#Li Xinyue

[feng-huli]

The Four Guardians of Tianqi

[finalfantasyx]

Yue Yao (because I need to scream about her awesomeness and the dangers of retconning), Yue Qing, and How NOT to Write Women - A Rant(TM) about Dashing Youth & The Blood of Youth

Spoilers ahead for Dashing Youth and The Blood of Youth if you have not seen either live action drama, since we haven't gotten there in the donghua yet. You have been duly warned. Now come scream with me. I've been wanting to scream about this for a while.

Okay, what the hell??? Prefacing this again with the fact that I watched Dashing Youth before TBOY and I'm just...floored? Yue Yao was so interesting. She was up against some major political issues where the repercussions of her choices and the choices made by the people around her would impact and probably, most likely, cause the deaths of thousands. She was dealing with a missing father who, for all they knew, could have been dead, a clingy sister-turned-annoying-character-trope, the fate of her people, and also the fate of all of Beili and Beique (I mean, seriously, you want to talk about Yi Wenjun being at fault for instigating the three-way war between Nanjue, Tianwaitian, and Beili, AND SHE WASN'T ACTUALLY AT FAULT ASIDE FROM NOT COMMUNICATING WITH HER HUSBAND BEFORE MAKING A HUGE DECISION THAT WOULD IMPACT THEM ALL and leaving her infant son in the house BY HIMSELF, PLEASE Yue Yao would have been directly responsible for all the deaths resulting from any move she made), all the while trying to find a way to do what was best for everyone AND getting to know the prodigy and dumbass with a heart that was Baili Dongjun, whose grandfather Baili Luochen helped Beili in the war with Beique that resulted in her people being killed and displaced to the unforgiving north.

/breathe

And oh, does she ever find a way. Baby girl decides to just DIY this whole shebang when she finds the natural-born martial arts prodigies with the special meridians or whatever the hell the drama said it was that set Baili Dongjun and Ye Dingzhi apart from alllll the other martial arts practitioners and just takes her sworn sister's identity, gets a makeover, and BAM joins the Jixia Academy...audition.

Not only that, but we see that she is more than her pretty clothes and her miss-fairy-in-a-carriage persona that we've seen up until this point in the drama. SHE CAN FIGHT! SHE CAN BEAT SOMEONE'S ASS! SHE CAN CHEAT AND GAMBLE! SHE STRAIGHT UP APPROACHES BAILI DONGJUN AND CHALLENGES HIM. SHE. APPROACHES. HIM. FIRST. Also it's really freakin' cute.

SHE STANDS UP FOR HERSELF AND HER TEAMMATES AND PROTECTS THEM. SHE SAVES BAILI DONGJUN'S TAIL. SHE'S GOT HER OWN WAY OF THINKING AND SHE'S FUNNY AS HELL. SHE SLAPS HIM CLEAN ACROSS THE FACE FOR GOING TO A BROTHEL.

We see her enter Jixia Academy, we see her train under Liu Yue (which I am still salty about because we could have used a lot more scenes of her and Liu Yue training and just being master/apprentice, see her having a hard time with really just using Liu Yue to stay near Baili Dongjun for her own/Beique's ends, especially with Liu Yue declaring that he doesn't care about her true identity, just that she is now his apprentice and that means that he's always on her side please Liu Yue was the best and he got fking nuked at the end, even if he got to retire from jianghu with Mo Xiaohei lol), WE SEE HER STRUGGLE. This entire time, Yue Yao is absolutely torn between a) doing what is best for her people, b) doing what is best for everyone and not causing the deaths of thousands, and c) not falling for the guy whose grandfather is a war hero because he killed her people.

Also the fact that this dumbass she is falling in love with has been pining after her miss-fairy-in-a-carriage persona for so long he has no clue she's right in front of him. Good job, Dongjun /pat pat

Let's play this out.

If Yue Yao a) does what is best for her people, which everyone thinks is reclaiming Beili, a warmer and far more fertile land, and creating better lives for themselves, that would incite another war and cause many, many deaths. Also, there's a very, very high possibility that Beique might lose anyway!

If Yue Yao b) does what is best for everyone and not cause another war and the deaths of thousands, she is condemning her own people to a harsh life in the cold, icy, desolate north.

If Yue Yao c) falls for the guy whose grandfather is a war hero because he killed her people, she will be seen as a traitor and will be turned on because they'll think she turned on them first, especially since she is basically their princess.

What's a girl to do.

SHE FREAKIN' OWNS UP TO IT AND COMES CLEAN with Baili Dongjun and her followers, Mo Qixuan and Zi Yuji. She does not lie to them and is up front about her vision and what she wants to do for her people and for herself, because they don't have to be mutually exclusive things. She follows her heart; she knows that while she wants a better life for her people, it cannot be found in a new war with Beili to settle old grudges and claim old land. She wants to find a new home for them.

Yue 👏 Yao 👏 is 👏 so 👏 great.

...Only for all of that buildup in the first half of the drama to go absolutely nowhere as her vision is never recognized. She returns to Tianwaitian only to be locked up for betraying Beique with zero timeline as to how long she was locked up for and how she actually got out of the cage. There were no repercussions for her escaping or leaving. In fact, as soon as she leaves Tianwaitian, Yue Yao's character basically stops caring for Beique, and she literally did not matter to the plot going forward. Her people in Tianwaitian never find a better home for themselves. They never get to leave the far north, never reclaim their old kingdom, and never get to rebuild, even before Ye Dingzhi establishes the Demon Sect. Ergo, even if we disregard the events of TBOY, Yue Yao still doesn't get to help her people and all of that development was useless.

Instead, after all that talk about wanting to find a better home and do better by her people, after all the character development and establishment, after all the scenes where we get to see that Yue Yao has a backbone and the fighting skills to prove it, she ends up as arm candy for Baili Dongjun for the next like seven years while the two of them remained unmarried. Um??????????

Why build up all that character and her skills and her relationships with Liu Yue, Baili Dongjun, her freakin' sister, and Mo Qixuan/Zi Yuji only for all of them to basically go kaput? Even with Baili Dongjun, most of the time, she's...just there. Just...looking pretty. Not doing anything.

No one waits seven years to get married, especially when they're in such close quarters like Yue Yao and Baili Dongjun were pre-war and during the war. This makes zero sense, and honestly just cheapens their already-sad relationship even more because it shows a lack of respect on his part. There's no denying that he does love her, but the respect, which is based off of the values of the people in their time, is not there, whether for her honor, virtue, or just the progression of their relationship. Seven years is a long time, especially in period Chinese dramas (and reality, back in those times) when two people are hanging out in an established relationship.

Yue Yao is displeased.

And then we come to the problem of her sister, Yue Qing, who has decided to play a self-insert victim and villain, somehow both at the same time by not actually being relevant to the plot and generally not actually being good at anything at all.

Her motivation: Yue Yao is her older sister, the one she has always looked up to, and she sucks at being the eldest princess and has essentially abandoned them to chase after the sweet, sweet tail that is Neo Hou in a period drama. Ergo, Yue Qing needs to leave Beique to find the other special person martial arts prodigy, Ye Dingzhi, and homegirl does her best to manipulate the hell out of this poor, traumatized kid in order to get him back to Beique and free her father so that they can march on Beili and reclaim their kingdom. He sees right through her though, and because there is no way in the eighteen levels of hell she can beat him in a fight, and she tries, she goes back to his doorway like a kicked puppy every time he throws her out because it's clear she has no idea what on earth she's doing except that she thinks she's all that and has every reason to condemn thousands of people to their deaths so that she can incite a new war for a better life for the people of Tianwaitian.

In the same way that Yue Yao was SO great in the first half of Dashing Youth, we do not give two shakes about Yue Qing and how she is barely even relevant to the plot, because if you stuck Mo Qixuan or Zi Yuji in there to manipulate this poor bastard, the result would have ended up the same way and she does not impact the story whatsoever.

And then Ye Dingzhi saves Yue Qing's life, and all of a sudden, she understands why her sister decided to go with Baili Dongjun instead of staying in Beique, according to the story lore. It also doesn't hurt that he's pretty and he's feeding her medicine and didn't just...let her die.

PFFFFFFFFFFT HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Yue Qing, the bar is on the floor. Also girl, you manipulated him and used him and he does not care for or about you. In fact, the only reason he saved your life was because he lashed out at you and almost killed you and felt guilty for it before he proceeded to throw you out again.

Because Ye Dingzhi is untouchable at this point, Yue Qing proceeds to then manipulate his wife, Yi Wenjun (which is another convoluted story point because she's already married and is a secondary consort to Xiao Ruojin who is an absolute monster in the actual worst way, which is why I did not feel a lick of empathy or sympathy for him in TBOY--I mean, he put her under using some drugs and it was HEAVILY IMPLIED that he gr@ped her while she was completely unconscious and everyone just kind of breezes over this plot point in the dramas), and sends her back to Tianqi by spreading false news of Xiao Yu being really, really sick (causing problems even at a young age, I see). Because of this, Ye Dingzhi is then manipulated into going to Beique to free Yue Qing and Yue Yao's father so that he can be number one in the world and take his wife back, blahhhh blah blah.

AND THEN THEIR FATHER DIES after a confrontation between him, Baili Dongjun, and Ye Dingzhi, and it's almost like Yue Qing and Yue Yao are pitting their respective special martial arts person against each other because they're both natural-born wumai which is NOT actually a thing, and I don't even understand what it is and do not care to actually translate this; IT'S SUPER DUMB.

And because the official leader of Beique, Yue Yao and Yue Qing's father, dies, Ye Dingzhi goes full demon mode and takes over the people of Tianwaitian and establishes the Demon Sect by uniting all 30-something sects in the outer regions of Beili, which was supposedly impossible until this point. He then begins the infamous three-way war between Beili, Nanjue, and Tianwaitian which Yi Wenjun then gets blamed for instigating.

UMMMM??? DOES THIS NOT SOUND FAMILIAR??? DO WE NOT ALSO KNOW OF A WOMAN WHO WAS SAID TO BE SO BEAUTIFUL THAT MEN WENT TO WAR FOR HER AND LAID SIEGE TO AN ENTIRE FREAKIN' CITY WHICH IS NOW A FAMOUS TRAGEDY? DID THE DIRECTORS OF THIS DRAMA WANT A CDRAMA VERSION?

(in case anyone is lost, the answer is Troy. It's Helen of Troy.)

