So, uh, how do I retroactively extend this reversed behavior to all the links on my blog relying on the previous behavior? I think it’s easier for me to just downgrade and freeze the plugin back to where it works the way I’ve relied on it functioning up until now.

(Not to be critical of your work; it’s your code and you do with it as you will. It just seems my use-case was niche even until recently, and now it’s no longer supported at all.)