Dec 30, 2022
First-Class Lawyer Audio Drama || Theme Song, "The Utopia Will Not Fall"
策划：Neko@Nekooooo呀 项目统筹：浅栗@小西木_lue| 监制：阿黄 词作：怀袖@柚梦游 作曲/编曲/混音：曾猴几@曾猴几 歌手：裂天@裂天 题字/排版：岑夏@花果山松鼠
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First-Class Lawyer Audio Drama || Theme Song, "The Utopia Will Not Fall"
策划：Neko@Nekooooo呀 项目统筹：浅栗@小西木_lue| 监制：阿黄 词作：怀袖@柚梦游 作曲/编曲/混音：曾猴几@曾猴几 歌手：裂天@裂天 题字/排版：岑夏@花果山松鼠
19 September 2022 | By lamp light
“……误以为我可以说一些[荒谬]的话，或是做一些[唐突]的事。”
“…A misunderstanding that I can say something crude, or do something crazy.”
==
From First Class Lawyer by Musuli! Her writing is so good and these two are so soft! My MSL brain rot is getting worse and worse...
cnovel!anon: oh, and yeah, I agree YJLS was definitely about lawyers - throwing shade at those of them who care more about their own reputations and the nomination as first class lawyer than about doing the right thing. I thought it was so interesting that MSL focused on trial strategy and how GY and YSZ were able to win their cases (even for the Cleaner), but then build up the evidence outside of the case so that the Mansons got their due.
yes that trial strategy!! i'm curious, does it read to you like MSL has legal training/insight...? I would 100% believe if she did or didn't but I'm just so darn impressed she constructed a whole story prioritizing this perspective that feels super specific to law (at least to me, a completely ignorant ho HAH). The build-up to that final case was done so well! MSL never once let up on the genre & worldview & never strayed from getting us the courtroom battle victory!!
(also, thanks to 破雲 and 一級律師, my favorite phrase has become 潛規則. It's so evocative and sexy in a kink and love context hahahahha)
cnovel!anon: spoiler for ch 135 of 一級律師[星際]: I got to this and cackled: 「誰知道呢，比如你們梅茲大學前院長從墓裡詐屍？比如什麼驚天大財團倒台？比如星際海盜搞到了無量反物質彈，並朝我們扔了一顆過來？」 I'm guessing #3 is what you referred to earlier about piracy? I love all the ways MSL drops clues and picks them up later.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA oooooh the reporters <3 <3 <3 <3 Yeah I've reached the point where all the hints are coming back around now and i'm like!! wahoo!!!! here we go!!!!! This is the top of the roller coaster boys time to take the plunge!!!
cnovel!anon: I'm really enjoying一級律師 - I love the way GY and YSZ banter. It isn't gratuitous (some YA novels I read, I feel like they are trying too hard to be Buffy - lots of snappy dialogue jammed in for the purpose of having witty lines, without regard to making it feel realistic) but fits in well with their characters. I laughed at the way GY said he needed mint and ice before listening to YSZ to 降火, or YSZ teasing GY when (GY's knowledge of) his identity was revealed. (cont'd)
(2/3): the humor feels unforced. And I love Priest's novels (very plotty/ detailed worldbuilding), but I don't think she writes with that same gleeful spark of humor, so I understand your mother's point. I love both types of writing, just depends on my mood. 一級律師 is such a fun read so far - YSZ's pov is particularly hilarious (將進酒 starts out angsty - I'll go back to it when I'm ready for it) though I'm just starting to get into the parts with more about his backstory and bracing for knives.
3/3 You mentioned that they get together really early - I usually love the slow burn first time/getting together stories, especially the tantalizing UST, but I just got to ch 125 and cried at 有那麼一瞬間，他闔了一下眼睛,覺得自己好像又回到了二十多年前，還住在那幢舊居裡,日子慢悠悠地過著，他懶洋洋地靠在窗檯上，一邊畫著速寫，一邊半真不假地對屋裡的人說：「前兩天碰到一點麻煩事……」很奇怪，在這一瞬間的想像裡，屋裡聽他抱怨的是顧晏。So for all of my love for yearning and and (mutual) pining, having GY able give him love and support as his boyfriend at this time was lovely.
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FAMMMMMMM I'm nearing the end and last night I think it was ch198ish—that shit had me sobbing in bed. No spoilers but I was thinking about the world view this novel's plot invites...I kind of really love it. I'm curious to know what you think once you've finished heheheh.
