#WuJi

[scrivenger-grimgar]

wei wuxian would probably be taller than lan wangji if he wasn't starved as a child. my guy was 186cm tall after being starved for 4-6 years, he would probably be like 190-195cm tall.

i love the idea that both wei changze and cangse sanren were also both freakishly tall, and because of that their kid is eye-level with nie mingjue or more, like dude. dude.

WWX: tallest person in jianghu

just for the record, wwx is canonically 186cm, but i think this is better! this also means that every modern au has tallxian, and i will not compromise on this >:3c

[neo-kid-funk]

Your CEO Lan Wangji is gorgeous!! Now we need the genius new employee sweeping Gege off his feet!

I think I got carried away drawing a Modern AU Wei Ying;;; In my brain modern au Wei Ying is a total fashionista that wears whatever he wants and absolutely does not care 😵‍💫🤧 I also replaced his hair ribbon w red streaks in his hair!! Thanks for the ask 💖💖

[mugchild]

the untamed (2019) be like: no this isn't a gay couple. yes LZ would travel to the end of the world with WWX. yes WWX let go of LZ to protect him (multiple times). yes LZ made a whole song for WWX. yes LZ recognises WWX after 16 years of death because of a single glance after one melody. that's just what the homies do

[wangxian-the-zhijis]

Whoever made Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo (Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji’s actors) sing the main ost of The Untamed, which is 無羁 (wú jī)— had made the best decision in the entire decision making world.

Whoever decided to name it 無羁 (wú jī) and make it the WangXian version (from the books/donghua) of the live adaptation, and also the one that Lan Wangji canonically composed as a theme song for him and Wei Wuxian — had made the second best decision in the entire decision making world.

Whoever decided to make the official English title of ��情令 (chén qíng lìng) as “The Untamed�� which also means “unrestrained” or “無羁 (wú jī)”— had made the third best decision in the entire decision making world.

Like it was so genius? Knowing that whenever you listen to 無羁 (wú jī), it’s Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji themselves singing the song? Their theme song? And that even though they censored it, they still managed to make the song name a combination of their names (Wuxian + Wangji)? And that the literal English translation of 無羁 (wú jī) is “unrestrained” which can also mean “Untamed”?

[scathieedraws]

[btsiu]

[frostfires-blog]

Módào Zǔshī Hanakotoba Analysis Part 2

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-> 4) Lotus/Water Lily

-> 4.1.) Lotus/Water Lily Flower Symbolism:

Despite having a few differentiating characteristics, lotuses (Nelumbo nucifera) and water lilies (Nymphaea) are often confused with one another. As a result, there is a lot of overlap in their symbolic meanings, to the point that they convey the same sentiments across multiple cultures. In China, lotuses are known as lián huā (蓮花) or hé huā (荷花), whereas water lilies are known as shuìlián (睡莲) and héhuā (荷花).  Lotuses are known as the "gentleman's flower" in China because they grow upwards pure and unstained from the mud. The flower is thus associated with perseverance, elegance, resilience, as well as ultimate purity of mind and heart. The lotus is revered as a sacred flower in Buddhism, representing the essence of divine beauty, wisdom, humility grace and rebirth. It is also a sign of moral integrity, emphasising the importance of maintaining inner purity and virtuous behaviour in the face of worldly temptations. The word “l蓮” (lián) also sounds like “連續” (liánxù) which means continuous. This conveys the idea of constant growth and spiritual progress thus making the lotus a symbol of the continuous pursuit of knowledge, wisdom, and enlightenment. The lotus also has profound significance in Taoism, representing serenity, balance, and the "interconnectedness of all things and the inherent harmony within the universe".  The lotus' adaptability to various environments embodies the Taoist concept of living in harmony with nature, flowing with life's rhythms, and preserving equilibrium in the face of change. Additionally, the lotus' ability to rejuvenate and blossom year after year, despite the shifting seasons, represents the continuous cycle of life, death, and rebirth. Part of the lotus flower’s Chinese name “l蓮” (lián) is homophonous with the words “聯” (lián) meaning “to bind/connect as in marriage”; “戀” (liàn) meaning to love; and “廉” (lián) meaning modesty. As a result, the lotus flower has also come to symbolise union, love and marriage in Chinese culture and is thus a prominent motif in both historical and modern works to convey love and emotion. Lotuses are commonly used in bridal bouquets as a symbol of luck and 100 years of love.  A single stem bearing two lotus flowers represents the desire for harmony and a shared heart. This is derived from the fact that the “荷” (hé) in the lotus’ other Chinese name also means “union” and is homophonous with the word “和” (hé) meaning uninterrupted or one after another. Furthermore, a lotus flower with a leaf and bud symbolises complete union. In Japan, lotuses are called ren (蓮) or hasu (はす), while water lilies are called suiren (睡蓮). In hanakotoba, lotuses symbolise a pure heart, eloquence, sacredness and departing love—while water lilies symbolise a pure heart, faith and trust. Additionally, both flowers are also associated with rebirth, transformation, enlightenment, beauty, grace, and perfection. In Western floriography, water lilies symbolize purity of the heart, virtue, innocence, achieving great things, beauty rising from humble beginnings and bringing together separate things. Pink waterlilies are commonly associated with feelings of admiration. Since its scientific name was derived from the mythical Greek nymph, water lilies also symbolise dangerous beauty and estranged love.

