#chaoxi

[sl-vega]

✧Sticking to the Script✧-13

⋆｡°✩ 13-boyfriend vs boy friend

You and Lyney were walking to school together for what felt like the first time in forever. Between studying, after school activities, and your "dates" with Xingqiu, the two of you didn't get to see each other as often.

Sure, you saw each other during rehearsal, but you were too preoccupied with Xingqiu to care anymore. You and Lyney were still on good terms, but you felt a tinge of guilt, because you were ditching your best friend for a relationship that wasn't even real. Even if you tried convincing yourself otherwise.

"Hey Lyney." You said, turning to your friend.

"Yes?"

"I missed this."

He gave you a questioning look. "You know, us hanging out together, it's been a while." You explained, you really did mean it.

"It has." He replied "But having you out of my hair wasn't the worst thing in the world." He quickly added, lightening the mood.

You playfully shoved him. "Archons, let me be sincere for once!"

He rolled his eyes. "Never was your forte."

You glared at him, he shoved you back. "I'm glad that you're happy though." He smiled as the two of you neared the school building.

"You deserve someone who really loves you."

You quirked a brow, confused. Sure, you and Xingqiu got along but you wouldn't call it love.

"Come on, don't give me that look, haven't you seen the way he looks at you? He's down bad." He stated as if it were the most obvious thing.

Your face flushed. You weren't sure what you felt for Xingqiu anymore. You liked him more as a friend, but you didn't know how strong your feelings were. So in usual fashion, you suppressed them (avoiding your problems is naturally the best way to solve them!).

But that was hard, despite not having any classes together, the blue-haired boy always found some way into your schedule.

Staying after school?

He just so happened to be tutoring at that exact same time!

Going to the washroom?

You run into him in the hallway!

Venti said that Xingqiu just wanted an excuse to see you more, Fischl claimed it was fate, and that the two of you were meant to be. Lynette said that Xingqiu was probably jealous of all the time Lyney got to spend with you, hence why he always found some way to see you.

Xingqiu being jealous of Lyney...?

You giggled, just realizing that your train of thought had occupied your entire mental capacity and you weren't listening to a word Lyney was saying.

"(Y/N)? I get that I'm hilarious but something tells me you aren't listening to me."

"Sorry, I just remembered something amusing." You muttered as you made your way to your lockers.

"Pray tell."

"Just something your sister said. She thinks Xingqiu jealous of you. Honestly, I think it's rather ridicu-"

Suddenly a force parted you and Lyney, and a familiar pair of arms wrapped themselves around your waist.

"Good morning darling~"

"Xingqiu?!"

Lyney gave you a look that said enough.

Ridiculous huh? Explain that

Xingqiu pressed a kiss to your neck, you didn't pull away, you enjoyed the affection more than you'd like to admit.

"Morning Xingqiu." You managed to say, even though you were sure your legs were about to give out then and there.

Why the fuck is he being so affectionate all of a sudden?!

You mentally screamed as Xingqiu rested his head on you shoulder, his arms still wrapped around your waist.

"Mornin'"

"Good morning to you too Lyney."

You could've sworn you detected a bit of possessiveness in Xingqiu's voice.

Your "boyfriend" placed one more kiss on your temple before pulling away from you. You already missed his touch.

"I'll see you tommorow yeah?"

You simply nodded as you watched him smile and leave for his first class. You looked back at Lyney who had a smirk on his face.

"Doesn't sound so ridiculous to me~"

"Shut up"

masterlist

<prev ll next>

✧Sticking to the Script✧

Pairing: Xingqiu x [FEM!] Reader

Genre: fake dating, strangers to lovers, slow burn, fluff, angst (?), high school smau, modern smau

⋆｡°✩-Synopsis: Xingqiu just got entered into a special writing contest, the type that's invite only, the theme this year is love, the only problem is that he has zero romantic experience. but he really wants to prove himself as a writer. meanwhile, you just found out that your boyfriend cheated on you, and you need to show him that you're 100% over him, the only problem is that there's no way you can get an actual boyfriend that quickly. clearly, the solution to both of your issues is to fake date each other. it shouldn't be hard for an actor such as yourself, all you need to do is stick to the script.

additional notes:

-FINALLY GOT A CHAPTER OUT

-so sorry for going radio silent you guys

-also shoutout to @ladyninggs for indirectly motivating me to upload this

-she's so nice you guys

-give them a follow

-ALSO POSSESSIVE XINGQIU GUYS

-hehehehehehe

-i love possessive xingqiu

-tumblr is being a bitch rn cuz it won't let me us my usual dividers so I'm stuck with my blue hearts :(

-BUT I GOT A CHAPTER OUT YOU GUYS

-SO PROUD OF MYSELF

(OPEN) Taglist: @freyao7, @thatoneswordgirl, @sn1perz , @latay7 , @willowcandletree , @nmriki0 , @help-whatdoimakemyusername , @httpsrenren, @cupid-spams, @aixaingela, @kaitfae, @luvkvni, @danhenglovebot

[inavagrant-a]

Chaoxi (derogatory).

[lensocstash]

Triple whammy

[innerpalaces]

The Doting Love Story's Female Supporting Role Has Quit - 28

Chapter 28: Dirty Someone Else’s Grave

Nian Chaoxi: "..."

Nian Chaoxi: "Huh?!"

Her pupils trembled, she pointed at herself and stammered, "You, you said I'm your fiancée?"

The handsome young man looked at her with a very gentle gaze, but said firmly, "Yes, Xixi is my fiancée."

Nian Chaoxi: "..."

It seems that there was indeed a big problem with Master Yan's memory. It would be fine if he even forgot his own name while still remembering her, but he remembered her identity wrong.

But after he finished speaking, he looked at her tenderly, as if he was certain that she was his fiancée.

Nian Chaoxi didn't know how he could be so sure when he didn't even know who he was.

So she couldn't help asking, "You even forgot your name, how do you know I'm your fiancée?"

The young man in front of her seemed to be at a loss for a moment, then he said as if it was a matter of course: "Of course I remember. I remember your name is Xixi, and you are my engaged fiancée. Even if I forget everything, I will never forget this."

Nian Chaoxi: "..."

It's true that she had fiancés, and more than one. However, the first one disappeared on the battlefield and his whereabouts were unknown, so he was most likely dead. Although the second one was still alive, she had unilaterally decided to treat him as dead.

Master Yan was so sure that she is his fiancée, she wondered which script he was trying to get.

Nian Chaoxi spent a quarter of an hour racking her brains to prove to him that it was impossible for her to be his fiancée. However, the gentle and easy-going Master Yan in her memory became inexplicably stubborn after his memory went wrong. No matter what she said, he was certain that she was his fiancée and believed it without a doubt.

He just repeated one sentence over and over.

——You are my fiancée, and I will never forget this even if I forget everything.

Nian Chaoxi didn't know why he was so confident, but a quarter of an hour later, she was completely defeated by him.

She stood there depressed for a while, then subconsciously reached out and rubbed her brows.

The next moment, he grabbed her wrist and stopped her movements.

