#and lan xichen POV! fun fun fun

[wangxianficrecs]

Rewind 2024 - A few more recs...

WangxianFicRecs - Rewind 2024

Before the year ends, here are a few more recs of stories of 2024 that found their way into our inbox! I wish you all a Happy New Year and hope, that we can discover lots of fun fanfics next year as well! - Kay

Follower Recs

~*~

Think I've missed the 2024 Rewind follower recs but I've been absolutely loving this story!

WIP Modern Cultivators AU where WWX and LWJ have just agreed to a betrothal contract - for supposedly purely political reasons but in actuality because they fell hard and fast for each other during the prior fic in the series. POV switches between the two of them as they face up to (and increasingly embrace) the concept of being cared for and loved for being exactly who they are. Beautiful writing and brilliant characterisation, every update feels like a treat ☺️ @slothwithwifi

🔒 I'm Much Older Than I Thought I'd Be

by MajorEnglishEsquire (@chuckwinchester)

E, WIP, 81k, Wangxian

Summary: “Now. Before we break for the evening, as the topic has arisen between Lan Xichen and myself, directly, in accordance with an inquiry from the Lans,” Uncle passes him the copy of a draft agreement. “I wonder if you recall your lessons on the cross-clan arrangement of cultivation partnerships.” Picks up after The Further I Go, The Less I Know.

~*~

Hello! I want to submit this fic for Rewind because I love cherry magic AU and lwj pov is so rare. It’s very funny to listen to wwx pining in his head and lwj panicking over it. - Anon

My Heart is Yours to Fill or Burst

by anancites (@ananc1tes)

E, 67k, Wangxian

Summary: On his 30th birthday, Lan Zhan gets struck by a mysterious curse: suddenly he's a mind reader! As much as he dislikes most people talking too much, hearing their unfiltered thoughts is even worse. To top it all off, he learns that his old friend Wei Ying might not be flirting with him just to be a nuisance. He might be flirting with Lan Zhan because he's actually really into him? (a WangXian AU very loosely inspired by Cherry Magic)

~*~

Delightfully hilarious. I read it over a month ago and still laugh sometimes when I think about wwx in this. @alyseofwonderland

Living Art

by relenafanel (@relenafanel)

E, 8k, Wangxian

Summary: Broke artist Wei Wuxian takes a hard look at his finances and shrugs his way into becoming a content creator on OnlyFans. Jiang Cheng sighed. “These columns are negotiable. If you want to keep this subscription, you have to replace something to break even.” Wei Wuxian stared at the spreadsheet. He hummed in thought. “I need to break even.” “Yes.” “In order to keep my OnlyFans subscription I need $65 a month. On OnlyFans.” “No,” Jiang Cheng said quickly. “If I become a content creator and earn $65 a month--” “I am begging you--” “Then I can keep the subscription. Thanks A-Cheng!” The account in question? Hanguang Jun's Reading Livestreams.

~*~

🔒 Only with Time

by adrian_kres (@Bichen-Suibian)

E, WIP, 66k, Wangxian

Summary: Thirteen years ago, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji were arranged to be married as is tradition. Throughout their thirteen-year-long "courtship," things were not always as they seemed. Now, newly married, old secrets have ripped open wounds they thought were closed, and they must work together to rebuild a trust they never had and a love they always did but couldn't see. Told from alternating points of view between LWJ and WWX with frequent flashbacks to memories of their "courtship". Updates weekly.

~*~

Proud Author Spotlight

~*~

I can't believe I almost forgot to shout-out my own fic that I started this year! It's a modern AU with cultivation where Wei Wuxian loses his hand, gets taken in my Wen Qing and her family, starts a prosthetic start-up and schemes to take down Wen Ruohan from the shadows feat. Wen Yuan having a big sister, Wen Zhuliu redemption and all the Found Family vibes!

Black Sun

by thelastdboy (@thelastdboyy)

E, WIP, 51k, Wangxian

Summary: Within one afternoon, the Yunmeng Jiang Clan became a mere branch of the Wen Clan. They lost their estate, all of their assets, and Wei Wuxian – He lost an arm. All to appease Wen Ruohan. To the Jiangs, the name Wen became a curse to be hissed out between gritted teeth. To Wei Wuxian, the name Wen became something dear after Wen Ning and Wen Qing saved his life and took him in. Years later, Wen Ruohan and his sons have long since died under mysterious circumstances and Wei Wuxian has been branded a traitor to the high society of the cultivation world. Together with the remaining Wens, he turned to the civilian world and revolutionized the medical field by developing prosthetics controlled by spiritual energy. Enter: Lan Wangji. After their fight against the Tulu Xuanwu, his leg never really recovered. Years of countless surgeries and feeling as if he was living inside a gilded cage while being patronized by his family passed, until Lan Wangji finally took his chance and absconded. To Yiling.

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(Please REBLOG as a signal boost for these hard-working authors if you like – or think others might like – these stories.)

[rarepears]

Nie Huaisang, Lan Xichen, Jin Guangyao, and Nie Mingjue all reincarnate together into PIDW, and become disciples around the same time as Luo Binghe.

The drama of this is of course enhanced by the facts that NMJ & JGY died "early," but NHS & LXC lived to the end of their natural lives as cultivators, and so some of their perspectives and opinions on events have naturally changed with age. (tfw the passage of time renders you unfamiliar to your once-loved ones)

Eventually they talk about their feelings and reconcile and such, and this ends up derailing the plot of PIDW severely as the rest of the PIDW characters confusedly observe quite possibly the weirdest disciples Cang Qiong's ever seen

NMJ on Bai Zhan, with no clue what's going on because he died first and NHS & LXC haven't told him anything

NHS on An Ding, thoroughly enjoying what's pretty much a vacation to him at this point and possibly running an interpeak illicit goods market (definitely not to distract himself from any of the emotions having NMJ & JGY alive and nearby would be causing him, Everything Is Fine) I haven't decided if he'd get involved with the whole og!SQH and MBJ situation tho

LXC on Qiong Ding, because I feel like he'd see himself in Yue Qingyuan and lowkey hate him for it and I think that could be interesting

JGY on Qing Jing, because he's the objectively the funniest/most interesting character to throw into the mess that is SJ and LBH. The way I imagine it, he's doing the most direct derailing of the plot, because he mostly accidentally gets right in the middle of the thing that is going on between those two

I feel like as I wrote this it became more serious than I originally intended so just know that I'm mentally picturing this like a fic that's interspersed with outsider POV of the 4 of them being completely deranged about eachother

(Also I'd feel bad taking away LXC's brother so LWJ and WWX + friends are busy doing hot girl shit being rogue cultivators. I think WWX should be a half demon so he gets to keep the cultivation and steal some of LBH's protagonist energy. If this was a fic then the rest of the Untamed gang would be perfect to use for side characters during off-peak missions)

*grabs popcorn and sits down to hear more*

Nie Huaisang is having too much fun waiting the two idiots called his shizun and shizun's poorly kept secret of a boyfriend go flailing around on these terribly unromantic dates BUT THE TWO WERE TRYING SO HARD that it was cute. He wonders if he should do something to help the poor idiots out... Should he?

