we continue off of where we left off last chapter with him alone in a dark room and the videogame not starting. xin genuinely crashes out and rips out the cords. and then he starts crying, which again i think this is the first time i think xin's ever actually cried in the series. crying, he asks himself "what did i do?" and then a hand comes from out of the frame, and wipes away his tears. its lian.
she says "thats exactly it aixin, what did you do? thats right. you've never done anything. even then and even now" i js wanna show these panels here cuz ik i say this every update but i think xin is so close to crashing out and ending it all:
the camera zooms out, and we see that xin wasnt in the dark room after all, but where he and lian would sit to chat. lian continues "im here, xin. are u sure ur okay? u js shed tears out of nowhere." so i think its not any supernatural fuckery going on, xins js crazy and he's reacting to all of his emotions retroactively.
xin asks "lian.. how.." lian replies "what are u talking about? we were js having tea" she then tells xin that he should really get a checkup from a head family doctor. xin says that he doesnt need a doctor and that hes fine. lian says that everytime she comes by, xin's symptoms get worse. she tells him that she'll help him, and that they also go out for walks together because she plays the same game in a dark room every day. WHAT. what the fuck does that mean. (also its worth noting she has a crazy ass look on her face when she says this).
xin asks her "how do you know that? the fact that i play the same game every day" right bc how tf does she know ts.
he asks "the footsteps. is that you? i know you've been hiding somewhere in this house watching me... and yet pretending otherwise, pretending to care for me. i know you're js toying w me."
he then clocks tf outta her by saying "i know you don't really want my happiness"
she breaks her silence and reaches out to touch xin's face. "aixin... was that all you were complaining about? dont misunderstand me xin. as for me... i am the person who wishes for your joy and happiness more than anyone else in this family" YEAH CUZ NO ONE ELSE CARES ABT HIM THE BAR IS GENUINELY THAT LOW.
then she says "you are a part of me... because it is my lost fragment" ???? girl sure whatever im not even gonna question ur bullshit anymore.
next there is a flashback to when xin was a kid. he's being carried on ai tan's back as they walk thru some head family building (im guessing its the main hq). worth noting, tan is panting and he's using a cane to help him walk. he also seems to be very distressed. xin asks "where are we going now? i can walk on my own aitan." tan doesnt reply. https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870942/#image
they pass by a small figure whos head is covered with a robe, and face is obscured with a scroll(?) idk what to call it, but it has a chinese symbol on it.
xin says "brother did you see, there was a kid ive never seen before at the house. they look abt the same height as me. i want to get off..." xin tries to get down but tan stops him, and shouts "no you cant come down." he pauses for a bit then explains that theyre going outside of the main building. he says "a living icon, not the life of a living corpse. to live a human life... this opportunity was created at the cost of my freedom of movement" in other words, this scene is taking place after tan jumped off of the head family tower to escape, but before they started living in the annex.
tan says "however the sacred image is at any moment a being who must shine in the same place. someone has to fulfill their role there. so just wait, ill come back to find you someday" so i think, tans implying that when he left his life as 'a living corpse' in the head family hq, they had to find someone to replace him as an idol who stays there all the time. that someone is child lian. damn thats fucked up. obligatory panel drop cuz ts makes me sad:
tan says "the weight of these footsteps leaving the main house is mine alone. my responsibility resulting from my decision. there is no reason or need for aixin to share the burden. so you mustn't get off your brother's back. you must never step on this path on ur own two feet" damn and xin had to end up doing it anyways. ts sad as hell.
he continues "as if you didnt see anyting. as if you didnt hear anything. just stay still." END OF CHAPTER.
so the ppl in the raws comments are highkey geniuses so there's some things they pointed out that are rly interesting:
1) "the chinese character attached to lian's head is 'shi' (death) and character on the memorial tablet is zhou ming lian, so zhou ming lian might not really be lian but someone who merely inherited her name."
2) when tan was about to escape with miu in chapter 76, he said he left behind something important behind. now we can see that it was actually LIAN who he left behind. crazy ass twist.