The young man who had been stubborn and refused to listen to her just now had a look of emptiness and guilt in his eyes. He was silent for a while. When Nian Chaoxi was doubting his attitude, he suddenly stretched out his clean hand and wiped the side of her face, his movements gentle and cautious.

It was so gentle that it didn't feel like wiping, but more like caressing.

Nian Chaoxi was a little flustered and subconsciously wanted to retreat.

Then she heard the man in front of her say with a guilty look on his face: "Sorry, I just... I didn't notice that I rubbed mud on your face."

Upon hearing this, Nian Chaoxi subconsciously rubbed her cheek with the back of her hand, wiping off some mud.

Nian Chaoxi: "..." She is not clean anymore!

She looked up and wanted to say something, but she clearly saw the two mud marks she had made on the guilty man's face.

What is this called? Retribution in this life?

Yan Weixing noticed her gaze and immediately wiped his face hard. He looked a little embarrassed and his face turned a little red. It was unclear whether he wiped too hard or was shy.

When Nian Chaoxi looked at Yan Weixing like this, her expression suddenly relaxed, she raised her arm to lightly cover her eyes, and couldn't help laughing.

Really, why should she argue with someone like Yan Weixing?

Since there is a problem with his memory, it is not surprising if he has any kind of wrong cognition. Once his memory is restored, won't everything be clear?

So she waved her hand magnanimously, "Forget it, I won't argue with you."

After she finished speaking, Yan Weixing showed a relieved expression, and said: "It seems that Xixi has remembered it. That's good. I thought you didn't want me anymore."

Nian Chaoxi: "..."

Forget it, just let him think what he wants. She had already realized it. She couldn't compete with someone who had memory loss but still believed in the only memories he had left.

If they continue to disagree like this, they will probably argue until tomorrow.

So she maintained a high-quality silence.

After a while, she seemed to have finally made up her mind and said, "Come back with me!"

His memory was seriously damaged and he was severely injured. He also inexplicably appeared at her grave on the night of her resurrection. There was no way Nian Chaoxi would let him run around outside alone.

She made the decision after careful consideration. Yan Weixing's brows relaxed when he heard it, and he said as a matter of course: "Following you back is what I should do."

Nian Chaoxi: "..." Alas.

She rubbed her brows and said, "The situation is unclear right now. I don't know if you have any enemies. If you follow me back, you can't use the name Yan Weixing for the time being. You have to change to a pseudonym."

Yan Weixing nodded.

He originally had no memory of his current name, so it didn't matter to him whether he changed it or not.

Nian Chaoxi was just about to come up with a fake name for him, but suddenly she heard him say, "Nian."

Nian Chaoxi was stunned and looked at him.

The young man said, "Just call me Nian."

Nian Chaoxi was stunned for a moment, and asked in confusion: "Why is your last name Nian?"

Yan Weixing: "I remember your last name is Nian."

Nian Chaoxi was silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed.

That's fine, she used her last name and he used hers; it's fair.

So she smiled and said, "First name... Chixing, so I can still call you Ah Xing."

Yan Weixing's expression softened, "Okay. Nian Chixing."

Having solved the problem in her mind, Nian Chaoxi was in a good mood. She stood up, stretched her arms and legs, then turned to look at the sun rising in the east.

This was the first sunrise after her rebirth.

"Daoist Master Yan." She suddenly turned around and looked at him.

Yan Weixing raised his head: "Hmm?"

Nian Chaoxi smiled and said, "Look, I didn't break my promise."

After saying this, she didn't wait for his reaction and turned around to look at the rising sun in a good mood.

When trapped in Kunlong Abyss, in order to coax Yan Weixing to leave, she told him that she valued her life the most and asked him to wait for her.

Later she broke her promise and died on the battlefield in front of him.

But she never thought that now, after so many years, there would be a day when she could fulfill her promise.

You see, Daoist Master Yan, I really value my life the most, and I indeed survived.

Behind Nian Chaoxi, Yan Weixing, covered in blood, leaned against the tombstone, looking up at the back of the woman in front of him.

Behind him was a hard and heavy tombstone, and in front of him was a living person.

He raised the corners of his lips slightly, as if he wanted to smile, but in the end, the curve looked like crying.

He had no memories other than Nian Chaoxi, but he felt that the promise she mentioned must be very important to him.

Otherwise, he would not be so upset.

...

When Nian Chaoxi and Yan Weixing returned to the dilapidated temple, the whole place was in chaos.

Nian Chaoxi originally thought that Nianxi and the others had returned early and were looking for her, but when she got closer, she discovered that each of them had injuries of varying degrees, as if they had just been through a fierce battle.

Nianxi's injury had just healed last night, and now she had a new wound on her arm. Wei Liusheng bandaged her wound while Nianxi looked up at the leaky roof with hatred and said through gritted teeth, "That despicable villain!"

Wei Liusheng said helplessly: "Say less and save some energy!"

Nian Chaoxi was shocked when she saw this, and hurriedly pulled Yan Wei inside.

Nianxi saw her immediately and her eyes lit up: "It's the fairy! You're back!" Then, with a worried look on her face, she said, "Fortunately, the fairy came back late, otherwise, you might have run into that villain..."

Nian Chaoxi frowned and looked around at the people who were all injured, frowned and said: "What's going on? Did you meet an enemy?"

Nianxi gnashed her teeth when she heard this: "Enemy? Is that scoundrel worthy of being our enemy? He is just a shameless villain!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Liusheng patted her on the shoulder as a signal to stop talking, then turned around and explained to Nian Chaoxi, "It's Aunt Yan's enemy."

Then he said with a mocking look on his face, "He is just a coward who hides his head but shows his tail, a traitor who dares not show his face. It seems that the stab that Aunt Yan gave him didn't hurt enough, otherwise how would he dare to come here."

After that, he added: "It's a life-and-death feud."

Nian Chaoxi became even more suspicious after hearing this: "Yan... Aunt Yan's enemy?"

She knew Yan'er's character very well. With that girl's personality, how could she easily make an enemy of someone, and it's even a life-and-death feud.

What on earth did that person do to make someone as good-tempered as Yan'er declare a life-and-death feud?

But if the hatred was really that great, how could this enemy they were talking about just happen to run into a few lone disciples of Duheng Academy and beat them up?

Nian Chaoxi saw clearly that although the wounds of these people seemed serious, none of them had injured vital points. The person who came must be a powerful master, otherwise it would be impossible to control the injuries so accurately.

Yan'er had a life-and-death grudge, and he could clearly kill them easily, but he didn't do it?

So she thought about it and asked, "That person...just hurt you?"

Wei Liusheng sneered, "I guess he wanted to kill us, but he has to be brave enough. If he dares to touch us, Aunt Yan will have a way to make him suffer a fate worse than death. Besides, that man is used to pretending to be kind and righteous in public. He is so famous, he can't bear to ruin his reputation over us!"

Nian Chaoxi frowned and was about to ask something else when Nianxi said angrily, "I have never seen such a shameless person in my life. If they hadn't indulged the Young War God's adopted sister just for the sake of power, how could she have the courage to enter Kunlong Abyss? If she hadn't entered Kunlong, how could she have fallen for the trap and planted the demonic seeds, giving the demons an opportunity to take advantage of the situation? They pushed the Young War God to death step by step, and now they have the nerve to act like they are in despair for the world to see. If you ask me, Aunt Yan shouldn't have just stabbed him once, she should have taken the opportunity to kill him!"

