#but they are all moments where wwx makes him feel something

[wangxianficfinder]

In the mood for...

March 7th

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1. There's been many fics where wwx takes his revenge, or fights for himself and his place and there are people to support him in it. ITMF fics where someone takes revenge for wwx / fights for wwx. Showing a lover love for him / brother or sister's love for him / mother's or parental figure's love for him.

And Time Is But a Paper Moon by sami (M, 139k, WangXian, XiChengQing, Time Travel, Fix-It, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Healing, Mental Health Issues, PTSD, Hurt/Comfort, Depression, BAMF WWX, BAMF JC, BAMF LWJ, BAMF JYL, Getting Together)

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2. ITMF:

A) War general wwx and/or lwj

B) W ar veterans wwx and/or lwj

2A)

the wei to the kingdom (is through the prince's heart) by Bird_of_Dreams (T, 4k, wangxian, Historical AU, royal family, Tournaments, Mutual Pining, WWX levels of obliviousness) features WY as a general but the war is over and doesn't feature in the story

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

The Silver Thread General by Itszero (E, 70k, wangxian, Imperial China, No Powers, General WWX, Older WWX, Younger LWJ, Age Difference, Bottom LWJ, Forced Marriage, Protective WWX, POV LWJ, Childhood Friends, WWX is a Wēn, He was raised by them, WangXian Centric) wwx is a general but this isn't a fighting in war story

rebuttable presumption by sarah-yyy (WangXian, Angst with a Happy Ending, Arranged Marriage, Hurt LWJ, Enemies to Lovers)

2B)

Recovery by Unforth (G, 27k, WangXian, Modern AU, Rabbit Breeder LWJ, Veteran LWJ, Veteran WWX, PTSD, therapy animals, Therapy Rabbits, LWJ is an Asshole Sometimes, Doctor WQ, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Former Prisoner of War WWX, LXC is a Good Brother, Gray Asexual LWJ, Anxiety Disorder)

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3. A) Hello, I'm looking for wwx centric and xz centric (this part in a YZ post ~Mod L) fics. Anything that has them as the main focus works. I'd prefer if their relationship with someone else is not main focus of the fic, rather, it's more about them as an individual???

B) Any fics where wwx leaves/runs away after everything instead of dying. Just want to see him making a life on his own, discovering himself, healing, etc. Modern aus are fine too.

Have a good day! @kthvcult

3A)

🔒 in this corner of the world by akahua (G, 4k, wangxian, Kind of angsty, Cooking, Chinese Food, Inspired by Little Forest, Food as a Metaphor for Love, Comfort Food, Sichuan Cuisine, Spicy Food, Hunan Cuisine, Suzhou Cuisine, Soup, Lotus Root and Pork Rib Soup for the Soul, Modern Setting) also fits 3B

3B)

something left to save by androids_fighting93 (E, 57k, wangxian, Canon Divergence, No Bloodbath of Nightless City, JYL Lives, Not Everyone Dies AU, Hurt/Comfort, single dad WWX, Sick Character, Golden Core Reveal, the lightest d/s dynamic if you squint, handjobs, Anal Sex, Canon-Typical Dynamics) Does it count as alone if he takes A-Yuan with him?

Crazy, Rich Cultivators by ShanaStoryteller (Not rated, 13k, wangxian, Modern Cultivation, Idiots in Love, Misunderstandings, POV LWJ, īthis started as a crazy rich asians au but quickly got away from me, light moments of angst but mostly shenanigans)

Something Warm and Safe by Winxhelina (T, 13k, wangxian, JYL & WWX, Domestic Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Family Feels, Warm, Friendship/Love, Love, much softer than it seems, Not Everyone Dies AU, Canon Divergence)

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4. Hi!! thank u guys so much for all your effort! i was hoping that in the next in the mood for (though i’d love a comp with this vibe) could i get a fic where wwx is genuinely loved by the juniors/has a good dynamic with them? I was thinking something close to what’s written in the “hills and rivers” series (and every single one where they will throw down to defend him no questions asked). Thank you! @thwispsings

Joy In the Midst of These Things series by Glitterbombshell (T, 53k, wangxian, post-canon, hurt/comfort, angst w/ happy ending, fluff, teacher WWX, trauma & recovery)

Proximity To Knowledge by ChilianXianzi (T, 7k, wangxian, Post-Canon, Married Wangxian, Chief Cultivator LWJ, Teacher WWX, Inventor WWX, And his research assistant Lan ducklings, LQR is not a good educator, the kids are alright, WWX did online learning before it was cool)

bespoke by cafecliche (G, 3k, wangxian, Post-Canon, Fluff, basically I worked in both politics and event-planning and this is what happened, LSZ is a very good boy, which is specifically a tag for the fic but also just true in general)

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5. In the next available itmf post, could you/the community rec any fics where wwx is involved with activism? particularly if the fic highlights the hard and sometimes dangerous sides of the work. (I have vague memories of a few where it was LWJ who was involved, but I'm particularly interested in wwx for this request.) @balleyboley

like, comment, share & subscribe by detectorist (T, 22k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, YouTube, Social Media, Flirting, Humour, Banter, Getting Together, First Kiss, Texting, so much texting, Youtubers For Social Justice, The Gang Gets Political, Competitive Flirting Via The Medium Of Youtube, it’s about the yearning, YouTube Rivals To Lovers) I'm not sure if this is what request 5 has in mind but these modern AUs have some element of WY being an activist

These Things Stay the Same by notevenyou (E, 30k, wangxian, Modern, Kid Fic, Canon-Typical Violence, Minor Character Death, Injury, Natural Disasters, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hospitalization, Accidents)

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

Heat It Up! with Wei Ying by justpeace (T, 10k, WangXian, Modern AU, coworkers to dating, Getting Together, Chinese Food, racism that largely happens offscreen, workplace racism, toxic workplace environment, Workplace Relationship, food as a metaphor for racism, Humor, Happy Ending, Angst and Humor, food as a metaphor for flirting, References to Drugs, Alcohol, Asian-American Character)

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6. Hi ! This is an I’m in the mood for: I’m looking for a really good long and passionate Friends to lovers🩷 @red-spacekitten

See all this and more for just ten dollars a month! Series by ScarlettStorm (E, 382k, WIP, WangXian, Modern AU, Getting Together, Pining, Porn, like in the writing and also as a plot point, onlyfans au, repressed lwj, sex worker wwx, Minor Angst, major shenanigans, hornt™, mental health, therapy is good actually, Nonbinary NHS, Gender Exploration, Hurt/Comfort, past trauma, genderfluid wwx)

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7. hello! for the next in a mood for could i please get fics that have a similar vibe to “lynchpin” by shanastoryteller when it comes to yunmeg bros relationship, please??

🔒 to arrive late is better than not to arrive at all by Moominmammashandbag (M, 35k, wangxian, JYL/JZX, JYL & WWX & JC, JC & LWJ, Angst with a Happy Ending, Soulmates, Chronic Illness, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Hanahaki Disease, but as a curse, LWJ says fuck, Feelings Realization, obsession with interior design, JGY is bad, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Family Angst, sibling angst, LXC says fuck, He's very stressed, soft, Wedding, LQR was in love once too, Motion Sickness, sect politics, Marriage Proposal, YZY had reason to be angry, JFM feels guilty and so he should, Madam Lan was imprisoned for no reason)

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8. haai! for the next in a mood for could i please request fics where jin guangyao feels the weight of comeuppance? like actually has to deal with the consequences of his actions instead of just dying outright. thank uuu UwU

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9. Hello I hope you are wellI would like to ask you if you could help me find fanfic where Lan Wangji is the one who travels back in time to fix everything or where Lan Wangji Furuto travels to the world of Mo Dao Zu Shi, the genre could be Wangxian or Xianwang Could you please do me a big favor and thank you, I love your work. @alfithia

A Matter of Time series by mrcformoso (E, 84k, wangxian, time travel fix-it, graphic depictions of violence, underage, LWJ pov, JC pov, dark LWJ, manipulation, grooming, teen body adult mind for LWJ, happy ending for wangxian, problematic consensual underage sex, blood & violence, insane LWJ, manic LWJ) Not so much LWJ time travel fix everything more LWJ time travel break things in a different way that benefits WWX

the cycle of regret by KouriArashi (T, 14k, WangXian, Groundhog Day, Fix-It, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Alternate Canon) LWJ time loop

A Narrow Bridge by FrameofMind, Jo Lasalle (Jo_Lasalle) (E, 700k, wangxian, time travel fix-it, slow burn, getting together, first time, pining, pining while fucking, burial mounds settlement days, angst w happy ending)

The Wild Geese’s Tomb by The Feels Whale (miscellea) (T, 66k, wangxian, time travel fix-it)

I Have Arranged to Tie You to Me by xxxMiaHikarixxx (G, 51k, WIP, WangXian, Lan protective team, Time Travel, Past, LWJ oriented, Arranged Marriage, Boys In Love, Soulmates, Fix-It, Jiang siblings, not jiang parents friendly, Soft LWJ, Protective LWJ, Genius WWX)

The Dreams of Youth by sami (E, 86k, wangxian, time travel, fix-it, family, not lan sect friendly, canon typical violence & gore, childhood friends to lovers, hurt/comfort, mothers who live, some people live/not everyone dies)

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10. Itmf lwj protects wwx’s virtue… “only I can look at him” vibes; jealous, protective, and chivalrous lwj.

A Baby Dragon's Guide To Seducing Your Huli Jing by sweetlolixo (M, 102k, wangxian, fantasy au, dragon LWJ, fox WWX, younger LWJ, older WWX, fluff, humor, happy ending) if the person doesn't mind AUs, then A Baby Dragon's Guide To Seducing Your Huli Jing is the penultimate story for protecting Wei Ying's virtue.

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11. ITMF war fics. Like actual real war. Not like how people potray sun shot campaign, but war like WW1 WW2. If it could be modern , I would love it. But canon era will work too. Thankyou.

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12. this is for itmf!

does anyone know any good Xicheng fics?

(I've already read Audience of One by WinterDreams !!)

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13. hiii thank you so much for all the work that u do! ive been reading every recs for a week now >< that said, do u have any fics where wangxian are kids and are being there most adorable selves? i've been in the mood for baby wangxian and fluff lately. Thanks again!!

🔒 If You are with Me | End Racism in OTW by Starkalways1 (G, 5k, wangxian, Babyji and Babyxian story)

藍色的花，紅色的蘭 {Lan se de hua, hongse de lan} by Admiranda, AshayaTReldai (M, 45k, WangXian, Orphan WWX, Childhood Friends to Lovers, wwx raised in the lan clan, softer lqr, Good Uncle LQR, Good lan clan, Good Older Sibling LXC)

🔒 Hope series by RoseThorne (M, 59k, wangxian, WIP, Transmigration, Time Travel Fix-It, Illnesses, Family, Scars, Memory Loss, Angst, Crying, Music, Nosebleed, Fear, Recovery, Nightmares, Sharing a Bed, Flirting, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Good Parent YZY, Referenced Sexual Slavery, Blood and Gore, Monsters, Sexual Tension, betrothal, Arranged Marriage, Adoption, POV Third Person, POV Alternating, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Good Parent LQR, Clairvoyance, Butterfly Effect, Kid Fic, Epistolary, Food, Secrets, Resentful Energy, Cultivation Sect Politics, Character Death, Resentment, Anger, Explosions, Yīn Iron, Grief/Mourning, POV WWX)

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14. Itmf war fics. Relationship or marriage in between war?

Not That Great a Sacrifice by Winglesss (E, 37k, wangxian, historical fantasy au, arranged marriage, marriage of convenience, elemental magic, pining, UST, forbidden love, miscommunication, weddings, fluff & humor, light angst w/ happy ending)

tie a knife with a ribbon by iliacquer (E, 5k, wangxian, Dubious Consent, Bottom LWJ, YLLZ WWX, D/s, Rimming, Frottage, a lot of smut, a sprinkling of plot for flavour, war prize LWJ)

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

what price is duty, what cost is love by thunderwear (G, 18k, wangxian, Canon Divergence, WWX was never adopted by the Jiang Sect, War Prize, YLLZ WWX, Mutual Pining, First Kiss, First Time, Falling In Love, eventual dramatic confessions, Eventual Happy Ending, Angst with a Happy Ending)

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15. thanks for the hard work admins! any fics where lwj falls in love with wwx at first sight? thanksss❤️

smoke gets in your eyes by orphan_account (T, <1k, wangxian, WIP, F/F, Modern, Chef WWX) very short but very cute crush forming, wlw wangxian

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16. Itmf good madam yu fics.

A) she's always been good.

B) she grows good as fic progresses.

C) she's like - "yeah that is a nuisance gremlin, but you see that's MY nuisance gremlin " - for wwx @constellationdks

16B)

🔒❤️ the thing with feathers by RoseThorne  (G, 43k,wangxian, Transmigration, Time Travel Fix-It, Illnesses, Family, Scars, Memory Loss, Angst, Fear, Recovery, Sharing a Bed, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Good Parent YZY, Referenced Sexual Slavery, Blood and Gore, Sexual Tension, Arranged Marriage, Grief, Adoption, POV Third Person, POV Alternating, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Good Parent LQR, Clairvoyance, Butterfly Effect)

16C)

我的皇后是農民 | sowing seeds in the cold palace by sweetlolixo (E, 78k, WangXian, Imperial Palace, Emperor LWJ, Imperial Consort WWX, Farmer WWX, Only WWX Could Have an Empress to Farmer Pipeline, Angst, Romance, Wingman LJY, Wife-chasing-LWJ, LWJ will grovel to the ends of the earth to make it up to WWX don’t worry, Arranged Marriage, Best Boy A-Yuan, not LWJ friendly)

🧡 Heaven Has No Rage by flipfloppandas (M, 51k, WWX & YZY, JFM/YZY,  implied wangxian, WWX/WC, WWX/others, rape/non-con, modern, hurt/comfort, protective YZY, good parent YZY, hospitals, medical procedures, vomiting, trauma) It’s a moderne AU I liked it a lot it’s a YZY pov but it is very hard to read (READ THE TAGS)

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17. Hi! 🤗

Looking for the other fic, make me want to read more fics about WWX having his own sect. I really think WWX would be a great sect leader. So this is an ask for ITMF. ☺️ Thanks again for everything! 💕 @wangxiansgirl

I think there is a yiling Wei sect compilation on this blog!

