Hello There.

Kindness could not erase Luo Binghe’s abuse, but it changed the story into a kinder one.

Kindness did not stop Wei Wuxian’s death, but it did save a-Yuan.

Kindness did not undo Xie Lian’s suffering, but it renewed his sincerity to help others.

Kindness did not change the entire world, but it helped create a softer future.

So, uh, I don’t know if someone else has already pointed this out but… the ending of “The Untamed” isn’t really that ambiguous. Wei Ying and Lan Zhan get together after the end. That’s kind of the point of writing it the way they did.

The name of the song Lan Zhan composed is symbolic of Lan Zhan’s romantic feelings for Wei Ying. Even on a literal, in-universe level, the name is clearly very revealing since Lan Zhan repeatedly refuses to reveal it and gets antsy when Wei Ying tries to come up with his own name for it. Ergo, Lan Zhan telling Wei Ying the name of the song is Lan Zhan confessing his deepest feelings both literally and figuratively. 

In other words, “Lan Zhan, next time we meet you must have [thought of] the name of this song” effectively means “Lan Zhan, next time we meet you must tell me your feelings,” and “I have long since thought of it” means “I have long since known I was in love with you.”

This is why there’s no big emotional moment in the temple. Why there is no “platonic equivalent” to the book’s romantic confession. This is why there’s no complete emotional resolution. Why Wei Ying is clueless to the end. Why there has to be a temporary separation. Why there’s an “open” ending. Why we don’t see Lan Zhan at the very end. You can’t have a romantic resolution if you’ve already had an emotional resolution. You have to leave space for it.

There’s a real romantic confession when they reunite. That’s the point of the song. Seeing Lan Zhan is seeing his answer. Seeing Lan Zhan is seeing his confession. Seeing Lan Zhan is seeing the romantic resolution. Since we have to deal with censors, we can’t see Lan Zhan. But Wei Ying can.

mercats, mermcats, catfish?