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wangxianficfinder · 3 years

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I’m in the Mood for a Fic Where…

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1. In the mood. For ace spectrum wangxian

💖Words from the heart by MusicMe_tc (G, 6k, wangxian, modern, college/university au, love letters, secret identity, ace wwx, demisexual lwj)

The Bunnysitter: a Post-it Romance by theLoyalRoyalGuard (G, 9k, wangxian, modern, fluff, ace lwj, autistic lwj, adhd wwx, hacker wwc)

one heart, one body by stiltonbasket (Not rated, 1k, wangxian, married wangxian, ace wwx, demisexual lwj)

WithBroomBefore (both here on tumblr and on AO3) has done a variety of ace, demi, and aro WangXian stuff

your touch in the dark (your voice in the silence) by b_ofdale (M, 13k, wangxian, modern, friends w/ benefits, pining, ace wwx, demisexual lwj, happy ending)

Come Out and Level Up by figmentera (T, 3k, wangxian, modern, ace wangxian, sex favorable, getting together)

subtleties series by touchtheexoplanets (T, 17k, wangxian, ace lwj, 7 minutes in heaven, fluff, coming out, angst w/ happy ending)

💖you've ruined my life (by not being mine) by cicer (E, 132k, wangxian, modern, developing relationship, teen romance, demisexuality, bottom!lwj in ch 15)

💖Let Them Eat Cake by Vamillepudding (G, 7k, wangxian, romantic comedy, light angst, asexual relationship, getting together)

close the distance by onceiolanthi (sapphiregalaxyrin) (G, <1k, wangxian, asexual character, fluff, cuddling)

Like You Mean It by CoatWrites (T, 5k, wangxian, modern, getting together, dating app, unsolicited dick pic, fluff & humor)

Just As You Are by westiec (G, 1k, wangxian, post-canon, asexuality spectrum, talking about desire, kissing)

the way that all the pieces fit by tomatocake (T, 7k, wangxian, modern, high school au, aspec, fluff, sleepovers, first kiss)

(💖WWWWXD (What would Wei Wuxian Do?) series by deliciousblizzardshark (T, 55k, wangxian, modern, high school and forward, fluff, panic attacks, angst w/ happy ending, autistic lwj, grief/mourning))

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2. Thank you for your service - I love this blog! Got any recs for Wen Qing/Jiang Cheng as the main pairing? They're background in a lot of wangxian fics and I'd love to see them front and center. (Bonus points for pegging - it's what they deserve!)

Anything by snowberryrose

something worth doing by twigofwillow (T, 29k, JC/WQ, canon divergence, fix-it, yunmeng wen clan, family feels, friendship agenda)

let's play pretend and not remember by Misila (E, 13k, JC/WQ, modern, romance, angst, fake/pretend relationship, getting back together, past bullying, past suicide attempt)

No Such Thing as Too Good by Eleanor_Fenyx (E, 8k, JC/WQ, pegging, porn w/ some plot)

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3. Hi, me again, I hope y’all are doing well. For your next mood fic post I was wondering if you knew of any fics where WWX gets medical treatment after the burial mounds/ sunshot campaig? like JC, JYL, or LWJ notice that he is clearly not doing well and insist on helping him. I hope that makes sense. Thank y’all so much. @wolfletkaider

💖Minding series by WithBroomBefore (G, 85k, wangxian, canon divergence, what if WWX got therapy and recovery post-sunshot)

Tether by WithBroomBefore (T, 40k, wangxian, golden core reveal, JYL lives, WWX lives, fix-it, happy ending, wwx is up-front about losing his core)

💖Uninvited by WithBroomBefore (M, 13k, wangxian, canon divergence, fix-it, hurt/comfort, sect leader jyl, sick fic, happy ending)

Rescue by WithBroomBefore (T, 20k, JYL & WWX & JC, wangxian, JYL/JZX, JC/WQ, fix-it, golden core reveal, family feels, suicidial thoughts, happy ending, WWX almost drowns and his secret is discovered during medical treatment)

💖The Wild Geese’s Tomb by The Feels Whale (miscellea) (T, 66k, wangxian, time travel, temp character death) post-sunshot wwx gets the medical/mental support he deserves

if i had the strength by agloeian (M, 16k, wangxian, post-sunshot, fix-it, getting together, mental health issues, recovery, accidental baby acquisation)

The most dangerous thing is to love by KatAnni (E, 113k, wangxian, golden core reveal, fix-it, angst w/ happy ending, yunmeng siblings, hurt wwx, ptsd, panic attack)

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4. I'm in the mood for... wangxian courting! Doesn't matter what setting (though cloud recesses era with a meddling lxc has a special place in my heart), as long as there's some element of wangxian having to go through courting traditions or needing to be chaperoned while engaged. I want wangxian getting to know each other and falling in love. Lots of fluff pls! Angst is okay too, and a happy ending is a must! Please and thank you!

