#nmj critical

[jin-zixun]

Reasons Nie Mingjue tries to kill Jin Guangyao:

JGY saved his life (while being unable to do the same for others)

He didn't think working as a spy to win the war would actually include having to do bad things (unlike the killings NMJ performs which are always 100% justified because NMJ is 100% moral and has the right to make that call)

JGY won't kill himself

JGY won't perform extrajudicial murder of his shidi, favored by his father (which would also get him killed)

JGY won't die

JGY talked back to him and won't just completely agree with his assessment (that JGY should just die)

It's the only way for them to have peace (says the guy who suffers from extensive murderous rages and came back as a corpse to continue killing people against the guy who oversaw the biggest public safety project and expansion we know of and kept the peace for over a decade)

JGY tells their mutual friend/sworn brother that he's concerned about NMJ suffering from said extensive murderous rages

JGY bought nice things for NHS

Reasons Jin Guangyao tries to kill Nie Mingjue

Doesn't want to be killed by Nie Mingjue who keeps trying to kill him

[duohensheng]

#Not even nmj (in the middle of qi deviation) could come up with some of the things that this fandom believes wholeheartedly

via @random-mdzs-thoughts-dumpster

every so often i'll just be hanging out minding my own business, and then i'll remember the time i read some commentary about cql episode 41 that insisted jgy was using nhs as a human shield against nmj during his qi deviation. then i get mad and stomp around complaining about it to my lovely husband (who does not know/does not care about this nonsense but patiently listens to me anyway). at some point in the recent-ish past i could have sworn i wrote up a thing specifically detailing why nhs-as-crybaby-meat-shield doesn't track, but since i can't find my own post about it, i'm just going to make another, shorter one with some visual references.

here they are. (zanzan stop looking at the camera, you're supposed to be a professional.) i wish i could make gifsets because the stills don't quite show you what's happening. but imo this is a perfectly analogous moment to the 'beguiling boy' section of the novel, where nhs is fully prepared to throw himself onto the burning pyre of all his most treasured personal possessions after nmj has set them on fire. the only reason he doesn't burn more than his hands is because jgy is there to grab him and hold him back.

in this moment, nhs is struggling to get out of jgy's grip because he wants to go to his da-ge--the same da-ge who just finished hallucinating that jgy was pulling a mcu loki maneuver, and was wildly swinging baxia around trying to kill him. if jgy had let go of nhs in this moment, nhs would be badly injured--just like what happens in the novel during nmj's qi deviation--or worse.

[acequinz]

I love JC a lot I really do.

But I think the main reason he gets criticism for the wen situation with the Jin's and not others like NMJ and LXC for not supporting that idea because it's not about the morality.

It's about Wei Wuxian. It's about the family supports family or the loyalty to each other if you would.

Like sure he was a young sect leader with a lot of new responsibilities in the middle of the rest more mature with a good backing but there was also Jiang Yanli who would have and even did Stand by Wei Wuxian even in her last moments, even though she was married into the Jin's, even though WWX has supposedly just killed her husband and the father of her child.

But he failed where he failed okay.

He managed to protect something (the sect) but it cost him the last bit of his family.

He could have done something right, at least told Jin Ling the truth about his mother who died protecting her little brother instead of being his victim.

He had his reasons for what he did but it still doesn't make those actions any more likable.

Edit: you guys this isn't me criticising Jiang Cheng but vord vomitting and thinking about how I would view JC when I am feeling biased towards WWX. Because JC as an Individual does not matter when I am focussed on WWX and his pain just like WWX does not matter when I am focussed on JC and his pain. Like this is about how the character boils down to just actions and not reasons when I am viewing with regards to another because I am biased in those moments.

[luanna801]

Despite me joking about Lan Xichen not reading the room re: NMJ and JGY, I actually disagree with the idea that the Sworn Brotherhood was inherently a terrible idea and he should have known it would make things worse. I think it's a classic case where because we as the audience know how it turns out, that outcome seems like an inevitability and the characters end up being called dumb for not predicting it. But I think with the information Lan Xichen had at the time, it wasn't unreasonable for him to think this might work and was at least worth trying.

And I think in a different story, this is the kind of idea that could easily have worked and led to a heartwarming story about redemption and healed relationships. MDZS is just sadly not that story, at least for these characters, but as always fictional characters don't know what story they're living in and can't be expected to predict the future. All they can do is act based on the information available to them, and I would argue Lan Xichen didn't really have enough information to predict how this would turn out:

(1) At this point, the only time Nie Mingjue has tried to kill Jin Guangyao is when he mistakenly thought JGY had actually betrayed them and defected to the Wen side. Once the truth was cleared up, NMJ is still furious but backs down from trying to kill him. (JGY, meanwhile, has made no attempts to kill or even harm NMJ yet, and in fact actually saved his life.)

From Lan Xichen's perspective, he has every reason to think this incident was just an anomaly based on a very extreme situation where NMJ was acting on faulty information. He has no reason to think Nie Mingjue would try to kill Jin Guangyao again, or vice versa, so as far as he knows the worst case scenario for the sworn brotherhood is just... that it won't go great. That maybe they'll never really get along again, but they'll still collaborate politically for the sake of the Sworn Brotherhood, and there will be no real harm done that they tried. There isn't really a way he could have predicted things would escalate to them trying to kill each other.

(2) Nie Mingjue and Jin Guangyao used to not just tolerate each other but get along/work together EXCEPTIONALLY well, and Lan Xichen saw them during that time. He also knows they're both pretty closed-off people who canonically don't have a lot of friends and are hurt by the way things fell apart. It makes total sense for him to think they might be able to get back to how things used to be if they just got a chance to clear up misunderstandings and be reminded of the things they used to like about each other. And it makes sense that as someone who cares about them both he would want that for them.

(3) Lan Xichen sees both Nie Mingjue and Jin Guangyao as fundamentally good people. We can argue that he's mistaken in one or both of those evaluations, but based on what he knows, and indeed what they're respectively actually guilty of at that time, I don't think it's unreasonable for him to think so.

Most of JGY's worst actions are still in the future at this point. His only real crime (other than the things he did undercover, which LXC doesn't condemn) is killing the captain, which is an ambiguous enough situation that it makes sense for Lan Xichen to not consider it conclusive. Especially when weighed against what for LXC is far more substantial proof of JGY's goodness, like JGY having saved his own life when he was on the run, his time loyally and effectively serving NMJ, his incredibly brave and critical contributions to the war effort, etc.

Likewise, Nie Mingjue has yet to start acting as violent and unhinged as he later will on account of the saber spirit. While he's gotten angry, it was typically in rational ways that are largely proportional to the situation. He isn't doing anything comparable to the way he later flies off the handle at both Jin Guangyao and Nie Huaisang in largely irrational ways.

(We could argue that LXC should have known that he'd eventually end up there because of how saber cultivation works, but considering even Nie Huaisang apparently didn't know about it, I don't know that a member of another clan would have that kind of in-depth knowledge of the effects of Nie saber-wielding. LXC presumably knows the basic idea, but that doesn't necessarily mean he knows the specifics or how bad it can get.)

Therefore, from LXC's perspective these are two fundamentally kind, good people who all other things being equal should be able to work things out. And on the whole, he has far more evidence backing that up than contradicting it at this point in time.

[wangxianficfinder]

No JGY Redemption

~*~

Canon Era/Setting

~*~

A Bell That Tells Us to Rise and Fight by DeerstalkerDeathFrisbee (T, 120k, WangXian, ChengQing, XuanLi, SongXiao, Canon Divergence, Arranged Marriage, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Everyone Needs A Hug, Women Being Awesome, BAMF Women, Minor Character Death)

A Child’s Wish by Hauntcats (Not rated, 13k, WangXian, WWX & Wen remnants, Celestial meddling, Not JC Friendly, Fix-It, Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Everyone gets what they deserve, Age Regression/De-Aging, Child LWJ)

A Future Family In A Broken Past by Hauntcats (T, 121k, wangxian, WWX & Wen Remnants, Jiang Family & WWX, WQ/MM, JYL/NHS, LXC/NMJ, Not Jiāng Family Friendly, Not Cultivation World Friendly, WWX Needs a Hug, Family Dynamics, What is a good family?, Fear of emotions does not excuse abuse, Not Jiang Clan Friendly, Angst with a Happy Ending, Time Travel fix-it, Canon-Typical Violence, Canon Divergence, LXC needs a hug, Everyone Needs A Hug, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, Not YZY Friendly)

🔒💙 A Heart Undying by NonsensicalRambling (M, 114k, WangXian, Undead WWX, Canon-Typical Violence, canon-typical dead things the burial mounds, Fix-It of Sorts, Canon Divergence, Eventual WangXian, No Yīn Tiger Seal, Morally Gray WWX, Animals Eating People, WWX’s questionable choices, Morally conflicted LWJ, Oblivious WWX, WWX Creates a Sect | Yiling Wei, YLLZ WWX, Sect Leader WWX, LWJ & WQ have an Understanding)

🔒 a star called sun by thelastdboy (E, 120k, wangxian, SL/XXC, JC & JYL & WWX, JYL & LWJ, WWX & WN & WQ, JYL/JZX, Canon Divergence after Xuanwu Cave, Fall of Lotus Pier, But worse!, Power Imbalance, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Not Everyone Dies AU, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Canon-Typical Violence, Sunshot Campaign, Miscommunication, Heavy Angst with a Happy Ending, Slow Burn, Major Character Injury, Loss of Limbs, Chronic Illness, Seizures, WWX’s Three Months in the Burial Mounds, Wēn Remnants Live, Wēn Remnants Deserve Better, WWX Creates a Sect | Yílíng Wèi Sect, Additional Warnings In Author’s Note, Hurt/Comfort, Selectively Mute LWJ, Service Animals, Crows)

An Old Cardboard Produce Box for a Cradle by julomaiboulomai, mischiefseven (T, 25k, WangXian, Accidental Baby Acquisition, Canon Divergence, Sentient Burial Mounds, Golden Core Reveal, Everyone Lives)

🔒 between the shadow and the soul by Reverie (cl410) (M, 22k, WangXian, JYL/WQ, JC/NHS, Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Family, Dark WWX, Feral WWX, Memory Loss, Magic, Magical Realism, Protective LWJ, Protective JC, Protective JYL, Grief, BAMF WWX, POV Alternating)

break by justdoityoufucker (orphan_account) (T, 3k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, LXC Critical, JC Critical, Canonical Character Death, Guānyīn Temple Scene, BAMF WN, Protective WN)

