#blnovel

op’s note: oh boy this is going to be a long post I am sorry in advance. If you read the whole thing good for you <3. seriously this isn’t even all... I could probably do a presentation about this book.

I. GENERAL OVERVIEW

CHINESE NAME: 二哈和他的白猫师尊 by 肉包不吃肉

GENRE: Chinese XianXia BL Novel 

LENGTH: 311 Chapters + 6 Extras (with multiple chapters)

MAIN COUPLE: Mo Ran and Chu Wanning. 

MY VERSION OF A SUMMARY: Scum tyrannical dictator of the cultivation world, Mo Ran, ends his life bitterly after the death of his teacher, Chu Wanning, and everyone he held dear, only to wake up in is 16-year old body. Meeting his teacher again, as he unravels everything that went wrong in his past life and the misconceptions he had on the people around him (and how they actually protected him), he struggles to come to terms with his sins of the past that stain his hands. As such, he relives his new life and attempts to repent by ‘fixing’ his wrong doings and living honestly. But unfortunately, the stains of blood from the past are bone deep, and catch up eventually.

TW+Spoilers: If you do want to read the text please look at the trigger warnings prior. It is very intense and has multiple horror and suspense elements to it. It is quite a graphic novel Also spoiler warning I talk briefly about the progression of the plot. It is also technically a student/teacher love story if that makes you uncomfortable but the actual relationship starts much later. 

II.  CATEGORICAL RANKING & BREAKDOWN

1. CHARACTERIZATION ~ Rated 1000/10

I am literally in love with all the characters. I won’t be able to talk about them all but I just know Meatbun really took the time to make every single character 3D, with different background contexts and distinct, realistic motivations. All with their own struggles and tragedies. 

This 100000% applies to the two main characters as well. Mo Ran and Chu Wanning both have an incredibly heavily tragic past, and everything that has happened to them bleeds into their personalities in the present. They are both so deeply flawed, but acknowledge that. The character development each of them, but especially Mo Ran underwent throughout the story is written so naturally. Moran starts off as the main scum, the ‘villain’ in the reader’s pov,  but by the end of the book, you realize he is one of the biggest victims of the whole book. Purity corrupted by the schemes of people. Just another powerful chess piece on a board controlled by people blinded by their own goals. 

The book really plays with the idea that first impressions are usually a mask for much more deep and complex thoughts. It explores morality, as all the characters have their own actions that aren’t necessarily in the ‘right’, but it is up to each person and society to determine whether they are right or wrong, and sometimes this requires a full picture (which isn’t always shown). I felt that each character’s actions were all justified in terms of their motivations and personalities. Even the main ‘villains’ actions came from a set of circumstances and struggle in their life that led to this change. It played into the idea that ‘no one is born evil’, and that they believe in their own actions due to their environment. But even (SPOILER) Hua Binan had regrets and reflected on his actions. Even more hated characters like Rong Jiu and Nangong Liu felt ‘justified’ to me, as people with personalities adapted from their circumstances. The purest character, tiny child Xue Meng, is actually the one who suffers and is wronged the most - forced to grow up and adapt due to his circumstances changing within the events of the book. 

I can’t move on from this rant without talk about the development of the relationship between Mo Ran and Chu Wanning. Their fates have been tangled between two lifetimes and to see them go from intense misunderstandings and hatred to the purest form of love was so gut-wrenchingly sweet. Power couple to the max, I love them very much. Oh to be that in love with a person you would go to hell to save their soul. 

2. PLOT ~ Rated 10/10

The plot is GENIUS. It’s the type of book that always keeps you guessing; where there are small, scattered pieces of information fed to you, creating an intricate spider web that is only fully revealed in the final arc. Every flashback, every character no matter how insignificant is somehow tied to this string that is the greater plot. This leads to some EARTH-SHATTERING plot twists that made me literally put the book down and scream. Genuinely, there was one point around chapter 243 where I had to stop reading for a few days to DIGEST the twist that had just taken place. Instant headache and how completely unexpected it was. But no matter how insane each revelation one, they all logically made sense within the progression of the book. Meatbun is a master of this, and she somehow manages to build the puzzle that is the plot from many different points within the picture, and only when these parts are finally connected by these revelations the reader finally understands the full picture. I think that analogy is the best way I could possibly describe it. 

Another thing to point out about the plot that I personally found very interesting is it involves two timelines; the past life and the present (both of which intersect and become tangled together (oop spoiler) by the end of the book. But, at every single point in the book I was never confused between the two. While the book is incredibly long, the pacing is great.

MY FAVORITE ASPECT OF THE NOVEL: The most masterful part is that Meatbun is able to utilize very small, subtle moments of intimacy and embed very deep emotions into that one action. There were many times where she was able to use an ‘action of little significance’ to truly showcase the layers of emotions between the two main characters especially. It lead to a lot of tears being shed, and a lot of very touching moments. Spoilers ahead but some of the most impactful ones for me: The pear blossom wine, the handkerchief, the letters and Chu Wanning’s flashbacks about Mo Ran, Mo Ran’s memories about his mom, Chu Wanning and Moran eating together, the candy, the desserts, the earthworms ++++++++. There were so many small, but incredibly touching moments that held great significance. 

3. ENTERTAINMENT ~ Rated 10/10

Oh boy this entire book was a roller coaster. It is the longest book I have ever read, but every moment was entertaining and engaging in one way or another. The book itself has a lot of horror and suspense elements, as well as comedy and tragedy. Meatbun is able to so expertly flow through these different genres that it was almost disorienting. But it made the book all the more entertaining. For example, in the middle of tragic and extremely dire circumstances, Mo Ran would have a horny thought that completely juxtaposes it - which is FUNNY haha. However, the book is really tragic; the author is able to evoke the very strong emotions each character feels so skillfully. Hence, I did cry A LOT. I could physically feel the heart-wrenching pain each person felt in reaction to the events that had occurred. Meatbun was able to utilize such small nuances and details to make some of these scenes especially touching, yet heart-breaking. 

There was also amazing use of symbolism throughout, and some of the imagery is recurring to remind the reader, like the pear-blossom wine and the handkerchief. There are also the repeating themes of warmth, loss, abandonment etc. NOT TO MENTION THE UMBRELLA METAPHOR. 

III. RECOMMENDATION

THIS BOOK IS INCREDIBLY WELL WRITTEN and honestly even with reading half of it in MTL, I can confidently say it is one of the best books I’ve ever read. I’m not only talking about the plot here, but the writing in general is so poetic, and there is so much depth and complexity in the emotions the characters feel. It’s hard to describe but there are a lot of hard-hitting lines. Some honorable mentions: 

“Please, hell is too cold. Just let me go back, okay... I want to go home.”

“’No matter how good I am or how hard I work, you won’t even look at me.’ No. Between you and me, there was once a gentleness, there was also once a pot of wine between the flowers, there was also an umbrella in the rain, a moon in the middle of autumn, But you’ve forgotten, and I can’t bring it up now.”

“Mo Ran wished he could cut open his won chest and give him his heart, just to hear his heartbeat again. He wished he could drain his own blood to fill his veins, such to see color on his face again. He would do anything to make up for his mistakes.”

“Goodnight Mo Ran.” (honestly i’m leaving this one at that).

I wanna touch...their hair 

Soft Xicheng <3