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#ask biji
heybiji · 30 days
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I love your art style, ESPECIALLY your DnD art! I wanna give your scarred elf boi a big ol hug! Never has a drow ever made me wanna play the race as much as your art of Dandelion!
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oh, he could certainly use a hug lately, please do please do.
and FOLLOW THE DROW DREAM!! just don't be a donut like I was and have them in disguise for 60-something sessions while you are desperate to draw and share art of them but CAN'T
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psychic-waffles · 19 hours
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reboot hei xiazi memes part 2/?
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sunriseverse · 1 year
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watch my show boy.
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I’m still dying over this scene, when Wu Xie got anxious cause he didn’t like to sit in silence when they went blind and asked Pangzi to say something, cause obv Xiaoge isn’t a man for this job, but when Pangzi refused, Xiaoge was just "I can talk for you, baby” T_T
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hisapyon · 8 months
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been thinking bout them a lot lately lolol (probably gonna make nsfw version too)
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wushanju · 1 year
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Pangzi and Xiao ge are heading to the market together. Xiao ge holds the bags while Pangzi picks out the produce and then on the way home they take one handle each. They both know Xiao ge could easily carry it by himself but it’s nice to share the load.
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yugiohz · 9 months
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apparently ur boys dabihawks are #62 on the top 100 a03 ships so congrats/condolences
the number 62 is such a huge part of my identity this is so funny
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mademoiselle-red · 4 months
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Thank you so much for your reply! 十年and北京故事 are defenitely right up my alley, I'm looking forward to them. I absolutely loved 二哈, do you know 病案本? Please list any recs, I trust you haha. Chinese is fine, but nuances go over my head
I assume you’re referring to the 瓶邪 Chinese fic recommendations I mentioned in my previous response. I have quite a few.
瓶邪文推
Available on various different websites and forums:
毒+三年 by 夜藤 link (short, devastating, BE)
局外人 by 高森 link (this one was particularly good and quite 虐心, it is both BE and HE)
1990 by 一三 link
战骨 by 线性木头 link
犹记君归处 by 翠寒烟 link
渡苦 by 一三 link
墨色黎明 by BY 劍麟的狐耳 link
回去我们回不去的过去 by 想开点 link
骸之嫣然 by 六欲浮屠 link
歧路 by 六欲浮屠 link
我这一辈子 by glueball link
Available on ao3:
渐近终极 by bee_and_tiger link
观棋不语 by type_omega link (extremely long, but so good)
Available on LOFTER (search for the title or author in the app or website):
莫比乌斯 by 五脊吞六兽 (interesting world building for the 青铜门 mystery)
引狼入室 by糊涂仙儿
单相思 by 糊涂仙儿
平邪线 by 碎碎九十三 (time travel is involved)
白费力 by 404NotFound
无稽 by 此处用户名
~
I remember checking out 病案本 but I don’t remember why I didn’t read past the first chapter. Maybe I’ll give it another go!
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eirenical · 1 year
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Time Swap AU please?
I'm going to answer this one, @fixaidea, because I've already talked about the Amnesia fic this round. And the last round. (Maybe that should be a hint that I should bump it up the list? XD)
ANYWAY.
[The WiP Title List, if anyone else would like to ask about one. ^_^]
As for the Time Swap AU, this is a DMBJ Pingxie fic. The basic premise is "what would happen if post-TLTR Wu Xie from Yucun Biji era swapped bodies with his younger self from around mid-TLT2 era?"
And the answer is that on one end of time, poor oblivious bb!Wu Xie from TLT2 wakes up naked in bed with his husband in Yucun mid-lazy morning sex and promptly freaks the fuck out a little. Xiaoge and Pangzi assume that this is an amnesia thing and he gets to enjoy all the happy retirement things while they try to prompt his memory to come back (not realizing that this Wu Xie never had those memories in the first place OOPS).
And on the other end of time, post-TLTR Wu Xie wakes up in a hospital post-Qinlin Tree arc ALSO freaking out because he thinks he's having a relapse of his cancer from TLTR. He figures out pretty quickly what actually happened, then promptly has ANOTHER freakout at the possibility of having to live through the next 15 years all over again.
...the tonal whiplash should be loads of fun! XD
Anyway, eventually, they figure out how to swap back and Yucun era Wu Xie managed to change just... a few... minuscule details... to make their Yucun lives even better than they are, and succeeds. ^_^
I'm about 3000 words into it and this one is probably going to be a doozy in terms of word count. (...how do I always get myself into these situations? OTZ)
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kruk-art · 2 years
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TGRC_art_book_01? 👀
Oh! That contains all 11 illustration for my beloved The Grave Robbers Chronicles - book one. I already posted some sketches here, so now I will posta 2 new, that are in this psd :P
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heybiji · 2 months
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Any other hair styles that Dandelion would like to try?
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dande gets to try on so many looks because of his disguises that that's where he gets to play with his look most, so usually he's not overly fussed with how he looks normally (I think he does the two ties of hair at the front out of habit from his forgotten years in the feywild). he's had lots of different hairstyles over the past century, though!
though it's a joke with my group that i will allow my character to be maimed horrifically but they can NEVER get a bad haircut
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moonlightfilly · 2 years
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concern for the bf continues </3
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cascade05 · 1 year
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DIY (Independent S/O Idea)
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I see so many posts about Bakugo who takes care of his s/o and it’s cute and nice, but what if he was dating or married to someone who liked being alone and was used to taking care of themselves?
Warnings : Some language, unedited, also this is way longer than I thought it was gonna be, reader has a big-ass dog, ummmmmm... think that's it
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☾ This is a little self-indulgent so bare with me ☽
So, before meeting Bakugo you lived alone. Maybe you had a dog or maybe you had a cat or a lizard, I dunno. Point is, you lived alone. And you liked it that way. You had grown up in a pretty full house without a moment of peace—which was fun and enjoyable sometimes—so, growing up, you knew you never wanted to live with another person EVER again. That also meant you wanted zero romantic relationships because no.
A romantic relationship involves two people who were willing to give to each other. Be it time, energy, or just a listening ear, they would give of themselves to their loved one all because they, well, loved them. You could give. You were very good at giving. Ever since you were a young, blubbering toddler, you gave things to others because it made you feel good to know they were happy. When you are older, you gave other tings—time, energy, money—you were very good at giving.
It was the taking part of the equation—the asking for help and support and love part—that you knew you'd struggle with. People said you could learn but you didn't want to. As a kid, you had spent your whole life giving, but people rarely gave things to you—toys, little gifts, sure. You got those things often enough, but the deeper things in life? The things that were a little harder to give? A listening ear? Empathy? Patience? Support? You didn't have a lot of that. So, you gave that to yourself the best you could because you were good at giving.
You were more independent than most and you were happy like that. You didn't want to learn how to take because you were more than content being by yourself, thinking by yourself, living for yourself... That sort of thing wouldn't be fair for your s/o and it wasn't like you wanted an intimate relationship so you remained single—a virgin in every physical sense of the word.
