#jingyi probably has parents

[uncorrectintamed]

[Lan Sizhui and Lan Jingyi doing something dangerous]

Wei Wuxian: [passing by] Look at those two morons. Where is their parents?

Wei Wuxian: ...

Wei Wuxian: Oh shit! I'm their parent!

[seineko]

lan wangji and lan sizhui's relationship isn't discussed enough!

a-yuan was the reason lan wangji lived and i will stand by it as long as i have to.

i'm not talking about living in a physical sense. he would've done so being the light bearer he is, but the peerless hanguang-jun lost his light the second he knew wei wuxian breathed his last.

hanguang-jun was just that, a light bearer, not the source of it. he was the moon that depended on the sun to provide it to the people, but he already lost his sun.

he probably would've gotten sucked into the black hole that was left behind after his star died that he did not realize there was another sun right beside it until he heard the faint cries of a child.

a-yuan. (he was the sun that the last of qishan wen couldn't even hope to be.)

it's the ways in which lan wangji and sizhui's interactions are so subtly domestic that melts my heart completely.

the relationship they share that of a guardian-ward, of a father-son.

the way sizhui (along with jingyi and a few other lan juniors) scream 'hanguang-jun!' and are able to smile while being held hostage really says a lot about both the trust they have in him and how safe they feel around him.

sizhui saying that feels as if he has nothing to fear or worry about, so long as lan wangji or wei wuxian were around. the bone deep trust that he has that he will be safe if he's around either of them even if he was in the middle of a literal death trap had me pause for a few seconds to let myself bawl out.

it's in the way sizhui so willingly and so enthusiastically interacts with lan wangji while everyone around him (except a few of the lan juniors) are scared witless to even breathe the same air as him. even the lan juniors don't seem to have the ease that sizhui has. (okay, this may probably be me over reading into it, but i really did feel that way while reading.)

and, my favorite interaction, sizhui encountering that lan wangji buried a-yuan in a pile of rabbits will never ever make me stop smiling like an idiot.

they have one of the healthiest parent-child relationship i've seen and i so, so long for it.

it's as surprising as it is devastating how less they're talked about. a crime really.

[canary3d-obsessed]

Restless Rewatch: The Untamed, Episode 40 part one

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

Warning! Spoilers for All 50 Episodes!

Agree to Disagree

The juniors are arguing because Sizhui said that some demonic cultivators might have good intentions. According to Jin Ling that means that Sizhui is celebrating the murders of Jin Ling's parents, or something.

(Actor) Peixin Qi uses forehead-squinching as a primary acting tool, which would be perfectly fine if he wasn't playing a character with a red dot between his eyebrows.

He goes on to say that Wei Wuxian is the evillest of them all, way eviller than Xue Yang. Which in sheer numbers of victims, is probably a fair point. But Xue Yang was way more of a dick.

Ouyang Zichen is all of us when he asks Jin Ling to chill the fuck out.

Sizhui apologizes even though Jingyi is ready to throw down on his behalf. It's unclear if this helps, because Hanguang-Jun chooses this moment to arrive. He immediately defuses the situation with the power of stinkeye.

(more after the cut!)

More Than Meets the Eye

Many differences between CQL and the novel are adaptational choices - Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji's deep, early friendship; the yin iron plot, Jiang Cheng being loveable, etc. Changes like that, I normally don't point out, because adaptations are AUs, in my view, and can be enjoyed separately from their sources.

Other changes are driven by censorship, however, and in those cases I think it's fair to look to the novel and its less-censored adaptations for a peek at what's happening off camera. Particularly when there are scenes and interactions in The Untamed where the show seems to be deliberately pointing to the novel to fill in the blanks.

This moment on the stairs is one such scene. In the show, Lan Wangji carries liquor upstairs to Wei Wuxian, and the juniors react with shock; Jingyi drops his chicken out of his mouth and Sizhui stuffs it back in there.

They are shocked because he bought liquor, and that's the extent of their reaction.

In the Donghua, Manhua, and Novel, Lan Wangji is dragging Wei Wuxian up those stairs, having drunkenly tied him up with his headband.

First he stops to show his prize to the juniors, who have basically the same reaction in every version of the story, including Jinygi dropping his chicken and Sizhui stuffing it back in his mouth. In the novel, however, Sizhui does that to stop Jingyi from saying anything to Lan Wangji & his captive.

The liquor, in all versions, is a clear sign of how much Lan Wangji has mellowed since his youth. In case we need another reminder, we learn here that he let Sizhui get a tattoo on his finger.

Every parent will tell you, you gotta pick your battles.

Returning to to the timeline in which no visible bondage is occurring, Wei Wuxian is sitting around in the room upstairs waiting for Lan Wangji. Wasn't he busy talking to Lan Xichen when Lan Wangji went into the inn to shut the kids up? How did he get upstairs before Lan Wangji? Never mind, never mind.

Wei Wuxian goes to look out the window and Wen Ning appears, hanging off the roof like a dork, or like someone who has seen that one Spider-Man movie and is hoping for some upside-down kissing.

Wen Ning asks if Jin Ling is the kid he halfway orphaned, and Wei Wuxian says yes.

Then he hears Lan Wangji coming, and Wen Ning falls to the ground for no reason.

Wei Wuxian urgently shoos Wen Ning away, trying to hide him from Lan Wangji.

Wen Ning acts way too clueless for someone who spends so much time third-wheeling.

There's no in-world reason for Wei Wuxian to hide Wen Ning; They fought side-by side in Yi City, and they were all together for A-Qing's burial. There's not a problem between him and Lan Wangji.

Once again, the novel provides the missing information. Wei Wuxian is hiding Wen Ning because Lan Wangji is hella jealous even when he's sober. Wen Ning fell to the ground because drunk Lan Wangji leapt through the window and kicked him.

In the novel, Wei Wuxian & Lan Wangji's evening ends with a game of tag that's loaded with sexual tension, followed by a kiss...followed by Lan Wangji literally knocking himself out to avoid taking advantage of Wei Wuxian.

Lan Wangji does everything in the most extreme way possible.

In the live action, the most sexually charged part of their interaction is this positively sinful hip thrust that Wei Wuxian gives when he turns around at the window.

If you've seen Xiao Zhan dancing, you know this is not an accident.

Unlike the novel's perpetually clueless protagonist, live-action Wei Wuxian clearly knows he's on a date right now.

...and he's enjoying every minute of it. He's delighted that Lan Wangji has provided *good* liquor, rather than the rotgut he's able to afford himself.

As he pours for Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji points out that both of their brothers know who WWX is at this point. Wei Wuxian isn't happy about it but he says they can't do anything. Which is...not correct.

He tries once again to get Lan Wangji to tell him how he recognized him, and Lan Wangji responds by asking him why his memory sucks so much.

Wei Wuxian says "you try dying by falling from a great height TWICE and see how your brain likes it." That's what he should have said, anyway.

This whole thing about his memory isn't actually important in the live action, even though it keeps being mentioned. He's forgotten the name of their song because he was delirious when he heard it; otherwise his memory seems perfectly fine.

I think this might be another instance of the live action giving a wink to novel readers in the audience, because in the novel Wei Wuxian forgot Lan Wangji's confession of love. Which, like WangXian, was presented in a cave while WWX was delirious; Lan Wangji is not great at choosing his moment.

Anyway, this may be why Lan Wangji seems to take Wei Wuxian's memory problems personally, despite having very little in-show reason to be upset.

Lan Wangji changes the subject by asking Wei Wuxian to go to Jinlintai with him, to search for Nie Mingjue's head. Sounds like a perfect romantic getaway for a boy and his favorite necromancer.

Just as Wei Wuxian starts to ask what Zewu-Jun will think, Zewu-Jun and his cheekbones come into the room.

He's taken time to think things over--a concept the rest of the cultivation world could stand to learn about, incidentally--and he agrees that they should investigate.

Note: the non-CQL illustrations come from the MDZS manhua, which is complete online (mangadex.org includes the uncensored extra bits), and is about halfway through being published in English by Seven Seas. It's delightful and I highly recommend it.

Bonus: Lan Wangji and Sizhui enjoying some tie-in cup noodles. (A few in-character ads are included in the Viki version of the show.)

