#tactician rui

[nuikasa]

Part 2

Previous part

[siidaph]

Ruikasa Week 2024 Day 3-4: First Meeting + Fantasy

Fire Emblem: Awakening au

local stray tactician wakes up to see himbo prince! it is love at first sight…

[sakitenmaenjoyer]

i wanted nene you stupid bitch

[mizuribbons]

HELP I JUST FOUND THIS

now that i've made you guys care about this AU.. tucks hair behind ear

[blessingera]

my reasons why i love rui

hello!

before that, i would like to say that rui is the most unique characters in project sekai in terms of his design and lore.

look at his passionate in robots. so cute and sweet.

okay, first of all, i wanna say that his hair designs is something pretty. the combination of purple and cyan in his hair depicts diversity, as if clpl describes rui as a character who accepts diversity no matter what. if we can take this with semiotics, purple means wisdom, and cyan means calm. it means rui sees the diversity by wisdom and peaceful.

you know, i also love to spell his name. since rui's name in kanji means "variety" and his hair colors mean "diversity" if i say this with semiotics study, i think there is an implied relationship between the meaning of his hair colors and his name in kanji.

remember about his bloomfes story? i can say his character development is something realistic. we can see his 5 stages of grief there. i remember when elementary school rui was in denial-anger situation because of his loneliness and slowly in middle school (also high school) he began to accept his situation, while going through bargaining and depression.

here is the denial side of elementary school rui. (translate from japanese: "in other words, i wanna deny the lonely me-")

and here is the way rui accepted his situation and being patient. (translate from japanese: "because we know pain, we can be kind to others, and because we know sadness, we understand the importance of smiling.")

he is the gentle person and has a sincere heart. the way he treats his friends is very appreciated. he also really treasures every moment with his friends, especially to tsukasa, his positive influence. he knows how to empathize and return the favor to someone. even though he was considered as a weird, crazy, freak, or something out of the box, he is a genius and has 1001 ways to explore something interesting in his own way!

bonus: rui has a history being tsundere when he was in elementary school and it makes me adore him so much, hahaha.

don't forget that the way he speaks english fluently was something sexy, i admit it. you should know his sexy aura increased by 12000% during he speaks english!

i also love the way he bonds his good relationship with his mom. remember about his "revival my dream" event? he trusted his mom when she said that it's okay to be a weird and indirectly said "just be yourself". his mom understood his feelings, and rui did too. he is such a kind boy, isn't he?

okay, that's all about kamishiro rui in my opinion! here is my favorite costume from his card "tasogare no kagayaki" (yeah, i love tactician rui so much i could die without him).

thank you!

[captainblux3]

tactician rui for 1st day of rui week (ᵔᴥᵔ)

[blueberry-ash]

Writer’s Month 2024, Day 4 (‘stage’)

TKA, Chu Yunxiu &/ Su Mucheng. A The Earth is Online fusion, except that this is, like, only 1500 words long and the worldbuilding fits the wordcount. Don't think about it too hard.

.

Don’t ask Chu Yunxiu whether the Earth going online at the climax of the Glory World Cup had been a good thing or a bad thing.

Well, it had been a nightmare, of course. How are any of them supposed to forget the horror of their in-game moves actualising into realness? The sudden burst of pain had been as impossible to process as the sight of their changed environment; and the weight of Chu Yunxiu’s hands, inexplicably raised in an Elementalist’s familiar casting pose, had been infinitely harder to comprehend than the blank expression on Li Xuan’s face as the white of his China Glory t-shirt had bloomed bright with blood.

(“Ding dong! The game ‘World Cup, Team Competition’ has been triggered. At 20:41 on August 6, players Team China and Team Russia have safely entered the game. The players have entered the sandbox, the game map is completed, the data is loaded…”)

Whether finding themselves abruptly in the game and bleeding had been more or less shocking than the Tower’s following explanation—who could say.

Nobody has talked about it in the three months since. Or—nobody has talked about it directly with Chu Yunxiu, anyway, unless her ambiguous little dialogues with Ye Xiu can be counted. It’s not as though there haven’t been frantically hushed little conversations as the members of their fractured group have parted ways, and played, and won, and joined back up again to travel slowly eastward. And it’s hard to imagine the remaining tacticians, at the very least, not having seized those overlapping moments to stress and strategize. Still, Chu Yunxiu has wanted no part of it. It’s considerably better not to think, Chu Yunxiu has decided.

At least—it’s better not to give her mind the chance to dredge up the things it wants to dwell on, anyway.

Bad enough to be plagued by them at night, at rest, in these brief moments of anxious, uncertain quiet.

(Her home.) (Why it was only Teams China and Russia vanished from the world’s gaze—Yu Wenzhou had been told everything from an outside perspective, later, by a shaken stadium employee—and brute-forced into a Tower Game during the Black Tower’s first announcement, when everyone else had been given three days to play or not.) (Her parents.) (“Ding dong! 498.16 million players successfully loaded the game…”) (Her teammates.) (“There are four ways to enter the Black Tower, and this results in four types of identities: pro players, official players, reserve players, and stowaways. Guess which the Tower hates the most!”) (Club Misty Rain’s silly orange kitten.) (“Ding dong! China District 5’s pro player Han Wenqing and official player Lin Jingyan have successfully cleared the first floor of the Black Tower!”) (Her friends.) (“All players, please work hard to attack the Tower!”)

(What it means, what it means, what it means—)

She’d once heard Fang Rui wonder whether it would have been better to have been back home when it had begun, or even to have never played Glory at all. He’d been concussed at the time, though he’d still held a knife flat across one knee. He’d asked Su Mucheng what she’d thought, and Su Mucheng had said nothing, only looked toward Chu Yunxiu. Chu Yunxiu had looked away.

Who could afford to imagine it—to have been on a regular summer break, and at home with her family. Or to have never played Glory at all—to have been one of the faceless sea of Chinese noobs pulled into a first floor level dungeon when Han Wenqing and Lin Jingyan had opened the Tower’s first floor; to have been ignorant and unskilled and perhaps very swiftly freed from all of it.

Fang Rui had only said it the once, and nobody had answered, but Chu Yunxiu had known—well.

It would have certainly been easier, at least.

But then—

But then Su Mucheng is shifting against Chu Yunxiu’s thigh, her sleeping face swiping drool across the bare skin of Chu Yunxiu’s leg, her fingernails flexing and scraping against the rough hairs on Chu Yunxiu’s calves.

‘Yunxiu,’ Su Mucheng mumbles, the tone of someone speaking from within a bad dream.

Chu Yunxiu rests a hand against Su Mucheng’s head, petting gently.

On the other side of the café, she can just make out the back-and-forth rock of one of Huang Shaotian’s drawn-up knees. The rest of him is still and silent, a careful pillow for his captain’s bruised face. She wonders whether he’s just as awake as she is, or whether his limbs crave movement even when he’s sleeping.

‘Brother,’ Su Mucheng sighs.

At Chu Yunxiu’s other side, Ye Xiu shifts in his sleep in unconscious response.

‘It’s okay,’ Chu Yunxiu soothes both of them. ‘It’s okay. Go back to sleep.’

