#disabled!hua cheng

[one-flower-one-sword]

"The images that Xie Lian was seeing in his left and right eyes were different, and it was incredibly uncomfortable. He blinked lightly, which made him discover that his right eye could still see the scene outside even while closed. So he kept his eyes shut."

TGCF Volume 5, page 253

So this is when Hua Cheng is sharing his butterfly vision with Xie Lian by touching foreheads with him. Which is a very cute hualian moment, but I actually wanna talk about something else - Xie Lian describes having those conflicting views in his left and right eye as really uncomfortable, and while of course Hua Cheng has had many years to get used to it, I think it's still a pretty good example at just how skilled he is at multi-tasking. Because he apparently does this - using butterfly vision and/or hearing to keep tabs on different locations/people - all the time. Meaning at any given moment he could be listening to several different conversations at once, plus "flipping through" different views in one half of his vision, while also paying attention to his current surroundings. And not just that, he has to sort through and evaluate all that input and information. Just thinking about all that gives me sensory overload.

Also, technically speaking, having only one eye means he should have no depth perception - in that eye, that is. His butterflies don't have that problem. Imagine constantly switching between vision with and without depth perception, that'd be so disorienting. But he's evidently trained himself to do all this to a point where he can just seamlessly switch back and forth or use both his normal vision and butterfly vision simultaneously.

In that sense, I also see the butterflies as a sort of disability aid. Because with his right eye missing, Hua Cheng has a huge blind spot on that side. And while yes, even as a child he used to constantly cover that eye, so he's had hundreds of years to learn how to compensate for this. But the butterflies allow him to navigate the world in a way that is significantly different to someone with full vision and also something he's honed into a unique skill - he's still blind on one side, but he's made it much harder for enemies to take advantage of that and actually learned to "see" in ways that they can't.

[one-flower-one-sword]

I was just going to reblog this as is because I think it's a very good answer by @mxtxfanatic , but I just want to say @ anon, if we're talking disability rep, don't forget Hua Cheng!! though he's very powerful and competent, he's still blind on one side. if anon is interested I've written a post here about the wraith butterflies acting as potential disability aids in some cases, and a second post here where I analyze how Bai Wuxiang takes advantage of Hua Cheng being blind on side during his fight against him, plus further commentary on how Hua Cheng handles his disability in general.

i think you'd articulate it much better than i could but i'd love to know your thoughts about disability in mxtx's work!

i love the way she has all her mcs deal with spiritual (?) disabilities (corelessness, without a cure, the shackles). i'd say it's like half a step removed from actual rep, but she handles it really thoughtfully imo!

( maybe including other stuff/characters like the bm trauma etc)

Idk, I’ve never thought of stuff like the golden core removals or Without-a-cure as disabilities, because they only affect cultivation, which is not innate to the human body. It’s like claiming that an able-bodied person has a mobility disability because they no longer have a car. Yeah it takes longer to get places because you have to walk, now, but that doesn’t make you disabled. I am much more willing to talk about disability in mxtx novels through the lens of mental illness.

I like how mental illnesses like trauma and ptsd are handled through community care and not random vent sessions as stand-ins for modern therapy. I feel like this takes a more realistic approach on what it could look like when you take trauma seriously instead of relegating all healing to individualistic habit changes. For instance: the onset of Xie Lian’s spiral into his panic attacks and depression was being abandoned by his closest friends and then the suicide of his parents. Before that, he was able to continue on after the fall of Xianle based on their support of him, but after everyone leaves and he’s alone, he sinks heavily into despair. It is only after experiencing the unconditional support of Wuming that he is able to pull himself out of the pit, and meeting Hua Cheng later is what gives him to confidence to actually open himself back up again instead of taking on issues alone because he had no one to rely on anymore.

In mdzs, Wei Wuxian during the war and immediately post-war aftermath is a very tense person, still polite and charming but very distant from his peers. Part of that is the cultivation world beginning to treat him differently as they covet his power, but another part is that he had to remain on guard to protect himself, even from the people who he was formerly closest with. There was no one that he could depend on until he liberated the Qionqi Path labor camp. Afterwards, we see how Wei Wuxian is returned to his silly, playful self after spending time with the Wen remnants in the Burial Mounds, even though logically, this was the most dangerous time of his life outside of literal war in his first lifetime. The difference, however, is that he actually has people that he doesn’t have to guard against and who he can be honest and free with despite all the messy lines of debt and repayment that initially bound them together.