Wei Liusheng rebuked: "Say less."

Nianxi seemed to be unconvinced and argued something, but Nian Chaoxi was no longer in the mood to listen.

She opened her mouth, but was unable to speak.

Yan Weixing suddenly grabbed her hand from behind.

Nian Chaoxi's heart inexplicably calmed down.

She asked: "Yan'er...Aunt Yan...who did she stab with the sword?"

While helping Nianxi bandage her wound, Wei Liusheng answered casually, "It was Shen Tui, who is known as the city's number one strategist. This matter is already known to everyone in the cultivation world."

At this moment, Nian Chaoxi suddenly wanted to laugh out loud.

Yan'er, you really did what your lady wanted to do but didn't have time to do!

The next moment, she lowered her voice again: "Did he attack you?"

Wei Liusheng sneered, "This guy wanted to go to the tomb of the Young War God to worship, but he didn't expect that although Aunt Yan couldn't come this year because she went into seclusion, she sent us. He wanted to take advantage of Aunt Yan's absence to worship the Young War God, and he ran into us."

After he finished speaking, he calmly added: "But Aunt Yan is not here, so we definitely can't stop him. After we finish the offering, we have to hurry back to inform Aunt Yan so that villain won't dirty the tomb of the Young War God."

Nian Chaoxi turned around and looked outside. After a moment, she smiled and said, "Indeed... Shen Tui, don't dirty other people's graves."

Get up to 15 advanced chapters on Patreon

[momiji-bookhouse]

Helloo~ if your event is still on-going may I request qingxin with Kazuha? It fits him quite a bit 👁️👁️

[Qingxin]: "He's so in love he would pluck the stars from the sky if you ask him to."

Event Masterlist

pairing: Kaedehara Kazuha x gn!reader

genre: fluff

Many have asked you what it is like to date a sailor. Don't you feel lonely whenever he has to go out to sea for months on end? Don't you feel scared that something might happen to him? What if his ship gets caught in a storm? Or attacked by a sea monster? What if he finds comfort in someone else's arms during his journey?

You would be lying if you said you haven't worried about more than one of these questions before. Yes, it does get lonely sometimes when he's not by your side, when you can't see his face every day or hear his sweet voice string poems together. Yes, there are times that you would stay up when lightning strikes through the serrated night sky, your heart beating in tandem with the thunder as you look out at the dark harbor.

Have you at times felt like you weren't enough for him?...Yes. But he has never given you any reason to doubt his love for you.

(You can't say the same for Chaoxi, who has a whispered reputation for being a playboy, despite what Sisi refuses to hear.)

It's not just because he affirms his love for you whenever he can, through crafted haikus, words twined with flowers, or a simple "I love you", nor is it simply because of the gifts and little trinkets that he would bring back to give to you — a blossom to weave through your hair, an iridescent shell that casts rainbows under the sun, a wooden figurine carved when the moon hangs high.

It's in the way he treats you, so gentle and adoring that others feel it fit to comment about it to you. He's not overtly affectionate in public or anything, and yet with a simple brush of his hand to tuck a stray strand of hair behind your ear and how his eyes would draw constellations on your face whenever you talk, his love is communicated more effectively than anything they've ever seen.

"You have him all wrapped around your finger," they would say.

You would blush and take their words, but something they didn't mention is how equally enamored you are by him.

"You have a letter, (Y/N)," Linling says while giving you the crisp envelope. There's no need for you to question who it is from, the careful way your name is written on the front telling you all you need to know.

"Thanks, Linling." You take it from her and move to a more private corner of the room to read it.

"From your boyfriend?"

"Mmhmm." You make an affirmative noise in the back of your throat in response, carefully ripping the envelope open and retrieve the letter from inside.

"You're so lucky to have someone like him, (Y/N). He's always thinking of you — sending you letters and telling you how he is. Can't say the same for someone, though." She looks pointedly at Sisi's bedroom door, no doubt empty at this hour of night.

You simply nod, too engrossed in the letter at this point to offer your opinion about their roommate's love life. You savor every sentence, drinking in every detail from a piece of gossip heard on the Alcor, to who won the arm wrestling competition (Beidou, of course), to the shores he find himself docked to this time (the smell of Harra spice tangles with the briny air of Port Ormos).

You hear his voice in every word, his soft and mellow voice providing warmth to each syllable, right down to the very last sentence.

"The moon is beautiful tonight, but I will forever think about how lovelier it is with you by my side.

Thinking of you tonight, and for all time to come,

Kazuha"

You hold the letter close to your heart, eagerly waiting for the day you'll be reunited with him.

· · ─────── ·🍁 · ─────── · ·

Perhaps you should've realized by now that sometimes things will never go as according to plan.

Instead of being able to run into his arms as soon as he disembarks from the ship, his breezy laughter ringing in your ears, you're stuck in bed with a pounding headache and high fever. When you started coughing a few nights ago, you had hoped that some warm water would make it go away, but then your temperature began to flare high in the night, causing you to call for Linlang with a croaky voice.

You guessed that around this time, he will have already arrived at the harbor. Hopefully Linlang had told him of your sickness and that it's best if he didn't see you until you get better. You would hate to spread your fever to him.

You sigh heavily while curled up in bed. Your fever has mercifully gone down, but you're still left with an aching body and an unwillingness to get out of bed.

You're in the middle of going in and out of sleep when you distantly hear the door opening.

"Linlang?" You say hoarsely. "Is that you?"

The voice doesn't answer at first. Through your hazy eyes, you see a blur of beige and crimson red in your view, and then the sensation of someone sitting down on your bed.

"It's me, my dove."

Even in your sickly state, you're easily able to recognize who that voice belongs to. "K-Kazuha? What are you...doing here?"

"Linlang told me about everything. But how can I stay away when I know you're sick? Let me take care of you, (Y/N)."

"But...you might get sick."

You blink a few times to see his face changing to a light frown. "Don't worry about me, love. I'll be fine. You just focus on getting better."

For the rest of the day, he takes care of you — making sure that you're eating, even when your stomach protests, and that you're taking your medicine at the right time (he had gone all the way to Bubu Pharmacy to get you another dose). He wipes sweat from your brow and tells you of his travels, of the sights he saw in lines of poetry to hopefully distract you from your headache.

When your eyes begin to tire, he adjusts your pillow and invites you to slumber with a soft lullaby.

"You didn't have to stay the whole day for me, you know." You still managed to say even when you yawn.

He only smiles in response. "This is only a fraction of what I would do for you. How could I be worthy of you if I'm not there for you during both the good times and the bad? I may not be able to be there all the time, but as long as you need me, there isn't anything that can keep me from finding my way back to you." He places a tender kiss on your forehead. "Now sleep, my dove. I will be here when you wake up."

"Promise?"

"As true as the wind that blows." Kazuha strokes your cheek, his eyes softening. "Close your eyes, love. May the stars bless you with dreams sweet and beautiful."

