"I'm a leaf on the wind...

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The first wishlists go live and gifting starts on 25 August. Sign-ups close 4 September. Gifts will be revealed on 25 September (Reunion Festival).

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Flowing Into You (5,760 words)
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018)
Rating: Mature
Relationship/Characters: Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan
Content Tags: Episode Related, Episode 17, Missing Scene, Developing Relationship, First Kiss, First Time, Sex with Powers, Black Energy Powers, Water Powers, Water Tentacles, Oral Sex, Zhao Yunlan Needs Something In His Mouth

Summary:

Shen Wei looked him up and down. "Zhao Yunlan, you're dripping. You need to dry yourself before you catch a chill."

"I don't suppose you have a quick-dry power?"

"Ah." Shen Wei's eyelashes swept down for a moment; he'd clearly been thinking towels, not black energy. "Not exactly."

Hello, Guardian Rewatchers! Thanks so much to all of you who've been part of the discussion, or have been reading along. ♥

Come join us for round 5 of the Guardian Slo-Mo Rewatch. We're watching half an episode a week (about twenty minutes) so we can talk and squee about our beloved 镇魂 | Guardian drama. With the fifth batch of episodes, we have the start of the Merit Brush arc, the blindness arc with all its domesticity, culminating in the Sundial Exchange, another visit to Dixing, a video game, and the personality switch.

For those who remember our last rewatch a few years back, this time we're aiming for a lighter touch. Posts are on the minimalist side - a brief summary, one quote, one screencap, maybe one noteworthy detail and some discussion-starter questions. Minimalist comments are more than welcome, too!

We're looking forward to some fun discussions as we revisit Haixing, Dixing, and the SID – and of course you can always drop in on any of the previous discussions at any time.

Fans of the novel, the drama, or both are very welcome! You don't have to keep up with the rewatch – it's absolutely fine to dip in and out. We want to hear what you think! Those of us who participated in the Readalong or are otherwise familiar with the novel are likely to compare and contrast the two canons, but it's 100% okay to focus purely on the drama.

Please consider hosting a post or two! Comment with a date from the schedule below! Posts should ideally be made sometime on the Friday or Saturday, in any time zone.

Schedule for round 5
Weekend of 14 August - no new post; catch-up time!
Weekend of 21 August - no new post; write a guardian_wishlist sign-up time!
Weekend of 28 August - episode 21 to 23:00
Weekend of 4 September - episode 21 from 23:00
Weekend of 11 September - episode 22 to 22:08
Weekend of 18 September - episode 22 from 22:08
Weekend of 25 September - no new post; Reunion Festival & Wishlist reveals! Enjoy the bounty!
Weekend of 2 October - episode 23 to 23:24
Weekend of 9 October - episode 23 from 23:24
Weekend of 16 October - episode 24 to 22:02
Weekend of 23 October - episode 24 from 22:02
Weekend of 30 October - episode 25 to 22:55
Weekend of 6 November - episode 25 from 22:55

The Guardian Wishlist rules and FAQ for 2026 are up on guardian_wishlist! Please check them out and let us know if you have any questions.

Sign-ups open on 17 August!

And if you're willing to post a promo to Tumblr, Twitter, Discord, or elsewhere to spread the word, please check out this post for promo graphics and text. (We'd love it if you commented there to let us know which platform and/or drop us a link, but don't feel you have to.) Thanks!

(Much thanks to teaotter for our lovely banner!)

Hi, welcome back to our Guardian drama Slo-Mo Rewatch! Watch half an episode a week, and then come and chat about it here in comments. Or you can just jump into the comments without rewatching, of course!

Here is the first half of episode 20. On to the second half!

Episode 20 from 22:26:

Summary:

Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei are en route to the Inspectorate when Zhao Yunlan has a vision of Xiao-Guo unconscious and Zhu Jiu at the Hallows. He stops the car and insists Shen Wei go ahead on his own. Importantly, Shen Wei grips Zhao Yunlan's arm, and Zhao Yunlan pats Shen Wei's knee. Meanwhile, Ye Zun has psychically woken up Zhu Jiu. Xiao-Guo (inexplicably left alone to move him) unties Zhu Jiu to let him use the loo, and they have a philosophical debate about the merits of humanity. Then Zhu Jiu attacks.



Zhao Yunlan calls Zhu Hong and tells her to move the Hallows, then runs back towards the SID. Zhu Jiu finds the Hallows gone, but manages to prevail in a confrontation with Chu Shuzhi, Da Qing and Lin Jing. He escapes and offers his energy to Ye Zun as the last bit he needs to (temporarily) escape the Sky Pillar - where the Regent and the Attendant are watching. Zhao Yunlan meets up with Zhu Hong, who has the Sundial and the Awl, but they're accosted by Ya Qing, who takes them to meet Ye Zun's energy projection. Ye Zun tries politeness, philosophising about the need to let go of human desire, arguments about the oppression of Dixingren as well as flattery to turn Zhao Yunlan to his side, but his various self-justifications are not convincing. Zhao Yunlan calls him on killing both humans and Dixingren. When Ye Zun realises it's not working, he attacks, and Zhao Yunlan defends himself with the Sundial. Meanwhile, Shen Wei has arrived at the Inspectorate - only to immediately zoom away again because his Hallows alarm went off.

Zhao Yunlan taunts Ye Zun, who demands the Hallows. Slowly Ye Zun starts winning the fight against the Sundial's shielding. But then Shen Wei arrives, cutting the energy stream with his dao. Everyone is blasted back; Zhao Yunlan ends up unconscious on the grass. Shen Wei sends Ye Zun back to Dixing, and rushes to Zhao Yunlan's side. They hold hands. But when Zhao Yunlan opens his eyes, he's blind.

Quote:

The Attendant: "This summoning isn't enough to completely destroy the Pillar seal. Should we help him?"

The Regent: "Young man, it's not a good habit to be passionate about taking sides."

Detail(s):

The detail I want to highlight today is a parallel china_shop pointed out during the last rewatch:

Questions:

Which this your favourite part/scene/moment in this half-episode? Any favourite lines? Why would anyone leave Guo Changcheng alone with Zhu Jiu? Why didn't Zhao Yunlan tell Shen Wei about his premonition about Zhu Jiu escaping? What's the best part of Zhao Yunlan's confrontation with Ye Zun? Which is Ye Zun's best/worst argument for why he's totally in the right? What do you think Ya Qing makes of all of this? What does Ye Zun mean when he says Shen Wei is "still the same"? Which is the best Shen Wei/Zhao Yunlan touch in this half-episode? Any thoughts about more parallels with other parts of the drama? Any thoughts about how any of this connects with the novel?

(These are all just conversation starters - feel free to answer all, some, or none, and to say as much or as little as you like! You don't have to be keeping up with the rewatch to join in!)

Here is our schedule for the current batch of episodes - please do sign up to host a post if you can!