#‘he did bad things’ hi! welcome to cql

[duohensheng]

watching cql w my sister for the first time and I’m consolidating my adherence to the theory that people who don’t Get jgy’s perspective simply are not (being given the time to) apply their critical reading skills

[llycaons]

ep19 (part 1) : you know it's bad when you see a torture scene and you're like 'oh yeah this is the least painful thing to happen to him in three episodes and it'll only get worse after this'

on my first watch I remember being like 'oh god she looks like shit', honestly he's a little tired looking and he's got a far-away look in his eyes that points to some extreme inner distress or distracting pain and he coughs very weakly but. yeah no he looks pretty bad

what we all assumed was hunger but was. you know

unintentionally (?) funniest shots in the episode. wzl might actually know about wwx's core at this point - I assume he can sense them. I can think of no other reason for him to look at his hand like that

scream. with context...well we know why. and wwx likely hasn't slept either

of all the additions to the story cql made, this is by far one of the most powerful and memorable. it's such a beautiful scene and imo it points to what jc deep down wanted more than anything. happy family. everyone getting along. his some safe. wwx is there, and I know there's a lot of debate over whether jc sees his as a brother but it's hard to argue he didn't see him as par of that family in some way, regardless of how he treated him

this scene wasn't in the novel unless im really misremembering, but it's much easier to believe that jc viewed wwx differently there compared to here

his mother welcoming him! smiling! being kind and affectionate to his siblings!

his father interacting with him willingly! playing with him! believing in him! such simple things, and so out of reach for jc, once hard to imagine him attaining and now impossible

he knows to thank bssr but I don't think he'll ever thank wwx :/

RUDE BITCH

he's tired so I can forgive that his comeback to 'you're a dog' is 'NO YOU'

why are you like this. maniac

here he is! wwx is defined by his low birth status and his unstable relationship with the aristocracy. they can cast him out at any time, and do so once it's clear he will act against them. there is treatment and slander he endures that a highborn individual would never face even if they did the exact same things that he did. but wwx is scrappy. he uses everything he has to his advantage. he even weaponizes his lack of privilege.

wjl are you stupid. like. love this woman, she's very funny, but seriously. you work with cultivators

oof oof ouch. this is a rough scene and it's the least bad thing to happen to wwx from his enemies (or allies) in a while. after watching his home be destroyed, seeing myu blame him for everything then died with jfm, LP overtaken and disrespected, needing to get jc back, staying awake for days researching, then lying awake for two days and a night undergoing surgery, and AFTER this getting thrown into a pit of corpses where you're expected to lose your soul to endless torment....well. this is bad but relatively bearable

anyway ohh yin iron is reacting to his blood

I love when side characters deliver exposition loudly and obviously. very convenient for our protags

JC SAW THEM. SCREAM. I don't think he could have done anything esp since he doesn't have his sword but he SAW them. isn't that wild

if he was just a few hours earlier...well, wwx would still die, wouldn't he? being thrown into the burial mounds was horrifically traumatizing but it did facilitate his career in necromancy and he wouldn't have been resurrected without his own writings on the topic. and this is a very shitty situation for him to imagine an plot divergence

that being said this is one of the most horrific things that can happen to a person in like. any piece of media. this man has suffered so much bizarre and specific trauma

DON'T TOUCH HIM

DON'T CALL HIM THAT

SCREAM

shut up wen chao you're not the one binding him there

the smoke catching him, making his descent somewhat gentler. it can sense what's happening

in the book I think it's canon that he breaks several bones in the fall. or maybe that was in a fanfic I read. I like it more when it breaks his bones honestly bc it adds to the rawness and realism of the scene tho I am not complaining cql wwx has it a little better

and if that's not enough, wen ning has also been tortured! and wq in imprisoned!

[vrishchikawrites]

Sometimes I see the early episodes of the Donghua or the Untamed or just a soft moment in general and I think about JC have some redeeming qualities.

But then I think about how he was friends with NHS too, and despite everything, they interact as near strangers or with a lot of formality while NHS conspires to bring WWX back to life and they seem to have a civil and somewhat friendly relationship.

Not to mention that JC’s one saving grace, JL, also seems to prefer WWX later.

Honestly, JC’s soft moments screw with my brain sometimes (which is very human characterisation for sure and thus good, but you know, just saying).

Also, speaking of NHS, what I find interesting is how after finishing the story, most readers/watchers seem to agree that he’s one of the most intelligent characters on the show, which is true - and we see WWX acknowledge this and I think that’s pretty important.

I mean, so many people go on and on about WWX’s pride, thinking that he always knew better - and the truth is that he did always know better, maybe until NHS, who did succeed in tricking him, even if for a short time. And WWX is okay with that, even impressed. Which just dismantles the whole too prideful argument.

Yes, WWX has pride, but it’s backed by knowledge, and if he’s bested, he’s not afraid of admitting that either. (We all know that a part of why he loves LWJ is his competency kink and LWJ being his equal.)

Thanks for being an open forum for my random thoughts!

See, in my opinion, redemption should be according to the severity of the wrong committed. So, no matter how much the donghua or CQL manages to soften JC, unless we see him do things like turn his sect around, help people who really need it, stop hitting or raging at JL, and something like that, I'm not on-board with his redemption. Just looking at his canon actions makes all attempts at softening him futile. A few touches like being JL's uncle or having moments of introspection, etc, doesn't work, at least not for me.

As for NHS and JC relationship, it was just a question of them both hanging out around WWX. As sect leaders, they would have to interact in some capacity but I don't think they was any real friendship between them.

NHS is indeed a fascinating character, one of the most nuanced outside the two leads, imo. If I had to name my favorite outside of Wangxian, I'd say NHS.

WWX is rightfully prideful and that is what rankles everyone else. Because everyone inside and outside of the mdzs universe seems to have a shade of classism. Imo, pride isn't a bad thing. It only becomes bad when it is arrogance. Less of arrogance and more of genuine pride in your accomplishments and character. We need to see that more everywhere.

You're welcome! Nice to hear interesting thoughts from everyone.

[bigbadredpanda]

Helloo, would it be a possible interpretation that the ideals and mindset that wwx follows is close to the religion and practice of Taoism?

Hello! That’s a fascinating question and I wish I had more knowledge to delve deeper on the subject but I’m a bit more familiar with the philosophy/spirituality part of Taoism than with its religious practices and rites. As always, anyone is welcome to add to the discussion or correct me if I misconstrue something, this is a vast topic and I’m just an interested layperson!

Xianxia in itself is a literary genre rife with references to Taoism: the pursuit of immortality, the internal alchemy to form a golden core, the Taoist exorcisms to drive out evil spirits, Taoist incantations and talismans, etc... But that does not necessarily make cultivators Taoists.

At the heart of Taoism is the philosophy of espousing harmony with nature, with the self, with the Tao. It’s about simplicity, spontaneity, non-attachment to worldly desires. In the introduction of my copy of the Zhuangzi (庄子), one of the main Taoist texts, the translator chooses the hero Yu the Great to epitomise the “going with the flow instead of fighting against the current” attitude dear to Taoists. Yu the Great is a legendary figure whose father, Kun, was tasked by the emperor Shun to protect the country from floods. Kun built barrages and dykes that held momentarily the waters in check but they ended up bursting, causing a flood even more devastating. The emperor banished Kun and entrusted the son, Yu the Great, with the same mission. Yu the Great succeeded by digging canals to help the course of water and let it flow to the sea. Yu the Great is referenced several times in the Zhuangzi and, interestingly, Wei Wuxian himself takes him as a model when he challenges Lan Qiren in the classroom and sows the seeds of what would become the foundation of his demonic cultivation:

魏无羡道：“横竖有些东西度化无用，何不加以利用？大禹治水亦知，堵为下策，疏为上策。镇压即为堵，岂非下策……”

Wei Wuxian said, “Anyway, there are some things that cannot be liberated so why not make use of them? Yu the Great who controlled the waters knew that building barrages to block was ineffective and dredging canals to reroute was the superior method. Suppression counts as blocking, wouldn’t is also be considered ineffective...” (ch.14)

The carefree and unfettered part of Wei Wuxian’s nature does fit Taoist ideals, you even have the opposition of the more Confucian-oriented Gusu Lan Sect and its rigid abidance with rules and ethics. However, Wei Wuxian is at odds with a key concept of Taoism: the principle of non-action (无为 wuwei). It’s not passivity or laziness, it’s letting nature runs its course, letting things fall into place. Wei Wuxian is very much shown to be assertive, even wilful, when his mind and heart are set on one thing. He does not hesitate to take matters into his own hands and jump into action. That’s especially true of his younger self who would rebel instead of do nothing, his older and wiser self after he is reborn is a bit more circumspect and knows when to speak out and when to hold his peace. Non-action is seen as the guiding principle of an ideal ruler, without the interference of government meddling, the state would (hypothetically) flourish on its own. I’ve seen some good meta on both the Chinese and the English-speaking sides of the fandom that makes good arguments that it’s actually Lan Xichen who personifies best this concept (x). Speaking of other characters from MDZS that parallel Taoist parables, Nie Huaisang reminds of the good-for-nothing tree which is praised by Zhuangzi. Because it bears no fruit, no one tore its branches to strip the fruits from them, because its wood is of poor quality, no carpenters cut it down. It is left alone and it is able to live long.

The Tao Te Ching (道德经, Daodejing) expounds three basic virtues called the Three Treasures (三宝): compassion (慈), frugality (俭) and humility (不敢为天下先, lit. ‘daring not to put oneself before others’ or ‘daring not to be first in the world’). The first two are for sure among Wei Wuxian’s qualities but the last one is more contentious, not because he is arrogant or boastful but because he dares setting himself apart. The following analysis in from a commentary of the Taoist text:

The third treasure, daring not be at the world's front, is the Taoist way to avoid premature death. To be at the world's front is to expose oneself, to render oneself vulnerable to the world's destructive forces, while to remain behind and to be humble is to allow oneself time to fully ripen and bear fruit. This is a treasure whose secret spring is the fear of losing one's life before one's time. This fear of death, out of a love for life, is indeed the key to Taoist wisdom. (Ellen M. Chen) 

Wei Wuxian did not hesitate to ‘expose himself’ by being willing to be the first practitioner of demonic cultivation and in the end his downfall was at the hands of ‘the world’s destructive forces’, warmongering rumours and bloodthirsty hostility. Wei Wuxian is also not subject to fear of death, there are a few quotes that exemplify his carefree, devil-may-care mindset:

使我徒有身后名不如即时一杯酒。

Better have a cup of wine here and now rather than leave behind a posthumous good name. (ch.75 & Wei Wuxian’s CQL character song Qu Jin Chen Qing)

The quotation above comes from A New Account of the Tales of the World (世说新语), a collection of various anecdotes that was compiled in the 5th century, fittingly it’s from the “The Free and Unrestrained” (任诞) section.

生前哪管身后事，浪得几日是几日。

Why care about what happens after death while one is alive? Better live life to the utmost while one can. (ch.16)

I’m not sure if this one is a literary citation or not as I haven’t been able to track down a quote with this exact wording but it was very reminiscent to me to a chapter of the Liezi (列子), another Taoist text, attributes the following thoughts to the hedonist philosopher Yang Zhu:

One hundred years is the limit of a long life. Not one in a thousand ever attains it. Suppose there is one such person. Infancy and feeble old age take almost half of his time. Rest during sleep at night and what is wasted during the waking hours in the daytime take almost half of that. Pain and sickness, sorrow and suffering, death (of relatives) and worry and fear take almost half of the rest. In the ten and some years that is left, I reckon, there is not one moment in which we can be happy, at ease without worry. This being the case, what is life for? What pleasure is there? For beauty and abundance, that is all. For music and sex, that is all. But the desire for beauty and abundance cannot always be satisfied, and music and sex cannot always be enjoyed. Besides, we are prohibited by punishment and exhorted by rewards, pushed by fame and checked by law. We busily strive for the empty praise which is only temporary, and seek extra glory that would come after death. Being alone ourselves, we pay great care to what our ears hear and what our eyes see, and are much concerned with what is right or wrong for our bodies and minds. Thus we lose the great happiness of the present and cannot give ourselves free rein for a single moment. What is the difference between that and many chains and double prisons?

"Men of great antiquity knew that life meant to be temporarily present and death meant to be temporarily away. Therefore they acted as they pleased and did not turn away from what they naturally desired. They would not give up what could amuse their own persons at the time. Therefore they were not exhorted by fame. They roamed as their nature directed and would not be at odds with anything. They did not care for a name after death and therefore punishment never touched them. They took no heed of fame, being ahead or being behind, or the span of life."

The myriad creatures are different in life but the same in death. In life they may be worthy or stupid, honorable or humble. This is where they differ. In death they all stink, rot, disintegrate, and disappear. This is where they are the same. [...] The man of virtue and the sage die; the wicked and the stupid also die. In life they were Yao and Shun [sage-emperors]; in death they are rotten bones. In life they were Jie and Zhou [wicked kings]; in death they are rotten bones. Thus they all became rotten bones just the same. Who knows their difference? Let us enjoy our present life. Why should we worry about what comes after death?” (A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy, trans. Wing-tsit Chan)

It’s quite a long extract so I highlighted the most relevant parts that echo Wei Wuxian’s ideas and in particular his motto in life:

是非在己，毁誉由人，得失不论 。

Right and wrong are decided by oneself, praise and condemnation depend on others, gains and losses are insignificant. (ch.75)

This is for me the defining quote of the novel that encapsulates the overarching theme of the story. This sentence is so popular that it’s the go-to quote on Wei Wuxian-related merch and it also features on the cover of the book in simplified Chinese.

