Those who haven’t read “Qing Cheng” might think, upon reaching the end, that it feels a bit rushed or sketchy. I remember a friend in the group asking this question, and before I could answer, someone had already replied, “This is Qian Yu’s style. ‘Qing Cheng’ was the same way.”
I smiled secretly in front of the screen, then erased my prepared response character by character.
My stories often come to an abrupt halt after a major climax because I believe that each character in the story has a lifetime to experience new stories. Rather than a slow, continuous flow, I prefer to freeze-frame the beauty, tranquility, and happiness that follow the storm. To me, everyone finding their place is the best ending.
So, I won’t write any sequels about Xia Jingshi. If I have any ideas, they will become new stories entirely.
I started writing “Yi Xiao” after completing “Qing Cheng.” Initially, I had a complete story outline planned for about 200,000 characters, but as I wrote, it grew uncontrollably, eventually exceeding 300,000 characters. I didn’t have the same fervor for “Yi Xiao” as I did for “Qing Cheng.” When I finished and reviewed the entire manuscript, I lacked the lingering aftertaste I had with “Qing Cheng,” and even felt somewhat detached. This might be due to the lengthy completion process. After all, “Qing Cheng” was written in just over 20 days, while “Yi Xiao” was pieced together over more than half a year of struggle. It was also affected by the revisions and publication of “Qing Cheng,” as well as work transfers and frequent overtime. So, I didn’t have high expectations for “Yi Xiao” until Nina from the Jiu Jie Original Network contacted me, which led to the Jiu Jie interview.
I thought it would be routine, but during the two-day special interview, editor Gong Sun Wu led me to review the entire process of “Yi Xiao” from conception to writing. As I thought about it and answered questions, I realized that “Yi Xiao” was another “Qing Cheng.” The effort I put into it was no less than “Qing Cheng,” and possibly even more.
Truly, most of the characters in “Yi Xiao” don’t have personalities I’m skilled at writing. Coupled with deliberately changing the style to avoid repeating previous patterns, writing was particularly challenging. I even thought about abandoning the work halfway through. Being able to persist until completion was the result of collective encouragement from the book group. Especially Xiao Xin, who wanted to poison Xi Yang, Lao Feng, and the Empress Dowager every time they were mentioned; Jing Ying Xue with her sharp tongue but soft heart; and of course, Wu Wei, who would go crazy every time she saw the Xiu Mu I wrote — she is the original model for Xiu Mu in the story.
Characters like Xue Ying and Xiu Mu didn’t exist in the original outline, which is one reason why I didn’t elaborate much on these two characters. At that time, Xue girl was always arguing with Wu Wei. One day, she suddenly said she wanted the female lead in my new story to have a name with “Xue” in it and to give her a little maid named Xiu Mu. But my outline was already set, and the female lead’s name was also the title of the story. So, as a compromise, I added a close friend for Yi Xiao.
It was meant to be a joke, even a bit of a spoof, but unexpectedly became a highlight of the story. Some even left comments saying they read “Yi Xiao” just for Ning Fei and Xue Ying’s relationship. For me, this was quite a surprise, but I can understand — in the world of original web novels filled with angst, where people have become numb to tragedy, a love story that progresses smoothly to holding hands without experiencing third-party interference or sinister plots is rare indeed.
“Yi Xiao” is a story about letting go. The name “Yi Xiao” is not just a character, but also embodies an attitude I desperately wanted to express through the text.
Having seen too much love and indifference, and being surrounded by people who love, don’t love, entangle, and are entangled, Xi Yang is an exaggerated microcosm of this. Loving someone isn’t wrong, but she just took the wrong path.
Learning to give in the process of loving, and learning to reciprocate in the process of being loved — this is Yi Xiao.
I love you, so I want to see your happiness — this is Xia Jingshi.
I love you, so I want to give you happiness with my own hands — this is Feng Suige.
To be happy, one must learn to let go.
Love is very simple; it’s just purely loving or not loving.
In my stories, there’s not just friendship and love.