💖 Magical Marriage Ribbons series by starandrea (M, 741k, wangxian, ongoing, animal transformations, weddings)

Stunted, Starving Juvenility by TomatenMark (E, 291k, wangxian, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, feelings realization, getting together, fix-it of sorts, not JFM friendly, blood & gore, WIP)

Give Me a Chance to Fall by brooklinegirl (E, 37k, wangxian, arranged marriage) They know each other already but they still have to court and it's awesome

💖sweet chaos by eachandeverydimension (G, 86k, wangxian, arranged marriage, different first meeting, falling in love, getting together, lwj in lotus pier, Chinese culture)

Polishing Jade by Starra (M, 252k, wangxian, modern, arranged marriage, awkward dates, slow burn, falling in love, drinking to cope, angst w/ happy ending)

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5. I was talking to a friend and we both came to the realization that lan zhan and lan xichen were both rape babies. Is there any fics that sort of explore the turmoil of that? @fangirling-quietly

❤️ For Both Of Us (And Time Is But A Paper Moon) by sami (E, 65k, wangxian, time travel, both JC and LWJ time travel) explores this to some degree

❤️in case of fire, break glass by Jenrose (T, 65k, wangxian, my bookmark)

go where the stolen roses grow by Stratisphyre (M, 20k, LQR/CSSR/WCZ, mentions ad discussion of sexual assault, madam lan lives, not lan sect friendly, hurt/comfort)

Dragon's Gall by ritualist (M, 5k, madam lan / qingheng-jun, implied/referenced non-con, implied/referenced abuse, isolation, forced pregnancy, mind the tags!)

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6. hi! i'd love some fics where people learn to focus on the spirit of the gusulan rules rather than the letter, or actually amend/remove some of them. canon-divergent or post canon both work great, but im also specifically looking for a fic where i think lwj (in the 13 years??) changes some stuff like 'drink responsibly' and explains that some people can do horrible shit if they're drunk etc. i'd love it if someone remembered it

❤️To be of use by Erisette (not rated (G), 53k, wangxian, Mojo’s post)

Proximity To Knowledgeby ChilianXianzi (T, 7k, wangxian, post-canon, teacher wwx)

❤️ Twelve Moons and a Fortnight by stiltonbasket (G, wangxian, 290k, Mojo’s post) there is a MARVELOUS scene of lxc destroying part of the wall of rules because he realizes their original intent has become kinda corrupted and a cycle of cruelty overtime, and then leaves seclusion to rework the system/rules a bit

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7. In a mood for fic: any that have Jiang cheng saving or trying to save a-yuan after the first seige of the burial mounds. Maybe he looks for him and does or doesn't find him, or something else happens, and/or he recognizes a-yuan as lsz yrs later. Maybe he remembers a whole bunch about the kid, or he's working off vague info, etc. Off the top of my head, I think "12 moons and a fortnight" (sing to the clouds in summer) has a side story like this. So does "you're my brother" by laxruar. (In both lwj got to him first).

grieve the living by Misila (M, 160k, wangxian, heavy angst, hopeful ending, mental health issues, unhealthy coping mechanisms, violence, homophobia, romance, family)

The Accidental Baby Acquisition Club by nerdzeword (T, 26k, wangixan, my post) technically JC is looking for smth else but they do raise A-Yuan together

none lives forever, brother, and nothing lasts for long by eena (M, 38k, wangxian, LSZ raised at lotus pier, JC found first, reconciliation)

Time Kept Flowing by notoneforreality (T, 115k, wangxian, JC&LWJ, canon era, co-parenting, WIP)

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8. Hello, how are you? I want a fic where wwx just goes off on Wen QIng (the jiangs are also acceptable). Perhaps for lwj or for them not thinking of his feelings or something. I just want a wwx who cares about himself and can hold a grudge. I don't want him to blow up and immediately apologize. Hope this makes sense.

