róngyào

Back in 2019 DD was in a skateboarding reality show called One More Try (anyone wanting to watch it can check out the fansub here. Fellow Yuehua talent Cheng Xiao was also in the show*.

*For years Yuehua seemed to be trying to get some CP marketing hype going between them, so they were frequently put together in various variety shows and performances.

Translation credit: YiboSubs

At one point in the show DD's team was given a challenge to princess carry someone from the other team and everyone decided that it would be DD princess carrying CX.

When he sneaked up behind her and tried to lift her he was incapable of doing so (and famously put his foot in his mouth by saying that she was 'too heavy to lift'). 😅

There was a lot of online hype about that moment in the show when it aired, and hotsearches trending about DD and CX.

In the midst of the online fervor, GG shared a selfie where he's holding some orange juice with the caption, "没有藕，有橙也行呀" ("No lotus root? Orange will do too.")

Some turtles interpreted "没有藕" to sound like, "没有偶" or, "My partner isn't here," which is a reference to a homophone that appeared in a famous historical couplet that is deeply associated with marriage, "因荷而得藕 - 有杏不须梅" or "Because of the lotus, we obtain the lotus root. Having apricots, there is no need for plums." The hidden pun in the couplet is, "By what fortune did I obtain a spouse? Being so lucky, there is no need for a matchmaker."

It's based on a historical tale:

During the Ming Dynasty, a young prodigy named Cheng Minzheng scored incredibly high on the imperial exams. A high-ranking minister named Li Xian wanted the young man to marry his beautiful daughter. During dinner, the minister pointed to a plate of lotus roots and tested the young man with the first line: "Because of the lotus, we obtain the lotus root" (secretly asking, "Would you like to be my daughter's spouse?") Cheng Minzheng looked at a plate of candied apricots on the table and instantly replied: "Having apricots, there is no need for plums" (secretly saying, "I am so lucky, we don't even need a matchmaker!") The minister was so delighted by his wit that the wedding was immediately arranged.

So the idea is that GG might have been making a direct reference to that couplet, and saying, "Ah, when your spouse isn't by your side, CX will do!"

There was also a more direct interpretation that GG was saying, "If I'm not there, CX will do," given that the character 藕 is sometimes used in a slang/cute internet sort of way to refer to oneself, and the 橙 character is a direct homophone to CX's surname, the caption could be read as, "Without me, CX will do!"

In other words, GG's words were interpreted by BXG as a playful, witty joke about DD replacing GG with CX when he's not around. This is the sort of clever wordplay GG is often known for.

Not long afterward DD shared a photo of LWJ kneeling in punishment with the caption "谱一曲望尽前尘往事，走一遭孤绝无悔路！#蓝忘机雪中下跪 #蓝忘机领罚" or, "Composing a melody to look back on all past memories, walking a lonely path of isolation with absolutely no regrets! #Lan Wangji Kneels In The Snow #Lan Wangji Takes Punishment"

Which BXG took to mean DD was swearing to the path of 'isolation' - being true to GG - and accepting punishment for his perceived crime of being associated with CX.

There was a big reaction from a lot of people online. The context made it hard to imagine GG's post not being directly about the moment from the show that was trending online. The reference to her name (as a direct homophone) seemed so blatant that a lot of people were shocked. When DD responded the way he did, it was taken as a confirmation of GG's intent, and DD playfully showing penitence.

No doubt some new turtles were hatched at that point. 😅

Some turtles read this as being a jealous moment where GG was very angry and DD basically publicly apologized. I completely disagree with this interpretation, but everybody's free to their own reaction.

To me it's clear that GG and DD are both joking around. As with the Jealousy in 3 Languages clip, it's just an ongoing banter between them that is good-humored in nature. No doubt GG had the idea of this witty pun and decided to joke around with DD, and DD played along.

If there was any genuine jealousy there I do not see GG airing it publicly, especially not by turning it into a joke. I do not think there's any planet on which GG would do that. If he was genuinely angry he would be much more likely to go cold and hold DD to account privately.

I also don't see him being jealous of CX. She and DD are friends, and he's never shown any romantic interest in her. They have a very sibling-like relationship. GG knows DD well enough not to feel threatened by something as silly as that.

And GG has too much self-respect and restraint to air genuine grievances publicly like that. It just would never happen.

If anything, the fact that GG joked about it publicly is proof to me that there was nothing between DD and CX, and proof that GG didn't feel threatened by their association.

Jealousy is not cute. It is very toxic and dangerous. It's endlessly annoying to me that people in fandom try to frame everything as jealousy and think that it's cute, and a candy. That kind of social perception is harmful, in my opinion.

More about that here.

But of course, people are free to their own interpretations.