[lilapplesheadcannons]

MDZS cooks, rated by Jiang Yanli, the Queen of soup.

Wei Wuxian: abomination unto the kitchen gods! Eating his food is just the beginning of your suffering because rest assured, it'll hurt more coming out.

Lan Wangji: Actually decent at making simple dishes. Stickler for recipes.

Jin ZiXuan: Messes up the spice drawer and substitutes sugar for salt. Get him out of her kitchen!

Jiang Cheng: Elaborate, fancy recipes. Leaves a mountain of dishes in the sink.

Nie MingJue: Stress baker. Makes excuisite croissants, thanks to his upper arm strength.

Nie HuaiSang: Self-declared taste-tester. Will finish off an entire pot just tasting. Persona non grata in the kitchen.

Lan Xichen: Partner in Sunday baking class. Tends to slightly overmix cake batters and make dense spongecakes.

Jin GuangYao: Doesn't cook, but has a palate that should be preserved for posterity. Can tell all the ingredients in a recipe from one taste and recommend whatever is needed to fix it.

Jin Ling: Ruined the microwave trying to cook an egg.

Lan SiZhui: Takes after both his parents. As in, can cook simple recipes but tends to overspice.

Lan JingYi: Would rather live on takeouts and cup noodles.

Ouyang Zizhen: That child will probably get kidnapped one day, lured by a piece of cake. Can't boil water.

Jiang Fengmian: Actually knows his way around the kitchen.

Yu ZiYuan: Can toast bread and slather jam on it. That's pretty much it.

Lan Qiren: Excuse me? Why cook yourself when you can pay someone else to do it?

Wei ChangZe: King of barbecue. Has a secret spice mix that he hides from everyone.

Cangse Sanren: Can't believe she's saying this, but actually agrees with goatee Lan.

Wen Qing: Coffee connoisseur. Hasn't bothered to explore the rest of the food pyramid.

Wen Ning: Master Chef material.

[coolshadowtwins]

Here’s me and my friends stupid nicknames for the MDZS characters. (The Untamed was how we watched it first, so these are based an that)

Wei Wuxian was almost always just called his name, mostly because Jiang Chang yelled it often enough that we remembered it lol

JC and JYL were “Wei Wuxian’s brother” and “Wei Wuxian’s sister”, respectively, though they got their own names pretty quickly for some reason.

JZX, when we are introduced to him, was being an asshole to JYL. So his name was “Bitchass (derogatory)” for a good part of the show, until he got his act together with her. Now he is “Bitchass (affectionate)”. In turn, his father tends to be “Bitchass Dad”, his cousin is “Bitchass Cousin” and Jin Ling is sometimes rarely “Baby Bitchass”. The last isn’t used a lot because Jin Ling is a relatively easy name to remember.

On that note, all the father sect leaders are “Daddy Jin”, “Daddy Jiang”, and “Daddy Wen”.

WWX said Lan Zhan enough for us to get his name. His uncle is just “Uncle Lan”. Lan Xichen is, funnily enough, “Hot Lan”, because his actor was determined to be the hottest by @rinonline.

Wen Qing, in the subtitles, were referred to as “Lady Wen”, so that was the name we used. Wen Ning, as such, was “Lady Wen’s brother”. They both got their actual names quickly tho.

When NHS first appeared, he was sneaking a bird into class. So for that episode, and that episode alone, he was “bird guy”. The next episode, he was being a dumbass with WWX, and so for that episode alone he was called “The Dumbass”. Every episode after that, he was called “Fan Guy”.

Meng Yao was easy to remember, but then we called him Mung Bean and that stuck for some reason lol. JGY is rarely used. NMJ was just “Fan Guy’s brother” for the longest, until we were being stupid with the names and ended up morphing ‘Mingjue’ into ‘Mango’. So now he’s Mango.

We never remember LSZ’s name, and so he’s just ‘A-Yuan’, like he never grew up lol. LJY is ‘Jingyi’. Short and simple. Together they are the ‘Baby Lans’.

MXY is just ‘Mo’. That’s it lol

Surprisingly enough, the Yi City crew don’t really have nicknames. We actually use their names.

I almost forgot Su She, which is absolutely not surprising. I forget him constantly. We say ‘Sushi’ which isn’t much a difference, but just know that is the spelling we mean.

I think that’s all the characters? I feel like I missed someone lol

But to recap, Jin Ling’s parents, Bitchass and Wei Wuxian’s Sister, get killed by Wei Wuxian (mostly by accident). This leaves him the care of Bitchass Dad and Wei Wuxian’s Brother, until Mung Bean kills Bitchass Dad and takes over for himself. Mung Bean has two sworn brothers, Mango and Hot Lan. Mango has a younger brother, Fan Guy, who is plotting to kill Mung Bean for Mango’s death. Hot Lan also has a younger brother, Lan Zhan, who is not planning Mung Bean’s death but will be an active participant in it. Lan Zhan is in love with Wei Wuxian, who has gone rogue in order to protect Lady Wen and Lady Wen’s brother. Wei Wuxian does get killed though, probably by himself, and comes back in Mo’s body. At this point he meets Baby Bitchass, A-Yuan(again), Jingyi, and the rest of the Baby Lans. Eventually, he goes to live with Lan Zhan, much to Uncle Lan’s annoyance.

I hope this has entertained you.

[tafeja]

I feel so so so insane. I do not usually ship rarepairs, but now I am suddenly extremely invested in a pairing with no content.

So let me pitch it for you, maybe somebody will be able to see it my way, and will want to chip it too.

It's Lan Sizhui/Wei Wuxian (mdzs). Wait, no, don't go away! I know that when Lan Sizhui was very little Wei Wuxian was in a sort of parental role, he played with him, regularly babysat him, was called gege and joked a few times about being the kid's parent. And it is easy to lean into that. I myself like stories when he literally adopts Wen Yuan. (And when I said that there is no content, I lied a bit, it's just that all of this content leans into pseudo-incestual vibes, and that is not what I want from the pairing). But it is not the only possible angle, especially considering that when they meet again for the first time they don't know each other and start from a new page.

Ok, so first of all, after Wei Wuxian' resurrection they are pretty close in age. Much closer than Wei Wuxian is with anyone from his generation, Jiang Cheng or Lan Zhan. It doesn't take a lot of stretching of the canon to say that Lan Sizhui is 18 (though 16-17 is more likely, for my purposes he is 18) and Wei Wuxian is 21 (I think he is between 21-23, but again, he can be 21)

And now, the concept:

Lan Sizhui is gay (cutsleeve), knows it already for some time, but doesn't share it with anyone for obvious reasons (yes, not even Lan Jingyi). He doesn't have any sort of gay-radar, and even though he knows that people like him exist in theory, he's never met any of them. So meeting Mo Xuanyu for the first time is a bit... interesting. He is quite a bit strange and his family treats him badly, so Lan Sizhui mostly feels pity than something else. And then night hunt turns more dangerous than was expected, and the disciples get over their heads. And then Mo Xuanyu suddenly takes the lead. He is very confident and he knows what he's doing. He is not lost (like Sizhui is). He is unexpectedly competent. And even though he is still a little weird, Mo Xuanyu isn't ashamed or afraid of being himself, it is also an attractive quality. So at this moment Lan Sizhui catches a crush on "Mo Xuanyu". But as soon as Lan Sizhui realises it, Mo Xuanyu disappears without a trace... Now they probably won't meet each other ever again...

But unexpectedly they meet again literally the next day!!! Lan Sizhui is very happy and excited. Mo Xuanyu once again puts himself in a leader's position and saves the day. He takes Sizhui's sword to make his flute! Then there is this whole situation with him maybe being Yiling Patriarch, Lan Sizhui tries to verbally defend him against Jiang Cheng. The whole Dafan Montain ends with several things happening simultaneously:

1) Mo Xuanyu again with no shame and in front of many influential cultivators openly talks about liking men

2) He says that he likes Lan Sizhui's teacher/parental figure (rip)

3) Lan Sizhui's crush goes with them home to Gusu Lan (❤️❤️❤️!!!)

