#a lot of the fanon just kills my desire i guess so this blog is dead til i find a way past my anxiety ✌️

[irradiateds]

tbh thinking about writing here makes me feel really weird skjnksjdn i’m just not really comfortable so idk i’ll be on @scavengurs and @apocstle ✌️

[rynne]

First of all, I'm a Jiang Cheng stan and the ones that introduced me to MDZS are Jiang Cheng stans, Jin Guangyao stans and Xue Yang stans....I'm quite surprised when I found your blog and end up love reading your metas about WangXian and (especially) Wei Wuxian...Thanks for your hard work...

Do you mind if I ask your opinions on Jiang Cheng, Jin Guangyao and Xue Yang?

Hi there! Thank you so much -- I'm glad you enjoy the meta, because I enjoy writing it. :) I'm sorry this took so long, but I've been both considering what I wanted to say and writing it (it got long).

As for my thoughts on JGY, XY, and JC…

The thing is, I'm not generally personally interested in antagonists. There have been exceptions, but mostly I just don't care about them. I enjoy characters who want to and try to do the right thing, even when it's hard. I usually find characters who prioritize themselves or who enjoy having power over people to be pretty boring. I really only care about antagonists in terms of their impact on the story -- plot, themes, and other characters.

So I don't care about Xue Yang at all. I guess it's tragic that he ended up caring about the person he drove to kill himself, but he otherwise gets a big "meh" from me. What I find more interesting about him is what his story says about the cultivation world -- after Nie Mingjue's death, no one thinks him worth standing up to the Jin Sect about, even though he massacred both the Changs and Baixue Temple. This shows the difference that having someone actually willing to protect a demonic cultivator can make. Of course, there are limits to the parallel given the different circumstances, but I do find it notable.

JGY I find marginally more interesting, but not by a lot. Again, what I generally like most about him is what his story says about the cultivation world. Everyone at Lotus Pier after the Second Siege was very ready to believe everything terrible about him, even though WWX was right there pointing out dubious things about Bicao's and Sisi's stories. WWX himself notices with discomfort the mob getting riled up against JGY, given his own experience with the cultivation sect mob. This kind of thing emphasizes the ways in which "mob justice" is an oxymoron -- a mob wants a target, not real justice.

As for JC -- given the way he polarizes fandom, this will be...rather long.

Right now I am only going to discuss my perspective of his canon character (rather than addressing fanon/fandom). Again, I'm more interested in JC in terms of his narrative roles and the impact they have on the story, themes, and characters than I am in his personality. Given his history with the protagonist WWX, he is a pretty significant character, so he carries multiple narrative roles that can each have a lot of weight.

First, I do consider JC an antagonist for most of the story. His opposition to WWX drives the plot in key places, from the beginning of the novel to the end. The threat of JC is what makes LWJ bring WWX to Cloud Recesses:

Lan Sizhui tried to reason with him. “Young Master Mo, Hanguang Jun actually brought you here for your own good. If you hadn’t come with us, Chief Jiang wouldn’t have let you go. These past several years, he’s caught and dragged countless people back to Lotus Pier and tortured them for information. He’s never let anyone go.”

Lan Jingyi said, “That’s right. You’ve probably never seen Chief Jiang’s methods yourself. They’re downright cruel…”

(Chapter 11, Fanyiyi translation)

Cloud Recesses is where WWX's involvement in the main plot kicks off. MXTX therefore uses the threat of being captured and tortured by JC as a way to place her protagonist where he needs to be.

She does this again towards the end of the novel. When the confrontation in Lotus Pier's ancestral hall drives WWX into pain and unconsciousness, the last thing WWX expresses before he faints is his desire to leave. He had not wanted to leave Lotus Pier immediately until the fight with JC.

Lan WangJi, "How do you feel?!"

Wei WuXian didn't answer the question, "Lan Zhan… Let's go."

Go. Right now.

Don't ever come back again.

Lan WangJi, "Yes."

He'd completely lost all intention to continue the fight with Jiang Cheng.

(Chapter 88, ExR translation)

While he's unconscious, LWJ recalls his wishes and takes him away after the golden core reveal. It's the middle of the night, but the clash between WWX, LWJ, and JC is so severe that they just take a boat and go. They don't even have a goal yet -- they just want to get out of there.

