them (ybxz) being together, double standard of wyb, the way he only gave special smile to xz (this is what bjyx believe),and etc, but after i watch bts of legend of fei, I have some doubts. I mean, I never see wyb gave such a genuine smile for a woman and thats zhao liying to the point that i think he has a crush on her lol(even though i know she has married
Hi, anon! Happy to see a new fan!
Disclaimer: fake, cpn, don’t take this for real.
I must admit I don’t really like the term “following someone’s private life”, though antis may say that I’m doing precisely that by especulating and spreading cpn hypotheses. Remember that turtles feed on things they do in public: posts in their social networks, public appearances, interviews.
By the way, anon, I think this has been sent to the wrong blog. If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you’ll know that I think yizhan is a thing.
I’m a fan of both dd and ZLY, but I don’t ship couples based sorely on being a fan or whether I think they make a good couple. I don’t think bjyxszd because I’m a fan of gg and dd or just because they look good together (which they do).
About legend of fei bts, I’ve watched some of them. And remember that dd was playing a role that has a very different personality from his own, which would make someone think “oh, wow, he must really like them to smile so much when he’s usually so aloof.” That’s I think a reaction from a new fan. But then, just based on that, you could say that his relationship with feng-ge in ddup is also strange because he doesn’t laugh like that with anyone else.
I’ll say that I think ZLY and dd are good friends. They have similar personalities, and they’re both known for being very straightforward people. They both like weiya (the cords that suspend them in the air). They have very friendly interactions when they’re together (tencent awards and ddup are what come to my mind). But that doesn’t necessarily mean a crush.
Maybe it’s just me, but I think a man and a woman can be friends perfectly without anything between them, a belief that usually it’s not shared in Chinese culture. That’s why I still get a certain degree of distance between them, even though they’re definitely friendly with each other.
Of course, this is all my view and you’re allowed to disagree and ship whoever you like. However, you’ll notice that their interactions had been reduced to 0 (from what I’ve seen) after the promotions, while turtles still get yizhan content every once in a while. There’s a limit to what can be considered chance.
Hey!! Love your blog!! Thanks for always taking the time to answer you’re so helpful!! I was wondering if you thought there’d be any chance that YB and XZ will be in a drama together again? From their popularity and the way it multiplies when they’re together it seems like something directors would want to monopolize on. Thanks!! Have a great day!!
Hi, anon! I’m glad you like my blog!
I wrote a similar answer to that in the beginning of this blog here. You can see by how I failed to predict the outcome of 2/27 (Oath of Love is not being aired yet, but not because of 2/27) that many things in the post are probably wrong (though I did insist that I’m an outsider to the industry and that I know next to nothing).
Please, don’t take the contents of that post seriously. Take it as... light reading? 😂 If you read it at all.
Now, I still think it will be difficult, though the exact nuances and why escape me.
@potteresque-ire or @peekbackstage may have more information than I do or have another opinion on this. I think they know much more about the industry than I do ☺️
Why did xiao zhan give his ring to wang yibo during the tencent awards?
Hi anon! I didn’t really know what you were talking about when I saw the ask, so I’m guessing is some cpn theory. However, I did save this link for you, I think this is the information you’re looking for.
More ask answer about Word of Honour (山河令, WoH) and the so-called “Dangai 101 phenomenon” under the cut ~ with all the M/M relationships shown on screen, does it mean improved acceptance / safety for the c-queer community?
Due to its length (sorry!), I’ve divided the answer into 3 parts:
1) Background
2) Excerpts from the op-eds
3) Thoughts
This post is PART 1 ❤️. As usual, please consider the opinions expressed as your local friendly fandomer sharing what they’ve learned, and should, in no ways, be viewed as necessarily true. :)
Hi I posted an ask regarding your view point on GGDD's safety by people shipping them openly by bus designs, digital hoardings in their country and various other ways. I am not sure if you have already replied because I can't seem to find it. If not, please notify in case you would be interested in posting, there is no pressure or complaints if the answer is not affirmative. Also, I am hoping to read your piece on current issue DD is facing in relation to Nike. I am sure a lot of people enjoy your straight, detailed and analytical thought process and information presentation. A lot of people especially ifans needs to understand the perspective and position an actor or any national level influencer/celebrity is in when they are a citizen of totalitarian regime.
I would love to read, if you decide to write.