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9. Hello! I'm looking for good kid fic recs! Hurt/comfort would be lovely ✨

Welcome to the Family series by jiejieaini (E, 204k, wangxian, modern, dadji, teacher wwx, london, fluff & angst, happy ending, hurt/comfort)

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10. I hope you're having a lovely day <3 <3 if you'd like, could you or the followers recommend your fave fics where jc and/or jyl make a point of calling wwx didi/ge, or asking wwx to call them jiejie/didi, and alternatively (or concurrently!) fics where wq and wn fully regard him as their sibling and preferably verbalize it? i just want him to drown in familial love, like i would even love xxc/bssr but is 3 requests too much? asklfdk thank you so much in any case <3

💖Hope series by RoseThorne (T, 49k, wangxian, time travel)

💖the thread may stretch or tangle but it will never break by RoseThorne (E, 64k, wangxian, fix-it, golden core reveal, WIP)

Where the Lonely Ones Go by CSHfic & VSfic (T, 24k, wangxian, accidental baby acquisation, case fic, fluff, post-canon)

💖Lynchpin by ShanaStoryteller (not rated, 103k, jiang cheng, wangxian) Jiang Yanli making an explicit change from shidi to didi

The most dangerous thing is to love by KatAnni (E, 113k, wangxian, golden core reveal, fix-it, angst w/ happy ending, yunmeng siblings, hurt wwx, ptsd, panic attack)

A Mother's Love by FirefliesNLightningBugs (M, 117k, wangxian, canon divergence, angst, hurt/comfort, eventual happy ending, miscommunication, family feels, ptsd, WIP) has jyl jc and wwx treat each other as siblings (jzx is also accepted into the fam) and there's a specific scene where jc calls wwx out on why he doesn't call jy and jc jiejie and didi anymore

Wei Wuxian, Who's That? by bumbledees (T, 48k, wangxian, crossdressing, pining, sibling feels)

The Teapot Plot by ToxicAngel13 (M, 52k, wangxian, misunderstandings, protective jiang siblings, golden core reveal, fix-it, post sunshot, hurt/comfort)

Rescue by WithBroomBefore (T, 20k, JYL & WWX & JC, wangxian, JYL/JZX, JC/WQ, fix-it, golden core reveal, family feels, suicidial thoughts, happy ending)

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11. Hi can you recommend me some fics where Wei ying or someone bashes out at the cultivation world for their hypocrisies, or it just be Wei ying finally realizing the mistreatment he suffered and actually confronting it, the mistreatment Wei ying suffers just frustrates me so much.

💖 Did I Not Explain Why the Sunset Turns Red? by 3988Akasha (E, 100k, wangxian)

💖After Truth Lies the Honest Path by Vrishchika (M, 10k, wangxian, canon divergence, truth serum, WIP)

Words by RJ_RJ (T, 1k, wangxian, WWX goes off on LXC in the Guanyin temple, not LXC or Jiang friendly)

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12. Hiya! I am in mood for some aftercare fics. Specially some with safewording ones. I doesn’t have to be direct out safe words. Maybe some just checking in ones and some tender loving and feeding and taking care ones. Any pairing as 3zun and songxuexiao for examples. Not jus wangxian if u can please! Thank you!

A New Kind of Thrill by doukeshiA (E, 25k, wangxian, modern, bdsm, dom/sub, WIP)

underweight by sixstepsaway (E, 7k, wangxian, eating disorders, anxiety, sex as a bribe, full-time dom lwj)

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13. hey Mojo and Mod L! I hope y'all aren't stressed n stuff. Know any fics where WWX becomes a God/ascends to Godhood after Sunshot Campaign, or something?? Like maybe because the Heavens were impressed with his feats etc etc @sentientcongee

Of Destruction and Rebirth by demoniqt (M, 77k, wangxian, slow burn, god wwx, bamf wwx, grieving lwj, angst, hurt/comfort, fix-it, happy ending, attempted non-con, blood & gore)

You still sound like a song by Moominmammashandbag (M, 62k, wangxian, WIP) river spirit wwx

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14. Hi mod L! For the I'm in a mood for, do you know any fic that has LXC realize on how unfair/harsh he was being on WWX? Where he finally has a realization that he was expecting too much from him from the start when he befriended LWJ.