Maybe he should...

(Watch Shang Qinghua and Mobei Jun suddenly have a number of sex pollen accidents over the next few months....)

Lan Xichen would be an old man and a good voice of reason for Yue Qingyuan. Although he's head disciple and a very good one at that (if only because his Big Brother instincts can't be held back and he MUST interfere to help prevent history repeating once more), Lan Xichen has made it very clear that he would never accept becoming sect leader.

Also don't forget Liu Mingyan in the background writing about a 4 person sex orgy. At least, that's her personal theory for why there's so much UNRESOLVED TENSION between these four sus male disciples. And also, because it's fun.

It's even funner when you consider that Nie Mingjue is out of the loop of Cang Qiong stuff even on Bai Zhan because he tags along on so many of Liu Qingge's missions that he's probably spending like 8 months of the year outside of the sect.

(Nie Huaisang gets "assigned" to missions that happen to take place near Nie Mingjue's hunts.)

Meng Yao is Meng Yao and he still craves the approval of Male Authority Figures That Could be his dad. Also Meng Yao still likes to climb up the social hierarchy and power. AKA Luo Binghe growing mushrooms in the corner at seeing ANOTHER QING JING disciple THE SAME AGE AS HIM being given SO MUCH ATTENTION AND APPROVAL by shizun.

Luo Binghe develops a complex over Meng Yao of course.

(Shen Jiu approves of Meng Yao because he understands these characters very well and know how to manipulate (cough kill or injury them physically or mentally) them easily. Plus Meng Yao is actually competent.)

[More in #Nie Huaisang Lan Xichen Meng Yao and Nie Mingjue reincarnate into PIDW and are Cang Qiong disciples at the same time as Luo Binghe is AU

[zeldahime]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Spread the self-love ❤

Alright, I can do a bit of shameless self-promo 😂 Let's see....

5: anything, nothing, everything, MDZS, Xiyao. T, 2.7K. An on-the-run fic where Lan Xichen is a perfect gentleman and helps clean Meng Yao up after he's been in a fight on the street. They're two very polite and proper boys with enormous crushes on each other in close quarters. A whole lot of absolutely nothing happens and they're both very intense about it.

4: Anathema Device: Girl Genius, Good Omens, Gen. G, 1.5K. Book Omens Anathema, age 8, fights the Man, the Man in this case being her spelling teacher. I loved writing it and if anyone shows the slightest interest in Anathema Device I will shove this fic under their noses.

3: In Major Key, Good Omens, Aziraphale/Crowley. T, 10K. A very self-indulgent through-the-ages style fic focusing on the 20th century. It's kind of five songfics strung together like beads on a necklace. It was a lot of fun.

2: Her Reflection In You, MDZS, Madam Jin/Jiang Yanli. E, 7k. It was a lot of fun writing from the POV of a manipulative heartless bitch! Repressed lesbian in love with her dead best friend and forced into a horribly miserable loveless marriage she feels powerless in, fucking that friend's pretty daughter in order to uphold the very systems that she's so trapped by, what more can I say?

1: Song of Songs 4:7, Good Omens, Aziraphale/Crowley. E, 3K. Crowley literally idolizes Aziraphale, worships him, and they very seriously and yet clumsily stumble their way into blasphemous and awkward sex. Blasphemy! Weird tongues! Incredibly earnest declarations of love and devotion! The most recent thing I've written and therefore probably the most technically skilled by default! Come one come all!

[deathbyoctopi]

Rarepair April! Yaaay!!! >w<

So! For the past couple weeks I've been working a lot with Gotcha for Gaza and another event, writing some oneshots for prompts, and the wonderful rare ships I was asked about are just so cute!!

So, for those already lost on just what I have and haven't written (me included), here's the recent Rarepair Festival >w<

🚢Wen Chao / Wen Zhuliu🚢

Shouting was heard from the ancestral hall of Lotus Pier. Which wasn’t too strange on the warmest summer days, when the youngest disciples took refuge in the cool shade and played games (making them grow quite rowdy), ensuing the even louder screams from the closest responsible adult that came to yell at them young irreverent ruffians.

Ah, but it wasn’t summer anymore, and the shouting now was far from joyful. Also, all the disciples were dead.  

From: A helping hand, a nsfw nasty little dub-con because if Wen-er-gongzi discovers he likes being spanked, can his faithful bodyguard actually refuse? (he should and he almost does! XD)

🚢Nie Huaisang/Lan Wangji🚢

Lan Xichen eyes nervously the other members of the meeting. Judging by the little monitors on his screen, no one else seems to be noticing that Wangji is having some sort of inappropriate fun right now, thank God. Although he can’t understand why, since it’s so obvious…

But well, Lan Xichen has been long aware that, for some reason, he seems to be the only person able to read Wangji’s solemn expression, which Jin Guangyao has called on some occasion “the most perfect poker face” he’s ever seen.

From: Just another corporate secret, a naughty Lan Wangji / Nie Huaisang from the pov of Lan Xichen, that gets in an online meeting and realizes what's going on under his brother's table.

🚢Jin Guangyao / Nie Huaisang🚢

“Tell me, a-Yao…”

The tinkle of golden wrist bells rang soft and delicate, glittering against the dark golden silks of the bed. The light was low and the perfumed incense thick, and there was a heavy suggestion of alcohol in the room.

Enough to make Nie Huaisang’s voice pass for something even more light and feminine.

“…have you been a good boy?”

“Yes, a-niang.”