In svsss, though I don’t think Shen Qingqiu had any mental health issues, the thing that differentiates him from Shen Jiu is that Shen Qingqiu built up relationships with his martial siblings in the few years he had transmigrated, while the original goods kept himself intentionally isolated in his own sea of bitterness and jealousy. When the world turns against Shen Jiu, it is of his own making, but when the same happens to Shen Qingqiu, he has a whole mountain at his back ready to defend him—or even just his body! And in the post-canon when something happens on bingqiu’s time away, his first thought is “let’s go back to the sect for protection.” He never has a chance to fall into that same despair because he knows he has a community of support in case anything goes wrong. On the opposite end of things, the lack of love, community, and inclusion is what eventually sets Luo Binghe on his descent into madness, and it is the assurance that Shen Qingqiu both loves him and will never abandon him that pulls him back from the brink.

I’ve seen quite a few people make snide comments about how “of course” mxtx characters react badly to trauma because they exist in a setting without therapy, but I think this both ignores the autonomy of the characters (wwx, xl, or even yqy do not react to being traumatized in the same way that, say, sj or mq do) and also the fact that the solution to a lot of mental health issues that arise from trauma is a change in circumstances and having community. So even though therapy doesn’t exist in mxtx novels, the solutions to a lot of these problems still feels realistic and intentional rather than falling into “everyone traumatized will turn evil” or “love cures all, don’t look too deeply into it,” while also putting onus on the individual to choose healing rather than it being something that just passively happens to them.

[muzsmocsing]

The most problematic thing about Hua Cheng isn't the debauched city he runs or the statue drama or even the murders. It's how he didn't let Quan Yizhen ride the spooky skeleton drawn golden carriage even though he clearly really really wanted to.

[gay-disabled-characters-showdown]

LBGTQ+ Disabled Characters Showdown Round 3, Wave 1, Poll 12

A character being totally canon LGBTQ+ and disabled was not required to be in this competition. Please check qualifications and propaganda before asking why a character is included. 

Check out the other polls in this wave and prior here.

Joly-Les Misérables

Qualifications:

Joly is a hypochondriac and uses a cane. He is in a poly relationship (this isn’t explicitly explicitly canon, but it’s fairly implied in a text from the 1800s)

if i remember correctly he's canonically a cane user (and while canes were often for fashion back then i'm fairly sure he needs his?) and also he's queer by virtue of a) all of les amis being queer and b) whatever's going on between him and bossuet and musichetta

Propaganda:

What’s cooler than an 1800s queer disabled character? Joly (aka Jolllly) is a hypochondriac and uses a cane, and is complimented well by his accident prone boyfriend. The two also have a relationship with them another woman. Despite his constant worrying, Joly is quite happy go lucky and fun, and he is a dedicated member of the revolution and very caring friend.

HE'S A YOUTHFUL MALADE IMAGINAIRE! the day before he's expecting to die (in the june rebellion) he is worried about a cold :( he is also a very happy guy and considering the book is called 'the sad guys' that is commendable

The qualifications and propaganda paragraphs correspond, @satancheeto is the first submitter, @mxcrowave is the second.

Hua Cheng-Heaven Official’s Blessing / Tian Guan Ci Fu

Qualifications:

Hua Cheng is the main love interest in Heaven Official's Blessing, a ghost who has been in love with the hero Xie Lian for over 800 years. As if being dead isn't enough, he once clawed out his own eye in order to save a group of humans from marauding ghosts shortly before his ascension to Ghost King.

Propaganda:

Sexy pirate ghost king swag. Gay for His Highness.

Fun fact: between when he was submitted and when this poll was written the mods both read all of TGCF. Also low key I feel like gay for his highness is a little bit of an understatement.

[douknowthisgaydisabledcharacter]

Do You Know This LGBTQ+ Disabled Character?

Hua Cheng is visually impaired, MLM, and uses he/him pronouns.

[heartinhyacinth]

There’s been something wrong with my eye for the past two days and I was about to start panicking when it first began, but just when I was getting ready to spiral into worry…a thought popped into my head.

Well….at least it’s the right eye.

If it’s anything serious (not likely), at least I can have really authentic hua cheng cosplay.

I’m still taking it seriously, don’t worry. Though normally I’d be a ball of anxiety. Thinking of it like this has kept me very calm and even given me a silly story as well :)

[doyouknowthisdisabledcharacter]

Do You Know This Disabled Character?

