#if you like lqr so much why don't you just join the lan sect then????? | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

crossdressingdeath · 4 years ago

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(1/12) So a while ago I *think* someone on your blog brought up an idea making JYL take sides in a post-SSC AU where neither JC nor WWX lost their cores, WWX wanted to marry LWJ, and JC refused. I've been thinking about this in more detail, and I am very unlikely to write it, but I still wanted my thoughts to be Out There (and I don't do twitter so I can't make it a twitter fic), and I hoped you would enjoy the idea as well.

(2/12) Wen remnants are not an issue bc idk since JC didn't get captured and lose his core, WN couldn't have connected with WWX in the aftermath of that, so he tries helping WWX in a different way that ends up with WQ going with him, her branch splitting off and fighting with the SSC, and the sects agreeing to (and actually doing so, supported by both LXC and NMJ) leave them alone afterwards.

(3/12) Post-war, JYL married JZX, leaving WWX and JC alone together. WWX starts night-hunting a lot bc he finds he doesn't actually want to spend that much time with JC without a buffer. He ends up teaming up with LWJ a lot, who still goes where the chaos is, and obviously falls in love with him. They confess, are very happy, and go to LXC, who is very happy.

(4/12) Then LXC approaches JC about a marriage. JC is not happy. JC is like, they're both men! you think that's acceptable? no. and even if it were acceptable, WWX is my 2IC, I need him here. if he wants to get married, I can find him a woman who will stay with the Jiang.

(5/12) LXC is a little shellshocked, goes to tell WWX and LWJ what happened. WWX goes to ask JC what the fuck. JC goes off on a rant, tells WWX he promised to stand by him so he has to stay *home*, with JC. he's not allowed to just *leave*. does he seriously want to abandon the sect that took him in off the streets and raised him and taught him?

(6/12) and what, does he think LWJ will be willing to marry into the Jiang, for *WWX*? the Lans would never go for their sect heir leaving the sect to marry someone of lesser status. and besides, Lotus Pier is still rebuilding, so the Jiang wouldn't be able to put together a proper bride price for the second jade of Lan. it's not going to happen.

(7/12) WWX, depressed, goes to JYL for comfort. JYL is shocked at JC's decision but not sure how to handle it. JZX very awkwardly tries to comfort WWX, starts establishing himself as best brother. Eventually WWX goes back to Lotus Pier because he *is* loyal, but he's torn between nighthunting and maybe encountering LWJ again, which would be painful, or staying in Lotus Pier with JC, which is also painful.

(8/12) They stay in this holding pattern for a while until the next discussion conference, when LQR corners WWX to be angry at him for breaking LWJ's heart. WWX, depressed and angry himself but still polite because he *doesn't* badmouth JC in public, explains that his sect leader is unable to spare him and they could not ask the Lan to spare LWJ, everything JC ranted to him about, etc.

(9/12) LQR, who had basically convinced himself that JC would only have said no if WWX hadn't actually wanted the marriage (because why the hell else would he turn down a great match and good alliance like that) and that WWX had just been playing with LWJ, is shocked. he can see really clearly that WWX is miserable but filial, and JC really is the problem here. LQR now respects WWX's filial piety, is angry that he respects anything about WWX, and still wants to make his nephew happy.

(10/12) Cue a pro-marriage conspiracy. JYL has been writing back and forth with LXC about options, so LQR joins their discussions. NHS, who heard about what happened and likes WWX way more than JC, invites himself along. JZX offers the support of the Jin, because he's finding he likes one BIL much better than the other (and JGS is out of the picture somehow; maybe JGY got fed up and murdered him already) and it would make JYL happy if WWX were happy.

(11/12) So while LWJ is miserably fighting chaos somewhere and WWX goes to visit the Wens and daydream about him and LWJ adopting a-Yuan and giving him a good future, everyone else goes to confront JC. LQR emphasizes the match and the alliance, JZX agrees it would be good for Lotus Pier and the post-SSC political landscape generally.

(12/12) NHS pokes at JC's insecurities and is like, WWX is indispensable here? you are incapable of functioning without him? and by the way, that promise you want to hold him to -- didn't he say that he would support you like his father did yours? didn't his father *also* leave to get married? and the whole time, JYL is sitting there, very obviously taking WWX's side. JC caves, because of course he does. WWX and LWJ get to get married and adopt a-Yuan and WWX only rarely has to see JC again.

Oh, that’s fun. I especially like the bit where NHS uses JC’s pride against him by pointedly calling him out on being incapable of functioning without WWX. Very good politicking. I’m imagining NHS with all wide-eyed innocence just being like “Oh? You truly can’t manage without WWX’s help? Weren’t you trained to run a sect? Can’t you find a new second-in-command for the sake of your brother’s happiness?” and basically just pushing and pushing until JC has to either let WWX go or admit that he’s incapable of doing his job without a loyal mega-genius doing most of the work for him.