3) " considering that Zhou Aitan says what he left behind (Lian) isnt an object but a being he must take responsibility for, they could also be blood relatives. if u go back to the chapter where miu and tan die, a woman is crying behind the rest of the servants, so there might be a connection"
4) "it seems they barely managed to leave the main building on the condition that the 1st collateral line heir would be seated in the sacred statue instead of the direct line, and that the brothers would temporarily move to a separate building. anyway there was a condition that they had ot return to the main building, so tan put his heart into it until the end, but in the end, the signator (referring to tan) himself died, so that condition couldnt be fulfilled. it seems Lian used the condition of "returning the statue" as a pretext to proceed with the succession ceremony by offering the younger brother xin as a sacrifice. through this resurrection ritual, he could spread the superstitution among the elders that the zhou family would revive, boosting her own trust, and by eliminating the direct heir, she, as a member of the first branch was able to completely wreck havoc on the Zhou family"
by dominating the zhou family as the sole leader she *would* be preserving xin's happiness technically. also its fascinating that the commenter is referring to the new ritual as a resurrection one.
some final closing thoughts:
this is probably my fav chapter of season 3 so far. all of the art direction was so good, and the atmosphere was wonderfully creepy throughout as well. we get to see new sides of xin, lian and tan, all characters which ive been very curious about. we also got to see xin and lian's first meeting which i predicting we were going to see, but their first meeting was way sadder than i expected. im usually pretty good w my predictions, but the thing about her literally turning into the idol after tan left was insane. we also got to find out a shit ton of lore regarding the main family. i think this is also the first glimpse we've actually see INSIDE of the main family headquarters. prior to this we only saw yajin getting his tattoo in a side building.
very very curious what lian's intentions with the ritual truly are. if the commenters are right, and she is the one benefitting from this, is it an act of revenge or love for xin? also what does lian mean by 'you are a part of me, because you are my lost fragment'?
CHAPTER 82 SPOILERS/SUMMARY
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we continue off of where we left off last chapter with him alone in a dark room and the videogame not starting. xin genuinely crashes out and rips out the cords. and then he starts crying, which again i think this is the first time i think xin's ever actually cried in the series. crying, he asks himself "what did i do?" and then a hand comes from out of the frame, and wipes away his tears. its lian.
she says "thats exactly it aixin, what did you do? thats right. you've never done anything. even then and even now" i js wanna show these panels here cuz ik i say this every update but i think xin is so close to crashing out and ending it all:
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870933/
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870935/
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870936/
the camera zooms out, and we see that xin wasnt in the dark room after all, but where he and lian would sit to chat. lian continues "im here, xin. are u sure ur okay? u js shed tears out of nowhere." so i think its not any supernatural fuckery going on, xins js crazy and he's reacting to all of his emotions retroactively.
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870938/#image
xin asks "lian.. how.." lian replies "what are u talking about? we were js having tea" she then tells xin that he should really get a checkup from a head family doctor. xin says that he doesnt need a doctor and that hes fine. lian says that everytime she comes by, xin's symptoms get worse.
she tells him that she'll help him, and that they also go out for walks together because she plays the same game in a dark room every day. WHAT. what the fuck does that mean. (also its worth noting she has a crazy ass look on her face when she says this).
xin asks her "how do you know that? the fact that i play the same game every day" right bc how tf does she know ts.
at this point lian has fully cornered xin in his chair. lian genuinely looks scary, almost gigantic? as shit from this point onwards:
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870940/#image
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870939/#image
he asks "the footsteps. is that you? i know you've been hiding somewhere in this house watching me... and yet pretending otherwise, pretending to care for me. i know you're js toying w me."
he then clocks tf outta her by saying "i know you don't really want my happiness"
she breaks her silence and reaches out to touch xin's face. "aixin... was that all you were complaining about? dont misunderstand me xin. as for me... i am the person who wishes for your joy and happiness more than anyone else in this family" YEAH CUZ NO ONE ELSE CARES ABT HIM THE BAR IS GENUINELY THAT LOW.
then she says "you are a part of me... because it is my lost fragment" ???? girl sure whatever im not even gonna question ur bullshit anymore.
next there is a flashback to when xin was a kid. he's being carried on ai tan's back as they walk thru some head family building (im guessing its the main hq). worth noting, tan is panting and he's using a cane to help him walk. he also seems to be very distressed. xin asks "where are we going now? i can walk on my own aitan." tan doesnt reply.