Also, RUDE that her "instigating" this war is what she is known for, even in The Blood of Youth. Yi Wenjun gets blamed for this massive, awful historical event when the only thing she did was be manipulated by Yue Qing using her child. Like, what on earth /eye roll

It was also never talked about how she was coerced into this marriage by her father in TBOY (which we find out in DY) and that this was never something she wanted anyway. Also the gr@pe because that was completely unnecessary and again, breezed over by every single character in Dashing Youth, which, also, WHY did it have to happen that way? Xiao Yu's existence in TBOY could literally be explained by "marital duties" or "wedding night" or something even if the spouses hated each other, did y'all really have to sink to gr@pe????? Especially since I watch dramas for escapism and fantasy and not historical accuracy because of course this has happened probably many times over the course of history. I am angry.

We find out later that Yue Qing is locked up by Ye Dingzhi and then just dies via suicide in prison at the end of the three-way war while Yue Yao rides off into the sunset with Baili Dongjun in her fairy carriage, intent on marrying her at last after SEVEN AND A HALF YEARS TOGETHER, YES I DID THE FREAKING MATH (let me know if anyone needs an approximate timeline).

Following this trainwreck and what Dashing Youth has established, we get to the canon in The Blood of Youth, which takes place twelve years after the prequel. Now that the twelve-year pact between Tianwaitian and Beili where Ye Anshi, the son of Ye Dingzhi and Yi Wenjun, is a hostage in Beili is over, the story picks up where we see our heroes in the following places:

Baili Dongjun: Master of Xueyue City and a depressed drunk after (we learn later) mistakenly killing his wife because he was manipulated into doing so, making this the biggest regret of his life

Yue Yao: dead. Was dead before Tang Lian stepped foot into Xueyue City, and was dead because someone manipulated Baili Dongjun into thinking Yue Yao was Yue Qing and he kills her.

...wait what? But...but I thought Yue Qing died in the prison even before Baili Dongjun and Yue Yao got married in canon? I think we're told in TBOY that Yue Yao blocked an attack for her sister or died for her sister or something via her husband attacking her thinking she was her sister or I DON'T KNOW it's not really clear. The point is, the events of both dramas can't both be true or canon at the same time.

Aaaaaand we've hit one of the biggest retcon snags between the two dramas. Shifting the focus over to the problem with retcons, my first question is this: DY directors and producers, you guys had the perfect template and formula since The Blood of Youth exists and had such incredible ratings. Y'all already have a world and a story and storyline and characters to work with and are able to entirely and completely plan ahead. How did y'all come up with this dumpster fire???? And it's not even a good dumpster fire?? How could Yue Qing cause Yue Yao's death, which we are told is what happens in Baili Dongjun's dream in TBOY, if she's dead??

Other honorable problematic retcon mentions:

There's a specific voiceover at the end of DY telling us what happened to the main characters at the end of the war, and though in TBOY the story said that Lei Mengsha died fighting against Nanjue, we are shown that he and Xiao Ruofeng are both fine and victorious. WHAT???

In TBOY, we are told by Li Suwang of the Sword Heart Tomb that his daughter, Li Xinyue first met Lei Mengsha at the Sword Heart Tomb when he and his buddy his pal Baili Dongjun stopped by and convinced her to duel and then roam jianghu with them. We see that at the beginning of Dashing Youth, Lei Mengsha actually meets Baili Dongjun a LOT later in the narrative, and by then, Li Hanyi is already about five years old and Lei Mengsha and Li Xinyue have been married for A While.

Yin Luoxia and Yue Yao are shown to be sworn sisters who met and became extremely close even before the events of DY, even closer than Yue Qing and Yue Yao at their absolute tightest. Luoxia lives in Xueyue City in TBOY. She knows Baili Dongjun personally. THEY DID NOT INTERACT. SHE DIDN'T EVEN TALK ABOUT YUE YAO ONCE IN ALL THE SCREENTIME THAT SHE HAD.

Sikong Changfeng says in TBOY that Li Hanyi is four years younger than him, but started studying under their master first and this is also why she is the Second City Master and he is the Third. This is only half true; while Li Changsheng took Li Hanyi in as an apprentice, she was literally like five or six at the time. Nangong Chunshui then proceeded to take on Sikong Changfeng not long after, but Sikong Changfeng by then was already a teenager headed into his adult years. Like, he's at least eighteen when Dashing Youth starts.

Speaking of Sikong Changfeng, TBOY says that the healer Hua Jin is his shimei, his younger martial sister from their master, the number one healer in the world, Xin Baicao. DY shows us that they met the one time where Xin Baicao was told by Baili Dongjun's uncle (who was a top poison user and the two of them got into competitions all the time wink wink cough cough) to save Sikong Changfeng's life. Sikong Changfeng stayed in the Medicine Valley for something like six months, all the while studiously not learning medicine from Xin Baicao and instead focuses on his spearwork and fighting skills. Also, Hua Jin isn't in DY at all.

This one is less of a retcon issue and more of a gripe, Baili Dongjun was literal childhood friends and best buds with Ye Dingzhi. Wuxin/Ye Anshi would literally be the equivalent of his nephew/godson. Do we get to see them interact at all aside from like 5 seconds in DY???? No. We do not. WE WERE CHEATED.

Another gripe, Sikong Changfeng and Baili Dongjun were bros in Dashing Youth, and have been for many years (according to my math, it's 21 years between the beginning of Dashing Youth and The Blood of Youth) and did we get to see them actually interact in TBOY??? NO.

Oh, with all this talk of Sikong Changfeng, another gripe about HOW TO NOT WRITE WOMEN--Feng Qiuyu (who is she, you may ask???).

She is, my friends, the mother of Sikong Qianluo.

BUT DO WE REALLY KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HER? No. WE BARELY REMEMBER HER NAME. SHE WAS LITERALLY WRITTEN INTO DASHING YOUTH SO THAT SIKONG CHANGFENG COULD MEET HER AND SIKONG QIANLUO COULD BE BORN. SHE WAS ON SCREEN FOR A MAX OF 5 MINUTES DURING THE DRAMA AND WAS NEVER REALLY SEEN OR TALKED ABOUT AGAIN EXCEPT FOR LIKE A MINUTE AT THE END. WE DON'T EVEN HAVE THE COURTESY OF KNOWING SHE DIED BEFORE TBOY; WE HAVE TO PUT IT TOGETHER USING CONTEXT CLUES.

I AM YELLING.

Man, I started this rant really just wanting to talk about how best girl Yue Yao was done super dirty by the producers/writers of DY, but the more I thought about it and analyzed and wrote it all down, the more I got to the underlying issue of just the less-than-lackluster way this already-awfully-written drama treated their women, the angrier I got.

All this to say, Dashing Youth does not write or treat their women very well and that, my dears, is bullshit.

[whydoyouaskmethis]

I noticed some inconsistencies about Lei Mengsha family. Li Suwang said in TBOY that Lei Mengsha and Baili Dongjun met with Li Xinyue before Lei Mengsha and Li Xinyue married.

But in DY, Baili Dongjun didn't seem to know that Lei Mengsha was already married and had a daughter (like me 😂).

Lei Mengsha brought Baili Dongjun to his house after he passed out after finishing the exam. Baili Dongjun was alone when he woke up and he didn't know where he was. He only met with a little girl that was Li Hanyi. Baili Dongjun thought she was his master's (Li Changsheng) daughter because her surname was Li. And when Li Xinyue appeared, he didn't recognize her either.

Which version is the correct one?

[curtvilescomic]

Mystique by Xinyue Li

[creamycustard]

Can't think a better way to celebrate Christmas rather than watch these guys playing tennis(although it took me 10 hours on the road now I'm soooooo tired)(thought I deserve an award like the most supportive ruudfan or something)(you owe me a lot of wages man)🎄In the second photo Casper was actually eating an apple during Jerry and Kei's match. What a chill guy. Love it. (sounds like I wouldn't appreciate whatever this stupid Norwegian did anyway)

Sadly didn't catch my man to get a photo or signature. But I look awful today so maybe not a bad thing at all. Wait for next time. Will get you Casper😈

[barananduen-blog]

Favorite Looks from GQ Creative Gala 2024

🌺Gulnezer Bextiyar (Guli Nazha)🌺

This was truly a gala in fashion creativity. Click the cut to see more amazing outfits and photos!

Yang ZiShan

Liu Yu (INTO1)

Tong Yao

Gulnezer Bextiyar again

Chen DuLing

Zhang XinYu

Liu Yu again

Li YiTong

Zhong ChuXi

🌿 Want to see more #fashion posts? Click the hashtag! 🌿 I do one of these for c-ent red carpet events as long as I find several outfits that impress me.

[arjengelly]

✨I just really like these 3✨

[kukuandkookie]

Lmfao help I totally forgot I scheduled my last post where I rambled about Jian Suiying in the tags (I probably scheduled it to seem more normal or something because I didn’t want to flood my feed 😂).

The reason I find it extra funny is because I literally feel like I’m going feral right now and I did just draft another Twitter thread ramble before coming on here and immediately seeing my scheduled post with those tags LADNSKDNS.

My Twitter is still on hiatus until further notice—aka when I am more comfortable interacting and sharing things socially—but over the past few weeks, my drafts have become very full of thoughts on LiJian (Li Yu and Jian Suiying) and YuBai (Yu Fengcheng and Bai Xinyu).

And the main reason I feel so feral right now—as in right this minute—is because of the author of this really good fic (which I found thanks to the fan audio drama adaptation on MaoEr FM) that’s multi-chaptered where the premise is that a younger Li Yu ends up in the present day in Li Yu and Jian Suiying’s house. Li Yu is obviously very upset by this because he hates his younger self for how he treated Jian Suiying, and the story is about helping him heal from that past.

And well anyways this post isn’t about that fic specifically, although it’s a really good fic and I went crazy over it a while ago as well: since it’s told entirely in screenshots on Weibo at least, I actually captured every image of text until I had everything and then I MTL’d them using Google Translate and then I severely edited them on-and-off based on my own Chinese knowledge—so this included grammar and pronouns but also less obvious stuff where I had to check line by line or turn it into audio to listen to. 😂

It’s a really fucking good fic though. So worth it.

And well the author has done other versions; one is where a younger Yu Fengcheng gets transported into current Yu Fengcheng and Bai Xinyu’s life, and I’ve already collected every part of that one (it’s still incomplete).

Except it referenced a case where there were two Jian Suiying’s, a fic the author said they were planning to write back when they released the two Li Yu’s fic, which obviously made me a little feral.

I struggled to find it until I finally did (yay!!) alongside a masterlist of their fics in general (yay!!!), and I really really want to translate and read it right now.

But part of me also wants to save it—because I like saving things I like—to the end, since the author has other fics I can translate first, including one where Li Yu gets amnesia, which will definitely also be quite interesting.