Holy shit agreed MSL writes such good banter. Like, her 懟人 dialogue is shady. Yeah yeah yeah I know exactly what you mean by dialogue trying to be like Buffy. Writing clever cunty people is hard lmfao, and MSL is ridiculously good at it??? I mean I haven't finished reading QQGK but them, and Panguan for sure, and now 燕大律師. Also hello the fact that they're both so cool to the world but so warm to each other really adds a fantastic layer of spice to all their banter doesn't it? That mint shit. And when YSZ gets possessive?? Delicious.
YEAH CH125. I was wary and I'll be honest, I did put the book down at one point, but now I've powered through that brief hiatus I honestly don't hate that they got together that early. The pacing of the relationship in context of where she wanted the novel to go makes sense. YSZ FINDING LOVE AND SUPPORT AFTER ALL THESE YEARS ALONE IT FUCKS ME UP UP UP UP UP and it also gives me new feelings about Xie Wen hahaha. There were a few lines in 一級律師 about YSZ walking alone for 10+ years that were super reminiscent of 判官, and I was vibing so hard.
oh okay the YSZ/GY storyline is delicious and lovely, but also the 喬/柯謹 story?!?!?! I was lying in bed punching my chest 'cause that shit hurt so bad. The devotion baby!!!!! I love that young master hahaha, he's a fucking homie.
It's interesting 'cause my coworker who was very shrug about the novel remarked that it wasn't actually about lawyers, but I find myself disagreeing very hard. MSL never once slips too gratuitously into action (imo); the stakes and pacing are all very much centered on case-building. In fact I think I found her dedication to it so impressive that even though I do objectively find this subgenre to be more boring than, say, Panguan and QQGK, I still want to keep reading because her characters frame the story in such a specific way, does that make sense??
Anyways, I'm on the final case and once I finish, I think I'll start on.....something else!! I have 將進酒 and 殺破狼 open but I might fucking go and finish QQGK first????
First-Class Lawyer, ch.108 excerpt
Yan Suizhi’s body gradually relaxed, and after a period of silence pillowed on his arm, he suddenly spoke up in a light voice: “Gu Yan.”
“Hm?”
“Are you a little afraid of me?”
Gu Yan halted in his motions.
Then, Yan Suizhi felt a touch to his forehead.
“...”
With a huff he caught that hand and pulled it from his forehead.
“Trying to call me delirious?”
“Where in the world are you getting that I’m afraid of you?” Gu Yan’s low timbre was far too suited to the night. The torrential storm poured on outside with the occasional flash of lightning and thunder but he remained ever calm and steady.
“I don’t mean that sort of afraid,” Yan Suizhi said. “More like...you’re a bit cautious.”
With that he flipped decisively over to watch Gu Yan’s eyes.
“You’re clever. You know what I mean.”
Gu Yan was silent for a moment before, “mh.”
Somehow, such a simple single note felt oddly stifling.
His brow pinched, and his gaze fell to a lamp on the side before unfocusing. A few moments later, he opened his mouth to speak: “After the explosion...I had a bout of insomnia, for a few months.”
This was likely the first he’d ever talked of that time. He fell silent after every sentence.
“It wasn’t that I actually couldn’t sleep. I just didn’t want to fall asleep,” he said. “Because at the time...the same dreams kept recurring. I would dream of an alumni gathering where Lola tells me there’s been a mistake, the explosion didn’t happen at the hotel you were staying at. You’ve gone back to your job, you’ve taken on a new case, you might clear up a week to go give a lecture back at school.”
This man was always like this—whenever he spoke of his once frank and immense emotions, his tone was always calm.
But that was what made it so upsetting to hear.
“Those dreams were always very realistic... Sometimes it was hard to tell what was the truth upon waking. That’s why I gave myself a lot to do. I’ll read over case files at night, including all the most tedious files on other explosion cases from those few years.
“Those cases actually weren’t relevant at all. It was just that they all covered explosions.”
...
But he had still felt dissatisfied. He’d kept thinking that maybe he had just missed a keyword, or maybe that the connection was hidden away in some covert corner. He’d kept thinking, there must be some undiscovered, convoluted reasoning to all of this because otherwise...how could a perfectly fine person be gone, just like that?
Gu Yan went silent again, then said: “These days...I still dream of some things. I dreamt of Fitz rushing over to tell me there’s been a mistake, that there’s never been an intern, that it’s all been an absurd fantasy. The last I’ve heard of you is still the explosion. The last time we talked was still ten years ago.”
