Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms 三生三世十里桃花 - Episode 8 (Recap)
kakashi: There's a time jump in this episode. Only of 70'000 years, mind you. Oh, 70'000? Shit. That number rings a bell...
JoAnne: Ha. I see what you did there.
So IS he Mo Yuan V2 or not? If he is, what's going to happen to that body in the mountains? Well, now in the fox den?
Grandpa gives him the name Ye Hua and declares him heir to the throne (wait a minute, what about his father?). Su Jin, who apparently is 20'000 years old now, is tasked by Ye Hua's mother with taking "good care" of the little boy.
So when she was 500 years old Heavenly Father told her foster parents to go to Kunlun mountain, which they did seemingly right away, and then they came back pretty quickly and after a few days Mom spent 7 days in labor and now suddenly Su Jin is 19'500 years older?
Oh, here comes another new character. She is a white snake spirit named Shao Xin, currently "trespassing" into Zhe Yan's Ten-mile Peach Tree Woods. The thing is, she has a token with her - the white jade bottle that Si Yin/Bai Qian loves to drink from - and she is looking for Bai Zhen (4th Bro). Si Yin saved her from some ruffians in the forest and then sent the poor parentless creature to her brother.
She's very, very pretty.
Bai Zhen is suuuper uncomfortable about this "present", but he has a good heart and decides he will take her to the "Fox Den". That's ... his father's palace, ahahaha. He tells the little snake that she can stay with his mother. Fox nobility is AWESOME. At the Fox Den, there is another servant and housekeeper called Mi Gu. He's a tree spirit. We hear of the plans to leave the Fox Den to Bai Qian when she comes back - mother and father plan to move out. Haha, I think they're done with being King and Queen. As I said, awesome! And awwww, the little snake spirit looks shyly at Bai Zhen ... haha, no, this guy is not ready for any girlfriends, he only wants to go back to the Peach Blossom hide-out.
Mi Gu is adorable, isn't he? And yes, I too noticed that there was a bit of chemistry between Bai Zhen and the snake spirit girl, but he's nobility and she's not so that won't work, right?
I get the feeling that he thinks all girls are a nuisance except for his awesome sister.
Not much later, his and Zhe Yan's peaceful lives are disturbed again, this time by Senior Disciple! They're all looking frantically for Si Yin and Mo Yuan's corpse. Luckily, her family finds her in that Fox cave before it's too late. She's barely breathing.
Well, maybe that's supposed to happen. Maybe her spirit gets reborn too and that's how they find each other again.
Only cross-essence repair can save her, Zhe Yan knows. More than half of somebody's essence needs to be given away! And it's really dangerous. They all volunteer to do it and argue back and forth, but in the end, it's her mother who saves her, after her father successfully gets Divine Fungal Grass, which is guarded by dangerous beasts, from some remote area. Yes, they need it to protect the "magic breath" of the one who gives the essence. Totally weird? Yes, it is, but it's important for later.
Why can't they just call it a mushroom? It's a mushroom.
Yes, a magic mushroom.
I feel like magic mushrooms probably explain a lot of Chinese fantasy.
Up in the Heavens, Dong Hua Dijun is still contemplating teacups while the Heavenly Lord stresses over the kidnapping of Mo Yuan's corpse. Ah, but Dijun has a solution, like so often. Why don't they just write the following into the historical records: "Heavenly Father's son Mo Yuan and his seventeenth disciple Si Yin have gone to live in seclusion. They quietly disappeared and are untraceable." So be it.
Dijun the Spin Doctor. I dig it.
70'000 years later
70'000 years later, Mo Yuan is still as beautiful as ever and Bai Qian is more beautiful than ever. She tells his motionless body that it is seven days before Qing Cang, the former Ghost Lord, will break the seal and comes out from the bell. WHAT?! But not to worry - she will do everything in her power to seal him back in.
Girl, you better.
Bai Qian is the Fox Queen, much revered by her subjects. She lives in the Fox Den with the two servants, the tree spirit Mi Gu and the snake spirit Shao Xin. There is only one problem: the 2nd son of the Heavenly Lord Sang Ji has come to the Fox Den and Bai Qian has absolutely no interest in seeing him. Yes, Daddy King up in Heaven is now really serious about this marriage alliance between the Fox Tribe and his Dragon Tribe - as we have heard before, many clans oppose him.
