#hua cheng would never say no so xie lian asking would not be a question at all

[heartinhyacinth]

Listen, I love the idea of Hua Cheng finally getting to propose to his beloved special someone after 800 long-awaited years (and correct his previous blunder haha), but hear me out…

After Hua Cheng’s year of absence, hualian reunite, spend some blissful days soaking up each other’s company at the small cottage Xie Lian built on mount taicang, then decide to take a trip to ghost city. They could use the dice, of course, but it’s such a nice autumn day and days as such have become dear to them.

They’re snugged up close in the step-litter when Xie Lian casually asks, “San Lang, wanna get married?” He wears his usual gentle smile—the one he would use as if he were asking if Hua Cheng was feeling hungry or if he’d like to take a stroll through the maple trees.

But there is also the unmissable twinkle of amusement that is present, which Hua Cheng uses to convince himself that Xie Lian is in a silly mood and surely this is just payback—Xie Lian will confirm it any second now. But it doesn’t come. Five seconds, ten, fifteen, and the confirmation does not come.

So Hua Cheng simply sits there, expression bordering between pure terror and pure ecstasy as he tries to dissect the situation for any sign of its true reality. With breathy giggles, Xie Lian finally has mercy on the poor ghost, “You don’t have to say yes, San Lang—I can take it.” Despite his words, it’s exceedingly obvious by the humor in his tone that they’re both aware heaven and earth would sooner turn to dust, and with that, Hua Cheng finally regains control of his brain. “It would…” he takes a deep breath, nearly a millennia of longing crowding his throat all at once, “It would be my greatest honor, your highness”. Xie Lian’s smile brightens and he takes Hua Cheng’s hands in his own, “good—because no more dying, okay?”

The idea of Hua Cheng’s heart and soul asking him to spend their existence together—of Xie Lian affirming that he chooses Hua Cheng and wants him as his beloved forever and always, wants to walk by his side till the end—it’s just…too much to handle. (Him saying yes to Hua Cheng’s proposal would also achieve this but you get the idea).

Bonus: Hua Cheng fully planned to ask him during that same trip but Xie Lian beat him to it

[mikaela-the-slut-expert]

Can you do more angst scenarios where male reader feels like they’re a third wheel and left out? I’m a sucker for angst despite how much it hurts 😭😭

Don't Leave

Hua Cheng x M!reader x Xie Lian

Sorry it took so long, forgive me 🧍

Will make more sense if you've read the book.

Hope you likeee

Ignore grammar mistakes

____________________________________

"Xie Lian, do you like San Lang?"

You had asked out of nowhere. Xie Lian glances at you for a moment and smiles. "I do"

"Very Much?" You press.

"I suppose" He smiles nervously

It was a random question. You and Xie Lian were in Puqi shrine, the morning after San Lang had left. After San Lang left Xie Lian a ring.

It made you feel strange. You love Xie Lian very much and you like San Lang too. However the ring suddenly made you feel lesser.

Recently you guys have had a third helper and San Lang has kind of taken your job. He protected both of you and was very helpful. Yet, you feel a certain itch because of it.

Because Xie Lian likes San Lang.

You feel selfish. You wouldn't have minded so much if Xie Lian had shown interest in both of you but he seems very caught up in San Lang right now. It feels like San Lang is threatening your spot.

It's always been your job to be by Xie Lian's side. You always have been. Always. You grew up together, you stayed with him after the fall of Xian Le, even afterwards when Xie Lian had done morally wrong things you stayed, even when he wanted you to leave with Feng Xin you stayed.

Xie Lian has always been your person. You've always been his person. Lately you've just been feeling left out. San Lang and Xie Lian had been perfectly fine at Banyue Pass by themselves. You had ignored your feelings of jealousy during that time, but after seeing the ring you can't help but feel it ten times worse.

You chalk it up as overthinking and shove the feelings of jealousy down your throat. You have no right to feel these things. Xie Lian shouldn't have to deal with them either. What right do you have to cling on him when he isn't yours? You guys aren't dating and Xie Lian has never expressed love for you.

You ignore it

♡

The feeling you hate so much comes back again. Xie Lian, you, the wind master, and Lan Qinqao all went to ghost city. There was supposed to be a purpose but you never cared. You only went because Xie Lian went. Obviously he would've been fine because guess who's been watching the whole time?

San Lang

San Lang has been here the whole time, he always is it seems. You had to stand there while San Lang and Xie Lian held hands and played dice. You watched as they smiled at each other and touched hands.

It shouldn't idk you so much but it does. The feeling crawls out of your stomach and claws at your throat until you feel yourself physically choking it down. You're being over dramatic. It's just a dice game.

You ignore the glances they send to each other. You don't see the glances they send to you.

♡

The feeling burns on your tongue and churns in your gut when the strange Waning Moon officer -whatever the hell he is- tells Xie Lian that he's invited to Paradise Manor.

Actually you hadn't minded it all. You had walked side by side with Xie Lian ready to see San Lang. You haven't got the chance to talk to him. You were excited, even.

Until the strange officer makes it clear only Xie Lian can come.

So you were just supposed to stay behind? Stand to the side? It upsets you more when Xie Lian only apologizes and says he'll be back to find you. He left you standing there.

You thought you and San Lang were on good terms so why would he not invite you as well?

You chalk it up as a misunderstanding and roam around ghost city. The wind master eventually finds you and the two of you sneak into Paradise Manor dressed as dancers.

Seeing San Lang and Xie Lian on the bed/ couch together helped nothing. It makes you feel worse. They left you out for what? To spend time alone? Being in Paradise Manor felt like hanging around in a place you obviously didn't belong in.

It's a misunderstanding. It's a misunderstanding. It's a misunderstanding. It's a misunderstanding.

You repeat it in your head like a mantra.

♡

Once the incident at Paradise Manor is over you and Xie Lian are finally side by side again. You and San Lang still haven't had the chance to talk. You're hurting but you're positive that you're overreacting. Honestly Xie Lian would never do that to you. You were going to talk about it with him but he was dragged away into court.

Then Xie Lian, basically gets out under house arrest into the Xian Le palace Jun Wu had made him. When you get there Mu Qing and Feng Xin are already there. If you close your eyes you could imagine it being like old times where all four of you are back at the palace running around.

It doesn't last long. A big group of butterflies fly at you all. They don't dare touch Xie Lian. Mu Qing doesn't give you the chance to find out how the butterflies would react to you because he pulls you behind his make shift shield. It seems they doubt your relationship with San Lang too.

When you see San Lang come out of the black pit behind the doors to grab Xie Lian you take your chance though. You aren't just going to stand there. You leave Mu Qing's side and run towards Xie Lian but the doors close on you. The doors close on you. San Lang and Xie Lian left you? Not possible.

You're standing there staring at the doors. You just couldn't believe that they left you to stand there like a fool. It doesn't feel like a misunderstanding, it doesn't feel like overreacting.

Even Mu Qing, who is usually snarky ass, feels bad. He grabs your shoulder gently trying to break you out of your stupor.

"Y/n you should sit this one out. Me and Feng Xin will find them"

"No I-" you blink up at him, lost. "I have to go find A-Lian. He was taken. . ." You point at the door.

Mu Qing's face scrunches. "Xie Lian wasn't taken, he ran off. It was his choice. It was also his choice to leave you y/n. Just let us deal with it."

Mu Qing's words cause him and Feng Xin to bicker but he isn't really lying.

"That isn't what happened, say it as it is! He was obviously taken. Right y/n?" Feng Xin looks at you for support but you can only stare at him like a fish out of water.

"He. . . Ran off"

While you're focused on the door you fail to remember the butterflies hadn't touched you. You fail to notice the die in your robe.

♡

You took Mu Qing's advice and decided to sit this one out. You had never actually been separated by Xie Lian's side before so you don't exactly know what to do while he's running around with San Lang.

You go back inside of XianLe palace and sit where Xie Lian had been sitting before. You have nothing to do besides stare at the table. When you move to sit down something falls out of your pocket though. The closer you look you see it's a die.

Huh, you hadn't noticed that in your robes before. Lucky you it landed on a six. You wish you had that much luck with Xie Lian and San Lang. You pick up the die and hold it in your hands. Your plan was to just play around with it some more but you're suddenly pulled back into a pit of darkness and someone is holding you.

When you look back at your attacker, you see the familiar face of San Lang- well Hua Cheng but he's always been San Lang to you and Xie Lian. "S-san Lang?!"

Your surroundings get clearer and you see Xie Lian too. Honestly you're so happy you could cry, but you don't. You don't know what to say at all because you don't know what's going on. You just allow yourself to be pulled along by San Lang.

Xie Lian and San Lang take a moment to explain what's going on. To explain everything actually. For a minute San Lang looks like he's going to break down and e-ming is making sad squealing sounds.

Turns out everything was a big misunderstanding. San Lang and Xie Lian hadn't meant to leave you out of anything. San Lang had just wanted to do everything for the two of you, he wasn't thinking that his actions seemed like he was taking your job. He had most definitely invited the both of you, and he was very irritated with his officer. San Lang hadn't meant to leave you when he took Xie Lian. That's why he gave you the die. Since Xie Lian rolled the die he was able to get him. He could only come back to grab you once you rolled the day.

It was just a lot of miscommunication, really. You don't realize your crying until Xie Lian is wiping your eyes with his sleeves. You were crying out of relief. You had genuinely thought Xie Lian and San Lang were leaving you out but they were never doing such a thing.

San Lang and Xie Lian are very close to you after that and apprehensive to leave your side at all.

[jayktoralldaylong]

Who would ask the "Would you love me if I was a worm?" question (Mxtx partners version)

WangXian - Wei Wuxian - He's not insecure, he's just being annoying on purpose.

HuaLian - Hua Cheng - He is very insecure. 💀 The fact that he brought up the question at all is a huge step. Xie Lian will of course say yes and shower him with kisses.

BingQiu - Luo Binghe - He is both annoying and insecure. 💀

The Responses

Lan Wangji: That would never happen

Wei Wuxian: But if I was?

Lan Wangji: But you aren't.

Wei Wuxian: Yet if I was?

Lan Wangji: But you're not.

Wei Wuxian: If I WAAAAAASSSSSSS????

Lan Wangji: .........

Lan Wangji, blushing: Yes

.

Xie Lian: (Immediate doting on Hua Cheng and explains how he'll carry him around in his pockets and add some mud so he wouldn't dry out)

.

Shen Qingqiu, in disbelief: How on earth am I supposed to love a worm?!

Luo Binghe, tearing up: Shizun doesn't love me.

Shen Qingqiu, panicking: W-wait!

Inner SQQ: If he starts crying now he's not going to stop!

Shen Qingqiu, accepts defeat with a shaky smile: I will. I'll love you, even if you were a worm so don't cry okay?

Inner SQQ: Even if it's impractical. Isn't that animal abuse?

Luo Binghe: Yaaaay!

[mieanme]

Merman x Siren au

Hualian - (part VII)

First part: PART I

Previous part: PART VI

I'M SO SORRY, I FORGOT YESTERDAY WAS A SUNDAY. I AM LIVING IN A MATRIX. I WILL UPDATE THE LINKS TO THE PREVIOUS PARTS TOMORROW TT~TT ANYWAYS, ENJOY, IT'S THE LONGEST PART I THINK

***

"You stay, Xie Lian. I want to have a word with you."

The merman's smile quickly changes into a grin as he stills in one place, turning around yet again to face Jun Wu. On the way he makes eye contact with Mu Qing and Feng Xin, who seem to be waiting for him, so he just waves at them to let them know they're gonna talk later.

The older merman closes his eyes for a moment and smiles softly, waiting for the last tail to disappear through the exit. When his eyelids lift up again, they're in the hall all alone.

"So you ignored my order and actually went to the siren's territory, am I right?"

Jun Wu's tone doesn't hold any anger, but Xie Lian still lowers himself and bows his head, feeling guilty.

"You're right, Emperor. This one is sorry for the disobedience," he clicks sheepishly. "This one will take any punishment for this one's actions."

"I should punish you for going against my will, but how can I do so when you come back with the medicine? You're truly something else," the Emperor chuckles at the end, making Xie Lian curious enough to lift his gaze and look at the other merman.

Jun Wu leaves his seat to swim up to Xie Lian.

"Come with me. I want to ask you a few questions in the upper caves."

Xie Lian nods and follows the Emperor to the said place.

Upper caves are located right above the city hall, however, no one has direct access to them. They are a place where Jun Wu would invite his guests or handle the most important matters. The roof of the caves has numerous, small holes in it, making the light coming down into the caves clash and create a beautiful, shimmering glow. The bigger holes on the sides reveal a magnificent view on the whole capital and further waters in the pod's territory. Truly a great place to hold a conversation.

The Emperor reaches out to one of the pretty cabinets hidden between the carefully selected and planted algae which are growing inside the chambers. Before Xie Lian can process it, he gets offered a serving of fresh, big shrimp. It must have been a meal Jun Wu prepared for himself prior with the rations everyone gets to pick at the canteen, but he didn't get to consume it because of the prolonged discussion in the city hall.

Xie Lian politely declines, even though they're both probably hungry, and then immediately regrets it, because Jun Wu chooses to not eat as well in this turn of events.

"Tell me then, how did you get the algae? Was it really from the trench in the siren's territory?" Jun Wu asks, swimming up to the biggest hole, that is serving as a window, to look at the capital getting ready to rest for the night. "Did you manage to get away without interfering with the siren itself?"

"It is indeed from that trench. I reached it without much trouble, but that's also where I met the siren and... it's only because of him that I managed to gather the algae," Xie Lian says, feeling Jun Wu's eyes on him. "He told me I wouldn't be able to reach deep enough to pick the algae and with how the medic Elder reacted I'm starting to consider the siren might have been right. I believe that such information should be given out to everyone before departing to even look for the right place to pick the algae from, Emperor."

