#hanshi

[guqin-and-flute]

Wangji trying to convince his brother to immediately turn on Jin Guangyao and help Wei Wuxian after the Koi Tower Debacle™ feels very [no_take_only_throw_dog_meme.jpeg]

Lwj: Xiongzhang. Help.

Lxc: Okay, but I need to understand the whole situation.

Lwj: ... >:( No nuance. Only help.

[stiltonbasket]

Hi! In fem!wwx, when will a-yuan meet LXC, and LQR? What is their reaction to a-yuan considering that a-yuan has some similarity with LWJ? Will they make incorrect assumption? Like they think a-yuan is their biological kid or other reason? Thanks

Lan Xichen and Lan Qiren met A-Yuan a few weeks after Lan Wangji moved into the Burial Mounds, but there was no confusion about A-Yuan being his biological son. He would never have been intimate with anyone other than Wei Wuxian; and if he had slept with WWX, he would have informed LXC and LQR afterwards so their wedding date could be moved up, war or no war, before requesting punishment for breaking the sect precept against promiscuity.

[cql-screenshots]

[m4niackkyun]

I actually have like...three personas that i hardly ever talk about

[essiemclaren]

lingering ties

pt 8

College!au

In which reader and Oscar, now broken up, must co-parent their (fur) baby

oscar's post on twitter/x

lando's chat to unibros

reader's post on twitter/x

oscar's posts on twitter/x

-

reader's post on twitter/x

unibros gc without oscar in it lol

-

lando's chat with oscar

lando's chat with reader

reader's private post on twitter/x

part 9

--

a/n: IM SORRY FOR SAYING THAT ILL BE UPLOADING IT BUT ENDED UP NOT GETTING IT PUBLISH, SO IM SORRY 😔🙏 the reason why i uploaded very late because... i was busy with internship to the point that i barely watch the races anymore 💔 BUT HEY I AM HERE AND ALIVE BUT CANT SEE VERY WELL, i went out for a run and me being me, i lost it.... so 😔

HOPE YOU GUYS LIKE THIS ONE!!! IF YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DROP AN INBOX!!! LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT THISN!! THANK YOU FOR BEING PATIENT WITH ME I LOVE YOU SOOOO MUCH!!!

essie RAAAAAAH ❤️

tags: @tsireyasgf @ziarahpikiran @mrsjamietartt @softtina @overlyexcitedoutlaw @osclerc @nixisracing @sinfully-yoursss @colmathgames2 @booksandflowrs @formula1blog @storminacloud @nixily @lokideservesahug @cherry-piee @annispamz @sltwins @mxdi0 @killinorris @awritingtree @andruuu28 @sarahkaliii @auggieblogs @hanshy @evie-119

@tellybearryyyy @ale-522 @xoxonoire @grovelingmen @s0meth1ngs @kodzuvk @2pagenumb @luuuucas @nataliambc @lyannesworld @honethatty12 @brune77e @iloveyou3000morgan @5sospenguinqueen @ellouisa17 @daisyfreecs @lichterfee @ididntseeurbag @koalalafications @saachiep81 @angelfrombeneth @vintagefucksstuff @mmoodd-jobutupaki @mountvesuvu @chezmardybum

[korpikorppi]

Guys, I just now noticed one more interesting little detail in the Untamed!

You know the names of the buildings in the Cloud Recesses: the lecture room/hall Lanshi (兰室, Lánshì, "Orchid Room"); Yashi (雅室, Yǎshì, "Elegant Room") – the reception room/hall; the spirit-summoning room/hall Mingshi (冥室, Míngshì, "Underworld Room" or "Room of Darkness"); Hanshi (寒室, Hánshì, "Frost Room") - Lan Xichen's residence; and Lan Wangji's Jingshi (静室, Jìngshì, "Quiet Room"), right?

The character used to write the "shì", room, in the names is 室, here seen in the Lanshi and the Yashi (the names are read from right to left):

As a side note, the Lan seem to use the traditional rather than the simplified characters, so the "lán" in the Lanshi is written with 蘭 rather than 兰.

BUT. Not so in the Jingshi! Instead of the 室, a slightly different character is used for the "room":

My trusty dictionary did not know the character in question, so I started to look at what was different:

As such, the character 凶 (xiōng) means act of violence, murder, evil. An evildoer. A murderer. And as Lan Xichen told Wei Wuxian, we know who lived in the Jingshi before it became Lan Wangji's residence: "It is the place where our mother lived in the Cloud Recesses".

So, it seems that when the house became Madam Lan's prison, the character was changed to reflect her crime, denoting the place as the quiet room of a murderer. Accentuated by the reversed colours of the sign:

This has probably been quite self-evident to anyone who actually speaks and reads Chinese, but was quite an oooff! to me as I realised. One more killer detail in CQL 😟.

And while I was at it, I just had to check what it says above the gate (seen here when LWJ returns home with the Emperor's Smile):

As far as I can read it, the characters are 影竹堂 (yǐng zhú táng), which I freely translate as "Bamboo Shadow Court". An apt name for the place.

Hopefully it offered some solace to Madam Lan.

And oh, I just have to add! As Hanshi is the Sect Leader's residence, Lan Xichen is living in their father's house, while Lan Wangji is living in their mother's. And the two houses are more or less identical, down to the furnishings (just check the scene where Lan Xichen confronts Wen Chao and his muddy boots in ep8 vs. The Wangxian Scene in ep43). So did Qingheng-jun have the house built for his wife, identical to the house she was not allowed to live in? That is quite plausible, in universe. Out universe, they probably had only so many buildings to shoot in :).

