#shen jiu would be shen yuan's parent in this to make it work

[moon13dreams]

Hey, Tianjiu writers/shippers, have you guys written a modern au where they secretly marry right before adult Bingqiu's wedding which makes them technically siblings like that one reddit post?

If not, you totally should

(Bonus points if there's 79 drama in there too lol)

[optimisticmosquito]

What if Shen Yuan was transmigrated into Shang Yuan, youngest son in the merchant Shang family and Shang Qinghua's little brother.

At first Shang Qinghua doesn't put much thought into it. He never did write much of a backstory for the other peak lords, so it makes sense the world has kind of just, written itself? Shang Yuan is several years younger anyways (I'm thinking 7-10 years) so it's not like he has a lot in common with him either. Shang Qinghua even joined CQM when he was barely out of toddlerhood. Shang Qinghua was fully prepared to just slowly fade out of sight and mind in his new family, just like he had in his old one.

Except this kid just really hates his guts? He gets letters regularly from his family, telling him how a-Yuan has been asking about him. But every time he visits the brat just shouts and kicks him around. All out of sight of their parents so he can't even go and complain to them! In their eyes Shang Yuan is their perfect little angel.

Honestly, Shang Qinghua isn't even that surprised the original goods turned into a villain if this was how he grew up. And oops, did he say that out loud? Shang Qinghua peeks down at the rigid brat he's holding under his arm in an attempt to stop him from trying to beat him up. With big eyes the kid turns his head up and whispers "you're a transmigrator too?".

From that day on Shang Qinghua can't help but feel a little bit less lonely, and maybe even a little happy. Who would have thought his number 1 anti fan would transmigrate into his didi! They start writing letters, both complaining about the system, and Shang Qinghua about the sect and his martial siblings. When he starts working for Mobei-jun he tells Shang Yuan everything about it. He even has a reason to go back and visit his family!

Shang Qinhua quickly accepts his responsibility as gege. Helping (or trying to) his little didi grow up to a nice young man and giving tips when Shang Yuan starts cultivating as well. And despite Yuan-di's tsundere behavior, Shang Qinghua knows he has his back as well.

In his own badly written stallion novel, Shang Qinghua finally finds the family he didn't have in the real world.

Now as for pairings. Bingyuan would be hilarious just because I want Shang Qinghua to ask, with a shit eating grin, how long Shang Yuan has been coveting his own nephew. And then for Shang Yuan to try and beat the shit out of him for it.

Jiuyuan would also be an interesting pairing (it can always be a jiuyuan if you're brave enough). Shang Qinghua knows his scum villain is misunderstood and not as bad as the book and rumors portrays him to be. But also he knows Shen Jiu is at least a dozen traumas in a trenchcoat. Does it really have to be his didi helping Shen Jiu deal with all of that? Sure Shang Yuan doesn't seem to mind, but Shang Qinghua also knows his didi makes some really stupid choices if you take your eyes off him. But also he's too much of a coward to say anything to Shen Jiu's face.

Hm, better to keep an eye on that from a distance.

[gaywarcriminals]

My hurdle in writing Shen twins/bros AUs is always the fact that a backstory which produces a Shen Jiu will never be a backstory that produces a Shen Yuan. You have to change fundamental parts of one of them if you want them to share an upbringing.

AUs that maintain the element of SY being a transmigrator work the best in that regard, because he can still have 20-some years of being a spoiled son, but even then, the more horrors of SJ's childhood that SY experiences, the more SY would be changed. SY thinking he's fine because it's just a story or because he's mentally an adult would not prevent SY from getting traumatized. Similarly, an AU where SJ grows up as the well cared for second Shen son is going to result in a very different man, because SJ is so heavily shaped by his trauma.

I think this is part of why I find them easier to write as parent and child; the fic conventions are that if SJ is SY's parent, then SJ has clawed himself to a higher position where he can offer SY comfort and stability, and if SY is SJ's parent, then SY changes SJ by giving him an un-traumatizing childhood. Either way, it makes sense for them to be those versions of themselves in that story.

[gaefiction]

Son of the ScumVillain - Modern Au (ft. Luo Bingge)

So, OG!Shen Qingqiu dies and reincarnates multiple times until he ends up in the Modern World™.

The thing is- His parents hate him (very much) and it's mutual; so the moment he hits adulthood he's forced to marry a wealthy lady of good offspring « he's not interested in, thank you very much» and in retaliation Shen Jiu decides to elope with his new wife (not for long) and HALF AND A YEAR later he comes back, with no spouse in sight and a CHILD.

Little Yuan, no more than a few weeks old, is a delight to the eyes; a tiny baby boy with rosy cheeks and chubby little arms that in the moment his father walks in with him, the entire room is already cooing at the boy- Shen jiu hates that, of course.

Shen Jiu's parents «being the snakes they are» try to take his little boy, using multiple excuses about how Shen Jiu isn't ready for the responsability; that they would take care of Yuan while he works to provide the baby (which, he has already been taken care of since he dropped his, now ex, wife the moment the baby was in his arms!) or that he's too «uhg» innapropiate to be a parent. That directly infurates Shen Jiu, making him yell at his parents about «how innapropiate THEY were for him, that they can try to snatch his baby boy from him, but he will die before letting them touch a single hair of Shen Yuan's hair!». It should be emphasized that they did not take well this, and disowned Shen jiu (lmao).

But, this man being a high IQ individual, has already predicted this course of action- While being away; he slowly built a decent business abroad, enough to keep him rising to the top, and maintain his baby! (RIP ex-wife, she was not in his plans) Check mate. So he has absolutely no problem dropping his deadbeat awful family and disappearing from the picture.

That's how the first years of Shen Yuan's life he's coveted by his father, and spending most of his time indoors (thanks to a very rare decease that keeps him with a very weak inmune system). This shy, cute little child that looks like a carbon copy of his dad (geez, Mother's genes didn't even try) who's too introverted to make friends with the children of dad's business partners, ends up casually being a secret brat!

Too smart for his age, Shen Yuan's a tiny Shen jiu; much less violent but poisonous to the same extent that his father's venomous. His pure golden heart is appeased by the coldness emanated from Shen jiu's and is equally measured a lil bitch (also, he has a lot of mysandric ideas thanks to his beloved dad, but were not talking about that).

That's when Shen yuan's dad meets his- other dad (he doesn't know THAT yet). Yue Qingyuan is a golden retriever made into a man, quick to appease Shen Jiu's moods and pacifist to the absolute extreme, making him very easy to bully but also the best to actually de-escalate any conflict his husband can possibly make.

So, at five/seven years of age, when his new dad enters the picture Shen Yuan is allowed to be a child; no more classes too advanced for his age, no more behavioral instructions or punishments «he can actually eat sweet now! whenever he wants! Baba Yue is the best» but the damage is already done; he's a brat, just like his father, and has a snake's tongue (again, just like his father), with a very- complicated view of the world, ("kill all men" he yawned one day during literature class, his teacher too stunned to speak) and a very serious behavioural problem (he indeed liked to kick people's calves in supermarkets and run to his parents for protection, that little shit).

So, this MENACE grows up, reads PIDW and doxxes everyone that has a fight with him (including airplane himself), sends glitter bombs to Luo Binghe's haters and has a very secret (only Baba Yue knows about it, because and ONLY because he's the one paying for it) collection of merch in his very very big closet and gets discovered by his (dramatic) dad; who threatens to burn all of Shen Yuan's merchandise, leading him to make a threat of his own that he will move out if anything happens to his Luo Binghe welding Xin Mo collectible figurine.

Of course, Shen Jiu doesn't believe it: And when Shen Yuan isn't looking he throws the damn nendoroid in the trash.

Two days later Shen yuan is sitting in his new apartment with all his collectibles secured behind every damn lock he knows blocking the front door.

And because Shen Jiu's luck is shit a month later a very known face shows up in his son's apartment.

He of course isn't informed about it (Shen yuan's still giving him the cold shoulder). He grows suspicious when one day, a year and a half after shen yuan's tantrum, he hears Yue Qingyuan on the phone talking to their son, Shen yuan with a strangled and breathy voice "Ah! Baba don't worry- everything is fine, i'm fine! can w-we talk later? Okay bye!" Not even giving his Baba the CHANCE to say hi.

...

That little shit.

Neither Shen Jiu nor Shen Yuan take it well when Shen Jiu appears unannounced at the door of his apartment, and finds a VERY tall muscular man, with beautiful curls and a winner's smile opening the door.

EDIT: Guys I'm so sorry I was really sleepy when writing this and just now i noticed the copy-pasted parts *cries*

[cleverstudentcheesecake]

Since I either consider Shen Yuan to be reincarnated Shen Jiu or Shen Jiu's brother/twin/son, I hate it when people describe him to be awkward, spineless, dumb, poor, broke or unattractive in the modern world. In the SVSSS world, in fannon he is often characterised to be too easy, trusting, damsel-in-distress who is easy to manipulate.

Let me tell you, a reincarnated Shen Jiu or Shen Jiu's close kin would never be any of the above. Even if we consider him to have absolutely no relation with Shen Jiu, he can never be any of the above.

Now let's be realistic why.

Poor, broke and unattractive?

Shen Yuan is clearly stated to be a 'Second-generation rich kid'.

This is the definition of 'Second-generation rich kid' given in the extra notes of book 1:

SECOND-GENERATION RICH KID: A child of a wealthy family who grows up with a large inheritance. “Second-generation” in this case refers to them being the younger generation (as opposed to their parents, who are the first generation) rather than immigrant status.

Have you ever seen rich Chinese kids or heard about the term 'Crazy Rich Asians'?

Do you know what their lifestyle, fashion senses, academic profiles and extracurriculars are like?

Iykyk...

According to me Shen Yuan in modern world used to be that absolutely breath taking, elegant, overachieving kid who grew up reading the hardest of litetary works and then proceeded to burn himself out in University.

He must have known how to play atleast 2 musical instruments and have been well versed in multiple languages. He was also a chess genius as well as a great networker with his silver tongue and natural knack for flattery. He had been privately tutored for everything above.

If you ever found Shen Yuan outside his house, you would find his spine to be pin straight, without a hair out of place and effortlessly dressed to kill.

I believe when he was reading PIDW he was taking a break after both his mental and physical conditions declined due to social, academic and familial pressures.

He was good at everything but never as good as his elder brothers. He used to be a prime example of 'Jack of all trade, Master of none'.

He had no ambition of his own after being overshadowed by his brothers who were also physically more fit than him, all his life. He was existing until one day it all came breaking in.

Why did the length of the break even matter when he would still have a huge trust fund even if he achieves nothing in life? He just had to make sure to not do anything shameful that could have possibly harmed his family's reputation. The trust funds were sufficient to sustain his introverted ass for a lifetime.

So, he became a shut in.

He was always a closet otaku but now he could completely indulge himself in his otaku tendencies.

He went and read every trashy web novel that ever existed until he found his 'The Read'.

From the comfort of his home and behind the screen he could be his true gremlin self (someone who could completely tear down your confidence down with his verbal attacks without a huff).

He no longer needed his silver tongue to appease people, he could laze around all day aimlessly and shit talk essays on the web novels' comment sections.

The rest is history...

Why do you think he was inherently adept to pretending in the SVSSS world? Why was it so effortless for him to pretend to be an extraordinary immortal scholar? — because all his life he had been pretending.

If he was awkward he wouldn't have been able to collect potential suitors like pokemons.

He is polite, endearing and a flatterer but never awkward.

Excuse me if he was easy to manipulate and too trusting, he would have never escaped Zhuzhi Lang.

Spineless you say?

Prove it that he won't castrate a person then and there if they even try to look the wrong way at his disciples?

Assure me that if had gone through the same circumstances as Shen Jiu, he wouldn't have turned out exactly like Shen Jiu?