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

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

[doufudanshi]

for anyone who criticizes jyl for bringing soup to yiling instead of like, money—

we should first ask: could jyl actually have given wwx money? she must have something, you say. the jins are rich! she could even give him some of her betrothal gifts.

but realistically jyl probably didn't have much money at all! let's think this through. not only did she not marry jzx yet at the time of her yiling visit, but (based on many, many imperial palace tv shows lol) all her worth would be in betrothal gifts of jewelry, fine clothing, or other misc items, which is 1) heavy and difficult to transport without notice, but that doesn't actually matter bc it's ultimately 2) disrespectful to sell and worse to have the gifter find out when they come by for tea and you begin chatting about the event in two days and they say oh where's that one-of-a-kind jade bracelet I gave you wouldn't it match the also one-of-a-kind silk garment that lady jin gave you sooo well oh you will look so lovely in it won't you wear it.

or worse, have it recognized in some random pawn shop on the street by someone who has never really liked you and WILL get you in deep shit for it.

does jyl have any money from the jiang side? well, jc has been busy at work rebuilding lotus pier and the clan since before wwx's defection, and even if he's not borrowing a shitton of money from the jins (which he almost certainly is), he definitely has the opposite of surplus funds. he's also busy organizing and buying gifts for the wedding too, making him go more in the red because you know the jins aren't going to want cheap-ass things even if you don't have money.

let's say jyl did get a significant bride price (aka given money money)—not only does that go to her family (jc), but it is given during the ceremony (which, again, hasn't happened yet). and, realistically, jc probably will have to use it to offset the costs of the above.

beyond that, let's just take this scene from a storytelling perspective. sometimes it is simply about the emotional resonance. the vibes. let's say jyl did have some funds to give wwx. but imagine if jyl was like here a-xian take all this money 😐 ok sure useful for some period. but is that the gift that wwx would want during the first time he's gotten to see her in months, and likely the last time he will see her in a long, long time (possibly years)? would that be impactful for the story?

meanwhile, the soup she brings represents her love. we hear in the extra, from wwx's own words, the care she put into selecting the ingredients, making sure the lotus root is fresh and perfectly ripe. it also takes hours for her to even make iirc. wwx derives so much comfort from it—that's why it comes up again and again. it is one of his first memories of feeling safe in lotus pier, of home. it provides wwx some semblance of normalcy. he hasn't had any this entire time, and is likely something he aches for whenever he's homesick or sad or questioning his choices. it is simply, given the circumstances, incredibly thoughtful. (and how meaningful was it to see wn treat it with such respect? seeing that is literally the moment in the chapter when wwx realizes—ah. the wens are people I cherish as well.)

and regarding jyl coming in her wedding dress—it is not for herself. it is for wwx. we saw how devastated wwx was just to even hear that jyl was getting married because he had to hear it from someone who wasn't jc or jyl. and to immediately then realize he cannot go? even more heartbreaking. and jyl, who clearly knows wwx extremely well, would know, without having to ask, how upset wwx would be to miss such a huge occasion in their lives that was previously a given. this is what she can do to offset that, even just a little. because jyl came in her dress, wwx gets to experience a piece of her wedding even though he cannot physically be there. not to be a 2000s mastercard ad, but there really are some things that money can't buy.

idk there's also some fist-shaking at the class discrepancy in the scene. and I get it. it sucks! her dress is certainly lavish, and the wens are farming on a corpse mountain and have only just started making a bit of money. yes, it's fine to think that if you were in the character's shoes, maybe you would've found it to be in poor taste—but the story isn't about you. it is about these characters, and what this scene means to them. and I'm of the camp that if there is no indication that wwx is upset by any of this, and in fact moved by it, there really isn't reason for the reader to be righteously indignant about these things on a character's behalf. that's just not the focus or the point of the scene.

plus, jyl is sharp. she is likely more aware of the discrepancy than most people think. she has also been shown in the text to not just be another sheltered, spoiled noble (re jzx soup incident). but if what you want is guilt from jyl—I personally think that guilt is performative, and accomplishes nothing. her guilt would've only made wwx unhappy. instead, here is an action that is meaningful and brings joy to wwx. to share her joy with him is not selfishness, nor is it some lack of awareness of their situation. if in this moment, she shows off her dress, if she revels in her joy, her happiness, it is for wwx, and wwx is incredibly moved by it.

and let's face it—wwx, of all people, would want to see jyl in a wedding dress that cost more than rebuilding lotus pier from the ground up. he wouldn't want anything less.

[pakhnokh]

I was unable to comment on your posts on patreon, but saw your question in the reading commentary:

Ok so which one is it!? I feel confused because I know ExR makes the difference between Gui and Mo. I went to the official 7seas translation and in both cases they write "demonic"! (Vol.4 Page 83) which is unbelievable cause Wei Wuxian would never say that his path is the Mo Dao. I really wonder what the original text says.

I'd like to explain this! I think this is a translation inconsistency. In the original CN, Gui is a subset of Mo. Everyone including WWX refers only to Mo Dao in terms of the cultivation path. It's the Dark Path in contrast to the mainstream, "righteous" Bright Path.

There's four types of evil beings in MDZS:

妖 yao: made from living non-human beings. The living Goddess Statue, Tortoise Xuanwu, both count in this category

魔 mo: made from living humans (living puppets). There aren't any examples I can think of in MDZS (Song Lan wasn't puppeted until after he's dead, right?) but, this is the word most commonly translated as "demon".

鬼 gui: made from dead humans. This is the classic WWX stuff like Wen corpse army etc. Translated as "ghost" usually

怪 guai: made from dead non-humans. I also don't think there's any examples in MDZS.

But importantly, WWX listed all these in Cloud Recesses under the same cultivation path, 魔道 Mo Dao. All are subcategories of Mo Dao. So he is indeed cultivating Mo Dao knowingly. It's up to interpretation, but personally I think that makes his moral character very interesting OvO

Ok thank you so much! With your permission I'll give an introduction to those who don't know what this is all about.

I'm reading Mo Dao Zu Shi again and making a commentary on my Patreon page. (It is public by the way, so everybody can see it)

The quoted part in this ask refers to my question regarding the things Wei Wuxian says to Lan Wangji when the latter visits him on Burial Mounds and they part:

A moment later, Wei WuXian spoke up, “Lan Zhan, you asked me if I intended on staying like this from now on. To be honest, I’d like to ask something as well. What can I do apart from this?”

He continued, “Give up the demonic path? Then what about the people on this mountain?

“Give them up? I won’t be able to do it. I believe that if you were I, you wouldn’t be able to do it either.”

He continued, “Nobody can give me a nice, broad road to walk on. A road where I could protect those I want to protect without having to cultivate the ghostly path.”

(This is ExR translation version. The official 7seas uses "demonic" in both cases. Reading the ExR translation, the difference between demonic and ghostly path has been made by the translators in other parts of the text. For example, Wei Wuxuan saying that he never practiced the demonic path, or Lan Wangji telling Wei Wuxian that the ghostly path harms body and soul etc. So I was confused - why would Wei Wuxian himself call the methods he used as demonic? I was sure that this is a fault in the translation or maybe me not understanding something in Chinese culture)

So back to the things you wrote, fist of all thank you so much for finding the time to answer me! I really wonder why you couldn't comment on Patreon itself? Public posts are available to comments both for paid and free members.

Now, if I understand correctly what you say, "Mo Dao" is a large umbrella term containing all types of "dark" cultivation that are not the "righteous" canon cultivation method practiced by all sects? Meaning that both what Wei Wuxian does (Gui Dao) and what Xue Yang did (Mo Dao) can be considered "Mo Dao"?

Then, in this case, how does using this term works for Wei Wuxian's benefit if he wants to stress out that he uses the ghost path and not the demon path (meaning that he specifically uses dead corpses and not living humans?) isn't it also justifies the false rumors spread about him as being the "mo dao zu shi?" I remember reading in other explanations that the whole thing of him being called this way was the misunderstanding and the spread of false info about what Wei Wuxian actually practiced.

So now I'm even more confused hahahaha if you have a further explanation I'd be so grateful!! <33

I'd really just prefer if all the translation left the terms in pinyin. (yao, mo, gui and guai) so that this confusion wouldn't exist :(

Btw, I think that what Xue Yang did to the townspeople in Yi City was considered mo dao, right? He sprinkled the corpse poisoning powder on them making them into living corpses for Xiao Xingchen to kill.

"guai: made from dead non-humans. I also don't think there's any examples in MDZS." - does it only include animals and plants, or objects as well? Does what Wei Wuxian did to the paper puppets in Yi City count in this category?

[rejectedfables]

I think often about Jin Guangyao’s “[I murdered] my father, my (older) brother, my wife, my son, my teacher, my friend” quote. I think about how Jin Guangyao, a man known for self effacing politeness to the point of taking blame and shame onto himself to alleviate the tempers of others, in this moment takes complete responsibility for "murders” that he absolutely did not commit. And I think about how the audience both in the story and outside it, take his words at face value.  

I think there are multiple ways of interpreting who this quote is about. Obviously Father = Jin Guangshan, Wife = Qin Su, Son = Jin Rusong, those are clear. I think (older) Brother could either be Nie Mingjue or Jin Zixuan. I think "teacher” could be Wen Rouhan or Nie Mingjue. Friend could be Nie Mingjue, Su Minshan, or Xue Yang.

So I think the ONLY options for [brother, teacher, friend] (in that order) are: 

NMJ, WRH, and SMS

NMJ, WRH, and XY

JZX, NMJ, and SMS

JZX, NMJ, and XY

JZX, WRH, and NMJ

JZX, WRH, and SMS

JZX, WRH, and XY

I also saw a translation where he said “friends” plural, which would reduce the list to:

NMJ, WRH, XY and SMS

JZX, NMJ, XY and SMS

JZX, WRH, SMS and NMJ

JZX, WRH, XY and NMJ

JZX, WRH, XY and SMS

However, given the importance of his relationship with NMJ, I feel like we can safely eliminate any that exclude NMJ entirely. Similarly, there cannot be characters mentioned here who are unnamed or unknown to the reader, as that wouldn’t make any Doylist sense. We are left with a list that consists of Nie Mingjue, either WRH or JZX or both, and possibly XY and/or SMS. 

Regardless of which of those combinations you use, he did not directly OR EVEN DELIBERATELY murder everyone on that list. Let’s go through them:

Jin Guangshan: Yes, he deliberately ordered and orchestrated his father’s death. Outstanding, earned, poetic, no notes. (Okay maybe SOME notes, but like, listen. Listen.) 

Qin Su: Qin Su killed herself. In the animation, Jin Guangyao used the skull-piercing nails to force her suicide, but this is not canon to the novel. Bicao claims that Jin Guangyao must have killed her to silence her, despite her suicide having many witnesses (including us! the readers!), but Wei Wuxian (who WAS THERE) speculates that she couldn’t handle the reality of her marriage, as illuminated to her BY Bicao, or the prospect of societal shame if it got out. However, even IF “your actions drove her to suicide” were the rubric here, that’s still not quite the same as “you murdered her”, nor does it seem to be the outcome he was hoping or planning for. “JGY murdered her” is factually inaccurate, and a blatant propaganda tactic being used against him-- but perhaps it felt emotionally true to HIM because he’s grieving his DEAD WIFE and he FEELS responsible.

Nie Mingjue: JGY spent something like 5+ years suffering physical and verbal abuse and explicit threats of death by Nie Mingjue, then was tasked with killing Nie Mingjue by his father. He did so in a sneaky way, so as to not endanger himself further or get punished for (or perhaps cause an inter-sect conflict/war by) killing the leader of a rival sect.

Wen Rouhan: JGY stabbed him in all adaptations, A+, war hero.

Jin Zixuan: JGY, on his father’s orders, orchestrated a situation that led to Jin Zixuan’s death. We cannot know for SURE that JGY wasn’t aiming for his death but we CAN say that “Wei Wuxian accidentally compelling Wen Ning to kill the ONE GUY PRESENT Wei Wuxian did NOT want to kill” (OR “WN killing JZX of his own accord against WWX’s orders”) would have been a weird bet to make. This seems highly unlikely to have been JGY’s goal, but it was certainly caused by a situation he created. He also did not actually literally kill the guy.

Su Minshan: Su She died to protect Jin Guangyao from Nie Mingjue’s fierce corpse. Jin Guangyao is only “responsible” for this in the vaguest or terms and worst faith of interpretations. Technically Su She wouldn’t have died there if not for JGY on multiple levels (wouldn’t have had to protect him, NMJ’s fierce corpse being JGY’s fault, wouldn’t have been present at all if JGY hadn’t summoned him there, etc.), but if Jin Guangyao describes this as “I murdered him” that’s... a stretch. Again, like with Qin Su, this feels like something he might say because he FEELS responsible, rather than because he actually is.

Xue Yang: JGY ordered Xue Yang’s execution (or possibly ordered a fake execution, but this seems less likely) directly before he fled, injured, to Yi City. He did not die here. Later, after reconnecting and while still following Jin Guangyao’s orders, Xue Yang was killed by other people in opposition to Jin Guangyao’s wishes and plans. Again, TECHNICALLY Xue Yang would not have died when he did were it not for Jin Guangyao, but describing it as “Jin Guangyao murdered him” is QUITE a stretch. Due to the title of the “Villainous Friends” extra, which is about JGY and XY specifically, XY seems the most likely candidate to me for “Friend” in this quote, which is bizarre because I think his death is actually the LEAST connected to Jin Guangyao. Jin Guangyao wasn’t even present, nor did Xue Yang die FOR Jin Guangyao-- just on his payroll. BUT perhaps he still felt guilty for ORDERING his execution, and simply his willingness to HAVE Xue Yang killed counted enough to make the list.

I’ll get to the last one, but I’m pausing here to say: What all of this means is that no matter who is or isn’t on that list, it is NOT an objective list of factual murders. It is a list of people who’s deaths Jin Guangyao FEELS RESPONSIBLE FOR.

Even before we get to who counts as teacher, brother, or friend, even JUST his wife solidifies this. But it isn’t JUST her either-- even if we cut SMS and XY (the other two BIG stretch candidates) from the equation, that leaves us ONLY with NMJ(friend), WRH(teacher), and JZX(brother). And Jin Zixuan is the other one that really should not make the list of people JGY “murdered”.

This is a list of people who’s deaths Jin Guangyao FEELS RESPONSIBLE FOR.

Which brings us to the last one:

Jin Rusong: The quote (I believe this is a fan translation, but not sure) "One of the opposing sect leaders lost the arguments [about the watchtowers], and went into a murderous rage, killing Jin Guangyao and Qin Su’s only son. The boy had always been a good child and the couple had loved him dearly. Under resentment, Jin Guangyao tore down the entire sect in revenge” is, to my knowledge/memory, the only real account we’re given of what happened. “Lost the arguments and went into a murderous rage” doesn’t sound like the child was found dead some time later, and they had to investigate. It sounds like it happened in public, with witnesses, immediately. 

In the same scene where Bicao convinces an audience that Qin Su, who famously killed herself on screen in a room full of people with a (now) known motive for suicide, “must have” been murdered by Jin Guangyao-- in that same scene others speculate that Jin Rusong, who was famously killed by a political opponent in a “murderous rage” most likely DURING A CONFERENCE, “must have” been murdered by Jin Guangyao. 

I think "I angered an opposing sect leader so much that he killed my son" being translated by JGY into "I killed my son" is EXACTLY IN LINE with the rest of his list. How is that different than "I ordered Xue Yang's assassination, and later put him in a situation that caused others to kill him" being translated to "I killed my friend"? Or “Su She died to protect me” being translated to “I killed my friend”? Or “I didn’t anticipate my brother’s unwitting involvement in a covert operation would get him accidentally killed, which no one wanted, not even the guy who did it” being translated to “I killed my brother”? Or “I tried to protect my pregnant fiancé/wife from a horrible secret I only just learned, which would ruin her life, and when someone confronted her with it TO HARM ME she couldn’t live with it and killed herself” being translated to “I killed my wife”? It’s the same!

I do not believe that Jin Guangyao killed Jin Rusong. I believe “I murdered my son” is an example of the way that Jin Guangyao speaks about himself-- always taking the maximum responsibility onto his own shoulders. If he was in any way responsible, than he was completely responsible. If he FEELS responsible, then he MAY AS WELL have murdered them.

The context of when he says this quote also matters towards how we interpret it’s meaning. He was already attempting to flee the country, aware that the cultivation world was actively turning on him for crimes that he did AND DIDN’T commit. He was surrounded by people he thought cared about him, all of whom seemed determined to stop him from achieving a safe exit. He had had all the horrible things he felt responsible for (regardless of how directly or deliberately he was involved in those events) thrown in his face by said loved ones, while they looked at him with horror. Su Minshan had just been killed trying to PROTECT HIM, and now it looked like it had been for nothing anyway. Huaisang, who he is shown as doting upon throughout their decades long relationship, has just manipulated Lan Xichen (do I even have to go into how important Lan Xichen is to him? Please say no, please say this much at LEAST is universally understood) into BEING THE ONE to STAB HIM. 

In this moment, he believes that he’s going to die, and be reviled in death by society and his loved ones alike. He knows there’s nothing left he can say or do, he hasn’t had time to process Su She’s death, and Lan Xichen has JUST (accidentally) betrayed him (which he also hasn’t had time to process). 

And also, notably, he had very recently been IN POSSESSION of the TIGER TALLY. 

AND HE’S BEEN STABBED! To my memory this scene happens while he’s missing an arm and LAN XICHEN’S sword is still INSIDE HIS GUTS. His emotions and reasoning are probably NOT the most calm or rational right now (blood loss, pain, fear, grief, influence of the tiger tally, etc.), and this “confession” should be taken with that in mind. 