And this is what leads them to Yunping in time to catch JGY. (It is further what leads Jin Ling to Yunping as well, since he went looking for WWX.)

In the middle of the story, when the novel flashes back to the events leading to WWX's death, we see what made JC switch from supporting character to antagonist and the impact that had on what happened to WWX. This switch was precipitated by a moral disagreement where the narrative clearly places WWX in the right. In previous moral conflicts, such as JC not wanting to help the other sect heirs in the Xuanwu Cave while WWX wanted to step in, the two of them still managed to come out on the same side. That is no longer the case: JC makes a clear decision not to support WWX so long as WWX will not do what he wants (when what he wants is the morally inferior position of killing or returning the Wen Remnants). JC's decision here places him and WWX on opposite sides.

That decision wasn't the sole factor in WWX's downfall, but as JGY points out, it played a big role.

"Back then, the LanlingJin Sect, the QingheNie Sect, and the GusuLan Sect had already finished fighting over the biggest share. The rest could only get some small shrimps. You, on the other hand, had just rebuilt Lotus Pier and behind you was the YiLing Patriarch, Wei WuXian, the danger of whom was immeasurable. Do you think the other sects would like to see a young sect leader who was so advantaged? Luckily, you didn't seem to be on good terms with your shixiong, and since everyone thought there was an opportunity, of course they'd add fuels to your fire if they could. No matter what, to weaken the YunmengJiang Sect was to strengthen themselves. Sect Leader Jiang, if only your attitude towards your shixiong was just a bit better, showing everyone that your bond was too strong to be broken for them to have a chance, or if you exhibited just a bit more tolerance after what happened, things wouldn't have become what they were. Oh, speaking of it, you were also a main force of the siege at Burial Mound…"

(Chapter 104, ExR)

JC's refusal to support WWX left him on his own, with no one powerful to speak for or defend him. More than that, though, JC specifically named him an enemy of the cultivation world (even though WWX had only suggested announcing his defection). Calling WWX an enemy deliberately and deceptively frames WWX's intentions more negatively. Basically, from that moment until WWX's death, no one except LWJ seems willing to believe WWX might have good or even neutral intentions. Rumors of the time reflect this:

In less than three days, almost all of the cultivators heard a terrifying piece of news: Wei WuXian, the one who defected from the Jiang Sect and made his own home in Yiling, had created the highest level of fierce corpse yet. It was incomparably fast, strong, fearless, and vicious. On top of that, its consciousness was preserved, able to win every night-hunt!

Everyone was in shock: there would be no peace anymore! Wei WuXian would definitely make these fierce corpses on a large scale, in desire of founding his own sect to compete with the cultivation world! And the many young blood of today's age would definitely be attracted by his evil, opportunist path as well, and go to him one after another. The righteous path of cultivation would have a grim future -- dark times ahead!

(Chapter 75, ExR)

People do tend to scare-monger, so we can't say for sure that rumors like these would not have spread if JC had instead said "he and the Wens just want to live on their mountain in peace" or "these Wens helped me, so they and WWX are under my protection." However, WWX's former shidi and sect leader calling him an enemy does give rumors like these more credence. It is possible that this attitude contributed to the willingness of all the sects to come together to pledge to kill him in the end.

JC was the largest contributor to the siege on the Burial Mounds (chapter 7 notes that Jin Guangshan was the second largest, after JC). He didn't kill WWX himself -- as WWX clarifies, he died from a backfire -- but it's pretty clear that the siege led directly to WWX's death.

From the battle at Nightless City, where he was there to participate in the pledge to kill WWX, onwards, JC has consistently opposed WWX and created obstacles for him. The first thing he does upon being presented with someone who might be WWX is, in fact, to try to kill him again:

On the other hand, Wei Wuxian seized the opportunity and ran.

Everyone looked on, shocked. Hadn’t he only avoided the whip because Lan Wangji had stepped in front of him and blocked it? By fleeing, wasn’t he signing his own death warrant?

Indeed, Jiang Cheng seemed to have grown eyes on the back of his head, and seeing that Wei Wuxian had left Lan Wangji’s protection, how could he give up the opportunity to strike? He raised his whip and cracked it aslant. Zidian lashed out at Wei Wuxian like a venomous dragon, landing right in the middle of his back.