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870942/#image
they pass by a small figure whos head is covered with a robe, and face is obscured with a scroll(?) idk what to call it, but it has a chinese symbol on it.
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870943/#image
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870944/#image
the figure takes off the scroll, and reveals it is lian. xin and lian meet eyes for the first time. leaving this panel here cuz its very tea:
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870945/#image
xin says "brother did you see, there was a kid ive never seen before at the house. they look abt the same height as me. i want to get off..." xin tries to get down but tan stops him, and shouts "no you cant come down." he pauses for a bit then explains that theyre going outside of the main building. he says "a living icon, not the life of a living corpse. to live a human life... this opportunity was created at the cost of my freedom of movement" in other words, this scene is taking place after tan jumped off of the head family tower to escape, but before they started living in the annex.
tan says "however the sacred image is at any moment a being who must shine in the same place. someone has to fulfill their role there. so just wait, ill come back to find you someday" so i think, tans implying that when he left his life as 'a living corpse' in the head family hq, they had to find someone to replace him as an idol who stays there all the time. that someone is child lian. damn thats fucked up. obligatory panel drop cuz ts makes me sad:
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870946/#image
tan says "the weight of these footsteps leaving the main house is mine alone. my responsibility resulting from my decision. there is no reason or need for aixin to share the burden. so you mustn't get off your brother's back. you must never step on this path on ur own two feet" damn and xin had to end up doing it anyways. ts sad as hell.
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870947/#image
he continues "as if you didnt see anyting. as if you didnt hear anything. just stay still." END OF CHAPTER.
so the ppl in the raws comments are highkey geniuses so there's some things they pointed out that are rly interesting:
1) "the chinese character attached to lian's head is 'shi' (death) and character on the memorial tablet is zhou ming lian, so zhou ming lian might not really be lian but someone who merely inherited her name."
2) when tan was about to escape with miu in chapter 76, he said he left behind something important behind. now we can see that it was actually LIAN who he left behind. crazy ass twist.
3) " considering that Zhou Aitan says what he left behind (Lian) isnt an object but a being he must take responsibility for, they could also be blood relatives. if u go back to the chapter where miu and tan die, a woman is crying behind the rest of the servants, so there might be a connection"
4) "it seems they barely managed to leave the main building on the condition that the 1st collateral line heir would be seated in the sacred statue instead of the direct line, and that the brothers would temporarily move to a separate building. anyway there was a condition that they had ot return to the main building, so tan put his heart into it until the end, but in the end, the signator (referring to tan) himself died, so that condition couldnt be fulfilled. it seems Lian used the condition of "returning the statue" as a pretext to proceed with the succession ceremony by offering the younger brother xin as a sacrifice. through this resurrection ritual, he could spread the superstitution among the elders that the zhou family would revive, boosting her own trust, and by eliminating the direct heir, she, as a member of the first branch was able to completely wreck havoc on the Zhou family"
by dominating the zhou family as the sole leader she *would* be preserving xin's happiness technically. also its fascinating that the commenter is referring to the new ritual as a resurrection one.
some final closing thoughts:
this is probably my fav chapter of season 3 so far. all of the art direction was so good, and the atmosphere was wonderfully creepy throughout as well. we get to see new sides of xin, lian and tan, all characters which ive been very curious about.
we also got to see xin and lian's first meeting which i predicting we were going to see, but their first meeting was way sadder than i expected. im usually pretty good w my predictions, but the thing about her literally turning into the idol after tan left was insane. we also got to find out a shit ton of lore regarding the main family. i think this is also the first glimpse we've actually see INSIDE of the main family headquarters. prior to this we only saw yajin getting his tattoo in a side building.
very very curious what lian's intentions with the ritual truly are. if the commenters are right, and she is the one benefitting from this, is it an act of revenge or love for xin? also what does lian mean by 'you are a part of me, because you are my lost fragment'?
other panels i fw heavy this chapter:
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870948/
https://www.mangago.me/home/photo/59870932/