From: Tell it to your mumsy, a nsfw HuaiYao where a drunk Jin Guangyao misses his mum very, very much (and Nie Huaisang takes advantage of that to learn all his little secrets >w<)

🚢Jin Guangyao / Wen Ruohan🚢

“Show me what do you do to them. The prisoners.” Wen Ruohan sat calmly on a wooden chair, which the local guard had very wisely left free the second he saw those two turning the corner of the corridor.

Meng Yao’s voice didn’t betray his thoughts, but even so the sightliest hesitation dripped through. He looked at the prison guards, still lounging by the nearest cell.

“As your Excellency wishes, but… Here?”

“Here.”

“Wouldn’t it be more suitable to... perform such acts in the comfort of your Excellency's bed?”

“Here, a-Yao.”

From: Keep an ace up your sleeve (it will come handy) a very nsfw insight at some special methods Meng Yao came up with to torture prisoners during his internship with the Wen...

Lastly, not a ship but a very special pair I hold very dear to my heart...

🍃Xiao Xignchen & Cangse Sanren🍃

Cangse Sanren put her arm around Xiao Xingchen’s shoulder and her voice took a conspiratorial tone.

“You too, you must get yourself a good and reliable cultivation partner, do you hear? Like that young man you fought with. What's his name? Song Something."

"Zichen."

"Whatever. If you like him, tie the knot as fast as possible. Life is so short, and so precious!”

Xiao Xingchen could have blushed, if it wasn’t because he had lost quite a lot of blood and was feeling a bit light-headed.

“Shijie, please, don’t tease…” he said hiding a smile.

From: Relentless in love (and dodging nettles), where Xiao Xingchen comes across a mischievous spirit and realizes she is non other than his legendary martial sister...

There! Now I'm up to date with the weird shit I've written lately XD

[thewalrus-said]

For "till even the sheets hurt" uwu: 2. How did you come up with the idea? 11. What was the most challenging aspect of writing it? 25. Share your favorite line 26. Share your favorite detail. Inquiring minds want to know 👀

first off, bless you for putting the Whole Question in so i don't have to go track down the post lskdjflskdjf a fantastic help that i will mimic going forward

for 2: you know good and damn well how i came up with the idea lkdsjfljds it was in your DMs over the following weeks after you honeytrapped me with nie huaisang. which i acknowledge you did by accident, but still.

for everyone else who is not stevie or i, though, i came out of the mdzs donghua thinking if that ever two fictional characters needed to fuck it out, it was nie huaisang and lan xichen. like. i was a mere baby in terms of understanding what these two had done to each other and how they had wronged each other, but still, i Knew that they needed to have absolutely disrespectful, fucknasty grief sex in order to have any hope of being, like, okay, ever again.

and also they would fall in love over the process, because i'm Me and that's how i roll lsdkjflsjdf

for 11, i think the hardest part was that i started Plotting It and Putting Together Sentences before i had read the books and gotten a sense of the tone they were written in (or at least the official english translation is written in), and so i had to, like. blend them together, once i'd actually Read the canon and confirmed that what i wanted would Work with book canon (which was what i wanted to write in).

also hard was that i started writing it while i was still frantically trying to churn out my last three FTH fics before the deadline, which i managed (!!!!!) but burned me out so significantly that i posted this fic on christmas day and haven't managed to write anything significant or complete until literally last week.

25, my favorite line, uwu.....let me think......

honestly, it might be: "Lan Xichen has never before been tempted to haul off and punch someone in the face." it's just such a fun tone shift, i think, from what lan xichen's narration has been up to that point. it tickles me uwu

special shout-out to: "No one warned Lan Xichen, when he was given his forehead ribbon, how erotic the sight of his fated person touching it would be," though. do you think there's lan-created pornography of people doing naughty things with the forehead ribbon? because i do. (and also lan xichen, if only in his head, deciding that nie huaisang is It for him, his fated person.)

26... idk if this counts, but for a long time i've wanted to write a sex scene where the pov character, like, doesn't have flowerly language for what it feels like to have sex? not even in terms of ~romance~ because for their first time in this fic, they're angry with each other and not romantically inclined at all, just, no long tangled sentences with metaphors about what sex feels like, just that it feels fucking good and they want to do it again because it feels good to do. so i'm glad i got to do that here uwu

thank you stevie!!!!!! i love talking about this fic, and about Them

(link if anyone's intrigued)

[dottie-wan-kenobi]

ooh pls tell me about cql wangxian in mdzs world 🌸

ahh that one is fun!! it's for a kinkmeme prompt, and what I've written so far is mostly outsider POV (+ lxc pov) of wangxian acting really weird lmao

they're doing crazy things like... not tormenting the cloud recesses with their sex life, and wwx isn't sitting in lwj's lap, and making lxc think that wwx has been cursed to lose his memory or something

here's a snippet of it:

“So you’re doing okay? Really?” “Yes, Wei Wuxian.” “And you haven’t hit your head recently or anything? Or have I? Zewu-jun, do you know if Lan Zhan and I have hit our heads recently?” Lan Xichen stares at him, growing a bit concerned. “Neither of you have indicated so in your letters… Wangji, Wei Wuxian, do either of you need to see a healer?” “No.” “Nope! Hahaha no we’re fine.”

[ao3feed-xicheng]

life's so fun (don't need to worry about no one)

by cloudrecesses Jiang Cheng and Lan Xichen bump into each other at the beach yoga class while on holiday to escape from their hectic lives in the entertainment industry. feat. model!JC and actor!LXC and also actors WWX and LWJ~ written for Lan Xichen's birthday week 2023. Happy birthday to our bestest boy, LXC!!! Words: 3076, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: 魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù, 魔道祖师 | Módào Zǔshī (Cartoon), 魔道祖师 | Módào Zǔshī (Webcomic), 陈情令 | The Untamed (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: M/M Characters: Jiāng Chéng | Jiāng Wǎnyín, Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén, Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī Relationships: Jiāng Chéng | Jiāng Wǎnyín/Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén Additional Tags: Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Thirsty Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén, Just Lan Xichen being Thirsty for Jiang Cheng, Gay Panic, Fluff and Crack, POV Jiāng Chéng | Jiāng Wǎnyín, POV Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén, First Meetings, Meet-Cute, Model Jiāng Chéng | Jiāng Wǎnyín, Actor Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén, Simp Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén's Birthday via https://ift.tt/p2ZYbSB