"The Elder's reaction was a bit off in my opinion as well. Thank you for your intel. I will discuss this matter with him personally too," Jun Wu replies, seeming a little troubled again. Soon enough he continues. "However, you shouldn't trust Hua Cheng so easily. He's a cruel creature. I have no idea what his intention is in helping us, but we cannot let our guard down."

"... Hua Cheng?"

Xie Lian is a little dumbfounded. He has never heard of that name before.

"The siren. I suppose he didn't introduce himself to you?"

"He did, but... That's not the name he used. I also wasn't aware the Emperor knows so much about the siren. Has the Emperor met him before? Could it be we're talking about different ones?" Xie Lian shoots some of the questions that have gathered in his mind.

He really doesn't expect Jun Wu to be knowledgeable about the siren. Before Xie Lian met the siren personally, he didn't even know what gender they were. However, the Emperor even recalls a name - but it's not the 'San Lang' the siren told Xie Lian to use.

"I didn't meet him personally, but I knew someone who did. It wasn't a pleasant memory of theirs," the Emperor explains, looking into the distance with some kind of contemplation. "As for if it might be a different siren - very unlikely. Sirens give up their territory only after they die or are unable to protect it anymore. Hua Cheng is younger than me, or so I am concerned, and sirens usually live longer than merpeople. He's impossibly strong, capable, fast and cruel, so I highly doubt he could have been defeated and replaced by another one of his kin. Moreover, red scaling is very unique in both sirens and mermen. If that's the colour of the one's tail, we are talking about the same monster."

Xie Lian nods, thinking about the bloody red scales that scared him to the bone at first sight. They are talking about the same creature indeed, so now he wonders why San Lang chose a different name to introduce himself to Xie Lian.

"However, there's no need to worry, Emperor!" The younger merman assures. "This one asked the siren to hold only this one accountable for this act of generosity of his, since this one went there without the Emperor's permission. He agreed to not demand requital from the pod and to wait for me to repay him somehow. This one will think of a way to do so!"

Jun Wu chuckles and rests his hand on Xie Lian's head. He pats gently, like if he wanted to praise a kid for good behaviour.

"Very well. I am leaving this matter in your hands then, Xie Lian." The older merman says, looking at Xie Lian with some unspeakable softness. "However, I am asking you to be careful. Hua Cheng acted kindly, but we cannot be sure of his next move. I am fond of you and cannot imagine you getting hurt."

"Of course, Emperor. I will stay safe!"

After bidding the farewells, Xie Lian leaves the upper caves, not wanting to neglect Jun Wu from eating his well deserved meal. He's quite hungry himself, so he plans on heading to the canteen to grab the leftover fresh fish from today's hunting.

He doesn't get to swim on his own for long until he feels someone grabbing his tail just above the base of his fin to stop him in one place. Before he can turn around, he already hears two familiar clicking tones.

"Don't tug at his tail like that! Don't you know how sensitive his scales are? You have no grace!"

"Stop treating him like a princess, I barely even wrapped my hand around him. If you're so worried about him, why don't you become his personal guard?"

"What are you even doing here? I thought you had duty on the west side of the capital. Were you waiting for him under the city hall or what? Creep!"

"Look at you, the pot calling the kettle black! Weren't you supposed to patrol the outskirts?"

Xie Lian turns around and, as of habit, swims in between Feng Xin and Mu Qing so that they can only throw insults at each other but not fists.

"I'm glad you both waited for me! Can you stop arguing for just a moment so that I can tell you how my trip went?" Xie Lian says, hoping this works for at least a while before they're at their usual selves again.

The answer he gets is two synchronized "humpfs", but then he indeed gets to talk about his encounter with the siren without much disturbance. Despite trusting his friends, he paves over the siren's name and how gently he touched Xie Lian. It feels almost illegal to happen, because even at the slightest thought of San Lang's fingers, Xie Lian's cheeks heat up.

He also doesn't tell his friends about the part where he's supposed to think of a way to repay the siren for his kindness. He can already see the yelling from them coming and never ending if he ever mentions that.

"So it's a male? Aren't they the most vicious?" Feng Xin recalls some of the facts he knows about sirens. "The fact that he let you go just like that is highly suspicious. What if he gave you some poisonous algae instead of the actual medicine?"

"You've heard the medic Elder, he said it's the right one," Mu Qing chimes in. "On the other hand, he was acting strange when it turned out Xie Lian brought the algae. The siren really could have told the truth - that mermen aren't able to reach the algae. That's even more suspicious than the siren's behaviour itself. Why would they not tell us?"

"You get me, Mu Qing," Xie Lian sighs with a tired smile. "But I don't have enough energy to think about it anymore today. I swear, I will pass out the moment I reach my home."

"Do you have anything to eat? I will go grab the leftovers and bring you some," Mu Qing says and, without waiting for Xie Lian's response (there's no need to wait, Mu Qing is more than certain Xie Lian hasn't eaten since he left the pod's territory), he swims away, leaving the two others mers alone.

Feng Xin looks Xie Lian up and down, as if he wanted to make sure he's actually alright.

"Let's go," he clicks after a while, grabbing Xie Lian's arm and gently pulling him in direction of their homes. "I will swim with you to your cave. You look exhausted, it's better I keep my eye on you."

"Thanks," is all that Xie Lian responds with, but it's coming from the depths of his heart.

He really appreciates how his friends care for him.

It takes maybe about another hour for Xie Lian to be left alone at his home, having the food delivered and hair brushed by his two mer friends. It of course doesn't stop them from bickering, but they seem a little less annoyed with each other this late in the evening. They immediately split after they leave Xie Lian's cave, and it might be for the better - the farther from each other they are, the less likely it is for them to fight.

Xie Lian lies down in the place designed especially for resting, with polished stone and dead plants changed regularly to provide a little softness. He falls asleep almost the second he finally stops moving.

That night he dreams of beautiful, red scales glimmering in the darkness.

***

Hi, hi! The case is slowly resolving! I also finally got the last 4 books, I'm at book 6 right now and LORD, GOOD LORD, I AM OBSESSED. As always: Please, let me know your thoughts ^•^ We might see Hua Cheng again in the next chapter so stay tuned!!

Next Part: PART VIII

[one-flower-one-sword]

Sending virtual hugs! 🌸

I’m wondering about your thoughts on Xie Lian and how he views Hua Cheng and the Gambling Den.

He expressed to Hua Cheng his concerns about how dangerous it is, and let it go when he understood that he and Hua Cheng have differing views on the matter.

It makes me wonder how things would have unfolded if the man who gambled to have his competitors die or give his daughter’s life and marriage if he lost, had been able to complete his bet without interruption. Like how much is Hua Cheng involved in something like that?

Would that man simply have walked away with the luck he needed to get what he wanted? I can’t see Hua Cheng actively hunting down and killing those people.

But I can see him allowing the man the luck needed to make his desires come true - so not actively engaging but not interfering with the man’s terrible decisions - kind of like with how he dealt with He Xuan.

I’m not completely sold on that thought though…😅 your thoughts?

Thank you! 🌸

And thank you for your ask! I love talking about Ghost City :3

I've thought about similar things regarding the Gambler's Den, but ultimately, I think it's on purpose that we don't find out for sure and are left to wonder. Especially since, at this point in the story, both the reader and Xie Lian are still slowly uncovering who Hua Cheng is as a person.

When we look at this scene after everything is revealed, I think it's quite clear from the mockingly derisive way he talks to him that Hua Cheng did not like that guy, and I wonder if he would even have taken that second bet if Xie Lian and the others hadn't been there - he seems to have a pretty good understanding of Lang Qianqiu's character when be talks about him with Xie Lian later, so I can see him use that second bet as a lure to make Lang Qianqiu cause a commotion. Because then Hua Cheng gets to "discover" that Xie Lian and the others are there, which means he has a reason to invite Xie Lian to Paradise Manor, which is necessary to make that whole "have them rescue 'Ming Yi' so that He Xuan's cover isn't blown" plan work.

As an aside, though of course Hua Cheng is always happy when he gets to spend time with Xie Lian, I think he must have deeply hated deceiving him like this. It speaks to how much he values his arrangement with He Xuan and how vital the information He Xuan provides is to him - which is proven when right after this, the whole Fang Xin reveal happens. Without He Xuan monitoring what's happening in heaven and relaying the information to him, Hua Cheng wouldn't have known that Xie Lian got locked inside his palace and couldn't have come to rescue him.

Back to the topic at hand though. I think it's worth looking at the actual dialog when Xie Lian and Hua Cheng discuss the den because there's so much in there:

After some hesitation, Xie Lian spoke up again. "San Lang, it may be out of line for me, but I still have to say it. That Gambler's Den of yours is incredibly dangerous. Won't it blow up in your face one day?"

A place that allowed the betting of sons and daughters and people's lives, granting wishes for others' sudden deaths - it was dreadfully sinful. Never mind a little brawl; if one day the bets got out of hand, the Heavenly Realm wouldn't be able to stay on the sidelines.

Hua Cheng gave him a look.

"Your Highness, did you ask Lang Qianqiu why he had to jump into that mess?"

Xie Lian was slightly taken aback, not quite understanding the intent of the question.

Hua Cheng continued, "I bet he must have told you that if he didn't do it, no one else would."

He was amazingly on the mark, obviously having seen through Lang Qianqiu.

"That's indeed what he said." Xie Lian admitted.

"Then I'm the complete opposite," Hua Cheng said. "If I don't control a place like this, then someone else will. I'd rather that person be me."

Xie Lian knew when to back down, and he nodded. "I understand."

It seemed, although Hua Cheng was the sentimental sort, he also cared more about control and power than Xie Lian realized.

It's fascinating that it we look at what Xie Lian actually says and thinks here, what he mainly seems to be worried about is what would happen to Hua Cheng and his friendship with Hua Cheng should Jun Wu be given reason to actively start going against him. Which is also what Xie Lian worries about during this entire mission - what will happen if it turns out Hua Cheng is involved with a heavenly official's disappearance and heaven retaliates, what will happen if he's not involved and Xie Lian has destroyed their friendship by deceiving him. It doesn't matter to Xie Lian that Hua Cheng is a Ghost King and that they're technically on opposite sides - he's decided based on his own experiences and judgment that Hua Cheng is a good person and a good friend, and he's already at this point very protective of him. Especially since he's not unaware that the heavenly realm in general and Jun Wu in particular do not share his opinion on Hua Cheng, and the political implications thereof:

Jun Wu turned around. "Tell me, what kind of extraordinary character did you engage with when you descended this time?"

Xie Lian raised his hand. "My Lord, I swear I did nothing. Just, one day by chance, I encountered an interesting young man on the road, and we spent some time together. I didn't think much of it."

Ju Wu nodded. "Chance encounter, young man, Supreme Ghost King. Xianle, surely you are aware what the consequences would be if Ming Guang was to question you further and you confessed to this in front of the other officials? No one would believe you."

"Xianle knows," Xie Lian replied woefully. "So, I'm grateful for My Lord's timely intervention. My Lord, you're not actually going to interrogate me, are you? I wouldn't collude with the Ghost Realm. These are absurd concerns."

"Naturally, I know you would not intentionally collude with the Ghost Realm," Jun Wu said.

"I'm grateful for My Lord's trust," Xie Lian replied.

Xie Lian is definitely stretching the truth here with the "I didn't think much of it" part, given that by the end of his investigation in Banyue, he damn well knew that the "interesting young man" was Supreme Ghost King Hua Cheng, and then he kept spending time with him regardless. He's very careful about protecting their friendship by downplaying it and being vague, and further than that, he's very careful about protecting Hua Cheng. We've already seen this earlier when Pei Ming was interrogating him - Xie Lian even pretended not to know who that "red-clothed young man" was because he rightfully deduced that Pei Ming would try to use Hua Cheng as a scapegoat to get Xiao Pei off the hook. Then when Pei Ming does try to pin the whole thing on Hua Cheng, Xie Lian immediately speaks up in his defense:

"General Pei, let's keep things clear and separate. Let's not talk about whether the young man I traveled with was Hua Cheng or not. At the very least, even if he was indeed Hua Cheng, that has nothing to do with what General Pei Junior has done. A Supreme Ghost King might have the worst possible name on people's tongues, but not everything can be blamed on him."

I find it very telling that the reason Xie Lian is being so carefully vague is less so he himself won't get into trouble and more that he's very aware that if Hua Cheng gets wrongfully accused, no one will question it simply because of who and what Hua Cheng is. And it's that kind of injustice and prejudice that Xie Lian will always stand up against. At this point he still completely trusts Jun Wu, but when it comes to Hua Cheng, Xie Lian not only disagrees but actively disobeys, though he's careful about how much of that he shows in front of Jun Wu:

Jun Wu shook his head. "I should not comment on the friends you make, but I will say this: Be careful of Hua Cheng."

Hearing this, Xie Lian bowed his head slightly, keeping his eyes down and saying nothing. He should've responded with "Yes, My Lord," as he should have been able to say yes with ease by that point. Yet, for some reason, he really didn't want to say that particular "yes".

Hua Cheng likewise also understands his and Xie Lian's respective positions and is careful not to endanger Xie Lian. Like here, when he explains why he put up somewhat of an act of not knowing Xie Lian because there were other heavenly officials present:

"Since gege is here, why not come in? We haven't been apart for that long, so don't be a stranger to San Lang."

At his beckoning, Xie Lian let down the beaded curtain. "Earlier in the Gambler's Den, it was San Lang who pretended not to recognize me."

Hua Cheng approached and stopped at Xie Lian's side. "Lang Qianqiu was there too, so if I didn't put on an act, I'd be giving gege trouble."