I just think a lot about how “I murdered [everyone I’ve loved except for you]” is such a raw and telling line, given the context. Even if it’s more like “I murdered [everyone I’ve owed devotion to except for you]”, that’s still so painful. He blames himself for all of it. All of it! The world celebrated Wen Rouhan’s death, but Jin Guangyao added it to his personal list. Jin Guangshan is arguably the most reprehensible character in the entire story, and ruined every part of Jin Guangyao’s entire life, but he’s on the list. He did everything in his power to protect Qin Su, and when she found out the truth he continued offering her ways he could protect her, but she chose to kill herself, and she’s on the list. He tried to improve the world with the watchtowers, and someone retaliated by murdering his son, and he claimed responsibility for that too.

He knew he was being blamed for their deaths, knew it was propaganda and slander and bad faith, but he blamed himself too. So he just... accepted it. I did it. It was me, I murdered them.

And so, so, so many people, in his world and in ours, were so, so eager to agree

[ninjakk]

The song within WWX's heart

Hearing LWJ softly singing Wangxian for the first time, back when they were trapped in the Xuanwu of Slaughter's cave, left a profound impression on WWX. Even if he was slipping in and out of consciousness at the time, it still affected him deeply. On a subconscious level, this melody means so much to WWX and the way MXTX weaves this delicately throughout the plot is just perfection.

The first time we see WWX play Wangxian he is using a hastily improvised bamboo flute, while on Dafan Mountain. This is prior to WWX or indeed the reader (on a first read) being aware of its name or the significance it holds.

To stifle it, Wei WuXian calmed his feelings and assuredly played another melody. The melody had drifted over his mind naturally. It was relaxed and tranquil, contrasting with the bizarre and ear-piercing one from before

Chapter 10 ExR translations

WWX calms his emotions and tires to relax. Trying to think of something happy, something soothing, that will quell WNs killing intent. Which is when this tune naturally comes to his mind. Hearing the song instantly pacifies WN and he begins to follow WWX.

Just prior to this, WWXs emotions were incredibly high and very raw. Only a few days ago, he was forcefully resurrected into a stranger's body. He's had an altercation with JC and inadvertently upset his beloved late shijie's son. Then he bumps into the man he's been subconsciously pining for since they were teenagers. With his mind stirring up painful memories from his past life, it's so poignant that this is the song that resurfaces in his subconscious. As something that makes him feel safe and secure.

After the above, it's not* until the Xuanwu of Slaughter cave arc that we are finally unofficially introduced to Wangxian. In this chapter LWJ showcases his beautiful singing voice to a very drowsy WWX, who is slipping in and out of consciousness. We later find out that this is the aptly named Wangxian, a love song that LWJ has composed especially for WWX.

It had originally been an offhand remark. He was chatting with Lan WangJi to pass the time and didn’t at all expect him to agree. Yet, after a few moments of silence, a low yet mild voice echoed softly through the hollow cave. Lan WangJi really did begin to sing. Wei WuXian closed his eyes, turned around, and spread out his limbs, “It sounds nice.” He asked, “What’s it called?” Lan WangJi seemed to murmur something. Wei WuXian opened his eyes, “What was it called again?”

Chapter 55

MXTX doesn't give us much in terms of a description of the melody at this point, probably in an attempt to keep most of the readers guessing a little longer with regards to how LWJ knew it was WWX back on Dafan Mountain. But we can see WWX appreciates the tune and seems quite content with everything at that very moment. Over the past few days, since beating the legendary beast, WWX has been running a fever. LWJ has been diligently looking after him, passing him spiritual energy and keeping a fire lit in order to keep him warm - which WWX obviously appreciates. There is also a very sweet moment where he questions if LWJ had been allowing him to lie on his lap while he was drowsy. It's a very tender scene and marks a definite turning point in their relationship - especially on LWJ's behalf.

The next time we see WWX play Wangxian, is back in his second life - where he's very much starting to accept his feelings for LWJ. The feelings he's had since they were young are flooding to the surface and he's blissfully content just being around the other. They are on their way to the very place he died years ago, but he's so drunk on the way he is feeling about LWJ, he doesn't care at all. He feels incredibly safe and happy with him - which is when he inadvertently plays their love song once more.

He even had the spirit to enjoy the fields under the moonlight, pulling out the bamboo flute at his waist. As natural as ever, he played a tune. The flute had a limpid timbre. Lan WangJi’s footsteps hesitated slightly as Wei WuXian felt something inside of him suddenly light up.

Chapter 66

Just prior to the above scene, WWX is feeling loved, cared for and so happy his heart won't stop fluttering! He's remembering his parents, the love they had for each other and for him. All of these lovely images filling his head and beautiful feelings flooding his heart. Just as he is so happy and content, a melody comes drifting in his mind and he plays it on the flute under the moonlight once again.

It comes so naturally to him, because this is how he felt when he heard it originally. He felt happy, even though he was stuck in a cave and suffering from a fever - which is quite telling about how he must feel at LP at times! He felt cared for. He felt quite content rolling around on someone's LWJ's lap, while his head was tenderly stroked. He was lulled back to an unconscious state, hearing LWJ sing this melody to him as he felt all of these sweet emotions. He felt these so strongly, that the tune imprinted on his heart, and in turn his memory for all these years. A song can be a powerful thing, especially when associated with strong emotions.

WWX finally remembers where he has heard the tune before and is absolutely ecstatic to learn that LWJ not only composed the melody, but he is the only one to have heard it.

To me, there is definitely a strong chance that WWX also plays Wangxian during the Phoenix Mountain arc. This is probably more apparent on a re-read, once you are more familiar with the description of Wangxian later in the novel.

He held up Chenqing and blew into it, fingers shifting. The clear sound of the flute rushed into the sky as though it was a bird, lingering as it echoed through the mountain.

Chapter 69

WWX has just been flirting with LWJ, throwing flowers at him and trying to attract his attention. So it's safe to assume LWJ is on his mind, even if he is currently participating in a competition. Taking up a comfy spot on a low hanging branch of a tree, he basks in the sunlight feeling relaxed and comfortable. He is about to calm the fierce corpses and ghosts, summoning them to surrender in the Jiang sect's name. As such, he plays a soothing song on Chenqing that is clear, melodious and soared like birds in the sky. To me, at least on a re-read, it is quite obvious WWX is playing Wangxian here. As we are given more descriptions of the tune later in the novel, it all pieces together quite nicely.

WWX playing Wangxian at this moment in time also adds to why LWJ simply lost control and kissed him not long after he played on his flute. WWX had inadvertently played their love song! The very song LWJ had composed just for him! Not to mention the teasing and flirting WWX subject him to earlier on as well. Of course I'm not condoning LWJ's actions, but considering his character, it's no wonder he lost control and forcibly kissed WWX after all of this. Especially if he heard the almost teasing tune of his love song being played on a flute in the distance.

The last time we see Wangxian being played is of course at the end of the novel, when we finally learn what the melody is called.

Swaying left and right atop the donkey, Wei WuXian took the flute from his waist and placed it by his lips. The limpid notes flew across the sky like birds. Lan WangJi halted and listened quietly. It was the song he sang for Wei WuXian when they were stuck in the Xuanwu cave. It was also the song that Wei WuXian just so happened to have played at Dafan Mountain, the song that enabled Lan WangJi to confirm his identity.

Chapter 113

We can see the melody is described as limpid (or clear) in tone and the song evokes images of birds flying in the sky. This description is very similar to the quotes referenced above, which I think is very much intentional. If WWX did play Wangxian to calm the entities down on Phoenix Mountain, as he did with WN at the beginning of the novel, how sweet is it that he uses this song to soothe the poor souls that are in turmoil and full of resentment.

I think there is quite a lot of subtext hinting that WWX playing Wangxian at the beginning of the novel is far from a happy accident. That it is in fact something he has done since hearing the tune all those years ago. It even states in the novel, he plays the tune "as natural as ever", which could be interpreted as he's played this tune many, many times in the past - during both of his lives.

*Honourable mention:

Another scene that could possibly include WWX playing Wangxian once again, is during the chapter when we first meet DrunkJi.

Stopping at a desolated area, Wei WuXian took out his flute by his waist, placed it by his lips, and played a melody. After this, he waited silently.

Chapter 30

Obviously we don't have enough of a description here to tell if WWX just played Wangxian to summon WN. But it would add to the reason why an inebriated LWJ reacts in such a jealous way towards WN when he appears on the scene. Especially as he seems particularly annoyed at WWX playing his flute for WN. Granted, it might just be because he drunkenly stumbled upon WWX and WN together when he woke up from his intoxicated catnap. With LWJ still feeling the sting from WWX unwittingly playing their exclusive love song to another man back on Dafan Mountain. Awkward...

But it could also be LWJ being roused from his drunken slumber to the tantalising sound of a flute playing their song.

I totally headcanon WWX humming the melody throughout his first life. Soothing an upset A-Yuan with this lovely tune. Harvesting radishes while he sings to himself quietly. Tinkering with his inventions in the cave, while whistling the melody and hearing it reverberate all around him. The Wen remnants and the crazy Yiling Laozu cultists camping out at the base of the mountain with their little banner, would even swear they could hear a calming song softly echo around the burial mounds in the middle of the night at times.

There's just no way he didn't hum or play Wangxian after her heard it drifting in and out of consciousness. Especially as he can remember it so clearly in his second life, whenever he's really happy or needs to calm down.

In fact, I really wouldn't be surprised if LWJ hummed Wangxian to WWX while passing him spiritual energy when they were hiding in a cave after escaping Nightless City.

It also makes me wonder if WWX used this melody to calm the entities in the Burial Mounds back when he was trapped there. Every time we have seen WWX use a tune to calm corpses, it's (possibly) been this tune. It's not too much of a jump to assume he used it in the Burial Mounds to suppress the resentful energy at the time. It was probably very much fresh in his memory still at this point - only a month or so since he first heard the tune.

How beautiful would it be if the song that LWJ composed out of love for WWX is what essentially helped calm the resentful entities and save his soulmate's life while he was trapped in a literal hell on earth.

[canary3d-obsessed]

Restless Rewatch: The Untamed, Episode 39 part 2

(Masterpost) (Pinboard)  (whole thing on AO3)    

Warning! Spoilers for all 50 Episodes!

Tumblr's godawful new editor has a hard limit of 30 images in a post, so I'm splitting this episode into 3 posts instead of 2. There's a lot of important gazing in this part of the episode and 30 images isn't going to cut it. (To be fair, the old editor would start to die after about 35 images)

Funeral Time

We start off at A-Qing's funeral. The gang has found a spot right next to the road to bury her, and has managed to pull together an impressive set of funeral accoutrements.

A well-prepared cultivator always travels with apples, oranges, peaches, ceramic bowls, incense sticks, sand for holding the incense sticks, candles, a sanded & finished board for carving names into, and paper money.

It's nice of them to make sure A-Qing has a proper grave with proper offerings. You know who they don't bury properly? Shishu Xiao Fucking Xingchen, that's who. Do better, Wei Wuxian.

Jingyi and Ouyang Zichen ugly-cry while Jin Ling threatens the already-dead Xue Yang with being bitten by his dog, to Wei Wuxian's discomfort.

The three adults on the scene don't cry at the grave or even look distressed, really; after the shit they've been through, they probably don't have a lot of feelings to spare for a stranger, even Wei Wuxian, who feels for everybody.

And Lan Wangji is busy with some important gazing.

Lan Wangji is having feelings; feelings about how it's a lot better to be Lan Wangji than it is to be Song Lan. He looks earnestly and intensely at Wei Wuxian and says "fortunately" or "how fortunate" (幸好, xìnghǎo), and then gazes even more earnestly at him.

(More after the cut!)

Wei Wuxian can be forgiven for not getting what Lan Wangji is saying here, because Lan Wangji isn't actually saying most of it. From WWX's perspective, a fresh grave is probably an unlikely place for a confession of love or anything like it, although by Lan Wangji's standards this is a romantic idyll compared to the various caves where they've had most of their dates.

Wei Wuxian asks him to explain, but the qiankun bag of cock blocking suddenly distracts Lan Wangji, and that's the end of that conversation. They tell everyone to wait while they go back to the coffin house.

Wen Ning watches them go, wondering what the fuck it is going to take for these guys to get together, for fuck's sake.

It's a Sad Sad Situation

Back at the coffin house, Song Lan is dejectedly caressing Xiao Xingchen's coffin.

This scene is poignant but it's also a reminder of what nice hands everybody in this show has.

It's also an opportunity to appreciate the details of Song Lan's costume. All the costumes have such variety in the fabrics, even an all black or black/grey outfit like this has a lot of textural variation.

Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian each have something important to return to Song Lan. Wei Wuxian gives him the spirit trapping bag that contains what's left of Xiao Xingchen's consciousness.

Xiao Zhan and Li Bowen each make a valiant attempt to pretend this bag is not empty and about to collapse if they hold it too firmly.

Lan Wangi watches him receiving it, with a deep and painful understanding of Song Lan's feelings in this moment.

So, I assume that Lan Wangji is probably mainly feeling grateful that he has all of Wei Wuxian (well, minus his old body, which doesn't really matter to LWJ) returned to him. But I also can't help thinking about what the Lan Wangji of ~10 years ago would have given to have a scrap of Wei Wuxian's soul that he could carry with him. I wonder if Lan Wangji is thinking about that too.

Song Lan tells them, by writing in the dirt with his sword, that he plans to travel the world to fight evil in company with what's left of Xiao Xingchen. Essentially returning to the life journey that they shared, all those years ago. Lan Wangji responds by presenting Xiao Xingchen's sword to him.

Song Lan hits the road with both swords on his back, while Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji watch him go.

We don't hear Lan Wangji's thoughts, but his expression is, I think, a reflection of the grief he carried for so many years.

We do hear Wei Wuxian's thoughts, wondering if Song Lan and Xiao Xichen will ever meet again.

I'm not sure how reincarnation works when one of you has part of his soul trapped in a bag and one of you is a possibly-immortal walking corpse, but maybe they'll manage to be reborn together in spite of all that.

When WWX and LWJ are done contemplating how shitty the world can be, they reboot by having an intense gaze at each other.

Then it's back to mystery solving.

Wei Wuxian smacks the lid off of Xiao Xingchen's coffin....which is now empty?

Maybe they buried him between this scene and the last one. Without using his coffin. *shrug*

Lan Wangji lets the sword spirit out of the bag, and watches it sink through the open coffin and down underneath it. He shoves the coffin out of the way and finds another underneath it. Bunk coffins!

This one is covered with magic shit, which Wei Wuxian uncovers so we can see the heap of talismans on top of it.

Hand enthusiasts, this really is the episode for you.

Lan Wangji, who never does anything halfway, splits the lid in half with Bichen rather than, like, opening the lid in some normal way.

The sword spirit turns into Baxia, which is a big clue that the headless corpse in the coffin is Nie Mingjue.

Note that in traditional Chinese death...stuff, it's important to have a complete corpse, so separating a corpse into parts and keeping its head in your linen closet is a big fuckyou to the dead person in question.

Side note: Wei Wuxian continues to sense resentful energy directly, in his new body; once you open the doors of perception there is no going back, I guess.

Lan Wangji still seems to depend on his eyeballs and the presence of black smoke to tell him what's up, despite probably being pretty familiar with the feel of it, by now.

Additional side note since I can fit one more image into this post before Tumblr stops me: Lan Wangji continues to be impossibly pretty.

Continued in part 3!

Soundtrack: Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word by Elton John

[tbgkaru-woh]

hi hi hi!!! since last time u asked for hcs or ideas, and i couldn't come up with any in the moment, I AM HERE TO SHARE (mine) AND ASK UR OPINIONS ON XIANXUAN (WWX X JZX) NOW... 😩

dont even get me started, personally for me, its HARD TO NOT ship two men who have punched each other for at least once in their life. AND WHEN THEY BOTH ACTUALLY HV CONSIDERATION FOR EO DEEP DOWN LIKE from hating each other's guts to punching each other's face to competing to an extent (over one girl literally) to actually having no hard feelings for each other to having consideration deep down for each other to believing in each other (to love the girl genuinely) to wwx accidentally and unintentionally killing jzx to mourning over his death and blaming himself for all of it to living again and taking care of his child...😩 i...ok half of the grief came bcs of shijie but ONE CAN IMAGINE AAAAH.

im sorry for making this long, help. (honestly ure the first ever acc i have found shipping them in one of ur arts so i HAVE to rant omg)

i love their dynamic sm, somehow i want wwx to top jzx at any fucking cost. WHY ?! because he wanna prove he's better and better and BETTER than this fucking peacock and he wanna crush his attitude so bad like...and jzx just tryna keep up with him and this fucker is back with new tricks to put him where he belongs. then ends up putting him under himself. oMG. help. im crazy. bye.