Then, he showed up. (Hehehehehehehehhehehehehe)
It was a normal evening for you. Nothing out of the ordinary was going on, you didn't feel weird, and your giant fluffy dog (self-indulgent, I know 😔) was lounging about at your feet while you worked. Normal. Your online business was going very well—yes, I'm talking entrepreneur kind of independent—and the ac was blowing the perfect temperature so things were normal—they were especially good, actually.
Then, he showed up.
Out of the blue, something crashed into your house—through your bedroom balcony, it sounded like. Your dog (Imma name him Biji (Short for Bijronson)—self-indulgent—but you can name him—or her—whatever, I guess...) Anyway, your dog shot up from his spot because of course he did, you did too. He trotted to the bedroom door—not a happy trot, but a cautious, purposeful one—and stood at it, watching whatever was going on.
You arrived next, eyes widening at the whole-ass man who fell into your apartment—into your life but you didn't know that yet. You knew who he was. Of course you knew who he was. The number two hero was a very noticeable man. He was large, a foot taller than you at least. His shoulder width was ridiculous and only enhanced by his small waste. Such a snatched thing. Truly a Doritos shape worthy of nacho cheese dreams. (Nacho cheese Doritos are mvp, don't fight me)
Then there was his stupidly handsome face. A scar ran down the right of it—from the edge of his hairline down to his upper neck. His light blond eyebrow was missing in the middle and his crimson eye was a little milky. He wasn't completely blind in it, but rumor said he would be soon. Most people said it wasn't a pretty sight but you always disagreed. Not only did it look badass, but it proved he went to hell and was strong enough to come back. Which was cool as fuck.
He was awesome—maybe a little bit of a jerk but you didn't need to like him as a person because you didn't know him a just a person. You knew him as Dynamight. As a hero, and he was a damn good hero. More often than not you would joke with your closest friends saying “If he's not Dynamight, I don't want it.“
“Dynamight is the bar.“
“He has to at least be six-foot Dynamight stature before I'll even think about it.“
Silly shit like that—all of which was just that. Silly. A joke. Never in a million years would you want to date Dynamight or any of the other pros you joked about. Your friends knew that. Everyone would share similar jokes before consoling their poor husbands or wives or boos or whatever because it was just a silly thing. You wouldn't even call what you had a celebrity crush. Dynamight and his companions were hot, attractive people. Simple as that. You appreciated the pictures, kay. And what they did for Japan, of fucking course.
We're getting off topic though. What was the topic again? Oh, right.
Dynamight was in your bedroom. On your bed. Your broken bed, might I add. All while you stood wide-eyed in your doorway, frozen as if you were the one who barged in on him. Then he slowly sat up, running a gloved hand through his sooty ash-blond spikes to rid it of glass. It pulled you out of your shocked state. It was then you realized Biji was barking and had been for awhile.
You moved to grab his collar just as the man stood up from his spot. You had been trying to sush your dog but those attempts came to a halt when you saw the condition the hero was in. Thankfully, it didn't seem life-threatening but, then again, you weren't a doctor and that shit looked like it hurted.
“Uh,“ you began, unsure of how to proceed.
The man looked around your room with what looked like disgust and you almost wanted to mouth off at him for the audacity before you realized he wasn't disgusted the dorky pictures of you and loved ones pasted on your dark walls. He looked confused. He turned around in your room a few times, eyeing the place and muttering confused curses. It was then you began to wonder how hard he had hit his pretty head.
You moved to straddle your strong dog who hadn't stopped barking completely but had calmed just a little. He was still on guard but you weren't scared—he sensed that.
“Hey, Mr—“ —were you supposed to say mr— “Dynamight?“
He looked at you. It was a sharp, unimpressed look and you wondered why until you saw his eyes dropped to your ramen pajama pants. The ones that said, “send noods.“ Not that they were embarrassing at all, you told yourself.
The man gave you and your barking companion a once over, gaze lingering on the large black and white dog you were effectively holding back. He looked tired, you noticed. Dynamight clicked his tongue before turning around and walking towards the sizable hole in your glass doors. “Wrong apartment,“ he mumbled and you gaped.
Ruining your beautiful and lovely bed because he was defending citizens from villains was one thing. You could let it pass cause he had a lot more shit to deal with than your glass-ridden floors and broken wall. His agency would cover the damages anyways.
Ruining your shit because he blasted his hot ass into the wrong apartment, however, was a whole other thing. Would he finance the repairs you needed to make? You hoped so but you didn't know, it wasn't during a fight, after all. No, he wasn't leaving until he promised his agency would take care of it. And until he recovered a little because he looked very unsteady on his feet.
“You're leaving?“ was your stupid, shocked question.
He scoffed. You narrowed your eyes at his broad back. Yes, you were enjoying the view and you would've enjoyed it a hell of a lot more if his torn shirt didn't show off his numerous gashes and cuts. Suddenly, you didn't feel like bitching to him about your apartment—you would make him pay for it, but later.
The crunching of glass caught your attention and you realized he really was leaving like that. “Hey, you're hurt,“ you said dumbly because you weren't really sure how to convince him to stay long enough for you to help.
“No shit,“ was his rude—but fair—response.
You huffed in annoyance. At least Biji's barking had stopped and he seemed calmer, albeit tense. Dynamight crashed into the wrong apartment, right? So he was aiming for an apartment in the complex, right? “You're apartment's in this building? Right?“
He said nothing but he didn't need to because you could see the gears in his head turning—could see the realization in his crimson eye. He knew what you were about to suggest but you said it anyway. “Just leave out the door—the actual door, not the one you DIYd,“ you said obviously, nodding to the broken glass.
He looked at said DIY door and grumbled something under his breath. Then he turned to face you. You rose a brow at his glare. It was his turn to nudge his head and he gestured it to your dog. “That flea-bag gonna let me through?“
“His name is Biji—“ “I don't give a fuck—“ “—and he might let you through, so long as you say please.“
The word please must've kickstarted an allergic reaction of some kind because Dynamight's face scrunched up like he swallowed piss. It was oddly adorable and you mentally nodded in satisfaction. If only he made such a face where cameras could catch and immortalize it.
“The hell is wrong with you? You think just cause I'm in your apartment you can order me around?!“
He was starting to raise his voice. Your hold tightened on Biji's collar as the dog began barking again. You took a deep breath in an effort to prevent your own anger from spilling out. “Yes,“ you damn near hissed, tugging Biji back because he was pulling.
Dynamight did not appreciate the answer but you didn't give him a second to bitch about it. “Might I remind you of how you barged in here out of nowhere. I'm not entirely calm and neither is he so, if you want him to be civil, say. Fucking. Please.“
“Be friendly,“ was really what you were telling him. He didn't look like he liked the idea, so you helped him out. “You ruined my door, broke my bed—which people don't get to do until after they take me out for dinner, by the way—“ —he scrunched his face again and you wanted to laugh— “and now I get to clean all that shit up. So, the least you could do is get your dirty ass over here to show Biji that you aren't as much of a threat as first impressions implied.“
A teenager getting his phone taken away—no, a kindergartner getting told to stand in the corner was what the giant hulking man ahead of you reminded you of. With more annoyance than you thought possible, Dynamight begrudgingly drug himself closer to you. He stopped a few feet away—stopping as soon as Biji became a little more frantic.