Quite Funny by nirejseki (T, 2k, vicious NHS, suffering LXC, not quite the prompt but adjacent)

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15. hiiii mods!! (I mean for moderator[s]) A) have u find any fic of wangxian genderbend (wlw) any plots will do as long as it is wangxian lesbians!! & B) do you know any fic that wangxian r ex-lovers but got their happy endings? & C) last do you have fics that r super long yet so worth reading for? if not I need a lot of angst fics but not cheating fic please? Thank you very much!! Hope you have good day and not bothering you too much! @vdjjixian

15A)

Happy for Now by ScarlettStorm (E, 80k, wangxian, F/F, modern, pining, there was only one bed)

girl, anything I can do just to make you feel alright by Anonymous (E, 3k, wangxian, dom/sub undertones, praise kink)

What happens at craft night by rheawrites (E, 4k, WWX/WQ, kink discovery, shibari, undernegotiated kink, friends w/ benefits)

and its sequel Rope Bunny by Khashana (E, 2k, wangxian, kink negotiation, rope bondage, subspace)

Beautiful mess, a colourful wreck by covalentbonds (Not rated, 11k, wangxian, JYL/JZX, fluff & humor, mild smut, 3zun feels, childhood friends, first meetings, non-chronological)

so little time and i'm way off track by defractum (nyargles) (E, 25k, wangxian, modern w/ cultivation, case fic, amnesia, dub con, fuck or die)

the dinosaur artist by varnes (T, 12k, wangxian, bringing up baby au)

give me one good honest kiss by occultings (microcomets) (E, 25k, wangxian, practice kissing, college/university au, pining, angst w/ happy ending)

The Flower Blooms in Day and Night by TheRedFig (T, 46k, wangxian, period typical sexism, sexual harassment, pining, sexuality crisis, happy ending, TWs in chapters, WIP)

the way that all the pieces fit by tomatocake (T, 7k, wangxian, modern, high school au, aspec, fluff, sleepovers, first kiss)

shape of her by candygay (T, 1k, wangxian, sharing a bed, angst, touch-starved)

loose me from hard care by oceanofchaos (E, 9k, wangxian, historical, touch-starved, war prize WWX awarded to General LWJ)

I’ll See You In My Dreams by Xiao_Tuzi (E, 4k, wangxian, Rule 63 version of the Incense Burner cottagecore fantasy)

long winter, dance with me by gusu-emilu (T, 2k, wangxian, burial mounds settlement days, angst, kissing, cuddling, protectiveness)

in the crevices, in the hold by Anonymous (M, 4k, wangxian, dark LWJ, fairy tale elements, no cultivation au, yearning, sculptor LWJ, angst)

15B)

All that is solid melts into air by huxiyi (T, 18k, wangxian, breaking up & making up, angst w/ happy ending, commoner uprising brings down the Great Sects, art by @yin_yoru in ch4)

15C)

❤️Tragedy is Not the End by Hobbsy3 (T, 358k, wangxian, my bookmark)

💖love, in fire and blood by cicer (E, 360k, wangxian, Mojo’s post)

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16. Hi people (Sorry, I know Mojo's pronouns, but not others') **My pronouns are they/them ^^ ~Mod L**! Hope you are doing great! :) I don't know if these kind of stories exist, but I'm looking for A) LXC&LZS uncle-nephew stories, could be modern, where we see a little more about their relationship. B) Established WangXian where YZY is a b*tch to WWX, but wants to keep a good image, so never does it in public, LWJ knows about this and is petty, and does something so everyone one knows how abusive she really is. Thank you!

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17. Hello, thank for all your hard work, I am absolutely amazed. I easily find JWY/LXC fics where Jiang Cheng is traumatised or otherwise vulnerable and finds comfort in the serene Lan Huan. Are there any fics where it's the opposite? JWY being very competent and LXC depending/relying on him to heal (preferably emotionally, but anything where he's the vulnerable one is fine). thank you guys ;)

A Bit of Ruthlessness by jirluvien (M, 110k, JC/LXC, post-canon, epistolary, angst, slow burn, courtship, asexuality)

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18. looking for time travel fics where specifically jin ling travels back in time?