Chronicles of Sect Leader Wei Wuxian by Muggle_Diary (E, 85k, WIP, WangXian, XuanLi, JFM/YZY, CSSR/WCZ, LXC/LQY, NMJ/QS, WQ/OC, OFC/ OFC, JC/ OFC, Sect Leader WWX, BAMF WWX, BAMF LWJ, Genius WWX, Inventor WWX, Different First Meeting, Canon Divergence, Minor Character Death, Anal Sex, Top LWJ/Bottom WWX, Sex Toys, Explicit Sexual Content, Sexual Tension, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Rough Sex, Child Abuse, Child Death, War Hero WWX, Sunshot Campaign, No Golden Core Transfer, WWX Leaves the Yunmeng Jiang Sect, Cultivation Sect Politics, Wen Remnants Live, Abusive YZY, Abusive Jiang Family, Bad Parents JFM and YZY, JC Bashing, JFM and YZY Bashing, Yunmeng Jiang Sect Bashing, JYL and JZX Live, Jiang Family Bashing)

💖 demons run when a good man goes to war by Miranda_Aurelia (T, 20k, wangxian, LWJ & NHS, JYL/JZX, canon divergence, angst w happy ending, NHS & LWJ friendship, not JGY friendly, dark LWJ, revenge, (presumed) major character death, not LXC friendly)

Did I Not Explain Why the Sunset Turns Red? by 3988Akasha (E, 110k, wangxian, time travel, canon divergence, Canonical Character Death, Soulmates, Demonic Cultivation, Original Female Character(s), Emotional Constipation, Minor Character Death, Hand Jobs, Sexual Content, Bathing/Washing, Idiots in Love, Poetry, Mild Gore, Anal Sex, Angst, Rimming, Blow Jobs)

Discarded by teawater (E, 187k, WIP, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Dying Lan children, Hurt/Comfort, YL WWX, Golden Core Reveal, Case Fic, Depression, Family Issues, Self-Esteem Issues, Self Confidence Issues, Self-Worth Issues, Angst with a Happy Ending, and it’s not always dark, POV Multiple, BAMF WWX, dubious morals in the Lan sect Feels, Pining, Grief, Fix-It, BAMF LWJ)

🔒💖 Drag Me Into Your Coffin (I Will Drag Your Sins Into the Light) by the5leggedCricket (G, 2k, Canon Divergence, Temporary Character Death, Time Travel Fix-It, BAMF LXC)

Dream a little dream of me by Moominmammashandbag (M, 60k, WangXian, SangYu, Prison, Hair Washing, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, mentions of torture, Mention of dismemberment, Coming Out, Anxiety Disorder, Anxiety Attacks, goose!NMJ, Reincarnation, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Incest, Dreamwalking, Angst with a Happy Ending, JZX Lives)

💖 Echo, Murmur, Dream, Here by bluerainmist (M, 51k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Universe Alteration, the yiling patriarch survives, Angst with a Happy Ending, Catharsis, Slow Burn, Drama, Getting Together, Romance, Hurt/Comfort, Melancholy, Love, Mutual Pining, Reunions, Love Confessions, Eventual Smut, Blow Jobs, Anal Sex, Switching, Grief/Mourning, fucking while pining, Implied/Referenced Torture, Self-Harm, golden core transfer, Playing fast and loose with worldbuilding, Battle Scenes, Canon-Typical Violence, Canonical Character Death, implied / Referenced suicide attempt, Sect Leader WWX, YLLZ WWX, Yílíng Wèi Sect)

finding you always, all ways by BlueFrogs (T, 31k, WangXian, ChengQing, Reincarnation, Fix-It, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Romance, Memory Loss, Age Difference, due to reincarnation)

🧡 Ghosts Shouldn’t by ShanaStoryteller (Not Rated, 15k, WangXian, Grief/Mourning, Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending)

Grey Area by pearliegrimm (M, 31k, WangXian, MM/WQ, LWJ Stays at the Burial Mounds, Found Family, Yílíng Wèi Sect, Sect Leader WWX, WWX lives, Canon Divergence, LWJ defects, married wangxian, Established Relationship, Secret Marriage, Angst, POV Multiple, Unreliable Narrator, Eloping, Reconciliation, Fix-It, Not Everyone Dies)

Having Enough (of your foolishness) by makexianxianhappytoday (T, 18k, WangXian, Hurt WWX, YLLZ WWX, BAMF WWX, WangXian Get a Happy Ending, Angst with a Happy Ending, Jiang Family Bashing, Canon Divergence, CSSR and WCZ Live, Yunmeng Jiang Sect Bashing, JYL Lives, JZX Lives, (but what are the consequences), JC Bashing)

Home and the Heartland by Witch_Nova221 (T, 210k, WangXian, JYL/JZX, Burial Mounds, LWJ Stays at the Burial Mounds, Slow Romance, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, Found Family, Fix-It, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Self-Discovery, Golden Core Reveal, Canon-Typical Violence, Canon Divergence, the burial mounds aren't always a happy place, but wangxian do their best)

hope dangling by a string by KouriArashi (M, 70k, WangXian, Alternate Canon, Fix-It, Everybody Lives, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Psychic Bond, Telepathy, Communication, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, jiang family feels, Lan Family Feels, Canon-Typical Violence, canon typical political bullshit, improper use of sacred forehead ribbons, gratuitous hair washing)

In Exchange by FlautistsandPeonies (M, 8k, WangXian, Major Character Death, Canon Divergence, Implied WangXian Ending, The Power of Yiling Laozu Sexy, WWX Canon Memory Loss, WWX gets his original body back, Crack Treated Seriously, not for JC fans, Attractive WWX, WangXian Get a Happy Ending)

it’s a long road but we’re not alone by Stratisphyre (M, 62k, WangXian, JYL & WWX, LWJ & LJY, JL & LSZ & LJY & OYZZ, Canon Divergence, Not Everyone Dies, Canon-Typical Violence, Parenthood, Grief/Mourning, Family Feels, Reunions, Golden Core Reveal, Getting Together)

Just go forward like you mean it by tawaen (M, 101k, WangXian, WWX & WN &WQ, WWX & JYL, NHS & WWX, Canon Divergence, WWx does not attend the Wen indoctrination, WWX saves Lotus Pier, Inventor WWX, No Golden Core Transfer, Sect Leader JYL, JC Has No Golden Core, Bad Parents JFM & YZY, Not JC Friendly, but he gets a happier ending than canon so don’t look here for bashing)

🔒❤️ kick at the darkness ‘til it bleeds daylight by AlfAlfAlfAlfAlf, tardigradeschool (T, 75k, WangXian, Hurt/Comfort, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Eventual Happy Ending, Getting Together, Burial Mounds Settlement Days, Inspired by The Parent Trap (1998), Kid Fic, teen shenanigans, two a-yuans, Fluff and Angst)

Lay my body down by tawaen (M, 48k, WWX & WQ, WWX & WN, wangxian, WWX & JYL, Canon Divergence, Time Travel, Rogue Cultivator WWX, Eventual WangXian, No Golden Core Transfer, Not Cultivation World Friendly, Canon-Typical Violence, Not JC Friendly, What if WWX saw the first siege of the burial mounds and said Nope to the war, OCs, OC point-of-view for one chapter for plot reasons)

Looked so alive, turns out i’m not real by KatAnni (M, 36k, WangXian, Temporary Character Death, Angst with a Happy Ending, Sunshot Campaign, Canon-Typical Violence, Heavy Angst, Canon Temporary Character Death, Necromancy, Demonic Cultivation, Hurt WWX, Hurt LWJ, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Sentient Burial Mounds, WWX’s Three Months in the Burial Mounds, Canon Divergence, Fix-It, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies)

💖🔒 love, in fire and blood by cicer (E, 360k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, YLLZ WWX, Arranged Marriage, political scheming, Gratuitous Domesticity, Mutual Pining, EXTREME SLOWBURN, the inherent eroticism of the forehead ribbon, The Mortifying Ordeal of Being Known, neither wwx nor lwj want to be Perceived, but sorry kids! it’s gonna happen!, rated E but the the NSFW stuff doesn’t begin until chapter 19!, bottom LWJ in chapter 20 and 27, Mojo’s post)

Meet you at a different place by tawaen (M, 57k, WQ & WN, WN & MXY & WQ, WQ & WWX & WN, Eventual WangXian, Ghost General WN, Ghost WQ, Canon Divergence, WQ comes back to haunt the cultivation world, Bad idea to kill the one person who didn’t kill anyone, Cultivation World Critical, Not JC Friendly, Wen Remnants Deserve Better, Sīsī Deserves Better, MXY Deserves Better, POV WQ)

❤️ nevermore, nevermore by agloeian (T, 120k, LSZ & WWX, LSZ & LWJ, LSZ & Wen Remnants, WangXian, LSZ & XY, Canon Divergence, Time Travel Fix-It, Not Everyone Dies, Hurt/Comfort, Found Family, Eventual Happy Ending, is this an excuse to have LSZ interact with pre-timeskip characters? yes, is he going to matchmake his parents? yes, Angst, some fluff too but yeah there's angst, Suicide Attempt, that being WWX's canon CQL suicide, Implied Sexual Content, Canon-Typical Violence, discussions of mental health, Spanish Translation, Перевод на русский | Translation in Russian)

Obedient and Bellicose by thunderwear (T, 20k, Wangxian, Ella Enchanted AU, Canon Divergence, Fix-It, cursed LWJ, Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Good brother LXC, LQR loves his nephews you cant change my mind, LWJ crying, Protective LXC, Pining, First Kiss, Love Confessions, Brief Depictions of Violence, meaning at least one of the people you really want to get stabbed does in fact get stabbed)

🔒 Of Destruction and Rebirth by demoniqt (M, 88k, WangXian, JYL/JZX, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage Sex, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Slow Burn, Canonical Character Death, God WWX, God Verse, BAMF WWX, Grieving LWJ, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canon Divergence, Gods & Goddesses au, JC & WWX Reconciliation, Rabbits, Fix-It, Attempted Sexual Assault, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Canon-Typical Violence, Blood and Gore, Castration, Lots of it, repeatedly, Punishment, Hell)

on restitution by glitteringmoonlight (M, 98k, LSZ & WWX, WWX & JL, WangXian, Dark JC, not JC friendly, Captivity, Angst with a Happy Ending, no reconciliation, Crossdressing, Non-Graphic Torture, Violence)

Reclamation by CordialCoroner (CordialCrow) (M, 6k, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Not JC Friendly, at all, Canon Divergence, Angst, Post-Sunshot Campaign, WQ is understandably angry, WQ gets some revenge, as a treat)