You gently caressed the dog's side, whispering and muttering calming words to him, promising him the giant man was a friend. Dynamight was allergic to that word too, but he sucked it up—as he should—and slowly removed one of his gloved before holding out the back of his hand to your dog.
Biji wanted to jump out of your hold but you held firm, slowly walking towards Dynamight who rose a brow. If it was in amusement, then you'd shove him out of the conveniently placed hole in your wall. Biji sniffed his hand eagerly. After a few moments, you felt his tail beat against your legs. A small smile spread on your face. “See?“ you cooed. “He's not so bad, is he?“
Biji was too busy sniffing the hero to respond—and he so would've responded otherwise. “Give the side of his neck a nice pat,“ you said softly. “It'll reaffirm you're friendly,“ was added when he glance at you in annoyance.
“Still think you can order me around,“ he scoffed, but much more softly then before.
“I do,“ you responded immediately, “so pet him.“
He hated it, you knew he did because why would a man like Dynamight like being bossed around by someone half his size? But the man gave Biji's long hair a gently pat anyway—not before wiping his hands on his pants, you noticed.
Both of you left the room after and you closed the door behind. “Unless you're scared of dogs, I'm gonna let him go.“
The man said nothing in objection—or anything at all—so you released the beast who ran up to Dynamight immediately. “He might jump so—“ and he was already up, paws on Dynamight's large chest and tail wagging eagerly.
“Biji, down,“ you ordered, gently tugging his collar when he went to jump again.
“Uh,“ you pointed down the hall, “door's that way.“
And off you both walked. No one said a word which gave you a moment to remember the hero's injuries. “I have first aid stuff, if you want it,“ you ended up mumbling because of course he would have his own medical supplies.
“Sure,“ he mumbled back, a rough but oddly civil sound that threw you off guard.
Maybe he was almost out? He probably had to patch himself up a lot. “I, uh, I'll go get it.“
And you did, entrusting Dynamight to Biji's care. You went to your bathroom and grabbed the first-aid kit in record time before returning to the entryway, just in time to see the Great Explosion God Dynamight petting your adorable Biji boy. You really wished you and phone right now because no one would believe you.
“Got it,“ you said softly, grinning when he pulled away with a scowl.
“Here you go, apartment buddy. Need anything else? Bottle of water? Painkillers? Anything?“
He didn't say yes or no. He just clicked his tongue before turning around to open your door. You rolled your eyes, following behind to make sure Biji didn't follow him out but also to make sure he got to the elevator fine. You knew he would—he probably dealt with much worse—but, just in case.
“Nice meeting you, love your work but don't make remodeling my apartment a habit.“
He didn't laugh which was his loss cause you were funny as hell. Dynamight gave you one last glance—a very judgy-looking glance before walking off. “See you around,“ you offer lazily before doing a double take.
He was already at his apartment. He was digging out his keys to his apartment because his apartment was—you counted the numbers.
814.
816.
817.
817, and yours was—“Dang, guess we're apartment neighbors, huh,“ you mumbled.
Not quiet enough because he tossed a glare over his shoulder. You chuckled nervously. “See ya 'round,“ you said and you meant it this time.
You retreated into your apartment after. Apartment 818.
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It's funny cause I was gonna make like a headconnon bullet point list thing about Bakugo x Independent s/o but it turned into this which is a drabble. A fun drabble that would make a pretty interesting story...
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Let's Talk About PingXie: Part 5
A Summary of Common Misconceptions in the Original Work of Daomu Biji
Source: MuzzledIdealist
Please note that this is a repost with an edited MTL. The original text is written by MuzzledIdealist on Weibo. They said it's okay to repost as long as the source is indicated.
It's not entirely about PingXie though, but the original writer put "PingXie" tag for some reason, so I just follow along.
This post is about some misconceptions in Daomu Biji fandom and whether they're canon or not. Daomu Biji is an old and long series, its story has yet to be completed, there are also many theories that are written by the fans, and those may confuse the people who just joined the fandom. So, this post will explain the following topics:
The timeline of Three Days of Silence.
Zhang Qiling was imprisoned in a sanatorium by Zhang Qishan for 20 years.
Wu Xie and Xie Yuchen were childhood sweethearts, and whether Xie Yuchen said he would marry Wu Xie when he was a child (and vice versa).
Wu Xie owes Xie Yuchen 30 billion and whether the debt has been paid off.
Whether Zhang Qiling ever studied abroad with Hei Xiazi in Germany.
Whether there is something like "wake up and go home" between Li Cu and Wu Xie.
Part 1
Someone asked me when the Three Days of Silence happened, which brought back painful memories of my previous attempts to sort out the timeline related to brother and sister-in-law (PingXie)... I still remember that I spent several nights writing a few pages of word documents, but in the end I found that this is fruitless...
Xu Lei has dug so many holes that he can’t even remember what he has written. There are still many discrepancies between his online serialized version and the physical book version. The most obvious thing is that the front part of the earliest serialized version of Tibetan Sea Flower is very different from the physical book.
According to the (online) serialized version, the first time he (Xiaoge) entered Medog (Motuo) to meet Deren was probably in the late 1970s, and the second time he went to Medog to investigate Dong Can’s whereabouts was probably in the late 1980s. However, in the physical book it was changed to the late 1940s when the first time he (Xiaoge) went to Medog to see Deren, and the second time he went to see Dong Can was in the late 1950s. In the (online) serialized version, Chen Xuehan met a man [they used “哥” here, since Xiaoge is often just called "哥" too, I'm not sure who are they referring to, a man named "Zaji" or Xiaoge] in Jila Temple, but this plot was deleted in the physical version, and even the important character "Zaji" was deleted [see more in Tibetan Sea Flower Ch. 4 (MereBear's Translation)]. Judging from the expression of the two versions, the physical book may have deleted some things, resulting in part of the narrative not being as readable as the (online) serialized version. Looking at the timeline, the time in the (online) serialized version is more consistent with the timeline in the follow-up Unknown Story: Queen of the West’s Ghost Banquet, which states: "(Xiao)ge went to Medog in the late 1970s and left Medog just a few days after Wu Xie was born." [See more in Unknown Story: Queen of the West’s Ghost Banquet Part 2 | Part 3 (MereBear's Translation)]
Therefore, if we speculate according to the (online) serialized version, Three Days of Silence happened in the late 1970s (Zhang Qiling entered Medog for the first time and met Lama Deren, and Wu Xie was born in the same year that Zhang Qiling left Medog). If we speculate according to the physical version, Three Days of Silence happened in the late 1940s (Zhang Qiling entered Medog for the first time and met Lama Deren).