It’s a lie, of course. Yesterday’s dungeon was hellish, and the next will be too. Chu Yunxiu feels that the lie still matters, though, even here in the looted mess of some Czech café. Or—especially here, probably. So long as there’s still someone to whisper it to, Chu Yunxiu figures. So long as there’s Su Mucheng, and—

Don’t ask Chu Yunxiu what she might have chosen, what she might have traded, if the Black Tower had forced her to pick between anything else and Su Mucheng. Don’t you fucking dare to even think about it.

Perhaps that’s the true silver lining to their World Cup championships having been taken and warped. Perhaps that’s the almost-bright-side coming out to glint dully beneath the stains of blood and loss and grief: the fact that Chu Yunxiu hadn’t been given a choice.

None of them had, not really. Not there. Not with the frozen burn of Chu Yunxiu’s ice turning real, and the harsh crack of Wang Jiexi crashing-tumbling-stumbling down beside her. Not with the Russian national team just as shaken and confused—just as unwilling to continue the match until the Black Tower’s rules had made themselves inarguably, explicitly, violently clear.

‘We could have been in the regular season,’ Ye Xiu had said quietly, after, when people’s tears had begun to fall. ‘We could have been at home, facing each other.’

(Ye Xiu had been crying, too. Chu Yunxiu had seen the dirty tracks of it before he’d swiped his knuckles across his face. She’d seen the salt amongst the blood and she’d seen his hands shaking.) (She’d seen the way he’d hesitated, earlier, silent and frozen when the Black Tower had abruptly offered him up like some kind of sixth player—a substitute for the fallen Li Xuan, it had said, and offered the Russians two more for balance. She’d seen the way he’d only burst into motion after he’d looked toward Su Mucheng and seen the trickle of blood along her cheek.)

Team China’s players had won, in the end. They’ve kept on winning, buffered by a kind of blank relief at finding themselves mostly in relatively straightforward dungeons, or having stepped accidentally into quests, and all of it horrifying but nothing so unforgivable as what they’d done that day in Zurich.

Better not to think about the Russian players.

Better not to think at all.

Su Mucheng sighs, and snuffles, and shifts around again.

Chu Yunxiu keeps petting, stroking her fingers through Su Mucheng’s short-cropped hair until her breathing steadies out.

Ye Xiu's shoulder digs against Chu Yunxiu's. The point of Ye Xiu’s umbrella—(“Pro player Ye Xiu has cleared the game and obtained the reward ‘Tower’s Manifestations Umbrella’ and ‘Trophy’s Grudge’…”)—scrapes across the cafe’s floor as he tightens his grip subconsciously.

He’ll be awake first, Chu Yunxiu knows. He’ll wake, and he’ll yawn, and he’ll dig out a cigarette for Chu Yunxiu to share. Maybe they’ll talk in low voices about the day ahead, or the nearby dungeon they’ve been avoiding, but, either way, there’ll be less talking than smoking.

Ye Xiu gets it, Chu Yunxiu knows. Ye Xiu understands there’s only one win condition that really matters, and if Ye Xiu’s definition is somewhat broader than Chu Yunxiu’s, well—the heart of it, for both of them, is still drooling in her sleep against Chu Yunxiu’s thigh.

Apply your brain, yes, but there’s really no room for overthinking.

And if other players have been surprised—Chu Yunxiu has noticed, unable to always hide the ironic twitching of her mouth—to discover that she isn’t at all the kind of person they should be relieved to be opposing, well—

It’s not as though Chu Yunxiu hadn’t been accustomed to that already.

Let them smirk across a mini game, when someone randomly recognises her. Let them murmur that she’d only ranked pro because boobs, because her team had carried her, because her Club had made money with her face on cosmetics.

Let them go ahead and die already.

Chu Yunxiu doesn’t plan to.

[axenyan]

🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️

Just a very random and self-indulgent headcanon of Tokyo Debunker bois if they were Arknights operators. This is purely my personal opinion, but I'm also open for discussion 👁️👁️👌

I'm putting the references here in case you want to see what class does what.

Race: link

Class: link

Frostheim

🐻‍❄️ Jin (ursus), liberator guard. Bro will afk together with uncle Mlynar.

🐟 Tohma (ægir), dreadnought guard. Orca and dreadnought guard, this is just Skadi 🤣

🐧 Kaito (liberi), deadeye sniper bc bro is strong but has long atk interval.

🐶 Luca (perro), lord guard. I was thinking of giving him dualstrike (swordmaster) guard, but IIRC his stigma creates a shield? Lord guard is known for their ranged dmg, but there is also a lord guard who can kind of "protect" himself (Thorns).

Vagastrom

🐶 Alan (perro), dreadnought guard.

🦝 Sho (anaty), this is tough bc there is no motorcycle as a weapon in AK (yet)... I guess he can go as arts protector defender.

🐈 Leo (feline), geek specialist because I want to see his HP depletes over time that class is just... very Leo. I'm also thinking of ambusher specialist, but I prefer geek specialist.

Jabberwock

🦊 Haru (vulpo), tactician vanguard. He can deploy Peekaboo(s) on the ground.

🐐 Towa (caprinae), splash caster. Bro and Passenger will make thunderstorms.

🦈 Ren (ægir), executor specialist because I know he doesn't like being in the battlefield for too long. Good luck taking all the damages tho 😁 //smacked.

Sinostra

🐯 Taiga (feline), marksman sniper.

🦚 Romeo (liberi), artilleryman sniper. Bro does AoE dmg with his explosion.

🐶 Ritsu (perro), phalanx caster. Was thinking of juggernaut defender (like Penance!), but he looks more like a ranged unit than melee unit. His stigma does make him a defender of some sort, though. Fortunately, there is a ranged class that can also absorb dmg because of how tanky they are when their skill is not active, and that is phalanx caster 😋

Also....lawyer...defend....defende(

Hotarubi

🐓 Subaru (liberi... I use chicken emoji but hes supposed to be a crane jdjdjdjd), charger vanguard.

🦊 Haku (vulpo), decel binder supporter.

🐟 Zenji (ægir), dollkeeper specialist. Bro doesn't retreat when receiving lethal damage, and will be replaced by a "clone." I think he can also be a bard supporter.

Obscuary

🦇 Edward (sarkaz), hm... Thinking of ritualist supporter or primal caster. When I see him, I can only think of elemental damage for some reason 😭

🐶 Rui (perro), reaper guard.

🐺 Lyca (lupo), arts fighter guard.

Mortkranken. This dorm feels arknightsy already 😭

🐹 Yuri (zalak), harmacist-- I mean incantantion medic 😇

🦕 Jiro (vouivre), centurion guard bc bro is swinging a chainsaw around.

[audriel]

fourteen: behind the scenes

this story can be said a character study of Fang Rui and his relationships (tbh when is it not lol).

in truth, in the earliest draft, there's only one relationship that's become the focus, but as it typically happens, the character and the story tend to take a life of its own. but ultimately what brings it to completion is the Secret Santa prompt. as per en's request, the two characters chosen to become the main focus in their relationship with Fang Rui are Ye Xiu and Yu Wenzhou, with two more from the Chinese Glory team. so special mention to en (empatbelas) since they’re the reason this story gets completed.