We find in the Yang Zhu chapter of the Liezi the same ‘carpe diem’ attitude, the nonchalance about death, the disregard of social conventions and the futility of reputation. Nevertheless, Yang Zhu does not exactly have a place with other Taoist thinkers as he promotes acting in self-interest, a form of ethical egotism that does not take heed of other people’s benefit. The translator from the extract above calls it ‘negative Taoism’. As we are well aware, Wei Wuxian has a much more benevolent and altruistic outlook:

我娘说过的，你要记着别人对你的好，不要去记你对别人的好。人心里不要装那么多东西，这样才会快活自在。

My mom said that you should remember the kindness you received from others and not the kindness you gave. That's the only way to find happiness and be free as the heart can only carry so much. (ch.113)

Wei Wuxian’s life philosophy is about remembering the good you've been granted and keep giving without expecting anything in return. If you let yourself to be fettered by bad memories, if you dwell on the past, negative feelings like anger and envy will take roots in your heart. It takes great courage and integrity to be able to move on from painful experiences without holding grudges and retain the ability to greet the future with a smile.

These themes remind me of the lyrics of the song Enlightenment (悟) from the film Shaolin,《新少林寺》, it’s a moving song that draws a lot from Buddhist influences:

为何君视而不见 规矩定方圆

Why do you look without seeing and let conventions decide the rules?

悟性 悟觉 悟空 心甘情愿

I open my heart, coming to my senses and awakening to emptiness

放下 颠倒梦想 放下云烟

Let go of your confused dreams, let go of the things fleeting like mist

放下 空欲色 ��下悬念

Let go of idleness, desire, pleasure, let go of the trouble weighting your heart

多一物 却添了 太多危险

One thing more adds too much danger

少一物 贪嗔痴 会少一点

One thing less and vices will be alleviated [lit. ‘greed, aversion, delusion’, the Three Poisons in Buddhism]

唯有 心无挂碍 成就大愿

Only with a heart without worries can your wishes be accomplished

唯有 心无故 妙不可言

There is no greater marvel than an unburdened heart

This ended up to be such a long-winded and maybe inconclusive answer but to me, Taoism, Buddhism and Confucianism, have all deeply shaped Chinese customs, ideas and culture with sometimes no clear boundaries where one begins and the other ends. Wei Wuxian’s ideals, his free-spiritedness and his probity, are reflected in these different schools of thoughts and spiritual currents but there is not a single all-encompassing one that matches him to a tee. In the end, what perhaps defines him best is his name that befits his nature, Wei Ying, the guileless innocence of a child, someone who can cheerfully go through life with a clear conscience and an unburdened heart.

[xiyao-feels]

Introduction

A disclaimer: I am not unbiased. I am not even pretending to be unbiased. I'm a JGY fan, and I think the fandom significantly misunderstands his character, his relationship with NMJ, and his killing of NMJ. If this is going to upset you, please don't read this.

I am also quite extremely harsh on FJ; again, if this upsets you, please don't read this. That said, I want to make it clear that I am neither condemning anyone for enjoying the movie, nor arguing that they shouldn't enjoy it! I think the idea that you should or shouldn't enjoy works of fiction is, by and large, fairly silly, and if I imagine the movie outside of its canonical context, I can see how I would enjoy it too.

All that said, while I am not pretending to be unbiased, I am trying to be textually sourced. If I make a claim that a specific thing does or does not happen in FJ, MDZS, or CQL, and you know that that thing actually doesn't/does happen, I welcome the correction.

Also I'd like to thank confusion-and-more for helping review this, pointing out weaknesses, and strengthening many of the arguments; this post would be much, much weaker without them.

The post ended up being too long to fit in a single post, so I split it up into four posts plus this intro/table of contents. Note that the parts aren't of equal length, since I wanted to divide it up in a way that made sense conceptually.

Intro - Pt 1 - Pt 2 - Pt 3 - Pt 4

First, a list of claims I think FJ makes about the Soc/SoT (Song of Clarity/Song of Turmoil), the Nie Clan, NMJ, NHS, and JGY, followed in each case by my argument that FJ makes that claim, and my evaluation of that claim against the evidence in MDZS and CQL. After that, I discuss my thoughts on how these changes affect our understanding of the characters; and then finally I end with a few observations that didn't quite fit into the post anywhere else.

SoC/SoT

-The SoC is expected to heal NMJ completely

-A few brief passages from the SoC, even when played by someone with weak cultivation, can very quickly bring a halt to NMJ's violence

-The SoT is so powerful that the brief corrupted passage will totally overwhelm all positive effects from the unaltered SoC, even if the player is using equal cultivation power throughout

The Nie Clan

-When the curse is coming on them too strongly, they remove themselves to the tombs to die there

NMJ

-NMJ wished to protect NHS from cultivating with the sabre as a youth.

-In his heart, NMJ carried significant doubts about the righteousness of Nie cultivation practices, including both the sabre-curse-inducing sabre cultivation and the practice of balancing the sabre spirits via corpses in the wall

-NMJ used to be "intelligent and wise;" it's due to the effects of the sabre curse that he is "moody and brutal."

-NMJ respects NHS' interests

NHS

-NHS is profoundly morally motivated

-NHS isn't really interested in JGY's gifts

-NHS is motivated by a desire for his brother's respect and the respect of their men

-NHS knows about the sabre curse

-NHS, though bad at fighting, is skilled in cultivation theory

JGY

-JGY has the authority to teach NHS the SoC

-JGY involves NHS in his killing of NMJ

-JGY can straightforwardly prevent NMJ's violence via the SoC

-Someone other than JGY is the main target of NMJ's violence

-JGY is easily replaceable, indeed at all replaceable, as a subordinate

Let's go through these claims, and show for each why I'm saying FJ is making that claim, then the contrary evidence from MDZS and CQL. (As a side note: I am quite familiar with the relevant sections of MDZS; with the exception of the Empathy sections I am less familiar with CQL. Although I did my best to rewatch relevant sections, and I am reasonably confident when I say something /did/ happen, it's certainly possible I'm missing something from a scene I didn't think to watch.)

Part 1: SoC/SoT and the Nie Clan

Part 2: NMJ and NHS

Part 3: JGY

Part 4: My thoughts on the effects of the changes on our understanding of the characters + misc notes

Next

[merakilyy]

Lan Qiren is Not a Completely Terrible Parent + Bonus Headcanon

Some disorganized thoughts on Lan Qiren!

A lot of my thoughts on Lan Qiren come from a bilibili article breaking down what it means be be righteous (雅正) in accordance to the Lan Sect’s motto. The article is in Chinese so I’ll just sum up some of the major ideas first:

***

~It fundamentally refutes the idea of Lan Wangji as the “black sheep” in the Lan Sect 

~It assumes Cloud Recesses has a highly collective intrasect environment. Children are raised not just by the parents, but by the entire Sect. 

~The Elders raised Wangji and saw him grew up and didn’t have the heart to hurt Wangji, even after he escaped with Wei Wuxian into the cave. Western fandom especially tends to see the elders as strict, conservative disciplinarians who are rigid in their beliefs to the point of hypocrisy. This meta refutes that. It’s unreasonable that Wangji, no matter how strong his cultivation, would be able to stand on his own against 33 seasoned cultivators. So, contrary to popular belief, the elders allowed Wangji to injure them so they would not have to harm a child of the Sect.

~Lan Sect rules are not about what is literally written, but the spirit of the rules. This also makes sense given that when you have 4000+ rules, some rules are bound to contradict one another. And, many rules are quite vague. Eg. “sneering for no reason is prohibited.” Where is the line that justifies sneering? There is none because the idea is not “don’t sneer for no reason,” the idea is “don’t be unnecessarily rude.” In many of the rules, there is room for interpretation and it is this process of interpretation that is valued over the literal inscription of the rules. 

~Basically, they are not good people because of the rules. They are good people because they are good people. The rules guide them to make good judgement, but good judgement does not comes from following the rules to a T.

~So the function of 雅正 (to be righteous) is internal, not performative.

~It is this internal clarity that makes Gusu Lan “innocent” (the word used is 纯真; 纯/chun = pure, clarity, genuine, practised and 真/zhen = true, real, genuine, clear)

~There is also a long history of Lans being deviant and rebellious. In CQL, there is Lan Yi who invents guqin battle techniques. They are also the only Clan to have been led by a female cultivator. Qingheng-jun clearly went against orthodoxy by marrying a murderer, but still remained in Cloud Recesses. We’re going to set aside consent here because is a total other separate conversation, but his punishment is self-imposed, not enforced by the Sect. So there are a lot of rules, but they aren’t pedantic. There is leeway, as seen in Lan Yi, but only within reason, as demonstrated by Qingheng-jun.

~Like his ancestors, Wangji also deviated from the straightforward path but his sect accepted his unrepentant love for Wei Wuxian in the end.

~In the end, Wangji gets what he wants: to live with Wei Wuxian in Cloud Recess. But he only gets this because the elders and Lan Qiren allow him to.

~To allow Wei Wuxian to exist in Cloud Recesses, the Lan Sect has to be more inclusive than we typically see them as.

~Despite everything, Lan Wangji still wants to return to Cloud Recesses because it is home to him.

~This is also my favourite explanation of Jingyi’s Jingyi-ness. Rather than Wangji (and possibly Xichen) singlehandedly creating a space for Jingyi, that space already existed. Jingyi isn’t as much of a black sheep as people portray him as because you don’t grow into a Jingyi if everyone is constantly yelling at you to follow rules. CQL Jingyi is plenty sassy, even in front of Lan Qiren, and Jingyi isn’t stupid! He was born and raised in Cloud Recesses, he knows when he is pushing several of the rules and he knows that he has the leeway to do so, and that Lan Qiren will not stop him (within reason).

~”Be righteous” is how the Lan motto is translated in English, but it’s….not exactly what it is in Chinese.

~In modern Chinese, it’s  雅正.  雅/ya = elegance, graceful and 正/zheng = positive, correct, straight, just. 

~Notice how the two parts of the motto contrast one another. Ya is outward, something that dictates how you act. Zheng is internal, determined by your actions and attitudes. Zheng is the foundation of Ya.

~As a related aside, the literary meaning of 雅正 is slightly different; it means to be correct and honest, and to welcome corrections to one’s shortcomings. The literary 雅 is to be proper。

~The meta ends with this beautiful line: 所谓的“雅正”，家族交出来，体雅是表象，心正才是更本。Now to ruin it in translation: “Each configuration of “righteousness,” as taught by the Sect, is outward physical elegance built on the foundation of a moral heart.”

~TLDR: Rebelliousness is a function of Gusu Lan, not an anomaly.

***

Onto some fun headcanons!

~Lan Qiren has personal issues with Wei Wuxian because of his mother, but he is more horrified by Wei Wuxian because Wei Wuxian has all this potential and then uses it to go down the heretial path?? Blaphemous. All that ability, all that work, only to throw it all away? Wei Wuxian is incredibly competent and Lan Qiren begrudgingly respects that competence. What he can’t stand is Wei Wuxian’s lackadaisical attitude towards his cultivation.

~In novel canon, Lan Qiren accepts Wangji and Wei Wuxian’s marriage. He definitely still has issues with Wei Wuxian for being a mass murderer, a demonic cultivator, for desecrating the dead, etc. Also for his general Wei Wuxian-ness. But Wei Wuxian is nothing is not incredibly competent and Lan Qiren eventually softens towards Wei Wuxian because of that competence. Once Wei Wuxian starts using that competence to be useful to the Sect and not just to be as annoying as possible, he gets Lan Qiren’s approval. 

~Secretly, of course. Lan Qiren would qi deviate before saying nice about Wei Wuxian to his face.

~I totally wrote a fic on Lan Qiren publicly defending Wei Wuxian heheh

~Cloud Recesses is only so big and Lan Qiren can’t avoid Wei Wuxian, even if he is never trying to seek him out. Plus, Wei Wuxian has this way of being in the most inconvenient place at the most inconvenient time.

~We all agree Wei Wuxian is a terrible cook. But, is he a bad cook because he adds too much spice, or he is a bad cook because he’s a bad cook? He did manage to cook congee for the ducklings in Yi Cheng without any fatalities. so I’m inclined to believe the former.

~Lan Qiren definitely thinks Wei Wuxian is a terrible cook, especially after hearing about how Wei Wuxian burned a hole in a pot.

~But Wei Wuxian is Wei Wuxian and even if he can’t be trusted with spices (or anything remotely resembling seasoning), he can make plain congee just fine....after some practice 

~Lan Qiren eats this congee and it’s a perfectly good congee. Ideal thickness, light taste, no spices, slides down the throat smoothly and pairs perfectly with his dried zhacai (pickled mustard; a super common Chinese side dish). He asks who made the congee, expecting it to be Sizhui. He chokes when he is told Wei Wuxian is the cook.

~Lan Qiren knows how to be a good parent in theory. He’s just terrible at putting it to practice.

~Jingyi’s parents, when he was still a terrible toddler wreaking havoc everywhere, went to Lan Qiren for desperate advice like “why is our child such a terrible Lan???”

