#anti Jiang Fengmian

[sandontshengshou]

Day 3829 of seething and coping over the fact that despite making Jiang Cheng feel like he was worthless to his OWN FATHER by relentlessly and publicly favouring his other son/ward?, he ALSO managed to deeply traumatise said boy by making him promise to place the priorities of the Jiang Sect (a.k.a his own biological kids) over Wei Wuxian’s own life like the kid never even mattered to him!!! Fucking sublime!

[jcs-singular-slut-strand]

Made a tiktok video a while back about how much I hate Jiang Fengmian but I had turn off the comments because everyone was just talking about how much they hate Yu Ziyuan like THIS AINT ABOUT HER GO MAKE YOUR OWN VIDEO PLEASE AND THANK YOU

[ayingdidi]

I love to headcanon that Shen Jiu & Yue Qingyuan are the reincarnation of Madam Yu & Jiang Fenngmian, that they're reincarnated in this new life as a karmic retribution. In their first life Madam Yu liked to insult WWX for being the son of a servant, in this one she reincarnated as Shen Jiu who was a slave.

Also, Madam Yu abused WWX and JFM turned a blind eye to it, similar to how Shen Jiu abused LBH and YQY doing fuck all to stop it. Where WWX never acknowledged the abuse, and still respected them until the end, LBH on the other hand gave it back as good as he got. YQY was pierced with thousands of arrows for his inaction & enabling of SJ, and SJ's reputation was smeared to the hell and he died after experiencing inhumane torture at LBH's hand. It's so cathartic to imagine that they're the reincarnation of JFM and Madam Yu, bc that's exactly the kind of fate they deserved.

[danmei-confessions]

Have you considered the fact that they didn’t rely on a sect— especially Jiang sect is because wcz and cssr might not have fucked with them 💀 we don’t know for certain their relationship with jfm who is claimed to be his “friends” … and then never tells that boy anything about his parents. Like yeah I would’ve loved for them to have a back up plan with an inn or something secure but with the SECTS?? They clearly wanted nothing to do with them. And look what putting him in a sect did anyways

.

[tea-cat-arts]

Sometimes I wonder what Jiang Cheng could've become if his parents didn't instill a mix of "crippling fear of failure" and "impossibly high standards" in him. Cuz like, his dad was holding him to the vague standard of being as good as wwx, his mom yelling at him whenever he goofed around like wwx, and then both of them expressed disappointment when he's less successful than wwx. The thing both of them seem to ignore though is that wwx got where he is entirely because he had the freedom to fuck around and find out- he trained tirelessly because he made training fun for himself, he was innovative as a cultivators because he experimented and persisted through failures, and he was able to act in line with the Jiang clan moto because his actions had less political pull than members of the main family. Jiang Cheng on the other hand- if he fucked around he got told to "stop stooping to the level of servants." If his achievements were lesser than wwx's, he got either dismissed by his dad or yelled at by his mom to try harder. And if he picked fights with the Wens, they'd have an excuse to destroy his clan. Like ya- no shit that'd create an adult who's terrified of failure.

The kite game serves as such a good metaphor/embodiment of this set back- with Jiang Cheng never being able to shoot as far as Wei Wuxian because he pulls back and shoots closer the second he misses.

And its sad too because he's shown to be pretty brilliant when he's in "fuck it, we ball" mode. Like, when he's not freezing up, he manages to pull off things like rebuilding his entire clan from the ground up, leading armies and taking back territories from the Wens, and I'm fairly sure he's the only character we see counter the Lan music cultivation techniques (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong on that last one. Also feel free to add any of the other cool shit he did that I'm blanking on at the moment, cuz I know I'm forgetting something).

That being said- even with his anxiety, he's still one of the top cultivators. Imagine what a force of nature he'd be if he could sustain "fuck it we ball" mode

[sonik-kun]

This is actually really mean spirited and so patronising

"I can screenshot too 🤓"

Like is there any need to be such a belligerent asshole?? This is why you can't debate JC antis. Because not only are they unnecessarily rude, they still fail to empathise with JC in the original screenshot and make it into another way to start a pity party for WWX when this wasn't even about him.