Tell me that Shen Yuan isn't capable of pulling a Nie Huaisang if his Jiu-ge is skillfully murdered in front of him?

A damsel-in-distress, tell me he isn't capable of fighting and standing up for himself.

How can he ever be dumb?

His aimlessness and laziness doesn't account for his lack of intelligence. I agree that he may not be much emotionally adept but he is book smart and quick on his feet.

Sometimes, his obvious denial of affection makes me feel that they don't actually stem from being in a Villain's body or obliviousness, but rather from his own self-doubt and hatred.

He purposefully denies what is right in front of him which makes him biased and an unreliable narrator. He sees himself as an unkind person throughout the story but we all know the truth.

He also considers himself old and unlovable but we know he is a pretty bitch who everyone has a crush on.

Believe me Tsundere Shen Yuan needed a Yandere Binghe in his life so he could realise that there exists someone who loves, trusts and believes him unconditionally. All his life he had lived feeling useless, he needed someone who wants him desperately and also makes him feel wanted.

We say Shen Yuan helped Binghe, trust me Binghe did the same for Shen Yuan. Binghe fixed something in Shen Yuan that he never realised was broken. They are co-dependent freaks who absolutely deserve each other.

[greenflamedwriter]

Go GO Fighter Scum!

guess who watched Ranger Reject- anyway creative liberties for both Scum Villain AND Reject Ranger/Go go Loser Ranger! Taking characters from one, key concepts from the other and doing my own thing enjoy!

For my own piece of Mind> this might change later- Shen Yuan Human> Dies. A Fighter takes his Idenity, Fighter S- S standing for Scum. Red Keeper: Luo Binghe. Green Keeper: Shen Qingqiu | Shen Jiu Yellow Keeper: Shang Qinghua = Created the tools to defeat Invaders. Blue Keeper: Liu Qingge (who dies) then Mobei-Jun takes over since he was First class Blue Ranger. Pink Keeper: Mu Qingfang (For healing)

Yue Qingyuan as first Red Ranger (Would take over for Red Keeper if something happened to Luo Binghe) Qui Haitang Is First Pink Keeper. Ning Yingying as First Green Keeper Mobei-Jun was first Blue Keeper and once he takes over it's then Jian Cheng. Then have Lie Xian as First Yellow Ranger [Theres not many in SVSSS so I may have to do crossovers aha]

____________________________________________________________

Shen Yuan stood in the crowd, drowned in the noise of praise and cheers for the Dragon Keepers. It was a show, an act. And yet parents brought their children then had the nerve to act scared when things became too hectic.

It wasn't a show and it wasn't an act.

He ran grabbing the child and fell back from the Fighter- the Invaders who were enemies of the humans. The Rangers grabbed the Invader while Shen Yuan turned to the mother and a bawling child in his arms. "Ah thank you so much! Are you a Ranger-"

"Lady do you have any brains- are you an Invader!? How stupid can you be to have a child here at the battle ground! What if he got hurt- or killed!" Shen Yuan yelled beyond pissed, aware others were glancing at him as the Mother's smile faded into shock.

"I should call child protection services for Child neglect and endangerment- that goes for all of you!" He passed the bawling kid over and glared at the women. What idiot brought kids to this place?

He moved back to his seat, arms crossed.

A ranger?

Get real.

He was known as Fighter S- his fellow Fighters or really more like Dusters- said the S stood for Scumbag. Yep a Reject even amongst his own speicies.

Even so, he was here for...reconisonce yeah! He had to study the enemy thats right! Thirteen years ago when he first woke up, he only shifted a little to change his arm into a blade. But then he saw he could mimic humans pretty well- Although he remained the same size, he couldn't make himself smaller or bigger.

So he pretended to be a human, it was smart! He was going to invade and Dominate these humans once and for all- and the perfect body was right there for him! As he was moving around trying to find some human to copy he walked past the rooftops and looked into the bedroom of a dead body.

...Opportunities don't come for Fighter S this was perfect! Divine intervention!

Changing to dust he was able to sift through the gap of the window and stand inside the room. He saw a bowl of food on the floor and assumed the poor thing choked to death!

As he rummaged around the room he found a student ID card and found other details. ...Well he was dead, so this was perfect! "Well thank you, Shen Yuan for dying today. Hopefully you'll reincarnate somewhere better."

He was able to quickly stuff the body into the cupboard then stiffened when he heard someone walking up the stars and opened the door as Shen Yuan shut the cupboard.

Shit-

"Shen Yuan? What oh-" Shen Yuan grimaced and moved forward picking up the plate and food. "Yeah sorry I made a mess..."

"It's fine, you're probably nervous about the exam."

...Shit! What exam? The panic must have been on his face as the man laughed, "Aha tell me about it. You wouldn't know this but your Qi-ge was nervous about his exam too."

Qi-ge that must be his brother...maybe?

"And what did Qi-ge do?"

The man laughed, "Well I had a simple focus. I must become a ranger, and work well with others as a team." The man gave him a knowing look like a secret. "Team work is the secret to success in the exams."

...He was giving him a hint. and he must be Qi-ge as well, Shen Yuan smiled, "Thanks - I needed the advice." "Well it's not everyday our a-yuan become a ranger now hmm?"

Must be his brother-

Hold on RANGER?

"Y-yeah."

"Are you okay?" "I uh- I'm just nervous aha."

...Did he hit the body jackpot or what!?

_________________________________________________________

He was lucky he had time to pack Shen Yuans stuff, and of course rummage around showing keen interest in his diaries and his phone thank god the guy didn't put in a passcode for his phone! He was able to find text messages and read through them, and photos of this 'Shen Yuan'

hmm...

He had one brother but it wasn't the man in the house- it was some guy named Shen Jiu who looked just like Shen Yuan only more sharp and mean looking. In the texts he called him a-jiu but not in public, his brother got annoyed when he kept calling him that. And the other was a cousin of theres, yue-ge. Yue Qingyuan, only Shen Yuan called him Qi-ge though. ...Could he do this? What if he ended up failing an inside joke or something?

THankfully he didn't have to worry much, Shen Jiu wasn't there as a form of silent protest he did not want Shen Yuan to be a Ranger nor train to be one.

Luckily he was excused from his 'out of character' behaviour for pre-exam jitters.

"Bye bye Qi-ge, next time you see me I'll be a Ranger."

"Good luck A-yuan."

As soon as Shen Yuan vanished inside the building with his things, Yue Qingyuans smile faded. Truthfully, he and Shen Jiu were in agreement that the Rangers was no place for someone like Shen Yuan. He was too idealistic and even wanted to have peace with the Invaders. He was the reason they fought so hard to protect earth from the Invaders if something were to happen to him...?

But Yue Qingyuan knew that the Invaders could harm those Ranger or no- at least Shen Yuan would have the neccesary training and tools to defend himself. They would just make sure he never gets promoted into more confidential dangerous roles.

____________________________________________________________

This was way more relaxing without Qi-ge around! He can be himself and do whatever it takes to become a ranger. Although these outfits were pretty stupid, man or women why would the belt have a triangle there of all places.

It's like an arrow going "Look at my butt!"

It was embarrising.

Even so after meeting the other Rangers he couldn't help but feel wary. This was it, he was an invader in enemy territory. Getting dusted and returned back to base is one thing. Being captured and experimented on is another- Fighters can still feel pain! even so he can tell this bunch were pretty focused. And rude, only a select handful were nice and Shen Yuan had no idea what he should do - how does a human act? Should he be rude like them?

"Hey! Watch where you're going!"

"Hah?" The young boy grabbed him by the uniform, "Mind saying that again?" Huh? So they can say that to Shen Yuan when he bumped into them but he can't say it back! Even so, if he gets hit they'll know-! "Tsk, nevermind."

Being mean wasn't natural to him anyway, but no one here seemed friendly or approachable.

"Remember, Team work is essential to success." Oh man this SUCKS! "Ah, that was rough, you okay man?" He turned to see a handsome boy looking up at him mischiviously, and Shen Yuan blinked.

"I uh, yeah...I'm Shen Yuan?" He asked and the boy laughed patting his seat, "I'm Wei Wuxian. Take a good look, you're looking at the next Red Ranger!"

This guy seemed pretty confident, he sat in front wondering if he should copy Wei Wuxian or just settle into the seat the way he wanted to-

"How about you, Yuan-er?" Shen Yuan felt taken aback by how informal Wei Wuxian was- was that appropriate to sound so familair with someone?

His instinct told him...to do the opposite of what Wei Wuxian was doing. "I want to be Red, too."

Wei Wuxian blinked "Ah never would've guessed that, and why are you sitting so stiffly? You act like that fuddy duddy over there," Shen Yuan turned and flinched to see a boy glaring daggers their way.

What the hec-

"That's Lan Zhan! He wants to be a Blue Ranger, we both got into arguments over it as kids since we both wanted to be Rangers- don't mind him he gets jealous easily."

Hmm wait- Shen Yuan noticed how everyone was in pairs of five. "Wait- two each for one Ranger?"

Wei Wuxian blinked then his eyes lowered almost looking dangerous, "Caught on to that hmm, you're pretty smart. Maybe you should try yellow." Shen Yuans eyes narrowed looking to the others, teamwork is the key to success so...he glanced at Wei Wuxian the one who would be his new partner for the Exam. Wei Wuxian seemed strong...he'll let him do all the work and piggy back of his sucess, easy.

___________________________________________________________

When they all gathered to begin their exam Shen Yuan was nervous, he had to stay as cool as a cucumber and not reveal he was an Invader. The Examinor was giving instructions as they all stood at a door. "Now all of you will be gathering keys to unlock this door, Team Red will be facing the Second Class Rangers." "Hmm thats odd-" Shen Yuan glanced at his partner and hummed, what was odd? "Its usually First Rangers we fight," Why would a change in second or First matter?

"Second Class Red Ranger: Hua Cheng. Both are to locate and retrieve the Red Key to pass this exam." Shen Yuans eyes narrowed as the Examinor began to list of the names of the Other Rangers staring at the door. A Door with Five coloured Key Holes, his eyes narrowed further. Only one key hole. He glanced at Wei Wuxian who looked to be daydreaming.

"...Any Questions?" Even Shen Yuan zoned back in and raised a hand.

"Uh, for anyone new um- what is the different between a First or Second Class Ranger?"

The Man hummed, "Ah right there are new recruits who don't know. The Rangers have battalions where the new recruitments work under one Leader- A Dragon Keeper. Third, Second and First is the higher up you can achieve with missions or promotions. The Final step will be becomming a Dragon Keeper yourself-" The others gasped so a 3-tier system?

"So on with you."

After they all moved on, they realised the Second Rank Rangers were also on the floor with a key, and even if they ended up finding one it might not be their colour.

Even so, something about this Exam felt too simple, he had to work with Wei Wuxian to complete this task? Would there be more or-

"I hear no one passes these exams. They are insanly difficult."

huh?

No way, why make an im-passible exam-?

There was a crash as a car zoomed past slamming into someone.

Shen Yuan cried out, "That's dangerous!" You almost hit me! He thought hysterically!

"Ah we hit her- maybe we went too far."

Instead a women stepped back looking way to calm after being hit by a car. "That was very dangerous, someone could've gotten hurt." She proceded to beat up the rangers in her pink uniform. Both the Red team Members stared eyes wide, they had no idea the Pink team would be so...brutal. What was her name again...? "The demoness Sha Hualing." Wei Wuxian answered in awe, "She's so strong!" Shen Yuan gaped at him- you don't have to look so happy about it. Luckily Wei Wuxian took the lead and yet Shen Yuan stayed behind to cover him, "Wei Wuxian- it's not our key!"

"This is a warm-up! Red Rangers are usually more stronger- whoa!" wei Wuxians dark grin came back as he backflipped and gazed down at the Demoness.