Looking at the timeline of the original story, it's even more confusing. The archaeological team was switched, Xie Jiu(ye)'s plan happened to be destroyed by Panma and others. The plots of the two archaeological expeditions at the Zhang Family's Ancient Building and the two groups of people in Xisha and Heavenly Palace on the Clouds are somewhat confusing. In addition, the key nodes of the timeline involve three versions of narratives by Zhang Qiling, Wu Sanxing, and Chen Wenjin, plus Wu Xie’s speculation in the summary chapter, which makes the timeline even more messy. Even if the physical book comes with a timeline of major events, the description is unclear.
Also, "it", the core that controls everything, involved some unspeakable things in the original serialized version (don't ask about this). In order to avoid this problem in subsequent publications, XL added some random things to Zhang Qishan, which caused great contradictions and divisions in the character and positioning of Zhang Qishan.
As soon as the operation is completed, the imagination and rumors come... Regarding the statement that "Zhang Qiling was imprisoned in a sanatorium by Zhang Qishan for 20 years", I have seen it many times, but the fact is that (Xiao)ge was seriously injured and lost his memory in the largest grave robbery in history in 1965. However, after this incident, a group of people headed by Wu Laogou and Huo Xiangu have been supporting and protecting him. The book states that (Xiao)ge entered a sanatorium at some point later, and was indeed transferred out of the sanatorium in 1985. But the book never mentioned who Zhang Qishan imprisoned, nor did it mention the specific time when he (Xiaoge) entered the sanatorium, but what is certain is that he still appeared in Medog in 1977, so "Zhang Qishan imprisoned people" and "20 years" are both pure imagination......
Part 2
Then there are many other rumors. Here are some common ones and clarifications.
1. Are Wu Xie and Xie Yuchen childhood sweethearts?
False. Wu Xie lived in Hangzhou most of the time when he was a child. Only during the Chinese New Year would he go back to his hometown in Changsha with adults to pay New Year greetings. Only then would he have the opportunity to play with children such as Xie Yuchen and Huo Xiuxiu, who are also juniors. Wu Xie went back to his hometown no more than five times, so he met these juniors no more than five times in total.
“When I was a child, I paid New Year's greetings. I remember that we kids often played together, but Wu Xie, you are not so gregarious, you are introverted, and you are from out of town, so you may not be familiar with me, so you don't remember me.” —Xie Yuchen’s original words in the main story. [See more in Daomu Biji Vol. 7 Ch. 31 (MereBear's Translation) | Ch. 26 (Chinese Version)]
“We came to our ancestral village not to reminisce about the past and celebrate the New Year. In fact, from the time I was born to now, I have never returned to my hometown more than once.” —Wu Xie's narration in the New Year chapter that follows the main story. [See more in Daomu Biji Extra Chinese New Year Special : Ch. 1.1 (MereBear's Translation) | Ch. 1 (Chinese Version)
2. When Xie Yuchen was a child, he said he wanted to marry Wu Xie? (And vice versa)
False. It was Huo Xiuxiu who said she wanted to marry Wu Xie, and at that time they were just children under 10 years old, it's a kid's joke.
"Yes, you even forgot about me.” Huo Xiuxiu said from the side, “You can’t even tell who’s real and who’s fake. You’re worse than this Fatty. It’s so upsetting. I even wanted to marry you when I was a child.” —Huo Xiuxiu's original words in the main story. [See more in Daomu Biji Vol. 7 Ch. 31 (MereBear's Translation) | Ch. 26 (Chinese Version)]
Part 3
3. Wu Xie owes Xie Yuchen 30 billion?
False. The fact is that Iron Triangle made a big fuss at the Crescent Hotel and robbed the Ghost Seal. The reason why they were not held accountable was because Mrs. Huo came forward and asked the Huo family to guarantee them. The reason why the Huo family was willing to provide a guarantee was because they wanted Iron Triangle to join in the operation to capture the Lama. So Wu Xie did owe money, but what he owed was the money from the Crescent Hotel's auction of the Ghost Seal, and this debt was guaranteed by the Huo family. Later, people from the Crescent Hotel came to collect the debt, so they asked Xie Yuchen to find Wu Xie and the others to ask for money.
“This son and I are going grave robbing soon.” Granny Huo patted the pattern and said, “I need your help. If you promise, I’ll make sure you don’t have to worry about Crescent Hotel. And there are other big benefits.” —Daomu Biji Vol. 7 Ch. 31 (MereBear's Translation)
“If I leave Beijing, our two families may fight and give a third party a chance. Beijing’s circle is so chaotic that when you made a scene before, Liuli Sun looked to us for an explanation. And the people at the Crescent Hotel are even more troublesome.” Xiao Hua said. “Your asses haven’t been wiped clean. When the Huos are in turmoil, the debts must be repaid together.” —Daomu Biji Vol. 8 Ch. 4 (MereBear's Translation)
「Xiao Hua looked at our feet and then at our walls. Fatty had put up some hanging paintings, but I didn’t know where he had found them. “Actually, people from Crescent Hotel came to ask me to pass on a message to you,” he said.
I looked at Fatty—I hadn’t heard that name for a long time—and said, “You can tell them that I haven’t been in the business recently. They don’t need to be concerned with me.”
“They’re here to collect the debt,” Xiao Hua said. “Do you still remember that you took something from Crescent Hotel without paying? I was your guarantor at that time and now I’ve come to collect.”」
—Daomu Biji Extra: Some of Wu Xie’s Thoughts (MereBear's Translation)
By the way, where did the 30 billion come from:
30 billion is not cash or an exact number, but the valuation of antiques stored in banks around the world by the Xie family. To put forward these antiques, we need a "special one" that can change the graphics according to the time accurately to the second, and correspond to the corresponding database system of those banks. The seal that “cannot be copied” was once hung around Huo Xiuxiu’s neck in Sand Sea, but was later torn off and thrown into the sewer. "As the water washes away, the seal is poured into the depths of the sewer. After 3 months, when the power of the backup battery is exhausted, the seal will stop changing. The wealth valued at nearly 30 billion will become dead and sealed forever in the bank". In short, this 30 billion has nothing to do with Wu Xie's debt.
4. Wu Xie owes this money and has not paid it back?
False. It had been paid off long ago, and Xiao Hua even mistakenly thought that the things that Fatty put in Wu Xie's house to pay the bills were Wu Xie's property and moved them away, so Wu Xie was so poor during Restart period...
「I thought Fatty had some more valuable things, but he said that all of the good things had been moved to Rain Village. On that stormy night, all those things had been regarded as mine and Xiao Hua took them away to settle the accounts (1). Fatty seemed to have a lifetime of bad luck just for knowing me. He went from getting accidental injuries to losing his whole fortune.
