On the Core of This Book
Up to now, this book I'm writing isn't the traditional "suppress Tang San with brute force" type of story.
Looking back at the earlier plotlines—
The protagonist made A-Yin fall in love with Tang Xiao, then gave Tang Hao memories of being "reborn." As a result, Tang Hao realized what losing A-Yin truly meant—and thus, the brothers turned against each other.
This is how Tang Hao's story goes. Similarly, Yu Xiaogang's story was handled the same way—his suffering and struggle were highlighted through the juxtaposition of the Yu Clan and his disciple.
Now, when it comes to Tang San, imagine putting yourself in his shoes:
Your mother knows your identity and hates you for taking over her child's body—she wants to kill you.
Your father caused endless trouble and is now relying on you to become a god and bail him out—never mind that he killed the mother of your beloved.
Your teacher is useless, but constantly emotionally blackmails you and wants to achieve fame and success through you.
Your lover finds out you're the son of her enemy and keeps cheating on you, even planning to destroy you as part of her revenge.
Your own brothers are also cheating with your lover.
So, what kind of person is this Tang San? He's a tragedy.
We often say that the essence of comedy is tragedy—but why is comedy still funny, and tragedy still tragic?
Because in tragedy, you feel empathy for the character. In comedy, the story strips away your empathy for the character.
Empathy makes a tragedy. Lack of empathy makes a comedy.
The core of this book is what you'd call a "fun piece".
A better, more fitting title might actually be:
"The Chronicles of Grandmaster Huo Disciplining the Dog Tang"
Under this premise, the current plot must create a situation where Tang San is temporarily unaware of the things happening around him!
(That is, a state where the readers know what's going on, everyone around Tang San knows what's going on, but only he is completely in the dark.)
A "fun piece" has three core elements:
Blind obsession
(Tang San's obsession with Xiao Wu is so extreme that he can repeatedly forgive her. He also believes he's the "Child of Destiny" and chosen by the God of Shura, so no matter how things go off track, they'll "return to the right path.")
Characters like this fixate so hard on one thing that they ignore everything else happening around them.
Unexpected twists
(Sudden reversals and plot surprises.)
Stripped empathy
(Do you really feel bad for Tang San's situation?)
Huo Yuhao gave Xiao Wu a lot of protection and contingency plans—so she can boldly mess with Tang San:
First: Tang San's obsession with Xiao Wu
(For example, when Oscar asks him why he doesn't just assassinate Yu Tianheng, Tang San expresses his own concerns.)
Second: The memory misalignment between Tang Hao and Tang San
(In Tang San's memory, he's a chosen one, destined to inherit the Shura God's mantle. But in the memory implanted by Huo Yuhao into Tang Hao, it's Xiao Wu who is the Shura God's sword sheath. Only the one who possesses Xiao Wu can become the Shura God.
This is similar to earlier in the story, where "He who gains A-Yin, gains the world."
So in Tang Hao's mind, even if he knows Xiao Wu is cheating on his son, he still has to let Tang San wear the green hat and go chase after her.)
Of course, I won't spoil more of the plot for now.