And yet. I cannot get over the concept of there being two Jian Suiying’s and how that might resemble or reflect or differ from the fic where there were two Li Yu’s (especially since the two Li Yu’s one is just very thematically perfect).

I might just translate it first because I can barely resist??? I already translated the second half of the first part just to tease myself, and it has me screaming because like:

(The above screenshots are from this fanfic here by 丧心病狂de凌子 on Weibo!)

The image of Li Yu dragging whom he assumes is his spouse (and he is; just from a different time period) back home only to come face-to-face with his actual spouse (of this time period) being all cute in his soft cozy home clothes with a little mug instead of having gone out drinking (which the Jian Suiying from a different time period in his arms had been doing—as all the fics so far have had the person from the past end up in the present after getting blackout drunk) which was a thing about Jian Suiying that Li Yu used to worry about…

(The above screenshot is canon and from the original novel!)

Yeah do you see what I mean???

I’m just so excited because you’ll get the chaos of two time periods intersecting, but also because Jian Suiying used to go out to such places and it upset Li Yu a lot since he knows Jian Suiying’s past life and their relationship took so long to get to a good place that he’s afraid Jian Suiying will discard him again when out partying—so seeing Jian Suiying here, at home on time, patiently waiting for his husband to come home from his business trip…

*sigh* They’re pretty cute even after all the craziness of their original novel lmao. 🥹

And yeah. Typing all this out…I think I’ll translate this first out of all of the author’s fics. I’m going to go insane otherwise SLFNKSDJSKS.

[yuexias]

( • ᴗ - ) ✧ for @xinxiins / continued from here

"if i say no, are you going to ask again?"

the immediate response was to say no just for the fun of it, but this is ren xinyu she's facing, so a safer route is taken. for now.

her head tilts as siyue looks towards where an jinyue stands, and when she finally manages to catch his eye, a playful wink is in store for the idol actor. an amused laugh leaves her as she straightens up to face xinyu again, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "your friend wants an autograph, nǐ ne?" it's not too difficult to realize that there's close to nothing that she could offer him that he wouldn't already have, but she lives for the possibility. "since you're so kind to ask on behalf of him, is there anything i could do for you in return?" lips pulled into a smile, and the idol waits patiently.

[guzhufuren]

New posters, message, part of a soundtrack and information about upcoming chinese BL The General's Son, show from the director of Word of Honor

"Green mountains are hidden in the distance, the waters are far away, the bright moon is always shining, the world is full of happiness."

Genres: wuxia; revenge Number of episodes: 24 Episode runtime: 18 minutes

Lead actors: Li Kaiwen as Li Jianwei; Dong Zifan as Chen Xiaoxi

Director and executive producer: Ma Huagan (Word of Honor, The Legend of Anle, Sword Dynasty) Art director: Liu Jingping (Love and Redemption, A Dream of Splendor, Wonderland of Love) Screenwriter and chief producer: Zhou Shucheng Executive producers: Zhuo Zuoqing, Yang Qi Co-producers: Jiang Yuxin, Li Shike, Dong Xinyu Co-director: Wang Xue Producers: Jiang Zhengpeng, Liu Wei, Xu Heni Planning by: Luo Yuting, Luo Gaoqiang

Filming finished this June. Will not be broadcast in mainland China. Original script.

Synopsis: General Li's family were killed on New Year's Eve. Li Jianwei, the youngest son of the Li family, escaped death, but disguised himself as a courtesan and went to Wei Mountain to seek revenge. Chen Xiaoxi, the young master of Guigu, has a lively and eccentric personality, becomes increasingly close to Li Jianwei, who has tried his best to win him over. Chen Xiaoxi's sister, Xiao Hetao, is simple and kind. She discovers that Li Jianwei came for revenge, and dies to resolve the hatred between the two.

Characters:

Li Jianwei. Twenty years old, the youngest son of General Li Fei, he is loved by the whole family, standing like an orchid and a jade tree, smiling like the bright moon. He should have had a bright future, but his fate changed overnight. In order to get revenge, he went undercover to Weishan, enduring humiliation and patiently executing his plan step by step.

Chen Xiaoxi. At the age of twenty, we meet the young master of Weishan Guigu. He was born pure but had evil eyes. Under his lively and sunny appearance, his face looked like that of a devil's. In fact, he was rough but kind, and treated people with sincerity. Unfortunately, fate played a cruel joke on him and his mother died.

Xiao Hetao. At the age of seventeen, Chen Xiaoxi rescued a human child from a wolf pack. Innocent and romantic, she was very simple and naive. Gui Rong and others gave Xiao Hetao the purest and most innocent living environment, but she hoped to resolve the hatred of everyone with her own power.

Princess Qingyuan. Thirty-four years old, a graceful and elegant lady, smart and tenacious. She was in love with Chen Dawang when she was young. After Chen Dawang's death, she firmly refused marriage arranged by the magistrate's office and spent many years in Zhejiang. While helping Li Jianwei to take revenge, Qingyuan, the deputy envoy of the Chang'an Supervisor Zi Ke, has been trying to find out the truth about Jian Jishan from 20 years ago.

Chen Dawang. At the age of 38, we meet the leader of Guigu in Huishan. Twenty years ago, he was a major general in the Loyal and Brave Army led by Chen Weishan. Entrusted by the general, Chen Dawang and his party lived in seclusion in Guigu for twenty years, just to avenge the Loyal and Brave Army and reveal the truth to the world one day.

Sizhou. 24 years old, a descendant of the Loyal and Brave Army, he was a martial arts expert but became blind in two days. Because he was indebted to the Lord of Qingyuan, he stayed by his side and waited for investigation. While helping Li Jianwei to get his revenge, he also hoped to find out the truth of the old case of the Loyal and Brave Army from 20 years ago.

Wan Qianhong. Thirty-eight years old, owner of Baihua Villa, with mysterious martial arts and deceitful tricks. When she was young, she fell in love with Li Pu, who concealed his identity. Later, Li Xifei and Huang Jueda broke off all ties with Wan Qianhong. Since then, Wan Qianhong deeply hated Li Pu and all men in the world. Behind the hatred, Wan Qianhong missed her daughter so much that she mistakenly recognized Xiao Hetao as Zaotian's daughter. In the end, they ended up loving each other but not being able to be together.

Shi Tou. Eighteen years old, a good martial brother of Chen Xiaoxi, grew up in Jianweishan. He is the beloved son of Uncle Hua and Aunt Hua, with a simple and straightforward personality. He was happy and naive until Xiaohe died. The joy he did not even have time to express became the biggest regret in Shi Tou's life.

*text from informational brochures was converted with image to text online programs, translated through google translator and edited by me with some help of online dictionaries. i do not speak chinese, so there are most certainly mistakes in the text. purpose of this translation is to give you the general idea

[paperultra]

candy stripes.

Pairing: OPLA!Vinsmoke Sanji x Fem!Reader Word Count: 5,048 words Warnings: Swearing, hospital setting [A/n: Soulmate AU. :)]

sortiger (adjective): delivering prophecies of the future; having the qualities of being oracular

Nobody else can see the string but you.

You wish you didn’t. It has no texture, no weight, so you can’t understand why it can’t be invisible too. But the string demands attention with every use of your hands, seizes your eye when you wash dishes in the morning and brush your teeth at night, a garish and bloody red that matches the stripes of your uniform.

You hate your string and you hate the color red.

Miss Xinyu, the old lady in Room 30, has one too. At least, that’s what she had told you when you gained the courage to mention yours one day, not knowing what it meant and how much you would come to dread it.

“It’s your red string of fate,” she had explained. “It connects you to the person who understands you more than anyone else in the world.”

In other words, your soulmate. Your one and only.

Miss Xinyu says you’re a lucky ducky, knowing what your future holds.

Her string goes into the ground now. You don’t think being reminded of a dead person whenever you look at your pinkie is very lucky.

The biggest reason why you hate the string so much, though, is because you’ve always had a problem doing what you’re supposed to unless you want to, which causes a lot of trouble for a nine-year-old girl. You already have trouble being nice to patients who are mean to you, so how can you love and wait for someone you’ve never met? It makes you feel icky.

Why can’t you choose? How come you have to have one at all?

Your only source of comfort is that your string is very, very thin and runs out of the hospital. That means your soulmate, whoever they are, is very, very far away. You’d very much like it to stay that way.

But it doesn’t.

—

Nurse Taoh wants you to watch the patients in Room 8 while he finishes his charts. You don’t really want to, if only because it’s Nurse Taoh asking – he likes to order you around more than Dr. Gu – but you don’t want to get into trouble again, so you go.

(… And okay, you are just a little bit curious about the new inpatients. You only know three things about them: one, they were brought in together last night while you were in your room poking holes into your paper instead of correcting it; two, they’re a man and a boy, presumably father and son; and three, everyone says it’s a miracle they’re still alive.)

(Then again, you’ve seen many miracles here.)

The unit is quiet as you walk down the hallway. Quiet, but not silent, as your polished shoes squeak like little mice against the floor and you whisper the room numbers as you pass by them. Two, four, six – eight.

You stop and knock, three sharp raps against the brown wood.

“Hello?” You open the door and poke your head in. “My name is –”

The squiggly-patterned curtain that often separates patients for privacy is drawn, and you clamp your mouth shut as you realize the patient closest to you is asleep.

Shutting the door silently, you creep closer to the foot of his bed. The man underneath the sheets lies quietly; he is little more than a skeleton, eyes sunken and bones sticking out underneath blistered skin. His beard is long and scraggly, but it pales in comparison to his mustache, each side braided and sticking out to the sides.

He looks angry, even though he’s sleeping. You hope he’s not the type to wake up and yell at you as you tiptoe past to check on the boy.

You pass the curtain, catch a glimpse of the bed sheets, and see –

Red.

Your feet root themselves in place, the room suddenly devoid of air.

You stare. Blink hard, twice. Look again. Then, trembling, you look down at your hand.

Your eyes trace the string around your own finger, following down to the dip of it that barely touches the ground and back up over the blankets until it ends in a red loop around the boy’s pinkie, tied off with a little bow.

Your stomach turns.

Stumbling forward, you make your way to the visitor’s chair in the corner. You slump down into it and stare straight ahead at the curtain, refusing to look at the boy’s face.

He continues to sleep.

You don’t want him to wake up.

—

The boy does not stir during your first meeting, but that small mercy is quickly eclipsed two days later by a single bowl of chicken broth.

The look on your face is sour as you walk down the hallway again, the broth splashing up against the lid with each step. Because most of the patients in the hospital you live in are elderly, the staff have somehow gotten it into their heads that you simply must spend time with the boy in Room 8 because he is your age and you need to socialize with other kids. You very much don’t want to. Not with him, at least.