Huang Shaotian: in comparison to the other three, there's no obvious interaction in the novel that suggests that they are closer than the typical familiarity between top gods of the League. it doesn't help that Huang Shaotian (and Fang Rui himself) is friendly with everyone. Huang Shaotian among the first to comment in Fang Rui's weibo post, then Fang Rui joins Happy's bullying of Huang Shaotian during the pre-match handshakes in the playoffs. until the prequel 'Summer of Blue Rain' that is.

not only Fang Rui shows up in Blue Rain, he also calls Huang Shaotian, Shaotian. again, considering how naturally friendly they are, it might not be enough as an evidence of their closeness. however, it's important to note that both spend time together in Blue Rain, and considering how tight-knit Blue Rain is and how social the two are, it's not impossible that they are more than merely colleagues and rivals, but friends that chat and hangout together outside of games.

Zhou Zekai: in the novel, there's only one notable interaction outside of games between the two, which is when they encountered each other after Samsara-Happy first regular match of Season 10. then there's a mention of a familiarity that's typical between pro players that debut together during the finals, but it doesn't suggest Fang Rui is as close to Zhou Zekai as Wu Yuce or even Zhou Guangyi, though it's interesting to point out that he called the latter Old Zhou, likely because he called Zhou Zekai, Little Zhou. however, then there's the prequel.

there's a pattern in the prequels: For the Glory and the Expectations of the Mediocre. all the stories tends to revolve around first meetings: Ye Xiu-Su siblings. Ye Xiu-Han Wenqing. Ye Xiu-Wu Xuefeng. Sun Zheping-Zhang Jiale. Yu Wenzhou-Huang Shaotian-Wang Jiexi. Wang Jiexi-Fang Shiqian. Yu Wenzhou-Huang Shaotian-Zhang Xinjie-Xiao Shiqin. Zhou Zekai-Fang Minhua. and based on the characters that become the focus, they are all play important roles for each other: partners, rivals, tacticians. they are equals.

and in the latest prequel, in what supposed to be Zhou Zekai and Samsara focus, suddenly a wild Fang Rui appeared. and he's not a mere cameo, unlike his previous appearance. he actually has an actual interaction, genuine exchange. and for people who's quiet and introverted like Zhou Zekai, they tend to stick close to people they're familiar with when they're getting into new place aka the League. Fang Rui might be the first friend he made outside Samsara, and quite possibly, his partner and/or rival in the future (or BB just plain adore FR, which is... fair, me too).

Yu Wenzhou: before the prequel, it's less likely for Fang Rui to be close to Yu Wenzhou, in comparison to Huang Shaotian. although there's a notable interaction in the playoffs when Lu Hanwen attempted to play dirty, the keyword here is 'attempted', making Fang Rui rolled on the ground laughing as he gestured wildly towards Blue Rain team. the one being shown having a reaction towards him is Yu Wenzhou (though this also points out how good of a relationship he has with his old team that he dares to openly tease them right in the middle of the match, it's the playoffs too).

then there's the prequel, while Fang Rui appears to mainly summon Huang Shaotian for his new silver weapon, he stays behind and calls Yu Wenzhou, Wenzhou. Unlike Huang Shaotian, Yu Wenzhou is more reserved and not to mention he's Swoksaar successor and future captain, even young as they were, I don't think any ordinary newbie (as per timeline suggests that the Challengers League conclude around the same time of S3, Fang Rui should only have less than a year in the training camp) would have that kind of familiarity with Yu Wenzhou. i come to believe, as reflected in this story, that in actuality Fang Rui is closer to Yu Wenzhou than Huang Shaotian.

Ye Xiu: and lastly, putting the most important relationship and the one that started everything. as i fall in love with Fang Rui, i recall vividly all his scenes and his interactions with others. his dynamics with Ye Xiu particularly caught my eye. Wei Chen is the first who can keep up with his trash talk in Happy, but ultimately after they officially enter the Glory Pro Alliance, it's Fang Rui. Su Mucheng is undeniably his best partner, but Fang Rui is Ye Xiu's partner in trash talk and in close range offensive. there are plenty of instances of these two working together in dealing damage in close range (i can give the receipt, if anyone wants it). these are some of my favorite interactions:

"Nice snipe." Fang Rui's Boundless Sea said in the public chat.   "I can't stay rusty forever :)" Ye Xiu replied with a smiley face. -Chapter 1163

"Clearly explain? You didn't explain at all!" Fang Rui said. "I saw that he was looking at them himself!" Ye Xiu said. "What use is looking at them himself! Are the rules that easy to digest? You need to properly teach him how to exploit the loopholes in the rules." "You shut your mouth, is exploiting loopholes and whatnot something that a respectable pro player should do?" "But there will always be a few sneaky players that do this. To defeat their sneaky tricks, you first have to understand how they'll be sneaky!" said Fang Rui. -Chapter 1164

"The ones who should be strictly criticized are the two players who went up next. Two players, and you couldn't take down the opponent's one player? Especially the third player, the great general anchoring the group arena, Fang Rui! The team didn't spend so much money to get you over here just so you could be a useless dim sum! You couldn't even take care of a Wang Jiexi?" Ye Xiu berated him. The tone of that "couldn't even take care of a Wang Jiexi" was deafening! Ever since Wang Jiexi had entered the Alliance, the reporters had never heard this kind of sentence before. "Yeah yeah yeah." To the side, Fang Rui confessed, ashamed, "I messed up, I couldn't focus my spirits to play well. Someone like Wang Jiexi, I should at least be able to fight ten of him." "That's a bit much!" Ye Xiu said. "Eight?" Fang Rui said. "Mm." Ye Xiu nodded. -Chapter 1195

“What do you mean? We purposefully gave you a shot at him, y’know?” In the chat, Fang Rui replied to Wei Chen. “Look at what wonderful people we are, giving you a chance to show off in front of your disciple. Where’s your gratitude?” Ye Xiu added. “Fine, thank you, you dumbasses,” Wei Chen retorted. -Chapter 1415

At such a crucial moment of time, Happy’s team members were still relentlessly trash talking Wei Chen, reminding him that it wouldn’t look good if his junior to defeated him. “You’re twice his age!” Ye Xiu reminded. “More than,” Fang Rui corrected. “If you get cut down so easily then that would be quite the embarrassment,” Ye Xiu said. “Indeed.” This time, Wei Chen didn’t reply. Naturally, this wasn’t because he was alright with being mocked like this, but it was because he couldn’t spare any effort into arguing with these two -Chapter 1416

“If you were my opponent, I definitely wouldn’t have fallen for that,” Fang Rui said honestly to Ye Xiu. “Nah, you definitely would have,” Ye Xiu replied back honestly. “Definitely wouldn’t have.” “Definitely would have.” -Chapter 1525

“How’s it going there? If you’re still holding on, type 1,” Fang Rui messaged. “11111111111,” Ye Xiu typed a line of 1s, showing that he was doing great. “Wow, amazing! What are we even here for?” Fang Rui replied. He was actually very shocked. -Chapter 1618

those interactions never fail to bring a smile to my face. their exchange is easy, comfortable. while at the same time when they do it during games, neither loses their focus. there also are times when they use it to cover their real intentions or use it as a mental attack, making their opponents second guess. then, i thought of the teams they left behind. 