Thank you for your blog. It is highly appreciated and welcomed.
Hello Anon! I sincerely apologise ~ my ask box has been very full, and I answer based on time availability (which isn’t much) and “urgency” of the matter (for example, the recent post on Dangai/WoH skipped the line because it’s current). My whim too, occasionally and admittedly; sometimes I’d like to take a breather and talk about something a little more fannish and fun (like window cleaning robots!) Above all, I prefer giving delayed but responsible, or even no answers over irresponsible ones, given some of the subject matter I touch upon. I’ll ... probably have to write up an ask box policy at some point.
Now, my thoughts about Dd’s current situation ... or maybe, my thoughts about the things around it ...
I should explain where my highly disorganised thoughts this time come from first. I’m a Hong Konger by birth, and I grew up at a time when it was still conventional for Hong Kongers to refer themselves as Chinese, following the tradition of referring to the (believed) origin of one’s paternal family as my own origin. I’ve never, however, sworn allegiance to the Chinese government; the two citizenships I’ve ever held are 1) United Kingdom (Hong Kong was still a British crown colony when I was there), and 2) United States.
The distinction between China, the country, and Chinese government, as the country’s rulership, has therefore always been clear to me. You can love, feel a bond with the country, its people and culture and its 5,000 year old history, without having feeling anything with its 71 years-young government with foreign (soviet) roots. To quote Hamilton: Oceans rise, empires fall, and just the central plains of China alone went through a total of 13 recorded dynasties, during which its border waxed and waned, often splitting what is now Chinese territory into multiple countries under different rulership that sometimes split along ethnic lines—China, in that sense, isn’t even historically a country as we define one today; it’s a piece of land in East Asia where different countries have taken over, risen and fallen. And the major ethnic group, Han, which also includes the vast majority of the current political elite, wasn’t always in control. The Yuan dynasty (1271–1368) was famously built by Mongolians; the Qing dynasty (1636–1912), Manchurians. Beijing, the current capital of China, began its illustrious history as The Capital City for the non-Han based, north-of-central-plain dynasties of Liao and Jin. Liao people were believed to be either Mongolic or Tungusic. Jin people were Tungusic, and would eventually become Manchurians. Xinjiang (新疆), meanwhile, was only under the influence of the ancient Chinese empires sporadically, and its formal conquest / incorporation by a Chinese dynasty didn’t happen until ~ 1760, and by the (Manchurian) Qing dynasty. Its late incorporation is also reflected in its name that means, literally, “New Territory”.
What does this all mean? It means:
1) Loving China =/= loving the Chinese Communist Party;
2) Chinese culture =/= Han culture; especially the Han culture infused with “Core Socialist Values” as defined by the Chinese Communist Party
3) X dynasty’s territory (where X = one of the ancient Chinese dynasties) =/= What has to be People Republic of China’s territory.
And by writing down these three =/=, which I’d argue are simply conclusions from historical facts and logic, I’ve committed an act of subversion in the eyes of the current Chinese government. Remove the “/” in “=/=“, and you’ve got three of the most important talking points of Chinese propaganda.
The sacred, un-violatable rules the Chinese government tells its people.
Why do I mention them? Because the scrutiny, the attack on Dd read familiar to me, and is probably familiar too to all those who’ve kept even a brief eye on Hong Kong and Taiwanese entertainers who work in China. When a topic that violates one of these propaganda points makes news (for example, the HK protest, Hong Kong/Taiwan Independence), entertainers from Hong Kong / Taiwan—anyone who’ve achieved name recognition—are often placed under immediate scrutiny by Chinese netizens to see whether and when they’ll confirm their loyalty towards the Chinese government. The argument is that only those who display absolute loyalty to the Chinese government deserves to earn China’s money, and the main motivation behind this scrutiny, in this case, is mistrust: Hong Kong is, after all, crawling with British loyalists and rioters according to Chinese propaganda, with separatists who’re conspiring with foreign governments to overthrow the Chinese government; the democratic island nation of Taiwan, meanwhile, is supposedly a rogue child who has escaped its mother (China) ’s arms for the past 70+ years—the child, that, by the way, shall be brought to its knees (along with into its mother’s arms) by military intervention. Both places, in other words, are serial violators of =/= 1) and 3), and not to be trusted. If their entertainers fail to affirm their loyalty towards the Chinese government, or if the timing of their patriotic display is perceived as off, vicious accusations—similar to those Dd has endured—will fly, and calls for boycott begin.