Or here when he's content to be accused of having maliciously kidnapped Xie Lian if that means Xie Lian won't be suspected of resisting his arrest and made to look guilty:

Xie Lian finally understood. Shi Qingxuan could see that Hua Cheng had no ill intent, but on the surface, they had to pretend that Hua Cheng had only barged into the Heavens to collect his due. It would prevent gossip from those how might suggest that Xie Lian had maliciously and intentionally absconded. Hua Cheng understood Shi Qingxuan's intent and had played along. However, Xie Lian didn't want to go this route.

"All right, stop acting. He only came to the Heavens to save me. San Lang had good intentions, so why conceal them?"

Hua Cheng does this to protect Xie Lian, but Xie Lian likewise wants to protect him. This has ended up quite long-winded, but I wanted to look for more evidence of why I think that Xie Lian mainly brought up the Gambler's Den because he's worried that the bets could end up endangering Hua Cheng himself.

Hua Cheng sincerely thanks Xie Lian for his concern, but makes it clear that he doesn’t quite agree, and I think it's worth looking into why that is.

I've seen Hua Cheng be described as completely amoral by fans, but I don't think that's how the text actually portrays him. He certainly can be quite critical and cynical with his views on both humans and gods, but his reasoning for establishing and keeping the den isn't "I don't care what happens there" or "I want places like this to exist for my own gain". He is, at least from his perspective and based on his experiences, simply being grimly realistic about how if he forbids these kinds of bets, the people who want to conduct them will simply move underground and do their gambling in secret. So not only will these bets happen either way, someone else will eventually take control of such a place, and Hua Cheng doesn't trust that such a person wouldn't take advantage of it.

Hua Cheng isn't amoral, he just has his own perspective on morality and justice. He's also not passive and uncaring in the face of what he perceives as wrong and unjust, but he doesn't really talk about that openly unless prompted. Like here during the Black Water arc, when they discuss the scroll with (supposedly) the names of victims of the Reverend of Empty Words:

Xie Lian turned to Hua Cheng. "San Lang, you said it's full of outrageous mistakes. How so?"

Hua Cheng scooted over to him, they were now sitting much closer than before. Hua Cheng pointed at a few names. "These are wrong."

Xie Lian looked at the names closely; all of them were known to be lawless, malevolently evil tyrants. "How do you know?"

"Because I killed them," Hua Cheng said.

Hua Cheng deeply hates people who abuse the power they wield, to the point that he personally acts against them. I think this ties in well with his reasoning about the Gambler's Den. I don't think there's anything in the text that suggests Xie Lian is upset to realize that Hua Cheng cares more about power and control than he'd thought, just surprised - until he comes to Ghost City, Xie Lian has mostly been around the very laid-back "San Lang", and this is the first time he's encountered Hua Cheng in his own territory, where he's a Ghost King ruling over the largest settlement within the ghost realm.

Also Xie Lian doesn't know this yet, but given everything we later learn about Hua Cheng's past, I think it's quite obvious that Hua Cheng's preoccupation with the power and control he wields, as well as his contempt for those who abuse theirs, is rooted deeply in the trauma he's gone through. Control in particular is a huge thing for him for several reasons, one of the main ones being that as a child, he was repeatedly punished for things outside his control, and he internalized that pattern to the point where he now punishes himself for things outside his control, as is shown repeatedly when he decides he's failed Xie Lian in some way. But I'm going to go into more detail about this in my Hua Cheng + trauma responses meta.

Lastly, I think it's important to keep in mind that the text makes clear that even when Xie Lian and Hua Cheng disagree, rather than a point of conflict it's actually proof of how strong and healthy their relationship is. I've sometimes seen fans (not you) portray their relationship as Xie Lian being irritated with Hua Cheng's attitude towards others, having him either be somewhat grudgingly resigned to it or actively trying to change Hua Cheng's behavior. But when we actually look at the text, we realize that nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, the opposite is the case - Xie Lian is incredibly protective of him and repeatedly gets defensive when others judge and blame Hua Cheng. I'm gonna examine that in more detail in my hualian meta though, so for now, I hope this turned out a satisfying answer!

[do-u-know-this-autisticcharacter]

Do You Know This (non-canon) Autistic Character?

Long propaganda:

He's so single mindedly obsessed with swords and martial arts that he ascends to godhood as a martial god at only 17. and then does it 2 MORE TIMES. (autism so strong that you're the only god to be banished and then re-ascend x2)

he's such a sword nerd (affectionate) even after he's been banished. he's unable to read between the lines and realise that Hua Cheng is Very Gay for him, despite the fact that they CONTINUESLY KISS AND FEEL EACH OTHER UP. sounds like you have trouble discerning between platonic and romantic advances. not very allistic of you.

still, on the subject of romantic advances, the most successful one was unleashing him in an armory and letting him infodump about swords for hours. the author literally describes him as a sword otaku.

he's pretty perceptive, and tends to make pretty reasonable guesses about what's going on based on what he knows- and then never tells anyone. basically like: "oh I'm sorry i didn't know when it was acceptable to say that i know that you showed up in disguise earlier but i didn't want to call you out and make it awkward so i just played along until someone else brought it up" maybe the truth is blatantly obvious but figuring out when to say it is so hard :( someone come save this man from social cues before he gatekeeps another critical piece of information.

he has a passable understanding of social norms but often forgets them/ ignores them if he thinks they're dumb also there's this whole passage where he goes (paraphrasing once more) "hahaha my teacher taught me well I'm So Good at not feeling attracted to women. so good, in fact, that its never happened. i only wish he also taught me how to not find men SO HOT. it's clearly because my teacher never taught me how to avoid men's hot sexy advances." sir. sir i just saw you "practicing calligraphy" and "exchanging spiritual energy" with Hua Cheng do you want to maybe inspect this a little bit. as an autistic oblivious gay, I've been there but c'mon. you can only kiss a man so many times before your bros card is revoked.

on the subject of him being taught in class, because he was learning cultivation and martial arts from a young age, he was mostly a joy to have in class (special interest makes the heart grow fonder) until he started asking Socially Unacceptable questions. especially the why questions. i mean.

" "My child, I hope you will become a person like him," the state preceptor said, solemn and tender.

Young Xie Lian sat there poised and proper, and he said without thinking, "I don't want to become a person like him. I want to become a god."

[...]

Xie Lian still swore that he had never intended to be provocative or rebellious when he raised those questions. He was genuinely curious and looking for answers to his queries. However, when the state preceptor heard him, his face turned quite the shade." is this not the autistic experience very clear and expressive body language (which often just reads to me as stimming). he waves his hands when hes excited, he rubs his forehead, he paces and walks in circels, theres a scene of him opening and closing a door a bunch of times because he's happy.

before i leave, i would like to share some quotes "as long as the objects were placed together, Xie Lian would refuse to separate them. So whatever it was he built, he'd forbid anyone to touch it, and he always wished desperately that he could glue the fragile sheets together so that it'd never collapse. When he was even younger, if he saw his golden palace fall apart, he'd be distressed to the point of refusing food and sleep until the king and queen coaxed him from his shell."

"That youth smiled, not saying a word. Xie Lian suddenly realized the youth was actually staring at him. A moment later, it finally dawned on him that what this youth was staring at was actually the cursed shackle around his neck."

I rest my case

Anything else

Sorry about the amount of things in the source media section, he's from a chinese book so theres the english translation, the pinyin, and then the abbreviation most fans use when looking for things :D

Also sorry about the length of my propaganda i cant stop thinking about him.

[askew-d]

Fanfics ideas, cause you love MXTX works . Your top 3 fav MDZS characters will be besties with who (in your opinions) if they were in other universe, with characters from TGCF & SVSSS? Hope my questions are not confusing.....

hi, anon! sorry i’m terrible late for this ask. hope you don’t mind :) i am not sure i can provide great fanfic ideas, but here’s my opinion about who’d be besties with who in the mxtx universes, and i added more than three or favorite characters, by the way:

1. wei wuxian would create a group of besties with xie lian, shen qingqiu and hua cheng (and get together really often with nie huaisang group of friends)

wait up! i mean, wei wuxian would get along with xie lian because of his obvious fair morality principals and they would eventually get along with shen qingqiu for their intimate experiences with their husbands. if shen qingqiu was frustrated with luo binghe, of course xie lian and wei wuxian would share advices. wei wuxian would love to hear xie lian's lifetimes of stories and xie lian would love to hear his in return. shen qingqiu would slowly warm up to them.

and now, why hua cheng? i personally do not see hua cheng warming up to a human other than wei wuxian. not only because wei wuxian is a demonic cultivator, but also because wei wuxian would always thoroughly respect xie lian and have him like a great friend because he also has been treated like shit by others and understands xie lian. i think hua cheng would appreciate that. shen qingqiu would not judge xie lian either, so i guess they would all be ok nicely hanging out.

and they would spend time with:

2. nie huaisang, shang qinghua, shi qingxuan and sha hualing

you cannot tell me that nie huaisang would not become friends with sha hualing. they are both capable of everything. nie huaisang would be a little scared of her at first? surely. but something would happen, perhaps a case in which only he could help her out, and they would end up turning into acquaintances bordering into friends. one hand helping the other (perhaps not always for the greater cause).

anyway, shang qinghua and shi qingxuan though? personally, i think they would hit it off right at the first sight. shang qinghua would help him with writing, even, and open a new word for nie huaisang.

3. jiang cheng would slowly start being friends with feng xin, mu qing and liu qingge (even if none of them will admit it)

jiang cheng? admiting he made friends with those angry idiots mu qing and feng xing who cannot stop fighting? admittng that he made friends with that weirdass liu qingge? and vice versa? no, they will never say it. but fairly enough, i think jiang cheng would end up getting drunk one day, they would all start complaining, being angry, hitting things over, discussing over those gays kissing at their feet all their time, and the next morning, they would just grow an inch closer.

they would still roll their eyes at one another every time they are in a social conference. they would still be tsunderes even if they just spent an afternoon hanging out gossiping back and forth. yet, i think they would grow closer, and in a life and death situation, they would fight together like reluctant sworn brothers.

4. lan wangji would befriend ling wen, mobei-jun and luo binghe

lan wangji and ling wen i think its clear that they would be nice friends, helping each other and having tea together. mobei-jun would just be there because, if shang qinghua must have his time to be with nie huaisang and other human friends, at least hanguang-jun is one human that he tolerates for the simple fact that he does not talk much. so that is enough for him. luo binghe would only become close to lan wangji because they would trade nice recipes for their husbands. and also, it would be nice if lan wangji also helped ling wen, binghe and mobei-jun out with understanding how human works. they would be so confused and would want explanations of human experiences from hanguang-jun (one time or another, i can swear that mobei and luo binghe would want to receive advice towards their sex life too).

5. lan xichen would grow fond of yue qingyuan and he xuan

lan xichen, my dear! for you, i think you would have a good friendship with yue qingyuan, only. with he xuan, i think its horrible to say that he xuan would seem to be a wise guy, so you would become close to him, you would have tea together, only for at the end you have another disappointment to discover that he isnt exactly who you think he is and another time you will be crumbling in sadness, so i will not say it. but there, i will leave you all with this angst side. or perhaps you would get along with shi qingxuan better because he sure been through this whole experience just like you, huh.

6. the juniors would be besties with shang qinghua, shi qingxuan, lan qianqiu, ning yingying and ming fan

do i need explanation for this one? hahah, they would all love to learn more from shang qinghua and laugh at his antics, follow around shi qingxuan just like ducklings, be impulsive with lan qianqiu, play around the town with ning yingying and judge others with the company of ming fang. perhaps beat some that threaten their superiors in the middle :) would love to check their shenanigans.

[dancing--in--therain]

Very soft hualian fluff

Basically hua cheng getting pampered by his gege

Xie lian had just returned from dealing with a very pesky ghost. Shrugging off his soiled clothes he quickly quickly jumped in the bathtb to rinse off the the blood and grime off his body.

Just as he settled, he heard the familiar voice of his beloved calling him. "Gege? Are you back?"

"In here san lang." Xie lian replied. The bathroom door opened. In walked hua cheng, who seemed to be in a human disguise at the time. Xie lian didnt care. His beloved was his beloved, regardless of his form. "Welcome home san lang." Xie lian greeted warmly, extending his hand towards him.

Hua cheng walked over and kissed xie lian's extended hand softly. Xie lian smiled, a tender smile that only made an appearance during such soft and achingly domestic days. Hua cheng loved that smile. Xie lian withdrew his hand from hua cheng's hold and placed it against his cheek, caressing it softly.

"Join me?" Xie lian asked softly not wanting to break the tender atmosphere surrounding them.

"Hmm i will. But first, would gege allow this lowly one to wash his hair?"

Xie lian frowned a little. He flicked his forehead lightly. "San lang you're not lowly. You're my love, the reason for my happiness. I wont let anyone badmouth my beloved, not even you." Xie lian's eyes looked so earnest, so full of love that hua cheng could not take it.

Hua cheng's heart skipped a beat. Blush trailed from the base of his neck till the tips of his ears.

"Gege.." he whined.

Xie lian giggled. "To answer your question, yes you can."

Xie lian settled in the tub while hua cheng carefully and reverently washed his hair. Hua cheng fingers massaging xie his head felt so good. He could feel all his stress melting off him and he sighed softly. Hua cheng placed a small kiss on xie lian's forehead, pleased at his reaction.

After washing and carefully rinsing off his hair, hua cheng stripped off his clothes abd joined xie lian in the bathtub, as promised.

Xie lian settled against him dropping small kisses over his bare neck and chest. Then he kissed him, oh so gently that hua cheng could not take it. His breath caught, and he could do nothing but stay pliant and obedient to his god. Hua cheng wanted nothing more than to stay in this moment, to freeze time and stay right here. Then xie lian moved to get up. Hua cheng's arms around him instinctively tightened.

Xie lian laughed softly. He kissed hua cheng's forehead and whispered, "let me return the favour, beloved."

Hua cheng wanted to protest, but he couldn’t say anything. He was putty in the hands of his god, unable to do or say anything.