~But Jingyi isn’t actually Lan Qiren’s kid so he actually gives good advice. “Give him a toy, he’ll tire himself out for his nap,” “Let him crawl around, just cover sharp objects and table corners,” and “give him a crushed peach as a reward for walking across the room”

~But he doesn’t know how to talk to Xichen or Wangji as family. He loves them both dearly – obviously he raised them, but they’re also good nephews!! Questionable taste in men aside, they are excellent nephews! He just doesn’t know how to talk to them outside of official sect business.

~Especially with Wangji, He kind of did declare Wangji’s husband a heretic, a traitor, was extra hard on Wei Wuxian as a student, Wangji for visiting Wei Wuxian. And there’s that whole discipline whip thing.

~Which, to be fair, did end up saving Wangji’s life. Raising his sword against Sect Elders and one’s own family is an act of treason punishable by execution. But Lan Qiren can’t just execute his own nephew….he has a heart, even if no one believes it

~33 discipline lashes from the discipline whip is very harsh and Lan Qiren won’t pretend otherwise. But he could gamble that Wangji’s core is strong enough to pull him through. Because the odds of a living, resentful Wangji is better than a dead Wangji.

~They never talk about this. There are a lot of things they don’t talk about.

~Even before, Lan Qiren isn’t a bad parent. He just has no idea how to put his ideas of parenting into practice. He knows what a good parent looks like, he just doesn’t know how to be one.

~So he hides behind the rules because the rules can’t go that wrong, right? Right???

~Lan Qiren is lowkey jealous of Wei Wuxian for knowing how to be affectionate. He definitely thinks Wei Wuxian is too open with his emotions, but he is envious that Wei Wuxian and Wangji are open to each other in a way that Lan Qiren never established with either nephew. They are loyal in the filial manner of juniors to their elders, but Lan Qiren isn’t exactly close to his nephews. 

~In his ongoing attempt to be a better uncle, he ends up getting advice from Wei Wuxian about emotions.

~It’s not like he can go to anyone else. And, well. That congee was really good.

~Turns out Wei Wuxian can brew the perfect pot of tea, too.

~Offensive. That Wei Wuxian is so competent and the least emotionally repressed person in all of Cloud Recesses.

~Eventually, Lan Qiren begins to understand why Wangji is so attached to Wei Wuxian, even if he still can’t stand to be in the same room as Wei Wuxian for longer than 15 minutes. 

~No matter how much he might no longer hate Wei Wuxian, he prefers their interactions in small doses and spaced out.

~But he does learn to bond with Wei Wuxian over cultivation theory. Annoyingly, Wei Wuxian is just too useful to continue to despise. 

[accio-victuuri]

Hello, the truth, I was informing myself on your blog I really liked it. I wanted to congratulate you.

I am a fairly new turtle so to speak. I used to be a solo from Yibo and I only watched for him until the end of 2019. I'm a solo from Yibo since 2016, I always liked Yibo's personality, he is always hardworking and tries hard in everything he does, even when he gets hurt, he continues with his work.

When he decided to make cql I was surprised because it was a queer novel, I have nothing against that, in reality there are queer people in my family, but I didn't imagine that when he was very good in his career he would take risks that way.

After making cql his smile became more sincere and brighter when he is with Zhan, most of the solos around me didn't like this, I myself felt a little strange when I realized things. I realized that he was possibly in love, but it didn't seem the same to xz, so I felt upset because for me Yibo had no hope other than being a good friend.

I never delved into Bjyx until early 2020 when Zhan's 227 started, because they started saying nasty things about that, well, Yibo was the culprit. After 227 I started to become very fond of Zhan as well and I began to investigate how a turtle I did it quite slowly, I didn' t want to make a mistake and think things wrong, I would feel bad and guilty.

I realized wyb wasn't the only one who cared and was looking only that it was less obvious, xz is quite kind you can confuse it sometimes, it was a long process, the solos can be very toxic and brainless sometimes, I don't know how they can be real solos and hate someone who makes your favorite happy.

So after hard work, I became a bxg. I believe and hope that they are well and can overcome the bad things that toxic solos and 🐜 do.

Ooohhh!!!! An OG Yibo fan!!! Anon, I have so many questions!!!! 🙃 Thank you for sharing your story and thoughts with me. 💚 Thank you for loving zhan zhan too 😭😭 We are pretty similar, I was a solo GG stan first. I watched CQL because of him. Welcome to the BXG World! 💛

I agree that it’s so hard to understand how some people can hate someone that Web clearly respects and gets along with. I can also hope that they overcome it all. It will take time, I don’t need everyone to be bxg, just to simply co exist and not snap at each other every chance they get is fine. 😌

[spaceskam]

Hello! For Title Tuesday, how about 33 and wangxian, since I recently fell into this ship and am still swooning and desperate for more! Thank you, love everything you do!

thank you! and thank you for waiting a week too! I’ll add the ao3 link whenever I get the chance to post it over there, I hope you like it!

title tuesday instructions

tags: cql canon, post-canon, a bit of sad and lonely WWX 

33. an uncomfortable month [ao3]

When Wei Wuxian came back to Cloud Recesses, he’d been excited.

He missed Sizhui and Wen Ning and having a reliable place to sleep and bathe, but mainly he missed Lan Zhan. He’d been so excited to hang on him again, to trick him into staying up past curfew by talking for hours and it was simply rude to fall asleep while someone was talking, to catch those moments when he smiled. He missed them together, whatever that meant and in whatever capacity he was allowed to have it in.

However, he hadn’t expected it to be so… weird. Awkward, maybe, was a better word. Lan Zhan was, for the most part, the same, but he was always so busy and so Wei Wuxian had to entertain himself. To make matters worse, apparently, people thought he was the great Hanguang-Jun’s ward. At first it’d been funny, but now it was simply annoying.

“Lan Zhan,” he whined, pouting and squishing his face against Lan Zhan’s arm. He didn’t slow down his pace or even accommodate Wei Wuxian’s affections, so he took the hint and stood up straight. He rolled his shoulders, shaking away that little bud that was beginning to blossom inside him that did nothing but remind him that he was unwanted. He was hoping to get rid of it before he couldn’t ignore it. “Lan Zhan, what did you tell them? I’ve told three separate people that I’m not your ward and not a single one of them believed me.”

“Mn.”

“Mn,” Wei Wuxian mimicked, rolling his eyes, “What does that mean?”

“I have said nothing to anyone about my relationship to Wei Ying,” he said.

“Yeah, including me,” Wei Wuxian grumbled softly. Lan Wangji tilted his head slightly in his direction as if listening and Wei Wuxian managed a laugh, petting his arm. “I’m teasing, Lan Zhan. So, what, do I just let them think that? What if rumors start about my age, though? Aren’t wards much younger?”

“Let them come to their own conclusion,” Lan Zhan said firmly. Wei Wuxian’s face felt warm at the implication. Though, maybe there were no implications and his mind was just a bit naughty.

His mind had definitely been awfully naughty these days.

“So, you won’t mind what they say when I stay in the Jingshi long past curfew?” Wei Wuxian asked. Lan Zhan didn’t answer which meant he didn’t mind. Wei Wuxian leaned closer. “But what will they say if I don’t leave at all?”

Lan Zhan came to a halt, turning to him. Wei Wuxian’s eyes widened a bit, shocked he was getting that much of a reaction. Lan Zhan hadn’t really given him much of a reaction since he came back. It was all very cordial. Plain. Wei Wuxian never overstayed his welcome at the Jingshi because of it, regardless of how much he wanted to take a nap in his bed again. It was much warmer than the guest rooms.

“Wei Ying,” Lan Zhan said, staring at him. His eyes slowly grazed over his face and then further down and Wei Wuxian felt a bit lightheaded. “Are your rooms not satisfactory?”

“No,” he said. Lan Zhan blinked and then nodded before Wei Wuxian’s brain processed anything at all. “No! I mean, yes, I mean, they’re fine. Fine.”

Lan Zhan took a slow, even breath. “Wei Ying.”

“I suppose I was under the impression that I would be staying in the Jingshi,” Wei Wuxian said slowly, stupidly, but it didn’t matter. He didn’t know how long Lan Zhan planned to let him stay here, but it couldn’t be too much longer. “You know, like we did last time.”

“Wei Ying was here under pressing circumstances last time,” Lan Zhan pointed out, his eyebrows pulled together just enough to show his confusion. It was such a small change from his normal expression that Wei Wuxian barely caught it. “Wei Ying deserves a space of his own for however long he will be here.”

And it was so sweet that Wei Wuxian didn’t have the heart to tell him that he didn’t really mind sharing if it meant sharing with Lan Zhan. In fact, he’d much rather that. If they were in the same room, then they would at least see each other every day without Wei Wuxian having to hunt him down.

But Lan Zhan had been very thoughtful and Wei Wuxian smiled.

“Oh. I suppose I misunderstood,” he said. Lan Zhan blinked slowly and he took a step forward.

“Wei Ying can stay as long as he desires. And he can have whatever he desires. If he wishes to stay in the Jingshi, he is welcome,” Lan Zhan said. Wei Wuxian nodded slowly in understanding, but his cheeks just started to grow warm and he found himself laughing for no reason. It wasn’t funny. He did it anyway.

“Silly Lan Zhan, you don’t want to give me your house! I am just a ward, don’t you remember?” Wei Wuxian laughed. Lan Zhan blinked, but then nodded his head once.

Lan Zhan continued to walk and Wei Wuxian followed as they made their way to the open courtyard where young disciples were practicing sword forms. They were all around 13 or 14 and greeted Lan Zhan with a warm ‘Hanguang-Jun’ and then quickly averted their eyes from Wei Wuxian. They hadn’t done that before he left, even when they knew he was the Yiling Laozu. He put a little more space between him and Lan Zhan, just to be safe.

The days continued on like this, Lan disciples averting their eyes and Lan Zhan just being eerily calm. Not to say he wasn’t always calm, but he seemed almost sedated. Wei Wuxian wasn’t sure how to handle that. He would press his luck and stay later in the Jingshi, but he was never told to leave even as Lan Wangji went about his business to prepare for bed. It was like he didn’t care about anything but work. Wei Wuxian felt like he’d missed a step.

“A-Yuan!” Wei Wuxian called, walking a bit faster than was Lan appropriate to catch up with him. He was the only one who’s behavior made sense. Sweet and righteous and adorable. 

“Wei-qianbei,” Lan Sizhui said warmly, bowing politely. Then he stood up, paused a moment, and went in for a short hug. That was another thing that made sense. He always gave him hugs when no one else was around. Wei Wuxian gave them freely right back.

“A-Yuan, could I ask you something? Between you and I, of course,” Wei Wuxian said, trying to keep his voice diplomatic as they continued to walk. It made him smile so big his eyes turned into little crescents. Adorable, truly.

“Yes, Wei-qianbei, anything.”

“Did something happen while I was gone? The Lans have never been exactly fond of me, but viewing me as Hanguang-Jun’s ward and being too awkward to even look my way is definitely new. Did a rumor about me spread? I haven’t heard any,” Wei Wuxian said, tapping his nose thoughtfully. He’d tried to come up with reasons and failed each time. “Even your Hanguang-Jun has been weird.”

“Ah,” Lan Sizhui said, giving a tense little smile and looking away quickly as his cheeks began to burn red. Wei Wuxian stopped walking, putting his hand on his arm.

“A-Yuan,” he said, using the same tone of voice he’d used when he would tell him to spit out whatever he’d shoved in his mouth 16 years ago now. It was enough to make him tilt his head back in Wei Wuxian’s direction.

“Hanguang-Jun just… made it very clear that you were not to be disrespected,” he said carefully. Wei Wuxian’s eyebrows furrowed.

“What does that mean?”

Lan Sizhui pushed his hair off his neck and looked around. Wei Wuxian put his hands on his hips and waited for an explanation. Hanguang-Jun had been acting strange as well. What the hell could he have possibly done?

“Have you been to the Jingshi?” Lan Sizhui asked quietly.

“Of course I have.”

“Then have you not… noticed?”

“Noticed what?” 

Lan Sizhui’s face flushed again and he shyly looked at Wei Wuxian which only furthered his confusion. He went to the Jingshi nearly every day. Had he missed something that obvious?

“Perhaps you should ask Hanguang-Jun. It doesn’t feel like my place to say,” Sizhui said. Wei Wuxian scrunched up his nose and sighed.

“Everything is so difficult around here,” he said, earning a small smile from Sizhui. Wei Wuxian reached out to smooth his forehead ribbon carefully. “Fine, I suppose I’ll ask.”

“Alright, Wei-qianbei.”

“Once I straighten that, we’ll address this Wei-qianbei nonsense. Am I not worthy enough to be your Xian-gege anymore?” Wei Wuxian asked, enjoying the sound of his laughter. That made sense. If A-Yuan was laughing and smiling with him, then things couldn’t be that bad. He was sure of it.

“Alright, Xian-gege.”

Wei Wuxian spent his day as normal as he could, though he was already prepared to pack up if need be. He would ask Lan Zhan what he’d missed and see what he said, but he didn’t want to be in a place where everyone wouldn’t even look his way anymore. It was too uncomfortable.

He didn’t want to leave Lan Zhan and he wouldn’t if he didn’t have to, but it was beginning to feel like he had to.

As the day began to wind to an end and it was around the time that Lan Wangji would be retiring to the Jingshi, Wei Wuxian made a point to beat him there. He let himself in and took a look around, trying to notice if there was anything amiss. Nothing stood out.

“Wei Ying,” Lan Zhan said as he entered in complete silence. Wei Wuxian spun around to face him, smiling as innocent as he could. 