Like that's ever going to happen.
But, problematic: 2nd Prince Sang Ji falls madly in love with Shao Xin, the little snake (whom Bai Qian gave the Cloud Clearing Fan to! they made up a whole story how that artifact got to Bai Qian in the first place, since Si Yin has disappeared without a trace), while he waits for Bai Qian at her Fox Den for a whole month (who went to the Peach Blossom grove to avoid him). So much that he takes her up to the Nine Heavens with him. He wants to marry her.
Okay, but a month is like, an eye-blink for them. It's nothing. Less than nothing. And how do we feel about Shao Xin in this matter? It's not quite Xuan Nu-level betrayal, and the fact is that Bai Qian has NO interest in this guy anyway, but still, somehow, it doesn't sit well. Not least because of those eyes she made at 4th Brother a while back. Does she just glom onto ANY guy she thinks will be good for her?
It did rub me the wrong way too, but I think she's sincere. She is very much in love. But she's also very naive and maybe a bit dumb.
When Sang Ji enters the heavenly palace, he bumps into his nephew ... Crown Prince Ye Hua, now a full-grown man of 70'000 years (and the spitting image of Mo Yuan). Well, I assume they're fully grown at this age? Very clearly, Ye Hua notices something strange about his second uncle.
And I quietly mourn the loss of facial hair.
His looks will grow on you, I promise.
A bit later, he talks to his third uncle (Lian Song) about the Scarlet Flame Golden Tiger (later, subs calls it a Lion) that is devastating Zhong Rong State. Oh! It's Qing Cang's beast! After 70'000 years, it suddenly made an appearance again at Mount Junji of the Far East (oh, that's a mountain the Kunlun students wanted to go to together ... *sigh*). It did horrible things, among others rape the Empress there, which made the Emperor kill himself.
I wonder if a Lion Baby is going to appear at some point, then.
3rd Uncle is a bit surprised Ye Hua would want to discuss this with him (since he usually doesn't talk to him much) ... is there something else? Yes, says Ye Hua. 2nd Uncle is back - way too early, he should have stayed with his betrothed for at least three months. He doesn't know what happened between him and Bai Qian, says Ye Hua, but his uncle did bring a snake spirit with him into the Heavens. "A lady", he adds. "Oh no", says 3rd Uncle. It is clear to the two men that Sang Ji secretly brought his fiancee's servant back with him - and that this will be a major problem.
Maybe part of the reason I don't trust her is that snakes are typically portrayed as untrustworthy?
I buy Sang Ji's feelings but I'm on the fence about her.
The real crisis we're facing though is the Bell! The Bell-seal will break! It's good Mo Yuan told Si Yin, but is she the only one who knows?! I don't know, missy, but it took your extremely powerful master's life to seal the Ghost King in, do you really think you can do it alone?! It's also intriguing that that Golden Beast made a reappearance ... does it probably know his master will soon be up and about again?
I'm guessing yes? Also, here's what I wonder: when Ghost Dad comes back, what happens to Li Jing as the current Ghost King? Do you really think Dad's going to just sit around drinking fruity drinks and maybe taking up golf in his retirement?
Last, not least: the Fox family. I can't say it often enough, they are all so awesome. A loving, supporting family.
Yeah, they're pretty cool.
JoAnne: Ha. I see what you did there.
Episode 8
It's a very happy occasion! A baby is born up in the Heavens! But it's a strange baby. It spent almost no time in the womb. Yang Cuo (the father and in case you're not that good with names, the Heavenly Lord's first son) thinks it must be the blessing of the Golden Lotus. It's a very hard birth, but finally, a new prince is announced! Golden light shimmers above the palace and outside, colorful birds gather. It was the same when Mo Yuan was born.So IS he Mo Yuan V2 or not? If he is, what's going to happen to that body in the mountains? Well, now in the fox den?
So when she was 500 years old Heavenly Father told her foster parents to go to Kunlun mountain, which they did seemingly right away, and then they came back pretty quickly and after a few days Mom spent 7 days in labor and now suddenly Su Jin is 19'500 years older?
She's very, very pretty.
