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Can you give us a rundown on the variation in JC adaptions?

I can't do a full one right now because I've only completed the novel and the show, which is why I asked for others to weigh in! In terms of broad strokes, in the novel his last appearance is this:

After a moment of silence, Jiang Cheng shook his head, “There’s nothing to say.”

What could he say?

That, back then, I wasn’t caught by the Wen Sect because I wanted to go back to Lotus Pier to retrieve my parents’ corpses. That, at the town we passed on our way, when you were buying food, a group of Wen Sect cultivators caught up. That, I discovered them early and left where I sat, hiding at the corner of the street and didn’t get caught, but they were patrolling the streets and would soon run into you outside.

That this was why I ran out and distracted them.

But just like how the past Wei WuXian couldn’t tell him the truth of giving him his golden core, the current Jiang Cheng wasn’t able to say anything either.

Chapter 110, Exiled Rebels Translation

And his adapted endings are in order:

1. Wang Zhuocheng trembling smile crying a single perfect tear as he whispers Take Care to WWX's retreating back, with a postcanon extra two years later of LWJ writing a letter to WWX, grumbling fondly about how noisy it is in the Cloud Recesses now that he and JC have reconciled and JC keeps coming over to cause a ruckus.

2. Donghua!Jiang Cheng finds out about the core transfer after Guanyin Temple amd has a breakdown about it so bad he swaps endings with Lan Xichen and goes into seclusion, leaving Jin Ling to fend for himself.

3. Manhua!Jiang Cheng has a brief awkward conversation about flute ownership and watches WWX leave kind of looking like he wants to say something, but doesn't even think about it meaning that Jiang Cheng's sacrifice technically isn't manhua canon and he really may have gotten caught going back for his parents' bodies.

These are some BUCKWILD shifts, particularly if Jiang Cheng's sacrifice really isn't supposed to be canon in the manhua. I am actually reasonably pro adaptational changes but these are three completely different men? I'd have to watch the donghua in depth and read the full manhua to really do any kind of analysis, which I actually do want to! The donghua ending kind of killed my interest for awhile although I started getting slowly getting it back a couple months ago, but the manhua ending has me almost weirdly pumped. Like I'm ready to sit down and go through this making notes so that I might Understand, and come back with my completed thesis to get my PhD in Jiang Cheng Studies.

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I've updated my JiuPlane AU!

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I just discovered foodtimeline.org, which is exactly what it sounds like: centuries worth of information about FOOD.  If you are writing something historical and you want a starting point for figuring out what people should be eating, this might be a good place?

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Oh my god so I just had the most 🤢 brain worm but AU where JGY is actually a girl which makes things like ten times worse because yea, of course it does.

But the worst part is that in the scene with JGS and the prostitutes when he was bad talking Meng Shi he says this right...

Out of everything, just why did she have to bear a son, a son of a prostitute? What could she have hoped to…

But instead of this because JGY is female, he pulls a Donald Trump and says

"Out of everything, just why did she have to bear a daughter, a daughter of a prostitute? What could she have hoped to… *sigh* At least she does have a very nice figure. If Guangyao weren't my daughter perhaps I'd be dating* her."

This was the straw that broke the camel's back in canon too but now he gets an even more brutal death.

And well idk what happens after that.. maybe canon goes on like normal. But I just see JGS as such a sleazeball that he'd definitely say something like that.

*also he prob wouldn't say dating but like screwing or something worse

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The word is 'attempt' (Chapter 7)

Where do we go from here? Part 3 - The End.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/34123435

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13962595/1/The-word-is-attempt

https://www.wattpad.com/1136012778-the-word-is-%27attempt%27-aren%27t-you-tired-of-being

Yanli seemed embarrassed but there was also a vulnerability there that made Yu Ziyuan think twice about saying too much to her in front of everyone. She herself was a bit uncomfortable with displaying all of these emotions with an audience.

Yanli had been courageous when sticking up for the boys, but that courage had faltered when it came to herself. It made sense then that she would feel more vulnerable. She was accustomed to taking care of them but she wasn’t accustomed to having that much attention on her .

The boys cherished her a lot and looked up to her and maybe she didn’t feel comfortable showing this side of her to them. She was older than them and a girl to boot. It would not do to expose her insecurities in front of them.

“Alright then, if you insist there’s nothing to say then I won’t push you,” she said to her daughter who looked relieved.

“But you and I are going to have tea later, no excuses.”

Yanli winced but nodded, accepting that she would not get out of talking so easily, but that her mother would at least do her the kindness of talking to her in private.

Yu Ziyuan really did feel proud of her daughter at that moment. Yanli had never had an aptitude for cultivation. As a woman and a wife, their roles would be limited and a strong cultivation base did offer you a measure of freedom and protection. Strength meant that a man could not take advantage of you as much as one without strength. For a strong female cultivator like Yu Ziyuan, a daughter who was unable to cultivate a strong golden was disappointing. Still even though her daughter wasn’t a strong cultivator she could try to ensure she’d be protected by setting up an engagement with her dear friend's son. Her friend was strong and would be able to protect Yanli. She would be well taken care of. Since the engagement was no more, Yu Ziyuan had been worrying about her daughter’s future.

But now she had come to realise maybe she didn’t need to worry so much. Yanli may not have had much martial strength, but she did have strength nonetheless. Yanli had her own brand of strength that many others might not be able to claim. (And as for the marriage thing, well maybe the best way to protect her really was for her to just stay with her parents.

A-Cheng loved his sister, if anything happened to them he would surely take care of her. He wouldn’t force his sister into anything she didn’t want and he wouldn’t try to get rid of her. She could stay and be Lotus Pier’s darling for the rest of her life. Her only worry was that someone may like Yanli and try to force a marriage– she would have to try and find a way to prevent something like that.)

She’d focused too much of her energy on trying to get Jiang Fengmian to acknowledge A-Cheng. Now that Fengmian had supposedly seen the error of his ways, it was something she would hopefully not have to waste time on. She would spend some more time with her daughter now. Her daughter deserved her care and attention too. She may not be able to train her like she would with A-Cheng, but there were undoubtedly things that she could still pass on. She was a daughter of Meishan Yu after all.

She was no fool and clearly, neither was Yanli. The things her daughter had brought up, especially to her father who had never once listened when Yu Ziyuan spoke about any of them, were so to the point. She had never known that her daughter had noticed all of these things.

Yanli was so much more than her mother had given her credit for.

Yu Ziyuan took in her daughter’s tear-stained face and felt her heart sting. She promised herself she would do better by her.

She cupped Yanli’s face again and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

Yanli blushed cherry-red, but looked shy and pleased. She smiled, a small, bashful thing, and oh! Why was that so adorable?

That’s it! Yanli was never getting married. She had everything she needed at Lotus Pier. If she fell in love with anyone he would have to move there. (Try and mistreat her daughter under her watch! 😤) And if Fengmian disagreed… well, there was a tanghulu stick with his name on it!

She turned away from Yanli before she did something undignified (like squealing and pinching her cheek). She was about to say well, good talk time to go (and slink back to her rooms to nurse her pride in peace) when she finally saw, from the side of her eye, what the rest of the room’s occupants were doing. Her husband was staring vacantly in their direction; he was probably trying to give them some measure of privacy and was likely thinking about some sect matter in the meantime.