[llycaons]

ep24 (pt 2): wwx and lxc best brothers in law and I stand by it

I was worried this ep would be boring but it has not one, not two, but THREE great character-driven conversations, and this first one coming up that's one of my favorites scenes in the whole show. it's time for LAN XICHEN'S INTERVENTION TALK

people call this a shovel talk, and that annoys me because 1. they are way more popular in fanfic than I think they are in real life and 2. he's not threatening wwx, he's reminding him that people care about him and try to keep that into account and whatever is going on it's bad for you and we can HELP you!. it's not quite an intervention, and it's undertaken as much for lwj's sake as wwx's, but it's close. and I believe that lxc is fond of wwx. he likes him!

wwx taking liberties with the actual sect leader is really funny esp since lxc is so polite about it and wwx is like super embarassed immediately after. he doesn't overreact like lwj, so wwx is properly chastened

famous foreshadowing line

YES YOU DO??!!!! this is coming immediately after jc's scene lamenting that wwx isn't there to help lmao

very funny of him. he's like 'oh hehe I'll come to him if he can't come here! visiting my friend who's copying texts and just watching him will be super fun!' boy you are so far gone you're happy at the idea of just sitting there watching him write...

the double meaning here really slams you in the chest. I can see why people consider it a shovel talk but it's really not! he just wants wwx to understand people (lwj) care about him and are trying to help him

it feels like this is THE most direct acknowledgement of what wwx and lwj have going on, at least as of yet

he is but. buddy. buddy

oh and this short argument is enthralling. ALL their issues piling up

jc pushes wwx down expecting him to be able to defend himself, and when he can't he's confused and blames him...and the kicker is, when he actually goes to try to help him, wwx tells him to stay away. another microcosm of their relationship...

wwx is being super frustrating but jc really can't wrap his head around not knowing something huh. he just can't accept a change without understanding why it happened

this scene is sooo sad...jyl crying in the shrine, wonderinf ig wwx will leave them, wwx reassuring her of course not, where would I go? but that's not really an answer, is it? I don't think wwx wants to leave LP, or ever truly wanted to, but he can have conflicting feelings about his home as a site of great trauma for him, a place he no longer feels he can contribute to, and a place where he faces verbal attacks daily. after jyl left, it was really not a healthy environment for him...

you wound me!

he is her little boy...she will forgive him anything *flashes forward* well almost anything

probably for the best

from wwx pov it was as if a large purple savior descended from the clouds with the most delicious food he'd ever eaten in his life and offered him a permanent home. of course he's attached

...given how trusting he was of strangers giving him food, it's a good thing nothing else bad happened to him. well, maybe he had good intuition even back then for people he shouldn't trust. he's been a really good judge of people overall excepting his initial judgement of lwj, and of jgy

[theimpurelily]

Dear Podficcer Letter for ITPE 2024

Hello! Thank you for your hard work! This is my first time doing this so sorry if there is anything a little confusing and if my fandom list are a bit small. I'm kinda just tipping my toes into this since it's my first time doing any gift exchange/fandom event and I'm new to podficcin.

Podfic likes

Any length and rating is good for me!

Intro/outro songs - I just think they're neat!

SFX - Being a fan of Scum Villain I like hearing how people do effects for the System. They also help me really get immersed into the story

Character voices - I find them really fun but I don't mind when people opt out of doing voices (accents aren't necessary)

Podfic dislike (honestly not a lot since I don't really know what I don't like)

Commentaries during the story but little comments at the end are cool.

Green Light! (borderline just looking at the tags I use the most lol none of these are necessary just what I really like)

AUs

Romance - I don't mind a platonic relationship focused fics but I'm a sucker for romance

Fluff

Case fic

BAMF Character name

Protective Character Name

Crack taken seriously

Hurt/Comfort

Getting together

Established relationships

Found family

Soulmate AUs

Sick Fics (or any type of character A gets hurt and character B takes care of them)

Canon typical violence

Sexual content (not needed but I won't say no)

I don't mind major character death as long as it's the "they died but got better" kind since it goes with the territory in some of my randoms (looking at you Módào Zǔshī and Scum Villain)

Incest

Idiots to lovers or friends to lovers

Third person POV

Yellow Light!

Omegaverse: Not a huge fan of the constant calling the other omega and alpha but the idea of the dynamics is really interesting to me so I can overlook if the fic has a lot of stuff I like

Rape - non con (only exemption is if it's consensual non-con, once again looking at you Módào Zǔshī)

Character bashing, as long as it's not any of the main couples I have listed I'm down

First person POV

RED DNWs:

Unhappy endings (I know I said I was fine with character death but….let there be some kind of hopeful ending)

Waterworks and scat

Dead Dove Don't Read

Second person POV

Character/Reader

Fandoms:

Sk8 the Infinity:   Reki/Langa as the main focus This is where I love the fluff, found family and getting together

Under the Oak Tree: Rifan/Maximilian as main focus All the soft love here and established relationship.

Fruits Basket: Kyo/Tohru or Kyo/Yuki I've loved this fandom all the way back when it was still being published! I will love pretty much anything from here.

What I'm down to record! All my greens, yellows and reds and from above apply here as well!

Sk8 the Infinity Reki/Langa as the main focus

Sasaki and Miyano Sasaki/Miyano They're so soft and sweet!

The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System: Any ship goes but my favorite are - Luo Binghe/Shen Qingqiu, Mobei-Jun/Shang Qinghua and Original Shen Qingqiu/Yue Qingyuan This is my latest obsession! I will love to do something from this fandom

Módào Zǔshī (any variation of the fandom): Any ship goes but favorite are - Lan Wanji/Wei Wuxian, Jin Ling/ Lan Sizhui, Jiang Cheng/Lan Xichen Watched the donghua and just started to read the books, I'm in love.

The Disabled Tyrant's Pet Palm Fish: Li Yu/Mu Tianchi It’s such a tiny fandom and it needs love!

I'll try to start organizing and making some of my bookmarks visible if that will help <3 my name on ao3 is ImpureLily

[10thmusemoon]

6 and 8 for the ask game!