Here’s a related observation, while I’m at it ... no one in c-ent is really allowed to keep their political views quiet, even if they’re not particularly well-known. No one can say, politics isn’t for me, it’s too ugly/too complicated and shove it under the proverbial carpet. Under an authoritarian government, control that is exerted via politics, via propaganda that seeps into day-to-day language. It’s an oil slick that taints and swims in even the smallest crack and crevice of life—there’s no where to hide.
And Dd is far more famous than almost all of these HK and Taiwan based entertainers. 表態 — a public announcement of his stance — is the only option left for him when he becomes the center of a sensitive issues such as this one. And there’s really only one stance he can take.
In that sense, what happened to Dd isn’t something I’m too worried about—this kind of attack under the guise of a “loyalty check” isn’t new; and the motivation behind the scrutiny of Dd is the safer to-take-down-his-career rather than political mistrust. I believe this storm shall pass soon, as long as his team doesn’t make an unexpected, big mistake. His non-fan fellow country people will probably view him with a more positive light as well: he walked the walk and did what he believed is patriotic — breaking a contract like this is no lip service when in China, performative patriotism is often lip service — reportedly even among the top Chinese Communist Party officials.
If I must find more defence for his stance ... please forgive me, Anon, but I don’t have much more to say than what I said last night, what I said before about China’s access to information—
—because, admittedly, following, talking about this incident is difficult for the Hong Konger in me, even if I’ve expected this kind of incidents from the moment I joined this fandom, even if I’ve expected, as I’ve learned from RL experience, that most people I adore in China will at some point support causes that I deeply disagree with. The online patriotic rally by c-motors and c-turtles under the associated Weibo tag, while impressive and good for Dd, is nonetheless heartbreaking/frightening for me to watch. Why? Because I know this can easily turn into a call to persecute all Hong Kongers involved in the democracy movements sometime in the future. Because I know the rally will probably be as impressive if this has been a call to persecute all Hong Kongers involved in the democracy movements. Frankly, I stopped thinking about Nike as I scrolled through the posts — I was thinking about the now impossibly wide gulf that separates most Chinese and a Hong Konger like myself; I was thinking about why a Gg / Dd performance can trend on Twitter in 10+ countries all over the world but makes almost no noise in Hong Kong or Taiwan, places that should’ve most easily fallen in love with Gg / Dd with their closeness in language and customs.
As it turns out, the closeness has only driven HK and Taiwan away; the closeness only brings them more insight of the beast—the government that looms over, cast a long shadow over everything that lives under it, including Gg and Dd.
I was reminded of the fact that many young Hong Kongers probably see me as a traitor just for being a turtle — young Hong Kongers who are n>1 generation immigrants from China, who never spend years reconciling the conflicting viewpoints, the even more conflicting emotions when it comes to this ... almost irreconcilable difference now in political beliefs north and south of the China-HK border. Unlike the older generations who often have immigrants/refugees from China for immediate, un-severable family, who often don’t have the option to walk away from the conflicts.
And here’re my even-more-conflicting emotions:
While, over the years, I’ve learned to harbour no ill feelings to the vast majority of supporters of pro-CCP causes—I reserve blame for those who conceal the truth, who’re involved in its policy making, or people who live outside the Firewall and should know better (such as every HK entertainer who’ve expressed support)—I’ve also learned, over the same years, to be fully, painfully aware that every endorsement is still an endorsement for the regime to carry on its ways, and the damage is real, is significant even if the endorsers may not know about the true nature of their endorsements.
A simple thought experiment: the sheer size of China’s population means it can easily control the narrative on English-speaking social media. The Chinese government already has a history of mobilising its people to scale the Great Firewall and spread its propaganda on, for example, Twitter. It has also mobilized fan circles for propaganda purpose. Again, as a thought exercise *only* (ie, SJD!), imagine the Chinese government mobilizing Dd’s supertopic fans to spread misinformation about Xinjiang.
Dd’s supertopic has 5+ million members—all savvy social media users and many skilled in the art of comment control; the total number of Uyghurs in Xinjiang is ~12 million, and their communications are heavily scrutinised. Just for the sake of argument, we’ll add the ~ 70% pro-democracy HK population to Uyghur’s side: that’s another 5 million, but most of them aren’t good at raging a battle on social media.