His perfect, gorgeous dianxia. Xie lian took a cup and gently poured water over hua cheng's hair. Then his hands made their way to his hair, massaging. And hua cheng's could've died here under the gentle care of his beloved, his god, his everything. He wouldve called thus heaven, but he had seen heaven and it was filled with nothing but stupid useless gods.

"Gege...." he sighed, eyes shut, "you spoil this believer too much."

Xie lian smiled, mirth and playfulness in his eyes. "Oh? On the contrary i think i dont spoil you enough." Then his expression turned more tender. "You deserve this and so much more san lang. I love you so so much and i plan on spending the rest of eternity spoiling you to my hearts content."

Hua cheng made a chocked sort of noise at that, turing red again. The water, which felt pleasantly warm earlier, now felt scorching.

Xie lian rinsed off hua cheng's hair, gently working out the knots. Hua cheng had never felt so calm and at peace before. After xie lian was done, he kissed hua cheng sweetly on his cheek and whispered,"let's go to bed now, hmm?"

Hua cheng could not agree more.

[mxtxfanatic]

Another pro-reader tip for mxtx novels: they are all stories with clear-cut good guys and bad guys and a strong moral message, BUT you have to actually read what the story has to say about characters without taking anything at face value, relying on genre tropes, or using identities and statuses as shorthand to your understanding of the moral system and themes of the story. So no, most characters in her stories are not morally gray (though some are, most can be definitively categorized as either morally good or bad, and ALL of her main characters are definitively morally good), and no she does not write morally gray plots where “morality is just subjective!” If anything, the term I think people are looking for is “morally neutral” (meaning that the thing is not assigned a morality in and of itself) in many cases.

An mxtx character is never designated as good or bad based off their backgrounds or class: Wei Wuxian, Jin Guangyao, Shen Jiu, and Mu Qing all grow up outside of the elite class, but Mu Qing (eventually) and Wei Wuxian are unquestionably good guys while Jin Guangyao and Shen Jiu are unquestionable villains. Shen Yuan, Lan Wangji, and Xie Lian all grow up within the gentry class but are all good guys while Jiang Cheng, Jun Wu, and The Old Palace Master are bad. Likewise, life circumstances or tools don’t determine morality. In mdzs, the sword path (which is the orthodox one) is used to commit genocide by the general cultivation world just as easily as Lan Wangji wields it to protect the forsaken commoners. Wei Wuxian’s ghost path was created to protect himself before being used to protect others, but Xue Yang and the Jin Clan pervert it to cause mass destruction for their own wishes. In tgcf, Xie Lian uses his god powers to attempt to help the Yong’an people while the other gods simply collect worshippers to increase their power and oppress lesser gods. Every character I’ve listed minus the Old Palace Master has experienced intense trauma that has informed their lives and colors their morality, but it does not define why they have chosen to take on certain moral stances.

(This is not to say that mxtx doesn’t have certain tropes she dislikes, as she clearly hates the “dedicate their whole existence completely to another person” trope. Su She, a villain dedicated to Jin Guangyao, dies. Zhuzhi-lang, a sympathetic antagonist dedicated to Tianlang-jun, dies. Hua Cheng, A WHOLE LOVE INTEREST dedicated to the literal main character, dies a whopping three (3) times before he learns his lesson.)

Mxtx does not condemn those who stray from orthodoxy. In fact, every story she’s (currently) written is about the dangers of entrenched and unquestioned hierarchy and status quo giving way to corruption every time. She wants you to question the dominant narrative of the benevolent group who descend from on high to “save the ignorant masses.” She wants you to question the idea that the only people with the right of choice are those at the top of the hierarchy. She wants you to question the idea that even the smallest decision of “powerless” people does not matter in “the grand scheme of things.” She wants you to actually think about the story conventions that you accept as infallible and question whether or not it would make for good shorthand by which to understand well-written characters and story arcs (and also, hopefully, how society is structured at large). So if you find yourself reading an mxtx novel and siding with the mob characters or lamenting how x character was locked into making certain choices “against their will” or being unable to reconcile how a recognized trope led to an unexpected conclusion because “that’s not how it’s supposed to go,” then it may do you some good to stop and ask yourself “was this idea supported by the narrative that I read in the book, or is this an idea I’ve come to entirely from my own preconceived notions of how I wanted the story to turn out based on how other, similar stories have panned out?”

[lettiegrief]

What if Xie Lian was a university professor and Hua Cheng was his prodigy student?

The admiration would be mutual and so intense that only an unsuspecting and inattentive newbie would not notice it at first glance. There would be flirtations that for anyone would be so intense that it would be inevitable to think that they were no longer a couple, except for them, because in their loser minds the attraction is impossible to be mutual, when the impossible thing for anyone is for them not to be a couple.

That's why it ended up being normal for people to ask Xie Lian about Hua Cheng, and none of the questions were about his performance, but rather personal ones like "what about Hua Cheng? Is he okay? How are things between you guys? You guys are cute together 😊" and Xie Lian, with a red face because he might not know what's going on but he feels, would say "ah... okay? He seemed happy today and is still as smart as ever." It was a vague answer, but it was the kind of answer Xie Lian would always give about Hua Cheng, so people just thought that this was the kind of thing he would usually say.

As for Hua Cheng’s impeccable performance in Xie Lian’s classes, this phenomenon was always… interesting to watch. He would spend the entire class just following Guoshi Xie with his eyes, sometimes asking questions, he never took any notes, instead he chose to leave his cell phone recording the audio of the class (something he didn't do in any of the other classes), which made the other students wonder if Hua Cheng didn't hear his boyfriend's (or husband's, no one knew what their relationship status was) voice enough when they were alone.

They never got to know about this whole Mandela effect, not even when, after Xie Lian finally asked Hua Cheng out for dinner, they started going out and dating, because for everyone their relationship was already old news.

[mikaela-the-slut-expert]

Tea Shop

Xie Lian x M!reader x Hua Cheng

Y'all I've been thinking for ages how to make a two person scene a three person scene. What am I supposed to do, make two brides??? So if you have any ideas come bless me with them. 🫵🙃

Previous part: God of Song's second ascension

_____________________________________________

After you guide Xie Lian carefully out of the heavens so that he doesn't kill himself by accident . It takes a day to get to a tea shop. It could've taken longer, like three days but you saved yourselves sometimes. Since you can actually have spiritual prowess. The only reason it wasn't any quicker is because Xie Lian demanded you to not overwork yourself and use too much mana.

Xie Lian has always looked simple enough with plain, white robes. You on the other hand have to take on an 'avatar' you don't need anyone noticing you either. So you also dawn white robes, but of course a veil stays on.

You and Xie Lian sit at a table in the corner of the tea shop and you sit across from him. The two of you look over the scroll Ling Wen has given you... it isn't very helpful, but that's alright.

Both yours and Xie Lian's attention is captured by a silver butterfly. It flies across both of you and out the window. When you turn your head your heart almost drops out of your throat. Xie Lian is surprised as well to see two men sitting by you. One sat by you and the other sat by Xie Lian. There's only so much room on these benches after all.

You grimace at their presence. It's not hard to read the spiritual energy from them, they're obvious officials. You glare at them, Xie Lian is much kinder, "Oh uh who are you guys..?"

"Fu Yao" the one by you replies.

"Nan Feng" the one by Xie Lian replies.

You've never side eyed someone so hard in your endless years of life. At the 'Fu Yao' person beside you.

Ling Wen transmits a message to the two of you that they're volunteer officials. You huff inwardly. There's no way anyone from the upper court would offer their deputies from the middle court to help them.

That's because they aren't from the middle court though.

"Well I thank you for your help" Xie Lian says, quickly accepting their new guests.

"Which highnesses sent you?" You ask with narrowed eyes. You know they aren't deputies. Who are you to stress Xie Lian out more though, he already looks horrified when the officials answer his question.

"The palace of Nan Yang"

"The palace of Xuan Zhen"

"..."

Your glare only grows sharper. You've no clue why Mu Qing out of all people would want to help. You also have no idea why he would sit next to you of all people.

"Oh did your generals send you?" Xie Lian asks with a mouthful of tea.

"They didn't know we were coming" they answered in unison.

Xie Lian ponders for a moment, but you're quick to make the two squirm. Just because you can.

"Two officials from the lower court shouldn't go off without permission no? The trouble surely isn't worth it." Your eyes crinkle, as you smile at the two.

Lower court used to be what's now called the middle court. It was changed when whiny officials started complaining it made them seem trivial compared to officials in the upper court. To them an apparent mark to their honor. To you a pathetic attempt to seem important.

"..."

"..."

Your smile widens under your veil when they don't answer. What are they going to say? Their lack of words don't stop Fu Yao from glaring at you or from making Nan Feng squirm in his spot.

Xie Lian ever so kindly saves them, "Well do you know who we are?"

"You're his royal highness the crown prince and he's general /n"

"You're the justice of the mortal realm, the center of the world"

Mu Qing does not regard you at all and rolls his eyes when he answers.

Xie Lian chokes on his tea, "Did he just roll his eyes?"

" He did, tell him to scram" you and Nan Feng say together.

"Any official who was available was welcome to help so who are you to tell me to scram?" Fu Yao sneered. Again his words are only pointed at Nan Feng, not you.

"Ah well more help is better than none right?" Xie Lian smiles.

You sigh and all four of you go over the scroll together.

**********************************************************

Eventually it begins to get dark and all of you will need to find a place to sleep. Long ago, Xie Lian and you would sleep in the streets or on the ground. You put a stop to that. After becoming a powerful enough ghost and god you entreated yourself to your own palace. Not in the heavens though, you chose for it to be in the ghost realm. This was a while before Crimson Rain took over ghost city

Your palace just happened to be in close proximity to it and eventually ghosts started inhabiting themselves. Now all three realms call your palace, "The city of the lost". It's rarely talked about because well it's "lost" not many people find it, your city also doesn't cause trouble. It's just kinda there.

That is where you would usually go though but now you have two more officials with you and you'll be damned if you bring Mu Qing into your city.

"Why don't we find a temple of Nan Yang? I'm sure there's one around." You say, standing next to Xie Lian.

The four of you do eventually find one, it's a little run down but it's good enough. Your attention is dragged away when you notice a girl praying. A girl praying in a temple of Nan Yang? Makes you want to give your heart out.

You can't resist your temptations when Xie Lian asks why the temple has so many women worshippers. It's unusual for a martial god's temple after all. While Nan Feng feels the need to block the question, Fu Yao indulges it.

"I know what you want to ask, you want to ask why there's so many female worshippers right?"

You hold the urge to cackle, and lean in close to Xie Lian's ear. You happily ignore the two officials's glares. You whisper to him, "Xie Lian many women worship Nan Yang's temple so in the future their man will have... Good assets" you giggle into his ear.

For a martial god it isn't normal for many women to pray in their temples. Xie Lian was an exception because he was more of a ' feminine god ' depicted with lotus flowers. You were an exception because of femininity and because you're the God of song. The arts, like dance, drawing, and song were more partaken by women than men. Most martial gods don't have femininity, so rare for women's prayers.

You stay close to Xie Lian's side as Fu Yao judges the poor girl to pieces, calling her ugly. Xie Lian sighs, "You can't talk about girls like that Fu Yao" but you can tell Xie Lian is thinking the same thing. You snicker placing a hand on your hip.

Xie Lian notices a slash in the girl's dress, he tries to offer her his outer robe so that she can cover herself but of course she freaks out. She moves to slap Xie Lian but why would you just stand there? You grab her wrist and throw her to the side. 'throw' is an overstatement it was truly a nudge.

Once Xie Lian tells her she has a slash in her dress she finally accepts his robe and then runs out of the Temple.

Now Xie Lian's undressed. Bandages over his chest, and neck can be seen now. Nan Feng and Fu Yao stare in quiet shock. You on the other stare in admiration. Xie Lian is undeniably beautiful. You chuckle softly and remove your outer robe, unlike Xie Lian you have an under robe on. You move it over Xie Lian's shoulders.

"Should've let her run out with the slash in her dress. It's just like you to give the clothes off your back, A-Lian" you hum softly. Xie Lian smiles in thanks and puts on your robe.

He does look very pretty especially in your clothes.

**********************************************************

The next day all four of you go back to the tea shop. You aren't paying attention to the conversation about Mount Yunjin. You'd much rather pay attention to Wèizhī. The two birds hop around on the table and chirp away.

You decided to bring them today, simply because they bring you peace of mind. Of course they aren't only birds they're much more than that. Anyone would know if they're close to you, and they've seen the earring hiding behind your long hair.

Right now they're birds though and you'd much rather chirp away with the Magpies then pretend to chat with the officials next to you.

It isn't until loud drums and a gathered crowd outside has all four of you going outside to check it out. A line of men outside carrying a sedan is what the crowd is gathered for. As for the last inside the sedan... She looks like her neck has been snapped. It proves so when a fake head rolls to yours and Xie Lian's feet.

"Ew" you sneer and quickly kick it away. You assume whatever these mortals are doing is connected with the Ghost Groom. You stand to the side however as Wèizhī perches on your shoulders.

"If I was a ghost groom I'd kill the entire group for sending such an ugly thing to me" Fu Yao comments in disgust and rolls his eyes

"Fu Yao you aren't talking like an immortal should." Xie Lian said. "And can you fix that eye-rolling habit of yours? Why don't you set a small target for yourself first and only roll five days or something like that?"

" Set it fifty times a day and it still won't be enough!" Nan Feng yells

"Leave Fu Yao alone, if he rolls them hard enough maybe they'll fall out on their own." You add, with a snicker.

You're interrupted by yelling, one of the men in the group yelling about how it's useless and that they should just charge into Mount Yunjin and dragging an ugly freak out. They all hoot in agreement.

"Ugly Freak? Shopkeeper what are they talking about?" Xie Lian asks

The tea master explains, "The ghost groom has such an ugly appearance that no woman loves it, so he wears bandages around his face. That is why he kidnaps brides."