[...]

Zidian had a special ability: if it struck a body snatcher, the body snatcher’s soul would immediately be peeled away from the body they had stolen. Zidian expelled the invader without exception. But this person had been whipped, yet behaved just as he did before, bouncing around as usual. Unless he really hadn’t seized the body, there was no other explanation.

Wei Wuxian thought, How useless. Obviously Zidian can’t whip my soul out. I didn’t steal this body, someone offered it to me. Actually, he practically forced it on me!

Jiang Cheng’s expression was surprised but suspicious, and the intention to whip Wei Wuxian again crossed his eyes.

(Chapter 10, Fanyiyi)

The sequence of events here is pretty clear. JC (and LWJ as well) believes that WWX is a spirit possessing Mo Xuanyu's body. JC's spiritual weapon Zidian has the power to expel possessing spirits. By whipping WWX, JC is trying to expel his spirit from his body -- effectively killing him again. This is why LWJ is so determined to protect him here. It's only through a quirk of the sacrifice ritual that JC did not succeed -- and, in fact, WWX knew all of this would be the case and is using it to prove he is not WWX-possessing-MXY. WWX actually relied on JC's intention to kill him here.

He continues to oppose WWX throughout the present-day story of the novel whenever he does appear until the very end.

JC is never the main antagonist, but this is a novel with multiple antagonists who all help drive the plot as they oppose the protagonist. Some of them, like Wen Chao, Wen Zhuliu, Jin Zixun, and Xue Yang, are antagonists pretty much throughout. Some of them go from neutrality to antagonism, like JGY and Su She. JC is, I think, the only significant one to go from ally to antagonist (and then back to just plain supporting character in the very end), but that does not make him less of an antagonist.

And the thing is, his role as antagonist impacts one of his other major roles, which is as foil to the protagonists WWX and LWJ.

A narrative foil is a character who contrasts with another, generally the protagonist, to highlight certain qualities. When both characters have generally equal roles in the story, this contrast is usually pretty neutral, but when one character acts as a foil for the protagonist, it's usually meant to show the protagonist to advantage, though it can also show off some of the protagonist's weaknesses.

When an antagonist is a foil for the protagonist, the antagonist is usually given negative qualities in order to highlight the protagonist's corresponding positive qualities. For instance, an antagonist foil might be cowardly to help emphasize the protagonist's bravery. This isn't always the case -- some protagonists are not meant to be heroes -- but in MDZS, WWX is meant to be the hero (MXTX says, in the postscript, that "[b]oth WWX and LWJ are highly ideal characters, so there wouldn't be too much dispute on their moral standing. They're perfect as the protagonists"), so his foils are generally meant to come off worse in comparison.

So basically...I think JC's role as an antagonist foil means that he was literally created in part to be bad in order to help show off how good WWX and LWJ are.

We see this with LWJ as well as WWX. For instance, both LWJ and JC played a significant role in raising two of the juniors, Lan Sizhui and Jin Ling. The impression WWX gets of both of the boys helps contrast the difference in LWJ's and JC's parenting styles.

Of Sizhui, WWX's impression is:

Wei Wuxian gave this youth a once-over. His demeanor was gentle, refined, and graceful, and the corners of his mouth were lightly upturned, as though they constantly held a slight grin. The flag formation he had overseen was impeccable, and his upbringing was not so bad either. In short, he was a highly commendable young man, and in his heart, Wei Wuxian approved of him, though it amazed him that even in a frightening place filled with uptight fuddy-duddies like the Gusu Lan Clan, there was someone who could bring up such a splendid young man.

(Chapter 2, Fanyiyi)

While the impression he has of Jin Ling is:

Wei Wuxian hadn’t expected Jin Ling to turn up here, much less that Jin Ling would be as arrogant and dictatorial as this. What’s wrong with this child? How did he become so vicious and short-tempered? He’s stubborn and arrogant, and thinks everyone is beneath him. Excellent job picking up his uncle’s and his father’s flaws—but he hasn’t acquired half a speck of his mother’s virtues. If I don’t rough him up a bit, he’ll pay for it big time sooner or later.