[lxh-arts]

小满~ || Xiaoman~ || Lesser Full Grain~

Countless branches shining red,

Dyed the tracks of tears.

- Ming Dynasty, SHI Hanshi, Rhododendron

[pocketsizedowls]

Lan Xichen, libra extraordinaire, has never made a decision in his life.

He's been trained to, of course, but only in an official capacity. His uncle once told him to only make decisions after gathering sufficient information, and that has since become the most important rule in his life. This means he's great at mediating conflict, hosting banquets, and making executive decisions like which village gets more rice and what policies he should enact, but he never knows what to eat for dinner and what to do during his free time.

Lan Wangji, neurodivergent/autistic icon, is the complete opposite. He's a picky perfectionist with a strict daily routine, which no one ever interrupts because why should they? It's just Wangji being Wangji. And, in fact, everyone should strive to be like him. Perhaps if he grew up somewhere rowdier like Lotus Pier or the Unclean Realm then someone would finagle him into being spontaneous, but this is the Cloud Recesses. Of course nobody bothered him until Wei Wuxian came along and turned his world upside down.

Before Wei Wuxian, though, there was Lan Xichen. He stops by the Jingshi often, not because he is concerned for his antisocial little brother (well, maybe just a little), but because he gets so bored sometimes and he never knows what to do. Whenever Uncle is busy, little Xichen likes to find little Wangji and follow his routine with him. Can I join you as you meditate, he asks, and can I eat dinner with you? What do you suggest I do after lectures tomorrow? The other day I took your advice and made a painting, do you wanna see it? Can you pick a book out of this pile for me to read first? I can't seem to decide.

This is why Lan Xichen gets along so well with people. He goes along with things, lets people make decisions for him, and genuinely enjoys it. He earns the trust of the skeptical people without even trying to, just because he lets them pick which wine to order at the inn and what day they should go on a night hunt. You might think it's quite counterintuitive for an all-important sect leader to be this indecisive, but it worked out for the majority of his life. Just like how he chooses to believe in the good in people, people also believe in the good in him.

These days, though, Lan Xichen is reconsidering his behavior. As weeks turn into months turn into years, he stares out the windows of the Hanshi and wonders: Would everything turn out differently if he made more decisions based on instinct? Who can he even trust anymore? Would Nie Mingjue still be alive today, if he didn't force him and A-Yao to become sworn brothers? Would A-Yao still be alive today, if he listened to Wangji and Wei-gongzi's warning sooner? All the people who tell him he did nothing wrong must be lying. How can nothing be his fault?

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Cloud Recesses, Lan Wangji adds more items to his routine. With Lan Xichen in seclusion, he's busy now. He teaches and he nighthunts and he sits through meetings and he spends time with Wei Ying. He also visits his brother. He drops by the Hanshi every three days and says, can I join you as you meditate, and can I eat dinner with you? What do you suggest I do after lectures tomorrow? The other day I took your advice and wrote a new song, do you wanna hear it? Can you pick a book out of this pile for me to read first? I can't seem to decide.

[pastelcheckereddreams]

"I don't want to go to the safehouse alone. Guess I'll bring a pet to keep me company."

Are you surprised? Really, are you surprised?? This won't be a full series, I just wanted to do something for the kprewatch event and set maps are what I do best 🤷‍♀️ Especially because it involves watching the same episodes again and again very, very closely and going insane, which seems appropriate for all the brainrot VegasPete have caused me. The complete design:

Silly little observations below the cut, but also have this diagram that illustrates where all the scenes take place relative to the aerial shot from episode 11:

If you'd be interested in prints, let me know! I may end up having a crack at a more substantial safehouse piece. A front elevation view would be so interesting to put together.

Reblogs are encouraged, reposts are not. This piece is now crossposted to my instagram account here. Check out my cdrama set maps and other art at the links/socials below: The Untamed (ongoing): The Jingshi | The Hanshi | Lotus Pier Word of Honor: Four Seasons Manor (in progress) instagram | kofi | inprnt

A small note on my design choices/silly little observations: 1) The room where Pete is kept appears to be smaller and squarer than it is in the aerial shot. I'm guessing it's to accommodate the mood lighting and to give the room a more claustrophobic/cage-like feel. I've attempted to depict that empty space above relative to the dimensions of the birdseye view.

2) I'm not entirely sure there actually is a bit of a bump-out for the unseen room that makes up part of the main living space, but the apparent interior corner in the far right of this shot makes me think there might be:

3) There's fresh herbs growing in a planter by the fridge and I think we should all think about Vegas planting them and watering them and cooking with them:

4) There is one single shot of the bedroom where there might (a big might) be an armchair next to the bed at one point and I ran with it for personal headcanon reasons:

5) What is in this mystery room at the back of this shot?? There seems to be a welcome mat or something put down? Is that the true entryway?? A bathroom? A utility room? I don't know nearly enough about vernacular Thai architecture to make an accurate guess:

Anddd that's it, that's about all I've got for this blorbo house! As always, thank you for your support 🙏Feel free to yell about this location in the tags, I'd love to hear your thoughts and maybe improve my design.

[yiling-laozu-is-loml]

For the danmei fanfic nightclub: XiXian angst possibly prisoner of war canon divergence.

How dare you make me inspired to write ten minutes after waking up? Suffer now!