Dr. Gu is just leaving the room when you arrive. She gives you a quick smile, the corners of her eyes wrinkling, and pats your head.

“So you heard that the boy woke up, huh?”

You grunt, looking away with a pout. “Can’t you give this to him, Dr. Gu?”

“Nope. I have to finish my rounds,” she says. “Go in and have a chat. His name is Sanji. You’ll like him.”

“I doubt it,” you mumble underneath your breath.

Dr. Gu probably hears you, but she doesn’t scold you, merely patting your head one last time before you enter Room 8.

The dividing curtain is drawn this time. The window curtains are pulled back, too; it’s a somewhat cloudy day outside, but bright enough to sharpen the shadows on the walls and make the boy look even paler than you remember.

His eyes are closed as you approach. A sprout of hope that he might have fallen asleep again blooms in your chest – you’ll just leave the broth on the table, you think to yourself, and go about the rest of your day. Nobody said you had to watch him drink it.

You get about five feet away, already planning to drop some books off to the other rooms, when the boy’s nose suddenly twitches.

His eyes open to thin slits. Your hope shrivels like a weed in the desert as he speaks.

“What’s that?” His voice is quiet and raspy.

Your eyebrow twitches. “It’s just chicken broth,” you say tartly, setting the tray down on the overbed table and turning it around so that it’s over his lap. You take off the lid and steam bursts from the bowl.

The boy reaches up to rub his eyes. The red string dangles from his pinkie, and you quickly look away with a scowl.

“Who are you?” he asks, scooting back to sit up more as he gradually becomes more alert.

Reluctantly, you give him your name. “Will you need help with the soup?”

He shakes his head. His gaze latches onto the contents of his bowl, and he stops, transfixed.

You scramble to stop him as he suddenly grabs the bowl and attempts to gulp it all down in one go.

“Don’t do that! You’ll throw up!” Without thinking, you seize his hands and pry the bowl away from his mouth. A few drops of broth splash over the blankets and his gown, and your irritation grows. Now you’ll have to fix that. “Drink it slowly.”

“I haven’t eaten anything for weeks,” the boy complains. “What do you know?”

“I’ve been studying medicine since I was a little kid,” you retort. “So I know a lot.”

He frowns. “You are a little kid.”

“I’m nine years old!”

“No, I’m nine! You don’t look as old as me!”

There’s no way this … this brat is the same age as you! Fuming, you let go of the bowl and jab a finger at his face. “I am nine years old and I know more than you! You can’t drink the broth like that!”

You’re met with silence. The boy’s eyes are wider than saucers. Pride wells up inside you at your ability to shut him up.

But then he puts the bowl down and seizes your hand, and your pride gives way to horror as he folds down your index finger and lifts your pinkie – the pinkie with the red string wrapped around it.

He lifts his own pinkie, the rest of his fingers folded. Your jaw clenches when you see how the string has shortened to mere inches, bridging the space between his hand and yours.

“Holy shit,” the boy says. The largest grin spreads across his face, and it’s blinding and scary and you hate it, you hate it. “It’s you! You’re my soulmate, aren’t you?!”

“No,” you reply quickly, whipping your hand behind your back and backing away. “No, I’m not!”

“But you see the string too! I knew I’d meet you some day. How come you’re”— he pushes the table away, eagerly but just gentle enough so no more of the broth spills—“how come you’re hiding it behind your back?”

“I’m not your soulmate,” you bark, panic rising in your chest. “Don’t you ever say that!”

You only catch a glimpse of the hurt that flashes across the boy’s face before you turn around and dash out of the room.

Mrs. Hong finds you in the storage closet later, curled up behind the shelves of gauze and IV tubing. She coaxes you out with a promise of rice balls and no questions asked. You wish all the adults were more like her.

—

The next day, Miss Jaylee hoists you over her shoulder like a human sacrifice and brings you to Room 8.

“I don’t want to see him! You can’t make me!”

“He’s refusing treatment and food unless he sees you,” the woman answers briskly, each of her steps jostling you up and down. “You don’t want to be responsible if Sanji dies, do you?”

“I don’t care if he dies!”

Miss Jaylee clicks her tongue and walks faster.

You flail, feeling a little guilty for your cruel words but too proud to take them back. Sanji couldn’t have heard you, anyway, and nobody here is going to let him die no matter what he does or what you say.

You hear a door swing open. Miss Jaylee walks into Room 8 and turns around, and you lift your head, glaring at Sanji as his face lights up and his cheeks turn rosy.

“[Y/n]!”

Your own cheeks burn in embarrassment at the position you’re currently in. This, you only now realize, is way worse than walking into the room voluntarily.

“How come they’re carrying you? Are you okay?” he asks.

“Let them treat you,” you snap, arms limp and dangling. “And eat your stupid food or I’ll get in trouble.”

“Okay.” You nod, opening your mouth to speak again only for him to continue, “But only if I get to talk to you afterwards.”

What is he, a prince?! What makes it so easy for him to demand such things?

“That wasn’t what you told them,” you protest, squirming, but Miss Jaylee only tightens her arm around your waist.

(“Be nice,” she warns. You growl.)

“It’s important,” Sanji stresses, looking pointedly down at his hand and then back at you.

You bite down on your tongue as the red string glimmers in the light.

Dr. Gu and Nurse Taoh stare at you expectantly. Your neck is starting to ache from craning it, and there’s a feeling that you’ll never stand on your own two feet again unless you do what he wants.

“… Fine,” you hiss through gritted teeth.

Only once you promise to stay does Miss Jaylee let you slide off her shoulder. You stand to the side, arms crossed impatiently as they take Sanji’s vitals and ask him some questions. He’s only half paying attention, head turning to look at you more than once, which you merely turn up your nose at.

“All right, we’ll leave you two to chat now,” Dr. Gu says. “If you need anything, just let [Y/n] know, okay?”

“Okay,” Sanji says.

With that, the three adults leave, and you and Sanji are left alone once more.

“I’m glad you came. They were starting to get mad at me,” he says, then cuts straight to the chase. “How come you don’t want to be my soulmate?”

“Because I don’t want a soulmate,” you immediately reply.

“But why? It’s nice, isn’t it? Being special to each other?”

“You can’t be special to me. We’re not even friends.”

For the second time, Sanji looks hurt.

“…We’re not?” he asks. You shake your head. “But … you brought me food.”

You’re befuddled. “Because Dr. Gu made me,” you say, trying to ignore the disappointment on his face. “Besides, I yelled at you yesterday. Friends don’t yell at each other.”

“I thought that you were maybe just really surprised …” His voice gets smaller and smaller. “Some people get mad when they’re just surprised …”

“I wasn’t surprised. I saw it when you were still asleep.”

“Oh,” Sanji mumbles. He looks down at the sheets, scratching at the wrinkle in the thin white fabric. “Okay.”

He says nothing more. You fidget, wondering if he’s pretending to look like he’s about to cry or if he really is trying not to. You’re not good with people who start crying.

You chew on your bottom lip. Sanji tucks his hand with the string on it underneath his bed sheets, his eyes disappearing behind his tangled hair, and fine, you feel kind of bad whether he’s tricking you or not.

“I’ll only be friends with you if you don’t talk about being soulmates,” you finally tell him begrudgingly. “Not ever, okay?”

His head shoots back up. “Really?!”

“Only if you don’t talk about it! I’m serious.” You huff at Sanji’s sudden change in mood and click your tongue. “If you stay sad you might not get better.  Don’t get the wrong idea!”

He nods, grinning bigger than ever.

Oh, dear, you think as he promises that he’ll be a really, really good friend, you might have made a mistake.

—

By the fifth day, Zeff, the man who was brought in with Sanji, is awake.

You hear them arguing before you see them, pushing a cart of books for Sanji to browse through as per your agreement the day before. They’re loud, and Sanji calls the man an old shitbag right as you knock and push the door open.

“I’m here,” you announce, and the two quiet down to look at you. You give Zeff a polite smile. “Hello, sir. I’m [Y/n].”

“Hello, little miss,” Zeff says, his features softening from the angry expression he’d directed towards Sanji a moment before.

“Why are you being nice to her and not me?” Sanji pipes up from his side of the room, all puffed-out cheeks and petulantly crossed arms.

“Because she don’t make my ears ring with nonstop whining,” the man answers sharply. “Now get a book and read so I can finally have some peace and quiet.”

“You get a book and read,” Sanji grumbles.

“What was that, boy?”

You cut in before they start bickering all over again. “Do you want a book too, Mr. Zeff?”

Zeff’s gaze flicks over to you once more, and your shoulders tense. The man takes a deep, calming breath, and then he sighs, reclining back into his pillow and closing his eyes. “No, thank you, little miss,” he mutters. “Reading’s no good for my head right now.”

“Do you have a headache?” He grunts in affirmation. “Do you want me to get a nurse?”

“No, no, don’t need any of that.”

“You didn’t tell me you had a headache,” Sanji accuses.

Zeff’s mustache twitches. “All you need to know is that you oughta stop yappin’ when a man wants peace and quiet!”

(Not again.)

As you give up and walk over to draw the curtains, Sanji says your name desperately. “Can we read somewhere else?” he pleads when you glance at him. “I don’t want to be stuck in here with him right now.”

Narrowing your eyes, you appraise his weak-looking frame, pointedly skimming past the red string that snakes over to you. “Can you even walk around yet?”

“Yeah,” he says defensively. He wriggles out of the bed sheets and swings his legs over the side of the bed. Holding onto the side rail, he stands up and grips the IV pole for support. Though he’s a little shaky, he shuffles a few steps towards you and smiles when he manages to do so. “See?”

Well, you think, if you and Sanji stay here, you’ll need to have some light in order to read. But it will probably help Zeff if the room is as dark as possible, so if you guys go somewhere else, Sanji’s lamp won’t need to be on.

“Okay,” you agree. “Wait here. I’ll get some slippers.”

Ten minutes later, with Sanji shuffling along in his slippers, IV pole in one hand and your arm in the other, the two of you arrive at the common room and find chairs in the corner to sit down in.

“These’re mostly history books and stories for old people,” you explain as you pull out the one cooking-related book you could find from the top basket of the cart. “This was the only food one I could find.”

“That’s okay.” Sanji takes the book from you and begins to flip through it. “Oh, this one’s about seafood in the South Blue! Have you ever had any?”

“No.”

“Me, neither. I’ll try it someday, though … hey, this fish looks like a fried egg!”

Against your will, you perk up. “… Really?”

For the next half-hour, Sanji fawns over the spices used on grilled Sea King meat and how to cook wine clams and the best fish for South Blue-style sushi. And it’s … not boring. He doesn’t hog the book, and the pictures are cool, and he asks you which ones you think are the coolest or would taste the best. Looking at a book with another kid is different from reading with an adult. It feels like you’re sharing, not like you’re being tested on your comprehension or how to pronounce long words.