-> 4.2.) Lotus'/Water Lilies in MDZS:

Lotuses are the most commonly referenced flower in MDZS, and they are generally associated with the Yunmeng Jiang clan. This is due to the clan's insignia, a nine-petaled lotus, as well as the name of their residence, Lotus Pier. According to the novel, the compound is surrounded by “pink blossoms with broad jade-green leaves rose from the depths of the lake, whose waters spanned hundreds of kilometres […] giving the lovely scenery a sort of charming innocence” (MXTX, v. 3, p. 9).

The lotus’ symbolic meanings best embody the characters of Jiang Yanli and Wei Wuxian. > 4,2,1) Jiang Yanli: The flower's symbolic representation of virtue, modesty, innocence, beauty, faith, grace, and purity of the heart perfectly conveys Jiang Yanli's kind and caring demeanour. Jiang Yanli's relationship with Jin Zixuan is a key aspect of her character. The lotus' symbolism of love, union, marriage, and a shared heart corresponds with this. Additionally, in both the web drama and MDZS Q, Jin Zixuan grows lotus flowers as a gift for Jin Yanli. > 4,2,2) Wei Wuxian: Wei Wuxian's life can be divided into three parts: his time as the first disciple of the Jiang clan, his time as the Yiling Laozu, and his life after his resurrection as Mo Xuanyu. During his youth with the Jiang clan, he was a promising upcoming cultivator with a humble background. Despite displaying a mischievous and carefree attitude, he was intelligent, dedicated, virtuous and possessed a strong sense of justice. This ties into the lotus’ symbolism of flowing with life's rhythms, wisdom, perseverance, virtue and beauty from humble beginnings. As the Yiling Laozu, he defies convention by developing an unorthodox cultivation path that deviates from the norm. This corresponds with the lotus' symbolism of the continuous pursuit of knowledge, wisdom and achieving great things. He is determined to protect the innocent regardless of prejudicial beliefs—however, this sense of justice renders him capable of brutality at times. This is what inevitably results in him being seen as an outcast in the cultivation world. Ultimately, his power overwhelms him, causing many casualties given that “no one can walk along a single-plank bridge their entire lives and never fall” (MXTX, v. 2, p. 173). This turn of events all juxtaposed against the lotus’ symbolism of preserving stability in the face of change and achieving ultimate purity of mind and heart. After his resurrection, as a result of his experiences as both a hero and a pariah to the cultivation world, Wei Wuxian sees nuance where many do not and often expresses regret and admits his faults—“You’re not the only ones who remember what I’ve done. I remember too. You won’t forget—what makes you think I will?” (MXTX, v. 4, p. 174). This ties into the lotus’ symbolism of wisdom, constant growth and spiritual progress as well as the continuous cycle of life, death, and rebirth. Additionally, his courtesy name Wuxian (无羡) is derived from the last line of a poem by Xu Ben which translates to “to be free of envy and aspire to greater heights; not be misguided by honorary reputation and personal gain”. This ties into the lotus’ symbolism of maintaining inner purity and virtuous behaviour in the face of worldly temptations.

-> 5) Peony

-> 5.1.) Peony Symbolism:

Peonies (Paeonia) are known as mǔdān (牡丹) in China and were regarded as China’s national flower during the Tang Dynasty (618 to 907 A.D.). In accordance with this, they symbolise prosperity, honour, wealth and beauty, love and happiness. The Chinese term for peonies means "the most beautiful” while other Chinese names for peonies are "fùguìhuā" and "huawang," which translate to "king of the flowers" and "flower of riches and honour," respectively. In Japan, peonies are called botan (牡丹) and symbolize shyness, wealth and regalness in hanakotoba. The flower's profound appearance, notably its multitudes of large petals that are thin and silk-like, is where the peony’s symbolism of wealth and regalness originated. In Western floriography, peonies represent bashfulness and compassion.