On the other hand, A-Cheng was now sitting on the bed next to Wei Ying who was lying down but who was still managing to tease and pinch him. A-Cheng was batting his hands away and poking him but trying to be conscious of his wounds so he couldn’t retaliate as much as he would like. All of this they were doing silently so as not to draw the attention of the others in the room. She was aware they were probably trying to give Yanli some face by not paying attention to the mother-daughter pair, but at the same time it was just the way they were, always fooling around.

Usually this would annoy her. But today, something about the scene made her chest feel funny.

Jiang Cheng was scrabbling with Wei Wuxian and was acting all annoyed but he really wasn’t. That was just the way they played.

Boys. 🙄

She remembered something then, a long time ago, from even before she was married. Being on nighthunts with other young cultivators from the various sects was normal. She’d interacted with Jiang Fengmian and Wei Ying’s parents several times, though she had mainly just been polite as they were not friends themselves. Jiang Fengmian was the Jiang heir but he was close with his friend Wei Changze, despite the man’s low birth. It wasn’t uncommon that they would joke around with each other. Sometimes they would play fight too, but of course not in the same way.

She’d had a good youth. Her husband did too. But neither of their children had many such experiences. Their trip to Gusu (and unfortunately to the indoctrination camp) was the most interaction they had with other young cultivators (well in A-Cheng’s case… Yanli didn’t even have that). Sure there were events and competitions but they’d mainly be focusing on representing the sect then, not really on making friends.

Yu Ziyuan felt a pang of despair at the thought of her children both being so lonely. She’d had friends and so did Fengmian. But Jiang Cheng had had a hard time making friends; his naturally introverted character, his awkwardness and inability to express what he truly meant (that frustrated him and so often came out as anger instead), and his status had created a wall between him and the other children around Lotus Pier. He’d only had his puppies for company when her husband had brought back Wei Ying.

And Yanli, well Yanli could get along well enough with anyone. But her cultivation was not strong and she had not had the opportunity to really go out on nighthunts etc. and make friends. It didn’t help that there were very few daughters born among their peers. She herself didn’t have many friends but when she was young there were other young women who she considered friends, especially on night hunts. And she had her sisters. Yu Ziyuan also had Madame Jin, her dearest friend. Despite being married now with many responsibilities, they still remained close. And she couldn’t forget that Jinzhu and Yinzhu had grown up with her and followed her to her marital home so she had their constant companionship. But Yanli didn’t have anyone like that.

Wei Ying had made himself invaluable to her children for he was the only company they truly could be themselves with. Ironically, Wei Ying could make friends (or enemies) wherever he went, sociable as he was, and the boy who she’d disliked her husband bringing home had ended up providing both her children with the companionship they sorely lacked. Yes A-Cheng had to lose his dogs and yes A-Li still didn’t have any close female friends, but at least they weren’t so lonely anymore.

But Wei Ying was definitely a little troublemaker. As head disciple he was supposed to be helping the younger ones to maintain discipline, yet he often led them into shenanigans and caused trouble instead. The boy had to learn that not everyone was as gifted as him so they needed to work harder on their cultivation. He should be motivating them! If he led them astray all the time they wouldn’t learn!

And A-Cheng got into mischief with him and got scolded by her for it many times. But the fact that A-Cheng was comfortable enough with him to go along with his nonsense proved that they had a close relationship. It helped him to connect with his fellow disciples too, who he still was a bit awkward around. If it wasn’t for Wei Ying, he might not have been able to become closer with them like this. He was going to be the sect leader, A-Cheng would have to know and be able to work with these disciples. They would be his subordinates in the future. It would be difficult for him if he didn’t interact with them and get to know them. It was undeniable that Wei Ying was instrumental in helping with that.

To A-Cheng, Wei Ying was more than just the head disciple, he was his good friend. And she knew A-Li saw him as a little brother. Despite her disapproval they both treated him like a part of the family. And despite his father’s obvious favouritism, A-Cheng still trailed after him like a puppy. He was supposed to be the future leader but was following the one rumoured to be his father’s bastard (a rumour which he stayed totally silent on, never confirming but never denying it either). The one who could very well threaten his place in the sect if it was true and her husband decided to legitimise him. It used to infuriate her. It used to fill her with unspeakable dread. If Fengmian really did sire the boy and he decided A-Cheng wasn’t good enough, he could easily replace A-Cheng. His father’s indifference already hurt him; this would destroy her son.

But Fengmian had told the boy directly that he wasn’t his father. He wouldn’t lie to Wei Ying. Not about that. If the boy was his he would definitely not have told him otherwise since he liked him more than A-Cheng.

And that confirmation had done so much more to ease her heart than any promises Fengmian made.

He said that he would try to be better to A-Cheng and he’d asked her to try together with him to improve their relationship. These things might happen or they might not. But the fact that he wasn’t Wei Ying’s father meant that her son’s place was secure, whether his father ever approved of him or not.

She’d been holding on to that fear for so long that she felt almost weak with relief now that she didn’t have to worry about it.

With that out of the way, she also didn’t have much reason (other than his mischievous ways) to dislike Wei Ying.

She’d never hated him insomuch as what he represented anyway. If he could be a bit more disciplined he would be a perfect disciple. He was already touted as a genius. All he needed was a bit of reigning in. His energy needed to be directed somewhere other than causing mischief.

Moving closer to the bed she observed them for a moment.

“Wei Ying.”

He dropped his hand that was going in for another pinch immediately and looked at her guiltily, cursing internally that he’d been caught unawares, too absorbed with teasing Jiang Cheng to realise that Madame Yu had finished talking to Yanli.

“Sorry Madame Yu.”

“What are you sorry for? Don’t think I didn’t see you poking him, A-Cheng.”

A-Cheng flushed. “Sorry Mum.”

She wasn’t even scolding them. These children, really.

“Wei Ying, you will rest for the next week, and I mean rest .” She looked at them significantly and they both frowned unhappily. She meant proper convalescence which she knew Wei Ying would chafe at because for some reason he really never could sit still, but he needed to recover.

“Yes Madame Yu,” he said dejectedly.

“Jiang Chunhua will take over your duties temporarily for now. When you’re better you’re going to start advanced talisman classes.”

He perked up but then looked at her in disbelief, sharing a stunned glance with Jiang Cheng.

“San-Niang, what..? May I ask why this all of a sudden?” came the shocked voice of Jiang Fengmian.

“A-Cheng is going to be learning to wield a whip with me. He cannot take over head disciple duties. Wei Ying also lost his sword to the Wens. He cannot progress anymore with a training sword. He could lead the disciple’s drills but so can someone else. It is better for him to study something he can use in the meantime, don't you think? What is the use of having him doing drills which will not help him?” “Yes My Lady, you are right.” Jiang Fengmian was surprised she had thought of such a thing and considered A-Ying’s progress as important as A-Cheng’s.

The trick, she thought, to settling his restless soul that was always ready for trouble, was to set him an interesting but challenging task and let him get out his excess energy there.

“Well, do you understand? If you take your bedrest seriously then you’ll get to start sooner. The longer you take to recover the longer it will take before you will be able to learn.”

When Wei Ying realised that she was serious, he couldn’t help the excited grin on his face.

“Yes Madame Yu! This disciple will rest well.”

“See that you do. A-Cheng, you will rest today and tomorrow too.”

“Yes Mum.”

She patted his head gently, and ran her fingers through the strands of his hair with care.