Hanging out with Sanji is okay when the string doesn’t sour it.

“So you want to cook all of these one day?” you ask after scanning through a full-color page of steamed Ocean Hawk feet.

“I want to cook things from all four seas,” Sanji says. His legs bounce with excitement. “That’s why I’m gonna find the All Blue.”

“What’s that?”

The boy glows.

“It’s where the North, East, South, and West Blue seas all meet. Think about it – fresh-caught fish from all over the world all in one place! I’ll be able to cook dishes no one’s ever cooked or tasted before.”

You’ve never heard of such a place. But Sanji talks about it with such conviction, such resolve, that you figure the All Blue could really exist.

“I hope you find it,” you say, and you mean it.

“I will.” Sanji closes the book. “And when I do, I’ll cook something just for you. A-As a friend.”

He peeks over at you, his eyes even brighter and bluer than before, his cheeks flushing a familiar red. And you find yourself believing him, just a little bit.

—

Sanji keeps his promise.

You know he still likes you (blech) and so does most of the staff (double blech). Nurse Taoh thinks it’s funny and teases you about your little boyfriend in Room 8 who always asks where you are. Mrs. Hong reminds you to be sensitive whenever you stop by to pick up meals. Dr. Gu tells you to tell her right away if Sanji ever does something that makes you uncomfortable.

But he never does. Sometimes his words spill out clumsily like a broken faucet and other times he blushes and stutters, leaving you to wonder what he’s going on about, but he doesn’t try to kiss you or hold your hand, and he doesn’t say a word about the red string that is very much still there. If anything, he just annoys you at times, with how nice he is to you and how sunny he gets when you eat lunch with him sometimes.

You’ve never seen somebody so happy to be in a hospital before, even if it’s just because he wants you to like him. It’s weird.

It’s on the eighth day of Zeff and Sanji’s stay that you learn not everything is how it seems.

You’d gotten in trouble the night before for digging holes in the garden – you had kept the seed from your dinner plum and wanted to see if you could make it grow, but Miss Jaylee had caught you while taking Mr. Hu out for some air – so you’re somewhat grumpy on your way to Room 8, two notebooks in hand.

One of them is blank for Sanji. He wants to record all the meals he’s gotten and write down how he would make them. The second notebook is full of your notes that you need to study for your quiz tomorrow.

Zeff is sleeping again when you enter. You move quietly across the room to where Sanji is lying with his back to the door.

“Sanji.” You can see his shoulders tense underneath the sheets, but strangely, he does not roll over to face you. “I have your notebook.”

No answer. That is even stranger.

Frowning, you walk around to the other side of the bed. Sanji moves to bury his face into his pillow, but not before you hear a very soft, wet sniffle.

“Sanji?”

“Sorry.” His voice is high and so muffled you can barely understand him. “You can just leave it on the table.”

“Why are you crying?” In the back of your head, you know it is not the most sensitive thing to ask. But for some reason, you need to know. “I won’t laugh or tell anyone.”

You hear another sniffle from the mop of blond hair. It takes a long time for Sanji to answer, but he eventually does.

“I don’t like hospitals.”

Your brow furrows. “Oh,” you say, somewhat surprised. Most people don’t like being in a hospital, you’re pretty sure of that, but you didn’t know Sanji didn’t like it this much. “Why?”

Maybe he’s tired of getting poked all the time, or the bland food, or the hospital smell. Nobody here can change that. Maybe he’s homesick. The hospital can’t fix that, either.

Sanji turns his head slightly and takes in a small, shuddering breath. “’Cause it … it makes me remember my mum … when she was sick,” he mumbles, almost too quiet to hear.

“… Oh.”

You had assumed, upon learning that Zeff and Sanji were not at all related, that Sanji was like you and never knew his parents. He’d never talked about having any before, only his time on the Orbit and with Zeff. But he does know them – his mother, at least. And she was sick. The memory is what’s making him so sad, and it’s yet another thing that the hospital can’t help.

You don’t want him to be sad. You did make him your friend, after all, even if he does annoy you sometimes.

“I’m sorry,” you say, standing awkwardly with his notebook still in your possession. You remember what Miss Jaylee has told other patients before. “That, um, must have been really hard for you.”

Sanji squeezes his pillow more tightly.

Should you go? Should you talk to him some more?

“Please don’t tell anybody,” he whispers before you can decide. “Especially Zeff.”

“I won’t,” you reply firmly. “I said I wouldn’t, didn’t I?”

“I’m sorry I can’t hang out today. I really wanted to, but, um …”

“It’s okay. We can do it later.”

“Okay.”

You set his notebook and a pen on the bedside table. After some thought, you refill his water and, after even more hesitation, fix the bed sheets on him a bit so they’re not as twisted up. That is the best you can do.

The red string follows you as you quietly leave Room 8, and you don’t think about it at all.

—

“How do you spell necessary?”

“N-E-S-E-S-A-R-Y.”

“That doesn’t look right. I think it’s S-S-A-R-Y.”

“Maybe you can find it in the book,” Sanji suggests, kicking his feet as he lies on his belly next to you.

“Yeah, maybe.” You flip through the pages of your textbook, searching for the correct spelling lest you get marked off again.

It is the tenth day. Sanji is doing alright, and Zeff is up and about with his new leg. Dr. Gu says they’re good to go, so they’re leaving after Zeff finishes breakfast. You’re not sure how to feel about it.

In the meantime, Sanji is helping you with your essay about scurvy. He knows quite a bit about it, which makes sense since he’s lived at sea, and you hope the perspective he’s supplying will impress Dr. Gu.

(“That’s why every ship needs a good cook,” he tells you proudly. “We make sure everyone eats right so they stay healthy.”

“That’s why you and Mr. Zeff are going to have a restaurant ship, right?”

“Mmhm.”)

Sanji rests his face in his hands, cheeks squished against his palms while you continue to scan through your textbook. You finally find the word in a photo caption and, with a triumphant noise, jot it down correctly.

Someone knocks on your door. The two of you turn to face it simultaneously.

“[Y/n]?” It’s Mrs. Guo.

“Yeah?” you call, already slightly irritated.

“Is Sanji there? It’s time for him to leave.”

A frown presses down on your lips. Sanji sighs and gets up as slowly as possible, taking his notebook with him.

“Coming,” he says.

The two of you dawdle on your way to the hospital entrance. You pet Cabby the dog when you run into him and his handler and stop by the kitchen so Sanji can thank the cooks. There’s no rush, not really, but an uneasy feeling continues to well up in your stomach anyway.

Upon arriving at your destination, Zeff waiting at the double doors with a giant bag of treasure slung over his shoulder, Sanji stops and turns to face you.

“I’m – I’m going now,” he says, as if just realizing it.

“Okay,” you say.

You and Sanji stand in silence for a moment before Sanji’s bottom lip starts to wobble.

Yours starts to wobble too. The uneasy feeling in your stomach bubbles up into your throat and behind your eyes.

“I’ll write you,” he blurts, voice cracking. “You’ll come visit, won’t you?”

“I don’t know.” You don’t know if they’ll let you. The hospital is busy and the ocean is big, bigger than you, and you don’t know it at all like Zeff and Sanji do. “But I’ll write back.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

You are crying now.

For the first time, your arms wrap around Sanji, and he clings back as both of you bawl. Your tears and snot stain the shoulder of his brand-new clothes. Your uniform grows damp at the collar. It doesn’t matter at all.

“I don’t know if I’ll see you again,” you croak into his shirt, face hot and eyes blurry.

His grip tightens. “You will,” Sanji replies in between sniffles. “I know it. Even if it’s when we’re really old, we’ll see each other again.”

“Okay.”

You believe him. Not because of fate, but because you want to.

—

You write to each other every single week for the next ten years. You tell each other everything.

Well, almost everything.

—

“You seem nervous,” Nami says. “Don’t tell me a little bribery got under your skin?”

“No, no.” You wipe your hands on your thighs and try to relax against the back of the booth. “Just … not used to places like this, that’s all.”

The Baratie is nicer than you imagined. Sanji had kept you up to date over the years, sending newspaper clippings and recipe drafts as the restaurant he and Zeff founded grew in staff members and reputation, but seeing it in person is a whole different deal. You’re telling the truth when you said you’re not used to a place like this.

But it’s not why you’re nervous.

“Hey, look!” Usopp exclaims, pointing across the room. “I think those guys are gonna fight.”

The rest of you look. Near the kitchen, two men are arguing, and the pink-haired man sitting at the table stands up when the pirate shoves his food onto the floor.

Usopp sucks his teeth. “Yikes.”

Luffy leans forward in interest. Zoro simply stares, and Nami rolls her eyes.

One of the waiters approaches them. You watch as he tries to deescalate the situation, but neither party is having it.

The pink-haired man draws a gun.

Within seconds, the gun and both would-be brawlers are on the floor.

The waiter shoves his foot into the pink-haired man’s back to keep him down, then picks up the plate of bread rolls again, stepping over both groaning bodies with the ease of one who’s done it before.

He reassures the other customers as he approaches your booth. You’re not concerned about the fight so much as you are about the way that you know.

It’s been ten years, but you just know, even before he gets close enough for you to see the red string that trails up and disappears into the black of his pants pocket. Even before you see the blue of his eyes and the annoyed set of his brow, exactly the same as you remember.

He places the rolls down onto the table, and for the first time, you wonder what you want.

“Hi, welcome to our shitty restaurant where the only thing worse than the ambience is the food. My name is Sanji. What can I get for you?”

[elryuse]

Big fan of your work, I would like to request yandere Xinyu from triple s

PERFECT

YANDERE XINYU X MALE READER

Rain lashed against the limousine windows, blurring the neon cityscape into a watercolor of despair. Xinyu, her perfectly painted face pale beneath the harsh interior lights, stared at the figure huddled in the corner. Y/n, the once invisible boy, was now a pale specter, his eyes reflecting the flickering terror of the near-death experience they'd shared.

"You shouldn't have saved me," Xinyu rasped, her voice raw from painkillers and a deeper, unspoken fear.

Y/n flinched, the sound scraping across the tense silence. "I…" he stammered, his voice a mere tremor in the storm raging outside.

"You shouldn't have seen," she continued, her words laced with a chilling finality.

He didn't reply, couldn't. The memory of her pale face framed by the mangled wreckage, the metallic tang of blood in the air, was seared into his mind. He'd pulled her free, yes, but a chilling detail, obscured by adrenaline at the time, now gnawed at him. A single, pristine red rose, tucked behind the driver's seat, untouched by the carnage.