-> 5.2.) Peonies in MDZS:

In the series, a white peony cultivar named “Sparks Amidst Snow” is used as the symbol of the Langling Jin Clan. It is said that “by comparing themselves to the king of flowers, they implied they were kings among immortals” (MXTX, v.1, p. 65).  This ties in with the peony flower’s symbolic meanings of prosperity, wealth, honour and regalness. Furthermore, pink peonies are often associated with the novel’s central love story between Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji. During the Siege Hunt at Mount Baifeng, Wei Wuxian throws a pink peony to Lan Wangji amidst the parade. Later, while on a trip to Yunmeng, the latter once again encounters Wei Wuxian who throws him another pink peony. In this audio drama adaptation of this scene, Wei Wuxian asks a ghost woman what the meaning of peony is, and she responds that it means "wishing you would return my feelings" or to part with a heavy heart." Years later, following Wei Wuxian's death and resurrection, he finds a pressed peony flower that Lan Wangji uses as a bookmark. This peony was noted by Wei Wuxian as being “extremely well preserved, [with] the colours still vivid and the veins on its petals so delicately textured that it still looked alive” (MXTX, v. 3, p. 191). Given Lan Wangji's sentimental nature, this peony is undoubtedly one of those given to him by Wei Wuxian. The flower’s association with the pair ties into its symbolic meanings of love, compassion, and happiness.

-> 6) Willow Tree

-> 6.1.) Willow Tree Symbolism:

Willow trees are known as liǔ (柳) in China. They are regarded as a symbol of friendship, long-lasting affection, and "urging someone to stay." Willow trees are also connected with spring, therefore they can represent renewal, resilience, the cyclical cycle of existence and the revival of life after a dormant period in winter. Additionally, the willow tree's supple branches can convey an image of meekness and humility. The willow tree's interwoven branches symbolise the depth of friendship because similarly to how branches connect and support one another, genuine friendship is also based on trust, understanding, and mutual support. The willow tree is also associated with separation from loved ones, prompting feelings of sorrow and longing. Willow branches are commonly utilised in Chinese funeral rites as a symbol of grief and remembrance. Willows, known in Japan as yanagi (柳), represent obedience, independence, and the melancholy of love in hanakotoba. The willow’s symbolism of obedience is derived from how its leaves sway in the wind. In contradiction with this, its symbolic meaning of freedom also stems from how freely its leaves sway in the wind. In Western floriography, willows are associated with both freedom and sadness. Weeping willows in particular represent grief, melancholy, and mourning.

-> 6.2.) Willow Trees in MDZS:

Given its symbolic meanings, willow trees can be associated with Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian’s complicated, but strong dynamic. This is supported by Wei Wuxian specially mentioning a willow tree when remising about his youth spent in Lotus Pier with Jiang Cheng—“there was an old willow tree rooted on the bank, with a thick, sturdy trunk that slanted over the water and branches that trailed onto its surface. The boys of Lotus Pier would often walk along the trunk of this particular willow tree to sit and fish from the treetop” (MXTX, v. 3, p. 109). While the duo's bond started as one of trust, support, and mutual understanding, it has distorted into one of melancholy, mourning, and longing. This juxtaposition encompasses all of the willow's connotations across various cultures. The willow’s association with spring, renewal, resilience and revival could be indicative that Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian’s bond could be repaired if given time, considering that they never properly reconciled because of Jiang Cheng’s reluctance—“But just as the Wei Wuxian of the past who’d extracted his golden core for Jiang Cheng had been unable to tell him the truth, the Jiang Cheng of the present could no longer bring himself to speak up” (MXTX, v. 5, p. 127).

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╰┈➤ Part 1

╰┈➤ TGCF Hanakotoba Post Part 1

╰┈➤ Other Hanakotoba Posts

[Please check out part 1 as well! If anyone has any ideas on what anime/anime theme song I should cover next in this series please lmk✿ Also, if you liked this post, check out my other hanakotoba analysis posts... Lastly, if I've gotten any of the kanji, romaji, hanzi or pinyin incorrect, feel free to correct me]

[le-moons]

Idk who it was but thank you

[wuxian-vs-wangji]

Fort playing Wuji on the flute ☠️☠️☠️

[rainbowsky]

More Wuji recording BTS posted by Cheng Yi.