"You're good."

"Thank you~" Shen Yuan had that moment of regret, the power difference was insane both of them were so fast and impressive he even flinched back when she cracked against the pillar and it BROKE! And they were still fighting.

How- how on earth was he going to beat them!?

"Aw you're not doing anything over there- don't want to fail your exam little sheep!"

Shen Yuan jumped back and activated his bayard- a gadget that transformed into a gun and shot at Sha Hualing who laughed. "Oh now it's getting interesting!"

"Ah Good idea!"

Wei Wuxian used his to make a sword and both lunged forward head on and Shen Yuan was screaming internally inside.

This was insane this was nuts- These were SECOND Rank Rangers? They were one below First- how strong are the First Rank Rangers?

...There was no hope of passing was there-

RIIINNNGGG~

"Aw that sucks, just when it was getting interesting too."

She turned around and Shen Yuan's eyes widened and he grabbed Wei Wuxians arm, "Wei Wuxian-"

"Huh? What?" The guy was grimacing rubbing his head and Shen Yuan nodded to Sha Hualings back.

They both saw one lonely key strapped to her back. This confirmed his thoughts on how this exam was possibly going to go...he glanced at Wei Wuxian and sighed. He wasn't Wei Wuxians Partner, he was his enemy. Both had to fight against each other to get to the key. There was only one lock afterall.

____________________________________________________________

After the bell rings they have three days remaining to steal a key and open the door. Shen Yuan asked Wei Wuxian to meet up in his room later to talk more stratergy. "Teamwork is the key to sucess." That was the answer Qi-ge gave him and he was going to trust it. Two on one then to fight after seems foolish. And pairing them in twos lots of five? And having so many small groups? Why not two teams, five each if they're going against each-

His eyes widened as he snapped his fingers "Thats it!"

When there was a knock he brightened oh it was Wei Wuxian that was very helpful! But as he answered the door he cried out falling backwards as a fist almost pummeled his face-

"What the hell!"

"Lan Zhan! That was rude! He only asked me to come over innocently~" He said that too strangely, and Shen Yuan wondered why the tone intention was more higher even so-

"Ah this is perfect Lan Zhan-"

The mans eyes flashed "Lan Wangi." Shen Yuan hesitated huh? Isn't that his name. Whatever "Um- it's better that you're both here!" Both their eyes widened as Shen Yuan turned and patted the bed, "Sit sit- there's something important I need to tell you."

Both enterered and Shen Yuan placed his hands on his hips, clear excitment on his face. "For the Exam Wei Wuxian if we continue to be Partners I would be your enemy."

Wei Wuxian relaxed on the bed looking amused while Lan Wangi sat ramrod straight. "Figured it out huh?" Shen Yuan nodded "That we need a team of five to work together against one Rank Ranger? Five against one and working together to earn the keys would be better."

Now Wei Wuxian almost fell of the bed "huh- thats...thats pretty smart."

Shen Yuan nodded, "At this point I doubt it even matters what colour key we get. We can still fail, I'm guessing it's about how we perform and teamwork. Like the Dragon Keepers they work as a team but both have their own speicality. It's better if we recruit two more strong people for our team."

"Hmm, okay that seems to be best. Who did you have in mind?" Wei Wuxian asked placing a hand on his chin and Shen Yuan hesitated. "Honestly I don't know much about the other team other than picking the best out of the two. Having strong fighters isn't enough, we need people with smart stratergy and cool under pressure."

Wei Wuxian nodded, "I have just the people in mind, leave it to Lan Zhan and me, we'll get the other two on board."

Shen Yuan smiled, "Great!" He can piggy-back of this team! He saw Lan Zhan an absolute beast of a fighter this would be cake.

__________________________________________________________

Shen Yuan gaped, the next morining both Wei Wuxian and Lan Wanji were not at their meeting spots. And when SHen Yuan began to enter the room aware he was missing time trying to find his partner, he saw a group of five and froze, hiding behind the pillar to see Wei Wuxian with four others ganging up on a Ranger. Shen Yuan couldn't believe it as he hid heart beat racing. He was betrayed?

"Ah right! The second key is ours!"

They had two keys? Shen Yuan continued to stay and listen. "Wei Wuxian that was very smart to work as a team of five against a ranger instead of two!" "That's Wei Wuxian for you, his brother is a third rank of the Blue Ranger! Of course he'd be smart!"

"Aha- Lan Zhan, whats with that face? It's fine- he'll be fine! And we both know how ruthless the Rangers are, for someone that soft we'll be doing him a favour."

Shen Yuan grit his teeth.

Fine then...He'll have to make him his enemy instead.

When Shen Yuan found the others they looked dejected themselves that they were betrayed. "what are you all feeling sorry for? It's an Exam isn't it?" He helped a girl stand up then turned to the others. "Five against one, if we work together we can get the keys ourselves the more we have the harder it'll be for the other team to win."

He saw the looks on their faces change and with the thought of revenge nodded, "Lets do it."

"Ah that's good to hear." They all turned to see someone approach he seemed really scary and dressed in red? "It's the Second Class Red Ranger- Hua Cheng!" The girl spoke eyes wide, and Shen Yuan wondered how she knew. By activating his bayard he asked "Any weakness?" She shook her head- "He would've been Red Keeper if he wanted but he prefers to stay at his station for some reason-" Huh why would someone NOT jump at the chance of a promotion? Suddenly Hua Cheng was there, one eye crinkled in amusment as he backhanded Shen Yuan- he flew a couple feet but was lucky that he was able to hide the dust regenerating at his core-

That was fast! "Ah! We're done for-"

"Shut up! Surround him!" Shen Yuan has acted so many times on those Sunday perfomances watching the Rangers and their stratergy but he didn't know any of his teams strengths or weaknesses or even their names! "Two get in close- two activate bayards to guns and cover them!" Shen Yuan yelled and watched how they did as he said, two who had swords activated swung in, both the back and the front and Hua Cheng looked more amused then ducked from a stray shot from the long range fighters-

While Hua Cheng was fighting- Shen Yuan moved in from his blind spot his left where he was missing an eye- and was able to swipe a key.

"Fall back!" He yelled already sprinting.

The others followed and after a while leaned against a pillar gasping. "We did it- why wasn't he chasing us though?"

Huh? Shen Yuan peeked around and saw no one. He felt tense, noway in hell-

"Ah it's blue!" One yelped and Shen Yuan activated his weapon already pocketing the key, the Blue Ranger sneered. The man only stared at them then left, they saw he had no key on his back. Shen Yuans eyes narrowed.

Just like Hua Cheng.

"Once the key is gone, the Rangers fall back...hmm."

He glanced at the five and smiled, "Well we have one key, at the other team has two. If we get as many keys then we'll win."

The others glanced at each other then nodded. "I'm Nie Huasang. My brother wanted me in Green." "I'm Qin Wanyue, aiming for Yellow Battalion." hmm, she was the one who knew each ranger. "Green Ranger, Xue Yang." Shen Yuan didn't like the look of this guy, something about him gave him the creeps. "Wu Chen, I aspire to be the Pink Ranger." Shen Yuan looked at them all, hmm so that means Yang Yixuan and Lan Wanji - two Blue Rangers. And that left the two green Rangers with them, other than that they were all betrayed by their partners. "Shen Yuan, Red Ranger." He placed a hand on his hip staring at the 'rejected team' and couldn't help but see why Wei Wuxian choose the others. Xue Yang looked strong but unstable, while the rest just gave pitiful.

Even watching them fight he had to admit the only reason they won is that Xue Yang didn't mind that he was hurt and just bodily threw himself at him almost distracting Wu Chen. And both Nie Huasang and Qin Wanyue covered for them allowing Shen Yuan to slip in and get the key.

Compared to Lan Wanji who was a powerhouse and Wei Wuxian who also held his own with Sha Hualing the two alone could beat the rangers. Shen Yuan sighed internally then straightened up. "We have one Key from red, the other team have the Blue Key." Which must have just happened paired up with when they were fighting the yellow Ranger "And Yellow, and a third one now." Which leaves one more key. Which was either Green or Pink.

"Who is Second Class Green Ranger?" Shen Yuan asked as he looked up he saw the others look at him in horror. He tensed when he felt a breath on his cheek as someone spoke close to his ear. "That would be me." Shen Yuan wasted no time raising his gadget and activated it into a sword. "Mother-" Shen Yuan turned as the man flung himself back, looking angry. They couldn't do the same thing again- he may have been watching.

"Ah looks like Xiao Yuan is all grown up!" The man came gunning for him. Shen Yuan internally cursed- he knew him! He turned to the others, "Pull back find an opening!" Shen Yuan ran back and knew he was the prime target and was able to push back any blow- one scratch and he was done for- aha! He changed his weapon into a gun and shot at a firehydrant and watched as it exploded. The man called out- "Oh that is just cheating! Your brother would be proud!" Shen Yuan almost faltered, the original goods brother? Well shit! He picked up the fire hydrant next to the broken one and slowly came closer to the man who had his back turned. "Come on Xiao Yuan come on out- didn't you say how much you want to be a range-"

Bang! He slammed the hydrant down and watched as the body crumpled to the floor and grimaced. Hope he wasn't dead. As he reached down the man moved suddenly and swiped, Shen Yuan yelped. Evading back into the smoke and healed his chest the dust settling back into place. This guy is strong. "Tsk- Never knew you were the type to being so underhanded Xiao Yuan." Shen Yuans eyebrow twitched- this guy seemed close, however that nickname was seriously ticking him off! "Who knew you were such a Scumbag! Shen Jiu would be ashamed of you." Shen Yuans eyes widened, he knew the original goods brother.

Shen Yuan laughed and it echoed in the smoke, making the guy look nervous. "Huh? Are you upset? You have no right to be, you're an invader afterall..." Shen Yuan trailed off, shooting his gun and making the man dodge looking aggrivated.

"And everyone knows the Invaders are our enemy..." The man turned suddenly looking unsure, "You've never believed that- Xiao Yuan always wanted to make peace with the Invaders..." Did he now? Huh- what an idiot, although maybe the lamb always tries to make nice with the wolves. "True, but this is an exam. And the Rangers know-" Shen Yuan shot at his legs and the man scowled then yelped when Shen Yuan brought his leg up and kneed him in the face. "-That the Invaders are not even Human! So when it comes to Mercy they don't even Rank!" "Shen Yuan!" Ming Fan fell back, but Xue Yang grabbed him under the arms and laughed, "Hah! Got him- want to beat him up Xiao Yuan~"

Ugh it was more obnoxious when this guy called him that. He saw Qin Wanyue slip past grabbing the Green Key. That meant the other team fought Sha hualing. Lucky she was ruthless. So they only have Red and Green. "We need to get the other three keys from the other team." The bell rang, so they have the third and final day to get it, what was worse... "Even if we get all the keys, the exam wouldn't be passing based on success on the mission but on individual strengths and how someone works in a team." Maybe even how likeable they were.

...Shen Yuan looks up and could see the faces of the others, minus Xue Yang, look almost unsure with facing the other team and getting their keys.

"They faced off against Sha Hualing," Wu Chen began biting his lip, "They seem to be really strong." Shen Yuan nodded, "So we need a stratregy." And make sure that the others don't betray him. "Give me the Green Key, Qin Wanyue." She almost gave it before Xue Yang swiped it from her hands. "Now why should she do that? What- plan on giving these to Wei Wuxian." Shen Yuans poker face failed him, as his face narrowed into anger, "I've already been betrayed before, Wei Wuxian and all affiliated I plan on crushing into the dirt. However it was my expertise that helped us get these keys and if one of you planned on using them as a payment to join the other team I wouldn't be surprised to being betrayed twice."