“Both of you did well,” she said, “They will all see that our sect has excellent disciples, not to be trifled with. But it is important to remember to take care of your bodies. Your cultivation can’t progress if you neglect your health. Your body and mind needs to have balance. We can’t have our best disciples falling ill.”

She turned to her daughter, “A-Li, remember we will have tea later. You can come to my pavilion before dinner.”

And with one last pat to Jiang Cheng’s head, she left, with them staring after her in stunned silence.

Yu Ziyuan had never complimented Wei Ying like that before, and she had never openly expressed worries about his health.

Jiang Fengmian was the most shocked out of all of them. He felt strange.

“Well, I should leave you to get your rest A-Ying,” he said, almost absentmindedly as his gaze had not left Yu Ziyuan’s retreating back, though she was no longer in the doorway.

He didn’t even hear Wei Ying’s response as he trailed out the door almost in a daze.

And then there were three.

They all looked at each other, confused as to what just happened.

Jiang Yanli went to sit on the bed as well.

“A-Xian, A-Cheng, I’m glad you’ll be getting to do advanced training. It would feel better to have some means of protection without your swords, right?”

“Mm,” said Wei Wuxian as Jiang Cheng nodded.

“Jiejie, are you alright,” said Jiang Cheng, worried about his sister who had never had an outburst like that before.

She took his hand in hers and patted it gently. “Jiejie is fine, don’t worry.”

“Shijie, do you think Uncle Jiang and Madame Yu will get along better now?” asked Wei Wuxian.

She sighed, “Well we can only hope so can’t we? For our family.”

“Jiejie… thank you,” said Jiang Cheng shyly.

“There’s no need to thank me, jiejie will always look out for you. It was time someone said something. Our family could not go on like that,” she said, “Jiejie may not be as strong as you two, but jiejie can still protect you in her own way.”

“Shijie is strong enough!” said Wei Wuxian.

“Yeah!” agreed Jiang Cheng.

She smiled at them and pulled them both in for a group hug. They clutched at each other, suddenly serious and taking comfort from the intimacy. It had been an emotionally draining day, for all of them. Her brothers were also both exhausted and A-Xian was injured.

“Okay well Mother is right, you two need rest. Please don’t cause us to worry any more. A-Cheng, A-Xian, you must always take care of yourselves, okay?”

“Alright shijie,” A-Xian said, chastised.

“We will A-jie.”

She ruffled both of their heads and took her leave.

Jiang Yanli did not know what would happen in the future. She could only hope and pray that things would get better.

She had not started the day expecting any of this to take place. She was a quiet, mild-mannered girl who was not fond of conflict. But that didn’t mean that she didn’t notice when conflict was occurring. In their family there was never a moment of peace to be had. The storm in her had been brewing for a long time, and it finally came to a head. The raging winds in her heart had forced their way out and the sheer unexpectedness of it had caused her family to listen to her.

Storms could cause great damage. Her outburst could have backfired and caused a lot more problems than they already had.

But storms were also cleansing. They could be rejuvenating.

After a storm, the world feels like it's new again. When the clouds part and the sun shines, a new sense of peace emerges.

And if you’re really lucky, you might even get a rainbow.

The End (or truly, The Beginning)

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Thank you all who made it this far 🥰

I debated on having yzy apologise to wwx but I decided that would definitely not fit with her, instead her character is more likely to gradually change her behaviour towards him now that he is no longer a threat to her child's future and jfm has explicitly said he isn't the father.

So this is the end for now guys. Thanks for sticking with it! I may have small sequels posted separately if I get the time.

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Securing Sect Leader Jin chapter 10 is up

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Securing Sect Leader Jin Chapter 9 is up!

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The Tale of Luo Bingcock and Hen Qingqiu

Chapter 1

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Chapter 2 is up

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Chapter 2 is up!

Chapters: 1/? Fandom: 魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù, 陈情令 | The Untamed (TV) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Jiāng Chéng | Jiāng Wǎnyín/Qín Sù, Jīn Líng | Jīn Rúlán & Qín Sù, Jiāng Chéng | Jiāng Wǎnyín & Jīn Líng | Jīn Rúlán Characters: Jiāng Chéng | Jiāng Wǎnyín, Qín Sù (Módào Zǔshī), Jīn Líng | Jīn Rúlán, Mèng Yáo | Jīn Guāngyáo, Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, Zǐdiàn (Módào Zǔshī) Additional Tags: Friendship, Developing Relationship, Family, Love Summary:

Jiang Cheng had always been grateful to Qin Su for being there in A-Ling’s life. A-Ling may not have had a mother but his aunt treated him as good as her own and Jiang Cheng had always been thankful to her for it. After the death of little Rusong, they both struck up a friendship born out of the acknowledgment of each other’s losses. So when Qin Su found out about her true parentage and tried to kill herself, Jiang Cheng somehow became far more personally involved.

AKA: Zidian decides it’s high time Jiang Cheng got a wife and she knows the perfect candidate! Now if only said candidate would stop trying to get herself killed!

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The Value of Recognition- Chapter 5

Chapter 5 - The Gift

Shao Jianguo was a good man in life. He’d led a simple existence, helping where he could as a rogue cultivator, until he met his wife and they had their family and settled down. He wanted to help too by joining the Sunshot Campaign but his need for his family to be safe won over his commanders orders to stay with his regiment and as he snuck out to find the Jiang contingency he was caught and killed. 

He wanted to see his wife but especially his child one last time and tell them that he was sorry. But he couldn’t find them. And it was too late anyway to provide them with a good life. What he could do was save those other children whose parents left them alone to play without considering the danger they were in– they were at war for crying out loud!-- so he took it upon himself to rescue them. But he was a spirit and one with a lot of regrets, which led to him becoming unwittingly resentful, and though he never harmed the children, he was still a malignant spirit who would not hesitate to harm those who tried to rescue them, who he considered as a danger. This led to him being chased by several cultivators.

And when he was about to be captured by those cultivators, he noticed something strange. There was a profound sense of sadness amongst some of them. While he would normally have been inclined to help, his spirit was bogged down with resentment by that time (which was why he was able to sense the negative feelings within them in the first place). So his idea of helping was to give them a ‘gift’.

But they’d been spread out by that point and he could only choose one at random to receive this gift. The one in blue was in his line of sight as the one in yellow was the one behind him, trapping him in the pouch, so he aimed his wishes specifically at him. He didn’t expect the one in purple to intervene, though he wasn’t unhappy with the outcome. That one was the saddest of all. He could use Shao Jianguo’s gift the most.

“What ‘gift’?” the qin-playing cultivator kept asking, “Mister Shao, please tell me, what was your gift? What was it supposed to do? Is it permanent?”

“Well of course it should be permanent! I meant to reunite you with your family after all,” chuckled the spirit.

Lan Sizhui lost his composure for a moment, letting out a slightly distressed whimper.

“A-Yuan what is it?” said Wei Wuxian, grasping his shoulder tightly. Everyone’s faces had paled at what they assumed was terrible news.

But Lan Sizhui just shook his head and pulled himself together.

“What do you mean reunite me with my family? How would turning me into a child help with that?”

Sect Leader Jiang turning into a toddler did not really seem like it aligned with that goal.

“I was simply going to return you to your family, in the afterlife. Isn’t that why you were sad? All of you had such strong sorrow. I understand it. I too miss my family dearly. I wish I could reunite with them. My greatest gift to you would be to help you return to them. The purple cultivator seemed even more hurt than I could ever imagine. It is a blessing for him to return to his family. Truly I did mean to help you but I am not sorry it was him instead.”