(Chapter 20, Fanyiyi)

WWX even draws a comparison between LWJ's and JC's mentoring styles himself:

Jiang Cheng’s next words were wrapped in thorns. “Why are you still standing there? Are you waiting for prey to rush toward you and stick themselves on your sword? If you can’t capture whatever’s living in Dafan Mountain, don’t ever come see me again!”

Jin Ling shot Wei Wuxian a venomous glare, but he didn’t have the courage to glare at Lan Wangji, the one responsible for his forced silence. Placing his sword back into its scabbard, he made polite goodbyes to the two seniors opposite him and retreated with his bow in hand.

[...]

Lan Sizhui smiled slightly at Wei Wuxian and said, “Young Master Mo, we meet again.”

Wei Wuxian pulled on the corners of his lips. But Lan Wangji opened his mouth and issued a command. It was clear and concise, free of any ornamentation. “Complete your task.”

Only then did the flock of juniors remember why they had come to Dafan Mountain. Placing any other thoughts at the back of their minds, they reverently awaited further instructions. A few moments later, Lan Wangji spoke again, “Try your hardest. No recklessness.”

His voice was low and magnetic. The heart of anyone standing near enough would undoubtedly tremble upon hearing it. The juniors obediently followed Hanguang Jun’s orders and walked deeper into the mountain forests, too afraid to linger. Jiang Cheng and Lan Zhan were truly completely different people, Wei Wuxian thought. Even the advice and the warnings they gave their juniors were completely contrary.

(Chapter 8, Fanyiyi)

As we see throughout the story, JC's parenting style towards Jin Ling is rough, angry, and frequently relies on threatening negative consequences. On the other hand, LWJ is more encouraging and prioritizes their safety over results. Under JC, Jin Ling is vicious, short-tempered, stubborn, arrogant, and has picked up all of his uncle's and father's flaws -- but under LWJ, Sizhui is gentle, refined, graceful, impeccable, highly commendable, and a splendid young man.

I have also talked before about how LWJ and JC contrast in what they do with their love for WWX.

But JC is also very significant as a foil to the story's MC, WWX. His choices are frequently contrasted with WWX's to show that WWX has more heroic qualities and a healthier mindset.

In terms of morals, WWX is consistently given the morally superior position to the one advocated by JC:

Jiang Cheng, "It served you right to be bored to death. You shouldn't have played the hero and you shouldn't have cared for such a hell of a thing. If in the beginning you didn't..."

Suddenly, Jiang FengMian spoke, "Jiang Cheng."

Jiang Cheng paused, knowing that he had said too much. He was quiet at once.

Jiang FengMian didn't look as if he was blaming him of anything, but his expression had turned from calm to more solemn, "Do you know in which ways what you just said is not appropriate?"

Jiang Cheng's head hung low, "Yes."

Wei WuXian, "He's just angry and speaking without care."

Seeing how Jiang Cheng's mouth and heart were still at odds, how he still felt defiant, Jiang FengMian shook his head, "A-Cheng, there are some things that can't be said even if you're angry. If you said them, it means you still don't understand the motto of the Jiang Sect, that you still don't…"

(Chapter 56, ExR)

I think there are several major things we see here, but I want to highlight two. First, JC simplifies the Xuanwu Cave situation as WWX "playing the hero." As we see later, with the fall of Lotus Pier all the way through the confrontation at Guanyin Temple, JC seems to have decided that WWX "playing the hero" is what led to the attack on Lotus Pier.

JC is objectively wrong. He acknowledges himself in Chapter 59 that the Wens would have come regardless of what WWX did, while WWX's actions in the Xuanwu Cave were the only effective strategy for actually getting them out of there alive -- JC had wanted to stay out of the confrontation between the Wens and LWJ-JZX, but that would most likely have led to the Wens killing everyone.

More importantly, though, JC's impulses here contrast strongly with WWX's. JC did not want to help LWJ, JZX, and Mianmian. He prioritized self-preservation over helping others. WWX, on the other hand, prioritized helping others over self-preservation, and the narrative validates his choice. JC's priorities would have led to the Wens killing all of their hostages, while WWX's decision to step in allowed all the hostages to live.