4) against his will... (double rip)

Lan Sizhui sees that Lan Jingyi treats Mo Xuanyu normally, doesn't judge him specifically for being gay, so he is a bit less afraid and decides to share with him. Lan Jingyi is very supportive of him. He tells Sizhui to "go for it" and tells him that he totally has a chance with Mo Xuanyu. The rest of the story he acts as a professional wingman, always talks Lan Sizhui up in front of Wui Wuxian.

Lan Sizhui feels more confident with a crush on Mo Xuanyu than he would be with a crush on somebody else. Yes, he seems to like Hanguang-jun, but it doesn't seem that serious and Hanguang-jun doesn't like men (obviously), and at the very least Sizhui is sure that Mo Xuanyu likes men and wouldn't judge him for the same if he decided to confess.

For Jiang Cheng, when he finds out about Lan Sizhui/Wei Wuxian, it would seem even more that Wei Wuxian moved on. It's not a continuation of whatever's been before, Wei Wuxian starts new life and completely new relationships with new people.

When Wei Wuxian and Lan Sizhui find out about how they knew each other before, it would be a bit awkward for them, but they'd be fine. On the other han, Lan Wangji would freak out privately. I believe that he totally liked to imagine Lan Sizhui as his and Wei Wuxian's child.

Feel free to add anything, talk to me about the pairing, take any ideas from this post and run with them, link me any works with this pairing (no incest though)

[mdzs-owns-my-ass-i-guess]

The duty of those that came before

There are certain things that one cannot do unless they have reached a certain degree of maturity. There are stages to life, there are things that must be done in a certain order, in a certain manner, in a certain rhythm.

There are duties that generations must fulfill towards one another. The young must respect and obey their elders, and their elders must teach, protect and discipline them in turn.

There are things that the young cannot do, no matter how courageous, audacious or powerful they might believe themselves to be.

Lan Qiren knows that this is one of those things.

There are duties that elders must fulfill towards their young, there are things that parents must do for their children.

Lan Qiren never had children of his own, but he had helped raise his brother's. That made him a fatherly figure for them, to an extent - even if he heard neither of his nephews address to him as anything other than uncle. He doesn't know what he would have said if they did, anyway.

But even so, he has always seen Wangji and Xichen as his own, his pride and joy, his hope that the mistakes of the past could be erased by the brilliance of the future.

They have grown well. He doesn't tell them often. If he thinks about it, he probably never has. But he is proud of them. They are strong, intelligent and capable, and despite their transgressions, they've remained pillars of righteousness and power in their sect and beyond.

Perhaps he hasn't always agreed with their choices. This is more the case when it comes to Wangji, but, much like his father (and, if he is to be honest, like Lan Qiren himself) he has always been relentless in the pursuit of what he wanted - and Lan Qiren was powerless to stop him.

Of course, he voiced his opposition at every occasion - but fact of the matter is that Wangji did choose well in the end. He was happy, married to Wei Wuxian, raising a gaggle of juniors that Lan Qiren has always been secretly proud of.

Lan Qiren has had his own issues with Wei Wuxian - but he is not going to pretend that he has always been right in his assessments of the man. He is old enough to recognize his own biases, and he knows he hasn't always been fair towards his nephew's husband.

Yes, he's never going to accept his unorthodox cultivation practices, his propensity for loopholes and rule-breaking, or his shameless displays of affection towards Wangji (not to mention the beard shaving incident a few decades ago) - but Lan Qiren is an honest enough man to admit that he cannot imagine Lan Wangji with anyone else but Wei Wuxian.

Perhaps he will never understand - to willingly take a near fatal punishment for a man draped in sin, to raise a child that bore the blood of your clan's murderers (because Lan Qiren has always known, from the moment Wangji brought the boy in) - but Lan Qiren is aware of the limits of his knowledge. He is not so arrogant as to think he understands everything, much less the breadth and depth of something as complicated as love. After all, he has never experienced it. Not in that way, at least.

But he does love Xichen and Wangji, and he loves Sizhui, the bright, powerful boy that he is, and he even loves that little troublemaker Jingyi that's so much like Wei Wuxian that Lan Qiren himself used to wonder whether he was Wei Wuxian reincarnated sometimes.

And, with all his gripes about the man, his past and his methods, Lan Qiren realizes that he loves Wei Wuxian too, even if only a little bit. He loves him because Wangji does, and if he were to lose Wei Wuxian again, he would die.

And so, Lan Qiren has decided, it is his duty as an elder, as a relative, as a parent, even, to prevent that. It is his duty to save Wangji's life, so he saves Wei Wuxian.

It was a stray shot - a really thin, sharp arrow slicing through the air with incredible speed and a much too obvious target. After all, Wei Wuxian still has many enemies, and even despite the high security in the Cloud Recesses, nobody is infallible.

Lan Qiren hasn't been on a night hunt in a long time. He has spent much of his life among books and treatises, teaching and learning altogether.

Still, his reflex are sharp and his senses honed to near perfection.

He hears the threat before he sees it, and he reacts before he thinks about it.

The pain isn't as sharp as he's expected it to be, but he can feel the arrow - well, technically, it's more of a long, thick needle coated in poison - pierce through him in its entirety, lodging itself right into his heart.

His golden core vibrates in distress under his skin, and he's so distracted with the feeling that he almost doesn't hear Wei Wuxian's scream.

It echoes into the Cloud Recesses, late enough into the night that there's nobody else around. Quite ironic of him to die like this, alone save for somebody he has never hidden his disdain for.

"Let's sit." Lan Qiren says, calm as ever, ignoring Wei Wuxian's tearful, panicked fretting. There is no point for any of that - Lan Qiren knows he is dying, and he wishes to do so peacefully.

They sit underneath a large willow tree.

"Don't cry." Lan Qiren tells Wei Wuxian, "There is nothing to cry for."

"Why... why did you do that?" He manages, levelling his voice enough so that the knot in his throat doesn't obstruct his words entirely. He's shaking, the shock of what just happened drumming adrenaline into his veins, and the realization of what would come next dawning on him like a heavy weight on his shoulders.

Tomorrow, when Lan Wangji returns alongside Lan Xichen, who is finally going to be back from seclusion, they will find their uncle dead.

Tomorrow, they will find their uncle dead because he took a hit that was meant for Wei Wuxian.

"I did it for Wangji." Lan Qiren replies, closing his eyes with a heavy sigh. "If you died again, he would too. I would not be able to bury my s- my nephew."

Wei Wuxian looks at him, fists balled tightly into his robes - Lan Qiren appears entirely unaffected, serene almost. There is only a single droplet of blood on his robes, where the needle had penetrated the skin - otherwise, he looks as elegant, pristine and imposing as always.

"But," Lan Qiren continues, opening his eyes and turning to look at Wei Wuxian, "I did it for you as well."

He stares, eyes wide and unblinking. Lan Qiren distantly notes he looks a lot like his mother now.

"For all the grief I've given you, I would hate it if you died as well." And Lan Qiren finds himself wanting to smile. "I may not agree with much of what you do, but I know you have never been ill-intentioned. And as much as I trust Wangji's judgement, if I did not believe there to be good within you, I wouldn't have... tolerated you here."

Tears fall freely down Wei Wuxian's face and his head hangs low. Lan Qiren clicks his tongue, disapproving. "You have nothing to feel guilt about. This has been my choice and I do not regret it."

"Tomorrow... what should I... they-"

"Wangji and Xichen will understand." And Lan Qiren wants to smile again, feeling only the slightest prickle of tears in his eyes. "They are good boys - no, great men. They would have done the same."

"I thought I was done having my family die for me..." Wei Wuxian manages, squeezing his eyes shut to stop his tears from flowing any more.

"None of that. Didn't I tell you not to blame yourself? Listen to me for once."

A wet, tearful laugh escapes Wei Wuxian at that. "I'm sorry I've been a difficult student."

Lan Qiren finds himself reaching to pet Wei Wuxian's head. "You weren't that bad. If you'd obeyed the rules a little more, I think you would've been one of my best."

He sighs, leaning further against the tree. He feels his extremities slowly going numb, a warm nothingness in place of his legs now.

"There is something that I wish you to pass on to my nephews, Wei Wuxian."

"Anything."

Lan Qiren reaches into one of his sleeves and pulls two envelopes out. "Hand them these letters. I have written them a long time ago, when the Cloud Recesses burned and I did not believe I would survive. I changed some things as years passed, of course, a lot changed since then... But I suppose one could consider these letters to be my... last will."