Cw/Tw: warnings, heavy angst, psychological torture, isolation, self-loathing, suicidal thoughts, near-death experience. Hopeful ending because I am not entirely a monster!

Word Count: 3.2K

“The Lan Clan’s losses can never be compensated, even in a hundred years which is why the Jiang Clan has come up with something. We only hope this formal apology serves to restore the relationship between YunmengJiang and GusuLan. We also wish for Hanguang-jun to have a smooth transition and a better life in his next reincarnation.” Wei Wuxian would joke about how he was proud that Jiang Cheng managed to stay civil and formal at the same time and for such a long time-

“What is it that you’re offering?” Trust Lan Qiren to never waste time with skippable formalities.

“Wei Wuxian, Hanguang-jun’s murderer as a prisoner of war. This will be the last time we will do anything related to Wei Wuxian again. He is under your care now and you may feel fit to do whatever,” he spat the last word towards Wei Wuxian.

-if only he weren’t being sent to his slaughter amidst the internal cheering of the cultivation world.

“We accept, but instead of a prisoner to be tortured, I would like to take Wei Wuxian as my lawful spouse. I would love to live a long life with him. There is no resentment in Cloud Recesses to cloud his mind after all,” Lan Xichen spoke evenly but even from a distance Wei Wuxian could see the gleam of hatred in his eyes. Oh yes, he understood what the Lan Clan Leader was doing. Torture and killing him wouldn’t last as long as a marriage and captivity in the clan would. He would be proud of Lan Xichen for finally showing his true emotions if he wasn’t in danger.

“Lan-zongzhu is most merciful.” He bowed, trying not to clench his fists. There was nothing more he could do. He was Lan Xichen’s to do with as he wished and from the look in his future husband’s eyes, Wei Wuxian would suffer for years. But that’s alright. It’s what he deserves and worse. For being the reason Lan Wangji died. For telling him he was going to destroy the Yin Hu Fu and the mechanics behind it and for letting his guard down around a man so determined to stick around him.

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

He finished his three bows without fanfare the next day and moved into the Hanshi a few hours later. With everyone he cared for dead and everything important to him having been burned in Lotus Pier years ago, it didn’t take long. He only had to bring himself.

“You’ll sleep on the floor near the brazier,” Lan Xichen informed him and Wei Wuxian gulped before offering a small bow. “The Clan leader needs to look like the paragon of the Clan as such, I must take care of myself before anyone else. I am sure you understand how politics and gossip work, Yiling Laozu.”

He didn’t, and on the off chance he did, he didn’t care about what people thought anyway but he nodded to show he understood.

“Well, I hope you see him in your dreams tonight because I am sure he would’ve loved to see you in his.” It was said lightly but Wei Wuxian understood it for the curse it was. Not even half a day had passed since his sham of a marriage and his husband had already cursed him to nightmares.

“Have a pleasant rest, Lan-zongzhu,” he responded, settling his tired body near the brazier.

The next few weeks were a blur of doing nothing, getting sneered at by everyone and thinking of Lan Wangji. It always got worse if he would look in a direction and remember what Lan Wangji had done in that area years ago. He could picture him stomping around in that elegant manner of his in his mind and it never got easier, knowing he was never coming back.

Because he had learned to be a self-sacrificing fool from staying with him. Wei Wuxian would cuss him out if he wasn’t worried about how every one of his actions could affect his reincarnation. He probably thought too highly of his influence with fate but it was better to be careful.

The constant ache of feeling like something was missing, something was wrong, the nightmares and the bland GusuLan fare that was surprisingly not poisoned caused his health to decline steadily. He lost weight, his body ached constantly and his mind was in tatters, warring with immense guilt and self-hatred at all times of the day. So it wasn’t a surprise when the thin line between his guilt and lack of self-worth finally snapped. Frankly, he was surprised it took two months.

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

“Excess emotion is forbidden in the Cloud Recesses,” Lan Xichen reminded, as he found his husband with tears streaming down his face again. He didn’t even seem aware he was crying but didn’t look surprised as he wiped his face free of the residue of his guilt.

“Why are you being so cruel to me? You won't let me die and now you don’t want me to feel,” he whispered listlessly, the rays of the setting sun making the harsh lines of his face more pronounced. He had known his husband wasn’t eating but surely a cultivator of his calibre could practice inedia for weeks, couldn’t he?

“Every Clan member has to abide by the rules and you are part of the main family now.” He pointed out.

“I didn’t take you to be so skilled at torture, Zewu-jun, but I was wrong. You’re so good at this, aren’t you? Ordering the kitchens to send me food Lan Zhan used to like better, not stopping anyone from whispering and jeering and taunting my dead family, letting everyone remind me how I failed at being a father before I could ever become one… before I could ever save my A-Yuan.” He choked on a sob and Lan Xichen was surprised. Yuan-er, dead? Who was telling him such lies? “I really despise you.”

“That’s alright. The last person in our clan you seemed to like was my brother and we all know how that went.” It was instinct, lashing out at a husband who never fought back because the guilt of having a hand in his brother’s death was too much for him. If he hadn’t whipped Wangji. If he hadn’t left him unsupervised. If he hadn’t underestimated the depth of his brother’s feelings for Wei Wuxian… It was no wonder Wangji overexerted himself and reached the Burial Mounds before the siege did.

The pain on Wei Wuxian’s face made him stumble. The guilt on his face had left its mark on his once-youthful face. His eyes were dull, and his smile, ever-present in his teenage, was twisted into a loathing grin. One directed at himself.