"Just because his face is wrapped in bandages doesn't mean it's ugly. There's a possibility it's so beautiful that it doesn't want others to see it, so he covers it up" Fu Yao says.

When Fu Yao quickly glances at you, you ignore. This isn't about you and you know that Fu Yao is truly a prick. No need to make something out of nothing.

Your group's attention is caught when the same girl from yesterday begging them not to go do anything dangerous and a man bitching at her because she refused to join them.

You don't care about anyone's affairs unless it has something to do with Xie Lian. You perk in attention when the man pushes the girl roughly, Xie Lian ever so kindly catches her.

Xie Lian uses Rou'ye to smack down the man and then just as quickly hides back in Xie Lian's sleeve. You snicker softly at the slumped man in the dirt. The man is not happy though, he's having none of it. He brandishes his sword and yells that Xie Lian is using wicked magic.

Nan Feng uses his palm to snap a wooden pillar of the tea shop and the group of men run in fear. You side eye Nan Feng. You have mixed opinions on him, but even after so long... "You're still just a brute dummy. You're paying for that" you smile behind the veil and return to Xie Lian's side.

The four of you eventually head back to the temple. With newly acquired information from Ling Wen, you now know that you're going to need a fake bride. However you can't use any mortals since it's a wrath level ghost.

"Well if we can't use women we'll have to use men" said Fu Yao.

"What man is going to want to dress up as a bride?" Nan Feng sighs.

The two suddenly have the same idea and look over to you and Xie Lian.

"???"

"No." You glare.

**********************************************************

Nighttime, the temple of Nan Yang.

You watch as Xie Lian walks from the back in a brides dress, hair down and flowing. You sigh into your hand. It doesn't look like a bride at all

Nan Feng has a more extreme reaction, "Fuck!" He just can't stand to see Xie Lian in a brides dress, it's awful.

Fu Yao scans Xie Lian with a complicated look.

"Do you have something you wish to say?" He asked

Fu Yao nodded "if someone sent a woman like this to me..."

"you'd kill the whole town was it?" You snicker.

"No I'd kill the woman." Fu Yao replied frigidly.

Xie Lian smiles, "Then thank goodness I'm not the woman."

You hum, "A-Lian let me help you, obviously these two have and never will see a bride in their lives" you smile, "not unless it's each other..." You mutter the last part out.

"Excuse me..." The four of them look at the voice. It's the girl from earlier. She has a white robe in her hand and stands with trepidation. "I've washed these clothes to return them to you and thank you so much for yesterday and today"

You see Xie Lian smiles in response but suddenly remembers his attire.

"Are you... if you want I can help?" She asks, no longer shy.

"No miss you misunderstand this isn't a hobby of mine" Xie Lian laughs nervously.

You on the other hand are happy with this development. "Yes! Come help us."

And so that began Xie Lian's makeover. The girl has a sewing kit on her and helps Xie Lian fit into his dress. You do Xie Lian's hair - you do it all the time anyways - and together the two of you do Xie Lian's makeup. After you're finished with him, he looks like a proper bride and a damn good one too. If you weren't a ghost there would be a blush on your cheeks.

__________________________________________________

Guys. If anyone has actually read all of these parts I need y'all to tell me if Y/n is making sense. 😭 Like do we understand the background and his character? Do we understand the b i r d s?

Time gap between here and first glance

First Glance

[lovelive-animequeen1029]

You looked before you frowned, Something was off. You knew it. Never over the last 16 years have you felt such unease. "I wonder if they know about me?" you question yourself out loud not noticing your lover behind you." is something wrong sweetie" You look up only to see his honey-colored orbs covered with worry. despite breaking up the two of you still took care of each other, promising one another you would come to the place where the moon shone the brightest. Yu Jun Mountain, happy memories as well as bad ones.” do you wish to dance away the worries with me” he held out his hand. You took it. His touch felt like it would be the last you would feel it.’ well if all is

going to fall, I might as well enjoy my last ounce of freedom.” you thought as you forced a smile. The two of you danced, spin after spin, jump after jump. leap after leap, and when (e/hn) pulled you ever so close to his face, you rested your hands on his chest clutching them. Your lips were ever so lonely but when you felt his you felt complete as if you found the other piece of a puzzle. You were first to break the kiss gazing at him. ‘There's something I want to say to you” You hesitantly say. He grabs your hand and places it on this cheek before saying” Say whatever you wish but remember I love you” You smile ever so sadly” I’m yours you know and you’re mine Y/n…ahh” A bandage pulls him from the rooftop you too were on and throws him on the ground. As you try jumping to him a hand on your waist stops you.” so the rumors are true” you start trembling in his grasp” Hua cheng please let me go”. He tightens his hold on you.” oh how cute love asking me to let you go after all you did” you gasp you open your mouth to insult him but before you could a scream of agony rang filling in the silent night. you stop.. Tears falling “ let him go, please... Hua Cheng let him go ” He smiled as he warpes your tears ” Oh no we can’t he had you for so, so long and then he called you his quite the thief he..” Hua Cheng looked at you in disbelief..his hand on his cheek. you lept before he could stop you.  When you landed you saw Xie Lian standing above your ex-lover body, who was losing too much blood. you ran and kneeled beside him holding his passing body in your hands. He looked at you with dead eyes”’ p..please..ugh..kee.p m..y ring..i’ lo..ve you..” and with one more cough he passed eyes open his body turning into ashing? you cry, trying to grab hold of the ash, but a huge gust of wind blows them away.” why..why did you do that you..you monsters.” The two just stood there watching you cry until Hua Cheng had enough of it “ Stop wasting your tears it’s annoying” his sharp commanding voice made you fear what would happen to you. You sniffed looking at the ruby-cloured ring..at least you have it. Xie Lian who was still standing came to you and said” Look love we’re sorry but you know we have no choice but to keep you from him” he patted your head. “ how..how did you find me” you felt his hand take a strand of your silver hair before he smiled ”you still have your silver hair love” you shiver and then you start crying. what in heaven did you do wrong,. Lost in your thoughts you overlooked the fact that Xie Lian was carrying you. It was when you felt a needle in your arm and two faces looking at eyes filled with intense love “Rest love we’ll talk later” A tear dropped before your ever-bright eyes turned dull and closed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

@fhjfjg68 hey I hope u liked it and it was the way you wanted.🥀

[bi-bird37]

Heaven Official's Blessing (Found Poem) 

A god fallen . . . a ghost risen 

The Prince of Xianle, ascended thrice as: 

a Martial God, a Misfortune God, a Rubbish God. 

Crimson Rain Sought Flower, Hua Cheng. 

He saw a flower was getting battered by the bloody rain, 

so he tilted his umbrella and shielded it. 

The touch of a hand, a roll of the dice 

Once, twice, thrice. 

Clack, Clack, Clack 

Willing to bet, willing to lose; 

other than obediently conceding his defeat, what could he do? 

Something to fight for, someone to live for 

"What should I live for in this world? What does it mean to live?" 

"I have no answer to the question you asked. 

However, if you do not know the meaning of your life, 

then make me that meaning, and use me as your reason to live." 

Fates aligned; bodies intertwined 

"To me, the one basking in infinite glory is you; 

the one fallen from grace is also you. 

What matters is you, not the state of you." 

Last ghost standing, first love blossoms 

Blossoms fell like blood: blood danced like petals on the wind. 

"As long as this red string remains unbroken, 

it means the person on the other end is alright." 

Body in abyss, heart in paradise 

Xie Lian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. 

Help me, help me, help me,  

help, help, help 

It hurts, it hurts, it hurts, 

IT HURTS, IT HURTS, IT HURTS 

Why can't I die? 

WHY CAN'T I DIE?! 

Lifetimes of cruelty, Centuries of devotion 

Hua Cheng smiled, then mouthed soundlessly, "Don't be afraid, Your Highness." 

" . . . Didn't I say that I'd protect you? Stay behind me." 

A battle for freedom, a love for the ages 

But even if he looked sickly, he finally looked alive. 

" . . . Have I been defeated?" He noticed a trace of relief on his face. 

Like a heavy burden had finally been lifted. 

"To die in battle for you is my greatest honor." 

"You said, you would never leave me." 

"There is no banquet in the world that doesn't come to an end." 

In an instant, Hua Cheng shattered into thousands of silver butterflies 

right before Xie Lian's eyes, transforming into a breeze. 

A silver butterfly drifted over and lightly brushed the back of Xie Lian's hand, 

his cheek, 

his forehead.  

Its actions were full of affectionate longing, 

as if it were whispering its goodbyes. 

But it too couldn't last. 

However, in the spot where it had perched on Xie Lian's third finger, 

there was still a bright, 

vivid 

red string 

This poem was composed by me from Heaven Official's Blessing by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu 

[marizch]

just have been here imagining a tgcf band au...

in my mind the main point would be the rock band "ghost city", with hua cheng as its lead singer, composer and guitarist; he xuan as bassist; and yin yu as manager and drummer. of course it was hua cheng's idea to start it and the other two were dragged by him. btw, yin yu might be overworked as usual, handling the bureaucratic and financial situations that involve the band, while he xuan also works as an actor (from where he knows shi qingxuan), but he lost a bet to hua cheng and now have to play with them.

on the other hand we have xie lian. he also used to be part of the music industry, maybe playing classical instruments in the same group as mu qing and feng xin. but after a lot of things went down, they’ve decided to quit it and follow their own paths, maintaining little contact. I can imagine him working in a flower shop now, but still enjoying music very passionately, looking for new bands and stuff, which leads him to being a fan of the upcoming success group, “ghost city”. he's also a longtime friend with shi qingxuan, who's an actress. one day she invites him to go to a show of that band he likes, because her work-colleague, who happens to be a member of it, gave her two tickets, and xie lian gladly accepts.

now thinking about the connection between xie lian and hua cheng. in his best days as a musician, xie lian could have founded a project to bring musical education to children and teenagers in need. that’s how he met hua cheng, a shy teenager wearing an eyepatch, who was very interested in his lessons and showed great potential, gaining his teacher's affection. 

xie lian had many students, as well as volunteers helping with the project, so it would be hard for him to recognise someone after all these years, especially when the person in question has changed so much. however, hua cheng never forgot the man who got him into music, gave him his first guitar and has been his inspiration since then. so it's a big surprise to him when,  after a show, xie lian and shi qingxuan meet the band in the back stages due to he xuan’s invitation.

xie lian also gets very surprised when the enchanting leader of the band shows to recognize him from his years as a classical musician, something that hasn't happened in quite a while, demonstrating also great knowledge about music in general. he doesn’t say anything about their past, but they get along well together since the beginning, to a point in which hua cheng insists that xie lian should open an exception for them and help them produce their next album. although being honored by the idea, the former musician asks for some time to think about it, they exchange numbers and decide to keep in touch no matter the decision. anyway, after some reluctance due to past traumas, shi qingxuan excitedly encourages him, and he decides to accept the offer. so he starts working with them almost daily, while keeping working in the flower shop half shift.

(another detail i think might be funny is that qi rong also auditioned to be part of “ghost city” at some point, but was rejected. since then, he has been working as a metal singer, and he consideres himself a rival to the band, although they never really cared about his attacks - and his music isn't even that good.)

[yabancreations]

For the WIP game, The Newcomer one sounds so cool!! I'd love to hear more about it!

Heavy spoiler warning for Heaven Official's Blessing. Hi! Right, so, The Newcomer. I came up with the idea around two years ago, while re-reading the Ghost City arc. Do you remember how the mortal who's betting against Hua Cheng when Xie Lian arrives uses his daughter's lifespan and fate in marriage as a wager? It established fortune/fate as a sort of currency in the world of TGCF, a notion that later got reinforced by things like:

-How Hua Cheng can transfer luck in games of chance to Xie Lian -How Shi Wudu could use He Xuan's divine fate to make Shi Qingxuan ascend instead -How Jun Wu physically took Xie Lian's fortune away from him with the second shackle and scattered it among mortals (or so we hope, because Xie Lian asked for that to happen, but with Jun Wu, you never know) -How Jun Wu can put his resentment to bake in the Kiln and cook curses of horrible misfortune with it, which was what made Hong'er's brief life so miserable

The whole thing is quite intriguing. Does the Gambler's Den have a vault of good and bad fortunes in different areas of life, that they've been hoarding for centuries in order to offer them as rewards to new patrons? How, where, and from whom did Hua Cheng learn the magic required for such a thing? Does part of his extremely good luck come from gambling earnings, or is it all his, and the house has its own separate reserves? Is there anyone able to audit these transactions and confirm that there's no cheating and everybody involved gave their informed consent, which seems to be the requisite for the magic to work without breeding resentment (as opposed to a stolen fate, like the Blackwater case), or do they have to believe in what Hua Cheng says because he's too strong to be opposed or challenged?

If I have those questions, surely some characters in the story could have them too. Cue the new Earth Master, formerly an overseer of a big mining operation at the service of the Chinese empire, who swears that he was coerced into betting his extraordinarily auspicious fate in marriage in the Gambler's Den, and claims that Hua Cheng used it to marry Xie Lian, because otherwise there's no way "any respectable god would agree to marry such a vile monster." He ascends shortly after Hualian get married, which in turn is not too long after Hua Cheng's return. Many gods are still resentful towards Hua Cheng for his past deeds and the fanfare of the bells singing him praises every day, so they rally with the new Earth Master to see if they can take him down. Naturally, Xie Lian doesn't believe any of it for even an instant. He's devastated by the turn of events, and when he's told that he should not only stay away from the case because he's biased, but also stay away from Hua Cheng altogether until they determine if their love is legitimate or the product of a fate switch, he almost gets into his second calamity era and locks himself in Paradise Manor, refusing to leave until the case is closed (he's too strong for anyone to force him out, so at least there's that).