Xue Yang shook his head, "That doesn't answer my question, how can we trust you." Shen Yuan realised they were at an impasse. He sighed, "Fine you win. It's probably more troublesome to make one person hold all keys." Xue Yang smirked, "Then you wouldn't mind if I keep Green, hmm?" Shen Yuan swore as soon as this farce was over, Xue Yang will be the first one he killed. "Still even to defeat Ming Fan...quite impressive." Who? Oh, that guy he turned to look at Ming Fan who was glaring at him as he was getting up off the floor. "I-I'll tell your brother about this!" Really? Shen Yuan faced him, "Tell him what? That I took the key from you?" By reading his brothers texts he knew he kept threatening body damage if ever Shen Yuan put on foot out of line. "He'd be more disapointed in you, than me." Ming Fan scowled, then rolled his eyes. "Nevermind then," He walked away and Shen Yuan closed his eyes, two keys down...three to go. This Exam wasn't over yet! _________________________________________________________

Shen Yuan was lucky he didn't stay inside the fortress all cooped up for thirteen years, it was around the fifth year mark he decided to leave and resume the form of a human he copied. He began walking around like a tourist and learned many things about humans.

Such as needing money to travel, similair phrases other tourists had, teaching himself to read. And mostly- he learned more from tv shows. After trespassing into some teenagers house he was able to use their computer and just...browse to his hearts content. And when they came home he turned into dust and left. So many programmes, it took a while to diffirentiate between fiction and realty and what those words even meant. Cartoons were easy to parse but live actions? Those were a bit more tricky- for a moment he genuinly believed that people could cultivate and fly on swords! Until he learned that wasn't possible.

It took a while but he was able to learn a lot about humans. ...From tv shows.

And as a Ranger in training he figured it might be different, that humans may act differently in real life. And Rangers were even worse. Shen Yuan lay in his bed hands behind his head as he found himself thinking... Wasnt the show just an act? The Invaders were already defeated and this whole show was just to appease the masses and make everyone feel safer. And yet this whole training excersize was over-kill. The Invaders were so weak one punch and they were dust, literally. So is this all necesary for training?

________

notes from Discord:

I just ship Fighter D and Red Keeper esp with Red Keepers tendecies of a perfect show then casuually crushes a persons face in a wall is such Binghe energy, and just having a Fighter like Shen Yuan is obsessed and a fanboy but is also a picky critiq of a perfect story and he knows he's a prisoner being defeated for entertainment but he's like "Don't you find this boring? Want some BETTER compelling arcs and highs and lows instead of blasting dusters weakly?" But SY has no clue on how to even talk to someone like Red Keeper who wouldn't see him as a threat. So only based on the 'its a show stuff' SY is unaware that he's playing with dangerous people and Red Keeper/Binghe is like meh I'm bored and he was looking for some entertainment.

Like everyone is thinking in 5-d chess thinking this Fighter was just trying to change up the plans for world domination, put SY is playing checkers but DURING his ideas to Binghe and even bringing up of "What if a Fighter became a ranger?" and is like "What if a fighter betrays his kind and becomes a ranger or is hiding as one? What if theres a new Ranger and a new colour?" -Only coz from trailers I srs thought Fighter D was going to become a black Ranger and its like pfft nope.- So Binghe is like sure but everyone else is like huh??? But becoming a ranger and seeing humanity and the stuff they do and the contradictions is exposed and Binghe holds SY back and says "We're the keepers and the invaders are the enemy." Meanwhile SY sees humans being grusemly killed in the name of Hero sutff and sees how fucked up it is.

I was thinking swapping some roles- so you know how Pink Ranger is Hibiki's sister and Fighter D takes his place? Well what if Shen Qingqiu was Green Keeper who had a brother called Shen Yuan who died from choking on a bun and this lifeform fighter took his place AND instead of Fighter D the invader now calling itself 'Shen Yuan' is Fighter S- S standing in for Scum. So it ties the taking over identiy part as well. If Shen Yuan starts as a lower tier Ranger then he can work his way up, he'll probably even call out Shen Qingqiu and be like "You didn't even notice your little brother was an invader!?"

Fighter S is like "Making my way downtown walking fast- killing people I'm a scumbag! dodododdididoddodo!" Then see's an excectuive and is like "This guy triggered my daddy isues-" and if it does come out that he's an invader but a chill one and see the whole "They left us like the dad that went to get milk how dare they- Bosses? Thats not a boss thats some loser! Abanonded at zero years old!" Imagine the Rangers etc being like "Zero…thirteen years ago?" SY: Huh oh yeah, so that makes me thirteen years old yeah! And all of a sudden all of his chilidsh antics and over-simplfying the hero/villain like he's Megamind because he was not only taught that as a baby in his developmental stage but also ruthelessly killed over and over again and Fighters CAN feel pain when they get destroyed/body parts ripped of.

I bet Shen Yuan would be watching the OLD tv show for the OG red Keepers and becomes obsessed! and a huge fan and it's like. "You want to dominate the world right?" SY: More than anything! "Even if it means…no more of this tv show?" SY: huh? "Its Ranger propogander, it will be destroyed if Invaders win." SY vibrating at how unfair it all is! they literally use that as a carrot to keep him on their side

I think I'd love to write a juxpasition of SY talking big mean and scary, but witnessing Luo Binghe (his hero) killing someone once in front of his eyes- especially a human (like how unhinged Red keeper is) would make him horrified, that Sy is like- "No way I'M the Monster in this scenario here!" - and the whole secret identity, of having Luo Binghe being a psycho happing killing frenzy against Fighter S then is really wholesome and sweet with Shen Yuan

I was thinking of mixing Peak Lords and Demons together to make the Rangers but then i need some characters for the Executives. Luo Binghe will be Red Keeper. Shen Qingqiu will be Green and Shang Qinghua will be Yellow (I feel it fits since yellow invented the tech seems to know alot is seen as the weakest and Qinghua is god so yeah) I was unsure wether to make Liu Qingge Blue or Mobei Jun then realised I can make Liu QIngge Blue get him killed off and Shen Qingqiu gets blamed for it, then Mobei-Jun takes over as Blue. But Pink I have no clue who that could be

Mu Qingfang as Pink, then have Qui Haitang, Xiao Gongzhu and Gongyi Xiao as the Pink battalion as class Rangers. the irony being that the men are gentle want to heal everyone, meanwhile the girls can handle being cut into ribbons then regenerating and staying calm under pressure. then swap the whole "Everyone wants to kill red- to green," and imagine Shen Yuan being surprised by how many people are just gunning for Shen Qingqiu including Luo Binghe it's like all the rangers are pointing their weapons at him. And SY would be like- eh if they start taking each other out- Ranger: Isn't green your brother? SY: Goddamn this was the worst disguise ever!

just had a thought at work today- where Shen Jiu was Fighter J and ended up becoming a Green Ranger through hard work and 13 years of loyalty, and he made a connection with human Shen Yuan and thats what made him change his priorities for fighting against = rangers/executives then once they gone be free and live life as a human. So when he ends up being backstabbed and killed by Binghe- Fighter S Shen Yuan see's Green being killed and is shocked then see's instead of being bloody is actually dusted- and when Shen Yuan is found by the Shen Jiu who ran away and is about to have the 'talk' with Sy that he is still his brother he has been for the last thirteen years and that he warns SY they were coming after him, and SY is like. "They going to do examinatiosn to test all rangers if their human now…which would've been fine months ago." And Shen Yuan reveals HE'S an Invader- with how many accidents human SY goes through Shen Jiu is pissed and the two end up fighting like "You killed him how could you-" and even Fighter S is pissed coz didn't Fighter J leave him for some humans? While he and the other dusters were forced to endure pain for thirteen years and act like villains for some crappy tv show humilated and tortured and here Fighter J was, planning to destroy the rangers for a human? THey come to blows. Luo Binghe had a feeling something was off with Shen Jiu- but the two have a shonen worthy rivarly and do NOT get along at all, and the only reason anyone keeps Shen Jiu around is because of his knowledge on the executives and invaders which duh coz he IS one. But knowing about his own kind and studying their weaknesses and strengths WAS for his own gain to figure out HIS strength and weakness and if Fighters could evolve and get stronger. But honestly everyone hates Green and it was just a bad day, bad time that he ended up getting hit (even when he's usually so careful) and is exposed.

YES! I decided to have Wei Wuxian as the Red Rankless Ranger who is partnered up with SY during his Exam and betrays his one partner for the group of five. And SY is pissed because it was HIS idea to have two groups of five rather than working as two, Wei Wuxian was like "Ah yeah but SY doesn't seem like the best fit sure he's smart but a bit of a coward," He just wants to be a Ranger with his boyfriend and will do anything to do it. So Yue Qingyuan is going to be first Rank Red Keeper just one below Binghe, (Since svsss Binghe saw him as a threat) and with other mxtx characters I figured having Hua Cheng as Second (He would be first but he's lazy) having Wei Wuxian and Lan Zhan taking the exam together and lan Zhan will be blue. And I was thinking of making Xie Lan as yellow at first but now realise dude can take a beating and was the first one cancelled so Pink seems more inlign for him. And for the Yue Qingyuan - Shen Jiu and Shen Yuan, Yue Qingyuan is the oldest who became a Ranger first he became one to protect the Shen Siblings he was their cousin but they all lived together as the Shens lost their family to Invaders (The church protesters fighting for Invader rights) so when Shen Jiu began to work hard to become a Ranger and Yue Qingyuan having guilt that he wasn't there in time to stop it- even if he was a lower rank at the time- he just chalked it up to Shen Jiu wanting revenge for his parents death, not realising Shen Jiu was replaced by an Invader because the gap between them became too big (Like SVSSS how he knew SJ was too different and they used possesion instruments that didn't work) and for Shen Yuan he was too young and most of his memories were of the Invader Shen Jiu not the human one. Yue Qingyuan figures he should be mad however after learning that Shen Jiu was the one he connected with the past thirteen years Shen Yuan says he has no right to be okay with one invader stealing his familys faces but not okay with the other it's so messy and Yue Qingyuan blames himself again for being too late- but having the Shens save him, call him Qi-ge he comes to accept the Invader Shens Oh sy campaigning for sj 😭 boy he killed the og sj unlike you. And calling yqy qi ge before rescuing him is sjsisi. Shen family drama in my binggeyuan but yeah with the inclusion of Xie Lian and the idea that the Pink Ranger does two things which is media presence and making a good advertising impression for sponsors (Almost like the heavens being popular and getting merits from prayers) and having Xie Lien demoted because he wasn't really fit to being a cold blooded ranger AND the second part of being a Pink Ranger is clean up/assasination so Xie Lian is really meticulous in the second part and having Hua Cheng becoming a ranger because of Xie Lien but became a REd ranger to proect him so they would be parralells between the MXTX ver and this au version.

[justawanderingbabbit]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Spread the self-love!

Babbit babbling ahead!

The story that pulled me into writing fanfic was Scum Villain Self-Saving System. I won't say my first or second fic is my favorite, though; both have flaws that I'm not ashamed of but mean they're not up to snuff. Since then I've written for Scum Villain, Modao Zushi and Heaven Official's Blessing, as well as for Dao Mo Biji (AKA the Graverobber's chronicles)

1) What Is Not Said

The Scum Villain universe is changed by the simple matter of Liu Qingge rescuing Shen Jiu from the Qing before Shen Jiu is driven to homicide. This results in Shen Jiu getting the training he needed when he needed it and shifts the course events away from ever needing a Shen Yuan to fix things. (I may, one day, address what happens with Shen Yuan, but not any time soon.)

The title comes from the line, "Communication is the understanding of what is not said." Since lack of communication is the primary cause of death in Moxiang Tongshu's works, this fic is all about properly communicating.

