Genshin Impact Rant Book

you guys do know that they're like grandpa and granddaughter right?

Hey guys! I hope you're all doing good lately! Today's chapter is about relationship interpretations and how people try to force it on others. I can't believe I didn't do a chapter about this yet bc it's one of my top annoyances in this fandom (mostly and usually done by the Westerners). I already talked about Kaeya and Diluc, so we don't need to get into that, but we'll talk about two other pairings:

@Adoriingly gave me the suggestion, so ty! But also ty to @ss-va-cielium for bringing it up in one of the comments! 💛

First up is Zhongli and Hu Tao. If you follow the story, you'll know that Zhongli is the employee while Hu Tao is the employer. He works at Wanghsheng Funeral Parlor as a consultant and Hu Tao's the boss (or also known as the director) of the parlor.

Even with the recent Lantern Rite event, Zhongli speaks to Hu Tao formally and with respect. English translation calls her "Director Hu" but in the Chinese text, it's roughly "Parlor Master Hu".

Now that I've talked about their relationship to one another, we now move onto their ship: ZhongTao. Again, people ship for different reasons. I just know the employer/employee trope and the cute and energetic person with a more calm and serious person are common reasons for people to ship these two.

My one friend who's a huge ZhongTao shipper just loves them because of the reasons I listed above, and also because of that one year's Lantern Rite scene where she has her hand on Zhongli's shoulder and is all excited, looking up at the sky filled with fireworks and pointing to it to show him.

While some people saw the scene and liked the idea of the two romantically, some others saw it as a found family relationship (dad and daughter or grandpa and granddaughter), which is cool, except many of these people aren't being respectful at all to ZhongTao shippers or to those who see Zhongli and Hu Tao as simply friends in an employer/employee relationship.

To the ZhongTao haters, they believe anyone is "disgusting" and/or "messed up in the head" for seeing Zhongli and Hu Tao as something else other than a "wholesome relationship of a family".

ew a ship art of them... yiKes. 💀

y'all who are shipping them, you guys do know that they're like grandpa and granddaughter right? literally most people in the fandom see them like that sooo

This ship makes me feel so icky. He's literally old as hell and she's only an adult in her 20s (maybe even a damn minor for all we know). Idk Asians ship weird shit tbh and it sucks bc I LOVE their works and I try to be respectful but aaah idk sorry

^ A reply under this comment: I agree! Like their ships make me SO uncomfy but I just really like the art so I keep following them. It's just not okay for them to ship these illegal stuff :(

^ Another reply: lmao that's why I keep bullying them so they can close their account. We don't need them here on Twt or anywhere else. I hate pro shippers 😭 like why can't they just be normal idc if its fiction it's still wrong and this goes to all those smut books on literal minors

(Btw the original commenter is a ZhongChi shipper. Their caard site says they're "strictly a gay shipper. DNI if you like ZhongTao and other similar ships with Zhongli" but they're okay with other ships that doesn't involve him, like Jeanluc. Just thought it was a little funny).

Pretty much the same thing with Hu Tao and Xiao. Some people see them as a found family of brother and sister while some others see them as strictly friends.

Their relationship is really interesting to look into. They both deal in death, hers more of passing others into the afterlife while he fights against evil to protect Liyue. Contrary to what people want to believe, they do know each other (and this is made really clear with the recent Lantern Rite).

I know I keep saying this over and over and over again in several chapters, but really guys - don't force your perspective and headcanon of these relationships onto other people. You can see them as family, BUT don't be an asshole to other people who see it as something else.

I notice from reading a lot of fan fictions that many people see a family dynamic of Zhongli as the dad, Childe as the husband/sugar daddy, Hu Tao as the daughter/granddaughter, Xiao as the son, and Ganyu as the daughter.

Cute and great to see them that way if you want! We all see things differently and that's cool (that's what makes people so interesting, seeing what they think and why they think that). But let's all learn to be respectful of each other. We can disagree and still talk politely together. Remember that if someone is trying to educate you about something in a respectful way (esp when it comes to canon stuff), be open to listening. You can feel whatever you want, but recognize the canon side of things and don't deny it just bc you don't like it.

It is canon that Hu Tao and Zhongli and Hu Tao and Xiao are acquainted (but none of these pairings are actually related). The found family is only a headcanon.

This chapter's question: how do you guys view these two pairings? I'd love to hear your thoughts and any dynamics that you like or anything else you want to talk about!

♦︎ AnnoyedAsian