WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Episode 7 of Heaven Official's Blessing, "Scorpion-Tailed Snake Shadow," now streaming on Funimation.
Previous episodes of Heaven Official's Blessing established Xie Lian as someone who would go out of his way to help others, who seldom judges people, and is unfailingly kind. However, his bad luck constantly puts him in some hilariously unfortunate situations, making him the laughing stock of the heavens, the ghostly realm and the mortal world. He takes it all in stride with a light smile but it's clear that no one has taken his side before and he's used to that. But now, that has changed.
The Cave in the Desert
After getting swept away by the sandstorm, Xie Lian uses Ruoye to pull San Lang, Fu Yao, and Nan Feng out of the storm and into a cave. Fu Yao wonders if the other woman in black is the other Imperial Preceptor named Fang Xin. Xie Lian denies it, stating that the timelines don't match: they're at least 100 years apart and Fang Xin is from Yong An Kingdom -- something Xie Lian knows because he was in the vicinity collecting scraps at the time.
As they walk further into the cave, they discover that they're not alone. Unbeknownst to them, a group of vendors has been taking shelter. San Lang points out that half of the people who have traveled here have gone missing and to see a group as large as this one here is suspicious, to say the least. The leader, a man known as Uncle Zheng, says that people can pass through with a guide -- a man named Zhao. Nan Feng and Zhao exchange looks.
The Story of the General
It becomes clear that the stone Xie Lian had been sitting on is, in fact, a tombstone. The words are written in Crescentian characters that only Xie Lian and San Lang can read. Oddly enough, although the Crescentians and Central Plains people often fought, this Central Plains general was found here near the Crescent Kingdom.
This general kept getting demoted until he was a lieutenant because he kept interfering in the battle in his attempt to prevent any innocent people, on both sides, from getting killed. Shocked, the vendors murmured about how sad it was for someone as good as the general to have suffered such a humiliation. Fu Yao snorts and says that the general's attempt to save everyone was naive and if he understood the purpose of war, he'd know that casualties are inevitable. In the end, the general's efforts were useless because the Crescent Kingdom ended up getting conquered anyway.
In the end, the general died after he tripped over his shoelaces and got trampled and slashed by his own troops. The group couldn't help but break into laughter. San Lang interjects: if they bow to the tombstone three times, fortune will find them in the desert. Immediately, the vendors fall to the knees and start kowtowing. Xie Lian chides San Lang to which he smiles cheekily.
San Lang's Care
Although Xie Lian doesn't admit it, his and San Lang's responses are more than enough to prove that he's the general in the story. Fu Yao's derisive commentary of the general speaks to his own views of Xie Lian: he doesn't think highly of the former Crown Prince. Trying to save everyone? How could the general/Xie Lian be so naive?
In contrast, San Lang doesn't laugh or ridicule Xie Lian. His respect and devotion to Xie Lian is shown prominently when he edits the inscription so the vendors' mockery gets transformed into worship. When Xie Lian gets bitten by the scorpion-tailed snake to save San Lang, the latter doesn't even hesitate before he sucks the venom out: His first priority is to make sure Xie Lian is safe and cared for.
This story also sheds some important light on Xie Lian as someone who doesn't seem to care about his well-being -- getting stamped on or getting poisoned is brushed aside. Whether that's because he's a god and technically can't die or if it's because he's gotten numb to pain after 800 years remains to be seen. With San Lang here, this means that Xie Lian is no longer facing the world alone.