Lan Zhan eyed him skeptically, not buying it for a moment and yet not calling him out either. It was little things like that that reminded him that Lan Zhan was a grown man now and not a hot-headed teenager. Not that he’d ever admit he was hot-headed, but still.

“Lan Zhan! I was waiting for you, let’s eat,” Wei Wuxian said, coming close and plucking the tray of food out of Lan Zhan’s hands. He brought it to the table and knelt on one side. Lan Zhan was still watching him closely as he placed Bichen on its stand and came closer.

Lan Zhan knelt at the other side of the table and poured tea for the both of them. Wei Wuxian smiled in his gratitude and downed it. They ate in silence which seemed to be an immediate warning flag for Lan Zhan if the way he was staring said anything. Granted, Wei Wuxian never listened to that particular Lan rule before.

“Wei Ying,” Lan Zhan said softly as their meal ended. It was around the time he usually started moving around the room to prepare for bed. And it was the night he usually took a bath, so typically he would go to the other side of the privacy screen and disrobe while Wei Wuxian talked through his body lighting on fire from the inside. “Is there something wrong?”

“Ah, why would something be wrong?” Wei Wuxian laughed. Really, he just wasn’t quite ready to ask what happened after he left to travel last time. What had made all the Lan disciples look away and spread rumors that he was a ward. He still couldn’t get over that. A ward! How could they possibly think he was a ward? 

“Wei Ying,” Lan Zhan repeated.

Wei Wuxian sighed and let his shoulders sink a bit, his eyes going anywhere but in Lan Zhan’s direction as he fiddled with his robes. It shouldn’t be so hard to ask.

“Lan Zhan,” he said, “What changed while I was gone? I asked A-Yuan, but, you know, just like his Hanguang-Jun, he’s all too respectful to tell me what is yours to say. So all I ask is what happened to make everyone avoid me. More than they avoided me when they knew I was just the Yiling Laozu which, honestly, is impressive.”

Lan Zhan stared at him for a long moment and Wei Wuxian would’ve thought he was just annoyed by the question if not for the way his ears were slowly burning brighter and brighter with each breath. Wei Wuxian tilted his head.

“Lan-er-gege, what did you do?” Wei Wuxian asked, a bit of teasing in his voice if only to lighten the tension.

“My sect will be ordered to stop avoiding you. I apologize for their lack of respect,” Lan Zhan said. Wei Wuxian rolled his eyes.

“Aiya, Lan Zhan! You know that isn’t it! Now, tell me,” Wei Wuxian said. Lan Zhan took a deep breath and stared at him. Wei Wuxian pushed himself up on his knees and walked on them over to him. He sat down right beside him, their knees nearly touching. “Is it something bad? Would it be easier for me to leave?”

That got his attention and Lan Zhan looked at him quickly, his eyes sharp and determined. They both knew Lan Zhan wouldn’t keep him here if he didn’t want to, but Wei Wuxian felt a rush of warmth at the idea that Lan Zhan would still give a lot to make him want to be here. To feel welcome in his home. That was nice.

“Alright,” Lan Zhan said, his hands clutching his robes, “I had a larger bed constructed.”

“Ah?” Wei Wuxian breathed, eyebrows coming together in confusion. He looked over his shoulder to the bed and, yes, maybe it was a bit larger than when he slept in it last, but it wasn’t that much larger. Just… big enough for two. “You’re… getting married?” Wei Wuxian asked slowly, dread poking at his gut and against those quiet sounds of ‘you’re not welcome, no one wants you here’ pried into his mind.

“Wei Ying,” Lan Zhan breathed, looking some mix of fond and exasperated. Wei Wuxian could hear his heart in his ears.

“What does a larger bed have to do with me?” he asked. Lan Zhan slowly closed his eyes. Wei Wuxian’s eyes widened when he realized what the Lans were thinking, what they must be assuming he and their brilliant Chief Cultivator were doing in that large bed. “Ah! And they’re calling me a ward? Is that to save their own thoughts? How shameless of them, Lan Zhan.”

“And not shameless of me?” he asked, tilting his head. Wei Wuxian blinked and then nearly melted.

“Oh. Lan Zhan,” he teased, gently pushing his shoulder. Wei Wuxian’s insides were similar to the way he felt when he knew he was naked behind a privacy screen‒entirely on fire to the point he was almost dizzy. “Were your disciples not just assuming, Lan Zhan? Well, that would explain why A-Yuan got so flustered when I asked. Ah! You are shameless. But, don’t worry, shamelessness looks very nice on you.”

Lan Zhan’s smile slowly appeared and that was nice. Similar to A-Yuan’s, if Lan Zhan was smiling then nothing could ever really be wrong.

“Then why would you give me my own quarters? And why would you act so scandalized when I asked why I wasn’t living in the Jingshi? Lan Zhan, you’re terrible at courting!” Wei Wuxian pointed out. However, saying the word courting out loud when he was speaking about the two of them made a little too obvious what was going on and he leaned closer to Lan Zhan to keep his mind busy. “And still your disciples were thinking things that hadn’t even happened yet.”

“Yet?” Lan Zhan asked, ignoring his questions that were honestly rather important. But, well, he could get those answers later he supposed.

“Yet,” Wei Wuxian repeated, eyes scanning his face. He was so handsome. All of those naughty thoughts that Wei Wuxian had shoved away out of respect came back to the surface very quickly. “Lan Zhan.”

When Wei Wuxian found himself sprawled half-naked on the bed within the Jingshi, he didn’t finally notice the size difference.

[ibijau]

ooh, can i ask for jiang yanli/wen qing and 40 please?

Pride parade/parades in general

I’m cheating a bit but there’s a parade happening nearby so it totally counts.

I’m mixing different canons: Jiang Yanli and Wen Qing went to the Cloud Recesses like in CQL, but the discussion conference in Nightless City happens like in the novel/donghua

Jiang Yanli rarely goes to these discussion conferences if she can avoid them. Although the topics mentioned usually interest her, more perhaps than people might expect, she feels uncomfortable with having any attention on herself. It was bad before, when she was engaged, but now that she’s available once more, she knows she will be gawked at, with sect leaders trying to decide her worth as if she were a horse on the market. Her looks and cultivation don’t play in her favour, but an alliance with Yunmeng Jiang is no small thing, and perhaps her mother’s skill will skip a generation.

A mare to be sold and purchased, that’s what she feels like sometimes. 

There was little joy in her engagement, but at least Jin Zixuan unwillingly protected her from that for a long time. Now, though…

Still, she asked to come to this particular conference, knowing what it would be like. Jiang Yanli doesn’t make many requests but when she does, they are often granted. Her mother likes to see her more assertive, while her father feels guilty about not favouring his own children enough. If Jiang Yanli were of a different disposition, she could so easily use that against them. Knowing this is part of why she rarely asks anything, fearful to take advantage of their weaknesses. But this…

This is important.

Important enough to face the appraising gaze of men, important enough to ask for it.

There’s rumour of a war coming after all. And before it comes, destroying them all, Jiang Yanli wants a last chance to speak with Wen Qing before they inevitably end up on opposing sides.

The chance to do this comes earlier than Jiang Yanli would have expected. The Wens, eager to impress as always, have organised a number of demonstrations of their power to welcome their guests. There is to be an archery contest for junior disciples, demonstrations of new techniques for the elders, and of course the discussions themselves. 

First, though, the festivities open with a loud and elaborate parade.

While her father and brothers watch the parade with the other delegations of the Great Sects, Jiang Yanli glances to the side to meet Wen Qing’s eyes. The other young woman nods ever so slightly. The two of them silently step away from their relatives and move toward the back of the platform where they’re all standing, so they can talk without attracting too much attention. Wei Wuxian is the only one who notices her moving away, but he spots Wen Qing as well, and seems satisfied by that, returning his attention to the parade.

The two women find a corner hidden from view to have their chat. The instant it is safe, Jiang Yanli takes Wen Qing’s hands in hers, as she did dozens of times in the Cloud Recesses. She feels Wen Qing tense, her pulse quicken, but she doesn’t try to escape. Everything else is different now, but this hasn’t changed yet at least.

“I’ve heard about your engagement,” Wen Qing says, blunt as always. “How sorry do I need to be?”

“Not too sorry,” Jiang Yanli admits, something she wouldn’t tell anyone else. “I should be happy that I won’t have to marry a man who dislikes me. I know too well what it does to a person’s temper.”

Wen Qing’s fingers wrap around hers, a comforting gesture. She knows, of course, that Jiang Yanli liked her cold fiancé more than was reasonable. They talked about that, back in the Cloud Recesses, and about a great many other things.

Too many things, perhaps.

Jiang Yanli isn’t sure if women too can cut their sleeves. In those circumstances, she doesn’t want to know. It could never happen, anyway.

“You know, I’ve started thinking of marrying, actually,” Wen Qing announces, startling Jiang Yanli.

They’ve not spoken of that, but there can be women who only seek the company of other women, then Wen Qing has to be among those. The way she speaks of men compared to the way she speaks of women leaves little doubt on that subject.

“Have you met someone then?” Jiang Yanli asks, wanting to tear her hands from Wen Qing, fighting the heartbreak and betrayal she has no right to feel.

Wen Qing laughs, the same way she laughed the first time Jiang Yanli asked her if there was something going on with Jiang Cheng.

“It would just be more convenient,” Wen Qing explains. “Wen zongzhu will have to be a little more considerate about bossing me around if I have a husband, lest it starts looking like I’m his mistress. And I would be on firmer ground to protect my people if I had a man to speak my words for me. I just need to find someone who suits my purposes.”

Instantly, Jiang Yanli relaxes and grins. That’s more like the Wen Qing she knows.

“You are a difficult woman to please, Wen guniang,” she teases, just for the joy of making Wen Qing roll her eyes. “I hope you’ll find a husband eloquent enough to please you, useless enough not to threaten you. Might I suggest Nie er-gongzi? I’m quite sure he won’t, ah, bother you too much with marital duties.”

They both giggle, remembering a certain incident in the Cloud Recesses, and the secret Nie Huaisang begged them to keep.

“I’ve thought of it actually,” Wen Qing admits. “But his brother…”

Jiang Yanli wrinkles her nose and nods. She knows Nie Mingjue’s reputation, of course. He would never let his little brother marry into Qishan Wen. To be honest, it’s unlikely Nie Huaisang himself would have been on board either. Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng befriended Wen Ning, but Nie Huaisang kept his distances, showing he shares his brother’s prejudice.

“I’m still looking for now,” Wen Qing sighs. “I’ll find someone, sooner or later. And when I do… well, I’m a busy woman. I have my clan to rule, and I’m a doctor as well, of course. I won’t have time to be much of a wife, I fear, so I’m thinking I’ll allow my husband to get a second wife.”

“Will you now,” Jiang Yanli says, half breathless because the way Wen Qing looks at her is…

“Things are about to get rough I fear,” Wen Qing whispers, glancing around to make sure nobody is nearby. “I cannot protect my friends. But someone linked to me by marriage would not have to fear the rage of Wen Ruohan. He needs me too much to risk angering me, and he knows it.”

“Wen guniang…”

Wen Qing squeezes her fingers tenderly, and brings up one of Jiang Yanli’s hand to the level of her face, dropping a brief kiss on her knuckles.

“I will understand if you decide you cannot leave your family, Jiang guniang,” she says. “But I’m offering you that choice anyway. I will protect you with all that I have, make sure you have the best life I can give you. I cannot promise you a husband who will love you, but I can assure you that whoever we would marry would know to respect you, and that I… well. You know how I feel, Jiang guniang. I do not offer these things lightly. I know what it could cost, for both of us. But I offer this anyway, because you are worth the risk.”

Jiang Yanli’s vision blurs, tears threatening to spill.

Once, she would have loved to hear these things coming from some handsome young man, perhaps from Jin Zixuan if she could only be so lucky. How lovely she would have found it, if he could have promised to challenge the heavens for her.

He could never have said those things as beautifully and sincerely as Wen Qing did though. And Jiang Yanli, who always thought she would sacrifice everything for her family, finds herself tempted to abandon them for the sake of the young woman before her.

It would be selfish, certainly, but Jiang Yanli can’t help feeling she might have earned that selfishness.

[starsxinxthexbluexsky]

Hello, thank you 4 your blog and info. I just came to tell you [CPN]

I saw weibo night and all that confusion with the seats and the expressions of yb during the event. It makes me believe that yb believed they would sit close. In my resolution they assured them but xz ended up sitting in row b because none of them had anything to do with it. I felt dd angry at the moment, maybe I am a clown, he was quite smiling too, but that does not mean that he is less angry.

For xz I have to say that the man was quite confused and nervous, I mean he didn't seem to be comfortable with what he was doing xz does not know how to pretend, I was an xfx for at least a year and a half before converting to bxg, so I know that It is bad for him to pretend something that he is not, even though he is an actor, that for me is good and bad because he lets us know that he is a transparent person, but it will be uncomfortable for him to have to pretend something that isnt because it is the first time he is really going to do fanservice for some promotion remember that he did not play leading roles before cql. The man even seemed a little stressed to me with the situation, maybe he is my crazy brain but I can swear I saw discomfort

Hello, Anon, You're welcome, although I don't think I give any special information, just my silly opinion. What a long paragraph you make me feel identified, let's be friends. 😘😘😘.

Wuaw. An old XFX, nice to meet you, I would like to know more information about how you saw GG before and what is your thought of him, now.

