A’chai’s aftermath where he tells his subordinate to kill her during the chaos, then admits he said she was a talent, then gets mad about the kiss—his emotions are all over the place. The detail that he claims to have seventeen or eighteen women but clearly has never been kissed before? That contradiction is pure gold. He’s trying so hard to be this hardened general but Wen Wan cracks his facade with one peck.
Part of me wonders if Jiang Muchen has some hidden depth. His anger seems personal, like he was hurt by her past behavior. He mentions her "original appearance" and being pursued by men. Maybe he's jealous? But right now he's just an obstacle.
Old Madam is infuriating in the best way. She adopts Xing Ge’er to spite Yuan Xueyue, then nags her for not giving her a biological grandson. She wants a concubine to help manage the household but also wants to keep control. The hypocrisy is so thick. When she blames Yuan Xueyue for Xing Ge’er playing outside instead of studying, I wanted to yell at my screen. This woman embodies the toxic mother-in-law trope perfectly.
I'm really curious about Gal's backstory. He's a silent wolf beastman, huge and strong, but he doesn't use his spare spear and instead offers the whole thing for roasting. Why doesn't he use it? Is he that strong without a weapon? Or is it a ceremonial item? There's a lot of mystery around him that I hope gets explored in later chapters.