Wei Wuxian feels himself overcome with emotion again, taking the two letters in hand reverently. He hopes his tears haven't wet the delicate paper.

"The council of elders might give you grief about my death for a while, but do not mind them. They have always been like that. Xichen will need help leading the sect, so I ask you not to leave the Cloud Recesses for a while. I know he will be... fragile now."

Wei Wuxian nods, a few sobs escaping him. He doesn't want to think about that, about everything that will come once Lan Qiren is gone.

"Wangji will be shaken as well. He grieves quietly, which means he tends to isolate himself. Don't try to coax it out of him, he will come to you when he is ready. Take good care of him meanwhile, make sure he eats and sleeps properly, no matter how much he fights it."

Lan Qiren has lost feeling in his arms as well now. The warm numbness is slowly climbing up his torso, with a clear destination.

"I will try my best to respond to Inquiry whenever called upon, so if either of you ever need me, I will be there."

Lan Qiren looks over whatever he can see of the Cloud Recesses from his seat beneath the willow tree, glances up at the starry night sky, and listens to the distant thrill of running water and night birds.

"I have one last thing to ask of you, Wei... Wei Ying."

"Yes, shufu."

Lan Qiren smiles, tearful at last as he feels his heart slow and his breathing heavy. "Tell my nephews... I love them... won't you? And... I'm proud of them... have always been, even if I never said it..."

Two stray droplets fall down his face as his eyes flutter closed, lips drawn apart around his final breath. "And... Wei Ying... you've... done well..."

The moon shines pale on his face like a halo.

[stormblessed95]

Hi, sorry if it's late, but can I ask for your persoal top favorite queer books and (maybe) your top fav fanfiction (from any fandom but your all time fav)? Thanks so much.....

Also why do you think mlm or wlw romance is more interesting than mlw (het) romance?

Feel free if you want to ignore the last ask, thanks for your blog....

Why do I personally enjoy gay romances to het ones? Preference and taste probably. I also tend to enjoy the angst, longing, tropes, passion, etc in the way its written more than I do in the ways those things are written between a straight couple. And that's not to say I don't enjoy straight romances either! I have plently of het ships I love too, and a few good romances that aren't gay 😂 I just have a preference, and that's okay! As for recommendations!! I have a LOTS! If you want to tell me about what YOU like to read, I can give even better recs. But for in general, some of my favorites...

I have posts about QUITE A FEW here already that you can check out (please do)!:

^ you'll find queer characters in most of the lists of recs honestly at least somewhere. BUT I do have posts specific for Sapphic, Achillian and Ace recs there. So start there!

I'll also throw in that I'm recently quite obsessed with fantasy Sapphics with swords in my books lately! So books like "The Jasmine Throne." "This is How You Lose The Time War." "Priory of the Orange Tree." "Gideon the Ninth." "Girls of Paper and Fire" and "Legends and Lattes."

Come back for me if you want more!

And some of my favorite fics (of various fandoms! Exciting!) In no particular order, I'll link a few for you!

That Isn't Nothing by Taekookschanbaek

(I KNOW OKAY, in my defense I didn't realize the authors name until AFTER I read and loved the fic lmfao but it IS SO good, I promise lol)

Fandom: All For The Game

Ship: Andrew x Neil

Summary: "A look into the lives of pro exy players Andrew Minyard and Neil Josten. The world says they hate each other, but when Andrew gets transferred to Neil's team, their teammates begin seeing something else between them."

In Which Neil is a PR Nightmare by CoverYourEyes

Fandom: All For The Game

Ship: Andrew x Neil

Summary: "Eve was not the best person in the world. Sometimes she didn’t hold the elevator open when she saw people rushing to catch it from the other side of the lobby. Cutting the line at Starbucks was a semi-regular action. But Eve did not deserve to be Neil fucking Josten's publicist.

**********

Or, the one where Neil does what he wants, picks fights with reporters, discovers Twitter, breaks the internet, and really shouldn't be allowed out of his house. Andrew does nothing to discourage him."

The Men In Apartment 22B by jjmash

Fandom: All For The Game

Ship: Andrew x Neil

Summary: "Andrew and Neil's new neighbors are extremely confused about the two mysterious men in 22B. Are they dating? Are they in the mafia? Are they rival assassins who've fallen in love? As always, the truth is stranger than fiction."

Blame It On My Youth by youreyestheyglow

(Locked fic, you need an account. This fic is THICK but it's by far one of the best Andriel fics I've ever read or just in general. SO GOOD and so emotional and so sweet and so cute)

Fandom: All For The Game

Ship: Andrew x Neil

Summary: "10 years after the end of The King's Men, Andrew and Neil have decided to foster a kid. They have low expectations for themselves--they're not exactly ideal parenting material--but at the very least, the kid will be safe with them. But neither Andrew nor Neil do temporary very well.

Full disclosure: highly character-driven, minimally plot-driven."

(Wangxian and MDZS IS my newest hyperfixation and I love the juniors dynamics fics so much lol)

The One-Body Problem by metisket

Fandom: MDZS

Ship: Wei Ying x Lan Zhan

Summary: "The good news is that Lan Jingyi has found a mentor, friend, and constant companion through the difficulties in life.

The bad news is that that’s because he’s been accidentally possessed by the Yiling Patriarch."

Operation Old Men by Chiharu

Fandom: MDZS

Ship: Wei Ying x Lan Zhan

Summary: "An ill-fated parent teacher conference reunites Jin Ling's wayward uncle with Sizhui's father. AKA: A matchmaking disaster as told by Jin Ling, Sizhui, and Jingyi."

And Time Is But A Paper Moon by Sami

Fandom: MDZS

Ship: Wei Ying x Lan Zhan

Summary: ""Zewu-Jun. You once told me about a house surrounded by gentians, where you visited once a month, and how Lan Zhan still waited there, even when the door no longer opened."

Xichen feels light-headed. He feels shocked, and angry. He has never told anyone such a thing, but Lan Zhan is giving Xichen a look of utter betrayal.

"You told him?" Lan Zhan whispers. "When?"

Wei Wuxian takes Lan Zhan's hand. "About twenty years from now."

*******

Wei Wuxian starts again from the beginning."

(the first time) he kissed a boy by buzzcut__season

Fandom: Sk8 The Infinity

Ship: Langa x Reki

Summary: "Reki is insecure about his lack of kissing experience. Langa just wants to help him feel like he's good enough, even if teaching Reki to kiss means breaking his own heart."

The Gambler by MooeyDooey

Fandom: Sk8 The Infinity

Ship: Joe x Cherry

Summary: "Joe and Cherry run into a problem. Conspiracy theories have started to surface in some fan forums of "S" that the two of them are secretly dating one another.

Both of them agree that the idea is absurd, but can't agree on which one of them would be the better boyfriend if they actually were dating. So they decide to have a competition, to see who can be the better romantic partner when pitted up against one another."

The One Where Nico Has 30 Boyfriends by a_million_stars

Fandom: PJO

Ship: Will x Nico

Summary: "“Seriously? Me and Lester?” Nico looked ready to kill him. “If you keep speaking to me I think I’m going to throw up.”

Or, a new friend from college desperately tries to figure out who Nico's secret boyfriend is. He messes up. A lot. If only Nico didn't have so many weirdly close friends from high school."

Burgundy (not Maroon) by Eggplant_Crusader

Fandom: Wednesday

Ship: Wednesday x Enid

Summary: "They're driving each other insane. It can't last. One of these days, one of them will surely kill the other. Enid wants to avoid that. Wednesday can't wait."

Like Everything Glows by Annie_Vi

(One of the only people I'll read RPS fics from. Everything this woman writes is gold, this is my favorite though, and the first i read of hers)

Fandom: BTS

Ship: Jimin x Jungkook

Summary: "Jeon Jeongguk watches the sun rise and set on the water every day without wondering what may lie far beneath the surface. One nighttime walk along the beach upheaves his entire life, sending his human morals into a tailspin as he questions what his beliefs really are."

(I need more shows with good wlw ships that have good fics too!! If anyone has any good recs, send them my way!! Also there are so many good fics I've read that i realized i never bookmarked and now i cant remember what they are. Lesson learned. Bookmark everything! Thanks for the ask!!)