SJSHSKSK MY GOD. looks like im gonna go on a brainrot.

They were some of the most obvious to me too only to find no one talking about them, I guess the whole WangXian tunnel-vision and Jin Zixuan not having a fandom will do that to a dynamic.

I just hoped in canon they'd have...more. I wanted to see their arc, I wanted them to fight side by side, wanted to see Zixuan defend Wei Wuxian in front of the gossipy pricks and his word mattering to them, wanted to see Wei Wuxian punch someone for Jin Zixuan, instead of punching him for Yanli.

Straight Zixuan is also extremely boring to me and him secretly crushing on the brothers, maybe even popping a boner while wwx gets REAL CLOSE to him during a fight and needing to leave RIGHT NOW... He'll be a good bridge between the two, he's quiet, arrogant and loyal to duty as Jiang Cheng is, but wwx is what he wished he could be like in certain aspects, not to say that with their constant teasing and play-fights, some truths will come out sooner rather than later.

And when it comes to smut I love to imagine that something that starts as a hate fuck with neither backing down but both their inexperience starts showing but unlike jzx who's more honestly embarrassed about it, wwx has this fake confidence and "need-to-take-cate-of" impulse that turn it into something a bit clumsy but respectful and with a genuine goal of the other enjoying it. Maybe wwx can keep it as their secret,as jzx parades himself around like the straight guy people think he is afterwards.

[stoopid-turtle]

Consuming Candies Pt. 1: GG and DD are le Gay

Everything is fake. I make up stuff for fun. Do not believe a word of it.

Intro post for this series

I'm a nerd so I feel I need to asterisk just about anything. Basically, this is my list of moments/candies that cemented for me a few things: 1) DD is hella gay; 2) GG is some flavor of gay; 3) that GGDD definitely had a thing around the time of the TU filming; 4) that they're still together.

1 and 2 are needed to establish 3 and, unless you go for a very different timeline than other turtles, 3 is needed to establish 4.

Such. A. Nerd.

I divided this up into 2 posts because I'm incredibly long-winded.

So, #1: DD is incredibly incredibly gay. There is no doubt in my mind. Here's why, in order with the most convincing moments first. Once I accepted these, the following points were easier to wrap my head around.

a) DD checked out another guy's ass at the Tencent Awards Night and exclaimed "Handsome" to his co-star.

Just what it says on the tin. I've watched these 5 seconds over and over, and I can't wrap my head around any other explanation. The man passes by, DD's eyes clearly sweep down, then he says "Shuai!" I'm usually skeptical of lip-readings, but this is unmistakable.

I put this as the most convincing for me because it's not a bts, there's no need for fanservice, it's an official stream of a video and there is literally no other way to interpret this. It's incredibly blatant. He's into men (and, notably, his co-star in LoF is clearly in the know since he makes the comment to her).

(Honestly, it makes me a little uncomfortable, because I've noticed DD has started covering his mouth when speaking to companions at public events, presumably so that fans can't try to read his lips. I'm sure he did not expect that ass-ogle to be noticed by anyone)

b) "I'm not talking about WWX, I'm talking about XZ." I discussed this in my turtle origin story, but this moment in the bts really knocked me over the head with that fact that DD was outright hitting on XZ. There was no way to interpret this as them joking around with the fact that their characters were in a BL relationship (a la the director referring to them as "lovebirds" or someone on the crew calling xz DD's "wife"). DD straight up flirts with GG. Gets turned down because the phrase he used was taken the wrong way. Then calls him "beautiful" (or "fairy-like"). When GG rejects this as not fitting WWX, DD just clarifies that he's talking about XZ not WWX. (Which, wow, what a line. DD is bold)

There's no het explanation for that moment, unless you want to posit that there was an intentional fabrication of fanservice (I address that issue elsewhere).

Add this on top of DD's other comments to XZ, calling him "erotic", asking for kisses, asking for him to sleep with him, declaring his love. A lot of this is joking around, but there's a safety in joking around when you're flirting with someone you like. You can retreat to the joke if they don't like it.

But this moment isn't even a joke. It's sincere. DD's flirting the fuck with GG.

It's not even hard to believe coming off a). DD is clearly into men. GG is very charismatic and seems to attract the attention of just about everybody who meets him (I get serious There's Something about Mary vibes from him sometimes in how people talk about him) (I am old. My references are old). Is it so hard to think that DD would shoot his shot?

He's on a cast with the guy, playing the love interest. They get along incredibly well. DD has a pretty high opinion of himself, to say the least. I'm not at all surprised he'd make a go for it.

There are several moments in the bts where GG teases DD for sending memes of himself (only the handsome ones) or sending (again, handsome) selfies of himself. It is funny, but it also strikes me as someone trying to get some reaction from his crush. It feels a little awkward to have GG openly teasing him about it but DD gets his revenge by showing off the pouty photo of GG, so he clearly managed to deal with it. (And GG clearly agrees that DD is handsome, so DD's text campaign worked)

c) The Nike rainbow shoes and ice cream.

Honestly, I wouldn't have this on here except for this post by potteresque-ire here on tumblr. Within the context in China at the time, and with the response DD received from his fans, it's clear that the rainbow Nikes + Ben & Jerry's were meaningful to DD. It's a shame that the political situation with Nike later required him to fall in line with the CCP and remove it, but I trust potteresque on the context that this post was a Big Deal.

d) His involvement with TU.

I've heard mixed things about the expectations for TU at the time of casting. The landscape for BL was rocky and the production company was unproven, but it was recognized that MDZS was a huge IP and so there was a chance that it could be a gigantic hit. There was also an equal risk that it would completely flop or not be allowed to air. Still, there's a fantastic interview with the non-GGDD cast of TU where the interviewer asks them if they knew that TU was going to be so big. There's a moment of awkward silence until somebody (I think WZC) just says, "No."

My understanding is that WYB was the biggest star they got on the cast. He had other opportunities, no doubt some that were more promising and that didn't result in him losing the support of his homophobic fans. But DD put his hat in the ring anyway.

Why? Maybe he wanted to roll those dice to see if he could sign on to something that would be huge. But he's also gay, and there's every possibility that he just wanted to act in a gay romance.

(This is putting aside some of the speculation that DD and GG knew each other or were even dating prior to casting.)

I bet he saw it as a rare opportunity to play a (censored) gay character, and he was willing to lose fans to do so (much like with the Nike post). DD is bold.

I go into this more when I talk about GG.

(Also, I don't know if he specifically went in for the LWJ role or if, like literally everybody else on that cast, he was trying to get the role of Xue Yang (srsly, what's up with this???), or if he just kept his options open)

e) He has no interest in women.

Just because a guy likes men doesn't mean he also doesn't like women. Except with DD, he seems to have 0 interest in women. At first, I could chalk this up to him being shy, not having much experience around girls, etc. But after a certain point, his clear disinterest has to be taken in consideration with his overt flirtiness and enthusiasm about men.

Basically, he doesn't have a problem with women. They're just not his focus in life or love. He doesn't light up around women. He lights up around men. I know this is real subjective, and that displeases my nerd heart, so the other points matter too, but this is really the heart of things. DD isn't interested in women.

Add onto this some implications he's made that he is...um...not sexually frigid (I tried to find this clip and was unsuccessful. Ah well.) and...well, you can't be shy with women and still be a horndog Leo if you're straight. That horndog energy is being directed somewhere else.

In sum, DD is just really, really gay. Don't hit me with those, "But his hobbies are so dudely" nonsense. Go meet some actual gay guys, list out their hobbies, then get back to me. DD. Is. Gay. Full stop.

#2. GG is some flavor of gay.

GG's always the more puzzling one. DD is so...loud and unapologetic. GG plays close to the vest.

I'm struck by some screenshots I saw of his university peers gossiping about him back in those days. People explicitly said he wasn't gay, so if GG was out back then, he was only out to a few people.

He came from a traditional family, and I get the vibe he was incredibly nervous at the idea of entering a gay relationship. I doubt he "didn't realize" he was gay until he met DD, because I think even the scaredest, most closeted person knows on some level that they're gay. But I think GG might have been set to remain in the closet for the long-haul.

There's an interview of GG done while filming where he's asked about DD (he smiles real big and it's really sweet). He gives the usual response of DD being slow to warm up to people, but when he's asked about his current impression, he exclaims that DD is "a lunatic" (I laugh every time I watch that). Then he comments that DD isn't scared to be "unconventional".

I can't say for certain, but it feels like it's in part a reference to DD being more bold with his sexual orientation. GG keeps things more buttoned up and close to his chest, but he clearly finds DD's lunacy appealing as he signed onto it.

Honestly, GG is hard for me to get a read on. When I see DD outside of the UT bts, I can see the continuity in his personality. I mean, yeah, everything's turned up to 11 in the UT bts because he's clearly infatuated with GG. But he's still a gremlin outside of the bts, just in a more subdued and less targeted way.

With GG, I struggle sometimes to see the continuity between his personality in the bts and his personality outside it (the wig doesn't help with this. it makes him look like a different person). Granted, I haven't delved into his solo work near as much as I have for DD (and, notably, he doesn't seem to do as much unscripted stuff as DD), but he strikes me as a person who is very adept at code-switching depending on the situation. DD is DD is DD, 24/7. GG is more adaptive to his surroundings.

I imagine that's one of the things that drew GG to DD (beyond the massive flirt-campaign...I mean, who could resist DD when he's going so freaking hard for it?).

Do I think GG's attracted to women? Honestly, not sure. I've not seen enough of his interactions with women or his history with women to say (I've spent way more time with DD outside of TU than GG). But I'm pretty sure he's attracted to men for these reasons:

a) His ideal life painting.

Put aside all the other interpretations people have for that. Just the fact that his ideal life included one (1) other person and that that person is a man is significant.

Admittedly, I don't know the background of the painting. It was used in an ad campaign, and if you watch the full video that showed the painting, the cat and bike elements are shown as inspired by stuff GG saw in a walk. I'm not sure how much creative control he had over the whole thing, and I've not been able to find anything in English about it.

But assuming that he had the freedom to paint his genuine ideal life, or at least enough of it to be the one to choose having a man in there (and why would the hotel specifically ask for a male companion in the painting?), then there's no het explanation for that. GG's ideal life is to be at the beach with his cat and another man.

b) When he wore Pride shoes to an interview.

Not just something that incidentally had a rainbow pattern. Straight-up Pride merch.

IME, allies don't wear Pride merch. Any ally I know who wears Pride merch will eventually come out as LGBT+ at some point. If you wear Pride merch, you're gay. (That's the rule)

Okay, more seriously. I grew up in the grimmer days of the 90s and 00s in US South, before rainbow-washing was profitable and before most studios felt comfortable showing even the slightest amount of gay relationships. Back when wearing a rainbow was a serious statement that would attract notice and might get you beat up (I had multiple friends who were physically attacked. I avoided it bc I am a trickster a bisexual and therefore invisible). Back then, the only people who wore Pride merch were actually gay. I can't think of any exceptions.

Later, as the situation for LGBT+ folks improved in the US (let's put aside the anxiety of the current anti-trans wave), I have seen a couple self-identified allies who wear Pride merch. But in every case, that ally eventually came out as gay. The "ally" label was a useful stopping place in their comfort with being openly gay.

Things may be different in China. I think in some ways, it probably resembles the way things were when I grew up--before gay marriage was legal and when the majority of people expressed disgust with gay people. On the other hand, the homophobia of the US has a strong religious element that doesn't seem to be present in China.

But all that regardless, wearing Pride merch is meaningful. Even now in the US, when rainbows are everywhere. It's definitely meaningful in China, where same-sex relationships are censored in the media.

c) I've discussed DD's overt flirting already, but another part of that "I'm not talking about WWX, I'm talking about XZ" video that struck me was GG's response.

He smiles, crinkles his nose, and shyly looks down. This is such a classic "I'm being flirted with and I'm into it" response (shy-person flavor). No straight guy would react to DD flirting with him like that. That reaction only makes sense if XZ is into being flirted with by men, DD in this case.

d) The BDSM conversation in the cave, complete with GG making an obscene, um, tongue gesture.

I'm trying my best to picture this as a conversation between 2 straight guys, and I'm failing here. The whole conversation is gay. Add in the literal tongue in cheek and it's incredibly flirty and suggestive. Like with C, GG's responses are just...not straight. They only make sense in a flirty context, and not one that's playing with them acting as Wangxian.

e) His involvement in TU.

This follows what I wrote for DD above. XZ was not as big a name as DD was at the time, so he was a relative unknown trying out for a role (for Xue Yang's role, specifically) on a show that may never air.

GG likely didn't have as many options open to him as DD at that time, so you could try to argue that he was just trying out for as many roles as he could.

But honestly, I think anybody who signed onto TU has higher than average odds of being LGBTQ+ themselves. Think about it. If you're queer and in the industry, you have few to no opportunities to play a role that reflects your relationships. You have few opportunities to work on a set that is overtly okay with same-sex relationships (at least, of the fictional variety).

You hear that a BL novel is being adapted and while you know BL novels are mainly for straight women, it's still gonna be a gay romance. Maybe your only chance at being involved in filming a gay romance. Of course you're going to want to be in on that.

Being in the closet sucks. Not being able to be yourself fully sucks. Back when I was a gay teen in the 90s-00s, I would just look up photos of girls kissing online (not porn. just kissing) just because I never saw that and it fed something inside of me that was missing. A part of me that was never reflected back at me. I ached for more lesbian relationships in TV and books, and I watched so many shitty movies/tv shows just because there were lesbians in it.

The media landscape is much better now here in the US, but when I think about how queer folk in the industry in China might feel, I think back to myself as a younger queer lady bursting at the seams to immerse myself in a world that actually had a space carved for me.

So yeah, being on the UT, in of itself, is a signal to me. It doesn't mean that everybody involved with it was gay. But I do think that it means that the odds of any particular person being gay is higher than in a non-BL production.

Admittedly, there's no way to prove this, and who knows? Maybe gay men would be less likely to want to work on a BL production because of the strained relationship between gay men and the boy-love genre. But I kinda doubt that because when your relationships are censored, you'll latch onto anything you can get that even resembles them. I watched countless anime made for horny fanboys because they had lesbians in them. I watched, literally, anything, no matter who created it. I know other gay girls who watched lesbian porn of the type made by and for straight men because they just wanted to see their own desires reflected at them, even if the reflection was a little wonky.

And that's just with watching media. Signing up to act in a project means you also get to connect with other people who are hypothetically okay with gay relationships. Who might even be gay, themselves. Fuck yeah, you're gonna leap on that.

So, yeah. This point is the last for both DD and GG but it's important because it establishes how I think about the production of TU. If the set had more gay cast/crew given the subject matter of the show, is it really so far-fetched that some people would hook up? Or start a relationship?

Once I convinced myself that GG and DD are some flavor of gay, the rest wasn't hard to buy into at all. But that's for the next post. :)

I am a clown and everything I say is fake. Don't buy into it.

Next Post: Consuming Candies Pt 2: DD ❤️ GG and GG ❤️ DD

[add1ctedt0you]

I read your zhanchengxian post and I feel the same. So Ive got a question: do you know of any fic with timeskip zhancheng where canon is substantially changed by it? I'd love to read one is why I'm asking

Hi! I am happy to know someone agrees with me! Anyway, I've not read a fic like that, sorry, but I've this habit of saving for later fics and never read them, so I've got some recs, even though I've never read these fics.

Fic (I've never read but seems zhancheng timeskip ~ canon divergent):

time waits for no one by adasinon

“Ah, Er-gege,” Wei Ying forces yet another laugh, it is breathless and helpless, and painful as always. “So inappropriate. What would Jiang Cheng say?”

Lan Zhan doesn’t recoil, or laugh. He really has changed.

“You didn’t tell us you’re injured,” Lan Zhan gently moves his arm around, dotes on Wei Ying like he cares for him the way Wei Ying wishes him to. He’s convincing, for sure, and Wei Ying tries not to pretend his delusions are coming true.