Fake. Fanfic. CPN

Well, regarding your comment, I saw videos of cameras focused only on DD and yes, I saw that he hit his leg and he didn't look happy. Maybe he was angry about the change, but maybe he already knew, that we will never know. In spite of everything, I think he looks very happy too, smiling sweetly. Unlike 10cent, where he looked tired and other things

Regarding GG, I don't think he was ignorant of the situation he knew he was going to do fanservice and he may have been a little uncomfortable, knowing that people were going to realize that it was exaggerated, but he still has to do his work.

Sometimes GG may not really know how to pretend, but I think that's more of a situation when it comes to DD (when DD hurt his neck with the ox chain, when he gets jealous and makes weird faces, when he shows his bunny teeth to DD)

It is also more or less true that it is the first time that he will do fanservice as such, because it is a purely romantic novel, there will be a lot of that, but GG is a great actor and good at his work, so we will see him do everything well, of that I am sure so the uncomfortable will go out the window, when he enter the role of Gu Wei

As I said before, I think I have said it a lot, DD won't care if GG does that, DD respects his work and although he is minimally jealous, I don't think it is really serious because he knows that, it is works, and he also does the same.

I wait other comments by you, Anon, bye. 😂😂😂

[ruanbaijie]

Hello again, I hope you are staying safe!

To answer your question to me, I relate the most to Wei Wuxian and Wen Ning. I relate to Wen Ning because I am shy, quiet and I try my best to be good. I value protection more than many understand, and I wish for my loved ones to be safe. I like being helpful. I relate to Wei Wuxian because a lot of bad things happened to him, yet he kept his morals intact and stayed a good person, even when everyone seemed to hate him. That is how I hope I will continue to be. I can also be quite self sacrificial.

My question for today is: How did you find out about CQL/MDZS? What have you watched/read (the show on Netflix, the book, audio drama etc.)?

- Sincerely, your Classified Cultivator

hello welcome back!! (◕▿◕✿) hope you’re keeping safe and healthy too hehe~

ahhh when you put it that way I’m like HMM oh yes I can relate to wen ning too because I am... very shy... irl (ˇ⊖ˇ) and am very non-confrontational like if I ever stumble upon a fight (verbal or otherwise) irl idk what I’ll do like I definitely won’t barge in??? maybe I’ll walk away?? or call the police?? idk LOL that’s why when random quizzes have questions that are similar to this I descend into a minor life crisis ο(_ _ο)彡3 and wwx’s character (at least in cql) is really inspiring! the whole notion of sticking to one’s morals come what may, even if it harms yourself, is definitely something to look up to and I don’t know if I’ll ever reach that level of steadfastness and dedication _(:3」∠)_

I first got exposed to mdzs via the donghua around april last year, because @/laruines (not tagging directly bc I’ve tagged her too many times already sobs) was spamming my dashboard with mdzs donghua gifs and art and I got intrigued... and yeah the rest was history (ﾉ･o･)ﾉ

it became my new hyperfixation which turned out to be a good thing, because around that time, I’d recently decided to quit playing a mobile game (maplestory m cough cough) because I had been super addicted to it and had been spending a lot of time and money (more than SGD1000 which for me, back then a student with no income, was insane) on it. it was giving me a lot of stress....?? and it took me a while to realise that it was doing more harm than bringing more fun so I decided to quit and leave this addiction behind... it sounds so trivial now but back then I was crushed and crying over it for days (because I’d invested so much effort in the game and made friends from it)... and then came along mdzs donghua which really gave me another thing to focus on and I’m much happier for it ^^

ANYWAY yes after watching donghua season 1, I went on to read the novel and manhua (and broke and fell even more in love with the whole mdzs universe), listened to the first two seasons of the audio drama (haven’t gotten around to the last one because I’m lazy asllksdklfklj), watched donghua season 2 when it came out, then counted down to the days to the release of the live action and scrambled to keep up with it when it aired _(:D｣┌)⁼³₌₃ I think the only thing I haven’t touched yet is mdzs q...? and random mobile games lol anyway those haven’t been released yet and bOY do I have a phobia of mobile/ pc games now (・ω・｀)……….. it’s been really amazing watching the fandom grow!

omg okay that’s my long grandmother story on how I descended into this cesspit (^▽^;) I feel like I should ask a question too! which is your favourite soundtrack song from cql? 

[eyeslikefoxglove]

Episode 14 - WangXian are a (v soft) Battle Couple & Foxglove is hella mad

Hi! Welcome to episode 14. I should be studying. It’s day two of morning runs, so my soul has left my body already, send help. Yesterday I went to buy plants with my mum and got so excited I just whacked on a bunch of eyeshadow because I haven’t seen the outside in weeks, I’m also wearing makeup today, because I have nowhere to go, but I really need to finish this bb cream before it goes bad, so my parents are getting my full fresh faced “woke up like this and put on mascara” routine (which is a fucking lie because I’m wearing at least three blushes and two highlighters). I’m determined to get this bitch down in under five minutes so I can have another five to do eyeshadow, I have way too much eyeshadow to not wear it (I have way too much everything except maybe mascara and eyebrow stuff).

Yes, if y’all were wondering I am in fact a makeup magpie. ANYWAY BACK TO THE ACTUAL THING WE ALL CAME HERE FOR.

(Btw further down I discuss once again how shitty I think the Yunmeng sibs’ parents are if that causes an issue for you)

Ok ok ok, so I was talking with damnpoe-2187 here about how we found that sometimes WWX crossed from gremlin into asshole when he tried to get LWJ riled up. Like in the Cold Springs, putting our shippers hearts aside, that was a dick move and he should have stopped undressing the second LWJ went from annoyed to incredibly uncomfortable. I find this scene the complete opposite, a show of character development if you will. It is kind of similar in that they’re both hurt, and alone (although this time is much more serious) and there was some undressing going on; however WWX here behaves like a fool in love considerate person and knowing how uncomfortable LWJ already is tries to make it easier for him. They’re also super soft and I’m weak.

A brief interlude from my one track mind: That pond is full of corpses isn’t it? Or at least the remnants of the Murder Turtle’s meals I suppose. Damn right WWX should not have gone into the water with an open wound, but think no one should go swimming in there without a full hazmat suit tbh (I want to pump them full of antibiotics at this point ngl)

So I love this tiny montage (is it even a montage) of the, getting themselves ready to kill the Murder Turtle.

Teamwooooooork.

Listen, I have read a few fics in which their mind-meld stays in place due to reasons and I need me more of those.

Ok, turtles don’t work that way, but then again, giant murder snake-Trex-turtle so that’s low on my list of priorities. What’s not low is the fact that this guy is knee deep into pretty much a mass grave and I want to take a few showers just watching him.

Yeah, I know exactly what he’s smelling and suddenly I hope I don’t have meat for lunch today tbh.

The screaming sword has always been fucking creepy and does LWJ’s fist clench mean that he’s also hearing them?

BATTLE COUPLE! BATTLE COUPLE! BATTLE COUPLE!

So I know killing the thing took them something like six hours. And while it feels quite a long time in the show, I think that, if they cut the scene with idk, JC running towards Lotus Pier, then back to them, then back to JC, but now the sun is in a different position, back to them, but now the blood from LWJ’s hand has dripped down his arm; and so on a so forth it’d convey more clearly how long it took for the Murder Turtle to die. I know fuck all about cinematography tho so feel free to ignore all this if it is in fact an abomination.

Tiiiiiiny interlude here to say that Yiling Patriarch!WWX is probably one of my favourite character archetypes. He’s slightly creepy, slightly amoral (smiling while torturing and murdering bad guys is still amoral ok), more than a bit on the Dark Side, cocky, smirky, a bit of an asshole a BAMF, a rebel with cause and yet he will still do the right thing, not despite his nature, but because of it. He’s kind of like a Chipped Spike? But you know, he doesn’t need electroshock to behave.

I just want a fic where he’s this Dark Lord of Evil in everyone’s eyes however the ‘good guys’ take a break from trying to off him because a bigger threat just popped up and they have no choice but to ask for his help. He agrees, keeps being his charming self while also saving everyone’s asses, LWJ is smitten.

TL;DR: The Necromancer is hot. Oh and nobody dare deny LWJ has a Yiling Patriarch kink.

Oh my, this is the part when I always get teary eyed.

WUJI ON A CELLO? DO YOU WANT TO KILL ME?

“Why hasn’t Jiang Cheng shown up and rescued me yet?” THIS IS ALL THE PROOF I NEED THAT WWX IS THE BABY SIBLING.

“Lan Zhan sing me a song”

IT IS HAPPENING, STAY FUCKING CALM EVERYBODY (I’m crying)

That slideshow of their best moments set to WuJi is a masterpiece, and also, it kind of drives home the point of “how tf did we go from flirting during summer camp to this mess”?

(Btw if that’s YiBo humming he’s got one hell of a deep voice)

Ok ok ok, so this moment had me spitting up my tea the first time I watched it. Believe it or not my dumbass thought these people were actually serious with the censorship and we’d get scraps of their actual relationship. Lots of charged moments like in some other western tv shows I’ve seen when two dudes have chemistry but “they’re not gay”, no longing glances, no tender touches, no being unbelievably soft with each other; just you know, amped up, because if I’m not mistaken you can be arrested in China for “promoting the gay”. I mean, they changed the beginning when people insult MXY’s sexuality to insulting his mental health; no one would think “ah yes, the gays are good” when they hear it used as a slur, but they still erased it completely. One of the things I thought they’d fully take away was WangXian, I mean, the into/outro is named Wuji, which, you know, still a mishmash of their names, but not their ship name. It is such a significant part of the story with all the “what’s the song name? Figure it out yourself” that if something were going to give away that they’re married with a kid it would be that. I thought we’d get an artful fade to black BEFORE LWJ would say the name not after. And also, YiBo is enunciating it so clearly that, even with the sound muffled and the blurriness I, who don’t speak Chinese, can make out the two syllables. That’s deliberate, I can say “WangXian” loud and clear without moving my lips too much. At this point in time I must assume someone in charge of looking for censorship violations in the show is a fan and just ignored it.

Censorship person 1: dude, isn’t that a bit too gay, maybe you shouldn’t greenlight it.

Censorship person 2: shut the fuck up, sit here and watch.

*a full rundown of the whole of CQL later*

Censorship person 1: oh my god they’re so in love and they deserve to be happy.

Back to the commentary: I’m sorry but I have a mighty need of a WWX & Peacock friendship ok? This might be me just wanting WWX and LWJ to make other friends besides each other but I think that the Peacock is just bitchy enough to not take any of WWX’s bullshit.

And the Yunmeng bros timing for banter strikes yet again.

That’s terrible quality fake blood btw.

@ Yunmeng disciples: STOP SHOOTING FUCKING KITES PLEASE AND THANK YOU

Oooof even with a change of clothes our boy is still looking rough as hell.

MY LOVELY YUNMENG SIBS BEING SOFT AND HAPPY WITH EACH OTHER.

It hurts my soul that the second JFM starts praising WWX for surviving the Murder Turtle our boy’s knee-jerk reaction is to start praising JC in return. It is instinctive, how many times must this have happened for him to know his brother won’t even get scraps of praise? (Seriously fuck their parents)

It was going so well, I mean, JFM had a point warning him to not say things in anger. But I thought he was going to tell him that it is because sometimes he’ll hurt someone without wanting to, yet, this asshole decided to, once again, remind his kid he thinks he’s a failure.

And here comes Mme Yu who I can only assume had a servant posted at the door to warn her when WWX woke so she could throw some verbal abuse at him. I mean, she must have been missing it.

And JFM’s misogynistic bullshit strikes once again, because why defend ALL your kids when you can insult your wife.

(Every time someone berates WWX for “intervening” I want to scream. I mean, seeing this I can believe why the society as a whole thought genocide was a good idea.)

I love how they use their kids as props in their fight, I mean it’s not like they have feelings or anything. This woman is gaslight-y as hell too “you don’t love your kid because I gave birth to him”, you can’t tell me saying that in front of the son she’s supposed to love isn’t going to hurt him. And she knows it, I mean, besides the Wen attack I’ve never seen her hit the kids (although I very much doubt she hasn’t), so a good part of the abuse must be verbal. There’s no fucking way a person who regularly uses words that way won’t realise where she’s aiming those arrows. Which means to her (to both) the kids are collateral.

But FR, the barely-out-of-adolescence disaster bi necromancer PTSDing all over the place and living in a mass grave was a better parent than any of the current adults in this thing.

Which brings me to another point, Shijie is textbook “the oldest sibling is just another parent” and I’m making myself very angry.

[this is when I start frothing at the mouth and itching to write a modern-girl(and friends)-dropped-in-CQL because someone has to be a positive adult influence in these kids’ lives and it sure as shit ain’t the ones in the actual show.]

CAN WE STOP BRINGING PEOPLE’S DEAD PARENTS INTO THE FIGHT?

*deep breath*

I am going to feed JFM & Mme Yu each other’s spleens. Look, listen, look and listen, let’s first talk about how calmly they lay out the facts of their lives, one is only loved because he’s been brought up in the shadow of his dead parents, the other knows with certainty his father dislikes him and his mother uses him as leverage in marital disputes. When have these two not exploded their emotions all over the place? Fucking never. Yet here they are, talking about this bullshit like some bout of inconvenient weather. They’re used to it!