I'm too lazy to put together a post about the translation and background so I'll just link to Vic's post about it. 😅

Cheng Yi's posts have been somewhat controversial in the past. You can read more about that here.

[xianthepiper]

wangxian social media au where wwx, chaos incarnate, returns from his two-month suspension, becomes the talk of the town, and promptly decides to join the school publication team. oh and he’s exes-but-not-really-no-one-knows with lwj, who’s a student athlete.

i’d initially planned to post this on twt as a thread before i found out about the shitty update

should i??? or should i not…??

[scrivenger-grimgar]

au of an au for mdzs where canon plays out exactly as it was supposed to except

wwx became a calamity after dying and cared for his coven of ghosts in yiling before mxy summoned him for revenge.

he still elopes with lwj after solving the corpse question

supreme ghosts have a similar ability to gods taking deputies, except since they're not sharing immortality they can have a lot more of them

wwx's "deputies" are (in order) jiang cheng, the wen remnants, luo qingyang, nie huaisang, mo xuanyu, jin ling, lan jingyi, ouyang zhizhen, lan sizhui, and lan wangji.

being a calamity's "deputy" means that you are soul bonded to them, with a kind of preternatural sense of the wellbeing of the entire coven.

one of the heavenly officials decides to fuck around with time, and only other heavenly officials were supposed to remember, except extremely strong ghosts and their covens also remember because there are TWO gods married to calamities, and calamities are weirdly cooperative with each other (hc, hx, wwx, & gL discuss trade agreements over tea and artistic process over alcohol).

thus like 75 people are now in the past.

wwx's child body cant stand the power his soul has and just kinda crumbles under the weight. thats mostly fine tho cause he can shapeshift.

of course he immediately comes up with a dastardly plan to inflict as much chaos onto the sects as possible while also protecting his loved ones at the same time. he gets in contact with the wen remnants (bigger and there's more of them) and slowly moves them over to yiling while he builds places for them to live on the mountain, and then offers the people of yiling a very good deal:

"we'll deal with all your ghost problems for free, and in exchange we get discounts on food, and you tell everyone who comes asking that the Yiling Wei sect has been here the entire time."

its almost too easy to set up, too. they forge some trade agreements and other documents to place in the other sects' files, waiting to be found, with ease, bc he knows what the filing for the jiang, lan, wen, and nie looks like, and part of the story is that the jin offended them so badly that they just stopped doing business with them altogether and also tend to actively hate them with few exceptions.

meanwhile, huaisang, qingyang, and wangji will reference the Yiling Wei and act like this is something everyone knows about, and jiang cheng catches on and starts doing the same.

wwx's plan is to drive them all insane by appearing out of nowhere and acting like he's been there the entire time. make them question reality.

wen popo, at a discussion conference: i'll be standing in for my grandson so he can participate in the games

jiang fengmian, initiating polite conversation: your grandson? what happened to your son?

wen popo, internally cackling: fengmian! are you so quick to discard changze like this?! for shame!!

jiang fengmian, who has never met this lady: what

wen popo: you know i trusted him when he said he wanted to stand by his sworn brother's side but if this is how you treat his memory after he was so unwaveringly loyal to you, only ever leaving for Cangse, the love of his life, then i'll have to have you stricken from the legacy registry!

wen popo, with unfaltering confidence: good evening wen-zhongzhu

wen ruohan, who has incurable face blindness: well met Wei-zhongzhu (do i know her???)

nie mingjue is the only one who's taking any of this well and thats solely because his brother has been spoon feeding him Yiling Wei propaganda for 13 years. lan xichen has a crisis because his baby brother eloped with a clan leader he met thrice and they're having a spring wedding.

[accio-victuuri]

xiao zhan rehearsing “wuji” at the studio / source 🎵🎤

[danmeigirl]

This was such a cool find! Thanks to the person who made this easy to sing along to!

[wangxian-the-zhijis]

WuJi 無羈 was officially originally named as WangXian 忘羨.

It was WangXian 忘羨 when xz and wyb recorded it. It was also WangXian 忘羨 in the end credits.

The special edition already changed it to WuJi 無羈 from episode 1. But the unabridged version still credits the song as WangXian 忘羨 from episodes 1-10. It was changed to WuJi 無羈 at episode 11.

You can check YouTube/Netflix/other streaming sites if you wanna

But apparently I just checked Netflix and it’s still credited as WangXian 忘羨 at episode 50… It’s only YouTube that changed it to WuJi 無羈 at episode 11.