Run Off The World by Sapphire_Roses (M, 336k, WangXian, XuanLi, SongXiao, WIP, Not Everyone Dies AU, Canon Divergence, Wen Remnants Live, Flashbacks, YLLZ WWX, WWX Creates a Sect | Yiling Wei Sect, Sect Leader WWX, Married WangXian, OCs, POV Outsider, Morally Grey Characters, (Do Take That Tag Seriously), Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Family Feels, Developing Friendships, Fluff, Attempt at Humor, Yunmeng Siblings Feels, Gusu Siblings Feels, Sibling Bonding, Pining, Character Study, Tenderness, Mild Smut, POV Alternating, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Minor Character Death)

So You Want to Start a War by JaenysBloodcourt (T, 47k, WIP, JGY/QS, JGY/WWX, WangXian, JL & WWX, past LXC/NMJ, Reincarnation, Half-Sibling Incest Mention!, QS does the ritual instead of MXY, WWX as a woman, JGY Is His Own Warning, Canon Divergence, Impersonation, Additional Warnings In Author’s Note, Please check the notes before reading a chapter, Timeline What Timeline, WWX Has PTSD)

❤️ Somewhere Sits an Empty Throne by Siamesa (E, 19k, WangXian, Major Character Death, TGCF Fusion, Gods & Goddesses, Ghosts, Romance, vengeance, Canon-Typical Violence, Dark LWJ, Grief/Mourning, Explicit Sexual Content, Angst with a Happy Ending)

Song of Joy and Regrets by HelloKitten (Not Rated, 134k, WIP, WangXian, Angst, Self-Harm, Child Abuse, Time Travel Fix-it, Characters Watching The Series, Not YZY Friendly)

the breaking of your soul (upon my lips) by sunsandships (M, 40k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Fix-It, Mutual Pining, Canon-Typical Violence, Golden Core Reveal, Happy Ending)

The Core Issue by Hauntcats (T, 21k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Not JC Friendly)

The Cultivation World Needs a Reset by FangirlingIsLife (Not Rated, 53k, WangXian, LXC/NMJ, WIP, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Past Abuse, Temporary Character Death, Immortality, Time Travel Fix-It, Physical Abuse, Cloud Recesses Shenanigans, The Cloud Recesses Rabbits, Abusive Jiang Family, Jiang Family Bashing, YZY Bashing, LWJ is a Little Shit)

The Fire Lapping Up the Creek by notevenyou (E, 66k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Hurt/Comfort, Canon-Typical Violence, Injury, Injury Recovery, Blood, Respiratory Illness, Major Illness, Fever, Grief/Mourning, Burial Mounds, Angst with a Happy Ending, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Hunger and food scarcity, Surgery, Fix-It of Sorts)

🔒 the language of flowers and silent things series by Reverie (cl410) (M, 107k, WangXian, LXC/NMJ, LWJ & Madam Lan, NHS & LWJ, LWJ & LXC, LWJ & NMJ, LWJ & NHS Friendship, Developing Relationship, POV LWJ, Minor Injuries, Autistic LWJ, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, aka the YZY warning, Genius WWX, Light Angst And Hurt/Comfort, WWX Protection Squad, Gusu Lan Sect, Slow Burn, Protective LWJ, LWJ-centric, Politics, Canon Divergence, No Sunshot Campaign, Cultivation Sect Politics, Protective WWX)

the problem with authority by isabilightwood (M, 139k, WangXian, QingLi, Canon Divergence, Sacrifice Summon, only the summoner sticks around, slightly dark!JYL, WQ lives, Slow Burn for yanqing, Angst with a Happy Ending, Chronic Pain, Mild Sexual Content, Versatile | Switch WangXian)

The Trouble With Politics: a Treatise on Jiang Sect Deputies Gone Rogue by Sect Leader Wei Wuxian by stiltonbasket (G, 56k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Yílíng Wèi Sect, or: the one where yu zhenhong is a wild card, Smitten LWJ, Domestic Fluff, Politics, Happy Ending, Sect Leader WWX, Fix-It of Sorts, JZX still dies though)

❤️ Tragedy is Not the End by Hobbsy3 (T, 358k, wangxian, Time Travel, Torture, Hurt/Comfort, Golden Core Reveal, Canon Divergence from Qiongqi Pass, Angst with a Happy Ending, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Yunmeng sibling bonding, good dad wwx, good dad lwj, JZX Lives, JYL Lives, Junior Quartet Dynamics)

🧡 Vow by draechaeli (E, 216k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, BeliefGod!WWX, Adoption but WWX birthed them all, Pregnancy Kink, Mpreg, minor male lactation, Consensual Non-Consent, Light Bondage, Non-Graphic Rape/Non-Con because JGS, Mentions Canon Typical Incest, Canon Typical Violence)

🧡 Weep You No More, Sad Fountains by athena_crikey (T, 48k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Fix-it fic, Whump, Curses, Fever, Delirium, Stabbing, Loneliness, Confessions)

Wei Wuxian, Who’s That? by bumbledees (T, 48k, WangXian, Mild to Moderate Pining, lotus pier siblings quietly also have a penchant for chaos, WWX will make LQR like him whether the old man likes it or not, WWX just wants to have fun and not be killed, and also to go to his sister's wedding, Mutual Pining, Everybody Lives, "wei wuxian fools the entire cultivation world", "and kicks up drama in front of their salad", warnings for sexual harassment due to JGS, and for the canonical behavior of the jin clan, ie war crimes forced labor human trafficking etc., hello naughty jin cultivators it's revenge time :) )

we’re starting at the end by Miss_Enthusiasimal (M, 92k, WangXian, JC & WWX, Time Travel, Canon Divergence, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Golden Core Reveal, Burial Mounds, Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Starvation, emaciation, Cannibalism, Self-Harm, Amputation, Suicidal Thoughts, Sunshot Campaign, let JZX and WWX be friends club)

what else is there? by mme_anxious (T, 13k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Swan Princess AU, Everybody Lives, who isn't already dead, MagicAnimal Transformation, Curses, Angst, Humor, Happy Ending, Kissing)

refrain; a musical phrase repeating in a song or instrumental piece Series by Cerusee, Mikkeneko (T/G, 51k, WangXian, Time Travel Fix-It, Sort Of, Memory Loss, Canon-typical dismemberment, Post-Series, but also mid-series ya feel, Changing Tenses, Protective LWJ, Everybody Lives, Confused WWX, Crack Treated Seriously)

pale shadows of forgotten names by Chrononautical (T, 56k, wangxian, Madam Lán Lives, Madam Lán Deserves Better, Good Sibling LXC, Badass LXC, He gets there in the end it just takes a while, Not particularly JGY friendly, Gūsū Lán Sect Rules, Canon-Typical Behavior, Unresolved Sexual Tension, the universal fear of growing up to become one of your parents, Canon Divergence, Everyone Lives AU, Except WN but he’s very polite, Arranged Marriage, Forced Marriage, Imprisonment, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, not between wangxian, Drunk LWJ, to lighten the mood, Fluff and Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Traumatized WWX, though he will not admit it, Taking time to heal, canon-typical communication skills)

The Wrong Man by Remma3760 (Not Rated, 125k, WangXian, Sect Leader LWJ, Evil JGS, Canon Divergence, Golden Core Reveal, Major Character Death (not Wangxian))

By Any Other Name by ShanaStoryteller (Not Rated, 31k, WangXian, Mix of CQL and MDZS, Identity Porn, WWX has an atypical relationship with gender)

~*~

Non-Canon Era/Setting

~*~

A Baby Dragon’s Guide To Seducing Your Huli Jing by sweetlolixo (M, 102k, WangXian, Fantasy, But still in the Cultivation World, Dragon LWJ, Fox WWX, Younger LWJ, Older WWX, Fluff, Humor, Eventual mpreg, Angst with a Happy Ending, Best Boy A-Yuan)

A Blade By Your Side by athena_crikey (E, 77k, WangXian, Historical, Royalty, Forced Marriage, Bodyguard, court intrigue, falling in love with the person you're married to, Hurt/Comfort, Misunderstandings, Politics, Drama, Compulsory Heterosexuality, Slow Burn)

Conquering the Emperor by catbrainedschemes (E, 21k, WangXian, Historical AU, Imperial China, Emperor WWX, General LWJ, Mutual Pining, Idiots in Love, Historically Inaccurate, Misunderstandings, Fluff, Eventual Smut, Light Angst, Non-Graphic Violence, Getting Together, Sexual Tension, Some Plot, Slow Burn, Happy Ending)

Do You Feel What I Feel? by istartedtheapocalypse (M, 33k, WangXian, Kid Fic, wangxian in a hallmark christmas movie but hornier, and with slightly more plot and angst, background XiYao has lighter than canon levels of toxicity but it is still a lil toxic, Holidays, Christmas)

Half Agony, Half Hope by queenklu (T, 105k, WangXian, LXC/JGY, JC/WQ, JYL/JZX, LXC/NMJ, Jane Austen Fusion, persuasion au, Pining, Broken Engagement, Secrets, Espionage, Child Injury, Terrible Parents (YZY & JFM), Past Child Neglect)

Keep Track of Losing Days by giraffeter (T, 74k, WangXian, Modern AU, Case Fic, Police, Missing Persons, Mystery, Getting Together, Flashbacks, Rooftop Conversations, Detective LWJ, antifa WWX, Endgame NieLan, Angst with a Happy Ending, Sharing a Bed, First Kiss, First Meetings, Seattle, Mutual Pining, nonfatal car accident, mafia wens, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Friends to Lovers)

我的皇后是農民 | sowing seeds in the cold palace by sweetlolixo (E, 84k, WangXian, Imperial Palace, Emperor LWJ, Imperial Consort WWX, Farmer WWX, Angst, Romance, Wingman LJY, Wife-chasing-LWJ, Arranged Marriage, Best Boy A-Yuan)

🔒 the cow says moo, the chicken says squawk, and the demon beast of yiling says by Dragonskye (T, 57k, WangXian, Animal Transformation, Angst with a Happy Ending, kind of a glucose guardian vibe actually, Fairy Tale Elements, Beauty and the Beast Fusion, Falling In Love, but like… through a lot of small things, Hurt/Comfort, they're soft, Secret Identity, Canon Divergence, Here comes the, Mutual Pining, you love to see it)

Through A Looking Glass by Purplepulu (Not rated, 21k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Families of Choice, Wēn Remnants Live, Fix-It of Sorts, Creepy JGS, JZX Tries, Cultivators with One brain cell, Crack Treated Seriously, Humor, Angst w Happy Ending, Oblivious WWX, Pining LWJ, Matchmaker LXC, Mastermind NHS, Traumatized A-Yuan, Fluff, NMJ Lives, Soft NMJ, BAMF WWX, POV LXC, POV JGS, Protective JYL, JZN Being an Asshole, Everyone Lives au, Except for Jīn Zǐxūn, Good Sibling JC)