No. Lan Xichen won't sympathize with that man. Doing so was the cause of his brother’s downfall. He needed to hate him forever and needed to ensure Wei Wuxian got what he deserved and more.

“I didn’t come here to talk to you, I came here to tell you we’re having tea with the elders today. Make yourself presentable. Your Lan robes are there, wear them.” Lan Qiren had gotten Wei Wuxian an ill-fitting –more now than before because of all the weight he had lost— set of robes, plain white to signify that while he was married to the leader, he was nothing more than a prisoner. An unwanted.

Lan Xichen should hate him, he really should. It’d make things easier. So why then, did hearing Wei Wuxian’s heart-wrenchingly agonized sobs make him want to cry too?

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

“You are a disgrace upon this clan and to every cultivator alive! How dare you look at me with such an accusatory expression?” Elder Zhou yelled, breaking half a dozen rules about composure. Lan Xichen looked at his husband and realized the elder was right. Wei Wuxian was glaring at him. Could it be that he realized who argued with him the most to make sure he punished his brother with the discipline whip?

“You’re only lucky Xichen wanted you alive. Your status as his legal spouse is the only thing keeping us from seeking justice! You don’t deserve to take a single breath of Gusu’s air with all the crimes you’ve committed!” Elder Wang spoke up too and was it him or the Elders had invited them to tea solely to take turns hurling accusations at Wei Wuxian. He had thought this was a formality, yet there seemed to be a reasoning behind every carefully worded barb. And it was working. Wei Wuxian’s clenched hands were shaking, his lower lip was bleeding from how hard he was biting it and there was an unmistakable wetness in his eyes.

“I think that’s quite enough.” He stood up, offering Wei Wuxian his hand. His husband quietly followed his lead. “Don’t forget in whose presence you are because you all have broken two dozen rules so far. Submit yourself for punishment tomorrow.” And then he was leading Wei Wuxian out and away from the Elders. Should’ve done this earlier, a voice in his mind grumbled and he was tempted to agree.

But the damage was done because as soon as they were in the Hanshi, Wei Wuxian fell to his knees, clutching his robes. His surprise made him speechless.

“Kill me, please. I can't do this anymore. Everywhere I look, I see him, I remember the lives I snuffed out and I feel the guilt. It's been getting worse, Zewu-jun, I can no longer take a single breath without feeling weighed down by self-loathing, deserved as it is.” His voice was hoarse from the tears, his form bony from starving himself, yet the grip on his robes was unyielding and spoke of someone who used to have so much power. And now he had been reduced to begging.

“It's killing me, I know that was the purpose but the soul-crushing agony I feel is unbearable. I am going insane and I don’t want to become a danger to the Clan. I wouldn’t forgive myself if I hurt another soul again. So please, please kill me. End this farce and free yourself. Shatter my soul too after so I can never reincarnate again. I don’t have a golden core so it’d be easy and I know I don’t deserve to ask this of you but please make it quick. I want to have one last moment without pain-“

“Wei Wuxian, calm yourself!” He fell to his knees and grabbed his husband’s hands. “Take a deep breath and explain what you mean.” Because he couldn’t have heard that right. Wei Wuxian was the strongest cultivator alive, how could he be that without a golden core?

“I would if it’d make a difference but… I can't, I can't breathe I can’t-“ Lan Xichen realized too late. Wei Wuxian looked dead, his outward appearance reflecting on his mind’s condition. He was right because Wei Wuxian was on the brink of insanity and begging him to kill him so his people stayed safe.

“He’s good, he’s one of the best people out there, Xiongzhang, so please help me bring him to Gusu.”

Ah. So this is what Wangji meant back then. This is why his brother wouldn’t budge in his defences of the Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation.

I see it, I see it now, Wangji. But am I too late?

His eyes were a dull, lifeless grey. They seemed to be seeing through him. Wei Wuxian was dying. And most of it was his fault. He did this, he tortured the man his brother cared so deeply for with every member of the Clan. He should’ve felt happy, proud of breaking the feared Yiling Laozu. So why then, did the sight of Wei Wuxian almost dead make him feel like scum. Like a murderer. Like someone who killed an innocent.

Because that’s what his husband was. An Innocent. The pieces clicked in his mind. The rumours of Jiang Wanyin losing his core but coming back even stronger. The Demonic Cultivation. The pushing people away. The desire to stay away from Wangji yet be helpless to resist his light. The lack of Yin Hu Fu. The desire to keep one more person safe from his hands if that was the last thing he did.

Wei Wuxian had been innocent and Lan Xichen had committed a heinous, unforgivable crime.

“A-Ying, husband, I am here. I am here.” His hands were clutching at bony shoulders, pulling the man into his arms for a tight embrace. He held him as he shook, body wracked with sobs and unintelligible sounds of grief and guilt and he held him as his own eyes grew misty. He realized how every horrible thing that had happened to this poor, innocent man had his hand in it. He wasn’t any better than the things he was punishing Wei Wuxian for, was he? What was the purpose of being a Clan Leader, someone said to have infinite wisdom, both theoretical and real, if he was going to be blind in the face of his own guilt? He was a disgrace, he had tortured a man whose only crime was caring for others, and he had let others take part in his depraved schemes.

He was a monster.