[disastermages]

[read it on ao3]

Lan Wangji does not swear. Not frequently. Not unless the situation truly calls for it, but he almost swears and drops his phone as it starts vibrating, his brother’s contact photo flashing up on the screen while the shower roars from behind the closed door. He’s long since cleaned up the broken glass and the drops of blood from the night before, but Lan Huan’s call makes him drop the dustpan, broken glass raining down on the floor yet again.

“Ge,” Lan Wangji greets, pressing the phone between his neck and shoulder as he stoops to grab the dustpan and restart the process of sweeping. He’s grateful that Lan Huan cannot see him, it would make it harder to conceal the frustration and everything else whirling at him. 

He can’t remember how long Wei Ying has been in the shower, scrubbing at his paint-ruined hair for who knows how long. The hot water has almost certainly run out, but Lan Wangji can’t bring himself to knock on the door, not when the spirits punished Wei Ying because Lan Wangji dared to fight back.

“Didi, you’ll never guess what I recovered on a nighthunt!” Lan Huan sounds excited, but Lan Wangji cannot bring himself to match his brother’s energy, the glass tinkling as Lan Wangji sweeps it up while Lan Huan sets up the story about the new artifact he’d found.

“It’s a haunted pickle jar, could you ever imagine such a thing? According to some of the disciples here, one of their old sect masters used it to imprison his teacher.” There’s an air of amusement in Lan Huan’s voice, an air that usually puts Lan Wangji at ease, but this time, it only makes Lan Wangji’s eyebrows screw together, broom and dustpan held carefully in one hand while the other clings to the stair rail.

He’d managed to hurt the Yiling Patriarch earlier, it wouldn’t be easy for the Patriarch to gather up enough energy to push him down the stairs or trip him yet, but Lan Wangji wouldn’t put it past him to try.

“Why would the old sect master put his teacher in a pickle jar?” The question comes out numb and careless, meant to show Lan Huan that Lan Wangji was listening to him. Distantly, Lan Wangji hears the water stop above his head as he rounds into the kitchen. A pang of guilt rings through him as he tries to guess whether or not Wei Ying had managed to wash all the paint out or if his hair was truly ruined. 

“It’s hard to say,” Lan Huan says, and Lan Wangji can hear the opening and closing of his car door, the brief tone of the door being left open ringing through the phone. “Jingyi isn’t the best researcher yet, he only found two reports, one saying that the sect master and his teacher hated each other, and another was a story called “Regret of Chunshan”, but he wouldn’t tell me what the story was about.”

“Perhaps someone could perform Empathy with the spirit attached to the pickle jar.” Lan Wangji says it without thinking, regretting it the second he hears his brother’s side of the call go deathly quiet. He can almost picture the way Lan Huan’s eyes close and the way his shoulders lay back against the seat. 

“Empathy wouldn’t be the most practiced way of going about it.” Lan Huan tries to keep his tone gentle, Lan Wangji can tell when he doesn’t want to argue and he hates that it puts him on edge. “Please don’t misunderstand me, didi, Wei Ying’s methods are revolutionary, but the long term effects haven’t been studied yet. And what if a possession came of it?” Lan Wangji feels himself frowning before he can stop himself. Lan Huan isn’t making any new points, they’ve both made their arguments about this before. Lan Wangji knows that he’s supposed to point out that Wei Ying himself has used it several times and hasn’t ever been possessed or hurt because of his own method.

But Lan Wangji cannot make the point about possession anymore, even if he doesn’t know how the Yiling Patriarch wound his roots around Wei Ying. 

“Brother is right, I should not have mentioned it.”

He shouldn’t have done it, but the words left Lan Wangji’s mouth. They’re hanging in the airspace between Lan Wangji and his brother, and he can’t take them back. He was childish, but he does not want to make himself apologize for it.

“How is Wei Ying, A-Zhan? How are you both?” Lan Huan does not enjoy their disagreements, so he sidesteps this one as carefully as he can. Lan Wangji can hear the tiredness in his voice.

“Wei Ying is well.” Lan Wangji answers, and it’s not a complete lie, at least not yet. “He’s made several improvements to the house.” Yet again, it’s not a lie, Wei Ying had shown him photos from before he’d laid a hand on the house. Every bit of graffiti has been covered by paint that is very purposefully neither neutral nor impersonal. “He has let me help.”