Time Travel Compilation

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19. In a mood for a fix where jiang cheng isn't portrayed as an angry grape. A fic where he is put in his place, either critical or bashing fic hehe

💖Return to Sender by Thesaurus_with_no_words (M, 64k, wangxian, not JC friendly, WIP)

💖Trials of Time by Muggle_Diary (E, 32k, wangxian, not jiang friendly, time travel, butterfly effect)

💖bleed by justdoityoufucker (T, 5k, wangxian, time travel, sunshot campaign and post-ssc, families of choice)

❤️Symmetry by Vir_Abelasan (M, 13k, LSZ & WWX, wangxian, mind the tags just in case)

keeping score by hauntedotamatone (T, 6k, LSZ & WWX, wangxian, not JC friendly, the opposite of reconciliation, anger, protective wwx)

on restitution by glitteringmoonlight (M, 98k, LSZ & WWX, WWX & JL, wangxian, dark JC, not JC friendly, captivity, non-graphic torture, angst w/ happy ending)

'Yunmeng Siblings' Once by chiyukimei (T, 1k, wangxian, JC & WWX, not JC friendly, post-canon)

justdoityoufucker has a lot not JC friendly content

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20. In a mood for a fic that talks about lwj's beauty. Just him being pretty, and all majestic.

Bow Wow Wow by Chrononautical (G, 1k, wangxian, animal transformation, bravery, WWX has a fear of dogs, angst w/ happy ending, the context is a bit weird, because LWJ has been transformed into a dog.)

Welcome to Yiling by crossdressingdeath (T, 2k, wangxian, welcome to nightvale au)

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If you didn’t get an answer to your ask here, don’t forget to make use of @mdzs-kinkmemeand MDZS KINK MEMEon 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!***

#wangxian #mdzs #wangxian fic recs #i'm in the mood for a fic #the untamed #wangxian fic search #wangxianficfinder #long post

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veliseraptor · 3 years

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I just discovered there is a JC/XY ship! Any thoughts on that?

this is one of those things where like...I know it exists but I haven't read any of it and I think it's because I have a hard time really wrapping my brain around it?

like...I don't know that I'd say I can't see it because I can kind of grok on a conceptual level what it's about, I think...but I can't quite make it work in my head. I think it's a combination of that I think Jiang Cheng would actually be someone that Xue Yang would be disinclined to hook up with under almost any circumstances (he's too...tense, and not in the fun neurotic way that Jin Guangyao is where he's fun to play with; he's just too brittle for that, and also doesn't have the common ground with Xue Yang that I think is part of what makes their particular dynamic possible).

and coming from Jiang Cheng's end...part of it is probably about headcanoning Jiang Cheng as ace pretty firmly such that the only sex I think about him having is pretty squarely in the "messy failure to emotionally process his bad feelings" category (see: Lan Wangji/Jiang Cheng), and Xue Yang in my head, in a context of most of his relationships pre-Xiao Xingchen, doesn't really do nonsexual intimacy, so that'd be a non-starter for him.

(sidebar: for some reason Xue Yang as Wei Wuxian proxy sex doesn't work for me in the same way that Lan Wangji proxy sex does? I'm not sure why that is. maybe it's because in the Lan Wangji instance the proxy sex isn't so much about LWJ being directly a proxy so much as it's like. "the inherent eroticism of the one other person who understands your grief but also who you profoundly hate partly for that very reason, and whose hatred for you is an echo of your feelings about yourself, or something.")

the thing I am sort of interested in, and keep gnawing on looking for a way to make it work, is the dynamic specifically of the way that Jiang Cheng might relate to Xue Yang as Wei Wuxian's dark mirror. but I still have a hard time figuring out how Xue Yang would relate to Jiang Cheng beyond a combination of wariness and his...usual disdain for people of higher status (and, well. people in general, by default.)

I've seen people do universes where Jiang Cheng adopts a pet demonic cultivator at some point, but I think that doesn't work with my sense of Jiang Cheng's relationship to demonic cultivation after Wei Wuxian's death (universally hostile) and also his general state of openness to forming new intimate relationships (in the negative digits).

this is one of those things where I'm sort of like "convince me!" on the one hand but also I'm having a hard time being convinced. which is really getting in the way of my #xue yang fucks the untamed agenda, but I guess I can put Jiang Cheng next to Jin Zixuan on the "having a hard time making this work in my head" list.