JFM was a terrible father figure for BOTH of them.

If there are rumours going around that you favour your own disciple over your own son, so much so that said son thinks you hate him, then you have failed as a parent.

The example this anti provides in their rebuttal is the only canon example of JFM showing any love or even ounce of acknowledgement towards his own son. And that was because he knew he was going to his own death.

Of course JC and everyone else for that matter is going to assume that JFM favours WWX. Because up until that moment, he gave WWX way more attention than he did JC. JC even says that JFM seldom ever held him. And this was even whilst he was still a small child.

JFM overtly favoured WWX. There is no ifs or buts. But even then he failed him as a parent too. He did nothing to pacify Madame Yu's anger towards WWX. And he also put unfair obligations and expectations on WWX.

The point of the original screenshot is to demonstrate that JFM was an all-round terrible father figure for both boys. He may have loved JC, but he sure failed to show it when he was alive (even WWX couldn't rebut JC's point). And JFM did nothing to put JC's insecurities at ease.

Similarly, he did nothing to make WWX's situation any better in the Jiang household and essentially allowed him to be an outlet for Madame Yu's anger.

All JC fans want from JC antis is to sympathise with JC. No one is denying that JFM was shitty to WWX too.

He is partly to blame for the strain on their friendship. But JC antis seem incapable of even understanding that and would sooner prefer to solely blame JC.

Anyways, I'm not directly reblogging the original because this JC anti is clearly a troll. But it's a reoccurring theme I see in this fandom where JC antis can't accept that JC was a victim too. And to accept that whilst JFM didn't favour WWX, he certainly did prima facie and it made WWX's position in the household even more precarious. It was an unfair situation to put both children through.

[ookamikabu]

I'm going to come out and say that the more I re-read MDZS the more I actually HATE WWX.

I know he's a protag so everything is supposed to be about "poor me I've done nothing wrong" but I can't stand those types of people. He would be a person where if he existed in real life I would not be able to be around him.

I've actually become more of a Jiang Cheng apologist (actually, no, because that implies that he's ever done anything wrong).

I read through all the main points and here are a few things that piss me off. Please add on if I missed something:

WWX is obviously favored by JFM and if JC brings up this concern, all WWX says is: "no he doesn't lol you're so silly I'm not his son" TBH WWX wasn't his child but JFM had a son and it wasn't JC

Golden Core transfer. Need I say less (and fuck you Wen Ning for saying JC didn't deserve the core and the power he had wasnt actually his. He cultivated it for YEARS to get it to where it is today. It is NOT WWXs core anymore. Fuck all yall)

WWX defecting from YMJ and going with the Wens when JC had NOTHING. No sect, no support, no family. He's a new sect leader and has no resources or money to do anything or go against anyone. And thanks WWX for defending the people that, you know, massacred his family but whatever. (I understand they were innocent but still, I can tell it would really hurt JC)

Along with the defecting, WWX and LWJ broke into Lotus Pier and BOWED TO MADAM YU AND JFM WITHOUT JCs APPROVAL. DISRESPECTFUL AS HELL I KNOW WHY JC WAS PISSED. WWX had NO RIGHT to be there after everything he had done.

WWX tells JC to leave everything in the past. As usual, he is running away and not accepting any consequences for the many, many, things he's done wrong. If I were JC, I would permanently ban him from Lotus Pier and kill on sight because if he wants to leave things in the past, then that includes WWX.

Lastly, WWX never once defends JC. Whether it be against LWJ, Wen Ning, or other people that say terrible shit to him because they're being petty. Not once does he come to his defense.

To end my rant, WWX is actually a very terrible person (and so is Lan Wangji. Fight me) with no sense and I finally realized it after re reading the book multiple times. Come at me if you want but this is my honest opinion and I get why JC is such an ass because BITCH ME TOO GET OUT OF MY HOUSE.

Hopefully I have some support here but I also know I'm going to get some hate.

[naehja]

Prompt:

After WWx punched Zixuan during the Cloud Recesses studies, both Jiang Fengmian and Madam Yu came. Madam Yu is super pissed because of the break-up of engagement (+ maybe because of other events before coming) and when she sees Wei Wuxian, she is livid and throw Zidian at him to hit him.