[nevgovhater]

Intro time!!

Hello!! I have several different name, but I go by Chaoxi, Dirk, Socal, Maui, Simatuq, Dallas, and other such

I also go by The Sailors as that is our sys name

— I'm intersex tfem aphroflux sapphillean twospirit and I have a lovely partner

— physically disabled. Don't use fonts or heavy typing quirks around us please!!

— WE ARE POC. Any closed culture names we use are from a culture we belong to. We have established rules in the system to only use closed culture names we can use.

We are a diagnosed rcdid system but will not blog about trauma. Just about our special interests, etc

Main spinterests are ben brainard(comedy, wttt, etc), homestuck + hiveswap, warrior cats, countryhumans/balls, planetary moe, solarballs, tf2, hlvrai, object shows, etc ^_^

We are also hyperfixated on regretavator, but distance ourself from the fandom due to the ableism of a huge percent of members

ENDOS, PROSHIPPERS, ETC DNI. We do not have to explain.

Frequent fronters ::

- Զեն / Zen 🛸

- Roxy Lalonde 🎶

- Umiaktorvik 🧫

- Sedna 🌊

- Arizona 🌻

- Alaska 🗻

- Oklahoma 🌪

- Gov 📠

- Ijiraq 🦈

And more !!

Toodles!! -🛸

[quilveor]

Kaox, The Tide's Conductor

Just a random character idea because the sound of violins was incessantly torturing my mind the entire day. I probably won't do much more with him, but I still like the vibes.

Linebreak for lore and me rambling.

Young Chaoxi knew he was just a tool. Sold like one, treated like one, being a servant surrounded by nobles constantly jabbering and gossiping. He resented every single reminder that his scales are "dirty", and that he's not "proper" enough. His master was the only one that showed him any respect, teaching him ways of the court. But magic, Chaoxi taught himself and he was incredibly good at it. Surprising everyone with his abilities, which have been called divine, Chaoxi managed to break through the social barriers, gaining more and more respect.

The kobold adapted phenomenally to it. Playing with people was just as natural to Kaox as magic, and soon enough he himself had servants to tend to his needs. Those, of course, Kaox treated fairly and with understanding. Nonetheless, some nights Kaox was nowhere to be found, escaping the self-important society to hide in some bar, drinking cheap ale and throwing coins to performers, enjoyment that he never got but always desired. After all, if you force a river to dam up, you should be prepared for it to burst with more strength than you could ever fathom.

Having incredible affinity for water, Kaox is resourceful and clever, able to manipulate circumstances and people into his own favor. A servant ennobled, driven by his ire towards the nobility, rebelling with every breath and act while still staying within their made-up rules. Despite his name being Chaoxi, he goes by Kaox with anybody he deems worthy of his real respect, and is a patron of numerous artists, often employing street musicians as background for his own performances of magic.

-------------------------

So, Kaox. First of all, the most base inspiration was Saba: A Sonnet of Scales [Youtube link] which I found out like two days ago. Pretty much fell in love, and to my dismay I found out that none of my characters fit a violin background track.

I always liked violins though so I spent a whole day thinking about it, because I didn't want to just do the same story beats as anything that ever fit a violin [vague 1900s rebellion vibes, gentleman thief and/or european nobility [honestly it's mostly that, i love that vibe a LOT but i didn't want to just do a knock-off of Saba]]

Hit by a different inspiration [I could blame Xiran Jay Zhao [Also youtube] for this, I found her unrelatedly but really enjoyed her view on Mulan movies] I decided to go with an eastern vibe and somehow it all kinda fell together?

To note, Chaoxi is not chinese, he just takes inspiration from chinese culture. His "nationality" is completely undefined, if vaguely modernish. On that note, his name means tide [if google and wikipedia didn't lie to me], and the three lines to the left of K in Kaox are a radical used to symbolize water [but only in combination with other things].

He has eight fasteners on his coat for good fortune, and black pants to fit the color associated to water with wuxing. The gem on his horn, however, is there as a slight reference to a magic system I made up.

However both his hair color and scales color... are a complete accident! Like, okay, I intended for hair to be blue, yes, but I kind of did them too harsh at first and had to attempt erasing them. I think everyone knows how hard it is to actually erase a color pencil. But the result looked pretty neat so I went with it.

And now for bonus character traits: - Kaox is utterly awful at all instruments. All of them. He tried. It did not work out. - That's why he employs musicians though - he still really likes music. He might as well get it his own way. - His hair is dyed, it's actually just white. He's acting up the whole "water mage" thing. His eyes are natural though. - He had an eastern dragon father, but never really knew him as originally he was in a regular kobold burrow. That's also why he's so good with water. - He also didn't knew his mother - the burrow was communal. He doesn't blame the elders for selling him though, but it took many years for him. - 90% of things he does are motivated by spite. - He's bi. Also out of spite. - He genuinely enjoys low quality food and drinks. A cheap beer for him is much better than ancient wine. He sometimes gets hot dogs from gas stations, and gas stations alone. - Violin + Accordion is the best combo and he will fight you on this. It reminds him of himself, a mix of high culture and street culture working together - He owns a double bass. It's mistuned and he's too short for it, but it's still his pride and joy.

If you reached here, thank you, have a nice day =]

[wanderingminds34]

The People & The Troupe Director

"Life mirrors opera, just as opera reflects life," Yun Jin often said. In the smallest of encounters, she tended to find inspiration for her performances. With these five counts, with these five scenes, would you care to watch the show?

A Yun Jin-centric story dedicated to my friend on co-op.

Available on ao3 and tumblr.

Chapter 1: Irreconcilable Lovers - Sisi

One was the woman longing on the docks,

hopeless that her wandering lover would flock.

Humming a joyous tune, Yun Jin strolled through Feiyun Slope. Along the concrete path, men and women alike formed a line to Mingxing Jewelry. Usually, she would greet Xingxi, but the poor lady was far too occupied to entertain any friends, so Yun Jin merely passed through.

Yesterday, she decided that the Yun-Han Opera Troupe would benefit from a break, so today was a holiday for all of its members. With their upcoming show set to take place later next week, everyone was working hard to prepare the stage and excel in their roles during rehearsal. Certainly some rest would leave them rejuvenated enough to put on their best performance. 

As she trekked down the lofty staircase, she encountered fans of the Troupe, common people that frequented their shows. When the Troupe first became popular, Yun Jin often received overbearing attention -- flowers on the streets, requests for autographs, even impromptu auditions for a chance to join her team. She was born into that lifestyle, though, so she could hide her stress from the constant idolization. Over time, the pressure simply…dissipated. 

“Ms. Yun Jin,” an older man called, “I’ll see you soon! My daughter is leaving work early for once. It’s going to be her first show!” 

“How delightful! This performance will not disappoint, I assure you.”

He beamed, bringing a smile to her face. “I look forward to it. Have a good day.”

“And you as well.” She nodded politely and continued her descent. 

At the docks, a refreshing aroma of salt water accompanied the disconcerting scent of fish and, more specifically, shrimp. Fortunately, no one chose to cook stir-fried shrimp this afternoon, otherwise she would have avoided the place entirely. However, with the reminder of her diet, Yun Jin stubbornly changed course to the other side of the harbor, where they were not selling food. 

