After the recent translated volumes of MXTX's other series, it is legitimately jarring to have a flashback segment that isn't just starting a new chapter and suddenly we're x years in the past with neither warning nor context. It makes me wonder if Shang Qinghua's story about sacrificing his integrity as a writer in the name of encouraging serialization traffic isn't a little autobiographical, but that's not really the point here! The point is that Binghe loves his shizun, shizun actually does love his Binghe back, and a whole lot of consequences come due in rapid succession, which makes for an engaging read the whole way through.