#wow this got long for me rambling about a ship i can't quite figure out #jiang cheng #xue yang #the sad queer cultivators show #aggressively headcanons #detour into wangcheng there #which now i'm thinking about again. awful. i love it #conversating #kasasagi eye

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lesbian4lqg · 4 years

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top 10 the untamed characters based on how much theyve played third wheel to wangxian

1. wen ning

this is obvious

the scene where they show up in the burial mounds and start to untie the juniors, but instead of explaining whats happening wwx just hands wn his sword and watches w lwj? all three of them were completely in synch, not a word was said, but they fucking knew anf they were having way too much fun w it

literally the whole reason he has consiousness is bc they teamed up

its aro week and i wanna take this second to say that this is a win for my ace aro wen ning & qp wn&wwx and wn&lwj agenda

three-way parenting for lsz

(god can you imagine if wq lived? theyd be too powerful)

was one of the first ppl to hear wuji outside of wwx and lwj

the boat scene????? wwx and lwj were gazing lovingly into each others eyes and wn was just. vibing. dude didnt even look that uncomfortable, just like it was another day im-

literally every scene wen ning was in after wwx came back to life tbh

2. the xuanwu of slaughter

they were literally cradling each other in their arms while an entire murder tortoise was trying to kill them

the telepathy talisman? iconic, why dont we talk about that more

life threatening battles are just hella gay by design, esp when theres swords involved. idk what to tell you

3. lan sizhui

just look at his name. lwj named him that unironically. holy shit.

the temporary parallel universe that was lwjs visit to the burial mounds? what we couldve had smh

i know lwj and wwx lovingly annoy the shit out of him post canon, bless his heart

4. nie huaisang

the bit on dafan mountain where he's like "oh fuck thats dangerous i dont want to run out of here" and wwx and lwj make eye contact and then are just like "thats rough buddy. anyway, lets do it"

"oh wow this adventure we're on is so cool" "we? this is about me and lan zhan, what the fuck are you talking about"

when they see him right after they fuck up the nie tomb and theyre lowkey just bullying him

the scene at the end where wwx confronts nhs while lwj just watches knowingly? theyre once again bullying the poor man

he gets extra points for orchestrating everythig. dude really said "oh jgy thinks he's funny? well wwx and lwj are about to be completely fucking hilarious" and then just sat back and watched shit go down w occasional commentary. king shit

5. lan xichen

when they come back to cloud recesses after mxy!wwx's reveal and theyre like "the dude whos kinda debatably the love of your life is the real evil here" and he just has to deal w that

ok it felt weird putting him this low on the list but like. he and jc were mostly emotionally third wheeling??????? like he wasnt in a ton of scenes w just him and the two of them, but he had to cope w lwjs pining all the time

6. jin ling

really should be lower on this list but he has extra points bc again, i cant believe they let lwj and wwx name things

the part where theyve p much Just been reunited and they immediately have to go break him out of the nie tombs? dude wasnt even concious but i feel like it still counts

7. jiang cheng

i feel like he shouldve been higher on this list too, but im not listing everyone and again he just doesnt have scenes w just the two of them

however he def had to deal w so much pining. the reunion on dafan mountain AND the reuinion during the sunshot campaign. the golden core reveal. the 3 months of him and lwj searching for wwx alone

8. jin guangyao

technically no scenes w just them but like. the bullshit they got up to undoubtedly lived in his brain rent free. theres no way he had any peace

honorary mention for stuff from the novel like the guanyin temple confession

10. literally everyone

these dudes are everywhere and they will make it everyone elses problem

the skywalkers of fantasy ancient china

post canon discussion conferences? the water abyss or whatever in caiyi? the sunshot campaign? the murder of the cuanwu of slaughter, which helped kick off the sunshot campaign? nightless city pt 1 AND 2? the going-ons of literally every chief cultivator? that was all them babe

honorary mentions include: lil apple, lan jingyi&ouyang zizhen, wen qing, jiang yanli, the ghosts of cangse sanren&wei changse (and prob madame lans ghost as wel tbh), su she (ty @ghostysword for reminding me- i totally forgot about him) and everyone whos seen the show

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carolyncaves · 4 years

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This is for Day 28 Bliss, but it’s also the make-up for Day 21 Charm - I told y’all I had a plan for that one, didn’t I? Welcome back to the ace!JC vs ‘The Bachelor’ AU. 1749 words, Ace!Jiang Cheng, OC, speed dating, JC is having a terrible time, so is Lu Lian

previous / previous / this / next / next

There were eight suitors, and they arrived with their chaperones at Lotus Pier in time for a lunch banquet. They were all very lovely. They acted refined and dignified, they treated his servants and one another warmly, they were each probably intelligent and talented in various ways, and they all deserved husbands who were not Jiang Cheng.