This isn't specific to any media. If you know only one version, vote ‘I know them.’

Hua Cheng is blind in one eye.

[waitineedaname]

I know hua cheng's handwriting is because he wasn't formally taught how to write as a child and had to teach himself, but he's extremely well read and has had 800 years to work on his handwriting, so I've decided he has dysgraphia. as a treat.

[demihualian]

Christmas fic, angst and hurt/comfort, disabled Xie Lian. T, 3,183 words.

This is a very indulgent, very personal fic. You shouldn't need to know the characters to read it.

I'm putting it in the disability tags because this is the closest I'm going to get to a personal post on this account. I hope this fic can bring comfort to other disabled people spending Christmas alone!

“San Lang,” Xie Lian laughs, surprised out of his panic. “Did you buy the whole store?” “I have a second bag, too,” Hua Cheng says, grinning. “Don’t worry, I know what you eat.” Xie Lian sits helplessly as his best friend digs through his comically large bag of comically restricted food. Against his will, holiday cheer begins to bubble in his chest. He can indulge a little, can’t he? Hua Cheng seems to genuinely be having fun.

Xie Lian thought he’d be alone for Christmas. Hua Cheng proves him wrong. And with gentle care and persistence, he finally begins to break through Xie Lian’s belief that being disabled makes him less worthy of love.

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/43841484

Edit: there's a fluffy little epilogue now, from Hua Cheng's POV! https://archiveofourown.org/works/44071512

[mdzs-owns-my-ass-i-guess]

Most iconic Pei Ming things according to me

Contains spoilers

Hoho

When he had a more romantic and meaningful relationship with his male subordinate than any of the hundreds of women he'd been with.

When Xuan Ji offered him state secrets to win the war and he said he wanted to win by his own skill

Being worshipped as a God of Love

When he was mortal and he slept with so many women that they would curse him to get an STD but he never did

Being very supportive of HuaLian

When he broke his sword and never used another again

Not knowing how to cook

The beef Shi Qingxuan has with him for hanging out with Shi Wudu

When people keep shipping him and Ling Wen

Being one of the Three Tumors but also one of the Four Famous Tales

Being tense around one woman ever and its Yushi Huang

The fact that he treats Pei Xiu like his honorary son

Being a very honest and straightforward dude

The fact that he did take care of Xuan Ji after she disabled herself even if he didnt love her

When Hua Cheng was in his child form on Mt. Tonglu, Pei Ming found him cute and teased him

Not iconic Pei Ming things

Commitment issues :/

Being a manwhore

[one-flower-one-sword]

His fingers curled into claws, and he aimed directly for Hua Cheng's right eye!

It all happened in under a second. Hua Cheng dodged just as fast, but the attack still left two bloody scratches on his cheek.

For the first time, Hua Cheng faced an opponent he couldn't overtake in speed. His gaze turned sharp, and he changed tactics on the spot - he called forth millions of wraith butterflies, and they swarmed the man in a frenzy. The myriad butterflies wrapped the white-clad man inside a large, shimmering silver chrysalis, but that likely wouldn't last long. Hua Cheng was about to grab Xie Lian when the silver butterflies shrieked and exploded into sparkling powder!

Seeing the subtle change to Hua Cheng's expression as so many wraith butterflies were destroyed at once, Xie Lian knew that this wasn't good. The white-clad man had blown apart the wraith butterflies, and now he was hidden within the shimmering silver powder that choked the air. His newly grown hand struck out once more, aiming again for Hua Cheng's right eye!

TGCF Volume 6, page 76

In this previous post, I've speculated about the logistics of Hua Cheng being blind on his right side and his usage of the wraith butterflies as a sort of disability aid in some instances. This above scene of his first direct clash against Bai Wuxiang is another one of those moments where the text isn't directly stating something but it's possible to extrapolate from what is described and from what is implied.

Hua Cheng is extremely skilled at direct combat at a very young age already, evidenced by the way he manages to injure several of Qi Rong's lackeys when they capture him as he's only ten years old:

"I called for five or six guys, and they still couldn't catch the brat. He trashed and bit them until they were bloodied all over."

Volume 2, page 351

And then later as a young soldier in the army:

"Although the boy was carrying nothing but a worn sword, he was still highly effective and struck down many of the binu. [...] "You've never used a saber before, right? You use a sword, but the sword is tricky. Although it's fast and extremely aggressive, its range is fairly limited. If you've never used a saber before, try it next time. I think you might be even stronger with it."

