Dashing Youth (2024): Rewatch [Episodes 5-6]

Welcome to the third discussion post for a Dashing Youth rewatch.

This post is for Episodes 5-6.

Ep. 1-2 | Ep. 3-4

!!! PLEASE USE SPOILER TAGS FOR ANYTHING BEYOND THE CURRENT EPISODES AND ANYTHING FROM BOTH BLOOD RIVER AND BLOOD OF YOUTH!!!

Infos about the drama can be found in the old masterpost. You can also find a translated relationship chart here. If you download the picture it should be big enough to actually be readable.

Ep. 5:

New to the show:

Yi Wenjun – Daughter of Tianqui’s Shadow Sect Leader Yi Bu. Later BoY >!mother of Xiao Yu and Wuxin!<, but only the kids version.

Baili Chengfeng – Baili Dongjun’s father, Heir of the Marquis Zhenxi. BoY >!Played by the actor of BoY’s older version of BLDJ. I enjoy seeing him play the complete opposite kind of character here!<

Wen Luoyu – Baili Dongjun’s mother, younger sister of Wen Hujiu Emperor Tai’An - current emperor of Beili.

Zhuoqing - Head of the Five Great Eunuchs. DR: >!most likely already up to stereotypical shady Eunuch stuff!<

Baili Luochen – Marquis Zhenxi, BLDJ’s grandfather.

Xiao Ruofeng - Ninth Prince of Beili, Young Master Fenghua, Seventh of the Young Masters of Beili. That’s a lot of numbers, names and titles. BR & BoY >!Played by the same actor in BR, who also plays his own son in BoY.!<

The plot is moving:

Forrest of Swords

The fight between Baili Dongjun and Ye Dingzhi gets into a dragon vs. multiple-headed phoenix (or maybe some other Chinese mythological creature I don’t recognise) showdown, but a draw. YDZ gives the sword Dustless to BLDJ, because he doesn’t think he can best someone using Xichu’s Sword Song and is grateful for having witnessed the legendary move.

Wen Hujiu takes his nephew away immediately afterwards. I guess he knows that several other people would contest that decision. Smart move. Poor Song Yanhui looks like someone destroyed the sword right in front of him. YDZ is nice enough to stop everyone from trying to capture BLDJ. That’s what old friends who hide their identity from you are for. Wang Yixing also seems to have taken a liking to BLDJ and helps YDZ.

Flashback Time!

We get a flashback to nine years earlier when YDZ was still called Ye Yun. He and small BLDJ were friends with Yi Wenjun, who is the daughter of the leader of the Shadow Sect. They met to listen to a story about the White Feather Sword Deity. Of course, what else are children in Beili supposed to do? The boys dream about travelling and bringing justice with their swords. Because the White Feather Sword Deity’s best friend was known as the Liquor Deity BLDJ plans to take that role for himself to match YDZ. Unfortunately Ye Yun’s father, a general, was suspected of treason and his whole family sentenced to be executed.

Returning Home

BLDJ and WHJ return to Qiandong City, where BLDJ gets chained up by some of his grandfather’s men, but is greeted first by his father, Baili Chengfeng. They have a very loving father-son relationship. WHJ is much closer to his sister Wen Luoyu and confesses the whole sword acquiring adventure to her. She doesn’t believe him that BLDJ won it. He really seems to have his reputation as a good-for-nothing down, but all the sword wielder witnessing him using the lost technique could be bad news for him.

A Glimpse into Tianqi

In the capital of Beili the Emperor and his head eunuch received some intel from the Shadow Sect, that the sword song has resurfaced. We learn that it was BLDJ’s grandfather Baili Luochen that led the siege were the two deities that could perform the full version died. Or maybe not died, which makes the Marquis suspicious to the emperor, especially due to his grandson using the sword song. The Marquis was also friends with both deities, but more or less ordered to kill them. They speculate that the scholarly deity must still be alive. So BLDJ doing something stupid in his drunken state might lead to dire consequences for his grandfather. Don’t drink and sword fight!

Meanwhile Xiao Ruofeng, one of the Emperor’s sons, gets an interesting rendition of the happenings between the Yan and Gu family and about BLDJ via Lei Mengsha, who seems to be very good friends with the prince. >!Like father, like son.!< There is more disbelief about BLDJ using the sword song, after they get news of it.

Childhood Master

BLDJ got to know the scholarly deity Gu Chen, hidden away by his grandfather near their home, by pure chance and more or less fell into his hiding place. They bonded over liquor, age appropriate only sniffing for BLDJ.