True Gold Fears No Fire by defractum (nyargles) (M, 82k, WangXian, Royalty, Ancient China, Wuxia, Historical, Historical Inaccuracy, Arranged Marriage, Identity Porn, Mutual Pining, Emperor LWJ, Empress WWX, Eventual Happy Ending, Misunderstandings)

Your Tragedy, Your Song by Grace_ShadowWolf (TaubeLePigeon) (T, 42k, WangXian, Angst with a Happy Ending, Characters Watching Their Series, basically they watch their future, But through songs, exposed secrets, Canon Divergence, Fix-It, Songfic, Drama, POV Multiple, JGS is a shit, WRH is highkey so done with WC, let LWJ take care of WWX, mild body horror)

When the Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation takes a week off by galaxy_in_your_eyes (T, 20k, WangXian, Modern Cultivation, Canon Divergence, Everyone Lives, only those that deserve it, kind of fix-it, Zombie Apocalypse, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Attempt at Humor, POV Alternating, Canon-Typical Violence, Blood and Gore, Mentions of Suicidal Thoughts, Brief Mentions of Cannibalism, Zombies, We don’t see the Zombie Apocalypse, It happens behind closed doors, WWX in quarantine, Wangxian being Wangxian, Mentions of Smut, Established Relationship, Courtesy Names, local necromancer gets sick with the flu)

With No Particular Affection by Chrononautical (E, 92k, wangxian, Arranged Marriage, Modern, Kid Fic, Miscommunication, Family Drama, JFM & YZY’s A+ Parenting, Canon typical consent during sex, canon typical violence revamped for a modern setting, canon typical behavior from villains and honestly I toned it down a lot, Good Uncle JC, Wedding Fluff, Wedding Night, Genius WWX, Street Kid WWX, Homelessness, Rich LWJ, Oblivious WWX, LWJ’s canon typical communication skills, Cinnamon Roll WN, Implied/Referenced Suicide, WWX Has a Pregnancy Kink, WWX Has a Fear of Dogs, Curtain Fic, Domestic Fluff, Fluff and Angst)

~*~

[thatswhatsushesaid]

i mean it makes sense! still “doomed by the narrative” but he’s been doomed his whole life, it’s all he knows. very metal imo.

Nie Mingjue is the opposite of a man trying to escape the narrative. He's constantly being pushed OUT of the narrative and yet he keeps coming back in. He's a corpse before the story even starts he was a minor blip in the mc's life he should NOT be this deep in the narrative and yet there he is. Jgy literally killed him in his efforts to get out of the narrative himself and then nmj was like Fuck You (haunts you thereby tapping you both in the narrative forever) his brother's need for vengeance for his death is the reason the plot even exists he's so inside of the narrative he basically becomes it.

[ifellintothestyx]

The funny thing about JC defenders is that they always try to argue that JC refusing to cover the Wens and side with WWX was the correct political move. In the short term, perhaps, but in the long term, that was proven wrong in the books themselves.

(It's even funnier thinking that correct political moves exist in a bullshit political system that blatantly serves only the gentry, is held together by hearsay and rumors, and has no actual system of laws that can serve as a basis to accuse, judge, or punish someone.)

So how was JC's refusal to side with WWX and the Wens considered the "correct political move"? Reasons include that the Jiang sect was still recovering from the war, that going against the Jins would result in another war that would end in major losses on the Jiang sect's side, and that the Wens weren't and shouldn't have been a priority for JC at all.

Let's clear a few things up. The Jiang clan was not the only clan recovering, so were the Nies and the Lans. In the aftermath of the war, it's not explicitly stated how well the other sects were doing, so we couldn't really tell if the Jiangs were worse off than the other three. It could be noted, however, that the Jins retained much of their wealth and influence, so much so that Jin Guangyao was able to take the position of Chief Cultivator with little to no opposition. The main point, though, is that at that moment in the aftermath of the war, we could not easily assume the Jiangs were the worst off, as the other three sects also lost many disciples in the war, and we didn't really know how much the other sects recovered.

For the second reason, if a major war somehow did happen again, this time Jiangs vs everyone else, everyone else would lose. WWX's presence single-handedly helped them win the war against the Wens. A war between the Jiangs and the jianghu would be based on numbers, which reflects the war between the Wens and the jianghu. The Wens had more disciples, and no matter how many LWJs or NMJs you got up your sleeve, numbers make a big difference in war. That's why WWX's skills were a critical part in winning: he is a one-man army of thousands. He could easily make up for the gap in numbers. That's why the Jins kept trying to get rid of him—they were nervous about so much power belonging to only one faction: the Jiangs. JGS couldn't exactly claim his desired role as Chief Cultivator if a younger, smarter, and more powerful individual was still around to keep him in check.

Finally, we get to the part of why I'm making this long-ass post on a caffeine-driven rage. See, the point of trying to stop a powerful faction from committing atrocities is to stop them from thinking they can do it whenever they like. The Jins were given a pass to do whatever the hell they wanted to a small, outcasted faction (the Wens), and they proceeded to take that pass as a pass for everything else. Nobody stopped them from torturing the Wens, so what's stopping them from allowing a mass murderer like XY to run wild in an attempt to create their own WWX? Definitely not NMJ, hahaha, because, y'know, the hypocrites in the gentry have already decided that whatever the Jins do is alright so long as it's not their problem. An exterminated clan isn't their priority. So, what was stopping XY from going out and doing it again to SL's sect? Absolutely nothing! Because the Jins could cover it up and no one could say a word despite how suspicious it was, because hey, remember what happened to the last guy that spoke up against the Jins?

Calling out the Jins on their crimes against the Wens, who were elderly and children save for WQ and WN (who JC owed his damn life and core to), would have created a precedent of not allowing massive crimes to slide under the radar. But because the opposite happened, because nobody fucking realized that apathy and selfishness don't fucking help in the long run, two sects were exterminated because JGS and JGY were basically given an "okay, fine, just keep that bullshit away from us". That's not actual justice. That's not "morally grey". Allowing people in power to trample over others just because it doesn't affect you personally is not sustainable, because what happens when it's you they've decided to trample over? Are you going to complain? Are you going to look to others for help, when you personally couldn't be bothered to offer your hand to those who suffered? When the reason the people trampling over you gained that power is because you allowed it?

The unopposed killing of WWX and the Wens led to the political climate that allowed the massacres of two sects because the Jins were trying to protect and satisfy their pet project. It led to the murder of NMJ because JGS/JGY wanted to keep people from checking their power. If JC couldn't find it in his heart to be sympathetic to the Wens, fine, but at the very least, he should have considered the potential harm in rolling over and giving a political faction too much power.

[eiyriny]

Why Does Jiang Cheng Get All the Hate While Nie Mingjue Gets a Pass?

I genuinely don't get why Jiang Cheng is the only one who gets so much blame and hate for not helping the Wen Remnants. After all, the main reason he chose not to help them is out of fear that his newly rebuilt clan couldn’t survive the fallout of offering them protection. Regardless of whether you believe this to be true or not, that's what Jiang Cheng honestly believes.

But you know who did have the power to challenge the Jin Clan, has no compunction in using said power (proven during Xue Yang debacle) and prided himself as being a righteous man, but still pushed for the deaths of everyone associated with the Wen name just bc of his personal hatred? That's Nie Mingjue.

During the emergency clan meeting after Wei Wuxian absconded with the Wen Remnants, two major clan leaders tried to speak on behalf of the Wen Remnants and each time they were instantly shut down by Nie Mingjue.

First, Jiang Cheng:

Jiang Cheng deeply furrowed his brow and rubbed his temple, which never stopped throbbing. He drew a soundless breath. “…My apologies to the Sect Leaders. You see, the Wen cultivator that Wei Wuxian wanted to save was named Wen Ning. He and his sister Wen Qing showed the two of us mercy during the Sunshot Campaign. That is why…”

“Showed mercy how?” Nie Mingjue demanded. “Wasn’t the Wen Clan of Qishan the culprit behind the Jiang Clan of Yunmeng’s annihilation?”

[Side note: Cutting Jiang Cheng off mid-sentence here wasn’t just rude, but it also undermined JC's authority and displayed NMJ's lack of respect towards JC as a fellow clan leader in front of everyone. Plus, the most egregious part here though, was the way NMJ callously threw in the destruction of the Jiang Clan, JC's personal tragedy to his face as a point to shut him down without any real regard to JC himself.]

Next, Lan Xichen:

After some thought, Lan Xichen answered. “I know a little about Wen Qing. There has never been talk of her being involved in any of the massacres associated with the Sunshot Campaign.”

“But she also never stopped any of them,” Nie Mingjue pointed out.

“How could she have done so, when she was one of Wen Ruohan’s trusted aides?” Lan Xichen asked.

Nie Mingjue was indifferent to such logic. “She remained silent and raised no objections while the Wen Clan committed atrocities. That is no different from watching from the sidelines. She can’t presume to enjoy preferential treatment when the Wens were fanning the flames of disorder, then refuse to bear the bitter consequences and pay the price when they were overthrown.”

Lan Xichen fell silent.

So my point is, I think it's unfair that Jiang Cheng gets so much heat and condemnation for not helping the Wen Remnants, while Nie Mingjue, the man who was basically condoning and supporting the Jin Clan's abuse and try to justify it under the guise of righteousness at that, barely faces any level of hate and criticism in this fandom. I think the later is far more despicable and deserving of condemnation than the former.

[a-sky-full-of-ideas]

My favourite jobs of MDZS characters in a modern AUs (that aren’t business men cause that’s too obvious) and why, in no specific order!

WWX

Graphic designer (XZ former job, freelancer)

Gardener (he loved it !!)

Athlete (all rounder)

Photographer, specifically landscape/storms or otherwise on site stuff (free/unbound)

Artist (freelancer and creative)

Flutist

Band member specifically bassist and lyricist

DJ (free)

Influencer (is he not basically that lol)

YouTuber

Journalist (he loves to annoy ppl and find things out that they’d rather not want)

Talk show host/interviewer

Stunt man (he loves the adrenaline)

Crazy scientist/engineer (achieve the impossible)

Basically anything that is full of freedom, where he can travel wherever, whenever he wants! Something unbound to a place and by his own rules.

LWJ

Vet (he loves those bunnies so much)

Classical musician

Music teacher (loves music/good with kids)

Fashion designer (have you seen his wardrobe)

Librarian/archivist (he likes order)

Judge on a music competition show (we know he loves to judge ppl but also bring out the best in them)

Influencer, doesn’t talk in his videos at all, just shows the skill, wether it’s cooking, martial arts or music

Journalist (helps ppl and cares for the uncomfortable truth, no qualms running to the end of the world for it)

Critic (wether it’s restaurants or movies, judgemental but eloquent and fair)

Anything traditional and well regarded but that is supporting one or more of his interests. Then again he can be a judgmental and rebellious.