Volume 3, page 124-127

(The horrifying thing about this is of course that while Hua Cheng probably possessed natural talent, the reason why he had to learn to defend himself against adults as a mere child was that he was so severely and frequently beaten by them)

Also in my previous post, I speculated that Hua Cheng always keeping his right eye covered likely meant he learned early how to compensate for his blind spot in combat, since that obvious weakness is something his opponents would immediately notice and try to take advantage of. Until Bai Wuxiang, we never witness him fighting anyone who can actually injure him, not since he's become a Supreme Ghost King. He defeats 33 heavenly officials in a row, and even fighting two against one with Feng Xin and Mu Qing, he defeats both of them with ease.

I would argue that, aside from being extremely skilled with a saber and having immense spiritual powers, it can be extrapolated from the above quote about his fight against Bai Wuxiang that it's also Hua Cheng leveraging his superior speed against his opponents that prevents them from taking advantage of his blind spot.

(As an aside, I would assume that even when Hua Cheng is in a fake skin that has both eyes and not in his true form, he's still blind in the right one because it's, well, fake. If the text ever actually contradicts that (I've not read volume 8 yet) I will add corrections)

But now, he's facing Bai Wuxiang, who is just as if not even faster than him. Judging by the fact that Bai Wuxiang aims his attack at Hua Cheng's right eye twice, he's correctly judged his blind spot to be the most vulnerable place to go for, thereby managing to bypass his defense long enough to injure him.

Hua Cheng immediately reasses the situation, realizes he needs to create more distance between himself and his opponent, and switches to use his wraith butterflies as a sort of distract-defend-attack combo. And against everyone else, this would have worked - we see this when he uses them to drive Feng Xin and Mu Qing back after they kidnapped Xie Lian away from him:

The butterfly deluge was blocked by the formless spiritual shield and shattered into shimmering silver light, which rapidly recrystallized into new silver butterflies and attacked once more. The onslaught was completely unstoppable - Feng Xin and Mu Qing gave ground slowly as they kept their shields up, and Hua Cheng steadily advanced step by step.

Volume 6, page 63

And then again to keep Feng Xin away and occupied while he faces Mu Qing with Eming:

Meanwhile, each arrow Feng Xin shot at the butterflies was snapped by their sharp wings. The sheer number of butterflies was ultimately too difficult to deal with!

Volume 6, page 64

But Bai Wuxiang is infinitely more powerful and simply destroys all the wraith butterflies at once, which then gives him the opportunity to immediately go for Hua Cheng's blind spot a second time and aim his attack there again.

If we continue to read the wraith butterflies as not only a weapon but also a disability aid of sorts, these fight scenes demonstrate both the possible uses of them as such and also their limits. While they're feared for good reason and have multiple functions - acting as his eyes and ears like spies, defending like a shield or cutting like a blade - they can help him make up for his blind spot to a certain degree, but they can't erase it. They're an aid for his vision loss, not a replacement.

(Which is a good thing imo, just to make that clear. I feel like it's always such a wasted opportunity when characters sustain a disability and then it's either magically fixed or they continue on as if they're still able-bodied. But Hua Cheng is disabled, and the ways he's found to empower himself and to navigate a world that's pretty hostile to people like him, don't take away from that)

Like I mentioned above I haven't read Volume 8 yet, where as far as I know there'll be more fight scenes, so I might come back to this post in the future to add further observations or correct previous ones!

[xueyuverse]

A fanfic idea where Hua Cheng is blind and taught himself to draw and sculpt at a young age, because of his disability he was rejected and beaten by other children and his own family, so he spent most of his time alone.

However, he didn't learn to read or write until Xie Lian came into his life and taught him how to read and write Braille. This gege has such a sweet voice, such affectionate touches and such cute patience that Hua Cheng couldn't help but pretend that he wasn't able to learn anything just to have him longer.

On one of those days, Xie Lian allows Hua Cheng to touch his face and body to see what it feels like, and oh, it was even more beautiful than he had dreamed. It was a ravishing beauty, poetic and worthy of a muse, Hua Cheng spent the night working only on sketches and molds for a statue of this man.

[badass-queer-couples-battle]

Don't you think it's funny cause actual canon gay characters in BL manga will say "I love you" but only the shounen bromance can spew out some of the most romantic shit akin to a 19th century poet writing a letter expressing his surpressed love for his lover 😭.....