“I am sorry, I am so sorry, please stay with me. Stay with me!” He couldn’t disguise the desperation in his voice as Wei Wuxian went slack against him. Would he be able to live with himself if Wei Wuxian died? Would he ever be able to face his brother with his hands tainted in his most cherished person’s blood? “A-Ying, A-Ying I am so sorry please don’t leave me, please! I’ll do anything you ask for, give you anything, please don’t go too, please please-“

He heard shouts in the background, he heard the word Qi Deviation being muttered and felt the oppressive feeling of untamed panic as the door to the Hanshi was kicked open. Yet his arms never let go of his husband, even when the world went dark.

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

He sat up with a harsh breath, wondering where he was. Looking around didn’t tell him anything. He tried to remember what happened, where he was��� It was then he noticed a weight on his left hand and turned to look at what had him in such a death grip.

Wei Wuxian slouched on the floor, seemingly asleep. But the grip on his hand was unyielding. It was also warm. Warm with life. Warm with proof that his husband was alive and that he had time to make amends and be a better person for him and Wangji.

“A-Ying,” he whispered, and Wei Wuxian sat up with a grumble, eyes red with interrupted sleep.

“Oh… I should call the healers since you’re awake,” he muttered and moved to get up. Xichen wasn’t having it, so he pulled Wei Wuxian towards him, making him stumble and fall onto him gracelessly.

“Don’t go yet, stay with me, A-Ying,” he whispered in his hair as his arms tightened around his husband. His husband. Wei Wuxian was his husband. How had he never realized how significant that fact was?

“I- alright?” And then he climbed into the bed and wrapped his arms around Xichen, offering him comfort he didn’t know he needed so badly.

“You’re alright. I didn't lose you…” He shuddered at the thought and felt Wei Wuxian look up at him. “You’re here…”

“I am.” Lying was forbidden in the Cloud Recesses after all. “Where am I?” He still felt disoriented, as if he wasn’t quite feeling or seeing everything around him yet. His head hurt and it made him realize he couldn’t feel his spiritual energy.

“I had to seal your spiritual energy so it wouldn’t harm your meridians. You were qi deviating and I didn’t know what to do. Turns out it was a good idea because Xiansheng told me I just saved your life. It’s a little fascinating, he said he had never thought of stopping a qi deviation fit before it killed or permanently rendered someone from cultivating by sealing the energy and forcing the disruption to contain itself and-“ He tuned out the rambling in favour of staring at his husband’s face. For the first time in years, he saw the passionate interest reminiscent of a scholar again.

The war had taken so much from them all. He had forgotten it had been taken from Wei Wuxian too. His core, his family, his standing in the world, the reputation of his deceased parents. It had taken the spark, the warmth that had made Wei Wuxian Wei Wuxian and none of them had realized.

Seeing him now, so alive and only because he had gotten over his pain and guilt to save Xichen’s life. Watching him gesturing minutely with his hands as if he could draw him a picture of every genius thought that crossed his mind to explain his thoughts better, Lan Xichen realized he was alright. Wei Wuxian was alive and so was he. Their relationship had been riddled with pain and guilt, doomed from the beginning. But maybe, just maybe, they could make something beautiful out of it.

Beautiful… It was the same word he could use to describe Wei Wuxian now, with his eyes full of life and his voice going hoarse from the constant rambling. His cheeks were flushed and he was panting as he stopped his tirade and looked at him with a look full of so much indignance he giggled.

“You’re not even pretending to listen to me!” He wailed dramatically, a triumphant smile touching his lips as Lan Xichen laughed again. So this was Wei Wuxian, the real Wei Wuxian. Someone who was so smart, not just in mind but in action. Someone who was kind and selfless. Someone who found joy in making others happy regardless of who they were and what wrongs they had committed in life.

Lan Xichen didn’t blame his brother anymore. He could see it. Feel the first dregs of infatuation coursing through his veins as Wei Wuxian pouted dramatically at him. Feel a stirring in his heart that could only be the foundation of love as he tightened his hold on his husband. Feel the warmth of a blush as it spread on Wei Wuxian’s cheeks and his ears as he leaned forward to kiss his forehead, whining about how unfair he was being, taking away his thoughts just like that.

“A-Ying,” he sighed and Wei Wuxian’s flush darkened as he looked away from him, a shy smile touching his lips as he hugged him back harder with utmost nonchalance.

“A-Huan…” It was Xichen’s turn to freeze, his face beginning to burn and Wei Wuxian cackled inelegantly in his embrace.

They would be alright. There was a mountain of hurt between them, unanswered questions, withheld knowledge, the grief of losing Wangji, and the lingering effects of war, too. But for once, Xichen was convinced, his optimism not unfounded.

They would be alright and they would be happy. It would take time but he was sure of it, surer than he had ever been of anything.

He smiled down at his husband and pulled him to rest against him, a hand moving to stroke his hair. Wei Wuxian sighed softly and began the process of lecturing him about being reckless and following in his example of idiocy. And as those lips moved against his neck, reprimands falling from them against his skin, he wondered what it’d feel like to kiss them.

[purplephloxpress]

It's August 21, which means: Happy Fanfiction Writers Appreciation Day! If you are a writer of fanfic, please know just how appreciated you are!! Fandom would be such a different space without your creativity and labors of love. 💜

In celebration of this most glorious holiday, @renegadepublishing ran an event where we bind copies of fics to gift to their authors, and I had the joy of binding The Tranquility of Water for @noppoh! It's a truly fantastic post-canon story and I love the exploration into the effects of the main story on its characters after the fact. (This is a story I love so much that I wrote up a page and a half crash course on The Untamed so I can try to force my sibling into reading it as well. Take that as you will)

The walls of the Hanshi creep in on him and so Lan Xichen leaves. He leaves Cloud Recesses and his seclusion, stealing away in the night with no-one the wiser that he even left. His feet bring him to Lotus Pier where a surprisingly kind Jiang Cheng seems determined to help him heal.

