So, about Zhao Xinci

[branchandroot]

Okay, the last round of this was huge fun and I’m about to be locked in “leadership institute” for eight freaking hours, so let’s talk about Zhao Xinci.

Spoilers for the end of the show, of course.

My take: Zhao Xinci is not a brilliant man. He’s dedicated to his job, but he’s not a brilliant investigator. Instead, he’s methodical and devoted to evidence and logic, and gets results because what he does have is the ability to lock down his emotional response. We’re talking “I want to grow up to be a Vulcan, oh look I did it” levels, here. He’s methodical and careful, but not very flexible, witness every interaction he has with his son. He also seems deeply dedicated to process and procedure, witness /both/ his interactions with his son and his statement that he doesn’t care if SID is in the right, he can’t let them flout the Ministry’s orders. That’s some pretty steep levels of devotion to the chain of command.

And yet, very soon after that above statement, we see him do a complete 180 and participate (apparently willingly, given Zhang Shi’s comments about partnership and it having been a long time) in knocking out the Minister, imprisoning the Minister in his office, and taking over the Ministry basically by coup. Oh, and fighting for the salvation of Dixingren, the people he’s hated unrelentingly for years and years.

And that’s where I finally snap. The rest of his sometimes uneven characterization and motivation I can wave off as Zhang Shi. But this, when they are allegedly working together consciously? *bangs head on desk*

So I’m left with the conclusion that Zhang Shi is actually still leaning very hard on Zhao Xinci, through the end, and just doing it more subtly than taking him over.

Thoughts?

Comments

[mekare]

I found myself nodding along to the methodical-rule abiding paragraphs. And then stumbled over the Zhang Shi situation too. It‘s been some time since I watched those episodes, but I can‘t reconcile that behaviour without some kind of coercion either.

[branchandroot]

It’s just so sudden! And barely signaled at all, even as a possibility, and then here he is allegedly a willing accessory to overthrowing the Minister? Ugh.

I think it was /meant/ to be an actual Heel Face Turn, given how sympathetically Zhang Shi is presented, but I’m having a hard time with that. Zhao Xinci is just such a raging asshole the whole rest of the show.

[clevermanka]

I love to hate Zhao Xinci. I take an unreasonable amount of pleasure in the spike of irritation every time I see him onscreen (despite the fact that I think he is physically very attractive). So I haven't given his duplicitous nature more than a second thought in either of my watchings but for my third go-around I'll try to pay more attention--if for no other reason that I need a better grip on him to inform the characterization of Zhao Yunlan in my Ghost Story AU.

Hope more people chime in, here, because he's a fascinating character!

[branchandroot]

*grins* He /is/ fun to hate. What I’m never sure of is whether he’s /supposed/ to be confusing or whether the inconsistent signaling of Zhang Shi’s involvement is a bad editing artifact. I mean, did he make sense, at one point, or was he just always a plot device? It may take me another few times through to decide.

[demitas]

I like to try to figure out which is Zhang Shi and which is Zhao Xinci in the scenes where it isn't explicitly stated, haha. (For the record, Zhang Shi is left-handed and Zhao Xinci is right-handed, but that's only helpful for identification in a couple of cases, lol)

Yeah that change at the end feels SO out of character for Zhao Xinci, who is still willing to let ZYL take a fall for the sake of order very late in the game. And not that many months earlier, Zhang Shi was forcibly taking control because he disagreed so heavily with what Zhao Xinci was doing. I like your conclusion - it makes more sense than a true heel-face-turn, given that we aren't really given any reason WHY ZXC would heel-face-turn at the point he supposedly does.

[branchandroot]

Oh wow, now there’s a project to make you tear your hair out. On the other hand, that would be an /amazing/ write up for the comm, if you ever wanted to toss the post together.

[demitas]

Oooh that's not a bad idea! I might organize my notes and do that. ♥

[kimboo_york]

I love to hate him! The actor is a fox which complicates my feelings (I'm shallow trash, this is not news) but the character is kinda horrible!

Honestly I did not see his behavior as inconsistent the first time I watched the show, which is weird I guess? But to me he came across as less "law and order" than simply "order" -- he's arrogant and competent, so of course he thinks he can handle things better than, well, anyone else. When things go so shit he takes over the ministry, okay, yep yep yep. LOL.

I am FASCINATED by Zhang Shi, tho'. I'd love to see more fic about him. Let's kill off Zhao Xinci early and have Zhao Yunlan raised by Zhang Shi, what would be different? And we all cry about Shen Wei's 10k years of longing but Zhang Shi had 10k years of life after life after life, fully aware he would outlive the families he took on as his own. And seriously, he could have managed to possess the most powerful people in Haixing, built up his own personal empire over the years without the BCE even noticing, but he DID NOT DO THAT. He got into the Guardian but did not use that opportunity to destabilize Haixing, which he could very well have done. What a good person he is.

So in the end, I can believe that any inconsistencies Zhao Xinci exhibits are due to Zhang Shi trying to moderate the worst of him. He's had 10k years to practice this, I'm sure he's capable!

[branchandroot]

Yes, Zhang Shi seems so under explored! I mean, we just kind of get it dropped on us that he’s been Zhao Yunlan’s demi-dad, and then nothing else is made of it. Augh.

[ranalore]

While I could buy him staging a coup at the Ministry if he felt Gao had violated either part of "law and order" (and it's been a while since I watched those eps, but I want to say he made a few indications that Gao was edging toward the line of violating "order," just like the SID had violated "law"), I too couldn't buy him helping to fight for the Dixingren without being strongly influenced by Zhang Shi. But then, I've never been inclined to take Zhang Shi at face value, which affects my reading. I mean, he's clearly not ambitious in the way Ye Zun is, but he's got an agenda that prioritizes finding a replacement wick for the Guardian Lantern, for one, and which never quite comes clear otherwise. And I think he presents himself as able to influence Zhao Xinci in a particular way, and suggests their partnership, but I think his ability to influence works on a more subconscious level than ZXC knows or can counteract. I think Zhang Shi may not like to do it that way, perhaps it involves more dark energy use and means ZXC's condition deteriorates faster, but certainly circumstances are dire enough in those last few episodes to warrant the risk.

[branchandroot]

Zhang Shi is a character that just begs to be made something of, and zhe mostly gets used as a plot lever. Ugh.