Except.

Nie Huaisang was here, next to Wei Wuxian and Madam Yu has not correctly targered WWX. Zidian hits Huaisang brutally, making him fall on the ground, blood coming from a big wound of the chest and the left arm.

Wei Wuxian panicks because his friend is hurt (and Huaisang is less strong than him, Zidian could do a lot of damages).

Madam Yu says that the boy is weak and that if he had a better golden core, it would be nothing. She is not afraid of Mingjue because she sees him as a young man, younger than her.

Jiang Fengmian is sweating with panic because "ho my god, it's the precious little brother of the Nie Sect leader. It could give me so much problems and affect the relations between our sects!"

Lan Qiren wonders how he'll explain THAT to Mingjue. And that he'll have to be VERY diplomatic about it.

Lan Xichen is already near of Huaisang, giving him spiritual enery and saying him words of comfort.

Jin Guangshan thinks that really this women is crazy. Because even he knows that touching Huaisang is a big no no because Nie Mingjue is a very protective brother.

Nie Mingjue is....well he'll absolutely livid when he'll learn that.

Good thing that the Gusu Doctors are very good and that Huaisang will be totally alright after they take care of him, because if he didn't fully recover, Madam Yu would be dead.

[bnnywngs]

The rumors and gossip throughout the cultivation world was wrong from the beginning. The one who created the rumors herself, was beyond wrong in her delusions.

Wei Changze didn't elope with Cangse Sanren.

The Jiang sect leader at that time thought his son, Fengmian, was too enchanted with the rogue cultivator and immortal disciple, and that it interfered with the marriage negotiations between the Jiang and Yu sects. Reasoning, he gave an ultimatum to the couple: leave or die.

"And do not contact my son ever again."

So they had no choice but to leave immediately, in the middle of the night like two outlaws running from fate. It was shameful, but there was nothing they could do. Poor Fengmian, beyond feeling left behind by his two closest friends, will have to marry the one he despises the most at his father's word.

What a leader that Jiang zongzhu is! To resort to blackmailing a couple to get what he wants! Ha! May fate have fun with him!

Wei Changze and Cangse Sanren both curse his name and his person, as well as his passive wife. And even Jiang Fengmian himself. But they moved on, walking the world together hand in hand, and not too soon, they had company - A-Ying and his precious smiles.

Life wasn't so bad, after all. Maybe the decision to leave Yunmeng was for the best in the end.

[jiaoji]

Seeing YZY takes by JC stans is so funny to me, like saying that JFM is worse than her and that he didn’t deserve to marry her…

But didn’t she and her sect forced him to marry her? Didn’t she essentially brainwashed JC to having daddy issues? She didn’t even take the Jiang name???

Like??? She fucked around and found out! And made the people lives around her even worse!

(while I do agree the JFM is shitty it’s because he allowed her to abuse an orphaned child with a whip that his back was full of them)

I can’t find myself to petty her at all knowing those facts.

YZY whole purpouse on life is to make everyone's life miserable and unfortunaly she married a very passive guy that is tired of her and just let things happen.

FGM is bad, but he have some redemptions acts/qualitys, like trying to be a good father for JC and teach him, but YZY throw that off the window just opening her mouth and JC is already too deep into his mother bullshit and imaginary daddy issues (as much as is not THAT imaginary, but less than what YZY says, i mean, FGM love his son very much)

She's not a "girl boss" and drives me insane how people just like her for a 1-2 minutes animation with her being "badass" and because of her looks, when she phisically and verbally abused an orphan child (she's a bully, a 30 years old bully that target a child)

FGM didn't deserved to (forcibly) marry her, thats the only thing they say that is correct, but not in the way they think.

[mifeng-xiaojie]

I will die on the hill that the Jiang Cheng antis who blame Jiang Cheng for never protecting Wei Wuxian from Yu Furen need to stay away from people who have to deal with trauma from childhood abuse.