“So in other words, you meant to kill me?” Lan Sizhui asked.

“Well when you put it like that it sounds bad now doesn’t it? I meant to help!” 

“If you meant to kill then why has Sect Leader Jiang turned into a child?”

“Who?” “Sect Leader Jiang. The purple cultivator you hit instead of me. The one whose regiment you meant to join before you were killed.”

The spirit was shocked, but his tone turned understanding.

“It was Sect Leader Jiang that I hit? No wonder his emotions were that strong. I am sorry that Lotus Pier has lost their leader again, but isn’t it a kindness? Of all people he should get to be with his family again. They’re all gone you know? The Wens killed them all,” he said sadly. He was a spirit stuck in the past. He was buried, but now that his soul had been released his last memories were his reality, despite the war being long over. The feelings aroused by the massacre of the Jiang Sect were fresh in his mind. The horror and disbelief of hearing that a great sect had been eliminated in one day. Seeing the Wens patrolling, terrorising the citizens of Yunmeng. They were dark days. He felt a little sorry to be ending the Jiang line, but he also felt that it was a kindness for that poor boy who had lost everything except a sister and a shixiong.

“Mr. Shao, you seem to be under the impression that Sect Leader Jiang is dead, but he is not. As I mentioned before, he has merely been turned into a child. Tell me how to reverse it, please.” Lan Sizhui was terribly shaken by what the spirit had been saying but the important thing was to figure out how to help Sect Leader Jiang. He would deal with his feelings later.

But Shao Jianguo had no idea what to do. His ‘gift’ was meant to put the afflicted one into a deep sleep where they would relive their happiest memories with their family and the yearning they would feel to go back would help their soul to pass on to the next world easily while they slept so that they could reunite with them once again.

He really did mean it as a kindness. But he was also a resentful spirit and his idea of kindness was a bit warped. His gift was actually a curse meant to kill. Softly… gently… but kill nonetheless.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

A-Cheng was excited to show his new geges his home. Jiejie had shown him a beautiful patch of lotuses just yesterday and they had played with the fishies that came around a particularly huge one. A-Cheng even got to feed the fish while sitting on it!

But why couldn’t he find them?

He saw other lotuses and eagerly pointed them out, but the pretty patch with the very big one that could hold A-Cheng’s weight was nowhere to be found.

“What’s wrong?” Zizhen asked him, noticing his expression that kept intermittently changing to a frown in between his happy chatter.

“A-Cheng can’t find the big lotus,” he said unhappily, “It was here yesterday!”

“Maybe it moved,” suggested Lan Jingyi, at a loss as to how to explain why the lotus wasn’t there.

“Silly gege, lotuses don’t move!” frowned A-Cheng.

Jin Ling shot him a disbelieving look. Really Jingyi? Did you think the lotus got up and walked away?! Isn’t it obvious the reason why the lotus isn’t there?!

Jingyi’s eyes widened. Ah he was such an idiot! 

He laughed sheepishly when A-Cheng looked at him oddly, “Ah yes this gege was just being silly.”

“Maybe the kitchen aunties harvested it to make lotus tea,” Jin Ling said, trying to give a more logical explanation.

And it seemed to work, A-Cheng looked contemplative and decided that it made sense.

“Let’s go to the kitchens then! We can ask the kitchen aunties and get them to give us snacks!” he said cheerfully.

“Good idea!” said Lan Jingyi, eager to gloss over his blunder and get free snacks to boot.

A-Cheng wanted to walk like a big boy but he’d been running around for a good while with them to show them the different lakes and the flowers etc. and his little legs were starting to tire, but he was afraid to annoy the gege’s so he valiantly tried to keep up with them on their way to the kitchens.

He was holding Jin Ling’s hand but they weren’t accustomed to having to accommodate for children’s pace and so were unintentionally moving a bit too fast, what with their longer legs and all.

Eventually he tripped up and fell. He wasn’t injured but the shock of it and the fear that he bothered them by not being able to keep up had his eyes welling up again.

He was sniffling and wasn’t very loud but obviously his cries were noticeable. 

“Oh no jiujiu!”

Jin Ling picked him up and checked his hands and knees. Seeing the little hands turning red from the impact Jin Ling hastily blew on them as the toddler’s tears fell hotly down his face.

“See, it’s okay, you’re okay!” he said to A-Cheng, “Gege will blow the booboo away!” 

He blew on the toddler’s hands a few more times and cuddled him.

Jin Ling didn’t have much experience with kids but that was what Jiang Cheng used to do when he was very small and had accidents. Of course Jiang Cheng also used qi to help heal any real wounds and little Jin Ling thought his jiujiu was the coolest because he could make injuries go away like magic!

But for things like this when he wasn’t really hurt it was just the shock of falling or the pain of impact etc that would cause upset and this was Jiang Cheng’s signature move.

After a few minutes of Jin Ling’s cuddling, when his tears petered out, the little Jiang Cheng said, “Gege knows how to blow away booboos like jiejie!” And he looked at Jin Ling pleasantly surprised.

Oh.

Jin Ling hadn’t known…

Jiang Cheng had never told him that his mother used to do that too. Well, honestly people didn’t talk much about his parents other than how good they both were etc.

Jiang Cheng in a rare mood would tell him stories of when they were younger, but obviously most of them starred Wei Wuxian which was a topic he couldn’t bring up to a young Jin Ling, so it was very limited information that he could share with him growing up anyway.

A bit choked up, Jin Ling said, “Gege learned from his jiujiu.”

“The jiujiu that looks like A-Cheng?”

“That’s right.”

“Flower-gege’s jiujiu must be smart then, like my jiejie!”

“Mm, just like your jiejie.”

Jin Ling felt his eyes sting. 

(Ouyang Zizhen shed a tear in the background for him.)

Not wanting mini jiujiu to think it was his fault again for making someone cry he fought off the tears and threw A-Cheng once in the air and caught him again, making him shriek in surprise and delight (as a distraction). 

“Now that the booboo is gone let’s go get snacks from the kitchen aunties. Can gege carry you?”

This gege was becoming his favourite so the child quickly agreed to be carried (plus his legs were tired.)

Xoxoxooxoxoxox

When Sizhui relayed the spirit’s words the room became sombre. If the spirit himself didn’t intend for the curse to work this way, then they were really at a loss. It wasn’t designed to do this so they couldn’t know how to fix it. Of course the intention was death so if it had worked like intended then there would be no fixing it at all. 

Now there was a chance, but a very small one as they had no idea as to how to go about fixing the problem when they didn’t even know how it truly came about.

Though there was one detail that the spirit had mentioned that might be useful and it was the fact that the curse had been meant specifically for Lan Sizhui. Maybe that was why Sect Leader Jiang had not just died.

“It’s a silver lining,” Wei Wuxian said, his voice strangely hoarse.

“Curses that were meant for specific people can go awry if cast on a different target. In this case Jiang Cheng has a higher cultivation than Sizhui and he interrupted the curse from reaching its target so it malfunctioned. Or at least that’s the best guess I can make at the moment.”

Since the ghost would not be of any more assistance, they sealed him back in the spirit trapping pouch and SIC Pan went on to debrief the sect.

