wowza

~spoilers for volume 1 & 2 ahead~

(tw for suicidal themes)

-

The very first scene audiences meet Ji Mu is through a memory and i believe this is the first and last time we probably ever see a realistic portrayal of who he was (foreshadowing). He is protecting lanzhou, he is cracking jokes and he is extremely honorable and brave (a wwx from mdzs variant tbh)

HOWEVER. as time goes on and lanzhou continues to be plagued by nightmares from the chashi sinkhole, it is EXTREMELY interesting how Ji Mu’s death warps in Lanzhous mind— take for example these two scenes:

“ ‘Your brother is invincible.’ Ji Mu’s tears struggled to squeeze out a smile, but tears were streaming down his face and his voice hitched as he continued, ‘I’m an impregnable fortress!’” (v.1 p.15)

“A hand reached out from the roiling waves of withered bones. Jerking like a puppet on a string. Ji Mu lifted his arrow-pierced body and sobbed as he called out to Shen Zechuan, ‘It hurts so much…’” (v.1 p.339)

It is critical to note that in the first quote it can be inferred that the Chashi Sinkhole must have happened mere days before and despite the torture, Lanzhou still has a clear recollection of it and thus Ji Mu’s character. The second quote however takes place six years afterwards!!! While it could be argued that it is just a generic nightmare sequence, i just don’t think TJQ is that kind of writer! every scene she includes in her story typically has a narrative purpose and here i would argue she is showing that Lanzhou has begun to forget Ji Mu ( Just look at the personality shift! )

perhaps forget is not the right word, but he is definitely beginning to have a warped perception which fuels his INTENSE survival guilt and acts as a way for Lanzhou to punish himself

During their conversation, Grand Master Qi touches upon this a little in relation to Jiming and Chiye: “their brotherly bond should’ve been one you understand best, yet somehow it has become the one you understand least” (v.2 p.18)

This could be single handedly attributed to this warped narrative and it’s extremely important to note what Lanzhou DOES remember going forward in the narrative. EVEN LANZHOU CONFIRMS THIS SAYING: “He couldn’t even remember Ji Mu’s face as he laughed. He had tumbled into a nightmare, tormenting himself every second of every day. Ji Mu was dead. Why hadn’t he died instead?” (v.2p.19)

Laughter is an extremely powerful tool used in this sentence. From the short scene we get, we know that Ji Mu was probably laughing all the time. So it packs a HIT to know that something that was ESSENTIAL to who his brother was…is something Lanzhou can’t recall anymore.

TJQ DOES NOT STOP THERE! because IMMEDIATELY after that, we see exactly WHY this is happening. Ofc over time memories begin to fade, but here it’s specifically juxtaposed how Lanzhou has been tormenting himself, Ji Mu is dead and therefore Lanzhou believes he should’ve to. And as long as Lanzhou carries around this guilt— Ji Mu’s memory will continue to fade, warp and haunt him. His brother now acts as the driving force behind his revenge, or rather the ghost of him does.

audio from @/ high5ifyourestillalive on tiktok!

~~~