With a title like "Tranquility of Water" and the story largely taking place at Lotus Pier, I may have been a little heavy handed with the lotus imagery throughout the book, but it felt very fitting! The lotus on the cover was a last minute addition, but one that turned out so lovely. Just, you know, to tie everything together lotus-wise. (Another one of my favorite design details in the typeset is that both title fonts from the chapter headers and title page get repeated within the text of the story as the main characters handwriting fonts!)

I started the physical binding process of my copy while at the Renegade Retreat in April (and decided the week before that I wanted to change my body font... can you say formatting speedrun?) and up until that point I hadn't actually figured out what the cover and endpages were going to look like. Special thanks to everyone who contributed pieces to this binding (and who moral-supported me along the way -- my copy holds so many fun memories now) because it LITERALLY would not look like this without you all. I really love the way the color transitions worked out, with a predominantly blue/green case, fading into green, into pink, into the title page, and then transitioning back out at the end of the book.

And these endbands!! Friends, that is SILK embroidery floss that a friend brought to the retreat especially so I could experience the decadence of silk endbands. I will never be the same. (They're so smooth... so shiny... so slippery to work with, but SO WORTH IT)

(Binding details under the cut)

The pieces that went into this bind:

Fandom: The Untamed/Mo Dao Zu Shi

Pairing: Jiang Cheng | Jiang Wanyin / Lan Huan | Lan Xichen

Bookcloth: Renegade Retreat Swap Table Special (I have no idea what it is, but it was just enough to make a copy for myself and the author and the color worked PERFECTLY!)

Cover paper: Opal Momi paper

Cover paper: Opal Momi paper

Endpapers: from the Craft Consortium Ink Drops - Dusk paper pack

Titling: foil quill

Endbands: leather cording core, silk embroidery floss for the bands

Body font: EB Garamond

Title fonts: Wintersoul and Bastian

Handwriting fonts: Bastian (Lan Xichen), Richardson Script (Lan Wangji), and Wintersoul (Jiang Cheng)

Tumblr insists on eating and doubling text in this section at its own whim, so if there's something missing that you're curious about, feel free to DM me an ask!

[thatswhatsushesaid]

does everyone remember just how gay the xiyao box scene really is in ep. 4 of CQL? pepperidge farm wei wuxian remembers.

(pls forgive the grey spot, that's my ipad mouse cursor and I was too enthusiastic in my screencapping to wait for it to gtfo the way)

skipping over the awful commentary provided by jiang sect students 1 & 2 who no one remembers because they are irrelevant aside from being mouthpieces for shitty cultivation society, let us take a moment to appreciate and respect poor meng yao doing his absolute best to keep it together.

and then zewu-jun arrives to greet him, and smiles at him like that. 👆

and then meng yao looks up at him, like that. and zewu-jun looks back at him, like that. 👆🥹👆

so then zewu-jun goes to take the box from him, which might as well qualify as going straight to first base in the cloud recesses,

and I completely fucking forgot that the camera pans straight to wwx?? who was sort of paying attention to this drama beforehand, but now he's really paying attention to it, and then--

listen I just do not believe for a second that /gestures @ that whole face journey, has anything to do with the pot that meng yao and nie huaisang brought with them from qinghe, okay, wei wuxian does not care about the pot, and neither does the rest of the narrative framing of this scene. you know what he's looking at. we know what he's looking at. the pot of plausible deniability is there to appease the censors.

and no one else! was looking at the pot either!!! (no, not even huaisang in the last frame, you know he knows what's happening) there's no good reason for the physical contact beneath that box! meng yao is super aware of this!

my kingdom for the capability to make gifsets because the screencaps don't do justice to meng yao's startled (but also a bit coy, since only lan xichen is paying attention to his face at this point, and he's clearly into it, even if it was extremely unexpected) eyebrow bounce at whatever all of that just was. or lan xichen's mischievous little smile at all of the wall of discipline rules he's well aware he just bent within a hair's breadth of breaking, but he has zero remorse for doing so because it was for a very good cause.

anyway, my condolences to both meng yao and lan xichen for not immediately ditching all of their obligations and responsibilities after this encounter to go fuck passionately in the hanshi, because that's what they both clearly wanted to do.

[stiltonbasket]

what happened when wwx went to gusu summer school in the wrh raises wwx au?

"Thank the heavens," Lan Xichen laughs, when Lan Wangji presents himself at the Hanshi after returning from his latest monthlong night-hunting tour in Huai'an. "Shufu has been at his wits' end in your absence, didi."

Lan Wangji lifts an eyebrow and begins to unpack the basket of tribute gifts he received from the Huai'an magistrate. "Why? My duties were to be delegated to Changyi-tangxiong while I was away; and whatever Shufu might find wanting in his temperament, I have never known him to be anything but diligent."

"No one has dared replace you as head of discipline," his brother says wryly. "And according to Shufu, this batch of guest disciples has worse manners than most."

"Shufu rarely has trouble with the guest disciples," Lan Wangji points out, frowning. The lone exception to this rule was Nie Huaisang; but no one in the Cloud Recesses has ever bothered disciplining Nie Huaisang, even before his older brother was betrothed to Xiongzhang. "Who does he wish me to discipline this time?"