JC

Architect ( “rebuild the Yunmeng clan to its former glory” or sth. Also fashion for buildings but very logical, precise and pragmatic and mostly a highly regarded job)

Fashion designer (have you seen his wardrobe?!)

Lawyer (dude loves to argue and scare ppl but also cares for the right ppl to be punished aka 2in1 for him)

Meteorologist (who best to read the incoming storm but the storm himself ?)

YouTuber, specifically cooking channel “cooking with juijui” aka for JL

Gym teacher (we see him train his new disciples)

Swimmer (best swimmer of YM or what ? Drowns out his thoughts and focuses on his body which at least he knows)

Librarian/archivist (he likes order and is stuck in the past)

Dog trainer

Vet/animal shelter owner (he loves those dogs so much and if he can’t have them he’ll at least treat them)

For him I love the two extremes of either sth that his parents will highly approve of cause it gets them money and status or sth that is completely just for himself and his interests, be it animals or his nephew

LXC

music teacher ( loves music and good w/kids)

Art teacher ( can draw and good w/kids)

Librarian (quite life he craves )

Professor

Flutist

Classical musician (traditional)

Yoga teacher

Voice actor for self help books and stuff

Judge (fair but steadfast)

Museum director (traditional and honoring the past)

Born a teacher I believe. Patience of a saint, not condescending at all and skilled at everything he does. Doesn’t need the fame of being a pro.

Some obvious ones

Wen Qing = doctor

JYL = Cook (Restaurant or celebrity with talk show)

NHS = fashion designer

NMJ = personal trainer

Feel free to add!

[celestesinsight]

Lan Xichen letting Jin Guangyao play the Song of Clarity to Nie Mingjue is a blatant case of carelessness and breach of trust, even if JGY hadn't altered the song with malicious intent. Imagine, your closest friend is suffering from a life-threatening condition and you’re an expert in treating such ailments. Yet, instead of helping him yourself, you entrust the treatment to someone who’s barely learned the technique from you, solely to improve personal bond between them.

It doesn't matter how much a genius this trainee might be - in such a critical situation, only you are experienced enough to provide the best care. This isn't just LXC naively trusting the wrong person, it’s a betrayal of NMJ's trust as a friend and the failure to fulfill his responsibilities as a healer.

In modern terms, this would be an egregious breach of medical ethics, prioritizing relationships over expertise at the expense of a vulnerable individual.

LXC’s actions, though rooted in misguided compassion, are a failure to prioritize responsibility over personal loyalty, especially when lives are at stake.

[greenandhazy]

The thing about NieYao for me is that even when they know the worst of each other, they don’t pull away.

After Nie Mingjue witnesses Meng Yao commit murder, after the confrontation at Nightless City—Nie Mingjue still agrees to swear brotherhood with him. And sure, some if it (even most of it) may be Lan Xichen’s persuasion, but not all of it. He still says he wants to keep Jin Guangyao on the right path. He still swears an oath that is mutually binding for both of them.

After Nie Mingjue’s suspicious nature and violent tendencies get worse, after he kicks Jin Guangyao down the stairs and calls him a son of a whore—okay, maybe before, depending on the adaptation—Jin Guangyao chooses to kill him, but he still does it in this very gentle, intimate way that involves him repeatedly going into Nie Mingjue’s home or welcoming Nie Mingjue into his, and after the death he maintains a good relationship with Nie Huaisang (from his POV) and remains enmeshed in Qinghe Nie, keeps Nie Mingjue’s head in his treasure room and feels bound to it, chooses Nie Mingjue as the tool of his ultimate destruction (even as he pushes Lan Xichen away).

It’s the mutual obsession. And I wouldn’t necessarily say that someone seeing the worst in you is the Most Honest way to read someone, but I think for me the reason why NieYao is and will always be the side of 3zun that most fascinates me is the fact that, imo, the worst parts they see in each other are also the parts they most fear.

Meng Yao sees NMJ as rigid, unyielding, incapable of empathizing with others or seeing things from other points of view, unable to be controlled or to control himself—all things that are exploited by and exaggerated by the saber curse, the things that were already driving NMJ to an early grave. Also worth noting that the two main victims we see of his increasing instability are Jin Guangyao and Huaisang, his brother and his heir whom he loves. At times Jin Guangyao is even the one defending Huaisang (the symbol of Qinghe Nie’s future) from NMJ, which I can only imagine he hates more than anything.

As for Meng Yao, there’s a common characterization I see of him that always strikes me as somewhat off, which is one in which he has, basically, low self-esteem and is shocked at being treated well and almost tries to walk it back on behalf of the person being nice to him. I don’t think that’s true. I think Meng Yao does believe that he deserves the position and respect his mother told him was his birthright, and he resents other people for failing to give it to him, because he loves his mother! He thinks SHE is worthy of respect and adoration, and therefore his status as her son shouldn’t be shameful. Appropriately enough, I think that’s what draws him to Nie Mingjue in the first place—the fact that NMJ is the first/among the first people to elevate him based on merit, which SHOULD BE how the world works!

But there is this insidious catch-22, which is that in order to be worthy of the position of respected sect leader’s son, he needs to act like and uphold the values of a respected sect leader’s son… and if he does that, no one will ever raise him to the position. He needs to be a bastard in order to get the job done, which is what Nie Mingjue criticizes him for. He needs to kill, to be sly, to eliminate his enemies, to do his father’s dirty work. And I do think that, over time, his sense of self-respect begins to falter a little, to become intertwined and tainted with disgust at what he’s done, especially when it comes to the people who are closer to him—killing Nie Mingjue, marrying Qin Su and keeping the secret from her, Whatever Happened With Jin Rusong.

So Nie Mingjue’s attitude towards him represents this growing fear: it’s not that Jin Guangyao is unworthy because of his mother, but because of himself. Because his own actions are undeserving of the lofty place his mother imagined for him, the place that she prepared him for and he failed to achieve.

And both of them feel powerless to get off those destructive paths. Nie Mingjue is going to keep cultivating with the saber, because that’s what his family does. Jin Guangyao is going to keep doing whatever he can to get his father’s approval, because that’s what his mother wanted for him. They can see each other’s downfalls so clearly but they’re trapped, and eventually they end up trapped in that coffin together, hand in unlovable fucking hand.

[thatswhatsushesaid]

re: this post about hensheng (aka objectively the coolest sword in the mdzs canon, no further notes on that point necessary) by @xiyao-feels

something that i see brought up frequently in discourse that is critical of jin guangyao is the time he spends undercover with the qishan wen, which is often characterized as a negative indictment of his character and the first substantial proof we get in the novel of his duplicitous nature. which, to be fair to people who hold this opinion, is something that nie mingjue's perspective during the empathy flashback sequence absolutely reinforces, and if you aren't reading those chapters with your critical thinking/reading cap on, it is easy to internalize that viewpoint and consider it objectively true. but nmj isn't the only lens through which we get to view jin guangyao's actions and decisions, and i think what i love most about these excerpts concerning hensheng is how absolutely they contradict that discourse narrative. because yes, jin guangyao was a spy! he was a damn good one, too! i think that what seeing those kids re-enacting the sunshot campaign through innocent play makes clear is the whole cultivation world recognizes that without jin guangyao's deception of wen ruohan and the rest of the qishan wen cultivators, the sunshot campaign could not have succeeded! his success as an undercover agent for the sunshot forces, and ultimately his assassination of wen ruohan, are what propel him from obscurity and secure his place not only within the lanling jin, but within the heroic adventure tales that both the gentry and the common people tell each other, and their children.

tl;dr the spying is a feature, not a bug!

[lansplaining]

Hope this doesn't come across as a criticism. Aren't jgy and nhs similar? Both of them killed cruelly someone who trusted them, and both did it for a number of reasons and because they were scared for their lives. - and yes, I am referring to nhs too: he doesn't know why jgy killed nmj, he probably thinks he's next. They are parallels

they're totally similar! but I also think the similarities you lay out don't totally hold up beyond a superficial level, mostly because I absolutely disagree that NHS was scared for his life from JGY-- there's no evidence that he felt that way at all, and if he was that scared, why did he wait 13/16 years? I think you can headcanon it, but it's really not an element I think it's reasonable to bring into an attempt to compare them or discuss the text as it exists.

among other differences, JGY was using the means available to him to kill someone much stronger than he was, and who was actively suspicious of him. for NHS, the cruelty of JGY's public exposure was part of the point and the pleasure.

[wangxianficfinder]

In the mood for...

June 27th

~*~

1. can you recomend fics in which wwx decides to leave jiang sect? @chellsky

Dispersing Clouds by dreamingofcake (E, 283k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Genius WWX, Inventor WWX, Not Jiang Family Friendly, Abusive YZY, Canonical Child Abuse, Hurt/Comfort, Slow Burn, Eventual Sex, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm (Background Character), Background Character Deaths, child deaths, Canon JC, Good Uncle LQR, Accidental Baby Acquisition, Cultivation Sect Politics, Homophobia, Heteronormativity, Feelings Realization, WWX is Not Oblivious)

Lay my body down by tawaen (M, 48k, WWX & WQ, WWX & WN, wangxian, WWX & JYL, Canon Divergence, Time Travel, Rogue Cultivator WWX, Eventual WangXian, No Golden Core Transfer, Not Cultivation World Friendly, Canon-Typical Violence, Not JC Friendly, What if WWX saw the first siege of the burial mounds and said Nope to the war, OCs, OC point-of-view for one chapter for plot reasons) WWX nopes out of the cultivation world in general, which includes the Jiang

Debts of a Child by Hauntcats (M, 115k, WangXian, dark, YZY Bashing, Not Jiang Family Friendly, Angst and Feels, lots of anger, JC Bashing, not Jiang friendly, Angst with a Happy Ending, Content warning for icky spiders in later chapters.)