Being allowed to help might be a lie, but Wei Ying let him pick out some of the colors to replace the ruined mural, and he’d been allowed to help with dishes and smaller jobs. He’d even been asked to hold the ladder for Wei Ying once. But Wei Ying wouldn’t let him lift a finger for the heavier jobs, he only allowed Lan Wangji to watch.

Lan Wangji means to say more, he means to eliminate any kind of doubt from Lan Huan’s mind, but the words turn to ash in Lan Wangji’s mouth as Wei Ying drags himself into the kitchen. His hair is still dripping down his shoulders and back, with dried paint still clinging to whole locks of it. Whole sections without paint have already begun to dry, damaged and brittle and sticking out everywhere.

Wei Ying says nothing while Lan Huan's voice turns into a thin buzz in Lan Wangji’s ear, his chin resting on his crossed arms. Without meaning to, Lan Wangji interrupts him and rushes through his goodbye, promising to catalog the pickle jar when he returns home, whenever that would be. He abandons his phone on the kitchen counter, nearly letting it fall into the trash can with the broken glass.

“Wei Ying?” Lan Wangji calls him softly, watching the way Wei Ying’s eyes stare blankly ahead, not seeing the rest of the kitchen in front of him.

“I’m gonna have to cut it all off.” 

The words are without anger, without sadness, devoid of anything beyond acceptance, even as Lan Wangji comes forward, his hand already reaching out. He isn’t sure what he means to do with it, whether he means to rest his hand somewhere on Wei Ying’s arm or the table he’s all but wallowing on. 

He hadn’t spent all that much time looking at Wei Ying’s hair, not when they were younger, and not now, until it had been ruined in an attempt to punish the both of them with the other.

“I could cut it,” Lan Wangji offers. He tries to stroke his fingers through Wei Ying’s hair as gently as he can, but he gets caught by knots and tangles that wouldn’t have been there if it weren’t for him. It drives a cruel icicle into his chest. “I could try to make it look nice.”

“It doesn’t have to look nice, it just can’t look like some ghosts dumped paint all over it.” Wei Ying doesn’t react to Lan Wangji’s hand, even when one of his fingers gets stuck and the knot won’t let it go.

Parts of Lan Wangji scream at him to wrap his arms around Wei Ying and hold him until something comes, whether it be sadness or anger, but he holds himself back. He forces himself to settle for hanging in Wei Ying’s space, his hands hanging dumbly by his sides. He wishes words were easier, he wishes something would come out of his mouth, if only to break the silence.

He wishes Wei Ying would blame him. He wishes Wei Ying would lash out and push him away. He wishes Wei Ying would reach out and touch him, however minimally.

It takes Lan Wangji a moment too long to see the tears as they tumble down Wei Ying’s cheeks, mixing into the water droplets, but he still can’t make himself move or speak, though his fingers twitch. 

He did this.

He was the one who came and he was the one the Yiling Patriarch attacked.

He was the one who struck back at the Yiling Patriarch, and he was the one who brought this retaliation.

This is his fault.

“Wei Ying, I am sorry.” Lan Wangji says, dropping onto his knees and forcing the words past the tangle in his throat. His own eyes, wide and unseeing, stare straight ahead, focusing on one long white thread that dangles from Wei Ying’s ripped jeans. He hadn’t bought them like that, he made those holes himself through hours and hours of hard work.

Wei Ying still does not touch him, nor does he turn to look at Lan Wangji, but that does not stop him from sitting back, the chair creaking with the shifting of his weight. “Can you really make it look nice?” Wei Ying’s hand shakes as he raises it to touch the ends of his hair, the roughness making him frown and drop the strands he’d only just touched. 

It isn’t forgiveness, it isn’t even absolution, but it still makes Lan Wangji start where he kneels, his face tilting up to look at Wei Ying as he scrubs at his face with the heel of one hand.

“Mn. Does Wei Ying have scissors?” Lan Wangji would do his best. He would be more careful than he is when he trims his own hair, he would do far better than any of the at home haircuts his uncle ever gave his brother and himself. 

The scissors they find aren’t ideal for cutting hair, but they’re better than the kitchen scissors that Wei Ying had originally suggested, but they’re sharp enough, despite Wei Ying using them to cut anything and everything, from twine to outline a flower bed, to wallpaper, to the contact paper that lined the cabinets and shelves. 

Lan Wangji doesn’t allow Wei Ying to help as he drags one of the chairs out onto the back porch, the space narrow and crowded from Wei Ying’s past and future projects.This is the very least he can do, even as Wei Ying watches him from the threshold of the back door, a tired kind of interest clinging to his features.