2) Different Paths to the Same Route

In a world where Nie Mingjue kills (sort of) his 3rd sworn brother, he and Lan Xichen work together to save Jin Guangyao's spirit and - when he's mostly restored to them - to prevent Jin Guangshan's plans for the cultivational world from wreaking havoc. Just this once, almost everybody lives.

The title is based on a Modao Zushi music video called Different Paths, in part because despite the changes, certain fixed events are fixed and still sort of happen.

3) Moxiang Tongxiu Crack and Drabbles

As the title says, this is a huge compilation of short fics based on various of Moxiang Tongxiu's works. Some are silly little fics, some a bit more serious. Not really drabbles, perhaps, but so it goes.

Some of the fics form the basis for other fics but those aren't finished and (I'm sorry) may never be because they're sitting there laughing at me.

4) The Wang Who Came In From The Cold

I've been pretty focused on Daomo Biji lately, so most of my more recent fics come from there. This one posits that Wang Can from Sand Sea (1) survives, (2) is Liu Sang's 'twin', and (3) what would happen if he showed up at Wushanjiu after rescuing Xiaomai from thugs.

It has a follow up, wherein Yan Sanxing is their parent and is rescued from durance very cold and vile and the truth about their family is revealed.

5) Alias Yue and Huo

Another Daomo Biji fic, yet another focused on Wang Can. (I love Liu Sang but Wang Can is so FUN to write!) Here Wang Can falters in his escape from Wang Pangzi, Xiuxiu and the Blue Robed Master, and ends up revealing his Zhang kinship and joining Wang Pangzi on a trip to Changbai. Liu Sang makes an appearance later, but the focus is on the buddy trip.

Could be a ship fic if one wants it to be, it's certainly implied later, but the primary goal is understanding.

Title comes from Wang Pangzi and Wang Can's given names. Pangzi's actual name is Yue Ban, whose characters together become Pang, or fat. Can is made up of the characters for fire and mountain, so they used the aliases Yue and Huo on their trip.

----

It was hard to choose which fics to highlight here. My preferences change depending on my mood.

And now the tagging... @pearlpugly, @littlesmartart, @foxofninetales, @sharkbeneaththelotus, @merinnan

[delicioussshame]

Crime AU AU, part 8

Yue Qingyuan knows.

Shen Yuan will have to accept that when it comes to his… private affairs, he is terrible at keeping secrets. Both Luo Binghe and Yue Qingyuan managed to find out about the one aspect of his life no one should have been made aware of, despite all his efforts to the contrary, and both have tried to use it against him.

So when he decided to complicate his life further on the off chance that maybe, someday, his future husband and his brother might be able to exist in the same building without plotting the other’s death, he had only thought it prudent to keep Shen Jiu’s right-hand man away from an already too tense situation.

Then again, maybe this is Shen Jiu’s fault. Keeping Yue Qingyuan from discovering his proclivities should have been his responsibility. If Shen Yuan was the one who… spent time with his brother and his brother’s fiancé, he would do everything in his power to keep Binghe from finding out.

Not that he would ever do that.

Not only because Luo Binghe would find out anyway, and Shen Yuan would have neither brother nor old family employee.

At least Yue Qingyuan probably won’t eliminate them.

…So Shen Jiu should be the last person to use to make sure Luo Binghe survive, but if he plays his cards right, maybe he can convince him to intervene. “I know you said you would have some of your own people working here, but isn’t Yue Qingyuan overkill? Why is your shadow wasting his time lurking in the casino?”

Shen Jiu shrugs. “I don’t have time to micromanage him. He can do whatever he wishes as long as he does what he has to and he comes when I call.”

“May I remind you I’m the manager here?”

Shen Jiu glares at him. “If you think that gives you the right to stop mine from going wherever they want, you’re delusional.”

It does, in fact, give him that right. Shen Yuan has full veto power over who works here. His parents would fully back him up if he decided not to let Shen Jiu plant his little spies in his domain.

Would that extend to the man bred to be Shen Jiu’s? Very few things are forbidden to Yue Qingyuan.

Shen Yuan sighs. He is not going to risk the very fragile truce he’s just started building by alienating both Shen Jiu and Yue Qingyuan. If Shen Jiu is fine with his right-hand man wasting his time by the wrong brother’s side, that’s his prerogative.

If that’s a plan, for one reason or another, Shen Yuan will foil it. He did not come where he is by being helpless.

If he’s being very foolish and is planning some form of counterattack, Shen Yuan will cede the right to retaliate to Luo Binghe. That should be more than enough to teach them their place.

Hopefully, the blood won’t stain.

[rarepears]

shen twins au where shen yuan is peak lord and shen jiu is imperial tutor:

luo binghe still gets kicked into the abyss. luo binghe still ends up making himself into an S-class demonic emperor. if luo binghe wants to be an effective enough demon lord to impress his shizun, he'll need the best teacher.

shen jiu, freshly kidnapped: !!!???!?!?!?!

luo binghe, looking at the man who is famous for being as vicious as he is intelligent and beautiful: shizun??????????

the crown prince, who is Very Much like luo binghe and uh. missing his future empress tutor: shizun!!!!!!

Man, that crown prince works as an excellent foil to Luo Binghe. He's what Luo Binghe could have been if his parents didn't die.

Since Shen Jiu and Shen Yuan occasionally switch places, it would be hilarious that every time that Luo Binghe goes to kidnap Shen Yuan (for a romantic outing among other things), he ends up kidnapping a Shen Jiu who's pretending to be Shen Yuan.

And like, at some point or another, Luo Binghe already knows about Shen Qingqiu having a twin, but he still can't tell the two apart beyond their clothes (hah!) so... he thinks all his romantic gestures aren't working and he gets more and more overboard.

Naturally. Shen Jiu doesn't tell his brother about anything; Shen Yuan the oblivious idiot also doesn't pick up hints from his fellow peak lords about the courtship...

Shen Yuan's first real courtship gesture from Luo Binghe thus ends up with his peak getting surrounded by an army of demons, him taken "hostage" to save his disciples (who are watching with great amusement at this roleplaying "barbarian kidnaps beautiful princess" trope), and wondering if he's about to get turned into a human stick for Luo Binghe's latest wife acquisition's amusement as he's dumped into some lavish bedroom full of red candles and redressed into the flimsiest of flimsy blood red robes, not realizing that he's the one going through the process of being wife-acquired.

(Oh, if only Shen Yuan realized that Luo Binghe was merely copying the actions of the male love interest of the latest bestselling book that Shen Yuan beta-read for Airplane-bro because SURELY that's what Shen Qingqiu would enjoy if he's got his name listed on the book as editor!?)

[Follow #a shen twins au where shen yuan becomes the qing jing peak lord and shen jiu becomes an imperial tutor to the crown prince for more]

[phoenixtakaramono]

So I'm here to say that I really love your Bingyuan fic! The research you do for it and share with us is just amazing! I also have a q regarding LBG. From SV we know that he felt admiration for his Shizun so do you think that if SJ wasn't cruel to him LBG's admiration would've grown into love and attraction like it did in LBH's case for SY? Which then also raises a question: would LBH/LBG fall in love with any Shizun who was kind to him? Or was he just drawn to SJ's type of personality. WDYT?

Hi there, Anon! I’m glad you’re liking the Untold Tale! Thanks for reading! I think it lowkey helps when the story I’m writing (in general) is from a culture I’m familiar with and that I know some of its language nuances (just general Mainland dialect; I’m unfamiliar with Shanghainese, the Beijing dialect, etc etc). So fortunately for me, as someone who is Chinese but was born in the Western side of the world speaking Mandarin to family and friends, emulating the Chinese aesthetic and atmosphere in TUT comes a little bit easier to me than someone who did not grow up with this culture. I bet if I had been raised in China, I would be able to write something even more multilayered and deep but, alas, the youthful rebellious me of the past hadn’t taken my pinyin and Chinese character writing lessons seriously so I can only communicate verbally and understand audibly 😫. It’s very special for us writers in fandoms to be able to write a story of a culture that we actually know and can identify with. But high key it’s been immensely fun injecting some references of things I’ve come to notice from watching period C-dramas and the C-novels I’ve read, and I’ve come to learn interesting things about Chinese history and mythology even I didn’t know! So the story really writes itself.

Shen Jiu (OG!Shen Qingqiu)

To answer your question 🤔, to be honest this is why the SVSSS fandom is great—because there’s so many interpretations of the original source material. That’s why we have our headcanons and fanfictions to explore these many different possibilities. So for me personally, I can see it happening both ways: *1) LBG does develop a crush/falls in love with SJ, or 2) no matter how SJ treats him LBG regards him respectfully or coldly. I think Possibility 1 is more likely, since SY transmigrated into SQQ and we saw what happened with “Bunhe.”

Now, mind, for Possibility 1 to be more likely to happen, the SJ in PIDW will have to undergo a massive personality change/ a change of heart/ develop a good conscience and will need to clean up his image aka clear up the massive misunderstandings from PIDW canon (like him being mistaken as a pervert for Ning Yingying, visiting whorehouses, killing LQG, etc). It’ll be difficult though considering who Airplane has changed SJ into for his stallion harem novel (reading through SVSSS, my impression of PIDW besides it being the harem stallion novel is that it sounds similar to a “dog blood plot,” where audiences tune in to see how the villains are brought to justice). I literally have a line from TUT in a future chapter where SY says this about SJ since I will resurrect SJ and bring him into the story for closure:

People like Shen Qingqiu naturally had a set of deeply-rooted values. If one wanted to change them, it’d be easier to just have them reincarnate. (—TUT, ch???)

At his core, he’s a flawed man (which makes sense with the underlying cycle of abuse theory, considering his upbringing and backstory). He’s jealous and petty and prickly. His image is that of a proud and cold immortal. In Chinese terms, he’s the type of character archtype who I can see being àojiāo (definitely not canon characterization; this is just a stray thought that amuses me) in a romantic relationship.

LBH will have to recognize that^, or be in a position where he finds SJ’s caustic side endearing instead. He will also have to be extremely patient with him (although, since the joke in SVSSS is that LBH is an incurable M, it shouldn’t be that hard).

A fun thing about OG!SQQ is that he’s the cannon fodder scumbag villain of PIDW. He’s the reason LBG blackened from a white lotus. And, as you know, villains aka antagonists aka bad boys resonate strongly with people for a reason. That’s why we see a lot of Enemies to Lovers tropes, etc. It squicks me to use this phrase but “the allure of dating a ‘bad boy’ is strong.” SJ is that type of bad boy we could identify as a “fixer-upper project” (ugh, that phrase)—even with the red flags and warning signs—especially for those said to have a troubled past with rejecting neglectful parental figures/ family members/ friends and have have not outgrown their wish to convert that sort of person into a loving, accepting person. When we want something we can’t or shouldn’t have, our desire for it grows exponentially. In fanfiction this is a concept writers and readers can explore safely in a world of the imaginary.

From a Meta Perspective

Although, if we look at it meta-ly, the cold and proud and/or knowledgeable Shizun (teacher/ master) character who comes to know love and “is redeemed” by whomever is the love interest (typically a cute and quirky girl who may or may not have started off as naive to the innerworkings of the Cultivation World and therefore needs an established and mature mentor to guide them) is a very well-known archetype for a reason in Chinese fan culture.

Seeing a terrible person change their ways and try to become a better person because of the influence of the one they love is also a popular depiction for a reason.

It’s almost like gap moe. The crueler and aloof one starts out as (arrogance is a staple), the more impactful the shift is when we see such characters soften their edges.

The draw of the sacred master/disciple relationship is that it’s taboo, so I think it’s fair to say that such a relationship in fiction is a popular trope precisely because of this aspect. From a writer’s perspective, the main appeal is to show that there is someone out there who can cause this respectful figure to lose control (undergo emotional change) and go to great lengths to protect his/her precious person. That precious person also has to fall into the “not like other girls” trope (so they can show the ML a different world he would not have seen the beauty of before). On the other side, we look forward to the point of the story where the love interest has their “Oh” moment and realizes their admiration has somehow shifted into love and attraction over the course of events.