[deadguysclub]

btw the thing that jin ling (14) and lan jingyi (16) get into a fist fight about in high school is they're in the locker room and lan jingyi aggressively asks another boy 'and why are you looking at my tits, f-ggot' as jin ling is walking into the locker room and jin ling just remembers jiang cheng saying he should probably fight anyone that says the f word so he just starts swinging on him, even though lan jingyi was asking the other kid that because he had been saying some transphobic shit to his face (jin ling did not hear that part)

when they get pulled apart and sent to the principle's office jin ling is confused because he didn't know gay people could say the f word (he has never been around a drunk nie huaisang) and lan jingyi gets suspended for saying it and for fighting a younger kid, and then when the principle starts scolding jin ling for hitting a ''''''girl''''' jin ling jumps across the desk at him and swings on him too. he's less than five feet tall but he gets a couple good swings in before jingyi pulls him off

jingyi is like my bad little dude, i was unfamiliar with your game and jin ling is like i will fight you again if you call me little dude and from then on they are friends. jin ling gets expelled for punching the principal and then they both fight the kid that was doing transphobia in the bathroom, and THEN they find out they both know sizhui and zizhen and they're like omg small world <3

jiang cheng is nuclear mad at jin ling for punching the principal but he's also like. well yeah alright i get it, but i am always telling you to use your words when you're upset, and jin ling is like uncle cheng i watched you call a guy in a lifted pickup truck a cunt and then kick his tail light out last week. and jiang cheng is like well you know what

lan jinyi gets in some trouble for throwing hands with a fourteen year old but his parents are kind of just like well we can't afford to send you to a military academy, just stop being such a shit. and he's like okay :D

[wenningfanclub]

I love a modern-AU dadfics as much as anyone, but we have to stop glossing over how Wei Wuxian adopting A-Yuan would impact the Wens. Because if he does, something has gone terribly wrong for them and it would absolutely affect everyone involved.

The issue is that A-Yuan has primary caregivers other than Wei Wuxian who should be taking care of him, and if they're not in the picture then there’s going to be a reason why. The first person missing is Granny Wen, who is Wen Yuan’s actual caregiver in mdzs and would most likely be taking care of him. Unfortunately in most dad!xian fics she's immediately fridged or has her grandchild taken away from her due to her age off-screen—which would be deeply traumatic for everyone involved, especially if she’s subsequently unable to be involved in her grandchild's life.

The second person who would be taking care of A-Yuan before Wei Wuxian is Wen Qing. Sometimes the in-fic reason for her not being his caregiver is due to unavoidable circumstances (usually financial issues, which like. yikes), but most of the time it comes down to Wen Qing not really… wanting? to be a caregiver, often because she’s too busy or is putting her career first or is just too much of a GirlBoss. So she chooses to adopt out Wen Yuan to Wei Wuxian (again, off-screen) and that's the end of that.

Listen. Not everyone wants to be a parent. Not everyone should be a parent, or can. It’s a reasonable and valid decision to prioritize other parts of your life over parenthood—especially if being a parent or caregiver wasn’t your choice in the first place. But Wen Qing is going to have SOME kind of feeling about letting A-Yuan be adopted out of her family, and that feeling is probably going to be complicated or bittersweet, if not painful. Not only because she’s, you know, a human being with emotions, but Wen Qing’s primary motivation in the book is to take care of her family and keep them together. So her deciding “nah, I’m too much of a girlboss to be a caregiver, here’s a free kid and I’m going to feel absolutely nothing about this cause it’d be inconvenient for the fluff” is not only a dismissal of how complicated that decision would be for her, it’s also wildly out of character. No matter what the reason is, she's going to feel something about it.

(I’m not getting into how Wen Ning is never tapped as another potential caregiver btw because we're really not ready to talk about ableism just yet)

If you love the idea of Wei Wuxian adopting A-Yuan in your modern au, there’s are a couple of changes that can address this. One is to make Wen Yuan not related to Wen Qing and the shared surname is just a coincidence, like Lan Jingyi. Another is to have them be a blended family where they’re all caregivers for A-Yuan, or have Wei Wuxian be his primary caregiver but help A-Yuan actively maintain a connection to his family of origin. Or have Wei Wuxian adopt A-Yuan but the Wens actually get have feelings about it for once, regardless of why it happens—sorrow, frustration, relief, gratitude, regret, something. Let Wen Qing have complicated feelings and let them shape her relationship with Wei Wuxian, too, for better or worse or just messier. Maybe even let Wei Wuxian, who was also separated from his family of origin and is a walking ball of family trauma, have complicated feelings about it as well! Or go the extra mile and let A-Yuan have some emotions about it for once, because regardless of the context the loss or change of support structures is traumatic, especially for a small human.

Anyway read A Temporary Fix by Bosgood for your complex Wen family feels (feat. Lan Wangji adopting Wen Yuan, because all of this goes the same for him as well).

[robininthelabyrinth]

Not sure if tumblr ate my other ask (feel free to ignore) but if you're still doing alt headcanons, what about Lan Qiren as Nie Mingjue's other parent?

“You knew?” Lan Xichen shouted.

“Do not disrespect your elders,” Lan Qiren snapped. “And keep your voice down.”

“I will not! I cannot believe – shufu, how could you? Nie Huaisang has done such terrible things in his pursuit of vengeance, such that I cannot believe, and you…not only will you not support me in acting to stop him, you tell me now that you knew what he was about this entire time! That he was scheming behind my back to destroy A-Yao’s life, that he suspected even me of collaborating with him, that he was orchestrating everything, even murdering Mo Xuanyu –”

“I knew it all,” Lan Qiren said impassively. “From the beginning to the end. Whenever he needed help, I offered it to him, and gladly. It was I who sent Sizhui and Jingyi to Mo Village, and Wangji to watch over them, and I did so knowing what they would find there, and who. I knew, and not only did I know, I approved. I collaborated. Any punishment you seek to bring down on his head will need to be brought down also upon mine, though of course doing so will shame our sect, and so you cannot act as freely as you wish. That is your complaint, is it not?”

Lan Xichen bit his lip. “Tell me why,” he said fiercely. “Shufu, I know A-Yao – I mean, Jin Guangyao. I know Jin Guangyao has done terrible things, I know it now, and I despair of it, but still, how could you ally yourself with Nie Huaisang? Why would you?”

“Because Jin Guangyao murdered A-Jue.”

Lan Xichen faltered.

“Oh, so now you remember,” Lan Qiren said, and his voice was icy cold. “You forgot, I take it, that the former Sect Leader Nie was misaligned, that he was a man who bore who his own sons with his own body…that he needed only a willing partner to father them, someone willing to let them be raised as Nie rather than under his own surname.”

He rose up, and for all that he was shorter now than Lan Xichen, Lan Xichen felt the weight of his uncle’s stare as if it were coming down on him from above.

“You remember now that I served as that willing partner,” his uncle continued. “That Nie Mingjue was not merely your friend and sworn brother, but my son – by blood, although not by recognition. Tell me, Xichen, now that you remember, do you still have the gall to ask me why I did everything in my power to avenge him as he ought to have been? Do you still wish to chastise Nie Huaisang for pursuing the vengeance that in all rights I ought to have been the one to undertake, a right that I only yielded up because I was worried about you?”

Lan Xichen hung his head.

“Go back to seclusion, Xichen,” his uncle said, words biting; given Lan Qiren’s troubled history with his brother, it was the closest he had ever come to actually cursing his nephew. “And don’t come out until you’ve reacquainted yourself with morality – or, if you find yourself unable to develop that, at the very least a sense of shame. Your brother and I will manage perfectly fine without you.”

This was probably, Lan Xichen thought numbly, about what he deserved. He’d known from the start that he was displacing his anger at himself at Nie Huaisang, but to have forgotten something so close to his uncle’s heart…

Maybe his problem with Jin Guangyao really hadn’t been just ignorance. Maybe his uncle was right, and it was something deeper than that, more fundamental. Maybe it really was a matter of morality.

Maybe he really did need to take some time to examine himself.

Maybe…

Maybe seclusion really was what he needed.

“Yes, shufu,” he said. “I’ll go.”