He sent some disciples to River’s end to try and find Shao Jianguo’s remains, and another set went out to Yunping and environs to look for any clue of his family.

Healer Zhang went off to the infirmary to prepare any medication she could think of that they might need in future now that the sect leader was a child with no core. 

“Well I guess it’s a good thing that his plans were interrupted,” Wei Wuxian said softly. 

They all knew that if that curse had hit Lan Sizhui like it was intended to do, that he more than likely would have been dead. The spirit was an old one and his resentment had been partially directed towards Lan Sizhui’s biological family. It would have been a double whammy. 

“I just wish it hadn’t hit Sect Leader Jiang,” Sizhui said, still feeling terribly guilty. Wen Ning squeezed his shoulder lightly as support. 

Wei Wuxian shook his head a bit. “Jiang Cheng is strong, he will come back from this…. Even… even if we have to raise him again, he will be okay.” 

Nobody mentioned Wei Wuxian’s wobbly voice.

[aurora077]

I truly believe Wei Wuxian wouldn't be able to live in a world where there is no Jiang Cheng. Throughout his life Jiang Cheng has always been a presence there, a figure that bleeds into the background on mundane days and outshines even the sun on the brightest. Wei Wuxian has always lived with the knowledge that Jiang Cheng was safe somewhere.

Even when he's Yiling Laozu, in the back of his mind he knows Jiang Cheng is out there, breathing, fighting. He sees him often despite exiling himself, has Jiang Cheng practically knocking on his front door even when the world sees them as enemies.

And even when he comes back as Mo Xuanyu, Jiang Cheng lurks in the background. He knows by filtered gossip that Jiang Cheng is safe, that he's in the highest position to be so, that the core that spins in him has kept that promise of protection. Wei Wuxian can keep his distance because he knows Jiang Cheng can protect himself, understands that being around him would only cause more pain for them both.

And yet if harm came Jiang Cheng's way, no matter how far across the land Wei Wuxian was, he'd know and he'd come running.

And if Jiang Cheng died then Yiling Laozu would show himself again.

Jiang Cheng, on the other hand, has to live. It's not just his pride that keeps him alive but his honour for his family, his sect. He cannot let his own life end when he needs to avenge theirs, when he holds a little Jin Ling in his arms and knows he needs to protect that child. But the death of Wei Wuxian? That kills his spirit, takes a small part of who he is away. That's the reason why he continues to hunt Demonic Cultivators, why he tries to reason with himself that Wei Wuxian isn't dead, that there's a way to find him, bring him back kicking and screaming if he has to. Jiang Cheng refuses to acknowledge the death of Wei Wuxian because if he does then that means it's real, right? And Jiang Cheng would have to live with the knowledge that the only last person to know who he was, Jiang Cheng and not Sandu Shengshou, A-Cheng and not Jiang-Zongzhu, was truly utterly gone.

They really are the soulmates born in the wrong place at the wrong time.

[aurora077]

Wei Wuxian: This one goes out to you, baby girl!! *intense flute playing*

Jiang Cheng: What the fuck...

(He's flattered really😌😌)

[aurora077]

You've shown me the meaning of being lonely

Summary: Jiang Cheng's relationship with grief & loneliness was not new, but it was only much later he realised it went slightly deeper than just that, for you see, walking hand in hand with him was also heartbreak.

Inspired by: Backstreet Boys - Show me the meaning of being lonely

So many words for the broken heart 

Jiang Cheng thought he knew grief. There were many occasions for it over the years of his life. From an early age, he’d grieved the loss of Princess, Jasmine, and Little Love. For a lonely little boy, they’d been his dearest companions. But the sting had been removed by the presence of a cheerful little boy, who initially he blamed for the first loss and was jealous of for the second thing he lost: the scraps of attention from his father which he had held onto all these years as a sign that his father did love him; his father after all was a sect leader and of course he was just too busy to indulge his young son. With Wei Wuxian’s arrival, these foolish thoughts were shattered. His father had picked up the boy, held him all day in his arms when he was afraid of the dogs, and his eyes when he looked at him shone with something that had never been directed towards Jiang Cheng. 

When Jiang Cheng agreed to share his room with Wei Wuxian, his father had gleefully picked up the boy to celebrate. Wei Wuxian had only been there some days and he’d already been carried around by the sect leader and then picked up in joy. It was harder after that to fool himself into thinking that his father just didn’t know how to show affection and was too busy to hold him the way other fathers would hold their children. His father, it seemed, just didn’t do these things with Jiang Cheng, but he was fully capable of being that way towards someone he did like. 

It’s hard to see in a crimson love

Everyone knew that his father didn’t like his mother and everyone said that Jiang Cheng was like his mother. It didn’t take a genius to put two and two together. Within a few days Jiang Fengmian had held the boy he brought back twice (and for a whole day at that!) whereas over the 9 years of his life, Jiang Cheng had been held less than five times, each time enough to make him happy for months afterwards. But Jiang Cheng had been a little boy with emotions that were too big for him, and so that night he had screamed at the usurper who’d been the cause of his only friends being sent away, who had shown Jiang Cheng that his father was in fact capable of affection and who was now supposed to sleep in Jiang Cheng’s room too. Jiang Cheng himself had agreed to it but that was before he realised that his father would hug the boy for it. 

This boy was here to replace Jiang Cheng, he was sure of it. His heart stinging, he threw the bedding out of the room and told him to go away. 

So hard to breathe

He’d quickly regretted it because he didn’t want to admit it but before seeing the way his father acted to the boy he had been excited to share his room, thinking that maybe even though his dogs were gone he could have a friend. And he felt guilty about throwing the boy out, it was cold outside, so he made to tell the boy to come back in. But he’d not been there and Jiang Cheng ran to his jiejie crying because his father liked this boy and if he found out that he left because Jiang Cheng threw him out then he’d dislike Jiang Cheng even more than he already did. He hadn’t truly meant for Wei Wuxian to really leave after all, he had just been upset. And he knew it wasn’t really Wei Wuxian’s fault that his father didn’t like him, it just hurt because in a few days Wei Wuxian had gotten what he’d been wanting his whole life: his father’s affection. 

It was the first heartbreak he’d had, though he was too young to know what it was called. Family of course could break your heart as terribly as any lover. 

Walk with me and maybe

But A-Jie had helped him find Wei Wuxian. And Wei Wuxian had said that he would lie to Jiang Cheng’s father so he wouldn’t get into trouble. They’d been inseparable ever since.

Nights of light so soon become

Wild and free I could feel the sun

It hadn’t taken them long to become good friends. Wei Wuxian was as sociable as Jiang Cheng was not. They complemented each other. Wei Wuxian was rather reckless and Jiang Cheng, the responsible sect heir that he was, was the one who was there to clean up the messes he left behind him. But he’d never resented it. Wei Wuxian dragged Jiang Cheng out of his shell. It was thanks to him that he’d become a bit closer to the other disciples. He was always getting into mischief, dragging Jiang Cheng with him. 

When Wei Wuxian was there, everything was bright. Jiang Cheng often wondered how he’d lived before him. He was like the sun; everyone was drawn to his warmth. But though he’d played with everyone, at night it was Jiang Cheng alone who had his attention. Sharing the room often led to them trying to spook each other with scary stories, huddling under the blankets of one of their beds and laughing whenever they managed to provoke the other. 