#mdzs #cql #grapehate #rynne #asks

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miixz · 2 years ago

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#mdzs#mdzs meta#wen sect#lan sect#all good points#i don't think i agree with the one about the lan not waiting around when another clan is attacked first#because didn't that happen?#i though the wens were subjugating the minor clans way before they attacked the lan clan#but no one in the cultivation world batted an eye other than some grumbling under their breaths and hushed discussions#it could have been different if a major clan was hit especially the nie clan on account of lxc's friendship with nmj#but even then i'm not sure since lxc is not the leader yet#and lqr is much more ruthless and coolheaded#so while maybe the lan wouldn't sit and do nothing like the jiangs were someone else attacked first#i don't think they would have rushed to the help either#more like they would have focused on their own defenses @sienne-k

Hi, thank you for bringing this to my attention, I don't think I explained that part well!

Mostly why I think that they would not wait around when another major clan was attacked is because it's a sound strategy to band together. I am arguing they are in the best shape, yes, but Qishan Wen was still undeniably better. This isn't a fight they could win alone and unless they want to hide in the Cloud Recesses forever the push back will have to be bigger than just maintaining their own defences, so it makes sense to reach out to allies and do other such things.

It's one of the things I thought would contrast with the Jiang, that effectively did nothing while it was obvious their clan would be attacked at some point, since the Wen had already attacked a great clan and were doing power plays like the indoctrination. War was coming, it's a question of getting ready for it.

I do see them helping the Nie mostly because of the connection between Nie Mingjue and Lan Xichen, but its also a good idea in general not to have a territory conquered by the Wen Clan.

In Yunmeng I see some insistence from Lan Wangji to at least go himself and try and make sure if Wei Wuxian is okay which grants them some aid probably. They're also very close to Gusu and checking on that situation has its own advantages considering their closeness and how useful of a spot Yunmeng is when it comes to accessing everywhere else in the Jianghu.

They have really no connection to Lanling at this point which is why on them I was sort of "uhh maybe? If it was advantageous and they had some reason for it", it's genuinely the one great clan I can see going completely ignored while preparations are focused entirely elsewhere, because while there would be an element of kindness to their actions, especially from Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji, I think any aid offered would be strategic as well.

On joining with minor clans, I do think theres an element of "well you ignored us until now!" but if the choice is between that alliance and being subjugated by the Wen, then plenty of people might be willing to join an alliance with a bigger clan that they can trust not to turn on them. And the reason for an alliance at all is back to the point about them still not being able to win this alone. It just seems to me that with the certainty that war was coming, that'd be a part of getting ready for it.

It has been brought to my attention that we’re not all in agreement that the Wen attacked the Gusu Lan Clan first because they’re their biggest threat as an opponent and not because they were petty about the archery competition placements, so I guess this is a post I need to put out there.

Warning, lots of words ahead!

Let’s think about the other clans first, and what we know about them at the time:

Nie Mingjue is young. His father died at Wen Rouhan’s hands and though he is very mad about this, he hasn’t been able to retaliate, which says a lot about the position he’s in. He would fight back with all he has during an attack, but he’s likely not to fare well by himself against all of the Wen’s resources.

Jin Guangshan is clearly a cunning person, but he’s also a slimy bastard who’ll take the opportunity that's more advantageous to himself and everyone seems to know that. I can see why Wen Rouhan would think that he’s more of a controllable element, especially when he’s holding the most power. Jin Guangshan has enough self preservation and lacks enough morals that he just wouldn’t oppose the Qishan Wen too strongly while they’re winning really.

Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan’s relationship is known to be a bit of a mess and their leadership works, but they’re not coordinated and seem easy to break apart, as well as not being very politically minded or full of alliances. Yunmeng is a really good location to have, but there does not seem to be a rush to take over it since they’re destabilized enough that they wouldn't fight back as strongly if not attacked first. Which they don’t, they stay in Lotus Pier pretending a war isn’t on the horizon until it comes to their doorstep.

In comparison to these, Gusu Lan is kind of thriving?

Yes, the whole thing with Qingheng-jun and Lan Qiren is sort of a mess of its own, but it’s a controlled mess. It doesn’t reach or affect them outside of the Lan, it has not made them lose any respect that we know of, the management seems to be going fine, they’re well respected enough that the lectures are a big deal event that plenty of the other clans participate in, not just because it's a tradition but because they want to be there.

There was a virtuous and prestigious elder in the Gusu Lan Clan - Lan Qiren. Everyone in the cultivation world accepted three characteristics which described him: pedantic, stubborn, and a strict teacher who produced outstanding students. Although the first two points kept a lot of people at a respective distance from him, some even to the point of secret dislike, the last one made them try everything they could to send their children to study under him. He had brought up quite a number of excellent disciples of the Lan Sect. As long as they stayed a few years in his classroom, no matter how pathetically useless they were when they first entered, they would at least seem to be decent when they depart, especially in terms of appearance and etiquette. There were plenty of parents who were so excited that tears flowed down their cheeks when they picked up their sons.