i cannot imagine Excellent Era with Liu Hao and Wind Howl with Tang Hao responding positively to their trash talk or their overall playful, not so serious exchange, not realizing it’s also their way to lighten the team’s mood. i imagine how lonely it has been, how difficult and uncomfortable it might be, and yet here they are in Happy. another person, their teammate who can actually give as good as they get, without getting offended or losing focus in game. it’s like finding someone who can get your jokes. if i’m that happy in that situation, i bet Ye Xiu and Fang Rui are too.

and i want to particularly highlight these two interactions:

"Good joke. On the other hand, look at how sincere I am," Fang Rui said to Ye Xiu after leaving the stage, and was met with a kick. -Chapter 1139

"You useless dim sum! Are you looking for death! Hurry up and kneel!" Ye Xiu hit Fang Rui on the head. "My mistake, my mistake!" Fang Rui was weeping and crying. The others didn't know whether to be angry or amused. This communication issue was really a big problem! -Chapter 1208

my memories might be faulty, but i really, really cannot recall Ye Xiu being as physical with others as he has been with Fang Rui (besides Su Mucheng, but like that’s only once too, i think cmiiw). that’s display of another level of comfort right there

this also brings me to the other dimension of trash talk (and dirty playstyle).

Fang Rui had completely ruined the tense atmosphere in the stadium. The peak-level match had suddenly turned into an in-game 1v1 in the Glory Arena.  -Chapter 1605

Fang Rui received a warm welcome from Happy’s fans. As they cheered, he strutted around as if Happy wasn’t the team falling behind right now. He walked onto the stage, waving his hands towards the crowd as if he had won. It was only until the referee rushed over and berated him did he go into the player booth dejectedly. The crowd laughed. The tense atmosphere from Zhang Jiale’s 1v2 had lightened considerably. [...] The public chat had been very calm previously, but Fang Rui’s presence changed that. “How mighty! 1v2!” Fang Rui gave praise towards Zhang Jiale. “It’s not over yet!” Zhang Jiale replied.  “It pretty much is,” Fang Rui said. [...] You could say it was dirty, but that explosive burst of qi was very heroic. You could say that it was tyrannical, but hiding behind a wall and gathering qi was very dirty… In any case, Happy had won this round. It was a clean victory, chasing back the advantage that Zhang Jiale had gained. If Fang Rui’s previous interactions with the crowd had eased the crowd’s tension, then his dominating performance this round was a tranquilizer to Happy’s fans. -Chapter 1491

these excerpts can be said to be the best examples of how much a mood maker (or destroyer) Fang Rui can be. he can only pull this off if he is perceptive, he’s sensitive towards people’s moods and knows how to influence them. so it’s not a stretch to say that Fang Rui is a master at people’s psychology. and interestingly, this exchange sounds a bit familiar…

"Our captain is mighty." "If you've got the time to spout useless words, why don't you use it on moving your character instead?" The praise that he had typed into the public chat was only met with Ye Xiu's disdain. [...] Liu Hao would never forget the icy contempt that Ye Xiu showed towards his well-meaning compliment. To Liu Hao, calling out a beautiful play by a teammate was a way of boosting the morale of the team, but Ye Xiu maintained that his praise was too excessive. -Chapter 1279-1280

why is there such a difference in response from Ye Xiu? is it because of it’s directed towards an opponent instead of teammates, as it can be disruptive? Ye Xiu’s explanation in that very same match is that Liu Hao is always unable to put one hundred percent of his attention into the match. there are far too many other things he’s concerned about. is that all, or is there something else?

my first and main guess, is that Ye Xiu has a higher and better regard for Fang Rui. this started from their first official interaction in the novel.

"In the end, it's the experienced players who are harder to deal with!" When Ye Xiu saw Fang Rui's decision, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart. [...] In the end, it's the experienced players who are harder to deal with! Fang Rui came up with the same evaluation. -Chapter 1110

what’s also interesting in this chapter is that this shows their thoughts, and their thoughts are strikingly similar. this also might be BB sowing the seeds early of how Fang Rui would have fit in Happy under Ye Xiu easily.

“He’s not wasting the foundation that Mo Fan lay down for him. What a reliable guy!” Ye Xiu sighed. -Chapter 1447

Reliable, such an assessment coming from Ye Xiu should be a huge compliment. after all, this is the man who believes that Glory isn’t a single-player game. 

“You gonna be okay?” Ye Xiu grinned as he asked Fang Rui. For the other Happy players who didn’t know that Fang Rui wasn’t himself right now, it didn’t sound like anything was wrong. The team had four senior members. Apart from Su Mucheng, the other three weren’t exactly the most serious people. It was common for them to talk trash about each other. But Fang Rui knew that these seemingly normal joking words had real meaning today. “Even if I’m not, I’ve got to go. The team really can’t do without me,” Fang Rui said proudly. The others on Happy didn’t find anything wrong, but Ye Xiu could hear what Fang Rui was implying: Yes, we don’t have any other choice. No matter how things are, I have to go. Ye Xiu didn’t say anything more. He wasn’t completely clear how Fang Rui’s condition was, but he knew that Fang Rui was a responsible player. He wasn’t going to play if he didn’t think he could win. It could only mean that he could still fight. He didn’t want to go before probably because he only wanted to fight if it was necessary, and right now was the time. -Chapter 1655

Responsible. 

THIS. this might be what sets Fang Rui apart from Liu Hao the most: he’s a responsible player. he always sees the big picture, he thinks of the ultimate goal: victory, and he never forgets he needs a team to achieve that. his trash talk and his playful demeanor onstage and offstage, his silence when he’s not feeling the best, his voluntary choice to step up when needed… are all in consideration of victory, and being as perceptive (and former vice captain) as he is, he knows how important morale is. Liu Hao can preach as much as he wants that he wants to boost the team’s morale, but Ye Xiu isn’t buying it, he knows Liu Hao’s doing it for himself, not for the team, not really as he’s always concerned about other things irrelevant to the game, to victory.

it’s no wonder that Ye Xiu finds it easy to trust Fang Rui despite having less time to build a rapport with, especially compared with the rest of Happy who has been building the team with him from scratch, and even when he’s not exactly close to Fang Rui. i say this with confidence because it’s noted that Ye Xiu needed to open a new chat window to pull Fang Rui to Happy, which means their only contact is limited to around official matches or All-Stars.

Ye Xiu’s trust and reliance in Fang Rui shows up many times throughout the novel, but it’s notably obvious in during the playoffs.

“I would’ve been fine even without your help,” Fang Rui suddenly said. “Huh?” Steamed Bun replied. “Not you, Steamed Bun,” Ye Xiu typed a reply as fast as he could. Though he knew that Fang Rui was talking to him, but if they let Steamed Bun misunderstand, then things would go downhill very fast. “We’re counting on you, Steamed Bun,” Fang Rui also broke out into cold sweat, hurriedly pitching in and making sure that Steamed Bun was focused and happy. [...] Ye Xiu and Fang Rui’s hearts calmed. Let him be as wasteful as he wants; it’s better than going completely out of it. “It’s all up to you!” Ye Xiu once again made sure Steamed Bun focused, but his words had a second meaning. Fang Rui understood, knowing that Ye Xiu was actually talking to him. As for Steamed Bun, the other cheerfully gave an acknowledging reply. Fang Rui didn’t dare tell him the truth of the matter. -Chapter 1474

Ye Xiu is trusting the handling of Steamed Bun, the most difficult to understand player in Happy, the greatest wildcard and variable in the game, to Fang Rui.

then there’s the playoffs against Tyranny.