6. a fic that made you laugh/cry

Can't Erase the Day, aka the cumplane dads au twitter thread had me crying at multiple points, it's 80k and rated E

Shen Jiu Da-ge's Day Off always makes me laugh, it's part of a series but can be read stand alone. Modern Au where Shen Jiu befriend Mu Qing online over their shared love of the Violet Spider's films. Supporting cast is YQY as Sj's boyfriend and Lan Xichen as Shen Jiu's therapist convincing him that Friends are a thing people can have.

one that made me laugh AND cry is They Have Taken Photographs of Our Footprints in the Dust, Star Wars, Chirrut changes his answer every time someone asks how long he's been married to Baze. Even if you've never watched Rogue One, this one shot is very sweet and fun to read.

8. a fic about family relationships

Not All Roots, a Yunmeng shuangjie fic by varnes

Even Loved Ones Scatter (Like Petals in My Hand), Jin Ling pov dealing with the fact that Jiang Cheng has hanahaki, xicheng at the very end

[anotherlinewithout-a-hook]

(Preface : Okay so gollowing the news of Moonbin I have not been coping well and it is currently 4a.m as I write this. I guess in a weird way this is healthier coping mechanism than my other one's. So I am diving into different theories because I would much rather think about 3zun than....yeah.anyhow, my mind is still scattered so please excuse me if the wording and order and grammar is off. ) That being said,

This was really interesting to read! And as 3zun and the Yi City arc are quite literally most of my favourite parts of MDZS, CQL and all other abbreviations linked to this series. I had some thoughts.

I am not trying to argue or start anything, because I truly did enjoy the post above. And hearing from someone with like, you know...actual knowledge on literature. (As opposed to me ranting to my friend who knows nothing of MDZS qnd me who knows next to nothing of literature.) Also I am *not* a literature major(although I wish to be, sigh) my highest qualification is English A levels (which include a lot of literature but is not comparable to Uni Grad) so my thoughts have nothing to do with the structure from a literature point of view. Rather, how I interpreted the story.

I have watched all of the live action and donghua, however I have only read the manhua up till chapter 250 and I have about 40 chapters(excluding the extra chapters) of the book left to go. So my opinion on this is based only on that! Maybe my thoughts will have altered once I finished those.

So, with the parallel thing, I guess it had never been in the front of my mind. Like subconciously I noticed some similarities. But like OP I also think it is more fun to think about them as more than parallels BUT also the idea that they could be parallels is thought provoking.

I like the concept of the parallel in this instance(once again from a reader's pov) because it highlights exactly what I love about MXTX. The fact that her books can be interpreted thousands of ways based on your walk of life and all that. Also that the characters represent real people.

Where I get confused with this is the actual meaning of parallel. I have not studied literature in depth so I know of the concept but not deeply. The definition I am working with is this:

But in this definition, does that mean it is okay that the characters aren't exactly similar?

Because the way I understood it, if we used the more common comparisons (XC and XC, JGY qnd XY qnd SL and NMJ) then a comparison can be drawn because not only are their story lines similar, but so are their characteristics. So it becomes easier to see how the two arcs emphasize each other, which I think is the main point of a parallel?

Whereas if we look at it from annon's perspective, the comparisons drawn share a theme, but not an arc or even similar characteristics the way I see it. Is it then still a parallel if the story lines (because of the order of events)are so different?(or is this what a parallel is all along?)I am unclear on this so if someone can explain this to me, it would be great!

Either way the parallel notion made me compare the characters and that made me think more about their stories and what they represent to each of us. (Which I have been doing since 2019 seriously pls send help.)

Seeing as I don't understand fully what a parallel is, I am just going to draw Comparisons between the different Characters and Arcs and leave everyone to their own thoughts

Much like OP, I naturally assumed the comparison would be between these two so my thoughts on that.

There are a lot of similarities between all of them if we look at it from this perspective.

Similarities Lan Xichen and Xiao Xingchen

- Both meet their eventual (arguable) human form of a downfall at a time of loss.(XXC of his bestie [and eyes] and LXC of his home). 《Actually, in CQL Lan Xichen meets Jiggy on those teachings when they present the gift with Huaisang, yet for some reason I vividly remember Xichen in MDZS meeting Jiggy for the first time while in hiding. It could be that CQL changed it up for the sake of the audience but it could also be because of my terrible memory and my disorganized thoughts. This may not seem like an important change but here's the thing, if XC met Jiggy first as a member of the Nie Sect, then there was inherent trust on his part as he trusts the Nie Clan. It also changes Jiggy's intention if he already knew of Xichen's status amd kindness.》

- Both end up feeling as though they have failed on a basis of their moral compass nearing the end of their arc.

- Both are seen to be this pillar of morality within the story but a deeper look at their stories proves otherwise.

- They have a strong moral compass, yet a gentle approach(as opposed to their counterparts, SL amd NMJ). But this gentle approach is what causes their lapse of judgement?(if I can call it that?)

- Light element in their dynamics.

- They were both warned but chose to see the good in people(which technically goes against Lan Xichen's upbringing but makes sense with his walk of life) A-Qing aka "Little Blind" warned Xingchen continuously and expressed her distrust (and dislike) of Xueyang *especially in the novel*. As did Da-ge of Jiggy but this I saw more of in the live action(though, I just may not have reached that part in the book).

- They both come from a secluded background that doesn't really allow room for questioning their teachings? (To be fair no one really knows what happens on the mountain, but how much room does Xingchen have to question his teachings when he learns from Baoshan Sanren alone and is seperated from the rest of the world).

Xingchen is physically seperated from the world, and while it may seem Xichen isn't, I like to argue emotionally/mentally he is. Besides the Cloud Recesses being quite far from everything already, their teachings are done by Lan Teachers and they live in a weird moral Utopia where Good and Bad can clearly be divided, which cannonically does not stand true.

- Death. Xiao Xingchen's physically and Lan Xichen's emotionally. It really stands out to me when Wei Wuxian says to Xueyang (The spirit in this bag does not want to come back. It is utterly broken, fragmented. Something along those lines.) Which I think is how Xichen feels after Guanyin temple.

(There are many more but, yeah)

Differences between Lan Xichen and Xiao Xingchen

- One the room they are allowed to deal with their emotions. Xingchen roams the world with his bestie for a while. They are free to talk about their emotions and help each other cope. And it works for them. They share a similar world view and have similar goals.

However Xichen and his bestie in this case Mingjue, don't have time for that. They are clan leaders and can't be acting on emotions alone. And also have so much shit to get done. At first glance Lan Xichen is good, but the more you look at it, thete is no way he could have been without severely repressing his emotions.