It does happen that abusive parents will pick one child to single out. The children witnessing their sibling being abused are also being psychologically abused, especially if the parent is verbally abusive to the other children, which Yu Furen was. Saying that Jiang Cheng should’ve protected Wei Wuxian from his mother is disgusting. It was not Jiang Cheng’s job as an actual child to protect another child from an adult. It was Jiang Fengmian’s job, especially because he is the one to bring that child into the situation.

I won’t even go into how it’s likely that no one saw the treatment as abuse since the entire society used corporal punishment for discipline. Antis want to call it all abuse, so let’s call it that.

It is not the job of abused children to protect other abused children, even if one child is getting it worse.

The fact that antis keep saying a 16 year old boy should’ve taken on that burden just because they want to dunk on a character they hate is frankly disgusting.

[least-carpet]

For the shipping ask game, Xicheng and Chengxian?

Hello, anon! This got wildly out of hand, so it's all going under a cut.

Xicheng: Could Ship It

Borrowing this additional option I saw floating around!

I'm not strongly opposed to it, but it's hard for me to see them making it work in a canon universe. The fanart is very cute, though! And I've read some AUs that I thought made a good case, but they involved some thoughtful interventions.

What potential do you see in the ship?

Honestly, like, I just want them to both have something nice, they've had such a hard time. They both understand the hard work and sacrifices involved in sect leadership. I think the argument for it goes something like Jiang Cheng gets a person on his side who is kind to him, and Lan Xichen gets someone who's very reliable and also pretty direct, to heal his presumed post-canon trust issues.

What aspect makes you hesitant?

It just doesn't seem to me that they really enjoy each other? Like I believe they get along just fine and have a comfortable working relationship. I don't think they dislike each other, even. But they don't seem particularly close, even though they're of a rank and have been working with each other for years and years. I want my blorbo (Jiang Cheng) to be loved for his bad personality, not in spite of it!

I also think they would really struggle to communicate—Lan Xichen prefers to smooth things over, but Jiang Cheng reads too much reserve or politeness as rejection and, uh, gets reactive (thank you Jiang Fengmian for giving him the MOST deranged daddy issues, for real). Actually, I think Lan Xichen has a lot of potential to push a lot of Jiang Cheng's dad-related buttons just because of his temperament. (Maybe that's a plus? CRUNCHY.)

It also has the potential to cause some new and exciting political problems for them, which they both prefer to avoid.

Chengxian: Ship It

[lies face-down on the floor and starts hollering]

These two make me fuckin' insane!

What made you ship it?

Two things:

Their mutually happy childhood relationship, their initially compatible dysfunctions (Jiang Cheng is easily embarrassed but secretly wants affection, Wei Wuxian is bad at boundaries and WILL die if you don't pay attention to him -> Wei Wuxian touching Jiang Cheng all the time and receiving his attention, making both of them happy). Their enjoyment of each other. I love a badly-boundaried and devoted teenage relationship, it's delightful. Even before chengxian completely rotted my brain out, there was something specifically appealing about the Lan summer camp era.

The double golden core reveal took me out. I found Wei Wuxian's decision completely appalling to begin with, like viscerally disgusting. (I find it interesting when antis accuse Jiang Cheng of pretending to be upset when he finds out, or of not caring where the new core came from, because I, reader who did not get nonconsensual magic surgery, profoundly Did Not Like It. If it was my own body, I would freak out.) It's a fascinating combination of obsessive devotion and total denial of agency. Wei Wuxian is just like, "Don't worry, I will invent new and unheard of methods of violation for your own good because I can't cope with your despair." That's deranged, my dude. That is Not Normal. And then you find out that Jiang Cheng lost the core saving Wei Wuxian, and he plans to NEVER TELL HIM ABOUT IT. God damn it.

I don't even really care if they kiss, although it's fun when they do. Just reconcile! Reconcile!

What are your favourite things about the ship?

In no particular order:

In a text that is largely pro-Wei Wuxian—not in the sense that everything he does is moral, but in the sense that he's the cool protagonist, and he gets to kick ass and solve mysteries and have a happy ending—this relationship is one that highlights his weaknesses and failures in a very humanizing way. And in order to reconcile, he would actually really have to challenge himself and grow as a person, which I love for him. (I also think Jiang Cheng would have to struggle for it, but, like, dude has demonstrated the capacity to do hard and terrible things even when confronted with his own weaknesses. He's not gonna be cool about it, and he's going to cry and bitch the whole time, but if he thinks it needs to be done and it can be done, he'll do it.)