And now let’s talk about yet again siblings-are-just-extra-parents, with an added pile of WWX’s terrible self awareness that, to the man who brought him up, his worth is due to his dead parents. Again I’m extrapolating, but with the amount of times Mme Yu brings up his parents in such a negative light I refuse to believe JFM hasn’t made all the “you’re so much like your parents” comments to him every time WWX does something right. I mean, telling an orphan about their parents if they ask is a good thing, but WWX seems starved for stories about his them, which leads me to believe JFM refuses to talk about the topic except to make those little comments. What a fucking stellar way to give someone all the trauma if you ask me. May also explain a lot of WWX’s self worth issues if the biggest praise he’s ever heard is that he resembles dead people, yes, people who were loved, but they’re dead, and it doesn’t look like any adult has bothered to go and differentiate WWX from ZSSR&WCZ.

I’m just really mad, despite all the silly anecdotes I put in here my parents are fucking great at parenting, so I know what good parents should look like, and this ain’t it.

Ok, so I made myself angry and I don’t know if I should move onto the next episode now or wait till tomorrow but thanks for reading!

[xueyangs-pinky-finger]

Oh wow your pets are adorable!!! Give them an extra head scritch from me 💛. I do have a few pet cats and they're honestly saving my life during this pandemic!

As for KPop, I don't really closely follow bands much but I do listen to more of BTS, A.C.E, and Blackpink. But I'm always open to discovering more! What about you?

Which is the character you like least in The Untamed? And like most? Who do you relate to the most? Which character is your favourite to gif? And who do you think is the most complex character?

🎵🦄

Yeah, they’re a bunch of little gremlins, but I love them lol. What are your cats’ names? 💓

Ooh, I’ve seen both BTS and A.C.E in concert, they were great. (sigh... concerts... when will we meet again? 🥺) The Pinks are great too, but I haven’t gotten the opportunity to see them yet~ As for me, it’s been a few years so I’m in pretty deep, I daresay there are few current groups I don’t know about and honestly it’s so hard to choose favorites... But currently: NCT, Bvndit, Enhypen, Loona, fromis_9... I listen to a lot more but I can only prioritize a handful in terms of actually supporting them, watching their vids, etc. (I still don’t do a great job at that, tho... lol.)

As for song recs, you’re welcome to check out my Spotify~ A lot of the playlists are pretty specific, and idk if they’d be interesting to anyone other than me, but I do have some that are songs that came out in a certain year, etc. that you may find helpful? Or maybe not lmao. I could try to recommend specific songs, but there’s so many and idk what you’d like. 😅 But yeah pretty much all of my playlists are almost exclusively kpop, so...

Argh you ask such great questions but I’m so bad at picking favorites ahhh 😬

1. Probably Wen Chao, I can’t rly think of a single thing I like about him, whereas even characters like Wen Zhuliu (doesn’t give a fuck, has the same expression on his face all the time, wears fingerless gloves and is a badass) or Wen Ruohan (great hair, is a dramatic bitch) or Jin Zixun (I live for WWX’s interactions with him where he pretends to not know who he is alskdf) have at least something going for them...

2. I mean, my url… it does speak for itself, hehe. I don’t necessarily want to admit that he’s my fave, and I do love so many of the other characters so much (especially Wangxian family trio 💕), but who occupies my thoughts the most, who do I have a certain bias towards, who have I read fics for, who did I change my url on tumblr for the first time ever for… the answer to all of these is Xue Yang. 🙈 I always feel the need to justify this even though he’s just a fictional character but it’s like I did enjoy him as a simple villain at first, but then my heart went ow when he grew feelings and a backstory and everything, and I just get sad thinking of what was and what could’ve been… And it’s just so tragic; it’s not like I’m excusing his behavior, I don’t condone it, but things would have been different if someone had shown him compassion during his formative years… No child deserves that treatment… And then, later on, I think he was capable of change… I think he did have genuine feelings for XXC… It’s just that when he got caught he put up his defensive smug bastard persona again and ruined everything… It makes me so sad, like honestly, I make myself rly sad thinking about it aksdfl. Also pls don’t say mean things about him even tho he deserves it it breaks my heart as I am but a fragile flower and anyway haven’t we both been through enough? I mean he’s already died; what more do you want from him? :(

3. Okay this is something I’ve been thinking about lately bc I’d like to do mdzsnet’s ‘get to know our members’ event, but I’m still not rly sure !! LWJ? On character quizzes in the past I’ve gotten LWJ, WWX, and LSZ… But I don’t rly know how accurate those are, much as I’d like to believe they’re very precise bc that’d be very flattering to me, lmao. I will say that, like LWJ, I think I have RBF, I don’t like to be touched, I might seem cold on the outside but rly I care a lot… I looked up the term bc the novel was tagged with it on novelupdates or something, and I think I’m a kuudere like him, lol.

4. Okay this one’s tricky…! I still haven’t giffed everyone yet, and I would like to—which is part of the purpose of my cql character + episode series—but so far… Not to be basic but honestly Wangxian… These days when I rewatch the eps, I keep finding myself writing down scenes of LWJ’s to gif bc he looks pretty in them… (Bitch, when does he not??) And all of WWX’s facial expressions and XZ’s acting aahhh it’s rly nice to capture all of those little moments~ And ofc my smug bastard as well; I have the most gif ideas for him ^^

5. That’s rly tricky to say, honestly, bc they all contain multitudes and that’s what makes the show such a stand-out… I guess I’d say someone who surprised me, like XY, JGY, NHS…

What about you? (If you’re better at giving concise answers than me and can fit them all into an ask, that is. 🤪)

[weekendwritingmarathon]

This weekly roundup includes fics written (at least in part) during the 1k1h sprints and/or the Weekend Writing Marathon events.

Fics are ordered first by fandom, then by word count from smallest to largest.

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Build Them Up (And Tear Them Down) by Yuliares

Leverage || Hardison/Parker/Eliot, Nate/Sophie || Teen & up || No major warnings apply || 4,292 words || Complete

Summary: The Leverage team mashed up with Sentinels, Guides... and whatever the hell Nate is.

Other tags: Sentinel/Guide Universe

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And See How Bright We Shine by Imoshen

The Old Guard || Joe/Nicky || Explicit || No major warnings apply || 8,308 words || WIP

Summary: Lord Nicolò di Genova visits Tunis for the Sultana's birthday. He meets her son, Prince Yusuf, and what was meant to be a little mutual enjoyment... well. Nicolò did not intend to lose his heart in Tunis, and is he the right person to stand at the Prince's side? (Yusuf very much thinks so. To convince Nicolò of that, though...)

Other tags: AU, fantasy world, Prince Yusuf, Lord Nicolo, flirting, fluff and pining, anal sex, Nicolo has a thing for Yusuf's clothes, eventual happy ending

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Familiar (but new) every time by Yuliares

The Old Guard || Joe/Nicky || Teen & up || No major warnings apply || 13,262 words || Complete

Summary: Andy, Nicky, Joe and Nile fly to the safe house in Calabria to regroup. With a new team member, and old ghosts, they settle into habits and patterns both old and new. Aka domestic fluffffff, written for the Mini Bang, with artwork from linaxart!

Other tags: Post Canon, domestic fluff, movie night

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Not Your Guardian Angel (chapter 7) by Tryslora

Original Fiction (Welcome to PHU) || M/F/F (Shane/Pels/Jess) || Teen & up || Author chooses not to give major warnings || 3,971 / 26,860 words || WIP

Summary: Dad claps his hands together, rubbing them quickly. “I never thought I’d hear you actually ask for for help.”

Other tags: Magic, College, Guardian Angel, Ghosts, Soulmarks

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Not Your Guardian Angel (chapter 8) by Tryslora

As Above || 5,906 / 32,766 words || WIP

Summary: "Now that wasn't so bad, was it?" OR Pels makes friends...

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Watch the Woods Fill Up With Snow by @roseclaw​

The Untamed (CQL)/MDZS || Jiang Cheng/Nie Huaisang || General || No major warnings apply || 1,827 words || Complete

Summary: Nie Huaisang was making his monthly pilgrimage to Sabre Hall when the storm started. (snowed-in fic)

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Mending the Broken Moments by @ramblingandpie​

The Untamed (CQL) || Lan Wangji / Wei Wuxian || Teen & up || Major Character Death || 6,443 words || Complete

Summary: After bringing A-Yuan back to Cloud Recesses, Lan Wangji is sequestered, punished, and grieving Wei Wuxian's death. Lan Xichen is doing his best to help, but it still takes months before Lan Wangji is ready to be allowed a small bit of freedom.

Other tags: Canonical Character Death; Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD; Depression; Self-Harm; Angst; Physical Abuse; Angst with a Happy Ending; Eventual Happy Ending; Happy Ending; Rabbits; The Cloud Recesses Rabbits (Módào Zǔshī); Dead Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn

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Have you posted a fic recently?  Any active WWM participant can Submit your fic here by midnight EST Wednesday and it will be included on next Friday’s WWM Fic Roundup post.

[razberryyum]

The Untamed/陈情令 Rewatch, Episode 13, Part 2 of 2

(spoilers for everything MDZS/Untamed)

[covers MDZS chapters 52, 53 and 54]

WangXian meter: 🐰🐰🐰+🐰🐰+🐰🐰+🐰🐰+🐰🐰+🐰🐰🐰+🐰🐰🐰+🐰🐰+🐰🐰+🐰+🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰

Continued from Part 1...

Xuanwu Cave Comparison

Between the novel, audio drama, donghua, and live action depictions of the Xuanwu cave event, there are marked differences that determine my preference for each version, so here’s how I would rank them (and this is only applicable to the Xuanwu cave adaptation):  

novel > live action > audio drama > donghua

Since the novel is the og source, its depiction should naturally rank above all versions of MDZS, but if I’m going to be honest, I debated a bit whether the The Untamed’s adaptation should fall beneath it, or actually be equivalent to it. The primary reason for my momentary indecision is because the relationship dynamics between Wei Ying and Lan Zhan in the show were different going into the Xuanwu cave than how they were in the novel. Because they had gone through more experiences together—the Yin metal hunt and their defiance against Wen Chao, for example, which wasn’t in the novel of course—their interactions during this just this whole conversation scene in the cave is somehow warmer and more amicable. The difference is most noticeable with Wei Ying: in the novel he actually gets a little annoyed and then straight up angry with Lan Zhan, going so far as yelling at him and moving away from him. Even though it’s admittedly for a valid reason since Lan Zhan did bite him, the distance between their hearts felt farther apart. It did feel more like two people who didn’t like each other much, forced to work together. And since the audio drama follows the novel pretty closely for this event, the same sentiments applied there as well. But here in CQL, Wei Ying is mostly just teasing, considerate and sweet. He’s almost affectionate with Lan Zhan, like they’ve been friends for a while, which in Wei Ying’s mind they have been, so there’s no sense of animosity whatsoever. Wei Ying never stops to wonder if Lan Zhan actually hates him like he did in the book. Lan Zhan, in turn, was also generally more blatantly irritated with Wei Ying in the book, a fact that was clearly brought to life in the audio drama since he was rather short with him many times. Whereas here in the live action, while he’s exasperated with Wei Ying (because he’s being dense AF)…

...overall he’s more...soft? Like, even if we didn’t know he was in love with Wei Ying, or that Wei Ying thinks they’re good friends, there’s still no sense that they don’t get along at all.

Still, at the end of the day, because the novel is the well from which the Xuanwu cave event sprung forth, it has of course more precious and crucial elements that the show lacked, which helped finalize my decision on ranking the novel’s version of the Xuanwu cave above The Untamed instead of putting it on the same level. In addition to the previously mentioned piggyback ride, Lan Zhan making his permanent mark on Wei Ying by biting him and then breaking down over what befell his family and Cloud Recesses, were left out of the show as well. The stripping scene was also longer in the book, with Wei Ying straight out threatening to jump Lan Zhan’s bones while half-naked. Although a slight downer to that moment was how Wei Ying ended his prank: by assuring Lan Zhan he’s not into men. That one line actually still bothers me to this day because I can’t shake off its implications: basically, it’s really lucky for Lan Zhan that Wei Ying was revived in a gay man’s body. The thought of how their ending would have been otherwise makes my heart ache. For sure, I don’t think we would’ve gotten “everyday means everyday”. But that’s a longer and more involved discussion for another time. I’ll shelve it until we get to the episode later on when Team CQL changes Mo Xuanyu’s sexuality completely.

Back to the differences in the novel that was absent from CQL:  Lan Zhan ended up wearing Wei Ying’s undergarments, and the satchel of medicine was from Mian Mian, not Wen Qing (who hadn’t even appeared yet in the story), which is important since later on when it’s revealed that Lan Zhan secretly pocketed that satchel and turned it into his coin purse because he’s such a sweet romantic. Of course the satchel never made an appearance against in The Untamed. Lastly, in the novel, Wei Ying ends up sleeping on Lan Zhan’s legs because Lan Zhan finally obliges his request after he passed out from the fever.  The most we got in the show was them sleeping next to each other.

Aside from the differences in the degree of WangXian, there’s also general story differences as well: in the novel, Su She was the one who tried throwing Mian Mian to the Wens and pretty much got bitch slapped by Lan Zhan for it (in the show, it was just some random Jin disciple betraying his own kind). Su She also was the one that caused the Xuanwu’s blood lust to be riled up because he accidentally shot Wei Ying with an arrow while trying to make amends for his cowardice with Mian Mian. It’s actually a shame that Team CQL decided to leave Su She out of the Xuanwu proceedings entirely in the show because his inclusion would have made his hatred of Lan Zhan and his actions against Wei Ying make more sense. Petty jealousy and an overblown inferiority complex just seemed a bit of a reach in light of how much he despised Lan Zhan and the lengths he went through to essentially destroy Wei Ying. They really should have included Su She in the Xuanwu cave, was the actor not available, I wonder.