I sighed, pinched my brows, and realized that I had to make some money.」
—Restart Ch. 126 (MereBear's Translation)
Later, Xu Lei also replied in the WeChat comment area that the money owed by Wu Xie had been paid off:
「Selected comment: Wu Xie still owes Xiao Hua the Ghost Seal money and hasn’t paid it back yet. How dare he borrow it again?
Xu Lei: It’s done.」
An additional point here is that the Huo family should use their own family credit as a guarantee for the Iron Triangle, and the amount of debt is huge. The Huo family should provide personal insurance rather than property insurance. PICC (People's Insurance Company of China) is divided into general guarantee and joint liability guarantee. Usually fools will choose general guarantee, let alone a smart person like Mrs. Huo, because under this guarantee method, the guarantor enjoys the right of first-suit defense. In layman's terms, the creditor must first apply to enforce the debtor's own property. Only when the debtor runs away and has no money or his own property is not enough to pay off the entire debt, can the creditor require the guarantor to assume the guarantee liability. This means that Crescent Hotel can only ask Wu Xie to pay back the money first. Unless Wu Xie has no money to pay back, he can go to the Huo family. Therefore, Wu Xie went bankrupt and paid off his debts, and the Huo family did not have to pay at all.
Part 4
5. Zhang Qiling and Hei Xiazi studied in Germany together?
False. First of all, it is never mentioned in the book that I have been to Germany. This rumor may have developed from "Zhang Qiling understands German". So, can I speak German?
When (Xiao)ge went to investigate Dong Can's whereabouts, he found a German corpse and a notebook in the snowy mountains. In the notebook, there were things about the ultimate recorded by the Germans. Later, Wu Xie found a note left by the Germans in the jacket draped over (Xiao)ge's statue. From these details, it seems to be inferred that I understand German. However, the Germans have been involved in matters related to the archaeological inversion for a long time, and they have also used each other with the Zhang family. When Wu Xie entered Medog, he also met many Germans and brought his own translator, so it was not difficult to find a German or even a German translator in Medog. It is not ruled out that he does not need to be very proficient in German to communicate with Germans.
Moreover, he is a person who is extremely talented in languages. When he went to investigate Dong Can, he could not understand the conversation of the Tibetan porter and could not understand the word "ultimate" written in Tibetan in his notebook. But later he learned it after staying in Medog for a while, so it is entirely possible that he learned basic German through communicating with Germans in Medog. Does language learning have to be achieved by going abroad? What's more, he didn't even have an ID card at the time, so how could he go to Germany......
Later, Xu Lei even said that (Xiao)ge didn't know German well:
「Xu Lei’s new book live broadcast in October last year (2022)
Host: A friend asked if Xiaoge can speak Northeastern dialect?
Xu Lei: Then he can definitely speak it. Xiaoge can also speak English.
Host: Does he speak German, too?
Xu Lei: Ah? (Shocked, why didn’t I know about this?)
Host: A friend said below that Xiaoge can also speak German, so you are writing a book for Sanshu (NPSS), but Xiaoge doesn't speak German.
Xu Lei: (Laughing awkwardly) Yeah, yeah.
Host: (Laughing awkwardly) If you have a mouth, you can speak.
Xu Lei: Well... that's possible, maybe a little bit, but it's that kind of... uh... then I can say that I can do it a little bit.
Host: Xiaoge can also speak zongzi language.
Xu Lei: Yes, actually it is called insect language, which simulates the sound of insects to test whether there are very dangerous insects in the corpse.」
6. Did Li Cu say "Wake up, we're going home" to Wu Xie in Sand Sea? [IIrc it should be the other way around but it has the same point though]
False. The only time this sentence appears in the entire Daomu Biji series is in Daomu Biji Vol. 8, when Wu Xie and Pangzi went to the Zhang family's Ancient Building to save Xiaoge. When Wu Xie saw the ancient building and saw his brother dying, he thought he was dead. He instantly felt that the world had collapsed, his body felt despair one step ahead of his consciousness, and he patted (Xiao)ge's face in a state of despair and said, "Wake up, go home."
So how did the rumor come to be that Li Cu also said such things to Wu Xie? Since I haven't watched any movies and TV series related to Daomu Biji, I searched for a long time and found out that this is the plot of the Sha Hai (Tomb of the Sea) web series, which was rumored to be the original content, and coupled with the spread of the yx (marketing) account, it became a rumor that everyone said. Personally, I hope that the book and the drama can be separated, at least not to spread unfounded rumors as the content of the original work (the novel).
My thought:
It was posted in December 2023, so I think it's still relevant. I don't know if anyone would be interested in this matter but I think it's pretty interesting, so I couldn't help but repost it here (⁠^⁠~⁠^⁠;⁠)⁠ゞ
Thanks for reading! (⁠◍⁠•⁠ᴗ⁠•⁠◍⁠)⁠✧⁠*⁠。
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traineecryptid · 6 months
Text
DMBJ Web Film: Reality Control Unit
Synopsis of the web film (i think) in the works as posted by the official Jiezi Ghost City Weibo account. (based on the description, it might be the sequel for Jiezi Ghost City and unlike the other web films wip this isnt part of the materlist... im... confused too ngl)
Other web films in the works here DMBJ Web Film: Reality Control Unit (Part 2) Translated by @traineecryptid Edited by @thelaithlyworm Source
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Jiezi Ghost City Movie (+Follow) 23-10-16 Posted from Zhejiang From Weibo Web Daomu Biji Supertopic Where do strange creatures go? Nagas, Flying Night Ghost and subdued creatures have actually been locked up in Xie Yuchen’s secret base—The Reality Control Unit. [thinking face emoji] But what is the function of this secret unit? And who are the people involved in this plan? Layers of mysteries await their resolution, please look forward to it~~ #Jiezi Ghost City Movie#
Source
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Reboot: Mystery of the Abyss Movie (+Follow) 23-10-16 Posted from Zhejiang From Redmi Note 11 Pro Anticipating Xie Yuchen’s extraordinary collection [cheering emoji]
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Reality Control Unit At the end of the movie “Jiezi Ghost City”, Zhang Qiling defeated the Flying Night Ghost and led everyone out of the Comet Tomb. After they left, Xie Yuchen sent Li Cu and Yang Hao in to clean up. The two of them bring out the Flying Night Ghost from the tomb safely after some shocking encounters and send it to a secret location. This place is managed by Hei Yanjing and it is approximately the same size as Warehouse 11. The “spoils” of every adventure that Xie Yuchen and the others embark on are stored within it. At the same time, Xie Yuchen and Hei Yanjing are already on a flight to Prague. There, they will be subduing another item for the collection.
Google document with the translated masterlist and all the synopsis
Note: I've translated the text to match the source as closely as possible instead of doing it in a more localised way. Feel free to ask what certain terms mean, I will edit this post to include the explanation and add an explanation section to the gdocs for the answers.
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lunanoc · 6 months
Note
Hey there! Your posts about heihua and xiao hua in particular have made me curious and I've only started book 7, so I didn’t get too much og book xiao hua (I have watched all the dramas though). Would you mind talking about him (and/or them) a little more? I'd love to read that!