The lack of boundaries within the relationship, which is a product of the lack of clarity of the type of relation to each other. Are they friends? Are they martial brothers or real brothers? If Wei Wuxian is Jiang Cheng's shixiong, but Jiang Cheng is also Wei Wuxian's sect leader, which takes precedence? (It's clear what should take precedence, but Wei Wuxian just straight-up does not Respect His Authority, even though—by all available evidence—Jiang Cheng is a really good leader. But that lack of respect is also a form of intimacy.) It's super, super messy.

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

By lying to him so extensively, and then by failing to show up for any of his commitments without any explanation, Wei Wuxian really did betray Jiang Cheng a whole bunch of times, and Jiang Cheng's resulting betrayal trauma really is his fault.

You break it, you bought it, coward! Stop running away! (For legal purposes, this is a joke.)

[danmei-confessions]

Jfm and yzy dickriders … personally I’m glad they’re dead but okay

.

[tanoraqui]

☔ for the ask game? (idea you're not sure you'll write, if the emoji doesn't come through)

☔Is there a fic concept you have that you'd like to just explain and share because you're not sure you'll ever write it? If so, what is it?

I kind of dropped out of the MDZS fandom like a rock after finishing my novel-length longfic, and the fic I most regret leaving unwritten is a bullet-point au in which Jiang Fengmian just cannot find his friends' lost son, he gives up, so Wei Wuxian grows up entirely on the streets, scrounging his way to enough cultivation education to invent demonic cultivation (because that's still the kind of person he is), and JFM assuages his conscience a little by inviting a different random clever basically-an-urchin - Meng Yao - into Jiang Sect.

Highlights include:

Meng Yao: wow the obvious fault lines in this family make everyone so easy to manipulate- wait, am I being offered real affection and trust? That's...fine.

Meng Yao trying desperately to hide his background, but he goes to visit his mother when she's ill. Jiang Cheng follows him, because Meng Yao is his best (only) friend, and Jiang Yanli follows Jiang Cheng to make sure he doesn't get in trouble, and then (JYL steps on JC's foot to stop him from saying the first thing that comes to mind) they both react with compassion and sympathy rather than scorn to Meng Shi and her profession. Meng Yao experiences several more Real Emotions.

Teen rogue cultivator Wei Wuxian just kinda. invites himself. to Lan Summer School, on the strength of Cangse Sanren's name. JFM is delighted when he hears, encourages JC to befriend him (Meng Yao: [jealous cat hisses]) and would have invited him home at the end of the summer...if WWX didn't get himself expelled halfway through for punching Jin Zixuan's smug face.

He also crashes Terrible Wen Summer Camp. Gets stuck in a cave with Lan Wangji, etc.

Wei Wuxian has kinda been a Batman-esque vigilante in Yiling (moody, dramatic, clad in black, fights ghosts and also bad guys). When the Wens move in, he shifts to being a more actively anti-authoritarian Batman-esque vigilante. Wen Qing is annoyed. Wen Ning is enamored.

The Wens attack Lotus Pier, because they were always going to attack Lotus Pier next. Jiang Cheng does get his golden core torn out. Wen Ning rescues him, because Wen Ning is always a hero even if Wei Wuxian isn't immediately present. Meng Yao decides it's time to do what he does best...so he promised Jiang Cheng that he'll be back, then goes to the Nightless City and says, "oh golly gee, I, second disciple of Jiang Sect, am so defeated and humbled by the mighty Wen! Can I please join, oh magnificent masters?"

Meanwhile, Wei Wuxian has rescued Lan Xichen (this is gonna get him so many bonus points with his sexy law-abiding nemesis LWJ) , and then gotten himself thrown into the Burial Mounds for snarking at Wen Chao...which is a lot like throwing Brer Rabbit into the briar patch

Sunshot Campaign! With no golden core, JC can't really rebuild Jiang Sect, but he gets reliable intel from a man on the inside and he humbles himself enough to ask Wei Wuxian for tutelage in talismans, and of course you'd literally need to tie him up to keep him from going out and kicking ass.