Inexplicably, Lan Xichen only grins at him and scoops a handful of icy-red lychees out of the tribute basket.

"Go to tomorrow's lecture in the Lanshi," he teases, "and perhaps you shall see."

Lan Wangji could not see the sense in this. If one of the guest scholars was being impudent in the Lanshi, Shufu ought to have sent them to the Pavilion of Discipline to receive punishment instead of waiting for him to settle matters; for as Head of Discipline, Lan Wangji's main duties consisted of revising the codex of appropriate punishments and patrolling the Cloud Recesses after hai shi on alternate fortnights.

But the next day, he made his way to the Lanshi as bidden—and the moment he crossed the threshold, he understood exactly who had been making trouble for his uncle, and why he had been left for Wangji to handle.

As ever, all four of the other Great Clans were represented among the guest disciples: Yunmeng Jiang disciples in violet and jade-green, the Jin in cream and gold, Nie Huaisang and his shixiongdi in their familiar black and silver-gray—and by the window, the fiery scarlet and gold of Wen Ruohan's delegation, dressed in silks so fine that they would not have looked out of place upon an imperial concubine.

Lan Wangji narrows his eyes at them. Each one is haughtier than the next, though not quite brazen enough for Shufu to blink at; but then his gaze moves to the disciple sitting at the front, and freezes as the boy rolls his shoulders and turns around to greet Wangji with an insolent, lazy smile.

This is the one, he realizes, as the disciple flutters painted—painted?—lashes at him before turning back to look at Shufu. He is the one Uncle wants me to discipline.

"Wangji," Shufu says, with such open relief that Lan Wangji looks away from the Wen disciple in surprise. "At last. Have you come to attend lessons with the guest disciples?"

Wangji puts his hands together and bows. "Yes, Uncle."

"Excellent. But before you sit down, go take Wei Wuxian to the dormitories, and see that he washes his face and removes those ornaments from his hair."

Lan Wangji nods and takes three great strides towards the Wen disciple. "You heard your laoshi," he says. "Come."

The disciple—Wei Wuxian—gives no reply; but luckily, he rises from his chair and follows Lan Wangji out of the Lanshi without protest. As soon as the doors to the lecture hall fall closed behind them, Lan Wangji opens his mouth to deliver a short lecture on the virtues of modesty and simplicity in dress—only to snap it closed again in shock, for he has never seen a man who painted his face like this outside the theater troupes Xichen used to visit with him when they were children.

Wei Wuxian's lips are a wet, shining crimson, as if he had dipped them in blood before arriving at the Lanshi; and his eyes are lined with fine black paint and red rouge mixed with some kind of bright, sparkling dust. Worse yet, he had even painted his eyelashes, to make them seem twice as long and dark as any man's lashes ought to be—and as if all of that were not enough, the heavy locks of his hair are fastened with chains made of solid gold.

"Why are you looking at me, Lan-er-gongzi?" Wei Wuxian asks. He puts his head to one side, and despite himself, Lan Wangji hears music; for someone had woven small golden bells into Wei Wuxian's braided hair.

"Enough talk," Lan Wangji says flatly. "Follow me back to the dormitories so you can wash and brush out your hair."

To his astonishment, Wei Wuxian does not object. He keeps pace with Lan Wangji all the way to the compound reserved for the Wen disciples; and then, without another word, he vanishes into his lodgings and leaves Lan Wangji behind to wait for him on the porch.

Puzzled, Lan Wangji seats himself on a convenient stool and wonders why Wei Wuxian had obeyed him so easily. It was only too clear that Shufu first tried to teach him the virtues of simple adornments at least a month ago, if not longer; so why had he flouted Uncle's wishes and honored Lan Wangji's?

Perhaps he is being too obedient, says a small voice in the back of Lan Wangji's mind. Perhaps he has run out through the back of the house, and gone off to frolic in Caiyi.

Lan Wangji frowns more deeply than ever and raps on the door with his knuckles. "Wei-gongzi? Are you finished?"

"Nearly," Wei Wuxian calls. "You can come in, if you'd like."

Wangji highly doubts that Wei Wuxian is really making himself presentable (or at least, not as he ought to be doing) so he enters the house and finds his charge wiping his face with a damp towel.

He lowers the towel at the sound of Lan Wangji's footsteps, and then:

"You were not meant to paint yourself in a different fashion," he says, incensed. "Wash your face properly at once."

Wei Wuxian blinks at him in confusion.

"I have washed it off," he says. "Look."

And then he leans forward and grabs Lan Wangji's hand, drawing it up to the damp skin of his face before Lan Wangji can turn tail and flee. He drags Lan Wangji's fingertips over the smooth bones of his cheeks and forehead, and across the bronzen skin circling his eyes—tanned and not painted, Lan Wangji realizes—and presses his full lips to the heart of Lan Wangji's palm, so forcefully that any traces of rouge left upon them would have been imprinted on Wangji's skin.

"There!" Wei Wuxian says, beaming—and completely unaware that Lan Wangji is very near to bursting out of sheer fury. "I'm as clean as a new jian."

"Your hair," Lan Wangji croaks; for if he dared raise his voice any further, he would scream, and then he would be the one submitting himself for punishment at the discipline pavilion. "Comb it."