[mdzsshoujo]

MDZS Shoujo Mashup Master List

We made a list of all the amazing works made for the MDZS Shoujo Mashup!

ART

Artist: Frania (teleport warning)

General Description: Yunmeng siblings run a maid cafe

View on Bluesky

Artist: Frania (teleport warning)

General Description: Clow Cards (Cardcaptor Sakura), WangXian as The Time and The Return

View on Bluesky

Artist: HellingLaozu

General Description: magical swords WangXian (collaboration with spookykingdomstarlight, art accompaniment to "Help!!! I'm a Broke College Student How Did I End Up With a (Hot) Amnesiac Sword Spirit For a Sugar Baby??!??")

Chapter 1 art on Bluesky and Tumblr

Chapter 2 art on Bluesky and Tumblr

Artist: littleartbot

General description: Magical girls Jiang Yanli, Wen Qing and MianMian

View on Tumblr

Artist: lychee (lycheeeart)

General description: "welcome to 'burial mound oddities and antiquities'" 🪭✨

View on Bluesky and Tumblr

Artist: Niq (skuzzybunny)

General description: modern au accidentally drunk teenji and his magical animal companion silkie chickens

View on Bluesky

Artist: YaYa (terabyte-my-ass)

General description: Cloud Recesses Host Club

View on Bluesky

FICS and THREADFICS

Author: em (gusufan) - threadfic WIP

Summary: Lan Jingyi is sick of watching Wangxian pining for each other, so he convinces Jiang Cheng to help him get them together. (He doesn’t expect to fall for him in the process) Additional Details: CW: strong language probably? (it's JC 🙄)

View on Bluesky

Dawn of the Red Lotus by Raine (rainewritesfanfics)

Summary: Wei Ying is hiding something, and Lan Zhan can do nothing but watch and worry as Wei Ying's smile stretches thinner and more bandages peek out from his hems. When he finds himself entangled with the city's young superhero, he realizes that answers may be closer than he realizes, and that the Red Lotus may not be the only one with magic in his veins. Additional Details: featuring magical boy Wei Ying, tea shop waiter LWJ, and a deadly family curse 😱

Read on AO3

Promo on Tumblr

So, You Think I'm Pretty? by Sour Tea (lordoflemons)

Summary: Lan Zhan takes on a role as a maid at Caiyi Cafe, a maid cafe his friend had introduced him to. Far from his school, he thought no one would find out about his part-time job until one day, classmates he knew too well came to visit. Now one of them has taken an interest in the shop and has become a regular. This person also happens to be his deskmate, Wei Ying, and he seems to have a keen interest in Lan Zhan's alter-ego 'Jiji'. Has Wei Ying figured out it's him or does he really like maid cafes? Guess the only way to find out is to go on a date with him.

Read on SquidgeWorld

Read on AO3

Promo on Bluesky

Help!!! I'm a Broke College Student How Did I End Up With a (Hot) Amnesiac Sword Spirit For a Sugar Baby??!?? by Spooky (spookykingdomstarlight)

Summary: Wei Ying is a normal first-year college student. He lives with his parents. He gets good grades. He has friends. Or a friend, at least. Everything is going well, at least until a stunning man in hanfu with white hair manifests right in front of his eyes on a field trip. Suddenly he’s stuck introducing a sword spirit to the modern world, dealing with a mystery involving metal shards appearing all over Jiangsu province, and grappling with the possibility that Siri from his old phone might be sentient. What’s a normal first-year college student supposed to do under these circumstances? He dives right in, of course. ⚔️ sword spirits ⚔️ reincarnation ⚔️ tragedy with a happy ending ⚔️ siri

Read on SquidgeWorld

Read on AO3

Promo on Bluesky

Unusual Gifts by Toshokanin

Summary: At a critical moment in canon, Luo Qingyang, Wen Qing, and Jiang Yanli each receive a magical gift. But will it be enough to change the course of events? 🔮 CQL canon divergence ✨ Magical Girls ❓ Ambiguous/hopeful ending

Read on AO3

Promo on Bluesky

OTHER WORKS

WIP teaser: jes (francowitch)

The word of the week was "friends"

View on Bluesky

Picrew: Niq (skuzzybunny)

A Shoujo-ifier for all your MDZS favorites

Picrew Dollmaker

Promo on Bluesky

You can also view the list on our carrd:

If you have any late works you want to add, just send us a message!

[stiricidewrites]

The Damage You Do: ch 23, pt 4

CW: not child abuse, but just the unfortunate state of parenting

Previously

~

lwj’s hand squeezed his, and wwx’s attention shot back to him. “Uh? Oh! Oh, uh, lhr took A-Yuan for a play date with his kid? So, until they get sick of each other, I guess?”

The expression on lwj’s face grew dark, and wwx was torn between the urge to burst out laughing at the sudden shift in mood, and genuine concern that he shouldn’t have left his child with his dom’s cousins.

“Is… is there a problem with that?” he asked, trying not to sound like the quickly panicking parent he was.

lwj hummed, a sparkle of amusement crossing through his eyes as he explained that his cousin’s son was extremely annoying, so it was unlikely A-Yuan would last long in his company.

“He’s like, what? Four? All four-year-olds are annoying,” wwx pointed out, his concern quickly dissipating as he was hauled along, towards lwj’s bedroom and then to a room past it.

“Are they?” the other man asked as he led wwx into the room. “I know very few. Jingyi is by far the most annoying.”

“Why?” wwx asked as he looked around. It was an exercise room—a very fancy and complete one for a private home. Racks of weights lined a wall in every possibly variant, from free weights to dumbbells to kettle balls. Various machines lined another wall, along with bands and skipping ropes and punching bags. There were boxes and other items for plyometrics—he had always loved those—as well. The room was also huge, not just long and wide, but towering—almost as if someone had modified the shape of the room. Taken out walls and floors to make a gymnasium, which, expensive!

lwj sighed, long-suffering, and this time wwx did laugh, his attention dragging away from the odd looking floor near the far wall. “He is loud, impolite, nosy, impatient.”

“So… he’s a kid?”

His dom glared.

wwx smiled back. “Don’t look at me like that. Kids are an absolute pain in the ass. They’re always trying to hurt themselves… and you—that’s practically their main hobby. The number of times I’ve been nailed in the head by A-Yuan’s head? And, oh god, the messes? And the crying, and all the accidentally broken things. Honestly, I’m surprised anyone ever has kids.”

“You have a child, by choice,” his dom pointed out.

“Sure, but A-Yuan is special—and obviously,” he cheered, smiling probably a little crazily at his boss, “all parents think their kid is special. Helps them ignore that their kids are actually demons in human skin.”

lwj did not look convinced, not that wwx could blame him—or even correct him with more than joking words. He’d seen more than a few parents out and about, their seeming hatred for their kids not quite hidden behind their tight voices and dead eyes, burnt out and unable to find it in their hearts to love their children the way they deserved. He was lucky. He loved his kid and had the support system to help when he needed it, but he knew some parents just… realized too late that their lives weren’t better with kids. That broke his heart, a little, to think of parents stuck regretting their kids. To think of the children trying to survive in a household where their parents might not actively abuse them but they couldn’t quite hide that having kids was a mistake...

“So…” wwx sighed, biting his lip as he looked back to him dom, the man’s concerned eyes already—or still—on him. “You were exercising? I could sit and watch? Or leave! That’s still an option—kicking me out.”

His dom blinked slowly at him, and he wondered if the man had figured out how that blink affected him. How it made him squirm and sizzle.

[bi-turtle-enthusiast]

Hello.... Can I ask your top 5 (or top 3) favorite characters from MDZS? And why you loved them? And your top 5 favorite moments from the series? Thanks if you want to answer....

yeah sure!

Characters:

5. Lan Sizhui/Lan Jingyi I love their dynamic SO much. They're best friends who have clearly known each other for such a long time, and they're both really interesting characters in their own right! Lan Sizhui is so interesting, what with his Lan upbringing and his Wen heritage, and the fact that he's connecting to both by the end of the book. Lan Jingyi is Lan Sizhui's ride-or-die, protecting his best friend at every opportunity while having the best lines in the entire book, and he makes every scene he's in 100x better.