That’s the kind of thing that requires good organization and coordination between clans, a measure of respect, that they all do seem to have for the Lan and for Lan Qiren (effectively their leader). Those things are very important.

Not to mention this creates a sort of network of all of the former disciples that would have come to classes and hold their own feelings of respect for the Lan Clan because of their time spent there. Plenty of people have a relationship of sorts with the Lan.

So, so far the Lan Clan has that the others do not:

A good functional environment within the Cloud Recesses where outsiders don’t really know of any strife.

Good relations and a history of coordination with other clans.

An experienced adult as a leader (or two, considering both LQR and QHJ sort of count).

They are also known to have the sort of beliefs that would evidently clash with Wen Rouhan’s conqueror ideas and wouldn’t be bought or manipulated on them.

Then we have the archery competition, which yes was a bit of a hit to Qishan Wen’s ego, but was also a great opportunity to look at the other clan’s disciples and ascertain their threat levels. strengths and weaknesses and such things. And it did prove that the Lan, along with what I have listed, seem to have the strongest and most well adjusted clan heirs - which isn’t exactly a surprise, they were already known as such. But it does add to the list of reasons why they’re currently the most well adjusted and the biggest threat, as even that reputation among the juniors counts as influence which is dangerous.

The respectable title of the Two Jades of Lan was given to the two sons of the Gusu Lan Clan’s current leader - Lan Huan and Lan Zhan. Just after they passed fourteen, they were deemed by the elders of each clan as exemplary models to compare with their own disciples. They were exceptionally famous among the juniors, so it was only natural that everyone recognized the names.

The Cloud Recesses are also on a pretty defensible territory should they be warned about an attack and ready for it to come. The terrain is in their favor. We know that in the war they did need to defend themselves from attacks, and that Lan Qiren was the one holding the fort, and since we don’t hear of any big attacks having landed on Cloud Recesses other than the first one, this proves both this point and also that as much as I don’t like him, Lan Qiren is as capable of handling this sort of operation as I’ve implied above.

During the Sunshot Campaign, stories of praise were told about all three of the Venerated Triad. The ones of Chifeng-zun were about how he swept over all obstacles, leaving not even a trace of the Wen-dogs after he finished. Zewu-jun - Lan Xichen - however, was different from him.

After the situation of the Gusu area had settled down, Lan Qiren was able to defend it with great tenacity. Thus, Lan Xichen often traveled to aid others, saving lives from danger. In all of the Sunshot Campaign, he had countless times recovered lost territory and assisted narrow escapes. This was why people were ecstatic whenever they heard his name, as though they gained a ray of hope, a powerful trump card.

Every time Lan Xichen passed Hejian as he was escorting other cultivators, he would rest shortly, with Hejian acting as some sort of a transit station. Nie MingJue led him to a spacious, brightly-lit hall. A few other cultivators also sat within the hall.

Let’s think of the situation where another Clan is attacked first and the Lan are left alone to prepare for what's to come. I can’t see them being okay playing nice with the Wen, and I can’t see them simply waiting around like the Jiang did.

They have a good relationship with all the other leaders they can reach out to. If Qinghe Nie was attacked, I think they would try to come to their aid while also raising their defenses, as they had a close relationship - and that's clearly possible for them to do all at once considering that passage I just included about Lan Xichen helping people in the war, a capable and whole Cloud Recesses would hold itself together even better.

If Yunmeng Jiang was attacked I’m not sure if they’d offer aid as strongly, but they likely would as well, as they’re very close geographically.

Lanling Jin… I’m not sure.

But either way, whichever Great Clan is attacked, they are in a good position with the remaining clan leaders to reach out to them and coordinate strategies, and not even them, there are a lot of minor clans that based on the lectures and other similar interactions based on sharing knowledge would have good relationships with them. Not all of them would rally behind the Lan, but some would, and some is much better than none.

That makes for a lot more functional opposition.

Being knowledgeable of the possibility this may happen, it really just makes the most sense that they went for them first. This is their one opportunity to use the element of surprise to their advantage, obviously it’d be used to attack their most well adjusted enemy that has a better chance to fight back.

I’m unsure where to put this, but I do think that the indoctrination was also a sort of proof that the regard the cultivation world as a whole had for the Lan Clan was noticed by the Wen Clan and it bothered them (which makes sense, considering they wanted to be seen as the unquestionable leading clan).

It’s a very similar scenario to the one we are presented in the lectures, that functions as a mockery of them, a dark reflection where instead of the boys being invited to learn and socialize, they are being exposed to the cruelty of the Wen Clan and the consequences of disobeying them.

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