Who will control the narrative in the end?
And so: I understand why Dd’s statement is what it is. I don’t fault him for making it. Still, I can’t in good conscience say to anyone, myself included, that the statement is a personal opinion and doesn’t matter. It does matter a lot. His announcement is another stab to the Uyghurs, and the knife is sharp because of Dd’s social influence.
(Today, I saw Dd’s name for the first time in a Hong Kong pro-democracy online news site.)
The statement carried this sentence:
國家尊嚴不容侵犯，堅決維護祖國利益
The dignity of the country is not to be violated; the interest of our motherland is to be resolutely defended.
Firstly, it’s character-for-character propaganda language.
Secondly: even if we do not consider the labor camps, this is the condition in Xinjiang’s city of Urumqi. Where’s the dignity of the people who’re living there and who’s preventing that from being violated? The interest of the motherland—what kind of motherland answers an allegation of human rights violation with “interest” (利=profit, advantage; 益=benefit)? What kind of motherland has “protects its interest” being synonymous with surveillance and abuse of its own people?
I have a motherland, but it’s not the one in this narrative.
The issues of Xinjiang and the Uyghurs have also become even closer to Hong Kongers since 2019, as the fates of Hong Kongers and the Uyghurs became intricately tied—as dual examples of Chinese government’s human rights violations and indeed, these two populations who had very little in common before have shown solidarity with each other against all odds. Their connection being this one simple, awful fact: both having what they value most stripped away—the traditions, religion and culture for the Uyghurs, the promised freedoms and hopes for democracy for Hong Kongers—by the same government. As an online meme goes: “Today’s Xinjiang; Tomorrow’s Hong Kong” — expressing the fear that Hong Kongers may soon be subjected to the same surveillance as the Uyghurs today, for the same reason of having put up a fight against who they saw as their oppressors (this article offers an objective summary of what led to the 2009 clash between the Uyghurs and the Chinese government, which precipitated the former’s treatment as will-be terrorists today)(Note the role the US played in this.).
As such, I cannot look away from Xinjiang. As such, I cannot look at our two beautiful stars, Gg and Dd, without also seeing the flag with its blood red looming behind with its own five stars—the biggest of them symbolising the Chinese Communist Party.
How do I reconcile all the feelings? As I said, it’s a constant work-in-progress, possibly a lifelong one. Re: Gg and Dd, that’s what I tell myself at the moment: that my being an i-turtle shall not sway my view or silence me on any sociopolitical issues, that my being a fan of anything, anyone shall not mean any other human life suddenly worth less to me, or its suffering, something I shall suddenly look away from. The moment this becomes true—that I find myself depreciating human lives, or ignoring the pain of others for the sake of my fannish pursuits—that’s when I must leave my fan identity until I find my discipline (I do understand the lure of a happy fandom bubble, and I’m far from immune to it). I’m a person before I’m a fan.
Just wanted to update everyone on the situation with DD and Nike. He has issued a statement severing ties with Nike and posted the same post in support of the region’s textiles that GG had posted earlier. 😔
From now on, our company and our artist Mr Wang yibo have terminated all ties with the Nike brand!
We and Mr Wang Yibo are determined to resist any words and actions that deface China, and the state respects it. Will not tolerate aggression, resolutely safeguard the interests of the motherland.
This was to be expected, but it’s sad. Nike was a brand he really favored. It’s hard to imagine him without his Nikes.
It’s also really sad that this is the stance we’re faced with. I mean… this is just part of the reality of supporting Chinese artists.
The reality is that as performers, GG DD are also very limited by what they are allowed to support/say. This isn’t something that fans are making up to defend them - in March, the CCP passed new guidelines in wake of the ZS scandal that explicitly states that any performer who breaches these guidelines can face a lifetime ban.
One of these guidelines is for performers to “ardently love the motherland, support the Party’s line, principle and policies… and consciously accept [government] and societal supervision.”
Yep. A lot of fans just don’t get it, but there’s a dark side to all of this that we’re going to be faced with again and again as fans of GG and DD. I think it’s often difficult for people who are used to Western standards of progressive activism to fully grasp how oppressive things are in China.
It’s painful to watch something like this happen, especially when we know how difficult it must be for DD, but it is what it is. There’s nothing we can do about it. If we want to be fans of Chinese artists, this is just part of the package.
