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It's been so long since I posted that I will not look for my last post. Suffice it to say that I had plans for Yuletide, then Hikago Day, then nothing. Yikes. I had not quite anticipated how much a big fandom does swallow you up. My heart Hanyu Yuzuru <3

On the other hand, I've also stumbled upon the world of tolerable to terrible Chinese language webfiction, on podcasts via (probably) an AI-generated narrator, on Youtube. Some of them are long-ish, about 1 hr, the ones I'm going for are about 30mins. I set them on the kitchen counter while I cook... this is the level of intellectual engagement they require. On the other hand it's doing a lot for my listening comprehension of Mandarin, especially the ones that (inexplicably) run at about 1.5 speed.

Most of these webfiction (flashfiction?) that come via my algorithms are of broadly three types:

1. set in unnamed/imaginary ancient Chinese dynasty, a young lady's (yes it's nearly always a noble lady) journey to marrying the right guy, finding love and happiness. Plots include some version of evil stepmother or stepsister drama, mother-in-law drama, harem plots, invasion by barbarians and a/an (in)conveniently conferred decree of marriage by the emperor. Eventually she gets rid of her rivals and villains and live happily ever after.

2. Teenager on the verge of gaokao/national examinations, becoming the top scorer in the province, finding love and happiness. Plots include some version of school bullying, evil best friend/sister/stepsister, nearly missing the exam due to plots, switched at birth drama and meeting a tall, handsome boy who is smart, rich and madly in love with her. Eventually they move to Beijing or Shanghai, build a global business empire, and live happily ever after.

3. Either of the above except with rebirth/redo/reincarnation premise, or that they have been pulled into an imaginary bookworld where 1 or 2 are happening. These variants come with the ability to predict what bad guys are doing and getting on top of that, exposing the two-timing boyfriend, backstabber best friend, etc. and getting some vindictive revenge (in the best way!) along the way

They are incredibly addictive given how generic and predictable they are. It's a bit like Mills and Boon. You know how it will end but you can't stop. A few came close to being genre-savvy but most of them have been very earnest so far. Some are pretty funny and a few genuinely made me cry.

Admittedly my algorithms have skewed me towards a certain type of fiction, so I'm drowning in Mary Sues on a wish-fulfilment journey. They have similar names. The male lead and the 2nd male lead also have similar names, and the ability to differentiate them is how you know the skill of the author. For the stories that are reincarnation premises, I'm grappling with the morality of pre-emptive revenge, i.e. you are reborn and you meet the villain who murdered you horribly in your last life, but now that it's a redo and you've just met him and yes, he's still a baddie but right now, he hasn't yet done a thing to you, should you - just go ahead and skin him alive, so as to speak?

Something to consider lol