4. Wen Qing Medical malplractice queen!! But in all seriousness, there's something so viscerally powerful about the fact that she's willing to go against nature itself for her baby brother. She'd both die and kill for Wen Ning, and later for Wei Wuxian. I feel like her type of character (murderous older sister) is kind of rare and I really, really like her. I feel like The Untamed really fleshed out her character and I really appreciated her after I watched it. She's equally capable of nurturing and destroying—a force of nature herself.

3. Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian Fun fact: I hated Lan Wangji when I first read MDZS, and to be honest I'm still so-so on novel Lan Wangji. However, he was easily one of my favorite characters in The Untamed, and watching it made me see him in a whole different light. He doesn't communicate through his words, but through his actions. I think Wang Yibo was perfect casting because he NAILED Lan Wangji's micro-expressions and body language and really brought the character to life. Reading Lan Wangji as autistic also made me understand him a lot more. As for Wei Wuxian, I initially read him as a silly guy and... was right. Despite everything, he stays silly. I do find him a little insufferable pre-death, but I think that was intentional. He probably would have been higher on the list, but while I think he's a really compelling character (and ADHD personified, just like me fr), I'm also very frustrated by him and I don't like how he treats people sometimes. Still, I adore the way he looks after Jin Ling, refuses to let anyone blame Jiang Cheng for anything that happened to him, and takes care of Lan Wangji (towards the end, anyway).

2. Jin Ling Ok he probably would have been at the very top of this list but unfortunately jiang cheng brainrot is real. But CAN WE TALK ABOUT HIM. Over the course of the story, he finds out that his disgraced uncle who insulted him for not having a mom was actually Wei Wuxian reincarnated, then had to contend with the fact that Wei Wuxian was both the reason his parents and grandparents died AND the guy who protected him at every opportunity. Not to mention, he learned that Jin Guangyao, his beloved uncle who gifted him his beloved dog, had orchestrated his parents' death and was ready to kill him too. And what does he do at the end of the novel? He cries. He doesn't seek revenge, he doesn't get angry, he just cries, and he lets go. He chooses not to pursue revenge, because he's seen how the quest for revenge has destroyed everyone around him in one way or another. He's a little shit (because he's an edgy 15 year old) but he's a really intelligent and kind person who loves Jiang Cheng more than anything.

1. Jiang Cheng Some of y'all are going to disagree with me but it must be said. Jiang Cheng is the best MDZS character. Jiang Yanli's love and care taught him how to be loving and caring too. He loved Wei Wuxian, he loved Jin Ling, and he loved his sect. Jiang Cheng never stopped loving Wei Wuxian, even after everything that happened. He hated Wei Wuxian too—that's undeniable—but he also loved him. He kept his belongings intact, he never stopped believing he would come back, he literally gave up his golden core to protect Wei Wuxian. And Jin Ling! He loves Jin Ling so much! Despite having AWFUL parents himself, he was determined not to be that way towards Jin Ling. He did his best to break the generational trauma of his family because he wanted Jin Ling to have it better than he did. When Jin Ling becomes sect leader, he makes sure that he knows that if he EVER needs ANYTHING, he'll provide it to the best of his ability. I could go on for hours about this man. Best MDZS character. He's so full of resentment and hatred and vengeance, but in the end, the thing that always wins out over everything else is his unshakeable love.

Honorable mention: I loved MianMian in the Untamed and wish she got more time to shine in the novel

Favorite moments: 5. Literally anytime Lan Jingyi is in a scene. Every time he opens his mouth it's my favorite scene. He keeps Wei Wuxian humble in a way that only a teenager can. 4. The WangXian scene where Wei Wuxian hides porn in Lan Wangji's book. It starts off so genuinely nice—you can tell Lan Wangji isn't really serious anymore when he tells Wei Wuxian to stfu, and you get the feeling that Wei Wuxian is probably the closest thing Lan Wangji has to a friend. Wei Wuxian draws Lan Wangji a little portrait, and it's genuinely a sweet gesture. Lan Wangji thinks so too—he hasn't ever gotten something like this, and the fact that Wei Wuxian took the time to learn his appearance and commit it to paper makes him feel some type of way. And then, it turns out that everything was just a ruse so Wei Wuxian could prank Lan Wangji. Lan Wangji is,, understandably enraged. It feels cruel that Wei Wuxian would be so insincere just to do that. I kind of hated Wei Wuxian in this scene, but it's one of my favorites because it kind of shows the nature of their initial relationship—half-sincere, but never truly sincere. 3. Xuanwu cave scene. It's so funny and so painful and so sweet. We really see everyone's characters coming out—Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji being selfless protective, Jiang Cheng being capable and responsible, Jin Zixuan being brave and righteous, MianMian being the GOAT, Wang Lingjiao and Wen Chao deserving death, etc. 2. The umbrella scene in the Untamed. It was just so powerful. Lan Wangji putting down his umbrella, which represents the rules and morality of his sect, and just letting the rain mess up his perfect appearance. He doesn't know what's right and wrong anymore, because he loves Wei Wuxian, but everyone is telling him that's wrong. Wei Wuxian himself doesn't know what's right and wrong. Lan Wangji has been thinking in terms of black and white all this time, and for the first time, he finds himself in a gray area. It was just so powerful!! 1. The conversation between Jin Ling and Jiang Cheng after the temple scene at the end. It was just so beautiful. Go read/watch it.

[wipbigbang]

This is Round Two of the Artist Claims for the 2023 round of WIPBB. You may claim up to three fics this round. If you want only one fic, please fill out the form once with your top choices. If you want two fics, fill out the form twice with your first choice in the first form submission with one unique ID and the second choice in another submission with a different unique ID.

The synopses are located at https://wipbigbang.dreamwidth.org/172201.html

The form is located at https://forms.gle/ES2D3d2mTG1nU4Pk6.

Round two of the art claims will go on until July 1st.

The Untamed/MDZS (Part 2)

#167

Title: Fixation

Pairing/Characters: poly Jiang Cheng/Jin Ling/Lan Xichen is the endgame ship and those characters/relationships are the focus (also contains some Jin Ling/Lan Jingyi and (past) Lan Xichen/Jin Guangyao)

Rating Explicit | E

Warnings/Tags: Non-con/Rape, incest, dubcon, unhealthy/toxic relationship dynamics, suicidal thoughts

One of the main ships is uncle/nephew incest. Also, to clarify, the full on non-con is backstory and off-screen, but the on-screen relationships are not at all healthy and a character has a panic attack about the past trauma triggered by on-screen dub-con elements and communication of his needs in bed being ignored/steamrolled, and there is discussion of his past trauma and also just dub-con elements going in all directions both intentional and not.

The suicidal thoughts are brief and not dwelled on.

Other, more general tags include: proxyfucking, messy polyamory, abandonment issues, panic attacks/ptsd, angst, smut, angst with a happy ending, characters forgiving each other for things they probably shouldn't, age gaps, obsession/possessiveness.

Summary: After a three year incestuous relationship, Jin Ling's uncle abruptly abandons him out of guilt and 'for his own good'. He spends the next decade trying to pick up the pieces of his heart and move on, with little success. He has just started to form a more healthy relationship with Lan Xichen - whom he'd gone to for mutual proxyfucking when Jiang Cheng first left him - when Jiang Cheng suddenly shows up in his life again. Jin Ling has missed him, and does want him back, but it's going to be on his own terms, this time. Unfortunately, 'his own terms' becomes entitlement and punishment and taking things too far with disastrous consequences for all three of them.

#170

Title: Love in bloom

Pairing/Characters: Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī/Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén/Niè Míngjué

Rating Teen | T

Warnings/Tags: No Warnings apply

Angst with a happy ending, pining, emotional hurt/comfort, past homeless Wei Wuxian, single parent Wei Wuxian, Toddler A-Yuan, modern au, wei wuxian's life adapted into modern times is still a warning all of it's own lol, cynophobia, Jiang Cheng is not the best in this but it'll end hopeful for reconcilliation, in general Jian family critical but doesn't focus on it much.

Summary: Lan Wangji has a quiet but full life, he has his brother and their flower shop, his friends, and his rabbits. He doesn't feel like anything is missing, until a beautiful man and his adorable son move in next door above the Nie's tattoo shop.

A story about learning how best to care for someone through their troubles while you're pining hard enough to fill a forest.