Wei Wuxian is peak Yiling Patriarch because it's the right thing to do. (LWJ: Come back to Gusu with me (so I can aggressive cleanse your spirit, then maybe dick you down so hard that neither of us can movie for a week))

AFTER THE WAR: Jin Guangshan dramatically recognizes war hero/Wen Ruohan-slayer Meng Yao as Jin Guangyao, his son and new sect member... and Meng Yao, having grown up with the absolute Ride Or Die nature of Jiang Sect, and with more intimate knowledge (via JYL's engagement and YZY's friendship with Madame Jin) of how much JGS sucks, says, "Thanks but no thanks, I will be staying with my sworn brother and sect leader Jiang Wanyin to rebuild Jiang Sect."

It's just about his ambitions, okay! He'll FUNCTIONALLY be Sect Leader; Jiang Cheng literally doesn't have a golden core! (Though he's still absolutely first-rate in swordwork and his talismans are fucking superb. The thing about Jiang Cheng is that he will rise to the occasion, always.) Also, that 'sworn brother' thing was not agreed upon in advance; Meng Yao totally publicly backed him into that corner - in which he didn't mind being. Jiang Cheng is pretty damn sure he's getting the better of this deal, and he's kinda right.

Between JC's prestigious name and insane levels of personal dedication, MY's people skills and equally insane (but slightly more calculated) levels of personal dedication, and JYL securing a very favorable loan from Madame Jin, they hella get Jiang Sect back on its feet.

Meanwhile, WWX has again refused to go with LWJ to learn "proper" cultivation or anything else...and JGS is seeking power, and abusing Wen prisoners of war...

Wen Qing comes to Lotus Pier, finds Meng Yao, and says, "Please help save my brother. We helped save yours. You owe us this much." Meng Yao, being Meng Yao, thinks, I do rather owe here, but this is politically delicate... Who can I foist this off on whom I don't mind seeing torn apart by every righteous sect... and forwards her to Wei Wuxian.

Who does his righteous Wei Wuxian thing

There's a big dramatic meeting of sect leaders & etc about this, in which JGS beats his war drums, etc. etc. Meng Yao feels slightly bad but not, like, that bad. Wei Wuxian tried to steal his brother when they were teenagers, and again while MY was away during the Sunshot Campaign, so he probably deserves to die.

Afterwards, JYL with her unerring Older Sister senses pulls MY (and JC) aside and hisses, "A-Yao, what did you do?"

Do they end up saving the day? Is Wei Wuxian just destined to doom himself with his particular combination of pride, self-neglect, and blithe refusal to play by everyone else's rules? I never actually decided!

[sonik-kun]

In one way, Jiang Cheng is kind of similar to his father, more than Jiang Fengmian might think. I'll explain.

Both JC and JFM loved their best friend dearly. And both lost their best friend from a young age, taking on and promising to protect and shadow a child that isn't even their own thereafter (JL for JC, WWX for JFM). Both proudly stepped into the role of "uncle" for their child and wore that badge with pride.

Furthermore, both JFM and JC stood in WWX's corner. They favoured, prioritised, and sacrificed some aspect of themselves for him to some degree (for JC, it was his life, for JFM, it was his relationship with his wife and son..).

Taking all of this into consideration, it is almost as if JFM just willingly chose to overlook all these traits his own son exhibits. Such as how well JC treats WWX despite everything (just like JFM wanted him to, mind) and is willing to stand up for him even to his own mother.

All of this is done in plain sight for JFM to see and yet he chooses to ignore it and only see JC for all his "bad" traits. Wilfully ignoring any goodness.. Any hint of "Jiang" in him.

JFM really is the biggest JC anti. 😔✌️

[wittytrixter]

Oiya, I don't get this thing with the pro/anti Jiang Cheng camps right now. It's very annoying, and it takes away from real discourse about the manner in which his character chose to move through the world. Must we do it?

Well, I'm not gonna.

I'm halfway through my million and second reading, and I am again stuck on how his perspective/narrative stole everything he loved from himself. Jiang Cheng serves many purposes, but I feel his primary purpose is to establish what happens to people who never question repression.

