I guess if water was the chief symbol in “The Prisoner of Beauty” then the moon is the recurring symbol in “Legend of the Female General.”

It first appeared in Episode 1 when XJ rescued her from accidentally falling into the pond. He assumed that she was about to kill herself and admonished her not to disrespect life so casually and her parents’ nurturing grace with suicide. She scoffed, telling him that her parents refused to let her speak and even abandoned her in the temple because she was blind. He persisted in defending life over suicide. Death might appear to be an easier option than living because of her desperate circumstance, but she could still achieve greatness in her blindness.

Sidenote: This should tell us his mindset and explain why he offered to build an army and retake Que after he had been flogged by the emperor. In his desperation, it would have been an easy way out for him to die or hide in shame, but he chose to rebuild his army and reclaim his family honor.

He then offered her osmanthus candy. (This is another recurring symbol.) He clearly told her that it was inedible but to his surprise, she ate it to test if it still retained a taste of sweetness like he said. Hmmm…why give it to her when she can’t eat it in the first place? Did he mean it to be a keepsake, a talisman or something?

After that she asked about the moon.

HY: Is the moon beautiful tonight?
XJ: Bright moon like frost. Gentle breeze like water. The serene beauty is endless.

The moon was obscured by the clouds, so he lied when he said that the moon was bright. Look: I’m not a meteorologist but when there’s frost in the air, the sky is clear. A full moon on a frosty winter night will appear very luminous.

She smiled at his poetic description of the night. His words did the trick; he comforted her.

To me, this scene is important because it establishes in our subconscious that XJ is like that moon. HY obviously can’t see him (i.e., he’s obscured by the clouds) given her blindness, but he’s there right beside her, hovering about her, watching over her.

The second time the moon came up was on the festival of paper lanterns. They lit the lanterns and send them off in the waters. Then, they gazed at the moon.

HY: Under the bright moon, I long for my kin. I wonder if the deceased shares this moonlight with us the living.
XJ: (firmly) Yes, they do.

This is a reminder that two of them have shared griefs and grievances that they can’t yet voice out loud. It’s enough for them to stand beside each other, in companionable silence, like the moon in the night sky.

Now, the third time (IIRC), the moon next showed up in Episode 11 when XJ barricaded himself inside his side of his bedchamber when he started sharing his space with HY. She spoke outside his door.

An aside: she reminded me of Anna in “Frozen” coaxing Elsa to come out of her room and make a snowman with her.

She reassured him that despite his distrust of her, she would always stand by his side and defend him. She’d wait until he began to trust her on his own accord. And unconsciously, she repeated the words his father, General Xiao, had told them – that the two of them would become twin stars of the Wei kingdom, and with their joint forces, they would protect the land and its people.

She then noticed the moon.

HY: Commander, the moon tonight is breathtaking. Care to admire it with me?

He stood up to open the door for her but changed his mind. Instead, he just leaned against the door, just like she was leaning against on the other side. They looked like bookends.

To me, this scene indicates that he still has his barriers up. He can’t consider opening up to her or even admitting to himself that he likes her.

The fourth time the moon arose was when he was about to leave on a rescue mission to Litao Town. He decided to bring his experienced batallion with him and leave her behind so she could recover from her injury.

He heard noise in her bedroom and when he walked in, he saw her struggling to put ointment on her back. So, he sat down and did it for her.

Afterwards, she offered him a gift of osmanthus candies for him to eat on his way. (Lol. This tells me that she overheard Feinu’s military report on Litao Town.) He accepted it without saying a word.

But then, as he was about to walk out of her room, he stopped and mentioned the moon.

XJ: The moon that night was beautiful.

Now, his words may not sound much to most viewers, but for me, this signifies that:

a. he’s finally opening up to her. It’s a tacit admission that he did gaze at the moon alongside her, although they weren’t physically standing by the same window.

b. he’s leaving on a mission without her, but he was leaving her with something to think about while he was away. In essence, it’s like a short love letter one leaves behind to be discovered later. But instead of a jotting it down, XJ spoke it aloud. He was telling her, “Do take care of yourself while I’m gone, and wait for my return.”

I’ll continue watching for the moon in the upcoming episodes and update this.