The second thing I want to highlight here is JFM's caution that some things should not be said even if you're angry. JFM isn't saying this to be cruel or because he hates JC -- the narrative even says that he did not look like he was blaming JC. But what JFM wants JC to understand is that words said in anger still matter.

JC continues to prioritize self-preservation, and this continues to contrast with WWX's more heroic decisions to help people:

Wei WuXian finally lost his temper, “Jiang Cheng! What- What do you think you’re talking about? Take it back–don’t make me give you a thrashing! Don’t forget. Who was the one that helped us burn Uncle Jiang’s and Madam Yu’s corpses? Who returned to us the ashes that are in Lotus Pier right now? And who took us in when we were chased after by Wen Chao?”

Jiang Cheng, “I’m the one who fucking wants to give you a thrashing! Yes, they helped us before, but why in the world don’t you understand that right now any remnant of the Wen Sect is a target of criticism? No matter who they are, with a surname of Wen they have committed a most heinous crime! And those who protect the Wen are at risk of being condemned by everyone! All the people loathe the Wen-dogs so badly that the worse they die the better. Whoever protects them is against the entire world. Nobody would speak for them, and nobody would speak for you either!”

(Chapter 73, ExR)

This conversation further adds "paying debts" to the moral ledger. WWX is not just helping people here, including an innocent toddler and grandmother, he is repaying the debt the Jiangs owe Wen Ning and Wen Qing. JC is the one pretty explicitly saying that he does not care that he owes them a debt -- he acknowledges it ("Yes, they helped us before"), but he still prioritizes his own self-preservation.

This conversation shows that WWX is even more morally praiseworthy. JC explains that there are strong barriers to doing the right thing, and he lets those barriers deter him. JC's decision to give up in the face of potential adversity contrasts with WWX's decision to persevere and do the right thing anyway.

Though in this case, I don't think it was primarily the adversity that stopped JC from doing the right thing, which introduces another contrast. JC does not want to help the Wens, not because it's hard, but because he holds onto his hatred and resentment of them. WWX, on the other hand, generally does not hold onto resentment very much. ​​

How people handle resentment is a major theme in this story, and one where I think JC's position as a foil is used very effectively to illustrate the negative consequences of holding onto resentment as opposed to WWX's healthier decision to let it go and move forward.

Wei WuXian, “Uh, I think it’s best if you…also stop keeping it on your mind. I know you’ll definitely always keep it on your mind, but, how should I say it…” He clenched Lan WangJi’s hand, saying to Jiang Cheng, “Right now, I do really think…it’s all in the past. It’s been too long. There’s no need to struggle with it any longer.”

(Chapter 103, ExR)

JC is a person who definitely keeps his resentments on his mind. His reputation throughout the present-day story is of a man obsessed with finding WWX again, even though WWX died thirteen years ago. He still blames WWX (and even LWJ, because WWX intervened in the Xuanwu Cave in part to protect him) for the fall of Lotus Pier (Chapter 87), and he has passed that perspective on to Jin Ling (Chapter 43). He continues to hate all Wens, even those who weren't actually related to the Wen Sect (Chapter 92). Half of what JC talks about when he confronts WWX about the core transfer is how finding out about it means he can no longer straightforwardly hate WWX for everything he continues to blame him for, even in that conversation (Chapters 102-103).

WWX, on the other hand, does not want to hold onto resentment. As he tells JC, he thinks it's best if they let it go. Holding onto resentment creates a struggle that prevents people from moving forward. We see this when he's talking to the people who came for the Second Siege of the Burial Mounds in Chapter 82 as well -- you can hold onto hatred or you can move on.

The narrative rewards WWX's path and cautions against JC's.

JC has become the kind of person who, as Jin Ling describes him, "had been cold, severe, and gloomy for years and years on end. Not a single lenient or merciful word left Jiang Cheng’s mouth if he could help it, nor was he ever willing to offer charity and kindness" (Chapter 23). He is unpleasant, and he is unhappy. And then he is punished with WWX leaving him behind and no reconciliation. His father told him that words said in anger still matter, and he disregarded that, and so he is punished with the person he consistently lashed out at deciding to stay away from him. He doesn't get a happy ending because he hasn't earned it.