Wei Wuxian nods and unravels his braids. Rather than undoing them one by one, he merely snaps his fingers and lets out a burst of spiritual energy; and immediately, the gold fastenings fall loose and clatter onto his dressing-table, leaving the glittering mass of his hair to slide down his broad back like a waterfall coursing down the face of a mountain.

Suddenly, Lan Wangji finds himself unable to breathe.

He flings himself out of the guest house and up the hill towards the Jingshi, where he spends an hour meditating in complete silence before he can bring himself to set foot out of doors again.

"Brother," he says, when he finally works up the courage to return to the Hanshi two days later. "I fear that I may be unable to take over the duty of disciplining Wei Wuxian. He made me angrier than I have ever been in my life."

Lan Xichen—who had heretofore shown no signs of being anything other than a kind, understanding brother—only stares at him, and bursts into laughter.

[cql-screenshots]

[saltyfish11]

Good for dà gē

lan xichen/ lan huan x gn! reader

A/N . Forgive any spelling mistakes, its too late for my brain to spill out alphabets in their correct order. Pls revive this dead tag.

CW: lxc being called ge-ge by reader, suggestive

word count: 584

-------------------------- - ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ -------------------------------

"Zewu-jun~". The words leave your lips as a pressing sigh echoes throughout the Hanshi's walls; his plush lips are warm and firm and steady as they crash against yours. A sturdy forearm pins itself perpendicularly to your fanned out hair on the silky sheets and Lan Xichen tactfully towers his sculpted figure over your smaller one.

The early dawn light that filters through the craved windows, casting an intricate shadow against his delicate, jade-like features. You wrap your arms around his neck and pull him closer, deepening the kiss. An abrupt bite on your delicate lips earns him a quick yelp followed by a dramatic whine on your part.

"L-Lan Xichen!" you whimper pathetically, tugging on his slender forehead ribbon. Long locks of ebony spill out of his usual hairdo as the ribbon loosens and becomes undone in your palms. They caress the angular edges of his face perfectly, and you think that he somehow looks even more handsome like this. It was as if the strands were hand-woven by the heavens for you to admire, his slender lips crafted to caress yours, and his safe arms to embrace your frail frame.

The atypically stoic man doesn't respond to the courtesy name and instead, his honeyed eyes simply darken with lust. Pulling away from the kiss, his heated mouth asserts itself above the corner of your lip before pressing a trail of open mouthed kisses along your jaw. Jolts of pain and pleasure wash over you as his canine teeth tug and nibble on your supple skin.

"A-Huan~". Once again, the hopeless mewls fall on to deaf ears. In a pitiful attempt to muffle the moans that threatened to spill, you scrunch the Gusu Lan forehead ribbon in your palm and thrust the fabric into your mouth.

Pinning your arms above your head, Lan Xichen sweetly squeezes your jaw open and extracts the sopping cloth. Clutching both your wrists, he expertly wraps the damp ribbon around them twice before firmly securing them in place with a harsh knot, and then, an elegant bow. Immediately, he continues to push against the soft surface of the bed as he shifts his assault on your neck. Crimson marks begin to adorn your lithe neck as his animalistic urges persist along the length of your nape. Shifting his lips to a new target, his scorching breath fans against to the untouched skin just above your collar and it becomes increasingly more difficult for you to keep your voice down.

"L-Lan G-gē gē," you stutter as you bite your lower lip in shame as those humiliating words leave your reddened lips.

"Yes my love?" he asks tenderly in contrast to the mildly obscene term, his warm breath against your ear ensuing a valley of goosebumps to erupt along your body.

"P-please s-stop teasing me," you plead in a drunken state, your whiny voice not even a fraction as convincing as you had intended it on being. You were a pitiful sight. The red marks littered throughout your slender neck were staring to bruise a deep purple. The deep rouge flush that bloomed from your checks swiftly spread across your features, from the tips of your ears to right under your collarbone. You, with your petite wrists tethered under his toned, looming build.

"Shushhh," he hushes dismissively with newfound amusement, and you can feel the corners of his slender lips on your earlobe curve upwards at your helpless request.

"Be good for dà gē and keep your voice down alright?"

-------------------------- - ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ -------------------------------

[essiemclaren]

lingering ties

pt 9

College!au

In which reader and Oscar, now broken up, must co-parent their (fur) baby

unibros gc

oscar's post on twitter/x

reader's post on twitter/x

unibros gc

unibros gc: update from oscar

oscar's text with reader

oscar's post on twitter/x

blue devil's college newspaper

reader's post on instagram

liked by landoOo, carlito, maxver._ and others

yourusername the sky was painted in your colors today, a sign you’d win. even though we’re apart, i’ve never stopped cheering for you. congrats on your first win—here’s to many more. 💫

-

“You came to my game. I didn’t expect that.”

“You called out for me. I couldn’t stay away.”

--

a/n: sorry for the delay! i have been busy with my internship, and no, i did not go back to the guy so stop calling me stupid haha ☹️

thank you for being so patient and understanding with me, i love you all! stay safe and take care of your mental health 🫶

love from essie 🍓

tags: @tsireyasgf @ziarahpikiran @mrsjamietartt @softtina @overlyexcitedoutlaw @osclerc @nixisracing @sinfully-yoursss @colmathgames2 @booksandflowrs @writelikeapoet @storminacloud @nixily @lokideservesahug @cherry-piee @annispamz @sltwins @mxdi0 @killinorris @awritingtree @andruuu28 @sarahkaliii @auggieblogs @hanshy @evie-119

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