Back on the battlefield, Happy had regrouped under Ye Xiu’s orders. They clearly didn’t want to continue fighting with Tyranny here. They wanted to reset the battle and fight in a different place. During this gradual process, Happy’s players began to regain their calm. Even Ye Xiu had felt distressed over the loss of Fang Rui. He wasn’t nearly as calm as he appeared. The others were even more so. -Chapter 1565

before finally Fang Rui is sent out of the game, until the very end Ye Xiu tried to save him, even when Fang Rui himself told the team to leave him. In that scene, Ye Xiu is even shown to be visibly distressed, which says a lot.

"Du Ming's in really good condition today. Be careful," Ye Xiu said to Fang Rui. "In better condition than me?" Fang Rui scoffed. "Haha," Ye Xiu laughed. "What's 'haha' supposed to mean!" Fang Rui could feel the disdain from Ye Xiu's laugh. "You're getting paid the most out of all of us. Please," Ye Xiu said. -Chapter 1605

the please tacked on really shakes me to the core, i can imagine it's more so for Fang Rui. that proud and stubborn Ye Xiu, needs to resort to something close to begging in desperation. i may be reading into things, but another interesting point in this scene is how Ye Xiu is not hiding his disdain. Ye Xiu is really careful in revealing his emotions, particularly negative ones. and yet here he is, doing so. for me, it’s like the mask is off, the guard is lowered, in that single moment.

“But… No matter what the map is, have you thought about not letting Fang Rui go onstage?” Chen Guo said. Ye Xiu fell silent.  -Chapter 1635

Just two of them were left. Su Mucheng stood behind Ye Xiu, watching him reclassify the recordings, articles, images, etc. from before and save them. “How do you feel?” Su Mucheng suddenly asked. “How do I feel? You mean about Fang Rui?” Ye Xiu said, without turning his head.  -Chapter 1636

By then, Ye Xiu had returned to Happy’s area. He also had to decide on the next person Happy was to send up. But this was not an easy decision. Even though Ye Xiu did not lose in spirit to Zhou Zekai, not even he could suppress the opponent’s confidence. Zhou Zekai would continue his fight-to-the-death attitude and launch an aggressive offensive. Happy needed to send up someone with lots of experience and ability to quickly adapt to changes to tango with Zhou Zekai. Fang Rui! He was the most suitable choice. When Ye Xiu thought this, his gaze wandered in Fang Rui’s direction. But just as he did so, his heart sank a little. Fang Rui was also looking back at him, but his gaze gave off an abnormal sense of calm. Ye Xiu understood Fang Rui. Even though he was the epitome of playing dirty, he was definitely not the kind to bully the weak and avoid the strong. Fang Rui must also understand how crucial this coming match was. In these moments, judging by Fang Rui’s usual personality, he probably would have already volunteered to play next without being asked. But now, not only Fang Rui did not speak up, but he still stayed silent when he caught Ye Xiu’s eyes. Ye Xiu immediately knew that Fang Rui wasn’t at his best. The burden from last match probably hadn’t been completely erased by the two days’ worth of rest. Fang Rui staying silent was his way of not hurting Happy’s morale. But at this moment, he decided to stay silent after he exchanged looks with Ye Xiu. This was because he knew Ye Xiu would understand him right away. -Chapter 1651

Mo Fan, who hadn’t contributed anything last round, looked even more dejected when he returned. The comforting from his teammates were completely ignored. “Don’t worry,” Ye Xiu looked towards him. Mo Fan walked right past him. Those words were too light. How could he casually wave off such a devastating defeat? “Your teammates are still fighting,” Ye Xiu continued. Mo Fan turned his head. Ye Xiu was no longer looking at him. Mo Fan followed Ye Xiu’s gaze to Fang Rui, who was still holding his clenched right hand up in the air. “So we haven’t lost,” Ye Xiu turned his head to look at him. -Chapter 1655

Fang Rui patted Qiao Yifan, and his attitude was also very sincere. “Without me, you guys will be the ones working very hard.” Everyone laughed. But after laughing, they felt that these words, although shameless, were true. Fang Rui’s strength, Boundless Sea’s strength, were stronger than the new players and new accounts of Happy. Without him, the rest of them really would have to work very hard. “Then we’ll work harder.” Ye Xiu nodded. -Chapter 1675

the first to the last scenes are Ye Xiu not denying Fang Rui’s strength and importance to the team. it also shows Ye Xiu’s tendency to look to and for Fang Rui. i want to remind you of the scene when Ye Xiu was checking on everyone’s state before the playoffs, and kept wondering of Fang Rui’s whereabouts until Su Mucheng told him that he went to bed early. Don’t also forget this infamous scene:

It was a shocking performance, but as Ye Xiu watched and watched, his original smile grew a bit heavy. He glanced at Fang Rui’s booth again, and seeing that there was still no movement, he quickly walked over. [...] Even though Ye Xiu was still smiling, that heaviness from earlier still hadn’t faded. When he saw Su Mucheng looking at him, he returned the gaze, answered Su Mucheng’s doubts. -Chapter 1634

Ye Xiu is the first to notice the abnormality of Fang Rui and the first to make a move to check on Fang Rui. he's also the one who doesn't buy Fang Rui's act.

this trust and understanding go both ways.

"It was well done," Fang Rui nodded. "But it wasn't easy, no?" "What?" Chen Guo was puzzled. When she looked at Ye Xiu, she discovered that he didn't look too happy about his win. Even though Ye Xiu wasn't the type to show his emotions easily, his expression wasn't very relaxed despite winning. Chen Guo realized her perspective of the match was too shallow. She looked at Su Mucheng, and from Su Mucheng's gaze towards Ye Xiu, she could see… worry. [...] "It wasn't easy," Ye Xiu said.  -Chapter 1273

The trophy. The gleaming golden trophy, symbolizing the greatest Glory, was finally given to Happy. Ye Xiu accepted it with both hands. But immediately afterwards, the trophy slipped between his fingers. “Ah!!” As the crowd cried out in surprise, to Ye Xiu’s left and right, Su Mucheng and Fang Rui swiftly reached out to support the trophy. -Chapter 1727

It’s Su Mucheng and Fang Rui who are the first to react and help Ye Xiu to support his tired fingers to lift up the trophy, and Fang Rui himself is unlikely to have fully recovered by then too.

whoops it grows into such a long analysis into Fang Rui and Ye Xiu’s relationship. i’d also point out that Ye Xiu’s trust and reliance on Fang Rui is not baseless, besides the legendary play that heralds Fang Rui’s return to godhood. it’s been pointed out that Happy’s excellent record is due to Fang Rui as much as Ye Xiu’s. (not core player my ass. sorry my beloved dimsum, but we’re gonna agree to disagree)

