Zenless Zone Zero Qingyi: A Modern Interpretation of Chinoiserie

Let's start with the name of the individual we will be discussing today: Qingyi, she is a member of the Criminal Investigation Special Response Team. Her belly suit prominently displays the scientific name 01 Neo-Genesis VI.

In Chinese, there are several meanings associated with the word Qingyi.

As a noun, it describes black clothing. Maidservants and Yamen runners have also been referred to as wearing "qingyi" since the Han Dynasty. Qingyi works in the government office and is Zhu Yuan's subordinate, which matches the identity of the person who worked as a servant in ancient times.

In traditional Chinese opera, it's a form of the Dan role, known in the north as Qingyi and in the south as Zhengdan. Each of the portrayed characters is grave and somber. Qingyi also satisfies the characteristics of being a polite, serious, and steady person.

The third is the actual cyan clothing; even though the coloring of cyan is only present in the qingyi's hair and arms, it is the qingyi's primary color because her hair occupies a significant visual proportion.

Consider the name Qingyi, which is ideally suited to the character's design.

Let's look at the form next. Qingyi's unique band name this time is Clear as Jade Pot Ice, similar to Zhu Yuan's Straight as Red Silk Rope.

These two lines are from the Southern Dynasty poet Bao Zhao's poem "White Heads.".

The original sentence reads, "Straight as the red silk rope, clear as the ice in the jade pot."

It's defined as "as straight as a red silk rope, as pure and clean as a jade pot of ice."

Interestingly, Baozhao created this poem to convey his thoughts and unfairness after being deported for slander; does this indicate Zhu and Qing's future fate?

Green and Jade are important features of Qingyi.

Cyan is an essential color in traditional Chinese colors that can be used to represent a wide range of meanings. For example, youthfulness and vigor, tranquility and indifference, uprightness and persistence. The game's Qingyi reflects all of these traits.

As a color, its description is fairly broad; practically any color between blue and green may be considered cyan. Qingyi has two long greenish braids, and at the roots of her hair are two blueish hair bands. The design of the hairbands was also rather intriguing, resembling a graphic interpretation of the Chinese word "青," and there is jade as a headpiece to complement the hairbands.

Jade has long been treasured in Chinese culture as a sign of auspiciousness, beauty, and elegance.

In ancient times, wise individuals frequently employed jade as a symbol of virtue, believing that it embodied five virtues: compassion, righteousness, wisdom, courage, and cleanliness. In addition to representing noble character, jade is also a sign of rank, protection against evil, the blessing of longevity, and the legacy of cultural skill.

Qingyi is similar to this little piece of jade; concealed within the small body is the crystallization of knowledge honed with a vast quantity of old civilization knowledge.

Her head has two jade hair decorations, which are not carved clearly, but when paired with the rear of the object, the carving here is a Q form of Bì'àn, a mythical creature in Chinese legend, often depicted as a tiger-like beast and a symbol of justice and prison.

The bottom of the hair is hung with two enormous jade balls, and the game's texture is very nicely done, giving off a pleasant feeling you'd want to keep in your hand while playing.

On her right chest is a portable law enforcement device with thermal printing capabilities, making it simple to open tickets. On the left breast utility pocket there is a police badge. Qingyi also has a tactical dagger placed between the two pendants on his chest.

A walkie-talkie could be found on the lower right side of the clothing, and behind it was a little cylindrical item with a lightning bolt emblem that appeared to be an energy module. A huge thermos strapped to the back waist with an adorable Q-version of Bì'àn in relief. On top of the thermos is a jade lid that can be flipped over to form a cup for drinking tea. In the game, the thermos will adjust the amplitude of the restricted rotation based on the character's motions, allowing this attachment to light up.

Qingyi has two Bì'àn image battery packs hanging on either side of his crotch bone, which is as charming as a youngster hanging two packs of snack bags.

The tops of Qingyi's thighs feature definite stitching lines and little triangles that imply alignment, indicating that you are not dealing with a genuine person.

Looking at the overall form of Qingyi, cyan is the dominant color, but due to its low saturation, it seems to be a background color. To prevent the blue uniform of the Security Bureau from capturing the visual emphasis, Qingyi's body does not have a significant area of blue color block, such as the chest armor of this region, but also with a variety of minor props for color blocking.

When combined with the design of the jade ball material on the hair, the low saturation of the cyan hue can be highly eye-catching and looks very harmonious and pleasant.

Her weapon is called the "Peace Bringer," and its full name is the "Special Issue Three-section Staff."

In truth, the "PEACE BRINGER" initially referred to the square piece of wood used by ancient magistrates to shock the offenders by pulling it up and smacking it on the table. It is commonly utilized in costume dramas with yamen moments and is currently used in opera shows.

The Three-Section Staff is a traditional Chinese cold weapon made out of three small sticks of equal length joined by an iron ring and classified as a soft weapon. It is also known as the three-jointed whip.

The length of the short stick can also be separated into two categories: short three knots and long three knots; the length of the Qingyi weapon ought to belong to the latter category. The three-sectioned stick is a rare all-around weapon due to its form qualities, which allow for both offensive and defensive, attack range that may be long or short, attack movements that can be changed, and other advantages.

The drawback is also obvious: ability is required, and the entrance barrier is much greater than with the sword and stick, but there is no obvious three-sectioned stick characteristic in the Qingyi's actions at the moment, which is a bit of a disappointment.

Further down is the anti-dislodgement lanyard, which is not present when the weapon is in stick shape. It only occurs when the weapon is unfurled into a three-sectioned stick shape, hence it is reasonable to suppose that this protrusion regulates the weapon's contraction. The base of the stick is inlaid with a jade ring, which is linked to a chain made of soft material and copper coins.

Let's look at what's interesting about the skills next.

Eternal Seasons, the Core Passive of Qingyi, is both the epigraph of name from the Song Dynasty and an adjective signifying longevity.

Basic Attack: Enchanted Blossoms ，from a song written by the Ming Dynasty writer Xu Zichang, it will transform into Drunken Flower after enough electricity is flashed down.

Wind Through the Pines , Graceful Embellishment , Song of the Clear River and so on . They are more or less related to lyrical rankings.

Finally, we conclude the character design of Qingyi, she is the character with the highest concentration of national style so far in ZZZ, and her national style is more following the public choice of the standard. Whether the color, decorating, weaponry, or actions have a history to follow, but her image is also highly rebellious, carrying all of this is not a real human, but a loli appearance of a super AI.

As a result, there is a strong sense of struggle between the old and the new, and the ancient and the young are entwined in this figure, which immediately enriches the image of Qingyi.