As for the audio drama, even though it follows the novel pretty closely and I absolutely love it and most of the performances by the voice actors—in particular our two leads, Lu Zhixing-laoshi as Wei Ying and Wei Chao-laoshi as Lan Zhan, who are absolutely beyond superb...seriously my knees turned to freaking jelly in some scenes because of them—not to mention, it is probably the most faithful adaptation of the novel we will EVER get, the reason I ranked it below The Untamed in terms of the Xuanwu cave events is because of the mere fact that some scenes just are better brought to life in a visual medium. That’s really it. Therefore, it’s not the fault of the audio drama, per se, but the nature of audio dramas that makes me prefer the live action’s depiction of the Xuanwu cave scenes over it.  

As for the donghua, at least in terms of these particular sequence of events, I absolutely think it has to fall to last place because it omitted so much from the novel in terms of WangXian. Even though Wei Ying showed some upper body nudity for a brief moment and Lan Zhan rubbed medicine on his brand directly, they changed the disrobing to Wei Ying pulling on Lan Zhan’s head ribbon as the reason for Lan Zhan spitting up blood. He did smack Wei Ying for doing that, which I thought was cute and funny, but that’s still a far cry from what was supposed to be. Even the talk about Mian Mian was truncated and just didn’t have the same sentiments involved. Lan Zhan did get emotional over his family, but not to the degree that he did in the novel/audio drama. Also to be honest, most of the cave sequence in the donghua was just a little too dark. Like, I do appreciate the fact that they were trying to go for realism in a cave setting; I mean, at least they didn’t light up the cave at 9 pm (aka the time the Lans fall asleep like narcoleptic zombies...how do they even go on night hunts???) like it was Alaska during the summer:

But my poor eyes would have appreciated it even more if the donghua abandoned reality and simply lit up the surroundings more. They could have easily thrown in some glowing stalactites as the explanation for the unrealistic lighting.  I was so happy whenever cultivation magic happened since those were the moments my eyes no longer had to strain. 

Also, while the Xuanwu tortoise wasn’t much to write home about in The Untamed:

I did like the fact that I could see every CGI wrinkle on him. Actually, I’m being harsh, he really wasn’t too bad as CGI effects go in the show, and he’s definitely much better stationary than in action.

There was one thing that the donghua included that wasn’t in the novel, audio drama or the show, and that was Nie Huaisang. I actually don’t know why he was included...not that I’m complaining about it since I welcome more NHS in any version, but I thought that was a curious change and I would actually like to know the reason for why Team Donghua decided to add him in. Although, I can understand why The Untamed didn’t include him: first of all, he wasn’t meant to be there to begin with since he wasn’t in the novel but also perhaps they realized they didn’t need yet another damsel in distress who had to be  constantly protected. One Mian Mian in the cave was enough.  

With Apologies to Mian Mian

I know the Mian Mian in the cave was actually closer to the way she was portrayed in the novel, but I really didn’t like this version of Mian Mian since she isn’t the same one we’ve been living with in the show up until that point. In terms or The Untamed, the Mian Mian we know is much stronger, braver and smarter than that. I mean, this is the girl who diffused the tension between Wen Chao and Jin Zixuan at Qishan while casually side-stepping Wen Chao’s attempt at harassment at the same time. While I understand she was without her weapon in the cave and there had been no indication she was even that strong of a fighter to begin with, I’d still like to believe that had she been in character, she would’ve picked up one of the Wen’s swords and fought alongside everyone else against the Wen dogs. I don’t know why Team CQL decided to damsel her down in this instance, but I found it rather irritating. Her being the one to induce the Xuanwu’s bloodlust because she fucking tripped and hurt herself makes me cringe every single time I see this scene. That’s like a bimbo in a bad horror movie type of move and totally not worthy of the Mian Mian we’ve been blessed with up until then. This is the woman who will one day take off her sect robes and renounce her secthood in front of a roomful of sect leaders and her seniors due to her sense of righteousness, and then more than a decade later draw her sword to protect her family against two intruders hiding in her backyard....not to mention protect her husband and daughter against freaking ghost puppets while voluntarily going on night hunts. This Mian Mian isn’t one to cower behind anyone helplessly or carelessly tripping over her own feet, dammit. At least in the Xuanwu cave, Team CQL really did Mian Mian wrong.  

Wei Wuxian is awesome

Again, a given as usual, but I still want to especially restate that fact because his recitation of the Wen Sect rules back to Wen Chao’s dumbass face is still one of my favorite Wei Ying moments. Not like I even have a non-favorite Wei Ying moment, but this definitely ranks at the top of the list. What made the moment even better was Wen Zhuliu’s reaction to Wen Chao’s ignorance.  

I will never stop asking this: what the hell kind of debt does Wen Zhuliu owe Wen Ruohan that he would be willing to saddle himself with someone who is clearly very very much his intellectual and cultivational inferior? I know it’s a life debt, maybe his own life was saved, but that still hardly seems worth the trouble he has to put up with for all these years.

WangMian??  (j/k)

Even though Wei Ying was just teasing Lan Zhan about liking Mian Mian, I can kind of see why someone would mistakenly think Lan Zhan might have some interest in her based on this moment alone. The way the scene was constructed was rather interesting because of how Lan Zhan quickly rushes to Mian Mian’s side as soon as he notices she might be in danger. First time I watched this I thought, oh, he’s just doing that to block Wei Ying from getting into trouble and also to protect him from Wen Chao, but after reviewing the scene a few times since then, I realized his position isn’t quite right for that purpose.  Or perhaps, Lan Zhan was protecting Mian Mian because in that instance she was someone who is weak and he was just acting on his principles. I can accept that explanation.  After all, I don’t seriously think there was anything between Lan Zhan and Mian Mian, nor do I think Team CQL ever intended there to be, but that was still a rather motivationally vague way to execute that scene.

A Jealous Lan Zhan is Cute

I just love how over he is with Wei Ying flirting with Mian Mian. Lan Zhan was really chugging the vinegar there.

Wang Lingjiao is a Real Evil C-word

Speaking of people who downs vinegar like water, I have to take a moment to marvel at just how truly evil and petty a woman Wang Lingjiao is. The fact that in the middle of a highly dangerous, life or death battle with an ancient monster, she still found the time and mood to try to brand some poor girl her stupid sugar daddy showed just a teeny tiny bit of interest in is pretty astounding. She is really an unbelievably vile character. However, as much as I hate the character, and I will only hate her more in future episodes, I have nothing but praise for the casting choice for WLJ. Lu Enjie really nailed that role, not only in terms of performance but she had the perfect look and body language as well. And then, Qiu Qiu-laoshi’s voice acting made what was already perfect even more sublime. It was as if Wang Lingjiao literally stepped out of the pages of the novel and onto the screen.

Questions I Still Have

- Even now I actually don’t know how Wei Ying’s paperman trick works cuz there doesn’t seem to be much consistency in how it operates. Sometimes it seems like he’s just commanding it to do things, while other times he’s like putting his own consciousness in it. But even the degree of consciousness he is able to insert into the paperman seems to vary. What gives? And man, could Wei Ying have been more obvious with his little messenger in that moment?? That paperman flew to Wen Qing and clung to her in full view of everybody right behind her. Good thing the Wens obviously employ a bunch of blind dummies who are completely oblivious to their surroundings, otherwise both Wen Qing and Wei Ying would’ve been in deep shit.

- Did Wen Ruohan ever tell his son the game plan for keeping all the major sect’s kids? Cuz if the point was to hold the next generation of sect leaders hostage so that their parents won’t revolt against the Wens, KILLING them all in a cave is probably the LAST thing Daddy Wen would want Wen Chao to do. I mean, I would imagine nothing would incite a collective mutiny more than if everyone’s most precious heirs mysteriously died during a night hunt held by the Wens. Honestly, what the hell was Wen Chao thinking with that stunt? I guess the answer is he wasn’t thinking since he is kind of stupid, but then that begs the question why would Wen Ruohan let his idiot younger son be in charge of something so important in the first place? I wouldn’t trade the hostage situation in for anything since it did lead to important events in the story, but I guess I wish it wasn’t so flimsy-seeming in the logic department?  

Overall Episode Rating: 9.5 Lil Apples out of 10

Disclaimer: The Untamed would not be possible without Mo Dao Zu Shi and Mo Xiang Tong Xiu-laoshi. I mean no disrespect whatsover when at times I may favor the shwo over the MDZS bible that is the novel. All hail MDZS and MXTX-laoshi, always and forever!    

[weilongfu]

Something old, borrowed, and blue (Nothing is new)

Or in really bad Chinese:  旧的，借取的，和蓝色的 （东西都没新的)

MDZS/CQL, WangXian. Part 4 of the reincarnation!AU

The talk of the town (okay maybe only Gusu), the event of the year, the wedding of Lan Wang Ji and Wei Wu Xian. Of course, an extravagant wedding requires suitably acceptable gifts (not that the grooms are insisting on such). But with so few choices for something perfect and so many guests of importance, who will find and keep the ideal present in their hands?

AKA: Several once cultivators vie for a limited pool of things from the past that may mean a lot to the present.

@sarah-yyy @ctl-yuejie @stebeee

Jin Ling frowned as he read the invitation over again. It was a very pretty invitation, Lan family pale blue with white clouds drifting across the top fading into a Jiang family purple lake with gold lotus blooms floating on the surface. 

His mother had fawned over it, thrilled to hear her ‘Ah Xian’ was taking the next step with ‘Young Ah Ji.’ His father had furrowed his brows and simply filled in the RSVP card and said nothing more. But Jin Ling knew a refusal would never have happened anyway. It would be impolite and be perceived as a slight between the Jins and the Lans. Never mind the Jiangs. Uncle Cheng was already in a tizzy after receiving his invitation and Grandmother Yu could be heard complaining all the way in Lanling. Or perhaps it was her calling Grandmother Jin.

(Realistically, Jin Ling also knew that the last time his father had complained about anything to do with Xian-ge, his mother had gone quiet, all the food they ate had never touched her hands, and father had slept in one of the guest rooms for two weeks without complaining before he was allowed to return to the master bedroom.)

With his mother already determined to help cater the entire affair (”Ah Li, Xi Chen is hiring caterers for that.” “But Ah Xian would be so sad to not have his favorite soup at his wedding! I should offer!” “Ah Li...”), it fell on Jin Ling’s shoulders to find an acceptable present. The weight of his father’s credit card in his pocket was thrilling.

“Be reasonable,” was all Jin Zi Xuan had asked while handing over the card without a spending limit. A moment after Jin Ling had pocketed the card, Zi Xuan added, “And tasteful.”

Thus tasked, Jin Ling had asked the only other person he knew he could rely on for help. Five minutes later, Jin Ling regretted his decision. 

“Ah Ling, I came as soon as I got your message!” Lan Si Zhui bowed before he passed through the door to Jin Ling’s house. Behind him, Lan Jing Yi, cousin and best friend, was not far behind. 

“As soon as you...” Jin Ling looked at his phone. “I literally texted you five minutes ago? Did you fly to Lanling? Are you hiding a pair of wings?” Si Zhui smiled serenely as Jin Ling turned him around to double check. “And all I wanted was ideas. You didn’t have to run here.”

“Jing Yi and I were already in the area! I stopped by on our way back to Yunmeng. I heard there’s a nice shop in that specializes in a lot of antiques.” Si Zhui bowed as Yan Li passed by. “Hello Ah-Yi.” Yan Li ran over to press kisses to Si Zhui’s forehead as well as Jing Yi’s before returning to her work, maids following with several cookbooks and notepads. “You’re welcome to join us, Ah Ling!”

Jin Ling frowned. “Aren’t antiques taboo?”

“Taboo?” Jing Yi scratched his head. “Because it could be bad feng shui?”

“This shop was especially suggested by Xi Chen-shushu,” Si Zhui insisted. “I don’t think he’d mislead us.”

“What does Lan-Laoshi know at this point,” Jin Ling huffed. “He’s so taken by all the wedding planning, you could do a dance in front of him and he wouldn’t notice.”

Jing Yi opened his mouth to argue but Si Zhui shut it for him. “If Ah Ling doesn’t want to join us, we need not force it.” Si Zhui bowed. “I will let you know if I see anything you might be interested in, Ah Ling. Enjoy the rest of your day!”

Before he left, Si Zhui bowed to Zi Xuan as he passed by, glaring at something on his tablet while his assistant, Mian Mian, followed behind. Zi Xuan returned the bow before continuing on. Jing Yi hurried to follow. 

Jin Ling scowled as the two walked off across the grounds before pulling his shoes on and running after them.

------

Lan Qi Ren did not necessarily pride himself on anything. He considered himself a rational man of modesty and good accomplishments, chief of which was the raising of his nephews into fine, dependable young men of good standing. Of course, he regretted sending Wang Ji away to finish his studying. But it ended with very good test scores and a placement in a good job that was well deserved. If the price to pay was association with Wei Wu Xian, the scoundrel troublemaker of Yunmeng, it was not a terrible price to pay. 

However, Qi Ren was sure that if Xi Chen showed him one more table cloth pattern, he’d cough up blood.

“Bofu, perhaps this pattern would-”

“Xi Chen, just pick one.” Qi Ren could feel the blood welling in the back of his throat already. Or perhaps it was just stomach acid, damn ulcers. “Wang Ji will not care and Wu Xian will not pay attention.”