(Years ago, Wei Ying went to Lanling on his own, and died during the ambush. He returns to a changed world, where the loves of his life have seemingly been doing better without him.)

((Established Zhancheng, but we all know where this is going))

Fics set during Sunshot campaign:

Wonder of all Walkers by CoolTapes

Lan Wangji and Jiang Wanyin search for Wei Wuxian, rescue a dog, and fall in love.

Let Me Hear The Sound Your Heart Makes by Nantai

In a universe where you can hear any music your soulmate makes (be it singing or playing an instrument or just humming under your breath) Jiāng Chéng often hears his soulmates play together, but he doesn't dare join in. Because he knows Wèi Wúxiàn can't be his soulmate and Jiāng Chéng certainly won't come between him and Lán Wàngjī.

This changes when Wèi Wúxiàn goes missing during the Sunshot Campaign.

moored by fluffysocks

Lan Wangji comes over and they kiss. Lan Wangji comes over and they have tea.

Lan Wangji comes over and they talk.

It turns out that the available study materials are contradictory and unenlightening.

Fics I've read and enjoyed, that portray an interesting zhancheng dynamic during wwx's death (they don't reach canon, being set during the timeskip, but they set the mood actually)

mirror-bright scale by sugar_shoal

It's a serie! Dragon!LWJ AU, that follows canon events. At the moment there are only two fics about snippets of zhancheng moments, but it's not completed! First fic:

The Care and Keeping of Dragon Pearls by sugar_shoal

Lan Zhan's mother wore Qingheng-jun’s pearl around her neck, as big as Lan Zhan’s small fist; he stared up at it. Tints of gold shimmered in its surface, the same gold as Lan Zhan’s father’s eyes, his father’s qi. But despite the warm colors it still appeared cold to him, fastened around her neck with a chain. He touched his own smaller, paler pearl that rested in the hollow of his throat.

Lan Wangji always watches Jiang Wanyin with rapt attention. So he sees the moment of startled joy when Wanyin opens the small silver-inlaid box and realizes what it contains, the warmth that brightens his eyes. He sees when that brightness dims.

* * *

Jiang Wanyin closes the box and holds it back out to him. “Wangji,” he says, “I can’t take this from you.”

Beyond the Autumn Waters by omphalos

Two days after the first siege of the Burial Mounds, Jiang Cheng returns there to hunt for Suibian. What he finds is something completely different, but he takes it home all the same.

A found family and friendship AU that branches from canon shortly after Wei Wuxian’s death and covers the period until just before his return.

(this last one is not jgy friendly- and it's not tagged-, I don't know if it's a deal-breaker or not, but be mindful!)

[xiyao-feels]

On the topic of WWX's privilege vs JGY's, there's this exchange with WQ after he's killed Jin Zixuan that always stands out to me:

He could neither shout nor move, rasping, “Why are you going to Koi Tower? I wasn’t the one who cursed him with Hundred Holes at all…”

Wen Qing, “But they have set their minds that it was you.”

Wei WuXian tried his best to think of ways to deal with this. Suddenly, he thought of something, “Then find the real person who set the curse! Jin ZiXun’s definitely gone to experts of cursing. The most common way to deal with these curses is to hit them back, let the effects rebound back to the one who placed the curse. Even if not all of the power could be rebounded, a large portion can. We can just look for someone who has the same curse marks on them!”

Wen Qing, “There’s no use.”

Wei WuXian, “Why not?”

Wen Qing, “There are so many people—where could we look for them? Set up a checkpoint on every street of every city and make everyone take off their clothes so that we can check?”

Wei WuXian protested, “Why not?”

Wen Qing, “Who’d be willing to set up these checkpoints for you? And for how long do you intend to search? We could perhaps find them after eight or ten years, but would those people be willing to wait?”

Wei WuXian, “But there are no rebounded curse marks on me!”

Wen Qing, “During today’s incident, did they ask you?”

Wei WuXian, “No.”

Wen Qing, “That’s right. They didn’t ask. They straight-up prepared to kill you. Do you understand now? They don’t need any proof. They don’t need you to find the truth either. Whether or not you have curse marks on your body doesn’t matter at all. You’re the YiLing Patriarch, the King of the Demonic Path. You specialize in dark curses, so it wouldn’t even be strange if you didn’t have curse marks on you. On top of that, you didn’t have to do it yourself. You could’ve gotten Wen-dogs, your slaves, to do it for you. It’s you no matter what. You won’t be able to deny it.”

(ER 77)

At this point WWX still feels on some level like he can defend himself with reason—not just from one person, but from the mob. He expects that something like finding the actual person who set the curse can be done, and while I don't think he's really thinking through how much work that would be, it suggests that he's not used to having to think through how much effort it would take, to prove himself innocent. Intuitively, he expects to be given the benefit of the doubt, not by everyone but by enough people; intuitively, he expects a situation where at least someone in authority is on his side.

And he's wrong, of course, as he realizes here, and as he learns even more deeply at Nightless City. But I think the fact that he has to learn it speaks a lot to what his experience of the world was, until this point.

And the thing about JGY is, he'd never have made this mistake, because he's never had the things that WWX did! He's never been given the benefit of the doubt, he knows not to expect support from any authority. Tbh we see him surviving only because he doesn't make this mistake: what do you think would have happened to him, if he'd turned himself in at Langya, if he'd tried to argue with NMJ after Sun Palace instead of fleeing?

There are a lot of scenes showing just how different their circumstances are, but this moment says a lot to me. Even now, even after everything that's happened, WWX still expects things to play out as though he's a favoured member of the Jiang sect; and he doesn't realize just how different things are for someone who's really outside the system.

[wangxianficfinder]

In the mood for...

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1. hey y'all im hoping you're having a good holiday. im in the mood for jin ling having a complex about his courtesy name. thanks, y'all are spectacular!

climbing up that coastal shelf by Sour_Idealist (T, 15k, JC & JL & WWX, JC & JL, JC & WWX, JL & LSZ, JL & WWX, Post-Canon, Mutually Unrequited Forgiveness, JC & WWX Reconciliation, Family History, Generational Trauma, Discussion of Canonical Abuse, Awkward Attempts at Communication, mentions of past JC/WQ, Fairy is a good dog) This is for #1 but it's not the focus of the entire fic, just the second section

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2. Hello! In the mood for canon setting time loop fics? Not just going back in time once, but someone is stuck in a loop over and over again. Preferably Wei Wuxian-centric, but it could be any character. Love this blog, thank you all! @gloriousclotpole

the cycle of regret by KouriArashi (T, 14k, WangXian, Groundhog Day, Fix-It, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Alternate Canon) LWJ is the one stuck in the loop

Wearing Down Every Bone by CSHfic, VSfic (E, 30k, WangXian, Groundhog Day, Time Loop, Temporary Character Death, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, Case Fic, Curses, Pining, Getting Together, Time Travel, Night Hunts, Hurt wwx, Mystery, Angst with a Happy Ending, Use Your Words, Mutual Pining, Depression and Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, gratuitous use of empathy) I have something that's post-canon rather than strictly canon, but still deserves a mention I feel

Pocketful of Soul by Jenrose (T, 182k, WangXian, Time Travel Fix-It, Canon Divergence, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, BAMF MXY, MXY Lives, Genderfluid MXY, MXY Backstory, POV MXY, If At First You Don’t Succeed Try Try Again and Again and Again, Wangxian Speedrun, times three because time travel, Found Family, Genius MXY, Genius WWX, Not particularly JGY friendly, CQL-based) Pocketful of Soul by Jenrose is probably not what people expect from time loops but it is time loops nonetheless

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3. Do you know good fics where Yu Ziyuan got some karma for the way she treated Wei Wuxian? Bonus if her husband got some karma too (even if he never mistreated directly Wei Wuxian, he didn't stop his wife to abuse him)

🔒If Wishes Were Donkeys by NightOwl1 (M, 101k, WIP, WangXian, SVSSS, Time Travel Fix-It, Case Fic, Mpreg, Fluff and Humor, Dysfunctional Jiāng Family, Bad Parent YZY, WangXian Get a Happy Ending,   Period-Typical Homophobia, Crossdressing, LWJ and WWX Have a Breeding Kink, It’s All The System’s Fault, Post-Canon, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Warning: JGS, Good Uncle LQR, LWJ and WWX Are LSZ’s Parents, Inappropriate Humor, Family Feels)

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4. Hi! Itmf where lan wangji and Wei wuxian are in an established relationship and suddenly lan wangji goes back in time. ❤️❤️

The Second Hand Unwinds by trulywicked (E, 25k, wangxian, JYL/JZX, Time Travel Fix-It, not JC friendly, not Yúnmèng Jiāng Sect friendly, not Jiāng Family friendly, not YZY friendly, Time Travelling LWJ, Protective LWJ, Fluff, Minor Angst, Minor Character Death, JGS is his own warning, Wooing, LWJ is romantic af, Inventor WWX, Genius WWX, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Protective Gūsū Lán Sect, Supportive LXC, Good Uncle LQR, WIP)

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5. I love all time travel, but could I ask for fics where the person time-travelling isn't wwx? I'd love for the person to seize the opportunity to make sure that wwx experiences less (or none!) of the Horrors haha

🔒💖 The blame game by apathyinreverie (T, 13k, wangxian, LXC & LWJ, LSZ & WWX, WWX & WQ, LXC & WWX, canon divergence, time travel fix-it, possessive LWJ, oblivious WWX, fluff, siblings, romance, golden core reveal, golden core fix-it) Lan Xichen travels back to just before Wei Wuxian liberates the Wens and supports him.

Lynchpin by ShanaStoryteller (Not Rated, 103k, WangXian, JC & WWX, Time Travel, Fix-It, Lynchpin [PODFIC] by Opalsong, [PODFIC] Lynchpin by Gwogobo) the one travelling is JC, to the moment he and LWJ find WWX after Burial Mounds

The Second Hand Unwinds by trulywicked (E, 25k, wangxian, JYL/JZX, Time Travel Fix-It, not JC friendly, not Yúnmèng Jiāng Sect friendly, not Jiāng Family friendly, not YZY friendly, Time Travelling LWJ, Protective LWJ, Fluff, Minor Angst, Minor Character Death, JGS is his own warning, Wooing, LWJ is romantic af, Inventor WWX, Genius WWX, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Protective Gūsū Lán Sect, Supportive LXC, Good Uncle LQR, WIP) link in #4

Resilience. by Vrishchika (T, 7k, wangxian, time travel, not JC friendly, golden core transfer fix-it) JC & LWJ are the time travellers

Time, Time, Time by skeletonofaplant (G, 44k, wangxian, JYL/JZX, LSZ & WWX, JYL & JL & JZX, LJY & LSZ, Time Travel Fix-It, Burial Mounds Settlement Days, Identity Porn, Identity Reveal, Angst, Fluff, Junior Quartet Dynamics, Time Travelling Junior Ensemble, Junior Ensemble Shenanigans, Humor) The Junior Quartet time travels

A Matter of Time series by mrcformoso (E, 70 k, WangXian, Time Travel Fix-It, POV LWJ, POV JC, Dark LWJ, Manipulation, Grooming, WangXian Get a Happy Ending, Consensual Underage Sex, Except problematic please read warning in first chapter, Blood and Violence, Insane LWJ, Manic LWJ, Conditioning, WWX is a Lán, Minor Character Death, Confused JC, Golden Core Reveal, Good Friend NHS, WWX Isn’t Adopted by the Jiāngs, Abusive Jiāng Family, Jiāng Family Bashing, Jiāng Family Critical, POV NHS, Dark NHS, Anal Sex, Marathon Sex, Dual Cultivation, Qīnghéng-jūn Lives, LWJ Has a Big Dick, WWX Self-Lubricates, Plot Twists, Porn With Plot, Scheming NHS, Manipulative NHS, BAMF LWJ, BAMF WWX) Dark!LWJ time travels & sets out to ensure WWX has a happy life

A Narrow Bridge by FrameofMind, Jo Lasalle (Jo_Lasalle) (E, 700k, WangXian, Time Travel Fix-It, Canon Divergence, Slow Burn, Getting Together, First Time, Pining while fucking, Burial Mounds Settlement Days, Angst with a Happy Ending, CQL Verse, almost everybody lives/almost nobody dies, epistolary-ish, canon-ish side pairings, radishes) LWJ time travels. Features an interesting price for the second chance

💖 With Surgical Precision by metisket (T, 20k, WQ & WN, WQ & WWX, WangXian, Time Travel, Families of Choice, sibling bonding through murder) WQ time travels

💖 Lessons relearned by Iamnotawriter (T, 44k, WangXian, LQR & WWX, Not Madam Yu Friendly, Time Travel Fix-It, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon-Typical Violence, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Inventor WWX, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, No Golden Core Transfer, YZY Bashing) LQR time travels

Never Again by Hauntcats (T, 67k, WWX & WN & WQ, JC & WWX, wangxian, graphic depictions of violence, major character death, Canon Divergence, Angst, Golden Core Transfer Fix-It, Time Travel Fix-It, Not JC Friendly, Dark, BAMF WWX, mentions of abuse, Not Everyone Dies au, XY doesn’t have a happy ending) Technically WWX does time travel in this, but only after WQ does

Regrets by antebunny (G, 38k, wangxian, miscommunication, misundersandings, time travel fix-it, temporary character death, angst w/ happy ending, fluff, hurt/comfort) Both LWJ & WWX time travel

The Wild Geese’s Tomb by The Feels Whale (miscellea) (T, 66k, WangXian, Time Travel AU, fixit, Temporary Character Death) several people time travel, including WWX, but it's LWJ pov

somehow, someway, we all get to someday by Stratisphyre (T, 76k, CSSR/LQR/WCZ, LQR & Madam Lan, LQR & CSSR, wangxian, JYL & LXC, Madam Lan/OFC, Canon Divergence, Role Reversal, Canon-Typical Violence, Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn, Parenthood, Not Everyone Dies AU, Threesome - F/M/M, Family Feels, Not JFM Friendly, Not Lan Sect Friendly, past emotional abuse, Demisexual Character, Inclusive discussions of reproductive rights) it's lqr who goes back

~*~

6. Hii! For the next itmf, do you guys have any f1 recs? Thank you!

Set the pace by Lunarieen (T, 20k, WangXian, Modern AU, Coffee Shops & Cafés, Sports, Getting Together, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, mentions of an accident (nothing graphic), 5+1 Things, Light Angst, Slow Burn, Formula 1)

~*~

7. For the next intmf could you do any of your favourite there was only one bed or fake dating fics?

Just the best pining from both sides and the angst of lying in bed next to the boy you like!