Fang Rui growing accustomed to his new playstyle was an indispensable contribution to Happy's recent strong performance. After being thrown off by Ye Xiu's unspecialized Lord Grim, the various members of the Alliance now faced another playstyle that they couldn't immediately understand, that caused them just as much difficulty as Lord Grim. -Chapter 1225

this, alongside the brief mention that player(s) from abroad seems to disdain these kinds of dirty tricks from Wei Chen, makes a strong argument that if Ye Xiu has his pick in the national team roster, he will certainly have Fang Rui.

meanwhile, it is merely my speculation that Fang Rui is the one replacing Han Wenqing. however, i feel it’s not without basis. the numbering on the national team, for one. then there’s the distribution of class and ability. I’ve read some analysis, and many are leaning towards Fang Rui as one of the candidates. more so if Wei Chen’s comment of dirty playing is being disdained is true and not mere exaggeration, Fang Rui’s not being the first choice is much higher and for Ye Xiu, who needs to work miracles as the Team Leader in the short time, for him choosing Fang Rui is a no brainer: a player that is unpredictable and unfamiliar to opponents, and a teammate whom he trusts and relies on, with whom he can pick for both individual and team competition. 

i kinda have to add the last one because the younger members of the national team are not very known for their teamwork. and Fang Rui, both as a player and as Qi Master, is incredibly versatile. he has high adaptability. case in point: him fitting in the grassroots, online game background Happy with surprising ease. for this reason Happy is nigh invincible in online games and robbing BOSSes compared to other pro players. this shows that that online game style is not easy for pro players with a formal training background, and yet here Fang Rui who debuted in the Fifth Year easily fitting in like he’s been with Happy from day one.

that’s why i headcanon Fang Rui as a diplomat’s son, who is used to moving to different countries, learning different languages and cultures. it’s also why he’s so perceptive when it comes to people and language (read: loopholes). in the national team, he will be the unofficial vice captain to Yu Wenzhou and right hand to Ye Xiu. while they have single rooms during training, they will have roommates during the actual competition abroad, which i think will make more sense, in the case of anything going wrong (lateness, forgetfulness, you name it). so it’s likely for Ye Xiu and Fang Rui to room together. yeah, i definitely have some ideas for the World Invitationals, writing them is another matter.

thank you for reading this long author’s-note-turned-meta! i’d love to hear more from you about this story (and my note).

[dangokasa]

★

In this post you’ll find a few things to take in mind before sending any kind of asks and to know how this askblog will be run. Please, be aware that this blog is run by two people, one of them the creator of the au.

1). You can send as many asks you want to! as long it’s related to the au, there’s no limits. Take in mind that asks won’t be answered immediately UNLESS, they are directed to the author/mods. In case you want to send something to any of them please refer to them as author/name. Unless you don’t state the name, we will assume the question is directed to Tsukasa and/or Rui.

2). No hate, any kind of anonymous question directed to promote hate will be immediately delete and won’t be posted and user will be automatically blocked if you send it with your blog name. The content created for this blog and the au in general is for fun, if you want to promote hate do it somewhere else.

3) Nsfw questions are not allowed by any means, this space is a safe space for everyone. Dark themes are allowed as long they aren’t something very explicit, gore/cannibalism won’t be allowed, questions related will be deleted asap.

4) Questions related to story and plot wise, will be answered with/without images attached to the ask sometimes, please don’t expect every single ask to be always drawn, takes time and energy and there’s a human behind the screen, please always remember that.

5) You can send questions to any character related or shown in the au, while the au is about Ruikasa, all the characters can be asked question as long it’s related to any of these two. If you want a specific answer, either from Ruikasa from the past or the present, please clarify it! if you want to ask a question to Dragonkasa and Tactician Rui, send (past) and the question and if you want to send something to Dragonkasa and Student rui, there’s no necessary to clarify, by default any question will be directed to them.

6) have fun!! 

Thanks for reading so far, I hope you guys enjoy your stay here! 

[nuikasa]

I noticed Dragonkasa is getting more and more detached to his past self where he used to wear a lot of ornaments as a sign of respect for his title and because he loves to be a show off lmao.

But that isn't even needed in the present where he is not remembered by anyone, he isn't a god, he doesn't have to do anything for others and he is all alone.

Till Rui came into the picture and he started to show him the world as what is it today. He is experiencing what a normal human does, what they enjoy, what they do to have fun and he likes it.

[the-archlich]

Hello since I saw you were rating wish list for DW hope its oke for me to share mine and ask for your thoughts thanks a lot and feel free to ask me my reasoning for them.

Wei: Cao Hong, Cao Zhen (two very important commanders for cao cao), Zhang Xiu (another top cao commander would also help flesh out Jia xu as they were very close historically), Zhong Yao (Zhong Huis dad a very early supporter of cao cao eventually became a top minister extremely interesting guy)

For Wu:

Zhuge Jin, Zhuge Ke ( I don’t think I need to justify it lol), He Qi (very important and skilled general who really helped Sun Quan hold his southern territories also his dw blast design makes him look like wu’s version of Zhang He which i like), Zhang Zhao (was pretty much Sun Quans father figure and closest minister)

Shu (my favorite):

Honestly many, I would even consider removing some of the fictional characters because out of those the only one i like and feel contributes anything to the story is Guan Suo. Anyways

Liao Hua (do I even need to say why lol), Wang Ping (Top general was able to overcome a learning disability and rise to the top), Fei Yi (would really help add an interesting dynamic to Jiang Wei), Zhang Yi or Ma Zhong (either would help fill out with another disciplined warrior) maybe Zhuge Zhan but he comes in quite late.

My least favorite sorry Jin:

Another Sima (so many talented Sima’s lol) my personal choice would be Sima Yi’s brother, Sima Fu (very important minister I think he became imperial chancellor but more loyal to Wei than jin could provide some nice tension with his relatives)

Yang Hu (very important Jin figure although most of his achievements came late in the period, really this is my major beef with Jin) or maybe Hu Lie for similar reasons.

Other:

One of the Yuan Brothers either Shang or Tan would add a nice bit of drama and excitement to Cao Cao’s northern conquest

Liu Biao (super important figure of the period involved with nearly every important faction and character)

Han Sui (really interesting warlord and had a long life) if they decide to go the novel route a one handed moveset would be interesting as well

One of the bandit factions leaders; i like what total war did with the bandit Zhang yan and the bandit queen. It be cool if koei could try something similar good suggestions imo would be Zhang Yan, Yang Feng, or Zang Ba

Cao Hong was very important and might be a good foil for some of the established members of the family, presenting a new dimension to their interactions. Cao Zhen is also hugely important and could be a great foil for Cao Pi and Cao Xiu; showing how important he was also makes it easier for people to understand why his son was given so much authority after Cao Rui's death. Zhong Yao is one of the most important people of the era and while the Wei faction is pretty heavy with tacticians at this point, there's always room for someone of his accomplishments. Zhang Xiu is certainly one of the people I'd love to see. Great for Jia Xu as a character and he can add some muscle to some battles that are otherwise pretty lacking in significant enemies.