It takes nearly fifteen minutes of bargaining and rearranging for Lan Wangji to leave enough room for himself to move and Wei Ying to sit, but those fifteen minutes couldn’t have prepared him for he way Wei Ying peels off his shirt, midmorning humidity making the fabric sticky enough to cling to Wei Ying’s tanned skin. 

Lan Wangji has to remind himself not to stare, even as a kind of hunger resurfaces in his very core, though that hunger fades just a little as he begins to work, the heat of his cheeks cooling as the scissors cut through the parts of Wei Ying’s hair that are still stained with paint. Red, yellow, orange and blue, all of them faded, fall to their feet while Lan Wangji works, a concentrated frown on his face.

Damage follows after the colors on the floor, the strands almost breaking beneath the bite of the scissors and making the both of them wince. Lan Wangji has to thread Wei Ying’s hair between his fingers to find them as those damaged strands start to fall away, carding through again and again until there’s only the familiar softness that ought to be there.

“I will not leave it like this,” Lan Wangji explains as Wei Ying turns on his front facing camera. Neither of them had a hand mirror to look at what remained, and Lan Wangji had forgotten his phone inside, “I only wanted you to see how much was left.” It’s more than either of them thought there would be, with one side longer than the other, but Lan Wangji had been careful. He’d been determined to only take away what was necessary.

Lan Wangji means to come stand in front of Wei Ying, to start the work of making his hair look as nice as he could, but he trips.

Lan Wangji trips over the leg of the chair and feels Wei Ying’s hands pulling at him, trying to keep him from hitting the ground, but he only succeeds at lessening the blow, pulling Lan Wangji between his open legs while Lan Wangji sits back on his knees, trying to collect himself. His own long hair is in his face for just a moment too long.

Heat flares in his cheeks again and his eyes grow wide as he comes to terms with where he’s sitting, on his knees between Wei Ying’s legs. He can’t help the way his mouth falls open, words of any sort refusing to come as he blinks and forces himself to stand up. Wei Ying tries to help him, his hands catching Lan Wangji’s arms. They’re too warm, too big, too steady on Lan Wangji as he finally straightens himself, picking up the scissors from where they lay on the floor. 

Neither of them say a word as Lan Wangji puts himself to work again, cutting Wei Ying’s hair into something presentable, something he could go to the hardware store with. All of it would be more forgivable if Lan Wangji didn’t have to take Wei Ying’s face into his hands and turn his head more than once. It felt too… Too intimate. Too close to something they weren’t. Too close to something Lan Wangji has scolded himself for daydreaming about. 

Wei Ying’s hands don’t stay still, he clenches them and unclenches them against his thighs, he tangles his fingers in the loose strings of the holes at his knees, once or twice, Lan Wangji even thinks Wei Ying might be reaching for him, only to have a stray hair be plucked off his shirt, brown eyes staring up at Lan Wangji’s face as if Wei Ying expected to be swatted away. 

But Lan Wangji couldn’t ever bring himself to swat Wei Ying’s hands away, not unless Wei Ying did something unforgivable, like chasing him with a bug. Only then would Lan Wangji slap his hands away. 

When Lan Wangji finishes, Wei Ying’s phone comes out again, checking over Lan Wangji’s best work with a smile on his face. Lan Wangji almost smiles himself, but he manages to bite it back as he sets about brushing hair from Wei Ying’s shoulders and the chair he’d been sitting in. He’d have to sweep it off properly before it could come back inside. 

“You really weren't lying when you told me you’d make it look nice.” A grin has found its way back to Wei Ying’s face as he stands up, trapping Lan Wangji between his own body and the narrow space behind the chair, whether he means to or not.

“I do not lie.” Lan Wangji says, and he mostly means it. He has not lied to Wei Ying. He would not lie to Wei Ying. He doesn’t want to, not when Wei Ying is still smiling at him like he is. It takes everything in Lan Wangji not to reach forward and let his fingers brush against the ends of Wei Ying’s hair, his stomach still clenching around nerves. “Do you truly like it?”

“You did a great job, Lan Zhan, I mean it.” Wei Ying says in a low, soft kind of voice, “I thought I was gonna have to shave it all off, but you did it way better than I ever could.” Lan Wangji’s hand finds the back of the chair against Wei Ying’s praise, nerves giving way to something kinder, something that feels similar to relief.