🔒 crying like a fire in the sun by Reverie (cl410) (T, 10k, wangxian, SL/XXC, JC & WWX, BSSR/LY, Runaway WWX, Canon Divergence, Everyone Lives AU, rogue cultivator WWX, Angst, Post Cloud Recesses, Not YZY Friendly, Happy Ending, BSSR is WWX’s grandmother instead of grandmaster)

Inchoate by Marinelifeclub (T, 20k, wangxian, Child Abuse, Bad Parent JFM, Bad Parent YZY, Protective LQR, Protective LWJ, Rogue Cultivator WWX, YZY Bashing, JC Bashing, No Golden Core Transfer, Dark JFM)

My heart knows (you’re the missing piece) by makexianxianhappytoday (T, 73k, wangxian, WWX & Jiang  family, BSSR & WWX, canon divergence, rogue cultivator WWX, not  Jiang   friendly, protective LWJ, butterfly effect, no golden core  transfer, WIP)

Chronicles of Sect Leader Wei Wuxian by Muggle_Diary (E, 85k, WIP, WangXian, XuanLi, JFM/YZY, CSSR/WCZ, LXC/LQY, NMJ/QS, WQ/OC, OFC/ OFC, JC/ OFC, Sect Leader WWX, BAMF WWX, BAMF LWJ, Genius WWX, Inventor WWX, Different First Meeting, Canon Divergence, Minor Character Death, Anal Sex, Top LWJ/Bottom WWX, Sex Toys, Explicit Sexual Content, Sexual Tension, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Rough Sex, Child Abuse, Child Death, War Hero WWX, Sunshot Campaign, No Golden Core Transfer, WWX Leaves the Yunmeng Jiang Sect, Cultivation Sect Politics, Wen Remnants Live, Abusive YZY, Abusive Jiang Family, Bad Parents JFM and YZY, JC Bashing, JFM and YZY Bashing, Yunmeng Jiang Sect Bashing, JYL and JZX Live, Jiang Family Bashing) feels a bit OOC, but I'm enjoying the world building, WIP

Just go forward like you mean it by tawaen (M, 67k, WIP, WangXian, Canon Divergence, WWX does not attend the Wen indoctrination, WWX saves Lotus Pier, Inventor WWX, No Golden Core Transfer, Sect Leader JYL, JC Has No Golden Core, Bad Parents JFM and YZY) I love this one, WIP but I think it's close to done

~*~

2. do you know any fics where Madam Yu or Jiang Cheng accidentally hurt Huaisang with Zidian while their target was WWX?

Ad Oblivione by Baph, HikariNoHimeWriter (M, 70k, WangXian, Time Travel Fix-It, Temporary Character Death, Canon-Typical Violence, POV Multiple, Hurt/Comfort, Grief/Mourning, Identity Reveal, Golden Core Reveal, Cultivation World Critical, Not JC Friendly, Abusive YZY, Angst with a Happy Ending) Not quite the request, but similar enough it may be of interest. JC goes into a rage over WWX in this - though he isn't present - & NHS sustains life-changing injuries as a result - though with JC's sword rather than Zidian

❤️ A Future Family In A Broken Past by Hauntcats (T, 121k, wangxian, time travel, not Jiang friendly, Not Cultivation World Friendly, WWX Needs a Hug, Family Dynamics, What is a good family?, Fear of emotions does not excuse abuse, happy ending of sorts, Not Jiang Clan Friendly, Angst with a Happy Ending, fix-it, Canon-Typical Violence, Canon Divergence, LXC needs a hug, Everyone Needs A Hug, except JC, He can suffer, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, not YZY friendly) For # 2 we’re NH is endangered there is the story

~*~

3. Hi buddy! Thanks for the last fic recommendations...

Could you give me some fics with general Wei Wuxian? There was one particular story with him being an awesome General who cares more about his soldiers and the lives of the people he's protecting and thus deciding to surrender rather than fight fully knowing that they would not be able to win. I think him and LWJ was on opposite sides yet had respect for each other. There were some madam yu bashing though... @grrumpywoof

🔒 Crossing Paths by Ilona22 (M, 21k, wangxian, shapeshifter au, graphic depictions of violence, war between sects, war crimes, not JC friendly, happy ending)

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4. itmf modern a/b/o long fics? or any self indulgent long fics set in modern au?

Insert Coin Now for Extra Life by TriviasFolly (E, 201k, wangxian, modern, ABO, Intersex Omegas, Omega WWX, Alpha LWJ, Marriage contract au, Twitch Streamer WWX, fluff and smut, caring for other while sick, Possessive LWJ, Rare Male Omegas, Pack Dynamics, Sugar Baby vibes, Eventual Smut, Brief mention of lwj/others)

🔒I is for Instinct by beeswaxing (E, 71k, wangxian, NMJ/LXC, JYL/JZX, hualian, modern, ABO, college/university au, alpha WWX, omega LWJ, scenting, possessive behavior, getting together, public claiming, good parent LQR & YZY, fluff, romance, slice of life, smut, mpreg)

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5. Hi! I hope y’all are having a wonderful day! Today I’m itmf two improbable scenarios: A) chief cultivator wwx, and B) wen zhuliu melting wrh’s core. Thanks! :3

5A)

The "Patriarch" Was Supposed to be Ironic (or, Wei Wuxian, Chief Cultivator) by groignequi (E, 1k, WangXian, JC & WWX & JYL, JC/NHS/WQ, WIP, Canon Divergence, Fix-It, jiang friendly, Not Everyone Dies, Really Most People Live (Except JGS), Chief Cultivator WWX, Getting Together, Happy Ending) Hi! For 5A on the recent ITMF, I also couldn't remember reading any fic with that premise...so I made some? Only the first chapter is up so far. And the tags can lead to the whole four (4!) other fics under "Chief Cultivator Wei Wuxian" : )

5B)

💖 Love made visible by Moominmammashandbag (M, JYL/ZZL, wangxian, hurt/Comfort, amputation, major character injury, sibling love, angst w happy ending, cooking as cultivation, attempted rape/non-con, sexual assault, minor character death, family angst, dysfunctional family, protective siblings, near drowning, amnesia) wrh core melting is very off screen but it is mentioned later!

❤️ in case of fire, break glass by Jenrose (T, 65k, WangXian, Time Travel Fix-It, Post-Canon, Canon Divergence, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, unless I hate them, BAMF WWX, BAMF LWJ, Genius Inventor WWX, NHS Finds His Calling, No Women Die) also very offscreen but stated that zhao zhuliu killed him, not as central to the plot of this one as the first rec

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6. Why is LQR always portrayed as this really old dude? He is the younger brother of the LWJ’s dad, so he is at most like, 35? 40? Sexy cranky middle aged single-dad (of twin jades) LQR please!!!

Rest and Care Series by meyari (T/G, 62k, WangXian, Hurt/Comfort, very little hurt lots of comfort, Chronic Illness, Serious Injuries, Self-Medication, Disability, PTSD, Depression, Self-Worth Issues, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, aftermath of war, Aftermath of Violence, Prisoner of War, Identity Issues, Warning: JGS, enslavement (discussion of), abuse (discussion of), actually very fluffy despite the warnings, Fluff and Crack, dubious academic writing, Historical Research, Modern Era, Good YZY, Good Person SS, Reincarnation) LQR being young is a subplot

~*~

7. Hello there, I’m not sure if this is a fic finder or an in the mood for, because I’m looking for a fic and more like that.

So you know how theres this TikTok Sound of someone called Nick who asks for the WLAN Password and its I Love You Nick and Nick is in a lot of denial about being lovers even though their anniversary is coming up?

I found a fic that was basically WY and LZ in a relationship, and WY/LZ (but more likely WY) didn’t realise that they were anything more than friends, and it was very funny.

More comedic than anything else. But I cannot for the life of me find it, and everytime I try and search for it, only the sad version shows up.

Please send help, I need to read this fluff….I crave it. @desperation-is-my-middle-name

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8. Hi! For the ITMF, I'm looking for

A) Protective JC and JYL, especially if JFM and YZY are gone and they can protect WWX openly now without anyone standing in their way and,

B) Protective JC and JYL, but specifically against LWJ because they notice how rough he is with WWX (see Phoenix mountain kiss for example) and all the funny misunderstandings that come from that @hikato-chan

8A)

🔒 between the shadow and the soul by Reverie (cl410) (M, 22k, WangXian, JYL/WQ, JC/NHS, Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Family, Dark WWX, Feral WWX, Memory Loss, Magic, Magical Realism, Protective LWJ, Protective JC, Protective JYL, Grief, BAMF WWX, POV Alternating)

spice by antebunny (G, 5k, WangXian, JC & WWX, Canon Divergence, Fluff, small tournament arc, JFM and LQR dissing each other for 2k, yunmeng siblings, people treating WWX with the respect he deserves, Scheming, Fix-It of Sorts, Good Dad JFM, fluffy fluff)

family by antebunny (G, 8k, JC & WWX, WangXian, JYL/JZX, Fix-It, Angst, Fluff, Found Family, actual family, Everybody Lives, JC is a good bro, Epic Tsundere JC, WWX's horde of gremlin children, Canon Divergence)

8B)

Life is Very Long by Vamillepudding (T, 12k, WangXian, JC & WWX, JL & WWX, Post-Canon, Comedy, Protective JC, Protective JL, Misunderstandings, Oblivious WWX, Protective LWJ) has Jiang Cheng & Jin Ling (rather thank Jiang Yanli) trying to protect Wei Wuxian because they think Lan Wangji is abusing him. So, close, but not quite what they were requesting.

~*~

9. itmf some jyl time travel fix-it pls! ty!

from the top, this time with personality by thunderwear (G, 15k, JYL/JZX, wangxian, time travel, JYL stands up for herself, family feels, WIP)

Sail Away Sweet Sister by sami (M, 73k, WangXian, YZY/CSSR/MDM Lan, MingLi, Time Travel, EXTREME Canon Divergence, Wide Focus Narrative, Some People Live/Not Everyone Dies, Most Named/Canon Characters Live, Childhood Friends to Lovers, Families of Choice, Parenthood, this work contains a major tonal shift, Fluff, Angst, Underage Sex, not particularly explicit, but not at all ambiguous, PTSD, Only a tiny bit, Unforeseeable consequences, The butterfly effect, Slightly Dark JYL, Asexual Characters, but that’s not really the focus, Canon-Typical Violence)

🔒 Young Madam Jin by StarClearWaters (Readoutloud) (G, 5k, WangXian, JYL/JZX, Time Travel, Fix-It of Sorts, Canon Divergence, Temporary Character Death)

~*~

10. For the next itmf I wanted something with everyone but wwx time-traveling, I want him so be so confused about why everyone changed the way they act around him, thanks

refrain; a musical phrase repeating in a song or instrumental piece Series by Cerusee, Mikkeneko (T/G, 51k, WangXian, Time Travel Fix-It, Sort Of, Memory Loss, Canon-typical dismemberment, Post-Series, but also mid-series ya feel, Changing Tenses, Protective LWJ, Everybody Lives, Confused WWX, Crack Treated Seriously)

~*~

11. Hi!! I was hoping you could suggest any wwx never died and has no golden core? The longer the better just no character bashing please 💖💖