“Bofu! That’s very irresponsible to say.” Xi Chen picked up all his samples and Qi Ren couldn’t deny the rush of relief that flooded through his body. “I hope you will say sorry with a proper wedding present to Wang Ji.”

That made Qi Ren pause. “A proper present?”

“Of course! Bofu, surely you weren’t thinking of just giving Wang Ji money, were you?”

Qi Ren thought of the hongbao already stuffed with several large bills in his desk drawer. “Of course not.”

Xi Chen nodded. “Well then, I’m off to ask Ming Jue-Xiong if he’ll be bringing anyone other than his brother. Honestly, how he lost his RSVP card, I’ll never understand while Huai Sang is still there...” Xi Chen paused for a moment. “No... Ming Jue wouldn’t... Get my car ready! We have a wedding emergency!”

Qi Ren kept a calm face while Xi Chen walked off before reaching for his cell phone and calling in a favor.

------

Nie Huai Sang winced, messing up his bamboo painting on one of his new fans, as Lan Xi Chen lectured Nie Ming Jue over the importance of Lan Wang Ji and Wei Wu Xian’s wedding. Words like, “event of the century,” “my dear brother’s heart’s desire,” and “I don’t remember you being like this with the Jins and the Jiangs,” were thrown about every so often. The 1.5 hr drive from Gusu to Qinghe had done nothing to temper Xi Chen’s surprisingly upset emotions. At least when it came to Wang Ji.

Huai Sang was sure that if his brother wasn’t so uninterested in relationships, he and Xi Chen would be the old married couple instead of acting like one.

“And you, Huai Sang!” Xi Chen cried. Once again, a spear of ink through a lovely watercolor peony. “I trusted you to keep your brother on task!”

“To be fair,” Ming Jue interjected while peering over Xi Chen’s shoulder, “The flaw in your plan was that you depended on Huai Sang.”

“Xiong-zhang!”

“Am I wrong, Xiong-di?”

Huai Sang huffed. “I bet you haven’t even found your present, Xiong-zhang! I had mine ready ages ago!”

“Wait, I’m giving a separate present?” A cross between confusion and rage settled on Ming Jue’s face. “We’re both representing the Nie family. We’re giving one present!”

“Not after you said that to Lan-xiong!”

Recognition dawned on Ming Jue’s face. “You little-”

“Lan-xiong!” Huai Sang cried as he bent over his table, sobs wracking his frame hard enough to garner sympathy but not so much to splash ink on his silk shirt, fine jacket, and tailored dress pants. But Ming Jue knew his brother, knew well when the younger was faking. And Xi Chen was buying it hook, line, and sinker. “Xiong-zhang is being so mean! Why should I share my present that would bring Lan-er-ge joy with him! He clearly wouldn’t appreciate it! He made me throw away the RSVP card too!”

Xi Chen’s fervor restored at the proper person, Huai Sang went back to painting with the express intention of actually making a proper fan to carry to the wedding as Ming Jue tried to tower over Xi Chen while decidedly not cowering.

------

The shop had been relatively easy to find in Yunmeng. Nestled right in the historical part of town, serenely settled behind an ancient set of wooden gates. The antique shop sign was also simply painted wood. The entire thing seemed like a relic of one thousand years past. Apparently it had once been part of a larger temple structure, but had been gated off at a later date. The rest of the complex was lost to time and the needs of the city apparently.

It gave Jin Ling shivers up and down his spine while walking through the door, as if he’d been there before. Si Zhui and Jing Yi seemed to have no such problem, casually moving through the shelves. The shopkeeper kept a placid smile on his face after offering to help them in any way possible, then dismissing them with a perfectly formal bow. 

Jin Ling had glanced at the man’s name tag after he had stared a bit too long at him. Meng Yao had been printed neatly on it. 

The name rubbed Jing Ling the wrong way too. As if it was right, but also wrong.

“Ah Ling! Look, this is very nice. Xian-ge might like it a lot!”

Jin Ling scowled but came over anyway. “Isn’t Xian-ge about to marry your fuqin, but you still call him ge?” 

“When Xian-ge marries fuqin, I will call him diedie.” Si Zhui’s reply had come immediately. “Anyway, look!”

Jin Ling followed Si Zhui’s finger to a silver bell in a case. The craftsmanship of the silver was high quality as was the etching of lotus blossoms. Above the bell was a fine jade ornament, like the cross-section of a lotus root. The tassel was also in good condition and a vibrant red. It made Jin Ling feel a sense of longing, as if he’d never see his parents again.

“Ah, young masters, you have excellent taste.” All three boys startled as Meng Yao appeared behind them. “This bell is actually a recreation of an original that was destroyed. However, you will find the craftsmanship to be equal to, or even better, than the original. If I may.” Meng Yao opened the case and with a flourish presented the bell. With a tap of his fingernail, the bell gave a gentle chime, clear and refreshing. “The jade ornament is hand carved. The bell is made of pure silver and fine tuned even after the etching work. Shall I have it wrapped up for the young masters?”

“How much?” All four turned to face another customer. 

“Nie Xiansheng!” Si Zhui bowed to Nie Ming Jue while Jin Ling stared, completely bewildered at the current leader of the Nie family showing up in an antiques shop in the middle of Yunmeng. “It has been too long.”

Ming Jue respectfully returned Si Zhui’s greeting. “Si Zhui, you had better-”

“Whatever Nie Xiansheng is going to pay, I’ll pay more.” Jin Ling pulled out Jin Zi Xuan’s credit card. “Name the price.”

Ming Jue scowled. “You! Your father would never-”

Jin Ling tilted his head. “Forgive me, Nie Xiansheng . But fuqin asked me to buy our family present. Even for you Nie Xiansheng, I cannot spare anything.”

“Ah...” Meng Yao looked between Jin Ling and Ming Jue, hands out in a placating manner. “Perhaps, Nie Xiansheng, you’d prefer something over-”

Si Zhui knew Ming Jue would never start a fight with teenagers, but he pulled out a slip of paper from his sleeve anyway.

“What’s that?” Jing Yi whispered as Jin Ling and Ming Jue continued to stare each other down with Meng Yao caught in the crossfire. 

“I borrowed it from Xian-ge. He said it was an experiment.”

Jing Yi frowned as he looked at the characters written on it. “An experiment in what? How are you even going to use that? Talismans don’t do anything!”

Si Zhui’s mind flashed back to a previous day, vivid memories racing across his mind at the threat of death. Vivid memories of another Xian-ge, a life lived on a mountain of corpses and a hollowed tree, a debt that could never be paid to either of his fathers in the past and present. “Don’t ask.”

Si Zhui focused his spiritual energy into the talisman which burst into rabbits made of fire that gave off no heat, but jumped through the air and all over the shop. In Meng Yao’s panic and Ming Jue’s stupification, Si Zhui grabbed the bell and Jin Ling before running deeper into the store. 

Jing Yi watched for a moment longer as Meng Yao desperately tried to stomp out a bunny only for it to split into more bunnies before running after the pair ahead of him.

------

Jiang Cheng sighed as he passed through the gates to the antiques shop. The email that his order had arrived was a welcome blessing. It was a chance to get out of Lotus Pier and away from the insanity of Wu Xian doing everything in his power to rile up Lan Wang Ji while trying on suits for the wedding. 

Apparently Lan Wang Ji was not opposed to being riled up.

Thankfully the tailor was discrete and easily paid off.

But knowing that insanity followed him like a cloud did nothing to prepare Jiang Cheng for a hoard of rabbits made of flame to come streaming out the moment he opened the door to the shop. He realized, only distantly while wondering where he’d gone wrong in life, that the man carried away by them was Nie Ming Jue.

Looking harassed, but entirely still too willing to please, Meng Yao bowed to invite Jiang Cheng in. 

Jiang Cheng took one look at the disorder of the shop, the lone bunny hopping to join it’s fellows, and a glimpse of Jin Ling’s hair and Si Zhui’s sneakers from a hole in the ceiling, before turning around and walking right out. Restored antique flute be damned.

Jiang Cheng immediately headed to the nearest jewelry shop. If Wu Xian was going to act like he was an obnoxious blushing bride, then he was going to receive the nine tokens of a traditional dowry instead of a flute he’d have liked better instead.

------

The day of the wedding came with plenty of its own disasters. 

The decorators were an hour late. Yan Li was an hour early with all the food she had prepared. The officiator had gotten into an accident and Lan Qi Ren was some how persuaded to take his place. Wu Xian was already drinking in his dressing room and his tux smelled of liquor. Nie Ming Jue arrived with a box that was obnoxiously large and an omnipresent glare for all the rabbit themed decor that Xi Chen had insisted on. Someone (more accurately Wu Xian) had invited Wen Ning and Wen Qing and the resulting chaos had nearly taken down the entire building.

How the situation had been dispersed involved events that no one could quite remember, but it did involve Nie Huai Sang’s newest fan depicting a pine forest with a white and black rabbit hidden under a tree, a premature release of several biodegradable balloons, and Wen Ning throwing a table at someone.

The sound of traditional Lan family music was almost a blessing as it soothed tempers and made way for the grooms to arrive. Jiang Fengmian walked Wu Xian down the aisle to a waiting Wang Ji. 

As Wu Xian and Wang Ji held hands, Lan Qi Ren began to loop a blue ribbon embroidered with clouds around their hands. 

“My wedding gift to you, Wang Ji,” Qi Ren said. “In times of old, Lan family weddings were done with a hand binding with the family head band. This band once belonged to the man you were named after.” 

Wu Xian coughed to hide a suspicious smile and while Wang Ji seemed unaffected outside of bowing in thanks, the tips of his ears turned just a hair pinker. 

------

Before all the food Yan Li had worked so hard to prepare could be laid out, the newly married couple did their best to thank and properly welcome everyone. The line was long and Wu Xian’s eyes widened as he watched the gift box for cards fill rapidly. Wang Ji only pinched his husband’s leg once.

“Do not be greedy.”

“Ah Zhan, this wedding was expensive. As your faithful husband, I’m only thinking about our household expenses, I assure you.”

As Jiang Cheng had expected, Wu Xian was entirely too pleased at receiving the nine dowry tokens. Each of the 8 miniature items was made in 24 karat gold encased in the lovely box that counted as the ninth item. Wu Xian’s laughter echoed through the entire venue, louder than Yu Zi Yuan’s cries over such a display. Wang Ji’s cheeks turned a small shade, but Wu Xian soothed him before the next guest could come forward.

Nie Huai Sang presented a triptych painting he’d done himself that spanned from Yunmeng to Gusu. The classical watercolor techniques were quite striking and Wang Ji actually hummed. 

Nie Ming Jue’s present was slightly less well received. Within the giant box he had brought with him was a pair of guardian lions carved from marble. Nobody dared to ask how he had managed to carry them around all day. Their expressions were more ferocious than noble, but the couple accepted them with only slightly strained smiles.

Jin Ling stepped up with his parents to present his present in a small box. Wu Xian lifted the silver bell up with absolute wonder and reverence. “Shushu.” Wu Xian’s head snapped up, tears forming in the corner of his eyes as Jin Ling addressed him. “The person who sold me this bell said... the original had a tragic history. It was destroyed before it could reach the person it was meant for.” Wu Xian’s eyes softened even more and Jin Ling pointedly turned around despite his mother’s protests. “I hope in your hands, it only brings you joy.”

Lan Si Zhui was the last to present his gift. The smiles of Wang Ji and Wu Xian were rather indulgent. “Fuqin, diedie, Ah Yi and I got this for you.” Si Zhui presented an old book wrapped in finely embroidered cloth. “I think diedie will enjoy this the most.” Suspicious of the twinkle in Si Zhui’s eyes, Wu Xian turned to the side to open the bundle. The title on the cover insisted it was a book on different kinds of ghosts. However the page Wu Xian turned to caused his eyes to widen.

“Shameless,” Wang Ji said over Wu Xian’s shoulder. Wu Xian snapped the book shut.

“Young man, I don’t know who taught you this-”

“It was you, diedie. You also taught me how to-”

“That’s quite enough of that.” Wu Xian moved to stand up, but Wang Ji pulled him back down. “Just because you’re 18 doesn’t mean I can’t stick you in the ground and plant you like a radish-” Wu Xian felt his breath leave him as Si Zhui tackled him and Wang Ji into a hug. The murmurs and cooing from the rest of the wedding guests also drowned out the rest of what he had to say.

“I’m so happy for you, fuqin, diedie.” The both of them put their arms around Si Zhui, feeling his body shake. “I hope that you will both always be happy together.”

“The three of us,” Wang Ji said. “The three of us together will be happy.”

“Come on you brat, time to eat your Ah Yi’s cooking,” Wu Xian said as he stroked Si Zhui’s hair. “And you guessed right. I appreciate your present more than your fuqin.”

------

The rest of the wedding was a blur of good food and good alcohol. But when Wu Xian woke up the next morning, beautiful gifts arranged all in a row on a table in their room, he could only smile. So much was old and new in so many different ways. So many memories, past and present. 

“I’m getting sentimental,” Wu Xian muttered to himself. “But I guess... it’s not so bad...” Wu Xian tapped the silver bell, letting it chime softly through the room, giving way to the noise of the city.

And by the sound of the only slightly heavy breathing, Wang Ji was already putting the guardian lions outside the apartment door. 

Wu Xian looked at some of the other presents laid out, particularly Si Zhui’s. There had to be something in there that he could use for inspiration to show his appreciation to Wang Ji. 

After all, what else was there to do on your honeymoon?