As I mentioned, Ling Wen takes on the case to get some fresh air and see if that can get her out on parole. She's in terrible terms with Hua Cheng, but I think she's too pragmatic to try to use the chance to get back at him. Instead, I think she'd be genuinely interested in finding out whether the old fox is as cunning as people paint him to be.

That's what I have defined so far. The rest is rather nebulous because there are a lot of possibilities, both in regard to what actually happened, and also in regard to the POV(s) I want to focus on. I could stay with Ling Wen and show how the Earth Master mirrors the men who looked down on her and mistreated her through her life, or I could focus on Hualian, or do a mix of both... I have started the story two or three times, testing the waters, but I'm still unsure.

Thanks for asking!

——————

Back to WIP game main post.

[sylviesoothsayer22]

This Is What Happens When You Leave Two Crackshippers Starving and High on Copium

Summay:

Basically a brainstorming session between me and my friend that took a straight nosedive into complete lunacy that all began with a "Hey! Why don't we just give Wei Wuxian a high school reverse-harem AU? Wouldn't that be hilarious?!"

This was essentially the very first WWX-centric reverse-harem AU Heiyu (who you'll find on AO3) and I ever discussed. After checking the word count of that WHOLE freakin’ discussion, what led up to it and what conclusions were drawn, here are the results:

It had reached 6K+ words. We ended up crossing over with other danmei (TGCF, SVSSS and Word of Honor). The amount of pairings that would be produced if all the men in the harem decided to play human musical chairs would be 100+ pairings.

SO!!! Without further ado, I’m gonna go ahead and show anyone who's interested the whole discussion in its entirety, as well as the lore additions and you can all decide if you wanna pitch in, leave it be, or call Heiyu and I insane.

Here it is, the WWX-centric reverse-harem in Modern AU that nobody asked for!!! I hope you enjoy this!!!

Important Note: To anyone who's reading this thing, please bear in mind this is a DISCUSSION about a fic idea I had with a friend, Heiyu (also known as Jinyu). I just copy pasted our convo and you can see how that new verse expanded and was talked about. I briefly thought of writing an actual fic for this, but decided against it because it would just be so freakin' long!!! You'll understand what I mean in a minute.

Read at your own discretion, don't take it too seriously ('cause it's all crack anyways) and just have fun with the insane premise/pairings!!

((Discussion Start):

Sylvie-Laoshi: WWX is still learning the ‘quirks’ of each Calamity. 😆

Jinjin: He is new, he deserves some slack. 😌

Sylvie-Laoshi: My thoughts exactly. 🤣 Give him a break. He’s the equivalent of the new kid who transferred when the term was already half done. 🤭

Jinjin: Poor thing, it is good that the class president equivalent of the ghost realm is so inclined to help him! 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: Yes! 🤣🤣🤣……. If HC’s the class president, would that make HX the vice-president or the secretary? 🤔

Jinjin: Good question 🤔 HX is the secretary. Yin Yu is the vice president who actually does all the work 😜

Sylvie-Laoshi: Perfect. Absolutely perfect. 🤣🤣🤣 We all know Qi Rong will be the troublemaker/problem kid/head bully? And Bai Wuxiang? Maybe the boogie man? Like the school kid that mysteriously died in the bathroom? (I plan on having HC & HX stating that BWX is just a legend. No need to introduce him. 😑)

Jinjin: BWX can be the homeroom teacher? That is never seen?

Sylvie-Laoshi: I like where you’re going with this. 🤣 

Jinjin: And yes It is better if wwx stays away from BWX lest he gain an obsession for WWX too 😐

Sylvie-Laoshi: Uh huh. I can’t even IMAGINE how that would go. 🤢 What about Wen Qing and Wen Ning? The school nurse and the quiet kid in class? 🤔

Jinjin: If they are in high school then Wen Qing can be the member of the student council who is responsible for the maintenance of the infirmary (?) like an apprentice to the doctor or nurse there. Wen Ning is definitely the shy, bullied child in class

Sylvie-Laoshi: Not anymore he’s not! If the new kid, Wei Ying has anything to say about it! 🤣🤣🤣

Jinjin: Oh definitely!! WWX gained his bad boy reputation in this new school when he beat up the bullies and saved Wen Ning. What is the pairing here? Huaxian?

Sylvie-Laoshi: Why stop at HuaXian? 👀

Jinjin: Oh 👀…. How many in this harem?

Sylvie-Laoshi: It can be as many as you want! Provided that the ship doesn’t have fucking QR or JW in them. 🤢 Hua Cheng. He Xuan. Pei Ming. Xie Lian. Even Yin Yu (but secretly, because he’s too shy to acknowledge his own feelings)…..

Jinjin: Oho 👀…I see. Also, please keep wwx away from those two disasters 🤢 

Sylvie-Laoshi: We can even have characters from MDZS and SVSSS, if you want. I also wouldn’t mind adding other danmei if you’re up for it…. 👀

Jinjin: Like Wen Kexing…?

Sylvie-Laoshi: You knew where my mind was going!! 🤣🤣🤣 Would Wen Kexing be HC’s rival? 🤔 like originally WKX WANTED to be class president, but HC won by one vote?

Jinjin:That would be delicious!! I think at least from MDZS we can snag lwj, NMJ (?) Oh wait. we can make the Lan Bros actual twins who are in love with wwx 😆

Sylvie-Laoshi: YES!!! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! 🤣🤣🤣🤣 If LWJ is in this AU, he’s gonna be competing with SO MANY strong opponents…. 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Jinjin: Wait wait!! Factions within the student council!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: YES! Who’s on whose side/group/clique?! 🤔

Jinjin: Well all the above mentioned are already in the harem so....... I guess that work can be left to the NPCs?

Sylvie-Laoshi: No arguments here. The rest of the background characters can take care of the school. I’m just here for the drama! ☺️

Jinjin: Me too 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: We didn’t even mention the SVSSS characters!

Jinjin: Wait, who is nominated from svsss for the harem 👀

Sylvie-Laoshi: The Shen twins (Shen Jiu and Shen Yuan), identical twins, but people COULD tell them apart once you start talking to them. Shen Yuan is a lovable goof who’s waaaaaay into critiquing romance novels, while Shen Jiu’s the school Ice Queen who’s a bit of a fashionista. (But nobody says that to his face).

Jinjin: Oh… I....... I can't convey my excitement right now 😵‍💫😖😍 Two pair twins!!!! These two definitely!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: Also, LBH (without a doubt) the perfect straight A student AND Liu Qingge, the celebrity jock, whose a bit of a dum dum, because he fails to realize that there are girls (and guys) openly flirting with him, but he just thinks they’re being too nice.

Jinjin: I was going to add these two!! 😍 They needed to be there! Oh but we didn't decide what the characters of Tgcf harem members and MDZS harem members are. The shy nice baby -Wen Ning's friend- Xie Lian (?) HC and HX and YY are done.

Sylvie-Laoshi: Yes. Absolutely. 💯 AGREED! I never thought of these two being friends, but that’s PERFECT! Alright! I already mentioned HC, HX, PM, SQX, YY and XL. 

As for the MDZS characters… LXC, LWJ, NMJ and maybe Meng Yao? He’s not gonna be a bad guy in this one. Soooo….. 🤷‍♀️

Jinjin: WN and XL would just ✨vibe✨ And yup, I don't have anything against Meng Yao until he turns into JGY

Sylvie-Laoshi: Pei Ming would be the most obvious about his liking for WWX. He’ll just openly flirt with him in front of THE WHOLE CLASS (he should be the school’s playboy) maybe do some cheesy wall-slams, buy WWX lunch, just doing the most, but WWX is sometimes denser than LQG at times.

Jinjin: 💯 Agreed!!!!! Also let's make wwx from a higher middle class family. Not the poor uke troupe please.

Sylvie-Laoshi: Yup! Everyone here either came from New Money (HC, HX maybe PM and  Shen Twins too) or Old Money (XL, WN, SQX, the Lans and so on).

Jinjin: Agreed! Definitely!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: I always imagined WWX’s parents to be highly successful in (whatever) careers they have. So, DEFINITELY not from a poor background. But the whole cast is still ready to use their money to spoil WWX. 🤣🤣🤣

Jinjin: They are! 😂 And WWX in his head is like " guys I can buy my own lunch, you know that right? RIGHT?!!"

Sylvie-Laoshi: The whole freakin’ harem that WWX doesn’t know he has: “Of course we know! But we just reaaaaaallly feel like buying something for you today, okay?”

Jinjin: Think about so many people just floundering about school trying to catch a glimpse of wwx 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: This would spread to the rest of the student body like wildfire. Now WWX has the school newspaper trying to catch pictures of him/interview him. Asking him what’s his secret for catching so many fine specimens in the span of a few weeks. 🤣🤣🤣

Jinjin: Wwx in his interview, "I am so glad that I made so many friends so soon too! AND they are so caring!!" The student body reading this,"the ice queen? The disciplinarian? The president? The vice president? The demon lord? Where is the nice and kind aura here!!!!" 

Also! Also! We can divide the harem members in different classes! The mdzs in one, Tgcf in one and svsss in one! The other two classes are so jealous that wwx was assigned the mdzs class 😂. HC even tried to meddle with class allotment for wwx 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: Ohhhhh! What if HC (since I’m a hardcore HuaXian shipper at heart) was the first one to fall for WWX? Poor WWX got lost on his way to school and ended up on the other side of the town he just moved to, HC sees a kid wearing the same school uniform as him and sees that the kid is going in the WRONG direction, so chooses to help him out. They talk on the way and he starts developing a crush during their long trek to the school. 😍

Jinjin: Done! This is what happened! Also cut the poor boy some slack! He is new to town! 🥺

Sylvie-Laoshi: Soooooo truuuuue! 

Wen Qing (the bff who’s watching this shit show): Wei Ying! You’re supposed to be smart! We’re in the 21st century. There’s NOTHING heteronormative about this!!!! Use your head for ONCE IN YOUR LIFE!!!! 😭😭😭😭😭

Jinjin: Wen Qing is tired ok!! She had to listen to no less than three people asking her if they were sick because their heart was beating faster than usual and it hurts sometimes!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: It was probably SJ, LWJ and XL. All three of them can be so oblivious to their own feelings sometimes. 🤣🤣🤣

Jinjin: Exactly my thought!! 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: She then gets a visit from LQG asking for the SAME EXACT thing. Wen Qing is about ready to explode. 😆 If Wen Qing finds out about Wen Ning’s crush on WWX, would she root for him, help him out or just goes ‘it’s your funeral, hun.’? 🤔🤔🤔

Jinjin: She wants to quit!! When she sees Wen Ning entering the infirmary she feels dread creeping up her spine and when Wen Ning asks the same thing "Not you too A-Ning!!!!" 

Poor Wen Ning was just here because he has actual heart problems. 😭 Why did jiejie shout? Wen Qing felt so guilty, she forgot for a second that her didi was actually sick 😞

Sylvie-Laoshi: Oh my gooooooood!!! What a great punchline!!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Jinjin: WQ roots for him definitely but this is without a doubt her first reaction~~

Sylvie-Laoshi: Undoubtedly. 🤭 What’s the story on how the rest of the harem fell for WWX? We already got HC covered. 🤔

Jinjin: XL definitely fell for WWX when he defended Wen Ning from the bullies, same for innocent WN. Lwj fell in love because wwx was breathing. LXC fell in love gradually when both of them enrolled for the wind instrument class. Which had devolved into duet sessions by the two of them…

Sylvie-Laoshi: I LOVE THIS! And it’s something that only the two of them (LXC & WWX) can share here! ❤️❤️❤️ What about WKX? 😏

I’m thinking that since WWX is well-read, they could have.. like a library meet-cute. WKX was practicing a recital for literature club, WWX walks by him and accidentally knocks over a bunch of books at the top shelf, causing an avalanche that would’ve fallen DIRECTLY on WWX’s head, WKX pushes him out of the way on time, and you get an accidental wall-slam moment with soul-gazing for a few seconds. Both of them are still processing what just happened.

Jinjin: WKX being the student head of the Library! Their sweet moments are all about books and that corner in the Library where the sunbeams hit just right in the evening giving it the warm, cosy feeling. (romantic too! Wwx just doesn't get this part🤭)

Sylvie-Laoshi: We’re gonna be stretching out the “he doesn’t know they’re in love with him” trope soooooooo much in this one. 🤣😭🤣😭🤣 

Jinjin: So true 😂 but it's so fun!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: Hmmm. What about the Shen Twins (specifically Shen Jiu) how would WWX manage to capture SJ’s icy-cold heart? 🤔🤔🤔

Jinjin: Let's take up the Fashionista troupe up 🤭 For a week straight wwx dresses so atrociously that SJ just goes up to him and " take my number, we are going to yours this evening you need some FASHION ADVICE for god's sake!!" (Wwx has nice clothes but not the sense of how to wear them and SJ is exasperated"

Sylvie-Laoshi: Oh my god. Yessss. And everyone in the harem interprets it as the Ice Queen finally making his move and decided to take their flirting up a notch. 🤣🤣🤣

And maybe Shen Yuan tags along for the SJ & WWX fashion show (since his poor twin doesn’t have any friends and he wants to encourage some kind of bond between his older brother and the new kid). He sees WWX’s book collection and just starts ranting over this book or that, WWX watches wide-eyed (for a guy who drops constant F-bombs, he gives some good critique!) and encourages Shen Yuan to keep going, following his advice on what to/and what NOT to read, while SJ’s brow’s twitching in irritation. Digging through WWX’s walk-in-closet for the best outfit combos.

Jinjin: SY and WWX are out there in the corner huddling over a book they read exchanging critique while SJ is in the walk-in closet obsessing over clothes. Once in a while he makes wwx stand in the centre of the room to see if the combo fits wwx's physique or not. 

Sylvie-Laoshi: First day with the three of them together and they've already got a nice and comfortable (almost domestic you might say!) dynamic down. 😂 😂 😂. 