WWX, on the other hand, decides to move forward. If he had wanted to hold onto grudges for everything that happened to him, he could hate almost the whole cultivation world, but he doesn't decide to do that. He could resent the Lans for their part in the siege, but instead he views them as his husband's family and makes a home with them. He decides to focus on the positive, and he is given a happy ending with the love of his life. The narrative rewards him for his choices and his mindset.

So to return to your original question -- what I think of JC is that he is a cautionary tale. He consistently picks the wrong action, the wrong reaction, the wrong priorities. Part of his role in the story is to be wrong.

And there is nothing wrong with having him do that, because he is a character in a story and this is part of why he exists.

[radmanraditz]

What is one sexual insecurity that your muse has?

{In-Depth Sinday Meme || Open and Accepting!}

Raditz is an insecure person. It’s why he’s so keen on being a dominating asshole when he’s in a situation where he’s the big fish in the small pond. We see it in canon when he meets his brother on Earth and how he treats his students in Xenoverse 2. He does have some real confidence in himself, but a lot of it is part of his “Proud Saiyan Warrior” persona. It’s an interesting and realistic duality to be both confident in what he can do compared to other weaker people, but also be insecure about his shortcomings as a warrior compared to his partners and anyone else who proves they’re stronger than he is.

I’ve wanted to make a stand-alone analysis post for the reasons why I write Raditz being more sexuality active compared to my other muse, Nappa, and for the reasons why he uses sex to get validation and praise for what he doesn’t get as a warrior. But I can sum it up here pretty nicely. 

Sex is the one activity where he can be both physically dominating while also being able to give and receive physical touch in a way that is “acceptable,” and it allows him to feel desired and adored for what he’s capable of. It makes him feel special and different from his partners – whom I HC didn’t have as much interest in getting laid while working for the PTO, despite all the fanon nonsense that’s popular – and therefore, superior in at least one area where neither of them feel like competing with him to prove that they’re better. (And TBH both @indomitablepride and I HC and write Nappa and Vegeta looking down on him for his promiscuity. Their thoughts on that run along the lines of, “Ew. Really Raditz? Where are your standards? Guess you’ll settle for anything that wants to.” ) 

So what would make him feel insecure about one of the few things he feels genuinely confident and skilled at? The same thing that makes anybody feel inadequate: rejection. 

Despite having had several attempts at a ship and a couple of actual ships here, Raditz knows he’s not the ideal type of person for healthy romantic relationships. He’s capable of it, but it’s not going to be easy for either party because he’s got a lot of emotional baggage. He’d need to grow as a person along with his partner. The only person who hasn’t struggled with that aspect in their relationship is Turles because he’s already aware of what his emotional baggage is since they were childhood friends. In general he’s not seeking romance even though deep down real intimacy and acceptance is what he wants far more than sex. Sex is just a quick and easy way to get a taste of what he truly wants but feels like he’s incapable of receiving from other people. He knows what unconditional love feels like from his mother, Gine, and from his friendship with Turles when they were kids. Both were lost when he was still a child/adolescent and doubts he’ll ever get that again from anyone else without having to go through great lengths to earn that. Lengths that he’s not willing to put himself through because his efforts don’t seem to matter. So he doesn’t try. A lot of his emotional needs were frowned upon as him being too “needy” by his father, Bardock in extended game canon. The hint of his grief over the destruction of Planet Vegeta and his parents and younger brother being dead made the other two Saiyans on his team visibly uncomfortable in the DBS Broly movie. (One of those great subtle moments of the film I really need to devote an analytical post to on my main blog about that entire scene because damn, it’s really good and confirmed a lot of headcanons I have for both my muses in just one minute of screentime. That’s an amazing achievement that took advantage of the visual medium of animation and it’s one of the reasons why I love the DBS Broly movie so much.)

In Raditz’s mind, if someone doesn’t want to have sex with him, then they must not have any positive interest in him at all. His looks and what he can give sexually are the only positive things he thinks he can contribute since every other aspect of his life involves being manipulative, and ruthless in order to hurt and kill people. If they don’t want to have sex with him, then they must not think he’s attractive or “good enough” because he already assumes nobody’s going to like him for any other reason. And being reminded that he’s “not good enough” is the root to a lot of his emotional baggage. It’s why he is so turned off by people who approach him with insults.