The one in the left corner looked positively ill, she was so angry.

It took Jiang Cheng’s brain several seconds to catch up, because it was so out of line with the rest of the scene. Most of these women had to be convinced to come, but they were here because they would be willing to consider Jiang Cheng if it meant marrying a sect leader and were interested in being considered in return. This one – she was his age or even slightly older, old enough that her family had to be apoplectic she wasn’t married – did not want to be here, did not want to be considered, and did not want to marry Jiang Cheng.

He could relate. Still, it was weird.

///

After the banquet, the agenda was for him to have tea with each one in succession. Jiang Cheng didn’t know how he was supposed to drink that much tea, but obviously none of this had anything to do with him or his comfort, so he didn’t argue. His agenda was to get this over with.

The first suitor was a woman from Gusu, an outer disciple of the Lan sect. From Jiang Cheng’s observation of the group, she was probably the most objectively beautiful. That obviously meant less than nothing to Jiang Cheng. Properly it should mean little to anyone actually looking for a wife instead of a decoration, but Jiang Cheng had resigned himself to failing to understand other people’s priorities long ago.

Her father joined them in the tea room, as did Jiang Cheng’s head of household. She bent down and informed him sotto voce, “This suitor was recommended by Wei-qianbei. He says …” She glanced at her book. It wasn’t because she needed to refresh her memory of the words – his advisor had an excellent memory. Reluctance, then, because his brother … because Wei Wuxian had said something stupid.

Jiang Cheng turned to look. She angled the book so he could read.

If it’s merely an aesthetic reluctance, I recommend you consider Shu Qi – I can personally attest that the people of Gusu are the most talented in the world in the amorous arts, so if you’re looking to be initiated, perhaps she could do the trick : )

Jiang Cheng could feel his brain beginning to boil. He would fling himself off the cliff at Nightless City himself before he would go around matching Wei Wuxian and Hanguang Jun. Or maybe he should drag Wei Wuxian there and heave him over again instead. He’d sent this woman all the way here for nothing more than a fleeting joke at Jiang Cheng’s expense.

He drank tea with Shu Qi politely, and at some point in the conversation – mostly driven by his advisor – it came out that her father was originally from Yunmeng and they’d had a chance to visit his hometown and see his parents – her grandparents – along the way. Jiang Cheng forgave Wei Wuxian one quarter of one inch.

He drank tea with several additional suitors in succession, each as pleasant and educated and unsuitable as the rest. Some tried in vain to engage him in conversation. Some sat quietly, having apparently gathered from his demeanor at the banquet or the reports from previous suitors this was unlikely to be a fruitful excursion.

For one, a woman from Yiping City, her brother who was chaperoning her sat down at the table with them. This was unusual, but he had already dealt with a wide range of fathers, brothers, and one particularly memorable auntie, so he paid it little mind. Then she introduced him as her didi – also unusual, but perhaps she had no elder brothers, and perhaps her father had been too busy to attend himself – and about a sentence and a half into her description of his “many endearing charms”, Jiang Cheng clocked that the suitor and the chaperone were in fact the other way around.

“Who nominated this one?” Jiang Cheng asked his head of household, at the first reasonably courteous opportunity.

“The Wang suitor was selected by your faithful staff,” she replied.

“Ah,” was all he said. He supposed he should be grateful for their unambiguous support of his cut-sleeve yearnings, even though they were nonexistent. He muttered something to about how ‘charm’ wasn’t precisely his type – it seemed courteous to let them know he understood and was declining – and passed a fairly pleasant rest of the half hour with the Wangs in which they chatted with each other and left him to drown himself in oolong in peace.

There were only a few more. Once the teas were through, maybe he could call off the rest of this with at least a hint of respectability.

///

The angry one was second to last.