But when she turned the corner, Yun Jin ran into someone, letting out a yelp when they knocked her off balance. An envelope dropped to the ground, and the other person, a young woman, exclaimed, “Hey! Watch where you’re going--” before pausing in recognition.

Yun Jin waved her hands to placate the woman. “My apologies. I should have been more careful.” She picked up the fallen envelope, seeing the name Chaoxi scrawled beautifully on the front. 

“Uh--no, no! It was my fault!” the unfamiliar lady stammered. 

Yun Jin extended her hand with the envelope. “Please do not worry. You are going to give this to someone special, right? It could’ve been ruined if it slipped between the wood planks.”

Gazing sadly at the item, the woman hesitated to reclaim it. “...What does it matter anyway? He’s never going to read it,” she murmured, reluctantly taking it. 

“What do you mean?” asked Yun Jin with a frown. 

The lady shook her head in a poor attempt to purge the negative thoughts. “Sorry for my rudeness, Ms. Yun Jin. I’m Sisi,” she introduced. “My boyfriend is a sailor, you see. He only returns every blue moon, but during those nights he’s ‘too tired’ to even talk to me.”

“Oh dear,” Yun Jin remarked, “Surely he will come back during this season? It is the perfect opportunity to spend more time with you.”

Clenching her fist and subsequently crumbling the letter, Sisi became even more riled up. “That would be the last thing he would do. Chaoxi’s probably running around with that other girl! Buying her gorgeous jewels, taking her to flower fields, telling her ‘I’ll never leave you…’” she trailed off, covering her face with both hands. 

Gently, Yun Jin rubbed her arm. She was clearly dealing with a heartbroken woman. “I’m sorry, Ms. Sisi. You deserve better than him. Why don’t you let him go?”

“I can’t…” she whispered, “How could I, when those warm memories still remain? He used to shower me with affection, his heart devoted to me alone. He picked those Qingxin and Purple Roses with his own two hands, and those Vajrada Amethyst stones that washed from the sea to the shores…They couldn’t have been meaningless.” 

“So what will you do?” Yun Jin inquired, anticipating the answer. 

“I suppose I’ll wait here, as I always do.”

Yun Jin curtsied. “Then I will bid you adieu, and I wish you the best on your endeavors.” 

“Thank you, Ms. Yun Jin.” Sisi returned to the railing, leaning over to gaze at the port full of ships. 

Yun Jin continued her walk, her polite smile dropping to a grimace when she left Sisi’s viewpoint. It was not her responsibility to impart her opinion on a stranger, especially one as clouded as Sisi. She knew the lovebird wouldn’t listen, but Yun Jin couldn’t suppress her pity as the sound of soft cries reached her ears.

Wretched lies fell from the man’s lips,

stringing the dame along with every nautical trip.

With his mind astray, his heart untrue,

he couldn’t come to terms with the girl he knew.

But she’d already seen through his charade,

she couldn’t give up, let her affection fade. 

So night after night she begged for more,

never to accept another future in store. 

[vixlenxe]

Me & Apollo on a joint mission to find this cuckwaffle GI NPC named Chaoxi in the Lantern Rite & commit acts of violence against him.

[stay-tiny2021]

Meet the Dong Children (Sicheng)

Dong Mei

Full Name: Dong Mei

Hanzi: 董梅

Korean Name: Dong Da Eun

Hangul: 동다은

English Name: Maeve

Nickname/s: Mei Mei

Height: 5ft 7

Language/s: Chinese (Mandarin), Korean

Date of Birth: October 21, 2029

Zodiac Sign: Libra

Birth Place: Wenzhou, China

Time of Birth: 7:06 AM

Birth Weight: 6lbs 2oz

Godparent/s: Yuta

Dong Chaoxiang

Full Name: Dong Chaoxiang

Hanzi: 董朝祥

Korean Name: Dong Han Woo

Hangul: 동한우

English Name: Spencer

Nickname/s: Chaoxi, Xixi, Chao

Height: 5ft 9

Language/s: Chinese (Mandarin), Korean

Date of Birth: August 20, 2031

Zodiac Sign: Leo

Birth Place: Wenzhou, China

Time of Birth: 5:07 PM

Birth Weight: 7lbs 4oz

Godparent/s: Jaehyun

[elysian-edu]

I'll gladly start a chaoxi hate club if you'll join

ALSO TY FOR THE KIND WORDS JAYDE. ILYSM ♡♡♡♡

Srsly tho you rlly made my day <3

i'd join 100%. i'll be the vice-president🙏🏾🙏🏾

YWWWW THO!! YOU DESERVE ITTTT. ILYSM MOREEEE!!💞

[sl-vega]

✧Sticking to the Script✧-Prologue

⋆｡°✩ Prologue-A little fall of rain can hardly hurt me now

"I just don't think we'll work out anymore"

You choked back a sob as you stormed out of the restaurant, those words still ringing in your ears.

"I've been seeing someone else."

You continue to blink back tears as you tried to block those words out.

"You aren't actually surprised-are you?"

Surprised would be an understatement you thought bitterly.

Two years. Two fucking years of being together.

"And for what?" you told yourself as you sobbed, some tears escaping. You didn't even know where you were going, you just wanted to be far, far, away from him.

You pulled out your phone to message Lyney

You put your phone back into your purse. Tears and raindrops trickling down your face.

You leaned against the outer wall of the tea house. The downpour was heavy and you could feel your dress cling to your body from the water. You found some shelter by a tea house, but it didn't make any difference, your feet felt numb in the fancy heels you had put on for your date, and your makeup that your friends had helped you with was all messed up from your tears.

You stared at the busy street, at the many cars rushing by, you prayed that Lyney would show up soon, you just wanted to escape.

This time, you didn't hold back your sobs you let them all out. Your vision was blurry from your tears, your head hung low and the tears fell down to the side walk.

Suddenly you felt the rain stop.

You turned your head to your side and saw a boy around your age holding an umbrella over your head. He was dressed in semi-formal attire. He looked familiar. Where have I seen him before

"Sorry, I just noticed you crying when I walked by." he said as he gave you a gentle smile, still holding the umbrella over your head. You whispered your thanks to him.

"Xingqiu!"

The boy turned around after hearing someone call out to him. He held your wrist and placed the umbrella in your hand. "I think you'll need this more than me." he told you as he turned around.

"I hope that whatever you're going through gets better"

He gave you another smile before running through the rain "I'm coming!" you heard him yell as he ran towards the source of the first voice.

You felt your face flush as he left, it was a brief moment of bliss before you remembered why you were out here in the rain, before you remembered what just happened. Before you remember your boyfriend of two whole years had just confessed to cheating on you.

Archons, I'm pathetic

You thought to yourself, you felt like you were going to start sobbing again. Then, a familiar car pulled up.

"(Y/N)!"

You heard Lyney call your name, he quickly got out of the car. He was holding a red towel and he handed it to you. "What happened? Why isn't Chaoxi with you?" he asked, along with many other questions that you couldn't bother to remember.