If he were a bolder man, Lan Wangji might thank Wei Ying for his praise, he might even say something in return, something about how Wei Ying could go out wearing the worst clothes and the silliest hairstyle he could manage and still look fine just as long as he smiled, but Lan Wangji is not bold. Lan Wangji is not bold and he forces himself to keep those words tucked against his chest, though he can’t stop his own smile from blooming on his face.

“I should clean up,” Lan Wangji says the words as gently as he can, wanting nothing more than to put his hand on Wei Ying’s bare arm, but he forces himself to settle for a glance, unhidden and unapologetic as he lets his eyes scan down the length of Wei Ying’s torso, from his shoulders, to his chest, to the thin trail of hair that leads further down.

For a moment, neither of them move and neither of them speak. Wei Ying’s shirt hangs in his hand, limp and defeated. Lan Wangji wants to press it against his chest and breathe in the scent of Wei Ying as it clings to the shirt, haunting it like a much kinder ghost.

“Lan Zhan,” Wei Ying starts, but says nothing else, the whole of his body leaning just a little closer to Lan Wangji.

“Wei Ying,” Lan Wangji echoes back at him, his eyes flicking away from the waistband of Wei Ying’s jeans to meet his eyes. Heat blooms against Lan Wangji’s skin as one of Wei Ying’s hands curls around his wrist, the gentle seizure of it a stark contrast from the brutal grip that had left Lan Wangji with dark blue bruises. Dark blue bruises that Wei Ying traces over with a thumb now.

“How come you didn’t tell your brother about what the Yiling Patriarch did to you?” Wei Ying doesn’t let go of Lan Wangji, not for a moment, but his grasp never tightens. It never even threatens to. Shame blows the grin off of Wei Ying’s face like a candle, the light around them fading as clouds start to gather over the sky, “I didn’t mean to listen in, but you were on the phone and I didn’t want to leave you alone any longer than I already did.”

“My brother would’ve wanted me to come home, and if I did not come on my own, he would have come to fetch me.” Lan Wangji says, the words tasting bitter as he takes the risk of letting his other hand cover Wei Ying’s where it still hangs onto his wrist. “I am not ready to leave Wei Ying.” Wei Ying watches their hands, nodding along with Lan Wangji until almost the very end, then Lan Wangji has no choice but to watch something tired settle into Wei Ying’s face.

“Lan Zhan… If he… If I ever hurt you again, even if I don’t mean to, even if he takes over again, you have to tell someone. Promise me.” Lan Wangji isn’t sure he means to do it, but Wei Ying pulls him forward, his eyes turning to liquid amber, “I don’t ever want to hurt you like that again, I never wanted to hurt you in the first place, so please, promise me, Lan Zhan.” Wei Ying’s pleas threaten to smother him as thunder rumbles overhead, the breeze picking up around them.

Nothing can stop Lan Wangji from pressing his hand against Wei Ying’s cheek now, not even himself as he frowns, trying to think of ways to soothe Wei Ying’s nerves. “Where did Wei Ying go while the Patriarch was in control?” Lan Wangji asks without promising anything, his thumb rolling over the swell of Wei Ying’s cheek. Wei Ying squeezes his eyes shut against the question at first, shaking his head, but never shaking Lan Wangji’s hand away.

“I thought…” Wei Ying starts and opens his eyes as he drags a breath inwards, “I remember thinking about how you were probably going to go to bed soon, so I wanted to go up and say goodnight, but you were still in the shower, so I was going to wait, it’s like a dream from there.” Lan Wangji waits patiently, finally shaking Wei Ying’s hand off his wrist to stroke his hair back from his face. “I remember I was in the bathroom with you, but you were behind the shower curtain and you kept calling me, but I couldn’t answer, you couldn’t hear me.”

The first few droplets of rain splatter against the ground and Wei Ying lurches forward, letting himself be caught by Lan Wangji. “I thought you were messing with me.” Wei Ying groans as the floodgates finally open, buckets of rain falling upon the ground all at once. They aren’t even safe under the porch roof, cold rain is already sinking into Lan Wangji’s back.

“And then you woke up.” Lan Wangji finishes for him, though not unkindly, his arms fully wrapped around Wei Ying now, the touch far more than he’s used to.

“And then I woke up.” Wei Ying confirms, “I woke up and you were hurt, so you have to promise me, alright?” Wei Ying’s forehead thumps against Lan Wangji’s shoulder as the rain thunders down, drowning out all the other noise around them. 

“I promise.” Lan Wangji murmurs, his lips brushing against Wei Ying’s temple with each word.

But he would not leave Wei Ying behind.

Not again.