As you may be able to tell, I had started a reread of King Lear while i first started to binge watch Ashes of Love on the suggestion of Mod Xian, so Edmond and Runyu were characters very much entwined for me. (thus, the overly pretentious title)
WARNING! This is an early episodes meta only- although reference will be made to further on, this is an examination of the character Runyu was at the beginning of the show, looking backwards as a way to see if it explains his degradation throughout the course of the show. Also, as the name suggests, I am a Huge Runyu Stan, so bias will likely unconsciously abound. You Have Been Warned (Mod Xian: lol we both are)
First off, let's talk simple setup clues. That first episode? Crucial. Runyu’s attempt to help his brother only to be pushed away is a very interesting (and good) way to introduce us to his character. It lets us see he is the unfavoured son, just rough tropes and so on and so forth- although not so much that guards would be cruel to him. It also shows us that, despite the concern for his brother shown, there is nothing given back- no message or wish from the brother undergoing Nirvana. Finally, the fact that it is considered dangerous for Runyu to be near his brother to the point of denying entry suggests some already unconscious biases present, if not just in the Empress, but also within the population as a whole who are near them and politically active. (This goes more into theory territory but- let’s be honest, the show doesn’t give us much to work with so im inserting other wuxia/court intrigue basics in here if needed) It is anticipated that Runyu desires the throne- despite people mentioning the Night Immortal being above such things courtiers around the Emperor and Empress unconsciously expect him to attempt to gain the throne.
One of the reasons this is so fascinating is because this is what dooms Tuyao: her vehement hatred and fear of Runyu leads to her plotting as though he is a threat for the throne, leading other courtiers around her to unconsciously include runyu as a contender, with her attempts to beat Runyu down not achieving their desired effect due to the fact that, at least at the beginning of the series, Runyu genuinely doesn’t want the throne- but Tuyao is too blinded by her fear and the echo chamber of her own whispers that she has created that she doesn’t realise that she has engineered her own destruction. From the very beginning, it is obvious that the Empress at least is not going to be able to treat Runyu that way for long- whether due to his death or his disappearance. But all the warning signs that Runyu is not stable are there in the very few episodes where we see him without Jinmi or Runyu- he has a routine and not much else- even without Jinmi he was not far away from snapping. (Mod Xian: we’ve talked a lot about Runyu just up and leaving and it always ends with him being happier than before.)
Mod Xian: The first few episodes are also interesting to me because it's pretty obvious that Runyu cares for Xu Feng--the moment he realizes that Xu Feng is in danger through him being attacked and his immediate thought is to be there for his brother and try to protect him, only to be turned away at the door. His reaction is very indicative of how much he cares; he tries to protest for a moment, openly worried, and instead gets sent away. He tells the guards to be on high alert, and reluctantly leaves. These small actions make it abundantly clear how much he truly cares about Xu Feng, and yet the next time Xu Feng sees him, in my eyes, there is not much of that concern returned. This might be because Xu Feng is rather ignorant of the Empress’ treatment of Runyu, but it also might be because Xu Feng just isn’t that concerned in return. It’s just baffling, because surely Xu Feng knows how much Runyu would have worried about him, and with the fact that he returned injured would just make him more worried. Again, it may just be because he is ignorant and oblivious, but…
Runyu is quiet, but open with his emotions. His feelings are clear in his actions. If they have been in the same household since children, surely Xu Feng would have learned some of Runyu’s body language. And yet—despite the concern Runyu displays, there is no reaction.
Mod Yu: The opposite of love is indifference, and honestly the relationship at the beginning feels as though the Empress has previously succeeded and made Xu Feng indifferent to Runyu, to a certain extent. And that’s a real shame, because we don’t get to see any true decay of that relationship because the Empress has done it for Xu Feng, like so much else.
Mod Xian: Yu and I like to think about what their relationship was like before canon, and often times it ends up happy. Xu Feng adores his older brother because he is the only one who can treat Xu Feng like he’s the child he is. Runyu is calm and steady and perhaps a bit sad, but Xu Feng truly loves him, in the way that only a younger sibling can. And Runyu, who wakes up without any memories, with scars on his chest and horns just beginning to poke out of his forehead and with memories of something so cold it turns to fire, meets this child who is bright and happy. Runyu latches on because at that point everyone was aware of the fact that Runyu was a bastard sired by the Emperor and Xu Feng is the only one who treats him normally. And—it’s sad, to think of their relationship like that and then compare it to what is shown in the show. Something must have gone terribly wrong, because they act more like friendly acquaintances than brothers. And that’s just saddening.