The following days were a chilling ballet of recovery and manipulation. Xinyu, a spider weaving a web of affection, showered Y/n with gifts and a suffocating presence. He was a captive prince in a gilded cage, the city lights mocking his imprisonment.

"We'll be a story, Y/n," Xinyu purred, tracing a fingertip down his arm. "The perfect couple, a testament to fate."

Her touch burned, a stark contrast to the emptiness in her eyes. Y/n flinched, the phantom scent of gasoline and rust filling his nostrils.

"It's not a story," he dared to whisper, his voice hoarse.

A dangerous glint flickered in Xinyu's eyes. "Of course it is," she hissed, her voice dropping to a low, predatory growl. "And you, my darling, are the leading man."

Nights were the worst. Trapped in the opulent prison of her apartment, Y/n tossed and turned, haunted by the rose and the unspoken threat it symbolized. The city lights became a watchful audience, and every creak of the floorboards sounded like approaching footsteps.

One night, he woke to a bloodcurdling scream. It was Xinyu, standing in the doorway, a single red rose clutched in her trembling hand, its petals stained a sickening crimson.

"It's a message," she shrieked, her eyes wide with a manic terror. "From her… from Mei."

Y/n's blood ran cold. Mei, Xinyu's best friend, had vanished shortly after the accident. Now, the rose, a chilling reminder, lay before them.

"We have to call the police," he rasped, a sliver of hope flickering in his chest.

Xinyu's laughter, sharp and brittle, shattered the fragile hope. "The police? Don't be naive, darling. We have to handle this… ourselves."

Days blurred into weeks. The chilling facade of their "perfect" relationship continued for the online world, but the air crackled with unspoken threats. Y/n, his eyes haunted by shadows, learned to navigate the minefield of Xinyu's volatile emotions.

"You're getting distant," Xinyu accused one evening, her voice trembling with a childlike vulnerability.

"I'm just… tired," he lied, the weight of the secret choking him.

A single tear rolled down Xinyu's cheek, a stark contrast to the chilling glint in her eyes. "Don't leave me, Y/n," she pleaded, her voice a desperate whisper. "We saved each other. We belong together."

Her words, laced with a chilling possessiveness, sent a shiver down Y/n's spine. He wasn't a savior. He was a prisoner, bound by a twisted sense of obligation and a gnawing fear. But a seed of defiance, nurtured by the darkness, began to sprout within him. He wouldn't be her pawn forever. The game had changed, and this time, Y/n wouldn't just be playing to survive. The hunt was on.

The escape was a blur of adrenaline and terror. With the woman, who turned out to be a former "disobedient fan," as his accomplice, Y/n managed to overpower the frail caretaker and slip out just as Xinyu stormed back into the apartment.

The city lights, once mocking reminders of his imprisonment, now seemed to offer a path to freedom. But their escape was far from over. The news of Mei's discovery had thrown Xinyu into a tailspin. Her previously meticulous online persona morphed into a desperate cry for help, painting Y/n as her missing hero.

Y/n, living a ghost-like existence in a safehouse provided by the authorities, watched in horror as Xinyu's carefully crafted narrative unraveled. The comments flooded with accusations, the once adoring fans calling for his return.

One day, a familiar face appeared at the safehouse door – a younger student, a member of Xinyu's fan club. Xinyu, claiming Y/n's disappearance was a kidnapping, had sent her "loyal followers" to search for him. Y/n, his heart pounding against his ribs, refused to come out. But the girl, her eyes shining with a disturbing fanaticism, wouldn't leave.

"Xinyu needs you," she pleaded, her voice trembling. "She's lost without you. You have to save her."

Fear turned into a cold resolve. He had to break the hold Xinyu had on these girls. With the help of the authorities, a video message was recorded. Gaunt and exhausted, Y/n spoke directly to Xinyu's fans, his voice raw but firm. He revealed the truth - the roses, the disappearances, the carefully crafted web of lies.

The internet exploded. Xinyu, once a beloved influencer, became a pariah. Yet, amidst the vitriol, a chilling message appeared on Y/n's phone – a single red rose emoji.

Days turned into weeks, then months. Xinyu vanished, swallowed by the same darkness she had created. Y/n, though free, remained a prisoner of his memories. He carried the scars, both physical and mental, of his ordeal. The city lights, once a symbol of her reign, now flickered with an unsettling reminder – a predator could lurk anywhere, masked by a dazzling smile and a carefully curated online persona.

One sunny afternoon, while walking through the park, a shadow fell over him. A familiar voice, saccharine sweet despite the tremor running through it, sent shivers down his spine. "Y/n," Xinyu purred, her eyes glittering with a manic possessiveness. "They don't understand us, do they? We were meant to be together."

Y/n stood frozen, the taste of fear metallic in his mouth. Xinyu may have been gone, but her twisted love story, far from over, had taken a terrifying new turn. The hunt, it seemed, had just begun.

[kangshxrtie]

Twelve | What if I

"She lyin' to me, and I'm lyin' to her, fuck it, guess we both ain't shit" - B.A.S. by Megan Thee Stallion ft. Kyle Richh

"y/n isn't answering my calls," xinyu complained to nien as she walked up to them.

"you want me to try?" nien offered, casually pulling her phone out of her pocket.

"mayu and i have been trying for the past hour," xinyu huffed. "why would she-" her words cut off mid-sentence as nien raised her phone to her ear, signaling that you had, in fact, answered her call.

"heyy, y/n," nien greeted, her voice smooth and easy.

xinyu and mayu exchanged wide-eyed, disbelieving looks before their gazes snapped to nien, who was now smirking slightly as she held the phone to her ear.

"oh, nothing," nien continued, glancing at the two other girls. "xinyu and mayu wanted to talk to you. mind if i put you on speaker?"

"uh... sure," you replied, silently cursing yourself. it wasn't like you were purposely ignoring xinyu and mayu; you'd just been buried in studying and didn't think their calls were that urgent.

nien hit the speaker button and held the phone out between the three of them.

"y/n?" xinyu's voice shot out immediately, firm and demanding.

"yes?" you replied, bracing yourself.

"what is this behavior?" she asked, the mock exasperation in her tone making it clear she wasn't letting this slide.

"well..." you began, searching for an excuse but coming up empty. "i see how it is, y/n," mayu said, shaking her head in mock disappointment. "i'll remember this betrayal."

"what did you two even want?" you asked, hoping to steer the conversation away from the topic.

"we wanted to know if you wanted to hang out, but clearly, you don't mess with us anymore," xinyu chimed in, crossing her arms dramatically.

"i do!" you whined. "i was just studying."

"but you answered nien's call," mayu pointed out, her tone teasing. it was clear they weren't about to let this go easily.

"nien's my partner for a project," you explained, trying to sound convincing. "i answered because i thought it might be important."

"and what if i was dying on the side of the road?" xinyu asked, feigning offense.

"why would you call me and not, i don't know, the ambulance?" you shot back.

"you could've been my last call," xinyu said, ignoring your logic entirely, "and you didn't even answer."

"what did you two actually want?" you asked again, rolling your eyes playfully.

"we wanted to invite you to grab something to eat with us," mayu replied.

"just to be clear, i'm not paying for anyone," you said, already wary of their antics.

"is that what you think of us?" xinyu gasped like you'd just accused them of something heinous. "we only wanted to hang out with our dear friend y/n."

"i've been lied to before," you muttered, narrowing your eyes suspiciously.

"come on," mayu coaxed. "it'll be fun. besides, nien's coming too."

"when was i invited?" nien's voice chimed in from the background.

"just now," xinyu said without missing a beat. "and you're coming with us."

you groaned loudly, knowing you had no choice in the matter. "fine, i'll go. just send me the location."

"yay!" mayu cheered triumphantly.

"great," nien said, suddenly grabbing the phone. "hanging up now. see you there!"

you tried to suppress a smile but failed miserably. you were just happy you'd get to see nien today.

"what have you been up to today?" xinyu asked, poking at her food.

"just studying," you replied with a shrug, taking a sip of your drink.

"studying? or avoiding us?" mayu teased, giving you a side-eye.

"why would i avoid you?" you said, feigning innocence.

"i don't know, maybe because someone ignored my call earlier?" xinyu said, narrowing her eyes at you.

you groaned, already sensing where this was going. "oh my god, i already explained this! i thought nien's call was about our project!"

"and i could've been calling to save your life," xinyu shot back, biting into her fry.

"yeah, but you weren't," you countered, rolling your eyes. "i thought you were calling to ask some stupid shit like what time i woke up or something."

"she's got a point," nien chimed in, smirking as she leaned back in her seat. "i've gotten some of those calls before."

"nien you get no say in this," xinyu said, glaring at her.

"what?" nien said, holding her hands up in mock surrender. "i was just saying, if you're dying, maybe don't call y/n first. call someone more... capable."

"wow, okay. y/n's just gonna let you disrespect me like that?" xinyu said, turning to you for backup.

"don't drag me into this," you said quickly, raising your hands defensively.

"you're already in it," xinyu said. "but you know what? it's fine. i'll remember this betrayal next time i'm out to eat and think about inviting you."

"speaking of study breaks, what are we doing after this?" mayu cut in, clearly trying to change the subject.

"i vote karaoke," nien said immediately.

"you always vote karaoke," mayu said, laughing.

"because it's fun," nien argued.

"for you," xinyu said, giving her a look. "meanwhile, the rest of us are forced to sit through all of your sad-ass ballads."

"no do not blame me for the ballads" nien gasped, "that's all dahyun."

"it's both of y'all," mayu quipped, earning a laugh from everyone at the table.

"guess we're just a part of some alternate reality where i've chosen a ballad song at karaoke," nien said, pouting. "y/n, i've never done that, right?"

you tilted your head as you thought back to all the times you've been to karaoke with this group. "i have seen you pick one before."

"wow," nien said, shaking her head as everyone burst into laughter. "i thought you were on my side!"

"i am! just not when it comes to your ballads," you said, grinning.

nien narrowed her eyes at you but couldn't hold back her smile. "alright, fine," she said, dramatically crossing her arms. "no ballads tonight. happy now?"

"thank god!" xinyu chimed in.

"you're all ungrateful," nien huffed, but her exaggerated pout just made everyone laugh harder.

once you all were done and the check was paid, the four of you headed out to a nearby karaoke spot. once you were in the room nien wasted no time grabbing the remote and scrolling through the song options as she plopped down on the couch and started building a queue.

"alright, who's up first?" nien asked.