Her name was Lu Lian. He learned this from her paternal uncle, who was her very enthusiastic chaperone. The woman herself said nothing, stared at the table, and barely touched her tea.

“Lian would make a marvelous wife, Sect Leader,” the uncle said. “She has sterling manners and speaks and writes well. She knows how to keep a dignified household in order, from my wife’s good example – not that our manor holds a candle to Lotus Pier, of course, but Lian is capable, more than capable of rising to the task. She maintains my books and records for me, in fact, and has always done so without flaw or error – so you see, it would be hard for me to lose her, a constant fixture of my household for the past fourteen years. But if you two were to marry, I would be willing to, in hopes of achieving a lifetime of marital bliss for my beloved niece, and for you as well, Sect Leader.”

Lu Lian was glaring at the kettle so harshly Jiang Chang would have thought she could boil tea that way. For an beloved member of the family her uncle was reluctant to part with, she certainly seemed to be here rather against her will.

“I assure you, she is not so deathly quiet most of the time,” the uncle said with a threadbare jollity. “She does not talk too much, of course!” Apparently someone had gotten ahold of one of Jiang Cheng’s matchmaker lists. “But she has a good head on her shoulders.”

The silence stretched. Jiang Cheng could practically see the uncle trying to calculate how he might command his niece to act friendlier without being obvious about it. As if he wasn’t already. Jiang Cheng was no fool, and he didn’t even have a reputation as one like Nie Huaisang that would give this man an excuse.

Lu Lian’s hands were curled into tight fists on her knees.

“You can step outside if you want,” he told her across the table. “You’re welcome to the porch, there.” He picked up his cup, gestured with it, and took a sip.

Lu Lian’s brow dipped. She looked at the door, and then – for the first time, probably – at him.

“Take your tea,” he suggested. She’d come all this way, so she might as well get to drink it.

One of her hands uncurled slowly, reaching out and claiming her cup from the table. She rose and let herself out, shutting the door gently behind her.

The uncle looked appalled. “Ah, Sect Leader, please forgive my niece. She has been so eager to meet you since we received the invitation, she’s simply overcome with nerves! I hope you will be generous enough to give her another chance when she returns. Why don’t I go fetch her for you?”

“No,” Jiang Cheng said, leaving the man helpless to do anything but stand there and wait, pinned by his order. He ignored him entirely, turning to his advisor. “Who recommended Lu Lian?”

“Sect Leader Nie,” she read out of her book, voice tinged with the same puzzlement Jiang Cheng felt. He wouldn’t have expected Nie Huaisang to make such a poor choice. “Apparently the new Nie-furen knew her for a time when they were young.”

He and his advisor exchanged a look. People could change a great deal from when they were young. Jiang Cheng knew that all too well himself.

Still, the combined involvement of Nie Huaisang and Zhang Meihua gave him pause. It made it less likely this was a thoughtless choice and more likely a deviously thoughtful one. This was an inane situation which Nie Huaisang had himself contrived, but within it, Lu Lian was the suitor that most stood out.

She stayed outside for the full half hour, which gave Jiang Cheng time to turn the puzzle over in his mind and come up with the rudiments of a plan – one that would get him, and in the process also Lu Lian, out of this. He would have to sit through one more tea first, but that might truly be the end of it.

When she finally came in, she stood uncertainly in the doorway, her empty cup held limply in front of her.

“Take an ozmanthus cake when you go,” he offered. “And more tea, if you want it.”

The uncle was glaring unsubtle daggers at her, gesturing with his posture toward Jiang Cheng as if he were trying to compel Lu Lian to petition him for additional time. Lu Lian did not heed him, stepping forward cautiously and taking one of the diamond-shaped cakes from the table. “Thank you, Sect Leader Jiang.” She set her cup down.

By the time he realized she was probably just intending to leave it, he was halfway through pouring her a new cup, which meant it was too late. “You’re welcome.”

She took it and left. Jiang Cheng looked significantly at the uncle, reminding him he was supposed to leave too, and he scurried after her.

Perhaps Jiang Cheng hadn’t given Nie Huaisang enough credit. He’d assumed his old ‘friend’ was trying to wheedle him into a relationship, but perhaps he’d actually set up the pieces so Jiang Cheng could knock them down in such a way as to ensure neither he nor Lu Lian would ever be hassled about getting married again.