Jinjin: The next day, everyone is blown away when wwx comes to school the next day. 

Sylvie-Laoshi: They all just can’t look away…. Some of them even secretly took photos on their phones as WWX walked by (HC, PM and LWJ definitely did at least). 🤭

Jinjin: 😂 😂😂 But the Lan Twins are not happy! The Shens are too close!! This is war!! ⚔️

Sylvie-Laoshi: It's the Lan Twins vs the Shen Twins! Gather up everyone! They're about to have a showdown! (SJ already voted that it should be a fashion competition first and then a musical one second). 🤣 🤣 🤣

Jinjin: LXC will have you know that Lans aren't old money for nothing!! They have an impeccable fashion sense!! LWJ in the corner already giving up on the fashion show and preparing for the music competition. He will win that one for sure!! (lwj is actually the head of the disciplinary committee, btw)

Sylvie-Laoshi: That's soooooo in character for both of them! Oh my gooooooood! 🤣 🤣 Also, I can't imagine a more perfect role for LWJ other than being in the disciplinary committee. 😂

Jinjin: I couldn't think of anything else. The Library was occupied already after all and so were the music lessons.

Sylvie-Laoshi: Truuuuuuueeee. We got so many young talents in this school... If it's not the most prestigious school in all of China, I'm eating my keyboard.....🤣

Jinjin: Oh it definitely is! 😂…What of NMJ, though?

Sylvie-Laoshi: Oooooooh! Could he be head of the wrestling club (who's already won a few gold medals)?! And XL a part of the fencing club? Or dancing. I could see him go either way, really. I don't know what roles they can have in the school committee, though. 🤔

Jinjin: Let's do it like this, XL has actually been a member of three clubs but was removed from two because of something or the other. Dance then fencing and now he is in the eco-club dedicated to the preservation of the environment in and around the school and city. NMJ, XL and the rest can be club representatives for their respective clubs. I can definitely see NMJ  being the school wrestling champion. He is one of those sports people who are already making a career in their fields

Sylvie-Laoshi: I love how you snuck in the 'thrice-ascended' god reference! 🤣

Jinjin: Can't forget the thrice ascended reference now can we 😌

Sylvie-Laoshi: NMJ’s already successful before he even left highschool! What an impressive young man, indeed! (Why does a part of me think that WWX would be a bit of a fanboy for this NMJ? Like kid!WWX was REALLY into fighting sports, wrestling was one of his favourites and now he gets to meet one on his way to becoming a national champion...?)🤩

Jinjin: Oh like a Yuri on ice idolization!! Just that wwx in not a wrestler.

Sylvie-Laoshi: I love how your mind works! 🥰. Ooooorrrrrr WWX just really likes fighting and asks NMJ on how to fight opponents bigger than him. This then evolves into them having semi-sparring sessions.... 🤭

Jinjin: Oh my~ 🤭 things can get quite hot in this scenario

Sylvie-Laoshi: Indeeeeed~ 😏

Jinjin: NMJ was not ready for the sudden heart disease he seems to have caught maybe he should go consult Wen Qing 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: This is gonna be a running gag. I just know it..... 🤣

Jinjin: Definitely 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: Ooooohhh! Here's an idea for an arc!

Jinjin: Oh…?

Sylvie-Laoshi: Poor WWX doesn't know which club to join!! He JUST transferred! And you're only allowed to be in one, but all his 'friends' are scattered in so many different clubs!

Jinjin: 😂 oh woe is he. He has so many 'friends' who should he join 😔

Sylvie-Laoshi: This can then evolve into lots of spats/arguments between the 'friends' where all of them try to sway WWX into joining THEIR club. *Gasp* LBH should be representative of the cooking club!!!

Jinjin: How could we forget!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: Sorry. We COMPLETELY forgot about him. (So many characters, man.....😅 🤣) 

Jinjin: Well no one is a contender in the lunch department now 😂 But the popularity of this man and his legendary dishes knows no bounds 😂 

Sylvie-Laoshi: Definitely. He is the unchallenged/unbeaten winner chef in this story. 😂

Jinjin: Well the lunch arc goes to LBH. He is the final winner. The music one will definitely go to the Lan twins.

Sylvie-Laoshi: The gardening/eco-club to XL.

Jinjin: We sidelined poor YY too.

Sylvie-Laoshi: Oooof. Yes. Poor YY! He would be the vice-president of his class, right? Since HC's president.

Jinjin: They were the student council president and vice president weren't they? That is why there was rivalry between HC and WKX. 

Sylvie-Laoshi: Yeah! We mentioned that a while back (best to keep our facts checked. So many different roles here!) 🤣

Jinjin: I think YY would fall in love if wwx picked the papers that slipped from his hands because there were too many. All with the angle effect in the background 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: That can be on WWX's first day at school! And then a cleaning closet scene would be their second encounter! 🤩 As in: WWX accidently made a mess during his 'try-out day' in the cooking club. Feeling flustered, he rushes to a cleaning closet and there he finds the cute, quiet kid that he ran into before, who's always following HC around like his personal secretary (even though that's supposed to be HX's job), Yin Yu. Currently napping next to the cleaning supplies. 

Jinjin: Oh please yes!!!! 😍 I can just see wwx thinking. Oh poor thing and then going to the supply closet and bringing over a blanket for YY. MEET-CUTE!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: YESSSSS! And YY was actually AWAKE, but pretended like he was still sleeping (he's a light-sleeper, because he didn't want a teacher to catch him napping in the closet. It would set a bad example as the vice-president) 🤭

Jinjin: And here starts the story of the shy vice president who didn't declare his love openly because he was scared of the president 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: Class president Hua Cheng would work him to death if he did. 🤣 🤣 🤣

Jinjin: He would 🤣

Sylvie-Laoshi: What of Pei Ming? How would their meet-cute go? 🤔

Jinjin: I can't say? He is a playboy after all. But it can go like this, PM flirting with Wwx and not expecting the comeback from wwx and then floundering through the conversation flustered JZX style. Wwx was a certified flirt in canon.

Sylvie-Laoshi: Like the smug player who didn't think he could be outmatched! 🤣

Jinjin: Exactly!! 🤣

Sylvie-Laoshi: Truuuuueee! And this would be the ONE time where he's 100% sure that a guy was flirting with him, since it's common knowledge that PM likes both guys and girls. 🤣 🤣

Jinjin: But wwx from then onwards thinks that PM is in a competition of out flirting each other

Sylvie-Laoshi: And doesn't ACTUALLY think that PM might be interested in him because OF COURSE he doesn't! 🤣 🤦‍♀️

Jinjin: Well PM this is Karma 😂 When the entire harem has confessed and has been accepted (way off into the future) PM still has friend status. The harem literally pitied him and told WWX that PM actually loved him. Please put him out of his misery.

Sylvie-Laoshi: The fact that PM (of ALL people) would be the last one to join..... That's comedy gold right there. 😂 😂 😂

Jinjin: It is 😂😂😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: Hmmm. Now all that's left are LBH, LQG and Meng Yao. How would their meet-cutes go? 🤔

Jinjin: I don't know 😔

Sylvie-Laoshi: Hmmm. Well LBH would be the representative of the cooking club. Meng Yao could be in charge of the school newspaper (since gossip and rumours are his bread & butter in canon) OR head of the drama club, since he's such an excellent actor. As for LQG, tennis or football champ (I'm thinking of a sport that's most suitable for his physique)....

Jinjin: LQG fits tennis very well 🤔

Sylvie-Laoshi: WE FORGOT HE XUAN AND SHI QINGXUAN!!! 🤯

Jinjin: Yikes!!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: Ironic that it's both of them together....🤣

Jinjin: SQX definitely has the friends to lovers trope. They have such playful personalities they just go with the flow into friendship and then evolve into some more as they spend time together

Sylvie-Laoshi: He and WWX honestly wouldn't have it any other way....😂

Jinjin: They wouldn't 😌. He Xuan can have his time to shine in the club arc where he is the secretary and has to introduce WWX to every club so that he can make a decision thus spending a lot of time with him. They are all serious conversation  and HX falls hard when he sees wwx smile be hyperactive but calm down and get down to actual business when it comes to important matters

Sylvie-Laoshi: Yes! HX would definitely love the non-hesitant, serious decision-making side of WWX, who also doesn't take himself tooooo seriously.

Jinjin: Wwx would be the kind of balance that Hx really appreciates.

Sylvie-Laoshi: You know what?! Let's have SQX be the head of the drama club (he seems like the hyperactive theatre kid type) and Meng Yao could be in charge of the school newspaper, while ALSO keeping the nasty rumours about WWX at bay (once MY falls for WWX that is 🤭 )

Jinjin: Oh we totally forgot the easiest way to MY's heart!! Wwx argues that his mother shouldn't be made fun of for being a single mother if it was the father that left him and that she is a dedicated mother who brought up her son all alone!

Sylvie-Laoshi: And from there WWX (unknowingly) got MY *locked* on him! 🤩 😂

Jinjin: He did 🤭

Sylvie-Laoshi: Now for LQG….

Jinjin: Oh…?

Sylvie-Laoshi: I'm thinking that during his exploration of the school, WWX decided to take ONE tennis lesson just to see if he's up for it (he knows how to play, but his skills are average). On that same day, LQG was supposed to have a fierce training session with a champion from a rival school at the same time as WWX's tennis lesson, but the rival delayed (and nobody told LQG)....So! LQG goes to the tennis court, on his A-game, thinking that the raven head on the other side was his opponent, served......and knocked WWX to the ground, giving him a concussion because he hit the ball too hard (WWX didn't see it coming). LQG had to carry him to the nurse's office. 🤣 🤣 It's soooooo dumb. But also soooooo LQG..... 😂

Jinjin: This would be so precious 😂 LQG would feel so very guilty after this!

Sylvie-Laoshi: HE WOULD! The next few weeks, WWX keeps getting mysterious packages of spicy snacks in his school locker and doesn't know who keeps putting them in there! (LQG asked around and found out that WWX likes spicy food. This is his way of apologising). 🤣

Jinjin: He is a bit emotionally constipated and can't say sorry to his face thus begins the take of the secret snack provider. One day wwx gets to school early and hides behind another row of lockers just to see who was leaving him snacks. When he finds LQG he shouts "it's you!!". Maybe both of them like spicy snacks and that becomes their bonding point.

Sylvie-Laoshi: Yeaaaaah! New head-canon for LQG!!! 🤣 🤣 Now for LBH, I think I FINALLY have a meet-cute for him....

One day, WWX woke up REALLY late (maybe it was right after the concussion episode and his body-clock hasn't fully recovered yet). He runs to the kitchen to prepare his own lunch-box (usually his mom would help him with that, but she already went off to work, probably thinking that WWX's ALREADY at school and not over-sleeping). During recess, WWX goes to the school's rooftop for some peace and quiet since his head was still pounding (cliche as hell, I know). He sits down there and cracks open his lunchbox, about to start a meal, when he hears a new voice exclaiming: "HOW did a simple congee came out to be THAT shade of red?!" WWX snaps his head in the voice's direction and finds another kid, just huddling there in his corner, several books open infront of him (doing HOMEWORK during recess! WWX thinks disbelievingly), inspecting WWX cooking style (or lack thereof). 

LBH nods to himself and asks: "You have anything after school?"

WWX: "No...?"

LBH: "Good. Meet me in the cooking club once you're done with your last class."

Jinjin: Cliche but nice!! 😆 Wwx was so bewildered with this person suddenly bossing him around and LBH was dying inside with each bite wwx takes of that red monstrosity.

Sylvie-Laoshi: LBH is probably thinking to himself that WWX has no taste buds. How else could he eat that and NOT gag?!

Jinjin: No gag huh 😏

I am so sorry 😂 It's just heavenly pillar  and no gag what was I supposed to think 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: Oh my god. You evil genius you~ 🤣

Jinjin: What evil genius?! I felt second-hand embarrassment from my own comment!! It was so.......*facepalm*

Sylvie-Laoshi: Don't worry about it.... This is a judgement free zone!!!

Jinjin: Thank you!!! *sigh*

Sylvie-Laoshi: Aaaaaaannnnnddddddd thus starts the arc of LBH TRYING to teach WWX how to cook, but somehow WWX just CAN'T get it right. LBH gives up and resolves to just cook WWX lunch everyday JUST so he doesn't accidently give himself food-poisoning! 🤣

Jinjin: The perfect house husband manners!! Mama wei approves 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: Oh my god. Wei Ying's parents would have a riot once they find out the complete shit show that's their son's love-life!!! 🤣 🤣 😭

Jinjin: They would 😂🤣😭. Wei Changze is having a crisis!! There are 10 too many sons-in law here!! His baby is in danger!! While Cangse Sanren is having the time of her life! She is making a ranking of all her son's boyfriends 😂🤣

Sylvie-Laoshi: WCZ’s ONLY baby at that!!!!

Jinjin: WCZ is thinking of moving to a different city once again 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: No! He's thinking of moving to a whole different planet all together!!! Somewhere that DOES NOT have any other man chasing after his precious boy!!!!

Jinjin: 😂😂😂. There is a sense of doom hanging over WCZ. I am sure he faints at some point 😂. 

Sylvie-Laoshi: Just once? I feel like he'll be fainting multiple times in this story~

Jinjin: No no this is the start of WCZ fainting side series 😂

I know we made the entire harem for wwx but how does it function in the modern world?

Sylvie-Laoshi: I have no cluuuuuuuuuueeeeeee 😭 😭 😭

Jinjin: Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: THEY'RE RICH PEOPLE! They don't go by the same rules that us peasants do!!!!