#172

Title: Platonic Romances, Emotional Affaires, and Other Remedies

Pairing/Characters: Wen Qing/Qin Su | Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian | Lan Wangji & Qin Su | Wei Wuxian & Wen Qing

Rating Mature | M

Warnings/Tags: Chooses not to use Warnings

Canonical CWs such as implied past incestuous relationship, past MCD, Angst with a Happy Ending, Misunderstandings, Hurt/Comfort, etc.

Summary: After Wei Wuxian’s death, life for Lan Wangji takes a dramatic turn. The same can be said for Qin Su when she discovers her lover of the time is in fact her half brother. She escapes him, pregnant. She runs into Hanguang-jun who helps her out maybe more than she asked for. Years later, Wei Wuxian returns and it’s not to what he expected considering his best friend is now at the will of JGY and his other is married and has a family and his other best friend is a fierce corpse under JGY’s control.

Wen Qing, a fierce corpse, is given few options but she has to fulfill his demands in order to protect her younger brother. But how challenging could that be when the request is only to retrieve his run-away wife?

#173

Title: Show & Tell

Pairing/Characters: Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji/Jiang Cheng, Lan Wangji/Nie Huaisang

Rating Explicit | E

Warnings/Tags: Underage

Voyeurism (technically nonconsensual but lwj finds it hot later), Exhibitionism, lan wangji has a vulva, Bottom Lan Wangji, Top Wei Wuxian, Top Jiang Cheng, Top Nie Huaisang

Summary: Wei Wuxian spies on Lan Wangji and finds out that he has a pussy. It's surprisingly easy to convince him to show it to the other guys. Authors Note: This is an MDZS canon fic, not a The Untamed fic. The author wanted this clarified.

#175

Title: Til Death Do Us Part

Pairing/Characters: poly Jin Ling/Jiang Cheng/Jin Guangyao

Rating Explicit | E

Warnings/Tags: Non-con/Rape, incest, suicidal ideation

Other general tags include: time travel fix it, canon divergence, everyone (you care about) lives, wedding fic, wedding sex, secret (incest) wedding, threesome, smut, angst, angst with a happy ending

Notes on the rape tag: I'm tagging it this for two reasons. One is that two of the characters have experienced violent rape in the past, and while it *probably* won't come up in any explicit detail in this fic but it very much does in the series as a whole and may be referenced. The second reason is that while it doesn't happen on-screen in this installment of the series, one of the main conflicts of this series has been Jin Ling's deception of Jiang Cheng while they are in a relationship, causing them to breakup at the end of the last (already published) fic when Jiang Cheng discovers that he'd intentionally withheld information about himself to keep Jiang Cheng from finding out that their relationship is incestuous because he does not want him to reject him for this reason as the Jiang Cheng in Jin Ling's timeline had (temporarily). Jin Ling and Jiang Cheng getting back together in this installment involves Jiang Cheng forgiving him for rape by deception and while it's not explicitly spelled out as that I think it deserves a warning. Jin Ling's actions aren't *intentionally* malicious, they're driven by fear, loneliness and selfishness, but he sure does know he's doing a bad thing and rationalizes it away until Jiang Cheng is very, very obviously and badly hurt by it.

Summary: This fic is the 5th installment of a series (first 4 are already published here: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2835754) in which a 40yo, very powerful Jin Ling time travels to the past to prevent some terrible things. Something goes wrong, he arrives years later than he meant to and gets stranded, and decides to build a life for himself and fix what he still can.

He keeps his identity a secret, joins the Jiang sect, and enters into an incestuous relationship with Jiang Cheng, his uncle, who in this world is younger than him and has absolutely no idea they're related, as Jin Ling himself has not yet been born.

He does his best to keep his loved ones from befalling the same fates as before, to varying levels of success, and spends years living this new life.

In the last installment Jin Ling convinces Jiang Cheng and Jin Guangyao to marry to keep the latter safe. Jiang Cheng discovers who Jin Ling actually is and breaks off their relationship, kicking him out, telling him he needs space to decide if he even wants to speak to him again. Jin Ling leaves, and Jiang Cheng decides to go through with the marriage to Jin Guangyao anyway.

This last installment is focused on the romantic relationship developing between Jiang Cheng and Jin Guangyao as they plan their wedding, and Jiang Cheng's lingering/Jin Guangyao's budding feelings for Jin Ling, who is trying to find a way back to his original timeline, since he is no longer wanted in this one.

#176

Title: Trials and Tribulations

Pairing/Characters: Wei Ying (Wei Wuxian) / Lan Zhan (Lan Wangji)

Rating Mature | M

Warnings/Tags: Graphic Violence, Abuse, Physical Abuse , Mental Abuse , Dubious Consent (both parties) , miscarriage

Descriptions of abuse , miscarriage , omegaverse , mpreg , heats , medical treatment

Summary: When Lan Wangji volunteers to take part in a new scientifc trial, a sign of his familys faith in the recent partnership with Jiang Solutions, the last thing he expects is to be paired with his old classmate Wei Wuxian. Lan Wangji can't help but hope he'll finally be able to overcome his own stoney alpha exterior, and form some sort of connection with Wei Wuxian. Only to have the hope shattered when Wei Wuxian tells him they're obviously a placebo group. While the drug is desgined to help form pack bonds without the antiquated mating bite or a blood relation, they're too valued as family members to risk if something goes wrong. Without it, Lan Wangji fears his attempts will be as doomed as when they were younger. With a little encouragement from his brother, Lan Wangji decides to use their weekly hour meeting to try to connect with Wei Wuxian. But the more they meet, the more something seems off. Wei Wuxian seems to be far from the carefree boy Lan Wangji knew, instead almost coming off a skittish. As bruises and realizations grow, these two have a long way to go before they can find a happy ending.

[thisisallthehattersfault]

Free name headcanons, get ‘em while they’re hot!

Note that I do Not speak Chinese and I am Not completely certain about any of these But! I have tried looking to see if other people have made posts about given name headcanons for some of the cast that only have courtesy names and found nothing so if I am Wrong I hope someone will please take pity and correct me. Nie Huaisang -- 涧 Jian, Mountain stream. Nie Mingjue -- 峰 Feng, Mountain peak. Nie Zonghui -- 峥 Zheng, lofty (of a mountain)

You probably noticed the theme! My only justification is “wouldn’t it be neat if it was a naming tradition among the Nie for the actual family to have like, cool environmental names?” and I don’t know enough about the language to come up with something fancy and clever so everybody is literally just getting named for Parts Of The Mountain. As far as I could find Zheng is actually technically a surname but I also didn’t find anything saying it couldn’t be a given name? If I’m wrong plz ups a bomb to my house at your earliest convenience UwU

Ouyang Zizhen -- 胜 Sheng, to defeat/to surpass/to be victorious 

Old man sect leader Ouyang wants to be big and important so bad and he’s fully heaping all those dreams and expectations onto his kid. Sorry Zizhen.

Mo Xuanyu -- 丽 Li, beautiful Mama Mo -- 爱 Ai, love/affection

The only thing we really know about Xuanyu is that he likes to wear makeup. Me being me, I’m gonna stretch that one (1) trivia fact into an entire character trait! Some of the only memories he has of his mother is that she liked pretty things, and whenever she could she would show them to him. Not just finely-crafted jewelry or intricately embroidered robes (although those too) but also beauty in nature, and stories, and music. Naturally, to her, there was nothing in the world more beautiful than her baby, and she told him that every day. And now all of us are sad.

Lan Jingyi --  欣 Xin, happy, joyful, delighted

My personal headcanons for the parents of the most un-Lan Lan are that they were pretty un-Lan Lans themselves; I like to think Jingyi’s father in particular was a loud, cheerful man who smiled a lot and loved to make new friends. Especially since Jingyi was def born during Sunshot, I think happiness is a good thing to hope for for your kid.

Jin Zixuan -- 富 Fu, rich, abundant, wealthy 

This one was actually kind of a fuck you from Guanshan. The Jin have money. As far as he’s concerned, that’s all that really matters? His kid is gonna be Richer Than You and there’s nothing you can do about it. No, he hasn’t put any actual thought into what kind of person his son is going to grow up to be or what hopes he has for his heir’s future, he doesn’t view his son as a person.