Other Romantic Possibilities

It’s very likely. I personally like the fanon headcanon where anyone with Heavenly Demon blood running through their veins feels a compulsion to “obsessively fixate on one person” (TLJ —> SXY, LBH —> SQQ). Personally I don’t recall if this was canon or fanon, but someone had written something about LBH imprinting on one person in his lifetime on the account of his demon nature. And I like that theory (I think it’s likely more fanon than anything but it’s an intriguing idea full of possibilities!).

For him to fixate romantically on one person, I personally don’t think the prerequisite is just by being kind to LBH (but it probably adds to the person’s appeal). There’s probably other factors that go into this to capture the male protagonist’s eye, such as him finding someone attractive (or passes his own personal standards) and/or having good chemistry with that person. So I could see him being into other Shizuns and whomever else. Personally I also think there is appeal in the unobtainable. It’s one thing to have someone’s affection (see LBG and his harem of 600 wives who definitely aren’t shy about giving him affection), but it’s another to know you’ve earned the affections of someone you really like and respect (especially if it’s someone thought to be unobtainable).

As long as the writer can provide a plausible justification for me to suspend disbelief and they set up events to justify it, I can swallow just about any ship possibility. It doesn’t necessarily have to be SJ’s type of personality. (For example, I read a very good fanfiction before where the writer paired Luo Binghe with Ming Fan. Ming Fan, people!!! And they actually pulled it off! What a madlad! Mind, it’s Shen Yuan who had transmigrated into MF in that premise, but the writer set up events that showed how these two characters came to bond and develop a deep friendship which inevitably had LBH developing a crush on his shixiong. I use this as an example because this is the type of unexpected (crack)ship, but because the writer did their work trying to make it seem plausible, we can only admire their hard work and effort at pulling it off.)

As the saying goes, there are plenty of fishes in the sea! As the protagonist, LBH/LBG can have many OTP possibilities with just about anyone as long as the writer can make it plausible. It’s all about the character development and the story/ central themes they wish to tell with the ship!

(Note, these really aren’t hot takes, lol. I’m just having fun answering to this casually from the perspective of a writer. Thank you for your Ask, anon!)

[nyerus]

Hi, nyerus.....If you don't mind me asking, who are your favorite MXTX characters (top 5 from each novel)? And why? I'm sorry if you've answered this question before.

Thank you so much for asking! I would love to! (Apologies for the delay, and also for how long this is lol....)

TGCF

1.) Xie Lian: I could write forever about why I love him, but XL is just a really great character who subverted my expectations. He's gentle and compassionate, but also funny and snarky on the inside. His character arc is the classic hero's journey but told out of order. So we meet him when he's already wise and world-weary, then get to see what he was like before, and how he finishes his journey later on. He's extremely inspiring, to show that our choices and our actions are what make us, and ultimately no one can take those from us.

2.) Hua Cheng: This is no surprise! I also just adore HC for being a very intense character! He's completely devoted to XL and that zealotry is very unique in a character. He's 100%, not 50, not 75. While he has a lot of relateable aspects, this part of him is utterly fantastical, on the level only myth and fable can achieve--which tracks. After all, he isnt a Ghost King for nothing. In the story, he is the embodiment of the purest devotion, no strings attached.

3.) He Xuan: I actually like him for the same reasons as HC! He too is a walking fable, only instead of devotion, he represents vengence. (They're actually like foils of each other, which is quite neat.) I really adore his arc, and how murky his whole character is. It tells a cautionary tale of how sometimes, our worst enemy--the one who makes us most miserable--is often ourselves. SWD wronged him greviously, but HX's obsession with vengence ultimately prevented him from getting the peace and recompense he wanted in the end. Absolutely stellar storytelling.

4.) Mei Nianqing: While I often question his motives and methods, he is still a really good character. Caught between wanting to be a mentor and protector to XL, but still loving (platonically or romantically, that's up to you) JW. He's the only father figure in XL's life that actually took him seriously, even if he did have to come around to it. But ultimately, he was proud of who XL became even before he ascended. He was just terrified of XL drawing the attention of the one man he shouldn't--and did. However his belief in superstition and fear of Hong Hong-er also makes sense, even if it's sad. MNQ is also just a quirky and fun dude lol.

5.) Mu Qing: I really like how complicated and murky MQ's is in terms of his inner turmoil. I'm somewhat similar to him in the way he thinks, and it's real work not to make things worse for myself by expecting the worse. His background makes him naturally suspicious of... basically everyone, all the time, and it's honestly understandable. Ultimately, he does understand that you can't make assumptions about people's intentions by projecting your own insecurities onto them--which I think is something everyone can relate to. I really like his subtle journey of self-realization and self-forgiveness, and he ends up far better for it.

MDZS

1.) Lan Wangji: I love the fact that LWJ was just so ready to Night Hunt himself to death upon the loss of his beloved. As you can tell, I really like complicated characters who have extreme traits, haha! That being said, I just also really like his stoicism and reliability.

2.) Wei Wuxian: Naturally, it's hard not to love WWX! He decided "yeah maybe the ends do justify the means" and went for it. To us, he is the hero. To the regular people of the world? Whose ancestors were dug up and disturbed to be used by the Yiling Laozu? His blackened reputation is not without cause! (Like... JGY literally has done more positive and helpful things for regular people than Wangxian, but those metas already exist lol.) Once again, his gray morality is what makes him so damn good, and can be debated at length!

3.) Jiang Cheng: JC gets a bad rep, but oh boy he doesn't make things easy for himself at all. However if I was in his position, I probably would be much worse off. He lost EVERYTHING, and still trudged on because there were people who depended on him. His hatred of the Wens also makes sense in the context that... that's often how humans react to and process extreme trauma. We find something to blame and *waves at literally every major conflict since the dawn of time.* (His rumored torture of innocent people due to that is reprehensible, of course, but given that MDZS is a book about how rumors can make or break someone's life... we should take that line with a grain of skepticism, much like all other hearsay.) He's not typically the type of character I like, but I found him really interesting to read.

4.) Jiang Yanli: I really love JYL, who decided to be the emotional backbone of her family from the time she was a child. It was an undue and extremely heavy burden to bear, but she did all of it without complaint. That's strength. I think many elder siblings can relate to her having to step up and be the third parent, when the actual adults fail at it.

5.) Wen Qing: I really like her arc in the novel, where she makes some of the hardest decisions anyone will ever have to make, over and over and over again. I don't typically love very "rough" characters, but she has ever right to be that way (and it makes sense for her character, and isn't just a tacked-on character trait like hair color or eye color in a CC), and honestly I want to marry her very seriously.

SVSSS

1.) Luo Binghe: Probably the most misunderstood main character of all of MXTX's works. LBH is neither truly a crybaby nor is he a ruthless maniac. He's right in the middle, in the valley of misanthropy. And yet, he knows just how to use his charisma to get his way. Cunning and devious, intelligent and ruthless. Meanwhile, he craves love and intimacy--something he could only ever dream of.

2.) Shen Qingqiu (Shen Yuan): Extremely refreshing to see an transmigrator know how to handle transmigration almost flawlessly. (Me reading/watching other works with this trope and wanting to tear my hair out at the protags = me sympathizing on a personal level with SQQ.) This also proves to be SQQ's fatal flaw!! His knowledge of the novel is both a boon and a obstacle to him, and prevents him from understanding the other characters as people until he lets go of his pre-conceived notions. And of course, his snarky as heck inner dialogue is amazing.

3.) Liu Qingge: I don't actually even know why I love LQG as much as I do. He's just neat.

4.) Tianlang-Jun: Honestly same goes for TLJ. He's just great though, and I have a blast reading about him. He wanted to see the good in humanity, and ultimately comes around after writing them off.

5.) Yue Qingyuan: He's a fascinating character. Harmless on the outside, but a quagmire on the inside. His love for Shen Jiu was quite... problematic, in that he saught forgiveness from SJ, without actually ever taking the time to understand him or to make amends. Patronizing and judgemental, yet willing to let SJ get away with literally anything because of his own unresolved turmoil, etc etc. Fascinating.

[drunkserval]

A Fresh Canvas: Incomplete Preview

Quite some time ago I did a silly little thread on Twitter, and I’ve always wanted to take that and actually make something out of it. Well it was a little harder than expected, but it’s coming along!

When I have the entire thing done I will be uploading it to AO3, but for now it seemed seasonally appropriate to at least drop this.

I wanted to have this posted yesterday but festivities kept me busier than expected! Story is below the cut. Keep in mind that this is still technically a rough draft, and will receive its final beta pass before the full story hits AO3.

(Tentative) Title: A Fresh Canvas Fandom: Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System by MXTX Rating: G, No Warnings Apply Summary: Shen Jiu and Shen Yuan are neighbors in the same modern apartment complex who, despite looking similar enough to be mistaken for each other, couldn’t be any more different. Or so they think.

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

Shen Jiu and Shen Yuan were neighbors in the same apartment complex. They lived on the same floor, in the same hall, and were often mistaken for one another due to this proximity combined with how similar their appearances were.

But there were key differences, as both would readily point out to their neighbors. Shen Jiu’s hair hung shy of his shoulders while Shen Yuan’s was shorter and lighter in tone. 

And still the mix-ups kept happening, particularly if they were at some distance or facing away. The misunderstanding would very rarely last past the first glance since Shen Jiu would snap and take immediate offense, and Shen Yuan would just sigh and say, "Sorry, wrong one."

Shen Yuan had no idea why Shen Jiu got so offended over it. Surely he didn’t look that bad, come on!

The neighbors eventually started learning to look at the clothes first--or to at least look for Shen Yuan’s thick-rimmed glasses. 

Both men carried and dressed themselves so differently. Shen Yuan dressed in hoodies and jeans--well, if he was planning on going any further than the mailbox, that was. Otherwise why bother changing out of pajamas or sweatpants?

On the other hand, Shen Jiu didn’t touch anything that wasn’t from a known designer. 

Shen Jiu spent proudly--and why shouldn’t he? Because he at least earned his money!

That Shen Yuan kid down the hall? Rumor was that his parents were paying his rent and he'd never had a real job in his life.

But because he never went out, Shen Yuan was one of the only people still hanging around the apartment complex when Shen Jiu went around knocking during a major holiday. 

In Shen Jiu’s arms was a box containing two fluffy black pups.

Shen Yuan’s eyes widened at the sight of them and he completely forgot to greet his neighbor until Shen Jiu cleared his throat. The dogs were like little storm clouds with feet and stubby tails, staring back at him with big black eyes. One started wagging its tail with such vigor that its whole back end wiggled about.

It took Shen Jiu a moment to find his voice as he followed, such was the state that his neighbor had chosen to answer the door in. Hideous cucumber-print pajama pants, a tacky anime shirt covered in snack crumbs, and unkempt hair had greeted him. But the continuous movement of the box in his arms reminded him of his mission. 

“I found... ” Shen Jiu shifted the box in indication as Shen Yuan shut the door behind them, “these, out by the garbage.”

Shen Yuan blinked as the other passed by him, “Have you tried calling any nearby shelters?”

“Of course I have,” Shen Jiu scoffed at the implication that he was so simple. “You try getting a real person on the phone today, though. It’s impossible. I could only leave messages.”

Shen Yuan put a finger to his lips, “Oh, right. Today is…” Glancing at a wall calendar almost as ugly as his shirt he nodded, “Right. Right.”

Did this kid ever so much as leave the building? Shen Jiu was starting to wonder. Shen Yuan dressed like he’d just rolled out of bed in the latter part of the daytime. And he hadn’t realized it was a major holiday. And then there were the countless odorous takeout boxes covering every available surface in his apartment.

