#put it all together. especially since it would make a bunch of cryptic stuff kunlun said about 10k years suddenly make sense

[coquelicoq]

Totally Valid And Understandable Reasons Shen Wei Could Have For Not Admitting To Zhao Yunlan That He's Hei Pao Shi

because here's the thing, right. if shen wei knows from episode 1 that zhao yunlan is going to travel back in time and see hei pao shi without his mask on, that means he knows that he can't hide his secret identity forever. at some point, zhao yunlan is going to know. so what was the game plan here? why not just be upfront about it? a non-exhaustive list.

when they first meet at the university, they're in public. what if somebody (xiao guo) says "HEI PAO SHI?!??!" really loudly or something? it could be this whole thing. shen wei works here! he likes this cover identity! what if he has to move? what if he has to change his name? what if he has to get a makeover to keep people from recognizing him? what if he has to stop wearing sleeve garters???? the risk is just too great.

he wants zyl to be his friend and he thinks zyl would be more willing to befriend a suspicious yet intriguing university professor than a terrifyingly superpowered foreign government liaison, so he doesn't want to tell him that he's hps until they're already friends. he wants zyl to get to know him as him, not his office. too bad that in order to hide his hps identity, he's gonna have to lie about a whole bunch of stuff, which means zyl can't fully get to know him until he comes clean. also too bad that he sucks at lying.

zyl would probably be less likely to share information about cases with him if he knew shen wei was hps. (i'm basing this on the fact that zyl has been chief for a while and has never gone to hps before now.) and recently shen wei has discovered that having conversations about cases with the chief of the SID is - get this - actually helpful in solving those cases! therefore, for the good of all creatures everywhere, it is his solemn duty to lie to zyl about his alter ego. QED.

being hps is lonely! people are intimidated by you. they don't try to take care of you. i think he likes having zyl treat him like he's delicate, sometimes. nobody fusses over a guy with healing powers getting tetanus or colds, you know what i'm saying? nobody tries to rescue a superhero from muggers. nobody is gonna put a boyfriend jacket on the black-cloaked envoy! that dude is already good to go on outerwear. he might as well be called the No-Need-To-Give-Me-Your-North-Face-Because-I-Am-Already-Very-Warm-And-Stylish Envoy.

he keeps meaning to tell zyl but then forgets. one time he was going to make a note to remind himself to do it in the morning, but then he used up all his ink ghostwriting zyl's report to minister gao. another time he did make a note, but it happened to be the closest scrap of paper to hand when he needed to come up with non-supernatural explanations for a weird mauling, and after he drew a bear on it he forgot that there was something else on the back. hate it when that happens.

he feels like it would be rude not to tell chu shuzhi first, but then they had that weird interrogation when shen wei was caught at the face-stealer crime scene, and now it would just be like. soooooo awkward. chu shuzhi would be all, "i can't believe i tried to creep you out with a puppet and then told you you couldn't compare to one of your own toes, oh god, please let the earth swallow me," etc., etc. kinder not to tell him, really.

as soon as he comes out as zyl's diplomatic counterpart, is that going to color all of their interactions? he likes being able to talk to zyl about stuff without bringing Envoy this and Lord that into everything. he likes them spending time together as shen wei and zhao yunlan, not as the representatives of their respective species. even if zyl suspects his identity, not actually telling him gives them plausible deniability to keep doing that. once shen wei tells him, are they gonna have to officially register their relationship with haixing inspectorate HR? will this be considered a COI? how many NDAs would this necessitate?? the acronymic red tape could be nigh on infinite.

zyl is spending so much time on shen wei right now, devoting all his admirable tenacity and powers of observation to figuring out what his whole deal is, and shen wei likes being the center of his attention! once zyl has proof, is he gonna quit following shen wei around and pretending they just ran into each other? is he gonna stop waltzing into shen wei's office and eating all his cake? WHAT IF SHEN WEI HAS TO EAT HIS OWN CAKE. unacceptable. worst-case scenario. must be avoided at all costs.

actually he is doing zhao yunlan, noted mystery lover, a huge favor. like giving a cat a puzzle box. it's enrichment for detectives! shen wei is just trying to ensure an adequately stimulating environment for the domestic shorthair living across the hall (and also da qing). what would zyl do without this to entertain him? probably wither away to nothing. you are welcome, zhao yunlan.

maybe he's hoping that if he waits long enough and keeps showing off in front of zyl with his sexy sexy glaive, eventually zyl will express some kind of hubba hubba sentiment about hps to shen wei, at which point shen wei can be like "about that" and go right into the magical girl transformation. talk about a perfect beginning to their hornily ever after, plus it's efficient as all hell. unlikely? maybe. but hey, a guy can dream.

#i know there are varying opinions on whether shen wei does know about the time travel from episode 1 #but that is my working theory for the time being #once he came to the surface and saw clothes and hair and guns and lollipops like kunlun's i don't think it would take much to #put it all together. especially since it would make a bunch of cryptic stuff kunlun said about 10k years suddenly make sense #omg what if he got to modern-day haixing and heard people answer the phone and was like ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh #i get it now lol #guardian #shen wei #my posts #f #anyway it's been bugging me why shen wei waited so long to tell zyl he was hps. especially after zyl figures it out! #why keep lying to him at that point??? so i had to make a list #feel free to add your own justifications #together we can make anything make sense #ps zhao yunlan is a domestic shorthair and kunlun is an exotic longhair. hope this helps <3