And if not, then I hope you still have a great day :)
hi! i'd be happy to talk more about xiao hua and hei xiazi in the books if you're interested in my take on them (which honestly thank you i'm flattered you'd want it tbh 😂) so thanks for asking (sorry in advance for how horribly long this is)
before i say anything though, a few disclaimers:
while i do like him, xiao hua is technically not my ultimate blorbo (that's wu xie) so because the brainrot is less intense i'm not gonna pretend i'm an expert on all things xiao hua compared to some other people i can think of. same goes for heihua, which is a ship i do like but more passively, so again, not enough brainrot to be a super expert
i haven't read everything they're involved in yet, so for complete transparency, i'm currently about halfway through sha hai in my chronological order read of everything, and anything after that point i've read in bits and pieces only (like various extras, bits of yucun biji etc), so i notably haven't read flowery night. as far as heihua goes, the only thing i've read where they directly interact extensively is the beginning portion of what's considered restart part 2 aka the mute village storyline, but to my knowledge they don't really interact in real time before that point or barely. so i won't be talking about flowery night or the dragon vein trilogy that takes place after restart
any quotes will be pulled from merebear's translations of the dmbj books
i won't be avoiding spoilers so spoiler warning
NOW
with that out of the way, let's talk about book xiao hua and a little about book heihua. i'll be comparing to mostly ultimate note in terms of the adaptations but i'll try not to get too much into that, so the tldr of it is just to bear in mind their dynamic and xiao hua's character in that are significantly different in some ways from how they are in the books. if you want a good drama portrayal of book xiao hua imo the best by far is lost tomb 2 xiao hua even if even he isn't 100% perfect either. anyway i'm getting off track 🏃‍♀️
since you mentioned book 7, it's worth mentioning for anyone unfamiliar with the books that canonically xiao hua shows up for the first time fairly late in the story at the start of chinese volume 7, more specifically the xinyue restaurant auction, while hei xiazi briefly features in chinese volumes 4 and 5 as part of wu sanxing's double agent team along with xiaoge, but by comparison you don't get much about him besides that he's mysterious and competent on a scale wu xie equates with xiaoge. wu xie and hei xiazi don't interact much, so he's pratically not there and leaves you wondering what relevance he has to the story, which is only ever answered come sha hai. and more importantly at that point, there's no established connection between him and xiao hua at all, which is the major difference with the drama adaptations, namely ultimate note. you do find out later, both in sha hai and a thousand faces, that they're at the very least acquainted with each other to some extent, but that's information you only get much later. so essentially any heihua content pre sha hai is necessarily canon divergence au, and yes that includes ultimate note
xiao hua as a character then. it's interesting to note that he's fascinating in how eeriely similar he ends up being to hei xiazi in some respects, namely in how they operate, which is why i feel they get along as well as they do, but let's look at him independently first because there's a lot to say about him.
keeping in mind that the books are all, exceptions aside, from wu xie's perspective, xiao hua isn't named until fairly late into book 7. they meet by chance as they cross paths in xinyue restaurant, but he doesn't introduce himself to wu xie who calls him Pink Shirt until you reach a much later portion of the book that's never been adapted simply because ultimate note changed the story too significantly by introducing him early to keep that entire bit, which is terrible in some ways because it's such a fun scene, but we'll get to that later. in the meantime, here's xiao hua's first appearence, which establishes through frequent paralleled behavior that the reader is meant to preceive some degree of similarity between wu xie and xiao hua as well, which i'll also get to later:
Just as I was about to speak, the man saw Poker-face behind me and his face instantly changed. I thought he knew Poker-Face, but when I was about to start asking questions, I saw a man come out from behind Poker-Face. He must have followed us in. The man was dressed in a black suit with a pink shirt underneath and no tie. He was very relaxed. The man went up immediately and asked, “Young Master, the usual?” The man didn’t speak, but looked at me and stopped. I suddenly felt that he was a little familiar. I lived in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, so I honestly didn’t have a lot of chances to meet acquaintances in Beijing. At this moment, my mind was stuck, and I couldn’t remember who this man was, but I smiled reflexively. The man had obviously stopped like me, and was looking at me with a very surprised and puzzled expression on his face before he also smiled. (...) The both of us smiled pervertedly at each other for a long time, but neither recognized the other. Honestly, when I looked at him, I felt as if I had seen him somewhere before. But on closer reflection, that was all it was. I simply felt that he was familiar. (...) The two of us shared a look, but we really couldn’t remember, and were both a little embarrassed. The old fellow with glasses was amused. These old Beijingers were slick and had seen all kinds of things. He gave us a roundabout: “Do the two young masters know each other? Let’s not stand here blocking the elevator door. When you meet someone you know, you’ll remember.” As he said this, he invited the other party in. Pink Shirt shook his head as if it was inconceivable, looked at me thoughtfully, and then turned and walked into the inner hall. He had only taken a few steps when he looked back at me again. — Daomu Biji Volume 7, ch. 6 'Auction' & 7 'Auction Part II'
much like hei xiazi, xiao hua is established as mysterious and somewhat unfathomable in a way that niggles at wu xie who can't remember why it is he recongnizes this man he to all intents and purposes should never have met given they don't run in the same circles and live in areas quite far apart. he takes note of how apparently disinterested he is when he notices that xiao hua is sitting across the iron triangle on the upper floor of the auction house, seemingly on his phone utterly bored out of his mind or acting like he's above what's happening really:
I looked carefully and saw Pink Shirt in a box on the left side opposite us. It seemed that he was alone and playing on his cell-phone. (...) Basically, it seemed like this was the only item being sold today, so all these people had come prepared to win. Thinking that, I looked at Pink Shirt, who wasn’t far away. He was no longer playing with his phone, but arrogantly sitting on a western-style sofa, and staring at the ceiling with his arms crossed. — Daomu Biji Volume 7, ch. 8 'Feast for Collectors', 9 'Memories Part I
but of course he's very much paying attention, as pangzi points out:
He took no notice at all, and simply wiped it with his hand and continued: “It’s time for a break, and when the second half comes, I bet another two million gets added. Goddamn it, this Fat Master has learned a lot today.” (...) He pointed to Pink Shirt again. “This guy is also very good. He’s been playing with his phone the whole time and hasn’t even raised his head. He rang the last bell just before the break. It seems he’s determined to win and doesn’t even want to compete. — Daomu Biji Volume 7, ch. 11 'Lighting the Sky Lantern'
and this is where we come back to how in some aspects he and hei xiazi are actually quite similar in their approach, in a way that's markedly different from how ultimate note sets out to contrast them almost glaringly. both he and xiao hua cultivate a persona of nonchalence with a devil may care attitude, but behind the false ease and approchability, there's a calculating and efficient mind aware of its surroundings at all times. in a similar way, very quickly you also realize that xiao hua, far from the prim and proper young master he's presented as in ultimate note, is quite literally just as unhinged.