Shen Jiu wrinkled his nose but still asked in spite of his rapidly growing doubts, “You don’t know anyone who can take these little mutts in for a day or two, do you?”

Shen Yuan shook his head and heard Shen Jiu sigh. His neighbor set the box down to give his arms a rest… but Shen Yuan couldn’t seem to rip his attention away from one of the pups. It hadn’t stopped staring at him, or shaking its fluffy little behind, for a moment.

“What if we take them in?”

Shen Jiu’s tone was flat, “What.”

Shen Yuan picked up the excited little pup and it immediately started wiggling in his grasp. Not struggling, however--just trying to get closer to his face, paws waving in the air and its little pink tongue darting out to reach for him even though it was still well outside of range. He had to fight back the urge to laugh at the silly little storm cloud. 

“The building allows us to have one animal per unit, right?” Shen Yuan shrugged, “so what if we each took one, even just long enough to find them new homes?”

Shen Jiu frowned. Taking in a dog, or really any animal, had never been on his agenda. He liked his nice clean apartment and intact furniture unlike a certain someone. Plus he was more partial to cats. He moved his gaze from the overexcited animal back to the box. Though the pups looked identical on the surface this one was clearly the calmer one. It looked up at his scowling face but put forth no such ridiculous display… thank goodness.

Who knew? Maybe Shen Yuan’s idea wasn’t so bad. And if it was, it was only a temporary arrangement, in the end. He might be able to get rid of the animal as soon as tomorrow if it was truly intolerable.

Tentatively, Shen Jiu reached out to pick up the dog…

And felt tiny teeth close around his fingers.

Jerking his hand backwards, Shen Jiu sneered down at the animal. “What, you ungrateful little beast!” 

Shen Yuan finally stopped cooing at his own pup to look over and said, “Maybe he doesn’t like your cologne?”

“And what’s wrong with my cologne?” Shen Jiu snapped, voice raising.

Stepping back, “Nothing, nothing!”

“It was a gift, you know!”

Shen Yuan barely avoided tripping over a haphazard stack of game cases as he kept moving away. “P-perhaps it’s just too strong for a dog’s nose, that’s all!”

This time Shen Jiu moved quickly, snatching up the dog by its middle before it could get its ridiculously tiny muzzle around anything, and he stared directly into the animal’s eyes.

“Do that again, and I’ll put you back out in the cold where I found you. Understood?”

The dog stared back at him, placid and indifferent… until its tongue darted out and licked the end of his nose.

“...good enough.”

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

It was a few days before the two of them crossed paths again. 

It’d seem they both had decided to keep their newfound pets and they were both out that day to take the dogs for walks.

The air in the park was warm, so they sat themselves on a bench to enjoy it for a bit longer and soak up some of the sunlight that was so rare that time of year. Shen Jiu’s pup sat like a sentry at his feet while Shen Yuan’s pup curled up on his lap the moment he sat down. 

It was through the ensuing conversation they realized they both gave their dog the same name by sheer coincidence.

One was too lazy and the other was too stubborn, so neither changed it. At least they’d bought different-colored collars. But this brought to light a new revelation, and Shen Yuan just had to ask…

“How did you come up with it?”

“It was just the first thing to come to mind,” Shen Jiu had explained, “from something I’ve been reading, probably.”

"Wait, you read that too!?"

As he suspected! That name was from one of the top-rated web novels that year, from its stallion protagonist: Luo Binghe!

Shen Yuan couldn’t imagine someone as outwardly prim as Shen Jiu reading trashy webnovels, but it turned out to be true. It was just a quick, easy way for him to kill a few minutes of downtime at work, Shen Jiu reasoned in his defense.

Whenever they met up from that point forward, Shen Yuan talked his ear off about his various grievances with Proud Immortal Demon Way.

‘Villains that dig their own graves but don’t bother finishing! Women that lead the protagonist on a three-chapter long subplot just to get to their lewd scenes, only to never see them again! And every single character lost all of their intelligence when the protagonist came around!’ 

And yet he had nothing but praise for said protagonist… almost excessive praise. 

Shen Jiu is annoyed at first but he starts enjoying the company. Which is good because the dog turns out to be a menace.

Well, both dogs could be counted as menaces, just in different ways.

Bing-mei (as they come to call him) would start whining so pitifully when Shen Yuan shut the door between them, thus he often just gave up and took the dog with him whenever it was feasible.

Bing-ge, on the other hand, broke his toys within days, climbed around on furniture he wasn’t allowed on--sometimes when Shen Jiu was looking right at him, too--he barked, he scratched furniture, he tore up pillows.

Despite all the trouble he was causing for his master, Shen Jiu would no longer entertain the idea of giving him up. Not after Bing-ge tore up three separate muggers on three separate occasions and growled at the person who kept taking his parking space until it never happened again.

But the biggest takeaway from their conversations, for Shen Jiu, wasn’t webnovels or dogs. It made him start to realize how lonely he'd been. 

The only other person he really spoke to was halfway around the world for their work and they only spoke a couple of times a month. Now that Shen Yuan was around, Shen Jiu actually started to have things to look forward to besides the monotony of work--knocks on the door, long walks with the dogs, the occasional cup of tea afterward on colder days...

Shen Jiu was never the sort to be up-front with his feelings, so he found a way to show his gratitude by helping Shen Yuan with his confidence issues. He started encouraging him to go out more, and to put a little more effort into his looks when he did. This morphed into helping clean up his squalid apartment since Shen Jiu could barely stand to look at it when he came over. 

Months later, Shen Jiu’s recommendation had helped Shen Yuan to land an entry-level job. That, and a steady habit of going out once a week, gave them something else to do and talk about.

Progress was slow, but visible. Shen Yuan seemed a little less awkward in public with each passing week.

One night they were leaning on Shen Yuan’s balcony. It was a night of celebration, for he’d just earned his very first promotion, and Shen Jiu had brought over wine for the occasion.

He found himself leaning closer to Shen Jiu, telling himself it was just to get a better look at him in the dim light of the city night. His focus wasn’t the best even when he was sober after all. Yet Shen Yuan didn’t stop. And when Shen Jiu turned to look at him in confusion, and their lips met, he didn’t withdraw for several seconds.

Neither did Shen Jiu.

Shen Yuan tried to flee as soon as he realized what he’d done only for Shen Jiu to pull him back saying:

"Don't run, take responsibility. We talked about this."

[writing-frenzy]

Mobbing Around: CucumberPlane AU~

yup, here I am again, back with my AU’s~ This time for one of my favorite pairings of Scum Villain CucumberPlane (I just love this disaster duo)

Here is first thing first; Shen Yuan and Airplane are not Shen Qingqiu or Shang Qinghua respectively.

But the both do have relations to both in certain ways-

Shen Yuan was transmigrated in this world into the body of a dying Shen Yi, the first of the street kids in Yue Qi and Shen Jiu’s group. He was the one who taught Yue Qi all his survival tips and in the beginnings of Shen Jiu’s life was the one who would sing nightmares away and provide a hug when needed. It’s also thanks to Shen Yi that the two have more power in the arsenal, because of course you know the minute Shen Yuan knew this was a cultivation world, he tried and see everything that would work in cultivating (which was surprisingly a lot, thanks to how PIDW is set up, his mish-mash of styles were perfect.) It’s like this for a few years, these years on the streets hardening Shen Yi in a way, the world undeniably real to him in every pain he feels, the grief that hits him, and even in the little pleasures he finds day by day... But of course it doesn’t last... After all, the extra’s did mention that Yue Qi and Xiao Jiu were the last of their group for a reason. It happens when a group of slave traders come through town, making nice with the lord there, showing off their pretties and then getting out with their pay... but with so little stock left, they of course of to bulk it up before they leave.

And who would miss a few kids from the streets? (Shen Yi did what he could, buying time to make sure the others would at least get away, unknowing that he himself would be the price paid to buy those precious seconds)

Now for Airplane, who was born one Shang Huanmu (hopefully means Pleased Desire but if not i’m blaming PIDW’s naming sense) Who is one of the numerous half-brothers of this world’s future Shang Qinghua. Shang Huanmu was a child that should have died in the womb, but thanks to transmigration, he in the end lives! Airplane’s father can be thought of as the Jin Guangshan of Scum Villain, a power hungry womanizer who only thinks of himself and the pleasures in life, just this one is actually able to legally have more wives. Now, if Airplane had been born as Shang Qinghua, as one of the sons of the Legal First Wife, he wouldn’t have to concern himself with harem politics and treachery, especially after his mother ensured he could escape it permanently by giving him the chance to be a big renown sect’s disciple... But like I said, Shang Huanmu does not have that safety net. He and his mother are stuck deep in the poisonous words dipped in rouge and perfume, where one wrong word, where one misstep, where one simple look could get them flogged, booted out of the clan, or even death if they are not careful.

Airplane gets a very different second childhood (but with a mother, a parent who actually loves and supports him, despite all his eccentrics and quirks? It goes a long way for his shallow heart). (EDIT: found out Huanmu can also mean 360 degree cinema screen, which only makes me want to keep it even more.)

Now, can you guess how they meet? :3 The head of the Shang Household decides they need more sex slaves hmm, ehem, I mean servants, of course, look, there are even a few boys here even! (not to say just how many woman there are) Shen Yi Just happens to be one of these poor souls stuck here. For a while, he just gets shuffled around for a time, no set place yet as he is still new and they’re not sure what to do with him yet.

Until one day, Shen Yi gains the favor of one of the many wives, her son one day seeming to favor him, so thus making him their personal servant.

(I’m thinking Airplane hears Shen Yuan singing a fan song under his breath, joins in with him, and suddenly both are like ‘I’m not alone’)

Now that that is set up, here are a few other things to note-

Mama Shang is a certified bad ass who loves her babies (yes, Shen Yuan is her baby now) and will fuck up anyone who thinks of hurting them (how else do you think they’ve survived for so long? and give me more awesome woman in SV!!)

In public, Shen Yi is the dutiful, grateful servant while Shang Huanmu is the careless weird master (in private they are just disaster best friends, with Shen Yuan being the huffy commanding one.)

Both boys learn degrees of her badassery, Shang Huanmu going more mental manipulative route with plenty of tricks and traps, while Shen Yi takes the fighting approach with the mental strategist route. This also gives the public a more Master-Bodyguard servant relationship to view...

Shen Yuan and Airplane find out in mid-early of their friendship who they were in a past life, but seeing as neither know they are in PIDW, Shen Yuan just bitches at him occasionally about it, even teasing him as well. 

The reason why they don’t know is because they are much more focused on surviving their environment around them, the sects that are mentioned are the ones either a) close by to the Shang Family or b) something more ‘fitting’ for their stations in life. (besides, a lot of stories have similar names for clans, I know about two that have a Jiang clan. not to mention Jin clan and others)

So yeah, Cucumber-bro and Airplane-bro grow up close, bitch and complaining, and crying to each other (laughing and smiling and clinging tight in the night, worried an assassin would be right there to take one of them away.) 

Both men are mentally older, wearier, and jaded here, both seek comfort in the other, both trust each other greatly... but both are still as dense as rocks when it comes to the realization that they have been in love with each other for years now.

(Shen Yuan has no idea why he wants to vomit everytime he hears about possible marriage matches for Airplane; probably just the thought of someone actually marrying him that gets him, even if he isn’t that bad to look at...)

(Airplane smiles like normal, but his eyes are like they were made of ice the moment someone offers to buy/take Shen Yi off his hands; no way is someone going to take his bro from him, even as the thought of separating from Shen Yuan fills his soul with a chilling fear. Probably just the thought of what could happen to his friend getting to him, what with how pretty the other is...)