- The third party(not because they are of less importance but in order that they entered XC²'s arcs) provides something different for them. Jiggy provides Lan Xichen a world away from High Class Society, comfort and the simplicities of life.

Xingchen seems to like how unserious (pos)life is with Xueyang. It seems he and Song Lan where so busy trying to eradicate evil and do right and start their sect not based on blood line. Not to mention how serious SongLan(and Da-ge) are. Jiggy takes care of Xichen(wherw Xichen has never been nurtured), while Xingchen takes care of Xueyang (where Xingchen has never really had anyone to nurture). Which I feel they both needed.

I don't fully understand annon's comparison but I feel it is always important to look at different views. So here is what I picked up from OP's analysis and theirs.(My interpretations might be wrong though)

Similarities bt. Xingchen and Nie Mingjue

-Disability narratives (or what they represent in their arcs)

- Both are within the novel and manhua(if I remember correctly) seen as standards for morality. And it is mentioned or at least highlighted quite clearly(to me) that they are in the different forms of media of the series.

- Their disability is taken advantage of by Xueyang and Jiggy, to lead them to their end after gaining their trust.

- They are both praised within the system that the major clans uphold and promote. They are at the top due to simple luck.(If you know about kpop, this could be simplified to BTS' song Baepsae. Xingchen qnd Mingjue are the Hwangsae or the one's feeding off of a silver spoon and Jiggy and Xueyang are left eating the crumbs of the system).

The differences between Xiao XingChen and Nie Mingjue

- Their approach. Yes they are moral paragons, but Xingchen has a more gentle approach that allows room for reformation. He is strict with his moral code but he is not as harsh or hot headed as Mingjue is. Ironically had each of them had a little more of the other's traits their arcs may have looked drastically different.

- This one is obvious but you know, the nature of their disabilities. (OP spoke about this). Xingchen is physically blind, and he was in control of the situation as he chose to give Song Lan his eyes. He has experienced life with his sight before and gave it up due to his personal belief and moral reasoning.(one could argue he didn't give it up willingly but felt it was the correct thing to do).

Da-ge has never had this chance. Qi- deviation is heriditary in his family and inherrits it. Much like someone who by today's standard we would call neurodivergent, his brain is just built that way. That has always been his view of the world. Made worse by the fact that his father did too! (Invisible disability is also different in some aspect to a visible disabilty, but I think someone with more experience with both should rather speak on this as I only have experience with the former.)

- Their experiences with I guess the antogonists(for lack of a better word) of the arcs?(Jiggy and Xueyang). Mingjue hadn't always hated Jiggy. He was the one who took him in and trained him and promoted him and even reccomended him to the Jin clan. He hasn't always been against him. Compared to Xingchen. Every run in prior to Yi City that he had with Xueyang was negative. Literally.

- Their downfalls were brought by due to different reasons. Yes they were both taken advantage of but also, Da-ge knew it was Jin Guangyao. But he trusted Xichen's judgement. He gave Jiggy the benefit of the doubt against his will, because they were sworn brothers (brought to you by my dearly beloved, Xichen) Whereas Xingchen gave Xueyang the benefit of the doubt from the get go off his own accord.

- Their deaths, although brought upon by other people, are different in nature. Da-ge's death was inevitable. Everyone, even Huaisang was always constantly holding their breath since Da-ge started cultivating amd showing signs. He was going to die at some point, Jin Guangyao sped up the process and made it much more painful than iy needed to be.

Whereas Xiao Xingchen could have continued to roam the Earth until he ascended really. (I know there is no ascension in MDZS as it is low fantasy but it is a metaphor, okay?). That being said their deaths were still painful to watch.

I guess this is part one? Thank you to OP and Annon for discussing this. And bringing the topic up. Once again, these are all just my thoughts and probably not what the author intended.

This isn’t a very popular opinion in the fandom but I think that XY & JGY, XXC & NMJ, & to some extent Song Lan & LXC parallel each other. XY & JGY are class narratives, XXC & NMJ are disability narratives (bc qi deviation is an actual condition in Chinese medicine) & Song Lan & LXC are displacement narratives. Song Lan is affected by the destruction of Baixue Temple while LXC is affected by the destruction of Cloud Recesses. Cql plays up the parallel by having XY get involved with the Wens.

It's a very interesting angle, Anon. The literature grad in me immediately wants to dig my nails into the source material (which, as a disclaimer, I haven't read much of at all. Most of my narrative knowledge comes from CQL. So, as always - take this with a grain of salt).

I would argue that any interpretation, popular or unpopular, should not be as straightforward as a direct parallel between each character in a certain group, simply because it's more fun and narratively rich to mix things up rather than simply using character B as a mirror or vehicle for meaning in character A's development. So that said, for the themes you've pointed out, it's very interesting to consider the alternately parallel characters - for instance, placing XXC and NMJ in parallel to each other when the easier interpretation would pair XXC with LXC, or SL with NMJ for their similar personalities and light/dark motifs.

I feel like the class narrative of XY and JGY speaks for itself, considering the main plot's occupation with status, power and orthodoxy, but where you could interpret XXC's blindness as allegory and compare his "blind trust" of XY with LXC's trust of JGY (which is a metaphor I'm not entirely happy making, to be honest, because I must stress: this interpretation reduces XXC's blindness to just an allegory, and I don't have enough knowledge of the novel to claim that as a true criticism of the source material or not), you can equally claim XY takes advantage of XXC's disability to manipulate him, in the same way that JGY orchestrates and uses NMJ's qi deviation for his own advantage.

In both examples, their 'weakness' is exploited and causes them a moral downfall, wherein NMJ and XXC were both once held up as paragons of virtue in that same system that discriminates against XY and JGY. It might also be interesting to compare the nature of their disabilities as well, within the context of the novel: XXC gives up his eyes for SL, yet another virtuous act, but NMJ's qi deviation is hereditary, and holds some stigma due to its - quite literally deviant - nature. Then we have SL and LXC, who both endure the traumatic destruction of their homes, and the displacement that comes after. Interestingly, LXC finds refuge with JGY and happily 'lowers' himself to JGY's status, while SL never gets that opportunity to find another refuge. He gets the inverse: Yi City, where (to circle back to the more popular parallel) he instead mirrors NMJ in that he is also reduced to something deviant in nature.