"y/n got that!" mayu said just as xinyu chimed in with, "yeah, y/n can totally go first."

you narrowed your eyes at them, catching the smirks on both their faces. "i feel like this was a setup," you muttered, reluctantly getting to your feet.

nien turned to you, narrowing her eyes. "don't even think about it, y/n. you're going first."

you groaned, but it was hard to say no when everyone was now staring at you expectantly. "fine, but i'm picking the song."

"all you," nien said, handing over the mic as you grabbed the remote.

the first few notes of an upbeat pop song filled the room, and everyone immediately started cheering. "classic y/n choice," xinyu said, nodding approvingly.

you started singing, and while you were no professional, the group didn't care. mayu and xinyu quickly joined in during the chorus, their voices more yelling than singing, but it only added to the chaos. nien stood up and danced around like it was a concert, holding an imaginary mic and hyping you up like a true hype person.

by the time the song ended, everyone was out of breath from laughing and shouting the lyrics. "and you were worried for what?" mayu said, clapping as you took a dramatic bow.

"my turn," nien announced, grabbing the mic and immediately queuing up an energetic dance hit. "and i don't want to hear any complaints!"

"nobody was gonna fight you for it anyways," xinyu said.

as nien launched into her performance, complete with over-the-top dance moves, the rest of you doubled over laughing. she leaned into the role, spinning and pointing dramatically at each of you during the verses. when the chorus hit, mayu and xinyu jumped up to join her, turning the room into a chaotic dance party.

"why does this actually feel like a concert?" you said, clapping along as they sang.

"because we're stars, y/n," nien replied with a wink, holding out the mic to you for the next line.

the night continued like that, song after song. at one point, xinyu and mayu tried to duet a love ballad but couldn't stop laughing long enough to get through the first verse. so, of course, you and nien had to upstage them by performing your own love duet to show them how it's done. but nien started blushing furiously every time you got too close to her. she kept looking away or giggling when you touched her, which wasn't helping your case at all.

by the time the session ended, all of your throats hurt from singing and you all were craving for something to drink.

"that was actually so fun," mayu said as you all stepped out of the karaoke spot into the cool night air.

"yeah we don't do that as much as we should" xinyu said.

"because everytime i wanna go everybody is all of sudden busy and shit" nien complained.

"you asked me in the middle of class one time" mayu said.

"i had a sudden urge to do it" nien shrugged.

"i'd skip class to do karaoke with you" you spoke without hesitation.

"really?" nien turned to you fast.

"of course" you nodded.

"i'm glad my two besties are friends now. I don't know how or why but I'm glad" xinyu said.

"we'll tell you eventually" you said.

"actually can't wait to find out the story" mayu said.

"right!" xinyu agreed. you were about to respond but then you got a message on your phone causing you to look down at it.

huh yunjin (01) where are u rn?

y/n y/l/ni 'm w sum friends, why?

huh yunjin (01) come over

y/n y/l/n u want me to just leave my friends for u

huh yunjin (01) yes. i want to see u y/n y/l/n well i'm sry but i'm prob gonna be w them for a while huh yunjin (01) js say u wanna hang out w nien more

y/n yl/ln and if i did?

huh yunjin (01) nvm don't come overi feel like you'll js piss me off y/n y/l/n glad we could come to an agreement :)

you let out an audible groan as your phone buzzed with another notification, causing everyone to turn and look at you.

"bro, are you good?" xinyu asked, raising an eyebrow.

"it's just my—oh—umm..." you stammered, quickly realizing you couldn't exactly tell them the truth. "some people in our project being stupid," you said, rolling your eyes for emphasis.

nien checked her phone too, curious about what had you so worked up. when she realized what it was, she nodded in understanding. "oh. yeah, i see what you mean. they're definitely annoying," nien said, smoothly covering for you.

"y'all wanna talk about it?" mayu asked, looking genuinely concerned.

you waved her off, not wanting to talk about it. "let's just go get drinks."

"that works," xinyu said with a shrug.

with that, the four of you headed to a nearby spot for some drinks, the conversation quickly shifting to different topics. afterward, you all made your way back to their house.

"do you wanna sleep here tonight, or are you heading home?" xinyu asked as you all wrapped up your night.

"i should probably head home. i have an early morning tomorrow," you said, stretching your arms over your head.

"that's fine. want us to walk you back?" mayu offered.

"i can walk y/n home," nien cut in, her voice calm but insistent. "we've got some things to talk about."

"she's all yours," xinyu said not hiding the smirk on her face/

you exchanged goodbyes with everyone before heading out with nien. the streets were quiet, the cool night air brushing against your skin as you walked side by side.

"by any chance," nien began, her tone soft as she fidgeted with her hands, "are you planning on dating anyone after you officially end things with yunjin?"

you glanced at her, surprised by the sudden question. "yeah, i'm interested in someone," you said simply.

a smile spread across nien's face, her eyes lighting up at your answer.

"why are you smiling? i didn't say it was you," you teased, raising a brow.

"what? i'm just happy you're moving on from yunjin," she replied, her grin widening.

"i bet you are," you said, shaking your head with a small laugh.

the two of you fell into light conversation as you made your way to your house. when you reached your door, you gestured dramatically. "welcome to my humble abode."

"it's nice in here," nien said, looking around with interest. "i can't believe this is my first time over."

"well, we just became friends a couple of weeks ago, and i don't let just anyone into my space," you said.

"well, i'm honored to be invited in," she said with a warm smile.

"you want anything before you head out? i feel bad letting you walk back this late," you offered, leaning against the wall.

"i wouldn't have offered if i minded," nien said, shrugging.

"still, i'd feel terrible if something happened to you because of me," you said, a touch of worry in your tone.

"i'll be fine. my muscle will scare off anyone who tries anything," she joked, flexing dramatically.

you laughed. "yeah, okay. my bad for doubting you.."

"do you have no faith in me?" she asked, feigning offense.

"nope," you teased, grinning. "i don't even know why i was worried. you're obviously stronger than everyone out there."

"i don't appreciate your sarcasm," she said, pouting playfully.

"it wasn't sarcasm. i was being serious," you said, trying to keep a straight face as you laughed.

"sure," she said, rolling her eyes before changing the subject. "i've been meaning to ask... what the hell do power rangers mean?"

you couldn't help but laugh, caught off guard. "oh god, that. they're like... codewords yunjin and i used to keep our relationship a secret."

"so there's more?" nien asked, clearly intrigued.

"yeah, we made a whole list. we came up with it for when we hung out with common friends," you explained.

"i have to see this list," nien said, sitting up with newfound determination.

"no way, that's shits embarrassing," you said, shaking your head.

"embarrassing? power ranger and simba are already cute! it can't be worse than that," she teased.

"we only used words that wouldn't come up in normal conversation," you said defensively.

"come on! i need to see how bad it gets," she said, moving closer to you, her excitement evident.

"it's safely locked away in my notes. you'll never see it," you declared, crossing your arms.

nien's eyes darted to your phone lying on the table. before you could react, she snatched it up, holding it toward your face to unlock it.

"really?" you said, unbothered at first, thinking it wouldn't work. but then, to your horror, it did.

"nien, no!" you yelled, jumping up as she opened your notes app and started scrolling.

"wait, you actually locked the note?" she laughed, dodging the pillow you threw at her.

"yes, because of people like you!" you shot back, chasing her around the room.

finally, the note opened, and nien grinned as she began to read. "power ranger: i want to be alone with you. simba: i'll miss you. aww, this would be so cute if she wasn't a cheating bitch. white ranger: let's talk later. nala: i need to tell you something..."

"stop reading them!" you whined, trying to grab your phone back as she kept it just out of reach.

"oh my god, i've heard these before! you two made it sound so casual," nien said, finally handing the phone back after reading the list.

"usually, we used them better, but she just used them to get us away from each other," you admitted with a sigh, slumping onto the couch.

"ah, so the plan is working," nien said, sitting next to you.

"yeah, she's pretty jealous of you for some reason," you said, laughing.

"she thinks i'm a threat," nien said smugly, clearly enjoying the thought.

"you're too cute to be a threat."

"what? i'm literally in the process of stealing you from yunjin," she said, moving closer to you.

"are you, though?" you teased, raising an eyebrow.

"do you doubt me?" nien asked, her voice low as she gently brushed your hair aside. she leaned in, her lips brushing against your neck. "so you're saying i couldn't steal you if i wanted to?"

you shook your head, staying still to see if she'd follow through.

she pressed her lips lightly against your neck, trailing soft kisses up to the corner of your mouth. "really?" she whispered again.

"i mean... maybe," you finally admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

at that, nien pulled back with a small, satisfied smile. though she wanted to go further, she didn't want to make you a cheater too.

as she leaned back, you let out a breath you didn't realize you were holding.

"if you want, you could just spend the night," you offered, trying to play it cool despite your racing heart.

"are you sure?" nien asked, her eyes meeting yours.

"yeah, you should take the offer. i don't just let anyone stay over," you said with a smirk.

"how could i say no to that?" she replied, grinning.

Masterlist ــــــﮩ٨ـ Next

[dangermousie]

I read the spoiler for the one big change from the novel and all I can say fucking fuck that is such terrible writing and makes NO sense - I don’t know if it was censorship or what but ugh.

Well, I guess LYF2 won’t make it into my top 5 cdramas this year (JoL2, Eternal Brotherhood, Heroes, Shen Li and Derailment are currently it - Tender Light would have been in but the ending fell apart worse than LYF2 can dream of) - oh well.

Honestly, s2 fell apart in the second half a bit but this is shoving it off the cliff.

Big spoiler so behind read more

The change of making Xinyue the one who is responsible for Jing’s temporary death and not CX is ridiculous!!!! She was all for that marriage since it would finally get the cousins separated!

Also, narratively and character arc wise it makes NO sense!!! None!!!!

It doesn’t whitewash Cang Xuan, it makes his whole arc fall apart!!!!! And it makes XY eventual peacing out with Jing never to be found again by CX or anyone, exiting the narrative - make no sense either - that is just her bailing on CX for no sufficiently good reason!!! Seriously wtf.

[thebansacredbanned]

Greater Jianghu Fencing Universe TBoY!

From this wip tag game

SO it's somehow a thing that if I get obsessed enough with a fandom I start deciding what fencing sword they would all use, so like this is what is now happening here. This is very much one of those 'write what you know' sorts of things except I'm significantly better at writing than I ever was at actual sports ✌️

There are three different fencing blades which have different styles and kinda suit different people, and thus:

Sabre: Lei Wujie, Sikong Qianluo, Sikong Changfeng

Foil: Xiao Se, Xiao Ruofeng, Ji Xue, Ji Ruofeng,

Epee: Tang Lian, Tang Lianyue, Li Xinyue, Li Hanyi

Wuxin, Baili Dongjun, and Yi Dingzhi also definitely fence(d) but I haven't worked out which blade yet. Lei Mengsha didn't fence but he would have been a sabreur. Ye Ruoyi is a human rights lawyer because someone needs a real job.

modern au feat trans Xiao Se, para-fencer Tang Lian (he got stabbed I love moving canon plot points into modern aus), and teen dad Sikong Changfeng

I don't particularly have a 'plot' yet, I'm thinking possibly it'll take the form of a magazine interview w XS, LWJ, SQL, JX, and TL as the 'new hopes' for Beili and the inheritors of their parents/uncles/guardians legacies.