Yan Suizhi watched him for a very long while, feeling for the first time in his life an indescribable sort of heartache.
“There hasn’t been a mistake.” He reached out and caressed Gu Yan’s cheek and neck. Then he leaned forward and hugged him. “I am alive and well. There aren’t even old scars left on me. Thanks to you, I’ve returned to my job and taken new cases, and once all this mess has been sorted out, maybe I’ll clear up a week to go give a lecture back at school. Of course, I’m also of the opinion that the first lecture won’t be all that effective. People might even faint from the fright.”
Gu Yan’s chin was tucked into his neck, his voice in his ear: “I know.”
He was very rational, and very awake.
He knew those were only dreams.
Maybe because reality had turned out so unexpectedly well that in the night, these dreams had to come and remind him not to get too cocky.
Gu Yan, in a low voice, “I’m adjusting.”
“Then you best do it quickly,” Yan Suizhi said, “or I’ll appear to have adjusted too quickly, like a scoundrel taking advantage of his student.”
As soon as he said this, he felt the cool bridge of Gu Yan’s nose rub against his collar. And then Gu Yan bit, murmuring, “I think you’ve misunderstood something...”
“Speak, don’t bite...” Yan Suizhi leaned away, but the motion was so small it didn’t dodge anything, obviously lacking all resolve.
一級律師 ch. 108
cnovel!anon: yeah, I have to turn off my reality filter when reading the police cnovels. Under the Skin was a little better, I thought, probably because of tv censorship, in that the police generally did things more by the book (e.g., got warrants and evidence) and didn't act with impunity (the way they would in the novels). Ofc it came with a side of "the police are to serve the people" propaganda.
cnovel!anon: cont'd: probably why I don't read too many novels set in modern times (also because the slang is often a lot harder for me in modern novels). Hm, the lawyer novel sounds interesting - how are you enjoying it? I'll put it on my read next list - I just picked up 將進酒 from another rec list. What doesn't your mom like about Priest's stories?
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Ye ye. Oh the slang is SO interesting I wanna read 全職高手 just to get that gamer lingo. Just casually watching the drama had me picking up some cool terms lmfao. I was like "what the fuck is 刷本" for a solid four episodes.
Lawyer novel is very fun!!!! It's literally a Xie Wen/Wen Shi modern/sci-fi lawyer!AU and I don't mean that in a bad way lolol. Yan Suizhi is Xie Wen with the unflappable elegance, smiles-beautifully-as-he-pokes-fun-at-you manners, and immovable core of ethics. Gu Yan is Wen Shi as the ardent yet super repressed student who has YSZ's teachings centered at the core of his practice but is very much his own man. Peak sexy 悶騷. If you finished Panguan with an itch for Xie Wen's side of the story this is a very interesting version of it. Their dynamic is 互懟, very fun and very dry, and it's the good flavor of 強強 with all the unspoken mutual trust and respect.
Since we're also talking police procedurals, the cases in this novel are a fascinating counterpoint? They very much only take place within the courtroom and clearly "ends" with the ruling. It's very strange to read this after the GUNS-CAR CHASE-DRUG LORDS-MURDER energy of Po Yun 1&2 and Under the Skin lolol but it's a cool change of pace?? Like, I've only seen maybe an episode or two of Suits. I've never engaged with courtroom procedurals before. (and I finally understand the thing from Brooklyn 99 about cops hating defense attorneys lol)
So I'm only on chapter 117 of 215, but I will comment that they get together...surprisingly quickly?? And I don't really know how that affects the pacing of the novel as a whole yet. One of the strengths of Panguan for me was definitely the mutual pacing of the plot/cases and their developing relationship. I don't think the novel is going to get worse and I don't necessarily want her to dangle the relationship in front of me the whole way through, but I am wondering if the second half of this novel is all just going to be about the cases-slash-where their relationship is going to develop from here.
Re: my mom and priest, my mom doesn't like her writing style hahahaha, and I think it's priest's sense of humor? My mom really likes Huai Shang's and Wu Zhe's writing and has remarked that MXTX's style is simplistic but she's still a fan. My guess is that she really doesn't vibe with priest's "your mama's ass" style of sarcasm kjksjdfkjsdfk
將進酒!!!! that's caught my eye 'cause i'm a slut for the poetry reference lmao how is it!!!!!!!! eyes emoji eyes emoji eyes emoji
not to be illiterate on main but every time I see Yan Suizhi’s name my brain autocorrects it to Sun Yanzi