Genuniely can't tell if it's bait or not, but I'm going to treat this ask seriously anyway.

Here, have some examples of beautiful and poetic expressions of love in BL media!

I'm going to start with my favourite murder husbands, Wen Kexing and Zhou Zishu from Word of Honor/Faraway Wanderers!

This happens in episode nine, less than one third into the story- it's that early, they've known each other for like a week and are already able to tell they're meant to be. They've made their decision to be together, and over the course of the story:

They defend each other multiple times and fight side by side in multiple episodes, sometimes protecting their adopted kid/mentee Chengling as well

Zhou Zishu is willing to go against the whole martial arts society for his boyfriend. With zero hesistation, might I add.

They both know the other has done horrible things (lots of murder on both sides here) and that's not only okay, it's a big part of why they're soulmates and get each other so well!

Zhou Zishu is slowly dying (poisoned nails in his chest, long story) and Wen Kexing can and will risk his life to save him. Don't worry, they get a happy ending both in the show and the novel even if the show's last episode is behind a paywall and Netflix didn't even include it for some reason?

But enough about them, let's move on to the immortal fantasy genre boyfriends Hua Cheng and Xie Lian from Heaven Official's Blessing!

Please note how Hua Cheng is ready to accept Xie Lian in whatever state he's currently in- as a god, a fallen outcast, even grieving and angry and at his absolute lowest. He's stood by Xie Lian in his worst moments, even if at the time Xie Lian had no idea it was him.

Hua Cheng has loved Xie Lian for 800 years, ever since he was a boy Xie Lian saved from falling to his death during a procession.

Xie Lian became a god, then fell due to horrible circumstances, almost committed a war crime against another nation that destroyed his country, spend 800 years wandering the mortal realm as a poor cultivator with his powers greatly reduced, and eventually ascended to become a god again. Throughout it all, Hua Cheng loved him and did his best to help him and then find him.

They're both adorable and the definition of a power couple once they're reunited- no spoilers, but they eventually fight an incredibly powerful god side by side and win & the last scene in the story is them reuniting for good since there's no more obstacles to their immortal love.

Let's move on to my favourite Japanese BL, Our Dining Table (also available as a series that came out semi-recently, but the examples below are from the manga.)

Yutaka is a lonely salesman who meets Minoru, a restaurant worker and his much younger brother Tane grieving the death of their mother.

Yutaka and Minoru hit it off by bonding through food they cook and share. The series is incredibly heartwarming, and as seen above Yutaka becomes a much happier person thanks to both his new relationship and big brother-like bond with little Tane.

As a little bonus, the whole found family together!

This post can't be complete without Golden Stage (or Golden Terrace, as the English official translation calls it).

Fu Shen and Yan Xiaohan aren't even in love at this point! This is at the beginning of the story, when their marriage has just been arranged by the emperor and they're still bitter rivals.

Yan Xiaohan is already protective of his future husband- later on, he also builds him a mansion meant to accommodate his disability (nerve damage in both legs, which requires a wheelchair and/or crutches). They're both incredibly powerful military generals, and the emperor was an idiot thinking an arranged marriage would humiliate them.

Of course they fall in love, of course they're a power couple, of course they send each other letters through trained geese when they're separated during the war, of course they run to each other as fast as they can across a wide cold river when they're finally reunited! Of course they're important to me!

....Aaand how about some Wangxian to wrap up this post? They need no introduction, an absolutely wonderful and complex relationship in a complex fantasy/intrigue story available in several forms - the books, the animated series (as seen above), the live action series, the audio drama, there's so much!

Some of their most beautiful moments:

Lan Wangji writing a song for Wei Wuxian and naming it Wangxian. Years after it's composed, Wei Wuxian plays it and LWJ is able to recognise him even in a different body.

LWJ begs WWX to come with him to Cloud Recesses, to safety, after WWX makes himself an enemy of the whole cultivation world for protecting innocent people.

They confront the final villain together, and work together to expose his crimes. This is also when their final love confession happens, and it's hilarious- in front of everyone's salad, WWX declares he also wanted to sleep with LWJ.

Despite censorship, the animated series was still able to allude to their wedding, showing them in red wedding robes (unfortunately can't find a gif rn)

Respectfully, if you genuinely think BL doesn't have beautiful love confessions and displays of romance, you need to find better BL.

