Afterword
Readers who haven't read Falling City might wonder upon reaching the end—wasn’t this a bit rushed? A bit rough? I remember someone in the group chat once asked this very question. Before I could respond, another replied, "That’s just Qianyu’s style. Falling City was the same way."
I chuckled silently behind my screen, then deleted the words I had already typed, one by one.
In my stories, after a great upheaval, everything often comes to an abrupt halt. This is because I believe every character in the tale has a lifetime ahead of them to unfold new stories. Rather than dragging things out, I prefer to freeze-frame the beauty, tranquility, and happiness that follow the storm. To me, everyone finding their rightful place is the best ending possible.
So, I won’t be writing any sequels about Xia Jingshi. If any new ideas come to mind, they’ll belong to a brand-new story.
I began writing Yixiao after finishing Falling City . Originally, I had a complete outline, expecting it to be around 200,000 words. But as I wrote, I couldn’t help but stray further and further from the plan, and by the time I finished, it had surpassed 300,000 words. Unlike Falling City , I didn’t feel the same fervor while writing Yixiao . When I reread the completed manuscript, it lacked the lingering aftertaste I’d experienced with Falling City —it even felt somewhat unfamiliar. This might be due to the prolonged writing process. After all, Falling City was completed in just over 20 days, whereas Yixiao was pieced together over half a year of struggle, interrupted by revisions for Falling City ’s publication, job transfers, and frequent overtime. So, I didn’t hold high expectations for Yixiao —until Nina from Jiujie Original Network reached out to me, leading to the interview on their platform.
I thought it would be a routine exchange, but during those two days of interviews, editor Gongsun Wu guided me through revisiting Yixiao ’s entire journey—from conception to execution. As I reflected and answered, I realized that Yixiao was, in fact, another Falling City . The effort and heart I poured into it were no less than what I’d given to Falling City —perhaps even more.
Truly, most of the characters in Yixiao weren’t the types I usually excel at writing. Coupled with my deliberate shift in style to avoid repeating past patterns, the writing process was especially grueling. At one point, halfway through, I even considered abandoning it. That I managed to finish was entirely thanks to the collective encouragement from the book group’s esteemed members. Particularly Xiao Xin, who was so exasperated by Xiyang, Old Feng, and the Empress Dowager that she joked about poisoning them; Jingying Xue, sharp-tongued but soft-hearted; and, of course, Wuwei, who went into a frenzy every time she saw Xiumu in my writing—she was, after all, the real-life inspiration for Xiumu.In the original outline, characters like Xueying and Xiumu didn't exist, which is partly why I didn't devote much ink to them. At that time, the snow girl (Xueying) was constantly bickering with Wuwei. One day she suddenly suggested that I name the female lead in my new story after snow (Xue), and even give her a maid named Xiumu (Rotten Wood). But my outline was already set, and the protagonist's name was the title of the work. So as a compromise, I added a close friend for Yixiao instead. It started as a joke, even with some parody elements, but unexpectedly became a highlight of the story. Some readers even commented that they read "Yixiao" specifically for the pairing of Ning Fei and Xueying. For me, this was quite a surprise, though understandable—in an original fiction world flooded with tragic stories, where readers have grown numb to deaths on the keyboard, love stories that progress smoothly without third-party drama or sinister schemes are truly rare.
"Yixiao" is a story about letting go. The name "Yixiao" isn't just a character—it embodies an attitude I strived to convey through the text.
Having witnessed too much love and its absence, and surrounded by people loving, not loving, entangled or being entangled, Xiyang became one such exaggerated microcosm. Loving someone isn't wrong; it's just that she took the wrong path.
Learning to give while loving, and learning to reciprocate while being loved—that's Yixiao.
"I love you, so I want to see you happy"—that's Xia Jingshi.
"I love you, so I want to personally create your happiness"—that's Feng Suige.
To find happiness, one must learn to let go.
Love is actually very simple—it's just about loving or not loving.
In my story, there's more than just friendship and romance.
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