🔒 An Ocean Away by aoeros (M, 42k, Inu no Taishou/Izayoi, WWX & LSZ, WWX & Izayoi, WWX & Inu no Taishou, WWX & Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru (InuYasha)/WWX, WWX & WN, WIP, InuYasha Fusion, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Canon Divergence, Out of Character, Found Family, WWX in WWX's Body, YLLZ WWX, LSZ is still Wēn Yuàn, Inu no Taishou Lives, Inu no Taishou/Sesshoumaru’s Mother is Implied/Referenced, human to hanyou to youkai transformation) WWX flees with A-Yuan and accidentally lands in Japan. Focuses more on their life now than the cultivation world so I think there wasn't any bashing

The Wrong Man by Remma3760 (Not Rated, 60k, WangXian, WIP, Major Character Death, Sect Leader LWJ, Evil JGS, Canon Divergence) WWX was taken prisoner by the Jin so is still alive & coreless

Aftermath by KouriArashi (T, 57k, JYL/JZX, wangxian, LXC/JGY, JZX & JGY, JYL & WXX, Canon Divergence, Fix-It, Everybody Lives, Romance, Developing Relationship, Family, Sibling Bonding, Light Angst, Politics, Attempted Sexual Assault, some murder on occasion, People talking about their feelings, processing their trauma, The good shit)

Blooming in white by luckymoonly (T, 38k, wangxian, JYL/JZX, MM/WQ, NMJ/LXC, NHS/JC, Canon Divergence, Mpreg, Getting Together, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, hidden pregnancy, Mutual Pining, Drama, Misunderstandings, Everyone Lives AU, Miscommunication, WWX and NHS are BFF, matchmaker NHS, Fix-It)

body and soul by TooSel (E, 41k, wangxian, Canon Divergence, Fix-It, Marriage Proposal, Everyone Lives AU, Cultivation Sect Politics, Yílíng Wèi Sect AU, Adoption, Smut, Friends to Lovers, Angst with a Happy Ending)

🧡 Discarded by teawater (E, 178k, WIP, WangXian, Lots of Angst, Hurt/Comfort, YLLZ WWX, Golden Core Reveal, Case Fic, Depression, Family Issues, Self-Esteem Issues, Self Confidence Issues, Self-Worth Issues, Angst with a Happy Ending, POV Multiple, BAMF WWX, dubious morals in the Lan sect, Feels, Pining, Grief, Fix-It, BAMF LWJ)

❤️ Dream a little dream of me by Moominmammashandbag (M, 60k, wangxian, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, mentions of torture, Mention of dismemberment, Coming Out, Plotting and scheming, animate body parts, goose, and supporting avian cast, Anxiety Disorder, Anxiety Attacks, goose!NMJ Reincarnation, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Incest, Do not fuck with NHS, Dreamwalking, Angst with a Happy Ending, JZX Lives)

Discordant Rhapsody by nirejseki (T, 49k, LQR & WWX, wangxian, JC & WWX, WQ & WWX & WN, LWJ & LQR & LXC, canon divergence, fix-it, hurt/comfort, trauma, politics, protective LQR, protective LWJ, protective WWX, LQR centric, whump, angst)

Field Trips with Wei Wuxian by antebunny (G, 42k, WangXian, WQ & WWX, NMJ & WWX, JZX & WWX, Canon Divergence, Fix-It, Found Family, Angst with a Happy Ending, Misunderstandings, Miscommunication, protective Jiang siblings, Unreliable Narrator, due to WWX assuming ppl hate him, JYL is gonna dropkick her baby bro into having friends)

Grave dirt by esama (T, 92k, wangxian, canon divergence, necromancy, demonic cultivation, farming, found family, pre-slash, politics, Fix-it of sorts, yilingwei sect au)

Hope Dangling by a String by KouriArashi (M, 70k, wangxian, canon divergence, fix-it, everyone lives, angst w happy ending, hurt/comfort, psychic bond, telepathy, communication, emotional/psychological abuse, jiang family feels, lan family feels, canon-typical violence, canon-typical politics, improper use of sacred forehead ribbons, gratuitous hair washing)

🔒 Tether by WithBroomBefore (T, 40k, WangXian, SangLi, WWX’s passive suicidality, Canon Divergence, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, WWX Lives, JYL Lives, Golden Core Reveal, Minor Character Death, Canon-Typical Violence, POV JYL, Grief/Mourning, Sunshot Campaign, Healing, Hurt/Comfort, Family Feels, LWJ makes friends, Fix-It, Happy Ending)

Until It's Dark by suzvoy (M, 120k, WangXIan, LXC/JGY, Canon Divergence, LWJ Finds Out, Pining, Fluff and Angst, First Kiss, First Time, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Hair-pulling, Hair-pulling in chapter 23)

Though one were strong as seven, he too with death shall dwell (For many times and lands) by sjyl_lotus (E, 151k, WIP, WangXian, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Suicide Attempt, Suicidal Thoughts, Yiling Laozu WWX, LSZ is a Wei, WWX Adopts LSZ, WWX doesn't go to nightless city, WWX runs away with a-yuan and granny Wen, Little bit of angst, WWX Doesn't die, JYL Lives, Wangxian Reunion, Canon Divergence, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Blood and Gore, Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, Implied/Referenced Torture, Panic Attacks, supportive LSZ, Anxiety Attacks, Canon-Typical Violence, Slow Burn, Mutual Pining, Slow Build, MXY Deserves Happiness)

These Things Unseen by bonyenne (T, 34k, wangxian, WWX & XXC, WWX & LY, canon divergence, fluff & angst, accidental baby acquisition, getting together, happy ending, found family, alternating pov, pining, kid fic)

i’ll take a secondhand monster by Stratisphyre (T, 24k, MXY & WWX, MXY & JGY, LWJ & LSZ & MXY, wangxian, Canon Divergence, Child Abuse, Bullying, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Kid fic, Minor canonical character death, Injured WWX, Earn Your Happy Ending) would probably work; it's another 'wwx is imprisoned by the Jins post siege' fic

~*~

12. Hiii, I have a request for the next ITMF post - please recommend some imperial royalty au👑.

Wangxian can be the leads with lwj as emperor or even lxn as emperor with some background relationships for him.

I have just been craving some well written imperial family drama starring wangxian. Please only complete fics 🙏

我的皇后是農民 | sowing seeds in the cold palace by sweetlolixo (E, 84k, WangXian, Imperial Palace, Emperor LWJ, Imperial Consort WWX, Farmer WWX, Angst, Romance, Wingman LJY, Wife-chasing-LWJ, Arranged Marriage, Best Boy A-Yuan)

願陛下 | by his majesty's decree by sweetlolixo (E, 40k, WangXian, Imperial Palace, Emperor LWJ, Concubine WWX, Harems, Pining LWJ, LWJ is not a dragon in this one but he descended from them :), Childhood Sweethearts (sort of), Romance, minimal angst, Happy Ending, NHS & WWX are concubine BFFs, LWJ has NO EYES for anyone besides WWX don’t worry the harem is only for the plot setting, Fantasy, Pregnant WWX, Possessive LWJ, Fluff)

The Emperor's Portrait by catbrainedschemes (E, 32k, WangXian, Historical, Ancient China, Historically Inaccurate, Meet-Cute, Mistaken Identity, Age Difference, Sexual Tension, Happy Ending, Fluff, EmperorLWJ, artist WWX, who happens to draw porn on the side, LSZ is the best boy, Misunderstandings, Hand Kink, Strength Kink, Smut, gege kink, lots of staring, Dirty Talk, Canon-Typical Bondage)

To Tread Upon Solid Ground by stiltonbasket (G, 6k, WangXian, LXC/NMJ, LXC & WWX, Royalty, Emperor LWJ, Growing Up Together, Friends to Lovers, Jealousy, Mutual Pining, References to Illness, (on lxc's part), Eventual Happy Ending, Bodyguard WWX, Fluff and Humor, Misunderstandings, gratuitous overuse of em dashes, Oblivious WWX, Confused WWX, This boy needs HELP, someone save the king)

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13. heyy admins! i'm running out of fics to ready, what are some of your favs or recs? thanksss!!

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14. Crying rn. INTM for some fics where Jin Rusong lives, like I don't care if he's adopted, faked his death, living with the Jins idc I just want to see him. @thatperson0-0

Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained by nirejseki (G, 4k, Canon Divergence, JRS Lives, NHS is a schemer)

Tread Lightly on my Ground by AshayaTReldai (E, 63k, LXC/QS, WangXian, JGY/QS, JGS/QS, JRS & LXC, QS & WWX, LXC & WWX, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, PTSD, Rape, Past Rape/Non-con, Slow Burn, Friends to Lovers, Not Really Character Death, Happy ending for LXC, Incest, Trauma)

now you’re tearing through the pages and the ink by Stratisphyre (M, 70k, JC/QS, WangXian, QS & WWX, Canon Divergence, Canon Typical Violence, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, JGS Being Gross, Pregnancy and Childbirth, Canonical Accidental Incest, Marriage of Convenience, Friends to Lovers, Child Abuse, Accidental Child Acquisition, Found Family, Not Everyone Dies, (but there is some), canon character death, QS POV, Golden Core Reveal, Twin Prides of Yunmeng Dynamics)

~*~

15. A) Fanfics where wei wuxian is pregnant with lan zhan

B) Marriage arranging between wei wuxian and lan zhan @jikookjiminjungkook91

15A)

🧡 Accidents Will Happen by vesna (mrsronweasley) (E, 45k WangXian, Post Canon, Mpreg, Fluff, Light angst)

Blooming in white by luckymoonly (T, 38k, wangxian, JYL/JZX, MM/WQ, NMJ/LXC, NHS/JC, Canon Divergence, Mpreg, Getting Together, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, hidden pregnancy, Mutual Pining, Drama, Misunderstandings, Everyone Lives AU, Miscommunication, WWX and NHS are BFF, matchmaker NHS, Fix-It) link in #11

Impermanence, Transience, Permanence by Best Bepsy (BepsyGray) (E, 39k, wangxian, canon divergence, unplanned pregnancy, mpreg, gore, sunshot campaign, assumed miscarriage, medical procedures, childbirth, golden core reveal)

All I Want by Selenay (E, 47k, wangxian, Modern, Mpreg, Post Holiday Romance, Consequences, Reunions, Idiots in Love, wangxian attempt to be sensible adults about it, they are very bad at it, Teacher WWX, Rating earned in later chapters, Handwavey Biology)

🧡 Brilliant Mistake by brooklinegirl (E, 53k, WangXian, Modern AU, Sex Pollen, Mpreg, dubcon, Modern Cultivators, Dubious Medical Science)