from the moment xiaoge jumps into action to fight the restaurant security staff for the qilin seal, xiao hua jumps to fight him too, except contrary to ultimate note, this isn't in an effort to save face and throw huo xiangu off because he's working with wu xie, and again, he shows himself to be calculating and cautious:
Between one thought and the next, Poker-face flashed like lightning from my side and jumped straight down from the second-floor balcony. His behavior left me stunned, and screams could be heard everywhere. I saw him make it to the ground and turn over swiftly before I heard another round of exclamations. I turned to look and saw Pink Shirt had one hand holding the railing of the gallery, while the other hand was in his pocket. He also jumped down and landed in front of Poker-face. On the other side, Fatty gave a loud roar, grabbed a stool, kicked down the screen, and rushed at the hotel staff who rushed in. The scene was a complete mess. (...) A man who rushed up was knocked down by Poker-face, and Pink Shirt was protecting the front of the glass cabinet. The two men looked at each other but hadn't yet come to blows. — Daomu Biji Volume 7, ch. 11 'Lighting the Sky Lantern', 12 'Wreaking Havoc in Heaven'
until wu xie finally manages to get downstairs with pangzi, at which point he finds xiao hua, ass handed to him by xiaoge because it's xiaoge, but instead of angry or surprised or any number of appropriate reactions at being beaten up, the maniac is smiling gleefully. and wu xie understandably thinks it's really fcking weird:
When I came downstairs, the glass cabinet with the seal had been broken and the thing inside had been taken out. Poker-face was looking at the seal carefully and had no intention of leaving. Pink Shirt was getting up from the ground, clutching his neck and coughing. It appeared he had already been beaten once. When we walked past him, however, we saw him coughing, smiling, and looking at us as if he were very happy. I went up to the stage and told Poker- face to take the seal and get away quickly. As soon as I turned around, I saw Pink Shirt approach me and say, “Hey, Brother.” Fatty and I looked at him. Fatty lifted the table and Pink Shirt immediately waved, “Wait, wait!” He took a business card from his pocket, handed it to us, and pointed to the imperial seal. “I won’t stop you. Here’s my contact information. When you want to sell the stolen goods, call me.” Damn it, I said to myself, definitely not a serious person. Fatty actually went up and took the business card, and Pink Shirt made a gesture of invitation. I was so anxious that I pushed them aside and rushed out. — Daomu Biji Volume 7, ch. 13 'Huo Xiuxiu'
it's at this point we also get introduced to huo xiuxiu (best girl who i could also talk tbh) who's also an absolute gremlin who teams up with xiao hua partly at huo xiangu's behest to test the iron triangle. which is where get into the entire portion of book that couldn't be adapted, and is the part the ultimate note actually changed significantly, because the iron triangle aren't on the run from huo xiangu, she's the one sheltering them. and so xiao hua's real introduction comes in the form of an elaborate scheme between him, huo xiuxiu, and huo xiangu wherein he disguises himself as huo xiuxiu thanks to the bone-shrinking technique, so successfully even xiaoge doesn't detect it until all three of them clue into something being very wrong, at which point he attacks them, gets his ass handed to him by xiaoge again, and once again finds it hilarious and the challenge has made him want xiaoge around clearly:
He staggered but didn’t fall to the ground. At the same time, I suddenly saw him pull a strange dagger from his sleeve, which seemed to be an antique. Holding it in a reverse grip, he rushed towards Poker-face. I immediately shouted “Be careful!” only to see that Poker-face was no longer in his original position. At the same time, a lightning-quick shadow flashed through the air and instantly knocked the man out with his knee. (...) I knew that the real malicious one was this guy, so I didn’t feel an ounce of pity for him as I helped Poker-face subdue him first. When “Xiuxiu” got up from the ground, his whole body suddenly stretched out in a strange posture. He suddenly got bigger, his shoulders widened, his height increased, and the mask was torn from his face. When I looked at him, I immediately recognized Pink Shirt. He was gasping as he laughed: “It hurts way more getting hit when shrunk to that size. No joke.” (...) Pink Shirt rubbed his joints, smiled, and then came up to me and patted me on the shoulder. He turned and nodded to Granny Huo: “Yes, you have a good eye.” Then he pointed to Poker-face and said, “This guy belongs to me." — Daomu Biji Volume 7, ch. 30 'Get Down to Business'
so essentially, all this was a very long-winded way of showing that xiao hua, before we even know his name and identity, is established as unpredictable, ruthless, calculating, faux insouciant, and a particular flavor of playful that wu xie clearly finds unhinged and is extremely put off by for a hot minute, mostly because he's not aware (not is the reader at this point) that xiao hua's entire life has forged him into finding amusement and challenge in unorthodox things.
in the same way, it's directly because of this that contrary to ultimate note (and even any of the other early dramas like lost tomb 2) he's also absolutely not immediately ride or die for wu xie despite knowing very well they're childhood friends. he abandons wu xie, who as per his assessment was in all likelihood dead or dying, to secure his own escape before coming back to find him, which is the point where wu xie finally realizes the single greatest point of divergence between them. up until then, both wu xie and the narrative make a point of establishing parallels between wu xie and xiao hua, and here finally, what divides them is made clear, and the narrative establishes them as two sides of the same coin separated by this one split in personal code of ethics:
He apparently didn’t rush to check on my situation after I fell into a coma, but continued to climb inside instead. He reached the end of the crevice, completed his task, and then came out to see if I was dead or not. I couldn’t help but feel a little upset. I didn’t know whether this could be considered a ruthless or firm mentality, but he obviously didn’t feel burdened by it. I had finally found a difference between the two of us. But since I didn’t have the physical strength and didn’t want to break our tacit understanding, I didn’t bother expressing this emotion. I knew that when it came to this industry, the habit of desperately rescuing your companions didn’t exist. There seemed to be a kind of prior agreement where two people decided to save themselves if both parties were in danger. It was actually very fair if you thought about it. It was true that Xiao Hua was uncertain about my situation at the time, and even I would hesitate to go back and rescue someone if I were him. I couldn’t help thinking of Fatty and Poker-face again. If they were here, the black-haired corpse would’ve had his head cut off before he could scratch my back. Or I would have seen Fatty rush out from those pottery jars and screw everything up. But I would have been saved. At that moment, I felt an extreme sense of insecurity, more than I had felt before. Although we were three people now, I was really only responsible for myself. It was a very disconcerting thought. At the same time, I suddenly understood why Xiao Hua hadn’t been grateful but angry at me for going into the cave to save him. He was used to solving his problems by himself. Before he did these kinds of things, he had already accepted that there wouldn’t be any backup or help. He wouldn’t blame anyone for his own death, nor would he blame himself for others’ death. Was this the Mystic Nine’s mindset? I felt a chill in my heart. — Daomu Biji Volume 7, ch. 53 'Snake Bite'