Zhuge Jin and Zhuge Ke don't need to be justified, you're absolutely right. That's all pretty obvious. He Qi is pretty significant (arguably one of the most significant people of the era since his efforts to settle the Han population in southern China and bring the region under Han control had long-lasting effects) and pretty unique. I wouldn't be upset about that. Zhang Zhao also goes without saying. He has every quality I'd look for in a new character; long career, close personal relationships to characters who need them, many historical accomplishments, unique personality, etc.

Liao Hua is a pretty common choice. He has longevity on his side (always good but especially for that faction since so many major people all died around the same time) and enough accomplishments to his credit to justify it. Yi is, of course, one of my favorites. It'd be great to have him to represent the leadership between Zhuge Liang and Jiang Wei and their different styles, and his assassination is a huge narrative beat that can really set up Shu's final act. Wang Ping and Ma Zhong were commanders whose accomplishments alone justify their inclusion, in addition to their unique personality traits and history. Zhuge Zhan has potential to be a very intersting character, although I doubt they'd have the guts to go all out with it and have him be part of the court's corruption. Zhang Yi (Junsi) would be an unexpected choice but not totally useless. For Zhang Yi (Bogong), I'd say the same things I said about Liao Hua. And for Zhang Yi (Boqi; often called Zhang Ni), the same as Wang Ping and Ma Zhong.

There are alot of Sima family members who would be decend additions. I think Sima Fu is one of the best, since he was perhaps the most important and had such a lengthy career; he could also really bring out some aspects of his relatives we don't currently see. I think Yang Hu is highly overrated; Hu Lie is pretty great though. He and his brother Hu Fen, along with their father Hu Zun, are all good choices IMO.

The Yuan family could always use a bit more meat to it; I think which members are most useful to have depends on how you choose to expand their tale. I do think Yuan Tan is particularly important, though, given his achievements under his father.

Liu Biao needs no justification. Han Sui is an interesting choice but one that I like.

I can see the merit in including someone to represent one of the major bandit factions of the time, though I'm not sure exactly who I'd cuse. Of the ones you listed, probably Zang Ba since he has much more going on than the others.

[lynne-monstr]

still thinking about this and.

xiao shiqin casually laments to his tactician friends that it's too bad sun xiang wants nothing to do with him after excellent era. sun xiang has been painfully polite to him during this time on the national team so far, and xiao shiqin is so proud of how far he's come. but it would be nice if he would drop the mask and just yell at xiao shiqin so they could move past it. meanwhile all the other tacticians (plus bonus wang jiexi) are making incredulous faces at each other because they have all seen sun xiang making sad puppy eyes at xiao shiqin's back after every single practice and team dinner.

and all the while, sun xiang is lamenting to zhou zekai and su mucheng that xiao shiqin will never view him as anything but the spoiled brat he used to be. su mucheng, who has been sworn to secrecy by xiao shiqin about xiao shiqin's crush on sun xiang, does an epic mental faceplam.

luckily, one day zhou zekai talks to fang rui who talks to huang shaotain who has the inside scoop from yu wenzhou, and a plan is born.

neither xiao shiqin nor sun xiang can understand why they suddenly find themselves alone in rooms together at random instances all the time.

fic where sun xiang leaves excellent era on good terms with xiao shiqin but walks away with the assumption that xiao shiqin only ever tolerated him during their time together. (he doesn't blame xiao shiqin. how could he. looking back on his own behavior makes sun xiang want to cringe into oblivion). he thinks fondly of xiao shiqin but doesn't make any effort to contact him once he's at samsara. he spent enough time as an obnoxious brat, he's going to do better now.

meanwhile, xiao shiqin is wondering why sun xiang has been ignoring him ever since they parted ways. he really thought that they formed a connnection during that finale match, and so can only come to the conclusion that sun xiang has some lingering resentment that xiao shiqin's plans weren't enough to beat team happy.

anyway, this all comes to a head at worlds when they find themselves back on the same team and it's awkward.

[tearwolfe]

Do you think tactician would ever use dragon Kasa's chest as a pillow? Like not in a weird way OBVIOUSLY but like yknow do you ever think he'd just snuggle up to him and rest in his chest and dragon Kasa acts all bashful about it but he actually loves it and is super cuddly and is like a big cat and hhhhhhhhh

rui sparks joy....

[shijiujun]

Okay I’ve decided to do a single rec after I finish one novel hahaha because if I wait to get around to it all it’ll never happen! Anyway because @sarah-yyy​​ has been reading it and I’ve gotten a lot of asks/replies on this, I’m just going to do one huge list for one of my faves so everyone knows what’s going on and where to find things XD

- Part of Min’s ‘Why You Should Read’ Series -

Summary: 

This is set in a historical setting where men can marry other men, but it’s usually reserved for sons who were not borne by the official main first wife of the patriarch of the family, i.e. a son born by a concubine in a family may be forced to marry a man to keep him from being able to become the next family’s patriarch for example. This is because any family’s next leader needs to be able to have children with a wife who married in as a zheng shi (lawful wife), and not a ce shi (second wife) or any other concubines/mistresses etc. Most of these men who marry other men have to take them as their zheng shi and lawful spouse in a sense, and the same goes for the royal family.

The story starts with third prince Jing Shao, who was forced to marry Mu Han Zhang, a Marquis’ second son, by the Empress and Emperor, thereby officially and effectively cutting him out of the race for the throne. He’s mocked by the public as everyone knows what this means, and for the next 10 years, he neglects Mu Han Zhang, blaming him for his predicament, and deliberately showers his three other concubines with affection in front of him, but 10 years later, when Jing Shao is accused of treason, everyone leaves him except for Mu Han Zhang. They are chased to the edge of the cliff by soldiers, and Mu Han Zhang dies in his arms having taken an arrow meant for him earlier, and Jing Shao jumps off the cliff with his dead body, and promises that if there’s a next life, he will do everything Han Zhang says, and love him.

He wakes up immediately on the night of his marriage with Han Zhang, and realizes that he’s been given a second chance to make everything right. Han Zhang is definitely afraid of him, humiliated and angry when he first wakes up after how rough Jing Shao was with him earlier on their wedding night, and he has no memories of their past life. Jing Shao then sets to SHOWER HAN ZHANG with affection, love and basically everything, because he realized that this is the only person who stayed by his side until the end, and then he falls in love with Han Zhang properly this time, and also deals with every single person who maligned and schemed against him in his previous life, with Han Zhang by his side.

Read: 

Novel (Online) | Novel (Print) - Not Available | Novel Translations | Manhua (You’ll have to download the KuaiKan app, the chapters are currently all free)

Characters:

1. 景韶 Jing Shao - 3rd Prince and is the first out of his three other brothers to be given a title 成王 (cheng wang). He’s referred to as 王爷, and also 小勺 (xiao shao) by Han Zhang. Went out on his first war when he was 14, and was thus given a title before any of his brothers. He’s known for being a merciless, cold and fierce army general/commander, but this was before his second life with Han Zhang, where he puts on like his doting mode and is basically a dumbass XD who listens to Han Zhang with a lot of trust, which is cool and all.

He marries Han Zhang when he’s 19, and in his first life he was very reluctant and resistant, and neglected Han Zhang for 10 years, until he was charged with treason and hunted down. 