Even though his parents still fought and his father still looked past him, he had Wei Wuxian and A-Jie. Everything was okay. His life was not perfect, his heart still feeling the pain of not being good enough, but as long as they were with him he would manage.

Your every wish will be done

Unfortunately his attachment to Wei Wuxian often led to his mother scolding him too, because he let himself get caught up in all Wei Wuxian’s shenanigans. He’d grumble and complain but no matter what Wei Wuxian wanted to do he would follow him. His mother often despaired that he was supposed to be the leader yet whatever Wei Wuxian asked him to do, he would. What kind of leader followed instead? And what leader had a subordinate who wouldn’t listen to him? 

They tell me

Show me the meaning of being lonely

Is this the feeling I need to walk with

He’d warned Wei Wuxian, begged him, not to draw attention to himself. To keep his head down. But Wei Wuxian being who he was just had to play the hero. Worse yet, he taunted Wen Chao. He made a fool out of him. 

Wen Chao and his lackeys came for revenge. Wen Chao was an arrogant, pompous, spoiled brat. Of course he wouldn’t take it lightly that someone not only dared to defy him, but that they insulted him and made him a laughingstock in the process. It wasn’t simply that the Wens were going around flaunting their power. This was more than that. It was personal. It was personal because Wei Wuxian being Wei Wuxian had to fulfil the need to run his mouth while he was playing the saviour. 

Dammit, save who you want to but did you have to hurt Wen Chao’s pride? If it wasn’t for this would they have come to Lotus Pier with a strong vendetta the way they did?

Tell me why I can't be there where you are?

There is something missing in my heart 

Lotus Pier had fallen. 

It had fallen and they were the only two who escaped. (Thank God A-Jie wasn’t there.) 

And it suddenly struck him how alone in the world they now were. 

The feeling of loss was quickly followed by anger.

If only Wei Wuxian had listened to him!

He’d let out all the grief and sorrow and rage onto Wei Wuxian.

As Wei Wuxian lay there and let him hurt him, the rush of emotions bled out of him as suddenly as they had come upon him and he was left with a pang of regret which quickly faded into a sense of nothingness. 

He felt so many things that he felt nothing.

He was numb. There was a gaping hole in his heart. There was something missing that he would never be able to replace.

Why… why was he still here? He should have been there with them! With his family.

He had wanted to go back for them at the time, though Wei Wuxian had rightfully stopped him. But all he could think of was wanting his parents; like a child he cried for them. 

Life goes on as it never ends

He’d done it, finally. He’d managed with the help of Wei Wuxian to kill those responsible for his family’s deaths. At seventeen he’d started fighting in a war, coming out of it Sandu Shengshou. They’d fought and they’d won. 

But life had only just begun. And other battles would soon come. A war of words and wiles was still war. 

Eyes of stone observe the trends

Wei Wuxian had proven himself to be a powerhouse. All eyes were on him and the Jiang Sect. For there were others who wanted the power he wielded. And barring that? Well they’d destroy him instead so that the Jiangs couldn’t wield this power themselves. Of course Wei Wuxian didn’t make it hard for them since he himself abandoned the Jiang sect to follow his own ideals.

They never say forever gaze, if only

Guilty roads to an endless love (endless love)

Promises of forever made by the youth couldn’t last after all. Who said they would stay by his side? Well…

There’s no control, are you with me now?

He couldn’t control the situation at all. Him trying to justify why Wei Wuxian might have done what he did just got him accused of being unfilial. And Wei Wuxian hadn’t even bothered to speak to him before he broke out Wen Ning’s crew from the Jin’s camps. Why didn’t Wei Wuxian come to him? Why did he have to move on his own and so publicly too? Everyone was whispering about how Sect Leader Jiang couldn’t even control his own right hand man, who he grew up with no less. In one fell swoop Wei Wuxian managed to not only make himself a pariah in their world, but to completely undermine Jiang Cheng’s very fledgling authority while he was at it.

Your every wish will be done

He’d begged Wei Wuxian to give up this foolishness and come back home. But when had Wei Wuxian ever listened to him? And when had he ever not given in to what Wei Wuxian wanted in the end? He’d always followed Wei Wuxian’s lead.

Wei Wuxian wanted to (at least outwardly) leave the Jiang sect. He wanted his actions to be viewed as his own so that he wouldn’t drag the sect down with him. He knew after all what he’d done and what would come of it. Or so he thought at least. He always thought he knew best after all. 

They tell me

Show me the meaning of being lonely

Is this the feeling I need to walk with (tell me why)

Tell me why I can't be there where you are?

There’s something missing in my heart (heart!)

But in the end, wasn’t it Jiang Cheng who ended up being right? He’d take being wrong any day over being right when this was the result. His sister lying dead in his arms. Wei Wuxian being hunted down like the dogs he feared. And him having to lead the charge with the odious Jin Guangshan, for who lost more to the Yiling Patriarch than the Jin and Jiang sect after all? 

There is nowhere to run

I have no place to go

He didn’t have any choice in the end did he? And of course he was angry. Wei Wuxian always told him he could control himself, and being the fool he was, he trusted him!

But even he didn’t know what he would have done when seeing him at the siege. After all, he'd agreed to lead the charge. His mind was in disarray. He’d needed to do it after all, his sect depended on it. And if a part of him hoped this meant he would reach Wei Wuxian first and manage to claim him as Yunmeng Jiang’s prisoner so he wouldn’t be left to the mercies of the Jins, well that was for him and him alone to know. What he would have done with Wei Wuxian after capturing him even he didn’t know. But even in his anger, he wasn’t sure he would have killed him.

Surrender my heart, body, and soul

However in the end the decision was taken from him, wasn’t it? Wei Wuxian chose self destruction instead. The horror of watching him be torn apart by corpses was seared into his brain. It was an image he would never forget. Wei Wuxian surrendered to the mercies of his own weapon turned back on him. His body torn apart, his soul surely full of resentment. And with him, with the last of his family being destroyed in front of his eyes, Jiang Cheng’s heart was torn into pieces.

How can it be you’re asking me

To feel the things you never show?

(Show-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh!)

What else could he feel? Numb. It was all that was left now. His heartbeat thudding in his ears. The shouts of victory from the others echoing without registering. He moved on autopilot, simply doing what had to be done. Thoughts and feelings were muted. There was nothing. Once more, there was nothing.

You are missing in my heart

Tell me why can't I be there where you are?

Some days, he wished he’d joined Wei Wuxian. Let them both be torn apart together. After all, why should he remain living when there was nobody left? Didn’t Yanli say that the three of them should stay together? So he should join them shouldn’t he? Together in death the way they couldn’t be in life. 

Show me the meaning of being lonely (being lonely)

Is this the feeling I need to walk with (tell me why)

He was left all alone to rebuild his family’s legacy. Every second of every day was painful, but the crushing loneliness, the ache inside, was just something he needed to learn to deal with. He carried on and they walked with him like bosom friends.

Tell me why I can't be there where you are? (where you are)

There’s something missing in my heart

(You are missing from my heart)

The only thing that kept him going was Jin Ling. If it wasn’t for his nephew he wasn’t sure that there would be any tether strong enough to stop him from going to his family.  

But he could not keep Jin Ling with him all the time. The ache was more pronounced when they were apart. When his nephew was in Lanling he felt as if whatever meagre shreds of his heart that survived were all there with him. In his chest there was nothing, a hollow space bereft of all softer feelings. 