[gay-disabled-characters-showdown]

LGBTQ+ Disabled Characters Showdown Round 1, Wave 3, Poll 9

A character being totally canon LGBTQ+ and disabled was not required to be in this competition. Please check qualifications and propaganda before asking why a character is included.

Check out the other polls in this wave and prior here.

Patchouli Knowledge-Touhou Project

Qualifications:

Every touhou character is queer even if it isn't canon. They just are. It's touhou it's just how it is. Patchouli is also canonically disabled, having asthma and anemia, and it canonically gets in the way of her day to day life because she can't cast as many spells as she'd like to

Propaganda:

She's very PURPLE

Hua Cheng-Heaven Official’s Blessing / Tian Guan Ci Fu

Qualifications:

Hua Cheng is the main love interest in Heaven Official's Blessing, a ghost who has been in love with the hero Xie Lian for over 800 years. As if being dead isn't enough, he once clawed out his own eye in order to save a group of humans from marauding ghosts shortly before his ascension to Ghost King.

Propaganda:

Sexy pirate ghost king swag. Gay for His Highness.

Fun fact: between when he was submitted and when this poll was written the mods both read all of TGCF. Also low key I feel like gay for his highness is a little bit of an understatement.

[mxtxfanatic]

Alright mxtx fandoms, let’s discuss class distinctions. I see a lot of people who discuss the theme of classism in mxtx works by collapsing all class groups into two categories: the ultra rich upper class who make all the rules and the poverty-stricken lower class who are oppressed by them. However, this is rarely the case in her books. The prime examples I can think of are in tgcf and mdzs.

In mdzs, a lot of people claim that Wei Wuxian and Jin Guangyao come from “similar backgrounds,” but this is most definitely not the case. Yes, Jin Guangyao went unclaimed by his father until later into his adulthood after his mother’s death, but Meng Yao did not grow up poor. Meng Shi was a famed courtesan with high-profile clients before she had her son, and having Meng Yao was a plan for her to be made into a mistress or second wife (which ultimately failed). Sisi was almost turned into a second wife, which is what caused her to be attacked and ruined her looks. Sex workers operated in a weird social space in ancient history where they existed as an industry, but class distinctions between different kinds of sex work still existed/exists and Meng Shi was definitely not on the low end of the scale. Even if Jin Guangyao had never been acknowledged by his father, he still found an honest job as a bookkeeper before meeting Lan Xichen. Meanwhile, Wei Wuxian was a street orphan with no family, money, status, who barely remembered his name, and definitely no benefit of an education due to how young he was orphaned, who was eventually taken in as the companion servant to a local lord-equivalent’s son. Neither of these characters started off as gentry, but they were not of the same class growing up.

In tgcf, Mu Qing is touted as a “poor”/working-class character by a large portion of the fandom, but… there’s no real evidence that he is? I mean, I have no doubt that, given the circumstances of his father’s death and his mother’s eventual disability, he was in poverty at some point, and this seems to be corroborated within the narrative by the fact that he is well-known and loved by the street orphans in the city. However, you cannot tell me that the personal servant to the crown (and only) prince to an entire kingdom is surviving off poverty wages. You’d be better-served making an argument to me about Anne Boleyn being an accurate historical representation of English serfs. Hong Hong’er, actual child living in poverty, is notably set apart from Mu Qing: from his fraying, patched clothes to his dirty hands to Mu Qing’s unwillingness to touch him… Mu Qing is set apart from the upper crust because 1) he is not of nobility but, more importantly, 2) his father was a criminal publicly executed for treason. And #2 is particularly damning for Mu Qing’s status amongst the nobility because Feng Xin, also not from a noble family, is (conditionally) accepted amongst the same elite snobs in a way Mu Qing is not (which makes sense since why would a noble like the son of a man who may have conspired against their rule?). Interesting to note, though, that the only time Mu Qing is unquestionably included in the array of the elite is when Hong Hong’er is being ostracized by the same group (minus Xie Lian). So while Hua Cheng and Mu Qing both had childhoods outside the nobility, Mu Qing was not anywhere near the level of poverty Hua Cheng had to live through.