and to be clear, this doesn't mean xiao hua is a bad person, nor does the narrative present him as one. it's simply the point where both wu xie and xiao hua diverge clearly when up until then they'd been presented as eerily paralleled. the difference between lies in where this mentality and stance is one that will eventually cause wu xie much grief and trauma when he's forced to adopt it during sha hai, it's simply one that xiao hua adopted too long ago to function without, and has stopped dwelling on if he ever did. similarly, xiao hua takes even longer to finally look at wu xie and see his use and welcome his presence genuinely, where before he'd still been cultivating the same easily approchable persona, though wu xie poked several holes into it before then:
Xiao Hua gave me a meaningful smile, “I found another reason why Granny Huo asked me to bring you. To some extent, you’re also a knowledgeable little shit.” I grinned, thinking that these words made it sound like he didn’t want me to be here before. — Daomu Biji Volume 7, ch. 55 'Unlock the Password'
from there, once xiao hua begins to truly open up to wu xie as a friend rather than a burden he's been forced into babysitting, he very quickly picks up on their similarities and what divides them as well, and in a show of almost uncharacteristic mercy, tries to spare wu xie from the ruthlessness he's accustomed to adopting to an extent when wu xie is forced to impersonate wu sanxing and confront just how ugly and lawless the underground business is. it's why this particular scene with panzi is incredibly touching in that despite confronting him with the responsability behind his choices, he spares wu xie from having to have literal blood on his hands, and in that way spares the version of himself he could have been had life not twisted him the way it has:
“Tonight is the key,” Xiao Hua said. “We just need a person to ‘cash’ in on our ‘achievement.’ Pan Zi has to come forward to determine how many people are on our side. Then, Wang Ba Qiu and Lao Liu will be eliminated later tonight.” I was completely shocked, “What do you mean?” “Never put something off until tomorrow. This is Master Three’s rule and Wang Ba Qiu knows it very well. He won’t wait for death.” As Xiao Hua spoke, he looked up at the sky. “It’s going to rain blood tonight.” I gave him a surprised look, “You can say such terrible words without batting an eye. How do you do it?” Xiao Hua smiled, “My grandfather said that sentence, and my mother relayed it to me. I was only seventeen when I heard those words.” As he said this, he sighed, “Stress is the kind of thing that when you talk about it, it’s gone.” I frowned and felt a sudden burst of fear in my heart. I never thought this kind of thing would happen again. “Must it happen like this?” I asked him. “Why don’t we call the police anonymously and have them kill him?” “Mr. Naïve is a fitting nickname,” Xiao Hua said. “If I were your Uncle Three, I might have found a way to keep you naïve, but I’m not. Little Master Three, let’s face reality. This was your choice.” I was silent as I looked at Changsha passing by outside the car window. I remembered that Pan Zi had said something similar to me before. Indeed, this was my choice. (...) While we ate, I asked Xiao Hua when the evening’s events would begin. He merely smiled without saying a word and kept making me drink. It was a kind of wine I couldn’t identify by taste, but I suspected it was mung bean roast, which was the kind of beverage grave robbers used to drink. Not only did it have some crystallized sugar and medicinal ingredients in it, but it had a spicy flavor and tasted like mung bean soup. After only a few drinks, I got drunk without warning and didn’t even notice when I became muddle-headed.  When I woke up, it was already the next morning. Xiao Hua and Pan Zi were lying on the sofa in my room, both covered in blood and sleeping soundly. I looked out the window at the bright sunshine and knew that everything was over. — Daomu Biji Volume 8 Part I, ch. 10 'End of the Act'
looking at all this (and this is is my purely my own opinion, so take it with a grain of salt), my main issue with ultimate note xiao hua (and heihua by extension which i'll get into briefly) is that he's not only in some aspects a little to a lot OOC, he's mostly a lot more one-dimensional where book xiao hua is anything but
as far as heihua as a ship goes, they don't actually interact much if at all until much later in canon, even if you interestingly discover in sha hai that it's implied that hei xiazi is working with wu xie on the sha hai project at xiao hua's behest, and that much of his trust in wu xie and his plan stems from xiao hua's trust in wu xie:
It was really a heavy loss. Why did he encounter such tragic consequences every time he tried to emulate Lei Feng67 and do good deeds, while doing unethical things often made him a lot more money? Was he being cheated by partnering up with Xie Yuchen and Wu Xie? He found it very interesting. He seldom completely ignored the details and promised others he’d do something. If he was part of a certain plan, then he had to know every aspect very well— not only his part but the others’ parts as well This was the only time he was doing something he knew almost nothing about, and the only reason was: “You just have to trust him.” He hoped doing this wasn’t a stupid decision. If this thing failed, then he would blacken the Wu family’s and Xie Yuchen’s credit himself. — Sand Sea Part III, ch. 117 'Fleeing Cockroaches'
there's also a fun bit in part I where hei xiazi, before disappearing to retrieve wu xie and wang meng from beneath the sand in gutongjing, leaves li cu with a backpack and a phone with one number he tells him to call for help, and once li cu actually calls it, you understand it's xiao hua on the other end who's entirely nonchalent about it:
Li Cu trembled as he picked up the phone, pressed the call button on reflex, and put it by his ear. After a while, he heard a voice from the other side say: “Who is it? Who called me just now?” “Well…I’m a messenger.” Li Cu said incoherently. “Someone asked me to give you a message.” He thought that after hearing this, the other party would reply to him and say “talk” or “wait a minute, I’ll find a quiet place” in a very low, solemn voice, but the other party said indifferently: “I’m a little busy now, can you call me back in thirty minutes?” Li Cu paused for a moment and thought, you’re even giving me orders now, before he said, “But this message is very important.” “My business is also quite important. If he’s really in such a hurry, why not come to me instead of asking you to call and give me a message?” The other party continued, “I’ll talk to you in thirty minutes. It’s okay if you don’t call.” At this point, the man hung up. — Sand Sea Part I, ch. 40 'Unique Number'
and it's arguable that much of the vagueness stems from the very real necessity of secrecy that the whole sha hai plan demands, but while much of this reads as "oh? he's inconvenienced? that's too bad, also i'm busy at the moment please call back at a better time", given how his character has been established before, it's safe to say this isn't the genuine annoyance and exasperation you get from him in ultimate note wherever hei xiazi is concerned, he's far too enticed by chaos as a form of vaguely perverse amusement. it reads far more (again in my opinion) as how much of heihua's dynamic that i've seen play out in the books goes, that is to say them prodding at each other in a giant mutual game of chicken where they're both grinning inwardly or outwardly like the gremlin trashmen they are
the entire premise of restart part 2 is the iron triangle and the baby triangle needling xiao hua into gossiping about hei xiazi because he's late to their get together, to which he happily complies because oh boy that's this week's chance at getting a tally on the prod sheet.
i'm not entirely sure this is coherent or at all what you were looking for, and is definitely way too long woops, but uh. that's my xiao hua/heihua word vomit? i guess? book xiao hua and/or heihua enthusiasts are very welcome to add onto or debate any of this, i leave the rest to the real experts 😂
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