If there is a system in this world, I want it to be as ridiculous as possible; Like, the Good Deed System, where you have to perform good deeds from simple ones to world saving quests, or even a Side Quest System, a system that makes sure that those little details actually get met. Maybe even a Karma System, where what comes around goes around and all that (basically, I want these two boys to be in the dark about where they actually are for as long as possible :D But Systems are so much fun to mess with~)

Now, this AU can actually Branch out:

In number one, Mama Shang sees an opportunity for her boys, since the first wife is sending one of her sons to the prestigious Cang Qiong Moutain Sect, she joins in with a group of other wives to try and get their own children sent, which the Shang Head allows, because hey, if more of his blood get in, more face for his family! This is when both boys find out that they are in PIDW, which makes Shen Yi glare at one certain shrinking author, who pales at all the realizations. But this is their best chance at a new life, to become cultivators and escape their harsh family and all it’s tricks and traps. Both of them take the digging holes seriously (even as Shen Yuan bitches about it to Airplane all the while) because again, best shot they have. And to their relief, they even manage to get in!... at different peaks that is... (why yes, I noticed that certain Peaks don’t have Peak Lords :) shame they have no named Lords at all... :) oh, how could this ever be fixed?) 

In this number we have these two boys and their mother leave the family (how they do so is unclear for now), learning under a random, maybe renown cultivator and Mama Shang, who become rouge cultivators themselves, their own ideas helping to improve and create entirely new paths of cultivation. In this path, they will eventually find out what world they are eventually, but decide to just stay as rouges here, with adventure and mystery all around them, making allies and accidently derailing canon all along the way as they do so :3 (it would be such a sweet freedom for these two disasters to enjoy, and with Mama Shang with them to be badass as well.)

Now, this one kinda branches off from number 2 in an interesting way :D You see, both these disasters have a great charisma, just aimed in different ways that could get many different types of people. They also, have different moral systems, things that would get people all around them, while Shang Huanmu and Shen Yi really couldn’t care less or have different takes on, despite all the years they have lived in this world. They end up getting... a lot of followers, people who would love to either be a disciple, little brother/sister, even servant at times... Slowly, ever so sudden, there is a big group of rouge cultivators at night hunts, Airplane figuring out the best way to settle supplies and money, while Shen Yuan easily makes nice with all these people, or if needed threaten them harshly. Soon, the two find themselves in a situation of; the only reason we aren’t a sect is that we haven’t gotten a place to settle down/Emperor’s approval...

Yeah, as you can see, I really like this idea XD

[ao3feed-scumvillain]

birds and the bees

by Xenxas

presenting is always stressful. maybe not usually so much for the parents, but when your parent was shen jiu, it was hard to outdo him in terms of worrying about things.

Words: 2016, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Series: Part 4 of mamajius guide to parenting

Fandoms: 人渣反派自救系统 - 墨香铜臭 | The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: Gen, M/M

Characters: Original Shěn Qīngqiū, Shěn Yuán | Shěn Qīngqiū, Mù Qīngfāng, mentioned yqy

Relationships: Original Shěn Qīngqiū & Shěn Yuán | Shěn Qīngqiū, Original Shěn Qīngqiū/Yuè Qīngyuán

Additional Tags: basically just a short explanation to aob biology, bc most fics make no sense and it drives me crazy to imagine, why would omegas biology force them to be housewives, or make alphas leaders, i can accept bonding. i cant accept nonsensical alpha dom stuff, maybe as a woman im tired of ppl pretending biology predetermines your personality, idk - Freeform, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, a yuan presents and gets the talk, no sex mentioned just biology, also this is totally bullshitted its just how i imagine it in my head

source http://archiveofourown.org/works/20559401

[delicioussshame]

This AU of an AU shouldn’t even exist, and yet, have some crime LBH and SJ quite literally fighting over SY.

Shen Jiu is going to kill Luo Binghe. It will happen. Not now, but someday. Soon.

He bites his tongue until it bleeds when the beast shoves his knee harder into his back. “Have you learned your lesson, or are we going another round? Your choice. I wouldn’t mind breaking a few of your bones. I’ll just tell Shizun you attacked me first and I was just defending myself. We both know who he’ll believe.”

“I’ll kill you. I swear I’ll kill you.”

This time, when Luo Binghe dislocates his shoulder, he can’t smother his cry. “I suggest you don’t try. If you make a serious attempt, I’ll have to respond in kind, and Shizun will be sad.”

If only he could get his hand on the gun Luo Binghe shoved away, he would put a bullet between his eyes before the monster could mention his brother again. “He’ll be upset when he finds your body, but he’ll get over it soon enough. You’re not worth mourning.”

Luo Binghe pulls out a knife, pressing the blade through Shen Jiu’s fine clothes and into his back, careful not to push deep enough to kill. “Are you going to take his mind away from me by fucking him? It hasn’t worked very well until now, has it?”

Shen Jiu freezes. Shen Yuan can’t have told him. He’s bluffing. “You’re a sick fuck.”

Luo Binghe laughs. “Me? I’m not the one sleeping with my twin. How did you manage that, anyway? I can’t blame you for wanting Shizun, anyone with sense would, but he’s so principled when he feels like it. Did you blackmail him?”

“Did you? You call him Shizun. He considered you his student, almost his son. He’s not the one who made the first move, that’s for certain.”

The knife digs deeper into his back, but Shen Jiu is the one who struck a nerve. “Shizun is mine. You’ll never have him again.”

“You’ll never call him yours. You’ll be dead before you know it.”

“I’ll bend him over your coffin.”

There has to be some way Shen Jiu can get himself out of this situation. Fuck, why does Qi-ge never show up when Shen Jiu needs him? If Luo Binghe was distracted even for a second, Shen Jiu would steal that knife away from Luo Binghe and stake him through the heart. “Why are you even here? Came to declare war? Too late for that, mongrel. You’ve already lost it, you just don’t know it yet.”

“Quite the reverse, in fact. I came here to announce my engagement. To Shizun, obviously. I wanted to tell my brother-in-law myself, do things properly. Shizun deserves it.”

“No.”

He can’t see the beast’s smile, but he must be grinning. “Oh yes. We’ll tie it up with an alliance between our families. It will be good for us both.” The knife slides up his back, closer to his left shoulder now. “We wouldn’t want you to ruin this for everyone, now would we? So this is my warning: fuck off and never put a hand on Shen Yuan again, or it will be the last thing you ever do.”

If Luo Binghe leaves scars on him, Shen Jiu will rip his own skin off. “Over your dead body.” This isn’t happening. It can’t.

Shen Jiu is sure he can get his parents to oppose, not to mention most of their allies and underlings. It’ll be nothing to him to spin this into Luo Binghe arranging a hostile takeover, taking advantage of Shen Yuan’s better nature to try and disturb the family’s hold on the city. Not to mention throw doubt on Luo Binghe’s actual parentage. How convenient that the orphan his brother was too weak to get rid of ended up being Tianlang-Jun’s only son?

“I wasn’t asking for your permission. It is happening. You can accept it, or you can die. In the meantime-“

There's a knock on the door. “Boss? Everything worked out?”

“Yes. You can come in now.”

Shen Jiu tenses as fucking Mobei-Jun walks into his quarters like there was nothing strange in the spectacle that was Shen Jiu, disarmed and bloody, Luo Binghe holding him in place with his own weight, while Mobei-Jun himself his keeping his gun aimed at Shen Jiu’s forehead.

“Now, I think I have made my point.” The knife leaves his skin, but not before twisting a last time in the wound. “I’m going to go now. If you move a millimetre away from the spot where you are right now, Mobei-Jun will shoot you dead. Shizun will be told you reacted very badly to my announcement, and I’ll soothe his pain myself until he can’t even remember your name. So stay put.”

Shen Jiu has never been this humiliated in his life. Not only Luo Binghe, Mobei-Jun will also have to die. So will everyone that knew of this event. “You’re a dead man walking.”

Luo Binghe doesn’t bother to look back as he leaves. “I’ll make sure Shizun feel how alive I am later. Goodbye, Brother-in-law.”

Exhausted, bleeding and more furious than he’s ever been, Shen Jiu calls Yue Qingyuan. Luo Binghe wants to start a war? He’ll have one.

[delicioussshame]

Terrible Crime AU AU is what I’m doing with my rare free time. Sorry.

We’ll see if I can manage another part before tomorrow. These are short, so maybe.

"Explain yourself."

Luo Binghe has rarely been confronted with his shizun's cold anger. It suits him. "What is Shizun talking about?"

"Binghe, I'm not in the mood. Don't play dumb. You know exactly what I'm talking about."

Like he's giving up this easily. "Please forgive your Binghe. He has no idea what he did wrong, but he's willing to do anything to make things right. Shizun only has to ask."

"You dislocated Shen Jiu's shoulder. What were you thinking!?"

"He attacked me first! I was only defending myself.”

Shen Yuan’s expression doesn’t change. “Did you honestly think you could get Mobei-Jun in Shen Jiu’s quarters without anyone noticing? I’ll admit it, it was a good effort, but you were spotted. My people just decided not to interfere. The situation is already very delicate; they didn’t want to risk complicating things even further.” Shen Yuan shakes his head, visibly disappointed. “I honestly thought I’d taught you better than this. Yes, Shen Jiu hates you, but he has never done anything to you to deserve this level of retaliation! On top of it all, you know how proud he is! He’ll never live this down!”

Luo Binghe hoped they would never have a conversation on this topic. He doesn’t blame Shen Yuan for what must be Shen Jiu’s doing. Shizun would never contemplate something so crass. But for putting Shen Yuan through such an ordeal, he deserves every single thing Luo Binghe did to him and more. “Has Shizun forgotten who killed my mother?”

It’s a low blow. He doesn’t have to see Shen Yuan flinch to know it. His shizun only took him on because he felt responsible. His mother, an old caretaker, was never supposed to die that night. Shen Jiu just found her too much of a risk. That’s how he first met them. Shen Jiu, his mother’s blood on his hands, whispering furiously at Shen Yuan, visibly angry at what he considered an unnecessary death. All of his mother’s blood pooling under her through her slit throat.

He isn’t sure what happened after that, but he’d ended up in Shen Yuan’s care.

He’s still grateful Shen Yuan was patient enough to stick with him through his adaptation period. To say he was a brat would be an understatement, but at the end of the day, his mother had been his only family, so it was Shen Yuan or social services, who would give the child of a woman who worked for a well-known criminal no chance to make something of himself.

Luo Binghe still mourns his mother and he always will, but he will also always be grateful that Shen Yuan was who he got in exchange.

“I understand that Shen Jiu will never be someone you care about. I respect that. But he is my brother and will lead the family. You both need to act polite around each other at least. I’ll try to smooth this over myself, but you really did not make our lives easier.” He sighs. “At least our parents will never hear about it. Shen Jiu will definitely do anything he can to keep this quiet.”

Like hell is Luo Binghe letting Shen Yuan “smooth this over.” “This isn’t Shizun’s issue to solve. Shen Jiu and I will hash it out.”

“You want us to get married! You can’t be sending assassins at each other.”

"It's better for our marriage than Shizun going to his brother."

Shen Yuan glares. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Shizun shouldn't ask questions he doesn't want answers to."

"I don't want to hear this, do I? I think I do. What could be so bad about meeting Shen Jiu? We'll both be heads of the family. Even if our responsibilities are different, we'll see each other all the time."

Here he goes. "When I was younger, I accepted that I would have to share Shizun if I wanted a chance to be with him, but things have taken another shape. I expect my marriage to be exclusive. I consider it my right to make sure it remains so using whatever means I deem necessary. I would never hurt Shizun, obviously, but his partner, I would have no mercy for."

Shen Yuan visibly blanches.

"I trust Shizun understands my meaning?"

It takes a while before Shen Yuan nods slowly.

"Good. As long as Shizun keeps this in mind, all will be well."