Oh and also it's the Greater Jianghu Fencing Universe (or possibly the Jianghu Fencing Crossover) because there's a MLC version that kind crosses over and it also takes place in the same universe as this Nirvana in Fire fic in which fencing is an actually popular sport that people care about and our heroes can be professionals at, although I currently don't have full plans to crossover NiF characters with these guys (yet)

[shvaliyeh]

reera, chancellor of state of zaetia, royal advisor to the king. soul reader and the last existing shadow wind. 3400+ years old, he / him.

001. GENERAL.

NAME:  liu wenyan. AGE:  appears in his thirties, is actually 3500+ ORIGIN:  kingdom of zaetia. SPECIES:  reera, belonging to a specific race nicknamed shadow winds. most of the race is now extinct and their name is unknown to most. GENDER:  trans man, he / him. LANGUAGES:  common craidesoa tongue, ancient zaetian, zaetian, narbaradi. OCCUPATION:  chancellors of state. ORIENTATION:  bisexual.

002. APPEARANCE.

his hair is white, cut slightly unevenly at the ends, giving it a natural, wind - swept look. it falls to his lower back, often left loose, though he occasionally ties it back into a low, simple ponytail during formal occasions or battles. he always wears a specific hair accessory that features a crane as its central motif, something that was given by his mother when he was young. his eyes are a pale, icy gray, almost silver, with a piercing quality that seems to look straight through a person. he has a lean, athletic build. though not overly muscular, his physique reflects years of discipline and training. wenyan favors simple, functional clothing, often in muted tones like charcoal gray, deep navy or black. his usual attire consists of a fitted long coat or cloak that drapes to his calves, paired with a high - collared tunic and tailored pants.

003. PERSONALITY.

wenyan is marked by a stoic and composed exterior that often makes him appear aloof or unapproachable. his serious and cold demeanor, paired with a neutral, unenthused expression, gives little away about his true thoughts or emotions. he prefers to keep his feelings tightly guarded and focusing on logical, practical solutions rather than emotional responses. however, beneath this detached facade lies a caring and protective individual. his reserved nature often hides the fact that he is profoundly empathetic toward those he values. he has an innate ability to assess people and situations with an almost unnerving precision, thanks to his soul - reading powers. this adds to his calm and deliberate approach to challenges, as he prefers to analyze and strategize rather than act impulsively. while his detached demeanor can make him seem unfeeling, it’s more a reflection of his cautiousness and his desire to avoid unnecessary conflict or vulnerability.

004. RELATIONSHIPS.

STATUS:  verse dependent. SIGNIFICANT OTHER:  verse dependent. PARENTS: liu chengxing, father. liu fanglin, mother. SIBLINGS: liu xinyue, older sister.

005. POWERS.

WEAPONS:  he carries a range of them, but is usually found with a blue and grey bladed staff. AIR MANIPULATION:  an ability inherited by every member of his race. users can create, shape, control and manipulate air and wind, they possess complete control over the layer of atmospheric gases and various compounds surrounding the planet that is retained by its gravity and possibly wind movement of air relative to the surface of the planet. since air cannot be seen by conventional methods, neither can the attacks and derivatives formed from it, making it an invisible and versatile weapon that is very difficult to block and dodge. since air is the originator for most natural disasters and all forms of weather, the users have control over nature’s most dangerous element allowing them to perform a wide variety of feats. SOUL READING:  an ability that only wenyan possesses. he can perceive and read the souls, whether free or in body. he can study and observe the nature of one's soul and find weaknesses based on the nature of the observed souls. by reading souls, he can see and feel the being's characteristics, personality, feelings, memories, whether they even have a soul, damage others' souls have endured and whether or not another entity is possessing or influencing the person on a spiritual level. MESMERIZATION:  reeras can make humans do their bidding. the reera only needs to have eye contact in order to seize your mind with a simple phrase or change in tone of voice. GLAMOUR:  able to cast vivid and convincing illusions in order to trick others, making it appear more appealing and beautiful. GENERAL REERA ABILITIES:  teleportation, immortality.

FULL STORY:

the shadow winds were an ancient race of reera born from the union of wind and shadow. legends say they were almost ethereal in appearance, with faintly glowing, wind - like markings on their skin and silver or pale eyes that reflected the moonlight. renowned for their mastery over wind and shadow, they could move silently, disappear into the darkness and manipulate gusts to evade or ambush. their abilities made them useful as messengers and assassins, but also feared and misunderstood. during the celestial war, they became targets of exploitation. desired for their abilities, they were hunted and eradicated by those who sought to weaponize or destroy them. despite their skill in evasion, their small numbers and lack of strongholds left them vulnerable. by the war’s end, they were believed to be extinct. their culture and stories faded into myth, carried away on the winds they once commanded.

unbeknownst to the world, a single lineage of the shadow winds survived: the liu clan. they concealed their existence and assimilated into the kingdom’s court. over centuries, they established themselves as key political players, known for their cunning and influence. despite their prominence, the clan has kept the truth of their full heritage a closely guarded secret. to the outside world, they are simply shadow winds— an enigmatic and resourceful family with an uncanny knack for gathering information and manipulating outcomes. outsiders are rarely allowed into their inner sanctum. those who interact with the family are kept at arm’s length, ensuring that no one uncovers their secrets.

now, during the current era, they refer to themselves only as shadow winds, avoiding any mention of their true origins. they allow their mystique to be misinterpreted, letting rumors swirl while steering attention away from their true heritage. every liu child is trained from a young age in the arts of stealth, misdirection and subtle manipulation. they are taught to conceal their abilities, using them sparingly and only in ways that cannot be traced back to their true nature. two of those children were wenyan and xinyue.

xinyue was the elder of the two, born and raised as their family's new prodigy. wenyan was born second and despite their family's traditions, he still struggled with the expectations placed on him, not wanting to be what his sister was working towards, though the help of xinyue taught him not to constantly push himself to his breaking point and to ease up. during that time, he was a hopeful child, calm and kind towards everyone around him and making many allies that later on helped him reach where he needed to be.

xinyue's sharp mind and ambition were praised within the family. but while the clan valued subtlety and balance, she desired something more: power. she was not content with merely preserving their legacy in secret— she wanted to reshape the world in the image of their lost glory. at the age of eighty - five, she orchestrated an elaborate ruse to sever ties with her family and free herself from their restrictive traditions. during a royal court banquet, a staged assassination attempt left her presumed dead. the "assassins" were actually mercenaries she had hired and her "body" was replaced with an unrecognizable double burned beyond recognition. the clan mourned her loss, though some suspected the truth. during this time, her brother was so stricken with grief that his own ability activated itself.

it was in the weeks following xinyue's death that wenyan began to notice strange sensations around people. at first, it was subtle. he would feel a pull when near someone deeply troubled or a faint sense of warmth when near those with pure intentions. he brushed it off as emotional sensitivity, the result of mourning his sister, but the sensations grew stronger over time. his abilities fully awakened during a private family ceremony to honor his sister. as he knelt before her memorial, he suddenly felt an overwhelming rush of emotions: not his own, but hers. he was transported to a surreal plane and felt everything she had felt. wenyan confided in his mentor, an elder within the clan who had guided him in their family’s arts. it was concluded that he might have inherited a dormant ability, a power to see and read the essence of others' souls.

soul reading was a rare talent even among his own kind. it allowed him to perceive the truth of a person’s heart, their intentions and even glimpses of their past and future. such power came with risks, though. delving too deeply into a soul could overwhelm the reader, blurring the lines between their identity and the person they touched. he began training and as he honed his gift, he discovered that each soul had its own "texture" or "color". some were warm and inviting, while others were cold and jagged. the experience was overwhelming at first, but with time, he grew more adept at navigating it. soon he began to piece together the truth: xinyue’s death had been a fabrication. her soul was too vibrant, too alive, to belong to someone truly gone.

fifteen years after her "death", his sister reappeared. she stormed into the capital city during a royal festival, leading a group of masked cultists. with the grace of a dancer and the fury of a tempest, she unleashed chaos, wielding her abilities openly for the first time. the truth was, she had created an allyship with an eshra and fused their magic together so she may become more powerful and remained in one of the old temples of the shadow winds, becoming a cult leader. she exploited outcasts, mercenaries and those who felt wronged by society. they operated in the shadows, performing acts of sabotage and assassination against powerful nobles and merchants.

and then, wenyan's true test came when the current king, ailun's father, tasked him with investigating a series of disturbances in the capital. unbeknownst to them, these incidents were the work of xinyue's cult. during his investigation, he encountered a wounded cultist. though hesitant, he used his ability to read the man’s soul, delving into his memories. and because of that, he saw his sister in the background. for the first time, he fully understood the depth of her transformation. a confrontation happens and while he tries to reach her as her brother, there was no use. the eshra had reached so far into her soul that this was not the person he knew anymore. this led to one of zaetia's greatest and most traumatic events, a battle that lasted for days.

it ended in xinyue's death, but the destruction she caused left the kingdom reeling. his entire clan was dead, entire provinces lay in ruins and the rest of the cult scattered into hiding. wenyan returned to his home, but instead of receiving gratitude, he was met with suspicion and hostility. the people viewed him as a reminder of his sister's crimes, a potential threat who could follow in her footsteps. the kingdom’s nobles denounced him and whispers of treachery spread like wildfire. he chose to bear the blame silently, knowing that defending himself would only deepen the public’s mistrust. this changed, however, when he gained an unlikely ally.

ailun, the new king had been crowned a while ago after his father, the previous king, had been challenged due to his terrible ways of ruling. he sought him out. unlike others, the king saw wenyan's actions not as a betrayal but as a necessary sacrifice to save the kingdom. he then accepted the role of chancellor of state, leaving him to be ailun's closest royal advisor. though he remained an outcast in the eyes of the public, he worked tirelessly to undo the damage xinyue had caused.

centuries later, wenyan establishes himself as an important figure in the kingdom. he is sent to work on fixing the divide between the people of narbarad and zaetia and spends time between the safe havens of narbarad created by shams azari and the similar camps in zaetia where the two of them travel together. (more info will come on this soon :p)