[wangxianficrecs]

🔒 Drag Me Into Your Coffin (I Will Drag Your Sins Into The Light) by the5leggedCricket

🔒 Drag Me Into Your Coffin (I Will Drag Your Sins Into the Light)

by the5leggedCricket

G, 2k, Wangxian

Summary: During the events in the GuanYin Temple, Jin GuangYao tries to drag Lan XiChen into death with him. When Lan XiChen next opens his eyes, he is faced with a—very alive—Jin GuangYao in Koi Tower, and a Jin ZiXun who is trying to force alcohol down his throat. Lan XiChen has a choice: smile and comply or take a stand once and for all—while still smiling, naturally. AKA: Lan XiChen goes Off™ Kay's comments: This story was so much fun! Lan Xichen basically travelled back in time from Guanyin Temple, so he was in an emotionally fraught place and ready to Go Off™ and it was absolutely beautiful to read him shredding the Jins to pieces. Excerpt: Jin ZiXun was speaking again. “The Jin Sect and the Lan Sect have always been like one family. We’re all the same. My two Lan brothers, if you don’t drink this, you’d be looking down on me!” Lan XiChen liked to think himself mild-mannered. All his life he’d tried to live by the rules, thinking discipline and self-control would keep him from making the same mistakes his father had made. But looking at Jin GuangYao, he realized he’d been so wrong. A sudden fury overtook him. His smile, still on his face even after dying, hardened. “Are you not looking down on us?” A hush fell over the room. “You say we are like family. Yet you dare ask us to discard our principles, the very foundations of the Lan Sect, to satisfy your pride.” “Arrogance is forbidden,” WangJi helpfully added. Lan XiChen had not expected him to be sitting here at his side. The last time he had seen him, WangJi had been on the other side of the coffin, one hand reaching for him, naked desperation on his face. Now, his face was carefully neutral. He looked so much younger, happier, free of the burden of decade-long sorrow. Sorrow that Lan XiChen had helped put there. He'd made so many mistakes.

pov lan xichen, canon divergence, time travel, time travel fix-it, time travelling lan xichen, bamf lan xichen, everybody lives, good sibling lan xichen, good person lan xichen

~*~

(Please REBLOG as a signal boost for this hard-working author if you like – or think others might like – this story.)

[cqlfic]

Unexpected Solutions

link to AO3 AUTHOR: Eleanor_Fenyx (@eleanorfenyxwrites) G, 6299 words, 1/1

RELATIONSHIPS: Lan Wangji / Wei Wuxian, Lan Xichen / Nie Mingjue BLURB: lxc, nmj, lwj visit the burial mounds

SUMMARY:

Evilteddybear requested: I always love a LWJ/WWX fic where the sect leaders, especially Lan Xichen, Nie Mingjue, and Lan Qiren, come to the Burial Mounds and see what it's like before attacking, try to negotiate.

--//--

“I will take him the letter myself,” Lan Wangji states, voice pitched low and steady. Though it’s an obstinate, unmovable tone that Lan Xichen has heard far too many times before, he can’t help but feel that it’s his duty to put up at least something of a token argument. He can never seem to argue with anyone but Lan Wangji, but even then he almost always ends up bowing out as gracefully as he can under the strength of his headstrong brother’s will.

“Wangji, it’s not safe…”

“Wei Ying will not hurt me.”

“I didn’t say that he would.”

“The Wens are not a threat.”

Lan Xichen sighs heavily and pauses as they reach a landing to close his eyes against the inevitability of his little brother getting to have his way.

sort-of fixit, what if other sect leaders saw the burial mounds, and realized that it’s just a bunch of farmers trying to survive, prompt fill, lan xichen POV

[link to all bookmarks]

[winepresswrath]

Very fun how Wei Wuxian is simultaneously shocked and kind of confused. He’s realizing he might have actually have lost this shamelessness competition, because it turns out that when your brother thinks you might have been complicit in the death of someone you both loved, you can... sob pitifully and make him feel like total shit? Even if you actually did it? That is an option to some people? Disgusting. Have the common courtesy to throw yourself off a lava cliff instead.

Lan Wangji, conversely, is not confused about anything except whether he’s going to make it out of this room without snapping and doing a murder.

[deathbyoctopi]

writing pattern tag game

Ok, ok, let's see what comes out of this! XD for your curiosity, @fieri-sentio-et-excrucior and @10holmes

Rules: List the first line of your last 10 posted fics and see if there’s a pattern.

They were benders, Tenzin remembered thinking the first time he saw them. (From A way out of extinction, a Legend of Korra fic.)

His new master was fussy, Xiao Xingchen quickly learned. (From When Song Lan's away, the cats will play, a xuexiao fic.)

It was a festive event. (From Not on a bronze mirror, a tteotm Xiao Lin / Tantai Jin fic)

“Close your eyes, a-Yang…” (From Wet cat dreams and Fish out of water, two xuexiao fic twins.) ((Counting them together because they intentionally have the same first line! Hahaha, cheating!))

Mo Xuanyu was idle, enjoying the sunset from a high balcony. (From From golden husk, a paper flower, a xuanyang fic)

Wei Wuxian felt a chill down his spine, but he assumed it was either because the blanket lay discarded at the feet of their bed, or due to Lan Zhan’s hardness buried deep inside his body. (From Wei Ying's day off, a wangxian fic).

The pleasure houses of Jinlintai were a world of lights hiding dark shadows and fragrant silks hiding sharp secrets. (From Gentle breeze, cold frost, sweet crimson drizzle, a songxuexiao fic).

“Xichen! Wangji!” (From Let Wangji do the talking, a jadecest fic)

“Snow! Da-ge! Come look, da-ge! It’s snow!” (From A fluffy prision, a niecest fic)

Jinlintai was hideous. (From Secrets light as a feather, a jadecest fic,)

So... What do all these words worming around tell us??

I see a few examples of starting sentences to show the feelings of the pov character, or somethimes their thoughts. A more descriptive setting is also shown sometimes, but often with a subjective point of view because it's still the character's opinion.

