So I Was Doing Research For Translation (while Procrastinating, As You Do), And Well. Here's A Breakdown

so i was doing research for translation (while procrastinating, as you do), and well. here's a breakdown of 悲风白杨 / bitterwind poplar, the martial technique di feisheng created.

悲风, which i've translated as bitterwind, refers to the ear-piercing and mournful howl of the wind. when put together with 白杨, it likely references this couplet from the anonymous han dynasty poem 《去者日以疏》 / the dead become estranged with the passing of time: 白杨多悲风，萧萧愁杀人！ / how mournful is the wind that howls through the white poplars; the soughing sorrow weakens the heart! among other things, the poem describes an intellectual's forlorn confusion at not being able to find a way out/forward.

on the other hand, the 白杨 / white poplar is known for taking root easily even in harsh circumstances, and for growing straight and true with sturdy branches. therefore, in chinese tradition, it signifies an indomitable spirit that will not bend nor yield, and is strong enough to not be shaken. it also features in 《白杨礼赞》 / in praise of the white poplar, a 20th century essay written by the novelist 茅盾 mao dun, in which he commends the white poplar for unwaveringly reaching to the skies, then likens it to the tenacious and diligent northern farmer, whom he praises for being frank and striving for progress.

i literally do not have the capacity to think any further on this right now so. yeah. :))

Trick or Treat!

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asathorin

1 year ago

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asathorin

1 year ago

I just read an interpretation for “the moon that year was not as bright as tonight” / “the moon that year is just like tonight” on bilibili that blew my mind：

When Di Feisheng says “the moon that year was not as bright as tonight”, he means that he did not appreciate their relationship ten years ago like he does now. And since saying “the moon is bright” is basically a love confession according to Chinese romance novel / drama conventions, Ah Fei is saying that he wasn’t in love (or didn’t realize he was in love) with Lianhua ten years ago, but realizes he loves with him now. (This is very plausible, imo, because ten years ago, he was single-mindedly focused on Lianhua’s power and channeled his obsession with Lianhua into their rivalry)

But when Li Lianhua tells him that “the moon that year is just like tonight”, he is confessing that his love for Ah Fei had never changed: he loved Ah Fei ten years ago and loves him still to this day 🥹

I really like this headcanon / implication that Lianhua was the first to fall in love with Ah Fei ten years ago (and not the other way around). Because imagine Li Xiangyi / Lianhua at the height of his power ten years ago, realizing that he has a crush on his arch-rival who only sees him as a challenge to overcome. Nevertheless, he manages to win Ah Fei’s trust and they sign a truce, only to learn shortly after that Ah Fei “betrayed” him and killed his older brother / shixiong! Imagine his despair and heartbreak as he storms into Ah Fei’s yacht / ship to fight him!

And then, ten years later, after he lost all is power and resigned himself to waste away as a dying man, Ah Fei shows up, tells him he didn’t order his shixiong’s murder, vows he will cure him, and refuses to leave his side. They settle into their old banter. They instinctively rely on each other but cannot fully trust each other.

And this is when Ah Fei, who has only known a life of violence and has never found a moment of peace until now, begins to realize that he can love! He doesn’t have to relive his childhood over and over, killing everyone better than him until he is the last man standing! For the first time in his life, Di Feisheng feels safe with someone, he wants to protect rather than destroy. With Li Lianhua, he can finally enjoy the mundane and simple pleasures of life. Of course the moon looks brighter tonight.

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asathorin

1 year ago

A lot of people around me are having kids and every day it becomes more apparent that hitting your children to punish them is insane because literally everything can be a horrible punishment in their eyes if you frame it as such.

Like, one family makes their toddler sit on the stairs for three minutes when he hits his brother or whatever. The stairs are well lit and he can see his family the whole time, he’s just not allowed to get up and leave the stairs or the timer starts over. He fucking hates it just because it’s framed as a punishment.

Another family use a baseball cap. It’s just a plain blue cap with nothing on it. When their toddler needs discipline he gets a timeout on a chair and has to put the cap on. When they’re out and about he just has to wear the cap but it gets the same reaction. Nobody around them can tell he’s being punished because it’s in no way an embarrassing cap, but HE knows and just the threat of having to wear it is enough.

And there isn’t the same contempt afterwards I’ve seen with kids whose parents hit them. One time the kid swung a stick at my dog, his mother immediately made him sit on the stairs, he screamed but stayed put, then he came over to my dog and gently said “Sorry Ellie” and went back to playing like nothing happened, but this time without swinging sticks at the nearby animals.