Can Ci Pin or The Defective; How Priest Presented The Cruelty of Separation and The Trauma of Reunion

I read another Priest’s novel, this time it's called Can Ci Pin or The Defective.

This novel is in the sci-fi category, set in a fantasy world with an intergalactic concept, where Galaxy 1 to Galaxy 8 are joined in the Interstellar Union. From Galaxy 1 to Galaxy 7, a super sophisticated AI system is connected to every human's brain from the moment they are born. This system is called Eden. He regulates human psychology so that you always feel happy, even when you feel a little emotionally unstable, Eden will stimulate your happy hormones. Eden will arrange your physical training schedule and diet menu so that you remain in the best physical condition. At this time, the human lifespan reaches 300 years, where 20 years is the coming of age, then 250 and above are considered elderly. With Eden, children don't need to go to school, they just need to enter a special pod for a few hours a day for several months, and Eden will transfer and imprint all the knowledge directly into the brain's neurons.

But Eden does not exist in Galaxy 8, as it is an outcast galaxy. The humans here have a syndrome that makes their brains unable to connect to Eden. So, most of the humans in Galaxy 8 have low IQs, short lifespans, poverty, and crime. Many space bandits use the planets in Galaxy 8 as their base, even the Union's enemies because the Union really turns a blind eye and doesn't care about Galaxy 8 at all.

The plot of the novel revolves around the two main characters, Commander Lin Jingheng, a commander and then the Union's best marshal who was later assassinated and declared dead 5 years ago because corrupt officers in the capital felt threatened by Commander Lin who was cold and harsh and very straightforward regardless of who whatsoever. He is still 30 years old but his military achievement is already piled up and no one can beat him except his mentor, the former Commander Lu Xin, who was also slandered and killed by the Union 20 years ago. This Commander Lu Xin is the connection between the two main characters. Then Lu Bixing, a young genius who excels at everything, but his brain would simply stop functioning when faced with the tsundere Commander Lin. 

I opened the Epub of this novel in early 2023, but I only managed to read the first 2-3 pages, then decided not to continue reading it because I felt uninterested and the lazy virus hit me. It was only at the end of 2023 when I was pressed by a 'reading target' that had not been achieved, then I decided to reopen this Epub on my Kindle and try reading it again. Take a guess? I only slept 4 hours in 3 days because I couldn't help but continue reading and finishing this novel. I'm completely hooked!

I was very, very impressed with Priest. I've read several Priest's novels, and realize the genres are very broad! Starting from wuxia, imperial court, criminal/investigation/detective, business, psychology, and now...interstellar sci-fi. Wow!

I like Priest's novels in different ways and degrees because I don't think they can be generalized. But... I like this novel.

Universe building, character development, storyline, pacing, conflict, OH MY GOD... it is really...really...really...good.

And...you know, I even reread several chapters because I was so interested in the issues raised in the story. OK, spoiler alert. At one point in the story, Commander Lin had to bomb and destroy the transfer portal of Galaxy 8. So Galaxy 8 became an isolated galaxy which required hundreds of years of space travel from Galaxy 7 to Galaxy 8. In the middle of the mission to destroy this transfer portal, Commander Lin was thrown outside Galaxy 8 and was attacked by space bandits and pronounced dead. Then he fell into a coma and was imprisoned for 16 years before finally managing to escape and return to Galaxy 8 through the natural wormhole that had saved him when he was assassinated by the Union 5 years ago.

 

Commander Lin was an orphan, and the relationship with his twin sister wasn't close at all. So, all this time he was never afraid of death because he felt he had nothing to lose even if he had to die to complete his mission. After meeting Lu Bixing, Commander Lin made a promise that no matter how far he went, as long as Lu Bixing was still alive, he would return to him. So, after coming out of a coma for 2 years, Commander Lin tried thousands of times to escape from his prison for 14 years without stopping. The only thing that kept him going and kept him from sinking into despair was that promise.

And what caught my attention the most and managed to make me cry in the middle of the night was how Priest described Lu Bixing facing 16 years of separation. This separation between Lu Bixing and Commander Lin was a serious blow to Lu Bixing's mental state because he did not see himself in the incident when the last transfer portal was destroyed and threw Commander Lin outside Galaxy 8. Lu Bixing also did not find concrete evidence of Commander Lin's death. So on one side of his heart, he still hoped that Commander Lin was still alive, and on the other side of his heart, he was trying to be rational and accept the fact that Commander Lin was dead.

It wasn't enough for just separation, Lu Bixing also had to deal with the grief of the death of his adoptive father whom he considered as his biological father. Betrayal from one of his trusted subordinates. And also the death of the Prime Minister of Galaxy 8 who was like an elder in his own family. Plus the huge responsibility that fell onto him to become the new Prime Minister to manage and revive the devastated Galaxy 8.

How Priest describes Lu Bixing who tries to paralyze his senses and heart by immersing himself in endless work, then Lu Bixing who enters another phase of denial by locking himself away and trying to improve Commander Lin's AI core, isolating himself from the students who are like his children themselves as well as other people. Then he tried to avoid anything related to Commander Lin and his memories. There was another phase when he tried to hurt himself, and experienced sleep disorders, then a drastic change in personality from the previous Lu Bixing who was optimistic, cheerful, and flirtatious, to the Almighty Prime Minister who was calm, cold, calculating, and reliable.

Then, when they finally met again after 16 years. It's not that easy, Ferguso... Priest is very good at tickling the reader's emotions when he describes how awkward it is when two personalities who have changed drastically meet again. Shadows of past memories, hopes, and expectations. Insecure feelings and thoughts that their relationship and feelings are no longer the same and will not last.

Ugh... the pain is different compare to when I reading Can Ci Pin and the pain when reading MXTX's Tian Guan Ci Fu.

My heart really hurt when the separation and reunion parts appeared. I can't imagine what my situation will be like when I face the death of my partner, my parents, and my younger siblings. I believe that losing a loved one is one of the triggers for a decline in physical function because there are so many people around me, such as my grandfather who died a week after my grandmother died because he really felt lost, had no appetite, and no longer had the will to live.

Unfortunately, Can Ci Pin is not as popular as Priest's other works. The manhua stops at only a dozen chapters. Donghua only has 16 episodes and there are no signs of a continuation. Fan art and the fandom is also not as big as the others. Even though the story and characters are very, very interesting. 

Oh, by the way... my favorite character isn't Commander Lin or Lu Bixing. My favorite character is Zhanlu, a super-intelligent, sophisticated, and chatty AI core who can shapeshifting to human figure. Ugh...I wish I had one. Hey...