I have a theory, see if you like it: Cheng Xiaoshi's mother spoke in this episode to never let Cheng Xiaoshi go to Bridon (London). Either because his parents knew about something in the future, or because his mother didn't want him to get involved in something bad or complicated that happened/will happen there (perhaps involving his own father?). Anyway, one important thing to note is that Vein says to Lu Guang: “This is the punishment for changing the past”, indicating that it wasn't Lu Guang's first attempt to save Cheng Xiaoshi. And where were they? In their photography studio, at home. In other words: I assume that Cheng Xiaoshi originally died during the trip the first time(s), but Lu Guang managed to prevent this and got Cheng Xiaoshi home “safely”. However, Vein followed them home and killed Cheng Xioashi in the introduction to episode 1 of this arc. Then Vein says (because Lu Guang tried to prevent Cheng Xiaoshi's death, returned home but failed in the end): “This is the punishment for changing the past”.
In other words, Lu Guang from season 1 and 2 somehow manages to get Cheng Xiaoshi back home to the Time Photo Studio safely. However, Lu Guang actually only postponed events somewhat because we see at the end of season 2 that Xiao Liu arrives from the airport. And what does he say to Tianchen Li (the pink-haired twin who controls the others by touch)? “It may seem like everyone only has thread of fate, but in actuality...it is woven from countless threads. Fate may be decided by someone's personality, OR IT MAY BE INFLUENCED BY OTHERS. We may want to change our fate, yet be unable to do so. I'd like to weave otgether more threads of fate, to transform all uncertainties into one certainty.” And what do we see in this episode? Lu Guang projecting various threads of wool onto a fate that he wants to try to change. For me, Xiao Liu returned from his trip at the end of season 2 because of Lu Guang/Cheng Xiaoshi. Xiao Liu's speech to Tianchen Li wasn't out of the blue, he realized this thing about different destinations/timelines because of Cheng Xiaoshi/Lu Guang, and it was precisely on Bridon's trip (that he arrives from there to the country/region that our protagonists are currently in in seasons 1 and 2).
Lu Guang has succeeded, so far, in keeping Cheng Xiaoshi safe even after the trip (we saw him fail when Vein followed them to the Time Photo Studio and killed Cheng Xiaoshi). However, he may just have postponed something. I had thought that maybe he had managed to get Cheng Xiaoshi not to go to Bridon by getting Bridon to go to them at the end of season 2 with Xiao Liu. But in episode 7 of the first season, when Cheng Xiaoshi travels to the past himself to save the life of the missing boy, Cheng Xiaoshi encounters Qiao Ling and Shanshan Xu in the past while crossing a street corner. Shansan Xu wonders: “For real? Didn't you go overseas?” Qiao Ling says: “I don't understand. He and Lou aren't supposed to be back yet.” So it kind of confirms that they have indeed traveled somewhere, which is most likely Bridon. Unless Lu Guang persuaded Cheng Xiaoshi or somehow managed to get them to travel somewhere else, but I don't think that's the case. So, if the Cheng Xiaoshi from the first season goes back in time and we have confirmation that this Cheng Xiaoshi from this line traveled on vacation previously, confirmed in this episode from the first season, and he's still alive, it means that at least so far, Vein hasn't killed him in the photo studio. Lu Guang says at the end of the second season: “I still want to use the last chance to go back to the beginning and save you”. So this could sort of imply that Cheng Xiaoshi hasn't actually freed himself from the bonds of fate completely, and Lu Guang fears this because he has already witnessed Cheng Xiaoshi being killed even after returning to their photography studio (although he managed to successfully save him on the trip and up until the present of the series, seasons 1 and 2, Cheng Xiaoshi hasn't died, he knows that Cheng Xiaoshi has already been killed even when they were back at home, by Vein). And Xiao Liu's arrival confirms it. They're still not that safe, possibly. But if this is “the last chance”, possibly it's the line that Lu Guang has managed to keep Cheng Xiaoshi alive the longest (which would make things even more unpredictable for Lu Guang, because he would never have progressed that far in all the other attempts, making him not know what exactly to do next since this line has gone beyond the key points he knew). Or, perhaps Lu Guang has already gone through the events of season two (but failed from them) and now he's using his last chance to try and prevent the evils of season three. |