In his first life he wanted to snatch the throne, even from his blood-related brother Jing Chen, but more out of spite than anything else because he felt he was dealt an unfair hand by having to marry Han Zhang. Not only that, but Jing Shao is not his father’s favourite son, and he always felt that the emperor was biased against him. Anyway, a huge accumulation of daddy and anger issues, which is fair.

When he realizes that Han Zhang died for him, he decides he will be good to Han Zhang if they are reborn in their next life.

2. 慕含章 Mu Han Zhang - The 2nd son of Marquis Bei Hou’s, born to a concubine. He’s called by his 表字 which is 君清 (jun qing) by Jing Shao. Official First Wife Bei Wei Hou-furen and her son (who is in line to inherit the Marquis title from his father) has bullied him all his life, and wanted to push him into greater desperation by marrying him to Jing Shao, knowing he will suffer at the hands of the supposed merciless/heartless wangye. He has a weak body because of an accident when he was younger, and in his first life he was really sick after being neglected for 10 years, and knowing this in their second life, Jing Shao does everything he can to take care of him.

He is incredibly smart, has a brain for business and sales, and is also very good at handling people, especially scheming ones. He aids Jing Shao in the beginning of their second life, and then Jing Chen later as well, as both brothers begin to fight to put Jing Chen on the throne, against the 1st and 4th Princes. Is an incredibly good tactician in war as well.

3. 景琛 Jing Chen - 2nd Prince, Jing Shao’s blood related older brother who is handsome af too. His title, given later in the novel, is 睿王 (rui wang). He was misunderstood by Jing Shao in the first life as Jing Shao thought it was his brother who led to him marrying Han Zhang, and because he’s not very good at expressing himself and shows his concern to Jing Shao by nagging at him, Jing Shao always thought he hated him. In their second life, Jing Shao already knows that Jing Chen loves him and did a lot for him in his first life, and so trusts his brother and supports him right off the bat, because Jing Chen is indeed the most suited person for the throne.

He has a wife and a concubine, 3 sons and 2 daughters at this point. He ends up helping Jing Shao a lot, and when he realizes that Han Zhang is way more adept at politics and the whole scheming thing than Jing Shao is, he begins trusting Han Zhang a lot more as well! There’s a surprise with Jing Chen hahaha which I loveee and could see, but wasn’t sure until they confirmed it in the last few chapters AHAHAHAHA.

Other Notable Characters:

1. Song Ling Xin (Second Wife) on the left, and two other concubines on the right

They’re pretty much vying for Jing Shao’s attention, but at this point apparently he hasn’t slept with any of them before. Song Ling Xin is the daughter of the Military Department’s Head Song An, and Jing Shao married her initially out of interest. The right most concubine (I forgot her name oops) was a gift given to him by his oldest brother, the 1st Prince. The two of them played a huge role in Jing Shao’s downfall back in his first life, and so in his second life, he especially detests Song Ling Xin. Plus the three of them keep bullying Han Zhang in the beginning, but thankfully Jing Shao is like: “Anything my Jun Qing wants”. They don’t stay around for long either, watch as Jing Shao gets rid of them like he’s swatting flies.

2. Xiao Yuan & Zhou Da-Ge

This is another male couple who’s been married for 7-8 years if I recall. Xiao Yuan is one of Jing Shao’s important allies and friends in the second life, because in Jing Shao’s first life, this was one of the only young officials in court who spoke up for him when the accusations of treason came about. Zhou Da-Ge is his husband, who is a cook running a restaurant in the city. Whenever Zhou Da-Ge bullies Xiao Yuan in bed a little too much, Xiao Yuan punishes him by making him wear colourful clothes out (pink, bright yellow, purple, etc.) and thus he has a reputation for being eccentric and a weirdo, but oh well, all for love.

3. Gu Huai Qing

One of Jing Shao and Jing Chen’s most powerful allies, and he becomes blood-sworn brothers with Jing Shao without realizing who he is. Later he takes a liking to Jing Chen.

(Will update with photos when they come out, but they’re a bit further into the story so we won’t have them for a few months yet ahahaha)

Amazing Scenes:

Jing Shao & Han Zhang first looks in the manhua

Jing Shao being THAT clingy husband and helping Han Zhang to wear his clothes properly so cute!!!!!

Han Zhang and Jing Shao in their first lives (10 years later), about to die, sad and then Jing Shao jumps down the cliff with Han Zhang’s corpse, regretful cuz he a dumb bij

Jing Shao unable to resist kissing Han Zhang’s cheek, realizes what he’s doing, and gets embarrassed LMAOOOO 没出息!!!!!!! (This is different from the novel, because in the novel Jing Shao just kisses and is done with that, the embarrassment part is drawn in only in the manhua hahaha)

Other Things I Like in the Novel:

Jing Shao is like, he does a 180 entirely and he is very cognisant of all his faults and what he did wrong previously, and how badly he treated Han Zhang, so he legit forces his brain to go “I will listen to Jun Qing from now on” and he really sticks to it!

Loves kissing and teasing Han Zhang, but doesn’t force him into bed after their wedding night, and instead goes to Xiao Yuan and asks for tips on how to make his partner feel less scared about sex

The both of them end up with a pet tiger?!! That’s called Xiao Huang (little yellow) LMAO

They nap together a lot which I love <3333

Jing Shao knows he’s bullied at home, so when they go back to the Marquis Bei Hou manor, he holds Han Zhang’s hand in front of everyone to let them know Han Zhang has someone to back him up

Brings Han Zhang to war because he “cannot concentrate if Jun Qing isn’t with me at all times” - and asks for special permission to do so

Han Zhang notes that since he married Jing Shao, as the ‘wife’ he is supposed to serve Jing Shao, but it’s always Jing Shao serving him - Getting water for him, bringing him to baths, putting clothes on for him, putting food in his plate if it tastes nice, massaging his back and waist etc. - and best is he doesn’t have to deal with any in-laws?!! HAHAHA

Jing Shao gets revenge on those who hurt Han Zhang when he was younger for him, and the outcome is pretty hilarious but well-deserved

EPILOGUES are cute af!!!!

[seekfelt]

so the new duplicate system in starira unlocks “characteristics” for cards--in battle they only grant a small effect, but the interesting thing is the devs meticulously picked what “characteristic” defines a role. here are all the “characteristics” for the stage girl cards out right now, describing the characters themselves

karen - a last-minute participant (飛び入り) hikari - mysterious (ミステリアス) mahiru - bright and open, like the sun (ほがらか) claudine - competitive in spirit (競争心) maya - a genius (天才) junna - an erudite (博識) nana - obsessed (執念) futaba - ambitious (大志) kaoruko - confident in oneself (自信家) 

ichie - a mood maker (ムードメーカー) fumi - revived (再起) rui - wholeheartedly devoted [to someone] (一途)

misora - powerful (パワフル) shizuha - elegant (優雅)

michiru - a tactician (策略家) mei fan - boar-headed (猪突猛進) yachiyo - a mad genius (鬼才) 

koharu - stoic (ストイック) hisame - neat and tidy (清楚) suzu - cheerful (快活)