Take My Pieces, Make Me Whole by InTheGreySpaces (M, 297k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Angst, Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Hurt WWX, JC & WWX Reconciliation, JC is a good brother, LXC Is A Good Brother, Golden Core Reveal, Mpreg, LSZ really IS WWX's son, and LWJ is his other father, LQR is a good uncle, after he's an ass for a bit, nobody we like dies in this one, cleansing the Burial Mounds, Eventual Happy Ending, WWX Has Memory Issues, resentful energy is almost a character of its own in this one, Nei Clan's resentful saber secret, NMJ is a good brother, Hurt LWJ, Hurt NMJ, Baxia is a misbehaving bitch, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, tiny bit of non-con, chapters will be tagged individually with necessary warnings, sentient Yin Iron)

On The Way Home by vesna (mrsronweasley) (E, 59k, WangXian, Modern, Mpreg, Non-a/b/o mpreg, Unprotected Sex, Unexpected Pregnancy, Friends With Benefits, Getting Together, Pining while fucking)

A Mother’s Love by FirefliesNLightningBugs (M, 170k, WangXian, XuanLi, Canon Divergence, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, Mostly combo of the Untamed and MoDaoZuShi timelines, Unreliable Narrator, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Happy Ending, Miscommunication, Family Feels, Found Family, PTSD, Post-Sunshot Campaign, Political Intrigue, Mystery, POV Multiple, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Strong Female Characters, Additional Warnings In Author’s Note, Good Brother In Law JZX, Genderbent WWX, Intersex WWX, not a/b/o, POV Original Character, Expanded Universe, Unplanned Pregnancy, Golden Core Reveal, WWX Has No Golden Core, Cultivation Sect Politics, Bisexual WWX, YLLZ WWX, Yunmeng Shuangjie, Pining WangXian, Parent-Child Relationship, Getting Together, Protective Yúnmèng Jiāng Sect, MXY Lives) Wwx is intersex (author tried to base it on the real world condition, not omegaverse that uses the term erroneously) & a misunderstanding combined with their own insecurities leads both parties to think they accidentally took advantage of each other (it was consentual), an inefficient mailing system causes things not to be resolved in a timely manner. Also tons of worldbuilding & unrelated political intrigue. Wens live

15B)

a light hidden and singing by occultings (microcomets) (E, 48k, wangxian, arranged marriage, pining, getting together, slow burn, misunderstandings, miscommunication, blood & injury, happy ending, smut)

forever is home (with you) by moonsteps (T, 23k, WangXian, Arranged Marriage, Canon Divergence, Intimacy, Sharing a Bed, Strangers to Lovers, the inherent romance of the forehead ribbon)

Lead Me On Through by vesna (mrsronweasley) (E, 54k, wangxian, Alternate Universe, Arranged Marriage, Practice Kissing, practice other things, horny boys in love, questionable logic, Questionable Choices, they’re dumb but cute, but dumb, but really cute, slight knives, Happy Ending)

seldom all they seem by Fahye (E, 25k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Arranged Marriage, or rather Arranged Betrothal, followed by Weapons-Grade Thirst)

sweet chaos by eachandeverydimension (G, 86k, WangXian, Arranged Marriage, Canon Divergence, Fluff, Romance, Light Angst, Falling In Love, Different First Meeting, Qīnghéng-jūn’s A+ Parenting, Night Hunts, Chinese Language, Good Sibling LXC, Good Sibling JYL, POV LWJ, Getting Together, Love Confessions, First Kiss, Chinese Culture, Slow Burn, No Homophobia AU)

the river and the sea by sasamelons (T, 7k, WangXian, Soulmates, Arranged Marriage, Misunderstandings, Angst with a Happy Ending, Idiots in Love, Falling In Love, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Mutual Pining)

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16. hello! do you happen to know any fics where someone hurts/smth happens to lan wangji and lan xichen goes apeshit?

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17. Hi! I was wondering if anyone had any recs with modern au's in which the Wens were wwx's foster family before he moved with the Jiangs? Thx <3

Train Rides Change Everything by Seriana (E, 403k, WIP, WangXian, NHS/WX, JC/NMJ, JYL/LXC, Non-Traditional A/B/O Dynamics, Mpreg, Abusive Jiang Family, Alpha LWJ, Omega WWX, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Slut Shaming, Fluff and Angst, Unplanned Pregnancy, Abusive YZY, Bad Parents JFM and YZY, Beta JC, Omega JYL, Modern Era, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Beta NHS, WC Being an Asshole, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Misunderstandings, Mating Bites, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Scenting, Scent Marking, Slow Burn, Forced Marriage, First Time, Forced Bitching - Omegaverse, Alpha WX, Minor Character Death, Murder, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Kidnapping, drug overdose, Sexual Tension, Omega JC) Its not a big part of the story but it's there!

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If you didn’t get an answer to your ask here, don’t forget to make use of @mdzs-kinkmeme and MDZS KINK MEME on Dreamwidth. Authors actually do use them for ideas. You may get what you order!***Your prompt doesn’t have to be kink! Fluff, crack, whatever - it’s all good!***

[jingyi-ma-boi]

Okay, I think it’s safe to say that Nie Mingjue is mostly seen as one of these two:

Either he’s a big-hearted straightforward himbo, with a short temper and a strong moral compass, that loves like he fights —passionately and with unwavering strength,

Or he’s an extremely privileged himbo with such rigid morals and anger issues that he becomes cop-adjacent since he’s unable to empathize with how his world-view doesn’t account for anyone less privileged than him.

I personally see him as being both. Because even though he was always seen as stern and serious, it is a fact that his cultivation pushed him to the limit faster than with any of his predecessors due to the strain that the war and Baxia put on him. We can’t know for sure how he would’ve behaved had he not cultivated to become the strongest fiercest warrior in Nie history. And so, his behavior is not that of a violent man unable to treat others with respect, but that of a person who heavily suffers from mental illness.

And I don’t mean just any kind of mental illness, but the kind that’s so ugly that makes you hate and hurt the ones you love as well as yourself. The kind that the moment it gets diagnosed, marks you as a dangerous crazy person because people assign those symptoms to moral failures and they go around saying that this killer or that abuser or that other crazy ex has it.

Let it be known that I’m choosing to headcanon NMJ like this because I too have several of those mental illnesses. I see the way he looses control and becomes extremely paranoid and violent during and after the war very similar to my own experiences with C-PTSD and the rest of my long list of diagnoses.

It doesn’t justify his behavior but it helps understanding his character. All this is to say that I might sometimes joke about him being a dumb cop who doesn’t understand privilege and heavily criticize his treatment of Meng Yao/Jin Guangyao, but I love his character all the same. Acknowledging all his faults while enjoying —and creating— depictions that see all this and try to give him a shot at a happier life feels to me like an act of self love more than any of the other characters due to the way I see myself reflected in him.

[pieridae-art]

Special Lan Xichen analysis post

As I’ve previously said, Lan Xichen is a very flawed person and that’s okay! I want to examine him at several parts of the story and pick apart some of the criticism he gets. So let’s talk Lan Xichen!

Siege of the Burial Mounds: I really like this one shot from the donghua where the Sect Leaders of each sect (NMJ, JGS, and JC) are shown at the siege and beside them representing the Lan sect is… Lan Qiren. Not LXC. Setting aside the perfect storm JGS set up for the siege to occur (I don’t care who led it; JGS is the problem post-Sunshot Campaign about 99% of the time), I think this is because LXC stayed back in the Cloud Recesses with LWJ tending to his wounds post-whipping. Not assuming LXC’s absence, however, the siege was led by JC and orchestrated (because separating the twin prides of Yunmeng and artificially creating tension within the jianghu was a deliberate action) by JGS. Not saying LXC’s participation is okay just because he wasn’t the driving force behind it but imagine if the Lan sect stood against the other sect’s wishes. Standing up for WWX would have been the right thing to do but were the Lans in any position to oppose the siege with their sect in the process of rebuilding? Going along with the siege, to me, is an act of cowardice, not malice. Extra note: we see his capability of defending the Wen remnants when JGS is talking shit about them and WWX but he is shut down immediately and does not speak up any further. This is not a matter of hypocrisy; it’s a matter of fearing the consequences.

NMJ’s death: this is rocky territory. It was a bad idea full stop to force proximity between them hoping everything would sort itself out. But you simply cannot blame him for NMJ’s death because he couldn’t have known. One could argue that he endangered JGY by forcing him to be near someone who tried to kill him several times. I think that’s an oversimplification of the situation. To me, this was a gesture of trust. Trust that NMJ will make an attempt to restrain himself/get better and trust that JGY will aid him in doing so. As we know, this trust is misguided. He’s rather naive to think this would work. But he is humored anyway by two people with bad intentions toward each other. LXC is not at fault for this going south when it was at a certain point inevitable. But he did enable it.

That one line about WWX being LWJ’s only mistake: I get so defensive because honestly I’d have said much worse in his position! Think about what he knows about Wangxian’s relationship leading up to it. He saw his brother devastated that the man he loved was being corrupted and harmed by his cultivation, watched as LWJ despaired over him and fought the elders and got whipped for him. He’s only seen his brother suffer due to his love for WWX. Was saying this okay? No. Consider the circumstances surrounding this line, however. Also criticizing him for this is just plain nit-picky to me lol there’s plenty this man has actually done wrong to criticize him for.

And another thing: stop saying he favored JGY over LWJ!! The entire point of his denial surrounding JGY is that there was no solid, tangible proof that was damning enough for him to outright condemn JGY without some level of unfair assumption! He was trying to be fair about the investigation! Might I add: WWX was the only one who saw NMJ’s head in Jinlintai. Had it been LWJ to see it and approach him I think the story would’ve gone differently! But it wasn’t. And he wanted to have faith in his friend from an underprivileged background constantly facing slander and mistreatment despite doing good things for the world against the jianghu’s wishes because isn’t that what LWJ did with WWX? LXC learned his lesson from WWX’s death, he just practiced it on the wrong person.

What have we learned? Lan Xichen was complicit in and enabled a lot of Bad Things if he was not an active participant, most of it willingly and some of it unknowingly. He’s unfair sometimes. He’s weak willed and lacks the strength to actually stand up for anyone in a meaningful way. He’s naive. In my opinion, he was in denial for a large portion of his story about the harmful effects of his actions.

And I adore him! He’s got the capacity for so much good and he fails to live up to it! He wants to be righteous and he doesn’t know how without putting the people he is responsible for at risk! He thinks he can do conflict resolution and he just can’t! By the end of the story, he is painfully aware of all of this and he lives knowing he did the wrong thing over and over and over again. He got the only outcome he could ever have. I don’t think he deserved his ending but I do think he might have earned it.