I also like to start with a line of dialogue, sometimes! To show who is directly opposite whomever is talking (and sometimes you can tell who that is just by their words >w<). Setting a scene just by having two characters talk is something I love doing, you can get such a good gist of their personality and the circumstances they find themselves in with so little <3

However, a long sentence can also go far if it shows an unexpected surprise for the reader (like wwx over there in num. 6 XD)

And 4 out of these 10 fics have already in their opening line something directly connected to the heart or the conclusion of the fic... foreshadowing with a high-intensity laser, here! XD

That was fun! I reread more of my stuff that I care to admit, with this game...

Thanks!

[words-writ-in-starlight]

So I’ve feelings about ur two ficlets of NHS offering NMJ his body and when I said feelings I meant that I’m crying like a baby rn but I’ve to ask bc I’m a sadist how do u think LXC reacted when he realises that NMJ is back? Happy to kinda see his sworn brother? Guilty bc of his part in NMJ death? Guilty bc he knows that NMJ would have wanted him to take care in NHS but apparently he did not do a good job about that? :)

Ha HA, sorry about this incredibly dialogue-light 3zun Angst Chat that doesn’t even have NMJ in it.  I had to cut it in half because it got long and I have another ask about this exact concept anyway so w/e.

(the Nie Brothers Ritual Thing, which I’m increasingly starting to think I should title)

It’s Wangji who warns him.  And it is a warning, make no mistake, with the precise way that Xichen’s brother comes and sits at the table and pours them both exacting measures of tea.  Wangji visits him with the sort of meticulous scheduling that they once kept to when visiting Madam Lan, and today he is somewhat windswept and it should be another four days before their next appointment.  But he comes, and sits, and then says, with the kind of quiet bluntness that Xichen has always appreciated, “There is something you should know.”

Xichen sighs and sips his tea.  It’s the sharp morning blend that Wangji prefers, which is not a good sign.  If he was hoping to appease Xichen, hoping to appeal for help from the elder brother who, even now, probably couldn’t refuse him, it would be something softer, more soothing.  This means that Wangji is trying to brace Xichen for something.

Xichen doesn’t know what else he could be braced for, these days.  

He finishes the cup in silence and sets it down, and Wangji fills it again, because he has the good grace not to pretend that he’s inscrutable to Xichen.  Xichen waits until the cup is full and the pot restored to its resting place, and then says, ���What is it, Wangji?”

It would be a lie to say that Xichen expects it to be about anything but Jin Guangyao.  A-Yao.  His youngest sworn brother, with his gentle smile and whip-sharp tongue and bloody, bloody hands.  For the first time in decades, Lan Xichen misunderstands his brother.

“Someone else has used the sacrifice ritual,” is what Wangji says.

Xichen does the math, quickly, and tries to think of anyone who might still be loyal to Jin Guangyao.  His own collateral guilts, the price of his years of inaction, have been tallied meticulously since he went into seclusion five months ago--Jin Rusong, Qin Su, the Wens.  But who might have survived Jin Guangyao’s death throes, to bring him back?  A disciple in Lanling, seeking revenge?  How much does Jiang Wanyin hate his brother?  How much did Jin Rulan love his uncle?

And then Wangji speaks again, and Xichen’s thoughts come to a halt so quickly that his ears ring.

“Nie Mingjue is coming to Cloud Recesses.”

The world reels around Xichen, his hands shaking as they come to rest on the tabletop.  Wangji reaches out to touch his shoulders--Sizhui really has been good for him--and waits, holding Xichen steady as he breathes, and breathes, and breathes.

It isn’t until Xichen’s hands have stilled that Wangji says quietly, “I am sorry, xiongzhang.  There wasn’t--a kind way to tell you.”  And he would know, of course he would know, Xichen’s ever-steady brother who chased any word of the Yiling Patriarch like it would kill him to stop.

“Who--?” Xichen chokes out.

Wangji closes his eyes, sits back on his heels.  He is Hanguang-jun, one of the finest cultivators of their day, and he has been as strong and youthful as he was the day he left seclusion all the years since.  Now Xichen thinks he looks very tired.  Too old for this.  They grew up in a war and came of age in a genocide and Xichen allowed it and Wangji lost nearly everything in it, and he wishes that the world hadn’t come to settle so firmly on Wangji’s shoulders, after everything.

“His brother.”

Bile gathers at the back of Xichen’s tongue.  He drinks more of the sharp tea, bitter and beginning to be oversteeped, to wash it away.

Xichen can picture Nie Huaisang perfectly--as he was when they were young, when he was a student at Cloud Recesses four times over and Xichen was amused at the idea of stern, driven Mingjue trying to harass his brother into studying.  Like a hunting dog trying to corral a cat, while Huaisang blinked liquid black eyes and pouted and refused to be managed.

Xichen can picture A-Yao, dimpled and quiet and brilliant, at his elbow.

Xichen blames Nie Huaisang for the death of Jin Guangyao.  Xichen blames himself for the manipulations of Nie Huaisang.  Xichen is grateful to Nie Huaisang for his brother’s happiness.  Xichen hates Nie Huaisang for making him complicit, one last time, without even the cold comfort of knowing if he had truly been used.  Xichen loves Nie Huaisang because he knows how to love him, how to protect his dage’s brother, with the surety of years of practice.

Mingjue will be so angry that Xichen did not stop this.

“When?” Xichen whispers, and Wangji, brilliant Wangji, knows what he is asking.

“He was perhaps two hours behind us.  Wei Ying will stall him at the gate, if you need longer.”

“No,” Xichen says, and he cannot hope to make his voice strong, but he manages to keep it from shaking.  “Let him in."

“Xiongzhang,” Wangji says, watching him with their family’s brilliant golden eyes like he’s seeing every fracture line hidden under Xichen’s skin.  He thinks he’s mostly fracture lines, these days.  “This was not your fault.”

“No,” Xichen agrees, bringing one hand up to cover his own eyes.  The clear, pale light streaming through the paper covering the window seems very bright, suddenly.  His eyes are burning.  “Like so many things, this was not my fault.  Not in any way, except in idleness.”

He does not need to see Wangji’s face to know that he is only barely holding back an argument, by the iron hand of his self-control and the precepts against arguing with seniors and family members.  Wangji only follows those precepts when it suits him, these days--Chief Cultivator is a title that buys a great deal of leeway--but he keeps his silence.

Xichen’s brother has always been kind.  He drinks his oversteeped bitter tea and pretends that he does not see the escaped tears running down Xichen’s cheeks.