Your eyes were still red and puffy from crying.

"He-" you tried to muster out some words but you started sobbing again. Lyney pulled you into a hug, placing the towel around your shoulders, and taking the umbrella you were given earlier.

He led you into the car, opening the door for you. "You don't have to talk about it now." he said as he wiped a tear off your cheek. You nodded, as you stepped into the vehicle, fastening your seatbelt.

As he started the car, he placed his hand yours, he looked you in the eye and said "It'll be okay."

You looked out the window and thought

I hope you're right

additional notes:

-prologue out FINALLY

-ik it's a tad boring but i got to set the scene

-in case y'all didn't pick up on my shameless exposition, let me summarize this chapter for ya:

-chaoxi is y/n's boyfriend and he just confessed to cheating on her (on their 2-year anniversary no less!)

-chaoxi is actually a character in game, he's an npc in liyue that's dating three girls at the same time

-yes xingqiu giving y/n his umbrella is a reference to that one mlb scene

-you can't write a romance story without including smth like that

-lyney supremacy fr fr

-this chapter title is actually a reference to the song "A little fall of rain" from the musical les miserables

-ty to @freyao7 for proofreading this 4 me <3

masterlist

<prev ll next>

✧Sticking to the Script✧

Pairing: Xingqiu x FEM! Reader

Genre: fake dating, strangers to lovers, slow burn, fluff, angst (?), high school smau, modern smau

⋆｡°✩-Synopsis: Xingqiu just got entered into a special writing contest, the type that's invite only, the theme this year is love, the only problem is that he has zero romantic experience. but he really wants to prove himself as a writer. meanwhile, you just found out that your boyfriend cheated on you, and you need to show him that you're 100% over him, the only problem is that there's no way you can get an actual boyfriend that quickly. clearly, the solution to both of your issues is to fake date each other. it shouldn't be hard for an actor such as yourself, all you need to do is stick to the script.

(OPEN) Taglist: @freyao7, @thatoneswordgirl, @sn1perz, @latay7, @esmetrees, @nmriki0, @help-whatdoimakemyusername, @httpsrenren, @cupid-spams, @aixaingela, @kaitfae, @luvkvni, @danhenglovebot

[prettybbychim]

minor spoilers for chenyu vale

BRO chaoxi has a girlfriend at yilong wharf too lmaoo that's THREE girls he's fucking around with BRO

[lensocstash]

[innerpalaces]

The Doting Love Story's Female Supporting Role Has Quit - 19

Chapter 19: There Was No Trace of Humanity in Those Eyes

Nian Chaoxi saw her own death.

She stood in Kunlong Abyss with a sword in hand, her pale clothes dyed red by blood. She could feel that it was her own blood, but because the bleeding was too heavy, she couldn't tell where she was wounded.

She had never suffered such a serious injury or lost so much blood since she was a child.

Her sword was full of notches and was almost unusable, but she still held it.

The dark dragon lifted its huge head out from Kunlong Abyss. The seal under the Abyss was almost useless to restrain it. The bloodshot eyes of the mammoth dragon looked at her as if it were looking at an insect that didn't know its own limitations. Demonic energy so thick it was practically a physical substance danced around it.

Nian Chaoxi raised her head, and everywhere she looked that dark demonic energy densely covered the sky and Yuejian City both.

It should have been a full-moon night, but it was so dark that not a single beam of moonlight could be seen.

The massive dragon stared at her maliciously, and demonic energy arose from it, almost wrapping her up completely, making her unable to move or breathe.

The dark dragon was a vicious hunter who enjoyed watching his prey despair. He had seen enough of her struggles and the fear of death in her heart, so he prepared to give her a fatal blow.

But before that, it still said maliciously: "The so-called daughter of the God of War is nothing more than this."

Nian Chaoxi suddenly raised her head and sneered, "You are afraid of my father."

The evil thoughts surrounding her suddenly became agitated, and the dark dragon almost roared, "What is there to fear! He has been dead for more than 60 years. Now, his only daughter is in my hands, and I can kill you at any time!"

Nian Chaoxi wiped the blood around her eyes and laughed: "You are not afraid of him? Then why do you still find it hard to let it go?"

The dark dragon was enraged and attacked with its huge claws, but suddenly stopped when it was about to touch her.

It suddenly realized something and sneered, "You want me to give you a quick death? Don't worry, I won't let you die so easily."

Its voice was filled with demonic energy. Its huge head approached her and it said maliciously, "In order to get them out safely, you risked your life to hold me back. How great! How touching! But for what? You are here gravely injured and dying, and none of them came back to help you. Hahahahaha, little girl, how does it feel to die alone and abandoned by your comrades?"

Nian Chaoxi looked dazed for a moment, and the scenes that occured before she came to Kunlong Abyss gradually appeared in her mind.

Wu Yan entered Kunlong Abyss for the stone tablet left by her father and accidentally triggered the seal, but she didn't know that the young lord of Hexia City who manipulated her into entering Kunlong Abyss was actually possessed by a demon. She carried the seeds of demonic energy sown by the young city lord in her body, and she brought those seeds into Kunlong Abyss.

The moment she entered the Abyss, the seeds of demonic energy had already taken root here, nourishing the sealed dark dragon.

But this time, Nian Chaoxi did not arrive in time like her real self. When she arrived, the seal was already half broken.

She was forced to use blood magic to seal the dark dragon again.

After using the blood technique, her body quickly deteriorated and she was forced to stay in the medicine house to recuperate.

During the time when she was recovering from her injuries, Mu Yunzhi and his men confined Wu Yan, who had caused such a big disaster, but they did not reveal to the outside world who was to blame for the dark dragon almost breaking the seal in Kunlong Abyss that day.

So, during the period when she was seriously ill, rumors grew wildly like weeds.

——Nian Chaoxi's strength was not enough, so the dark dragon almost broke the seal and escaped. Now, she was even forced to recuperate because of re-sealing the dark dragon.

Nian Chaoxi, who had just been able to stand up, got very angry when she heard such rumors.

But that's all.

Before she had the time to demand an explanation, the demonic energy in Kunlong Abyss had already matured and grown stronger. The dark dragon used this demonic energy to break through the seal that was in jeopardy due to Nian Chaoxi's haste.

At the same time, the demonic energy in Kunlong Abyss and the evil thoughts coming from nowhere outside the city intertwined together, covering the entire Yuejian City overnight, forming a barrier that no one could break. Everyone was trapped inside the barrier.

Outside the barrier, Fentian, the only one of the Twelve Arch-Demons to escape from her father's hands, and now the Demon Lord, led thousands of demons to besiege the city.

There was the Demon Lord Fentian outside and a dark dragon breaking the seal inside.

The entire city was in danger.

At that time, Nian Chaoxi's body was completely broken because she tried to seal the dark dragon with blood magic again. She was like a teacup with a huge hole in it. Her life force was rapidly fading away, and she was already dying.

She was very clearly aware at that time that Yuejian City could not be saved.

And just as she thought, Demon Lord Fentian was the first to break into the city.

On that day, Yuejian City was defeated, the blood of mortals flowed like a river, and countless cultivators died in the battle.