When he got blacklisted by the matchmakers, instead of despair all he felt was relief. Relief that he would not have to pretend to care for someone else when he had no care left to give. Whatever was left of him was for his sect and Jin Ling. 

A spouse deserved better than a shell anyway. For that was what he was. 

And Jiang Cheng did not want to become his father. Someone who would not be able to show his family love or attention because the ones that they loved more than anything were gone. 

Show me the meaning of being lonely (being lonely)

Is this the feeling I need to walk with

But you couldn’t claim loneliness when you drowned in work, could you? There’d be no time to feel anything but exhausted then. 

He spent all his time chasing after those who started practising demonic cultivation and wreaking havoc on the lives of the common people with their unhinged and destructive behaviour. As always, he was cleaning up after Wei Wuxian’s messes. 

If he used the time to also search for Wei Wuxian’s undoubtedly resentful soul hoping to put it to rest well, others were welcome to think it was destruction that was also his aim. 

Tell me why I can’t be there where you are? (where you are)

There’s something missing in my heart 

Of course he never found Wei Wuxian’s soul. No, that dubious honour went to Mo Xuanyu. Wei Wuxian came back after all, like he knew he would, though not in quite the way he’d anticipated. He’d expected him to be back as a resentful spirit, unable to rest with the violence of his death. He’d tried to exorcise him from Mo Xuanyu’s body, thinking he’d finally found him and would be able to let his soul move on from this plane. How could he have known that Mo Xuanyu wasn’t possessed but had willingly destroyed his soul to give Wei Wuxian his body. 

And how could he have known that even still he’d only have loneliness for company as he watched that unfamiliar, yet familiar back walk away from him once more? 

In the end he thought he’d known grief. He’d walked with it all his life after all. But how could he explain the grief he felt now? Knowing that Wei Wuxian was dead was lonely enough, but knowing that he was alive and chose not to come back even when he could have.. Chose to leave Jiang Cheng in his past.. It was a new form of grief. He couldn’t be where Wei Wuxian was before, and he couldn’t be there now either.

Those promises of being by his side were brushed aside with a simple ‘sorry’. In the end it was only he who valued them. He was worth little more than a debt to be paid. And oh did Wei Wuxian pay for his perceived debts dearly.

It was just that he was willing to sacrifice Jiang Cheng’s feelings at the altar of ‘owing’ too.

But he’d get over it.

He always did.

After all, grief was his companion. Loneliness, his friend. They were intimate acquaintances by now. Heartbreak? Well it was only a new word for an old feeling. There were so many words for it after all.

He would move on because he didn’t have a choice. There were many things missing in his heart, but he still had one left.

Jin Ling. The light of his shadowed life.

His nephew needed him, now more than ever. 

And if one day he didn’t anymore, well… 

He would cross that bridge when he came to it.

[aurora077]

A Fic Pet Peeve as a Chinese Person

MDZS fic writers, please stop changing Jiang YanLi’s name to “Jin YanLi” just cuz she got married to peacock golden boy. Even back in Old China, if you and your partner were (essentially) of equal status, you never change your family name to that of your spouse’s, even as a woman. The concept of “maiden names that are automatically changed upon marriage” isn’t really a thing. If a name change happens, it’s because an individual specifically chooses to take on the name formally (or forced to cuz of whatever nonsense reason). Still, it’s more common for name changes to happen by adoption rather than marriage.

In the case of Jiang YanLi marrying into the Jin Sect, her title is now (Young) Madam Jin, but her name is still Jiang YanLi. In her mother’s case, her name being Yu ZiYuan isn’t a big deal, it’s normal. It was the fact that she was referred to, as a title, as Madam Yu, despite being the Madam of the Jiang Sect, which suggested she took pride in her birth family roots over her marriage into the Jiang Sect. So, please, if you want to call her Jin YanLi please at least put in like one line of her wanting to take on the married name instead of her family name.

Anyways I just needed to get this off my chest ‘kay thanks bye

[aurora077]

The Irwin Agenda (Chapter 5~ End)

Chapter 5 - Lan Qiren’s no good very bad day

“Wangji, we have a meeting with the elders in five minutes, where is your brother!?” said Lan Qiren frustratedly. 

“Brother is at the Hanshi. He said if Fang can’t come to the meeting then neither will he. He refuses to go anywhere without his ‘emotional support crocodile’ and has sent me in his place,” Lan Wangji said sullenly. Since the elders learned of the crocodile they had told Lan Xichen that he wasn’t allowed to bring it into the council chambers. He was the sect leader so they couldn’t ban it outright if he insisted on keeping it, but they could keep it out of their meeting room. Lan Xichen had not been happy about this development. Fang was of course a comforting presence at his side whenever he had to deal with stressful matters (dealing with the elders was always stressful in his opinion) and so he decided if Fang wasn’t allowed in then he wouldn’t go either.

“Emotional what!?” fumed an enraged Lan Qiren. When Lan Huan said the crocodile was his companion Lan Qiren wasn’t happy but he couldn’t contradict the sect leader so he pretended it didn’t exist, but this was getting ridiculous! 

“Come Wangji, you will help me get your brother to this meeting!”

“Yes shufu 😞.” 

—--------------

“Lan Huan! What is that cacophony!? Cease this nonsense at once!” screeched Lan Qiren who had scarcely gotten up the path of the Hanshi before being assaulted with the most horrendous sound he’d ever heard in his entire life (and he’d heard Cangse Sanren’s cackling after she’d shaved off his beard!).

“Ah uncle, it’s not nonsense! Fang likes some strange newfangled type of music. The kids are calling it Rock and Roll? It seems to be a very natural type of thing. I’m not sure what instrument is used but I tried my best to replicate it with the ones we have here, though it doesn’t seem to be working out very well. We simply don’t have the right instruments since it appears to be quite foreign music, but Fang seems to like it anyway. Fang’s previous owner’s moniker is Jagged Stone. He must be very in tune with the mountains and the earth,” Lan Xichen said sagely. 

Wei Wuxian had a great idea that time when they misunderstood why Lan Wangji was upset. They initially thought that Lan Wangji was upset that the crocodile couldn’t talk, i.e. communicate more openly with them, which made Wei Wuxian later come up with a brilliant plan. He’d lent Lan Xichen the incense burner that they had in their possession to see if it would allow him to enter dreams with Fang. It had been a wild shot because they hadn’t known if crocodiles could dream. But it worked magnificently!

“Jagged Stone? Who named that guy? If I didn’t know better I’d have said Jiang Cheng made it up!” cackled Wei Wuxian, who had been on his way to visit the Hanshi to see if his idea had worked and had joined Lan Wangji and Lan Qiren on their way to see Lan Xichen.

He probably did, thought Lan Wangji sourly. It must have been an excuse to bring the crocodile to the Cloud Recesses and cause havoc. Really, who would believe that he just happened to come across the croc as some random yao dressed in strange black and green clothing dropped it almost on top of a boat of fishermen on one of the lakes at Lotus Pier. 

Sure Sect Leader Jin was also there with him at the time but Jiang Wanyin was his uncle, he’d back him up if necessary.

Besides, who ever heard of a yao that looked like a human crossbred with a fly but also happened to have strange wheels on its feet? And which yao spoke (spoke!!) about their plans to hurt some guy called Jagged Stone by sending his precious friend (the crocodile!) Fang where he could never retrieve him? And then even more unbelievably, if that was possible, the yao got hit by Zidian and just disappeared! They could find no trace of it! 