I feel like svsss escapes this sort of broad-stroke application of class status to characters because most characters really do either fall into one of the two groups or we are not given background information on them at all. We know that Shen Jiu and Yue Qingyuan were child slaves, with the former being bought by a cruel master and the latter being able to escape and join a sect. We know that Luo Binghe, while not a child slave, was a child servant working with his adoptive mother under cruel masters who were directly the cause of his mother’s death. Slight distinction, but functionally not any different in their effects and outcomes. Shen Yuan is said to come from a wealthy family in his world, and Liu Qingge and Liu Mingyan do, as well. All the major demon characters are nobility. The only character we see who does not fit into this distinct divide is Shang Qinghua, but his background only becomes fleshed-out in the extras. Not to say that classism isn’t also a theme, but it’s function is used differently here than in the other two novels (especially since in svsss, we are working with parallels feeding into cycles of abuse and how to break said cycles rather than recreating them into infinity).

So with all this said, I think it may actually help discussions of the classism theme within these different mxtx fandoms to acknowledge and take into account the nuances within the class positions that these characters occupy. Why is it that the functionally middle-class characters, after gaining a crumb of acceptance from the elites, tend to turn against those lower on the rung? How do characters of the same background and class status interact with others of differing status, and what makes their reactions different from each other despite being raised under similar conditions? What is mxtx trying to say about class as a social or even moral divider by adding all these class nuances or (with svsss) lack thereof into her various narratives?

[danmei-in-polls]

Submissions Open masterpost

blue for tournaments that haven't been updated in a while, and it's unclear when or if they will be ran

Characters:

Autism swag summit (new!)

Autistic headcanon bracket

Best regressor tournament

Bisexual swag competition (new!)

Character most screwed by writers

Characters who need to be put in the incinerator suggested: old palace master (svsss)

Characters with numbers in their names suggested: shen jiu, yue qingyuan, six balls (svsss), jing beiyuan (qi ye)

Cringefail biromantic poll

Disabled Characters Showdown confirmed: wen kexing (tian ya ke, shan he ling), zhou zishu (shan he ling) suggested: hua cheng (tgcf), zhou zishu (tian ya ke), cui buqu (wushuang), xiao xingchen (mdzs), xue xian (tqks)

Favorite disabled webnovel character suggested: see the list for "Disabled Characters Showdown" above

Favorite webnovel men

Feral MILFs

Fuckable faves

Guy followed around by a Voice

Guys you'd call mommy suggested: shen qingqiu (svsss)

Hidden webnovel character tournament (wn character tournament with voting based solely on ganda)

Hot moms in media

I'd call her sir (horny)

Lied on their resume tournament

Modern webnovel character

Most attractive fucked-up character

Most feral webnovel character (new!)

Most Meaningless Character Death

Pure Beef Bean (as opposed to smol bean)

Queer-coded characters

Revived revenge (characters who were murdered, came back to life, and took revenge)

Smartest webnovel character

Trans webnovel character

Transmigration destination protagonists' showdown confirmed: luo binghe (svsss), baili qingmiao (dvawtk)

Ultimate bottom

Ultimate top

Women with big dicks / BDE suggested: su xiyan (svsss)

Couples / ships:

Fucked-up ships

Toxic Old Men Yaoi

Webnovel rarepair

Groups:

Other:

Anything from any webnovel

Best book to movie adaptation (TV shows included)

Best gothic horror/gothic romance

Leverage teams tournament

Misogynistic Media Tournament

Queer shows and movies (i asked, censored bl goes!)

Webnovel monster (non-humanoid)

Not tournaments:

Are they queer? (similar to 'could x have saved them' blogs)

Are they queerplatonic?

Can they lift Thor's hammer? Could they wield Mjolnir? (different blog with same/similar theme)

Could aromanticism save them?

Could fatness have saved them?

Could lesbianism save them?

Could polyamory have saved them?

Could they assemble IKEA furniture?

Could transition have saved her? (for potential transfems)

Could transition have saved them?

Could transition save him?

Could being trans save them? Did transitioning save them? (different blog with same/similar theme) Are they trans? (different blog with same/similar theme)

Do you know this ADHD character?

Do you know this autistic character?

Do you know this baby?

Do you know this disabled LGBTQ+ character?

Do you know this stuttering character?

Do you ship this queer ship?

Have you read this webnovel?

Is your blorbo neurodivergent?

Is this character aroacespec?

Should they be emancipated? (freed from their parents)

Should they divorce?

The Babygirl Polls

Throuple or love triangle?

Webnovel tournaments suggestions

Would gay sex fix them? (temporarily closed)

Would being different gender affect their popularity?

Would it fix them?

Would you date this character?

Would you punt them into the sun?