Mi Gu is adorable, isn't he? And yes, I too noticed that there was a bit of chemistry between Bai Zhen and the snake spirit girl, but he's nobility and she's not so that won't work, right?
I get the feeling that he thinks all girls are a nuisance except for his awesome sister.
Well, maybe that's supposed to happen. Maybe her spirit gets reborn too and that's how they find each other again.
Why can't they just call it a mushroom? It's a mushroom.
Yes, a magic mushroom.
I feel like magic mushrooms probably explain a lot of Chinese fantasy.
So, mommy gives Bai Qian half of her essence and because mommy is more powerful than her daughter, Bai Qian (I will now call her that because she's back to being a woman!) now has more power than she had before. Also, this mother does not scold her daughter for one second, not even about the fact that it's her blood only that needs to be given to Mo Yuan from now on. No, this mother thinks it's only right her daughter pays this man back for what he did for her during her ascension.
She's a good mom.
At Kunlun, Senior Disciple dissolves the school. Si Yin is gone and so is their Master ... there is no point in staying. He vows he will find them if he has to search his whole life. They put Mo Yuan's sword into a wooden box and then leave. I think this is the saddest moment of the whole drama so far...
All those rooms emptying out and darkening, doors slowly closing... it was very sad, indeed. One of the schools I attended burned down last month, so I felt their loss personally.
Li Jing also tries to see Si Yin (he wants to give her the Soul Jade now!) and even comes to Kunlun, but they chase him away. The look on his face when he realizes she is gone, maybe forever...
It makes no practical difference for him but I got what he was feeling. It's one thing to lose someone, but know where they are and be able to picture them and even have some idea of what's happening with them. It's a comfort, in a way. They aren't really gone from you if you can 'see' them in your mind. But if she's gone who knows where, she's really gone from him. He can't place her, he has no knowledge of her life or whether she even lives or dies. It's a loss all over again.
Dijun the Spin Doctor. I dig it.
70'000 years later
70'000 years later, Mo Yuan is still as beautiful as ever and Bai Qian is more beautiful than ever. She tells his motionless body that it is seven days before Qing Cang, the former Ghost Lord, will break the seal and comes out from the bell. WHAT?! But not to worry - she will do everything in her power to seal him back in.
Girl, you better.
Like that's ever going to happen.
Okay, but a month is like, an eye-blink for them. It's nothing. Less than nothing. And how do we feel about Shao Xin in this matter? It's not quite Xuan Nu-level betrayal, and the fact is that Bai Qian has NO interest in this guy anyway, but still, somehow, it doesn't sit well. Not least because of those eyes she made at 4th Brother a while back. Does she just glom onto ANY guy she thinks will be good for her?
It did rub me the wrong way too, but I think she's sincere. She is very much in love. But she's also very naive and maybe a bit dumb.
And I quietly mourn the loss of facial hair.
His looks will grow on you, I promise.
I wonder if a Lion Baby is going to appear at some point, then.
Maybe part of the reason I don't trust her is that snakes are typically portrayed as untrustworthy?
Comments
Ohhhhhh, intriguing. We only got a glimpse of the Crown Prince, but he strikes me as extremely stiff (way more stiff than Mo Yuan, and he already was quite stiff) and maybe a bit of an ass. What Sang Ji did is certainly very improper and I'm thrilled to learn what will happen. Because they did nothing during the War, I despise those princes, but I will give them another chance. Sang Ji seems truly in love (and so does she) and gossipy 3rd uncle seems fun.I buy Sang Ji's feelings but I'm on the fence about her.
The real crisis we're facing though is the Bell! The Bell-seal will break! It's good Mo Yuan told Si Yin, but is she the only one who knows?! I don't know, missy, but it took your extremely powerful master's life to seal the Ghost King in, do you really think you can do it alone?! It's also intriguing that that Golden Beast made a reappearance ... does it probably know his master will soon be up and about again?
I'm guessing yes? Also, here's what I wonder: when Ghost Dad comes back, what happens to Li Jing as the current Ghost King? Do you really think Dad's going to just sit around drinking fruity drinks and maybe taking up golf in his retirement?
Last, not least: the Fox family. I can't say it often enough, they are all so awesome. A loving, supporting family.
Yeah, they're pretty cool.