Finally, Mu Yunzhi and his men used the City Lord's Mansion as a barrier to temporarily block the demon army.

Nian Chaoxi knew that they would not be able to hold out for long. She also knew that with the current state of her body, not only would they not be able to take her to escape, she would even become a burden to everyone.

At the same time, there were unusual movements in Kunlong Abyss. Nian Chaoxi knew that the dark dragon was about to take action. Once it did, they would not be able to defend themselves.

She propped herself up and sat in front of the dressing table, thinking for a moment, then picked up her sword in one hand and a few talismans her father had left her in the other.

Each of those talismans contained the full force of the God of War, and when worn on the body, it would be triggered when encountering deadly danger.

If they can't defend it, then they can only escape, but if they have these talismans, the chances of escape will be greater.

She brought the talismans to the main courtyard, wanting to see Mu Yunzhi again, and then let them leave as soon as possible with the talismans.

But she didn't see Mu Yunzhi, she only saw Wu Yan outside the door. Wu Yan said that Mu Yunzhi was still discussing countermeasures with others to prepare to meet the enemy.

Nian Chaoxi handed the things to Wu Yan and told her to have them escape as soon as possible with the talismans.

Wu Yan asked, "What about you? Where are you going?"

Nian Chaoxi thought about it and said, "Take Yan'er with you to escape."

Then she took her sword and went to Kunlong Abyss.

At least she has the blood seal and can use the blood magic technique once more. If there was anyone in Yuejian City who can hold off the dark dragon for a while, it was her.

If the dark dragon finds this place, they won't even have a chance to escape.

So she went to Kunlong Abyss.

Nian Chaoxi suddenly opened her eyes wide and looked at the dark dragon in front of her.

The dark dragon sneered and said, "You have sealed me for more than sixty years, and this is the fate that befalls you!"

The next moment, her hands and feet were broken and she was thrown into the host of demonic beasts transformed by evil energy.

Ten thousand demonic beasts feasted upon her and she died in pain.

She "watched" the whole process from the perspective of a bystander, and only now did she suddenly understand what was reality and what was an illusion.

That's not the real her.

But even so, watching "herself" being devoured by thousands of monsters, the chilling feeling on her spine almost made Nian Chaoxi feel the same pain.

However, this scene, which was like a dream or an illusion, as if she had been pulled into the sea of ​​memories by the dark dragon, had not ended.

After "her" death, Nian Chaoxi saw from a bystander's perspective what happened after she handed the talisman to Wu Yan.

She was racking her brains thinking about how to help them escape successfully, while the other three were discussing how to protect Wu Yan, who had the weakest skills, and ensure her safety.

Zong Shu asked, "What about Xixi?"

Mu Yunzhi was silent for a moment then said, "I will stay and die with her. This is what I promised my uncle. You take Wu Yan away."

Everyone knew her current physical condition, and everyone knew that she wouldn't live long. It may be a month or two, or a day or two, or she may not even survive on the way to death.

Then everyone fell silent, and it was unclear whether they were feeling burdened or sad.

Nian Chaoxi also watched in silence, but she knew in her heart that this was already a sign of them giving up on her.

But there wasn't much emotion in her heart.

Then she saw what happened after her death.

The sections and paragraphs flashed by quickly like fragments of a novel.

She saw that Wu Yan, who had received the talismans from her, for some reason, did not tell anyone that the talismans came from her, nor did she tell anyone that she had gone to Kunlong Abyss.

So those who were rescued all thought that Wu Yan was their savior, and because they couldn't find a trace of Nian Chaoxi, not even her corpse, many people secretly believed that she had deserted the battlefield.

She saw Mu Yunzhi, who had claimed that he intended to die with her, was now beside Wu Yan.

She saw the God of War's Manual appear inexplicably, attracting the greed of the world.

She saw her ex-fiancé stir up trouble and obtain the God of War's Manual, and several years later, he finally became a God of War.

At that time, he and Wu Yan got married. At the wedding, everyone called Wu Yan the daughter of the God of War.

When talking about her, probably only a few people still remember her "desertion from the battlefield".

And all of these were squeezed into a short chapter of the novel she transmigrated into, from birth to death, and ended hastily.

That was her entire role in that novel, a supporting role who died in one chapter.

Nian Chaoxi once wanted to know very much how she died, but now that she knew, she just wanted to curse God.

She never expected that she would suddenly see the whole story of the novel at this moment.

As a result, Nian Chaoxi woke up alive with agitation in her heart.

After regaining consciousness, she felt something very hard, as if she was lying on a slab of stone. When she opened her eyes, the sky was pitch black without a trace of light.

Overhead, demonic energies were surging.

Nian Chaoxi was startled and stood up suddenly.

Everywhere she looked, demonic energy enveloped all of Yuejian City, almost identical to what she had seen in her dream just now.

A sentence appeared in Nian Chaoxi's mind.

The city was surrounded by demons.

However, it was still almost ten days away from the time when the siege of Ten Thousand Demons actually begins in the novel!

Why did it happen so suddenly? Was it because she went to Kunlong Abyss in advance? Or was it because she discovered the abnormality of Kunlong Abyss in time and re-sealed the dark dragon?

Nian Chaoxi didn't know why.

But now didn't seem to be the time for her to think about this.

She didn't notice it when she first stood up, but now she suddenly realized there was the strong smell of blood in her nose. At the same time, she heard heavy, beast-like breathing in her ears.

It was very dangerous.

Nian Chaoxi was startled and subconsciously took two steps back, then looked towards the place where the sound came from. At the same time, she remembered Yan Weixing was clearly there when she was lost consciousness. Why didn't she see him now? Did something happen to him?

As soon as this thought came to mind, a thick pool of blood appeared within her sight. On top of the blood, countless severed demon remains were scattered everywhere, almost forming a small hill.

Atop the hill, a man was half-kneeling, holding a sword.

Nian Chaoxi's eyes suddenly widened.

Yan Weixing!

His dark robe was soaked in blood, making it heavy and sticky. His head was lowered slightly and his expression could not be seen, but he was panting and growling like a wild beast.

Suddenly, he looked up.

There was no trace of humanity in those eyes.

Get up to 15 advanced chapters on Patreon

[mamun258]

The biggest advantage of Douyin is content traffic 

From the beginning, there was no possibility that Douyin would crowd out Meituan or replace it.

Despite its aggressive entry, Douyin cannot take  HE Tuber  away all the cake whether it is e-commerce, games or local life.

At present, Byte Games has ceased operations and has withdrawn from competition with established companies such as Tencent and NetEase. In the field of e-commerce, although Douyin e-commerce is developing rapidly and its GMV is expected to reach 2.3 trillion yuan in 2023, it is still only about 1/3 of Alibaba. In the field of local life, Douyin has started high and gone low, and has slowed down the pace of catching up with Meituan since the second half of 2023.

The biggest advantage of Douyin is content traffic, but local life is a business that requires "bending down to pick up steel . "

Wang Xing once said, "It is not enough to have traffic alone. You must have actual merchants and an entire operating system who are willing to work hard."