The Simplest Way Forward by harriet_vane (E, 70k, WangXian, Modern AU, Accidental Baby Acquisition,Kid Fic, explicit in much much later chapters, green card marriage (but not really), pining for your own husband, endless pining, Slow Burn, Happy Ending, Nothing else bad or traumatic happens to the baby, [Podfic of] The Simplest Way Forward by knight_tracer)

You, Asleep and Dreaming by etymologyplayground (M, 9k, WangXian, LWJ POV, 5+1 Things, Literal Sleeping Together, Sharing a Bed, Cuddling & Snuggling, Intimacy, Getting Together, Fluff, Post-Canon, Undressing, wwx's 'angry lwj' kink)

abort retry fail by aroceu (E, 21k, wangxian, amnesia, married WX, internalized homophobia, handholding, smut, canon-typical kink, fluff & humor, SBWY)

Always Knew You Were Magical by jeyhawk (E, 25k, WangXian, Modern with Magic, Curse Breaking, Case Fic, Sharing a Bed, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Pining, Resolved Sexual Tension, Masturbation, First Time, Blow Jobs, curse fic, College/University, True Love's Kiss, Attempted self harm under the influence of a curse)

the moon lives in the lining of your skin by sarahyyy (M, 9k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Friends With Benefits, Misunderstandings, Oblivious, Pining, Mutual Pining, Love Confessions, Sharing a Bed, Roommates)

cut through the clouds, break the ceiling by tardigradeschool (G, 2k, WangXian, Modern AU, Love Confessions, Drunken Confessions, Sharing a Bed, Pining, Fluff)

call me home and I'll build you a throne by ana_cp (E, 51k, WangXian, Post-Canon, Post-CQL, Canon Compliant, Cloud Recesses, Getting Together, Developing Relationship, Gūsū Lán Juniors Dynamics, Touch-Starved, Non-Sexual Intimacy, ... and then Sexual Intimacy, Nightmares, Hurt/Comfort, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, WWX Has a New Golden Core, Farmer WWX, Chief Cultivator LWJ, Mutual Pining, Communication, Quietly Falling Into a Married Life, Light Angst, (because they don't think they deserve each other), Wholesome, POV LWJ, POV WWX, Sharing a Bed, WWX's Birthday, Semi-Public Sex, Inventor WWX, Jealous WWX)

The answer has always been yes by Magnolia822 (E, 6k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Friends to Lovers, Pining, Sharing a Bed, Bisexual Male Character, Frottage, Sexual Tension, Unsafe Sex, Getting Together, There Was Only One Bed)

End Racism on the OTW - Adventures in Pet Sitting by raitala (E, 63k, WangXian, background NieLan, Modern AU, Mild Hurt/Comfort, obscure animal facts, Artist WWX, Maths Nerd LWJ, POV LWJ, comphet lwj, Self-Realisation, Coming Out, London, Sharing a Bed, Exploring Sexuality, Mutual Pining, WangXian Get a Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst, Masturbation, Light Dom/sub, Oral Sex, Frottage)

🔒 tuck me in by belovedmuerto (T, 4k, WangXian, bed sharing, Hurt/Comfort, mostly comfort, Pre-Slash, Getting Together, Nightmares, expressions of care)

Out of the Bin and Into Your Heart by Alaceron (T, 27k, WangXian, Modern AU, Fake/Pretend relationship, Oblivious WWX)

❤️ save a sword, ride a socialist by sysrae (E, 33k, wangxian, modern w magic, college/university au, fake/pretend relationship, single parent WWX, homophobia, light angst w/ happy ending, idiots to lovers, fluff)

~*~

8. A more severely autistic lan wangji? With Wangxian, explorations of ableism,

My Boy Builds Coffins by enbysaurus_rex (Not Rated, 48k, WangXian, Coffin Maker AU, YL WWX, Location: Yílíng, LWJ builds coffins, Autistic LWJ, falling in love over a coffin, Hurt WWX, Mutual Pining, LWJ Has Feelings, Deathscapes, Death as a bittersweet community thing, accidental ecofiction, Farmer LWJ)

a new kind of silence by deliciousblizzardshark (E, 11k, WangXian, Modern AU, Autistic LWJ, Communication Disorder, Trans LWJ, Protective WWX, Pregnant LWJ, Panic Attacks, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Happy Ending, Getting Together, Oral Sex, Vaginal Sex, Soft WangXian, POV WWX)

~*~

9. hi hiii i’ve looked through your omegaverse recs, but i’m specifically trying to find fics where wwx and lwj were both alphas pre death, but wwx became an omega when he woke up in mxy’s body. do you have any like that?

You've got me feelin' like a child now by MaggieoftheOwls (E, 9k, wangxian, A/B/O, Alpha LWJ, Past Alpha WWX, Omega MXY, not that Wangxian realize at first)

March 31st by Midshipsman (E, 3k, wangxian, A/B/O, Alpha LWJ, Alpha WWX, Omega MXY, Gender Dysphoria, Body Dysphoria, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Biting, Oral Knotting, Top WWX, Switching (kinda), Loving acceptance of your partner's needs, Trans Male Character, Light BDSM)

Tilted by BadPennyGirl, thedawnwall (M, 24k, wangxian, A/B/O, Alpha WWX, Alpha LWJ, Omega MXY, Gender Dysphoria, Sexual Tension, No Sex, Just a lot of thirsting, Canon-Typical Gender Stereotypes, Getting Together, WN is the Best Brother, Cuddling & Snuggling, Spooning, Masturbation, JC Tries, JC is So Done, Omega WN)

( Five to Seven Days by Unforth (E, 5k, wangxian, A/B/O, Canon Divergence, Vers LWJ, Bottom LWJ, Vers WWX, Top WWX, WWX in MXY's Body, Omega WWX, Alpha MXY, Alpha LWJ, Knotting, Rutting, Body Dysphoria, WWX is Kind Of Presentation Queer, Overstimulation, Multiple Orgasms, Explicit Consent) and the opposite, formerly omega!wwx is now in alpha!mxy's body )

Smoke by TenyaTrash (E, 298k, WangXian, ZhuiLing, NieLan, Drama & Romance, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Relationships, Mutual Pining, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha LWJ, Beta LXC, Alpha Turned Omega WWX, Lost Love, Omega LSZ, Beta JL, Alpha JC, Omega NHS, Sharing Body Heat, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Denial of Feelings, Scenting, Scent Marking, Primarily CQL with elements of novel thrown in, Sibling Bonding, Courting Rituals, Marriage Proposal, Protective JC, Yunmeng Brothers Reconciliation, Versatile wangxian, Married Life, Enthusiastic Consent, Family Bonding, supportive families, Divergent Omegaverse, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics)

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10. ITMF longform college au fics! slowburn and preestablished friendship preferred. bonus if there's nightmare hurt/comfort or sickfic elements, i just like when they take care of each other :) thanks!! @monstergreentea

and here comes the summertime by ribena (M, 72k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Academia, this is set in America, Enemies to Lovers, Slow Burn, Mutual Pining, Slice of Life, Humor, Light Angst, Falling In Love, Found Family)

mating rituals by detectorist (E, 16k, WangXian, XuanLi, Modern AU, College/University, Humour, Pining, Getting Together, Idiots in Love)

💖 Pentimento. by orange_crushed (E, 73k, wangxian, modern, college/university au, art conservation, museums, pining, not actually unrequited love, angst w/ happy ending, misunderstandings, smut, major character injury, hospitalization, hurt/comfort, past incarceration, forgery) kind of? lots of college flashbacks?

Walk the Circle in the Other Direction by notevenyou (E, 31k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, High School, Coming Out, Homophobia, Bad Parenting, Alcohol, Recreational Drug Use, Vomiting, Panic Attack, Bullying, Minor Injuries, Blood, Fighting, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Oblivious WWX, honestly not as dark as the tags make it seem, bisexual wwx, WWX/MM, sex between a man and a woman)

Falling Headlong by floraidh (T, 35k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, skater au, First Meetings, First Kiss, Getting Together, autistic lwj)

Only Fools Rush In by justpeace (M, 22k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Bisexual Disaster WWX, Asian-American Character, Banter, Flirting, Fluff and Humor, Getting Together)

But really, why? by Scrippio (T, 52k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University)

take me home (where i belong) by scarletwanlian (E, 153k, WangXian, Modern AU, Slice of Life, PTSD, Trauma, Dissociation, Music, Strangers to Lovers, Friends to Lovers, Depression, Hurt/Comfort, Recovery, Injury Recovery, mental recovery, Mental Health Issues, Non-Sexual Intimacy, AND sexual intimacy, Literal Sleeping Together, First Time, Families of Choice, Car Accidents, Found Family, Flashbacks, Nightmares, gore elements somewhat, descriptions can get a bit gorey at times, Eventual Happy Ending, Sad with a Happy Ending, Healing, Character Study, Grief/Mourning, Survivor Guilt, Whump)

like blue flame over my fingertips by tangerinechar (T, 37k, WangXian, College/University, Mutual Pining, 5+1 Things, Food as a Metaphor for Love, lwj and jzx being reluctant bros)

🔒you are safe / loved / worthy / enough by everythingispoetry (T, 150k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Social Media, Mental Health Issues, Healing, self-care, Anxiety, Hurt/Comfort, the mortifying ordeal of self-acceptance, Falling In Love, Depression, Slow Burn)

(Planning the Day) To Meet You by Bettydice (E, 61k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Pining, Mutual Pining, WWX raises A-Yuàn, minimum angst, MAXIMUM GAY, Self-indulgent fluff, Slow Burn, Eventual Smut, POV LWJ, Happy Ending, Getting Together, Falling In Love, Masturbation, Blow Jobs, Hand Jobs, Anal Sex, Intercrural Sex)

Stumbling Into You by Magnolia822 (E, 39k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Getting Together, Friends to Lovers, Practice Kissing, Bisexuality, Coming Out, New York City, Denial of Feelings, Mutual Pining, Hand Jobs, Jealousy, Light Angst, Fluff and Smut, Slow Burn, Past WWX/MM, Underage Drinking, Recreational Drug Use, Family Dynamics, Falling In Love, Found Family, Unsafe Sex, Minor Character Death, Grief/Mourning)

❤️ the best of you by sysrae (E, 41k, WangXian, XuanLi, Modern AU, College/University, Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Mutual Pining, Getting Together, slightly undernegotiated kink, Nightmares, Panic Attacks, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, JFM and Madam Yu's A+ parenting, Dysfunctional Family, Mental Health Issues, the most tender of railings, Reference to animal attacks/animal cruelty, descriptions of past violence)

🔒some impulse of delight by handclaps (E, 20k, WangXian, Modern AU, First Time, Light Bondage)

~*~

11. I want wangxian fics like the web series "TRANSPLANT" , it's an hospital story, about a doc, Hamed who came from a war background? He has got ultra instincts, a gifted doc, a nice kind person. He was a patient in the hospital and 2 weeks later he joined in as the doc there. The story is nice.

~*~

12. Fics where

A) wwx and/or lwj is a biker?

B) wx like to dance together like in a lazy afternoon, or after a soft beautiful date, or on their wedding day, or when a yuan is baby talking.

12B)

Across the street to another life by danegen (M, 99k, WangXian, Modern AU, unleashed au, Family Fluff, Set in America, Hurt/Comfort, Past Child Abuse, Addiction, Crime, Amnesia, Ableist Language, another fridged mother, POV Alternating, past wwx/ofc, past wwx/omc, Medium parent YZY, A-Yuan is wwx’s biological son, Musicians, Happy Ending) this fic is mostly very angsty but there is one very cute wangxian dancing scene. Good fic though

For Once In My Life by Selenay (M, 7k, wangxian, Modern, Dance AU, Strictly Come Dancing Fusion, Dancer WWX, Violinist LWJ, Ballroom Dancing, Established Relationship, Romantic Fluff, the inherent sexiness of being lovingly cared for, Podfic Available) might like For Once in My Life; It's a sequel to a longer fic (also great!) where wangxian are dance partners on a reality show, but this part is mostly about them practising a dance together at home, so it could fit the request.

Just Ask Me To Stay by mrcformoso (M, 21k, wangxian, Former JZn/WWX, Minor LXC/NMJ, Minor JYL/JZX, Modern, Dancer WWX, Musician LWJ, Roommates, Best Friends, Friends to Lovers, Break Up, Post-Break Up, Recovery, Family, Realizing Your Best Friend is the Love of Your Life, WWX Has Self-Esteem Issues, And LWJ is not having it, Sex as Self Worth Reaffirmation, Fluff, Light Angst, Anal Sex, Anal Fingering, Oral Sex, Domestic Fluff, LWJ Has a Big Dick, WWX Has a Breeding Kink, Size Queen WWX, Belly Bulge, Porn With Plot, WWX Has Friends, LWJ Has Friends, Hurt/Comfort, Romantic Comedy, Cute, Feel-good) WWX is a dancer and he dances on good days and LWJ dances with him.

~*~

13. for the next ITMF,

a) (wangxian's or any) future child/ren time travel in the past

b) boashan sanren is present/involved in the storyline (like she went down her mountain, being with wwx, or any)

c) secretly married wangxian (pref. modern)

thankyouuuuuu!!!

13A)

Time, Time, Time by skeletonofaplant (G, 44k, wangxian, JYL/JZX, LSZ & WWX, JYL & JL & JZX, LJY & LSZ, Time Travel Fix-It, Burial Mounds Settlement Days, Identity Porn, Identity Reveal, Angst, Fluff, Junior Quartet Dynamics, Time Travelling Junior Ensemble, Junior Ensemble Shenanigans, Humor) link in #5 Also works for this request as LSZ time travels

Baby Of Mine by pupeez4eva (G, 3k, wangxian, time travel, humor, canon divergence, everyone lives, gusu school days, family)

Ardent Desires by crestre (Not rated, 6k, wangxian, Time Travel, Canon Divergence, A/B/O, Fluff, Attempt at Humor, Mpreg, Fix-It of Sorts)

13B)

Become Tomorrow by ShanaStoryteller (Not Rated, 39k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, WWX is BSSR’s disciple) WWX is BSSR's disciple

Can't Tell Me Nothin by natacup82 (T, 35k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Everybody Lives, Family Feels, Communication, BAMF Women)

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

13C)

Love Me Just A Little by mostlynonsense (travelingpsycho) (T, 16k, WangXian, Modern, Family Feels, Fake Dating (But Married), Happy Ending, Established Relationship)

Me and my husband (we are doing better) by like_a_bird_that_flew (G, 5k, WangXian, Modern AU, Yanli's POV, Fluff, Coming Out, Family Feels, Light Angst, Attempt at Humor, Established Relationship, Unresolved Emotional Tension, It's mostly super fluffy though dw, Family, Romance) secret marriage

Here everyone knows you're the way to my heart by like_a_bird_that_flew (T, 4k, WangXian, Modern AU, Coming Out, Angst and Humor, Mostly chill though, Family Feels, POV Alternating, Established Relationship) secret relationship (not married yet)

~*~

14. Hello, would you be a dear and suggest me some fics? I'm in the mood for fics where there's little wwx and little lwj, but especially little wwx being adorably cute and getting a lot of love. Even more lovelier if little lwj got interested in little wwx early on. Basically I want kiddos wwx & lwj. Thank you very much and have a nice day, dearest.

Noodle-Xian and Fluff-Ji Series by meyari (G, 10k, WangXian, JFM/YZY, Kid Fic, Shifter, Fluff, Dragon WWX, Bunny LWJ, bunny lwj, Shifter AU, dragon wwx, Discussion of Serious Injury, discussion of curses) Also very fluffy (literally and figuratively) with animal transformation

#FreePalestine | a birthday treat! by gentil-minou (Flyingsuits) (G, 7k, wangxian, Pre-Canon, Canon Compliant, Different First Meeting, Kid Fic, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, WWX's Birthday, Birthday Fluff, Friendship, Childhood Friends, Street Kid WWX, i wish there was a tag for fluffy angst:, you'll want to laugh and squeal through the tears at the same time, i would give the entire world for little a-ying i swear it, LWJ was born ready to care for and feed and nurture and love WWX)

a hop, skip, and a jump to you by gentil-minou (Flyingsuits) (G, 6k, wangxian, Magic AU, Witches, Shapeshifting, Rabbit LWJ, Rabbit WWX, Fluff, Childhood Friends, Just two bunny boys growing and learning together and being just so gosh darn cute, Tooth-Rotting Fluff)

~*~

15. I’m in the mood for a fic with a Wangxian marriage gone wrong. Like Wangxian is perfectly happy but the cultivation world is not and try to kill them about it. @apparently-i-am-an-adult

Concord by Deastar (T, 41k, WangXian, Arranged Marriage, Gūsū Lán Sect Rules, Depression, Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending)

~*~

16. Hello and thank you as always to the incredible mods and hive mind community of Wangxian Fic Finder! I've got an ITMF request:

With Wei Wuxian being the undeniable powerhouse of the Sunshot Campaign, it makes sense that Wen Ruohan would make an effort to take him off the board, one way or another. ITMF fics where Wei Wuxian is targeted by the Wens during Sunshot: he's lured into a trap on the battlefield, targeted by an assassin in camp, an attempted kidnapping, whatever. (No Jiang sibling bashing please). Excited for the recommendations! @flamingwell

~*~

17. hiii! itmf for possessive lan wangji? thank you!