Sect Leader Jiang claimed to have hung a clarity bell on the crocodile's collar because it was not attacking anyone but it was clearly very agitated. The upset crocodile was scaring the locals, who would not usually encounter such an animal in that area, and only with the clarity bell did it calm down. Jin Rulan claimed that despite their attempts to relocate it to a more suitable location, the crocodile got so attached to Jiang Wanyin that it was trailing behind him like a dog and refused to stay behind. Since the crocodile was acting like a trained pet and it was also doing wonders for preventing trouble in Yunmeng he let it stay. 

And in Lan Wangji’s opinion that should have been the end of it! But noooo. Jiang Wanyin had the brilliant idea to send it to Lan Xichen as a ‘late dowry for his wayward shixiong’ and because he thought that Lan Xichen of all people deserved an uncomplicated companion like a pet would usually be but since the Cloud Recesses couldn’t have pets then he’d just send Fang who was somehow trained but who was also a crocodile and hence people would have a hard time trying to make it stick that this was a pet. If his brother wasn’t so obviously happy having the crocodile around, Lan Wangji would have fought to prove it was a pet and gotten it kicked out. 

He begrudgingly admitted it was a better companion than Jin Guangyao at least. The crocodile wouldn’t manipulate his brother and make him doubt his own judgement.

Lan Xichen, oblivious to the thoughts of his brother, just laughed at Wei Wuxian’s words. “It does sound made up, doesn’t it? But I am happy to say that Wanyin isn’t playing a joke on us, it really is Fang’s past owner’s name. The incense burner worked! That’s how I knew he likes this type of music! If you don’t believe me you can ask Jingyi and Sizhui, somehow they got pulled into the dream too.” 

Wei Wuxian was vibrating with excitement. “I can’t believe it worked! Xichen-ge you have to let me try next time. I’ll have to trouble you to sleep in your guest bedroom!” 

“Wei Ying,” said Lan Wangji dejectedly.

“Oh of course you can come too Lan Zhan! Don’t look at me that way, you wanted to be able to understand Fang too, right?”

But before Lan Wangji could reply, Lan Qiren had finally lost his last strand of patience with them all.

“Forget the crocodile, Lan Xichen, do you intend to step down as sect leader?”

“What? Of course not uncle! What would make you say a thing like that?” Lan Xichen said, aghast. “Well it seems like you have forgotten your duty. The elders are waiting on the sect leader’s report, but the sect leader is too busy playing house with a reptile and leaving his brother to carry on without him!” 

Lan Xichen sighed. He’d not wanted to give in to the elders’ banning Fang from the meeting room but he also didn’t mean to upset his uncle. As angry as Lan Qiren seemed there was an undercurrent of hurt in his voice and Lan Xichen had a sinking feeling that he’d possibly just reminded his uncle of his father. 

“I’m sorry shufu, I’ll go now. Xian-di do you mind keeping Fang company?”

“Just leave it to me Xichen-ge!” saluted Wei Wuxian. 

—---------

Lan Qiren had had a stressful day. After the meeting he’d gone straight to his rooms to meditate and to have an early rest. 

The next day he decided, was a day for clearing his mind and lowering his blood pressure.

After breakfast he set out on a walk around the Cloud Recesses. The exercise and fresh air would bolster his spirit and soothe his mind. 

Or so it would have if not for–

There it was again!!!

“What is that mysterious ticking noise!” shouted Lan Qiren, at his wits end. It had been following him for half an hour. 

“Oh that’s just Tick-Tock, Fang’s mate,” said Lan Jingyi gleefully, “It seems she likes you! I’ve been looking for her everywhere but she was here following you all along!”

“That infernal crocodile has a mate!?” he said, too appalled to wonder how Lan Jingyi was suddenly there and why he didn’t notice the crocodile that had apparently been stalking him the entire time!

“Well I couldn’t let Fang be lonely, could I?” said Lan Xichen, popping up suddenly behind them and almost scaring ten years off of Lan Qiren’s life. (The precious little he had left after being terrorised by both his nephews’ pets. And no he did not mean Wangji’s rabbits!)

 “But don’t worry uncle, you have nothing to fear,” continued his nephew, “She’s perfectly harmless. Unless of course you happen to have a hook for a hand in which case she’ll turn feral and you should probably run for your life.” 

“Indeed, that one ship captain learned the hard way,” said the Chief Cultivator, fluttering his fan slowly.

Chief Cultivator!? Lan Qiren clutched his chest, what was with these people? Was it a trend nowadays to try and give him a heart attack? And where did they keep popping out from? None of these people had been here before and he hadn’t heard any of them approaching. Was he faltering in his cultivation? 

Composing himself, he said, “My apologies Chief Cultivator, I did not realise you were visiting.” 

“No need, Master Lan. I just came to deliver Tick-Tock and have her settled in comfortably.” 

“Yes, A-Sang was astute enough to recognise that Fang might be lonely since he is the only one of his kind here. I am ashamed that I did not consider it before.” Lan Xichen realised that when he had to do his sect leader duties it wouldn’t be possible to have Fang with him at all times even if he was his emotional support animal. But he had only been thinking of how unfortunate it was that he couldn't keep him around the entire time, totally disregarding that Fang himself might be lonely in the times that Lan Xichen (or the others) couldn’t be there. 

“Oh don’t feel bad. It was unexpected for Jiang Cheng to get a crocodile like Fang in the first place, it’s no wonder you didn’t think of finding another. For anyone other than myself it might not have been possible anyway. But yes Master Lan, Tick-Tock was my gift to Er-ge. In the spirit of making amends.” 

“Y...you gave Xichen that..that beast!?” Oh, his poor heart. How could he tell Xichen to get rid of it if it was a gift from the Chief Cultivator. Woe is me, he thought. 

“Master Lan, are you alright?” asked Nie Huaisang, when Lan Qiren appeared pale.

No... no he didn’t think he was.

“Uncle!”

“Shifu!”

He fell into a dead faint. Lan Jingyi was just a second too late to catch him. But unbeknownst to Lan Qiren, the crocodile was not. He would later wake up and wonder why his robes were torn. 

—------------

Lan Qiren also wondered if he too needed an emotional support animal with the way his life was going. Luckily (or unluckily, he couldn’t make up his mind) the female crocodile seemed to have really taken a shine to him for some reason and often ended up keeping him company. She was a surprisingly good listener and seemed to commiserate with him when he ranted about all the idiots he had to deal with on a daily basis. 

He would never admit it to Wangji but truly, having to learn how to read his face did come in handy for reading the crocodile. And he found that Lan Huan was right. Crocodiles were easier to deal with than people. 

Huh. Who would’ve thought?

A/N:

As for the origin of Fang, it’s Miraculous Ladybug crossover time: Something something Alix got mad at Jagged Stone for some reason, got akumatised as Timebreaker, sent Fang to ancient China, got whacked by Zidian and went back to her own time, got defeated by Ladybug but the Miraculous cure didn’t get to take Fang back because Jiang Cheng’s clarity bell is a cultivation item which interfered with the magic as two types of ‘magics’ clashed.

The Miraculous magic just shrugs and straight up creates a clone of Fang instead since it needed to fix things but couldn’t get back Fang. Tikki is the kwami of creation after all, her magic could make anything so nobody is any the wiser.