Poor JC went through it at home, and that's where his story of repression began, as acknowledgment in his house was dangerous. No, Madam Yu wasn't going to beat him about it, but she definitely threw his feelings at him constantly. This dynamic prevented him from returning the Twin Prides promise and prevented him from seeing WWX as an equal-- forever he had that boy on a pedestal or on the floor.

Had Yunmeng not fallen, I can see JC returning the promise and the pair becoming sworn brothers.

Even so, the Lotus Pier house of cards was going to fall one way or another. Madam Yu and Jiang Fengmian (anger and ignorance) fed him too much poison (jealousy). Let's imagine Wen Chao never came back for them, and that Lotus Pier's hostile takeover happened on the Wen timeliness (let's be real, that was their original timeline and that's why they took disciples as hostages to begin with, but who am I?). We're going to refer to these cards as "elephants" for now, because they're fucking enormous issues that just get ignored. Forever.

Madam Yu was wrong in her treatment of her kids. JYL and JC were often mistreated by her. Obviously, also WWX, but we're only a quarter counting him as her child. Elephant #1.

But she was right about JFMs refusal to deal with the Wen clan. 100% right, in fact. Not preparing to stand up against them ensured that Lotus Puer would fall. Elephant #2.

Equally, and this is kinda backward talk, but she was right about JFMs lack of decision about WWX's status in their family. Leaving him an unacknowledged, almost child in their family attracted classist ire from the outside world for both children and put her daughter in an awkward position, too (see phoenix mountain). JFM absolutely had the power to resolve this! He could, at any point, have acknowledged some clan or family status that was permanent and protective for all parties. WWX could have been made a guest cultivator or provided with the same status as a cousin (easier, guys) or emphatically erased Wei Changze's status as a servant, but he didn't. He just whined when it was mentioned. Elephant #3.

We can see the trouble wwx's unidentified status creates for Madam Yu in the Wen confrontation scene: servants should act like servants. Even Madam Yu is unable to identify his status. It has never been spoken. And then, asked to maim a child she's raised, she displaced all that vitriol on the kid (who never asked to be her child and never asked to be taken in by the Jiangs). This lack of clarity limits Madam Yus options to protect wwx, and then her parting words for him? Unforgiveable. Her rage, left unchecked beyond JFM saying "Wife" angrily every so often, is elephant #4.

These dynamics undermine the Jiangs standing in the larger cultivation world, and are left unchecked and undressed (Cloud Recesses arc), and yet JFM refuses to not send WWX on these events, and mounts no defense for him when he makes a splash and interacts naturally with his peers. Also, he can double go to hell for his parting words to WWX because at least Madam Yu didn't shower him with insincere affection and then abandon him at the last moment. Elephant 5.

Further, there is constant comparison between wwx and JC inside of and outside of Lotus Pier. Old news-- elephant 6. No one stands up for JC, aside from wwx, which is infuriating, if you're Jiang Cheng. Honestly.

This dynamic is evident from the beginning, but we see early on that Jiang Cheng's natural reaction is initially rejection and then, left to his own devices, rejoining. The Lotus Pier attack interrupted this process. OK, I know, this is long. If you're still here, I appreciate you. Only Jiang Yanli acknowledges WWX's relational status in the family, and only she mounts any defense of him or his actions. Ever. Jiang Cheng was never taught how to do it or why it's important to do so, aside from one reprimanding comment after WWX nearly died in a cave. Elephant 7.

But--and here comes the point--all these elephants are different forms of repression, squashing JCs ability to recognize the importance of this relationship in his life and pressing every bit of the healthy support contained there into the mud.

So... can we stop expecting Jiang Cheng to have relationship skills that have advanced in a manner that doesn't match his experience? Yes, he had opportunity to grow in the 13 intervening years, but who genuinely grows in isolation? Why would Jiang Cheng trust the world enough to make relationships with other people that pose any challenge to his self-image?

Jiang Cheng is a well written character. Let's fangirl/fanboy/fanthem the genius of the person who committed him to paper so effectively instead of engaging in the behavior he exists to caution us against.