A Matter of Time series by mrcformoso (E, 70 k, WangXian, Time Travel Fix-It, POV LWJ, POV JC, Dark LWJ, Manipulation, Grooming, WangXian Get a Happy Ending, Consensual Underage Sex, Except problematic please read warning in first chapter, Blood and Violence, Insane LWJ, Manic LWJ, Conditioning, WWX is a Lán, Minor Character Death, Confused JC, Golden Core Reveal, Good Friend NHS, WWX Isn’t Adopted by the Jiāngs, Abusive Jiāng Family, Jiāng Family Bashing, Jiāng Family Critical, POV NHS, Dark NHS, Anal Sex, Marathon Sex, Dual Cultivation, Qīnghéng-jūn Lives, LWJ Has a Big Dick, WWX Self-Lubricates, Plot Twists, Porn With Plot, Scheming NHS, Manipulative NHS, BAMF LWJ, BAMF WWX) link in #5 Also works for this as LWJ is about as possessive as you can get

🧡 Stunted, Starving Juvenility by TomatenMark (E, 712k, WangXian, WIP, Fix-it of sorts, Talisman master WWX, Not JFM Friendly, Study Arc, Getting together, Fluff and Angst, Engagement) LWJ is pretty possessive in this

That Time Wei Wuxian Fell In Love With His First Officer And Didn't Even Realize by seungchxn (E, 9k, WangXian, Star Trek Fusion, Captain WWX, First Officer LWJ, Vulcan Mind Melds, Vulcan Kisses, Fluff and Smut, Eventual Smut, Anal Sex, Anal Fingering, Hand Jobs, Hand & Finger Kink, Alien Biology, Mind Meld, Mutual Pining, First Time, First Kiss, Falling In Love, True Love, Soulmates, Accidental Marriage, Unrequited Love, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Oblivious WWX, WWX is a Little Shit, WWX is Bad at Feelings, Possessive LWJ, LWJ is Whipped, LWJ is a Panicked Gay, The Inherent Eroticism of Holding Hands)

Teacher's Pet by anobtra by (animeobsessedtrash) (E, 43k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Age Difference, Professor WWX, Student LWJ, Degradation, mild stalking, thigh riding, WWX Talks Dirty, Frottage, Mutual Masturbation, Anal Sex, Anal Fingering, Bottom LWJ, Top WWX, Coming Untouched, Orgasm Delay/Denial, LWJ is a Brat, Consent is Sexy, Begging, Hand Jobs, Blow Jobs, Exhibitionism, Voyeurism, Teasing, Hair-pulling, Semi-Public Sex, Masturbation, Consensual Sex, Rough Sex, Dry Humping, everyone is of-age, Barebacking, Possessive Behavior ,Porn With Plot, Jerk Off Instructions, Service Top WWX, just a lil bit Protective LWJ, Pining LWJ, Light Humiliation, Possessive WWX, Bottom LWJ/Top WWX, Possessive LWJ, Intercrural Sex) pls mind tags!

Howling for You by Runningbarefoot (E, 8k, WangXian, Fluff and Smut, dragon lwj, fox wwx, Possessive LWJ, Dom/sub Undertones, Fantasy, Biting, Anal Sex, horny wangxian, not really explicit I'm just playing it safe, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, kidnapped WWX, Happy Ending, Attempt at Humor, Twitter threadfic, Porn With Plot, dramatic declarations of love, shameless wwx, Light-Hearted)

These Mortal Treasures by ChilianXianzi (T, 9k, WangXian, Fantasy, Canon Divergence, Dragon LWJ, Rogue Cultivator WWX, Possessive LWJ, Domestic Fluff, implied eggpreg, Dragonji's hoard is 1 (one) weiying, The Cultivation World's canonical fuckery, eggyuan!, Gift Giving)

~*~

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

[aurorablackwei]

Sometimes when I read fanfics that put all the blame on WWX for not knowing LWJ's feelings or that he is idiot, ignorant or obviously I feel they leave many things aside, starting with the communication in the couple and the psychology of the character. (I blame "The Untamed" for that perception, their relationship there is much more obvious and in the end LWJ does not accompany him and remains at the service of the hypocrites of the world of cultivation, horrible)

They put LWJ in the "Friendzone" and I think something I really hate in real life and fantasy is the idea that good deeds and care for another must be returned in romantic feelings or sexual actions, especially if there is no declaration of intent . Even LXC kinda perpetuates this "after all he's done for you and you still don't love him" idea, so yeah, LXC in general is always well portrayed.

But personally and I speak from experience, assuming the feelings of another is the biggest mistake. Demanding that for being nice or having feelings someone should return those feelings or even sexual favors is a farce of a true relationship. It's generally misogynistic when a lot of men, which is where I see it the most, are nice to or befriend a woman for a chance, then complain that they didn't get laid or that she chose someone else.

She probably chose someone who, who really declared his intentions, tried to win her and from the beginning announced that wanted to have a romance or sex. If you introduce yourself as a friend, don't expect someone to treat you as a couple.

The worst of all this is that LWJ understands it, he can't be friendzoned because he was never there, he loved WWX before his death but he only acts on his feelings in secret (when he kisses him) or in despair (Nightless city ), before that he does not demand anything because he does not present himself as a potential partner, his feelings are his and he suffers for them, but he does not impose them on WWX or demand anything in return because he does nothing about it. We also know that he trusted the system, his sect, his clan and his family and it is later that he realizes that they are rotten. He also makes mistakes, because he always dedicated himself to driving WWX away or trying to help him thinking that he knew better, believing that his sect was right and could help him (personally I think that if WWX went to Gusu at first it would not be different from Madame Lan because LWJ still trusted his elders and their teachings, not his fault obviously).

When he saves him and faces the elders, I think it is the moment of deepest change for LWJ but it is too late to do anything, and I don't think the lashes are WWX's fault either, LWJ here must be 22/23 years old and although they were desperate measures, he make the decisions he make and he owns that and takes his punishment. That does not change the love nor the perceived rejection, nor the death of WWX.

LWJ understands it better than anyone and lives it for 13 years, he love WWX, he is still devoting his thoughts and his heart even if it is not reciprocated, even if the person is no longer there and will last as long as it has to last.

I think that the most beautiful thing about Wangxian as a couple is that they overcome that idea of debts, unlike other relationships like WQ and WWX or JC and WWX, LWJ does not expect WWX to return his love, if he thinks that WWX rejected him, it is not a impediment to continue loving and protecting him. He woos, nurtures and protects him and WWX even understands his wooing and falls in love with LWJ even more. When he realizes that his actions were cruel, despite being unintentional he explains it to LWJ, he clears up the misunderstandings. And they can be together.

When WWX returns, LWJ protects him, stay by his side, trusts him, and in the process pampers and woos him. And surprise, WWX falls in love. We know that before he had at least one crush, but I think there was no space in his life, mind and heart to fall in love, because there were many things happening, each one worse than the last, however he always wanted Lan Zhan's attention and now that has his is wrapped up in it and falls even deeper.

And even those misunderstandings make sense.

1.- WWX does not have the context behind LWJ's actions and still falls in love. He doesn't know what happened after the Nightless City.

2.- They have the fight with Jiang Cheng at Lotus Pier where we already know that he was thinking of marrying LWJ and he had caught him falling from the tree, but he sees LWJ upset and was unconscious later, after te GC reveal.

3.- In his mind at that point LWJ was so good that what he does for him he would do for anyone and they only added points to his greatness.

4.- LWJ's "rejection" at the inn is the last nail in the coffin, thinking that he abused LWJ and destroyed their relationship.

For LWJ

1.- He doesn't know that WWX doesn't remember Nightless City and still thinks that he was rejected.

2.- He probably believes that WWX was flirting with him like he did before, and that WWX also had experience.

3.- Maybe everything was going well but Lotus Pier happens and WWX says that they are just friends and LWJ does not know that he was trying to protect his reputation.

When JGY and LXC tell WWX about LWJ's feelings and punishment, I think that more than the punishment he took for him is knowing that LWJ loves him and the punishment is a sample of how far he would go for him, it makes it tangible, not just an idea or a word, for WWX words do not have as much value as actions, learning about the punishment makes tangible the fact that LWJ loves him despite how painful it is to know. And being sure of that makes him able to deliver his feelings without fear of rejection or displeasure, and he needs to tell him right then and there.

4.- When he is conscious in the inn it is to hear WWX thanking him and then saying that what they did is normal between friends and not important.

WWX is a self-confident character in many aspects, but emotionally delicate, few people have sincerely loved him, and he has been able to count on fewer, so to be in a relationship, he probably does need to be courted. He need be openly loved and with the confidence that they will be by his side, because he will give himself completely and without restrictions, as in all his other relationships. LWJ shows him that, that he will always be by his side, in every way and his relationship is healthy with trust and communication. Even his intimacy and sex life is a reflection of that, they trust each other, communicate their needs and desires, and support each other.

Unfortunately they worked on it apart, LWJ through mourning the love of his life and the disappointment of a system and precepts he trusted. WWX through loneliness, isolation and then his death. Maybe in another world they could grow and learn together, the idea that young couples don't last, is false. I know many couples that have lasted for years starting at 19 or 20 and others that don't, it depends on the sacrifices that each one wants to do and the objectives that they have together and these are not necessarily to start a family, they can be to travel and still do it together, professional success and still do it together, if you have a partner who is by your side and you are by his side you can, as long as you're both willing, learning together is also an experience. And at least for WWX dreams as long as he's having a couple of flings, he'd probably love the stability of a home and a partner (and therapy).

So I don't think LWJ should be friendzoned, especially since he's not an idiot who thinks he's owed something for his good deeds, and because he's shown that he doesn't accept feelings as thanks. The "Friendzone" is as far away from LWJ as you can get.

A veces cuando leo fanfics que ponen toda la culpa en WWX por no saber los sentimientos de LWJ o que es idiota o ignorante siento que dejan muchas cosas de lado, partiendo por la comunicacion en la pareja y las psicologia del personaje. (Culpo a "The Untamed" por esa percepción, su relación ahí es mucho mas obvia y al final LWJ no lo acompaña y se queda al servicio de los hipócritas del mundo del cultivo, horrible)

...................................................................................................

Ponen a LWJ en la "Friendzone" y creo que algo que odio en la vida real y en la fantasía es la idea de que los buenos actos y el cuidado por un otro deben ser devueltos en sentimientos romanticos, sobretodo si no hay declaracion de intenciones. Incluso LXC perpetúa un poco esta idea "despues de todo lo que hizo por ti y aún no lo amas", asi que sí, LXC en general esta bien retratado siempre.

Pero en lo personal y hablo por experiencia, asumir los sentimientos de otro es el mayor error. Exigir que por ser amable o tener sentimientos alguien me debe devolver esos sentimientos o incluso favores sexuales es una farsa a una verdadera relación. Es en general misogino cuando muchos hombres, que es donde mas lo veo, son amables o se hacen amigos de una mujer para tener una oportunidad, luego se quejan de que no lograron acostarse o de que ella eligio a alguien más.

Probablemente eligió a alguien que si declaro sus intenciones, trato de conquistarla y desde un principio aviso que quería tener un romance o sexo. Si te presentas como amigo no esperes que te trate como pareja.

Lo peor de todo esto es que LWJ lo entiende, el no puede ser puesto en la friendzone porque jamas estuvo ahí, amaba a WWX antes de su muerte pero solo actúa en sus sentimientos en secreto (cuando lo besa) o en desesperación (Nigthless city), antes de eso no exige nada porque no se presenta como pareja potencial, sus sentimientos son suyos y sufre por ellos, pero no se los impone a WWX ni exige nada a cambio porque no hace nada al respecto. También sabemos que confiaba en el sistema, su secta, su clan y su familia y es mas tarde cuando se da cuenta de que estaba todo podrido. Y también comete errores, porque siempre se dedico a alejar a WWX o intentar ayudarlo pensando que sabia mejor, creyendo que su secta tenia razón y podía ayudarlo(en lo personal creo que si WWX fuera a Gusu al principio no sería distinto a Madame Lan porque LWJ aun confiaba en sus mayores y en sus enseñanzas, no es su culpa obviamente).

Cuando lo salva y se enfrenta a los ancianos creo que es el momento de cambio mas profundo para LWJ pero es muy tarde para hacer algo, y tampoco creo que sea culpa de WWX los latigazos, LWJ aqui debe tener 22/23 años y aunque fueron medidas desesperadas tomo las decisiones que tomo y se hace cargo de eso y toma su castigo. Eso no cambia su amor, ni el rechazo percibido, ni la muerte de WWX.

LWJ lo entiende mejor que nadie y lo vive por 13 años, el amor es eso, dedicar tus pensamientos y tu corazon aunque no sea correspondido, aunque la persona ya no este y durara lo que tenga que durar.

Cuando WWX regresa LWJ lo protege, se queda a su lado, confia en él y en el proceso lo mima y lo corteja. Y sorpresa, WWX se enamora. Sabemos que antes tenia al menos un flechazo, pero creo que no había espacio en su vida, mente y corazon para enamorarse, porque habia muchas cosas pasando, cada una peor que la anterior, sin embargo siempre quiso la atención de Lan Zhan y ahora que la tiene esta envuelto en eso y cae aun mas profundo.

Creo que lo mas lindo de la Wangxian como pareja es que superan esa idea de deudas, al comtrario de otras relaciones como WQ y WWX o JC y WWX, LWJ no espera que WWX devuelva su amor, si cree que WWX lo rechazo no es un impedimento para seguir amandolo y protegiendolo. Lo corteja, lo cuida y lo protege y WWX incluso entiende esos cortejos y se enamora de LWJ aun más. Cuando se da cuenta que sus acciones fueron crueles, a pesar de ser sin intención se lo explica a LWJ, aclara los malentendidos. Y pueden estar juntos.

E incluso esos malentendidos tienen sentido.

Por WWX:

1.- WWX no tiene el contexto detras de las acciones de LWJ y aun asi se enamora. No sabe lo que paso después del Nigthless City.

2.- Tienen la pelea con Jiang Cheng en Lotus Pier donde ya sabemos que pensaba en casarse con LWJ y lo habian atrapado cayendo del árbol, pero ve molestia en LWJ y estaba inconsciente mas tarde.

3.- En su mente en ese punto LWJ era tan bueno que lo que hace por el lo haria por cualquier persona y solo agregaban puntos a su grandeza.

4.- El "rechazo" de LWJ en la posada es el último clavo en el ataúd, pensar que abuso de la confianza de LWJ y destruyo su relación.

Por LWJ:

1.- No sabe que WWX no recuerda Nigthless City y aun piensa que fue rechazado.

2.- Probablemente cree que WWX coqueteaba con el igual como lo hacia antes, y que además WWX tenia experiencia.

3.- Tal vez todo iba bien pero ocurre Lotus Pier y WWX dice que solo son amigos y LWJ no sabe que estaba tratando de proteger su reputación.

4.- Cuando esta consciente en la posada es para escuchar a WWX agradeciéndole y luego diciendo que lo que hicieron es normal entre amigos y no importante.

Cuando JGY y LXC le dicen de los sentimientos y el castigo de LWJ, creo que mas que el castigo que tomo por él es saber que LWJ lo ama y el castigo es una muestra de hasta donde llegaría por el, lo hace tangible, no solo una idea o una palabra, para WWX las palabras no tienen tanto valor como las acciones, enterarse del castigo hace tangible el hecho de que LWJ lo ama a pesar de lo doloroso que es saberlo. Y estar seguro de eso hace que puede entregar sus sentimientos sin temor al rechazo o desagrado, y necesita decírselo en ese mismo momento.

WWX es un personaje seguro de si mismo en muchos aspectos, pero sensible emocionalmente, pocas personas lo han amado sinceramente, y con menos ha podido contar, por lo que para estar en una relación probablemente sí necesita ser cortejado y estar seguro para devolver sus sentimientos abiertamente y con confianza de que estarán a su lado, porque el se entregarápor completo y sin restricciones, como en todas sus otras relaciones. LWJ le demuestra eso, que estará a su lado siempre, en todos los sentidos y su relación es saludable con confianza y comunicación. Incluso su intimidad y vida sexual es un reflejo de eso, confian en el otro, comunican sus nececidades y deseos y se apoyan mutuamente.

Lamentablemente trabajaron en eso separados, LWJ a través del duelo por el amor de su vida y la decepción de un sistema y preceptos en los que confiaba . WWX a través de la soledad, el aislamiento y luego su muerte. Tal vez en otro mundo podrían crecer y aprender juntos. edad, el aislamiento y luego su muerte.