Jinjin: 😂 they don't!!! There really are too many 😂 I can't think of something feasible 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: What have we done....? Jinyu...? I think we took it waaaaaay too far this time!!! 😂 😭 😂 😭 😂 😭

Jinjin: Definitely not!! Everything is fair in love, war and fandom!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: I genuinely cannot think of a better slogan for dedicated shippers. You summed it up perfectly. 😍 How many are in the harem now? I lost count....😅

Jinjin: Okay, so there's:

LBH

SY

SJ

LQG

HC

HX

YY

XL

SQX

PM

LXC

WJ

MY

WN

NMJ

Anyone else?

Sylvie-Laoshi: WKX…

Jinjin: Oh yes! 

Sylvie-Laoshi: You know what?! Why don't we add Shi Wudu, Xue Yang and Zhou Zishu in there for good measure? At this point, adding more isn't gonna make things any worse (it has already went FAR PAST the insane stage) 🤣 😭 🤣 😭

Jinjin: Let's go! We are already in too deep 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: We've already fully embraced the madness~

Jinjin: Their dating life isn't going to be that difficult but adult life with a harem is going to be challenging. 

Sylvie-Laoshi: Maybe they can all mark their calendars? See which days they can have WWX to themselves...? 🤷‍♀️

Jinjin: Well two of them are going for international sports. They are going to be busy. Meng Yao is probably going to join the paparazzi; he is also not going to have much time. Lan twins are old money which comes with responsibility. Same for Shen twins. They will no doubt make time for wwx but work is not going to leave them be. WN is probably going to pursue a medical degree and we know the condition of medical students. He will be there but mostly tired. HC is new money and needs to keep up with his company and YY is of course with him. HX will have the same problem and he is alone so that's a greater problem. SQX is either going to be an actor or a model, both of which will take a lot of time. WKX (is he old or new money?) has a lot of open options but I think he will open a bookshop maybe with a dream of owning his own Library. LBH is definitely going to become a cook and his most time out of all of them.

Sylvie-Laoshi: Hmm. Both of WKX’s parents are doctors (since they were healers in canon) but WKX didn't wanna pursue the same career-path as his parents. So yeah. Let's go with the bookshop option. ❤️

Jinjin: Sweet XL is definitely going to be an activist with the UN or something. He is also old money.

Sylvie-Laoshi: That suits him so well! ☺️

Jinjin: All this to say they are all very busy and won't be with wwx at the same time except for maybe new years and Christmas and such festivals. They buy a big house contributing their own share from their first salaries and live in the same place (for wwx of course) 

Though we can say this harem has side canon pairings too. Or fanon.

Sylvie-Laoshi: Yesss! Let the HuaLian, Beefleaf, Bingqui (he can have both twins if he wants), WenZhao ships thrive at the same time! (And maybe they can mix it up a bit too! HC & HX, XL & SQX, LWJ & LBH and so on and so on. I feel like we're gonna need to make several charts JUST to keep track of all the pairings.... 😂

Jinjin: I think so too 😂 They’re all gonna be a big happy gen z family 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: Also, I counted how many harem members (if you include SWD, XY and ZZ) then that would be 19 boyfriends/lovers/husbands for our dear WWX. I do NOT feel an ounce of pity whatsoever!!! 🤣 🤣 🤣 

Jinjin: Neither do I 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: You know TWENTY men will be living under the same roof, RIGHT?! And we're not even including potential kids here!!!!

Jinjin: POTENTIAL KIDS?!! Let's go!! Make this a men can get pregnant verse!! (Not omegaverse). 

Sylvie-Laoshi: WWX shouldn't be the only one to get pregnant! We got several bottoms here too! They can take up some of the load (PLEASE for the love of god DO NOT make WWX birth out NINETEEN kids -at the least-!!!!)

Jinjin: We shall not!!!! That it why it's not omegaverse 😂

But how many couples does a 20 people group make?? 😀

Sylvie-Laoshi: This is why I suggested charts. Because there's NO WAY we can keep track of even ONE character crossing over to other pairings! And we're not even including throuples here!!!

Jinjin: OMG throuples 😱 Wait wait let me see how many couples that makes at least 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: The longer we talk, the more insane we're getting.... 😭

Jinjin: So I may have done a mostly right calculation and there would be 171(?!) couples if everyone is involved with everyone except for the twins with each other….

Sylvie-Laoshi: Oooooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.................................

Jinjin: I know right 🤣😭🤣😭

Sylvie-Laoshi: I feel like this is the kind of crazy project that a whole STAFF of fanfic authors need to work on to make it functional (while also high on crack)..................................

Jinjin: 😂 you think we are high on crack 😂😂😂 I can't stop laughing 🤣

Sylvie-Laoshi: I can't stop either 🤣

Jinjin: Just think, 171 pairings!! 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: We were JUST talking about Well Matched (one of my published fics)! Then I was the one who decided that WWX should have a reverse-harem. 🤣 😭

Jinjin: Oh shit we were talking about well matched!!!!

Sylvie-Laoshi: You remember that WangXian fic that went viral, had like a 100+ tags and basically broke AO3?! I feel like THIS idea would be JUST like that, if not worse!!!!

Jinjin: 😂 it would break Ao3!! But this time it would be the relationships column that is going to have 100+ tags 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: I don't know if it will even ALLOW you to put 171 pairings....🤣

Jinjin: 😂 well then the entire first chapter would be FILLED with pairing 😈mwhahahahhaha

Sylvie-Laoshi: SO TRUUUUUUEEEE! It will be filled with JUST WWX-centric pairings in the beginning before slowly but surely crossing over with other characters till the sheer monstrosity shows itself in all its terrifying glory!!!!!

I think....this is our craziest tangent to date..... 😵‍💫

Jinjin: Is there any doubt?!! 🤣 People are going to run away before reaching the second chapter. Unless they are as you said "high on crack" 🤣

Sylvie-Laoshi: Nope! I don’t doubt it one bit! And I don't know if I should be proud or terrified!

Jinjin: Now, that I can't answer 😅 somewhere in between? I think it shows that we had been fandom deprived as this was our conversation on a Tuesday evening…The most tiresome day of the week.

Sylvie-Laoshi: I have to say, that is a very accurate assessment… Let's just shelve this......goliath of an idea (I genuinely don't know if we can EVER revisit an idea this insane, but two rarepair-starved shippers can dream....🥺 ). 

Jinjin: They can dream alright. They already did. If there was a third person here either it would be someone as crazy or we would be getting blocked 😂

Sylvie-Laoshi: This was sooooooooooo fun. Definitely had my creative juices flowing like crazy. I had a blast! 

Jinjin: Tell me about it!! It was so fun!! 😂 Made my week I think I will think of this idea and get through this week easily 🤣

Sylvie-Laoshi: Glad that you can have something new to cheer you up whenever you feel down!!! ❤️ I think it's best that we call it a night. It's probably past 1:00 AM there. And I'm feeling pretty tired myself. But this was THE BEST thought experiment we've had!! I'll keep you posted for any future projects!

Jinjin: Good Night! 💤 Take lots of rest!

Sylvie-Laoshi: You too! Goodnight~

((Discussion End))

Further Lore for the Other Harem Members: 

1. Zhou Zishu (Word of Honor): Jinjin suggested that WKX and ZZS could be one of the few established couples before any of the reverse-harem drama happened. WenZhou were childhood sweethearts that officially started dating while in middle school. WKX was the one who introduced WWX to ZZS, after they both start catching feelings, they decide to ‘experiment’ by having an open-relationship (they are oddly one of the few ‘mature’ members of the harem). And thus starts the arc of the most ‘experienced’ couple in the harem taking turns wooing WWX. Sometimes double combo-ing by smoothly inviting WWX to after school hangouts. Since WenZhou lived their whole lives in that town and they’re just tryna show the ‘new kid’ around~

ZZS can be the head of a fencing and/or mixed martial arts club. Unfortunately, I don’t think there would be a club for alcohol brewing. Not in a SCHOOL!!!)

Also, ZZS can drink WWX under the table. I’m SURE of it!!! )

2. Mo Xuanyu (MDZS): Jinjin had the brilliant idea of making MXY an underclassman who joins a year after WWX and was bullied in his previous school for both being gay and having a teen single mother. It keeps to his canon-pathos, but thankfully he’ll find acceptance in the harem/this lunacy of a group.

3. Xue Yang (MDZS): It was suggested that XY could be a foster kid/orphan who got into the school via a scholarship. It makes him the odd one out who had to use his wits and genius and claw his way up to where he is now. He’s a loner, a guy who just likes to unsettle people with dark ‘jokes’ for shits and giggles AND is the head of chemistry club. Makes perfect sense, the most dangerous place in a school that one can imagine are near acids, fire, reactive metals and what not. And maybe he has a similar obsession with chemicals and explosions like Maomao from Apothecary Diaries. Could be a nice zainey reference to his canon insanity. The only other thing he would be obsessed with is WWX and maybe Meng Yao/JGY.

4. Nie Huaisang (MDZS): Another friend made a hilarious suggestion, where NHS is the one who shows up to meetings, but has no official job. Everyone wonders why he is there and when asked he says: “Da-ge is my ride.” (or something equally ridiculous). Everyone assumes since he’s the lazy little brother who has average grades and whines whenever he’s given any sort of task, that he’s just an unambitious wimp. But as it turns out he was behind several betting pools about who would date WWX first, what kind of dates they would be, who would start in-fighting within the harem first, who would WIN in a fight and so on. NMJ still wonders to this day how NHS made so much money (their parents refused to give him any more pocket-money as punishment for his shit grades). Also, imagine everyone's shocked expressions when they find out NHS sideled his way into the harem with hardly anyone noticing (he just couldn't standby and watch from the sidelines anymore. )

5. Shi Wudu (TGCF): Jinjin and I decided on a very (un)subtle canon reference by making SWD head of the swimming club. One of the most common clubs in schools + it TOTALLY won’t leave room for very wet and juicy descriptions. (Jinjin said it, not me ). For added tension in the harem, SWD was gunning for head of the fashion club, but Shen Jiu beat him to the punch and now SWD has a SJ-sized chip on his shoulder. Plus, SWD has been dubbed the school’s resident ‘bastard’ and ‘unapologetic villain’. 

This is due to what he apparently ‘did’ to He Xuan’s sister. Soooooo, anyways SWD used to date HX’s sister (briefly) THEN rumor had it that they had this big dramatic breakup where the sister ended up heartbroken, all these allegations would start circulating in the school’s rumor mill. How SWD would often blow off HX’s sister, forgetting to pick her up for their dates, if she sends him a text, he’ll respond hours or even DAYS later, how he keeps forgetting what her favourite snacks and one time gave her a candy that she was apparently allergic to. 

Essentially, the rumours say that he was a SHIT boyfriend and that resulted in all the girls and guys in the school saying that SWD is a “ No-go Zone”. Basically a “date at your own peril” kinda person. Aaaaannnnnndddd. Of course HX has a huge, deep seated hatred over the guy who ‘seemingly’ treated his sister like shit. BUT….As it turns out, they were ‘fake dating’. SWD was doing the sister a solid, so that she can go and date Yushi Huang and Ling Wen (who are in SWD’s friend group). HX’s sis wanted to hide the fact that she was into women because she was afraid her family wouldn’t accept it. Soooooo yeaaahhhhh …. . 

That’s all I could come up with. SWD is still a bastard because he’s perfectly fine being portrayed as the ‘villain’ in the whole school and deliberately hams it up. (It makes it easier for him to get rid of all the stupid girls who keep leaving him love letters. They can FINALLY leave him alone!!!) AND we can have the HX x SWD ship later on without it being super problematic (*whispers* like in canon….). Also, we can make HX’s sister older than him by two years. SWD is older than everyone by one year and still has one final year to go before graduating high school.

The Pet Owners in this Verse:

1. HX can have pet fish (because of course).

2. The Lans can have bunnies. (Jinjin brilliantly thought of Mama Lan running a bunny café. The Lan Twins visit the place to keep the bunnies company during closing hours + it’s one of their favourite places to do their studies in).

3. Ling Wen can have an owl (scholar god reference and all that)

4. Yushi Huang can have an ox (maybe she and her family own a couple of farms + livestock.)

5. Maybe the Shen Twins can have guinea pigs. (Because Shen Yuan fell in love with them as a kid and the only way he could get his parents to agree is if BOTH twins want it, SY looks at Shen Jiu with the biggest puppy-dog eyes he could muster, SJ caved and said ‘sure’ *sigh*).

6. Some of the characters' spiritual weapons can be cats (Bichen, Shuoyue, Ruoye, E-Ming, Suibian, Chenqing and so on). And HC, XL, LWJ & LX can have cats from the same litter that was abandoned in front of the school just before WWX arrived. The last two of the litter (Chenqing and Suibian) attach themselves to WWX . XL’s and the twins’ parents wouldn't allow them to take in the cats so they take care of them at the back of the school as a “bonding experience” between them. Bichen, Shuoyue, E-Ming and Ruoye can latch onto WWX like their owners did).

End of fic idea dump.

Author's Notes:

And then we never discussed it again. LITERALLY Jinjin and I very very rarely ever even thought about this lunacy of a brainstorming session. So, thank you to my online friends (specifically Jaq and Stel) for reminding me about this (cursed) gem Jinjin and I carved out months and months ago.

If there is ANYONE who wants to take this idea and run with it through the wall, by all means go for it. Just please remember to give proper credits!!! If anyone wants to jump in and CO-WRITE this monstrosity with me (i.e. become a writing member/choose a chapter and/or pairing you wanna cover) by all means feel free to DM me here on Tumblr or on Twitter @SylvieSays22 or even on Discord at sylviesoothsayer and we can organise something because….. I sure as shit can’t write this whole thing ALONE!!! Lmaooooo.

Special thank you to Heiyu/Jinjin for helping me give birth to this abomination and EXTRA special thank you to Jaq for REMINDING me of NHS and for that hilarious NHS-lore. Lol.

Thank you for going through this madness!!!! Feel free to drop a like and lemme know your thoughts in the comments.

Next post will be a proper fic/teaser, promise~~