[repost from LJ]
I think I’ve rather becoming boring and can only chat to people about reading Japanese novels these days. -_- Apologies to all I’ve bored. I think I will be eventually done though ? This rate is not bad, and perhaps I will begin to read faster in Japanese. Well, maybe one day! BTW, if you want to know what the Saiunkoku novels are like, they are like the anime except with slightly more exposition. XD Well, the other difference is that the narrator sometimes shows that they are telling the story far in the future after all the events have taken place, during a period where all of this has become legend.

This novel covers the journey of the new governors to Sa Province, and around the revelation of the true identity of “Lin Senya.”


This story starts with the scene where young Ensei comes across the massacre of his family by the bandits, which is rather gruesome, with Ensei find and picking up the severed head of his mother, and later being thrown out in the wilderness with his arms and legs broken. Um, and this is when he is a little kid. Anyway, then there’s the part about Seiran’s past, which is pretty much as it is in the anime. Also it seems that the exams are full of irrelevant stuff, because Ensei knows all about governing the province, yet he nearly failed the regional exam because he wasn’t good at remembering poems. BTW, in the novel, when masquerading as Shuurei, Kourin recites a classical poem to prove her identity, which she needed to know as a condition of entering the palace as a servant of the consort.

Also, yes, if you are being sought, indeed, maybe hanging out with a well known dude with a DISTINCTIVE SCAR ON HIS FACE is… a certainty? Anyway, I think Ensei’s sense of… professional duty in some ways comes out more in the novels, because when they get put in jail, Seiran is v. v. v. not happy that Shuurei was left out alone, but Ensei explains his decision in terms of his duties as aide.

While I’m at it, randomly, I can’t recall whether this was mentioned in the anime, but in Saiunkoku wearing the colors of the seven major families is banned. (I think you can wear off-shades, but not something like pure crimson or indigo.) The seal of the Ran clan is the “Twin Dragon Lotus Spring” and the seal of the Kou clan is “Paulownia Bamboo Phoenix Kirin.” (Phoenix and a kirin?) Anyway, when Shuurei finds out the seal contains the special paint owned by the Kou clan, she flashbacks to her meeting with Kurou, in which Kurou does tell her a bit about Reishin, and also, I think it’s implied that Shouka didn’t allow people from the main house to get involved with Shuurei until now (so he didn’t want her raised as the princess of the clan, I suppose), but now his letting Kurou meet Shuurei means that he doesn’t mind her being under the protection of the main clan.

There’s a scene that was shorter in the anime where Sou Taifu talks with Ryuuki about the past. In the days where Sou Taifu was younger, the land was in a very bad state, much worse than the wars nine years before; the court was powerless, and the nobles corruptly controlled the provinces. Then the previous king stood up and declared that he would destroy everything and kill everyone in his way to constructing a new country, and with Sa Enjun, Shou Taishi, and Sou Taifu, proceeded to defeat the rebellious nobles (thus all the previous references to them being on a battlefield together). Ryuuki is shocked at his father’s violent words, because he only knew him as a wise king and distant father, rather than as this revolutionary figure. Sou Taifu also talks about the Hyou clan, who have magical powers, although not much worldly authority. They support the emperor from the shadows. In those days, Hyou Eiki fell in love with Sa Enjun, and pursued him even though he wasn’t interested and tried to avoid her. (Shoujo manga….) Eventually, though, he began to return her feelings and ran off with her and got married against the wishes of the Hyou clan, who didn’t want to give her up being of her ability to see into the future. By this time, Enjun had become head of the rebellious Sa clan, possibly by killing everyone in the main branch, although Sou doesn’t know whether this is true or not, so Enjun was able to overcome the objections of the Hyou clan. Later Ryuuki continues talking with Sou Taishi and thanks him for taking an interest in him when he was young, which makes Sou Taishi embarrassed over all the mushy stuff.

The scene where Seiran kills Meishou is bloodier. Also, it’s explained why Ryuuren can beat people up with the iron flute (he admired the strength and beauty of nature and eventually decided to take up martial arts). It’s also somewhat better explained how Sakujun began to act. When he was ordered by his grandfather to marry Shuurei, he decided to go and see her for himself, and he had Ensei and the others arrested. Then he watched Shuurei to see what she would do, and when he heard she had gone into the shop, came to see her for himself. He decided he liked Shuurei, and if he hadn’t, he would have had her killed, because that was what he intended from the beginning. It’s mentioned that Shuurei is totally shocked to hear that Lin Senya is a murderer, because she sincerely liked him (since I was spoilered, I simply disliked him from the beginning). But the Senya Shuurei knew was not a lie, any more than the murderous, sociopathic Sakujun was; both were facets of the same person. (This is pretty much consistent with the rest of the Saiunkoku characters. Many of them also have this dual nature, especially Shouka (I am actually really curious as to how Shuurei is going to react once she finds out dad is a renowned assassin), Ryuuki, and Seiran.

Anyway, as for Sakujun’s way of thinking, Shuurei is the only person he sees as special or important to him in any way, so he thinks it is unfair if he is not the only person important to her. [Eh, in the novel the relationship between Sakujun and Shuurei is even more almost some kind of parable of the kind of romantic love that is violent, fleeting, mysterious, and frequently selfish; awhile back we were having some kind of argument over whether it was proper to describe love instrumentally, and Sakujun poses that exact question: Shuurei may say that what he feels for her isn't love, but then what is it then?]

BTW, although the stories are animated, the parts where Ran Ryuuren appears in the story prior to this occur in the Gaiden short stories, so I guess if you didn’t read the Gaidens, Ran Ryuuren just suddenly pops up as a new character to deliver the seal and the jewel.

And now for Saiunkoku 5. (latter part of the Sa Province arc)
I’m linking to the LJ discussion because we discussed some interesting matters here.

tags>>saiunkoku