Veo mucho de las parejas jovenes no duran es por eso, deben crecer o madurar y conozco muchas parejas que han durado años empezando a los 18 o 20 y otras que no, depende de los sacrificios que cada uno quiera hacer y los objetivos que tengan juntos y estos no necesariamente son formar una familia, pueden ser viajar y aun asi hacerlo juntos, exito profesional y aún asi hacerlo juntos, si tienes un compañero que esta a tu lado y tu a su lado se puede, siempre y cuando ambos esten dispuestos, aprender juntos tambien es una experiencia. Y al menos por los sueños de WWX mientras tenga un par de aventuras, probablemente amaría la estabilidad de un hogar y una pareja (y terapia).

Así que no creo que LWJ deba ser puesto en la "Friendzone", sobretodo porque no es un idiota que cree que se le debe algo por sus buenas acciones, y porque ha demostrado que no aceptara sentimientos en agradecimientos. La "Friendzone" es lo más alejado de LWJ que se pueda estar.

[spriteofmushrooms]

AU where JC is a famous singer who’s songs all have that edge of wronged ex to them, ala Dilemma sung by Rachie or Why Do I by Set It Off. People speculate for years about who could have broken his heart this badly. Turns out he and WWX were going to be in a group together before WWX ran off to ‘find himself’ without any warning, he doesn’t know that WWX left because the label was threatening to cut him out and only have WWX debut which made WWX do something dramatic and stupid. WWX comes back after a decade plus from doing community building in a total dead zone and the first song he hears when he gets back is JC singing his heart out about being abandoned and hating feeling that way. Being an idiot, WWX takes over a decade of cries for attention as a sign that JC hates his guts. Shenanigans ensue when he gets roped into seeing a JC concert and gets singled out in the crowd to sing a duet with JC. What happens next becomes the most viral moment in music history for the next decade.

WEI WUXIAN, HE WANTED TO MAKE MUSIC WITH YOU! He would have dropped the label, too, if you'd trusted him to handle his own sadness. Augh!! 😭💖

One of my (many, many, many) chengxian songs is "You Don't Care for Me Enough to Cry" by John Moreland, but your song suggestions are fantastic.

What happens next? 🥺💖

[lgbtlunaverse]

POV switches in chapter 108

This is generally me trying to figure out which parts of the novel are from wei wuxian's limited perspective and which ones are omniscient, as they switch pretty frequently and without warning. And also specifcally because @darkfalcon-z asked in a reply to a post I made earlier today!

Obvious disclaimer that this meta looks pretty closely into specific wording, and that my source remains a translation. I haven't read the original text and so can't attest to my accuracy there.

So MDZS gets real messy with its narration. It obviously starts in omniscient with celebrating Wei Wuxian's death, but spends a lot of its time in limited, most exemplary shown by the enduring obliviousness wei wuxians has towards lan wangji's feelings never being explicitly undercut by the narration.

The novel... does NOT telepgraph when it switches povs. Moreover, wei wuxian does sometimes make confident statement about how other characters feel. Prime example being him talking about how jiang cheng would react to finding out about his core

This being, notably... NOT what Jiang Cheng's actual reaction is when he does find out. That's because wwx is working with incomplete information here, he didn't know Jiang Cheng was willing to lose his core for him to begin with.

Also, he afformentioned obliviousness to Lan Wangji leading to him, multiple times, attributing the wrong motivations to lan wangji's actions.

The novel doesn't outright say "wei wuxian assumed/ thought that jiang cheng would react like that" in the screenshot above, but it DOES clearly show, by leading with him thinking about why he thought he coudn't tell jiang cheng about the golden core transfer, that we're in his head at the moment. And so the following statements are also his thoughts, not omniscient narrations. The difference is very subtle. But it's there

So we're in chapter 108. right before Lan Xichen stabs Jin Guangyao, an we're clearly in omniscient.

Lan Xichen's feelings are stated plainly and there's not very much focus on Wei wuxian at all. It switches over briefly to him and lwj checking up on Wen Ning but his feelings are not overriding everything else.

Then the stab happens

We're still in omniscient here. "Lan xichen felt his heart go cold" a detail Wei Wuxian couldn't know, stated plainly as a matter of fact.

However.

I think this part

Is where we retreat from omniscient back into wei wuxian's pov. We're not told anything about either of these character's inner worlds, but do get some extra litte commentary that jgy was so slow that even Jin Ling could catch him with his eyes closed! That's not something either Lan Xichen or jgy would be thinking of right now. It is, however, a comment Wei Wuxian's inner monologue might think to make.

In the context of my earlier post, which this was inspired by. It also makes some assumptions. Namely, that Xichen is just going after jgy to catch him. It doesn't explicitly say so, because we're not in omniscient anymore but it's clear Wei Wuxian thinks so as he'll feel the need to warn him in a few seconds. This is interesting, as it directly contradicts a popular fan interpretation of this scene, that's become explicitly canonized in multipe adaptations, which is that Lan Xichen is intentionally going along with and is willing to die with him. I'm not saying this theory is correct based on its popularity alone, obviously. I was actually surprised to find out it was so vague when I read the novel considering its popularity!

By the next chapter we'll be unambiguously back into wei uxian's head, and after "Lan Xichen could no longer persuade himself to silence him again" which is in the paragraph before the one in the image above, we are no longer told any other character's feelings or inner thoughts except for Wei Wuxian's. Specifically, this:

So this describes wei wuxian realizing a "something" what something? well, this something.

Again, the difference is subtle. The statement of "He was fighting with his last breath to lead Lan Xichen towards Nie Mingjue, so they could die together!" might seem like another one of those "other charcters' feelings" statements. But we're not IN Jin Guangyao's head right now. This is describing actions, not thoughts. He's not trying to get away (a visible action wwx would be privy to) which must be because...see statement above.

And all of this is framed under the banner of Wei Wuxian saying he realized something, and that being that Jin Guangyao isn't trying to get away and Lan Xichen needs to get away from him because... see statement above. This line basically starts as a repitition of what Wei Wuxian said, repeating his assumption, and then clarifying what Wei Wuxian DOES think is happening. The whole paragraph between is just buildup for the payoff of what that "something" of the realization is. MXTX could have writtern "wei wuxian, however, realized something. Jin Guangyao wasn't trying to get away! Instead he was trying to lead Lan Xichen towards Nie Mingjue so they could die together" and them describe the scenario, it'd be functionally the same in the manner of what information was conveyed, but the little gap in setup and payoff increases suspense and makes the reveal more engaging. It's a good little writing trick!

That wording above does make it way more obvious that that statement? Is one of wei wuxian's. That's what HE thinks.

In the line where jgy pushes lan xichen away, we're still not privy to their feelings or thoughts at all.

But we do get this curious litle "yet,"

That means this is a subversion, something that goes against what was previously established. Namely, that jin guangyao would want lan xichen to get caught by nie mingjue. The actual reality of the situaton conrasts hat we were told earlier. it's a surprise. to who? Well, to all the other characters watching this go down. wwx among them. We get other little commentaries, like how the sight of jgy being choked by nmj is frightening, placing us even further away from his inner world and into the shoes of someone watching him in the temple.

The style being used here is similar to the one in the next chapter, when nie huasang's plan is unveiled. First you get bit of dialogue with clear implications from Wei Wuxian, and then we go into wei wxuxian's head. In a few lines it's explicitly established that he's questioning things, and we are following his line of thought. And then a whle account of nie huasang's plan is given. With no further affirmation that we're still in wei wuxian's head. That's based on context clues given prior. Is this recount of the plan correct? Most likely, yeah! But we're never expicitly told. We are still in wei wuxian's head.

This bit on Jin Guangyao is similar. From the removal of stating other character's feelings (a possible exception might be the statement that "Nie Mingjue is not afraid of spiritual weapons" but that is something observable to wwx who's been seeing nmj not give a shit for a good few minutes now. We get nothing he's not privy to) and a clear indication that we're inside his head now. What we get next is his reocunt of the events, and they're fairly factul as he simply tells us what he sees, but when he gets into the reasons for why things ar ehappening? Well, if we wanted to, we could doubt that.

[trans-xianxian]

hmm top five jc and wwx scenes? ten if you want but if that's too many, pretend I just said five

OOOOOOOHH I will do ten because I am insane. these aren't in any particular order because how could I rank them

wei wuxians last words being jiang chengs name. I can never and will never be normal about this

when they get back from their yin iron hunting adventure and are kneeling in the throne room waiting for jiang fengmian to come and scold them and wei wuxian is scratching jiang chengs shoulder sooo tenderly and they have their "what did I do in a past life to be cursed with a brother like you?" "in our next lives, let's be brothers again" exchange. something so tender about in the moment something so devastating in retrospect

when jiang cheng kneels in front of his mother and Tells her to stop hitting wei wuxian with zidian... a heartbreaking selfless act of love to disrespect his mother and put himself in harms way but also an interesting look into how and when jiang cheng decides that things are wei wuxians fault

in xuanwu cave then jiang cheng has to be Dragged Out Screaming in order to leave wei wuxian behind. makes me feel some type of way

I'm cheating here by combining several different moments from the same sequence into one list item but well I get to make the rules. but anyway when jiang cheng wakes up after his core is taken and wei wuxian sees him looking at the scars on his chest and is like don't worry I'll find a way to erase them. and then jiang cheng hits him and he's like if that's what makes you feel better you can hit me again. just the way that wei wuxian would do Anything to make jiang cheng feel better anything to see him smile. and then later when wei wuxian decides that he really Would do anything to take jiang chengs pain away and he's making him eat all his food, piling more into his bowl, before telling him anything about how they'll "get his core back" and jiang cheng in his frenzy and his trust eats his food with his chopsticks upside down. imagine I've said all of this in one breath shaking like a chihuahua

THE HUG ough I always forget how emotional it makes me until I see it again... "I was worried about you these three months" 🤧

the little flashback where baby yunmeng bros are holding hands and playing with each other.... absolute insanity

AAAAAHHGHHHBFDD when jiang cheng comes to the burial mounds. and wei wuxian tries to take his hand to lead him around but jiang cheng will not follow. and there are little moments that are Almost normal because affection comes so naturally but also because you can tell that wei wuxian is trying So Hard to make it seem like everything is okay, like it's all still the same. wei wuxian saying that yiling and yunmeng are close and he can visit whenever he likes, and jiang cheng telling him to stop being foolish. "no precedent? I'll be the precedent!" "wei wuxian, do you have to make me spell it out? if you keep protecting them, I won't be able to protect you". their whole conversation in the cave - jiang cheng full of concern, not even angry, trying to get wei wuxian to make the safe and easy choice, the one that will keep them together, wei wuxian, who Always carries the burden, trying his hardest to protect jiang cheng and their sect while still doing what he knows is right but never letting jiang cheng see even a drop of his pain and his heartbreak. "you are asking for the moon again". how they're both sort of just in disbelief of the other person as they agree to the fight

waaahg when they're goofing around about the soup with jiang yanli at lotus pier after jiang cheng eavesdrops on their conversation... soooo siblings and the last little bit of light and innocence before it all falls apart 👍

and last but most certainly not least goes to the entirety of their interaction in guanyin temple. jiang chengs childish rage, the way wei wuxian just sits there and takes it, "why didn't you tell me!" "because I didn't want to see you like this", wei wuxian wiping away jiang chengs tears, the way that throughout their entire conversation until that point you can see wei wuxian almost reach out to touch jiang cheng several times before clenching his fingers again, the fact that even tho they reveal secrets and give apologies and explanations it is Not all said and done, their relationship, realistically, is not fixed with a single conversation, there is still work to do but you know that it will be done

honorable mention to "take care" followed by The Flashback... technically the scene is About yunmeng bros but they aren't actually interacting so I didn't include it in the main list. something about the seed of their reconciliation being planted by jiang cheng committing the truly selfless act of letting wei wuxian go. the way that it would have been so easy and so in character for jiang cheng to reveal the monumental secret of his own sacrifice, to hold it against wei wuxian, just one more thing he believes he is owed, but in a moment of growth all jiang cheng wants is for wei wuxian to be well. okay.

[ninjakk]

The symbolic meaning behind A-Yuan's butterfly toys

There is such a beautifully poignant moment during the Yiling date chapter, where A-Yuan is playing with the two grass butterflies that LWJ bought him. The minute I read it, it made me smile at how sweet and innocent it all was. But it also pulled at my heartstrings a little, due to the symbolic meaning of the butterflies and what I felt like it foreshadowed.

Chapter 74

Knocking his bowl, Wei WuXian called a couple of times, but Wen Yuan was still looking down, holding two butterflies and mumbling. At times he pretended to be the one on the left, saying shyly "I… I really like you"; at times he pretended to be the one on the right, saying happily "I really like you too!" Being two butterflies at the same time, he seemed to be having lots of fun.

- ExR translations

To me MXTX uses the butterflies to express the unspoken feelings that WWX and LWJ have for each other. I think this small, yet sweet scene, could also show A-Yuan may have picked up on WWX and LWJs true feelings for each other - perhaps on a subconscious level. Children are incredibly perceptive and can pick up on things adults often miss. He may have only seen them together for a few hours, but he's spent a lot of time with WWX and could possibly see how he acts differently with LWJ. Either way, I don't think it's a coincidence MXTX chose to have A-Yuan play with the butterflies - he also has the clay dolls he could have used for his little directorial debut!

The fact A-Yuan is making the two butterflies confess they 'like' each other, echos how WX truly feel for one another. It's almost like the unspoken words they could have, and should have said so many times before. It is certainly allusive of the opportunity they had to confess their feelings during this particular scene as well.

The fact MXTX (or indeed A-Yuan) has made one shy and the other happy, draws parallels between LWJ and WWX's personalities. Much like the WX bunnies with their quiet and energetic personalities respectively. Personally I think it's quite clear MXTX deliberately made A-Yuan portray the two butterflies in this way. Especially if you take a closer look at the original version of MDZS, where the 'shy' and 'happy' personalities are not mentioned - so it's evident that MXTX later added this to enhance the scene, for a very specific reason.

If we look even deeper into this, there may even be more meaning behind the use of butterflies - as I said earlier, MXTX could have used the clay dolls instead. Butterflies are often used as a symbol of love in Chinese culture. More specifically, it can symbolise an undying bond between lovers. They can also represent death and rebirth. Which all fit with the theme of the novel perfectly.

MXTX likes to use little references and pay homage to poems and Chinese culture within the novel. And personally, I think the use of butterflies could be a nod to a particular classic Chinese love story. According to some, this is one of the reasons butterflies often symbolise love in Chinese culture.

There is a tragic yet romantic, Chinese legend known as The Butterfly Lovers (梁祝). Coincidentally (or perhaps not?), there are a few parallels between MDZS and the story as well. Much like our lovely WX, the two lovers in the legend met while studying together, where they develop an instant chemistry. The two main characters even experience misunderstandings that prevent them from becoming a couple. Eventually one of the star-crossed lovers tragically dies and the other follows soon after - which is where our duo obviously deviate, thankfully! The lovers spirits become butterflies and they fly off together, never to be separated again. Which somewhat echoes WXs own ending, where they elope and pledge to be with each other forever.

Something fell from Wen Yuan’s pocket. He called out, “Butter… Butterfly!” With him in his arm, Wei WuXian had already rushed outside the restaurant. Soon, a white shadow swept by him. Lan WangJi seemed to have followed them out as well, walking beside them. Wei WuXian, “Lan Zhan? Why are you following us?” Lan WangJi put into Wen Yuan’s palm the butterfly that he dropped.

Personally, I don't think the above scene is just a means for LWJ to follow them, because he would have either way! It's also symbolic. The two butterflies are suddenly separated, much like WWX and LWJ are later, for some 13 years. Eventually (or two seconds later in the above scene!) they are reunited, just like the butterflies above. It also represents A-Yuan's loss. He loses one of his butterflies, just like he will soon lose WWX - only to have them both reunited, together with him, eventually. It broke my heart when I noticed this tiny moment.

Just like the two frisky male bunnies used as a metaphor for WWX and LWJs true feelings earlier in the novel. The butterflies are used to foreshadow the path their entwined fate will eventually take as well. MXTX's writing style is just absolute poetry and I can't get enough of it.

🦋❤️🦋