Douyin has already picked the low-hanging fruit, but if it wants to go further, it needs to polish its "hard work", especially its delivery capabilities. This capability serves takeout, instant retail, and other home-based scenarios, and is closely connected with in-store business. It is Meituan’s real barrier and a weakness that Douyin cannot avoid.

Douyin once tried to rely on third-party transportation capacity and solve the problem in a curve. However, a more complex transportation capacity supply system has low efficiency, slow speed, and poor user experience.

According to "LatePost", people familiar with the matter said that Douyin's third-party delivery costs are as high as more than 10 yuan per kilometer, far exceeding the average order price of Meituan and Ele.me, which is 6 to 7 yuan, thereby hindering the development of takeaway and other businesses.

But it is impossible for Douyin to follow Meituan and build an army of delivery personnel covering the whole country from scratch.

At present, Meituan has more than 6 million riders, and the annual rider cost is close to 70 billion yuan. For Douyin, which has a large business, it is obviously unaffordable to invest so much money into local life.

Douyin, which has been unable to solve the distribution problem, has also greatly reduced its strategic threat to Meituan.

Douyin once made Meituan feel like a formidable enemy, but now that it has reviewed the market, the cost of stopping Douyin is far less than expected.

In the first quarter 2023 earnings conference call, Meituan’s management expected that the profit margin of the in-store segment will fall from 48% to 30% in the next quarter; but the actual situation is that in the second quarter, Meituan’s core local business segment Operating profit margin fell only 0.2%.

After the blitzkrieg failed to work, Douyin was involved in a position war with Meituan; Douyin’s traffic flow was weakened in disguise.

The deeper problem is that the competition between Douyin and Meituan, and even Alibaba and Tencent, is a limited war, not an unlimited life and death struggle. Except for the content area that is the foundation of its establishment, it does not need to touch the business foundation of others; it is a more rational choice to cut a part of the cake and coexist with others.

On the other hand, the competition between other companies and Douyin may seem fierce, but in the long run, it is not a battle of life and death.

Although Alibaba was cut off a large piece of the cake by Douyin, it is very clear that its biggest threat is not Douyin, but Pinduoduo; even Jack Ma further made this clear through the intranet.

Tencent also holds a similar view.

Byte's Chaoxi Guangnian invaded Tencent's territory, and Douyin anchors were repeatedly banned from pirated broadcasts of "Honor of Kings"; but after the rise of NetEase's "Egg Boy Party", Tencent ignored the past grievances and immediately launched the benchmark product "Yuan". "Dream Star" was put on Douyin for key promotion.

In the same way, Meituan’s strategic opponent is not Douyin.

In the field of pan-retail, e-commerce platforms with strong supply chains and fulfillment and delivery capabilities are the fatal enemies standing in the way of Meituan’s “retail + technology” vision.

Fundamentally speaking, Douyin is a content platform that sells traffic. Whether it is developing advertising business, doing live streaming, shelf e-commerce, or even local life later, Douyin’s ultimate goal is to sell traffic at a better price, regardless of whether the buyer is an anchor, a brand, or a merchant.

If Meituan wants to fundamentally block Douyin's offensive, it needs to cooperate with Douyin, become the latter's big customer and advertiser, and turn Douyin into a new traffic channel. It cannot just compete with Douyin, but should be in harmony with each other and establish a mutually beneficial and symbiotic competition and cooperation relationship.

03

Before getting into a fierce battle with Douyin, Wang Xing publicly expressed his philosophy of "competition and cooperation."

At the end of 2016, Wang Xing participated in a roundtable forum with Zhang Yiming and Cheng Wei. Wang Xing mentioned that when bidding goes to the extreme, a "winner's curse" may occur, and the person who gets the highest price may have paid too much. "If everyone competes like crazy, the first place is usually worth more than the actual value, which is not very cost-effective."

Three months later, Meituan launched its online ride-hailing business, and Cheng Wei immediately closed the Meituan interface of Didi APP. Wang Xing shouted from a distance, hoping that the other party would accept the new normal of "competition and cooperation".

Being wary of the "winner's curse" and thinking about "competition" reflected Wang Xing's strategic prudence at that time.

But in the following six years, as more and more people peered into Meituan’s backyard, Wang Xing focused on all-round competition. “Competition and cooperation” did not become the main strategic line of Meituan.

The fiercest battles broke out between rivals who used to cherish each other.

Wang Xing and Cheng Wei competed in many areas such as online ride-hailing, shared bicycles, community group buying, etc., and they also competed with Zhang Yiming in the local life sector.

In 2017, when Meituan entered the online ride-hailing business, China’s Internet was still in the afterglow of rapid growth.

Meituan competes with rivals large and small for new users and new territories, and together they expand the scale of the segmented tracks. But by 2024, the industry trend has undergone fundamental changes, and players are competing for the existing market; every step forward requires paying a higher price.

Eight years after proposing the "new normal of competition and cooperation," Wang Xing should really pay attention to "cooperation."

Looking around, opponents who once fought fiercely with Meituan are looking for gold in the Douyin ecosystem.

Meituan’s old rival Ele.me joined hands with Douyin two years ago, hoping to catch the last train of the short video era;

Didi opened an official live broadcast room in Didi to sell taxi tickets all year round;

Ctrip even made Douyin an important position two or three years ago, and founder Liang Jianzhang personally went live to deliver goods.

Ele.me’s performance on Douyin has been good and bad, but it has always been beneficial.

Meituan should also enter Douyin to prevent all potential users in the traffic pool from flowing to competitors.

There is only one situation where Meituan needs to fight Douyin: Douyin acquires Ele.me.

But as mentioned before, Douyin is in the business of selling water and should not carry the heavy burden of Ele.me’s millions of riders.

With Douyin's growth slowing down, Byte's current focus is to continue to improve traffic monetization efficiency.

Domestically, it has built shelf e-commerce to improve the conversion efficiency from content traffic to transaction traffic; while abroad, TikTok is also deploying its troops to continue to promote commercialization. It does not need to incur huge costs at this time, nor does it need to completely oppose Meituan.

It is Wang Xing's habit to fight his competitors to the end. However, after China's Internet entered the era of great reconciliation, mutual exchange of needs and benefit sharing became the main theme. Wang Xing might as well change his past uncooperative approach and treat Byte and even Alibaba more gently. If we can untie the knot, Meituan will be able to more smoothly draw traffic from Douyin, and even open up the spring of Alipay’s mini program.

The past grievances between entrepreneurs are the historical burden of the enterprise. There are no eternal enemies in the business world, only eternal interests.

In the face of the new situation, Byte and Tencent are still shaking hands and making peace, while Douyin and Meituan can also go hand in hand.

References:

Alphabet list, "Cheng Wei can't let Wang Xing go"

Alphabet List, "From Infinite War to Limited Cooperation, "Touteng War" Enters the Second Half"

Later LatePost, "New Changes in Local Life: Douyin’s Radical Goals and Meituan’s Quietness"

Huxiu, "The 40,000-word record is fully presented: What Wang Xing, Zhang Yiming, and Cheng Wei talked about in the closed-door meeting in Wuzhen"

Dolphin Investment Research, "Another fierce battle on Douyin, Meituan's defensive battle is stronger than Alibaba"