Family Dynamics

The family dynamics in the Marquis Zhenxi household are a bit strange. While BLCF wants to beat some sense into BLDJ, BLLC dotes very much on his only grandson and lets his own son be tied up. WHJ finds the whole display very amusing, while his sister seems to be very used to smoothing waves. BLDJ unquestionably takes after his mother in terms of manipulating his grandfather. BLCF and BLLC both expect that they might get a visit from Tianqi forces but are of different opinions how to handle that threat.

Swordsmanship

BLDJ finally gets to visit Gu Chen and talks to him about the past days. He gets only elusive stereotypical shifu answers out of him though. But he asserts wanting to learn about sword fighting know. He seems to have taken on the role of the more air heady noble’s son for his family to look less threatening to the imperial family, but wants to change his ways now. His master promises to teach him.

Ep.6:

New to the show:

Wuxiang: honourable envoy of Tianwaitian, who sits in a wheelchair.

Xin Baicao: Medicine King, which is a cool title. >!Same actor as B.!<

Sightseeing

Yue Yao let her servants return home alone and went on a little trip to the lands that once belonged to Beique. We learn that she has a younger sister and get our first glimpse at Tianwaitian, where we met Master Wuxiang. Meanwhile Yue Yao meets some former citizens of Beique, who lost a lot in the war 15 years ago and are not really eager for the possibility of a reformed Beique. That stance makes YY contemplate, because the people of Tianwaitian have that as there most important goal. Siblings

WHJ is instructed by his father to look out for other lost Xichuan arts, especially the poison related ones. How useful those little paper eating snakes are! He and his sister know that there could be an upcoming conflict that could test their loyalties that are split between the Baili and Wen families, or at least certain members of the Baili household.

Lone Rider

The very short scene of BLDJ wondering how Sikong Changfeng is doing all alone on the rooftop in the moonlight is kind of funny. I guess someone was afraid we might have already forgotten about him? Anyway, he has finally reached the Medicine Valley, falls out of the saddle and is found by Xin Baicao, who takes care of him. Xin Baicao is very sharp, he sees through WHJ’s plan to poison SKCF to tempt him to heal SKCF immediately. The Medicine King seems a bit lonely and bargains SKCF for six month of his time in exchange for saving him. So I guess SKCF minors in medicine now.

Not so lone Prince

Xiao Ruofeng is on his journey to Qiandong City to investigate the whole Scholarly Deity mess for his father. Lei Mengsha just happens to ride in the same direction doesn’t want to let FengFeng go alone (I really like their friendship).

Lessons

BLDJ continues to not respect his father at all and refuses to be taught swordsmanship by him though he looks at least a bit impressed by his skills. BLCF recites a few things his own master taught him. ‘Always know why you draw your sword’ sounds like something that might stick with his son. Restricting him to the backyard unless he masters unsheathing his sword is not only a measure to teach him, but also to let him miss out on meeting the Little Master from the Academy, that was announced. Which is simply another alias for XRF, he obviously needed a few more.

We also get to know that WHJ recognised his nephew possessed some internal strength despite never having trained for that sort of thing. He guesses that it was done under the guise of liquor brewing, which makes it most likely a sneaky thing done by Gu Chen without BLDJ knowing himself? Not yet sure about that. At least he doesn’t do very well with the unsheathing exercise.

Timeskip!

10 days later XRF and LMS have changed into Beili Academy get-up for their arrival in Qiandong and meet up with BLCF. They (mostly XRF) are here to recruit one new student for the academy. Hard to guess who that is supposed to be…

While his father and his grandfather don’t want him to be recruited (they must have kept out of Tianqi on purpose for the last years) and deny him being home, BLDJ remembers that the whole sword thing worked better while drunk. You can’t get to be the liquor deity without drinking before fighting. It helps, mostly in XRF and LMS noticing someone with quite a bit of internal strength. He shreds the scarecrow and nearly hits the guests with the debris. That’s how you get enrolled in a world famous academy. But first he falls unconscious.

Confrontation

XRF and LMS split up. Besides recruiting BLDJ for his master XRF has another task from his father. He heads to find Gu Chen. Which is seen as a good sign by BLLC, because XRF seems to be the emperors most trusted son who gets to handle delicate manners in a discrete way. So for now no open allegations against the marquis.

The confrontation between prince and deity leads to a full blown fight and new sword techniques being revealed. BLDJ awakens from his drunk slumper, checks the whole situation quite fast and wants to rescue his master. Suddenly also appearing: The White-Haired Deity and Zi Yi Hou represent Tianwaitian on the run to maybe being able to snatch away Gu Chen. They fight BLCF and get additional help by the envoys Wufa and Wutian. The latter two confront Gu Chen, who had easily demonstrated his strength to XRF.

1. Any plot threads emerging you are more interested in compared to others?